Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Everyone knows that it is hard to find a job that pays you a living wage, most only offer a check slightly above minimum wage - barely enough to cover rent and food at the same time. So of course, when an opportunity presents itself, you might jump at a higher pay stub…Right?

Molly Barnes was in the middle of her university career, studying the ever growing field of mechanical engineering. She, like many of her peers, sought a job building animatronics for all sorts of purposes. However, it was still widely considered to be an extremely niche job. There was only one company actively producing such feats of engineering: Fazbear Entertainment.

This particular company is whom Molly was writing her midterm essay on. She had only just found some energy and motivation to continue where she left off, pulling up every source she could and opening her document;

Their entire company was shrouded in rumor and speculation from the moment the first pizzeria opened. Fredbear’s Family Diner had opened in the late 70’s, having a fierce competition with the ever popular Chuck E. Cheese that had opened just two years prior. Molly had studied the animatronics that were used in both establishments. The animatronics from both franchises had many key differences, of course, as the designers and programmers for the beloved characters had little to no interaction with one another.

The Chuck E. Cheese franchise seemed to struggle as Fredbear’s Family Diner quickly gained traction thanks to the face of their company: Fredbear. He was a golden bear with a purple bowtie, top hat, and “charming” personality, affectionately called “Golden Freddy”, Fredbear and his similarly coloured rabbit companion, Bonnie, captured the hearts of children across the United States. However, it seemed this was not enough for the already widely popular chain.

Rumors and speculation quickly started - many suspected Chuck E. Cheese’s marketing team to be the root cause. Rumors that Fredbear’s recycled uneaten pizza to sell to guests, alongside cautioning guests that the animatronic characters were haunted; soon, things began to spiral.

A young boy was bitten by the Fredbear animatronic in 1983, dying a mere five days later.

Fredbear’s Family Diner was quickly shut down by none other than co-founder William Afton - rumor has it that it had been one of his own sons that suffered the fatal wound.

The company was disbanded, Henry Emily and William Afton appearing to go their separate ways under rather tense circumstances. Chuck E. Cheese went on to become the new stop for family fun and entertainment. Many were quick to forget Fredbear’s Family Diner after the gruesome incident, what with the fame its competitor quickly garnered. But everything was soon to change.

In 1985, Fazbear Entertainment was founded. Henry Emily had returned with a fresh plan and a new face for the company. Rekindling his friendship with William Afton, the two quickly got to work on four brand new animatronics.

First, there was the star, and the new face of Fazbear entertainment: Freddy Fazbear. A jolly grizzly bear with a matching black top hat and bowtie that sang songs for all of the kiddos to enjoy!

Next was Bonnie Bunny. A rocking purple bunny with a love for playing bass and quite the sassy personality!

Then, Chica Chicken. A bubbly chicken who loves pizza, games, and sharing!

Finally came Foxy the Pirate. A swashbuckling fox who teaches children the importance of friendship and trust - all in a fun, pirate themed manner!

Unfortunately, the lawsuits were almost instantaneous.

They did not stay afloat for long. But after a quick shut down and rebranding, Fazbear Entertainment was back on its feet! Their new line of toy animatronics and additional friends such as Balloon Boy and the Marionette were introduced. Things were going well!

Until that fateful day: The Bite of ‘87.

A security guard, whose name was never released, was bitten by an animatronic during the dayshift. He survived, but pressed no charges. Fazbear Entertainment, once again, went dark.

As the 90’s rolled around, Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria was built, and wrought with suspicion. Rumors, old and new, were started by the older generations who remembered the already long and arduous past of the company - whether driven by nostalgia or morbid curiosity, families flocked to the establishment. Old faces were brought back. Freddy, Chica, Bonnie, Foxy - the whole gang! Of course, they weren't without their quirks. Still, Freddy’s stayed open for quite a while. It was far past the time Freddy’s finally managed to stay open. With all of the money they raked in, they were able to afford such a powerful legal team that lawsuits were either successfully contested, or easily settled monetarily. Molly had read up on all she could as she was putting in her application. Their most recent attraction was hiring - a job at Freddy Fazbear’s Mega Pizzaplex, a pizzeria with the size and additional attractions of a mall.

Molly’s hands pause, tired eyes blankly watching the text cursor blink. Her rather sudden bout of motivation had slowly been draining with each word she managed to spill into the Word document before her; perhaps it was time for a break.

Her old swivel chair creaks and groans as Molly slowly pulls her arms into a stretch. She arches her back, continuing to stretch until a series of satisfying pops reaches her ears, now melting back into a resting position.

“Just needs some format adjustments, few more paragraphs,” Molly yawns, wiping away the involuntary tears that gathered at the edges of her eyes, “maybe I should ask Jayce to read over it? They’re probably still up.”

Molly’s twin had an even worse sleep schedule than she did. Which is, in and of itself, a terrifying thought! She felt she had a pretty good handle on hers.

However, a quick glance at the clock nearly startles her to her feet: it was already almost midnight! Had she really been working for that long?

Molly rubs her eyes as she pushes herself to her feet. She still needed to shower, brush her teeth, finish up some other homework - her heart thumped rapidly against her chest. Molly was getting too worked up about things. So long as she went to bed and fell asleep by 1, she’d get in a solid six hours!

___________________________________________________________________

This…was not ideal.

Not only had Molly not fallen asleep until 5AM, but she had to rush the end of some blueprints for a voice box that morning; hopefully her Component Design professor would understand.

Molly had parked in her usual spot and was fixing to get out when she caught sight of her reflection. She adjusts her rearview mirror, brows furrowing and eyes narrowing.

Dark circles plagued her blue and grey eyes, standing out against the gentle earthy tones of her skin. At this point, it seemed no amount of concealer would help; not that she had any interest in using it. Though, it probably wouldn’t hurt to try - Dakota most likely had something she could use, considering they were required to carry around that giant make-up kit.

Checking her watch, Molly can’t help but groan; it was already almost 8:30. If she had any hopes of staying awake during class, she needed a pick-me-up: the on-campus cafe was just the place to go.

It was only a short walk from the parking lot, however the line stretched much farther than she anticipated. There went that idea.

Molly presses her chin into the groove between her thumb and index finger; perhaps an energy drink would be a better substitute? There’s a vending machine just outside of her first class, so it wouldn’t take long to grab one-

“BOO!”

Two fingers jab Molly’s lower back firmly, a rather embarrassing squeaky yelp following her as she nearly tumbles to the ground.

She whips around, arms pressed tight against her sides. “Dakota,” she sighs, muscles relaxing, “you scared the shit out of me.”

The sight of her friend’s round, smiling face was comforting- even if they did just scare them back into a more alert state.

“Sorry, couldn’t resist! You were lost all up in space again so I brought you back down,” Dakota shrugs as they gently thrust a cup in Molly’s direction, “anyway, here! Figured you didn’t sleep too great, so I went ahead and bought’cha a cappuccino!”

Feeling the warmth of the paper cup meet her hands was almost enough to make Molly burst into tears. How Dakota always knew what she needed, she might never know, but she hoped some day she’d be able to pay them back.

“Oh my gosh, thank you- are you some kind of mind-reader?” Molly jokes before taking a tentative sip - caramel, her favourite!

Dakota hums as they tap their index finger to their chin. “Maybe I am! Orrrrr maybe I saw you playing Skyrim at four in the morning again.”

“Oh- um- how did you uh?”

“You do realize Discord tells me when you’re on a game, right?” Dakota raises a brow, a smirk tugging at their lips. “You’re not as subtle as you might think!”

Of course, Molly thought, Dakota had to be up even earlier than her - maybe she should have waited to send those screenshots of her latest glitch encounters.

Dakota’s giggling brings Molly back from her thoughts. “Awww, c’mon, don’t look so embarrassed! You’re lucky it was me that saw and not Kody- he would’ve reemed you for being up so late!”

Being told not to be embarrassed just made Molly’s face warmer. “Maybe we should get to class,” she says, sliding past her friend as they continue to grin at her.

Most of the day blurred on after that. By the time she tuned back into reality, she was gathering her things to leave for the day. Hopefully her notes were legible enough to do her homework tonight.

Homework..that’s right!

Molly tears herself from her seat, muttering quick apologies to the classmates that still lingered in their seats as she passed. She stumbles her way down towards her professor’s desk and slaps the blueprints down - perhaps a bit too loudly, as the professor looked pretty shocked. Though she smiles nonetheless.

“I was wondering when you were gonna hand this in,” she jokes in a gentle manner, “but you looked frazzled walking in today, so I didn’t press.”

“I appreciate that, Professor Kayde- I ahm..kinda had to rush it this morning,” Molly rubs the back of her head, “didn’t actually fall asleep until about, um, 5- maybe 5:20-ish?”

Professor Kayde pulls the blueprints from underneath Molly’s hand. “Oh, these do look a bit rushed,” she hums softly as she pulls out a pair of reading glasses, “but, a few squiggly lines won’t change the ingenuity of these plans! Excellent work.”

The student lets out a slow, quiet sigh of relief. All she had to do was stand here and wait for the grade!

“Now,” Professor Kayde starts as she hands the neatly rolled up blueprints back to Molly, “you can start on part two. You should be able to find most of the parts you need in the storage room just down the hall! My partner can help you find everything.” Professor Kayde smiles softly before placing a gentle hand on Molly’s arm. “And, one insomniac to another, melatonin gummies are half off at Market Square.”

Molly thanks Professor Kayde profusely before rushing to gather the rest of her things. That was one stressful project out of the way, now onto the next: building the voice box.

Perhaps she should have chosen something simpler - many of her peers were doing easy motor systems for toy cars, or joints for simple animatronics, stuff that could very easily be demonstrated. Making a voice box required programming, coding, and some sort of vessel for it to sit inside; something she needed more prints for. But first, she needed parts!

She makes her way to the end of the hall, spotting the propped open storage room door and hearing the familiar, scratchy voice of Professor Kayde’s partner: the vice principal of the school, Emery Hunt.

It was always so strange speaking to the vice principal so casually, but Mx. Hunt was so charismatic and friendly, it was easy to forget that they could easily ruin any student’s career - Molly’s seen it before.

Just as Molly is fixing to push open the door, a paper filled to the brim with gradients and neon colours caught her eye. Just outside of the storage room sat one of the many job boards - when did it get down here? Maybe a last second decision was made to move it where the engineering students were more likely to see it?

Regardless of the reason, Molly takes a closer look. This board looked to be chock full of job offers aimed towards engineering students! Manufacturers looking for fresh ideas, entry level robotics jobs- finally, Molly’s eyes land on the poster that had caught her eye in the first place.

Apparently, Fazbear Entertainment was looking for someone in or close to finishing engineering school for, as the poster put it, “a hybrid janitor and basic maintenance position” at their Mega Pizzaplex attraction.

Molly took note of the hours. It looked to be a full time job, and a night shift to boot! Oh she loved that - she wouldn’t have to deal with any other human employees, nor would she have to deal with the patrons that frequented the Pizzaplex! On top of that, it wouldn’t interfere with her current class schedule.

A small QR code sits just below the listed hours, a cartoon depicting a bear wearing shoulder pads and make-up resembling that of an 80’s rockstar. She pushes it aside, sliding her phone from her pocket and quickly scanning the code. It brings her to a rather garish website (something her parents probably would’ve gone on in their teenage years), but it was easy enough to find a list of the qualities the company was looking for.

Molly skimmed through a few of the desired traits, seeing as they were preferred but not required; mostly just things like “experience handling large animatronics” and “ the ability to fit through industrial size vents”.

Reading through the actual requirements for the job, Molly found that she fit the bill pretty well. It was asking for at least 3-5 years experience cleaning large facilities and working for long hours. Molly could do that. After all, she did clean a hospital for a while, she was no stranger to harsh chemicals and long hours.

Sending in the application was easy enough. It was all online so she just had to copy and paste bits and pieces from her resume and she was done with it! She figured there were quite a few people lunging for the job. After all, it does pay $25 per hour, and at the very least she’d be working eight hours, she’d be making more than enough to survive in a one person apartment. Any sane college student would leap at an opportunity like this in her opinion!

However, Molly felt anxiety spread across her chest. She knew she had the right qualifications for the job but it was still a toss up as to whether or not she would land it - hoping to be hired was all she could do.

Over the next few days, Molly anxiously went about her classes. She had not heard back about her application. Had they chosen someone else?

To ease her worries, she had gone back to apply to a few of the other job opportunities posted on the board. After all, it wasn’t smart to put all of your eggs in one basket! If she didn’t get the job she was really after, she’d still have other applications to fall back on for some extra income.

Now, lying on her bed staring at the glow-in-the-dark star stickers plastered all over the ceiling, Molly attempts to at least rest her body. She had been pretty busy gathering parts for her project, though there were a few key components she was missing, but maybe she could rummage through the local dump for something instead? So long as she got the owner’s permission of course-

BZZZZZT!

Her phone. That was her phone! Could this be it?

Molly throws herself across the room, tripping over clothes, stray books, and even her own desk chair before finally reaching her phone settled on her disorganized desk. Quickly, she unlocks it, spotting a notification for an email; from Fazbear Entertainment.

An unidentifiable feeling shoots through her body like fire. This could be it! Then again, this could be an email simply thanking her for applying, following it with a hard “but”. She carefully reads the first couple of words.

”Congratulations, Molly Barnes, and welcome to the Fazbear family!”

Molly has to force herself not to scream. She got the job! It did not register with her yet that she hadn’t even had an interview - who would if you land a job paying as much as this one?

She scans the rest of the email, taking in every word with careful consideration. They were wanting her to sign a contract, and, as the email put, “just a few waivers” - it was probably all legal mumbo jumbo. Companies that dealt heavily with electronic entertainment often did need to have certain things waived, but they usually made up for it in medical benefits. Molly continues to read over the email.

It asked for her uniform measurements. She also appeared to be eligible for a complimentary character jacket from the gift shop at a “waived fee” - not exactly complimentary if she still had to pay for it, but that 60% discount was tempting. Considering she had only ever seen the characters from the Pizzaplex on commercials, but the gator looked pretty cool.

Now, as she opens up the PDFs for the contract and the waivers, this is where she makes her first mistake.

She only skims the waivers. Molly had guessed that they were just legal mumbo jumbo about handling dangerous chemicals and the possibility of electrocution if she needed to change any light bulbs or mess with a breaker box. She signs them without a second thought.

Her second mistake? Signing the contract without even glancing at it for more than a second.

She had caught the words “dangerous situations” and “possibility of bodily harm”, but it didn’t stick out to her as any stranger than working at the hospital where she would sometimes need to balance precariously on a ladder while she changed an oblong light bulb in the hallway.

Molly makes sure to type up an excited, yet professional, blurb at the top of her response email, adding in her measurements at the bottom of it before attaching the contract and waivers. After pausing to take a deep breath, she sends it off.

As soon as the confirmation bubble popped up Molly leapt from her seat with a loud holler.

“I got the job!” She bounds into the kitchen, spinning and twirling so much that she startles her elderly cat casually chewing on her bowl of kibble.

It was her irritated meowing that snaps Molly from her overwhelming excitement

Walking over, the ravenette picks up the frail tabby and holds her like a mother would her newborn baby. “Piperrrr! I got the job!” She lifts the cat up and kisses her fuzzy forehead. “That means we can finally get you better food for your sensitive little tummy!” Molly snuggles the tabby gently, feeling her shoulders relax at Piper’s raspy purrs. Still holding her cat, Molly ventures back into her room to see if she had gotten any response yet. It had only been five minutes so she wasn’t expecting much yet. However, there was already a new email! This one had ‘DO NOT REPLY’ attached to it:

“Excellent,

We will see you Monday at 8AM sharp for a tour of the facilities! Wear something casual and comfortable - a worker bot will provide you with your uniform upon entry. You will be given a brief orientation, and sent back home to prepare for your first day of real work on Tuesday!

We look forward to seeing you, and once again, welcome to the Fazbear family!

See you soon!”

Molly feels a wide smile stretch across her face. This was really happening! She sits there for a few moments, just snuggling Piper and giving her every bit of love and attention she so rightfully deserved, until her eyes drift to the time and date listed in the corner of her computer screen. Her breath hitches in her throat as she jumps up. “Oh geez- that’s tomorrow! I haven’t even showered- ahhhh it’s already 9, I gotta email my professors- shoot, did I eat dinner?”

Plopping Piper onto the bed, Molly frantically goes about her newly made list of chores as she prepares a ready-made meal. And after making sure Piper had clean litter and water for the night, she finally settles into bed. She could feel Piper snuggling up onto the small of her back with quite the tired old lady cat groan. Molly couldn’t help but smile.

Tomorrow was going to be fun.

___________________________________________________________________

Molly was up and dressed by 6:30 the next morning. She had been almost too anxious to sleep, but managed to get enough rest to not feel like a groggy, zombified mess.

Now fussing over her appearance as she looks into her full-length mirror, Molly quickly wondered if she looked professional enough in the most casual way. Of course, even some of her most casual looks when going out were widely considered prim and proper.

She had layered a brown sweater vest over a tan button up, tucking the hems of both into the freshly pressed khaki pants she opted for over jeans. They were far more comfortable, and even had deeper pockets! And after putting on her belt, it was time to grab some shoes - her combat boots seemed to be the best choice.

She takes another few moments to take in the rest of her appearance. Despite getting to bed at a decent time, there were still visible dark circles under her eyes from the long nights where she just couldn’t find a way to sleep. Chronic insomnia was a bitch, but she handled it as best she could. Piper definitely helped on the really bad nights.

Molly really counted herself lucky that this month had been really light when it came to the sleepless nights - perhaps this job would help even more? After all, she'd be working the graveyard shift after today, and since the facility had been described as being "mall sized", she knew for a fact that she had her work cut out for her. The thought of maintenance of the animatronics was pretty reassuring as well.

Considering how much each one weighed and how big they’ve been described to be, Molly knew it would most likely take a good bit to get each of them cleaned up when the task came to light.

Smoothing out her wild, curly black hair, Molly couldn't help but wonder who would be giving her a tour - would she have a manager to report to? Would she be her own manager? She could see her own fear reflected in her eyes; would she have to interact with other people? She desperately hoped not. Molly had never been good at it, what with all of the nervous ticks people seemed to find joy in pointing out. The way she twisted and pulled at the hem or collar of her shirt, curled locks of her hair around her finger, covered her mouth when she spoke, the incessant scratching at any patch of skin Molly's hands could find uncovered on her body - please, she was begging the universe, please let her be her own manager.

Finally, it came time for her to leave. Molly made certain, once again, that Piper had plenty of food, water, and clean litter before putting on a playlist of music she found Piper enjoyed. Was it odd? Yeah, maybe it was, but it kept the old cat from getting too lonely when Molly was gone. She did worry for Piper. After all, the tabby was about 15 years old at this point - Molly had raised her from a newborn kitten she fished out of a dumpster when she was ten. It had been a fight to get her parents to agree to keep Piper, but Molly managed, and now here they are 15 years later, sharing an apartment. Molly takes a moment to give Piper's soft little forehead a few kisses.

"Be good Piper, okay? I'll be back later today." She tells the tabby, earning a raspy, chittery 'mow' in response.

The Pizzaplex itself wasn't too far from her apartment, a 10-15 minute drive at most, really depended on traffic. Molly had a feeling she wouldn't have to worry much about that when she starts working her actual hours.

Pulling into the parking lot, Molly was shocked by how many people were already there. Lucky for her, the email had also assigned her a parking space around the side of the building.

It was a little concerning how empty it was. There only seemed to be about five cars, after all, and one of them seemed to be in rather rough shape. Something from the 80’s, maybe? It looked pretty old. It was a miracle the rust bucket was anywhere near driving condition, really. It looked to be an old Chevy; a Monte Carlo SS.

Molly scoffs to herself - why have such a nice, sought after car and not take care of it? Rust plagued almost every bit of its surface, the candy red paint long since dulled and faded. It was sad, really, but she knew it was a pretty niche thing to be upset about.

Other than that there seemed to just be an SUV of some kind, a couple of pickups, and a singular jeep. It was probably the most well taken care of vehicle there; not a scratch or dent to be seen! The owner must not go off-road a lot.

After judging the cars she saw in, what she assumed to be, the employee parking lot, Molly grabs up her satchel and heads inside. She wasn’t entirely sure on what their policy was on bringing bags to work, however it did have her wallet, keys, and a small bag of feminine products just in case. Molly had also double checked that she had stocked up on bandaids and Advil - from the sight of the ginormous neon sign at the front entrance, Molly could only guess at how many more were housed inside. She would rather not have to deal with any migraines late at night when she needed to focus.

It was a bit jarring to walk through the side door and immediately be faced with a long, dim, and slightly damp looking hallway. From the looks of the industrial lights sloppily hung on the walls, Molly guessed that this was a service tunnel of sorts. What she wouldn’t give for a map right now.

Pressing forward, that was exactly what she got.

Molly had made it maybe five steps past the threshold of the ‘employees only’ door, when a metallic hand suddenly thrusts at her from the darkness.

”Please, take a map.”

Molly screams, throwing herself back against the door as she swings a foot out to strike the source of her fright. Pain shoots up her leg as she hits solid metal, a squeak of both pain and regret echoing down the hallway as she collapses, hands clutching her ankle.

”Owwwww-” She whimpers, doing her best to hold back tears.

Once again, a metallic hand appears in front of her face, but it was only now that she realized there was a folded piece of paper clutched between the gloved fingers. “Please, take a map.” It repeats, staring blankly at Molly, either completely oblivious to her pain or not concerned with it

The bot’s rosy, painted cheeks did nothing to soothe Molly’s rage as she glares at the bot, slowly pushing herself off of the ground. She watches as the bot’s hand rises with her, still holding out the map. Before it can repeat itself again, Molly slides the map from its fingers.

She flinches as the map-bot straightens up again. It appeared satisfied that it had successfully given out a map, however it was now rolling aimlessly down the length of the hallway, repeating “Does anyone want a map?” and “Free maps” as though there were more people than just Molly in the vicinity.

If this was how her first day was going to go, then Molly was far less prepared than she had previously thought.

___________________________________________________________________

Molly had eventually located some stairs that directed her upwards towards the main entrance. She was glad to see that Map-Bot was not following her - she would rather not see him again. Ever .

She suppresses a shiver as she pushes open the door leading out into the guest entrance area. There was already a sizable crowd of families, many with children already clearly hyped up on their own energy supply, and tired parents that looked about ready to collapse from exhaustion. Molly felt for them, but couldn’t entirely relate to that sort of seemingly endless source of energy-sapping. As she is about to start walking again, she feels a surprisingly gentle tap on the top of her shoulder. Thinking it was a person, she turns to greet them, only to be met with a mouthless face that looks exactly like Map-bot’s, minus the dramatically rosy cheek circles. This seemed to be a running theme for the working bots in this place already.

Before Molly can speak, the bot starts in its monotonous, somewhat masculine, voice.

”Welcome, valued employee, to your first day on the job. I will be your guide -zzt- Guide bot. Please take this bag and follow me.”

Very quickly, a string bag is thrust at her, Molly having to scramble to grab it before Guide bot drops it on the floor in front of all of the now watching guests. Molly quickly scurries after Guide bot as it (he?) rolls away from her at quite the fast pace, doing her best to ignore the gazes of the surrounding patrons burning on the back of her head.

Guide bot wastes no time beginning the tour then and there as Molly takes a quick peek into the string bag. “Inside the bag, you will find: a uniform in the size requested, an official Pizzaplex staff hat, a nametag, a badge, a set of keys, and a voucher for 60% off your choice of character letterman's jacket in the gift shop. Pleaseusewithin30daysorthevoucherwillbevoided .”

Molly blinks in confusion. “Huh..?” She mutters, eyebrows knitting together - what was that about the voucher? Molly didn’t have time to ask as the Guide bot continued.

The tour was fairly extensive. There were about two floors in total - Guide bot even showed her a special employee elevator! Though, he had explained that it was for her to use when she needed to wheel around the cleaning cart if there were still guests present at the Pizzaplex.

After a while of struggling to keep up with Guide bot, he seemed to turn towards an ‘Employees only’ door, pushing it open and staring at Molly as she hesitated.

Was this robot holding the door open for her? “Oh, thank you, Guide bot!” Though she knew he most likely couldn’t actually perceive it, she smiles at him as she passes through the door. A few moments later, he rolls himself in after her.

Molly was now faced with a slightly cleaner hallway, this one covered in white and gray tiles akin to those you’d find in a home bathroom. She found herself a little creeped out by the dim lighting, but soon pressed on as Guide bot rolled past her.

He explains that this was the laundry and employee locker room. So this was where she was supposed to bring her stuff!

Guide bot soon stops her in front of one of the lockers, gesturing to it, then to Molly. “This is your locker. Fazbear Entertainment does not provide locks of any kind.” He says, then spins so that his back is facing Molly - however, he does not roll away. “Please change into your uniform. Please say “I am ready” when you are finished so that we may proceed.”

So they programmed a robot to not only have manners, but to take privacy into consideration as well. Molly found herself impressed by the amount of work she was already seeing in these bots. As to not waste Guide bot’s time, Molly quickly strips off her casual clothes, and slides on her uniform. It was a simple deep turquoise jumpsuit, along with a white tank-top to go underneath. The fabric was surprisingly soft, and even smelled faintly of flowers. It was rather pleasant. There also appeared to be a pair of steel-toed boots inside - good. A second pair of boots always comes in handy!

After pulling her own shoes back on and making sure the ends of her pants were tucked inside, Molly nods to herself. The uniform itself was still a tiny bit baggy, even though it was the smallest size they seemed to have available. As another shiver runs up her spine, she realized quickly that the uniform’s fabric was pretty thin - no wonder they offered a “complimentary” jacket.

Molly hesitates for a moment as she tries again to smooth out her wild black hair. “Er- I’m uh- I am ready-”

Guide bot began rolling as soon as the last syllable rolled off of Molly’s tongue, causing the small woman to have to jog in order to catch up. The boots were harder to walk in than she had anticipated, but she would make them work. For now, she just needed to focus on following Guide bot.

The bot continues to explain the facilities to her, Molly’s head already filled to the brim with information she wasn’t sure she would remember after just one tour. She hated to say it, but she was grateful that Map-bot had given her a map.

After a few hours of trekking around, Guide bot finally rolls to a stop in front of the Superstar Daycare. He spins on his wheel, startling Molly, and gestures to it. “This is the Superstar Daycare, where the Daycare Attendant, Sunman - more affectionately known as Sundrop - will watch over children too young to participate in rides and games,” he pauses as he opens the door, “this will be the final stop on the tour.”

Molly hadn’t heard a more welcoming string of words that day. Her feet were aching horribly, and her head was starting to hurt from the amount of fluorescent lights within the Pizzaplex. She hoped they were at least dimmed a little when the Pizzaplex closed down for the night.

Following Guide bot, and thanking him once again as he holds open the door, Molly was impressed by how much there actually seemed to be inside of the Daycare itself. There were posters of, what she assumed to be, the attendant - were there two of them? Guide bot had only mentioned one. Venturing further in, Molly becomes even more confused at the sight of the huge golden statue of the same two characters in the posters. They were…unsettling, to put it lightly. The ever-present, wide and toothy smiles just didn’t sit all that well with Molly. The jester theme was cute though. Walking through the designated sitting area for the parents, she takes quick notice of the huge glass pane taking up almost the entire wall, save for a portion that held a slide that led straight into the ball pit below.

Looking into the actual daycare portion, Molly noted how many kids were shouting with delight as they ran around, trying to poke each other - seemed to be a game of tag. Regardless of the game, the shouting was extremely faint. The glass and the walls around the daycare all seemed to be soundproof, most likely for the sanity of the parents currently waiting at the lunch tables. She still couldn’t see the daycare attendant, but she figured it was around somewhere.

Still, despite reassuring herself that it was around, she finds herself scanning the room for it, completely unaware that Guide bot had finished his tour and had left her to her own devices. It was strange that she couldn’t see it - shouldn’t it be watching the kids? Then, she felt eyes on her.

Whipping around, she figured it was one of the parents giving her a dirty look, however they all seemed preoccupied with their phones, tablets, or whatever papers they brought to work on. Molly suddenly feels another chill run down her back - this time, it wasn’t from the cold.

She was being watched .

Chapter Text

Molly’s muscles tensed. Her jaw clenched. Her hands gripped fistfuls of fabric. Should she turn around? What would happen if she did?

A tight feeling formed in her chest, growing more intense each second she kept her back turned to the wall of glass. Something was there, she just knew it - but the thought of confronting it wasn’t the most appealing idea.

However. If she was to be working here, she reasoned with herself, she had to be able to face such irrational fears! Surely whatever was behind her wasn’t entirely unfriendly.

Molly takes a deep breath, wiping the drops of cold sweat that run down her face as she turns her rigid body towards the glass.

At first she was confused. There wasn’t anything there. In fact, there was no way for anything to have been there! A quick glance further proved there was hardly more than an inch wide lip of molding.

Strange, but Molly had lingered long enough.

With a small sigh, she turns, only to be met with a yellow grinning face.

“Heeel-”

Molly throws herself backwards against the glass with a loud shout.

Silence falls between her and this new face as Molly drags her eyes to meet theirs.

The white, pupiless eyes, the jester-like clothing, the sharp triangular protrusions mimicking sunrays- it finally clicked.

This was the daycare attendant.

As if sensing Molly’s realization, the animatronic’s everlasting grin almost seems to grow wider.

“So sorry for startling you, friend! I just couldn’t help but notice,” they point two long fingers towards Molly’s current attire, “you’re wearing a uniform! Haven’t seen one of those in aaaaages , lemme tell ya!”

They were surprisingly talkative. The jarring change from the scripted STAFF bot to a rather chatty AI had her frozen.

It wasn’t until a hand is thrust towards her face that Molly snapped out of her daze.

“Oho, just where are my manners today- my name is Sundrop! Though, you can call me Sun. Or Sundrop. Or Sunny- or- well, whatever ya please, really!

Molly hesitates, still frozen against the wall of glass.

Sun tilts their head. “Not much for handshakes, then? How’s about a high-five instead!”

The attendant shifts their hand so that the palm was level with Molly’s eyes.

Still, she couldn’t move.

Never before had she been this close to such a marvel of technology. The AI could clearly take in information and adjust tactics - such advanced systems always seemed so out of reach, yet here it was. Speaking to her.

Sundrop waits patiently for Molly to respond. Their sunrays spun at a snail’s pace, occasionally retracting as though mimicking the shining of the actual sun.

Slowly, Molly lifts her hand and presses it to Sundrop’s. Her eyes widen at the feeling of a soft, silicon-like material meets her palm instead of the presumed metal.

Molly gasps, pressing her thumbs into Sundrop’s palm.

The animatronic’s sunrays pause their spinning. “Something the matter, friend?”

Molly shakes her head vigorously, a smile replacing her nervous frown. “Do you know what materials you’re made out of perchance?”

The question clearly catches the attendant by surprise. They tilt their head, lifting their free hand in order to inspect it.

“Huh,” their grin widens more, “can’t say I do!” A joyful laugh follows their words. A long finger gently pokes Molly’s nose, drawing her attention away from squishing Sundrop’s palm.

“Y’know, you’re quite amusing, friend! I think we’ll get along GRRRRREAT!”

An exaggerated laugh interrupts any attempts Molly made to respond, large hands grasping hers and bringing her into the air with a spin.

It took Molly a moment to process what had happened. She was now suspended in the air, held under the arms by Sundrop as though she were a small child.

“My my, you’re quite light! If not for the uniform, I might have mistaken you for a cardboard cutout! And from your biometric scan, it looks like you’re far overdue for a lunch break,” the sound of whirring mechanics catches Molly’s bewildered attention, guiding her eyes down towards Sundrop’s sides.

From two hatches on either side come two more arms. The hands sport white gloves, a patch depicting the sun embroidered onto the backs of them. Unlike Sundrop’s main set, these hands sported only four fingers - much like that of a cartoon character.

The gloved fingers poke and prod at Molly’s sides, turning out her pockets, pulling out her keys, wallet, and a stray mint she had forgotten to eat.

“Hm,” the animatronic’s voice buzzes, “a lonely little mint, ey? Not much nutritional value! No matter, I have JUST the thing!”

The second set of hands dive into the pockets of Sundrop’s colourful striped pants, rummaging around until finally pulling out a handful of candies wrapped in bright red and yellow paper.

Sundrop places Molly back on her feet as they thrust the candies into her hands.

“Well,” they prompt, “go on, go on! Try one!”

Molly hesitates. Was candy really the best idea for an otherwise empty stomach? But how could she say no, especially when Sundrop was so kind in offering.

The paper felt smooth against her fingers as she unwrapped one of them, now faced with a yellow-orange ball; lemon flavoured, perhaps? It almost looked too fake to be considered food - still, far be it from her to refuse genuine concern.

With some amount of hesitation, Molly places the candy on her tongue. As expected, citrus washed over her senses; though, not as sour as she had expected. It was sweet, energizing - much like a cold glass of orange juice. It shot a cool jolt up her spine, a visible shudder overtaking her.

Molly’s eyes lit up. “Whoa-ho,” she couldn’t help but exclaim, “talk about a system shock! What’s in these things?”

Sundrop ponders her question as she unwraps another one.

“Oh, citrus, mostly,” They wave a large hand, the second set retracting into their sides once again. There is a small pause. A slight whirring just barely filled it.

“And about fifty milligrams of caffeine.”

Molly nearly choked on the second candy. Thankfully, she was able to get it down with only a few seconds of struggle, blinking away involuntary tears as she whips her gaze upwards.

“FIFTY!?” Her voice echoed slightly in the otherwise empty waiting area.

A few parents lifted their heads and fixed their eyes on Molly. She could feel the suspicion and judgment radiating off of them in waves.

She swallows. The feeling of the candy lingered in her throat, but it didn’t distract from the anxiety clawing at her chest as the parents continued to stare at her through narrowed eyes. Molly did her best to shake it away.

Sundrop tilts their head as Molly grabs their arm and tugs. They lean down with a small mechanical hum.

“ Fifty milligrams,” she repeats much quieter, “that cannot be legal.”

The attendant’s ever-grinning expression almost seems to twitch. “Legal? Of course it’s legal, frieeeend!” One of their spindly hands reverses its grip to wrap around Molly’s wrist a little too tight for comfort. “And if you have aaaaany questions on our business operations, I can cerrrrtainly forward them to our beloved CEO!”

The way Sundrop dragged out their words really wasn’t sitting right with her.

“R- Right, um,” Molly takes a small step backwards, attempting to pull her arm out of the animatronic’s grip to no avail, “no questions here!”

She could feel Sundrop’s grip tightening by the second. It wouldn’t be wise to panic, given all of the watching eyes; it was starting to hurt quite a bit, though, and that did not help her nerves.

“W-Well,” she cursed herself for stammering, “I really should be- going-” Molly starts to pull and tug on her arm more obviously, strain evident in her voice.

Sundrop’s face definitely twitched this time. However, the strength of their hold remains.

The tension that built up could be cut with a knife. Sundrop just fixated their blank eyes on Molly. It was a struggle, but Molly forced herself to meet their gaze.

As she did, she could finally see that there seemed to be a thin outline of a pupil in the vast whiteness of Sundrop’s eyes. When did he get close enough for her to see that?

Rather than question it, Molly takes the opportunity to shove her hand as hard as she could into the animatronic’s face. If they were built how she’d guessed, then they had to have some form of sensor behind their faceplate, right?

Thankfully, her hypothesis proved correct, Sundrop quickly releasing Molly to smack a hand against the side of their head in an attempt to unscramble their sensor.

And as Molly retreated, she could feel eyes burning into the back of her skull.

Maybe she should avoid this spot from now on.

It was a relief to get away from the noise and bustle of the main atrium. Molly now found herself back in the ‘employee only’ area just before the maintenance tunnels, right between the stairs leading downwards and a door she hadn’t seen before.

She had been following signs posted up on the walls, each one reading “Employee Orientation” and displaying an arrow pointing whichever direction she needed to go. Simple enough to follow.

The door she hadn’t noticed before was labeled very clearly as the orientation room. Molly would have thought this would be the first place she’d go. Regardless, she was here now, and that’s really what mattered.

It didn’t take much force to open it. Now, she was faced with a rather blank looking room. Aside from the stench of mildew and the clear signs of water damage on the wallpaper, nothing was super eye-catching. There looked to be an old clock on the wall, and a metal armchair settled in front of a very old and worn looking analog TV set on a metal cart.

“Hm,” Molly glances around. It was pretty dimly lit in here, too. Did they not have a powerful enough lightbulb? Clearly not. She could barely make out the outlines of the walls just outside of the circle of cold light above her.

Finally, something odd catches her eye: an inactive STAFF bot, settled in the farthest corner of the room.

It looked odd from where she was standing - was this an old storage room?

She takes a few tentative steps towards it. The STAFF bots here didn’t seem to have the programming to act beyond a script, but her encounter with the daycare attendant still lingered in her mind enough to where she didn’t want to take chances.

The moment she was within a few feet of it, the bot sprang to life. Its head whipped upwards and its blank eyes lit up, providing just a smidge more light in the room.

It thrusts a hand in the direction of the chair.

“Please, have a seat.” It drones, its tone a single note. Molly stood before the STAFFbot, brow furrowed and ignoring its command. It looked quite a bit different from the others - it seemed to have been built on the same endoskeleton as the main band. It had actual legs...freaky. Cursed.

“Gross.” She mutters.

"Please, have a seat," it repeated, once again gesturing to the lone metal armchair sat in front of the old television.

She hesitates for a moment longer. The lack of human contact for such an important day was starting to feel more uncomfortable than before. Nevertheless, she settled herself into the chair, tension evident in her muscles. While it felt like bliss to finally be off of her feet, something just didn’t feel right.

The seat was freezing through the thin jumpsuit, however her attention was quickly drawn back to the television in front of her as the STAFFbot flicked it on. It was a wonder the thing still functioned given how warped the screen looked - the picture was none too impressive either, multiple pixels refusing to light and causing black flecks to dot the screen. Not unwatchable, but certainly annoying.

An unfamiliar voice soon reaches Molly's ears, introducing themself as "Henry Emily" - the co-founder of Fazbear Entertainment.

Ah. This must be the training video! She'd wondered when she’d get to watch it.

She found herself reclining in the chair as the video played. It was standard stuff, really; rules and regulations, expected behaviour, general duties, something about a chip that needed to be inserted into your head-

"Wait," Molly mumbles, straightening her posture. There was no way she heard that correctly. That didn't sound entirely legal, and with Fazbear's extensive history of legal trouble she wasn't exactly too trusting of anything that seemed even remotely out of the ordinary.

She pays far more attention to the video now, taking in every detail she could. From what she could gather, it was a neurological implant that allowed one access to a closed database of information; something only the technicians would be granted the "privilege of accessing". No thank you.

There had to be some kind of human management she could talk to about this. No way was she getting any kind of Fazbear tech permanently implanted anywhere on her person, whether that be an internal or external device.

“Oh hell no. No way,” she directs her gaze towards the STAFFbot. It stood stock-still, dead eyes staring ever forward. Creepy.

As the video kept playing, seemingly in the end stages now, Molly made to get up.

Only for frigid metal to close around her ankles, causing her to flop right back into the chair.

Molly yelps, an awful chill going up her spine. What in the hell was going on!? This definitely couldn’t be legal! Since when was any company allowed to strap their employees to chairs!

It was only logical, in this moment, for her to keep her arms as far away from the armrests of the chair as possible. If there were cuffs for the ankles, there had to be cuffs for the wrists.

Instead, Molly bends over to try and pry at the restraints. She could feel how solidly they were attached to the chair itself - there had to be a latch, right? If she could find it, maybe could wedge something into it. She had her keys on her, after all, and it didn’t take much to replace any of them.

Her plans, however, are dashed as metallic hands stiffly grab her shoulders and yank her back against the chair.

Molly grunts as she cranes her neck; it seems the once stationary STAFF bot did know how to use its legs. How unfortunate.

“Let go of me, you rusted piece of scrap!” Molly snaps. It was pretty useless to struggle against a machine, but what was she supposed to do? She couldn’t just sit here!

There’s a brief pause. But the STAFF bot soon does let go - only to slam its hands onto Molly’s arms, forcing them to the armrests of the chair and stunning her long enough for the assumed wrists cuffs to confirm their existence.

Well…that was kind of embarrassing.

A few extra curses slip past Molly’s lips as she twists and turns. There had to be some kind of loose screw, a rusted panel - any kind of flaw that could give her a chance

Unfortunately, her struggling was only further interrupted by the whirr of machinery.

Just in front of her, the CRT television seemed to have gotten a new tape loaded into it. The STAFF bot standing off to the side of it held what Molly assumed to be the training tape, but in its other hand it clutched a remote of some kind.

Molly furrows her brow, her struggle forgotten for the moment as she watches the STAFF bot carefully.

The animatronic swivels to face the TV, and after a few moments of button-clicking, the low hum of the static turns into an arguably catchy tune, accompanied by the Fazbear Entertainment’s logo. Molly recognized the tune as the jingle the company uses in commercials; upbeat, but in this instance it left a bitter taste in her mouth.

The image fades to black with the last few drawn out notes of the tune, revealing Molly’s own face staring back at her.

It was nerve wracking to say the least. After all, having one’s own unease displayed right back at them did little to soothe it.

Nevertheless, she keeps watching.

The black screen slowly gave way to a picture; but it was blurry. Hard to distinguish between different objects, if there were any in the first place.

Molly squints. She swore she could see movement! There had to be someone there, right?

“Hey,” she keeps her tone as level as she could manage, “I can see you.”

Whatever was moving around on the screen paused. So it is real! Live video feed via a tape? Not something she would’ve expected to be possible.

The pause, however, was brief. It just kept shifting around after only a few seconds, occasionally leaning to one side or the other and revealing a little more of the lighter background.

Anger bubbled in Molly’s chest.

“I know you can hear me,” she had no idea if they actually could, but it made it worse if they were choosing to ignore them, “what’s going on? I’m not about to have a damn chip put in my head!”

The figure only grunts. So they can hear her! Rude!

With a huff, she flops back against the backrest of the chair. No use talking to someone clearly not interested in conversation. Maybe if she just let them do their thing, she’d get to go home faster? But what even is the “thing” they’re doing?

She decides to test the restraints again. The person (at least, she thinks it’s a person) on the screen wasn’t paying her much mind, so why not?

Molly wiggles her ankles. She could feel something knocking against her shin - some kind of plate, perhaps? From what it felt like, whatever mechanism the cuff was attached to hadn’t closed properly. Either due to some form of debris or general wear and tear?

….Better to chalk it up to debris.

Suppressing a shiver, Molly begins to rock her heels back and forth, testing both sides; only the right was loose enough for her to make proper circles with her leg. Finally, she feels her leg brush up properly against the slim opening!

There was definitely something stuck inside of it. If she could just get her heel in there-

With enough wriggling and maneuvering, Molly was able to wedge the very edge of her boot heel into it! It was only a bit of the beveled edge, and boy did it hurt to angle her foot like this in brand new boots, but the rigidness seemed to be more than enough for her to pry open the slit more.

The cuff loosened, allowing her just enough wiggle room to pull her foot free!

At the cost of her boot, that is.

Looking down, Molly winces - it was definitely scuffed up. But, they were work shoes! No harm no foul. Especially considering the circumstances of-

“ Hold still. ”

A powerful jolt of fear sends Molly’s back rigid. In front of her, a huge mechanical… thing loomed and blocked out whatever remaining light there was from the single pitiful lightbulb.

Wires hung from every part of its structure, with spindly, almost skeletal-like metallic arms descending from its oval-shaped, heavy-plated body.

Molly's arms tense underneath the chilled metal straps.

"What is this bullshit!?" She snaps at the screen in front of her.

The blurred figure does not respond at first, instead reaching off-screen; presumably to pull a lever of some kind, judging by the distinct ker-chnk she heard.

“What-”

“ It’s for the chip installation. Just hold still, you’ll be fine. ” The mystery technician interjects.

Molly’s jaw dropped. “No,” she gasps out, “no, no, no WAY. Abso-fucking-lutely NOT. I’m not about to trust you nor this God-awfully designed ceiling decoration to put a damn chip in my head!”

The figure goes right back to ignoring her.

The small woman found her face heating up. "Hey, asshole," she snaps, kicking her foot into the metal, spider-like contraption, "I'm talking to you! I did NOT consent to-"

" Yes, you did. "

The figure’s sudden response catches Molly off-guard. The voice is too distorted to discern any other defining features, however.

" In page 34, section F, it states that, " they pause, reaching down and pulling out a blob of black accompanied by the sound of rustling papers, " -ahem- Fazbear Entertainment, and all its current affiliates, reserve the right to implant equipment necessary to perform the duties given to the employee - that's you - by any means they deem to fit. By signing this contract, the employee agrees to have such technology implanted upon completing the end of orientation video. Sound familiar? “

Molly couldn't find her voice to retort.

The figure shuffles again, placing the papers back beneath them. The spindly mechanical appendages above whirr and click in their work, preparing something between their tips. " Yeah, didn't think so. Honestly, you gotta read things before you sign 'em. Kinda stupid- "

"Did YOU read it? All 180 pages?" Molly finally retorts, her anger once again bubbling to the surface.

It was the figure's turn to pause.

" ...no, " came their meek response, " but I learned pretty quickly to read after that. Now hold still- it hurts more if you squirm. " The spindly appendages of the mechanical spider draw closer, the pointed tips gleaming in the light of the TV.

Oh she’d prefer dealing with that off-putting daycare attendant than this.

“H-Hey, this can’t be sanitary,” she tries, leaning her head as far away from the approaching machine as possible.

“ It’ll sanitize the spot before it applies the chip,” the figure assures, “ now, which side do you want it on? Any particular colour? Or, perhaps a certain character?”

How was this guy talking so casually!?

“How about you FUCK OFF, and get this damn thing away from me!”

The figure clicks their tongue.

“ They never like to choose- fine, one boring standard neurolink, coming up.”

The machine’s whirring grows louder as it begins to close the gap between it and Molly, a few of its appendages poking and prodding at her head.

Molly does her best to wriggle and squirm away from its touches, but the machine just kept going. It almost seemed to get frustrated, too, as it finally just winds up grabbing her head with a few of its free limbs and steadies it.

She had to think; how could she delay this? There had to be something!

Then, it clicks.

“ W-WAIT - wait,” she squeaks out, both the figure and the machine pausing.

Molly swallows back her nerves. “You uhm- s-said I could do a character?”

The machine pulls back a little as the figure gasps.

“ Y- Yeah! Yeah, of course!”  

They sounded pretty excited - Molly was just relieved the machine released her head and pulled back enough for her to feel like she could breathe.

More levers were pulled, a few buttons were pressed, and the metallic fiend above her head retracted into the ceiling; her hopes were quickly dashed when it returned, but intrigue wormed its way onto her expression as she’s presented with a new screen.

A quick glance upwards told her it had descended directly from the machine.

“ So, ” the figure begins, the screen flashing to life, “ the main cast is all available, but we also have a few discontinued and side characters as well!”

The screen blinks off and on, now displaying the main band: Freddy, Chica, Roxy, and Monty. Characters Molly wasn’t extremely familiar with, but still knew enough about to recognize.

The screen blips again, now displaying the daycare attendant. Then, after a third blip, it displays a bunny character standing next to a fox - those were characters she didn’t quite recognize.

Finally, the screen displayed how the different neurolinks actually looked: each one was shaped like a simplified version of the characters’ head, save for the daycare attendant’s (which looked to be shaped like a combination of the sun and a crescent moon).

The figure shifts behind the screen, sounding as though they were leaning forward.

“ Soooo, which one catches your fancy? Of course, we can just do a simple colour change instead, if you’re wanting a more minimalistic look.” Molly could practically hear the smile in their voice.

“Uhm,” Molly hesitates, “well-” Considering she only had surface-level knowledge on these guys, she figured she’d just go with the first one that caught her eye.

“How uh…how about F- Foxy?”

“ Ohhh,” the figure hums, “ interesting choice! Not usually the one people go for- I like it. Right, hold still!”

Fear shoots through Molly again as the machine springs to life.

However, she forces herself to ignore the instinct to struggle. As far as she could tell, there really wasn’t any clear way to get out of this - should she just accept it?

She watches the machine lower itself to her level, the sound of a few drills rattling really not sitting well with her.

The machine latches onto her head once again, holding it in place as a cloth extends from one of its limbs. Likely the disinfectant.

It felt cold against her skin, but the sensation quickly gave way to the next searing wave of fear as a much sharper appendage descended from the machine, holding a small chip shaped like a fox’s head.

Molly forces herself to sit still. She did agree to this, after all - it was her fault she didn’t read the contract. Still, having to have a whole chip put in your head had to violate some kind of human right.

Thankfully, her lack of struggle did reduce the pain to a little more than a pinch as the chip was punched into her temple. The machine certainly made it quick.

“ There, ” the technician presses a few buttons, releasing the cuffs securing Molly’s wrists and ankle, “ all done. Expect migraines, ignore the rabbit. Good day. ”

“W-Wait, ignore the what now??”

But the TV showed only static.

Molly’s face scrunches, worry tensing her brow. What did he mean by “ignore the rabbit”?

With a quick shake of her head, Molly slides her boot back on and makes her way out of the room, touching her fingers to the tender flesh around the chip. As she pulls them away again, she stares at the crimson blood staining the digits. Her brow furrows again. First days were supposed to be informative.

So, why did she just feel more lost than before?

Chapter Text

The lights flickered as Molly entered the lobby of her apartment complex. The same as they always did.

She exchanges a brief greeting with the doorman as he buzzes her in. The same as he always did.

There were a few neighbors shuffling in and out of their apartments as Molly makes her way up the stairs. She’s stopped by the neighbor that lives just a door down from her; a single mother of two young kids. Molly always enjoyed her down-to-earth attitude.

The two of them chatted about the recent weather, school, and just overall minor things about life. The same as they always did.

Opening the door to her apartment, she was happy to see her cat, Piper, waiting patiently for her.

Molly scoops her up and settles her on her back into the crook of one arm as she sets her bag down.

She grabs Piper’s food, making sure to add in a little treat of a plain hard-boiled egg, and starts on her own dinner. Tonight, she felt like having a simple meal: sausage and fried potatoes.

Now, she sits at the table, finishing her food at a steady pace. The same as she always did.

She sheds her work clothes in favour of a comfy set of sweatpants and a tank top. After that marathon of a tour, all she wanted to do was just lay on the couch and watch a few episodes of- well, at this point, practically anything. She needed some kind of distraction.

Molly grips the side edges of the bathroom counter, leaning into her palms as she stares into the mirror.

It was still her, just a little..different. Not much of a change, really.

Reaching her fingers up, she gingerly brushes around the edges of the chip. It was only just starting to bruise, and it was hardly visible from behind her hair so long as she kept it down.

It was still her.

The same as she always had been.

Molly huffs. There was no use dwelling on it. The chip was in, and it was meant to help her do her job. Nothing bad had happened so far, so maybe it only worked on the Pizzaplex’s WiFi? Regardless, it seemed to be a really minor change.

Maybe she had overreacted just a little? Though, any rational person likely would have freaked out all the same. What sort of company straps down its employees like that?

Fazbear Entertainment. Of course.

Molly slaps her hand against her forehead with a loud groan. “Fucking- idiot .”

Completely abandoning the rest of her bedtime routine, Molly narrowly avoids tripping over Piper (who had since made herself very comfortable in the middle of the floor) and all but falls into her desk chair.

Her research paper greets her as she flips open the lid of her laptop, the cursor still diligently blinking in the same spot she had left it - but her paper wasn’t what she was looking for.

Quickly, she opens two tabs: one for Reddit, and one plain search tab. As far as she had seen, there was a subreddit for pretty much anything and everything. Surely, there were other people that’d worked for Fazbear Entertainment before!

As she searches, she’s careful to keep her questions simple. She already had quite a few tabs open with the public information about the company, but nothing really incriminating - that was to be expected, of course, no company wants their dirty laundry aired for the whole world to see.

Now, Molly was certainly used to pulling all-nighters. Whether she got sucked into a game, was cramming for a test, or deep down a rabbit hole on one topic or another she could handle the consequences. However, this time, she found herself exhausted.

She had spent the entire night reading different subreddits, digging for hidden articles, surfing different, increasingly obscure news sites- nothing.

Half of the subreddits hadn’t been active since 2011. The ones that still had people posting on them were just talking about some game from 2014. A horror series by the name of “Five Nights at Freddy’s” - ridiculous.

She had then spent the better half of the night browsing through gameplay, hoping for some answers. But the whole franchise just seemed convoluted and all over the place! Nothing made sense. Not a single mention of chips being put in people’s heads, nothing on the human employees of the company; even the CEO seemed to be nothing but a recluse stuck reminiscing about “the good old days” according to the sparse articles she managed to find.

With the light of day carefully peeking through her window, Molly leans back in her chair, letting out a short and irritated huff. Why was it that the worst companies were always the best at cover-ups?

As she fruitlessly attempts to rub the sleep from her eye, she begins closing tabs. No use keeping a lot of them open if there was nothing there, after all, and she’d need the processing space to work on her project; the model sheet wouldn’t make itself, after all.

Molly flops into her usual seat in the lecture hall with her laptop in tow. She hadn’t managed to finish the model yet, but she knew Professor Kayde wouldn’t mind her working on it during class. Today was more of a study-hour than anything else, after all.

Of course, focusing on the part of class that was the lecture was easier said than done. She was used to the brain fog that followed a sleepless night, but this was different. As cliche as that sounded.

There was a dull ache around the chip. She’d been warned there might be headaches, of course, but it felt like there were worms writhing around in her skull. Were there worms in her skull?? Surely not! Not unless the chip had some bizarre virus she didn’t know about. Couldn’t they have at least let her inspect the damned thing before they stapled it to her head? She wasn’t even sure the area was fully clean before it was installed, so maybe-

“ Molly. ”

Molly jerks backwards in her seat at the stern sound of Professor Kayde’s voice. Blinking rapidly to bring her eyes back into focus.

A good half of the class had turned in their seats to look at her, while Professor Kayde stood with a tablet in her hand at the front of the lecture hall.

“I know code organization isn’t the most interesting subject, but you’re going to need it for your next exam,” Professor Kayde squints as she adjusts her glasses, eyes scanning Molly’s face. She hums.

“S-Sorry,” Molly stammers out.

With a wave of her hand, she looks back down at her tablet to change the slide on the bigger screen. “Go grab yourself a water from my desk. It’s not a miracle cure, but it’ll help your focus.”

“Right..thank you, ma’am,” Molly manages out as she stands.

It almost felt like a walk of shame, making her way down the stairs from her seat and to the professor’s desk. She’d been there loads of times, sure, Professor Kayde was always willing to share her snacks!

But right now, she felt as though there were more than the eyes of her classmates on her.

It was the same feeling she’d gotten when the daycare attendant had been watching her. Unwavering. Calculating.

Inhuman.

A sharp chill runs down her spine as movement at the corner of her eye catches her attention. The edges of her vision were a bit dark, and seeing movement was normal when she was sleep deprived - this, however, felt more real than ever.

Molly fights the urge to look towards whatever was moving. It was probably just one of her classmates! No need to worry, no need to-

“ Hello, employee! ”

A flash of white and purple streaks by her vision as Molly’s knee connects with the desk. Her arm sweeps across the top of it, knocking over pictures, pencils, and sending a few document filled folders spilling across the floor. Though, she had thankfully caught herself on the edge of the desk before she could join the scattered supplies.

She couldn’t breathe just yet, however.

As she pulls herself up, she once again becomes aware of the gaze of her peers.

A cautious glance confirmed her suspicions; she’s quick to avert her gaze towards the desk again. “Sorry,” she pants, “lost-lost my footing.”

A deafening silence followed.

Molly swallows back her panic as best she could as Professor Kayde starts towards her.

“It’s alright,” she sets her tablet on her podium as she makes her way past it, “but are you okay? You’re not usually this- well..uncoordinated.”

Molly was grateful for the professor’s firm hand helping her to stand upright. But she didn’t quite have an explanation for her.

Sure, she had her moments, but she typically had the reflexes to avoid these types of situations. Right now, the world almost seemed to be at a tilt; and with how foggy her head was, it didn’t exactly make for the most effective balancing system.

Realizing she hadn’t yet responded, Molly clears her throat. “Ah-hah, um- I didn’t- I didn’t have too great of a night,” it wasn’t entirely a lie, of course, but it still didn’t feel good. “Not much sleep.”

Molly avoids Professor Kayde’s searching gaze. Had her eyes always been that intense? Did she really have to stare so much?

She feels the professor’s grip tighten, grounding her back to reality.

“I get it,” Professor Kayde’s voice softens, but only just, “why don’t you go lie down in my office. The lecture notes will be available tonight, anyhow. Come along.”

It was a struggle to ignore the intense stares of her classmates as she led past the podium and into a small room adjacent to the entrance to the lecture hall.

Once they were behind closed doors, Molly feels Kayde’s hand against her forehead.

“Are you sick?” Kayde asks quickly.

“What? N-No, I’m-” Molly tries to respond, but Kayde interrupts her again.

“You look sick- have you had anything today other than coffee? Anything to eat?”

Molly hesitates. What had she eaten today?

“Um..”

Well, shit. She couldn’t think of anything.

She’d been so focused on modeling the voicebox, she’d completely forgotten breakfast! Of course, she remembered Piper’s (Piper never let her forget, anyhow), but her own had been skipped over in favour of rushing out of the apartment.

Professor Kayde sighs, now holding both of Molly’s shoulders.

“Molly,” she starts, gently helping Molly to sit on the couch settled against the far wall of the office, “after class, I’m taking you for lunch-”

“Professor-”

Professor Kayde holds up a hand. “I am taking you for lunch,” she repeats firmly, “no arguments. As your mother, I will not have you skipping meals.” She slowly lays her hand back on Molly’s shoulder.

As she’s nudged to lay down, Molly feels a tightness gather in her chest. “Professor, we haven’t gotten the adoption papers signed yet-”

“That doesn’t matter. Whether it’s on paper or not, you’re still my child,” a rare smile graced the professor’s lips. She double checks to make sure Molly was comfortable before finally going to dim the lights.

It was almost painful to hear. Molly still wasn’t used to any of this; most of her familial affection and care had come from her sibling, Jayce. While she should be at least somewhat used to it considering how long she’s known the professor, it still left her with rocks in her stomach.

Professor Kayde pauses at the door, hand hovering above the handle. “I know it’s a lot.”

Molly, snapped out of her thoughts, shifts her gaze towards her. “What?”

“This- adoption situation. I know it’s more symbolic now than anything else, but-” Professor Kayde stops, taking an abrupt breath.

Silence follows - a little awkward, but mostly comfortable.

“Just know, symbolic or otherwise, you can talk to me about anything.”

Molly sees the professor’s head just barely shift; it gives Molly an odd feeling, as though Kayde wanted to say more but either couldn’t or wouldn’t.

The door creaks open slowly, Professor Kayde stepping out into the orange tinted light of the lecture hall.

“Try to relax. I’ll come grab you after the lecture.”

With that, the door shut with very little noise, leaving Molly lying back in the dimly lit room.

Sunlight poked through the old, worn down brown blinds neatly pulled over the window. They warmed the room just enough where Molly wasn’t absolutely freezing, but she still wished she’d remembered her jacket.

Alas, it was in her car. And it wasn’t as though Professor Kayde would let her leave to grab it.

Molly sighs to herself, almost feeling content. Now that her body matched the way her vision tilted, she didn’t feel nearly as disoriented as before. Even if the ceiling still spun a little.

Closing her eyes felt like heaven; sleeping on a couch at this level of exhaustion was just infinitely better than being in a bed. She wondered why that was.

“ It’s likely psychological! ”

Forcing back a scream, Molly leaps off of the couch and slams her back against the side of Kayde’s desk; luckily, there was hardly anything other than an old computer. No spillage, but that was the least of her concerns.

Standing on the arm of the couch, opposite to the arm she had been resting against, was a small animated bear.

A white base, purple markings, pink cheeks, and a jumpsuit almost identical to the one she’d received as a uniform. Only, this little bear’s jumpsuit was blue!

There was some device settled in each of its ears - it reminded Molly of bluetooth headphones, but she wasn’t entirely sure that was it. Not that she was going to ask.

“ Oh, the things in my ears? They’re for my visor! Lets me attach it on either side! ”

The little bear beamed with joy, rocking back and forth on his heels without a care in the world.

“What the fuck,” Molly wheezes out, grasping at the fabric of her shirt.

“ Ooo, swearing isn’t good, employee! But, we’re not at work, so I guess it’s fine! ” The bear smiles up at her again.

“M- Molly. My name is Molly, not “employee”- what the hell are you- am I hallucinating??” She grabs the edge of the desk, slowly bringing herself up and around it to sit in the rolling chair.

The bear hums before a little animated lightbulb appears above his head. “ Not quite! But, the FazCo Employee Guidance Chip taps directly into your Occipital Lobe, so I suppose it kind of is like hallucinating! ”

“Don’t sound so happy about it,” Molly snaps, slapping a hand over the chip on her temple, “you still haven’t told me who you are.”

The little bear gasps, pulling a pretty exaggerated expression.

“ Holy pizza pockets, you’re right! Ahem, ” the little bear straightens his posture before hopping down from the arm of the couch and scurrying the one closer to Molly, holding out his hand with a proud smile on his face.

“ My name is Helpy! I’m your personal AI assistant, and- ”

“Yeah, no, not interested.”

Helpy nearly falls right off the arm of the couch as he waves his arms in disbelief.

“ Wh-What! B-But, I’m supposed to teach you the basics of the tools at your disposal! What’ll you do if you run into an issue ya don’t know how to handle! ”

Molly pinches the bridge of her nose as she crosses her arms. “Look, I don’t mean to be- mean, I guess, but you gotta understand something,” she pulled herself forward, rolling on the chair until she was right next to the arm of the couch. 

She places her hands on either side of Helpy. “This,” she gestures around the office, “is not the place to do this. I’m not supposed to be at work until much later tonight- and even then, I’m sure I can figure out what I need to do. Okay?”

A pang of guilt shot through her as Helpy looked down at his feet.

She watches him kick an imaginary rock as he stuffs his hands into the pockets of his jumpsuit.

“ Well, gee, I’m sorry, Molly,” he mumbles quietly, “I got so excited to have someone to talk to, I guess I just wasn’t thinking. I can leave ya alone, if ya want- ”

Molly interrupts Helpy with a sigh. “No- it’s okay. I don’t mind that you’re here- not now at least. But, you could’ve given me a little more warning instead of just popping up out of nowhere.”

Helpy rubs the back of his neck sheepishly.

“ ..Sorry ‘bout that. Is your knee okay? ”

Molly gives her leg a few experimental swings. Some pain, but nothing that wouldn’t get better before tonight.

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it,” she reassures him. “But, look, how about if I need help, I’ll ask you.”

Helpy perks up, a hopeful sparkle in his eyes. “ Ya mean it? ”

Molly lets out a small breath through her nose, resisting the urge to try and give the bear a pat on the head. “Yes, I mean it. Can I lay back down now? And- maybe- don’t listen to my thoughts, please?”

Helpy flaps his paws as he jumps in place, an excited grumble escaping him. “ If ya need me, just gimme a ring, pal! ”

With a snap of his fingers and a blink of Molly’s eyes, Helpy was gone. Molly sighs in relief.

She really hoped this was all a dream.

Molly leans back in the uncomfortable faux leather seat of the diner’s booth, rapidly tapping a finger against the cracked resin tabletop.

Of all the places Professor Kayde could have chosen, why did it have to be a Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria?

She groans as she lets her forehead hit the table, her leg bouncing and taking over the rhythm now abandoned by her finger. While the place didn’t have any more active animatronics, something about the atmosphere felt off.

The professor had gone to put in an order for food and drinks. Unlike the Pizzaplex, this place actually had a full staff of humans: a bunch of really grumpy teenagers, and a single disgruntled adult manager that did nothing but play an old Space Invaders machine in the corner.

She turns her head, pressing her cheek to the table, and watches him sloppily eat a slice of pizza with one hand while controlling the Core Cannon. He was getting grease and cheese all over the buttons and control stick.

Molly grimaces, turning to lay on her other cheek and stare out of the smudged window the booth sat next to instead.

Cars rattled by, people shuffled along, and sky slowly darkened as the sun was beginning to set. The days were starting to get shorter as autumn dragged on. September was coming to a close and opening the way for October to take its place.

She couldn’t help but wonder what Halloween would be like this year as she watches a group of men start hoisting up a few zombie mannequins in their display window. The town always went nuts with its celebrations, considering it was at the forefront of many of the Fazbear Entertainment scandals and conspiracies. Normally, she’d be relishing in the fact that she’d get to have fun and finish her essay at the same time-

But instead, her stomach had tied itself into knots.

Being involved with the company now, even just after one day, had her more exhausted than she’s felt in months. But no matter how uneasy she felt, she was still giddy to start this job. Surely she could handle a few surprises here and there!

Footsteps pull her attention away from the outside world, and as she lifts her head the smell of pepperoni hits her like a truck.

A large pizza is set down where Molly’s head had been, piled with enough cheese to choke an elephant.

“Jesus..” Molly muters, her brow furrowing.

“Quite generous with the cheese here, it seems,” Professor Kayde mumbles as she slides into the other side of the booth, “but, I assume that’s why you asked for fries.”

A basket of steaming fries is set in front of Molly, who manages a smile in response.

She picks up a slice of pizza, allowing the excess cheese to fall over the fries as Kayde watches with great interest. “Jayce showed me how to do this. He calls them “pizza fries”,” she pauses to laugh, “it’s pretty good, and it helps reduce the choking hazard.”

Professor Kayde cracks a smile again, taking up a slice of pizza and allowing the cheese laden slice to drip right onto her own basket of fries. “Oh yes, I agree. Especially helpful, considering he inhales food faster than a vacuum cleaner.”

Molly snorts, covering her mouth with her hand. Ohhh, she was so lucky Jayce wasn’t here right now - her sibling didn’t take so kindly to being called out like this.

It felt strange, sharing laughter with the professor. Partially because Kayde was her teacher, but mainly because of this whole adoption thing.

A number of years ago – about seven to eight if Molly recalled correctly – Molly and her sibling had met the professor during an adoption interview. Neither of them had really experienced a permanent home before, and they weren’t keen on doing so anyway. Their attempts to liberate themselves by running away were very well documented.

The most recent escape at the time had been the two of them skipping town entirely; Jayce’s idea, Molly recalled, and one she had been wholly against. Especially considering they stole quite a bit of money from their foster parents. Jayce said they deserved it with how poorly they treated them. Molly wasn’t really convinced, but she went along with it anyway. She couldn’t just leave her sibling alone like that.

A state trooper picked them up before they could even get 2 miles past the town border.

It had been quite the lecture, too. This particular officer had nabbed the siblings more than once before this - it was routine at that point. The same old song and dance. But for whatever reason it was that particular lecture that stuck with Molly’s sibling.

After that, Jayce didn’t really raise much more of a fuss at their next foster home.

The home of Professor Kayde.

It had been an adjustment to be sure. Molly and Jayce were already very close to aging out of the foster care system; it was terrifying to think they’d just be out on the street again.

But in the roughly two years they spent with the professor, the siblings found they didn’t have to worry. Kayde had no intention of leaving them out in the cold.

She offered to help the siblings find their way in life. She offered to help Jayce with their transition, cover medical bills as best she could, drive them to appointments; it was the first time Molly had seen her sibling cry.

Kayde helped Molly get into college, all funded with a scholarship, and helped to save money for her first car. She gave Molly tips on finding decent enough jobs to pay for the first few months rent in her apartment!

The professor had been there for them more in just 2 years than any of the siblings’ immediate family had been in their entire lives. The real struggle came from the legal system.

With the two of them being adults now, the adoption process changed.

Paperwork tripled, there were all sorts of legal meetings and consent forms to sign - it was a struggle to get everything done, as Molly was in school and Jayce had a full-time job as a ride operator at the local amusement park. And now with Molly’s new job piled on top of things, it was only going to get more delayed from there.

Should Molly have waited to look for a full-time job? She’d only been doing the odd repair here and there when she could find the opportunity. It pulled in enough money to get by, but she knew a full-time job was better for the needs of herself and her cat. Maybe-

A hand gently clasped itself over Molly’s, pulling her almost violently from her thoughts.

Looking up, Molly catches the concern in Kayde’s eyes.

“W-What?” Molly stammers.

The professor sighs quietly. “I asked if you were okay, Molly,” Kayde repeats softly, “between what happened during the lecture today and those bags under your eyes- well. I’m worried.”

Molly quickly places her free hand on top of Professor Kayde’s as she shakes her head. “I-I’m fine! I’m fine, I promise, I just pulled an all-nighter doing research for my paper is all,” she pats Kayde’s hand with a small sigh of her own, “and I was just- thinking about all of the adoption stuff. It’s just gonna get more difficult now that I have a proper job.”

Silence falls between the women. There was tension, sure, but for the most part it was comfortable.

“It will,” Kayde finally murmurs, “but, we’ll get through it. Even if it takes us another five years.” Kayde’s other hand comes up to rest on top of Molly’s. She squeezes lightly.

Molly couldn’t help but smile. But worry still pushed and pulled at her insides.

The rest of the meal went by quickly. Molly and Kayde discussed the adoption more, but ultimately had landed on a completely unrelated topic. Something about games, maybe? Molly couldn’t remember now.

Right now, she was focused more on the metal door in front of her.

She had arrived to her very first official shift at the Pizzaplex with about twenty minutes to spare, knowing that she’d hesitate at the employee entrance.

Molly shakes her head, trying to rid herself of her anxious thoughts. It was just one little chip implant! Just that one thing. The rest of the job should be fine, right?

With a short huff, Molly swipes her badge and pushes her way inside the Pizzaplex.

It was an otherwise short trek straight to the locker room to change and clock in at the terminal. She had seen it when she left after orientation, settled just outside of the locker room. It didn’t take too long to get into the terminal, but what she saw made an uneasy prickle go down her spine.

As far as she had been told, she was the only human employee. However, the terminal showed the most recent clock-ins once the password was put in.

Vanessa A. - 6:05 PM

Molly hums under her breath. There was no clock-out time posted - this person had to still be in the building. Especially considering it was only 8:53.

With a shake of her head, Molly clocks in. She didn’t have time to ponder this other employee! She had tasks to get to.

As if on cue, Helpy popped up in her peripheral vision, sitting atop the terminal with that same happy smile on his face.

”Hiya, pal!” He chirps.

Molly hesitates. “Uh. Hi, Helpy,” she rubs the back of her neck, trying to smooth out the hairs that were standing up, “I guess we should get started?”

Helpy leaps up, paws flying to his hips. ”Yes indeedy, pal! Now pay attention, there’s a LOT to go through- say, you got a pen?”

It took Molly almost two hours to get through what Helpy called his “Beginner Course” - there was certainly a lot more to this job than just cleaning, but that was to be expected. She was expected to help maintain the building, and that included general repairs.

“Remind me again, the tunnels connect to everything, right?” Molly asks, chewing on the end of her pen.

”Yep! You can go pretty much anywhere in the Plex using those tunnels!” Helpy responds.

Molly hums. Not too complicated, especially considering she still had the map that one bot gave her. She hoped he didn’t pop up again, she was already on edge.

”So you met Map Bot?” Helpy’s voice cuts into her thoughts.

“Helpy,” Molly grumbles, pinching the bridge of her nose, “what did I say earlier today about invading my thoughts?”

The little bear folds his paws behind his back, a sheepish expression overtaking his face as he kicks an invisible pebble. ”T’not to..sorry, pal.”

Molly waves one hand while rubbing her face with the other. “It’s fine- it’s fine, just please stop. It’s very- invasive.”

Helpy crosses his arms, and though he still looked sheepish his expression took on an edge of concern.

”I’ll try, pal, but- it’s hard to ignore ‘em when they’re racin’ a mile a minute,” his foot taps soundlessly against the terminal, ”you’ve got a lot on your mind, and I can’t say I get it, but, you can always talk t’ me, pal! Trust me, I’m here for ya!”

Molly felt the edges of her lips tug upwards. But something in her told her not to put all of her trust into this little bear. It was already off that he was so immediately friendly - though, she guessed it was just his programming.

“Right- thank you, Helpy. But, for now, how about I verbally ask when I need help.”

Though Helpy looked defeated, he still gave Molly a firm salute. ”You got it, pal! Just gimme a holler, and I’ll be there in a jiffy!”

With a snap of his fingers, Helpy disappears in a puff of smoke. Certainly more intricate than his last exit. 

Trust me, the little bear had said. Molly really didn’t feel as though that were the right course of action. Hopefully he’ll actually listen and leave her thoughts be.

The tasks for tonight were simple. All she had to do was clean up a few party rooms, and replace some lights in the second floor of the Atrium! It shouldn’t take her long, though she’d need to grab a ladder from the maintenance room.

Molly smooths out the wrinkles in her uniform as she makes her way back up into the Pizzaplex, adjusting the badge clipped to the breast pocket. It felt so official, having a whole badge! Maintenance worker or otherwise, it was great to already feel like a full employee.

It didn't take her long to find the maintenance room, settled just to the side of the main stage - though the ladders looked old and worn down, she had faith that they’d hold up.

She makes sure to gather up what she needs: an 8ft ladder, the lightbulbs, and a toolbox.

As she walked back out into the Atrium, she could see the trouble spots flickering: the light just inside of the second floor gift shop, and the light in front of the guest elevator. Perfect!

Molly takes the guest elevator up to the second floor and gets set up underneath the light fairly quickly. They looked like standard linear fluorescent lightbulbs. Not too different from what she’s used to.

As she’s pulling down the broken lightbulb, a slight tremor comes up through the legs of the ladder.

Molly pauses with her eyes still fixated on the ceiling. Probably just the building settling, she thinks.

But as she goes to screw in the new lights, the ladder shakes again, this time requiring her to hold tightly to the top step to stabilize herself.

With her arm still wrapped around the step, she whips her head around to look for the cause. “Hey- who’s doing that!” She calls out, unable to look down properly. While she didn’t have a fear of heights exactly, being on an inexplicably shaky ladder wasn’t her favourite thing at the moment.

As expected, no voice came in response - instead, the ladder shook far more violently than it had been before, as if with intention.

Molly feels her grip slip from the top step, a short scream clawing its way up her throat before her velocity comes to an abrupt halt.

Warmth surrounds her and a noise of surprise cuts into the sound of her rapid heartbeat.

Molly’s eyes come face to face with lifeless plastic eyes and a crooked button bunny nose.

For a long moment, Molly stared at this almost cartoonish mask while they stared back at her. They seemed almost as startled as she was that Molly fell directly into their arms. Of course, the mask’s expression never actually changed.

“Um,” Molly’s voice cracks, “thank- thank you for catching me?”

It came out as more of a question than a genuine statement of gratitude, but it seemed to pull the stranger from their daze.

Molly’s back suddenly connects with the hard floor and her head with the bottom step of the ladder. Not enough to knock her unconscious, but more than enough for it to send cold waves of pain down her spine.

Before she had any time to pick herself up, she felt weight drop down on top of her, a gloved hand grabbing a handful of her hair and tugging it back to further expose her neck.

Molly’s first instinct was to struggle.

She swings her arms at the masked stranger, striking any part of their body she could reach, eventually managing to make a swing for their throat.

The stranger coughs and sputters as they cringe backward; more than enough space for Molly to give them a hard shove. Once the weight disappears from her chest, she scrambles upwards, grabbing the ladder as leverage and pulling it down on top of the stranger all at the same time.

A cry of frustration echoes behind Molly as she makes a mad dash for the gift shop. It wasn’t the best spot to hide, sure, but it had plenty of throwable objects.

Hands grip the back of her hair, yanking her backward into the plush chest of her attacker.

Molly whips around, swinging with all of her force, and delivers a hard punch to the masked stranger’s ribcage.

With a wheeze the stranger lets go. A hard kick to the gut is more than enough to send them to the ground again and allow Molly to burst through the open doors of the gift shop.

Novelty bats lined the frontmost display. Baseball season had just ended, so the company was likely trying to get rid of the more sports-centered merchandise before putting up the Halloween stuff.

While they weren’t too sturdy, the bats would do for now.

Molly grabs up a few before vaulting over the counter, readying one of the plastic wrapped bats just in time to see the masked stranger paused outside of the gift shop entrance.

The blank plastic eyes of the mask somehow bore into Molly’s very soul as the stranger slowly brings a knife from behind their back. Where they had been keeping it, Molly had no idea, but she wasn’t keen on being on the business end of it regardless.

With a tilt of their head, the stranger stalks forward, knowing they had Molly effectively cornered. It wouldn’t take long for them to reach her - she had to think fast.

I could REALLY use some help right now, She thinks, silently begging Helpy to respond.

Only static greeted her.

Genuine static, which was concerning in and of itself, but not something she had time to brood over. Helpy wasn’t there. Great, wonderful, she would have to deal with this crazy person herself.

With a furious yell, Molly surges forward, vaulting over the counter again and swinging the bat with all of her might at the stranger’s head. If she could knock off the mask, she’d be more easily able to identify her attacker when she was questioned.

Unfortunately, the stranger was far more prepared than Molly had initially realized.

They catch the bat mid-swing, using the small woman’s forward momentum to yank her forward and plunge the knife into her stomach.

A scream of agony wrenched itself from Molly’s throat. She’d been beaten and thrown around before, but this? This was its own category of pain.

Her head floods with adrenaline as her fingers grasp desperately for a hold on the stranger; a gloved hand grips Molly’s face tightly, forcing her to look up at the lifeless eyes of the mask.

As Molly’s vision slowly darkens, the stranger lifts their free hand to the permanent open-mouth smile of the mask and makes a slow shushing motion. Was this really it? She couldn’t just die at the hands of some person in a shitty costume!

With what little strength Molly could spare, she throws a punch into the abdomen of her assailant, making sure to follow it up with a headbutt directly to the gut.

It was at least enough to stun the stranger.

Molly took the opportunity to turn tail and run, ignoring the knife securely lodged into her stomach. She had to call the cops.

Sure, it was late at night, and she might get called crazy, but she figured the fact that she still had a knife stuck in her would be enough to convince any of the cops that came around that something had happened.

Scrambling to pull her phone from her pocket, Molly shakily dials 911 as she searches for a decent enough place to stash herself away. She couldn’t just keep running, she was already bleeding past the knife - maybe her locker? No, she wouldn’t get enough reception down there. She had to stay out of the tunnels.

A quick glance around didn’t reveal very much to her. But she soon spotted what looked to be an empty trash cart settled against the wall. That could work!

It only took a short look to tell her that her attacker hadn’t caught up just yet, and so Molly makes a dash for the bin and leaps inside. She just hoped she hadn’t trailed blood.

With her hiding spot secured and her phone in hand Molly finally dials 911.

It took only a few rings before a woman picks up on the other line.

“ 911, what’s your emergency? ”

“I just got stabbed,” Molly begins in a frantic whisper, “there’s some- person- in a rabbit costume at my work- a-and they’re trying to kill me- I’m at the Mega Pizzaplex, I just start-” Molly is forced to pause as she sucks in a sharp breath. Her new wound was far beyond tender. “Working- it’s my first day- I don’t know how they got in, I’m so scared-”

The operator only pauses for a second, the clacking of a keyboard filling the brief silence. “ Are they still in the building? ” She asks firmly.

Molly takes a small breath before lifting the lid of the bin just a bit. Just a few feet away, the masked attacker had their back turned to Molly’s location - but they were right there.

With a silent breath of panic, Molly lowers her voice even more. “ Y-Yes- they’re- right outside- of my hiding spot, ” she felt breathless, her chest clenching at the faint sound of footsteps, “ ohhh god, they’re right there- ”

The operator seemed to get the gist that she needed to stop talking for the moment as Molly herself had gone quiet.

Even inside the bin the world spun horribly. She could swear she could hear breathing next to the wall of the bin - but it very quickly faded along with the footsteps.

“... ma’am? Are you still with me? “ The operator whispers.

Though it takes her a moment, Molly releases the breath she had been holding. “Yes,” she answers with a small wheeze, “yes, I am- please- please, hurry, I don’t know how long it’ll take them to find me-”

“ Help is on the way. Please stay on the line with me, do not hang up. ”

“Wasn’t planning on it,” Molly manages a small, shivering laugh, “between the crazy bunny-suited killer and you, you are way better company.”

That seemed to get a small chuckle from the operator. At least her sense of humor hadn’t left her yet!

“ Do they still have the knife? I need to know if they’re armed, ” the operator asks.

Molly takes only a small glance down to see the knife still firmly lodged in her stomach. Bile rises in her throat.

“Ohh g- I-I don’t- I don’t know if they have more, but, I’ve got the one they stabbed me with,” Molly finally responds, placing her hand over her mouth.

“ You have it with you? Maybe they don’t have more. Is it in a safe spot? “

Molly pauses again. “Uhm…more, or- or less- it’s- kind of in me, right now,” she admits with a small shudder, “still in the wound, I mean.”

“ Oh dear- I’ll make sure the first-responders are aware. Just keep it in place, okay? Do not remove it. ” 

It was nice to have a grounded voice on the other end of the line. It kept Molly more level-headed than she really should logically be right now. “I ca- couldn’t take it out if I tried,” Molly couldn’t help but let out a low whine as she shifts, feeling a cold sweat forming on her brow, “it ff- fucking hurts-”

Though she did feel a little bad for her language, the operator didn’t seem to mind.

“ Just sit tight. Where are you in the building? “ The operator asks.

Molly takes another short moment to peek out of the bin. This time, her attacker was nowhere in sight.

“S- Second floor. Across- across from the gift shop in a large trash bin with wheels on it,” she finally answers.

The operator makes a noise of acknowledgement. “ Okay, got it. They’re almost there- will you be able to let them in at all? They won’t have access to the building. ”

Molly’s heart sinks. That’s right. Every entrance and exit was either keycard-only access, or blocked off by a metal shutter. Though she didn’t like it, one thing was made abundantly clear:

She would have to lift the front door shutters.

“ Ma’am? “ The operator urges with an undertone of concern.

“S-Sorry, I’m still here, I just- they won’t- be able to get in,” Molly gasps out, “there are shutters on the front door, a-and keycard locks on the employee entrance- I can probably open the shutters, though.”

It was a fool's errand, really, venturing out with a still-bleeding stab wound with the person that tried to kill them still lurking around the building. But she had to try.

There was a button for emergencies only - something Helpy had informed her of. It sucked that she had to use it on the first day, but it was either her life or her job, and she was going to opt for her life.

“ Are you sure it’s safe? We don’t want you getting caught, ” the operator sounded far more openly concerned than before. Of course she was smart enough to know how idiotic of a plan it was.

With a small, pain filled huff, Molly begins to push open the lid of the bin.

“I can do it,” she wheezes, “it’s not far- I can see the front doors from here. It’s a straight shot.”

The operator falls silent for a few moments. “ ...please stay on the line while you do this. And please don’t risk any more than you have to. ”

It was nice to hear the genuine tone of worry still laced around the operator’s voice.

Molly makes a small noise of agreement before she stumbles her way out of the bin and onto the gaudy carpeted floor. Thankfully, it did seem that the dark colouration of the floor hid any blood stains - but she still had to move fast.

Rushing her way down the frozen escalator, Molly makes a run for the shuttered front doors, fumbling with her new ring of keys. She had found them in her locker while she had been getting ready, and each one seemed to have a worn label on it.

She finds one labeled “Front Door Release” and dives for the box settled just next to the secure doors.

Her hands were a bit slick from the blood, but she managed to stick the key in and open the box - but not before she was forced to the ground once again.

A cry of pure desperation and fear echoed against the walls of the plex, drowning out the faint music playing over the PA system.

Molly could just barely hear the operator trying to get her to respond past the masked stranger’s very sudden giggling fit.

“ There you are,” they rasp, “little mouse. Thought you could get away? Cute.”

The voice sounded vaguely feminine. But there was an odd static to it - a voice changer, perhaps? Smart, considering one’s voice could be very easily recognizable in a situation like this.

Molly couldn’t form words to retort. She could only writhe furiously against the stranger’s grasp. But they had her securely pinned to the ground this time.

“Tsk. Tsk. Tsk,” the stranger shakes their head, “uuuuuuseleeeeeess. You may have been able to get a few hits in, but I’m the stronger one here, mouse.” Their grip tightens around Molly’s wrists. Bruising: a pain Molly was used to. Still no more pleasant than the stab wound.

They lean down. Their voice drops to a low, almost excited whisper.

“ I’m going to enjoy tearing you apart. ”

The stranger wrenches the knife from the small woman’s stomach, eliciting a screech of pain that continues as the knife is plunged right into her shoulder. Then once more into her arm.

The stranger twists the knife, their maniacal laughter almost completely drowned out by Molly’s sobbing pleas for mercy.

Though she knew it wouldn’t do much, Molly thrashes her legs, trying her hardest to bring them forward to kick the stranger off of them again. And while she did succeed, it wasn’t in the way she had intended.

Molly brings her knee up at just the right angle to strike the stranger right between the legs.

A strained “ouff” squeaks out of the stranger as they collapse sideways, hands going to cradle whatever bits Molly had just brutally bruised up.

But she didn’t have time to revel in the stranger’s pain. Instead, she forces herself to her feet and slams her hand onto the release button for the front door.

To her relief, the red and blue lights of police cars were the first thing to stream through the glass doors as the shutter lifted achingly slow. But as Molly turns to finally gloat?

The stranger had vanished.

Bewilderment temporarily replaced the fear and confusion that had been racing through her veins. How could they just…disappear? It made no sense.

Pressing her hand against the wound in her stomach, Molly’s back hits the wall, the lingering darkness at the edges of her vision finally beginning to close in. She had made it, but at what cost? Was she going to just die of blood loss?

A distant voice pulls her from her thoughts - the operator. She was still on the line!

Molly could hardly keep herself upright as she all but fell towards her phone. She brings it to her sluggishly, now hearing the operator’s voice repeatedly asking for her to answer.

“ Ma’am! Please respond, are you okay? “

“I’m h..hhhere,” Molly gasps, “i did it- they got- they got aw- away.”

“ That’s okay, ” the operator sighs in relief, “ the officers and paramedics have arrived. You’re safe now. ”

It was a comforting phrase to hear shortly before Molly’s world went dark.

Chapter Text

It wasn’t the first time Molly had awoken to the sound of beeping medical equipment. Though, it was a first to see more than just two people around her bed.

She saw Dakota and Kody fast asleep against each other in an armchair, a fashion magazine draped across their legs. She didn’t often see Kody in person; since when did he have a beard?

Of course, Molly’s twin brother Jayce was right at her side, his head resting just next to her arm. He had his fingers intertwined with hers. She could see faint tear tracks on his face - oh, she was going to get a lecture when he woke up.

Shifting her head, Molly then sees Professor Kayde settled in a folding chair. She was the only one awake. There was a book filled to the brim with sticky note tabs - her lesson book, Molly guessed.

Leaned against Kayde was Mx. Hunt. They were dead asleep, too, it seemed. How long had they all been here?

A timid voice pipes up in the back of her head.

“ You okay, pal? “ It was Helpy.

For a moment, anger surged through Molly like a wildfire - but, then, it vanished. Why should she be upset with Helpy? Poor thing didn’t do anything wrong!

I don’t know, Molly responds in her head, how long have I been out? ”

“ Oh, I’d say ‘bout…a day and a half? Maybe a little longer. ”

Molly couldn’t help but audibly sigh. She gently squeezes Jayce’s hand in an attempt to rouse him, but he remains still.

Another hand grasps her free one. Looking up, Molly could see the worried faces of Kayde and Hunt, the former looking to be on the edge of tears.

“Oh thank God,” Kayde murmurs, “we thought you’d never wake up.”

Molly blinks away the lingering sleep as she squeezes Kayde’s hand tighter. “I think my body likes being awake too much for that to happen.”

It didn’t get the amused reactions she’d been hoping for. But, at least it made Kayde and Hunt’s shoulders relax. She hated seeing them both so worried.

As Kayde runs her fingers through Molly’s hair, the sound of shuffling draws Molly’s eyes back towards Jayce - only to come nearly nose to nose with his intense eyes. Just like her, he had heterochromia, only his was a mirror to hers.

“GAH- Jesu- what the hell!?” Molly groans as she shoves her free hand into her brother’s face.

“Who did this.” Of course that was the first thing out of his mouth.

Molly huffs as she drops her head back down onto the pillow. “Who did what?”

The silent stare Jayce gave her was all the response she got.

“What! I seriously don’t know what you’re talking about- get off my case, Jay.”

“Molly, you almost got serial killer’d, I’m not about to just let this slide,” Jayce draws himself upwards, an unusually serious glint in his eyes, “and I’m not about to sit here and let this guy, who got away might I add, try to hurt you again-”

“Jayce,” Mx. Hunt interrupts with a stern undertone, “that’s enough. Your sister doesn’t need the added stress.”

Miraculously, that settled Jayce down. He had definitely gained some semblance of sense since the last time Molly saw him.

She wracked her brain for some memory of what happened; unfortunately, all that came of it was flashes of seeing her own blood. She couldn’t help but wrinkle her nose in sharp frustration.

The noise finally stirred Dakota and Kody from their slumber, the two friends scrambling over one another to shove themselves next to Jayce to fire off a million questions a second.

“Are you okay!?”

“Do you need anything?”

“Did you hit ‘em back!?”

“Are you in any pain?”

“Did you see their face? Please tell me you tried to take the mask off!”

Most of the questions came from Dakota, with Kody coming in with a much calmer tone of voice. It made her head reel - having no clue what they were talking about, she just stared at the two of them in utter confusion.

Nevertheless, a nurse was quick to come in and shoo the group out of the room so she could run a quick check. At least Molly wouldn’t have to answer their questions yet.

She helped Molly sit up slowly; that was really when the pain came around the corner.

She sucks in air through her teeth sharply as she’s leaned forward. The nurse is quick to help her lean back again afterwards.

“Still tender, I imagine,” the nurse gives a small sigh, “but we’ll get you the right medication prescribed. Do you feel dizzy at all?”

Molly blinks a few times. The room was at a slight tilt, but that was it.

“Uhm- not…really. Just a little woozy,” she mumbles.

The nurse nods, lifting the hospital shirt Molly had been given when she arrived and revealing the freshly stitched wound site.

It was gnarly to see. Heavy duty medical stitches told Molly that she was probably stabbed. But why? She had just been at work.

The nurse carefully cleaned the site as she pokes and prods around. It didn’t hurt too terribly much, but it was definitely still sore.

“It’s a miracle, really,” the nurse’s sudden voice pulls Molly’s gaze towards her, “the cuts were clean as could be. Of course, the paramedics still made sure to sanitize the areas.”

“Oh, uh- yeah? That’s- good,” Molly hesitates as she speaks. Had she been attacked? That seemed to be the logical conclusion. But, why? There was no one in the building aside from her and the security guard; and as far as she knew, she didn’t run into them at all.

“Pardon, is this the room of ah- a one Miss Molly Barnes?” Asks an unfamiliar voice, drawing both Molly and the nurses attention away from their conversation.

Standing in the doorway was a stocky old man, his hair a stark silvery-white. His bushy beard still seemed to have a few patches of light brown to it, though, and his hazel eyes glittered with such energy it just didn’t match his wrinkled face.

He hobbles into the room with the help of his cane, the head of which sported a support handle with an old keychain of Fredbear dangling from the end. It had been a while since Molly had seen even a small glimpse of that ancient bear - of course, she hadn’t been around when the original diner was operating, but even she knew that keychain design was never released to the public.

In her studies, she had seen plenty of Fredbear. No one paid much attention to the old duo of him and Spring Bonnie anymore, not after all of the allegations against the business first cropped up - only one person even had that particular keychain according to the forums Molly had browsed.

“M-Mr. Emily??” Molly stammers out in confusion.

The old man takes a seat on the folding chair Professor Kayde had been sitting on, gathering his cane in front of him and resting his hands on the handle. He smiles.

“In the flesh,” he chuckles softly, “but, please- call me Henry, dear. How are you feeling?”

It was hard to overcome her shock for a long few seconds. The Henry Emily was sitting right next to her. Talking to her. She had the chance to ask any (appropriate) questions she wanted! Instead, she looks down at her wounds.

“Ah…could- be better, really,” she finally responds.

Henry laughs again, adjusting the small glasses that sat on the edge of his nose bridge. “Hah, silly of me to ask, I apologize.”

Molly shakes her head. “Don’t worry. It’s nice to be asked, honestly- what are you doing here?”

Henry’s smile never wavers. “Well, I’ve come to discuss your time off. This fiasco must’ve put quite a bit of stress on you.”

Molly blinks. She couldn’t exactly recall what happened - she could only tell that she’d been stabbed in multiple places. Why? She had no clue.

“Actually, sir, I’m not- sure I remember what happened,” she admits with a sheepish glance to the side, “I’m sorry.”

“Oh, no need to apologize! It changes nothing, I promise,” he pulls out a small sticky note and hands it to Molly.

He reaches over to give Molly a very careful pat on the back of her hand. “You just send the bill to me, and I’ll take care of it for you. You got hurt on Fazbear property, after all, and I don’t want to have you paying a single cent for it.”

“Thank you, Mr- um, I mean- thank you, H-Henry.” She stumbles out. Was this really happening? It all felt so sudden.

Looking down, she sees that he’d written down an email; TheOGFredBear1973. It was an AOL email. It was kind of charming that he still used AOL.

With another warm smile, Henry pushes himself up and hobbles out of the door - but not before he looks over his shoulder.

“Oh, you’ll be given the next two weeks off to recover,” he states, “and you’ll be paid for a six hour work day for five days of each week. Good day, now.” He lets out another chuckle as he disappears around the corner.

What a strange gentleman. But, Molly wasn’t going to complain in the slightest.

In those two weeks, none of her wounds took too long to heal! Though she still had some pain, it wasn’t anything worrisome.

She kept speaking with Mr. Emily via email, as well as keeping up with her friends over Discord as she had also been excused from classes for a few days.

Within a week and a half, she was already mostly back to her usual functions. The stitches were pulled out with minimal scarring, the fact that she didn’t remember the incident helped with the psychological side of things - The only real issue?

The press.

They hardly stopped hounding her at any opportunity they could get. A barrage of questions were flung her way from the moment she stepped outside until she managed to escape into her car or into class.

It wasn’t a huge shock to Molly. After all, she was a Fazbear employee; anything that involved someone getting hurt was always grounds for a huge coverage. But Molly was very clear with them that she didn’t remember anything. 

At least…she didn’t think she remembered anything.

In the days before her return to work, she couldn’t shake this nagging feeling of anxiety tugging at her chest.

She told herself the incident didn’t really affect her - why should it? It wasn’t the first time she’s been put in that kind of situation, and it wouldn’t be the last knowing her luck. Sure. She’d never been stabbed before, that one was new, but she had to have been taken off guard for it to get to the point where she had needed a hospital. She was fine.

And yet, here she was, staring at her computer screen with her legs bouncing a mile a minute.

In front of her, she had a few homework assignments open. She had been granted generous extensions due to her circumstances, but she really preferred to turn them in when they’re meant to be due; though she found that such a thing was easier said than done.

With a long sigh Molly pushes away from her desk and allows her chair to roll the wall opposite to her set-up. She comes to a stop at Piper’s cat tower, where the old cat was lounging lazily in a fabric bowl about mid-way up the tree.

Molly carefully cups Piper’s face in her hands and rubs her thumbs along the cat’s cheeks. She couldn’t help but wonder what it was like to be a cat; no need to worry about a job, or school, or psychos with knives. Just lounging and sleeping and playing to her heart’s content.

With a small, airy chuckle, Molly presses a storm of kisses against Piper’s head. It earned her a smack on the face and an irritated ‘mrow’, but all was forgiven by the time dinner rolled around.

The days were growing colder as October arrived. Many people began preparing for the coming snow - Molly herself was in the process of getting new tires for her car (per Mr. Emily’s suggestions) when she received a call from Professor Kayde.

“Hello?” Molly steps away from the mechanic currently changing out her tire.

“Hi Molly, I just wanted to check on you,” Kayde responds, “are you feeling okay?”

Molly pauses for a moment. “Physically, or mentally?”

“Both,” Kayde sighs softly.

“Physically, I feel fine,” Molly presses her phone between her shoulder and her cheek as she digs through her satchel for her wallet, “mentally- ah, pretty okay. Little tired, but that’s normal.”

The mechanic side-eyes her, a strange glint in his eyes. Molly returns the look with a little irritation mingled with unease.

“Sorry,” Molly mumbles, “I’m getting snow tires for my car right now, can I call you back?”

Kayde sighs once again. “How about we meet for lunch instead?”

“Sounds good to me,” Molly smiles to herself, “bye Professor.”

As Molly hangs up the phone, the mechanic stands.

“So, you’re the girl that was on the news?” He asks, wiping his hands on a rag and tossing it towards his work desk.

Molly couldn’t help but sigh as she pulled out her card. “Unfortunately,” she grumbles, “I’d rather be left alone, though.”

The mechanic snorts. “Yeah, being a local celebrity isn’t all it’s cracked up to be- ope, one sec.”

The mechanic slides past Molly and grabs the band for the garage door, tugging it down in one smooth motion. Afterwards, he flicks the switch for the small neon sign outside of the main door and comes back to stand in front of Molly.

The sound of footsteps draws Molly’s attention towards the entrance to the shop. The glint of a lens catches her eye.

She’s quick to duck back in front of the Mechanic, who still had his back facing the door. “Shit- I thought I lost them.” She groans.

“Vultures, the lot of ‘em,” the mechanic scoffs, “don’t worry, though, I don’t want ‘em in here any more than you do. They’ll leave once they realize the door is locked.”

As if on cue, the door handle rattled. One of the reporter’s popped their head in from the side of the window, eyes squinted, before pulling back.

The muffled talking seemed to grow impatient, but eventually faded with the sound of large vans driving back off down the salted roads.

Still, the pair waits a few minutes. Neither wanted to move in case some of them came back. Luckily, that didn’t seem to be the case.

The mechanic re-opens the garage door and flicks back on the sign as he lets out a small laugh. “Nothing like hiding in plain sight, eh? Though, these guys are a little smarter than the animatronics.”

Molly blinks as the mechanic walks past her. It was only now that she noticed the wobble in his steps and the slight tilt to his overall posture.

“You used to work with animatronics?” Molly inquires cautiously.

The mechanic laughs. “Boy did I! You ever hear of Freddy’s Fantastic Fun House? Used to work there as a night guard back in the 80’s,” he takes off his hat, revealing a head of curly light grey hair, “feels like an eternity ago now.”

It didn’t take Molly long to realize exactly who she was talking to. His case had been all over the news in the 80’s, and she had read countless articles for her research paper.

He looked to be in his early 70’s or so, his eyes still holding some amount of brightness and his posture and physique still being as spry as ever. If anything, he looked much healthier than anyone would’ve expected him to be.

“The bite of ‘87!” Molly blurts out. “You’re the guy!”

The mechanic turns as he brushes back some of his hair to reveal a faded scar in the shape of a bite mark on the side of his forehead. “Guilty as charged! Name’s Jeremy Fitzgerald.”

It was amazing to see the man in the flesh. She had heard countless rumors that he had died a premature death or skipped town altogether. Who would want to stay in a town where they got bitten by a huge metal death trap?

“Lemme guess,” Jeremy grunts, settling his hat back on his head, “you thought I died or skipped town, yeah? It’s alright, they’re common theories-”

“Actually,” Molly interrupts, “I didn’t think either of those were true. It just really didn’t seem likely that you’d left.”

Jeremy blinks, a small grin spreading across his face. “Smart cookie, you are,” he laughs, “yeah, couldn’t bring myself to leave- not that mama would’ve let me. I was only, what- maybe 16?”

He kneels down again to start working on the last tire, though he continues to speak as he does.

“I hate seeing someone else get all tangled up in Fazbear’s whole shitstorm. Sounds like you ran into someone in a costume,” he shrugs his shoulders as he pulls off the old tire, “but, I don’t imagine you actually remember much, what with that chip in your head.”

Molly freezes. She brushes her fingers against the chip as unease prickles at her spine.

“How did you know about the chip.” She kept her tone firm, but there was a shivering edge to it she couldn’t quite mask.

Jeremy pauses. Molly could see the muscles in his back tense, but he keeps working on the tire nonetheless.

“Common thing for human employees,” he says, “assumed you had one, ‘cause I used to. Got bitten off, though.”

Eyeing the mechanic suspiciously, Molly debated her next course of action: these chips were far too advanced to have been around in the 80’s, and it wasn’t like Jeremy was still working for Fazbear entertainment, right?

”He’s lying, ” a small voice whispers in the back of her head.

Molly straightens her posture as she takes in a quiet breath.

“Makes sense,” she finally responds, “sorry if I sounded suspicious.”

Silence greeted her - until Jeremy pops back up with an uneven hop and a wide smile. “Don’t sweat it! I know how that paranoia feels.” He pats the trunk of her car as he sets his tools on his work bench. “Car’s all good to go, by the way. Come by again and I can take a look at your heater, too- noticed it was running a little slow.”

With a nod, Molly pays Jeremy and moves along on her way. But before she went off to meet Kayde, she pulled into the empty parking lot of an old, rundown gas station and turned off her car.

“Helpy,” she says in a shaking tone.

The little bear appears on her dashboard in a puff of purple smoke.

His usually gleeful expression was instead replaced by one of sheer guilt and anxiety. ”H-Hey pal,” he stammers, ”what can your ‘ol pal help ya with?”

“Did they have these chips back in the 80’s?” She asks, opening her glove box and rummaging through it until she finds a pen and an old receipt.

Helpy pauses, the guilt in his expression melting away to pure confusion.

”In the 80’s? Oh no, ‘course not! They reserved the technology for the animatronics.” He waves a hand. His usual smile began to poke through. ”Why do ya ask?” Is it ‘cause that Fitzgerald guy?”

“Exactly that,” Molly responds, scribbling down what Helpy had told her, “so how could he know about the chip? It’s not public information that Fazbear uses these, is it?”

The little bear places a hand against his chin. ”Oh heavens, no, chip implantation is a highly controversial subject! And-”

“-Fazbear Entertainment can’t take on more controversy than it already has,” Molly interrupts, tapping her pen against her steering wheel. She had a sneaking suspicion of who that mechanic really was.

After all, Mr. Emily had recommended him to her in their emails back and forth. Despite him giving her his personal email for the hospital bill, he continued to speak with her out of, as he put it, “regular old loneliness”. Molly was happy to oblige, of course, but now it just seemed to have some ulterior motives.

Helpy stands by, wringing his hands together. But he doesn’t say anything.

Molly sighs as she leans her forehead against the top of her steering wheel. Every nerve in her body felt as though it was on fire despite the cold air seeping into her car.

What do I do? I’ve only worked there a day, I can’t just quit, Molly thinks as she chews on the end of the pen. Part of her wanted to run away despite the short amount of time she’d been there; call it a survival instinct, or call it cowardice, but Molly wanted to live her life without the kind of danger she seemed to have landed in. The other, much louder part of her? It wanted answers.

Against her better judgment, Molly decided to pursue the latter.

Should she think more on it? Probably. But she didn’t have much time to decide anyhow. Her next shift started at 10PM tonight.

“This is so fucking weird.” Molly groans.

Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Helpy shuffle. The little bear was acting weird, too. But she just didn’t have the energy to question it right now. One thing at a time.

“Hey, Helpy? Another question,” she hums, starting up her car again.

The little bear’s eyes snap to Molly as he waves his hand. ”Oh! Fire away, pal!”

“Are you able to keep notes?” Molly needed a way to keep her notes to herself, and even keeping them on paper felt too exposed. If Helpy was going to be staying for the foreseeable future, then she might as well see what other features he has.

Helpy beams up at Molly, his pupils morphing into bright yellow stars. ”Yes, yes, of course! I am fully equipped with a hands-free note taking program! Would you like me to fire it up now?” He whips a notepad out from behind his back and a pen from behind his ear.

With a small breath, Molly nods. “Yeah, go ahead.”

The rest of the day went by much quicker than Molly had wanted it to. As she pulls up to the Pizzaplex, she turns to Helpy, who had thankfully not left her vision all day.

It was actually comforting to have someone to talk to who wouldn’t judge her - at least, she thinks he doesn’t judge her, she really couldn’t tell.

“Okay,” Molly turns off her car before leaning over to pull her badge out of her glovebox, “so, tonight, I have to clean the party rooms. All ten of them?”

”Ah-huh,” Helpy encourages.

“Then I have to check on the main stage animatronics- the Glamrock band.” Molly goes on, leaning down to make sure her shoes were properly tied.

*”Yep! It goes: Freddy, Chica, Roxanne, and finally, Montgomery! Freddy had another accident on stage earlier today, so-” Helpy pulls a clipboard out from behind him.

“-He’s top priority?” Molly finishes the little bear’s sentence for him, smiling when he nods in approval. “Got it- okay, I can do this.”

She makes sure to double check that her car is locked before swiping into the building.

The maintenance tunnel before her somehow felt less intimidating this time around. The dim, flickering lights felt like they were welcoming her back as she stepped through the doors and towards the lockers and the clock-in terminal.

She’s just pulling on her jumpsuit over her tank top when a sound catches her attention - a cough.

Now, while Molly didn’t remember what happened, that didn’t mean she wasn’t on guard. But, then again, what kind of murderer makes any sort of sound if they’re trying to ambush someone?

Helpy peeks into her peripheral vision, eyes trained on the doorway leading to the showers. Seeing this as a sign to look, Molly turns her head-

Only to come face-to-chest with a woman she had never seen before.

Molly leaps backwards, her back slamming loudly against the row of lockers that sat behind her. Of course her first instinct was to run; but seeing the stranger’s look of sheer confusion kept her from doing so.

“Jeez,” she grumbles, her voice sounding low and scratchy, “jumpy much?”

Molly blinks up at the woman. She takes in her features first: dull green eyes plagued by deep-set bags, pale skin that hardly saw sun, and messy dirty blonde hair pulled into a low ponytail. A night-shift worker if Molly had ever seen one.

“Uhm- sorry,” Molly stammers, “hi- I’m uh- M-”

“Molly Barnes. I know,” the woman huffs, waving one hand dismissively while pinching the bridge of her nose with the other, “you’ve been all over the news, for one. But I know you already because I had to pick up your work since you’ve been gone.”

The woman sounded beyond irritated. Really, it made Molly feel a little offended - she couldn’t help that she got put in the hospital!

“W- I’m sorry they made you do my job, but I’m back now and I don’t plan on getting put on leave again,” Molly pulls on the jacket portion of her jumpsuit and buttons it up with a little more speed than she had been prior.

“Yeah,” the woman scoffs, “sure. You attract trouble, I can already tell.”

“Is that why you’re still talking to me?” Molly fires back, raising a brow at the woman.

That seemed to do the trick. The woman scoffs again and spins on her heel, turning the corner to (presumably) finish getting ready to clock in.

With a shake of her head, Molly shuts her locker and pulls on her Fazwatch. “Who was that, Helpy,” she mumbles quietly.

A tingling sensation in her cheek told her the little bear had his hand on it. ”That’s the security guard, Vanessa,” he whispers, despite knowing only Molly could hear him, ”she doesn’t usually hang around the locker rooms like this.”

That’s the security guard? Oh, great, there go Molly’s chances of seeing the security footage. Hopefully they won’t cross paths much tonight. Molly really didn’t like the vibes she was getting from that woman.

But as Molly goes to clock in, she finds Vanessa waiting by the terminal, arms crossed and expression grumpy.

“You gonna clock in, or are you just gonna let yourself be late?” Vanessa grunts.

Molly furrows her brow, but clocks in nonetheless. “What’s got you so grumpy?”

“Maybe ‘cause I have to watch your danger-prone ass for the next week.” Vanessa huffs.

Molly’s heart sinks into her stomach. “You don’t have t-”

“Yeah. I do,” Vanessa interrupts, arms still crossed. “I was told to, and I need this job, sooooo-” The taller woman steps around Molly, walking up the stairs and tugging open the door with a dramatic wave of her other arm.

“After you, your highness. ”

“You don’t have to be a dick about it,” Molly mumbles as she ascends the stairs, “I’d really prefer if you weren’t with me all night.”

Vanessa’s expression softens, if only slightly. “Yeah, well- they haven’t caught the lunatic who tried to kill you, so,” she gives Molly a gentle shove through the door, “corporate - Mr. Emily, that is - prefers that we stick together for safety.”

While that did make sense, Molly still wasn’t entirely keen on it.

Nevertheless, Molly pressed forward towards her first tasks of the night: cleaning the party rooms.

According to Helpy, none of the STAFFBots were able to scrub effectively enough anymore to get up the cake and pizza stains. Not to mention the chewed up gum underneath the tables needing to be removed. Work that had to be designated to someone with far more mobility.

It wasn’t the most pleasant work. But, who was she to complain? When she was getting paid this good, it hardly bothered her to scrub these rooms top to bottom. What was making her uncomfortable was the security guard watching her like a goddamn hawk.

Every time Molly glanced over at her, she would catch Vanessa quickly looking elsewhere. It was as though she was looking where she wasn’t supposed to.

Molly brushes the thought to the side. She was just doing what she was asked to do; but Molly didn’t know how she was going to make it through a week of this.

As she’s finishing up the last party room, she finally throws down the rag she had been using and whips around to face Vanessa.

“Okay, stop.” Molly huffs.

Vanessa’s expression became confused. “Stop…what?”

“ Staring at me!” Molly responds sharply. “It’s weird, you’re making me uncomfortable.”

Vanessa almost looked offended as she averted her gaze to the doorframe. “Well Ex- scuse me for doing my job.” There looked to be the slightest tint of pink dusted across the security guard’s cheeks.

It was Molly’s turn to cross her arms. “Oh, so, your job involves being a creep?”

While it had just been a guess, Molly didn’t like how Vanessa’s face exploded into a bright shade of red.

“What!? N-No, of course not! Don’t flatter yourself-”

“God- okay, I don’t care what Mr. Emily said, I’m going to do my job away from you.” Molly snatches up her rag again and tosses it in with the rest of her cleaning supplies.

She shoves past a sputtering Vanessa. “Now- wait a second-!”

Molly feels a strong hand grasp her wrist and tug her backwards.

Whether it was out of simple reflex or a triggered memory, Molly swings the bucket in her hand towards Vanessa’s head as hard as she could.

The impact of the metal directly slamming into the security guard’s skull made a much louder sound than Molly had anticipated, but the sound of the bottles of cleaner clattering to the ground made a more lasting impression on the acoustics.

Without much of a second thought, Molly bolts towards Rockstar Row, hardly more than her empty bucket and her rag in tow.

And she doesn’t stop running until she runs directly into a solid and seemingly immovable object.

Though, before she could fall, two massive hands caught her with such swiftness she didn’t even realize she hadn’t hit the ground until whoever caught her spoke.

“Are- you okay, miss?” The voice was deep and raspy with a robotic static just at the edge of it.

Upon looking up, Molly sees the huge face of the star of the Pizzaplex: Freddy Fazbear himself.

Blinking up at the bear, Molly quickly realized that her feet were no longer touching the ground. She was suspended in the air; much like a cat that got caught misbehaving.

“Uh- y- yeah, yes,” she finally manages to say, “sorry, I wasn’t looking where I was going.”

“Has something frightened you? My scanners are indicating that your heart rate is elevated,” Freddy’s metallic eyebrows droop as concern nudges its way into his tone. Molly guessed they were on a magnetic track of some kind.

She pats his hand with a half-assed smile. “I’m fine, really- I just got a little spooked, that’s all.”

The animatronic still didn’t seem convinced. Regardless, he lowers Molly to the ground and takes extra care to dust away a few particles from the shoulder of her uniform.

“That is good to hear, miss,” he closes his eyes for just a moment before opening them again, the irises now a stark blue, “now, hold still please.”

Despite the strong urge to cringe away from the blue grid that washed over her, Molly does as she’s asked.

There’s a small twinge in her head as the grid travels up past her forehead. Something Freddy seemed to pick up on. 

His large hand envelops the top of her head. “Are you okay, Molly?”

“Uh,” Molly pauses, looking up at him through his fingers as she lifts his hand off of her head, “yeah? I just got a little- how did you know my name?” It was odd that he seemed to just suddenly know it. Was he linked to the employee database somehow?

“I am linked to the employee database.” He tilts his head.

Huh. Right on the money with that one.

“That- makes more sense,” she lets out a nervous chuckle, “sorry, I guess I am a little jittery tonight. Lots to do- ah, speaking off, can you kneel down for me?”

Freddy blinks but quickly obliges. He gets down on one knee and tilts his upper body downwards, falling still as Molly goes around to his back.

She opens up a panel on the back of his head utilizing her specialized Fazwatch and begins carefully poking through the wires - it seemed a few of them were crossed.

“Huh..well, no wonder you had that accident on stage,” she pats the bear’s back as she closes up his head hatch, “you’ve got a few wires crossed.”

Freddy’s expression grows worried. “Will it be hard to fix? I do not like being excluded from shows.”

Molly shoots Freddy a smile. “Don’t worry, it’s an easy fix. You’ll have to shut yourself down so I can fix it, though.”

That didn’t seem to soothe Freddy in the slightest. “Shut myself down? I- do not enjoy the sound of that,” he stands, gesturing towards his dressing room, “but, I will do so if it means I will be repaired to a functional state. Shall we step into my dressing room?”

His polite way of speaking put a more genuine smile on Molly’s face. It was nice to go from Vanessa’s grumpy attitude to Freddy’s calm and friendly demeanor.

She gives him a nod and gestures for him to lead the way.

It didn’t take her long to finish up detangling Freddy’s wires. There were a few more out of place than she had originally anticipated, but once she booted the bear back up, there seemed to be a new light to his eyes.

After running a few motor function tests and diagnostics, Freddy gives Molly a grateful look. I feel..refreshed! Thank you, Molly.”

“Don’t sweat it, big guy,” Molly gives his arm a pat, “happy to help. I gotta go check on your bandmates now, though.”

“Shall I accompany you? Monty can be especially…testy- with new employees.”

Well, all the more reason to have a familiar face with her, right? Molly gives Freddy a grateful nod. “Yes please.”

With that, Freddy followed Molly as she went to check on the rest of the animatronics.

Chica and Roxanne were actually both in Chica’s room, seemingly having a girl’s night. They were refreshing the paint on each other’s nails, Chica appeared to have taken some pizza from one of the restaurants, and Roxanne had even put on a playlist of 80’s classics.

A quick check-up told Molly there was nothing out of the ordinary going on with them.

Moving on, Molly finds herself hesitating outside of Montgomery’s room. Both her and Freddy could hear the sounds of an absolute rampage behind the door.

Molly shoots a look at Freddy.

The bear almost looked sheepish. “Perhaps- we will check on Monty later?” He suggests.

Molly sighs. “I can’t check on him later,” she responds, “it’s the last thing on my list of jobs tonight. It has to be now.”

“Ah…I will talk to him, then.” Freddy straightens his posture a little as he goes to knock loudly on the metal door.

In mere seconds, the crashing stopped. A loud grunt is heard before the door slides open to reveal a hunched over Montgomery gator glaring daggers at Freddy.

“The heck do ya want, Fazbear, I’m thrashin’ and trashin’ right now!” He roars, grabbing a nearby metal chair and crumpling it between his claws.

Molly forces down the urge to bolt. She had to get this done whether she liked it or not.

Freddy presses his hands together with a tilt of his head. “The new maintenance woman, Molly, has come to do a quick check-up. Will you allow us in?”

Montgomery’s eyes snap to Molly, who had since taken to partially hiding herself behind Freddy out of sheer instinct. It sure didn’t help that the gator eyed her like a wild animal sizing up its prey.

A growl and a grumble later, he makes a metallic scoffing sound. “Fine. But yer stayin’ out here, bear. C’mon pipsqueak.” The gator waves his hand sharply as he turns back into his dimly lit room.

With a small nudge from Freddy, Molly reluctantly follows behind.

She yelps as the door slides shut behind her. Now alone in the room with the clearly easily agitated gator, she worried there was something seriously wrong with his code that she’d need to fight to get fixed. But, to her surprise, the gator seemed to be…cleaning?

He frantically tosses debris to the side while sweeping away bits of broken glass with his tail as he clears a space on his torn-up couch.

Without warning, he grabs Molly, lifting her from the ground and carefully setting her on the couch in one swift movement.

“Comfy?” He asks, a twinge of nervousness to his tone.

Molly nods without thinking. It was actually a pretty comfortable couch if you didn’t pay attention to the claw marks.

The gator’s shoulders relax. He yanks over the only other functional chair (his vanity chair) and flops down into it with a huge satisfied sigh.

“Good! Sorry ‘bout the mess, y’know us rockstars gotta thrash and trash,” he laughs a hearty laugh, full and almost comforting. “Fazbear said yer s’pose ta be givin’ me a check-up?”

Molly nods again. She found herself at a loss for words. What was one supposed to say to the massive animatronic gator capable of bending entire steel chairs with ease?

The gator hops up from his seat and kneels in front of Molly, angling his upper body downward so she could easily access his head plate.

“All yours, pipsqueak- just be easy with th’ goods, alright?”

With that, Molly slowly pops open the plate and takes a look at his wiring: everything looked to be in tip-top shape, oddly enough. But why was the gator so mindlessly violent with his things?

She shakes her head, giving the wires another once over before closing up the head plate.

“Everything looks good,” Molly confirms, clearing her throat after her voice cracks.

The gator pops up with a triumphant yell, nearly startling Molly off of the couch.

“THAT’S ‘CAUSE MONTGOMERY GATOR RAAAAAWKS!!” He bellows, grabbing his vanity chair and chucking it as hard as he could against the opposite wall.

Thankfully, it seemed to be the only reinforced piece of furniture in this room, as it simply clattered the floor. It made Molly’s ears ring regardless.

“Y-Yeah,” she laughs weakly, “ah- I should- go and see if I have anything else to do-”

With a noise akin to a squeak, Molly scurries out of the room just in time to avoid Monty’s second round of “thrashin’ and trashin’, as he called it. Thankfully, Freddy was patiently waiting outside to greet her.

“Your heart rate is elevated again,” the bear observes, “do you need to sit down?”

Molly shakes her head and waves her hand. “No, no. He’s just- really intense.”

“Yes, Monty can be…a lot to get used to. But he really is nice,” if Freddy could smile, he certainly would be right now. At least, Molly liked to think he’d be smiling.

Though, this moment of calm is swiftly interrupted by a sharp, tired voice.

“Freddy! You’re supposed to be on lockdown.”

Molly and Freddy both turn to see Vanessa striding towards the two of them, a square bandage plastered over her temple. Molly cringes a little.

“O-Officer Vanessa,” Freddy stammers, his posture drooping, “I apologize. But, Molly has fixed my systems! I do not think a lockdown is necessary anymore.”

Vanessa turns her sharp gaze on the smaller woman. There was very clear disdain in her eyes. “Oh really now. You fixed Freddy?” She takes a few long steps forward, now looming over Molly with her hands firmly planted on her hips. “Under what clearance?”

It then occurred to Molly that Vanessa didn’t seem to have the same chip as her. So, it really was only maintenance that received the chips! That had to hold some significance, right?

Drawing herself up to a more confident posture, Molly meets Vanessa’s eyes. “Because I’m maintenance. I was told to inspect the band and fix any issues that I saw with their wiring.”

Vanessa’s glare doesn’t waver. In fact, it just seemed to get more intense the longer Molly held her gaze.

She only had so much confidence to spare, and Vanessa was much better at the whole “being intimidating” thing. It was still odd, however; why was Vanessa so concerned about her looking at the animatronic’s wiring?

“ Just their wiring?” Vanessa questions, narrowing her eyes.

“Yeah,” Molly responds, suspicion creeping into her tone, “just the wiring. Why’re you so worried about it?”

Silence fell. The only noise came from the looping song playing over the speakers, and the faint sounds of Montgomery rampaging around his room. It was enough to keep the now otherwise still air from being overwhelmingly so.

Finally, Vanessa pulls back, crossing her arms once again. “Because I don’t want you breaking any of them. This is, what- your second day here? I don’t exactly trust you to be careful.” The tall woman scoffs as she rolls her eyes.

Molly’s brow furrows. “Oh, like you’re any more trustworthy,” she retorts, “I mean- what kind of person grabs another and doesn’t expect to get hit!”

“I’m your COWORKER. You came at me like I was the freak that tried to kill you!”

Vanessa’s tone sounded beyond offended. Molly couldn’t really blame her completely; after all, she did still hit her with a bucket. She did hope it only left a small mark, but at the same time she felt her actions were at least a little justified.

With a huff, Molly pushes past Vanessa again. “Well I am sorry, but excuse me for being a little paranoid.”

The rest of the night went on in a similar fashion.

Helpy informed Molly that she had a new task: check the generators in the daycare. Great, wonderful, just perfect; now Molly had to deal with the daycare animatronic again.

While she didn’t have the judgemental stares of parents set on her this time, she had the hate-filled glare of Vanessa constantly at her back.

Oddly enough, however, the security guard stops as Molly heads towards the doors leading directly into the daycare.

“What?” Molly questions, pausing to look at Vanessa.

The taller woman looked a slight bit more nervous than she had before. “You got this, right? That thing really gives me the creeps.”

Holy shit. Was Vanessa actually afraid of the daycare animatronic?

It took everything Molly had not to bust out laughing. Sure, she herself was wary of the oversized, weirdly touchy robot, but she wasn’t so uneasy that she’d just straight up refuse to be near it.

“Uh- yeah,” she finally responds, coughing to hide a bit of laughter that slipped past her defenses, “I can handle it. It’s just one robot.”

With a small, amused scoff, Molly turns right back around to start heading towards the stairs. Only for hands to lightly grasp the back of her uniform.

“Oh no, that door is out only,” Vanessa’s voice sounded almost mischievous. “If you want to go in? You have to use the slide.”

Molly turns her attention to the mouth of a slide settled towards the corner of the huge wall of glass. As far as Molly could tell, it was well used, as the paint on the bottom portion of it was scuffed to no end.

With a grimace, Molly shakes her head. “No. No way- I’m not using that to get in.”

Molly hears fabric rustle as Vanessa shrugs. “Don’t know what else to tell ya,” she responds in a tone of mock sympathy, “unless you want to get your pay docked for not finishing your tasks?”

As much as she hated to admit it, Molly knew Vanessa had a point.

She shrugs off Vanessa’s hands with a huff. “Fine.”

Molly inches towards the slide, inspecting it as she gets closer. It seemed just big enough for her to fit inside. Then again, she’s actually a fairly small woman; makes it easy to hide, if anything.

Still, the slide itself gave off more of an eerie vibe - though, Molly guessed that it was meant to come off as whimsical. And maybe it did for kids. Did she really have to slide down this thing?

Unfortunately for Molly, it seemed she lingered too long, as a boot shoves her off balance and directly into the slide.

With a yelp, Molly finds herself quite suddenly submerged in a sea of colour. It all smelled strongly of…cleaner?

She forces herself upwards and crashes out of what now revealed itself to be a massive ball pit. She was surrounded by possibly hundreds of multicoloured plastic balls.

Shooting a glare up towards the window, Molly sees Vanessa doubled over in clear laughter.

“Asshole,” Molly huffs, starting her push through the ball pit and towards the edge.

Soon, she hoists herself up onto the cushioned ground of the daycare, taking a moment to re-adjust her now ruffled uniform. At the very least, the push she was given saved her a good ten minutes of hesitation; it still didn’t feel great to be shoved down a creepy slide, though.

Molly gives the place a quick glance. It was certainly much bigger than it appeared on the other side of the glass. The massive play structure towered over her, cords snaking out from different spots - those must be going to the generators.

It was odd that a place meant for small children had dangerous electrical equipment set up in it. After all, Molly had only just been here a few weeks ago and saw that it was practically jam-packed with kids! Something had to have happened.

What struck her as even more strange was that the daycare animatronic was nowhere to be seen.

Sundrop had been so eager to greet her the first time she’d been here. Now, it was almost deadly quiet. Impossibly still.

Molly swallows back her unease. She wasn’t here to check on Sundrop, she was here for the generators. And for that, she’d need to follow the cords. But to do that? She needed to climb inside the play structure.

A groan was all she could muster as she dragged herself towards the first entrance she saw. It wasn’t as though she had anything against tight spaces, but she really wasn’t looking forward to the back pain that was going to come from hunching over.

Even with her being as small as she is, it was still a chore to climb her way to the first generator. What was even worse was that the generator itself seemed to be on the verge of completely breaking down.

“Helpy,” she mumbles, opening the side panel for the generator, “how long have these things been on?”

The little bear pops up in a puff of smoke, his clipboard in hand. ”Oh, ‘bout a week and a half,” he responds, ”apparently there was an accident with the naptime attendant.”

With a blink, Molly turns her attention to Helpy. “An accident? What kind of accident?”

The little bear pauses, a loading bar appearing above his head as he scratches his chin in thought. ”He just sorta- snapped. According to the report, he almost hurt a kid real bad.” Helpy shudders, stuffing his clipboard back behind him. ”Guess that’s why your next task is to go check on his code and see if you can figure out what’s up.”

“ What, ” Molly snaps, eyes wide, “why do I have to check on him!?”

She couldn’t believe it. She had to check on the possibly murderous robot?? There was no way! What did they expect her to do?

Molly lightly drops her head onto the struggling generator, feeling the vibrations against her skull. She couldn’t help but let out a long, low groan of both fear and frustration. “I haaaaate this joooooob-” She hadn’t even been working for more than two days and she was already in charge of fixing things she had no business fixing yet.

She feels Helpy pat the top of her hand. ”Hey, cheer up pal! They don’t expect ya to fix him yet,” he encourages, ”they just want ya to get a look at his code and see if somethin’ in there got messed up!”

As she lifts her head, Molly couldn’t help but glare lightly at the little bear. Still, it wasn’t his fault.

“I guess you’re right,” she mumbles, “but he’ll be shut down while I’m looking at him though, right?”

Helpy hesitates. Oh boy, not a good sign.

“Helpy,” Molly states in a much firmer tone, “the naptime attendant is going to be shut down while I’m looking through his code. Right? ”

The little bear’s continued lack of response was all Molly needed to hear.

“Great..wonderful,” Molly flops backwards onto the floor of the play structure, staring up at the worn down ceiling above her. Now she had to worry about possibly being eviscerated by a rogue animatronic.

“This is such bullshit.” Molly scoffs as she sits up.

”Language please, pal,” Helpy warns with a wag of his finger.

Molly’s glare is enough to silence him again. She had a right to curse, really, and he should recognize that!

”W-Well- at least he’ll be strapped down to the table in Parts & Service! That’s good, right?” Helpy wrings his paws together.

With another shake of her head, Molly goes back to fix up the first generator - she had at least 4 more to go after this one, after all, so she didn’t have time to get hung up on her next task.

All too soon, however, she was done.

Now making her way out of the daycare and towards where Vanessa had been waiting for her, Molly glances at Helpy out of the corner of her eye.

“Say, Helpy?” She hesitated for just a few seconds. Something had been bugging her since she clocked in for her shift.

”What’s up?” The little bear inquires in a bright tone.

Molly scratches at the area surrounding her chip, shivering as she brushes against cold metal. “How come my jobs are so much more- I don’t know..involved?” She continues to scratch at the chip, wincing as a flash of pain snakes down her spine; maybe she should stop scratching at it.

Helpy’s paw settles on her cheek. ”Ah, well- seems the system has you classified as a “trained employee” now,” he rubs the back of his head, a nervous undertone to his voice, ”I think since Vanessa did the assignments that were meant for you, our automated task system thinks you have enough experience to handle the more involved stuff.”

The laugh that followed his words did very little to soothe the spike of anxiety that rattles around Molly’s chest. “You’re kidding,” she wheezes out, stopping to lean herself against the railing of the stairs and sliding down to sit on the step.

No wonder she had way more tasks than she did on her first night. Cleaning the part rooms, checking on the animatronics, fixing the generators, looking through the naptime attendant’s code - there had to be some way to reverse this!

“Helpy-” Molly starts, only for the little bear to hold up his hand.

”Sorry pal- already know what you’re gonna ask,” he sighs softly, shaking his head, ”resetting your experience level in the system means you’d have to reset your employee profile. Which is WAY more hassle than it’s worth, trust me.”

Molly’s shoulders slump. Who came up with such a bullshit system?

“Can’t be helped, I guess,” Molly sighs as she stands, brushing off bits of dust. She was sure she could handle it! After all, this is what she was going to college for; if anything, hands-on experience will be good for her.

As far as she recalled, she would need to go through the maintenance tunnels to get to Parts & Service. Molly shivers. It was going to be freezing cold down there - maybe she should’ve brought her jacket after all.

Finally, she makes it to the top of the stairs, seeing Vanessa tapping her foot much like an irritated mother.

“ Finally, ” She groans, hands slapping her sides out of pure exasperation, “what took you so long? Get stuck in the ball pit?”

“Oh, you mean the ball pit you shoved me into? No, I didn’t get stuck,” Molly grumbles, “I was fixing the generators carefully, because if you didn’t notice? That entire room is highly flammable.” Being around this woman was getting more grating by the second. Did she really have to be here the entire night?

Molly takes Vanessa’s scoff as the signal to start moving. She wasn’t about to sit around and argue with her more, after all.

It wasn’t until they arrived at Parts & Service that Vanessa seemed to throw in the towel. “Right- that’s- the end of my shift,” she huffs, tapping her wrist watch, “don’t go getting stabbed while I’m gone, I guess.”

It struck Molly as odd that now was the end of Vanessa’s shift. After all, a quick glance at the Fazwatch on her wrist told her it was only 2:47 - not to mention, Vanessa sounded rushed. Almost…afraid? Watching her practically sprint away would have been funny if Molly didn’t get such an off vibe from it.

“Oooookay- weirdo,” Molly mumbles, leaning towards the door to get a look at how to get inside the room.

As far as she could see, it was a scanner of some kind. Probably meant for her chip.

Leaning closer, she angles the side of her head towards the scanner and brushes back her hair, staying as still as possible. The blue, holographic grid that scanned over her reminded her of Freddy scanning her earlier in the night; probably the most consistent thing she had seen in this place so far.

Stepping inside, she was surprised to find a nearly pitch-black room. The only source of light came from the gentle glow of neon strips settled inside a large glass cylinder in the center of the room. The bottom of it was surrounded by metal from the floor to about 3 feet up. Likely for stability.

Inside, the tall, lanky shape of a struggling animatronic lies strapped to a steel table. The cuffs were made of a mix of leather and metal - not comforting to know it could plausibly break out if it struggled enough.

Molly steels her nerves. She could do this. It was secured to the table regardless. She was safe. For now.

Approaching the cylinder, Molly spots a set of controls just next to what looked to be a door. But as she goes to activate them, a loud buzzer sounds in her ears.

WARNING: AUTOMATIC CONTROLS UNAVAILABLE. MANUAL MAINTENANCE REQUIRED.

“Great. Wonderful- FUCK!” Molly kicks the stand holding up the controls, the steel toe causing a slight metallic echo around the otherwise silent chamber.

Red light washes over her as she raises her head. Ruby orbs meet her mismatched ones.

The animatronic had stopped its thrashing, now gazing at Molly with a tilt of its faceplate. It looked a lot like Sundrop, but instead of the bright reds and golds accompanied by his sharp sunrays, cold blues and purples plastered with white stars invaded her senses.

It was almost dizzying to look at, from the deep gradient of the pants and hat to the startlingly deep set gashes in its bare chestplate. From the angle of the gashes themselves, they looked to be self-inflicted - and the sharpened talons on the ends of the animatronic’s long fingers were the clear culprit.

Molly swallows back a frightened groan. Paired with the silence of the room, it almost felt as though she was face-to-face with a hungry animal rather than a robot meant for children’s entertainment and care.

“Okay,” she lets out a shaky breath, “you- must be the naptime attendant. My name is Molly.”

She scans her Fazwatch on the console in front of her. The door slowly slides open with an irritating squeak.

The animatronic tilts its faceplate more; it was almost entirely upside down at this point. Whatever was going through its servos right now, at least it was distracting it from struggling.

“I’m just here to check your code,” Molly continues as she takes cautious steps into the chamber. Though, she wasn’t entirely sure how she was meant to do that. The most she had done so far was physically check through the wiring of the main troupe - code was an entirely different ballpark.

“Helpy?” Molly mumbles.

Right on cue, the little bear pops up on the tilted table the naptime attendant was strapped to.

”Hiya pal! Need a hand?” He asks in his usual chipper tone.

With another small breath, Molly hesitates. As far as she could tell, she had no tools at her disposal to tap into the animatronic. Eventually, after taking a moment to think, Molly continues, resting her hand on the table just a few inches short of the animatronic’s.

“How- how exactly am I supposed to look into their code?” Her question seems to take Helpy by surprise, as the little bear’s eyes widen.

”Gosh,” he murmurs, ”I guess- you never actually went through that training…well! No worries, I’ll give ya a quick walkthrough!”

With a stamp of his foot, Helpy disappears in a puff of smoke and reappears on Molly’s shoulder just within her peripheral vision.

She feels a small jolt of pain go through her head again as his paw presses against the chip stapled into her head. She could hear the smile in his voice as he began his explanation.

”Your handy-dandy chip here has a built-in cable for just this sort of task! Neatly coiled up riiiight there in your head,” another pat from his paw sends another bolt of pain.

Molly feels her breath hitch in her throat. “How- what?? Helpy, what do you mean there’s a cable in my head!?” There was no way this was real. The chip was only slightly bigger than the pad of her thumb and about as thick as a coin.

Helpy only laughs. A cheery laugh, as though Molly had told a joke.

”Oh, this little chip has all sorts of gadgets in it! It’s a little thing called micro-tech,” Helpy poofs again, reappearing on the hand Molly currently had resting on the table, ”Fazbear Entertainment has been working with this stuff for a while! Really streamlines things, don’tcha think?”

The implications of this “micro-tech” didn’t sit well in Molly’s already churning stomach. What else could be hidden in this thing if an entire cable could fit inside of it? And what if the naptime attendant had some sort of virus?

She casts a glance at the still silent animatronic on the table. It hadn’t taken its eyes off of her, scanning her up and down; it seemed especially interested in her hands, its own straining lightly against the restraints to try and touch them.

Molly pulls her hands away. Be it out of instinct or purely because she had to get working, she didn’t entirely care to dwell on it.

Going around to the attendant’s head, Molly carefully reaches to brush her fingers against the faceplate to find a port or a panel - really anything that looks like an access point.

The attendant shudders, arms straining harder against the straps. Thankfully, they still held strong.

“Shhh shsh,” Molly could hardly keep her voice from shaking, “i-it’s okay, I’m not- I’m not going to hurt you. I want to help you feel better, okay? I just- need a second to figure out where the port is-”

To her surprise, the attendant relaxes again. She was, however, still bathed in red light - it really liked to stare.

“ The access port should be on the right hand side of the naptime attendant’s faceplace,” Help instructs.

Molly huffs. He couldn’t have said that sooner?

It doesn’t take her long to find the port, gently tilting the animatronic’s head to the side.

Somehow, it seems to tense under her hands. It almost felt like trying to look over a nervous cat.

Without thinking, Molly runs two of her fingers from the nose bridge of the faceplate up a little ways past the forehead in a repeated motion. “It’s alright,” she murmurs softly, “you’re okay- everything’s okay. I’m trying to help you, remember?” Molly leans over to make eye contact with the attendant, holding its faceplate in place.

It almost looked surprised. Though its expression was stuck in the same permanent smile that Sundrop’s was, the harsh glow of its eyes softened. It leans into her hand with a metallic creak; if Molly had to put a name to it, she’d say it sounded similar to a cat’s purr.

She couldn’t help but smile. “You’re just a big cat, aren’t you?” She laughs softly, though there was a nervous bubble in her chest.

“A..giant, metal, possibly extremely unstable and dangerous cat, but- a cat nonetheless,” with another breath, she reaches a hand up to her temple and feels around for the chip.

“What now?” She asks, glancing at Helpy out of the corner of her eye.

”Now,” Helpy responds, ”Give it a press! It might hurt a little the first few times, but you’ll get used to it!”  

Molly grimaces. But, she presses on the chip; it definitely hurt more than she’d expected, but there was a promising click that followed.

She tightens her index finger and thumb around the piece of metal that now protruded from the chip, giving it a small tug.

More pain erupted in her head as her knees buckled beneath her.

She releases the attendant’s faceplate with a loud yelp, managing to catch herself on the table. “ Fuck, ” She snaps, pausing her tugging, “what the hell!?”

Helpy clambers onto the naptime attendant’s chestplate, wagging a finger at Molly as he taps his foot. ”Molly! Language! I know it hurts, but this is no place for doing impressions of sailors!” Boy, this bear could be irritating sometimes.

A half-hearted glare was all Molly could manage through the involuntary tears of pain. “Well I’m sorry if it feels like I’m pulling out my skull right now- you made it sound like it was just going to pinch!”

Guilt replaced Helpy’s scolding expression. ”You’re still adjusting to it,” he hops down to place a paw on her hand, ”it’ll pass, I promise- just take it slow for now.”  

Molly groans. But, she straightens her posture again and slides her hand back against the attendant’s faceplate, tilting it once again to give her better access to the port.

Though it still stung horribly, Molly slowly tugged the cable out from her head and plugged the connector into the port. For a moment, nothing happened.

But before she could even consider asking a question, a semi-transparent screen opened in front of her like a computer window.

Lines upon lines of code scrolled past her face at a rapid pace; oddly enough, however, she didn’t feel as though she had missed a single bit. It all engrained itself into her mind, bit by bit, almost as though she had known the program for years.

It wasn’t until she felt a sharp jab in her temple that the code lines came to an abrupt halt.

At the same time, the attendant jolts, its faceplate clicking as it attempts to spin in a counterclockwise motion. Molly is quick to stop it, grabbing the edges and guiding it back into place.

“Shhh,” she shushes, “I think I found the problem. Helpy, there’s some purple code here, is that meant to be there?” She asks, glancing at the little bear.

Helpy shakes his head. ”Absolutely not! The naptime attendant’s code is meant to be blue! Every animatronic has colour-specific code, so anything foreign shows up as a completely different colour,” he explains.

With a small hum, Molly squints. To her surprise, the lines of purple code enlarge, giving her a much closer look than before. While it was useful, it was difficult to focus with all of the little twinges and pinches of pain that constantly poked at her brain.

She does her best to push the feeling aside. “It’s encrypted,” she mumbles, reaching out to try and run her finger along the underside of the code. It sends a faint tingle up her finger as though she had just brushed against a computer screen.

Molly shivers. She had to focus, especially now that she could feel the attendant’s eyes on her again. “Whatever this is, it’s going to take a bit to untangle- Helpy, can you take some work notes?” She asks, using her finger to swipe along to the next line of code.

The little bear salutes. ”Sure can, pal! Talk to me!”

Though hours passed, Molly still couldn’t decrypt the code before her.

It had to have been made by someone who was a professional in the field. Every attempt she made to unscramble even a small portion, it just wound up making her head hurt worse.

At this point, Molly had even pulled up a dusty rolling chair she had found in the corner of the chamber - thankfully, the cable in her head was much longer than she had originally anticipated. It was weird, yes, but at this point she was too tired to question it.

She groans as she rubs her eyes. “Okay- test…what is this, twenty six?”

”Twenty-eight,” Helpy corrects. Even he sounded tired.

“Right, twenty-eight,” Molly sighs, “jeez, this is going nowhere- okay, run the program again, try the L2TP again.”

”Pal, we’ve tried multiple versions of the L2TP,” Helpy almost sounded frustrated now, ”this has gotta be something even deeper than that.”

The little bear had a point. With a quick glance at her watch, Molly decides to just throw in the towel.

“Ugh…yeah- yeah, you’re right. It’s almost five, I can’t deal with this anymore- is there some special way I need to close out of this stuff, orrr?” Molly stands, stretching her sore muscles as she does. She had a splitting headache - it sucked that she’d have to head straight to class after this, but it wasn’t like she had the choice to skip.

Help points to Molly’s forehead. ”Just let the system know you wanna disconnect is all! Once you hear a click, you should be good to go.”

It sounded silly. But Molly didn’t have the energy to question it; not that the “system” really gave her any issues, as the “click” Helpy mentioned came pretty quickly after she thought about disconnecting the cable.

As she’s reaching down to remove the connector, Molly takes notice of the animatronic’s motionless state.

It seemed to be in a sort of stasis mode - what a way to find out it had eyelids, too!

She gives the cheek of the faceplate a gentle pat as she disconnects the cable. The attendant doesn’t stir; she hoped it felt relaxed. It had gotten distressed a few times over during her investigation into the code with Helpy.

“Do you think looking at an animatronic’s code is kind of- I don’t know, invasive almost?” She asks as she makes her out of the dark Parts & Service area and through the tunnels again. She gave the cable still in her hand a small tug, jumping as it retracts into her head like a tape measure might.

Helpy’s voice echoes slightly in her head. ”Hmm…well, I’ve never really thought about that! It CAN be, I imagine, but the naptime attendant didn’t seem to mind after a bit,” he pauses, before laughing a little. ”I think he might’ve LIKED you, actually! Good sign! It’ll make it easier to fix him right up.”  

The little bear had a point. The more the naptime attendant relaxed, the easier it would be to fix this weird code.

Still, she just couldn’t shake a lingering sense of unease. There was something sinister about that code; why was it so heavily encrypted? How did it get into the naptime attendant’s system? Why was it purple of all things? There were answers somewhere. Molly just had to find them somehow.

She really hoped she wouldn’t wind up regretting her decision to stick with this job.

Chapter Text

At this point, Molly wasn’t sure what to do.

The weeks had come and gone with little incident. Little incident, and little progress.

Her work on the naptime attendant’s mysterious purple code had proved to be fruitless so far. Nothing she did seemed to get her any closer to cracking it.

Though, by spending time with the naptime attendant, she did learn that its name was Moondrop, it preferred to be referred to as an “it” - and that it, and Sundrop, shared the animatronic shell together.

At this point in time, the two of them weren’t on speaking terms; considering Moondrop almost seriously hurt a child, Sundrop wanted nothing else to do with it. It hurt Moondrop that its best friend refused to acknowledge it anymore, and it often lamented to Molly about how it missed the days where they were theater animatronics. When neither of them had to interact with the children directly and only put on fun shows. When they were separate animatronics.

Oddly enough, these conversations didn’t come in the form of verbal communication. Instead, Moondrop used the code box to present questions and deliver answers - apparently, its voicebox had been damaged during its meltdown.

With everything she learned about the attendant, Molly had Helpy take down notes. It was much easier to have the animatronic tell her directly what was wrong instead of her having to dig around in its code and hardware anymore than she already had.

Of course, Moondrop’s situation wasn’t her only responsibility.

Molly had to maintain the party rooms practically every night. It seemed a lot of people tended to come from out of town to throw huge parties. And not just birthday parties either; Molly had only ever seen so many beer bottles and overturned bits of furniture when she was still living with her biological parents.

Whoa. It’s been a while since she’s thought about that.

The empty beer bottle almost felt heavy in her hand as she paused to look over it. Same label as what she remembered; then again, it was a popular brand. Looking at it still made her sick regardless.

A familiar rage claws its way up into her chest. Her grip on the bottle tightens as she reels her arm back, ready to chuck the bottle against the wall-

”Hey pal, you alright?” Helpy’s soft voice freezes Molly in her tracks.

Glancing to the side, she sees the little bear balanced on one of the overturned chairs, his brow furrowed with very obvious worry.

Molly feels her throat tighten. “I’m fine, man, don’t worry.” She lied right through her teeth. Helpy had direct access to her thoughts, but she just had to trust that he’d respect her request to stay out of them.

Helpy’s expression doesn’t change. Instead, he wrings his paws together. ”Look, I don’t- I don’t wanna invade your privacy here, pal, but you really don’t seem fine. You’ve been all tense since you started cleanin’,” he hops down from the chair, scurrying across the floor and stopping by Molly’s boot. ”Y’know you can talk ta me, right? Pal to pal?”

As he places his paw on the side of her boot, Molly feels the familiar pressure of tears behind her eyes. She had to admit, it had been a while since she’d spoken about how she grew up.

Still, spilling her life story to an animated bear that’s attached to her brain? It seemed a little weird. Then again, what’d she have to lose? It wasn’t like anyone else could see nor hear him.

“Okay,” Molly releases a shaky breath, “yeah- you got me. I’m not doing so hot.”

She pulls one of the chairs back to its feet and sits down, burying her face in her hands. “Reminds me of my parent’s house- Dad used to drink himself stupid. ” She kicks a bottle as hard as she could, hardly flinching as it shatters against the wall. “Mom did fuck-all about it- half the time, she was high on one thing or another. And the other half, she was kicking us around.”

With a heavy sigh, she lifts her head, leaning her arms on her thighs. “I don’t like thinking about it,” she pauses to shrug, shaking her head, “and I like talking about it even less if I’m being honest.”

”Have you perhaps considered therapy?” Helpy questions, appearing on her knee.

Molly shoots him an odd look. “Um… yeah, I have. Just haven’t found the right therapist yet.” Strange that Helpy would suggest such a thing. Especially considering it wasn’t related to her work.

Helpy kicks an invisible pebble, paws stuffed into his pockets. ”I’m worried ‘boutcha, pal- I know I said I wouldn’t go diggin’ through your stuff, but… some of your memories are real bad,” Helpy pressed his paws to her arm, looking up at her with tear-filled eyes. ”Please don’t be angry at me! I just wanna help ya! It’s in my code, I can’t help it-”

Molly couldn’t help but laugh a little at Helpy’s panicked rambling. It’s not that she was being mean, she just found it really charming.

“Helpy, buddy, it’s okay,” she reassures the little bear, giving him a few head rubs with her middle and index finger, “I don’t mind. Just- don’t go digging around too deep, okay? There’s stuff I’d really rather you not see.”

Helpy nods, fat tears rolling down his fuzzy face as he hugs Molly’s hand tightly.

It seemed he had already seen some pretty bad stuff. Molly just hoped he wouldn’t linger on it as much as she did.

Everything felt like a hazy mess today.

She didn’t have any classes today since most of her professors canceled due to the coming snow. It was par for the course in this part of the states when transitioning into November, but it was still good to prepare.

Since she had already gotten her snow tires, Molly figured she’d spend the day out and about alone - well, not completely alone.

Helpy sat up on the edge of her dashboard kicking his feet, gazing at the passing street as Molly drove along.

”Your blood sugar is getting low,” Helpy states, temporarily appearing on her shoulder to poke her cheek, ”you should find something to eat soon!”

“Didn’t know I was getting a free CGM with your chip,” Molly laughs softly. Since they were in the car, she didn’t worry much about speaking out loud. “I’ll stop somewhere soon, I just gotta get groceries first. Wanna be prepared with snacks for my shift tonight.”

Work tonight was likely going to slow down by a lot .

Mr. Emily had contacted her yet again and let her know to be prepared for a blizzard. She’d need to stay in the building to keep an eye on all of the animatronics and the heating system - apparently, the cold made a lot of it go haywire.

“I still don’t get how a building built in Utah, a state known for having freezing weather, wasn’t made to withstand a blizzard,” Molly huffs.

Helpy reappears on the dashboard, shaking his head. ”I’unno. It’s a mystery, even to me! But, Mr. Emily sure was kind to let you know to prepare!”

The little bear had a point. Whatever the reason for the shoddy construction of the building, Mr. Emily was still being pretty generous with his warning. Though, at this point, she had been working at the Plex for almost three weeks now; so a warning was really the least that could be done.

Still, Molly sighs. “Yeah…still wish I didn’t have to stay with little miss bad-attitude the whole time,” she grumbles, “I mean- what’s her deal! She acts like I made her do my job-”

”Hey pal, reel it back a bit,” Helpy’s nervous voice pipes up, ”your blood pressure’s gettin’ a bit too high there.”

It was a miracle she had Helpy in her head, otherwise Molly was sure she’d have had an aneurysm by now. “Right- you’re right. It’ll be fine, we’ll just- stay out of each other’s way!” She reassures herself as she rolls up her jacket sleeves.

Still, it irked her to have to be stuck in a building with someone so hellbent on hating her guts; not that Molly was any better about it.

Of course, as Molly is making her way through her list of groceries, who should she run into but the exact person she had just been complaining about?

“ Ah fuck, ” she mutters, “ you’ve gotta be kidding me- hey, Vanessa. I uhm…didn’t know you shopped here, too.” Molly greets. She just hoped the taller woman was in a better mood than she has been the past few weeks.

Green eyes scan Molly up and down, lingering a little longer than she’d have liked on her exposed arm where the scarring from her stitches are.

“Really got you good there, huh?” Vanessa grunts, snatching a box of pasta from the shelf.

Molly glances down at the scarred arm, swallowing back a sharp retort. “Eh- yeah,” she answers quietly, “still kinda hurts sometimes.” She murmurs, sliding the sleeves of her jacket back down and keeping her gaze cast to the side.

The way Vanessa’s eyes raked over her brought about a familiar sense of unease. There was something in the way the security guard looked at her that Molly just couldn’t quite describe; it reminded her heavily of the way Moondrop watched her when she had first started working on him. A hungry animal.

But there was something else there. Some underlying thought or emotion that was hidden underneath that outer layer of predator-like ravenousness.

The silence that replaced their brief conversation was only broken by the faint, skipping music playing over the store speakers.

“Need a ride tonight?”

Vanessa’s sudden question pulls Molly’s eyes to her in an instant.

“Oh, uh,” Molly rubs the back of her head, “n- no, I can drive. But, thank you.”

“Good- good,” came Vanessa’s strained response, “just ah- makin’ sure. Makin’ sure. Roads’re gonna get bad ‘n all.”

A sudden change of heart, then? Probably not. But it had been about a week since they’d seen each other, so maybe there was some chance at clearing the air. Still, it was pretty uncomfortable standing about like this.

“W-Well, uh- I’ve gotta go now,” Molly grips the handle of the cart tightly, trying to cover the small crack in her voice with a cough, “I’ll see you at work-”

“Wait-” Vanessa calls, quickly spinning to grab Molly’s shoulder.

It was different than the last few times Vanessa had stopped her. Her grip here was far more gentle, hesitant; it was as though she was afraid she’d hurt Molly.

It was enough to get her to stop and look back at the security guard.

Vanessa still hesitates, letting go of Molly’s shoulder as she focuses her eyes on her boots. “I’m- I’m sorry for how I’ve been acting the last few weeks,” she sighs softly, “I really think we could be friends, y’know? I wanna start fresh.”

Molly could only stare at Vanessa for a long few moments. “Oh, um-” She couldn’t help but hesitate. But, it wasn’t as though her and Vanessa had done more than insult each other.

With a small shake of her head and a shrug of her shoulders, Molly looks back up at the security guard with a smile. “Yeah- that sounds nice, actually. Sorry for hitting you with a bucket,” Molly laughs, though it was far more awkward than she had wanted it to be.

Vanessa waves a hand. “Water under the bridge. I shouldn’t have been so grabby with you, especially after- y’know,” she gestures to Molly’s arm again.

“Ah, well- funny thing is, I don’t really remember what happened,” Molly pauses to rub her arm lightly, “but I guess the paranoia is still there. I get so creeped out by the second floor now.”

A light, airy laugh interrupts any further thought from Molly. It brought about a new, warm feeling that made her heart flutter.

Looking up at Vanessa again, Molly sees her trying (and failing) to cover up her laughter. But it didn’t seem to be out of malice.

“Sorry- sorry, I promise I’m not laughing at you,” she waves her hands, revealing a wide smile, “it’s just- I hate the second floor! Heights just really aren’t my thing. I don’t blame you for being nervous up there. I swear the railing is gonna give out one of these days, y’know?”

“Y-Yeah,” came Molly’s nervous half-chuckle. It was hard to take her eyes off of Vanessa’s relaxed grin – it even looked like she had dimples!

“Gosh, you have a pretty smile-”

Molly’s own words hit her like a freight train. She could feel her cheeks becoming warmer the longer she stood there.

“I mean- uh- Igottagoseeeyouatwork!” She stammers out, all but running down the aisle and turning the corner before Vanessa could get a single word in.

Molly rushes through the rest of her list, quick to pay and leave before she could even think about running into Vanessa again.

It isn’t until she’s pulling into the parking lot of an In-N-Out that she really stopped to process what had happened. It wasn’t her first choice of where to eat, but it was the first place she saw. Regardless, it wasn’t as though she planned on getting out of her car just yet - she had to die a little first.

Pressing her hands to her still burning hot face, Molly lets out a long and distressed groan.

“I did not fucking do that- AUGH!” She flings herself backwards in her seat, letting the back of her head hit the headrest. “What the f- I am so goddamn- work is going to be so awkwaaaaaard!” Molly smacks her forehead against the steering wheel a few times over; there was no possible way to recover from that trainwreck of a conversation before her shift tonight! How was she supposed to look Vanessa in the eye after that!?

The familiar, fuzzy sensation of Helpy’s paw against her cheek pulls Molly from her racing thoughts. One look at his concerned expression told her exactly what he was about to say.

“I know- I know, heart rate and all that,” she lets out a shivering sigh, smacking her hands against the steering wheel once, “but- what the hell am I supposed to do!? That was supposed to be an inside thought, not an out loud one! She probably thinks I’m a weirdo-”

”For complimenting her?” Helpy asks with a raised brow.

Molly pauses, some of the heat dying down from her cheeks. “Well- I mean- sh-” She stammers, desperately searching for the right words. But Helpy was right. At this point, that wasn’t really a shock to Molly, the little bear really did know what he was talking about most of the time.

With a shake of her head, Molly turns off her car. “You’re right,” she mumbles, “as usual.”

Helpy’s expression brightens in an instant. Though, there was still a teasing twinkle in his eye.

”Oh, am I? I had a whoooole speech prepared for ya, pal! Don’tcha wanna hear it?” He asks, poofing to Molly’s shoulder with a flourish. ”C’mon, whether you like it or not, I know exactly what your surface thoughts are. Why not ask her out sometime, pal?”

“Oho no, no-ho way, man,” Molly nearly chokes on the frigid air as she steps out of the car, “we hardly know each other! Besides, we’ve spent the time we have known each other being pretty hostile-”

Helpy gasps. ”Enemies to lovers!”

“What the h- who taught you relationship tropes??” Molly sputters, craning her neck to look at the little bear.

All she could see was a flash of Helpy’s coy grin. ”I learn from YOU, remember pal?” He teases with a laugh.

Molly feels the heat return to her face. “...stay out of my brain history, man, that’s weird.”

“And you’re sure you’ll be okay?” Asks Jayce as he walks with Molly towards her apartment’s entrance.

“Yes, Jay, I’ll be fine,” Molly groans, giving her twin a soft punch on the shoulder, “it’ll be two, maybe three days tops that I’m gone.”

It had just so happened that Jayce had gone to the same In-N-Out that she had stopped at. It wasn’t a total shock considering it was his favourite place to eat; still, it was the perfect opportunity to really catch up with him!

As she unlocks the door to her apartment, she feels Jayce’s eyes on the back of her head.

“I just don’t see why they can’t just close the building until the snow calms down.” He huffs.

Molly rolls her eyes as she steps inside, tossing her keys into the bowl set next to the door. “I already told you- it’d be too much money to replace everything if it all shut down.” She shakes her head as she shrugs off her jacket and hangs it on the wall rack. “Apparently the building isn’t good at keeping itself warm without completely overheating, so it’s my job to make sure everything stays at an even temperature.”

Jayce fires off a look of both disgust and irritation.

“And they can’t just hire other people to do that?” He grunts.

“That doesn’t eliminate the issue here,” Molly pauses to kick off her shoes and flop down onto her couch, “there’d still have to be people staying for two or three days.”

“Yeah, but then you wouldn’t have to do it!” Jayce throws his hands up in exasperation as he flops onto the couch next to Molly. He crosses his arms and purses his lips; pouting again, it seemed.

With a loud, exaggerated groan, Molly flops against her brother. “ Whyyyyy do you have to pout like that! Seriously, you act like I’m going to be gone for months,” she shifts to bring her legs up onto the couch, her back now pressed firmly against Jayce’s shoulder.

“I’m not worried about the amount of time, I worry about the place, ” Jayce huffs, lifting his arm so that Molly’s head falls onto his lap. “You almost died there. Aren’t you the least bit concerned that that maniac is still out there?” He reaches down to pinch and poke at her cheeks, his expression  now taking on a very clear edge of worry.

Her brother’s concern was, of course, genuine and valid. But it had been weeks since the incident! Nothing else had happened since then. No had seen hide nor hair of that deranged bunny-suited wannabe-slasher since that day!

“Jay, man, c’mon,” Molly sits back up, shoving his hands away as she stands, “it’s been weeks. If the guy really wanted me dead, don’t you think he would’ve shown up again by now?”

“...I guess so.” Jayce sighs heavily. And though he seemed to drop the subject for the time being, his legs still bounced rapidly.

It wasn’t hard to tell that Jayce was still bothered. But Molly couldn’t let this golden opportunity slip away! She’d have so much time to work on Moondrop’s code and maybe finally get to the bottom of it. Still, she hated to see her brother so worried.

Feeling Piper weave around her legs, Molly couldn’t help but feel bad.

“Hey,” she leans down to pick up her cat, holding her like the sweet little baby she is, “I get it, really-” She pauses just before sitting next to Jayce again. “Well, sorta.” She sighs.

“I guess I just don’t remember enough to really be worried about it, y’know?” Molly shakes her head, leaning against Jayce with all of her body weight once again.

She feels his shoulders shake as he makes a sound between scoffing and laughing. “Exactly why I’ve gotta worry for the both of us,” he grumbles, “because your sense of self preservation is entirely situational sometimes.” He reaches over to place his hand directly over Molly’s face, squishing in her nose with his palm. “Or maybe you’re just that stupid.”

His tone was teasing, but it just made it all the more irritating. “Hey! Cut it out!” She protests, unable to retaliate due to the cat relaxing within her grasp. Though, the old cat was getting just as irritated with the situation, considering how much Molly was trying to writhe away from her brother’s hand.

Molly yelps as Jayce lunges at her, knocking the both of them to the ground. Luckily, Piper is quick to scurry away with an upset hiss, hopping into her tower just in time to avoid the siblings as they roll past.

Molly feels Jayce’s arm go to wrap around her neck. They had played this same game for years now: wrestle your sibling until they give up. Molly had always been the superior twin at this particular game, but Jayce had since gotten stronger after starting his transition a few years ago.

Still, she knew all of his weak points.

For one, he had an extremely ticklish neck. Something she easily exploited by stiffening her hand and sticking the ends of her fingers right into the crook of his neck.

Her twin yelps and cringes backwards. Molly uses the opening to her advantage, using every ounce of her strength to tackle him to the ground and pull his arm behind his back.

She grabs his leg with her other arm, bending it almost until his heel touches his backside.

“Say it.” She demands, unable to keep the strain out of her voice.

“Aaaaghh- I won’t- ssssurender,” Jay grunts out through gritted teeth.

Molly pulls on his leg harder. She watches as his free hand starts smacking the ground quickly.

“Gaahhhh okay! Okay! I yield, I yield- you win!” He groans.

Molly leaps up with a triumphant laugh. “All these years and you still can’t beat me,” she brags, inspecting her nails.

Jayce’s limbs flop against the ground. “That’s ‘cause I let you win.” He grumbles.

“Psh. Sure, right- you’re just mad ‘cause I’m still stronger than you.” She couldn’t help but laugh as her brother glared at her. “Oh come on, I’m joking! You had me on the ropes there. If I were anyone else, you’d have won.”

She holds out her hand for Jayce to take. And after a few moments of pouting, he does.

The siblings take a seat at Molly’s table minutes after, finally digging into the food they had taken to go.

They got into a more casual and relaxing conversation topic: Jayce watching Piper while Molly is gone.

“So- wait, which channel is it on?” Jayce asks through a mouthful of food.

“Seven thirteen,” Molly responds, “but I have it default to that channel when you turn the TV on.”

“You spoil that cat, y’know- I mean, does she really need to watch a whole TV show every day?” Jayce shakes his head, shooting a glance at Piper as she lounges in her tower.

Molly rolls her eyes. “Well, duh. She’s a queen! And the queen demands her baking show.”

It was Jayce’s turn to roll his eyes. “You are so weird.” He mumbles.

With a scoff, Molly reaches over to flick her brother on the forehead. “Says the guy that hunts ghosts in his free time!” She retorts, using it as a distraction to snatch a few of his fries.

In retaliation, Jayce actually winds up flicking an empty ketchup packet at her. “Hey, ghosts are real, and you should know that! Remember that old Freddy’s we stayed in? That place was for sure haunted.”

Molly hesitates. That was a memory she had pushed far into the back of her mind.

They had run away from a particularly rough foster home in the dead of winter with nothing but the clothes on their backs and a backpack half full of old food cans, a near-dead flashlight, and a pocket knife.

The old restaurant had been the only building they could get into at that time of night. Being small kids, the two of them easily slipped between the boards and into the dark and decrepit structure.

Molly forces the memory away again. She could only remember bits and pieces anyway.

“Yeah right,” she scoffs, “it was just some old, rickety building. We were twelve! Everything is scary at that age-”

“Okay, but what about that weird bunny-man? There’s no way that thing should’ve been able to walk around,” Jayce presses, “not with how crispy that shit looked.”

Molly found herself hesitating again. A bunny-man? Come to think of it, there had been something strange in that restaurant. But as she tries to dig deeper, a sharp pain in her temple distracts her.

She sucks in air through her teeth, hands flying to her head to try and squeeze away the consistent, now searing pain. It had been a while since the chip had hurt like this, but this time it went all the way down her neck and into her shoulders.

Hands grasp at her shoulders and shake her lightly. But no sound reached her; there was only a high-pitched whine that invaded seemingly every sense she possessed. It felt as though her entire body was vibrating.

Eventually, though, as she focused more on the pain than actually thinking, it all began to subside. And while it took her a moment to recover, something quickly occurred to her;

She couldn’t remember what she had been trying to think about.

A wave of cold washes over her so fast it gave her goosebumps. It was only when her shoulders were shaken again that she focused back on Jayce.

Though the sound returned, everything was muffled; Jayce was speaking to her, but she couldn’t make out the words. She rested her hand on his shoulders. Her eyes refused to completely focus. No matter how she blinked and rubbed at them, the world remained blurry.

She feels Jayce pull her up from the chair, and only then do her senses come back to her full force. Sound hits her like a brick, and the light of her living room nearly blinds her again.

“Fuck-” She mutters, pressing her palm against her eye.

“Are you okay? What’s wrong? Do you need me to call 911?” Jayce’s worried voice was far too loud. Even the sound of his hand rubbing circles on her back was overwhelming; not to mention it felt as though her shirt was sandpaper against her skin.

Molly pushes her hand against his face, simultaneously stopping his talking, and his hand rubbing at her back.

“Shh,” she whispers, “stop everything- I need a second.”

Thankfully, her brother obliged. And though it took a long few minutes, her senses seemed to cool down. She could no longer hear the electricity buzzing throughout her apartment and her clothes once again felt normal. Of course, there was still a low humming in her ear, but as far as she knew, that was normal.

Her shoulders relaxed, but she didn’t seem to be out of the woods yet.

There was still a lingering pain centered around the chip. It wasn’t nearly as severe as it was just moments prior, but it still struck her as odd.

“What the hell happened?” Asks Jayce.

Molly was grateful that he was keeping his voice at a low volume still. “I don’t know,” she sighs, rubbing her palms against her eyes. “I could ask Helpy? He might know.”

“Helpy? What, is that a coworker or something?” Jayce’s confused question quickly made Molly realize she hadn’t actually told anyone about the little AI bear! Boy was she about to sound crazy.

“He’s the AI maintenance assistant that’s in the chip I got for work,” Molly explains, shifting so that her brother could see the current source of her head pain, “and he basically helps me do my tasks at work. I’m the only one who can hear him and see him, though-”

“ See him?? Dude, what!? That’s actually sick!” Jayce laughs, running a hand through his hair. “You’ve got a fuckin’ robot in your head?”

Her brother’s excitement was much better than him being skeptical. Of course, he did also believe in ghosts, so she probably should’ve given him a little more credit.

With a smile, Molly shrugs. “Yeah, I guess so. He’s able to function separately from WiFi networks, too, so I’m able to talk to him practically anywhere. I’ll see if he knows what happened- hey, Helpy?”

Though it takes a few moments, Helpy pops up on the coffee table. His little uniform was covered in what appeared to be oil stains while he wiped his face with a cloth.

”Ah- heya, pal! Sorry ‘bout that little malfunction there- ya feeling alright?” He asks as he stuffs the rag back into his pocket.

“I’m fine, don’t worry,” she waves a hand, ignoring how intensely Jayce was currently staring at her, “but what was that all about?”

Helpy scratches the side of his head. ”Well- see, the chip ran into a bit of a snag was all! Nothin’ to worry about, though, I got it all handled with some self-maintenance!”  

While that should have been a relief to hear, there was something to Helpy’s almost dismissive attitude that didn’t sit right with Molly. Though, that could just be her own tendency towards paranoia talking.

“Glad you’re on top of it, buddy,” she reaches over to give Helpy a pat between his ears with two fingers, surprised to find that he felt even more solid than before.

Out of the corner of her eye, Jayce leans forward, his eyes now locked on the desk.

“How’re you doing that?” He asks, poking at Molly’s arm.

Molly blinks. How was she doing what? Looking down, she just sees her fingers resting on a very happy Helpy’s head. It wasn’t anything out of the ordinary. Was it?

It wasn’t until Jayce lifted her arm up that she realized it had been completely relaxed. Almost as though she had been resting it on something tangible. That was definitely new; before, she had only felt a tingle whenever she came into contact with Helpy. Now, it was almost as if he was fully there.

“Weird..” She murmurs, pulling her arm away from her brother. “But, normal! I think.”

“You “think”??” Jayce echoes in a much more exasperated tone. “Either it’s normal or it’s not!”

Molly contemplates for a few moments. “...no, definitely normal.” She concludes with a nod of her head. “These chips are pretty advanced, so it’s probably just some program.”

Though Jayce didn’t seem entirely convinced, he doesn’t press the matter, instead tugging Molly back to the table to finish their food.

For now, the incident was pushed to the back of her mind. She had more important things to worry about, anyhow.

The roads were already a bit sketchy by the time Molly left for work that evening. She, of course, left while it was still daylight out; arriving while there were still people felt a bit jarring, especially with how many still showed up at the Plex. Thank goodness for the employee entrance.

She had made sure to get permission to be on site before her shift, of course, as she wanted to make sure she’d be able to set up in a good enough sleeping spot. With how the weather was looking, she was sure she’d be here for an overnight stay at the very least.

Walking through the maintenance tunnels, Molly knew for sure that she’d avoid sleeping in the locker room. It was cold even when the heat was on! Maybe she could see if one of the Glamrocks would let her sleep in their room? Freddy was the first and most obvious one to ask, but she wondered if Chica or Roxy would agree. She had been wanting to get to know the Glamrocks more as a whole, but she just hadn’t had the time.

It wasn’t long before Molly reached the locker room. She wasn’t going to clock in just yet, as the Plex still had quite a few hours before it closed for the day, but she figured it’d be better to get ready now.

Though, as she got dressed, a thought occurred to her: why not walk around for a bit? After all, she basically had free access to the plex - maybe she could go check on Sun and Moon. They were sure to be a bit lonely with nothing to do.

After pulling on her boots and sliding on her backpack, Molly ventures back through the service tunnel and onto the main floor of the plex. Surprisingly enough, there was a sizable crowd of people milling about the lobby.

Hearing passing conversations revealed that many of them were reluctantly fulfilling promises they made to their kids. Seems they figured braving the oncoming elements was better than dealing with a disappointed child.

While it didn’t make much sense to Molly, she wasn’t really all that quick to judge. She wasn’t a parent and really didn’t plan to be. The task that is raising a child is one she would certainly lose her mind trying to accomplish - she’d leave it to the people who knew what they were doing.

It was odd to explore the plex when there were people around. Many of the stores were up and running, the attractions bustled with activity, and the sparse daytime employees looked far more awake than she would have expected.

A group of them had gathered around on the second floor just inside the hallway leading to the daycare, whispering amongst themselves as they fixed heavy stanchions to sit across the width of the hall. They all looked to range from the ages of 14 to just barely 17 - teenagers with their first jobs. It was likely much less dangerous to work during the day than it was at night, so Molly didn’t really pay much attention to it.

She easily walks by them seeing as they were far more invested in their conversation than someone walking past. But that particular conversation was what made Molly turn right back around.

“-no, really! We can just hide in Fazer Blast until the security doors come down!” One of the older teens, a boy with dark brown hair and glasses, whispers.

“Andy, that’s stupid,” one of the other boys, a blonde with sparse freckles, scoffs. “What if we actually run into the guy?”

The other three looked a bit off-put at the prospect. But the brunette boy, Andy, just rolls his eyes.

In order to eavesdrop, Molly quickly makes her way over to a nearby electrical box – one of her pre-shift tasks was to check over the breakers anyway, so it would be like killing two birds with one stone. She just wanted to be sure these kids weren’t actually planning to stay the night.

To make sure they wouldn’t suspect her, she pops in her earbuds and tucks her hair behind her ear to make sure it was visible. Thank goodness she kept her old wired earbuds with her for just such occasions.

“Jesus, Sawyer, do you seriously think I don’t have a plan? C’mon man, get real.” Andy gives Sawyer a shove, nearly sending the taller boy to the ground.

Sawyer shoves Andy right back. “I’m serious, Andy! You saw the news- he nearly killed that woman!”

Molly winces, quickly pulling her hand out of the box with a sharp curse; it seemed she had gotten way too close to a live wire while she was distracted.

She made it a point to pat herself down for her electrical tape and completely ignore the stares of the teenagers as though she weren’t listening at all – thankfully, her earbuds being in was more than enough to keep them from suspecting anything, as they went right back to talking after she found the tape.

“Sawyer has a point,” one of the girls, a ginger with hazel eyes, nervously cuts in, “I mean- you saw how she looked going into the ambulance. And that 911 call they played for the news coverage? Sheesh-” She shivers, wrapping her arms around herself in a tight hug.

The girl next to her, black haired with grey-ish eyes and a small scar on her lip, pulls the ginger into a side hug. “Shelly’s right.” She remarks in a flat tone.

Molly’s eyes travel down to her own wrists, catching sight of the bruises around her wrists – shaped like handprints, and stubbornly refusing to heal, they were a constant reminder of what she couldn’t remember. It made her throat feel tight.

As much as she wanted to say she was over it, she just couldn’t completely shake the anxiety.

Andy groans, tossing the screwdriver he was using to put the stanchions together into the open toolbox and pulling Molly’s attention back to the group. “ That’s what swings it in our favour, guys! There’s five of us- we can take on one person.” He gestures to the four teens in front of him, all of whom looked to be a mix of uneasy, unsure, and unimpressed.

Finally, the second to last teen chimes in: a boy with shaggy sandy hair and droopy blue eyes.

“Andy, we know you think this guy’s the one that took your sister,” he shuffles over to place a lanky hand on the shorter boy’s shoulder, “but we don’t have all of the facts. This could be someone entirely unrelated.”

For just a moment, Andy looked furious. But it all faded as a more solemnly accepting expression overtook whatever anger he was feeling.

“...I gotta do something, man,” he whispers. “I don’t know what to do anymore- Dad isn’t gonna last much longer if nothing else comes up, and-”

“The case hasn’t been closed yet.” Sawyer interrupts quickly. “The police’ll find something,” he goes to give Andy a pat, but the shorter boy pulls away altogether, sucking in a sharp breath. It was sounding like he was about to start yelling.

But before he could, he stumbles backwards and directly into Molly, whose hand slips right into the mass of wires and sends a massive jolt of electricity up her arm.

“FUCK! Jesus fucking- shit- ” Thankfully, Molly is able to yank her hand away, even if it was at the cost of a few wires. And the lights above them.

The five teens stare at her wide eyed as she pulls her earbuds out. Great. Now she had to pretend she hadn’t been listening the entire time.

Molly scrambles to pull out her phone and pretend to pause her “music” before looking the group over. “The hell??” She huffs, inspecting her hand for a moment. “Do you have any idea how dangerous these boxes are? You could’ve been electrocuted!”

“S-Sorry, I’m sorry- I didn’t realize you were there-” Andy stammers, keeping his eyes focused on the ground.

Molly forces her shoulders to relax at his clearly guilty expression. The poor kid had a lot on his mind already – and she really wasn’t keen on keeping up the whole “stern coworker” act.

She waves her hand with a small sigh. “It’s alright- probably should’ve had my music turned down,” she jokes lightly, “just didn’t want to accidentally listen to your conversation.”

While Andy looked relieved, Sawyer and the other boy stared silently; it was as though they were racking their brains for something.

It wasn’t until Shelly, the ginger, pointed at Molly that their eyes lit up in recognition. “Oh my god- it’s you! You’re the one that got attacked!”

The rest of the teens look up sharply.

Great. Wonderful. She just hoped she wouldn’t be bombarded by questions now.

“Shit, man- are you okay?” Asks the droopy-eyed boy. “I mean- we all saw the newscast-”

“Newscast?” Molly questions. “What newscast?”

She knew that there had been attempted press coverage, but she didn’t remember answering any questions. What sparse memories she had of being rescued by the police and paramedics didn’t reveal any cameras or reporters, either.

The teens share a look.

“Maria has it on her phone,” Sawyer gestures to the black-haired girl, who was already tapping away on her device.

Molly leans forward to watch what she pulled up on screen: a video featuring the local newscasters Jolie Holloway and Kendra Pike. People Molly personally disliked due to their tendency to prioritize spinning tales rather than presenting facts.

In all honesty, she wasn’t paying too much attention to either woman. Not until the screen switched to show a zoomed out view of the front of the Plex.

It was clear the cameraman was running as fast as they could. Next to him, one of the lesser known reporters urges the poor guy to move faster, claiming they’d “lose the prime shots” if they didn’t hurry.

They arrived just in time to catch a perfect view of Molly being helped out of the building by a tall police officer and onto a waiting stretcher.

“May I?” Molly mumbles, gesturing towards Maria’s phone.

Maria nods as she hands the device over, turning to share a bit of an uneasy look with Shelly.

The video continued. The reporter began to speak after fixing her hair.

“ -Ahem- This is Hollie Jaeger reporting live from Fazbear Entertainment’s Mega Pizzaplex,” she begins in a serious tone edged with excitement. “We recieved exclusive reports that an attempted murder has just occurred, and my cameraman Kenny and I are on the scene to get you the scoop-”

Molly grimaces. How could she sound so happy about it? Molly nearly died that night, and here little miss reporter was, chattering away as though it’s some crazy exciting event. But her curiosity forced her to continue watching.

“-but enough about Fazbear’s suspicious past! Let’s see if we can get a quick word with the survivor.” Hollie lowers the mic she was holding as she moves to catch up with the police officer helping move a very delirious Molly away from the building and towards the ambulance.

It was strange seeing herself like this – she had never experienced memory loss before that night, and now she just couldn’t wrap her brain around her moving when she wasn’t even aware of it.

The police officer helping her was pretty stern about Hollie keeping her distance, at least. He kept his free hand up while pushing his way towards the paramedics.

“No- ma’am, you need to step away. This is an active crime scene.” He tries to shoo the reporter away.

“I just have a few questions-” Hollie tries, but it just seemed to make the officer angrier.

“Damn it, why do you reporters have to be so damned nosy. Poor lady just got attacked, and you’re trying to ask her questions?? Get out of here before I charge you with interfering with police business.”

Though that seemed to get Hollie to back off, the camera had been focused on Molly the entire time – Kenny had even zoomed in to make sure he took in every detail he could of the wounds still oozing blood.

Molly couldn’t watch any more.

She quickly hands Maria’s phone back, holding down bile. “..fuck, I hate reporters.”

“Tell me about it- bunch of sharks,” Andy scoffs, crossing his arms. “They smell one tiny drop of blood in the water and they’re on it in seconds.”

Sawyer shakes his head slowly. “Too right.”

“At least you’re better now,” Shelly chimes in, “right?”

Molly couldn’t help but pause. Was she better? Her arm and shoulder would still ache, and the bruising on her wrists refused to go away – having no memory of the event helped, but was it really the best thing for her?

Realizing she hadn’t said anything, she manages a smile. “Ah, well, I mean- yeah,” she forces a small laugh. “I mean, it was hell to catch up on my classes, but most of my professors were understanding so- it worked out just fine.”

The group shared a quick look. Then, Andy steps forward.

“Do- you think you could help us find this guy?” He asks, a nervous tone to his voice.

Molly blinks. “What?”

The droopy-eyed teen steps up next. “Andy’s little sister went missing a couple weeks ago- he says she kept talking about some “bunny lady” telling her to follow when she was at daycare.”

As he pointed to the tightly shut doors behind them, the hairs on the back of Molly’s neck stood up. Bunny lady… was the person she escaped a woman?

She wracks her brain for any semblance of a memory she could get her hands on; as far as she could tell, she did do some fighting back. Definitely some kicking. And she did vaguely recall kicking them right where it would hurt most. But as far as she knew, that type of thing would hurt everyone.

FInally, she shakes her head. “I’m sorry, I don’t really remember anything about them. Nothing useful, anyway.” Molly rubs her hand, now feeling the leftover sting of electrocution. “I haven’t seen hide nor hair of that- hare- in weeks.”

Andy’s shoulders droop. It was clear he had been hoping for something, no matter if it was small fragments of information or massive chunks.

It was an awful feeling to see this poor kid look so downtrodden – she had to do something!

“But- tell you what,” she lowers her voice slightly, beckoning for him to lean forward.

As he does, she places a careful hand on his shoulder. “If you promise not to try and stay in this building after dark? I’ll see what I can do to help find this guy. ‘Kay?” She gives him a gentle pat and smiles as warmly as she could.

It takes a moment, but a grateful half-smile found its way onto Andy’s face.

“Yeah…yeah, I promise. You’ll tell me if you find anything, right?” He asks in an anxious tone.

It was Molly’s turn to hesitate. “I’ll see what I can do. I’m not usually here this early.”

Andy didn’t seem at all satisfied. “But-”

Molly is quick to hold up her hand. “Hey. I’ll try, okay? You all just need to keep away from this place at night,” she gives him a quick pat on the shoulder before turning back to the box.

It didn’t take long for her to find the problem wires and make a few tweaks. And as the lights come back on, the group of teens walk away – she hoped they’d heed her warning. Between the blizzard and the distinct possibility that the killer was still lurking around, she wasn’t keen on having to worry about a bunch of kids tonight.

With another glance at the daycare’s doors, Molly really wondered if she should even bother to see Sundrop – after all, she had quite a few pre-shift checks she had to make, and she’d likely be snowed in with the animatronic for a bit. And even then, he likely wasn’t even inside.

Yeah. She’d have plenty of time to visit later. For now, she needed to check a few more boxes.

The time to clock in came around quickly.

Molly had finished her pre-shift checklist and gone to sit in the locker room when Vanessa poked her head around the corner.

The security guard’s hair looked wet – it seemed she had just finished a shower.

“Oh hey,” she grunts, stepping out in a tank top and her work pants. “Get here alright?”

As Molly goes to respond, she catches sight of Vanessa’s arms; they were littered in stark scars that looked as though the blonde had been hastily stitched back together.

But what she really focused on was how toned Vanessa’s arms looked.

Molly hadn’t really seen Vanessa dressed down in any capacity – at least now she knew the reason Fazbear Ent. hired her. She looked like she could easily tangle with any intruder that managed to make it past the security doors.

“Hellooo, Earth to Barnes,” Vanessa’s hand waves in front of Molly’s face to try and bring her back to reality, “you alright there?”

Heat rushes to Molly’s face as she quickly looks back down at her feet. She had been in the middle of pulling her work boots on, that’s right!

She quickly leans back over to continue doing so. “Fine! Fine, yeah, I’m alright- sorry, I’m just- I’m just real spacey right now, I didn’t mean to stare-”

“I don’t mind.”

Vanessa’s amused response stops Molly’s hands from frantically struggling with the laces of her boots.

She looks up slightly to see the security guard’s legs mere inches from her face. Was she always that close to her? Should she try to slide away? This was probably pretty awkward given Molly’s forehead was just about brushing against Vanessa’s knee.

But as she carefully raises herself more, she finds herself face to face with the blonde instead – it seemed Vanessa had the idea to lean down at the same time Molly decided to straighten her posture.

“Ah- hi,” Molly oh-so-intelligently murmurs.

Vanessa smiles. “Well, hello to you too, Barnes,” she hums, sounding even more amused. “You seem nervous- is it the snow? Orrrr something else?”

There was a light tone of teasing to her voice. It was pretty obvious Vanessa knew exactly what she was doing.

Still, Molly does her best to gather herself. “Oh, well- uhm- you’re just a little closer than I thought you were-”

Vanessa leans down more, almost brushing her nose with Molly’s.

“I can get closer if you’d like,” there almost seemed to be a purr to her voice now.

At that point, Molly couldn’t form the words to respond – it had been a while since anyone had openly flirted with her. What was she meant to do? Was she in any mindset to reciprocate? And even then, was Vanessa even being serious?? There were too many questions rolling through her mind to land on a single conclusion.

The chiming of a phone alarm finally pulls Molly from her muddled cluster of thoughts.

Vanessa clicks her tongue. “Damn,” she grumbles, “I was hoping we’d have more time- oh well. Maybe after?” She winks as she disappears back around the corner, leaving Molly a confused, flustered mess.

“After..?” She echoes in a small voice. After what? What came after after ??

”Uff, your neurons are goin’ crazy, pal!” Helpy’s voice cuts into the whirlwind of confusion. ”I really do think you should ask her out- she seems to like ya!”

Then, and only then, did it click for Molly just what Vanessa had been implying.

She’s quick to finish lacing her boots and tugging on her jumpsuit. “Don’t- don’t be ridiculous, Helpy, she’s probably just messing around.” She murmurs quietly.

Helpy hums before clicking his tongue. ”I dunnoooo, she REALLY seemed into the idea!”

“Jeez- if I ask her out, will you drop it?” Molly huffs a bit louder than she intended.

”Maaaaaaybeeee,” the little bear giggles. ”If she says no, I will! But if she says yes, I can’t make any promises, pal.”

Molly buries her face in her hands as she plops back down onto the bench. This bear was going to be the death of her! She couldn’t chase the head way from her face, nor soothe her heart from its fluttering beat. She had just met the woman! Wasn’t asking her out now a bit much?

With a sigh, she stands, going into her locker and grabbing up her ring of keys – the blood had stained some of the labels a rusty brown, but most of them were still legible enough. She just hoped she wouldn’t have to use the door release key again.

She makes sure to tuck the belongings she didn’t need into the locker before shutting it; though she wasn’t expecting to see Vanessa’s face on the other side.

Molly yelps, only barely stopping herself from throwing a punch.

“Sorry,” Vanessa chuckles, “you’re just really tense.”

Molly focuses her attention on the padlock she was securing to her locker. “Yeah, it’s- it’s more of a defense mechanism, really.”

The security guard’s somewhat mischievous smile fades into a slight frown. “Oh. I’m sorry-”

“No, no,” Molly waves her hand, “it’s okay- really. Just hard to turn off the survival instinct sometimes, y’know?”

A flash of guilt passed over Vanessa’s eyes – Molly guessed she felt bad about sneaking up on her so much.

But before Molly could reassure her that it was fine, the blonde speaks.

“Hey, uh- I was actually wondering if I could take you to lunch after the weather passes?” She asks, leaning up against the locker with one arm as she rubs the back of her neck with another. “There’s this Italian place that opened a few weeks ago, and I thought “hey! Barnes might like that,” ‘cause I saw that they’ve got a few alfredo dishes-”

It was hard not to find the blonde cute when she rambled like this. And harder still to say no; the past few times Molly had brought lunch, it had been one kind of pasta dish or another. Itt was easy to put together and something Molly enjoyed in general. She wasn’t aware that Vanessa had paid any attention to that.

“-but I mean, I don’t wanna assume you like those kinds of things! I just-” Vanessa had kept going, but Molly cut her off with a simple wave of her hand.

“It sounds wonderful,” Molly smiles up at the blonde, “and I would be happy to go to lunch with you.”

Vanessa’s green eyes light up. “G- Great! Awesome- Saturday, then?”

“Saturday.” Molly confirms.

“Sweet,” the blonde runs a hand through her still drying hair, “I’ll pick you up at one, yeah?”

“It’s a plan-” Molly begins, but Vanessa gently interrupts her.

“Ah ah- it’s a date, Barnes,” she winks again, a grin replacing her previously sheepish expression as she moves past the smaller woman and out of the locker room.

Molly’s head was reeling. At least now she didn’t have to be one to ask! But now she had to really consider if she was ready to pursue a relationship with anyone – Vanessa seemed nice enough when she wasn’t an absolute grumpy mess. Maybe it had just been a long couple of weeks? At this point, Molly was more than happy to forget about it regardless.

After all, Vanessa seemed genuinely apologetic – they could put their initial spat behind them for sure.

Molly was swift to clock in and get to her first tasks of the night; for now, she just had to monitor the breaker, check the thermostats littered around the buildings, and double check that the animatronics were charging.

The cold had finally begun to set into the building. Thankfully, she remembered to bring her jacket. One she’d worn since she was 16 – funny to think she hasn’t really grown much since then. Funny, and a little sad.

An eerie silence fell as Molly made her way down into the tunnels and towards the locker rooms. The speaker system had gone down early into the storm, but it wasn’t exactly a priority to keep it running. If anything, it was a relief that she wouldn’t have to listen to that damned song repeating over and over and over again!

Still. Any sound would have been better than the still silence that surrounded her trek to the locker rooms.

It was, as Molly expected, empty. Not a soul in sight. It was just her and the frigid air.

She had only seen Vanessa a few times since their conversation pre-shift. But she just figured she was doing her rounds – still, it would be nice to speak to someone, as Helpy had been strangely quiet, and the animatronics were all deactivated to preserve their charge.

A long, low sigh from Molly sends a cloud of mist into the air as she struggles to unlock the padlock. Damned frozen fingers, she really should have brought gloves. At least no one was here to witness her battle with this stupid lock.

The sound of shuffling behind her, for a lack of a better term, freezes Molly in her tracks.

The hair on the back of her neck bristles in alarm. Something was moving around behind her. But if she turned around, it would likely make whatever it was pounce at her – then again, if she didn’t turn around, she wouldn’t know when it was getting too close.

More shuffling. It was getting closer. Slowly but surely, watching her like a hungry beast. She had to react.

The padlock finally comes undone with enough time for Molly to snatch up the spare blanket she had stored in her locker, spinning around and tossing it right over whatever was trying to sneak up behind her.

In the split second she caught sight of the stalker, her blood ran colder than the snow outside.

Lifeless, plastic eyes set on a stitched mascot head seemed to glower at her mockingly before they’re concealed by the plaid fleece blanket that left Molly’s grip.

She didn’t have time to wonder how this person got in here. She just had to go .

Molly snatches up her jacket and bursts through the door of the locker room with as much force as she could, catching herself on the wall and using her momentum to make a push for the stairs.

A furious yell echoes behind her as she winds her way up towards the tunnel exit and slams her shoulder against the heavy metal door leading out into the Plex. She understood it had to be heavy to make sure kids couldn’t easily get into a restricted area, but damn it if it didn’t make it harder to run from costumed killers.

Finally, she finds herself in the main atrium, heart pounding so hard against her ribcage she worried it’d punch a hole through her chest.

Vanessa. She had to find Vanessa.

Molly tugs on her jacket and zips it up as she begins her search for the security guard. With nowhere to go, she figured having her much stronger coworker around was her best bet.

As she moves, she pulls out her phone, attempting to dial 911 – yes, there was a snow storm outside, but she had to call the police and inform them of the situation at the very least.

“C’mon c’mon c’mon c’mon-” She mumbles as she holds the ringing phone to her ear.

Finally, an operator picks up. “ 911, what’s your emergency? ” It was a man who sounded like he was in his mid-forties.

“There’s some- some- psycho in a rabbit costume! I think they’re trying to kill me- I need help, I don’t know where they are, but I last saw them in the maintenance tunnels, and-”

“ Slow down please, ma’am, ” the operator replies calmly, “ I need to know your location and your name so I can have the police on stand-by. ”

“Right- right,” Molly lets out a heavy breath. “My name is Molly Barnes, I’m at Fre- AHAUGH- FUCK!”

A sudden, excruciating pain erupts through her leg as something solid and metal collides with her ankle. An audible CRACK echoes through the silent atrium – it was either her ankle, her phone hitting the ground, or a mixture of both. But no matter which it really was, Molly found herself splayed out on her stomach with a foot securely pressed in between her shoulder blades.

Tears blurred her vision. The only sound she could produce was choking sobs and whines of agony.

“ Ma’am? Ma’am, are you there? ” The operator’s voice grew marginally more panicked the longer Molly didn’t respond.

The weight is lifted from her back as a tall, masked figure strides towards the device. Using what looked to be a golf club, they expertly flip the phone onto the head and into their gloved hand.

“Nnno-” Molly manages to whimper out, reaching out a hand in a fruitless attempt to retrieve her only means of communication.

The bunny-suited figure tilts their head downwards. Their crooked smile mocks Molly as they gingerly place the phone back onto the floor just barely out of her reach-

And slam the head of the golf club down onto the screen.

The voice of the operator cuts off with a small yet distinct crack. Any lingering hope Molly had was quickly dashed. Seems she’s on her own now.

Quickly, she takes in her options: given her location, there weren’t many places she could hide where this psycho wouldn’t see her climb in. And fighting would be stupid considering they were much stronger and far more coordinated than she was – though, if she didn’t fight, she’d likely get her skull caved in by that golf club.

It wasn’t until she saw her costumed attacker move to raise the club above their head that she acted on the first thing that popped into her head.

Go for the ankles.

Pushed by a mix of pure terror and adrenaline, Molly rolls to the side.

A metallic thwack echoed through the otherwise silent building.

“Hold still. ” They snap impatiently.

“ Fuck you!” Molly spits, rolling the opposite direction as the club comes down again.

The suited killer’s shoulders vibrate with laughter. “Oh you wish . You couldn’t handle me- you could barely handle those little SCRATCHES !” They swing the club downwards again as if to punctuate their point.

Molly is barely able to tilt herself to the side, using her closer proximity to the weapon to grab onto the neck.

She yanks the weapon towards her with as much strength as she could muster – it wasn’t enough to pull the attacker off of their feet, but it did make them stumble enough for Molly to get a better grip.

The killer makes a sound between a frustrated groan and a growl as they try to pull the weapon from Molly’s grip.

“Give- it- back. ” They snap as they lean back with what seemed to be all of their weight.

An idea struck Molly.

“If you insist,” she shrugs, letting go of the neck of the golf club.

As expected, the killer’s weight had been shifted too far backwards, and they fell with a satisfying yelp. They wind up dropping the club in the process.

When the metal meets the ground, its echo pulls Molly from any and all amusement she could muster in the moment. No time to laugh! She had to get moving!

Molly scrambles to snatch up the golf club as the killer struggles to lift themself off of the ground – it seemed they were trying to keep their mask from coming off, as the fall had popped a few seams and exposed their pale skin to the light.

If she didn’t have what felt like a broken ankle, Molly might’ve dove to unmask them. For now, she takes her hard-fought prize and makes a break for the maintenance elevator.

If she could get down into the Parts & Service chamber, she could see if there were any service tunnels she could use to get to the break room.

The last time she had been in there, she had seen what looked to be a well-kept landline phone – it seemed Mr. Emily loved to keep more than just old memories around. Really, it worked in Molly’s favour, as the landline could work even if that psycho cut the power.

She makes it to the elevator without a hitch and smashes her hand on the lowest floor possible. The intercom springs to life with static – what usually played a jaunty elevator tune was now a spine-chilling reminder that she didn’t have the building on her side. If she spent too long neglecting the main breaker, there wasn’t any way she’d be able to let the police in if they even were able to respond.

Still, she had to hope. 

The doors slid close as Molly catches sight of the killer sprinting full speed towards her. Thankfully, there was no way to call the maintenance elevator back until it dropped off any current passengers; she was safe until it got back up to the killer.

Even then, how well did they know the building? If they knew any alternative route to Parts & Service, then they may even be able to get there before Molly did. Though, it wasn’t as though they could actually get in; after all, they needed her employee ID to do so, and it was still attached to her lanyard!

She’s quick to check that said item was still on her person. To her relief, it hung faithfully around her neck just under her topmost layer of clothes.

Now that she wasn’t in any immediate danger, she took a moment to sit down and inspect her ankle – shit, did it hurt. The lingering adrenaline beat back most of the pain, but considering she couldn’t put any weight on it told her it was likely broken. Another hospital trip, if she even got out of here alive.

Finally, the elevator dings, the static replacing the music cutting off and plunging her into silence once again.

A shaky sigh releases a massive cloud of mist from her mouth as she limps forward.

She uses the golf club as a sort of pseudo cane, holding onto the head of it tightly – it was the perfect size to fit her hand, thankfully, and it helped get her to the Parts & Service chamber much quicker than it would have if she just used the wall.

It wasn’t long before she arrived at the chamber. Scanning her badge, she slams her hand on the emergency lock button, watching as two sets of heavy-duty metal bars slide across the door. The mechanism was clearly supposed to keep things inside, but for now it was going to be her best chance at keeping things out.

Molly whines as she flops against the wall and slides downwards. Her heart pounded painfully in her chest and she struggled to catch her breath – it felt as though her lungs were about to collapse. But she had gotten away for now.

The tapping of metal against glass pulls her attention towards the back corner of the room, where a familiar flat-faced animatronic looked to be straining to see Molly.

She forces herself to her feet, nearly toppling over as the end of the golf club slips on the smooth tiled floor. It was clear that the weathered leather wrapped around the grip wouldn’t be enough to get traction – she’d have to improvise.

And by improvise…that meant dragging herself along the wall.

But she eventually found her way to Moondrop. It was a surprise to see the animatronic seem so distressed by the state she was in.

Pressing a shaking hand against the glass, Molly barely managed a smile. “H-Hey, Moon,” she stammers out quietly, “I need some help. Do- do you know if there are any tunnels that lead to the break room? Or- as close to it as possible?”

Moondrop pauses, tapping his clawed fingers against his scuffed faceplate one by one.

Then, he points up the stairs, mimicking holding a microphone and singing.

“F- Freddy? What does Freddy have to do with this?” Molly asks.

Moon smacks the top of his faceplate before pointing more adamantly at the stairs.

Though still hesitant, Molly nods slowly. “Okay- up the stairs…and- Freddy. Got it- I think,” she sighs heavily, making sure to keep a good grip on the golf club as she approaches the stairs.

It was a struggle to be sure. But as of right now, she had the time. And after a few slip ups, she managed to get up to four colour-coded doors.

Each one had a simple silhouette of the main cast: orange for Freddy, pink for Chica, purple for Roxanne, and green for Monty. Simple enough, but where did they lead?

With a small huff, she quickly scans her badge at Freddy’s door and watches the door slide open – it revealed a long hallway that appeared to lead directly to a secondary elevator. If she had to take a wild guess, it likely led directly to the bear’s green room. And if that was the case, she’d be as close to the break room as she could get!

Still, did it have to be such a long hallway?

More struggling later, and she’s finally on her way up to what she correctly assumed was Freddy’s green room – but upon exiting the elevator and scanning into the room, she finds the bear still in his charging pod. It was both good and bad all at once.

Good because he’s staying out of trouble and staying charged. Bad because he’d probably be able to protect her from the crazy person trying to kill her.

Pushing aside the immediate thought to pull Freddy out of his charging station, Molly limps to the curtains covering the massive viewing window and peeks outside.

As far as she could tell, all was quiet. Not a soul in sight.

Using the golf club as a crutch, she makes her way to the main door of the green room and cautiously pokes her head out. Still no sign of anyone.

As far as she remembered, the break room was settled between Rockstar Row and the main atrium, just inside of a hallway next to the bottom floor of the gift shop. Hidden from the public by a heavy, disguised door, yet easy to access if you knew where to look. For anyone who didn’t know the building, it was a secure place to hide in a case like this.

Molly makes as quick a dash as she could for the door with little interruption. Really, the hardest part was prying open the door – the thing felt like it weighed a damn ton! But she manages to open it just enough to slip inside and make her way down the dimly lit hallway.

The break room itself was nothing special. It had an old couch with weird stains on it, a few folding chairs, a microwave that was probably about as old as Mr. Emily, and a fridge that barely even kept a couple of grapes cold. All in all, it wasn’t exactly a utilized space.

But what Molly came for was sitting right in the corner on a dusty old table: the landline. Her last lifeline.

Quickly, she snatches up the receiver and dials 911 into the keypad, waiting patiently as it rings.

And rings.

Aaaaand rings.

It wasn’t until Molly was worried the line didn’t work that someone finally answers.

”911, what is your emergency?” Asks a masculine voice.

It was then Molly found herself struggling with her words.

The prolonged lull in danger had finally depleted the adrenaline coursing through her, leaving her an exhausted and stammering mess.

“H-Help- help. I need help,” she begins, sucking in a sharp breath as she puts too much weight on her broken ankle, “I’m at- at the Mega Pizzaplex. F-F-Freddy- Freddy Fazbear’s Mega Pizzaplex, a-and there is a crazy person-”

A thud echoes down the hallway and pulls her attention from the phone for just a split second. Anxiety ripped through her like a saw.

“-I-In- in a rabbit costume. Trying to kill me- they b- broke- broke my ankle with a golf club,” Molly finishes in a cautious whisper. “I’m in the bre- break room right now, b-but I don’t know where they are-”

Another sound echoes down the hallway, this one more of a crash than a thud, and much closer than the last sound.

“God- please- please help me, please, I-I-I don’t know what to do-” Before she could stop it, all of her fear came spilling out in the form of quiet sobs. With her hearing so many noises so close to her, there was no way the killer could be anywhere but in the atrium.

Thankfully, the operator on the other line kept his tone level. ”I understand your fear, ma’am, ” he says, “ may I have your name, please? ”

“Mol- Molly Barnes.” She winces as a series of crashing sounds echo from the atrium.

There is only a brief pause before the operator speaks again. “Oh…oh, I see- Molly Barnes! Is this the same killer from your last call?”

“Y-Yes- yes, it is, and I can’t- hide, or-or- or fight or anything, they’re too- strong -” She pauses, tightening her grip on the golf club. “I-I mean, I managed- managed to take the golf club, but- but I don’t know if they’ve f- f- found- found another weapon-”

Just outside of the break room, Molly could swear she heard the heavy metal door at the end of the hall creak – then, padded footsteps begin rushing down the hallway.

Panic floods through her as she drops the receiver and pulls back the golf club just in time for her bunny-suited stalker to round the corner.

“ THERE you are!” The killer sneers as they lunge for Molly.

With a shriek of pure terror, Molly swings the club and manages to strike her attacker in the side.

They crumple. It proved they’re human, at the very least – but it hardly seemed to deter them.

In fact, they almost seemed invigorated by the pain as their breath hitches in their throat. After just a few moments, they rose, now slightly hunched over and leaned forward like an excited dog. “So, she likes to play rough, hmm? C’mon now, sweetheart, you can hit harder than that. ”

A spike of dread stabs Molly in the gut.

Their tone, their posture, the way to almost radiated with the desire to be struck again-

“Are you- are you actually fucking into this, you sick fuck!?” Molly snaps, her nose wrinkling at the thought.

The killer’s shoulders shake as they begin to laugh; at first low and hardly noticeable, but soon devolving into a fit of deranged giggles.

“You… YOU, ” they lunge for Molly again, catching her off-guard enough to slam her back against the wall and grab hold of the club in one quick movement.

They press the pole against Molly’s throat. Not enough to crush her windpipe, but more than enough to make it a little hard to breathe deeply.

“You,” they repeat, their voice a mere whisper, “have no idea the kind of shit I’m into- wanna find out, sweetheart?”

With no other options left, Molly struggles.

Trying to push the pole away from her throat was very quickly proven to be fruitless. The killer was just too much stronger than her – she had to think of something, anything that would help worm her out of this!

In a moment of desperation, Molly took the only logical route she could think of: kick ‘em where the sun don’t shine.

No matter what was there, it was going to hurt like hell. And while Molly was down a foot, she knew it was her best option.

So, she pushes her weight onto her broken ankle, screaming as she slams her good foot up directly into the gap between the killer’s legs – and just as expected, they crumple, this time definitely in far more pain than before.

Molly could hear the operator on the phone desperately trying to get her attention, but she didn’t have time. There was no telling how long the killer would be down.

She grabs the golf club again and takes a brave swing at the killer; this time, she strikes them right in the shoulder with a distinct crack.

But instead of sounds of pain or distress, the killer makes a very odd yelping sound and shudders.

“Now there’s what I was looking for!” They laugh. A maniacal laugh untethered to any form of sane or rational thought. “Keep that up now, doll- the fun’s only just started.”

Quick as a flash, the killer leaps at Molly again, able to grapple her and drag her to the ground before she could take another swing at them.

They snatch the club with one hand and toss it directly into the microwave – it was sad to see the ancient, yellowed glass on the door shatter on impact, but she’d have probably felt a little more upset about it if she didn’t currently have someone on top of her.

She writhes and struggles as hard as she could, unable to do much with her arms pinned to her sides. “Get- OFF!” She screeches, but the killer doesn’t let up.

“And here I thought you were too weak to fight back,” the killer purrs, “but look at you! If you had aimed a little higher, you might’ve actually killed me.” They sounded far too interested in the prospect.

Molly yelps as she’s rolled onto her stomach. She could feel the killer hooking their legs around hers – likely to keep her from escaping while they did- well, whatever it was they were doing.

It isn’t until she heard a distinct, cracking pop and a short grunt of pain that she realized they were re-setting their shoulder. Molly had to have dislocated it.

“If I was anyone else, I’d probably just be a heap on the ground right now,” they huff out a laugh. “It’s been a nice warm-up, really, but I want to see what I’m working with here-”

Hands glide up Molly’s back before she has time to process much else, pulling up her jacket and part of the sweater underneath it.

The killer tisks. “So so so many layers! A shame, really,” Molly feels them lean down and press their chest against her upper back.

Hot breath tickles her ear as the killer whispers to her.

“ I want to see my handiwork on that pretty flesh of yours. ”

“YOU’RE FUCKING PYSCHO!” Molly shouts, her voice cracking in a desperate attempt to mask a sob, clawing at the ground in a feeble attempt to drag herself away.

The killer seemed to revel in her panic. “Ohhhh, doll,” they chuckle, “you don’t know the half of it.” 

Gloved hands slam down onto Molly’s wrists and effectively pin her arms to the ground.

Just above within her range of vision, the stitched together grinning rabbit mask hovers over her, lifeless plastic eyes now almost seeming to glitter gleefully at her. The tip of the crooked nose nearly brushes against her forehead and the jagged whiskers tickle her cheeks.

A hand roughly cups Molly’s face, fingers digging harshly into her chin as her head is forced to go back as far as it possibly could.

The killer tilts their head now that they had a full view of Molly’s terrified expression. “You and I are gonna play a new game now. Won’t that be fun?”

“N- No- no-!” Molly tries to argue, but the killer’s grip tightens.

“I’m not asking. I’m telling, ” they snap. “Consider it a make-up round for you squirming your way out of our last few games.”

They slowly drag their hand from Molly’s chin, up the side of her face and down around the back of her neck before curling her fingers into Molly’s hair – it was a deceptively gentle grip before cold fingers curl tightly into her curls and force her head against the linoleum flooring.

Things went white before falling into almost darkness; she had only been incapacitated, not knocked out.

She could only vaguely make out her surroundings as the killer drags her up into their arms.

“My my, you’re light,” Molly hears the killer speak through the consistent ringing in her ears, “and so thin! It’s a wonder you didn’t bleed out the first time. Though I suppose those… paramedics got here quickly. Party poopers, they are.”

Molly couldn’t respond. She could barely even keep her eyes open. All she could make out was the entrance to Gator Golf before the darkness finally overtook her vision.

She really wanted to stop passing out.

Chapter Text

Frigid darkness was the only perceivable thing. That is, until the headache hit full force.

Molly’s eyes fly open, her startled gasp replaced quickly with a strained groan of pain. Her head throbbed horribly. She could feel the dried blood trailing from her temple and down her cheek – it went all the way down to her chin, to her neck, and seemed to have kept going until it hit her collarbone.

“Fuck..” She murmurs, attempting to push herself to her feet.

Though, she quickly found that she couldn’t – likely due to the ropes binding her ankles to the legs of a wooden chair. And a quick glance at either side of her revealed that her arms were tied behind her as well.

Molly shifts; the rope feels securely looped around the back slats of the chair’s back, keeping her arms tightly pinned to them.

As her eyes adjusted to the darkness more, she noticed that the jacket portion of her jumpsuit had been pulled down and tied around her waist, leaving her in just her tank top and the pants. She didn’t even have shoes or socks on! At least she still had her badge.

Another shaky breath leaves a lingering cloud in the air much longer than it should have. The heat was off, that much she could tell, but for how long?

She forces herself to lift her head more. Her neck ached horribly, and she couldn’t shake the dizziness that plagued her vision, but it gave her a much better look at her surroundings – was she in a security office?

Monitors lined the top half of one wall just above an old desk. On top of it sits a hammer, a screwdriver, a pair of pliers, and a knife.

Each one looked to be caked in a dried substance Molly couldn’t quite make out. Given the circumstances? It was probably blood. There wasn’t anything else it could be.

Trying again to wriggle at least one of her limbs from the rope, she pulls her upper body as far forward as it would go. If she could loosen the ropes around her arms at all it would definitely be her best chance to escape – but loosening the ones around her legs might also be a decent enough route. Of course… there was still the matter of her busted ankle.

The pain had been pushed as far back in her head as she could manage, but it still lingered just a little too much to completely ignore it.

Even if she did manage to get out of the ropes, she wouldn’t be able to move quickly enough to get away from the suited psycho.

A frustrated sound between a whine and a groan was all Molly could make as she flops back against the back of the chair. At least for now it seemed her kidnapper was nowhere in sight. But there was no telling when they’d be back.

As if on cue, a door creaks open behind her, and padded footsteps accompany a rather irritated sigh.

“And here I thought they’d never leave,” the (unfortunately familiar) voice of the killer sends wave after wave of terror over Molly, especially as a hand snakes up her upper arm and comes up to firmly cup her chin.

A masked face leans over her other shoulder. “Sleep well, doll?”

Molly couldn’t force more than a whimper from her throat.

The killer clicks their tongue. “D’ohhh, is it hard to talk? That’s okay,” their grip tightens as they harshly pull Molly’s head up and back, eliciting a sharp cry of pain from the woman.

“I prefer this anyway,” the killer’s fingers dig harshly into Molly’s jaw and their palm cuts off most of her oxygen flow, drawing a few more frustrated noises from her. “Distress is… a lot like an improvised song. Everyone sounds different when they’re in danger.”

Finally, they let go, shoving Molly’s head away as they slide around the chair and saunter to the security desk.

The cold air constricts Molly’s lungs as she gasps for air. Holding in the instinctual desire to give in to blind panic was something Molly thought she was good at, but right now it gnawed at her like a starving dog. At the very least, she had so far been able to act quickly enough to save herself. This time?

This time, she has no out. No route to take to escape whatever this psycho was going to do to her.

The killer gingerly hoevers their hand across the items laid out on the table. “And much like a song, the sort of instrument used can change the tune,” they scoop up the knife and run their finger across the spine of the blade.

They spin to face the bound woman. “A knife, for example,” they walk slowly towards Molly as they flick the tip of their fingernail against the tip of the blade. “A knife is a versatile tool. It can cut. ”

Quick as a flash, they swipe the blade across Molly’s cheek.

Molly jumps, sucking in a sharp breath – it hardly stung more than a bad paper cut. But soon after, the killer grabs her face and presses the flat of the blade against her nose.

“ Crrrrrush, ” they almost sound as though they’re growling as they put pressure against the blade.

Molly could feel the bones underneath begin to give way. She’s unable to hold back a series of desperate shouts, writhing in the chair and struggling to pull her head away from the blade.

But before her nose could break, the killer pulled away, expertly spinning the knife in their hand until they held it in a reversed grip.

“And stab.” They state simply before plunging the knife directly into Molly’s thigh.

A scream claws its way up from Molly’s lungs. It echoed through the office and out into the empty Gator Golf attraction. As scared as she was, frustration was more prevalent.

“Che- oh yOu- ffffffuck- fucki- ngh-” She sobs. The only thing she could really move freely was her head, which now hung low as she struggled to breathe through the pain.

Blood slowly soaks the pants surrounding the wound. A few drops slide from her nose and onto the handle of the weapon. For a moment it seemed she’d get a break.

“Three very distinct notes,” the killer goes on, pulling the knife out of Molly’s leg.

“G- OW! MOTHERFUCKER!” Molly snaps, her failed attempt to lurch forward accompanied by the scraping of the chair’s feet against the linoleum floor.

The killer pauses to tilt their head. “...Make that four notes.”

Tears blurred Molly’s vision as she glared up at the killer. “If I get out of here- I’ll- f- I’ll fucking-” She struggles to speak, forced to gasp for air between uncontrollable sobs and whines of agony.

“Awww- making threats? Against me? Oh, doll, you shouldn’t! As if this couldn’t get more romantic,” the killer coos, tossing the knife back onto the table and moving to grab either side of Molly’s face. “This is only our first date, after all!”

“Ro- RomaNT- ROMANTIC!?” Molly screeches. “YOU ARE TORTURING ME- WHAT KIND OF FUCKED UP-”

The hands on her face suddenly close around her throat, completely cutting off her breathing and stopping her mid-rant.

“ Shhhhhhh, ” the killer whispers. They tighten their grip, leaning forward until the nose of the mask brushes against the smaller woman’s cheek.

“ I just want to have a bit of fun, doll- at least before that nosy little security guard gets back. ” Their grip on Molly’s throat loosens. Barely, but enough for a little air to come through.

Molly’s eyes widened. “I-I do- n’t-”

“She had to step out! Lucky me, right?” They spin around, fully releasing Molly and throwing their hands in the air. “Who knew it would take such little effort to trick that dumb blonde into doing something so stupid!"

“She is not, “ she has to hesitate to gasp down a breath, “sssstupid, you fucking- ps- psycho!” Molly couldn’t stop herself. Hearing this demented fiend speak so lowly of Vanessa made her blood boil. “She’s smarter than you’ll ever be.”

The killer pauses, their hands lowering slowly.

Molly swallows back her nerves. They sat like a rock in her stomach. “Vanessa is- sm- smart and- and if she were he- here, she’d kick- kick your ASS.”

More silence greets her.

For a moment, Molly wasn’t sure if they were even listening – it wasn’t until they lift their twitching hands again, reaching to grip the edges of their mask, that Molly realized they were subtly vibrating.

“Ssssso. You like. Her, do you? I see,” they turn, tugging harshly at their mask. “That’s fine! That’s okay- love- doesn’t happen immediately. It takes- time! Yes…yes, time.” They turn back around, posture hunched as they stare at the rest of the items on the table.

“You- you’ve tried to kill me- twice! ” Molly scoffs in disbelief.

“Of course I did,” the killer sighs harshly, “and both times? You’ve escaped. No one has done that before, not even once- you’re- special, Molly.”

Bile rises in her throat as her name leaves the killer’s lips. “How- how did-”

“I’ve been watching you, doll,” they quickly interject, “waiting. I couldn’t just- kill you and be done with it! Where’s the fun? The thrill of the hunt? No…” They trail off and turn to walk towards Molly, pulling the mask up just enough to reveal their mouth.

Sharpened canines glint in the darkness as they smile, gripping the top of the chair’s back as they lean over Molly.

“No, you- got. Away. You. Frustrate me,” they continue, their voice much softer and more clearly feminine without whatever voice modifier they had in their mask, “and you make me want to chop you up into itty. Bitty. Tiiiiny little pieces just so I can be rid of you and put my- failure- behind me.”

Molly yelps as the chair is tilted backwards. Now forced to look up at the killer, she sees they had lifted their mask just enough to reveal a single, glowering violet eye.

“And yet,” they cock their head to the side, the mask shifting and allowing strands of brown hair to spill out around their ear, “I can’t help but be enamored by you. Faced with the indomitable human spirit in its entirety, I’m… frozen.”

Their grip relaxes on the chair. They lower the front feet back to the ground and kneel in front of it, gliding their hands up either side of Molly’s thighs.

“H-Hey, what’re you d- stoP- AGH!” Molly’s meek protests are cut off as the killer drives their thumb into the fresh wound on her thigh.

The killer chuckles, resting their chin on Molly’s knee. “I never believed in the idiotic fantasy of- love at first sight. To my credit, I didn’t start feeling this way until you escaped me the first time,” they press their thumb into Molly’s wound harder, grinning like a lovesick puppy as she shrieks.

“And those sounds! So perfectly toned- how’s a girl meant to keep her heart in her chest?” The killer, now confirming herself to be a woman, slides forward. She keeps her thumb securely hooked into the wound and brings her free hand up to caress Molly’s tear-stained cheek.

“Oh, sure, I still wanted to kill you. But then I saw that fear again tonight… the burning terror in your eyes, and I-” She pauses, releasing a shuddering breath. “I couldn’t bear the thought of losing that.”

Molly could hardly focus – this psycho’s deranged ramblings didn’t matter when all she could feel was her already aching flesh being pulled and prodded. But she knew her kidnapper had a reason for it. She seemed to have a reason for everything, no matter how insane it was.

“Get. To. The. Point. ” Molly hisses through gritted teeth. She pulls her head to the side and away from the killer’s hand.

The killer pauses, the fingers of her free hand curling into a tight fist before launching to grab Molly’s face.

She yanks her thumb from the wound and brings it to the other side of Molly’s face, now squeezing her skull with both hands. “My POINT here? Doll? I want to hear you suffer, ” she presses the tips of her fingers harder into Molly’s head, sucking in a breath at the strained whine that escapes the small woman.

“Ohhh, I want to hear you beg and whimper, doll,” she pulls Molly’s head up as she stands, “watch you squirm and feel you writhe under my touch.”

She drags her bloody thumb across Molly’s lower lip before hooking it into her mouth and tugging.

Molly winces. Unable to respond now, she tries to pull her head away – but it was to no avail. The killer still had too firm of a grip on her head.

She could taste her own still-warm blood on her tongue as the killer runs her thumb along the edge of it. It was accompanied by the horrible texture of fabric and the odd, lingering taste of pizza grease as the killer hooks her other thumb into the other side of her mouth.

Molly could only glower at her for a split second before she involuntarily squeezed her eyes shut.

“Tsk tsk tsk, d’ohhh, so helpless now,” the killer coos in an almost mockingly gentle tone. “And yet… not a bit of that fire has left those eyes.”

Molly forces her eyes to open. She glares even harder at the killer through a flood of tears – if looks could kill, the woman before her would have certainly dropped dead.

The killer only smiles, biting her own lip in response. “Gorgeous,” she murmurs, breathless. “That murderous look- oh, you’d beat me to death if you had the chance right now!”

She almost sounded aroused at the prospect.

“Y-Y- Ah- i- ick-” Molly strains to speak past the killer’s thumbs, trying her hardest to close her teeth on the digits.

But even as one of her canines digs a shallow divot into the already bloody thumb, the killer just laughs.

“HAH! Sick!? Why, of course I’m sick, doll!” She finally adjusts her grip, now tightly cupping Molly’s face in her gloved hands.

“ Sick with desire. I- need you, do you understand? I have to break you down and make you need me,” she leans closer, allowing the mask to finally slip completely from her head and reveal the rest of her face.

In any other circumstances, Molly may have found her attractive; a strong, almost vaguely masculine jawline, half-lidded, glowing violet eyes, brown hair pulled into a messy ponytail, and high cheekbones. The unusually sharp canines would hardly have been a deal-breaker either.

Trying to kill her? Torturing her? Now those were obvious deal-breakers.

“I-” Molly pauses to cough and struggle, “will never need you.”

The killer narrows her eyes. “Defiance… such a tease.”

She leans even closer with a sound similar to a growl, pressing her forehead to Molly’s and throwing a glance down at her lips again.

It wasn’t hard to guess what she was thinking.

But being unable to move anything is what made it all the more terrifying. This woman intended to do far more than just torture her, and Molly wasn’t about to sit here and let it happen – but what do you do to someone who clearly enjoys pain both ways?

As the killer begins to close the gap between them, Molly begins struggling as hard as she could, loudly cursing out her captor.

Nothing stops the woman before her from leaning in. Not until a distinct crash echoes from outside of the room.

She stops just short of actually kissing Molly, irritation replacing the previously obsessive expression that had been plastered across her face. “What sort of rat is fucking around out there- fuck. I thought I got rid of those damned pigs.” She snaps, turning to snatch the knife and the screwdriver from the table.

Looking back down at Molly, she winks. “Be right back, doll- seems we’ve a party crasher! You-”

She stabs the screwdriver into Molly’s leg, twisting it more and more as Molly screams.

“-stay here. Enjoy my little parting gift.”

The killer pats Molly’s cheek before she bursts out of the room, the door slamming shut behind her. It left the smaller woman sobbing where she sat.

The pain felt paralyzing. The tears wouldn’t stop, her head pounded, her legs burned, and the ringing in her ears that had previously been in the background was getting worse by the second.

Now that she was alone, she had more time to really take in her options.

She forces her head up to better take in the security room. So far, there didn’t seem to be much around that would help – until she spotted the corner of the desk. In any other situation, Molly would have done something to cover it so no one got hurt, but right now it was her only hope.

Using every ounce of strength she had left, she began inching the chair closer and closer to the desk, making sure to stop and shift the angle she was at to better aim the rope.

It took much longer than Molly would have liked. However, she could now feel the corner pressing against the ropes with enough force to begin sawing.

Unfortunately, she was forced to rest. The effort of moving the chair using her limited core strength was even more exhausting thanks to her open wounds. Hopefully she’d be able to find a way to stop the bleeding after she got free. If she got free.

Molly finally starts shifting her arms up and down as much as she possibly could. The sound of the rope’s fibers snapping one by one was promising, but far too slow – she’d need to pick up the pace if she had any hope of escaping this time.

With a huff and a groan, Molly tenses her muscles and rubs the rope against the corner faster, wincing as the sharpened metal finally scrapes against her bare arm. Though it did nick her, relief floods through her almost numb shoulders as her arms fall away from the back of the chair.

She takes only a moment to rub away the static before diving to untie her legs.

“Fucking- psycho,” she mutters, now inspecting the wounds in her legs. At the very least, the fabric of her pants stopped a majority of the bleeding, but without medical attention they were sure to get infected.

A quick glance around revealed the medical kit required by the Workplace Safety Association to be in every security room. It was settled just underneath the desk with a few empty pizza boxes stacked on top of it.

She pulls it towards her, knocking away the boxes and all but ripping the top off of the kit. Inside, fresh bandages had been stocked, but the painkillers were missing. Better than nothing.

It didn’t take long for Molly to finally staunch the leftover bleeding and clean the open wound on her leg before wrapping it – but the screwdriver was an entirely different situation.

For one, she didn’t trust herself to pull it out without damaging her leg more. Secondly, she had always been told to keep the object in place if she ever got stabbed. But, third, if she left it in there was the distinct possibility that it could be used to cause even more damage regardless.

“Shit..” Molly grumbles, “how- how many times did she twist it?”

She winces as she brushes her fingers against the handle. She could feel how the head of it had already caught on parts of her flesh, making it tender. Nevertheless, she had to bite the bullet and do something.

Finally grabbing the handle securely, Molly gives it a few twists in the opposite direction; it was difficult to hold back her groans of pain but she just bit the inside of her cheek and kept on it.

Once the tool felt loose enough, she carefully slides it out of the wound. Thankfully there were no spurts of blood. It allowed her to quickly go in and stop the fresh bleeding before bandaging it. Finally, she felt like she could breathe a little easier.

Molly goes to dig through the box again. If she could just find a splint kit-

The sound of crashing and faint screaming pulls her attention towards the door. She didn’t have a lot of time left – whoever was out there seemed to have been found by the killer, so once she dealt with them, Molly herself wouldn’t have much room to work with.

Thankfully, she finds what she was looking for and quickly slides down out of the chair. Though it hurt, she drags herself to the secondary door within the room leading down into the maintenance tunnels. But a thought occurred to her: if she went down there, where would she go? The killer could easily catch up with her, after all.

A small look behind her revealed a smeared trail of blood as well. It was still pretty fresh on her clothes, after all.

Molly grits her teeth. While she was free of the chair, she was still down the ability to walk.

Footsteps sounded from behind the door leading into Gator Golf, snatching away Molly’s attention again. They were distinct, loud, rushed; not anything like the muffled footfalls of the killer.

Still, she wasn’t sure if this person would be friendly or not. Clearly they were running from the killer as much as she was.

As she drags herself close to the door, she rolls onto her back in an attempt to open the door. But she was too weak to do more than uselessly dangle her arm from the handle. It was too heavy.

“ Fuck, ” she whispers sharply.

The other door creaks open slowly. Molly’s breath hitches in her throat-

“Hello?” A different feminine voice calls.

The jangling of metal now accompanies the heavy sound of snow boots as an officer dressed in a heavy winter coat cautiously steps into the room. “Sheriff Ives, Blue County Sheriff’s Office- ma’am? Are you in here?”

If Molly could have leapt for joy, she would have. For now, she can only manage a sobbing groan of utter relief.

She couldn’t stop herself from crying now, warm tears flooding down her frozen cheeks. But she also couldn't seem to form any words. Not at first.

Even in the dark, Molly could see the sheriff’s eyes widen.

“Shit, they weren’t kidding about this call.” Sheriff Ives mumbles, quickly shutting the door and going to kneel next to Molly.

She goes to press two fingers against Molly’s neck, only to stop short when the smaller woman flinches away,

“I’ve- had enough of my neck being touched,” Molly rasps, “I’m alive, I promise. But we have to go before she gets back-”

“Before who gets back?” Ives questions, brows knitting together.

Molly hesitates. “H- her , the- the lunatic who k-” She stops as she catches sight of a shape behind the sheriff. A distinctly rabbit shaped figure.

The shadow lifts a finger to their masked mouth in a shushing motion. Screw that.

“Behind you!” Molly snaps, snatching up the screwdriver she had tugged from her wound and chucking it as hard as she could at the figure. At first, it seemed like a dead-on hit-

But the screwdriver clatters against the door instead.

The sheriff whips around, tugging out her handgun, but her shoulders relax when she seems to see nothing. After holstering her weapon again, she turns back to Molly and goes to lift her from the ground.

“Okay, we’ve gotta get you outta here- visual hallucinations aren’t a good sign.” Ives grunts as she straightens back up, Molly held bridal style in her arms.

Molly could only blink. The shadow still remained. It was still shushing her. It remained in view up until Ives turned to go back through the door leading out into Gator Golf; by then, when Molly craned her neck to look over the sheriff’s shoulder, it was completely gone.

“When di… did you get here? How did you get in?” Molly asks, eyes still fixated on the rapidly shrinking door behind them.

Sheriff Ives pauses to press herself against the wall and peek around the corner. “Just got here about twenty minutes ago. We, ah, might’ve used a bit of brute force to get in.” She looked sheepish for a moment before a more serious look replaced it. “My deputy is distracting the perp, though, so we should be fine.”

“They’re d- a-are you sure that’s safe?” Molly stammers, muscles tight at the thought of some poor deputy dying.

Ives simply grins. “Arnie can handle himself, believe me,” she picks up the pace of her walking as they exit Gator Golf, “that man’s wild enough to fight a whole cougar. I’m sure he can handle one insane person.”

Molly couldn’t help but stare up at the sheriff in disbelief. But, who was Molly to call the cards? After all, she wasn’t exactly the biggest nor strongest person ever. Surely a trained deputy would be enough to handle that psycho.

As they enter the main atrium, goosebumps rise along Molly’s exposed arms. She instinctively curls into the sheriff; the warmth radiating off of her coat was really the only thing keeping her from feeling like she was freezing to death.

Ives looks down at her. “Ah, right- sorry, here,” she quickly stops by one of the food areas and sets Molly on a chair to pull off her coat. After taking a cautious glance around, she drapes it over her and zips it up.

“There,” she smiles, “better?”

Molly hesitates. Then nods.

“Good. We’re just- gonna wait right here for Arnie.”

“There’s some snacks behind the counter,” Molly mumbles absentmindedly. “Fresh ones. I stashed them there before we closed.”

Sheriff Ives raises a brow. “Really prepared for an overnight, eh?” A grin splits her otherwise serious features.

Molly could only nod her head vacantly.

“Are you hungry?” Ives prompts, placing a careful hand on Molly’s shoulder.

“Am I- huh?” Molly echoes. But it soon clicks in her head. “Oh- um… n- y- yeah? No? I’m- I’m not sure.”

She could only sigh. As she adjusts the way she’s sitting, she pushes her arms into the sleeves of the sheriff’s coat; it was much bigger than she was. It made sense considering Ives was at least five eleven and built like she played football for a living.

“How’s about I grab you something, and you see if you’re okay enough to eat,” the sheriff gives her shoulder a light squeeze before turning to vault over the counter of the food stall.

Now that there seemed to be a moment or so of peace, Molly decides to take in the smaller details of her rescuer: pale brown hair, hazel eyes, and a small scar across the very edge of her mouth. Really, Molly shouldn’t be so focused on it, but damn it her head spun so badly that it was grounding to just stare at someone that wasn’t going to hurt her.

As the sheriff turned, her eyes lit up. She didn’t seem too bothered by Molly’s staring.

“So,” Ives begins, vaulting back over the counter and holding a bag of chips out for Molly to take, “I take it you’re a fan of baked chips?”

Taking the bag, Molly blinks slowly up at her. “Oh, um… yeah. How’d you know?”

The sheriff shrugs. “Could be a lucky guess- or the five other bags of these I found behind the counter.” Ives winks.

Molly feels heat flood to her face. She’s quick to look down at the bag in her hand. “R-Right, that- yeah, that-that would be- makes it obvious-”

She cursed herself for stammering so much. Why was it so hard to talk to pretty women?

The sheriff simply laughs softly. “Aw, sorry- didn’t think you’d get that flushed.” She rubs the back of her head sheepishly.

After pulling a chair over to sit down in front of Molly, Ives’s expression really softens. “Sorry if that’s a bit much right now-”

“No, no,” Molly quickly yet quietly interrupts. “No. It’s okay- it’s- it’s a nice change of pace. Though, I don’t know what Vanessa would say if she were here.” Though Molly herself saw no issue with having multiple partners, she did want to respect Vanessa’s boundaries. Even if she wasn’t sure what they were yet.

“Oh? That your girlfriend?” Ives asks, wiggling her brows.

“Well- no, but we’re supposed to go on a date this Saturd…” Molly trails off. Even in the warmth of the coat, her blood ran ice cold.

Vanessa. Where was Vanessa?

“Oh God,” Molly brings a shivering hand to cover her mouth. “I don’t- I don’t even know if she’s still alive-”

Ives is up from her chair in an instant. “When did you last see her?”

Molly couldn’t force even a single sound.

“Hey, come on, look at me-”

Hands carefully grasp her shoulders, pulling her eyes up to look into the sheriff’s.

“When did you last see her,” Ives repeats a bit stronger now.

Thinking back to the beginning of her shift was tougher than Molly would have anticipated. It felt like it had been an eternity since then, but all she had to do was focus on what came of it.

Finally, she moves her hand and draws in a deep breath. “This- this evening, before our shift started,” she brings her other hand up to grasp at the fluffy neck of the coat. “We were in the locker room getting ready.”

“And have you seen her at all since then?” Ives urges.

“Um- once or twice,” Molly recalls, “while I was doing maintenance? But- but that’s it-”

“Did the perp mention anything?” The sheriff pulls the chair she had been sitting in over to her with her foot, not letting go of Molly as she settles back down.

Molly probes her memory. It was getting a little hazy at this point, but she quickly found what she was looking for; the killer had mentioned Vanessa, and in a way that made it sound like she was still alive at least.

“Yeah- y-yeah, yeah she did,” Molly looks down at her lap. “She mentioned tricking her into “doing something stupid”, but- but I don’t know what she meant-”

“Ives!” A masculine voice shouts from within Gator Golf.

Both women turn to see a man, around 5’9” in stature, helping along what looked to be an injured, snow-covered woman.

Blonde hair tangled with blood was what caught Molly’s attention immediately, but it was the green eyes sharp with fury that sparked recognition.

“Vanessa!” Molly calls out, unable to hide the relief in her tone. Though the sheriff tried to stop her, she struggled to her feet, ignoring the sharp spikes of pain that fired through her entire body. Sure, she had only just started to get to know the woman, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t worried for her well-being.

The security guard looks up slowly at first, but once she catches sight of Molly she seems to find her energy again.

Vanessa shoves away from the man and starts off in a near-sprint. Likely so she could catch Molly in a hug before the smaller woman fell.

“Jesus fuckin’ Christ, are you okay?” There was a distinct, raspy crack in the guard’s voice as she ran her thumb just under the cut on Molly’s cheek; she didn’t waste any time sitting Molly back down.

Molly could only tighten her grip on the back of Vanessa’s shirt. Pulling her face away from Vanessa’s cold hands, she buries it into her shirt. Despite being covered in snow, the guard was warm – her presence felt comforting. Like she was finally safe now that she was here.

“Yeah, found her in the snow when I chased that psycho outside,” the man’s voice cuts into Molly’s thoughts, but she doesn’t look up.

“Shit, really? Must’ve been out there a while,” Ives scratches at her head. “Looks like she’s got a head wound, too- you check her over, Arn?”

The man, Arnie, scratches at his cheek. “Er- no. She wouldn’t let me. But she can walk by herself mostly.”

“Well, that accounts for both of the employees- what about-”

Arnie holds up a hand, interrupting Ives. “Sorry boss- she got away. Couldn’t get much of a look at her face, either. Too dark.”

Ives curses. Molly tunes out there; right now, all she was focused on was Vanessa.

Finally releasing the guard from her grip, she moves to grasp her hands. “You’re freezing- how long were you out there?”

Vanessa hesitates. “I- I don’t know,” frustration knits her brows together, “but if I get my hands on that slimy fucking prick, I’ll rip her a new asshole.”

Molly could feel the guard’s hands tense in hers. She presses them together and brings them to her face, resting her forehead against them with a small sigh. “I’m just glad you’re okay- I was afraid she did something to you.” She murmurs. Was it weird to be so worried? She couldn’t tell. Maybe she should back off a little?

“Sorry,” Molly gently pushes Vanessa’s hands away and lifts her head, “it’s- probably weird of me to be so touchy-” But her own hands were quickly grabbed before she could completely pull them away.

Looking up, she sees the security guard gazing down at her with nothing but appreciative warmth in her eyes. She leans forward and presses her bloodied forehead against Molly’s.

“Don’t worry,” Vanessa’s voice is soft, “it’s sweet.” She brings one of Molly’s hands up to her lips and presses a feather-light kiss against it. It just made Molly’s heart beat faster.

“I just worry about-” Molly begins, only for Vanessa to interrupt gently.

“-moving too fast?” The guard laughs softly. “Hey, I don’t mind. It’s not like we’re confessing our undying love to one another.” Though Vanessa laughs, Molly finds herself reeling.

She hoped desperately that they wouldn’t be doing that anytime soon. Especially not after what happened tonight.

It was only a few short hours later that Molly found herself back in the hospital, driven there by Sheriff Ives and Deputy Arnie.

Her phone had been retrieved and returned to her – the thing miraculously still turned on, but not without connecting it to a charger. She was quick to call Jayce and update him on the situation. Really, he’d have leapt through the phone if he could’ve.

Things were otherwise quiet. She didn’t have the energy to call anyone else; Jayce would likely call Kayde, anyway. None of them would be able to get here until after the snow settled, though.

It sucked that she’d be alone in the room for the foreseeable future. The nurses were very firm that Vanessa couldn’t stay in the same room as her until they were sure she wasn’t sick from being out in the snow for so long.

Glancing down, she looks at the cast now fixed to her ankle. The break, according to the x-rays, was bad enough to require metal stabilizing rods be put in. At least her leg wounds were cleaner than they’d expected.

Now that she was all cleaned up and tucked into an admittedly comfortable hospital bed, she was left to her own devices. They had an old DVD player loaded with multiple movies, a few television series – but right now, Molly was barred from using any screens due to the severe concussion she had sustained.

Her mind buzzed horribly and there seemed to be a constant blur to her vision. It felt similar to her first time meeting helpy; but the little bear had been absent even after leaving the plex. She couldn’t get him to respond at all. She hoped the chip hadn’t been damaged when she had her head smashed into the ground.

“Helpy..?” She calls out softly to the empty room. “Buddy? Are you there?”

No response.

“Helpy, please, talk to me.” Molly could hardly keep it together. She wanted nothing more than to just talk to someone, it had been hours since she settled in for the night. “C’mon, man- I know you’re in there.”

Finally, there was a hint of static. It was comforting enough to barely soothe the ache in Molly’s heart. But only just.

“Probably- working overtime in there, huh?” She forces a small laugh. “Head injuries aren’t good for the implant, I guess.”

More static – it almost sounded like a response this time, at least! She took it as a sign that the little bear was definitely doing his best to get things up and running again. For now, she would leave him to it.

Though she knew she needed it, sleep refused to come. Questions raced through her mind at mach speed. As far as she knew, there hadn’t been any recent reports of murders; the most there had been were missing children cases, but they were all at or around the Mega Pizzaplex location.

Molly’s brows knit together. Clearly there was some sort of connection between the two, but law enforcement had done nothing to shut the place down for investigation.

But someone had to.

Against her better judgement, she reaches for her bag, which had kindly been retrieved by Sheriff Ives before they left for the hospital. Inside, her notebooks for class sat diligently waiting.

She pulls out one of the newer notebooks; originally, she was going to use it to more clearly copy down her existing notes, but this felt a little more important. Besides, she could always get another one.

Inside, she begins to scribble down everything she could remember about the killer. What her face looked like, her mannerisms, the way she held herself – getting inside of her head might be the ticket to finding her intentionally.

Molly wasn’t entirely keen on encountering her again, but if anything, she was starting to at least catch onto a pattern. This killer used her strength to her advantage and appeared to be hesitant to take on anyone who could plausibly stand up to her.

In addition to that, she really liked sneaking around. The padded feet of the suit she wears definitely muffled her footsteps. Molly would have to be on the lookout constantly – no more music for her.

Finally, whenever the killer was around, Helpy went MIA. Molly guessed it might have something to do with the killer herself, but what? The most likely scenario was a sort of signal jammer, but since Helpy didn’t run on WiFi, it was hard to tell.

Molly leans back with a huff. If it wasn’t related to any specific WiFi signal, then it would have to be something pre-installed in the chip itself. But for that to happen, the technician responsible would have to be in cahoots with the killer.

The thought struck her like lightning.

She sits up again, wincing as the i.v. tubes tug at her skin. “A network,” she mumbles to herself, “it has to be a network of people-” She throws a wild glance at the door. She knew Vanessa had to be in a room somewhere nearby, but the nurses were very clear that Molly shouldn’t be walking yet.

Molly groans loudly, raking her hands through her hair. This couldn’t wait! She had to talk to Vanessa about this, she had to be made aware of the danger! But did she really want to risk running into one of the nurses? She had already been scolded about trying to take her IVs out; she still really didn’t think she needed them!

Pushing away her unrelated thoughts, Molly carefully shuffles herself to the edge of the bed and pulls her legs over. It felt odd to have one bare foot on the ground and one in a hardened cast, but she could make do, she was sure of it.

A quick scan of the room revealed nothing she could use to support herself on enough to walk with. Nothing that could move, at least. The rolling pole holding up the bag of fluids didn’t look stable enough to support her either, no matter how light she was.

In the far corner, opposite of the door, a folded up wheelchair sits leaned against a wall. It was her best bet. If only she could get over there.

Molly draws in a slow breath – no pain, no gain, right?

She finally gathers every ounce of strength she could and pulls herself from the bed. It was hard to hold back a low whine of pain as she put any sort of weight on her sore legs.

It didn’t take long for her to sink to the floor in a heap, dragging the tubes attached to her with her. It was progress at the very least.

She rolls to her side, carefully setting the edge of the cast on the ground as she uses one arm to drag her body across the floor while holding the tubes out of the way with the other.

The painkillers she had been given thankfully seemed to help stave off most of the lingering soreness from her injuries. But damn it if it wasn’t a pain in the ass to pull herself all the way to the wheelchair and set it up all at once.

But she did it. And now, all she had to do was find out where Vanessa was staying!

A short glance out of the door revealed an empty hallway. The clock read 4:34 – still plenty of time before the nurses did their rounds.

Wheeling herself down the way, Molly found she wasn’t sure where to start. The last time she had been here, she had been discharged fairly quickly, so as far as she was concerned this place was no easier to navigate than a maze.

It was difficult to curb her frustration in the moment; a distraction, however, was not far behind.

Just out of the corner of her eye a humanoid shape zips down the hallway behind her. Molly is quick to turn the chair, muscles tense – but only the empty, blackened hall greets her vision.

An uneasy bubble settles in her chest. There were obviously overnight nurses so it wouldn’t be weird to see someone else here; something still wasn’t sitting right.

With a shake of her head, Molly shifts the chair back around and continues down the way. Reading the paper name plates as she went, she found there weren’t actually many people on this floor. It was for more serious injuries, after all – were hers that serious?

A quick glance down quieted her doubts. Of course they were serious! She had metal rods in her leg now for fuck’s sake. Not to mention she was still recovering from the blood loss and dehydration.

Molly forces herself to focus again. She was on a mission: find Vanessa.

She finally wheels herself to one end of the hall, no closer to finding the security guard than she was before. Maybe she was at the other end? Or, perhaps on another floor entirely. It might just be better to wait until they clear Vanessa and switch her room.

A soft sigh was all Molly could muster. She hadn’t slept a wink since she had gotten here, and this revelation of hers wasn’t going to help in the slightest – she had to talk to someone about it, and with Helpy out of commission-

A sudden chill runs down her spine as fingers dance across her shoulder and run up her neck.

Molly lets out a choked sound between a yelp and a disgusted grunt as she quickly rolls her wheelchair forward and pivots to face whoever decided it was okay to touch her.

But she now only faced a blank wall.

With her fear beginning to boil over, she finds herself paralyzed. Despite the chilly hospital air, beads of sweat gather against her forehead.

An echoing whisper pulls her attention towards the opposite end of the hall.

“Who-” Molly stops herself. An important rule of thumb in a situation like this: don’t ask who’s there.

She tenses her jaw as she slowly wheels herself forward. The foolhardy part of her pleaded for her to investigate, but her voice of self-preservation demanded she return to her room, lock the door, and wait for the nurses to start their rounds.

As she approaches the other end of the hall where her room sat a mere two doors from the corner, a dark shape steps out into view.

Tall, rabbit-eared, and violet eyed, it scans the space in front of it. Its form twitches and writhes as though it was made up of a million tiny shadows. Its face almost seemed drawn on – crudely animated, even. It turns its twisted, sharp-toothed smile on Molly with a lopsided tilt of its head.

Though it says nothing, it almost seems to rejoice at the sight of the injured woman, a gleeful and staticy giggle bouncing off of the silent walls of the hallway.

Without warning, it surges for Molly,  sharply clawed digits outstretched and ready to strike.

Molly screams at the top of her lungs, barely managing to roll backwards and away from the shadow’s grasping hands.

She makes a break for the hallway just behind it, taking a sharp turn towards the open and waiting elevator – either a nurse or a roaming patient had just used it, but regardless of the reason, it was her only hope of escape.

Molly watches in desperation as the doors begin to slide shut; without a single second of forethought, she launches herself from the chair, wincing as her back collides with the back wall of the elevator.

The figure wasn’t far behind, but Molly already had a plan.

The now toppled over chair was sitting halfway across the threshold of the doors. It was hindering it from closing, so it had to go – directly into the shadow.

With another shout, Molly shoves the chair as hard as she could, reveling in the furious, crackling screech from the shadow as it collides with it.

She wastes no time using the pole of her hanging i.v. bag to hit one of the buttons for a lower floor of the hospital. And just before the shadow is able to collect itself, the doors slide shut with a clunk.

Finally, Molly could catch her breath a little.

It was difficult to comprehend exactly what was happening. Molly wasn’t entirely keen on believing in the supernatural like her brother is, but what that was is definitely not explainable by  any science she knew.

For right now, she was safe – hopefully the floor she was going to was more populated than the one she was staying on.

She taps the bandages around her legs. She could see crimson beginning to leak into the off-white fabric; seems she tore the stitches. Great. Now she’d actually have to find a nurse.

The ding of the elevator pulls her from her irritation. The doors slid open to reveal a far brighter floor of the hospital, and several sets of footsteps assured it was indeed populated by human beings.

Molly drags herself from the cabin, dutifully tugging along the i.v. drip still securely attached to her arm.

Exhaustion quickly crept up on her senses. Her arms felt weak and her heart still hammered against her chest – she had to stop. She had to rest. This floor already felt much safer than the last one.

It wasn’t long before one of the overnight nurses spotted her leaned up against the wall just next to the elevator.

“Wh-” He sputters, nearly dropping what Molly assumed to be a cup of coffee.

“There’s something upstairs,” Molly mutters, “I don’t know what it is.”

Instead of scolding her for being out of bed, the nurse blinks. Then, he kneels next to her, pulling her hospital gown up just enough to see the bloody bandages covering her thighs.

“Can you describe it?” He asks in a soft voice.

Molly hesitates. “I don’t think you’d believe me.”

The nurse only chuckles. “Try me. I’ve seen some pretty bizarre stuff on the night shift around here,” he carefully prods the bandaged areas, only stopping when Molly sucks a sharp breath in through her teeth.

“A rabbit,” Molly finally responds, “but- not- not an actual rabbit. It was shaped like a human and had the head of a rabbit-”

“Oh,” the nurse hums, turning to wave over a few more nurses.

“And it was just a shadow- or… a lot of shadows? Like- like a bunch of worms almost? And the face was-was- fuck, I don’t know,” Molly runs a trembling hand through her hair. Even just thinking about this thing made her pulse quicken.

One of the nurses the original nurse called over places her hand on her shoulder. “Hey, try to slow down,” she encourages, “we’ll send security up to check the floor.”

Relief floods through Molly in waves. A whispered “thank you” was all she could manage before her muscles finally relaxed. Though she was still fully conscious, she just couldn’t muster the strength to respond anymore.

Just a few short hours after her little expedition, Molly’s assigned nurse, a woman by the name of Grace Harlow, slowly opens the door.

“Molly,” she calls softly.

“I’m awake,” Molly mumbles, absentmindedly fiddling with an extra curly strand of her hair.

“I heard you had an incident last night,” the nurse hums as she flicks on the lights, “how’re you feeling?”

“Like I’m stuck in some low-budget horror movie.” Molly huffs, releasing the strand of hair and smacking the bunched up blanket with her hand.

Nurse Harlow lets out a small laugh. “Looking at your re-telling of the event? Yeah, I can see why,” she shakes her head as she sets her clipboard down. “Any new pain today?”

Molly only pauses for a second. “No, not really. Just the usual stuff.”

“Good- so long as you stay in bed, you’ll be out of here before the weekend.”

The pointed look told Molly that she was lucky the nurse wasn’t chewing her ear off about the stunt she pulled. It was very much appreciated considering Molly felt nothing but frustration and fatigue.

Her bandages are peeled away carefully – Harlow had to do the required inspection of her wounds, especially after what happened last night.

“When can I see Vanessa?” Molly blurts out the question much faster than her brain can really think it over.

Nurse Harlow pauses her evaluation of Molly’s new stitches. But she’s quick to continue.

“She hasn’t had any fever or shown any symptoms of illness all night, so by the end of today, she’ll be transferred here,” Harlow confirms. “She’s apparently been dying to see you, too.”

It made Molly’s heart skip a beat to hear that. It was still far too early to really tell what her feelings about the security guard were exactly, but right now she was more smitten than she cared to admit.

Though, she had to have been making more of a face than she realized, because Harlow only barely misses concealing a small laugh.

“Have you two been dating long?” The nurse asks with a miniscule grin on her face.

Molly angles her warmed face away. “We- I mean, we’re supposed to go on a date this Saturday. It- it really hasn’t been long at all since- I mean-” She could barely stammer out full sentences. Luckily, it didn’t seem like Harlow minded.

Really, it just made the nurse laugh a little more. “Hasn’t been long, then? Ahh, the puppy stage,” she shakes her head, finishing up with reapplying the bandages around Molly’s thighs. She pushes herself back up and claps invisible dust from her hands.

“You two make a cute couple if you ask me,” she hums. “I mean- when we first brought the two of you in, we almost had to strap her to the bed to get her to lay down,” Harlow pauses suddenly, a contemplative look settling across her features.

“Come to think of it… we did have to strap her down when she heard you needed surgery. Dr. Jacobs would have given her permission to watch if we hadn’t been worried about her being sick.” Harlow reaches up to rub the back of her head. “It took five nurses to hold her down long enough.”

At this point, Harlow was most certainly rambling. But Molly had made it very clear that she wanted the nurse to speak to her like a person and not a patient; she was already uneasy enough about the fact that she’d have to spend so long here, so she didn’t want to worsen it by being spoken to in an overtly professional manner.

It was comforting to hear Harlow speak so loosely. Really, it was just nice to hear someone’s voice! The silence of the room before had been absolutely overwhelming.

“-really, you should see a psychiatrist.”

Molly finally focuses back in on what the nurse was saying. It only served to confuse her more than anything else.

“Wh- what?” She stutters, blinking away the haze that had settled across her brain.

Nurse Harlow pulls up a wooden chair and settles in it, reaching to place her hand on the bed next to Molly’s hand. “A psychiatrist, Molly,” she repeats. “I only have half of the story, but I’ve seen the evaluation they did for you after you got here- this kind of traumatic experience can cause hallucinations exactly like the one you had last night.”

“I don’t think I’d have a lot of time between work and school,” Molly rubs the back of her head. She found she was unable to make eye contact with the nurse. At least, not for more than a few seconds. It wasn’t the first time she was told she needed therapy, sure, but a psychiatrist? That was a whole different story.

Molly sees the nurse glance at her out of the corner of her eye, but no more words are exchanged.

Eventually, Molly is once again left to her own devices. All she could feel was exhaustion; she’d give anything for even just a few minutes of sleep at this point. Anything just to take off the edge of the horrible, room-spinning dizziness that plagued her head.

But her eyes remained practically glued open. If she glared at the ceiling any harder, she was sure it’d collapse, but as she shifts to direct her attention in front of her she’s met with a spine-chilling sight.

It was back.

And it was standing right at the foot of her bed.

Chapter Text

A writhing blue glow cuts through the dim lighting of the hospital room. At first, Molly couldn’t move – but the colour pulls her from her instinctive terror.

The one that attacked her last night had been purple. This one is blue. And as this revelation takes hold, the mass of shadows begins to settle into a more solid, continuous shape. While it was still rabbit-like in the head area, it took on more of an abstract shape below the neck.

Or, well, lack thereof.

In fact, the entire shape becomes more akin to that of a ghoul that came right out of Tron. The cybernetic influence would slap even the most inattentive person right in the face; no legs, indented stripes of blue made up of right angles, and hands that were attached to its shoulders through arms made of pure electricity.

Its face is the last feature to settle. It now possessed a head more like a hare than a bunny, with eyes set in deep sockets. It was still pretty unnerving, but at the very least it has pupils now.

Molly tilts her head slightly. The hare does the same.

“What-” As she’s speaking, a familiar voice nearly bursts her eardrums.

”PAL, I FIXED IT!” It was Helpy, who now stands at the end of the bed with his paws in the air. ”I fixed it, pal! I fixed the security protocol!”

“Yeahyeahyeah, okay, okay! I hear you, Helpy, please stop shouting,” Molly groans, hands pressed securely against her ears. Though she knew it probably wouldn’t help, it was still some line of defense.

The little bear slaps his paws over his mouth, guilt replacing his previously excited expression. ”Sorry pal,” he murmurs in a muffled voice.

Molly waves a hand. “It’s fine- it’s alright. Just a little too much all at once, y’know?” She runs a hand through her hair and heaves a sigh of relief. If Helpy was back online, then whatever the hare was is probably not malicious. “What- exactly did you fix?” She asks.

“Oh, well- M.X.E.S!” Helpy responds, dropping his paws to gesture to the slightly twitchy creature behind him.

The way he said the hare’s name made Molly think she was supposed to know who it was. But as she looks over the floating (and still sinister looking) creature, she draws a complete blank.

“Okay, but… who is M.X.E.S., Helpy?” She asks as she fixes her eyes on the little bear again. “And why the hell did it attack me last night??”

Both Helpy and M.X.E.S. share a look of pure shock. Then, mutual guilt.

The hare looks away, rubbing the back of his hovering head with his eyes focusing on everything except Molly herself. Helpy, on the other hand, presses his paws against Molly’s hand.

“He didn’t mean it- honest! Vanny did something to his code while you were out, and-”

“Wait wait wait,” Molly pulls her hand away and gives Helpy’s fuzzy chest a poke, “now who the hell is Vanny? What exactly am I missing here?”

M.X.E.S floats forward, pulling up a flat square from his chest. He taps on it a few times before it lights up and holds it out to her.

It became pretty clear fairly quickly that the hare couldn’t speak. It made things a little more difficult, but only just – Helpy seemed to be able to understand him just fine, so he could be a translator, but it still didn’t make her trust the guy any more.

“What’s this?” She asks Helpy.

Helpy holds up a pointer finger. “A surveillance screen. M.X.E.S.’s security camera activates whenever the chip is being tampered with- go on, take it!”

Molly hesitates. But, ultimately, it was the best (and seemingly only) way to get answers.

She takes the screen and gives it a quick look-over: it was simple enough to decipher, as there were only a few places to tap. The footage in question was already pulled up as well. All she had to do was press play!

Therein seemed to lie the issue.

From what could be seen in the thumbnail, the killer Helpy called “Vanny” was hunched over Molly, who was laid across the table of the security room. It was clear she was doing something, but it was hard to tell what exactly with the video in its static state.

She draws in a slow breath. Then, after a moment longer of hesitation, she presses play.

The footage seizes for a moment as purple static splits the screen, but it quickly recovers as Vanny starts speaking.

”Handy little thing here, wouldn’t you say?” She giggles, waving around what looks to be a pair of bloody pliers. ”Made ‘em so secure, even I have trouble getting into it! Hah- ME! Ahh, but nothing a good pair of pliers can’t fix.” She clicks the pliers a few times before swiftly plunging them back downwards.

Molly cringes at the same time as her recorded self does. It was a wonder she didn’t wake up during the process; then again, anyone would find it hard to wake up after having their head bashed against the ground.

Pushing away her bitter feelings about the situation, she focuses back on the video just in time to see Vanny turn around. Violet eyes glint as she makes eye contact with the “camera” before her.

”Not happy, are you? Figures- I don’t imagine having someone poking around in your brain is entirely comfortable,” she tosses the pliers onto the desk next to the same hammer she remembered from that night. Only it was completely clean.

The implications made her shudder.

Still, Vanny goes on. ”Well, too bad for YOU that I need you out of my way. Your security protocol is getting in the way of the bug.”

A low, agitated mechanical groan echoes from the video. It reminded Molly of the sound a whale might make.

”Oh, don’t give me that! I’m not planning on killing her, I simply just-”

M.X.E.S. interrupts her with another, much shorter groan.

”Infec- NO! No no, nothing like THAT, you silly hare! No, it’s too soon for that,” Vanny waves a hand as she takes up the screwdriver, twirling it in her hands as she moves to open the electrical panel present on the left wall of the room. ”I’m just planting a weakness in your code. Enough to let enough information through so that when it IS time, there won’t be any resistance. Understand?” She points the screwdriver at the camera.

The hare makes more of a whining sound in response, the camera shifting to take in his now glitching hand.

Vanny lets out a low chuckle. ”Well, no, I’m not giving you a choice.”

M.X.E.S. whines again.

”No, I’m not programming you to HURT her! That’s MY job. YOUR job will be to scare her shitless and make sure she starts losing faith in this handy little chip here. Get it?” Vanny huffs, coming over to stand in front of the hare.

The camera remains focused on her midsection as M.X.E.S.’s view began to fill with more static by the second. He lets out a weak yet furious rubbing warble. But Vanny simply laughs.

”Oh-ho, “not your intended function”, HAH! As if you’ll be able to resist.”

With that, the screen all but shatters into fading pixels in Molly’s hands. A quick glance upwards revealed the hare’s uneasy and overwhelmingly guilty expression. She didn’t blame the poor guy – after all, he made his displeasure very clear. That was enough for her.

She reaches up to give him a small pat on the face, finding that her hand met tangible matter. It was freaky at first, but no more surprising than being able to touch Helpy.

“Don’t worry about it, buddy,” Molly assures softly, “you didn’t mean it.”

Helpy pops up in her peripheral, standing on her outstretched arm. ”Darn right he didn’t! His programming forbids him from attacking employees directly. All he can do is record ‘em and hope for the best!”

Ice seemed to replace Molly’s blood in the moment. “He can’t- he can’t attack employees?”  

The little bear nods. “That’s right! Somethin’ the engineers put in to-”

“Helpy, no, listen to what I’m saying,” Molly states sternly as she cranes her neck to look at the bear. “You said M.X.E.S. can’t attack employees. ”

”You’re uh- startin’ t’ worry me here, pal,” he lets out a nervous half-chuckle, ”I don’t understand what-”

“Vanny, Helpy!” Molly gently grabs the little bear and plops him on her knee, leaning down to grab up her notebook once again. “She’s an employee! If M.X.E.S. couldn’t attack her, then that means Vanny works at the Pizzaplex!”

As she speaks, she quickly scribbles out the best sketch she could of what she recalled of Vanny’s face. Sharp facial features, brown hair, violet eyes – while she didn’t have her coloured pencils with her, she did her best to write down a description underneath her rushed drawing.

M.X.E.S. and Helpy watch with great interest as they exchange quizzical glances.

“All we have to do is get into the employee database and find a match,” Molly flicks a glance at the two apparitions, then focuses back on her notebook. “I don’t imagine we can entirely trust the police-”

”Wha- whoa, why not, pal?” Helpy’s brows nearly flew off of his head he looked so shocked.

“ Because, Helpy, she’s clearly been doing this for a while and the police have done jack-all about it! There’s obviously something a lot worse going on,” she responds quickly, rapidly pouring every guess she had as to why onto the page. Even looking at it now told her she’d need to set up a proper board whenever she got home.

Help and M.X.E.S. exchange another look out of the corner of Molly’s eye.

”Pal, I get where you’re comin’ from, but-”

M.X.E.S. interrupts Helpy with a long, low groan of worry.

Helpy snaps his fingers. ”Exactly my point! It ain’t good to keep this from the authorities. They have any ability to help.”

“And what exactly am I supposed to tell them? That I got my evidence from the computer chip Fazbear put in my brain?” Molly fires back. “Unless I’m allowed to share that sort of information with the station?”

With a raised brow, she finally turns her attention towards the two programs. As expected, neither of them had much to say; in fact, both of them looked even more uneasy than before.

Molly can’t help but sigh as she looks back down. “That’s what I thought.” She shakes her head. "Besides, a normal response to this sort of situation would be to tape the place off and shut it down until the investigation concluded. Which, if you haven't already noticed, they haven't done."

With both programs currently silent, Molly went to work feverishly cataloguing everything she could remember about her encounters with Vanny. So far, the way the killer held herself wasn’t ringing any bells; then again, she had only ever interacted with the teenagers, and Vanessa during her shifts at the plex. She had no idea if there were any other adult employees that picked up the night shift.

There was a vague possibility that it was the only other person that worked the night shift with her – but, how could that be? No one would go through the effort of putting on a wig and contacts just to kill people at some greasy pizza place! Not to mention Vanny and Vanessa’s skin tones differed from each other by a few shades.

Still. The thought lingered uncomfortably in the back of her mind.

Hours passed. Molly still hasn’t managed to get any sleep. But right now, she had far more important things to do.

A small knock at the door hardly pulled her from her deep state of focus.

The door creaks open, and Nurse Harlow’s voice temporarily draws Molly’s attention towards the door – but only for a moment.

“Hey, anything new?” Harlow asks as she strides into the room.

Molly only grunts in response, tapping the eraser of her pencil against the paper.

“School work?” Harlow asks. She sets a tray of food on the foldable table attached to Molly’s bed.

“No,” Molly mumbles, “more of a personal project.”

The nurse raises a brow, but doesn’t question it further. Instead, she gently pulls the pencil and the notebook from Molly’s grasp; she didn’t quite register what had happened until the smell of warm food replaced the faint aroma of charcoal.

Looking up, Molly sees a bit of a scolding expression on the nurse’s face. She knew better than to argue, but that didn’t stop a pout from forming on her lips.

“Eat,” Harlow orders gently, “then we’ll go for a walk down the hall.”

While it normally would have sounded nice to be able to get out of the confines of the hospital bed, Molly found the idea unproductive. Still, she knew better than to argue with a medical professional. All she could do was nod in agreement.

Though, her lack of response seemed to concern Harlow, who moves to press the back of her hand against Molly’s forehead.

“Are you sure you’re feeling alright?” She asks, concern lacing her tone.

Molly resists the immediate urge to push the nurse’s hand away. Instead, she pats her forearm. “Yeah, fine- just a little tired.”

“Have you slept at all since getting here?”

Now there was the million dollar question. The only hang-up in answering? She’d be met with disappointment regardless if she elected to tell the truth or lie right through her teeth. A continued lack of response would also expose her just as much.

All in all, she didn’t have much of a choice.

“No,” she mumbles, “I’m too- wound up, I think.” Even Molly didn’t sound convinced by her own answer. Taking her insomnia into account, this was usually the point where she’d crash, but right now she found the thought of sleep to be too… unnerving.

It almost felt like, if she fell asleep, she’d wake up in some horrible situation again.

She knew it was ridiculous. She was safe at the hospital – no matter how much of a freak Vanny is, even she should have the head to not go out in the middle of a winter storm. But even just the miniscule possibility had her tense.

Nurse Harlow simply sighs. “What I said earlier today still stands,” she takes a seat on the edge of the bed, tucking Molly’s notebook back into the bag settled just next to her leg. “You really might want to consider seeing someone. I’m sure if your insurance covers this, it’ll cover a good psychiatrist.”

Molly couldn’t force even a single word in response. It wasn’t something she would readily admit out loud, but she’s probably needed to see a mental health professional for a long time. This just seemed to be icing on the cake.

Finally, she sighs. “…I guess it wouldn’t hurt anything.” She mumbles, picking up the fork to poke at the food in front of her.

The nurse smiles softly. But she says nothing. Instead, she stands and gives Molly’s hand a gentle pat before leaving the room; likely to go grab one thing or another. Molly found that she really didn’t care.

It wasn’t out of malice or anything, she just wasn’t entirely on board with the idea of seeing someone about these issues. If there was one thing Molly was certain of, it was that she’s sound of mind. Helpy and M.X.E.S. were real and tangible. Sure, the danger was real too – but not wanting to fall asleep out of fear she’ll wake up and be tortured again was something she’d just have to deal with on her own time. A secondary issue. But she wasn’t about to pay some stranger to tell her that she was losing her mind.

Still, she knew for a fact that Harlow wasn’t going to be the only person asking her to seek help. She was sure Kayde already had a number of psychiatric specialists pulled up and ready to schedule an appointment.

Molly really wasn’t thrilled thinking about how much her family was likely going to dote on her. She didn’t need that, she needed answers , and by God she was going to get them.

She abandons her food in favour of her notebook, going right back to scribbling down any small detail that came to mind.

It wasn’t until the door swung open again that she realized more than another hour had passed.

Looking up, Molly spots a familiar head of dirty blonde hair, now clean and free from the dark blood that had been tangled into it prior. Green eyes scanned over the entire room before landing on Molly. They were filled with a sort of relief that struck Molly as a little odd.

Vanessa strides into the room with little more hesitation, tugging a chair over with her foot and getting as close to the side of the bed as she could. “Hey,” she sighs softly, “I thought you’d be asleep?”

“I can’t sleep,” Molly mumbles, rolling her pencil between the pads of her fingers and focusing her gaze on her notebook, “not when there’s someone actively trying to screw me over.”

The security guard’s brow furrows. “Screw you over? Molly, c’mon, that crazy bitch was trying to kill you. I hate to dip this in battery acid, but I don’t think you’ve got the situation right-”

“I have it exactly right, Vanessa,” Molly interrupts firmly, “you weren’t there. You didn’t hear what she was saying to me. You don’t know what she was going to do to me.”

There was a brief moment where Vanessa’s jaw clenched and there was almost a glint to her eyes. But it was fleeting – maybe she was actually starting to see things now.

With a small sigh, Molly finally sets her pencil down and reaches to rest her hand on Vanessa’s.

“I’m sorry,” she murmurs, “I’m still just a little- overwhelmed, I guess.”

Warmth envelops her hand as Vanessa shifts to hold it.

“No, don’t be sorry,” she responds. “A lot happened in one night- I should be the one apologizing.”

Molly looks up at the guard slowly. She couldn’t help but be a little suspicious; but she knew it couldn’t have been Vanessa that did all of that! There was no way, not with how different she looked from the killer.

Hearing no response, Vanessa goes on. “I’m sorry for not being there for you,” she sighs heavily, “I shouldn’t have been so stupid- I let her trick me into following her outside, and then she bashed my head against the damn door.” She reaches up to brush her fingers against the rectangular bandage plastered across her forehead.

It was then that Molly really took in Vanessa’s current state: yes, her hair was clear of the blood, but it still looked tangled. Unkempt. As though she either didn’t have the energy or strength to brush it.

Looking down more revealed a possible reason; Vanessa’s right arm was in a sling. As far as Molly knew, the guard is right handed, so it made sense for her to struggle with previously easy tasks.

“What happened to your arm?” Molly asks, reaching out to brush her fingers along Vanessa’s forearm.

The guard flinches, but only slightly. “Ah, yeah,” she lets out a small, slightly irritated laugh. “She snuck up behind me and pinned my arm behind my back before she busted open my head. Nurse said it got dislocated.”

“Right…” Molly mumbles. A twinge of anxiety pinched at her chest. It had to be a coincidence, right? A coincidence that Vanessa had the same injury that Molly herself inflicted on the killer.

She had to force the thought from her mind. The killer clearly showed a high tolerance for pain, and Vanessa looked wildly uncomfortable; she was clearly in pain.

Maybe she was just getting too paranoid.

“I’m just glad you’re still here,” Molly finally responds.

Vanessa laughs softly. “Yeesh, you’re telling me- thought I was gonna freeze to death. But- I was more worried about you.”

“You really don’t need to-”

“I can’t help it,” Vanessa interjects, “you’re a trouble magnet- a-and I don’t mean that to be rude, believe me, I just- I just worry, y’know?” She gives Molly’s hand a light squeeze. There was almost a sense of urgency in the way the security guard looked at her afterwards.

“I want to keep you safe, Molly. You’ve already got a dangerous job, and now with all of this, I’d happily volunteer to watch over you!”

Molly thinks back to how the two of them first met; shortly after the first time Vanny attacked and nearly killed her. How Vanessa had been so upset about having to take over her work and shifts. Really, she still felt bad, but they seemed to have made amends since then. Really made amends considering their Saturday plans.

Still. Something told her to keep Vanessa at a healthy distance.

“You don’t need to do that, Vanessa,” Molly squeezes her hand back, “but I’m glad that we’re not fighting anymore. Kinda hated arguing with you for a week straight.”

The security guard pauses. Then, she laughs. “Shit, man, I forgot about that! Hah… yeah, I’m ah- I’m glad we’re past that.” She shakes her head, leaning forward with more of a sly grin on her lips.

“And I can tell you this much- Saturday is gonna be a blast. I’ll make sure of it.”

There was a brief feeling of unease that spread through Molly, but it’s quickly replaced by a giddy excitement.

“Well, I look forward to it!’ She laughs. “If I’m able to escape the tower my family’s about to put me in.”

The process of recovery was… certainly slow.

Now that she was aware of the presence of M.X.E.S., it wasn’t as jarring to see the floating hare in her peripheral vision.

According to Helpy, M.X.E.S. is the built-in security program for the building. Versions of his program had been copied onto the more recent maintenance chips as a way to prevent tampering from outside sources. It only proved her theory that Vanny is a current employee of Fazbear Entertainment, and a maintenance worker to boot.

Of course, her personal investigation into the matter would have to wait. After the storm calmed down, cops and reporters swooped in like vultures.

It wasn’t the first time she had been questioned by the police over the matter, but it was certainly her first time being conscious of it. It was even more irritating now considering she knew they weren’t going to do anything no matter how in-depth of a description she provides.

“Do you remember what she looked like?” Asks the investigator.

“Clear as day,” Molly mutters. She still wasn’t entirely keen on remembering, but if it made the police go away faster, she’d give them every detail she could. Though, the only questions she had been asked were simple; when it happened, how it happened, where it happened – it was seeming less and less likely that anything was going to come of it all.

The investigator takes a few moments to scribble down Molly’s description; it gives her time to take a glance at the door where two other cops were keeping a pair of reporters back from entering the room.

She grimaces. “You’re not letting them in after you leave, right?”

The investigator pauses. “Probably was,” he grunts, “don’t really see why I shouldn’t.”

His nonchalant response told Molly everything she needed to know about him and his commitment to his job.

“I’d really prefer if they left altogether,” she does her best to keep her tone polite.

But the investigator waves a hand and snaps his notebook shut. “Not my problem.”

“Seriously? You can’t ask them to leave?” It was hard for Molly to keep from snapping at this man. He hadn’t even introduced himself before he launched into all of his lazy questions.

He only rolls his eyes. “If there isn’t anything else you remember, I’ll be going.” With that, he tugs open the door and motions for the officers to follow him.

As promised, he made no effort to stop the reporters from squeezing in through the door, but at the very least they kept a respectable distance.

From the looks of them, they were likely from privately run stations; they didn’t have a camera crew, nor did they have any fancy microphones. Not to mention they were dressed in street clothes rather than the fancy suits and dresses big news reporters liked to wear.

Still, Molly narrows her eyes. She’d let them speak first, but she wasn’t planning on answering any more useless questions.

The first reporter shoves the second out of the way before he can even begin to approach the side of the bed.

“Hi, Bethany Milford,” she sticks out a gloved hand, “I run the Survival Horror Come to Life podcast. Mind if I ask you a few questions?”

Molly blinks. A podcast? Now that was new.

Before she can dredge up a response, the second reporter pushes Bethany out of the way.

He sticks out his hand as well, a serious look plastered across his thin face. “Clark Matthews. Tales From The Depths. How goes it?”

“Uh,” Molly looks down at herself. Her ankle was in a thick cast, both thighs were wrapped in fresh bandages, and she still had an I.V, stuck in her arm.

She looks back up with a furrowed brow. “...Bad? What kind of question is that-”

“Yeah, Clark, ” Bethany scoffs, “leave it to a conspiracy theorist to ask stupid questions.”

Clark sputters. “W- it’s- it’s a polite question! I’m trying to create rapport instead of just springing serious stuff at her, like you do.”

Bethany huffs in disbelief. “I do not! You just like to waste time,” she jabs a finger into Clark’s shoulder, “and I get into the meat of the issue. It’s why I have the more successful podcast.”

“Bullshit! I’ve got way more listeners!” Clark retorts.

“Yeah, one-time listeners! How many repeat listeners have you had in the past month, huh?”

Before the two could argue further, Molly taps her pencil against the metal railing on the side of her bed. “Hey, I don’t give a shit whose podcast is more popular, what the fuck are you doing in here,” she snaps. Her patience was already dangerously thin – she didn’t need a pair of strangers arguing and making her headache worse.

“Oh- right, sorry,” Bethany rubs the back of her neck sheepishly as she takes a few more steps forward and clears her throat.

Clark, however, is the one to speak first. “I’m wanting to do an episode going over your supernatural encounter with the Ghost of Fazbear.”

“Hey!” Bethany snaps. “She was talking to me!”

“As if!”

“I was talking to both of you,” Molly interjects before another argument could break out. “How the hell did you two even get in here? I thought the trauma wing didn’t allow visits from non-family.

The pair hesitates.

Molly groans. “You’ve got to be kidding me- you snuck in.”

“It’s important,” Bethany states, stepping forward more, “you just survived an encounter with a notorious serial killer. The people need to know-”

“-and the cops won’t do anything about it. Fazbear’s been paying them off for years to cover it all up!” Clark adds quickly.

Though Bethany looked annoyed, she made no effort to contradict him. “As much as I hate to admit it, he’s probably right,” she sighs, “and the major news outlets only care about another scary story. I- we want to spread the truth.”

Surprisingly enough, Clark nodded in agreement. As much as they seemed to be at each other’s throats, they had a common (and admittedly noble) goal.

Still. Molly wasn’t entirely open to sharing just yet.

“Look, I can respect what you’re trying to do,” she takes a moment to press a hand to her head, “but I genuinely feel awful right now. I’ll talk to you both, just not today-”

“How’s Saturday?” Bethany asks quickly.

“Horrible. I have plans,” Molly states firmly.

“Sunday?” Clark cuts in hopefully.

Molly pauses. “If Saturday goes well, Sunday won’t work either.”

Heat creeps up her neck at their quizzical expressions, but she quickly tamps it down with a cough. “Look, how about I just- give you guys a call when I’m free again? I have a lot on my plate right now.”

Thankfully, that seemed amiable, and after a few minutes of exchanging numbers Molly was finally left to her own devices again. She couldn’t wait to get out of this damned hospital.

The day came where she was finally discharged; Friday. A beautiful day in more ways than one. The weekend was just around the corner, and she was feeling more than well enough to keep her and Vanessa’s plans for Saturday.

She wasn’t allowed to drive for the time being unfortunately. It did put a little bit of a strain on her schedule, considering she’d have to go back to class on Monday, but she was sure she could figure it out.

She’s given a wheelchair to assist her with moving long distances. Molly’s recovery plan had her walking in short bursts with the use of crutches, and using the wheelchair for extended periods of being out and about – while she wasn’t thrilled that she’d have to limit how much she moved around, it was her best chance at healing properly.

Now, she found herself sitting in the hospital’s lobby, signing whatever papers they needed her to so she could finally go home.

Vanessa had been discharged the day before, shortly after the police questioned her as well – but not before she and Molly exchanged numbers. It was tempting to give her a call to let the security guard know that she was free, but she knew that it would be better to contact Jayce first.

Her poor phone was fucked sideways to hell; still, she was able to find an outlet to plug it into so she could update her brother on the situation.

He picked up almost immediately.

”Molly, hey, are you okay? Do you need me to come pick you up?” He asks quickly, sounding as though he had been running.

Molly has to allow her brain time to catch up with her. “Oh- no, that’s okay. I was just calling to let you know I’ve been discharged. I was just going to take the bus-”

”No, no, absolutely not. I can leave work early,” he already sounded like he was rummaging around for his keys.

“Jayce, no,” Molly huffs, “you can’t just leave- ”

”Be there in twenty.”

“Jayce-” But he had already hung up. Great. She really hoped he had actually asked beforehand to leave, otherwise he might wind up losing his job. Maybe it would have been better to call Kayde? After all, she didn’t work on Fridays. Unfortunately, it was already done.

True to his word, Jayce’s pick-up rolls up to the pick-up line hardly twenty minutes later. But he didn’t come alone.

After sloppily parking in the pick-up lane, he busts in through the glass doors so hard it was a miracle they didn’t shatter. And just behind him?

Professor Kayde.

“Great,” Molly mutters, “twice the lecture, twice the fun. ”

Before she can properly greet them both, Molly is swept up from her chair and into one of Jayce’s bone-crushing hugs. Usually the pressure was pretty soothing; right now, it just aggravated her bruises. But at the same time, relief flooded her. She could already feel her senses numbing themselves.

She could vaguely hear her brother launch into scolding her through her newfound haze. It was no mystery what he was saying – she didn’t need to listen. The lesson had been learned a long time ago.

Right now, she just rests her cheek on his shoulder, closes her eyes, and hugs him as tight as she could.

“Are you listening??” Jayce’s voice finally cuts in through the haze.

“No,” Molly mumbles. No use in lying, right? “Shouldn’t have hugged me if you wanted me to listen.”

Jayce groans, but he makes no move to put Molly down. “Good to see you’re still a little shit.” He scoffs. His tone was nothing but soft.

A hand rests itself on Molly’s shoulder, forcing her to pry her eyes open.

Kayde stares at her; there was very clearly a lecture brewing in her eyes, but she was doing her best to hold it back. It was more appreciated than Molly could put into words.

“Are you hungry? You look so thin,” Kayde’s hand comes up to rest on Molly’s exposed cheek. She traces her thumb across the freshly scarred cut now just below Molly’s eye.

With the way the professor’s brow furrowed, Molly could tell she was far more upset with the attacker than she was with her – not that Kayde was actually mad at her.

A smile finally splits Molly’s tired face. “Hospital food really isn’t too appetizing.”

“So, lunch is in order, then? How’s about pizza?” Jayce suggests, lowering Molly back into her wheelchair.

Just the mention of that grease addled concoction of ingredients made bile rise in Molly’s throat. So much so she was actually afraid she may throw up what little she had eaten.

“ Anything but pizza,” she coughs out, “please.”

“I’m sure a home-cooked meal would be much easier on her stomach,” Kayde huffs, clearly growing impatient with their setting, “and I’d rather be out of the way and on the road.”

It wasn’t much time afterwards that Molly was back at her apartment; the only elevator was out of order, but that wasn’t really an issue. Though, it was surprising when Kayde opted to carry her up the stairs instead of letting Jayce do so.

“I could probably just use the crutches they gave me-” Molly tries to argue, but the professor is quick to cut her off.

“Absolutely not. You won’t be walking for another two days at the very least,” Kayde only pauses to grab Molly’s keys, which had been stowed safely in her backpack. “I’m not really keen on you even leaving the apartment for class, but either I, or your brother, can drive you-”

It wasn’t hard to tune the professor out as she goes on and on about just how much she wanted Molly to rest. After all, Molly already knew she was going to be breaking whatever “rules” Kayde set down for the weekend; there was no way she was missing out on her date with Vanessa! Not when there was pasta and a chance at normalcy on the line!

Regardless, she doesn’t argue more when Kayde sets her on the couch and tosses a blanket over her lap.

“-and you better not move from that spot until bedtime, do you hear me?”

“Yes, professor, I hear you,” Molly rolls her eyes but couldn’t keep a smile from creeping onto her face. “I’m fine, really!”

Kayde only shoots an unreadable glance over her shoulder before disappearing into the kitchen.

Jayce plops heavily onto the empty space next to Molly just as Piper jumps up onto his lap. The old cat paws at Molly’s leg with a low, raspy mew.

Jayce chuckles. “She missed you.” He says.

“Ohh, baby, I’m so sorry!” Molly coos, pulling the cat into her arms and cradling her like a baby. “Did you behave?”

Piper purrs, pressing her tiny paws up against Molly’s face and pulling herself up to rub her snout against her nose. Not even a second later, she pulls back and delivers a quick, very light bite to her nose, all followed by a long meow.

“Oh, honey, I know,” Molly scrunches her nose and holds Piper closer, peppering her little head in kisses, “I’m so sorry for being gone. I’m back now, mama’s back-”

She’s cut off as Piper pushes her forehead into her face; more kisses, then.

Eventually, Piper had curled up on top of a pillow that Jayce had set on Molly’s lap. She knew direct pressure from anything, no matter how light, wouldn’t be good for managing the wounds. And aside from the sounds of Kayde making dinner, things were relatively quiet.

Until, of course, Jayce cleared his throat.

“So, are you gonna tell us what happened, or are you gonna keep pretending everything’s okay?” He asks.

Molly shoots him an uneasy look. “I’m fine, Jayce.”

“Bull,” Jayce scoffs, “you spent a solid week in the hospital this time! Your legs are fucked, you’re covering in bruises-”

“ And ,” Molly cuts him off, “I’m still breathing. I’m okay now, and I don’t exactly feel like dwelling on what happened.” Molly wasn’t lying, per say, she just wasn’t being as up front as she probably should. But with what she was going to be investigating, she’d much rather keep her brother in the dark than risk him getting involved.

Still, Jayce persists.

“Molly, c’mon,” he grabs her shoulder as he shifts to face her better, “we’re gonna find out sooner or later.”

“Okay,” Molly huffs, “then I choose later. Okay?”

Though he looked concerned (and mildly annoyed), Jayce drops the topic. For now.

It was going to be difficult enough to keep Jayce off of her tail, but she knew she’d have to handle Kayde as well. She wouldn’t have to worry about Emery, Kayde’s partner, at least – they were still getting used to the fact that they were going to legally be a parent. At the moment, it just meant one less set of prying eyes.

Instead of sitting in silence, however, Molly figured a distraction would help.

“Wanna watch a movie?” She asks, plucking the remote from its spot on the arm rest. “I’ve got a bunch of DVDs.”

Jayce snorts and rolls his eyes. “What is this, the 2000’s? Who uses DVDs anymore?”

A quick smack to the arm causes him to burst out laughing.

“Hey, c’mon! Physical media is so much cooler than digital,” Molly gestures to the old DVD player she has set up underneath her television. “It’s also hella convenient because I don’t even need an internet connection.”

Jayce raises a brow. “At what cost? You’ve gotta scour all those thrift stores and pawn shops and pay aaaaall that money- gross,” he shakes his head, “but I suppose we can use your insanely outdated method of watching movies.” He gets up with a dramatic sigh and trudges his way over to the DVD collection on the shelf settled next to the entertainment center.

Though she rolls her eyes, Molly couldn’t help but smile at her brother’s antics. “Weh weh weh, don’t be such a baby about it. You can pick the movie if that’ll make you feel better-”

“Ponyo.” Jayce’s immediate answer came. “We’re watching Ponyo.”

“Ponyo it is, then,” Molly responds with a small laugh.

It was just a few short hours later that Jacye had fallen asleep. Not that Molly blamed him – after Ponyo, they decided on Howl’s Moving Castle. It was a pretty dreamy movie all things considered.

Molly keeps her head leaned against the top of her brother’s. It reminded her a lot of when they would sleep on the bus to school. Obviously, it was far less bumpy.

She was more than happy to let her brother sleep. It wasn’t hard to tell he had worried himself ragged the past couple of days, no doubt due to Molly’s hospitalization. It just gave her even more incentive to avoid it in the future.

Her thoughts are interrupted as a plate is set in her lap. Looking up, she sees Kayde’s somewhat stern expression.

Molly blinks at her. “I-”

Kayde holds up a hand, then silently gestures to the food in front of her. It wasn’t hard to tell that the professor was still processing this most recent incident – not that Molly had explained much yet. Not that she was keen to, anyway.

The professor sits down on the armchair adjacent to Molly’s spot, her own plate of food in hand.

“I know you don’t want to talk about it.” Kayde’s voice is soft and, though backed by a barely restrained fear, understanding. “I won’t make you. My relief can’t be put into words, anyway. So let’s just have a relaxing evening.”

It was hard not to feel some sense of relief that the professor wasn’t going to press her for information. But it still struck her as odd.

Looking over Kayde, Molly took note of a few new greying hairs – whether they were from this most recent incident, or just general aging and stress, it was hard to tell. Regardless of the reason, Molly hated to see the professor so stressed.

She pokes at her food, occasionally tossing a glance at the professor.

“Maybe after this, we could watch Pulp Fiction?” Molly suggests quietly.

Kayde pauses mid-bite. “You have that on DVD?” She asks.

A smile breaks out across Molly’s face. “Yup. Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill- volume 1 and 2, of course. Oh! Once Upon A Time In Hollywood, too.”

A small laugh draws Molly’s attention back to the professor.

“I didn’t realize you had such a good taste in movies,” Kayde teases. It was nice to see a smile on her face now.

Said smile was infectious; Molly found herself grinning right back. “Well, I did learn from the best! You’ve an expert’s taste in movies as well as a wealth of knowledge in robotics.”

The professor flicks a hand at her. “Ohhh, you can stop with the flattery, Molly," she scoffs, though her grin persists. “I’m not upset with you. None of what happened is your fault.”

She reaches over to lay her hand on Molly’s shoulder, giving it a light squeeze.

Molly looks from the professor’s hand to her face – the pressure of tears wasn’t a welcome feeling. She forces them back. “How about Once Upon A Time In Hollywood?”

“I was thinking the Kill Bill movies first,” Kayde hums, rubbing Molly’s shoulder briefly before returning to her food.

A secure feeling washing over Molly now. Finally, it felt as though she truly was safe for the time being. An evening with her adoptive mother and her twin brother was exactly what she needed after the whole incident.

“Sounds perfect, professor.”

The night came and went much faster than Molly had expected it to. One moment, she had been curled up on the couch watching Pulp Fiction, and the next she found herself feeling as though she was suffocating.

Above her, a featureless face stared at her. Featureless – aside from the violently violet eyes that bore holes through her skull. They narrowed as though a grin had spread across the shadow’s face. 

It lunges. Molly screams.

Her eyes fly open, and her body lurches upright. Her muscles tighten in protest against such a sudden jolt to their previously relaxed state.

Molly whips her head around to get a good scan of the room. She could feel her heart threatening to pound out of her ribcage.

Sunlight fell gently through the gap in her curtains, warming the patch of hardwood flooring it fell against. Piper lays atop it, her paws tucked neatly against her chest while she peacefully basks with her belly towards the sky.

The blankets around her were warm and plentiful. A thin inner layer topped by a thicker, fuzzy outer layer that made it feel as though she was resting inside of a cloud.

A fresh glass of water sits on her side table. Three different pills lie atop a plate next to a granola bar and a banana. A note sits neatly to the side of the plate.

Wiping away cold drops of sweat, Molly finally gathers herself before reaching to grab the note.

Though she only skims it, it was easy to get the gist. Kayde and Jayce had left early that morning to go grocery shopping, and moved Molly back to her room beforehand so that she would be comfortable.

She runs a hand through her hair as she heaves a sigh. Calm washes over her once again, clearing away the terror she had awoken with.

With the two of them out, it would be easier to go about getting ready. Molly really wasn’t in the mood for questions just yet, and she knew both the professor and her brother would have a myriad of them.

First things, first, she needed a shower.

It wasn’t a good idea to try standing just yet, but she had been smart enough to already invest in a shower chair prior. It was a much safer way to shower anyway, but she had anticipated she’d take a hard enough spill one day to break something. The circumstances had been far more serious than she originally guessed, sure, but it was fortuitous that she’d thought ahead regardless.

The struggle really came in trying to get out of bed. Her wheelchair was nowhere to be found, and her crutches were just out of easy reach on the other side of her desk.

A quick glance at the time told her she didn’t have time to dilly dally – Vanessa would be here in two hours.

Molly huffs. Then, with little hesitation, she pushes all of her blankets, stuffed animals, and pillows onto the ground below. Her bed wasn’t tall to begin with, and she had enough surrounding her to make a decent sized mountain of plush to slide right onto.

Now successfully on the ground, she situates herself on top of the thicker blanket to avoid rubbing her stitches against the ground and uses her arms to pull herself forward.

Before anything, she needed to make sure she had one of her provided mobility aids handy. The wheelchair would do nicely.

Sure, the crutches were closer, but she wasn’t quite confident in her ability to use them. Not yet at least. The chair was the safer option.

Eventually she does find herself dragging her aching body into the wheelchair. A little workout to start the day never hurt, right? It certainly helped wake her up. Though, she was sure the medication would make quick work of any prolonged consciousness.

“Maybe I can skip the meds today,” she mumbles to herself. “Just one day. It wouldn’t hurt.”

An indignant “mow!” nearly startles Molly out of her skin.

Looking down, she sees Piper had finished her afternoon bask and was now staring at her with wide, judgemental eyes.

“Don’t look at me like that. It’d just be one day!” Molly argues.

The cat makes no noise. She simply continues to share. Was Molly really going to let her decision be influenced by a cat?

Yes. Yes she was.

With an exaggerated groan, Molly wheels herself back into her room and takes up the water glass. “Fine, fine. You win. Miss Judgy McJude.”

Oddly enough, Piper seemed satisfied with this development and trotted away to go sit in her sunbeam again. What a strange creature she is – then again, Molly did find her in a dumpster.

With a shake of her head and a small laugh, Molly goes about the rest of her preparations.

Before long, she had done her entire hygiene routine, but what she was really stuck on was her outfit. It had her stumped. Should she do something more relaxed, or something on the formal side? Business casual, maybe? Come to think of it, she wasn’t exactly sure what the vibe of this restaurant was. And it wasn’t like she thought to ask until now.

She went through the checklist in her head: Italian food, new place, in the downtown area. Downtown was known to front as more of an upper-class area, but the most a lot of the restaurants could showcase was business casual leaning more into the latter half of its name.

It was no use dwelling on it. When in doubt, nice jeans and a cardigan went a long way.

By the time she was ready to go, she figured it would be smart to leave a note for Jace and Kayde. They’d be gone for a while yet – knowing Jayce, he likely got distracted by one thing or another and dragged Kayde into an entirely different activity from shopping.

It didn’t take long to write something up and stick it under a magnet on the fridge. And just in time, too, as a knock pulled Molly’s attention away from any stray thoughts.

“One second!” She calls, double checking all of her pockets before wheeling herself over to answer the door.

Standing on the other side is a well-dressed Vanessa. A button-down shirt, slacks, and a clean pair of combat boots all complimenting the low, semi-loose bun she had her hair pulled into. Of course, it was all topped with a heavy winter coat.

Vanessa smiles, her teeth almost glinting in the hallway light. “Ready?” She asks.

With a small nod, Molly carefully wheels herself to the side. “Yeah, I just need a second- come in! Come in,” she gestures for the taller woman to step past the threshold. Once inside, Molly closes the door and makes her way into the kitchen.

“I just have to make sure Piper has plenty of water,” she calls. Didn’t want to leave Vanessa in the dark, after all. “And I’d need to grab a coat.”

“Oh, you have a pet?” Vanessa asks, poking her head into the kitchen.

Molly holds a cup of water between her thighs, making her way out of the kitchen and towards her room. “Oh yeah, her name is Piper,” she responds in a chipper tone, though she has to stifle a yawn. “Would you like to meet her?”

Though the blonde hesitates for a moment, she follows Molly into the bedroom.

It was understandable that she was nervous, of course, it wasn’t exactly common to be allowed into someone else's bedroom this early into a potential relationship, but Molly didn’t really see an issue. After all, it wasn’t like there was anything strange!

Coming into the bedroom, Molly sees Piper still sprawled out in the sunbeam. She clicks her tongue at the cat, attempting to beckon her over to the water fountain settled next to the desk as she pours the fresh water inside.

Piper’s head pops up with a soft “mrrp”, but while she was happy to see Molly, she didn’t seem immediately keen on Vanessa.

In fact, the old tabby leaps to her feet and arches her back with a loud hiss.

“Piper!” Molly gasps, plucking the cat from the ground and cradling her close. “I’m so sorry, I guess she’s a little grumpy today-”

“No no, it’s okay,” Vanessa quickly interjects. “I mean- I’m a stranger in her space! It’s an understandable reaction- I’ll just wait out in the living room.” With that, Vanessa retreats, and Piper’s hissy fit seems to settle for the most part.

Strange, Molly thought, Piper never hisses at people like that.

The little seed of doubt becomes a little more prominent. But she does her best to force it back. Every creature had their off days, and Piper was probably already in a sour mood considering how long Molly had been gone! That had to be it.

It didn’t take long for them to arrive at the restaurant – a quaint looking spot, and surprisingly not overly packed with people. Thankfully, they were given a table more towards the corner window, allowing Molly to safely tuck her wheelchair out of the way.

After ordering their drinks, the air grew a little awkward.

“Um, so,” Vanessa clears her throat. “You’re looking good today.” There was a moment of panic that passed over Vanessa’s eyes.

“I mean- you look good every day, I just meant that you look like you’re healing well! After- y’know, everything? B-But, I mean, you also just look good regardless-” Vanessa goes on, nervously tugging strands of hair from her bun.

Molly couldn’t help but smile. How could this dork be responsible for all of that pain? There was no way.

She reaches over the table and grasps Vanessa’s free hand, carefully uncurling the scarred fingers from the table cloth. “Hey, it’s okay,” she says in a gentle tone. “I’m nervous too. Thank you, and I think you look stunning.” She hums, pulling back leaning her chin on her interlocked hands.

A moment of silence follows.

“Is it too early to say I want to kiss you?” Vanessa asks, her cheeks flushed a pale red.

Molly had to fight her own blush creeping up the back of her neck. It was, of course, to no avail. She could feel the heat spread across her face in no time flat. Now it was her turn to be a stuttering mess.

“Oh, well- gosh, I mean- y- no? No, I don’t think so? I don’t know, I don’t really have much to go off of,” the words tumble from her mouth quicker than she can think. “I-In terms of timing, I mean! This isn’t- this is the first time in a while I’ve actually been on a proper date.”

A nervous chuckle punctuates her rather embarrassing confession. She’d had a few flings here and there, but this could lead into a serious, committed relationship – there was a lot more to mess up on.

After clearing her throat, Molly decides to distract from their mutual flusteredness by opening the menu. “Have anything in mind you wanted to order?” She asks.

Vanessa perks up, snatching up her own menu and flicking it open. “They had a really nice sounding pesto dish on the online menu, actually!” She responds. “Do you like pesto?”

“Ehhh,” Molly scratches her cheek sheepishly, “it’s not my favourite. I really prefer alfredo.” She shrugs, glancing through a few of the pasta dishes.

A hum pulls her attention back up to the blonde across from her.

“Never really tried alfredo before myself. I take it red sauce is a no-go?” There was a clear curiosity to her tone. Not the usual judgement Molly got when she mentioned her preferences.

A more relaxed smile finally made its way across Molly’s face. “Well- sort of,” she answers with a small laugh. “I’m just picky about it, you know? A lot of places either make it too spicy, some are too watery, some are way too sweet- it’s hard to find a good balance, y’know?”

“Huh,” Vanessa hums, “yeah, no, that's fair. Are there any places you’ve tried that you did like?” She asks, leaning her chin on her hand.

Molly takes a moment to dig through her memory. “Well- there was that time Professor Kayde took my brother and I to Chicago! We tried this little local spot, see, and it was just perfect. ” She leans back in her seat, making a small sweeping gesture with her hand as she sets the menu down.

“I mean- when I say perfect, I mean perfect! Savoury, seasoned well, just thick enough to stick to the pasta without it being close to a paste,” Molly has to pause as a small rumble echoes from her stomach. “Jeez, I’m just making myself hungrier talking about it.” She laughs.

A look flashed in Vanessa’s eyes long enough for Molly to catch it – something she couldn’t quite place. And despite looking as though she had something she wanted to say, Vanessa seemed to decide against it.

Instead, she forces her eyes back up to meet Molly’s with a more laid-back grin. “Well, how about I get something with red sauce and you can give it a try? I don’t really have a preference one way or the other, and I’m kinda eyeing the spaghetti and meatballs.”

Molly perks up more at the idea. “That sounds great!” She clasps her hands together and leans forward. “How about a trade?”

“Oh?” Vanessa hums in an intrigued and somewhat mischievous tone.

“How about I’ll get something with alfredo, and you can give that a try in return?” She offers.

Vanessa takes a moment to think. Then, with her grin widening, she nods.

“Sounds good to me, hah!” She leans back, crossing her arms over her chest. “I like the way you think.”

With a small chuckle, Molly bows. “I aim to please!”

They both share a giggle, thoroughly past the awkward stage just in time for the waitress to return with their drinks.

“No,” Molly laughs in an exasperated tone, “he did not- ”

“He did, ” Vanessa confirms with a light scoff. “Just went right up to the lady and spit in her face! Safe to say management cracked down on that pretty fast.”

The afternoon had gone much smoother after the pair made it over the initial hesitation. Now, they were swapping stories as though they had known each other for years.

Molly leans back as she sets down her fork. “How is someone going to work in customer service and not expect to get yelled at? I mean, I don’t blame the guy, that lady sounded like a real piece of work-”

“Right?? I would’ve done the same if I wasn’t worried about my job!” Vanessa shakes her head. “He had bigger balls than I did, that’s for sure. I did put my two weeks in right after he left- I liked the guy. It only felt fitting.” She shrugs, picking up her drink and taking a long sip.

It was nice to see that Vanessa had relaxed. She exuded pure charisma when she wasn’t worrying about what she was saying – something Molly found pretty damn attractive.

She leans forward, head resting on her intertwined fingers. “Thank you for inviting me out,” Molly says, “after everything, it’s nice to do something normal. ”

Vanessa quirks a brow as she sets down her glass. “Well– I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting you to say yes.” She reaches up to rub the back of her head, some of her prior sheepishness returning. “I mean, after how tense it got, I felt like it wasn’t really my place to ask you out– y'know?”

The confession certainly caught Molly off-guard. However, it didn’t entirely come as a shock. After all, they had fought like cats and dogs after their first impressions of each other didn’t entirely go well.

At least now it seemed as though that was all behind them. Molly couldn’t help but smile at the thought.

“I’d say that’s all water under the bridge now, right?” She prompts, laying her hand over Vanessa’s. “To be completely honest with you, I was trying to scrape together the courage to ask you out, but you beat me to it.”

The blonde sputters. “Wha- no way, ” a breathy laugh interrupts her shocked reply. “You’re serious?”

Molly could feel her face grow warm once again. “Well- yeah. It- might’ve taken me a while, but I would’ve gotten around to it! Ah, y’know, under- normal circumstances.” Though she laughs, she held herself back from continuing that particular line of thought; after all, she hardly had time to think before she got attacked that night.

Vanessa flops back in her chair. The flustered bewilderment was stark on her pale face. “I just- wow. That’s- I gotta say, that really helps my anxiety here. I was sure you weren’t that into me.”

Was that really what she thought? Though she’d never admit it out loud, Molly had found Vanessa very attractive since the moment she saw her. Infatuation was different than genuine interest, of course, and the fighting certainly didn’t help – now, however, she could confidently say she found the blonde alluring at the very least.

Instead, Molly shoots her a reassuring smile. “I think you’re wonderful, to put it bluntly,” she scratches at her head, though she winces as her nails glide over a particularly sore spot.

“Ah- ow- uhm, anyway,” she clears her throat, “genuinely, I thought my heart was going to explode when you asked me out! And I found it sweet that you noticed what I usually brought for lunch.”

A nervous chuckle rises from the blonde. “Oh, y’know, it- honestly smelled amazing when you were heating it up in the break room is all. I figured you probably liked pasta at the very least, y’know?”

It seemed as though the last of the barrier between them crumbled as the conversation went on – the afternoon quickly turned into evening, and the pair found themselves back on the road loaded up with a few desserts.

Molly could hardly wait to dig into what she wound up picking: a slice of coffee cake loaded with whipped cream.

“What’d you think of the sauce?” Vanessa asks, making sure to keep her eyes fixed firmly on the road ahead of her.

It took Molly a moment to come up with an answer. “Mmmm… nothing remarkable, ” she responds with a small shrug, “but, I’d eat it again. How about the alfredo?”

The blonde’s face twists a little. “Well- ehh? I can’t say I was a fan, sorry.” She sighs.

“It definitely isn’t for everyone,” Molly laughs softly, “no shame in not liking it.”

“How about those garlic knots, though?” Vanessa chimes in.

“Ohhhh, hell yes!” Molly responds with a giggle. “Those absolutely rocked- think they noticed that we took almost two whole baskets  of them with us?”

A chorus of laughter drowned out the hum of the radio. It had been quite a sight to see: two women hastily shoving bread into a ziplock bag, then acting as though it had simply all been eaten so they could ask for more. And thus, have more to take.

With a small shake of her head, Molly pats her bag. “Really, though, I know Jayce’ll be happy. So will the professor.”

“Garlic bread fans?” Vanessa asks curiously.

“More like fiends,” Molly rolls her eyes. “You’d be hard pressed to get even a quarter of a piece of bread when eating out with those two.”

“Damn,” the blonde chuckles, “that bad, huh? Should I be concerned? I’d say I’m a monster for the stuff, too.”

A mildly uneasy pause settled over the car. One neither woman was entirely sure how to break – it was a fairly loaded question, after all, as simple as it sounded.

Finally, Molly clears her throat. “Well,” she begins slowly, “that… would depend on if- you maybe wanted to go on a few more dates after this one?” A tentative poke at the proverbial bear. It was a situation that could easily blow up in her face.

“Would you be opposed to more dates?” Vanessa asks, her tone a lot more sure than Molly’s. “I mean– I definitely wouldn’t mind. We could see a movie, or maybe go to the lake and skate– y’know, anything you want.”

It was hard for Molly not to smile at the prospect. “That– sounds nice, actually,” she leans her head back against the headrest, looking over Vanessa. “Maybe if it were warmer, we could go swimming. I don’t know how to skate.”

It felt a little embarrassing to admit, really. She’s lived in a state where winters  are consistently cold enough for ice skating to be common practice – Molly just never found an interest in it.

Though, Vanessa seems to light up at her confession.

“Hey, why don’t I teach you? I have some spare skates that’ll probably fit you back at my place–” She cuts herself off abruptly. A sort of guilt clouds her green eyes for a long moment.

She coughs, turning her head to glance out of the window. “After you, uh, get better of course.”

Molly laughs softly. “I don’t know, maybe it’d be funny to roll me out onto the ice in my wheelchair,” she jokes. However, she understood the blonde’s immediate instinct to back track; Molly’s condition wasn’t set to recover until mid-december at the earliest.

With a small wave of her hand, she continues. “Really, though, I think that sounds amazing. Even if it’ll take a few weeks to get there. I mean, if- if you’re fine with waiting, of course, I understand if you’re not really keen on–” A hand comes to rest on her arm, cutting off her reply. Though, she wasn’t entirely sure why Vanessa felt the need to stop her; a gesture of comfort, maybe? Reassurance?

It was a fight to keep herself from pulling away as the blonde’s hand snakes down to her own. With their fingers now intertwined, Molly could feel a subtle shivering – with how warm Vanessa’s hands were, it couldn’t have been the cold causing it.

“Hey,” Molly prompts in a gentle tone, giving the blonde’s hand a light squeeze. “Are you okay?”

“I should be asking you that.” Vanessa laughs dryly.

Molly’s brow furrows. “Vanessa,” her tone had taken on a more stern inflection, “don’t blame yourself for what happened–”

“I do blame myself,” Vanessa interrupts quietly. “I could’ve stopped it.”

“That woman was beyond crazy!” Molly interjects, shifting to hold her hand tighter. “You’re lucky she didn’t outright kill you.”

Vanessa sucks in a sharp breath, the car lurching to the side as she pulls into an empty parking lot. The sound of the tires screeching nearly drowned out the honks of the cars that had been just behind them.

After throwing the car into park and killing the engine, the blonde turns fully to face Molly, now clinging tightly to her hand with her own.

“I’m lucky she didn't decide to kill you! I should’ve tried to do something to stop her.” Her tone, while full of concern, sounded angry – not at Molly, that much could be seen, but perhaps at Vanessa herself. It was easy to see how the blonde might be trying to take some margin of the blame for what happened.

It seemed silly. At least, to Molly it did. Vanessa was just as much a victim of the circumstances as she was.

Is she overcompensating because of some warped sense of guilt?

“There’s nothing anyone could have done,” Molly rests her free hand on Vanessa’s cheek gingerly as she reaches to unbuckle her seatbelt to better turn to face her.

The blonde shakes her head, a tightness coming to her jaw. “You don’t– understand, I could’ve– I should have–”

Seeing the usually well-spoken blonde struggle so much with her words struck Molly in the heart. To see how much turmoil she was going through because she wasn’t able to be there? It was painful.

“Vanessa,” Molly murmurs, gently tugging her hand away from the blonde’s so she could rest it on her other cheek. “It’s not your fault.”

She pulls Vanessa’s head downward, and though it felt a little awkward thanks to the difference in height, she rests her forehead on hers. It only took a minor adjustment on Vanessa’s end to make it a little less of a strain.

Though, it seemed to be for more than one purpose, as the blonde’s larger hands now came to sit on Molly’s face as well.

Her touch was soft. Gentle, almost as if she was handling fragile porcelain.

“Careful, Barnes,” Vanessa murmurs in a low tone, “you keep making moves like that, and this’ll turn into more than a simple date.”

Green eyes bore into Molly’s heterochromatic ones. The shade reminded Molly of a dark, freshly polished emerald; striking, inviting. So easy to get lost in, she hadn’t realized her body had begun moving forward until a sharp pain shoots through her leg.

She sucks in air through her teeth, but she manages to hold herself there.

“Are you okay?” Vanessa asks. Her hands tighten their hold.

Molly glances down at her lap. It seemed she had just pressed her thigh against the center console a little too hard. She swallows back involuntary tears.

“Yeah,” she finally responds, a mild crack in her voice, “I’m alright. Just– y’know, just got a little too– you- your eyes are, uhm. They’re–” Now she was struggling to speak. Heat flares up in her face.

A light chuckle halts her desperate attempts to fumble through a compliment.

One hand tilts Molly’s face upwards, another shifting to rest gently on the side of her neck.

“I think yours are way prettier,” Vanessa whispers.

Lightly chapped lips press gingerly into her own. Soft and sweet, yet full of hesitance.

A whirlwind of thoughts and questions slammed through her mind at record pace; should she kiss back? Where should her hands go now? Do they stay on Vanessa’s face, or do they sit on her shoulders instead?

But the initial freezing shock fades, past experience finally took the wheel.

Molly leans into the kiss. Lightly, but just enough to convey to Vanessa that she wanted it. It seemed to be more than enough for the blonde to relax, as she soon glides her hands downwards to the open edges of Molly’s coat and curls her fingers into them.

With little warning, the kiss is broken in favour of the blonde yanking Molly from her seat and sideways into her lap.

The smaller woman yelps, her hands instinctively going to grasp at Vanessa’s shirt.

“Vanessa, wh–” Molly’s question is cut off by lips smashing into hers.

One hand comes to tangle its fingers in her hair, while the other keeps a firm hold on her jacket. She could taste a mixture of spearmint and something vaguely tomato – likely the remnants of the meal the complimentary mint the restaurant provided couldn’t mask. Not that Molly minded much.

She feels herself pulled closer into Vanessa, urging her to kiss back. And while she does, a prickle of unease sweeps across her senses.

Vanessa was clearly forward with her advances, that much was certain, but there was something familiar about the way she held her. A familiarity that was not a comfort.

Try as she might to push away the distress it brought her, it lingered. But what was she meant to do? She wanted this. She knows she wanted this. It seemed counterproductive to lean into worries that likely weren’t founded.

Likely not founded. Therein lies the wrinkle.

Another thought quickly occurred to Molly in that moment: wasn’t Vanessa recovering from a dislocated shoulder? Wasn’t this hurting her? If it wasn’t, she certainly had a high pain tolerance.

She moves to pull away, tensing for a moment when she feels Vanessa’s fingers tighten within her hair. But they soon loosened, allowing her to pull her face back and draw in much-needed oxygen.

“Sorry,” Vanessa puffs, “too much?”

Molly hesitates, keeping one hand pressed against her chest while the other hovers over Vanessa’s collarbone. “Uhm,” her breaths came out in huffs and pants, “maybe- maybe a little?” She gives her a small pat.

“How about, uh– a little more warning next time?” She manages a breathy laugh.

Catching her breath was difficult when the frigid air outside had quickly cooled the interior of the car to well below a comfortable temperature. Still, the warmth radiating from both herself and Vanessa was ample enough to chase the chill away. But not nearly enough to quell Molly’s worries.

“Maybe we should get going?” Molly suggests.

Though a brief sadness crossed Vanessa’s eyes, her expression remained soft. “Yeah,” she laughs softly, “I think your family might kill me if I keep you out for too long.”

“The professor would never,” Molly rolls her eyes, “but, Jayce might.”

Vanessa laughs, but Molly simply scrunches her brow. It was enough to make the blonde pause.

“Wait– you’re serious?”

Molly glances off to the side. “I wouldn’t put it past him.”

Only when Vanessa’s face went so pale it was almost white did Molly burst out laughing. Something to help her unspoken unease.

“I’m kidding! He wouldn’t,” she gives Vanessa’s shoulder another light pat, “but they’re both probably getting antsy that I’m not back yet.”

The chatter continued as the pair got re-situated in their seats. And while the drive back was still pleasant, if a slight bit awkward, Molly still couldn’t completely crush those restless feelings.

Something was off. But did she really have the mental strength to pursue the truth?