Work Text:
‘IF IT ISN’T ONE THING…’
MANAGEMENT REPORT -
With only two short months left until our opening date, results of our extensive focus testing has shown a large problem. Customers just aren’t connecting with Foxy.
A selection of feedback we’ve received includes:
- His ‘Pirate’ theme clashes with the ‘Glamrock’ aesthetic, and is ‘generally old-fashioned.’
- His primary attraction being expressly targeted at young kids makes him not feel like a true part of the band, and instead a kid’s animatronic a la the Daycare Attendant.
- Multiple people noted him playing poorly and seeming disinterested during performances.
Unanimous reaction is that he’s the band’s weakest link, and the reason the band isn’t properly clicking. We’re exploring all potential options to try and salvage him, but we’re getting extremely close to the wire.
We value your feedback. We are a family, the Fazbear Family. Any suggestions on how to best tackle this problem will be appreciated, and if they’re accepted you could be rewarded!
REWARD - ONE (1) FREE SMALL FIZZY FAZ OF YOUR CHOICE.
- MGMT.
–
‘...IT’S ANOTHER!’
MANAGEMENT REPORT -
After a tense series of negotiations, Rigor Motors has made the extremely difficult decision to withdraw the sponsorship from the already complete ‘Rigor Raceway’ attraction. They will not be refunded the cost they’ve put in, but are immediately cutting ties and are not to be spoken of publicly.
As such, we are exploring every potential re-themes of the attraction. On such short notice, we do not have any backup corporate sponsors.
But, perhaps this may be a blessing in disguise. Perhaps we could re-theme the attraction to be centered around Foxy? ‘Fast as a Fox?’
The offer in the last email still stands.
- MGMT.
–
“Schoooooooooooooooool’s out, com-plete-ly!” Freddy Fazbear sang his heart out into his microphone, to an audience of none. With the Pizzaplex so close to opening, they were properly stress-testing the animatronics - making sure they could handle the difficulty of being active 24/7.
After all, Fazbear Entertainment spared exactly zero expense on em. They would hate to find out they had serious problems and have to close after a few days of being open, like the ‘87 location.
The band consisted of 4 members. The aforementioned Freddy on lead vocals, but then Chica on lead guitar, Bonnie on bass guitar, and Foxy on synthesizer. It was the classic band, reborn for a new era.
Fazbear & Friends had been given a fresh coat of paint, one that’d invoke the band’s glory days but nonetheless blow them out the water. The public fittingly nicknamed them the ‘Glamrock’ animatronics. Shoulder pads, leg warmers, and bright neon colors was the Pizzaplex’s entire MO.
The band performed every hour, on the hour. It was a simple cycle - After each performance, which usually lasted from 3-5 minutes, they were free to do whatever for about 40 minutes - minus private parties and the like. Of course, the intention was for the characters to interact with guests. As long as they made it back to the dressing rooms to charge before the next show.
Fazbear Entertainment considered making sure each guest went home with memories to last a lifetime, whether on their birthday or just a weekend trip.
They’d spared plenty of it in other areas, though.
Where were we? Oh, right. Without customers to meet or greet, the band mostly just hung out with each other and chatted. Looking to experiment with new songs on their setlist, talk about the arcade games, or just generally enjoy each other’s company.
Well, all except for one. Foxy. The band’s drummer, dressed in a blue coat and sporting their traditional eye-patch and hook. They always hid inside their dressing room. Not just that, during performances their drum playing was….Poor. Consistently off-beat - Seemingly not due to a lack of skill, but a lack of proper passion and drive.
Each of the band members tried to reach out to Foxy. Thinking that maybe it was simple stage-fright or a programming bug. But one after another, all they got was the cold shoulder.
As a last resort before turning to management, Freddy asked- nay, begged Vanessa to talk to ‘em. After all, he reasoned ‘they were only as strong as their weakest link.’ She was the building’s primary ecurity guard, and the only person with a key that’d unlock their room.
“Jesus Christ…” She grumbled, but nonetheless relented. Working at the Pizzaplex had a new experience every day that left her scratching her head and asking ‘What the fuck?’
While the rest of the band listened intently, she gave the door a polite knock to get the Fox’s attention before unlocking the door. The first thing she was met by was how it was completely pitch-black inside the room. Shining her flashlight inside, she quickly got a response.
“Argh, leave me be!” Hissed Foxy. Vanessa stepped in and closed the door behind her - but immediately flicked the light switch which lit the room up in orange neon. Strangely there was a blanket thrown over the mirror.
The Fox of the hour was lounging on the couch, sitting up as she approached. The blonde had to physically stop herself from heeding their instruction and just fucking off. But then Freddy would give her those big puppy dog eyes, and- she just couldn’t help but give in. So, with Freddy’s spirit in her heart, she sat down next to them.
“Your bandmates are worried about you, Foxy. Are you alright?” Ugh, saying something like that just felt- weird! Metaphorically stepping back, it was hard to look at Foxy like this…As if they were a person. They weren’t. They were an animatronic. A neural network mashing together soundbytes into a mush that vaguely resembled something a human would say.
…But she’d spent time with the band, she knew better than anyone they had their own personality, quirks, were able to hold conversations, and felt emotions… It was like they were real people!
All of it made her brain hurt. Once, she tried to get some guys from the tech department to try and explain what was going on behind the scenes and it made her head hurt for days afterward.
Even besides all that, she was no therapist nor psychologist. She was a security guard making minimum wage! What could she say that’d help?
“I am fully functional and operational.” Said Foxy, without a moment’s hesitation. Skillful, really - sidestepping the question like that.
“You and I both know that’s not what I meant.” Vanessa groaned, rubbing her face. “Look, I can’t force you to talk. But if you ever want to, then… I’ll lend an ear.”
Of course, her snark made them want to talk even less. But they did want to talk, just - not with their bandmates. Keeping quiet had been slowly killing them inside. “Aye, but d’ya promise to keep it between us?”
Vanessa sealed her lips and threw away the zipper.
Foxy stood up, clasping their hand and hook behind their back, and began to pace around the room. Taking a minute to think about how best to put it. “I don’t like being Foxy.”
For a moment, the guard was silent, before eventually squeaking “What?”
“See, Foxy is a character with a very long legacy. A legacy that- ain’t mine. I didn’t build it, it was handed to me.” Foxy spoke with a pop-culture pirate’s drawl.
‘Good lord, the robot has Imposter Syndrome. What kind of Pandora’s box have we opened?’ She mentally questioned. Standing up and putting her hands on her hips, “Is that all? Please. You’ll be a great addition to the character’s legacy.”
Narrowing their eyes, they were mad at how she entirely missed their point. Just words, nothing more.
“No, it’s not that. I don’t want to be another Foxy. I want to blaze me own path, do something new ‘n fresh.” Dramatically, they grabbed the blanket with their hook and yanked it off the vanity. "I look in the mirror, and…I hate the person I see staring back.”
“Well…” Vanessa sighed with a sour face, remembering the email from management she’d received earlier. “Look, I can’t sugar-coat it. Your lack of enthusiasm has been showing in your performances, and Fazbear Entertainment isn’t happy.”
This hit them like a blow to the chest. If the parent company wasn’t happy then it’d be their head on the chopping block.
Evidently, She saw the panic in their plastic face. “But hey, don’t worry. That’s life, you know? Sometimes things just don’t work out, so we learn what we can and make something even better!” She tried to be encouraging, pumping her fist. “I’m not gonna give up on you, and I know the band won’t either.”
“But what exactly can I do? What would they say if I didn’t want to be Foxy anymore?” They asked, quite nervous.
“They would understand, I’m sure of it.” Vanessa walked over to the desk in front of the fox’s vanity, reaching in and grabbing a notepad and pack of sharpies that the animatronics used to practice signing autographs. “Here, I want you to try and draw the character you want to be. I’ll leave you be in the meantime, but I’ll check up on you in a few hours or so.”
“Aye…Thank you.” The fox stated. If they had full control over their face, they’d smile - but alas, it was plastic.
Vanessa stood up and left the room, to which she was met with a chorus of “What’s going on?!”s from the band. To which she just replied, “He just needs a bit of space right now, don’t worry.”
–
The nightly patrols were…Normal. Thwart punk kids trying to break in and see the place early, brewing pots of coffee for the rest of the security staff, and trying to get Luis off her damn back. He would not take no for an answer.
But soon, time ticked over to three. The time they normally took a break, but - they delayed it a bit so they could go and chat with Foxy. Once again walking into their room, the first thing she noticed was the stack of papers in the garbage can. But they seem to have settled on a final product, and were proud.
“What do we have here?” She asked, grabbing the piece of paper. It was multiple orthographics for a retrofit, seemingly using the same base cosmetics with a fresh coat of paint.
The fox would be turned into a wolf. Fair enough, they were close enough species. To go along with this, their fur would go from orange to grey. As well, there were a few flourishes - such as a new outfit consisting of a crimson red crop top & hotpants, a flowing mane of hair, a second hand, and a keytar. Overall, it leaned into a more punk-rock aesthetic - which wasn’t a bad thing. Variety was the spice of life. “I like the design, but it looks a bit…Feminine, to me.”
Foxy nodded. “Aye.”
“Wait, do you- wanna be a girl?” Vanessa asked pointblack. Not even realizing what she said until it came out of her mouth.
“Aye.”
So, not only did Fazbear Entertainment manage to code an AI with imposter syndrome, but also gender dysphoria. At this point, she shouldn’t be surprised.
Well, aside from the seeming inherent absurdity of the situation, it was kind of…Nice. It warmed her heart, truthfully. The spark in their eyes, they seemed to be really serious. “Alright, well, I’ll send these over to Fazbear Entertainment in a few…Have…You thought about a new name? While we wait for the new cosmetics to come in, we could…soft launch.”
They thought back to one of their favorite songs - ‘Roxanne’ by the Police. “Roxy.” They simply stated. ...Like Rockstar, and was close enough to their deadname that it wouldn’t be too hard of a switch.
“Nice name.” Vanessa nodded. It was cool, sweet, & catchy.
Turning around, the guard slowly walked over to the door and threw it open. “I know you guys are listening.” She said, to which the guilty parties quickly appeared.
“What?!” Roxy grumbled.
Vanessa rolled her eyes and made a little ‘tsk, tsk, tsk’ noise. “I’m sure they only did it because they were worried about you. Speaking of - guys, I think I have someone I want to introduce you to.”
Roxy stepped out, nervously fiddling with their hook. “Hey, i’m- my name’s, uh…Roxy…I’m a girl now!” It was blunt, but - she didn’t exactly
“Is that what’s been bothering you? The thought we wouldn’t accept you? I’m sorry we made you feel that way.” Freddy shook his head, disappointed with himself that he made a friend think that way. But he wanted to make it right. Stepping forward, and wrapping his bandmate in a biggol hug. “We would never think of excluding you for something as silly as that.”
Bonnie shrugged his shoulders, “I mean, what even is gender to us? Not like we have genitals.”
As the band met their newest member, Vanessa slipped away. Swiftly scanning the drawing into her computer with her printer’s scanner, emailing it off as a reply to the previous email.
“We’ve spoken at length, and they understand the predicament they’re in. They’ve drawn up a potential redesign, and I’ve attached it.”
–
The anticipation was high throughout the Pizzaplex as the band waited to get a look at the new and improved Roxy. In the morning, technicians arrived with a crate full of fresh cosmetics - although temporary ones. Of course, Fazbear Entertainment wanted to see how she fared with focus groups before fully committing to her - In fact, they were holding another focus test again that afternoon.
The timing was tight enough that the band didn’t have a chance to see the newly redesigned character until it was showtime - and they only had the vaguest of clues of what was going to happen. Time slowed to a crawl as the 3 members ascended the platform elevator to the main stage.
Once the elevator reached the stage, a thick fog began emanating from it’s inbuilt smoke machines. Spotlights focused on one platform, that swiftly rose into the air.
The room was so silent, you could hear a pin drop - until the DreadUnit spoke up.
“Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, Fazbear Entertainment would like for you to put your hands together for a one of a kind musical extravaganza…”
“Holly came from Miami, F-L-A, Hitchhiked her way across the U.S.A.
Plucked her eyebrows on the way. Shaved her legs and then he was a she!
She says, ‘Hey babe, take a walk on the wild side,’
Said, ‘Hey honey, take a walk on the wild side!’”
The fog cleared, and when her bandmates finally got a good look at Roxy… It took them a full minute to pick their jaws up off the floor. The way she sang, the way she carried herself, the way she…was! She just effortlessly dripped cool in a way that they’d never seen before.
Hey, that just meant that they had to keep pace!
While the song was primarily sung by Roxy and her keytar was the lead instrument, Freddy sang some backup vocals, and then the duo of Bonnie & Chica provided additional instrumentation with their guitars.
The audience began to scream louder and louder with each passing note. Fazbear & Friends finally got into their proper groove. The band finally…Clicked! And even though the focus group only consisted of 15-20 people, they were clapping and cheering by the song’s end. “Encore, Encore, Encore!” They chanted.
Roxy grabbed the mic, “Sorry, that’s ALL the time we got! But if you enjoyed yourself, make sure you let management know! If you don’t, you’ll be sorry!” She said, teasingly throwing up the devil horns as the stage lighting cut out and they descended the platform elevator back to Rockstar row.
"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for visiting and we hope you enjoyed the show! As Roxy said, Please be sure to fill out the survey on the counter in front of the stage. Your feedback is important to us, and it helps us make the show even better. Have an awesome night, and we'll see you again soon."
–
A quick epilogue. With only a few short weeks left until the Pizzaplex opened, Everything just began to fall into place. The Focus Groups exploded, gushing praise for Roxanne and the stage show. Fazbear Entertainment knew they had a star on their hands, and went all in.
The robotics team began designing proper cosmetics. The marketing department spat out merch as fast as they could. And they all quickly decided to theme the raceway attraction after her. ‘Roxy Raceway’, has a nice ring to it.
She finally became someone she could be proud of. When she looked in the mirror, she not only liked what she saw - she LOVED it! It filled her with an indescribable glee.