Chapter Text
Gregory was starving.
The last thing he ate was some tuna sandwich that some fat businessman was eating. He turned his back and Gregory swiped it before he even realized he was there. The man screamed after him but soon turned his rage to the waiter who served the sandwich.
One half-eaten sandwich wasn’t nearly enough food to eat. Especially since he hadn’t eaten since last night.
Gregory hated this. But it was better than nothing.
He needed a plan though. He can’t keep going on like this forever.
Then he noticed a large billboard across the street. So shiny and colourful, it was impossible to miss. The billboard showcase four anthropomorphic animals. An orange bear, a chicken, an alligator and a grey wolf. Stars and music notes scattered around them as they seemed to be singing together.
Underneath the images were bold letters.
“COME TO THE MEGA PIZZAPLEX! WHERE THE PARTY IS NEVER OVER!”
PizzaPlex? Gregory liked pizza. Could be worth a look.
What’s the worst that could happen?
Finding the stupid place was hard enough. Sneaking in was even harder. Gregory couldn’t believe that you had to pay $10 just to enter the stupid place. Like, you were gonna buy stuff once inside either way.
Whatever. He still got inside.
Gregory’s stomach rumbled once the smell of pizza, cookies and candy reached his nose. Wow. He could feel the drool beginning to pool in his mouth. He actually felt like crying.
But first things first. He needed to get out of his clothes. Sure they were still in one piece, but they were dirty and smelly. Parents would immediately notice and then he’d be busted.
As he looked around, Gregory noticed a small box filled and surrounded with all sorts of stuff. The label on the box read “Lost and Found”.
Well, if they lost it and haven’t come looking for it, they must not want it anymore.
Besides, finder keepers, losers snoozers.
There we go. Much better than those raggedy old shoes that barely stuck together with all that duct tape. And the new shirt and shorts didn’t hurt either.
Then Gregory’s stomach rumbled again.
Right. Back to the mission at hand.
While looking around, Gregory made sure to stick close to any passing families, but not so close to getting that family’s attention. The fewer adults bothering him, the better.
Finally, Gregory came up to the food court and nearly wept with joy at the sight of all that food just lying there for the taken.
“Hey, kiddo!”
Gregory jumped and spun around in fear. No! Not now! He didn’t even get started.
But to Gregory’s utter surprise, it wasn’t an adult talking to him.
No.
It was a massive, bird-looking robot.
After another minute of ogling the robot, he realized it was the chicken from the billboard. The white plastic, the purple lipstick on her beak, the triangle earrings and pink ‘clothes’ and bowtie.
And in her hands, she was holding a tray full of delicious looking cupcakes.
“Hungry?”
Gregory looked between the chicken and the cupcakes. He really wanted something, anything right now. But can he trust her?
The chicken seemed to misplace his distrust for shyness and giggled. It sounded so motherly. “It’s okay. I have more where that came from.”
Finally, Gregory’s stomach won over his brain and he snatched as many as he could and began gorging on the cupcakes. Gregory nearly moaned in delight as the bird giggled some more.
“You want more?”
Staying silent, wiping his face of icing and crumbs, Gregory nodded.
“Well-“
“CHICA!”
Gregory jumped at another voice, much more rough and angry than Chica’s melodious tone and ran away.
“Aw, Officer Vanessa. You scared him away!”
“Whatever. Have you checked the time? It’s nearly time for the show! Get going!”
*Sigh* “Yes ma’am.” The chicken, Chica, complied and began walking off.
Gregory blinked from behind the plant he took refuge behind.
Show? What show?
“Showtime already?”
Freddy’s system shot into life as he woke up standing in front of his vanity mirror.
“I am experiencing a malfunction. The recharge cycle is not complete.”
“Shh! Will you shut up?!” a small, gruff voice whispered from… nowhere? Freddy turned his head and body to look behind him but found nobody there.
“Who said that?”
“I did! I’m down here!”
“Down where?” Freddy bent down below his mirror but there was no one. “I still do not see you?” the voice sounded like a child, despite the aggressive tone. Children were good at hiding.
There was a sigh, “Okay listen, you were sleeping so I opened the stomach hatch and climbed inside.”
Freddy reeled in surprise.
“My stomach hatch? That place is reserved for oversized birthday cakes and piñatas! It is not a safe play area!”
Freddy turned away from the mirror and opened up his hatch, leaning forward. Not expecting and not preparing for the sudden shift in movement, the boy tumbled out of his chest and into his arms. Freddy gently turned him around to face him.
“There you are?” Freddy did a quick scan.
SCANNING…
…
…
SCAN COMPLETE
GUEST PROFILE – UNKNOWN
NAME – UNKNOWN
DATE OF BIRTH – UNKNOWN
SEX – MALE
HAIR – BROWN
EYES – BROWN
INJURIES – LACERATION ON RIGHT CHEEK, LACERATION ON LEFT KNEES, SEVERE MALNOURISHMENT
“Scanning complete. How odd. Your guest profile is unknown to me.” The boy shifted uncomfortably. Was he nervous? Did he come here uninvited? “Who are you?”
The boy seemed to contemplate the question, before coming to a decision.
“I-I’m Gregory.”
“Gregory.” The bear hummed, “I will notify the main office.” Best let the parents know that their child is safe and sound.
CONTACTING MAIN OFFICE…
…
…
…
ERROR! ERROR!
CONNECTION ERROR!
“Huh, connection error. “ Freddy voiced aloud, “I cannot connect to the main network.” Freddy was about to suggest what they should do next when the boy spoke spastically, almost like he was nervous.
“It’s her! She cut you off. She’s not going to let you call for help until she finds me.” Freddy thought back to the injuries and grew concerned.
“Who? Who is looking for you? Your mother?” a light tap of footsteps echoed outside the window, causing the boy to duck and slowly make his way to the curtain.
“That is Officer Vanessa. She can help!” Freddy was just about to pull the curtains back and grab her attention when Gregory started pushing him away.
“No! No, I don’t trust her!”
“Why not?”
“I don’t know who she is, but she’s trying to get me.” Get him? Wouldn’t that be a good thing? Then she could help him find his parents.
“Isn’t there some other way for you to communicate with me besides talking so loudly?”
CALCULATING…
CALCULATION COMPLETE!
Freddy walked over to his shelf of many Freddy merchandise and picked out a small case and handed it to Gregory. “Take this. It is a novelty Freddy Fazwatch.”
Gregory looked at it funny, before taking the watch out of his packaging and slapping it on his wrist. It then let out a light beep.
“What was that!?” hmm. He must not have seen the commercial.
“I am sending you an encoded message. The Fazwatch was made for guests to reach their parties in time. They always lose track of time from having so much fun.”
Gregory didn’t seem to pay attention.
“If you still do not wish for Officer Vanessa’s assistance, then I will escort you to the main entrance. However, I am unable to leave this room. You should have no problem. There is a button on the wall that will open the door to the backroom. I will make it accessible to you now.”
All Gregory wanted was some pizza.