Chapter Text
Michael could have passed it off. They attracted all different types of children. Some of them fixated on the place, and it was normal for them to be there multiple days of the week. But after the news came out about… everything…
The pizzeria had been closed down after everything came out. But that boy and his mother were still coming around. If Michael didn’t know better, he would think Henry was… dating her. It was Henry, though. Henry didn't date.
And that kid was… odd. Michael didn't see families really come in anymore unless they were tourists or people who didn't believe the news. This kid, though, was always there- More than him, sometimes! And then there was…
"Michael." His father stood over him, tone shifting into an order. "Find out what you can about that boy."
Flinching, Michael looked up at him. His father looked upset. Whatever this kid had done, it must have been pretty bad to make his father this upset. He nodded, "Yes, father."
Heading over to where the boy was coloring at a table next to the stage with his mother, Michael nodded at them, "Er… Hello."
"Hello," the mother smiled at him, the kid just sort of looking at him kind of curiously. "I've seen you here quite a bit… are you related to one of the workers?"
Michael nodded at her. "Yes, ma'am. My name's Michael Afton. Are you… a friend of Uncle Henry’s?" He didn't think that Henry had friends. She was pregnant. Oh. Oh wait. Did that mean-
"Yes, but we only met a few weeks ago," she said, sounding like she was laughing. Huh. That meant the baby wasn't Henry's then. "Afton… so your father would be William, then?"
He nodded again, “Yes, ma’am.” She didn’t… sound particularly pleased. Had they already met before? “We’re… not really used to people coming around so often anymore.”
“I can’t say I’m too surprised, after everything that’s happened here,” the woman said before smiling. “I didn’t introduce myself, did I? I’m Annabelle, and this is my son Mike. As you guessed, I’m a friend of Henry’s, so we like to visit here rather often these days.”
Michael made a face at that. “You’re… Mike?” Finally, the kid looked up at him.
"Yeah, just Mike. My name isn't Michael."
Michael stared at him for a minute. That was rather rude. He crossed his arms. “Well, good. My name isn’t Mike.”
"Good." Ugh. He sounded like such a brat. He probably thought he could get away with whatever he wanted because his mom knew Henry. Michael would be sure the kid's ego wouldn't get away from him, that was for sure. Then, for no reason, the kid started giggling. He looked up at the stage, then went back to his drawing. What the heck was that about? Michael looked up at the stage as well, and it was just… Freddy and the band. They weren’t even playing music, since they had been put into sleep mode to conserve power while they were shut down.
“Hello, Michael,” Henry said suddenly, startling him as he approached. He sat down at the table with them, smiling at Michael. “I see you’ve already met Mike. I think the two of you could get along well.”
"Hello, Uncle Henry," Michael said dutifully before looking back at Mike. "And I doubt it." Because the name thing was annoying, but… he kind of looked and acted just enough like Co- Don't think about it.
Henry gave one of those twisted smiles, looking at Ms. Annabelle. "It would seem I missed something."
"Oh, they're quite upset-" Michael watched her hiss for a moment and lay a hand on her belly. 'Mike' immediately dropped his crayon, his head snapping up to her. "I'm okay, baby. He's just stretching, and getting ready."
The kid watched her for a long minute before picking his crayon back up, "He's taking a long time to get here."
There was a moment of silence between them, Michael surprised his mother didn't immediately answer. He thought he saw her look at the stage once before she nodded, "Some babies take a little longer than nine months, sweetheart. He'll come when he's ready."
"But he's taking forever," he whined, Michael staring at him and trying to figure out just what it was his father wanted to know. Couldn't he just ask Henry about him? Now that he thought about it… He never really saw his father and Henry talking that much anymore. Ever since… Charlie.
Michael crossed his arms, finally looking back at Henry. "Is the puppet ever going to come back out to the main room?"
"Not quite yet," Henry said, sounding as tired as he always did these days. "But soon, perhaps. I am a little surprised you would ask. You aren't… very fond of the animatronics." Don't think about it.
"It's just… different. Out here. Without the box." Don't look at the stage.
Ms. Annabelle hummed for a moment, "Michael, would you like to sit with us a while?"
"Oh, uh…" That sounded kind of nice. "I… suppose I wouldn't mind, ma'am." He was just doing what he had been told, after all. Getting more information.
Michael sat down and… he thought he saw a shadow over by the back rooms. That was happening a lot lately. Mike seemed to sit up a moment before turning and staring in the direction of the back rooms. What was that about? Had he seen something like Michael had? Or was he just… nervous being in here? He wouldn’t be surprised, considering everything that had happened.
Still. If Mike had seen something, that meant Michael wasn’t just seeing things. That meant there was something over there, but… it was too small to be father, and the same applied to Henry and he was right here. The only kid who ever ran around there all the time was… Charlie. And she… wasn’t here anymore.
Was that… No. That was crazy.
When they finally left, Michael was forced to return to his father. “Er… His name is Mike. He’s eight. He’s in third grade. His mother has another little boy on the way. They’re friends with Henry. They met a few weeks ago.”
“A few weeks ago, hm?” His father didn’t even so much as look at him, merely looking at the front door where they had left. “Find out if he knew any of the children who died here. If not, let me know.” Why… was that important?
Still, Michael knew the right words. “Yes, father.”
Of course, after that, Michael never saw them for a good couple weeks. It was normal, for most families, but for those that seemed to develop a sort of fixation with the place, it was always worrying.
When they did finally come in… It was with someone extra.
It at least explained why they had been gone so long, Michael looking curiously at the small baby that was in Ms. Annabelle’s arms, Mike immediately running for the stage and starting to talk, Michael not close enough to hear him and that was… weird. Why did he go over to the stage, where no one was around, and start talking to the animatronics?
Michael walked closer, listening now. "-and he doesn't do a whole lot. Mom says that's normal for babies, but I think it's boring. Do you think he'll be more fun when he grows up?"
"Hi, Michael, sweetie." Michael startled at the way Ms. Annabelle addressed him. "Are you doing alright?"
“Oh- Yes, ma’am, I’m just fine.” Michael tried to make it seem like he hadn’t been listening in on Mike. “Um, what’s their name?”
She smiled at him, adjusting to show him the baby. “Tyler. Tyler Jones.” Huh. That was… a nice name. “We were about to order some pizza. I would ask if you’d like any, but I expect at this point, you’re tired of pizza.”
“No, we’re not allowed to have pizza.” It wasn’t until he said it that he realized that might be something that could get him into trouble. “I mean- It’s unhealthy, after all, and father just wants to keep us… healthy.”
“Oh, well, I’m certain a slice or two here or there are okay.” He… wasn’t so sure about that. But Ms. Annabelle… smiled at him. “If your father has an issue, point him to me, Michael.”
"Yes ma'am." He wasn't sure about Mike, yet, but Ms. Annabelle seemed amazing. "Thank you. Do you need me to grab you anything? There should be a nursing station in the woman's bathroom if you need it."
Ms. Annabelle smiled at him. "Thank you, Michael. I'm okay right now. Tyler just ate a little bit ago. Do you have any siblings?"
"T-" Michael cut off the instinctive answer before the first syllable was fully out. "One. A sister, Elizabeth."
"Is that so?" She smiled at him before looking up. "Hello, Henry."
"Annabelle. Mike. Michael." Henry walked over towards them. "Have you ordered yet?"
"We were just about to," Ms. Annabelle smiled. "You still haven't met Tyler yet, you know. Come here and say hi before you give off a bad impression."
Michael watched with wide eyes as Ms. Annabelle handed baby Tyler to Henry. "I haven't done this in years," he told her, and… he was holding a baby. "Hello, Tyler. It's nice to meet you. You have a very good big brother to look up to."
"Yes he does," Ms. Annabelle chucked, Mike looking so pleased and happy and excited to be a big brother. Michael was happy for them. "Now, I am going to get us some food. Mike, don't cause Henry too much trouble."
Henry looked like he was starting to freak out, still holding Tyler. "Oh, well, don't you want to take-"
"I'll be back soon, boys," Ms. Annabelle said, dodging Henry and ignoring him completely. Henry looked kind of panicked.
"Uncle Henry… you alright?"
"Well… babies are very fragile, Michael. And it's been a long time since I've held one," he explained. And right then, Tyler started to fuss. He watched Henry sit down, soothing him. "Now, now. You're okay, Tyler. I would hope I'm not so scary."
Mike snorted quietly, "Yeah, not like-" Then… He looked at Michael. And he stopped talking. He hopped up to sit on the stage, kicking his legs and looking away.
Michael lowered his voice, looking at Henry. "Don't worry. You're not scary. Not… like others." Mike seemed to look back at him for a moment, then… He looked at the back rooms again. Then he nodded and looked away.
“I’m glad to hear you think so, Michael,” Henry told him, giving him a smile. "The interesting thing about babies, though, they can’t see people, much. It might look like he’s looking for his mother, but even if she waved over at him right now, he wouldn’t know it.”
"Oh, I remember learning about that," Michael said, excited at the fact he could show off just a little. "It's why that peekaboo game is so effective on babies, they don't have any perception of where people are as soon as they're out of sight. Right?"
“Something like that. It’s a little different,” Henry told him, smiling at him. “Mike. You’ve been a big brother for a little bit now. How does it feel?”
Mike seemed to think about it before shrugging, "Not too different, I guess. I kind of worry? He's really squishy. He could get hurt kind of easily."
"Yes. But at the same time, babies are much more hardy than you think. That doesn't mean we want him hurt, but he's likely to be okay, if something happens," Henry told him. That was something Michael remembered learning.
Mike nodded along. "Yeah. Okay, I-" His gaze wandered and he clammed right up, his eyes going wide. Michael frowned at the reaction, looking up to see his father approaching. He quickly looked away, glad he hadn't yet eaten any of the pizza that Ms. Annabelle had offered.
"Henry," his father greeted. "It's been quite some time since I've seen you with one so young."
"I'm looking after him while his mother-"
"Puts in the order. Thank you." Ms. Annabelle had come back with a couple drinks, Michael watching with wide eyes as Mike got a soda set in front of him. Ms. Annabelle swooped Tyler up, and gave father a smile. "Mr. Afton. I see you've met my youngest."
"I have," his father smiled. "He's quite the sight. It's good to see more young faces in here, even if this one is a little younger than we're used to."
"Hm." She was still smiling, holding Tyler, but… That was strange. Was that supposed to mean something? "We've been getting to know Michael. He's a wonderful little boy." He… was wonderful?
"Good, good, I was worried he might have been causing trouble." His father laughed, but Michael knew that meant he was in for a lecture. "He was a mean kid, but he seems to be growing out of it."
Ms. Annabelle… wasn’t smiling anymore. "No trouble. Actually, we enjoy his company."
To his surprise, Mike also spoke up, "He can help me learn how to be a big brother." Oh, that was… nice, actually.
"I'm sure he can," his father laughed before looking at him. "Just be careful what you teach him. Right?"
It wasn't a stretch to guess as to what his father wanted him to remember. Michael was really glad he hadn't eaten with how nauseous he suddenly felt, "Right, father."
Mike tilted his head. Like… Like he was listening for something. Then… He was glaring at his father. "He's gonna teach me how to be the best big brother."
Michael stared at him, stunned as he vaguely heard his father say something before leaving. Before he could think to say anything Michael was nudged into a seat and had pizza placed in front of him.
When he looked, Mike had leapt down from the stage and was sat eating his own slice of pizza, laughing. "Yeah. I don't think he was very happy."
"He wasn't." That was going to be a problem for him later, but for now… "So I'm going to teach you to be a big brother, huh?"
Mike looked a little surprised before shrugging. “You talk about your sister a lot. And, uh- I don’t think you’re that mean.”
"I try not to be." Anymore. "I can at least answer any questions you have, I suppose. I remember helping when- when mine was a baby, too."
Mike nodded at him, seeming to watch him. “A couple of my friends said they have siblings. One of them said he has a lot. Susie… didn’t have any, though.” Mike turned to look at… The adults… Susie. Susanne. One of the children. “Do you think Susie’s parents are gonna have another?”
"I don't know, baby," Ms. Annabelle said gently. "One child doesn't replace another. It's possible they will, but it's also just as likely they won't. Every family is different."
Mike was quiet for a moment before he nodded, “That’s a copout.” How old was this kid? He knew what a copout was?
"Who's a mother of two boys here?" Ms. Annabelle said, making that parental face that demanded compliance. "Henry agrees with me it's not a copout. Right, Henry?"
“Er-” Henry looked caught out. Michael… found it a little funny, actually. “There’s not really a yes or no answer to be given, unfortunately. Annabelle’s right.”
Mike looked at him, Michael considering offering his opinion before taking a bite of pizza. He couldn't talk with his mouth full, after all. Mike seemed to frown at him and mutter unintelligibly. Well… At least now Michael had some information to give his father.