Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Michael had never thought that he would live to be in his fifties or maybe sixties? Yet here he was present and accounted for. Standing over charred ashes and remains still un-alive well into his years. Michael had a deathwish ever since he was old enough to know the world didn't care about him nor anyone he loved. Always trying yet failing to put himself into dangerous situations hoping one day a car would hit him and his heart would stop beating. Or at least if it could beat. Waiting for the moment he would fall into nothingness as a new member of the dead and forgotten. But Michael couldn't get his way could he?

Everyone was gone except him. That bothered him much more than he would expect. The shabby pizzeria burned to a crisp in an intentional fire burning everyone within. Yet he stood here alone. Why was he the last one standing? It should have been some else, it should have been Henry. The old man had so much going for him but like Mike he too had a deathwish after the death of his daughter. So if one of them survived after the fall shouldn't it be Henry? He was a good man who made an honest living Always trying to bring smiles to children's faces. But Michael? Mike killed his only brother and started his Father into a killing spree. Mike was good at hurting people while Henry was good at helping people.

So why? Was fate playing a cruel joke? Mike was sick of it. William was dead, his legacy gone and smothered like the children he killed. Michael was just his shadow and shadows don't exist alone, they follow their owner until death do them part. Mike was supposed to die, he was going to die, but he didn't, and that bothered him so much. Existing alone with no purpose was too much to bear. He could push through the pain and all the dark nights alone, cold, just to achieve his one goal. Now that goal was gone and so too was his purpose.

Michael had just woken up in the ashes of Freddy Fazzbears Pizzarea with no clue as to how he was still kicking. Everything stung and his entire body was stiff as usual. The weird part was that the pain was more vivid, more real than it had been in a long time. Taking his precious time opening his eyes and slowly crawling up to sit on the rubble he now lay upon. Looking around, everything in the pizzeria was seared black reduced to ashes. The whole building had collapsed to now stand only a few feet tall. The whole building had turned into some kind of huge firepit with the remains just being small embers. Weirdly the smell of smoke and melting plastic were not present even though the place had burned down. Probably just his sense of smell, ever since the incident he hasn't really been able to smell anything. Still the thought remained as he did know he could smell strong scents like perfume, rotting flesh and most certainly smoke.

Looking down to inspect his current condition he realized that most of his clothes had burned in the fire. The only parts still remaining clung to his skin almost waxed on, scared of falling off. Luckily the main part of his comfy jeans were intact so Mike didn't have to worry about killing someone from freight. Unfortunately his shirt and hat were pretty much incinerated. The few parts of cloth still present on his shirt had fallen off due to him sitting up. His hat on the other hand was nowhere to be found completely and utterly gone. God he was going to miss that hat. The one thing he was still self conscious about the whole dead guy appearance was the fact that he had no hair. Said hat had always covered his head making him feel better about being bald.

The wind had started picking up whipping against Michael's face making his eyes sting. Some leaves from the nearby trees had been ripped off of their branches and danced in the wind. To Mike, whose life seemed to be nothing but a living hell, the sight was pleasant. He simply sat and watched the leaves twirl for a moment enjoying the fresh breeze. Then the wind changed direction and he suddenly felt his hair whip against his cheeks. Startled Mike fell backwards tumbling off of his small mound of burned wood landing on his back. "Ow.." he groaned Rubbing his now sore back. After his second of pain Michael brought a hand to his head raking it through brand new fluffy and most definitely messy hair. Mike felt a small grin escape him at the feeling of having hair again. Had he finally healed? Could he have a normal life again? Start anew? Joy bloomed through his now beating heart as he might actually escape this living hell.

~~~

It had been about three months since Michael had woken up from the ashes of a certain pizzeria. He was happy to say he was somewhat healed from the fire but a dead person is still a dead person. His Scars had been fully healed with the exception of the scar. Michael also had his organs back which was very pleasant considering you need those to function. He regained his past build with broad shoulders and a very lean look, no longer the twig he was after the incident with his skin clinging to his bones. That is to say he was nowhere near ripped, he didn’t have the effort to try. But Mike's favorite part would have to be the face. He had eyes and lips again which he really was thankful for because it made him look more human and less walking abomination. Lastly his hair had grown out although instead of the brown it seemed to have faded to a light-ish purple color. Speaking of, his skin was still purple which was very much not appreciated. Mike was really getting sick of purple. Although the dark purple his sickly skin had been was bleached to a lavender color making it slightly better but not by much. The worst part was his eyes, well he had gained eyes instead of empty sockets with small white pinprick pupils, his new eyes were now a violent violet color. God did Mchael hate purple. If he wasn't a purple man before he was now.

On the bright side he was somehow able to scrounge enough money to buy a small shabby house on the edge of town, alone. Normally he would have just used his money to rent an apartment like last time so he could quickly move from town to town but now he was broke with no money to his name. Besides, having a permanent place of residence meant he would be alone and unbothered. The silver lining was that he wasn’t homeless which was a big plus. Yeah Mike tried that idea before, let's just say that it was not a fun time for any party involved.

When he had first moved into the house and went shopping for some of his new possessions he was actually able to get a look at the date. Michael was very surprised to find out that he was knocked out cold for twenty years without being found or woken up by everyone. Wouldn't some kind of clean up crew or firefighters clean up a burned very hazardous building? What about building something new on the lot? Honestly it was most likely due to the Fazbear name. Everything associated with Freddies was filled with horror stories and amateur pizza. Well the rumors were true but were they really enough to stop meddling teenagers or someone else from savaging the building? For all Michael knew everyone had collectively forgotten about the place.

Mike took a deep breath and scanned through the newspapers. Apparently no one reads them anymore but Mike was more familiar with this. Besides three months of unpaid water and electricity bills means that the WiFi would be shut off soon anyways. Obviously not many guys were willing to hire a purple guy with nothing to his name. Reading the papers made his head hurt. All they were looking for was retail and customer service employees and Michael knew he wouldn't be hired if not for his appearance than for his abysmal social skills. Deciding to give up for the day Michael decided to clear his head with the fifth cup of coffee today. Yes it was eleven a.m. and Michael did not care. One of the few perks of being dead was that coffee can't kill you. It was weird how he had a healthy, fully functioning stomach without a single stomach ache but hey logic says the dead can't come back to life.

Taking the remote to the old box TV he decided to make use of his precious last moments of electricity to watch some good old rom coms. They were so dramatic but that's what makes them fun to watch albeit if Mike ever got a partner they would never be that sappy or dramatic. Like that was ever going to happen. Slumping in his chair he felt relaxed and comfortable, something that was very fleeting for him. To be honest Mike wasn't really paying attention to the television in front of him but more the peace and quiet of the house. Everything was truly over and now he could finally get his second chance at life. But to pay the bills Michael needed a job and he needed it fast. Suddenly losing his relaxed mood he shuffled through the papers again with the TV in the background. It helped him concentrate on the fine print. God he just needed one job it didn't matter what it was or what it paid, he just needed something. He would not ruin this second chance he had magically been given now.

With his focus still on the newspaper the television cut to an ad break. Mike was barely paying attention until he heard it, that name. "Welcome to Freddy's Fazbears Mega Pizza Plex where all your adventure and fun awaits! Come play our Fazer Blaster, Monty Golf, Arcade and more all in one place. We have plenty of shops and restaurants for our adults or when you just need a break. Stop by and listen to Freddy and friends as they put on a rockin 'concert. Or after showtime stop by and talk to your favorite friends Freddy, Chica, Roxy and Monty. Come join us at the Pizza Plex where adventure and fun awaits!” A pause in the commercial showing videos of children having fun and laughing in a big neon mall. The man on the TV continued “We are now hiring! Call us on our line if you're interested in the following positions." The commercial continued down the job list unsurprisingly having a huge amount of positions open.

Mike's jaw dropped, there was a Freddies still open and he wasn’t aware?! This was his entire purpose, the entire reason why he pushed through everything just to get to the end yet this shitty business was still running! How? Michael slapped his face “Idiot how could you not even do one simple job?” He continued to beat himself up smashing his head against the nearest wall eventually drawing blood but he didn’t care for that. Mike was heaving from his outburst yet he continued on bashing his head on the wall not caring for the pain that followed, no, on the contrary he needed the pain, it kept him in check, Father taught that. Blood flowed into his vision clouding everything in a haze of vibrant red. Soon though he could see no more, only coming too when he was slumped down along the wall he had previously been destroying. The red stained the brown wall giving it a decrepit and sickly feel. Michael put his head into his hands and sighed. Slowly crawling into a ball and debating his options. He could think clearer now, pain and adrenaline had always had that effect on him, he wondered why he didn’t try this option sooner.

Biting on his nails he weighed the pros and cons of each job at the pizzeria that they had listed. No matter the job he was getting into that restaurant. Looking through the list one job stood out among the rest, he was good at it, had previous experience and would most likely meet no one else while still getting close to the presumed animatronics. That’s it Mike would apply for the Technician position at Freddy Fazbears Mega Pizza Plex.

Chapter Text

If anyone asked you ‘hey, is Mike a fashionable guy?’ the answer would be ‘hell no’ and honestly Mike himself would agree. Point and case Michael was very much lost at how to look presentable. He would always wear baggy clothing meant for more comfort than style because when you're a walking zombie you don’t exactly try to look good. He was more caught up in the fact that before the fire he was always in pain, sure it was manageable but to make it slightly better he decided to wear comfy clothes. Even though he was no longer a corpse (somewhat) the habit stuck with him like many others, like they say old habits die hard. So when you drag and drop Michael into a high end clothing store with two bucks to his name and his horrible style you get looks. Well maybe that or the fact that he's permanently purple, that could also contribute.

It had been horrifying picking up the phone. Michael was shaking with sweaty hands grasping the phone hard like it might fall at any second. Despite his fears he gulped down his anxiety and dialed the number given for the job application. when it had rung for the third time he started to lose hope. "Um, hello? Hello, hello? Who is this?" A man on the other end asked. Holy shit someone did pick up. Okay Michael you got this, it's just a stupid phone call you can't choke up now, you've fought countless nights against deadly animatronics and faced death multiple times this will not trip you up. " Hi, yes, hello." Congrats Mike you are terrible at speaking. " I was calling to ask about the Technician spot for uh… you guys." He should just shoot himself already. " Um.. okay" the man on the other end replied, "just send us your application online and we might be able to set up a meeting depending on your application and credentials." It was at this moment that Mike remembered that he had never gone to university or college, something that is most definitely needed for a technician. Well… good thing Mike was an expert at faking official documents, something that he took after his dear old dad.

Now he was standing in front of a fancy suit store to try to look fashionable in a big interview. Somehow he was able to get a spot for the interview. Maybe it had something to do with the fact he had worked at multiple locations before. Either way it didn't matter, it was just one step closer to getting into that building. After he quickly got the suit Michael was thinking about scoping out the MegaPlex to actually see the place. You know, get a feel for the place, maybe he can magically sense evil juju vibes or something. Here is to hoping, although knowing himself he's going to fall asleep on the couch before that happens.

Pushing open the front doors Mike felt a blast of cold air hit him and send a chill up his spine. Michael himself was wearing a turtleneck shirt under his hoodie with the hood up to hide his unnatural appearance but clothing can't hide his face. Well the mask did help but it didn't stop the stares of passing patrons from glancing at the casual robber outfit and purple man within. Also didn't help that he had gloves, dark jeans and combat boots on to cover everything up while possibly looking intimidating. He never did like his style; it made him less approachable coupled with his stacher of 6 '2 and now his violet skin he truly did stick out like a sore thumb. It's fine Michael was used to this kind of thing. Anyone still glancing at Mike was met with a glare back daring them to stare even a second longer. Letting out an annoyed sigh he finally scanned the store.

The store itself was very small, likely due to the fact everything here was expensive so there was no need for quantity. It was a quant building with an old rustic feel, the wood was a dark mahogany that laced up the walls. The floor was a shiny marble that sparkled wherever the light hit it. On his right were shelves lined with different variations of suits from colors like brown, black and dark blue to some questionable choices such as lime green, piss yellow and pink… scratch that pink was a great color for a suit, but that shade of yellow really? Off topic the color didn't really matter to him as long as it wasn't fucking purple. To Mike's left there was a circular counter with a desk employee behind it manning a basic office computer. Funny how old and decrepit computers barely working make it into a high end place like this. The desk staff noticed his gaze on them and looked up to match his stare. They locked eyes as Michael was frozen in place. After a few moments of indifference from the worker they left his eyes and went back to typing on the computer. Mike, sufficiently thawed from his position, had begun walking down into the store trying to forget about the moment.

After passing a few annoyed customers and taking a good look around Michael finally found a suitable suit (he was hilarious, just admit it). The suit itself was a maroon color with a few accents of gold and the size seemed to fit him perfectly. Feeling satisfied with the set of clothing he went off to the change rooms. If he was going to buy something expensive then it had to fit perfectly or else it wouldn't be worth it. The whole point of buying and wearing a good suit to this interview was to try to increase the chances of him getting this job. What was his purpose in life if not to haunt Freddies? Finally Michael found the changing rooms at the very back of the store. Having to get by multiple patrons to make it to the back, they were not happy to have a purple man shove into them. But Michael being Michael just sent them daring glares of, 'what are you going to do about it?'.

Soon Mike was standing in front of a small room cut off with a red fancy curtain. Stepping inside while clutching his choice of clothes he noticed that there was a mirror. Well that's obvious it was a changing room, still Michael did his best to avoid looking into the mirror. Taking off his comfortable clothes with the exception of his underwear he then grabbed the suit studying how to put it on. After a tad bit of struggle he finally got the maroon outfit on. He hated to do this but if he really wanted to know if he looked nice he would have to look in the mirror. Taking a deep breath and steadying himself Michael turned to face the mirror. It was a full sized mirror meant to show the entire person probably so people could see all forms of clothing on themselves. But Michael wasn't most people and hated anything to do with reflections let alone see if his stupid clothes looked good. No Mike, take a moment, stay calm, this is for the job so get over your pathetic fear. Sikeing himself up his eyes met his own in the mirror.

Ignoring his own scowling face which was actually just his resting face. He never knew why but his resting face was just unhappy even when he wasn’t, weird how that worked. Looking to the focus of this trip, the suit fit snug to his body while still giving leeway to his joints, being able to move them around fairly well. As much as he hated to admit it the maroon color complemented his skin tone while the gold accents brought out his eyes. God his eyes looked so lifeless, maybe because he was dead. Moving on from that train of thought he adjusted his collar to a more comfortable position before settling down. It looked… good, he was not used to this. It brought him great discomfort to be out of his element and right now he was a fish in the sky. Deciding that he had enough mirror time for the day he began to undress again into his normal and in his personal opinion more fashionable clothes.

Walking out of the store with his new purchase in hand and a now empty wallet Michael made the unsurprising decision to go home. He had had enough adventures for the day so now it was time to go back to the comfortable house where he could lounge around, biting his time before the big day of the interview. Yeah that sounded nice, maybe he could find a rerun of Immortal and The Restless, that always calmed his nerves down before. I mean there was always the other option of certain… punishments that seemed to work. Well Mike could try that if Immortal and The Restless didn’t work, good to have multiple choices. Satisfied with the plan for the rest of the day Michael continued on.

He reached his dingy second hand Ford Mustang that was painted in a shiny silver coat that reflected the light right back into Michaels sensitive eyes. Squinting like he often did in the daytime he opened the door and drove back home. Inside the vehicle he turned the radio on listening to Die Young while slowly tapping his unused foot to the beat. One of the good things about waking up in the future was the technology. God and the music, music had evolved so much and Mike personally loved it. He loved the synths and upbeat nature of some newer songs. Before he knew it he was back in his isolated house on the edge of town surrounded by lovely foliage.

He truly did love his new house, well it was small it was located in the perfect spot. Close to civilization but not so close that people would ever come to his house that was covered by nature. The trees were lush and the birds chirped in the morning often waking up Mike but he didn’t mind it. He loved those birds so much he built a feeder for them and occasionally put seeds inside for them.

Throwing the new clothes on the kitchen counter Michael plopped down on his sofa and turned the TV on. It was automatically on the news, the last station he had watched, there was nothing important on just some politics which Mike couldn’t care less for. Browsing the channels he finally found one he did like, it was a corny love show where they bring random people in one place and force them to date, that whole situation. He himself would never do this but it was fun to laugh at these people's stupidity. Watching as some people got dumped and others got married two weeks into their relationship was odd to watch but entertaining nonetheless. Slowly Mike felt his eyelids drooping as his vision slowly faded to black.

~~~

It was now the end of the workweek, Friday, the day of the interview. Michael readied himself up in his suit, his dress shirt underneath and his combat boots on as they were the only pairs of shoes he owned other than sandals. Super professional but hey he was broke, what are they going to do about it? Making sure his cuffs covered his arms and the new wounds that lay underneath he felt a tad bit prepared for this meeting of fate. Taking one last long look at the mirror he ran his hand through his hair and muttered a final, “you can do this”.

Walking through the house he quickly picked up the things he would need, keys? Check, wallet? Check, knife? Check, that was hidden in his boot for safety purposes, he was waltzing into Freddies after all. Turning around to lock the door Michael started the car and drove to the location of the new Mega Pizza Plex. As he got closer to the building his breath began to pick up rapidly. He just had to keep going, “you can do this, you can do this, god damn you can do this Mike!”. Trailing a hand down to where the knife was he reassured himself that if this were to go awry he had protection, well not for animatronics but hey let him have some form of comfort. The drive itself felt years long but as long as Michael kept pushing through this he would be fine. Pushing the gas pedal a little bit harder than was safe he somehow made the long journey in a short fifteen minutes.

Getting out of the car Michael stared at the looming and very large Pizza Plex. Barley registering the slam of his car door Mike watched the front door. Kids ran in and out of the building with parents or guardians each with smiles on their faces. They danced and twirled around laughing at the things they did that day, “Mommy Monty was super cool! He taught us how to golf like real pros! I even beat him at golf!” or “No! I don’t wanna go! I wanna play with the lazer guns!” Just standing there he could feel a headache coming on. Why did the manager want him here in day again? He had told them that he had a certain skin condition that would scare the kiddos, besides wouldn’t they be busy or at the very least the place would be crowded. Michael was getting the idea that this manager was either real dumb, didn’t give a shit or just plain lazy.

Heaving a sigh and a bit of relaxed tension Mike stepped into the Pizza Plex.

Chapter Text

The only information a clueless Michael was given was to meet at the entrance at eleven. So when he had reached the end of his train of information Mike was at a loss of what to do. Looking around he couldn’t spot any employees that weren’t teenagers working minimum wage, or so he assumed. There were chefs, retail clerks and tour guides alike working but none of them seemed to be looking for him so he guessed they weren’t the manager. Seeing no available employee who was the manager Mike felt trapped. He was here in an unfamiliar building connected to a franchise known to have a history of violence while being in a swarm of people. The only reason he was even able to make out the employees in the first place was because of his height, but he was being squished in the crowd. Michael never took himself for the claustrophobic type but right now he felt he couldn’t breathe. Did he need to breathe? He doesn’t know, he just knows that his lungs were being pushed upon and he needed to breathe. Was someone pushing on him? He really felt like someone jumped behind him and was strangling him, burning his throat and making his eyes sting. Mike could hear his heart beat in his ear rushing the blood making his head hurt. God everything hurt, why did it hurt? Realizing that he was not finding the manager here and the fact he was drowning Michael looked for an escape.

Spotting a nearby washroom he jumped through the crowd of people swimming over an ocean of bodies. Reaching the bathroom he was able to breathe again with no one pushing down on his chest. Finally out of the crowd he felt he had a moment of rest. He knew this was a bad idea having an interview in the daytime but not for this reason. Mike knew he wasn’t around people often but to freak out that badly? He could almost swear it was a ghost instead of himself. Going over to the bathroom standard sink he turned on the tap and splashed water onto his face. The water was freezing and dirty but to Michael right now it was the best thing in the world. He hated to admit it but the water really helped. From now on Mike was going to avoid the crowds of people, yeah that sounded good. If he kept on freaking out like now it would take him forever to get around and find the manager. That fucking manager when he gets his hands on him he will punt that bastard into the sun!

Peeping out of the bathroom with a new piss off attitude Michael scanned the entrance for someone to point him in the right direction. The tour guides seemed like the best people. I mean they must have this whole place mapped out in their heads. They should be a walking map, that was their job after all. Spotting what looked to be the oldest tour guide or maybe they were just customer service employee, it didn't matter. Stepping up to the stranger with shaky hands Michael spoke trying to get their attention, "hey, um, I'm looking for the manager. Do you possibly know where they could be?" His British accent was peaking through as he spoke. The employee scanned him up and down, having the generic strained smile most service employees had. That expression quickly changed as he took in Michael's appearance, his smile faltering a bit. "The manager would be in his office, can I do something for you?" The employee said. Mike cooked his head up a bit to meet the man in the eyes, "I'm here to see the manager, it's for an interview." He figured there was nothing wrong with letting this guy know that they might be future colleagues. The man had wide eyes and was a bit slack jawed as he stared at Mike. "Uh… yeah, yeah sure um… just this way," the man signaled for Mike to follow him. Michael didn't know what it was that made this guy nervous around him, it should be the other way around, it's not like he's a zombie or anything. Honestly he couldn't care less what this man thought about him, he was just another pair of eyeballs that would gawk at him off to the side too scared to say anything.

The man started to lead Mike down into the Pizza Plex past crowds of people. Some customers were eating at venues and others were all piling up to get their Freddy Fazbears merchandise autographed. Was this a new age? All the celebrities were just robots now, guess humans really sucked if they're looking at robots to be their idols. The bright side was that everyone was too busy to notice Michael sticking out like a sore thumb as they went to meet Freddy Fazbear himself. He wondered what the man's name was, he couldn't just be calling him the man yet Mike couldn't notice a single name tag anywhere, weird. Passing through multiple large rooms they made it to a door with blacked out windows and in big bold letters across the door read, manager's office. He guessed that the tinted windows were for privacy but with Michael's history with this place it put him on edge. Nobody could see behind those doors, something could happen and nobody would see or hear considering how busy and loud this place was. Suddenly Michael didn't want to go through the door with the man, who had so generously opened the door waiting for him to step through first. He felt like he was being thrown to the sharks. Is this what the children felt as William led them to the backroom?

Reluctantly Mike stepped into the very claustrophobic room. Inside smelt like a sauna permeating his nostrils with the thick smell, dust floated in the room like it hadn't been clean in years and papers piled up on the desk onto the floor. The whole room gave off the feeling of neglect and mismanagement. In the center of the room behind stacks of paper was a very tired middle aged man ruffling through said papers scratching his head. It really looked like the man was going to pass out from sheer exhaustion. Slowly the other man or main man, the man that brought Mike here raised his fist to the door and knocked, “Ahem, Guy, sir? I have a person here for an interview with you.”

Looking up Mr Guy as he had been called by the man raised his head and stared towards Michael and the man. “Oh uh, thank you Adien, you may go back now,” Mr Guy replied.

Swiftly Adien closed the door behind him leaving Mr Guy and Mike all alone to do who knows what. “Ah so you must be Michael, read your application I must say you have lots of hands-on experience hopefully that means you’ll have no problems with the new and improved animatronics.”

Michael sat in shock from the whiplash of this man. What the hell does he mean? He was supposed to greet him at the entrance and was supposed to do an interview yet here he was acting like he got the job. Surely Fazbears has gotten better with finding … reputable staff, right? “Does that mean I got the job?” Mike titled his head a bit to the side.

“Where are my manners! I’m Scott Guy Jr but you can just call me Scott! I’m the manager of this fine establishment. Some people call me Scott, others call me Mr Guy whatever floats your boat!” Mike still stared at Scott like he had grown a second head. What a weird man. “To answer your question, yes you got the job! To be honest no ones got the experience or education like you do Schmidt I simply wanted you here for,” Scott trailed off, “Formalities” he seemed to settle on. “Now if it’s alright I would like to get your basic ideas down, for formalities.”

Once again Michael was lost, if he got the job he got the job didn’t he? What’s with this man doesn’t he have all of his contact information, banking information and basic stuff like birthday, full name, age etcetera? What more did he need from Mike, a traumatic backstory? Truthfully he wouldn’t be all that surprised with the idea. Still there was something Mr Guy wanted to ask and Mike had given him a false ID, he had to be ready to lie through his teeth. “What are your thoughts on Freddies as a whole Michael?” Suddenly he was cut off from his thoughts by Scotts clear and steady voice.

His tone almost sounded serious. Of course the manager was asking for his personal opinions of Freddies. He almost thought it would be something like ‘why the hell did you give me a fake ID with a dead man's name on it!’. This was the best question Michael could’ve been asked about, he had lied about it so many times before. Always having to suck up to your egotistical Father had its perks. Much better than whatever his anxious brain supplied for questions beforehand. “I quite like Freddies, it has a certain charm about it with the animatronics just for the kids. Nothing like I’ve seen before.” Yes he had, that was a lie. He practically lived with these things, “ It’s also the nostalgia. I used to come here a lot as a kid, well not to this location obviously but I went to some of the older restaurants a while ago before they closed down.” Or burned down, his mind supplied. “Overall I guess it just has a special place in my heart.”

Scott seemed to like his answer as he slightly bobbed his head up and down.

In honesty Michael hated Freddies not just for the dead children or even how fucked up it was with the handling of the cases but because of the memories. He remembered having to babysit Even and Liz at the dinner every weekend when he could be out with his friends because his Father was too busy with work. It was always work this, work that to the point where Michael didn’t even see his Father for the majority of the week. Michael practically raised his siblings! Did he do a good job? No. But did he try? Yes! It was better than being non-existent like his Father. Unlike his Father he didn’t beat them bloody with their screams piercing the house making him have nightmares forever. He will admit he scared Even quite a bit and argued with Lizzy about the smallest things but he needed an outlet for everything going on in the house. The pizzeria didn’t give any of the comfort his shallow house did because at least the house had walls with a normal morning routine. But the pizzeria was fully open with different people coming in everyday screaming and laughing and it was all just too loud. Mike hated everything about his childhood and how he had just the smallest bit of affection from Father to keep him going and not end it all, the endless pressure. Childhood felt like a hellhole which he would never revisit, not unless it were to pull Lizzy, Even, Charlie and all the other kids out with him into a brighter future. Unfortunately time travel didn’t exist and Mike just had to live with the aftermath of his and his Fathers actions.

“Alright well it seems you're good to go. Could you come in Sunday night so we can give you a tour of the building and go over the daily maintenance you’ll need to do over the nights. If everything goes smoothly with that I was thinking of starting you the day after on Monday as we uh… just lost our last maintenance guy and we need some major tweeking.” Scott explained. “I, uh.. Also got to say that we got a night guard who will be working ‘with’ you but not like ‘with’ you, you know. She’ll be around while you do the work type thing, if you could keep an eye out for her that would be appreciated. She uh… There's been some recent break ins over the past few months that we just can’t seem to catch, nothing missing you know? But like… it is a tad concerning so if you could just keep your eyes peeled Freddy Fazbear would be very happy!” Scott finished.

Michael was now very concerned about these supposed break ins that were just brought up, it reminded him of his Father. Unlike then though Father wasn’t around anymore, no, he was rotting in hell paying for his sins. It made him wonder who was coming in undetected and the competency of the security guard. Hopefully it was just some problematic teenagers looking to have some fun playing truth or dare.

“Yeah sure I’ll be there Sunday, just make sure you’re there.” Michael poked at his boss, he was still salty that he left him out there with no explanation. “Why weren’t you there anyways, you made me think I had the wrong place.” Scott shifted a bit.

After being a corpse with no social interactions for years at a time Michael had completely lost his filter and no longer bothered about what was rude or not. Besides, if they wanted him so badly because they lost their last maintenance guy that meant that they couldn’t let him go no matter how rude he came across. “Well you know how it is, paperwork piles up after a while and uh… the clock got the best of me.” He excused.

So basically he lost track of time. Alright this manager was definitely the lazy type, it was better than not giving a shit or lacking total brain cells although something told Mike that Scott wasn’t exactly the smart type. “Now if you will excuse me I must get back to the papers, work calls!” Scott pushed Mike outside the room and shut the door with a bit more force than necessary.

First impressions Michael would say that he didn’t like the guy but he wasn’t unbearable, just very irresponsible which made him wonder how he became manager in the first place with him being so disorganized. It was the same reason as always he assumed, that's just how Freddy Fazbears runs their franchise.

Mike turned around to the already closed door glad to be out of the suffocating room but he forgot to ask Scott about work and what clothes were needed. He was worried that if he let it go now Scott might forget to tell him something very important that would totally get blamed on him. Looking at the door Mike spoke, “Hey do I need a uniform or formal training before coming in Sunday?”

It took a long time with no response before he asked the question again this time with a louder voice and a bit more venom. Once again there was no answer. Getting rightfully frustrated Michael swung open the door slamming it into the opposite wall creating a loud bang. A quick yelp was heard from somewhere beyond the papers in response. “Michael, what are you doing?” Scotts voice could be heard from behind the mounds of reports and files. “You scared the crap outta me! A little tip for ya, don’t go scaring your new boss on the first day, unlike me most managers wouldn’t be very happy.”

“Yeah, okay. I just wanted to ask, is there a uniform I need or something? Anything else that I would need to know or do before coming in over the weekend?” Michael pestered. God he would soooo strangle this man if not for his barely passable morals. Sometimes he really hated having a consciousness.

“Ah right! I got one in the employees room just for you!”

“A uniform?” Mike guessed.

“Obviously. Now quickly follow me. I have things I need to be doing, those papers won’t file themselves.” He explained already walking out of the cramped office.

Mike was fast on his feet not wanting to stay in the dreadful room any longer than needed following Scott outside. Scott partially turned to Michael and waved his hand as a cue to follow him. Keeping what he said in mind Michael being the horrible person he is, walked at a slow pace just barely fast enough to keep sight of Scott. The man in question would periodically look over his shoulder to him, giving him a death glare. This was his personal payback for him not being at the entrance and giving Mike a mini heart attack. How does it feel? Doesn’t feel very good does it that someone you don’t even know is screwing you over huh? Call Michael petty he didn’t care, he’s stooped lower for lesser things. After everything, having to constantly chase an egotistical maniac over the state Michael had grown a tad bit irritable. Honestly it felt so much better getting to the staff office to see Scott's face full force trying not to let Michael get the satisfaction of anger on his face. Too bad, it wasn’t working. Scott looked red as a tomato with Mike's minor inconvenience and he relished in it. “Ahem, over here, these are your new work clothes. Please make sure to wear them when coming in.” Scott gestured to the table behind him where his clothes were laid out. “Your master key for maintenance is inside the front pant pocket. That key has access to the entire Pizza Plex although we ask you to not go into any… high authority areas unless absolutely necessary. It will mainly act to get you into the building after hours and into the maintenance room.” Scott picked up the clothes and handed them over to Mike.

Scott walked Michael back over to the entrance or exit now. They walked at a brisk pace this time Michael made the effort to actually follow Scotts pace. “Well I will see you Sunday, have a good day Michael.”

Mike was happy to leave the crowded, stuffy and loud place a long time ago. In response to Scotts goodbye he nodded his head and walked out. The fresh air smelt amazing getting rid of the greasy smell of horrific pizza. His car was waiting right where he left it an hour ago. Mike was not looking forward to staying inside that building for hours on end doing hard labor. The only bright side is that there shouldn’t be anyone there except the mysterious night guard. He really hoped this would finally be a half decent job with no killer animatronics, serial killers or gut scooping machines. That didn’t seem like a hard bar to pass right? Whatever, even if it was a horrible job he had plenty of experience with the supernatural and murderous, he’d probably be fine. The only thing Mike could do now was wait for Sunday to roll around and begin his new job.

Chapter Text

Waking up felt like a chore. After not having to work a night shift in what? Ten, twenty years? Mike really needed to check the year. Actually yup he really should. Struggling through his grogginess Michael reached for his phone, more specifically the calendar app on his phone. He may be old but he always made sure to stay up to date on all the newest technologies. Clicking on the app he scrolled to the top where the year was written clear as day. 2039, it read 2039, wow he really slept didn’t he? A feeling of regret and being forgotten began to build in his stomach. He missed so many years, years he could be doing something with his life. Maybe he could have become an artist or a chef, one of the rare things he liked to do and was good at. But now all of that wasted time was down the drain, instead it was replaced with Freddys once again. Michael swears to god that if this place is even a tad bit suspicious he will not hesitate to raise his criminal record on arson. Still the thought remained in his head, what would a normal life look like? His entire life was abnormal, filled with the supernatural and deadly, constantly having to fight for his life or undead life. Nothing was easy or calm; the only thing Mike pictured for his future was his headstone. The only question remaining, what would be written on his grave? What about failure? His Father loved to use that one. If he was feeling funny then maybe it would be skin suit, yup good times. God Mike could not deal with this so early in his day, or night he guessed as it was currently around eleven at night.

Pushing his legs over the bed frame Michael shut off his alarm on the bedside table. Attempting to clean himself from his thoughts he rubbed his face tiredly, the sweat on his palms making him feel gross. First step of the day was to take a shower because he could only imagine how horrible he looked. It didn’t take him long to reach the shower which was only a few feet away from the bed, his room was connected to the bathroom to save on square footage. But hey it worked for Mike so he wasn’t going to complain. It still felt weird to have a shower let alone use hot water as it ran down his skin. He was always worried that his skin would fall off because of the rot, instead he would normally just try to ignore the awful hygiene his state was in. On bad days he would wet down towels with cold water and gently rub them against his skin, he hated the feeling of his skin rocking back and forth, barely clinging on to his bones. That only reinforced his fears farther of never ever looking at another shower again. He once tried a bath but just sitting in it for a few minutes he could feel his skin begin to shrink and shrivel up like a raisin. All of that was to say being clean and feeling… good, in his skin was a first ever since being scooped. No, now his skin wasn’t being pulled off, it was staying firmly on him sticking to his muscles like a normal person. The bubbles from his shampoo ran down his body tickling him, the feeling long forgotten from decades of neglect. He turned off the shower and stepped out drying himself off with the towel. Wrapping the towel up around his waist he turned to walk back into his room to get changed into his new uniform. While walking the few feet to his room his eyes caught the bathroom mirror. He feared mirrors much more than he ever feared the showers, his appearance scaring even himself. Now without any clothing, only a towel tied around his abdomen he was completely naked. The ugly scar that he gained from the scooper and Ennard proudly showed itself off with no remorse. It trailed from his neck all the way down past the towel just past his belly button. Unconsciously Michael followed the scar down with his fingers gently rubbing and poking it. The scar no longer hurt but occasionally whenever he thought of Ennard he would feel a phantom pain erupt from it, scorching his entire body.

Walking back into his bedroom he examined the uniform Scott had oh so generously gifted him. The top was long sleeve, a bit on the puffy side but still clung to the body so as to not get caught up in nooks and crannies. It had a nametag with his name on the right side proudly showing off his last name Schmidt. The pants were a bit bulkier than the top, styled to be similar to cargo pants but with a different material than normally present on said pants. It was littered with many pockets probably so Michael could stuff all sorts of tools and gadgets into it. Overall the fit was very simple even down to the colours, the entire thing being grey with the pants darker than the top, a light grey and dark grey respectfully. Putting on the clothes he found they fit snugly against his slightly bigger frame. For once it seemed Fazbear's put effort into something. The clothes were very comfortable with a full range of motion, that was all the Mike could hope for.

Going back to the bathroom he tied up his hair in a pony that was really just a rat tail. He had enough hair that it needed to be pulled back but not enough that he could really pull it back. It was stupidly irritating to put it back without it falling back down but he was never going to cut it, he had had enough baldness for a lifetime. Michael also brushed his teeth because somehow his teeth hadn’t rotted or fallen out in all the years of not brushing, courtesy of being stuck under rubble, which Mike was more than happy to keep, after they hadn’t been managed for over a decade. After finishing the other menial tasks like brushing his hair, washing his face and somehow stomaching some food Mike felt as ready as he was gonna be. He had wasted enough time getting ready for the night that it was time to hit the road.

Before leaving the house Michael quickly checked his phone for any other text messages or calls just incase Scott decided to fuck with him one more time. Lord knows what he would do if Scott changed the time. No, he does know, he would kill the man himself. He really didn’t like Scott, the man was already grating on his nerves.

Mike hadn’t even realised that he had made it to the Pizz Plex, he must have zoned out as he didn’t remember the drive one bit. Stepping out of the car he looked at the building. Compared to the daytime the structure was much more intimidating, with the neon glow just barely lighting up enough of the surrounding area to give it a dim feel. There was no chatter coming in or out of the building from playful children or drained adults, only silence. The best word to sum it up was a ghost town, or in this case ghost building. Unlike most people though Michael felt right at home, darkness had always been his friend and silence his ever loyal companion. He was a different person when the lights were off and nobody was around, no longer the bumbling idiot who couldn’t even speak, but instead a monster of the dark. To top it all off he had also brought along a torch flashlight able to blind anyone staring at it, and an old lighter, in case anything went south.

Inside the building you could hardly tell it was night time, the lights were still on and there were a few staff bots which he had seen the day before cleaning the normally populated areas. Everything in the Pizzeria felt fine, no longer bustling crowds but instead open space to breathe. Michael much preferred this Pizzeria compared to the other one in the day time. Standing right by the entrance to Mike's surprise was Scott, waiting for him to show up. “Hey Michael! How's a goin'? Good I hope because we're about to start the tour!" Scott somehow managed to say all in one breath. "Yeah sure let's just get this show on the road." He replied unenthusiastically, already done with Scott's high energy. "Great! Follow me, first stop, the maintenance room."

The maintenance room itself was stuffed full of robotic parts and wires making the whole space feel cramped. But the room itself was bare with no character of its own having no charm or charisma. It was a boring yet muddled heep of greys and whites making Mike wish for more colour. In the very centre was a tube-like sectioned off room of glass with a metal operating table inside. The tube sent so many alarm bells off in his head, his hand already itching for the lighter in his pocket. "This is our maintenance room, please excuse the mess. We haven't really had time to clean it up. This is one of the few rooms where janitors or staff bots aren't allowed in because of safety concerns, unlike what the press says we do learn from our previous mistakes. That said since we can't clean it up we hope that you will be able to do something with this mess. Either way this is now your working space!" Scott ended off enthusiastically.

Mike could… actually work with this, he had plenty of parts and a fairly big working space, but that table set him off. He had never seen an operating table in either his Father's or Henry's room. For whatever it's worth his Father was never that obvious about his… plans, unless you were looking for it. But this table just screamed murder. "Uh Scott what the hell is that table," Michael asked him very bluntly. "Ah… that. To keep the animatronics from struggling while you work on them you can just hook them up to the table. Company says it's for your safety or whatever, personally I don't think the animatronics would hurt a fly. Still, can't go against the higher ups, so just strap those puppies up will yeah?" That wasn't horrifying at all, nope. "Can't I just turn them off? What's the point of keeping them active for maintenance?" Scott gave a nervous chuckle that sent a shiver down Mike's spine. "Yeah about that. Company never did give them an off switch, they're on 24/7."

"W-what?" He stuttered. "They don't have an off switch? Like at all?" Scott simply shook his head at Michael's outburst. "Afraid not, so try to be gentle with them okay? They can be very sensitive." Mike did not like this new fact. He in no way was going to play doctor with deadly animatronics. Not a chance, last time he did that he got his organs gutted.

"Yeah, sure," he responded with a fake smile. He tried not to strain his voice with the emotions he was currently feeling. He hated lying, being a brutally honest person but when he had to he was good at it. Something that built up over the years as horrible as the skill was, it kept him alive and in the dark. "Over here's the control panel you can take a look for yourself, it controls and performs most of the maintenance work for you. Make sure to familiarise yourself with it although it should be pretty simple, the buttons are labelled and the manual is in the drawer over there." Scott pointed to a cabinet across the wall with a bunch of tools piled on top of it. One of them being a well kept wrench with a few oil stains and a hammer which had seen some better days. "Every day the technical team will write a report about any malfunctions or upkeeps that need to happen, you can check them on the computer." Scott nodded his head towards the somewhat old boxy computer right next to the control panel. The computer looked workable but Mike was probably just going to hook it up to his phone somehow, make life a lot easier. "Basically your main tasks are to keep everything up to date and fix anything that's broken, I or the technical team will email you if there's anything else for you to do during your shift for that day." Scott rubbed his chin looking deep in thought or at least that's what Michael thought he was doing, he was never the best at reading people. Then again no one could ever read him, so he thought of it as a kind of trade off. If you can't see me I can't see you or whatever. "Ah yes one more thing! I know you're not the nightguard but if you see any intruders report it to security immediately, like I said before we have been having a few break ins which obviously isn't good. Speaking of, starting tomorrow we're having a new system implemented to help with that problem. Some shutters or the like to block the doors and exits so that no one can physically break in. Don't worry you'll be given a sensor that you can put up to the reader and any shutter or lock will open for you. After all you guys can't work if you can't get in or out right?" Michael simply absorbed the information nodding his head along. Though he didn't look it, he had been a nightguard in the past. Worst came to worst he would punt any person or metal scrap out. What was the worst they could do to him? He was already dead. The nightguard worries him though, he liked to be alone while working, he simply hoped they would never cross paths. Plus if someone did break in he would be fine but the night guard would most likely get hurt. Though, that was their job he supposed, and he didn't really care much for people anymore, if they got hurt they got hurt.

"Come along I'll show you the stage, you know we get a lot of attention from the press-" Michael just tuned Scott out as they walked through the hallways. Something about popularity with kids or what not, Mike didn't really care. This was going to be a long night…

~~~

It had been hours Listening to Scott talk on and on about different absurd topics about the Pizza Plex. His voice just droned on and on to the point Michael wished he lost his hearing. The tour had almost come to an end which he was thankful for, not just because of Scott but also because this place was massive. It was a never ending maze meant to confuse and disorient its victims, like his own maze but bigger, so much bigger. Now he was no longer the owner of the maze taking pleasure in watching the lambs scurry around desperately looking for a way out. No, he was now the sheep being herded away by the shepard to the slaughter. He so desperately wanted a map of some kind to help guide him but there was nothing of the sort he had yet to find. Finally after forever with Mike's patience running thin Scott concluded the tour with a clap of his hands. “Alright! I believe that's everything with the exception of the performance tunnels, you shouldn’t have to be down there for any reason. There's about two hours before we need to get ready for opening. I recommend you meet the Fazgang, but you're not obligated to, so it’s fine if you want to go home, I know tonight was a lot of information to soak in so I wouldn’t blame you for going home, whatever you choose to do.” Scott began to hum to himself as he strode toward the entrance doors. “Have a good night Michael!” he finished heading out of the building into the night. “Yeah, bye,” Mike barley muttered out with a sour tone.

He stared at the doors Scott had just left out of, watching the inky blackness unmoving outside. The stars didn’t peek through the clouds in the sky giving no source of light other than the neon signs. Well the lights were not off in the building they were dimmed, possibly to save on energy. Michael liked it this way, darkness was his favourite tool, keeping him hidden in the dark. With nobody else around the Pizza Plex the silence felt comforting. It felt… peaceful, like when Mike would stargaze on the roof of his house. It was a cosy atmosphere not fit for a place with the Fazbear name. Looking around Mike pondered where the animatronic were, he had practically zoned out for the entire tour after the stage. He was not going to wait any longer to meet these robots, not with his previous experiences. No he had to see them as soon as possible, if only to get a feel for anything. Sadly he couldn’t detect haunted animatronics but he could at least try to look.

His best guess at finding the animatronics would be the stage. In the previous locations during closed hours the animatronic were always glued to the stage. Although Mike did briefly remember Scott saying something about the robots having some kind of rooms. He kept going on and on about how the rip off Fazgang, ate and drank, exercised and had hobbies like they were human. He absolutely hated that. Either they were possessed by human souls and that was why they were so life-like or they were a trap made to lure children, just like the funtimes. No way could an AI ever be human, robots couldn’t feel emotions, sympathise or think for themselves, they were simply a program meant to imitate human nature. So maybe what Scott meant by rooms was the backstage area. That could make sense, that was why he didn’t see them when Scott originally took him to the stage.

Turning around right in front of the entrance was a straight shot to the stage. Down a long but open corridor with two grand staircases leading up to it. The stage itself was massive, meant to showcase the performers to everyone in the main auditorium and shops. Big curtains as tall as the walls were closed around the stage indicating that the stage was off limits for the night. That didn’t stop Mike though, no, it encouraged Michael. He always did love to make trouble, a habit that never left him even now. Walking up to the stage he realised he wouldn’t be able to climb over as the stage itself was up to Michaels shoulders. So instead he went to the sides finding the stairs that brought him up to stage level. Opening the backstage door he found that there was nothing. No robots, not even props, spare instruments or whatever else you would have on a stage. It confused Mike, if nothing was here then where were the animatronics? Scott couldn’t have been serious about them actually having rooms right? I mean only people have rooms, not seven foot tall monstrosities of metal. The robots didn’t even need rooms, what was the point of it? If only Michael knew, most of the time he would have so many questions with no answers, it would seem this was also the case.

Rubbing his forehead in annoyance he set off to find these so-called rooms. It didn’t take him long to find four rooms all next to each other labelled with each animatronic. All the colour schemes matched their corresponding colour, orange and blue for Freddy, pink, white and green for Chica, purple, black and white for Roxy and finally green and a tad bit of red for Monty. Each room also had a big neon light outside of their rooms with their faces on it. The pictures did a good job at portraying the animatronics as lovable mascot characters. Unsure of what to do next Mike just stood there. He was so scared of talking to people, it was his worst nightmare, it was worse than any fear ever including his Father. But these weren’t people, they were animatronics so what was there to fear? Michael didn’t know, yet his body still clammed up shaking. His heart was beating out of his chest, and he could feel his hands become clammy. God he was so stupid, out of everything in his life his big fear was not killer animatronics, his psychopathic Father or even something normal like spiders! Nope it was socialising, how pathetic was that? It's fine, he was fine, he had gone through hell and back, a little talking to a robotic chicken would be fine. Mustering up his courage he decided to talk to the one and only Fredbear.

He moved under the red rope that led a line to Freddie's door and moved his hand to knock. Instead of his hand connecting with the door, the door automatically opened to reveal none other than Freddy tinkering on a little watch. Freddy, alerted to the sound, turned his head toward his door where Michael still had his hand in the air prepared to knock. They locked eyes for a second before Freddy stood up and introduced himself, “Hello, I am Freddy, what brings you here to my room at this hour? It’s very late, most people should be sleeping by now.” Freddy then did a little scan thing over Mike, giving him a horrible prickly sensation throughout his body. “Ah, you are an employee. Why haven't I ever seen you before? Do you work with the day crew?” Freddy asked him. “Well there's a first time for everything right. I, uh, just wanted to say hi? I’m going to be the new technician from now on.” Freddy hummed and rubbed his chin. “Well if that's the case it’s nice to meet you Michael! I hope you take great care of us and our home.” Mike immediately blurted out, “How did you know my name? I never told you.” God that was so creepy, could Freddy read minds? “No, I simply did a facial scan to see if you were in the Pizza Plex’s database. As we can see you were, and it had your name on the information, you are indeed the new technician for Freddies.” Freddy concluded. Forget what he thought before, scanning someone was definitely more disturbing than reading their mind. “Hmmm,” Freddy rubbed his chin in thought, “would you like to sit down with me? I can prepare some beverages well we talk. I know when I have discussions with someone I prefer to be seated, although I do not know what you prefere?” Michael thought about it, he did want to talk with Freddy after all. “Yeah sure, just don’t do your creepy ass scanning thing again.” He replied. “I am sorry if that bothered you, I will not do it again if that is what you want.”

Freddy walked away into the back of his room where there seemed to be a fridge. Why would he need a fridge? He didn’t need to drink, wasn’t it just a waste of space? “Would you like tea, coffee or perhaps a soda?” Freddy asked well searching his fridge. “Um, just a soda is fine,” he responded. In truth he could really go for some tea, but he really didn’t want to seem more British than he already was. “Alright, is FizzFaz okay? I do not wish to give you anything you do not like.” Michael had never heard of FizzFaz but he wouldn’t complain, “Yeah sure that's fine.'' Freddy handed over a mainly orange and green soda labelled FizzFaz, well Freddy himself held some coffee, taking a sip. “How can you drink?” Michael asked out of curiosity. “In truth I do not know, it is simply something I can do. Well I do not need to drink, drinking makes me feel… normal.” Michael didn’t say anything understanding all too well what that feeling was like. He too did not need to drink or eat but did so anyway out of habit and trying to still feel human. “I do not wish to be rude but since we are trading questions, I would like to ask, why are you purple? Please stop me if that's rude, I am simply curious, I have never seen anyone like you.” Freddy asked with a surprising amount of sincerity. Michael thought about his reply, “Please Freddy it's not that rude, I’m actually surprised you didn’t bring it up sooner.” Michael took a sip of his drink, “It’s just an extremely rare skin condition, nothing more nothing less.” he concluded. Freddy seemed to ponder this, completely forgetting his own coffee. “I am sorry. That must be hard on you, it does not help that I brought it up. Please forgive me for being rude.” He apologised. “And like I said, I'm surprised you didn't bring it up sooner, it's fine. I'm used to it, besides your the most polite ask so far.” Freddy seemed to perk up at this, “Thank you for your understanding Michael. You should not feel ashamed of it though, I think it suits you.” Michael choked on his soda at Freddy's comment. “Are you okay Michael! Oh no, did I do something wrong? I'm so sorry. Is there anything I can do to help?” Freddy quickly stood up to pat Mike on the back, helping him recover from his choking. “I'm fine, I'm fine, just not too fond of the colour purple is all.” Freddy seemed to nod in understanding hovering close to Michael. “how about we just drop the whole appearance thing? I'm not in the mood.” Mike recovered slightly coughing from his spit. “Alright” Freddy walked back to his side of the couch and remembered that he had coffee, taking a careful sip.

Freddy's eyes suddenly lit up with excitement as he jumped across the room to the desk Mike had originally found him on. He grabbed the watch with delicate hands and put it down on the table between him and Freddy. Michael sent him a questioning glance to which Freddy nodded. “I've started working on a new project. I like to tinker a lot so I thought for our new employee I could build something for them, or uh you.” he gestured to the watch eye bright. “This is a Fazwatch! My latest creation. It should be able to access the cameras, a map of the whole building and a built-in message app for all staff of the Pizza Plex. I was thinking of giving one to each of the staff so we could all be connected. Unfortunately it's not finished yet nor do I have it mass produced, this is the only one. But it should be finished by tomorrow! And as a present I want you to have it.” Freddy finished. Michael carefully picked up the watch and turned it on. It had a mini home screen with lots of different icons to click on. It certainly looked top notch with how fancy it seemed, but Michwel didn't have a clue how to operate it. Suddenly Freddy delicately took the watch back from Michael, “As I said it is not finished yet, but when you come in tomorrow for your first day it should be finished. I'll show you how to use it tomorrow.” Mike gave a short hum of acknowledgement, pleased to finally have a map of this place even if he was getting it tomorrow. Mike took out his phone quickly checking the time only to find he had about ten minutes to six. Shit he had to leave if he wanted to make it out before opening. “Well Freddy, this was a lovely chat but I must leave. I'll uh… see you tomorrow?” Michael asked hesitantly. God why was he suddenly getting attached to a robot. This was stupid, he was stupid. “Oh, you are correct, it is almost time for opening.” his eyes widening, “alright see you tomorrow Michael, I hope you have a good day.” Michael stood up slowly walking out of the room, giving one finally goodbye before leaving.

He just got out of the building when some cars started to pull into the parking lot. Sprinting for his car, he jumped in before anyone had even a chance to glimpse at him. Panting from his sudden exercise or nerves he turned his car on and drove home. As  he was driving he sunk into his thoughts. He didn't know what to think of Freddy, the bear seemed friendly enough. It did bother him how he was so curious though, still Freddy had been considerate. The most important thing though was that he didn't seem haunted or murderous. Yet he acted much too life-like for him to be fully comfortable around the bear. Even if he took into consideration that Freddy was fine, what about the others? He hadn't met them yet, nor did Freddy bring them up at all in their little conversation. It was still all too foggy for Mike to get a clear picture of the animatronics. Doesn't matter, he'll be going back tonight anyways for his first shift. Once he's there he'll have plenty of time to find out anything dangerous. After all, the only thing he seemed to have now was time. Funny wasn't it? His Father craved for eternal life yet here Michael was having the one thing that his Father wanted, ironic right? He wasn't in the mood to ponder that line of thought any longer.

Too tired to think straight Mike unlocked his door and hopped into bed, curling under the covers. He set his alarm for eleven again and fell into a dreamless sleep waiting for his first shift. Tomorrow was another day.

Chapter Text

The scent of iron filled his senses. All he could see was red. The smell of blood flowing and the colour stained his body. Everything was red. “The scooper only hurts for a moment.”

Pain, horrible indescribable pain. White hot pain filled his whole body as he broke down. The metal appendage had impaled his fragile human body. Now his organs had splattered on the floor with no more casing of his fleshy skin. The sight made him want to vomit yet his stomach laid on the ground and his throat torn open. He had no energy to stand, he had no energy to live. His body collapsed on the cold unforgiving ground as he bled out. The red kept flowing with no sign of stopping. He desperately tried to will the blood and flesh back into his body, hoping for some sort of miracle. Yet no such thing occurred. Instead the sickly sound of metal scraping against stone slowly got closer and closer, each step becoming louder and louder. He closed his eyes, unable to keep them open from his exhaustion. The only other sound other than the metal was the dripping of blood as it dripped down the walls. The metal appendage was not meant for this purpose, the room was screaming that something wasn't right. 

Then the worst came. He felt everything . The metal worming into his skin and the hot pain it entailed. It pushed through his chest, its metal tubing attaching to his spine. A symbol that this monster would never let him go. It climbed down his body trying to fit in his legs. It was almost like the monster was putting on a onesie, going in the chest, securing the feet and then slipping on the head. He could feel his muscles push his skin out, inflating his entire body. Once the monster was satisfied with its hold on his lower half it then began to stick its head up his throat. The creature was almost as big as the human it was trying to fit into. His neck was not big enough for the beast to work up into. So to accommodate itself, it broke his neck. It pulled the skin apart, leaving only a few strings of skin and muscle holding the head to the rest of the body. It pushed its metal endoskeleton up into his head where one of his few organs remained, his brain. Once again it felt resistance from its host. 

He was in pain, he was in pain, it was all just burning pain. He was aware, he was conscious and he could still feel. Somehow he could still feel his emotions over his overwhelming pain. He felt burning humiliation and betrayal towards this monster. This bitch lured him in with his sister, promising he could help her, he could find her. Just to find out it was never his sister but instead a cold heartless drone. As the monster crawled in his skin he felt his last bit of humanity fade away. Like dust that got swept away with a small breath. He was no longer him, but he was not this monster. 

The creature, sick of trying to bash its way into his skull, pulled out its metal arm. It was weird feeling an arm appear out of your chest and extremely painful. It ripped its arm out of his chest cavity and went up through his thin tearing neck to both of their heads. It grabbed his brain and, uncaring whether it was gentle, ripped it out of its socket onto the floor. Somehow he was able to scream despite his vocal cords literally having been destroyed. His voice pieced the air, yet it wasn't his, it was hollow and much too deep to be human. The sound reverberated across the walls hurting his ears. How could he still be conscious, thinking, and still alive? His brain had been ripped from his body, so how? He didn't have another moment to think as the creature continued putting on its costume. Finally it was able to shove its head into the cave of his skull. He could feel his eyeballs being pushed out of their sockets from the pressure. He could feel the slow cutting of his nerves as he lost his vision, his sockets replaced with that of the monster. 

His body was full, stuffed to the brim as the creature settled into every part of his being. It began to flex his fingers, wiggle his toes and use his voice. The vibrating of its voice box made his skin itch in a horrible way. His body craved for him to push the intruder out and die in peace, yet it just wasn't possible. 

Suddenly he could see again despite having no eyes. He flung his hand up to his face, feeling for his eyes. He poked himself and flinched in minor pain. Michael groaned as he woke up to the beeping alarm. Sweat dripped down his back making him feel gross and dirty. Mike clutched his bedsheets reminding himself that it was just a nightmare. There was no Ennard and there was no scooper, just himself in his bedroom. His body was not a host to a parasite and he was alive. Just in case he checked his remaining scar searching to see it closed and not inhabited. Mike huffed a sigh of relief finding himself alone. Despite the evidence though he remained on high alert flinching at any sound in the house. The rickety stairs, the creaky doors and the squeezing of the floorboards underneath his feet. He half expected the animatronic to pop up around his bedroom corner, coming back to claim his body. 

Pushing away his fears he went through his morning, also known as his nighttime routine. He kept feeling like someone was watching him. Or something was moving in the corner of his eye. Yet nothing happened. Michael felt like he was losing his mind, but he couldn't turn it off. Every sound put him on edge to the point where he would jump when the wind whipped against the windows. Normally he would put on some music to soothe his nerves but the lingering feeling prevented him from putting on anything that could block his hearing. It was a constant state of limbo that Mike was starting to get really tired of. 

Grabbing his keys he exited the house with the click of the lock. The sun had set long ago leaving the stars to shine in his front yard, devoid of any light pollution. The chill from the autumn air was not unwelcome, bringing a fresh breeze with it. Getting into his car he drove under the night sky to Freddie's. He was ready to get on with his shift, take his mind off of his morning.

Entering the building he made a beeline for the maintenance room. It was the only place in the building that he knew how to get there without the help of a map. Everything else was lost in his memory, corrupted by Scott's unbearable tour. Speaking of which, didn't Freddy say that he had a map for him?

Michael stopped in his tracks and shamefully walked back to the entrance. He was so glad no one was here to see him do loopity loops around the building. If they were, Michael thought he would just curl into a ball and die. God it's so humiliating. He decided that he would not let anyone in this building see him run around like a headless chicken while he was learning the map of this place.

Walking up to Rockstar row had been slow and painful just like his thoughts. Fortunately Freddy's room was right in front of him, seemingly very inviting. He activated the door and stepped through it to once again find Freddy hunched over his chair playing with the watch. This time however Freddy didn't seem to notice Michael entering the room. Carefully Mike walked over to Freddy's desk and leaned over to see what he was doing. It was hard considering the bear was massive and super tall, probably standing at around seven feet tall. It was weird to consider someone taller than himself with his own stacher, but there's always bigger fish in the sea he supposed. 

It appeared that Freddy was working on the wiring. He was moving brightly coloured wires back and forth into different pockets of the watch. When slotted into the correct place a tiny bulb would light up. It was fascinating to watch an animatronic build technology so flawlessly. Maybe AI would one day replace humanity, they seemed to do a much better job then humans currently. 

Freddy peaked a glance at his now finished work giving a satisfied hum. He turned the watch over admiring his hard work staring into the empty glass. Suddenly Freddy jumped in his seat startled by Mike's presence. “Oh Michael, you scared me!” 

Freddy shifted his chair to look at Michael. “I did not hear you come in. How long have you been here watching me work?”

Mike shifted on his feet suddenly feeling awkward. “Eh… maybe a few minutes? You're very good with that watch.”

Michael turned his attention to the watch, “you said something about giving it to me? Although I don't know if you've finished yet. Besides, you seem to have an attachment to it.”

Freddy's face somehow turned into a frown, if that was even possible he didn't know. “While I do take pride in my work, I made this watch for you. It would only be right to give it to you. And do not worry, it is now finished.”

Freddy once again turned his chair back towards his desk facing the watch. He picked it up with careful paws and handed it over to Mike. His purple hands turned the watch over, inspecting every detail. It was well made and very practical, exactly what Mike liked. Its one downfall was that it was extremely bright and colourful. Being a neon blue and orange, which so clashed with his purple skin and dark clothing. “Press the button on the side to turn it on.”

Michael did as told and pressed the button on the side of the watch. Magically the watch turned on with a flash of light, momentarily blinding him. It had a basic home screen with different icons. He pressed one of the icons only to be met with a view of the main stage. “Those are the cameras. You can see every main part of the building where the public is allowed to go. We do not have security cameras in employee only zones.”

Freddy began to tell Mike of all of the different uses of his new found watch. The cameras were by far his favourite, giving him a sense of familiarity and security. But the watch also had contacts, update logs and even Bluetooth to hook up to his own phone. He wouldn't lie, the watch was sick. “Thanks a bunch Freddy. This is a huge help. Is there, uh, anyway I can repay you?”

Normally he wouldn't help an animatronic, but Freddy had been nothing but nice. The god damn bear gave him a furturistic watch for fucks sake. Besides he hated being in someone's debt, he wanted to pay the bear back immediately. Freddy smiled at him and shook his head. “No, I do not require assistance. I made you the watch as a present. You do not return or expect anything in return for a present.” There was a pause and then he continued. “I do believe that your shift is starting very soon. I advise you to go to the maintenance room. Being late on the first day is not good.”

Mike gave him a quick nod and began the trek back to the main stage. It didn't take him long to come back to where he began. The stage loomed over him as he walked up the stairs. He pushed the button on the stage and waited for the lift to go down. The lift was begrudgingly slow leaving Michael with his thoughts.

His mind wandered to his tasks. He didn't know what to expect from this job. His only other experience as a technician came from Circus Baby's Pizza and that wasn't pretty. He could only think that it would be similar, after all, this was still Freddy's. Nevertheless he steeled himself for his first night, praying that it was nothing like what he expected.

The lift finally came to a stop opening up to the maintenance room. The dust that swept up from the new found activity made him cough. How long had a human being been down here? Well other than him and Scott being down here once yesterday. It was so dusty and musty that he thought he was in an old person's basement. He walked through the crowded hallway filled with boxes of junk. Soon he came to the main room with the unnerving table’n’tube which gave him the chills. 

Mike turned on the computer and immediately transferred its contents and data onto his brand new watch. Never would he use old computers again if he could help it, the memories of those damn things haunt him. His watch popped up showing that the transfer was complete. Michael selected his messages and looked at what Scott had written him for today. It was nothing too much, just a little bit of fixing a few lights and Chicas voice box. Yup nothing to worry about here. He was a’okay with replacing Chicas voicebox the very first night! It's not like he would have to get up close and personal with that thing, nope! Taking a few deep breaths Michael’s eyes found the tube. He was supposed to strap the chicken in to do this, but he wasn't too sure how to operate it nor how well the restraints would hold. 

Mike remembered what Scotty had told him and turned towards the cabinet. He tugged at the handle trying to open the door, but to no avail. He sighed and looked around the room to pry this thing open. Across the room sat a shiny and very handy crowbar. It was perfect! Grabbing the crowbar Michael steeled himself against the cabinet and the handle, pushing on the crowbar with all his might. With a sudden pop the drawer swung open, hitting Mike in the arm. Ignoring the stinging pain he pulled out all the papers locked away onto the desk.  

He looked them over with intent eyes. The control system reminded him so much of Circus Babies that he wanted to puke. There was even a controlled shock function to make the animatronic go offline for a little bit. Mike felt sick to his stomach with unpleasant nostalgia. He almost felt bad for the animatronics unfortunate enough to find themselves down here. This method also didn't feel very safe for himself if his past experience was anything to go by. 

No matter how sickening it was, Michael kept reading. Soon he knew how to operate everything in the room to a limited degree. It still didn't make him feel better, but he would just deal with it. He decided that he would fix the minor lights first, before having to deal with all this bullshit. 

Begrudgingly Mike took the elevator back to the main stage. Once again the lift took forever to reach its destination, much to Michael's frustration. He swore that he would make this thing faster for his own sanity when he got the time.

It didn't take him long to find his way to the arcade with his brand new map, courtesy of Freddy. The place was super dark with its broken lights, closed time and its natural tendency to be dark. No matter, he could navigate with his eyes closed. The problem was where the lights were broken, and where they were just turned off. Holding a sigh Michael began his walk around the arcade looking for any clue as to the broken lights. 

The arcade, just like every single place in this monstrous building, was huge. The walls had to have been at least three stories tall to tower over him so much. Arcade machines lined the walls creating a confusing maze of twists and turns. Michael was already sick of this place. Yet he felt he would be here often if the ton of out of order signs on the arcade machines where to go by. 

Everywhere in the arcade had the lights turned on, just dimmed like the rest of the building. The only spot where the lights weren't on was the stage. It seemed as good a clue as any for the start of his search. 

The stairs to get down to the bottom floor were long and steep, the very thought of which made his legs ache. Fuck it. He grabbed the railing and jumped over the edge. He ignored the slight pain that popped up in his legs when he landed, he wasn't a baby. Unlike Michael any other person probably would've broken their legs, not Mike. Nope, ever after Ennard his body was much more durable. That was most likely why he could survive being skinned and burned all while having no food or sleep for years on end. It was the only good thing to come out of it, not having to worry about his personal safety any more, not like he did before anyways.

Soon the pain faded and left Michael with the oddly quiet ground floor of the arcade. You could practically hear a pin drop. He suddenly felt much more aware of his footsteps which lingered with a slight echo. His breathing which he was still getting used to, sounded as loud as a jet engine in the vast nothingness. His fall was probably so loud that a firework couldn't compare. 

Mike shook himself out of his thoughts. Obviously the arcade was meant to be quiet, it was closed. No people or animatronics alike to make any noise. Still… there should've been the slight hum of electricity in the air which was currently not present. Looking around it seemed the entire floor had no electricity as the lights were completely off along with the arcade machines. No wonder it was so unnerving. 

This was fine, he just had to find the generator for the floor and start it up. He moved past the arcade machines and the stage, a generator wouldn't be where the customer could reach. No it would be in a staff only area. Michael opened the door backstage and walked through. Surprisingly the backstage area did not look like a backstage area. Instead it reminded him of Freddy's room. Not with the colours or anything but more the fact that it felt like someone lived here. It looked almost like a bedroom, except this bedroom was massive. It was like someone took a music lover's room and tripled its size. 

There was a microphone stand housing a shiny microphone. A fluffy round bed sat in the corner with plenty of pillows. Music notes lined the walls like those stickers you put on your wall as a child. The room just like Freddy's was colourful and bright like a sunny day. And right there sitting in the middle of the room, was a giant thing. It was hard to describe. The thing it most resembled was a colourful spider with Mickey Mouse gloved hands. Terrifying, why was this in a children's establishment? Nevermind, this is Freddys, he’d be more surprised if there wasn’t something creepy. It just lay there unmoving in the middle of the space. Occasionally one of its eight legs would twitch, indicating that it wasn’t dead. That just put Michael's guard up more around the thing.

While Mike might be cautious, he also had no self preservation and so curiosity won. He tiptoed to the spider-like creature and began to poke its legs. Michael had crouched down to examine its strangely cartoonish hands. Each hand only had three fingers and a thumb. It made him wonder what finger it was missing, was it the ring finger or the middle finger? Maybe the middle finger and ring finger combined to form its new middle finger. He was extremely productive at the worst things. He wondered what the creature's hand looked like without the glove on. Maybe it was like him, covering old scars. It didn’t matter, robots didn’t scar anyways, they weren’t made of flesh and blood.

Michael moved to the creature's face which was tucked in between its front legs. He couldn’t see much but he could make out that the head was big, but not quite as big as its abdomen. It also seemed to be white like the majority of its body with headphones strapped to its head. What an odd spider robot. He moved to the side that the front of the head laid at, staring into its eyes. The eyes of the creature were powered down indicating that it was most likely sleeping or recharging. Honestly, well it did freak him out a bit, he found the spider like creature a tad endearing, sleeping in on itself with a tiny smile shown on its face. He decided it was best not to disturb it and move on with his task. The problem was that he didn’t know where the generator was, and he kinda needed that to turn the lights on. 

Looking at the room and then down to the spider, it was safe to assume that this was its bedroom or something of that sort. If the music theme wasn’t enough, then the colour palette of white, pink and blue certainly was. The one thing that stopped Mike from walking out of the room in his hunt for the generator was the spider itself. While he didn’t want to wake the possibly dangerous animatronic it did live here. Odds are that it knew the exact location of the generator. If Freddy was anything to go off of then this big guy might not immediately jump his purple ass. But his previous experiences with said robots were so unpleasant that one single decent encounter with Freddy wasn’t going to change his stance. But without the information, he could be lingering around this place for hours before he could find one miniature generator in this giant landscape.

He was never a good thinker, he mostly acted on impulse and gut feelings to guide him. It was how he survived (kinda) until now, his split second decisions saved his life. Right now his gut wasnt screaming at him saying run the fuck away. No his gut was still, and his impulse wanted to see this spider active. He wanted to know how it walked, how it talked and what it thought. It had eight legs, it would be so cool to see it walk. Mike had to remind himself that he was at work and not an amusement park. But god, everything in him wanted to see the creature alive. 

Making up his mind he reached down, poking the electronic spider on the cheek. It was cold to the touch, unsurprising as the spider was made of metal and plastic. The plastic of its face gave a slight way, making a small indent with his finger. He poked it again, the same thing happening. The plastic eventually fixed itself back to its natural position, almost like organic skin. It was like pushing skin, it would press down and then pop back up.

Just another odd thing to add to this creatures list. In his deep thought, Michael didn't notice the spider's eyes turn on. They were a mixture of neon pink and blue, glowing in the darkness. Its eyes turned to Mike who was now staring at it wide eyed. Even though he turned it on, it wasn't like he was prepared for when the creature towered over him. It stood at a solid twelve feet tall, twice his own height. No wonder everything in here was gigantic. The spider was by far the biggest animatronic Michael had ever seen.

Instead of attacking him from waking it up from its slumber, the robotic spider just tilted its head in a questioning manner. As if motioning for Mike to ask his question so it could go back to sleep. Michael taking the hint, and not wanting to anger the beast spoke. “Hey… um?”

Michael didn’t know this animatronics name. Actually, he wasn’t even aware that this animatronic existed at all. Now that he thought about it, that seemed very dangerous. His danger sense, otherwise known as his gut, was still silent, so he took that as a sign that the spider wasn’t angry. That didn’t mean he blew caution to the wind, no, it just meant that he didn’t need to actively be running away or looking for an escape route.

The spider pointed one of its eight arms towards a poster on the wall. Taking a look at the specified poster, Michael saw the same spider with the title of ‘DJ Music Man’. “You’re DJ Music Man?” 

The spider nodded its head, revealing its name to Mike. “Alright, M’n’Ms, do you know where I can find the generator? The power went out down here and I need to find it to do my job.” 

M’n’M began to walk out of the bedroom to the main stage area. Michael, hot on its heels, followed it all the way to the back corner of the arcade. It was tucked away so that it wasn’t obvious, but any kid that wandered just a little bit into the back could easily stumble on it. The generator wasn’t even in an employee only area! A regular patron could find and tamper with the piece of equipment. Michael shook his head at the shameless neglect. Just another thing to add to Fazbear Entertainments' ever growing list.

The spider pointed at the generator to an already informed Mike. Normally he would find someone pointing out the obvious, extremely irritating, but M’n’Ms just made it sweet. What was the word again? Wholesome? Yeah, the spider just seemed wholesome when pointing out the generator that stuck out like a sore thumb. By the time he turned around the spider was already gone. He was left all alone with the generator and plenty of work. 

Whatever, he would get around to saying thanks later. He imagined that being woken up in the middle of the night to a stranger wanting directions was exhausting. Mike made a mental note to thank Music Man when he saw it again. 

Now it was time for the task at hand… how fun. It didn’t take him long to fix the bashed up thing. Just needed to reconnect some wires and hook it back up to the power grid for it to be all fixed. For a moment the newly fixed lights blinded Mike. He had to wait a few minutes to blink his eyes open and adjust to the bright neon lights.

The whole bottom floor was a completely different space then it was with the lights off. Everything was colourful, with pinks and blues bouncing off each other creating odd shades of purple everywheres. No longer was the silence deafening, but instead filled with the quiet hum of machines and fluorescent lights. Everything in and around felt so alive and calm, no wonder the kids loved the arcade.

As much as he childishly wanted to play the nostalgic arcade games, he had more work to get done. Maybe if he was done early he could sneak back down here for a little self indulgence. Besides, no matter how much sound he made, the spider wouldn’t wake up unless physically touched. That made coming back here very easy. 

He was not excited for his second task of the night, fixing up Chica. One, he would have to interact with a potentially very dangerous animatronic. Two, he would have to use the cylindrical device which gave him the chills. Overall, it wasn’t looking too good. With his hindsight, he almost wished he did the lights second, if only to end this first shift off on a positive note. 

Whatever, he had to get it done anyway. Besides, Michael was never one to back down from a challenge. Bring it on you chubby chicken.

It took him a little while to reach rockstar row, as it was directly across the entire building. By the time he reached his destination, his feet hurt, begging him to stop and rest. If this was his physical limit, he really needed to work out. Who knows, maybe he would have to fist fight Chica, and right now, he would totally lose.

He walked past Freddy's room which was vacant of any life, towards Chicas room, which was right next to his. Unlike Freddy's room, Chica’s room was coloured a bright pink and white, matching her design. While Freddy’s room was spacious and filled with little gadgets, Chica’s room was cluttered with every fluffy thing imaginable. There were fluffy pillows, fluffy blankets, plushies, fake feathers and more. The only thing deviating from the scheme were plant pots hanging from the ceiling, with beautiful green leaves and vines dangling down giving the very plastic room life. 

Standing in the middle of the room in front of a full sized mirror was Chica herself strumming her guitar. It looked like she was trying to sing along to the rhythm of her guitar, the key word was try. Her voice was cracking and cutting out with every second word she spoke, completely breaking any singing voice she had. It felt almost… pitiful to watch, but Michael would never tell that to anyone. He could sympathise, not being able to perform at your best for something you couldn’t control. After Circus Baby’s he had to relearn how to walk, it was so embarrassing and demeaning that Michael wished so badly that he couldn’t walk at all, to at least have an excuse for not being able to function.

Chica’s broken voice shattered Michaels ears with feelings he really didn’t want to feel, ever. “Hey uh Chica?” He knocked on her door, alerting her to his presence. “I’m here to fix your voice box back up.”

The chicken snapped her head towards him, standing completely still. She was a deer caught in headlights. Slowly a blush creeped onto her face as she gawked at Michael at the entrance. “I-I, You? Did y-you hear me? God, t-that's s-s-so embar-rresing.”

She pulled her hands up to cover her beet red face from any further punishment. It took her awhile to calm down, well Mike was just leaning up on the door waiting. “Sorry, t-thank you for c-coming, I ha-hate this!”

To show her exasperation Chica flung her arms up into the air wildly with a frown on her face. “I don’t l-like not being a-able to s-sing, please help m-me.”

Michael simply gave her a nod, and began to walk out the door with the maintenance room as his new destination. “W-Where ar-are you going?” 

“To maintenance?” He gave her a quirk of his brow.

“Mainte-Maintenance is this w-way?” The chicken pointed to the backroom connected to her bedroom. 

The door had her silhouetted face painted onto it, fitting right at home. Michael, still brand new to the layout of the building, let the chicken lead the way. The door opened and behind it was a maintenance tunnel with an elevator seated at the end of the hallway. Both figures made their way into the elevator with moderate haste. Michael not wanting to be here any longer then he needed to, and Chica desperately wanting her voice fixed. Chica was the one to press the single button on the elevator, sending it down towards who knows where. Soon silence claimed the inside of the elevator with both of them standing around awkwardly. “So… you didn’t even question why I’m here?”

Chica turned her head towards him, “I d-don’t know if y-you know, b-but your sh-shirt says technician.” She poked his chest.

Chica crossed her arms and pouted, literally pouted. “I’m n-not clueless, de-despite what everyone s-says. I’m s-smart too!”

That came out of nowhere. Michael didn’t know what he did to spar this reaction out of someone he just met. He just gazed at the chicken with pleading eyes, hoping that this emotional outburst could wait. “I’m sorry. I-i don’t k-know where that came f-from. I g-guess my v-voice is getting to me.”

“That's understandable, I can’t imagine being a rockstar and losing your voice, that sounds horrible.”

Good job Mike, pat on the back, you are great at emotional support. If he ever turned out to be a therapist, then the world would crash and burn. Emotions were the last thing Michael dealt with, so how could he ever help others with theirs? He barely even knew the chicken, what could he possibly say to comfort her?

“P-please just f-fix me. T-Then maybe I’ll f-feel better.”

That was good enough for Mike, he could do fixing. The elevator opened with a simple ding, revealing the maintenance room in all its messy glory. Huh, that was cool, so much easier than walking all the way to the main stage to get down here. He assumed it was like this with all the other animatronics, considering they all had their separate doors like the one he and Chica just walked out of.

Chica, without any instruction walked into the cylinder and layed down on the makeshift bed. It was almost like she was a true robot. The whole time he had been here, which wasn’t overly long, the animatronics had been so… human. Chicas attitude, and movements, just irked Michael the wrong way, like someone had taken her humanity without a care in the world. It saddened his heart to know Chica had probably been down here a lot to already have an automatic reaction to maintenance. 

He should just stop thinking, there was work to be done. Mike stepped up to the computer and turned it on, revealing Chicas malfunction in her voice box. Clearly something was wrong with her voice, the problem was that he didn’t know what it was. He ran a diagnostic test on the voice box for any errors or any abnormalities. Yet nothing came up, the program said that Chica’s voice was up to date and in functional order. It was obvious something was wrong, but Mikes work wasn’t done until he fixed Chica. 

Despite his brief fear, he walked into the protected tube which housed an active Chica. “D-Did you f-find anything?” She asked him, in an almost desperate tone.

 “Nah, nothing came up, so I’m going to do a manual check up.” He was about to reach down to check, before stopping himself. “Is it alright with you if I do a manual check? I’m afraid if I don’t I won’t be able to fix your problem.”

The chicken seemed to contemplate for a second before giving a small nod. “Are you s-sure you want t-to do t-that? Most t-technicians d-don’t do that. I d-don’t w-want you to m-mess up on your first d-day.”

Michael once again sent the chicken a questioning glare. “Obviously, I literally just asked you. I have plenty of experience with this stuff, just trust me you’ll be fine.” He drew out his fine in an almost annoyed tone. 

Instead of speaking, Chica just nodded again giving him the go ahead. He got close to her face, making her nervous. It was funny, really, the deadly animatronic scared of him being so close instead of the other way around. Oh, how the tables have turned. He might have savoured this if it was any other location, but so far every robot here had either been helpful, friendly or both. Instead he felt almost sick making her scared, he hated making people scared.

Shaking his head he continued with his work. The metal underneath her shiny exterior seemed to be perfectly normal. It was all built up to code, with no scratches or dents which might cause a physical error. “Can you think of anything that might have caused your voice box to break?” He asked the chicken.

Chica turned her head away from him, biting her lip, or uh, beak. That was a guilty face if he ever saw one. “Chica…” he dragged out his voice.

She still couldn’t meet him in the eyes, instead she was staring at the glass of the cylinder, seemingly lost in thought. It took a moment but she did respond. “I may have been eating when I wasn’t supposed to…”

Michael remembered one of the things Scott had mentioned during his rough training the first day. “The animatronics are built with certain… human features to make them seem more human-like.”

“Why the hell would you do that?” He had questioned him. It only reminded him of the dark past this place held ties to.

“Look I don’t know! That's just what corporate said! I don’t design the animatronics, nor do I build them, I just manage this place.” Scott held his arms back in defence, trying to back down a heated Michael.

“They were just designed to eat, sleep and drink like us. They can also feel pain, but it's more dulled down, we don’t want them to be in any pain, just enough so they know they need a check up.”

Michael snapped back to the present. “What the hell did you eat? I thought it was all meant to go down fine.”

“Uh w-well… I may have a p-problem w-with eating… g-garbage!” She quickly blurted out.

She was so red, her embarrassment extremely visible on her pale white face. Michael gave a sigh of exhaustion. Of course the goddamn chicken still ate garbage! No matter the location or build, the chicken always ate garbage. It was like a cursed lineage from the original passed onto the next models. 

Either way he had his answer. Taking his glove covered hands he reached into Chica’s throat. He felt around the back until he felt something slimy and gross. He shivered at the feeling, barely stomaching the contents of his stomach. Pulling back his hand revealed a mouldy slice of pizza with some metal attached to it. Gross, so, so gross. He fled to the nearest trash can and threw the garbage in. He felt bad for whatever janitor would have to clean the trash. That was until he realised that he was his own janitor. Fuck.

“I, I can speak! Oh thank you so much Mr. Schmidt!” Chica bounced out of the bed and cylinder. 

Chica proceeded to run up to Michael and hug him. She squeezed him so hard that he couldn’t breathe, although he didn’t mind, not like he needed to anyways. He was lifted off the floor and spun around as Chica did a little happy dance, which honestly was kinda cute. It almost made him forget about the disgusting residue on his hands which were slimy. 

“Oh! I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have done that.” Chica dropped Michael down gently and backed away.

“Eh, no problem chicken, no harm done.” He walked towards the sink, turning it on and washing his hands under the ice cold water.

Chica awkwardly shuffled behind him as he cleaned his dirty hands, waiting for him to turn around. Complying to her invisible demands he turned around meeting Chica’s eyes. “Can I give you another hug? I’ve had this issue for a while now and no one else has been able to fix it. I’ve been stuck like that for a week, unable to perform! It’s so… frustrating! No matter what I did I wasn’t able to fix it! So thank you for helping me.” She ended timidly, shrinking into herself.

“Yeah, sure, as long as you stop calling me Schmidt, just call me Mike.”

She gave a jump and smushed Michael into a bone crushing hug. How no child had broken bones was beyond him, he could almost swear he heard a snap somewhere in his spine. She let go as quickly as she started and began walking back to her elevator. “Thank you again! Hopefully I’ll see you tomorrow?” 

“I’m not planning on going anywhere chicken, I’m here to stay.”

Chica skipped back to her elevator stepping inside. He watched the doors close, suddenly missing the presence of someone as lively as Chica. How long had it been since he had a positive interaction with someone? Sure he talked to Freddy but that felt somewhat transactional with his brand new watch. Music Man simply helped him so it could go back to bed. But Chica? I mean sure she needed to be fixed, but that felt very secondary compared to the others. 

He didn’t need social interaction, much less with AI. But it was nice, he wasn’t going to turn it down, maybe give him a little push to finally see everything through to the end. The one thing he did know about social activity was that it was super draining.

The moment Mike got home, he flopped on his bed, fully clothed. It didn’t take him long to fall into a dreamless, peaceful, sleep.

Chapter Text

Vanessa did not consider herself a people person. It was why she took the night shift, to avoid anyone and everyone. No one works the night shift, except for her, and they were closed, so there would be no customers. It was perfect! With nobody around she could just goof off while getting paid, it was a steal. Plus she also got to hang around the animatronics which had kind of become her friends. She would talk to them about a new video game which she loved or an amazing book. Vanessa's highlight of her day was going to work and working.

So, when Mr Guy told her that there would be a new technician that would also be working night hours, she was a little bit annoyed. She knew why he was working after hours, it was much easier to repair and fix everything if the whole building was closed with no kids running around. Yet Vanessa still couldn't help but be mad. Mad that her peaceful little bubble was soon going to pop with the presence of a new person.

Chica and Roxy had both assured her that she would rarely interact with the new employee based on the fact he was stationed in the maintenance room while she was in the security room. The rooms weren’t exactly across the Pizzaplex, but they definitely weren’t right next to each other. Either way, Vanessa just prayed that nothing would change.

She wanted nothing more than to race with Roxy in the go karts, eat cake with Chica, golf with Monty and listen to Freddy rant in peace. If he reported her to the higher ups for not exactly being the most diligent worker, and interacting with the animatronics without permission, there was a good chance she would lose her job.

It was Tuesday, and Vanessa was trying to forget that there was now another human being in the building with her. So when the new technician popped up around the corner she was patrolling, she, very rationally, jumped out of her skin. Vanessa didn’t even hear his footsteps as he walked, almost like he was a ghost. It also didn’t help his already very off putting and creepy appearance. The man practically fit the whole horror movie monster perfectly. All that was needed was for him to jump at her claiming he would kill her.

The man seemed just as spooked as she did. Unlike Vanessa though, he immediately held his flashlight up and bashed it onto her head. “Fuck!” She cursed at the blossoming pain exploding from her head.

She cradled her head, waiting for the pain to take its course. Soon enough she felt a hot sticky liquid flow down her hands onto her arms, coating them in crimson red. The blood rushing from her head made her lose all her fear and instead filled with annoyance. “Oi! The fuck is wrong with you? You don’t just go smashing people's heads in!” She lifted her head up giving him a glare.

Green eyes met purple, the man quickly backed down. “Ah… sorry, reflex.” He apologised.

Vanessa was going to have a word with him, consequences be damned.

~~~

Michael was not having a good day. It started right when he woke up. He had the weirdest dream about a dishwasher of all things. He didn’t want to remember the details, they shook him to his very core, but let's just say he didn’t know how many holes a dishwasher had until now. Was it bad that he kinda liked it? Yes, yes it was, very, very, very bad. He slapped his face hard until there was a darkish purple mark on his cheek. He banished the very thought from his head as he got up to get ready for work. But when he walked out his front door to work, he couldn’t help but eye his dishwasher in the kitchen, sitting there innocently. Maybe he should burn it like all his problems, that seemed to work.

He foolishly thought that the night might get better at work. Oh how wrong he was. His list was long, ranging from something so simple a baby could do it, to things like updating Monty’s internal system which were long, tedious and hard. He gave a hard sigh as he went through a mental step by step for each task. Deciding to do the opposite of last night, he went to go find Monty and give him his update. Maybe because all the animatronics he'd met so far hadn't bitten his head clean off he felt more comfortable being around them. For once maybe, just maybe, Fazbear Entertainment didn't create killer robots, but instead lovable metal animals.

Eh… you never quite know till it happens. Michael remembered back when he was a child he loved the spring suits of bonnie and fredbear. Look what happened to them, one was a murder suit that eventually housed the dead body and soul of his Father, while the bear chopped down an-, Mike didn't need to finish that thought. Point was that the original suits were harmless for years before there were any murders, what's to say these guys weren't the same? And even if the animatronics themselves are harmless, what about the people behind them? If someone like William was still running the business then no one was safe from any harm.

It was just another thing to look into and another mental jot note for the time being. Good thing this place was new, it would make uncovering evidence easier without the cover of years and years of operations.

What was he doing? Right, Monty. Mike knew each of the animatronics had a room and an attraction that they stayed in for prolonged periods of time. Basing his search off of that he went towards rockstar row aiming for Monty’s room. What he didn't expect when turning the corner was a human person extremely close towards him. In a quick reflex from all of his prior nightguard experience he bonked the women on the head and readied himself to book it. “Fuck”, the women angrily cursed, clutching her head.

Blood began spilling from the blunt force dripping onto the floor. Michael didn't even know he could whack someone so hard that it would draw blood, then again he was a corpse for decades with no muscle or strength to his name. He really would have to control that huh? “Ah… sorry, reflex” he apologised.

The women seemed more enraged at his apology, sending him a murderous glare. It seems that was the wrong answer. Michael tried to back track his words, hopefully he hadn't made things too bad. “Hey, uh… let me help you get fixed up.”

Without any time to refuse Vanessa was picked up under the arm and dragged away. Mike tried his best to find some sort of first aid station to no avail. Being new to this building was really starting to grate on his nerves. “Oi, stop dragging me you brute!” The women yelled at him.

“Ever hear of personal space! Let me go!” She then proceeded to claw at Mike's extremely clothed arm. Being a corpse and covered in protection Michael did not let go, if anything his grip got harder. He sighed and took a breath, stopping, “look just… where the hell is a first aid kit?”

“You dragged me without even knowing that?” She shouted at him.

Finally Vanessa managed to slip out from his hold, her wrist a tad red. “None of this would have happened if you weren't so violent” She rubbed her raw wrist.

Michael froze at that. What was he even doing? He was just making things worse again like always. His head lowered a bit in shame, his eyes locked on the ground. “Sorry about that. Can you tell me where a first aid kit is? So I can help patch you up, my way of an apology.” He silently requested.

Vanessa's gaze narrowed, “I can patch myself up fine. Why would I want you touching me? You fucking hit me on the head.” She turned around and began to walk away. “God damn psychopath,” she muttered under her breath.

Michael walked behind her not leaving her alone. She turned to glare at him as a final warning. He held his hands up in defence, “look, I know you don't want me around but, you're gonna need help with that injury. Firstly it's on your head so you can't see what you're doing very well, and secondly I have much more experience in this department than you do. Please, just let me help this one time?” He pleaded his case.

Ness sighed in defeat, already too tired to argue anymore with the stubborn technician. “Fine, fine. Just don't drag me around like some doll of yours.” He gave a firm nod and fell in line behind her.

The walk was so silent you could hear a pin drop. Michael didn't want to do anything else to make this woman snap. He was walking on eggshells that were invisible, not knowing any of her rules or ticks. So instead of focusing on her he memorised the area of the first aid station. Hopefully if need be, the information would come in handy. He really hoped not.

Michael tried not to take note of her staggering or the hand covered in blood. If he did then he'd just feel overwhelming guilt. It seems all he could do was hurt, at least it wasn't limited to others. Maybe patching the guard up will be like balancing the harm he caused, like a karma sort of thing. He hurt her so it's only right that he heals her now. Right his wrongs.

Spotting a room with a red and white colour scheme with a red cross was enough to signal to Michael that they were here. Swiftly, he went ahead of Vanessa and opened the door, leading her inside. It seemed the bash to the head took a toll on her coordination as she stumbled to walk inside. Michael's guilt spiked knowing that he might have caused a concussion or head trauma to the poor women.

Seeing her failing, Mike lightly grabbed her arm and guided her to a nearby bed. She gladly sat on the bed, her body sinking into the soft mattress. She let out a soft grunt from her head moving up and down. “Wow, you fuckin SWAT or something? I definitely wouldn't want to rob your place.” She lightly chuckled, likely trying to cope with the pain.

Mike didn't give a response other than a hum of affirmation as he scanned the room for bandages and painkillers. It took an embarrassingly long time to find the items but eventually he found the bloody bandages. He felt the eyes of the guard on him, watching him warily. Not that he blamed her. He did a good number on her and was now grabbing some pain meds, for all she knew he was grabbing some rat poison. Funnily enough there was rat poison right next to the medications they kept on hand, classic Fredbears.

Just in case, he pushed the poison aside and turned to Vanessa to start the ‘treatment’. First he handed her two painkillers, assuming she was within a healthy adult weight they would work fine. She eyed him cautiously before popping in the pills. The women dry swallowed them having difficulty getting them down. Michael scrambled to the sink to fill a glass of water, handing it to her. She finished the pills with a big gulp.

Michael, satisfied, reached for the cleaning supplies to sanitise the area. “The meds will kick in, in about a half an hour, if they don't pop one more in.”

“Okay doc” she rolled her eyes, “I know how fucking Tylenol works.”

“That was Advil, not Tylenol, if you're going to be childish I'm going to treat you like a child.”

“Like that wasn't childish?”

“What was?” He questioned

She began in a mocking tone of his voice, “It's Advil not Tylenol.”

“I was simply correcting you, there's a difference. I won't go too deep but, they're slightly different drugs with different effects. So you need to take them in different quantities to get-”

“Alright, alright, I get it.” She smirked, “good to know I've got a doctor whenever I get a boo-boo.”

“I am the best with boo-boos.” He agreed. “I'm also good at giving boo-boos, so look out.”

She laughed at his comment, “yes, yes, I know, that's why I'm here with good ol doc.”

They both slightly chuckled before going back to their awkward silence. The room felt slightly less suffocating but still awkward between the two. This was his first time meeting the guard and it was a horrible first impression. He can't imagine what was going through her mind as he wrapped the bandages around her head. The white cloth smoothly circled around her injury, ending off in a tie. Michael decided that he would be bold and tied it off with a big bow tie which looked like a butterfly if you squinted.

He stood back to admire his work. Being honest with himself he never bandaged up anyone else, only himself. The last time he did something like this, it was to put a bandaid on Evens face after he fell playing outside. He remembered Even’s face covered in mud while he complained about the small cut the rock had given him. Mike had to bring them all home and wash his face just to be able to see his brother's face clearly.

Vanessa stood up with a bit of a wobble, yet she stood steady not falling over. She clutched the bed a bit but it looked like she was already recovering. Ness turned to look at Michael, showing off her newly covered face. Instantly Mike's pride shattered to little pieces. Her face looked so much like Even when he was in the hospital. He felt sick to his stomach as his hard work fell into the drain, from the crude reminder.

He averted his eyes from the women, desperately trying to not double over and vomit on the floor. Vanessa didn't take much note though as she tried to shimmy along the wall, testing out her mobility. It was only when she was finished did she notice Mike looked completely spaced out. Or she assumed so as his eyes seemed to grow dimmer. Was that humanly possible?

She waved her hand in front of his face. “Hello? Earth to Mike? You there buddy?”

His head seemed to snap up at the mention of his name. “Hm? Yeah, I'm fine, are you okay? You still look a little wobbly.”

As if to prove his point he lightly poked Vanessa, satisfied when she didn't topple over like a jenga tower. Instead of getting angry at being poked or making it a joke, she just gave him a concerned glare. Michael hated that. No one should ever be concerned about him ever.

She let it go, heaving out a sigh. Vanessa had only known this man for like twenty minutes, she didn't know if he was simply spacey. Still, she couldn't help but be concerned, not just for him but for herself. His eyes looked so empty and unnatural that without his ever present demeanour she would think he was a ghost. His look stared into her very soul, as if reading it. It certainly didn't help that his eyes were an unnerving shade of purple.

“Thanks for patching me up doc, maybe you're not so bad after all.” Vanessa turned and left the room leaving Michael alone again.

He let out a sigh of relief after she left the room. He couldn't stand to look at her face any longer with the bandages mocking him. No, they weren't mocking him, they were reminding him of his failures, his mistakes. “God fuck” he mumbled to himself, rubbing his face.

He needed to snap out of his stupor or else he couldn't get his job done right. Hopefully he didn't have to see the night guard for the rest of the night, it would be so much more draining than it already was.

It took a bit of searching but he was able to find gator golf. The section was connected to the main plaza making it easily accessible and easy to find. While easy to find if you were a customer with limited areas to go. As an employee with a Pass to every door Mike literally had the whole building to explore. So explore he did. That resulted in him getting lost for a solid two hours.

The relief that washed over him when not only did he make it back to the main area, but when he found gator gulf was huge. Still not anywhere close to making it to six am, but it was up there.

His little side quest with Vanessa the night guard had already drained him of his social battery and will to exist. So he was really hoping Monty didn't speak or interact with him much, for his own sanity. What was Monty supposed to be like? He didn't know. He had no experience with the two new members of the band. And if his previous experiences were to be considered, they likely had a complex personality similar to a real human. Please don't let him act human, he couldn't deal with people right now.

Stepping into gator golf was whiplash. The main building was neon and 80s themed with a whole rock ascetic. Gator golf had more natural lighting with spotlights dotting the whole ceiling. Plants consumed every wall making the place a peaceful shade of green, it truly felt like the wilderness. The change was extremely jarring but not unappreciated.

Mike stepped inside, taking on a slower stride. The plants and design of the room reminded him of a certain someone who would always garden. He took comfort in him before the bite, his plants always livened up the place. Mike really missed him, he wondered how Jeremy was doing. Probably picked up his own life and was living happily in his own garden of Eden. He really wished he could stay with him, he was one of the few good things in his life. Too bad he ruined that too.

The odd thing was that this place was eerily quiet, with no gator in sight. He had already checked Monty's room with no luck. If the gator wasn't here, then he was out of luck on finding the big boy. Despite not hearing anything Mike traversed farther into the golf course. The outside didn't do justice to the section's sheer size. Michael could've sworn that he was walking twenty minutes in without ever lapping back to an old room. If a child got lost here it would be extremely hard for them to find their way back without guidance. Hell, Mike barely even remembered his own path into this maze.

Faintly, as he continued forward he began to hear a slight clicking noise. His curiosity perked as he made his way towards the sound. Standing at one of the last holes at the back of the room was a certain green gator. He was swinging his club hitting the ball at just the right angle, scoring a hole in one. Instead of a smile or a positive reaction you would expect from one doing something so hard, the gator just frowned.

Michael not wanting to jumpscare another person tonight made his footsteps known as he approached Monty. Besides if the gator had the same reflexes as him his face would probably be torn off. He really didn't want to go back to the medical room tonight.

Monty turned to the new human who was walking towards him. It didn't even take a glance to know that this person was severely maimed with his sickly purple skin. Monty had never seen such a person before, but despite his somewhat… disturbing appearance he couldn't help but notice how lean he was. Somehow this man looked like he was in his prime while also being the sickest person on earth.

Monty turned on his scanner to identify the new being in front of him. Before he got the chance the man leaped and grabbed his face preventing him from scanning. He was quick, fast enough to catch him off guard. Something inside Monty screamed that this man was dangerous.

Michael really didn't want to be scanned again. Both because of the breach to his privacy and that horrible sensation. So like a rational person, he leaped into the face of a very big and very sharp animatronic, cupping his hands over his eyes. The gator did not like this judging by his angry snarl but he did not move. “I'll get off of you if you don't scan me… please.” he borderline pleaded with the hostile animatronic.

“Fine, just get off my face you mackerel!”

Michael slowly removed his hands from Monty's optic lenses carefully eyeing the gator. “Who are you?” The gator eyed Mike back just as cautiously.

“you're new resident technician, that is if you don't eat me first,” he chuckled awkwardly.

The gator had the audacity to scoff at him as he folded his arms in on themself, crossing them. “Right… you, the sickly purple man is our new technician,” Monty repeated sarcastically.

Monty just gave him a deadpan, obviously not believing him. To prove he was in fact an employee Michael pulled out his ID, specifically his Fazbear ID given to him by Scott when he was first hired. He roughly shoved the card in the green animatronics face. The gator jolted from the swift action, and grabbed his card. As his eyes scanned over the identification he let out a soft “Oh”.

Michael smirked at the gator's dumbfound reaction. “Okay, so you’re the new tech. What do you want from me?”

Mike rolled his eyes at the disrespectful display. He had a feeling that they weren’t going to get along. “I’m here to do my job, big guy. Gotta take you down to parts’n’service for an upgrade, make sure you're up to date,” he boredly explained.

The gator pondered over his explanation, as if trying to find a fault in his motives. He knew he was never approachable or even likeable, but this amount of hesitation and distrust was a lot even for him. Before giving a reply Monty strutted over to his personal area inside the golf house. Mike, not knowing what to do, briskly followed him. For every stride Monty took, Michael had to take two, making him borderline jog to keep up.

It was only now that the zombie noticed just how big the gator was. He himself was about 6 '3 when alive, about 6' 1 post scoop, but Monty had to be at least 7 feet tall. The green animatronic was also very masculine and bulky, having extremely broad shoulders and a ton of metallic muscle. If he so much as wanted to, Monty could flatten him like a pancake. It was a very comforting thought.

Michael made up his mind not to piss off the gator, at least, not too much. What can he say, he never really grew out of his unlikeable phase.

“So, where we goin’ big guy?”

“I’m just gonna make sure there really is a scheduled update on the mainframe,” he pointed to the computer on the other side of the room.

“Can’t you just check inside your, I don’t know, head? I thought all you guys were connected to the main network.”

“Normally we can, but for things related to our own programs such as updates, clean ups or security improvements we can’t. It’s a matter of security in case any of us are breached. So instead I’m checking with the help of the network computers.”

Michael could understand the reasoning behind this practice. It kept a tight lock so no one could mess with the performers or copy their code. The problem was that Monty could easily check on the computers, ingraining the information in his memory. If a breach were to happen to him, the person could find his own updated code in his memory banks.

Honestly Michael didn’t care that much, if it meant that he could do his job he would let Monty check.

The gator scanned over the code on the computer at lightning speed. Soon enough he heard a faint “Alright” from him, confirming the technician's validity.

“Let’s just get this over with quickly, the only thing I ask is that you leave me on during maintenance,” his voice stern.

“Wait what? I thought you guys didn’t have an off switch?”

“Hmm? I thought you were the tech guy? Of course we do, it's just that turning us off hard resets us, wiping our memory. The last tech guys did it every time during maintenance, said they didn’t want to get hurt.” Monty scoffed, “It’s not like having your memory wiped over and over is super fun, forgetting important things, where you are, who you are. If you ask me those chumps were pathetic, they didn’t give a shit about us.”

“I’m… sorry, that’s awful,” Michael sympathised with the gator. “I can promise you that I won’t rest you at all, but you will have to bear though some pain, is that alright?”

Their short walk had brought them to Monty’s room. Like the others it was bright and colourful, this time being painted a bright lime green. “I’m not a wimp, I can handle some pain, it’s just like your human check ups,” he crossed his arms and rolled his eyes, offended at the mention of being weak.

Monty’s elevator brought them down to parts and service which obviously hadn’t changed from the last time the purple man had been down here. He gestured to the green animatronic to lay on the uncomfortable bed inside the tube. With a huff he moved inside and laid down, not even flinching when the restraints clamped around his limbs. “Just be quick, this isn’t exactly fun,” his voice muffled but still audible through the glass.

Michael took out his tablet as he began the process. He quickly scanned through the contents of the update before linking Monty up. As the new software updated the gator seemed to squirm a little, he was obviously uncomfortable.

His mind briefly wondered if there was a way to make this more pleasant for the performers. In his heart he felt a tug of guilt and discomfort for the animatronic. Anything with sentience should be respected, even robots.

Even after the update was long done and Monty took his escape from parts and service, Mike still couldn't help but ponder over his thoughts. A way to make the animatronics comfortable and reduce the pain of maintenance.

Even when the sun broke the sky and he lay down in his own bed, he couldn’t help but think about it. Perhaps when he woke up before work he could brainstorm some ideas, after all no one deserved to be in pain.

Chapter Text

Michael did not want to leave the safety and warmth of his bed. The comforter lay on him like a gentle hug to all the pain of the outside world. Sleep pulled at his eyes begging him to fall back under into nothingness. He wanted to go back to sleep and never wake up. Yet the world is solely against Michael Afton as his body went about the day on autopilot.

He went through the motions like every other day. Wake up, get dressed and go eat. Just like every day he wore a tank top and made cereal for breakfast. Nothing ever changes in the Afton household.

The morning was a blur, hazy from a lack of sleep and physical strain. Brief glimpses of Lizzy's disappointed face and Evans' glassy eyes were all he could remember. Something about how it was always cereal every single day. He remembered scolding her about it, saying that if she didn't like the food she could make her own.

Just like everyday Michael was exhausted and wounded from the night before. He had pissed off Father, earning him a beating yesterday. The new bruises joined with his old ones to create a mismatched mosaic on his body. Michael felt sore all around his body, some of his healing cuts reopened from last night. But this was fine, he was used to it. It was his normal, as sad as it sounded.

The beatings started when Michael turned eight, right after his Mother's passing. His Father had grieved for the women, leaving Michael to take care of a five year old Lizzy, and a three year old Even.

Michael fed them all three meals, even packing a lunch for both before school. He walked them to the elementary school before going to his own school every single day, and picked them up at the end of the day. When either of his siblings needed new clothes or supplies he biked across town to buy it, using the money stash Father kept for them. Sometimes he would run out of their weekly budget, usually because Lizzy wanted too many toys. This led to Michael having to ask for more money from his already emotionally damaged Father. As one could guess, Michael hated interacting with his Father.

The man had left Michael to care for his two siblings all by himself with no guidance or help. Not only that, at the drop of a hat he would berate Michael for the smallest of things. If an argument got too out of hand then that was when a slap would happen. Or on really bad days he would just beat Michael bloody until it was hard to stand, and his body was shaking. Yesterday was one of those days, the days Michael wanted to disappear into nothingness and never come home.

Yet for some reason Michael wanted to impress his Father. Maybe it was the fact that he wasn't always mean. Sometimes he would take them all out for ice cream down the road, making small talk and jokes with him. Some days were really good, he would praise Michael for being so smart when he built something together with him. He would pat Michaels head gently, reassured that nothing would hurt him.

The scary thing was that some days William acted like a Father.

Today Michael was waiting for his Father's appearance, watching to see if it was a good or bad day, based on the man's scowl or lack thereof.

Today was also Evans birthday, marking the day his little brother will turn ten. It was a milestone in every child's life, to leave the single digits and to say they've lived a decade.

Michael was obviously (okay maybe not obviously, based on Lizzy's silent cues) happy for Evan. After all, a birthday is meant to be celebrated. But some deep part of Michael was furious with envy, hatred and longing. Perhaps that was why he was so upset the past week leading up to Evans birthday.

Michael was proud to say he was a prankster and prided himself on how well he could scare people. His little brother was an easy target for his pastime. Normally it was the fact that Evan was scared of everything down to spiders and bugs all the way to the stupid animatronics in Freddy's. But this fear was now becoming too debilitating to Evan as Michael often found him curled up and crying under the tables in the restaurant. His screams of fear pierced into his soul like sharp needles. It hurt to see his baby brother so scared of something he lived around twenty-four seven.

The other part of Michael was glad his brother was scared. He should feel some pain after everything Michael had done for him for years. Evan actually got a birthday party for his tenth party. Michael didn't have another birthday party after his Mother passed, Father simply didn't have the time. Yet now he had time to organise a party for Evan? It left him with a bitter taste in his mouth.

He wanted to see Evan and Lizzy suffer for the strain they put on him. How his Father doted on them both, yet didn't even have time to say hello to Michael. Michael felt more like a stranger in his house than an actual member of the Afton household. Of course he loved his siblings and would never treat them the way his Father treated him, despite the kind facade he wore. But Michael also envied his siblings almost as much.

So did he feel bad about tormenting Evan on his birthday? A little, but he was bitter and spiteful. Besides, his baby brother had to get over his fears of the fake metal animals if he wanted to be an Afton. They spent the majority of their off time in the restaurant, and Father expected him to pull some slack. Evan wasn't allowed to be scared of the animatronics.

The drive to the dinner was uneventful, his Father quietly focused on the drive rather than bantering with any of them. Michael also wasn't in the mood to chat so he watched the buildings wiz by out the side window. Liz and Evan were seated behind in the back both of them whispering to one another, guessing on the flavour of his birthday cake. Evan was a huge chocolate enjoyer just like Michael, while Elizabeth was a vanilla fan through and through. They were arguing about which flavour was superior, which influenced what flavour they wanted the cake to manifest as.

Michael, as always, had his foxy mask on his person. It was his personal safety net for anything the world could throw at him. The mask was a gift from his Mother right before her death, it was like a piece of her was always with him.

The restaurant was in sight, and soon enough all four passengers of the car stepped out. The morning air bit through his clothes with a vengeance. Despite it being summer, the air had a cool chill.

The dinner was dressed in colourful streams and ribbons, half of which had fallen and were on the floor. Balloons hung from every corner of the building with all the colours of the rainbow.

Michael couldn't even remember when he stepped into the employee only area. It was only when he spotted the familiar face of Uncle Henry did he notice. His uncle had already noticed Michaels presence and had waved him over. “Hi’a Mike! Could you do me a favour and help me put this up?” His uncle was occupied by the ladder and banner he held, stretching his body to try to pin it to the wall.

Michael simply gave a grunt and joined his uncle on the other side. After a bit of struggle they had finally put the happy birthday banner on the wall. Henry gave a smile of satisfaction looking at the banner before turning to Michael.

“Thanks for the help Mike, couldn't have done it without ya.”

Michael simply shrugged, “you would've just gotten one of the part timers to help if I didn't anyways.”

Henry gave him a cheeky grin, acknowledging his statement. “Maybe.”

He rolled his eyes, Henry could always make Michael feel wanted for some reason. He didn't know how, all he knew was that it made him feel warm and fuzzy inside. Unlike Father, Michael enjoyed spending time with Henry. He made Michael want to live life and be a kid, always supporting him no matter what.

“Since you're here… does that mean our special little birthday boy has arrived?”

Suddenly Michaels mood dampened again at the mention of his brother. He got that it was Evans birthday and all, but, well, he didn't know what he wanted. All he knew was that he wished Henry would pay more attention and time with him then ask about Evan. Afterall it was his special day, wouldn't everyone be flocking him with attention?

“Yeah, he is. Probably crying under a table or whatever that wimp does.”

“Mike, you shouldn't say that about your brother. He's simply scared, and you aren't exactly helping with his fear,” Henry scolded.

“It's irrational! He hides all day under tables because he's scared of something made for three year olds!”

Henry gave Michael his stern frown, something he loathed. “Mike, take it from me. Anything can be scary, especially animatronics. I don't want to scare you but they can be dangerous, Williams springlock failure is a good example.”

Michael huffed at Henry's explanation. Sure the animatronics could be scary, he's seen it first hand. But Evans never seen them be scary before, and it was just so easy to be mad about.

Suddenly Michael was sparked with a horribly great idea. The perfect prank to scare Evan shitless while also showing him how much of a coward he was.

“Alright whatever Uncle Henry. Go coddle the birthday baby.”

Michael skipped to the phone in Father's personal office. Obviously he wasn't there of course, he couldn't be when he had to take care of Evans birthday. Maybe he would finally realise what Michael put up with on a daily basis. The screams of attention, the personal hellhole that was Lizzy's dolls. For once his Father could deal with the two brats while Michael got to have some fun.

He grabbed the ageing phone from his Father's desk and punched in his buddies numbers. Every single one of them responded to his calls, each agreeing to the master plan.

With a hop in his step Michael returned to the main party area. Now all he had to do was wait for his friends to show up, and then the real party could get started.

He decided to busy himself with the arcade games that were in the next room over. Ever since he was little he knew how to jumpstart the machines so he could play without coins. It was necessary when you were a kid with no entertainment and no friends around.

Michael was happy to see his high score on space invaders hadn't been beaten since yesterday. Stopping at the machine he did his thing, turning on the game without the use of tokens.

He didn't know how long he had been playing for before he was interrupted. A hand had gripped his shoulder, patting him roughly on the back. “What up man, you called?” His friend, Jeremy, said playfully.

“Guys, you're here.”

“Duh dude, wouldn't miss pranking the cry baby for the world,” the Freddy mask, Gabe, said.

The last guy, Mark, chuckled “Same.”

Michael patted Jeremy on the back in return, a fond gesture they both shared. “I’m just glad you guys showed, do you know how boring this place is? Not to mention I have to spend all day with the crybaby.”

“Oh we know Mike, it’s the only thing you talk about man,” Gabe said with a friendly tone of voice.

Mike caught Jeremy’s gaze shift from his own to behind him, locked on the arcade game he was just playing. “It’s nice to see you still got the high score, couldn’t go around school bragging about your skills if you lost to some random dweeb.”

Mike gave him a shy smile in return not knowing what to say. It was obvious that he was closer to Jeremy than with Gabe and Mark, afterall he and Jere had been good friends ever since preschool. He didn’t know what it was but Michaels heart fluttered at the words of praise. Jeremy, just like Uncle Henry, somehow made Mike feel safe and wanted. He had an odd urge to go up and hug Jeremy right then and there, the man was always just so perfect. Instead Michael just blushed at the thought, his days of hugging, like most things in his life, died the day his Mother was buried six feet underground. Father always said it was unmanly to show affection to anyone that wasn’t family. So like everything in his life, he followed Fathers words, even if it hurt him to do so.

“One day I’ll beat you and be crowned number one!” Jeremy joked, pushing his elbow into his stomach.

“Mhm, I’d like to see you try Jere,” Mike gave him a sly grin.

They stayed like that for a few fleeting moments before Mark stepped in between the two, “alright lovebirds break it up, we got a birthday boy to find!”

The four of them snickered behind their masks. The anticipation of the joke made each of them excited, as glee was visible on all their faces.

They split up in opposite directions, Michael heading towards the backstage area in hopes of catching Even there all alone. He walked through the main party room which was filled to the brim of young children. The restaurant had been shut down for the day to not allow for strangers to enter the building. So the small children must have been invited.

Looking at their small faces he recognised a few people in the crowd. Most were Evans fellow classmates jumping around the room hyped on sugar. Great, a bunch of 4th graders was not what Michael needed right now.

He swiftly navigated the crowd, weaving through adults and children alike to reach the back of the room. There were a few times when someone blocked his way but he just shouldered on through them, earning himself a few glares.

Finally, after what felt like forever, Michael reached backstage. The door had been left slightly cracked open allowing the hallway lights to flow into the other room. Poking his head through the crack he surveyed the room. It was filled with spare mascot heads with empty eye sockets which stared into his soul. There were endo parts littered throughout as well as the spring lock counter parts, fabric was thrown about haphazardly some of which covered the metal parts strewn on shelves and tables. In the middle of the room was not a crying boy he had hoped to see but instead the man of his worst nightmares and best dreams.

“What are you doing back here? I thought you were supposed to be watching your brother Michael?” His Father spoke, not even turning his head as he tinkered with Springbonnie.

“You always assume it’s me, why not throw in some spice and call for Liz a little,” he threw back. It always unnerved him that his Father didn’t even need to look at him to know he was there.

“Because,” he started, “you're always the one to poke his head in places where they don’t belong. How many times have I told you that you aren’t allowed back here without my supervision?”

“You’re here right now aren’t you?” he bit back.

His Father didn’t say anything as he continued to work away. Michael took this as his invitation to step inside. His Father still didn’t say anything as he silently closed the door and walked up to the man. Softly he took a seat next to him on the oil stained floor. He could see his Fathers face gently illuminated by the glow of the lightbulb. The special way the light bounced off his face showed off his sharp features and cold misty grey eyes. Michael watched his Fathers eyes flicker from the machine in front of him to his son at his side.

“Today has been stressful…” his Father spoke, his face softer than normal. “But it needs to be perfect for him, you know that right?”

He wasn’t sure if that was a threat to behave or the need to be supported in stressful times. With his Father everything he said was a coin flip.

Despite everything he wanted to throw at the man, the anger and hurt that this party had caused him, he couldn’t speak. Eventually he found his voice in the pits of his throat, hidden away by darkness and grief, “I know.”

He watched his Father work with precise hands, adjusting the spring locks which were already in their perfect position. It was stress work, something that kept his hands busy so his mind could go somewhere else. Michael would always recognize the slight glaze his Fathers eyes held as he slaved away. Oftentimes it came from one of his or Lizzy’s arguments with the man. It was odd to see it on the man when he wasn’t fuming at him.

“Have I ever taught you how to tighten the spring locks?” Father said, his voice uncharacteristically quiet.

“No,” his voice was also quiet, “You've only told me how they work and how to build them, never to maintain them.”

“It’s something you need to know if you ever get in one of these suits. It's the sole reason I didn’t end up dead in this suit.”

Michael forced himself to remember that dreadful day. It was back when Mother was still alive and Evan wasn’t born yet. He was only five when it happened.

“Hi there sonny, want to hear an old rabbits joke?”

“Yes! Yes, always”

“Alright, ahm-, what do you call a housekeeper rabbit?”

“I don’t know… a Mommy?”

“Shh, don’t let your Mom hear that, she’ll get very mad. But no, good guess. A housekeeper rabbit is called a dust bunny.”

The kid wrinkled his face in disgust, “like those things under the bed?”

Before the rabbit could respond a sharp sound could be heard throughout the room. Slowly one by one the sound repeated all coming from the bunny. Blood pooled down the suit as choking gasps could be heard from the rabbit. The blood spilled had gotten on the little boy's shoes forever staining them with red. “Dad?”

The rabbit didn’t respond.

Michael snapped out of his stupor. That was the worst day of his life. He almost watched his Father die right in front of him. He could still see the red at his feet slowly soaking up his entire vision.

His Father continued oblivious to his sons glazed over eyes, forever seeing red. “Watch closely, if you're ever put in here you need to keep them tightened so that the spring locks don’t activate.”

Slowly he watched his Father go over the maintenance of the suit along with an emergency release if anything did fail. As his Father talked he focused on his words remembering each and every one of them. He safely tucked this memory into his brain as something to look back on, something to love his Father for.

Eventually the moment had to end as it always did. Roughly outside the door to the private room he could hear shouts of joy calling his name. Slowly Michael picked himself on his feet and turned around leaving the room and his Dad.

Once outside he picked up his pace to a brisk walk towards the loud voices. He found them in one of the back party rooms close to backstage and parts and service. There under the table hiding was his little brother. “Well, look who we have here!” he put on some false bravado.

Evan stared up at him with fearful eyes that were flooded with tears as they streaked down his cheeks. In simple words he looked like a trainwreck. The moment they locked eyes his brother's face morphed into something of relief and pleading. Michael felt a little guilty in advance for what was going to happen, but his drive outweighed his guilt as he gave a stoney stare right back to Evan.

Without a word Gabe and Mark picked up Evan by his arms giving him no chance to run. Michael walked in front of the group as they set off towards the main party room with Jeremy bringing up the rear. All four boys had their masks placed firmly on their faces, each showing an iconic character of Freddy’s. Gabe as Freddy and Mark as Bonnie held up a helpless Evan with Chica or Jeremy following behind, while Foxy led the charge.

As expected all the children were so enticed with cake and games that they completely forgot the birthday boy they were celebrating. They were cheap friends at best, Mike didn’t even know why they were invited if they weren’t even concerned that the birthday boy was missing the whole time. If it didn’t work so well with his plan it would have disgusted him that these animals called themselves Evans friends.

They entered the room no problem, no one being able to hear Evans cries for help over the cheers and songs. “Please! Stop!” he screamed.

“No! No! Let go of me!” he pleaded.

“Michael, help me! Please!” he begged

“Please… no,” he did what he did best, and cried.

He wailed and cried but to no avail. “Guys! I think he said that he wants to take a closer look!” he taunted.

His friends cheered and agreed with their ringleader. The boys moved Evan closer to the performing Fredbear and the newly patched up Springbonnie. Evan continued to scream and beg as he was moved closer to Fredbear, his biggest fear. “Hey guys, I think the little man said he wants to give Fredbear a big kiss!”

The group moved the crying child up to the maw of the bear. Then with a heave Michael shoved Evan into Fredbears jaws. For a moment he continued to cry while the bear continued his show. The tears soaked into the spring locks and then a loud click started. Then another and another and another and another and another an-. With a loud clamp the mouth came down, crushing Evans skull.

For a moment everything was silent.

Red painted Mike's vision, tinting the whole world red. There was a high pitched ringing in his ears as he stared at the limp body of his brother. Red painted the mouth of Fredbear who was still singing and moving like nothing was wrong. Red stained his hands permanently, they were now forever red no matter how hard he tried to wash them. Maybe he could hear screaming in the background, he didn’t know. All he knew was his baby brother's unmoving body in the mouth of his worst nightmare.

The worst part? It was all his fault.

Michael awoke with a gasp.