Chapter Text
'Dear Mother,
Evan came home from school crying. At first, I thought it was nothing. It normally is. But it turns out, the kids at school were talking about you. Saying things that weren’t true in the slightest. So I decided I’d let him be tonight. I’ll be here if he needs me, but I doubt he wants that. I’m no better at comforting than I was when I last saw you. Anyway, he’s in his room now. Hopefully, Father will be in a somewhat decent mood tonight. The last thing the little man needs is to deal with tonight is a boozy Father. I know this all must sound strange to you, seeing how Father wasn’t like this a year ago, but with time he’s changed. We all have. I think the only thing that hasn’t changed is how we all still terribly miss you. Still, it’s not like any of us will be seeing you again for a long, long, time. It’s unfair. But by the time I see you again, I’m sure we’ll all have plenty of stories to share.
- Michael’
(June 4th, 1982.)
---¤---
“Leave him alone tonight, he had a rough day.”
The dim light from the television lit up William’s face and Michael could tell he was in a mood again. A different sort of mood than normal. Sure, the man was clearly at least somewhat drunk, but there was still something else that was ever so slightly off about him. While his expression was as cold as always, his eyes told a different story. They seemed to glow in the mostly dark room. There was maniac energy hiding behind them, though the teenager couldn’t tell whether it was from rage, joy, or both. Probably the first one. There wasn’t much for any of the Afton’s to be happy about, not since Clara Afton passed away a year ago. Things were starting to improve now, sure, but that didn’t change the fact that she was the glue that held the family together. Now, they had all fallen apart in her absence.
William shot him a nasty glare and Michael could feel himself shrinking in on himself. He patiently waited for his father to blow up at him, yell curses and insults, only to find that he had already walked away. Maybe it was a sense of joy, Michael thought to himself as he watched William approach Evan’s door. I wouldn’t be this lucky otherwise.
It wasn't like William was a bad man, per se, and he never hit Michael. He was simply willing to punish his children should they step out of line. If a child was messing things up around the house, they were to be locked away in their rooms. If they broke something of Williams, then it was only fair that William got to throw away their drawing supplies or rip their artwork to shred. Proper punishment was very important in the Afton household, and it was clear that William prided himself on “fair” discipline. Even if he seemed to punish Michael the most often, it was because he was the eldest and needed to be an example. The teen always failed to do that. But his pranks were ultimately harmless despite being somewhat mean-spirited. And improper. So no, William was not a bad man. In fact, he was a good one. Someone had to buy the groceries for Michael to make dinner with and it certainly wasn't the boy. And on the plus side, William himself had started to show his face around dinner time more often than not. So it’s not like he was neglecting them or anything.
Michael's father was a good man. He had to be because if William was bad then who was Michael supposed to turn to? Sure William wasn’t there all the time, but the teen was sure his father would be there if needed. And if William was a bad man then what would that make Michael? A bad person? He looked more like his father with each passing day. It wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to assume he’d also have a similar personality and morals. Would he be a victim? That wasn’t something Michael would allow, he was too tough to be a victim of anything- let alone a middle-aged man. Yet as he listened to his father bang on Evan's door, he felt his heart tighten. William said something in a stern voice as he continued to knock. Michael couldn’t hear what exactly it was though. All he knew was that Evan was most likely in trouble for some reason or another. Michael started to get up to prepare his own trouble and distract William when the elder man marched right back into the living room. And then, past it? Michael stared at the open front door in confusion. What the hell was his father doing? But said confusion didn’t last long, as less than a minute later William was right in front of Michael again.
“He’s gone,” William stated. His blue eyes bore into Michael’s identical ones. Michael blinked slowly, not allowing himself to say anything. It’s not like he had anything to say. Even if he did, it’s not like it would’ve helped anyone.
“You were supposed to be watching him. Yet you failed me.” William leaned closer, making Michael sink into the chair. There was a light scent of liquor on man’s breath, though Michael could’ve sworn he also smelled something metallic. Like iron. Michael could not bear to look at the man as he continued. “You always seem to do that. Can’t stay out of fights. Can’t keep your hands off my shit. Can’t have any common manners. And now, it seems like you can’t even watch over your damned brother. I don’t suppose you have any idea where he could be, do you?”
“I don’t know, sir. Maybe Fredbear's?” Michael looked up, gauging Williams’s reaction. His cold stare caused the boy to quickly change his guess. “No. The new Freddy's?”
“Is that your final guess?” William’s voice dripped with sarcasm and venom, with a hint of amusement. Michael found himself glaring before quickly blinking and returning back to a neutral expression. He slowly nodded.
William smiled tightly. He then turned around and left, leaving Michael alone again. The boy blinked at how easy he got off. Unless the punishment was being saved for later? Michael messed up worse than normal tonight. He was supposed to watch Evan, make sure he was safe and well. It was his job as his older brother. Yet he couldn’t even keep the damned kid from running off. That sort of behavior wasn’t like him either. Michael was the troublemaker. He couldn’t help but let out all of his emotions in an… unhealthy way. It was better than crying. He was fourteen now, more than old enough to grow up and “be a man.” William had taught him time and time again that crying didn’t fit that bill. Evan, however, hadn’t learned that lesson yet. While he was actually a rather well-behaved kid, he seemed to always be crying.
So it wasn’t a surprise when Evan came home that afternoon in tears. He cried almost every day now, ever since Mother died. It was just so easy to set him off. Michael makes him eat vegetables? Tears. A math problem is a little too hard? You bet your ass he’s crying. God forbid anyone even mention his late mother. Michael had made that mistake once. Shortly after her death, Michael brought home some cookies a friend at school gave him and stated that they weren’t as good as Mother’s. Evan, who had done the impressive feat of finishing his cookie in two bites, slowly looked up at the teen. His eyes, which were green like his mother’s and sister’s, shimmered with tears.
Now Michael had made his younger brother cry quite a few times. As mentioned before, it was extremely easy to do. All he had to do was tease Evan about his hair or his love of Cheerios, and the waterworks would come streaming down. It happened so often that Michael had almost become immune to it. Almost. Yet on that day, Michael felt his heart tighten and found himself profusely apologizing for the first time in a long time. After that, he had never mentioned their mother again. And she was never really spoken of by anyone in the Afton household.
So imagine Michael’s surprise when Evan comes into the home, clearly holding back tears. Well, that in itself wasn’t a shock at all. While Michael didn’t particularly care what the reason was, for all he knew his favorite teacher might’ve been out sick for the day, yet he still asked Evan what happened.
“M-mum, she loved us, right? She didn’t- it wasn’t like she would rather be, rather be dead, than be with us, right? I’m not too much of a, of a coward to be loved. Right, Mikey?”
Michael felt his eyes widen in a strange mix of horror and grief. Slowly, he bent down to get to his brother’s height. “Of course not! Why in the bloody hell would you say that?”
Michael had an idea as to why. It wasn’t exactly a secret that Evan wasn’t all that popular at school. Unlike their sister, neither of the Afton boys exactly got along with most kids. Still, Michael found himself surprised that someone had dared to say that. It was downright nasty. Sure, Michael teased his brother and pranked him to hell and back, but this was crossing a line. When Evan said nothing, Michael continued. “Hey, little man, did someone say something to you? You know you can tell me if someone did.”
Evan looked away, more than proving Michael’s suspicions. The elder boy’s eyebrows furrowed. “Look, it seems like you had a bad day. How about you go to your room to wind down and I’ll make you a bowl of Cheerios. And I’ll be right in the sitting room if you need me okay? You won’t even have to fight Lizzie for my help tonight. Does that sound okay?”
Evan simply nodded, swallowing his tears. He watched as Michael poured him Cheerios- the most disgusting cereal to exist, in the teen’s opinion- into the largest bowl in the house. Michael watched as the soon-to-be seven-year-old scurried to his room. He then returned to the sitting room, moved his homework that he never planned to finish off his favorite chair, and turned on the television.
Now, about five hours later, he found himself back in the damned chair. He listened as William’s car screeched out of the driveway. How had he messed up this badly? William was right, he had one simple job and he messed it up. As always. Across from him, Hawkeye Pierce valiantly refused to salute some Army brass Michael didn’t recognize. Pierce’s eyes shone with rebellion, staring at Michael through the television in an almost mocking way. The teen stared back. “Stupid telly,” was all he had to say as reached for the remote and turned the machine off, allowing the glow of it to be replaced by a curtain of darkness.
He didn’t know how long he sat there in pitiful silence. Not long enough, that’s for sure. Almost as soon as he left, William was back, with Evan in tow. The man dragged the child into the house, large hands digging into his arms. The two came to a sudden halt in front of Michael. No one’s face could actually be seen with the lack of light, but Michael could just feel his father’s eyes burning into his soul.
“Come on, boy. ” He spat at Michael, not deigning to say his name. Next to William was a silent whimper of fear, but the elder Afons ignored it. Michael slowly got out of his recliner and started to follow the other two to Michael’s room. It’s not like he wanted to. He knew full well what was about to happen, yet couldn’t stop himself from following. He watched as the door was thrown open and Evan was pushed into it. Michael followed hastily, not wanting to be pushed himself.
“Normally I’d prefer to not leave you in this pigsty, but I’m afraid I must because some brat broke open his window,” William said. Michael wanted to make some sarcastic comment thanking his father for at least thinking of trapping them in a nicer room but instead found himself stunned by the second part of the statement. Evan broke his window? He started at the trembling six-year-old, whose face was barely illuminated by one of Michael’s old lamps. The teen would be lying if he said he wasn’t a little impressed.
“I was having a mostly fine day before this. In fact, it was perfect.” William had a dreamy, almost psychotic grin on his face. “Of course, Henry had to be an arseface and stop me from entering my favorite bar, but it’s all right. I suspect the owners don’t care for me very much. Not after last weekend. Bringing someone’s mother into an argument is frowned upon, even if I’m right. But it doesn’t matter anyway, not after we buy that place out! Yet Henry kept me from attending tonight’s business meeting. I suppose that’s just Henry. Always doing what he thinks is best, even if it’s not.”
William sighed and left, apparently finished with the conversation. He locked the door shut behind him, leaving the two sons alone. Michael stared at the door with contempt for a moment, but only a moment, before getting up and turning on his light switch.
“It seems like someone’s a bit more than shitfaced tonight, I reckon.”
Evan gasped at Michael’s half-joking remark. “Don’t say that!”
“Why not? It’s not like you can get yourself in any more trouble after that stunt.”
Evan frowned. “I-it’s not like I wanted to…”
“Then why on God’s green earth did you do that? I mean, how long were you even gone? Freddy’s is a good walk away.”
“Not very long ago. I rode my bike.” Michael raised his eyebrows. Evan was always nervous about going on bike rides alone in the day, let alone the night. A rainy one too. He kept quiet though and allowed the younger Afton to continue.
“And I went because some kids at school were saying I was- that I’m too weak for even a mother to love. I told them that I’m not and that Mum loved me very much! But they told me I had to prove it. They said I had to go to the new Freddy’s at night. So I did. Or I tried to, at least. I just got there when Dad found me. But Mikey, I saw something strange. You know the secret entrance in the back? I tried to go in through there. I passed by the dumpster, and it was really weird because it fell down. And all the trash was all over the ground. But Mikey, I think- I think I saw an arm in the rubbish!”
Michael slowly blinked. It was a lot to take in. “Evan, I’m really sorry that they said those things to you. But I don’t think you saw an arm. I mean, out of all places, do you think you’d find something like that at Freddy’s?” He gave a small smile. “Seriously though, please don’t run off like that again. I’m too young to have a heart attack!”
To exaggerate his point, Michael clenched his chest and staggered over to his bed before falling on it rather dramatically. Evan slowly walked up to the teen to ensure he was okay, before being attacked by a flurry of tickles. “Stop it- stop! I can’t breathe,” Evan wheezed through his laughter. Tears started to form because of how hard he was laughing. Seeing this, Michael threw his hands up like a criminal about to be arrested.
“Alright, alright, but only for you little man.” Michael playfully winked at his brother. Evan didn’t smile back. “Ev, what’s wrong?”
“Aren’t you mad? I got, I got us both in big trouble.”
“Honestly? I’m absolutely miffed. But you’ve been through enough tonight. So I guess I’ll let you go this once. Take it as a brotherly symbol of love.” Michael said as a stood up, going towards his closet to fetch his extra blankets. “But next time, I won’t let you off so easy. Or at all. So you should tell me if something like this happens again. I’m the only one allowed to pick on my baby brother, after all.”
“What about your friends? They do it all the time!”
“We’re just teasing! Besides, they aren’t allowed to do it either without my permission.”
Evan blinked, unimpressed and unconvinced but not quite brave enough to voice it. “What would you even do if I told you?”
Michael grinned. “I’d beat up the punks who said that horseshit, of course.”
“Violence isn’t the answer, Mikey.”
“I think it’s a perfectly acceptable one, actually. Especially when you’re as tough as me.”
Evan hummed in discontent. But the boy soon found himself melting under the blankets Michael tucked around him, as the teen himself found a somewhat clean spot for himself to lay down on. “And as you tough big brother, nothing will be able to best me. You’ll see.”
Evan didn’t answer, already half asleep. Michael walked back over to the light switch and turned it back off, leaving the poor old lamp to be the only light once more. Normally the teen would turn it off, but he decided to leave it on for his brother. Content, he returned to his makeshift bed, and swiftly fell asleep.
---¤---
Despite how tough he made himself to be that night, Michael found himself to be anything but that the following morning. It had started off decently, with his bedroom door having already been unlocked. Seeing this, the teen quietly left the room, careful to not disturb Evan. That in itself was fine. It was what he saw in the kitchen that wasn’t fine.
Closest to him sat Elizabeth, sitting on a stool at a counter. She looked tired as all hell, most likely staying up late at her sleepover. She looked over the Michael with wide, confused eyes. Past her was the source of said confusion: the sight of their uncle sobbing onto William’s shoulder. Henry's blonde hair was more unkempt than ever and his normally gleeful eyes were sunken like a corpse. Even his favorite flannel looked like shit, wrinkled and sporting new coffee stains.
“I just don’t know what I was thinking, Will! I mean, I do know what I was thinking. I thought that stupid Puppet would be able to watch her while I was at the business meeting at JRs. How terrible and irresponsible is that? Leaving my own daughter in the hands of a machine?”
“Henry, I’m sure they’ll find Charolette soon. In fact, I guarantee it. Everything will turn out fine, alright?” William whispered. His voice was smooth, almost too smooth for someone whose goddaughter just disappeared.
Henry nodded slowly but barely moved. Michael himself felt like the ground just fell out from underneath him. Charlie was missing? No that wasn’t true! It had to be some sort of joke or test. But as Michael looked at Elizabeth’s concerned face, William’s comforting smile, and Henry’s glistening eyes, he knew what was being said was fact. Charlie was lost and no one knew where she’d be found. Michael involuntarily found himself thinking back to what Evan claimed he saw at Freddy’s. An arm of what must’ve been a corpse. The teen desperately brushed off the very notion. Charlie wasn’t dead. She couldn’t be dead because she was Michael’s best friend and if she died, his world would be so much more empty. So what Evan had seen last night was his mind playing tricks on him and nothing more.
Michael decided that was the truth for no other reason than because it had to be.