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"Oh boy oh boy oh boy! This is the best. News. EVER! I can't believe it! Oh I gotta get everything prepared! I should clean up the party room before they start arriving!"
Sun was positively glowing with glee as he ran around the daycare and began picking up different party equipment from the storage. He was so pumped! He couldn't believe that this was happening!
Sierra's birthday was today. Her family had ordered a birthday party at the pizza 'plex and had paid for one of the Glamrocks to join in. And who had she chosen?
MONTGOMERY GATOR!!!
Apparently he was her favorite of the band. Good choice, in Sun's opinion. Monty was great! He was sweet and strong and charming and-
'Could you not fantasize about how hot you think Monty is for five minutes?'
"Wh-wh-wh-wha-b-b-b-bu-bu-but I-!" Sun started steaming from the comment, stuttering and sputtering as he was at a loss of words.
'Seriously, Sunny. You need to calm down a bit. It's not your job to prepare the party room. They didn't order the full package, just the party, food and guest star performance.'
"I-I-I know that! I just… I thought we could make it a little more professional by cleaning up and maybe…"
'Management wouldn't be happy if you gave away services for free.'
"UGH! But I can't just sit and do nothing! I'm way too nervous and I want to impress him with my party planning!"
'Sunny. You don't need to impress him. He practically sang your praises last week. I'm pretty sure he's already in for the long haul.'
"What does that mean?"
He didn't receive any answer, just a smug energy from his counterpart as he put the stuff back into storage. He huffed and crossed his arms, walking off to attend to something else. But as he passed by a mirror, he had to do a double take before backing up to take a better look at himself.
There wasn't anything unusual about him. He was regular ol' Sunny. Though he hadn't gotten cleaned in a little while, so there were smudges of paint and grime here and there. His casing had dents and scratches all over.
Then there was… his face. It looked just like it always did. His smile was wide and toothy, his eyes white, empty and vacant, his features all harsh and exaggerated to an uncanny extent. All of it unmoving. Permanent.
It was all… creepy like usual.
"Oh… Moony. Maybe those complaints are right. Maybe we are just… scary."
'Don't speak like that, Sunshine. The kids love us. Adults just… fear the uncanny valley more than most children.'
"I guess…" he muttered sadly, tracing his fingers along the dips and edges of his face plate. He didn't sound very convinced. He sounded very deep in thought about this whole thing. Moon worried a little. Sun was always self-conscious about scaring the kids, just like he worried about everything else.
'Trust me. You keep them safe and take care of them.'
Sun didn't answer, just kept staring in silent deliberation.
"... … Moon?
… D-Do you think… anyone would f-f-find me… attractive?"
Where did this come from all of a sudden?!?
'Uuuh… I… don't know. Why are you asking?'
"... No reason. Nevermind. Forget I asked." He sighed heavily before stalking off towards some other task.
'Sun…'
"J-Just forget it, ok?!"
Moon decided to do as he asked and stopped prying into it. It wasn't worth it to make him emotional before the party. Best to save it for later.
*~*~*
The party was underway. Sun had been specifically requested to be present during the party. It was easy enough as they wouldn't stay in the party room for long and would go to play later. So he'd just have to stay there until Monty arrived. He'd show up after the candle's were blown and the kids had eaten some cake.
But geez. Sun was feeling really nervous. He wasn't really sure why. This wasn't the first time they would be working together under such conditions. They had done these parties before. But… this all felt… different somehow. Why? Was it because they were close now? But that shouldn't affect their work, so that couldn't be-
"Hey there, Rockstars! Where's the birthday kid?"
AH! MONTY WAS HERE! He wasn't expecting him so soon! Had everyone already started eating their cake??? Had he zoned out??? Oh no! He had just been standing in the corner like a smiling mannequin and doing nothing at all! Oh god!
"Mr. Sun! Mr. Sun! Look! Monty is here!" Sierra yelled and pulled on his wrist ribbons, pointing excitedly at the gator, who was grinning like a dork. He started flexing as soon as he was pointed out to the attendant while laughing with that jolly gruff voice.
"A-a-ah… y-yes! I see! Hello, Monty! Welcome to little Sierra's birthday! She's turning a whole 6 years old!"
"Ah! Ya don't say. Well happy freaking birthday to you, ya li'l scamp!" Monty put a hand on the little girl's shoulder and gave her dark curly hair a playful noogie.
"Thanks, Monty!"
"No 'Mr. Monty' for me?"
"You're not a babysitter. Sun and Moon are!"
"Ah. Of course. My bad! I prefer the short one anyways!"
Oh my goodness. He was so wonderful with the little ones! Even played along with the strange reasoning! How had he not seen this side of him way earlier?!
"Mr. Sun! Mom said it's time to go play! Can we play now?" Sierra asked loudly as she turned away from her mom, who had probably just told her kid that cake time was over.
"Oh! Of course! Of course! Go on and play, kids! Follow me!" The solar caretaker led the wound up children to the slide leading to the daycare. As parents began to help their kids slide down, Sun felt a tap on his shoulder.
"What's gotcha clear sky going all cloudy, Sunny boy ~?" The bassist leaned against the wall beside him, looking at the taller robot with a sly expression. That got him heating up again. Seems like he's done that a lot! Perhaps he should inform a tech.
"Ah… ha ha ha ha! I-It's nothing. Just nerves as usual!"
"Ya sure? Because if ya need some time, I could keep an eye on the kids for a minute."
"That's incredibly generous of you, Mont. But really! It's just me being anxious. I'll be fine!"
"If ya say so. But just tell me if you need the break."
"O-of course Mont!"
"Mont???"
Sun yelped in surprise as he spun around towards the little kid standing behind him, having asked that question.
"Don' worry, kiddo! Just a nickname between me and my bud!" Monty chimed in before Sun could respond and put a friendly arm around him.
What is going on??? Monty is never this touchy in public! Wait! Am I overheating again?! Is it obvious?!
" GASP You two are friends?!" The kid yelled, causing a few faces nearby to turn. The majority of people were busy having fun or watching their kids.
Sun laughed nervously before clearing his throat. "Y-yes. We are friends. B-but let's not focus on that! We have a birthday girl to celebrate! And I heard she wanted to play a BIIIIIG game of pretend with everyone!"
That had the stragglers cheering in joy before running to join the rest. The daycare attendant let out a relieved sigh as he put a hand to his chest, hoping to maybe calm himself down a bit. Then the arm over his shoulder squeezed him lightly.
"Hey, Sunny. Don't worry so much. You're doin' great. Just take a second to cool down and prepare."
Wow. He was being so thoughtful. When had he gotten so good at calming him down? Why, just a few months ago he'd stumble over his words trying to find the right ones to say. Had he really improved so drastically? Or… was Sun just that receptive to it?
He quickly managed to collect himself before humming seriously. "Alright. I'm good. Let's go, Mont!"
"THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!" the alligator roared boisterously as he smacked him on the back and started heading for the playground. Sun winced in surprise before just following after him.
*~*~*
"ALRIGHT EVERYONE! LISTEN!" Sierra yelled loudly, loud enough to get a sea of hyped up kids to give her their attention.
"It's time to play my game! If you wanna join, come here! I want a lot of people to join!" She announced, sounding a whole lot like Moon, if a little overenthusiastic. Sun could feel the pride radiating from him.
A few of the kids decided to go and do something else, but the rest were more than happy to play with the birthday girl. Sun and Monty were already standing beside her as she got up on a table for her announcement, ignoring Sun's quiet "please don't stand on the table."
"Ok! Now we are going to play knights! All of you will be knights and I'm going to be the princess! Mr. Sun, you will be the prince!"
That took him by surprise, not expecting to be taking such a role in her little game. Monty chuckled, which earned a sheepish reaction from the other robot.
"Ha ha ha! Aaaaw~. Does someone have a li'l crush on the Sun bot?"
"NUH-UH! He's too big for me!"
"Hm. Good reason."
"Mhm! I'm the princess and Sun is my brother, which makes him a prince!"
" Ooooooh! Yeah. Makes sense."
Sunny giggled quietly at the interaction. What a silly thought. Someone having a crush on Sun. The daycare attendant. That's preposterous!
"Alright! Then we're royal siblings and everyone else will be knights. What's going to happen?" He asked her as he rubbed her head, happy as ever.
"Wait! Monty doesn't have a role yet!"
"He's not going to be a knight?"
"He needs something cooler!"
"Heh! How 'bout I'll be a dragon and steal the little princess away~?" Monty teased as he leaned against the play structure.
Sierra looked over at him with puffy cheeks, not very pleased with that suggestion. "I don't wanna be kidnapped! No! I'm strong and brave!"
"Alright alright! Then what am I?"
"Hm… I kinda want you to be a dragon. But… I don't wanna be kidnapped. Hm… I KNOW! YOU CAN TAKE PRINCE SUN AND EVERYONE HAS TO SAVE HIM!" She cheered at her idea as she pointed over at the robot currently carrying costumes over to them. He stopped in his tracks and glanced over at the group shocked. "W-wait what?"
Monty gained a devilish, toothy grin and wandered over to him slowly, intimidatingly. He made playfully threatening gestures towards him while snickering in an evil tone. Sun gulped and started backing away, dropping the costumes as he attempted an escape. But he was too slow, as the 'dragon' lurched at him and tackled him to the floor.
"M-MONTY!!! CAREFUL!!!" He shouted and shifted, trying to sound angry as he desperately tried to wriggle free. But his friend had pinned him down good and glared impishly.
"Hmmm… well… What do we have here? A prince? And a very handsome one at that. You'd do good as a trophy in my castle~" he growled as he leaned down closer, grin as wide as ever.
…
…
Sun ceased to function.
His head was buffering worse than an old dial-up. He couldn't really think straight as he just stared at the large and strong animatronic keeping him stuck underneath him. Why was he suddenly stunned into silence by such a seemingly innocuous action?
"... Hey. Sunny. You ok?" He heard the other robot whisper quietly, so the kids wouldn't hear. It snapped Sun out of his little daze and he muttered back "Y-y-yeah…"
"Good. Then up you go."
Wait wha-
Before he could react, he was hoisted up into the air before being so unceremoniously flung over his captor's shoulder, who laughed maniacally. "Sorry, everyone! But the prince is mine now! Too bad, so sad!" He called out before trudging off with his new prize.
"H-Hey! Let me go! Put me down right now! This is not appropriate behavior and I don't want my kids imitating it!" The frustrated animatronic whined and started hitting at the green metallic back he had to look down on.
"That's not fair! I wanna be a dragon!" One of the kids complained quite loudly, causing said dragon to turn and grin at them.
"Well why don't you? Join my side! Become a dragon like me and abandon your knighthood!"
"Yay!" The kid cheered and ran over, being joined by a few other kids. Sierra seemed fine with this, since she still had quite a few kids on her side. It was pretty even. Which meant…
"DRAGON! THIS MEANS WAR! GIVE BACK MY BROTHER BEFORE I SLAY YOU!"
"BWAH HAHAHAHAHA!!! You want your brother back? You better defeat me first, little princess!"
Well… at least he was enjoying himself. Maybe Sun shouldn't be too fussed about it. But still, being a captive wasn't the most fun role to play during pretend.
Soon, he found himself placed on top of the playing tower before being promptly left there as his kidnapper got back onto the floor to 'fight' the princess and her knights with his dragon army.
At least Sun had a good vantage point to view the battle. It was fun. Kids were play fighting and acting out the epic battles to the death, even having their own little dramatic moments during the duel. It made him feel happy.
From what he had been told, Monty wasn't usually that good with kids. He'd talk about how annoying, rude, entitled and loud they were. He'd talk about how they would all be climbing over Freddy and begging for his autograph while pointing at Monty and asking if he was a dinosaur.
But, to be fair, most of his complaints were aimed at the parents rather than the kids. And he'd harp on a lot about the adult and teen guests as well, if not more. But right now, with Sun and the daycare kids, he seemed to be doing great and looked to enjoy himself.
Now, he had a couple of theories for it.
One: He was glad to have been specifically requested for the birthday party and was in a good mood.
Two: He was actually good with kids and had just said or really believed he wasn't.
Three: He was trying his best to tolerate the children for Sun's sake.
The last one kinda worried him. But he seemed to be having fun, roaring at the princess and biting the toy sword she was swinging at him. Sun felt pretty confident saying that he was happy. That made him sigh softly and lean into his palms, eyes trained on Monty as he played with the children.
'You know what I think?'
'What, Moony?'
'I think he's really a big softie. I mean, we're all entertainment robots for a place catered to kids. I can't see someone, with that in mind, making the AI dislike kids.'
'Yeah. I guess that makes sense. But… look at how good he is with them! He's a natural~'
'That's what I just said. Did you even hear me?'
Sun just hummed in affirmation as he stared longingly, enjoying the show. Moon seemed a little bothered, but just let it go and decided to leave him to the game.
"OOOOOW!!!" A loud, pained cry rang out from the group of kids. His attention was pulled to the sound, discovering that it was Melba, who had hurt herself when playing somehow. He gasped and started worrying about the poor thing.
"MELBA!" He shouted and scrambled to get down from the tower while Monty was rushing over to check on her too. But as he was standing up, his nerves caused his movements to grow clumsy and he swayed unsteadily.
Sierra gasped as she saw him losing his balance. She called out "Careful, Mr. Sun!" as she watched him struggle to not fall over.
Monty stopped and turned towards him, seeing he was losing the battle as he stumbled over towards the edge.
"SHIT!" He yelled instinctively as he turned to run towards him, extending his arms as he prepared to catch him.
Sun couldn't keep himself standing anymore and finally fell over the edge and closed his eyes as he came crashing down.
But instead of a hard blunt impact, he felt a strong sensation of déjà vu, letting out a huff as he stopped falling. He immediately opened his eyes and looked around wide eyed, in a bit of a shock before he heard a familiar chuckle.
"Man. What's the chances? Same spot even" Monty joked as he looked down at the frazzled attendant in his hold. Sunny just sat there in silence, not moving out of the bridal carry or even making a comment. He was just trying to process the confusing whirl of emotions in his head. Why was he feeling so flustered?!? This had happened before. Exactly this! And Sun had held Monty just like this recently as well! It wasn't weird! Why was he making this weird?!
"Hey…" The gruff voice entered his audio receptors, making him focus back on the gator. He saw Monty smiling down at him, this gentle, tender look all over his face. He looked… so… good.
"Are you unharmed, your majesty? Didn't hurt that handsome face of yours, right?"
At that moment, Sun felt like he had somehow become human, because he could have sworn his heart was beating out of his chest. His wires were running wild with static and his system was soaring through the sky.
Monty… he was so nice. He was sweet and kind, but also bold, brave and strong. He could be so playful and fun to be around, but he could also be serious, listening to and supporting Sun and standing up for him when he needs it.
It was so cool. So amazing. He was… wonderful. He was lovely.
"The dragon saved the prince?! Why?! He's the villain!" Some boy yelled after quite a while of the unresponsive animatronic just staring at his savior like he was an angel sent down from heaven.
"Uh…" Monty wasn't sure how to respond, mind torn between making sure Sun was alright and not making a scene.
"Oh! Oh! I know! The dragon wasn't evil! He kidnapped the prince because he loved him!" A girl called out her suggestion, trying to reason out this plot twist in their game.
Love...is...Is that it? I've read so many stories about animal characters falling in love. About princes and princesses getting married and living happily ever after. But I've never read one about the sun falling in love.
… is this… what love feels like? Could I be… in love?
When he had managed to pull himself out of his thoughts, he was met with a hot alligator gripping onto him. L-Literally hot! His fans were spinning loudly and he had a look of shock painted all over his face.
"ACTUALLY! Before we started, I was told that they were friends!" The kid from earlier said loudly for everyone to hear. This was turning into one big shit show with everyone shouting at one another. Both the animatronics were at a loss of words.
"I knew it! They like each other! That means we can make peace with the dragons and have a big marriage!" Sierra cheered as she threw her sword away with her hands up in the air. Most of the other kids seemed to agree as they also threw their hands up and yelled with joy.
"A-a-ah… C-ch-ch-children…" Sun stuttered out weakly and raised a finger, as if that would suffice as an objection.
"... Oh shit! Right! Sunny, you ok? Did you hurt yourself?" Monty finally remembered to ask while all the kids were distracted.
"L-l-language… I'm… I'm alright, I think. Nothing… nothing feels out of place." Except for my heart is what he wanted to end that sentence with, but couldn't find it in himself to say.
"Ah! Shi- I mean! Crap. Sorry. Can you… stand? You're trembling a little."
"I-I'm sure I can."
Monty placed him down slowly, making sure he stood steadily before letting him go. Sun had to practically force himself to not jolt after the claws and place them back on himself.
"Sorry. I should have been more careful. I'm so so clumsy! I'm really really sorry, Mont!"
"Hey. Hey. It's cool. Accidents happen. It's no big deal. Come on, let's just sit down. The kids can entertain themselves."
"N-No! I-I have to take care of them! I-I haven't even ch-checked on Melba!"
"Her dad checked on her. Their parents are here. It's a party. It's fine. Just-"
"Yeah! Go sit! You can't look! You gotta go with him!" Sierra demanded as she pointed between the two.
"O-Ok. If you say so, sweetheart."
He didn't really have a chance to object anyways since Monty was already helping him over to the nap corner. He sat him down and quickly joined him on the floor.
"Everything alright? You seem… really wound up. Did something happen?"
"... Uh… not really. I… I was just… I had psyched myself out before the party and made myself anxious."
"Why? Was there something special about it?"
Sun sat there quietly, moving his legs so he could hug them to his chest. He didn't know if he should tell him. What if he'd… what if he wouldn't reciprocate. Or… even worse! What if it would completely creep Monty out and make him hate him!?
What if… he'd see him as a disgusting, depraved, defective freak who had caught feelings for the only person to treat him as a friend! He'd lose his… his only friend. He'd be alone again. HE-
"SUN! HEY! SNAP OUT OF IT!" Monty yelled as he shook his shoulders, trying to snap him out of his panic attack he hadn't noticed was coming on. But that just caused him to feel even more panicked. It made his head spin and he let out a scared whimper while gripping onto his wrists.
Monty very quickly let him go and put his hands up like there was a gun pointed at him. "Wh-whoa! Hey! Hey. Calm down. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to freak you out. I just… I thought you… I… fuck. Goddammit! Shit!" He started swearing as he kicked away a pillow, getting frustrated by his failed attempt at comfort.
Sun just looked at him and shook while hugging onto his legs. He didn't want to act like he was. He wanted to be cool about it and just tell some lie about being rusty with parties. But he couldn't talk. He was scared that any word he let out would turn into an unwelcome love confession. He didn't wanna move in case it would somehow make him mad.
After his little tantrum, the gator looked down at Sun and realized he had basically gotten angry from the caretaker's fear. That must have looked very scary to him. He quickly changed his tune and got back down to his level.
"H-heeeeyy! I-I-I'm sorry! I shouldn't have freaked out! B-But hey! At least we match now! H-heh heh heh!"
Sun stared at him for a solid ten seconds as he chuckled nervously before he couldn't help but let out a snort. He was still shaking, but the sweet attempt to cheer him up made him feel more comfortable trying to speak.
"Heh heh heh… Th-th-thank you M-Mont… I-I'm sorry f-"
"Please don't apologize. You don't have to be sorry. Just… here. Try to calm down as best you can. I'll wait here with you." He got a blanket pulled around him for further comfort.
"Th-thank you so much… you really are the greatest…" he sighed and leaned into Monty, closing his eyes to feel a little better. Monty just sat there and put an arm around his body to rub his arm.
"... … … Ok. I… I think I'm ready. So… before the party, I had been running around to try and prepare the room for Sierra. Moon pointed out that I shouldn't be doing that as it wasn't in the contract. But I just felt like I needed to, so I… I could… impress you."
"Gh-! M-me?"
"Y-y-y-yes!"
"But… Why is that, Sunshine? You and I have worked together before!"
"Because… I really like you now. You're my best friend and I just want you to think I'm cool and put together and competent… you know?"
"Sunny boy. Was that… really why you've been so on edge?"
"Y-yeah?"
" Sigh Buddy. Ya don' need to impress me. There is literally no reason for you to impress me. I'm already yer friend, so ya don't need to get on my good side. I'm not gonna think less of you because ya didn't go and clean the entire 'plex. Just… be your usual happy-go-lucky self and that's enough! I like you as ya are!"
"... … Really?"
"Yeah! Yer special. And I like all of it!"
Sun looked up at him as he spoke, feeling those doubts and worries be pushed to the back of his mind. Yeah. Monty liked him for him. Not because he waited on him hand and foot. Maybe he'd be fine.
"Thank you, Mont. Thank you so much for your never ending patience and support."
Before Monty could respond, he got a slim animatronic snuggling into his side while cooing, sounding a lot better than earlier. He heard the deep laugh from the gator as he patted his back.
Maybe… maybe it won't be so bad. What if… he might be open to it? He seems to really like me, so maybe he'd be willing to… try a relationship.
"Alright! The wedding is ready!" One of the kids yelled as they ran to get the two animatronics, who felt like they had sat there for hours. Both looked up towards the kid, surprised and flustered before looking at each other.
"Uuuh… I don't think the prince is feeling well enough after the long battle. He needs to regain his strength after… the close call earlier."
Sun was silently grateful for his excuse, not really sure himself what to tell the kids.
"Aaaaw… then who's getting married?"
"Why not make it… a coronation?"
"What's that?"
"It's when a princess becomes a queen."
"OH MY GOD! REALLY?! SIERRA! SIERRA! LET'S MAKE IT A CORE NATION INSTEAD!"
Sun laughed as the child's screaming grew further away. He then looked up at the gator with a gentler smile.
"Let's go out and watch at least."
"Ya up for it?"
"Absolutely.
… But I'm keeping the blanket!"
"Ha! Deal!"