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As William sat at his table, he couldn’t help but think about what had led him to this moment.
Right now, the Diner was a smash hit. Him and Henry were raking in hundreds of dollars every day, and the money they had earned had allowed them to take the brand further than either of them had thought they’d go. Comics, merchandise, even a TV show! Most people, if they were in William’s position, would have been content with that. They would have probably opened a few more locations around the States, maybe go world-wide if they could, then sit back and watch the money roll in.
However, William Afton was not most people.
When he had an idea that worked, he didn’t just dust his hands and walked away. No, he innovated on his design, searching for ways to take it to the next level, make it bigger and better than ever.
If there was a word to describe him, it would be “ambitious”. As such, not too long ago, he had approached Henry with an idea: to expand the brand with a sister location, one starring the characters from the Fredbear and Friends TV show that had proved so popular. Henry had been hesitant at first, but he eventually came around. However, there was a problem. During the early days, William and Henry had been able to design the Fredbear and Spring Bonnie animatronics themselves. However, those two had been relatively simple, designed for a small location.
But if they were going to be expanding the business the way William wanted, that would require multiple, more advanced machines, and, as much as William hated to admit it, they simply didn’t have the ability to do that. Luckily, Henry knew someone who did: Edwin Murray.
Murray, owner of Murray’s Costume Manor, had apparently been an old friend of Henry’s from back in college. The man was, in Henry’s words, a mechanical wizard, able to design things years ahead of their time. William was skeptical, of course, but after meeting Edwin in person and seeing what he had made, he had to admit he was impressed.
However, William was never one to take things at face value. After all, if something looked too good to be true, it probably was. As such, he had done a little digging into MCM on his off time, and if what he discovered was accurate…
Well, it didn’t paint a good picture, to put it lightly.
As such, William had decided to arrange a meeting between himself and one of MCM’s employees in order to hear things from his point of view. After all, there was no better way to gauge a company than by speaking to one of their employees.
And speak of the devil…
The bell above the diner’s door rang as it swung open. The place was small, with only a few seats and tables, but it was cozy enough. The man who walked in looked young, twenty at least, with short, dirty red hair, brown eyes, and a slightly anxious disposition. Instantly, William knew it was the man he had been waiting for. As such, he stood up, straightened his shirt, and approched the man, a wide grin on his face.
“Ah! You must be Ralph! Pleasure to meet you.” He said, extending a hand to the man. The man looked surprised for a moment, before taking William’s hand and shaking it.
“Uh, yeah, that’s me.” Ralph replied with a nervous chuckle. “And I’m guessing you’re-”
“William Afton?” Will interrupted. “In the flesh! Please, take a seat.”
Ralph did so, with William following suit.
“You know, when I heard the owner of Fredbear’s wanted to meet with me, I was a little worried I’d make a bad impression.” Ralph said.
“Well, you don’t need to worry about that. It’s not like this is a job interview, after all.”
As William said that, the waitress approached them, looking for their order. William ordered toast with jam, while Ralph said he wanted eggs. With that, the waitress left, leaving the two alone.
“So, uh, what exactly did you want to talk with me about, Mr. Afton?” Ralph asked, looking slightly nervous.
“Well, as I’m sure you’re aware, Fazbear Entertainment is planning to collaborate with MCM on a big project in the future.” William explained, with Ralph perking up once he finished.
“Oh, yeah! I heard about that! I’m, uh, really looking forward to it. But, uh, what exactly does this have to do with me?”, Ralph asked, confused.
“Well, I just wanted to ask about your experience working with MCM. After all, there’s no better way to gauge a company's quality than one of its workers.”
On hearing this, Ralph paled a bit, and William saw a bead of sweat form at the top of his head.
“O-Oh. And, uh, what exactly do you want to know, Mr. Afton?”
“Oh, you know. Just tell me about what it’s like there. The history, working conditions, all of it. Oh, and I’d like you to be as honest as possible, please.”
Ralph hesitated for a moment, looking around as if to make sure nobody was eavesdropping. Finally, he nodded, turning to face William.
“Alright. Here’s how it is…”
And Ralph tells him. He tells him about how Edwin inherited the company from his father after the latter died. About how Edwin changed the company’s direction to manufacturing and producing his own inventions. About how the employees couldn’t keep up with all the changes. About how things only seemed to get worse after Edwin’s wife, Fiona, died at Fallfest. About how more and more of Edwin’s products began to be returned due to malfunctions.
“It’s not that they didn’t work.” Ralph explained. “If anything, it’s because they worked too well. Honestly, things have been going downhill for a while now. If things keep going the way they have… well, I might be out of a job, hehe.”
William took a moment to process what Ralph had told him. It looks like all the rumors he’d heard about were true. And knowing that left him feeling conflicted. On the one hand, he didn’t want to associate his brand with a company like MCM, knowing what he knew now. But on the other, he still needed someone to help him work on the sister location.
Suddenly, William got an idea. It was risky, and potentially illegal, but if it worked, it could solve a lot of problems he now faced.
“Hm… it sounds like you’re in need of a more stable career.” William said as casually as he could.
“Yeah, that’s an understatement.” Ralph replied under his breath.
“Well, perhaps I could give it to you.” Upon hearing those words, Ralph turned to look at Will, a look of confusion on his face.
“Look, Ralph.” William began. “I’ll be honest with you. Once this project with MCM gets off the ground, we’re going to need a lot of employees to keep things going. And I’d like you to be one of those employees.”
Ralph was quiet for a moment, before starting to chuckle to himself, sounding more bewildered than anything.
“I, uh, thought this wasn’t a job interview.” Ralph said once he’d managed to compose himself.
“It’s not. It’s a job opportunity. Now, do you want in?”
Ralph only hesitated for a moment.
“Yeah. Yeah, I think I do.”
“Excellent. Welcome to Fazbear Entertainment, Ralph.”
The two shook hands again, with Ralph being much more confident as he did.
“Now then, I’d like to ask a favor of you, if you don’t mind.”
This caught Ralph off guard.
“Uh, okay.” He replied.
“When you go back to work tomorrow, I want you to talk with the other employees, and tell them what I told you. About the project, and about how we need employees to run it properly. And I want you to tell them that I’ll pay them double what they earned at MCM if they agree to come aboard. Can you do that for me?” William asked, staring intently at Ralph.
“Uh, sure, I can do that.” Ralph answered hesitantly.
“Good. Oh, and one more thing. I want you to tell them they’ll get a bonus if they manage to get me anything from the company before they leave. Character patterns, designs, all of that.”
That really took Ralph by surprise.
“Uh, I guess I could do that, but… I don’t know, that doesn’t seem right.”
“Well, you said it yourself, Ralph. The company’s on a downward spiral. And if things do go belly-up, I’d hate for all of Murray’s good ideas to go to waste. You understand, don’t you?”
“Yeah, but… is this even legal? If people find out about this-”
“Then I’ll take full legal responsibility. It was my idea after all. I won’t even mention your name, I promise.”
Ralph hesitated for another moment, before closing his eyes, taking a deep breath, and nodding.
“Alright. I’ll… I’ll talk to the others.”
“Good man. You won’t regret this Ralph. I promise.”
WIth that, the waitress finally arrived with their food, with Ralph taking his to go, before leaving. As he did, William helped himself to his toast, glowing with triumph on the inside.
That had gone even better than he thought it would. If things went well, he’d soon have dozens of new employees, ready to help make his restaurant a success. And it wasn’t just a good thing for him either. He couldn’t imagine that all those employees were too happy working for Murray. And now, he was going to give them all new, better jobs for higher pay. Really, it was the best case scenario for everyone involved.
Well, everyone except for Murray, of course.
But that was just how business worked. No matter how much people might say otherwise, the truth was that not everybody could win. In the end, someone always had to lose. And if what Ralph had said was true, then Murray had brought this upon himself. The staff would have quit eventually. William was just giving them a place to go, that’s all.
As he enjoyed his meal, it suddenly occurred to William that Henry might not appreciate his little plan. It made sense, William thought. He and Edwin had been friends in the past.
But William knew Henry would come around in the end. It might take a while, but Henry would see that it would all be for the best. Both for them, and for all the new hires they were about to get.
‘Yes,’ William thought as he finished off his meal, leaving behind the money as he got up to leave. ‘Everything was going to be just fine.’