Day 2x3 - Take A Deep Breath, Just Think

"He was a wreck and he knew it."

You really needed to get back to work. Finding Freddy and sorting this out would just have to wait. Knowing the plex he could be all over still looking for you. If he finds you then you'll deal with him. You shrug and head back to the parts and services area.

The trip back is uneventful. There was no sign of Freddy or any of the main animatronics. The manager was still MIA as well. You didn't have a way out. That was the least of your concerns however. The issue of 'Moon' was still out there. He said he was "filling in for the manager" and that the "manager was out for the moment". It occurs to you that it could mean he was just sleeping or busy elsewhere but you had no idea what Moon was capable of. You also knew nothing about this Moon. Best just avoid him for now, you think.

There was also the matter of your watch which you left in the corridor. You decided to leave it there and go for it later. One of the janitor bots probably picked it up, you think. Either that or Freddy got it. It was the least of your concerns now. It's not like it had much of a use anyways. The manager was MIA.

You return to parts and services and unlock the door. The room had been untouched since you last were in here. With a lock and a chair blocking the door you secure the room and get back to work.

"Now, where was I?" You ponder aloud. You take a seat and slump in your chair. Sitting next to Bonnie and begin working away at the wires. Your stunt from earlier messed up a bit of the circuitry. But not any worse than it already was. You get to untangling, replacing and fixing the wires and gears. You get lost in your work as time passes, a newfound fervor taking over.

Upstairs Freddy was in his room waiting for Moon. Had he not found the guard? Maybe he found him but didn't tell? Maybe Moon is in on it? Moon always was the mysterious one. Maybe he made Bonnie disappear? Freddy's thoughts swirled in his head. He had so many questions but nobody to answer them. He was calmer now but anxiety had just replaced his desperation and rage.

He had been sitting on his couch hunched over thinking about all the possible scenarios and events that transpired over the past night. His mind was looping as he already spent the day thinking constantly about the bow and past memories with Bonnie. It even affected his performance. He was a wreck and he knew it. He let out a deep sigh.

It helped relax his servos.

He knew he couldn't just stay here. Moon wasn't coming and he felt it. Taking his fazwatch and yours he left his room. There was one place he wanted to visit.

He half considered asking his bandmates for help but Chica was nowhere to be found, Roxanne was busy styling her hair and Monty hated to be bothered at this time of the night. They wouldn't understand anyways. They had already all pretty much given up on consoling him. This was something he, himself needed to face.

The only person he knew he would be able to help him was...Gregory. Of course, he thought. Gregory was always good at finding things and getting into unusual places. Freddy couldn't believe he hadn't thought of it sooner. He quietly cursed himself for not being able to think straight.

Freddy's eyes flicked briefly. He refreshed himself, the animatronic equivalent of splashing cold water on his face. He figured he would spend the rest of the night looking and then tomorrow finally get some answers. Before he did that there was one place he needed to stop at.

The janitor bots had finished cleaning up the plex leaving a dimly lit empty mall in their wake. As if on autopilot Freddy walked from his room to the bowling alley. He had some thinking to do.

He took a seat on the stage, looking out at the scene in front of him. Videos of playing shows here played back in his mind. Memories of him hanging out and playing bowling flashed through his head. He sighed.

"Where did you go?" He asked quietly.

You were consumed by your work, minutes turning into hours turning into the rest of your shift. You were too engrossed in your work to notice time moving. Not Freddy nor Moon nor the guard came by at all to stop you.

As you continued working on the interior you found yourself having trouble getting to some of the gears directly under the chestplate. The puncture hole in the plate was too far from where you needed to reach. There had to be a way to open it up. There was a crease on the plate indicating it was possible.

Putting your hand back into the chest you fiddle around for a switch or some kind. Hitting a few levers and screws you eventually find it. The chest pops open, splitting up into 2 pieces.

"W-whoa!"

It nearly hits your face but you manage to move away quickly. You weren't sure the purpose of such a crevice but at least you could now reach the wires.

As you untangled and organized them something stood out. Located about in the centre of the tangled mess was a folded piece of paper. It was tangled in a bunch of wires but looked to have been intentionally tangled. It was crumpled a bit but you managed to unfold it. It was only slightly ripped. It was a crude drawing of Bonnie and Freddy on a 2D grassy field. By the level of detail you figure it was drawn by some kid. They were standing beside each other looking towards the artist, arms on each other's shoulders. Like friends, you thought.

"Hmm." It was a useful clue in determining Freddy and Bonnie's relationship. Between what Chica had said, this photo and Freddy's desperate reaction you realize you judged him incorrectly. You decide that whatever had happened to Bonnie, Freddy must have not been involved. Now that you thought of it, Freddy's reaction was that of the sadness of missing a friend. It was not fear of being found out of killing one.

He was innocent. Based on your assessment it also put Chica near the clear. You still wanted some additional proof for her.

You pocket the photo and decide to give it to Freddy first thing tomorrow. Hopefully it will straighten things out.

"He's coming for you." You instantly freeze up. A mechanical voice that sounded like the map bot spoke. It couldn't have been Bonnie. Shaking from an impending panic attack, you look at Bonnie's head. There was no sign of life. It wasn't him.

"No he's not." Another mechanical voice, this one sounding higher pitched. It was coming from outside the workshop. Both voices sounded a bit like the map bot.

"He won't know."

"He doesn't know." It almost sounded like they were arguing.

With as much courage as you could muster you get your tazer out and peer out the door, ready for combat. You saw a few metres down the hall were two janitor bots. They hadn't noticed you and they were engaged in conversation.

"You'll bring him back."

"We'll see."

"He wants to come back."

"We'll see."

Why here? Why now? You think.

"Bring."

"Him."

"Back."

Both bots turn to you. You swear you see something in them flash bright red for a second.

"Set him free."

You immediately close the door, fear gripping you. You get ready for them to start beating on the door any second. You turn on your tazer and it makes an audible whirring sound. This was it, you think. If only Bonnie was up. You stand tensely for minute but the bots never come. Ear pressed to the wall you just hear them roll past it and somewhere else.

What the hell were they talking about, you think. Did those bots have some kind of advanced AI too? No way, that map bot proved otherwise. What did they mean? Did they mean Bonnie, or was Freddy going to find you? Freddy. Yeah, he must have set them up to do that, find you and intimidate you. You rationalize it as Freddy setting you up. You needed to end whatever 'this' was ASAP.

It occurs to you that with this place being dangerous you needed allies. This gave even more reason to seek Freddy out.

Your nerves were acting up. You rush to your work to continue hoping it will get your find off him.

Peering inside the chest cavity you find what you believe to be his internal clock. Judging by its state of disrepair it had to have been dead. You hoped it wouldn't mess with anything later but you replace it with a new clock battery. There was a wire connecting it to the missing battery which probably charged it occasionally. No doubt it was dead, Bonnie having not being charged for almost 2 years now. As for his main battery, you didn't have the tools to fix that yet.

With clocks on your mind the next thing you notice is the time. It was almost 6, around the time your "shift" ended. You get out a clipboard and write down your report of Bonnie's progress. You also leave a note inquiring about if you had to paint Bonnie yourself. You also leave a note asking if it was normal for the janitor and other bots to just randomly converse. Even barring Freddy trying to chase you down that was the creepiest thing you'd encountered so far.

In your phone you leave a few notes, one for getting a tetanus shot ASAP and one about Chica's arm. In case you had some extra time tomorrow you decide to help her out.

With a full nights work under your belt you nod and say bye to Bonnie getting ready to head out.

"See you tomorrow." You say to Bonnie. The lights flicker off and you lock the door.

The walk back was uneventful. There was no sign of Moon or Freddy. You were able to freely leave as the morning prep staff showed up for work. On the way out you did briefly see the night manager but he was in a hurry of his own. He looked to be fine.

You figure you just misinterpreted Moon earlier.

On the ride back you debrief the day. Freddy was most likely innocent. Chica was leaning towards innocent but you needed more information. You'd only spoken briefly to Roxanne and her first interactions with you had her threatening you. She wasn't off the hook yet. And you hadn't met Monty yet so you chose not to judge.

Either way, you had convinced yourself that Bonnie was murdered.

You think maybe you could collect alibis for the night. Though you didn't think the animatronics had the capability of pathological lying. While that 'AI' was advanced, you didn't think it as advanced as that.

As soon as you entered your apartment you flung yourself onto the couch, eager to fall asleep. Nevermind the gnawing hunger upon you, you needed sleep. Being chased by a 1000 pound beast does that to you.

Tomorrow night was going to be just as busy, if not more.