Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Francine sighed. She was not in the mood to deal with anyone's shenanigans at the moment, but she had to. Catnap was her cat after all. She had insisted on keeping him and he made a cat army in her name. He was her problem now.

If she had gone to daycare like she normally would, Catnap would be her mom's problem and not hers. She hadn't been so lucky today. The car had broken down apparently, and her dad had to get to work way before the daycare even opened. She could've teleported herself, but her parents vetoed that idea. She was staying home whether she liked it or not.

Catnap had calmed down within the last few minutes though. Despite being a human at his core, he acted much like a cat. That being said, he did sleep a lot. Francine thought it was cute, but her mom thought it was terrifying. Though, Toy Chica thought Catnap was terrifying in general.

Francine was just about to grab a book when she heard a very familiar voice.

"Hello! Your dad sent me home for being too much of nuisance so I came to hang out with you," Jackie explained in rapid fire speech. Francine sighed. She was too young for this. Catnap opened one eyelid as Francine gestured for Jackie to enter her room further. Toy Chica didn't want Jackie around Francine without supervision due to Jackie's comments about breaking children, but Francine could break them first easily.

"Who is this?" Catnap's high pitched voice questioned. Jackie immediately bounded over to Catnap and crouched in front of the purple creature like they had never seen a cat before. Francine put her book back and walked over to the two.

"It's Jackie. Funtime's replacement essentially," Francine explained dryly. She could see Jackie pout at the phrasing, but she wasn't in the mood to care. Catnap seemed satisfied with this answer and closed his one open eye. He knew how to predict the unpredictable. He figured Jackie wouldn't be any different.

"Francine, why do you have a giant cat in your room?" Jackie inquired curiously. The lanky animatronic turned their full body towards Francine in anticipation of an answer. Francine sighed again at the barrage of questions.

"He's my cat, Jackie," Francine responded calmly. She took a much softer tone with Jackie, not yet believing they were truly an adult. They reminded her of Lunar in a way. They were supposed to be grown up but really weren't. She had gotten that distinct impression from Lunar when they first met, but she didn't talk at all at the time.

"Oh, why is he so big?"

"He's from another dimension."

"Oh, why is here?"

"Cult-divorce-murder stuff. Don't ask," Francine informed sternly. Jackie furrowed their brows. They only knew what one of those words meant after all. Luckily Jackie didn't press further though. Like Francine said many times before, she was too young for this.

"Francine, I would kindly ask you to introduce me more properly to this friend of yours," Catnap commanded politely. He began to stretch and sit up fully. Catnap tended to take a fatherly role with Francine. She knew he missed the kids in the playcare so she let him. There was no reason not to after all. It was harmless truly.

"If you insist. Jackie, this is Catnap. Catnap, this is Jackie," she replied dutifully yet in an annoyed tone. The tone of her voice didn't seem to bother Catnap as he smiled at her in satisfaction.

"Very nice to meet you clown man," Catnap said. Jackie shook their head and started rocking on their feet from their toes to heels. Francine noticed they tended to do this when they were bored. It was a fun bit of 'Jackie trivia' as Francine liked to call it. Catnap looked briefly confused by Jackie's lack of a response, but the emotion disappeared almost instantly.

"Francine, can I hug the kitty?" Jackie asked much like a child would. Catnap narrowed his eyes at the jester, but Francine quickly waved the lock off of his face. She knew as well as he did that he would do anything she wanted him to do, partly out of true care and partly out of fear.

"You should ask him," Francine guided softly. Catnap gave her a side look at the teacher-like treatment Jackie was receiving. Again, Francine waved that look off of his face. Jackie scooted incredibly close to Catnap, his face centimeters away from Catnap's. Catnap was uncomfortable to say the least, but he was willing to at least try to care about people Francine liked.

"Can I hug you?"

"Just for a few seconds," Catnap agreed with a hint of frustration. Jackie immediately wrapped their long arms around Catnap and then immediately let go. Catnap shook himself like a dog trying to get water off itself and Jackie looked incredibly pleased with themselves.

"Francine, must he stay here the whole time?" Catnap complained. Francine nodded surely which earned a groan from her cat. She saw a look of disappointment and hurt cross Jackie's face. She also saw Jackie force their face into a look of happiness again. That concerned Francine, but Jackie also wasn't her problem. Jackie was her dad's problem.

She didn't want more problems than she already had.

"Can we play a game?" Jackie asked excitedly. Francine swore she could feel the falseness of Jackie's tone. It was a very familiar sound to her. People were always trying to be fake for her own sake and she let them. After all, she didn't want more problems.

"I have UNO and Scrabble, take your pick."

"UNO sounds more fun."

"It is. Dad stopped playing it with me and mom because we get to heated."

"They scare him," Catnap added while he walked over to Francine's new position. He curled himself around her, quite and easy task considering her height compared to him. She was a little chicken. Quite tall compared to a normal chicken, but very short compared to her family. She was only a year old after all.

"I mean, Toy Chica scares me too. Francine is too small to be scary," Jackie retorted. Francine rolled her eyes and Catnap scoffed. Francine knew that wasn't true. An interdimensional entity wanted to kill her just for having potential, and she didn't die. She was clearly, very terrifying.

"Have looked into her eyes?"

"I don't make eye contact. It makes me want to crawl out of my skin. Sometimes I actually do that."

"Figured."

Chapter Text

"Freddy? Freddy! Freddy, I'm bored," Jackie complained. They laid sprawled out on their stage, or rather Foxy's stage, in annoyance. They could hear Michael grumble in the back of the pizzeria about a stupid job and an upset Evan.

"What is it, Jackie? I'm finishing up paperwork," Freddy called back. He was pretty annoyed with Jackie today. After all, Jackie had been acting more like a child than they usually did. Jackie didn't care about Freddy being annoyed though, they never did. They just cared that the metal doors in the back were too loud and Freddy's paws squeaked on the tile floor just wrong.

"I said I'm bored, and also my box feels stuffy," Jackie reiterated. They put there hands over where their ears would be if they were human, but it didn't help. They didn't actually know where their ears were. They could hear everything crystal clearly no matter what anyways.

"You could build a new costume, or go scare Michael."

"It's too loud back there and I said my box is stuffy."

"Well, I don't know what to suggest. You're on your own for this one, Jackie."

Jackie shoved his face in their hands. He didn't know what to do and he didn't want to be there anymore. The staff had closed the store, but everyone wasn't leaving for another hour. Everyone had to restock and clean and do paperwork. Jackie didn't understand why Bonnie and Chica didn't stick around to help, but Jackie didn't ask questions. No one would even answer their questions.

"It's too loud!" Jackie exclaimed. They dramatically flopped onto their back and returned their hands to their previous position over their nonexistent ears. They wanted to go home. Then they could talk with Toy Chica about Mapbot, or play with Francine.

They might even let him play with a dry bowl of cereal.

"There's only three people here Jackie," Freddy called back. Jackie sucked in a breath to keep from screaming like a toddler throwing a temper tantrum. Freddy said it was impolite and Toy Chica said they needed to act like an adult of they were going to claim to be one. Francine just gave Jackie a blanket. Jackie liked Francine.

"That's the problem, Freddy! I can hear Michael humming and the cardboard boxes rubbing against each other. I can hear you tapping and scribbling on paper. I am this close to losing it!" Jackie screamed. They could see Michael's head poke out from the back entrance, but Jackie couldn't care less.

"Oh… Well, can you stick it out a little longer?"

"No!"

"Okay, I'll send you home I guess," Freddy muttered. He got up from his desk and made his way over to Jackie. Jackie looked elated at this and Freddy's doubted his actions for a second. Then he just didn't. He would give Jackie the benefit of the doubt until they lost his trust. Freddy helped Jackie up and waved his hand, partially as a goodbye and mostly for the spell.

"Well that was quick," Michael quipped. Freddy shot the only other employee there a glare. He had his suspicions about Jackie, backstory and mentally wise. He also wasn't qualified in anything close to psychology, so he kept his thought to himself.

Francine was just about to head downstairs for a snack, when she heard a loud bang in her room followed by a screech from Catnap. She cautiously opened her bedroom door, not keen on being kidnapped again, and spotted quite the sight. Jackie had crashed onto her bed and startled Catnap. At this point, no shenanigans could surprise her.

"Jackie? Did dad send you home early again?" Francine asked calmly. She stood there with her head peaked in for a moment, waiting for Jackie to respond. However, she didn't get any such thing.

"Francine sweetie? Is everything okay up there?" Toy Chica called up. Jackie and Catnap flinched at the sudden loud noise. Francine wasn't unused to Catnap's jumpiness. He had been through hell and back, so he was bound to pick up at least a little bit of trauma. Though, didn't understand why Jackie flinched as well. As far as she knew, they were only triggered by the dark.

"It's fine. It's only Jackie," Francine called back. She sent out a warm comforting pulse to her mom in hopes to calm the notoriously angry mother chicken. It seemed to do the trick, as Toy Chica didn't call out again.

Ignorance was bliss, and she would know that best. She didn't have the luxury of ever being ignorant. She grew up too fast, understood too much, had too much responsibility. She didn't really mind though. Catnap and Sparky and her weird nine-tailed fox she called Vullie were just enough for her. The thing is, they weren't her only responsibilities. She had secret responsibilities.

And now, a not so secret responsibility.

"Jackie? Hey, did you end here on accident? I know Funtime likes to send magic to mess with-" She was cut off by Jackie's very quick shake of the head. She shrugged and stepped into the room further. She closed the door behind her too.

"Okay. So here's the plan, I'm gonna read a book. If you want me to read it out loud to you, you sit right next to me," Francine explained softly. Jackie nodded tearfully. Something wasn't right about Jackie right then, Francine could feel it. It came as easily to her as talking and reading did to her. Easily, and way too good for her to be a normal toddler.

The good news was that Jackie nodded to Francine's terms. Francine picked out a decently sized book. It was a long graphic novel to be exact. She wouldn't finish it before dinner, but she didn't need to. She had already read the whole thing.

Jackie sat next to Francine and curled up as tightly as the suit they had on would allow. Catnap reluctantly got up from their previously sunlit patch of carpet to curl up around the two animatronics. He seemed to sense just what Francine could. It might have been a bond between pet and owner, but Francine just thought they were both special. Catnap had always seen things the way Francine did.

He even saw the cosmic heroes behind her eyes when she was too young to even articulate them.

Moon could too, but Francine and him just avoided the topic like the plague. They were still friends, as much as a daycare worker and a child could be. They both loved Kinger and the color blue. That was enough for Francine. If only he was nicer to Jackie.

Oh well, Francine didn't Ned do think about Moon right then.

Jackie was excited about the book.

Chapter Text

Jackie didn't like the dark. Not many people liked the dark, but Jackie was different. They spent the whole night in their box, at least until the sun came up. They were reminded of being storage. The cold concrete floor and the walls that rattled with utilities of the garage were so terrifying.

The thing is, Jackie could usually get through it. They'd be in their box feeding the ducks or fighting dragons. However, today they couldn't. Freddy had punished them by taking away their box for one day. Jackie needed that box. Freddy didn't know that, but Jackie needed it. They had been welcomed to come into house proper to sleep, but he didn't want to. He thought the garage would be brighter since it was closer to the outside, but it wasn't.

Now they couldn't back out.

Jackie sucked in an artificial breath and held their hands close to their chest. They wanted to cry, but they didn't want someone wake up. They'd wake up Francine specifically, and she needed her sleep. She was still an infant!

Jackie didn't want to wake Freddy and Toy Chica up quietly either. Sure Jackie had been getting closer to Toy Chica, but Freddy was still mad at them. Jackie wrung their hands, not caring if they could easily damage their old wires. Their chest hurt. Their head hurt. Their heart hurt even if they didn't actually have one. They so incredibly terrified, they didn't remember how to talk.

Or did they not want to?

They wanted a hug.

They wanted someone to care.

Jackie whimpered in a high pitch tone when another rattle of the plumping echoed throughout the garage. It was hell. It was their own personal hell. They couldn't even remember how to form words anymore. They felt so small in the face of the rest of the world.

They stumbled to their feet and walked themself way inside. It was dark in there too, but at least it was warmer. They stared at the darkness and felt confused. They didn't know where they was in the house. They typically knew the house like the back of their hand. They knew every blueprint by heart, but now they were all fuzzy in their mind.

They let themself whimper again. Freddy and Toy Chica slept much too deep for Jackie to wake them up like this. They could bang pots and pans and only Francine would wake up to stop them. Francine was a very light sleeper.

Jackie just hoped they wouldn't bother the young chicken. Part of them did want Francine to come downstairs and help the, but a grumpy Francine was scarier than the dark. That was what Jackie told themselves at least, but they knew they were lying to themselves. Then, small footsteps stomped down the stairs grabbed their attention. It was a Jackie's lucky break.

"Sparky, you have to sleep outside we- Oh, hi Jackie," Francine said sleepily. She sounded annoyed at first, but her tone immediately softened up when she saw Jackie. Jackie let out a gasp of relief. They didn't know how much longer they'd last without sobbing.

Time seemed to blend together anyways.

"Whatcha doing inside? I thought you wanted to sleep in the garage," Francine mumbled. She walked over to Jackie with a stride much too steady for an average one year old. Francine wasn't average though. For that reason, Jackie trusted her. Francine had to have something trustworthy about her for the universe to let her grow up so fast.

But Jackie couldn't respond. They kept out a strangled cry and knelt down to Francine's height. They didn't know what was wrong. They wanted to know what was wrong. Their brain felt so funny, and they felt so small.

"Jackie… Did you break your voice box?" Francine asked in confusion. She was trying to piece together what was going on. She put a hand on Jackie's shoulder to try and comfort the clown. She didn't what to do. She was a child, a literal infant. This wasn't her job. Jackie wasn't even her responsibility. However, Jackie needed someone and Francine was the only one there.

"Oh, um… Do you need anything?" Francine inquired. Jackie let out another small cry of sadness. They didn't know. They really, truly didn't know. They wanted to know. They wanted to be able to tell Francine. She was trying to help and they weren't letting her.

"I can go get dad," Francine suggested. Jackie shook their head hard a that idea. They didn't want to wake Freddy up unnecessarily. Francine was smart anyways! She didn't need her dad's help to help Jackie. Jackie only needed Francine. If she really needed someone else's help, she could ask Catnap. He was impartial enough. He could keep a secret.

"Okay… um, why don't we go up to my room and I can read you a book," Francine offered. Jackie didn't respond as hastily to this suggestion, but they didn't want to go upstairs. The sounds of the piping were louder upstairs, and they thought it was because there were more bathrooms upstairs.

"Jackie?"

"Uh uh."

"Okay… I don't know what to do now," Francine admitted nervously. She wrapped her hands around one of Jackie's much larger hands. They both sat there in silence. Francine didn't understand what was wrong. Jackie wouldn't, or she got the sense that they couldn't, tell her. Francine looked into Jackie's eye to see something. It was harder to do with beings without souls, but her magic was stronger than that.

She sighed and began to drag Jackie towards the middle of the room. She figured Jackie would feel better in a more open space. She also needed more space for her magic.

"Okay. I'm going to take you somewhere, so don't freak out," Francine instructed. She held both of Jackie's hands and focused. She didn't need to say any incantations like her dad did, so the teleportation was easy. Jackie yelped in surprise at the suddenness of the spell. Francine noted they sound like a small child, but she was immediately distracted by Jackie's tight and panicked grip on her.

"Jackie, calm down. We're just at Sun and Moon's house," Francine assured. Jackie eventually let go of Francine's entire body, but they still held the child's hand tightly. Francine would've gone to Monty and Earth's house, but her godfather could pull a gun out of thin air.

Having not introduced Monty and Jackie yet, Francine thought going there wouldn't be wise.

"Let's go upstairs, that's where their bedrooms are," Francine said calmly. She guided Jackie all the way upstairs and stopped in for my of Moon's room. She knocked on the door quietly and waited for Moon to wake up. She knew both Moon and Sun didn't like Jackie, but Francine was Moon's second favorite kid at the daycare. She could persuade him to calm down enough to help.

She even briefly thought about waking up Dazzle to help since that was Moon's first favorite kid at the daycare, but Sun would be made at Francine for waking up his daughter at this hour. The idea was tempting, but ultimately stupid.

"Huh? It's the middle of the night, what do you- want…" Moon was startled at Jackie's appearance outside of his bedroom door, not yet spotting Francine in the darkness. He backed up slightly, ready to close the door. Francine circumvented these circumstances by holding out her foot to stop Moon from closing the door.

"Moon, hold on a second."

"Francine?!"

"Shush. I need your help."

"Okay… What for?" Moon sounded incredibly confused and mildly worried. He kept looking between Jackie's glowing beady eyes and Francine's non-glowing beady eyes. She looked more like a chicken in the dark than she did in the light.

"Something's wrong with them," Francine explained dryly. Jackie had their thumb in their mouth and they were chewing on it like it was taffy. Moon looked at Jackie closer, sensing something was off with the taller animatronic. Moon looked back at Francine with even more confusion on his face. He was still waking up clearly.

"Okay, and? Why'd you come to me?"

"I was out of ideas okay? Cut me some slack," Francine grumbled. Moon seemed surprised at Francine's quiet outburst. It was much more terrifying when said in a hushed and whispery voice.

"Okayyyyyyyyy… What do you want me to do?" Moon questioned incredulously. Francine was almost ready to kick Moon in the shin. She could even punt him through the ceiling of she put some magic into it. However, she kept calm for Jackie. Jackie needed her, and she was not about to let them down.

"I was hoping you would know, since I'm the child here," Francine retorted with sass. Jackie was pretty deaf to sass, and all tones in general. Francine figured it was safe to sass Moon and not give Jackie any ideas at the same time .

"Got it. Um, what happened to him?"

"Don't know. They won't talk."

"Get your dad or something," Moon rejoindered. Jackie let out a new, strangled cry at the mention of the already iterated suggestion. Moon paused, arms in dinosaur position. Francine held her hand out to Jackie as if to indicate this is what she's talking about. Moon stared at Jackie. He acted as if he was waiting for Jackie to say something.

"So, can you help us?" Francine asked in an impatient voice. Moon shrugged, which was met with a swift kick to the shin. He winced, staring at Francine in bewilderment at Francine's strength. Something so small and fleshy shouldn't be able to hurt something big and metal.

"I can give him a blanket," Moon offered grumpily. Francine smiled slightly in satisfaction and Jackie let out a soft cooing sound. Francine smiled at Jackie, they reminded her of Funtime Freddy in a good way. Jackie was at least a little more socially aware. Moon seemed to be thinking as he went into his pitch black room for a blanket.

"That was simple. Thanks," Francine said offhandedly as she wrapped the blanket around Jackie. Moon rolled his eyes, but Francine knew he didn't mean it. Jackie and Francine were both terrifying in a way. Francine found their design cute, but no one else did.

"You're welcome, and don't wake me up in the middle of the night again," Moon said threateningly. Francine chuckled. Moon wasn't a threat to her. If she put her mind to it, she could make him disintegrate from the inside out. She thought it was silly that anyone would even try and threaten her. It was completely and utterly pointless.

"I'll go scare Earth by appearing in her bedroom in the middle of the night then."

"I meant go bother Sun."

"I went to you for a reason."

"Well that's flattering, but it's two am and we should all be asleep."

"Actually it's three am, but your point still stands. Catnap will be back from training his army soon."

"His what now?"

"Bye!" Francine exclaimed before teleporting the now soothed Jackie and herself home. Moon blinked in confusion. He looked around and then shrugged. He was too tired to actually care.

Francine teleported her and Jackie to her bedroom. She tucked Jackie in in the corner and waited for Catnap to return. She didn't know exactly how to put herself to sleep, so she had to wait. It wasn't the end of the world if she didn't get to sleep at a reasonable time. She could always steal a ton of sundrops and eat them during the daycare's opening hours.

That's when she was interrupted by shuffling from where she laid Jackie down on her plush, carpeted floor. Jackie had crawled their way over to Francine and tapped her on her shoulder.

"Yes Jackie? You should be trying to sleep," Francine said sternly. Francine wasn't mad though. She was incredibly flattered Jackie would trust her over Freddy. It was unexpected. She had almost forgotten to always expect the unexpected, or maybe most things had become expected at this point. She'd think about that later.

"Can I sweep next to you?"

"Sweep?"

"S-la-ee-p. Sweep," Jackie repeated. Francine squinted her eyes as Jackie sounded out 'sleep' and then said 'sweep' again. She could steal her dad's phone and ask Michael to look at Jackie's voice box in the morning though.

"Sure buddy. Just don't be surprised if mom screams first thing in the morning," Francine warned. Jackie giggled and climbed into Francine's small bed. She still had a toddler bed, but she was used to sleep around somebody trying to cuddle her. Catnap preferred to sleep curled up after all. She didn't mind anyways. She was just ready to go to sleep.

It had been a nice day, or night, but it was time for it to be over.

Chapter Text

Francine had noticed that Jackie had become more attached to her after that one night. She didn't mind, she only had to deal with them in the evenings. Then she had to deal with them in the mornings too. It became a lot.

Granted, it probably seemed like a good idea to Freddy. Jackie behaved around Francine, so why wouldn't he be able to leave them with her? The thing is, Francine didn't want anymore problems. She had Sparky, Catnap, and Vullie. She did not need another responsibility. However, she didn't tell Jackie or her dad that. She didn't think it was necessary.

Today was one of those days Jackie wouldn't leave Francine alone. They always had to be right next to her the second they got back from work until Francine went to bed. So Francine decided to make the most out of it.

She would play princesses with Jackie, or have tea parties. The girly stuff Catnap wouldn't do, and she didn't want to do with her parents. They weren't that much fun to play with anyways. Jackie was always fun. They would make costumes for Francine and show her all of theirs. Jackie even invited Francine into their box a few times, though that wasn't that hard to get Jackie to do.

Today was a tea party day. Francine loved tea party days. That was mostly because she loved tea. She would get out her secret tea pot and light a small fire under the tea pot. She had no idea how her parents never figured it out because she never tried to hide it, but she didn't care.

Jackie couldn't exactly drink. They were still completely and utterly inorganic. They couldn't taste and they didn't even have a functioning digestive system. They just liked shoving ice cream down their 'throat' because it was cold and it felt nice to be cold on the inside. Francine did let the have a cup of tea. Though Jackie mostly dipped their fingers up and down and up and down in the liquid.

Francine could enjoy some peace and quiet where she could hear Catnap's purring from his extended midday nap. It was nice. No one bothered anyone. It was weird to have a calm moment.

"Francine?"

"Yes Jackie?"

"Can I give you a nickname?" Jackie asked curiously. Francine chuckled at the randomness of the question. She didn't know where the question came from or why Jackie would even bother asking for permission. Jackie was impulsive. They didn't ask for permission for anything. Still, Jackie stared at Francine expectantly.

"I don't see why not, but why do you ask?" Francine inquired while stifling full on laughter. Jackie put their elbows on the tiny table to hold their head up. They were thinking, but they weren't thinking very fast.

"Um, Catnap calls you 'Little Chicken,'" Jackie explained. Francine hummed. Catnap did indeed call her 'Little Chicken' despite her not being a real chicken. She did look like a chicken though. She didn't see why Jackie couldn't call her by a nickname. She also didn't see why Jackie had to ask her for permission, but Jackie had always been nice.

"Yeah, he does. Do you have any ideas?" Francine questioned. Jackie shook their head certainly. Francine let out one cackle, and then stopped herself. She was allowed one laugh at absurd situations, otherwise it would just be mean. One was already rude, so she avoided it as much as she could still.

"This is the kind of thing you're supposed to have ideas for, Jackie."

"I thought you would have ideas."

"Not really. It was your idea to give me a nickname, so you have to come up with ideas on that that nickname is," Francine explained calmly. If it was Funtime, she would've just called him a called him a dumbass. However, Jackie required more patience and less brute force than Funtime did. They acted very similar, but worked very differently. Francine needed a more careful approach.

"But I don't have any ideas," Jackie complained. They put their chin in their hands and sighed. They occasionally glanced at Francine, waiting for her jump in and rescue them from their own mess. Francine was willing to wait it out though. Jackie needed to figure this out themselves.

"So come up with some," Francine suggested. Jackie sighed more dramatically this time and let their arms sprawl all the way across the toddler sized table. Francine found it adorable, but part of her wanted to smack them lightly over the head. She didn't exactly have time to deal with Jackie's dramatics.

"I don't know where to start though!" Jackie whined. Francine smiled slightly and took a sip of her tea. It was green tea to be specific. It was as bitter as she could make it, and just the way she liked.

"Okay… How about you start with my name. Nicknames usually come from there," Francine said calmly. Jackie let out another high pitched, and very fake, whimper. Francine had to keep herself from breaking into a fit of giggles. If she didn't know better, she'd think Jackie was throwing an actual tantrum. Jackie didn't really like to throw real tantrums, as was common knowledge in this household.

"You're no help," Jackie mumbled grumpily after not getting a response to their whining. Francine rolled her eyes in amusement as she tried to think of what she could possibly say to stop Jackie from complaining.

"If you don't sit up, I'm going to dump your teacup out since you're clearly done with tea party," Francine threatened lightly heartedly. This earned a true and genuine gasp for Jackie. They sat up straight immediately, though they crossed their arms and twisted their faceplate into a pout to show that they were serious. Francine kept seeing them more and more as a cute, adorable child. Jackie seemed so precious.

"You wouldn't dare!"

"I would."

"Nuh-uh"

"What do you mean nuh-uh?"

"I mean nuh-uh."

"Why don't you just go ask dad for help with a nickname? I'm sure he'd be glad," Francine proposed. Jackie's face lit up at the suggestion. They quickly got up from the kid sized chair and rushed towards the stairs.

Francine was just good to have them out of her her room so she could laugh.

Chapter Text

Jackie didn't like being left alone. Everything was quiet and they hated that. Of course Freddy was home, but he was doing work and didn't want to be disturbed. So, Jackie considered themselves to be alone soon.

Granted, Francine and Toy Chica hadn't left for the mall yet. Though, Jackie still didn't want them to. Jackie wanted Francine to stay in particular. They wanted to play dress up and have tea party. Francine made really good tea, even if Jackie couldn't taste it. They knew Toy Chica wanted to take Francine to the mall to spoil the little girl, but Jackie didn't know why it had to be while they were home.

The mother and daughter duo had the whole day while Freddy and Jackie were at work to go to the mall. Francine didn't need to go to daycare every single day. It wasn't school.

Jackie laid their head on the window sill like a sad puppy. They hoped Francine would take pity on them and stay. Francine just felt bad, but she wasn't going to stop. She thought about taking Jackie with her, then she remembered that would be a bad idea. She could wrangle Jackie easily. However, her mom would freak out if Jackie did anything. The thing is, it was only things a small child would do. Jackie was just adult sized.

He really was like Funtime Freddy.

Francine put her shoes on and tied them with ease. Her shoes were originally Velcro, but they seemed too childish so she changed them. Her parents hadn't noticed yet. She didn't really care for them to notice.

"Are you ready, Francine?" Toy Chica called out from the kitchen. She was getting a last minute snack as she usually did. Everyone chalked it up to a 'Chica thing,' but Francine was still suspicious. She had never taken things at face value. She trusted people, but she didn't trust the way people's perceptions warped the truth. That warp had ruined many lives of those close to her. She knew even if they didn't tell her.

"Almost. I left my bow upstairs," Francine replied. Jackie tilted their head at this conversation. They had lots of bows in their box. Maybe if they gave Francine one, they wouldn't get left behind. They didn't care if people stayed or they went with. They just didn't want to be alone. That scared them.

"I have lots of bows!" Jackie exclaimed. They immediately pulled their box out of thin air, or wherever the thing came from, and jumped inside. They popped up a few seconds later with a literal armful of bows. Francine was surprised, but she didn't want to shut Jackie down. They had been behaving more because she was giving them things to do. If they were mad at her, Francine wouldn't be able to keep them in line.

"Uh… I'll take that pink and white one," Francine mumbled. She grabbed the one she eyed from the pile and Jackie's made a giant grin. It was genuine. She put it on her top tuft of feathers and adjusted her top hat.

"Thanks Jackie," Francine said more clearly. Jackie popped back in their box to presumably put all the bows back. Francine turned around to see her mom peaking around the kitchen corner to stare at Francine and Jackie. Anything Jackie tended to do weirded the yellow chicken out. Francine didn't get why. Funtime had been weirder and Toy Chica never batted an eye. It was a tad bit hypocritical.

"You're welcome!" Jackie exclaimed as they rose from their box. They threw it into the void it came from and stretched their legs. He looked at Francine expectantly and Francine stared back in befuddlement.

"Um, Watcha looking at Jackie?"

"You."

"Yeah, but why?"

"I'm waiting for you to say something. Isn't that how conversations work?" Jackie til item their head as they spoke. Francine sucked in a laugh and Toy Chica cackled from the kitchen. Jackie wasn't awake for all of the sixty years they spent in storage, but ten was enough to royally mess up their social skills. It was mean to laugh, but it was so funny.

"Yeah, but you don't stare at people," Francine patiently explained. Jackie let out a small 'oh' and then stared into the distance. Toy Chica rounded the corner after having finally finished her laughing fit and looked between the two people. It was a pushing sight.

"Are you ready Francine?" Toy Chica inquired. Francine rolled her eyes at the repeated question and nodded. She was taking advantage of the fact she was so young everyone thought her sass was cute, but she didn't really care. If people were going to be gullible without her involvement, she should get to use that trait for her own goals. It wasn't her fault everyone else's is stupid.

"Um, can I ask a favor of you mom?" Francine asked quietly. She turned on the cute factor as best as she could. When you were thought of as an infant, which technically wasn't wrong, manipulation was the only thing you had going for you in her eyes.

"Sure, what is it sweetheart?" Toy Chica responded. She crouched down to her daughter's level. Francine could've easily floated to meet her mom's eyes, but it was too much of a hassle to do that and now scare her mom. Toy Chica was scared of most magical or weird things. She clearly picked the wrong family to marry into, but again, it's not Francine's fault that everyone else is stupid.

"Can we take Jackie to the mall? We take them to the fabric store!" Francine suggested. She saw Jackie's entire face light up when the words left her mouth. The tall animatronic started jumping up and down, though only slightly. The front of their feet stayed on the ground.

"Um, I don't know about that Francine," Toy Chica mumbled. Francine saw Jackie's entire face deflate. They were disappointed. Toy Chica also looked at Jackie since Francine was. When Toy Chica caught sight of how upset the jester was, her heart hurt. Jackie wasn't a bad person, but they were unpredictable.

Jackie thought they were friends with Toy Chica, however they were just acquaintances basically. They talked about how to win over Mapbot together, but that was it. Toy Chica felt more like a mentor than a friend. Jackie was just too immature.

"You know what, she can come. It can't hurt," Toy Chica corrected. Jackie's face lit up again and they bounded over to Francine. They hugged the small chicken tight and then put Francine back down. Toy Chica was slightly worried Jackie was going to break Francine, but Jackie didn't. They were much too carefully around Francine to hurt her.

Francine wouldn't let Jackie anyways.

"So, let's get going!" Toy Chica said in an excited tone of voice. Jackie let out an excited squeal. Francine grabbed their hand so that Jackie wouldn't wander away. It was a very high possibility they would.

As they neared the car Francine felt Jackie tense up and the stop altogether. Francine looked up at Jackie to assess the problem, but she could only see fear on Jackie's face. Without looking at their eyes it was impossible to use her magic to understand why. The angle of which Francine was at made looking people in the eyes undoable. She could do it technically, just not without almost breaking her neck.

"Um, are you guys coming?" Toy Chica question in confuddlement. She tilted her head at the pair stood in front of her. She didn't look at Jackie, only Francine. Francine was already preparing a lecture for her mom, but she knew how to decipher a time and place for things.

"Yeah, just one second," Francine informed. She pulled Jackie's arm until they looked down at her. She peered into their eyes for a deeper look. What she saw was horrifying. She had been seeing cosmic horrors when she closed her eyes since she was a baby, but this was different. It wasn't something one could be far removed from. It was one moment, nothing someone could build a tolerance too. That's what made it truly horrific.

"Mom… I don't think Jackie's getting in the car," Francine explained nervously. Toy Chica beggar to look more confused, but Francine kept staring int Jackie's eyes. The car was a no go obviously, bust he had to find another solution. Then it hit her.

"Oh! How about I teleport us to the mall? We won't have to go anywhere near the car," Francine assured. She even took a few steps away from the vehicle in an attempt to clam Jackie down. Jackie seemed to like the idea of teleporting, but Toy Chica seemed more apprehensive. She knew Francine was powerful, but Freddy had described the child's magic as raw. It didn't seem safe.

"You sure that's a good idea sweetheart?" Toy Chica asked sweetly. Francine nodded and gestured for Toy Chica to come closer. Toy Chica obliged and stood closer to her daughter. Francine gestured for her mother come even closer and then grabbed the yellow chickens's hand.

"Let's go!" Francine exclaimed as she raised her arms in the air and teleported the trio in the blink of an eye. She loved being dramatic about her magic. She didn't need to add incantations, so she felt left out of the importance sometimes. Magic was accord and must be protected, but it was just like talking to Francine. It wasn't hard even if it should be.

She did figure she'd have to tell her dad that they didn't take the car though. Why would have to wait.

Chapter Text

Francine was excited to go to daycare. She was excited to go to daycare every single day. She got to be the cool kid and set things on fire with Barry. Sun didn't appreciate her setting things on fire, but she did it anyways. It literally couldn't burn anything but what she wanted to burn.

Jackie was not as excited for Francine to go to daycare. Jackie was not excited at all. Freddy didn't let Jackie go to the daycare during the day, so Jackie couldn't even go to drop off. Francine did let Jackie help her get ready. Jackie got to pick out Francine's bow and preen Francine's feathers. She didn't need preening, but Jackie seemed less sad when they helped out.

Francine was putting on her shoes and Jackie was rummaging through their box. Freddy stood at the door while drinking his coffee. He wasn't paying attention to either of the other people at the moment. Francine was still counting how long it took her parents to notice she added lace to her shoes.

"Francine? Do you want anymore bows?" Jackie called out as they popped up. Freddy almost choked on his coffee from surprise, but Francine was unfazed. She could see Jackie climbing their way to the top of their box before Jackie even surfaced after all. It was very hard to sneak anything by her that she didn't allow you to. She liked to hide the Christmas presents from herself.

"No, but thanks. I think I have plenty," Francine replied. Jackie pouted, but ultimately sunk back into their box to put their bows back. Freddy looked confused at Jackie's disappointment. He hadn't exactly been able to notice Jackie's clinginess.

"Are they okay? They seem really upset," Freddy queried. Francine shook her head and stood up. She stretched her arms way above her head and grabbed her backpack. She was ready to get out of the house. She didn't have much time to be a kid, so she relished in the time she did get to. She might even get to talk with Moon if that daycare attendant bothered to show up.

"They're fine. They don't want me to leave," Francine explained dryly. She went to open the door, but Jackie jumped out of their box and tossed their box back to wherever it came from. Francine couldn't have an easy day if tried. Everyday just had to be difficult.

"Francine! Can I go with you to drop off?" Jackie begged. They began to make puppy eyes at Francine. She sighed and pointed at her dad. Jackie turned and made the same face at Freddy. Freddy looked uncomfortable. He was almost one hundred percent sure Sun and Moon would have his head if he brought Jackie to the daycare before the place closed. Francine might be the only kid in earlycare, but those brothers would still be furious.

"Um, I don't think that's a good idea. We can go see Sun and Moon this evening though," Freddy offered. Jackie flopped on the floor. The loud clang of their metal hitting the floorboards startled both Francine and Freddy. Though they weren't entirely surprised at Jackie's dramatics.

"I want to go with you though!" Jackie whined. Francine suppressed a sigh. She looked up at her dad and silently pleaded with him to just agree. It wasn't the end of the world for Jackie to stay a bit. Jackie would just be there for drop off. They didn't even do anything at work that early in the morning. Freddy was the only who worked on paperwork then.

"Fine, Chickadee. Okay Jackie, you can come with us," Freddy amended. Jackie's head immediately shot up and they practically sprang off of the ground. Francine giggled and held out their hand for Jackie to take. After all, he wanted to go with her specifically.

"Yay! Thank you, thank you, thank you! I'm so excited," Jackie exclaimed. They swung their free hand side to side while Freddy teleported the trio. Francine only imagined the nightmare of trying to take Jackie to the daycare if Freddy had to go to work early again. Freddy didn't exactly like Francine teleporting without his supervision. He said it was dangerous without practice, but Francine had plenty of practice.

When the three of them got to their destination, Jackie practically skipped ahead. They were still holding Francine's hand, so Francine had to float so she wouldn't get flung into a wall by physics.

Sun and Moon could hear Jackie before they could see the jester. Sun was even standing at the front door with an angry look on his face. Jackie hadn't even noticed that Sun was there. They just walked right past the other clown with Francine still in tow. Francine said a quick sorry while she was still close enough to Sun. Jackie was pretty dead set on placing Francine on the security desks ledge.

"Freddy?! Are you going to explain yourself!?" Sun yelled. Freddy sighed and pointed at Francine. Sun stared at the bear in confusion. Francine was demanding and Sun gave in more often than not, but Freddy was her father. He was being a bit of a hypocrite and he didn't actually care.

"Hi Sun! Hi Moon! Freddy let me come to the drop off!" Jackie squealed. Moon backed away from the desk to put distance between him and Jackie. He didn't like Jackie one bit. He would never like Jackie no matter how hard Jackie tried. That was part of the reason Moon would never like Jackie actually. Francine thought the daycare attendants were dramatic. Jackie was essentially just a very lonley kid.

"I can see that… But why?" Moon asked incredulously. Francine pointed at herself and gave a cheeky smile. She could feel Jackie adjust her bow, but she trusted Jackie. Jackie was an expert in fashion. Sire that fashion was from the 80's, but Jackie knew what they were doing.

"Francine is very persuasive you know," Freddy explained sheepishly. Sun started at Freddy and then Moon and then Freddy again with a dumbfounded expression. Moon shrugged. He completely understood where Freddy was coming from. Francine scared Moon a little too. Francine thought it was an exaggeration, but she didn't mind the fear and respect.

"I was just tired of Jackie throwing a tantrum," Francine said simply. Moon did raise an eyebrow at this. Francine wasn't the type to be pushed around. It was almost impossible to push Francine round. Last time a kid did that Francine threatened to set them on fire.

"You know what, I can see that," Sun quipped. He walked over to Francine and picked her up off of the ledge and put her on the squishy floor. Jackie whimpered slightly, but just crouched down to Francine's level. Sun stared at Jackie and Francine in confusion. He didn't understand why Jackie seemed so attached to Francine all of the sudden. Francine gave Jackie the side eye, but Jackie didn't notice.

"Is he going to stay very long?" Moon questioned nervously. He walked out from behind the security desk and over to Freddy. Francine and Freddy shook their heads simultaneously. This made Jackie sigh but nod in return. They didn't want to leave Francine at the daycare.

"Good, good. Well it was nice to see you Jackie, but earlycare drop off is over," Sun said forcefully. Jackie sighed and hugged Francine. Francine let out a squawk of surprise, but she ultimately hugged them back. Jackie eventually stood up and adjusted Francine's top hat. Francine smiled at Jackie and shooed them off in Freddy's direction. So, just like that Freddy and Jackie disappeared.

"They're so sweet," Francine commented. Sun and Moon stared at Francine like she was insane. They started to wonder if they were the insane ones. Francine seemed so comfortable around Jackie when Jackie was objectively terrifying in their shared opinion.

"I'm sorry, but they say they want to break children," Sun retorted after a hot second. Francine glared up at Sun. She didn't agree with his statement one bit. Francine continued to stare with intense anger and possible hatred towards Sun until the yellow robot just walked away. Francine was very pleased with her work. She made Sun quite uncomfortable.

"They don't even know that breaking people hurts," Francine muttered. She floated herself back up onto the security desk's outcropping. She could easily get up and down by herself, but it also served as an easy way to get Moon to hold her.

"How does he not know that?" Moon asked in a befuddled tone of voice. Francine rolled her eyes, but her back to Moon so Moon didn't see. It would be much too long of an explanation for that early in the morning. She'd probably tell Moon some other time, most likely during the two hour long pick up period.

"Don't answer me then…" Moon mumbled in annoyance. Francine cackled heartily at that. Moon always had the funniest things to say. Moon, looked up at her and rolled his eyes. He assumed Francine couldn't see him, but she could easily look through the back of her own head to watch him.

Chapter Text

Jackie thought Francine's birthday was the best. Francine had so many guests! There was Barry (Jackie was still pretty sure the little rabbit's name was Jeremiah), Sun, Moon, Glamrock Freddy, Glamrock Chica, Funtime Foxy, Lolbit, and other people Jackie never learned the names of. It was amazing. There were a lot of people Jackie didn't know, but they did care. Francine introduced them to everyone!

Almost everyone.

Jackie had been getting scolded by Freddy for something when two more guests had arrived. It was Monty, who Jackie had only seen in cutouts and other advertisements, and some other lady. Francine had seemed really excited to see them, so Jackie didn't pay it much mind.

Jackie did try take note of the new lady though. Jackie had all of the Glamrock blueprints to craft costumes of them, they even had Sun and Moon's blueprints, but there was no Fazbear record of the new lady. While Jackie was observing, they noticed Earth talking to Sun and Moon. The three of the, were all siblings apparently, which made it all the more weird that there was no record of 'Earth'.

However, Jackie wasn't paying attention to that discrepancy anymore. Sun was pointing out Jackie and whispering about them. Jackie was used to the treatment, but it was weirder when Earth scolded Sun for saying those things. Jackie didn't understand why. Sun wasn't wrong.

Eventually Jackie moved on. Francine was playing with the other kids and Jackie wanted in. Francine was so nice to let them play games with the kids. Francine seemed like she was missing something and Jackie would feel that hole as much as they could. Though, they understood nothing would truly fill a hole so obviously large. Jackie knew what that felt like.

The thing is, that playtime wasn't long lived. Jackie felt a tap on their shoulder and they braced for another lecture for doing something wrong that they didn't understand. No one cared to explain what Jackie did wrong, people just got mad. That's not what they got, however.

"Hello? You're Jackie right?" Earth asked gently. Jackie spun around and grinned a huge giant grin. They was more than excited. Someone was talking to them in a non-condescending manner. It was a feeling of excitement they didn't truly understand. Even better, Earth was smiling back at them. Jackie could have a friend that wasn't a child. JQ might not have been a child technically, but everyone in that trio acted like one.

"Yeah! That's me! You're Earth right? I early like your hair. It's so fluffy! And I just love your design! Your hair would take forever to replicate though…" Jackie rambled. Earth giggled and smiled more at the compliments. She liked figured the last one was a compliment too.

"Thanks. I've heard a bit about you," Earth chatted. Jackie nodded enthusiastically. They counted around Earth to look at her from all angles. Her wheelchair was really cool. It had special wheels. Jackie had a few broken wheelchair they had been meaning to scrap for parts, but they knew they could fashion an exact copy of Earth's. They would want to figure out how to duplicate Earth's hair first though.

"Yeah! I saw you talking to Sun and Moon," Jackie added. Earth nodded. Something about Jackie felt special to Earth. Special in that way an elementary teacher would describe the author. It was a clearly ostracizing quality.

"Jackie? I thought you were playing freeze tag with us?" Francine inquired. She looked up and saw Earth. Francine's face lit up the sight of her soon to be godmother. Jackie immediately distracted Francine by crouching down and adjusting her hat and polka dot birthday bow. Francine pouted slightly, but let Jackie. It made Jackie happy.

"Hi Francine! I was just asking to Jackie here," Earth explained cooingly. Francine almost rolled her eyes, but stopped herself. She ,at have been two, but she wasn't a normal two year old. She only let so much of her knowledge show, but she showed enough to avoid the baby voice in her opinion.

"I can see. Just don't get carried away. You know you can get in your box of it's too loud, Jackie," Francine reminded. Jackie just giggled and smiled even more. Francine had been the only one to notice how much noise bothered Jackie, but it was Francine's special day. Jackie could and would deal with it. Francine was so nice to Jackie, so it was the least they could do.

"Francine, since you know Jackie well you can properly introduce the two of us," Earth suggested. She had sensed Jackie's unrecognized loneliness, but she hadn't planned on what she was going to say. Francine seemed to care a lot about the jester. She probably wouldn't mind.

"Sure. Ooh! You should get Monty too!" Francine insisted in the guise of a suggestion. She looked at Earth pointedly. Earth git the message a hurried over to Monty. Monty was arguing with Glamrock Chica about something, but it seemed to be completely forgotten by the chicken when a tall humanoid animatronic walked. Monty seemed confused, but eventually noticed Earth.

"Oh, hi Earth. You need somethin'?" Monty asked in befuddlement. Earth giggled and grabbed on of Monty's hands in bites of hers. She began pulling him towards the area Francine and Jackie were previously. Jackie was couch on the ground and Francine was just short, so they were hidden.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on?" Monty question between chuckles. Earth giggled more and kept pulling Monty along. She did have to use one of her feet to push her wheelchair along, but the wheelchair was more of precaution today than a necessity. The kids thought rolling back in forth really fast in a straight line was fun too.

"Oh they there are. Hi Monty!" Francine greeted loudly. Jackie squealed excitedly and stood up. Monty was startled by the unsettling clown that towered over them but the shock was short lived. Jackie wasn't that intimidating. They were much too bouncy to be intimidating.

"Hi! I'm Jackie and I've already met Earth. I've seen your 'advertisements' around, but I like to call advertisements money shows. I think Francine said it as a joke once, or it could've been Freddy, and I really liked it. So, hi!" Jackie piped quickly. Monty was completely and utterly overwhelmed. Why did this thing talk so much? Francine seemed comfortable around Jackie though.

"Yeah, hi. Is this what you bright me over here for, Honey?" Monty wonders to Earth. Earth nodded and moved closer to Francine. Earth made grabby hands to the child in hopes Francine would hug her. Francine was cute, so she was used to family and family friends always trying to hold her.

"I asked Earth to bring you over here so you can meet Jackie," Francine elaborated as she climbed into Earth's lap. Earth was actually really comfortable sit with, and Francine knew this from Earth still worked at the daycare. Francine appreciated the gesture, even if Earth's cooing was a tad bit embarrassing.

"Yeah! Francine keeps trying to make me hang out with my friends, but I'm pretty sure Jack is busy during the afternoons. So I'm trying to make new friends! People don't really want to be friends with me though. Freddy says it's something about the breaking kids thing," Jackie rambled. Monty looked startled by the words, but Earth looked like her suspicions were confirmed. Francine was glad she wasn't seeing things.

"Jackie, remember polite conversation," Francine reminded calmly. Jackie rolled their eyes, but just shut their mouth. Monty wondered if Francine was always parenting this Jackie person. It seemed like Freddy's job.

"So, what's his deal? Like, why is he invited?"

"Monty means what's his relation to the family," Earth corrected. She quickly shot Monty a glare and Monty sighed when he finally realized the implications of his words. Francine was glad he did. She would've kicked him otherwise.

"He's a friend of the family. Fazbear dumped him on dad, so he's like Funtime without magic," Francine deadpanned. She had explained who Jackie was so many times she was ready to throw something. Jackie would probably appreciate being thrown to the third floor right? Francine would ask later. She could tolerate the introductions for now.

"That's one hell of a description, kid," Monty remarked. Jackie gasped as soon as the word 'hell' left Monty's mouth. Earth poked Monty with her elbow. Francine was unfazed. She couldn't even swear if she wanted to. She could take the filter off, but it was more trouble than it was worth.

"You sweared," Jackie commented in disbelief. Monty sighed in disappointment with himself again. He kept talking without thinking. Francine didn't seem to care though, and that was all that mattered. So they kept talking. Jackie was a strange person to say the least, but Monty didn't mind. He had made friend south the weirdos before and they mellowed out. Jackie would probably be the same.

It was weird Francine was trying to make Jackie friends though.

Chapter Text

Jackie laid on the floor of a random hallway in the house. They had gotten themselves completely lost trying to hide, but no one had found them yet. They guessed that made them pretty successful.

They still didn't feel good. The Mimic wasn't even trying to gain control anymore. At least Jackie didn't hurt all over anymore. They just felt sick in general. They would've rather laid on something soft, but the floor would have to do. No one needed to panic about the Mimic. Jackie was just a nuisance in the first the place. The Mimic wasn't even just a dangerous nuisance.

Jackie felt hit liquid poor down their face a they almost panicked. The thing was wet and Jackie hated all things to do with water. Then they realized it was tears. They could cry now, wonderful. They whined and curled up as they realized this. They felt pathetic.

Francine wasn't scared of the Mimic, but she was a damn good actor. She did't just act her age for attention, she also did it to be perceived as normal. Therefore, acting scared if the Mimic was necessary. She wasn't unfeeling, there was just no way to the Mimic could kill her. She could snap her fingers and kill it even if she wouldn't do that in a million years. There was really no reason to be scared.n

That being said, she wanted to make sure Jackie was okay. They seemed liked they were in a lot of pain earlier. Granted, it hadn't seemed to last after the mimic. That was good. Francine still wanted to check that everything was okay.

She could teleport to wherever Jackie was. The thing is, there was no fun in that. Sensing where Jackie was like a game of hot and cold was fun. Francine still liked to play games like a little kid. She was a little kid. She was just smart enough to not be fazed by what most kids her age were fazed by. It was just ostracizing enough for her to notice, yet nobody else did.

She neared Jackie's area slowly. She really had no reason to be in a hurry. Jackie wasn't acting wrong. Maybe she should be more worried about the Mimic wanting to kill her dad and all his bandmates, but Freddy could I defend himself and Bonnie and Chica, and Foxy was who knows where.

Eventually she saw Jackie curled up on the floor. A pit formed in her stomach immediately. This wasn't near the garage as that was on the first floor, nor near Funtime Freddy's room where the computer Jackie used was. It was on the third floor Francine found unnecessary, especially since Funtime Foxy kept jumping off the balcony into the pool, and then missing the mark.

"Jackie, is everything okay?" Francine asked quietly. Jackie shook their head. Francine wondered if it was like that night that Jackie was in the house, but it wasn't dark. She approached against her better judgment. Just because she could fight the Mimic easily didn't mean she wanted to.

"Is it the Mimic?" Francine inquired softly. She crouched next to Jackie, almost reaching out to caress Jackie's face. She wasn't prepared to have that fast of reflexes. Jackie shook their head again. The Mimic liked to cause pain, so there was no reason for it to just hurt Jackie's head and stomach. They were just sick. It was what hurt when someone was sick, right?

"Do you want to lay anywhere else? The floor can't be that comfy…" Francine queried. Jackie shook their head harder and put their hands over there ears. Francine sighed and stood up. She knew Jackie wouldn't respond. She had plenty of experience with shutdowns, even if it was indirect.

"Come on. You're laying on the guest bed," Francine instructed. She pulled Jackie up and sort of dragged Jackie to a small room off to the side. She floated Jackie and pulled them along technically, but she didn't think it was that different. There was no way she could drag Jackie as is. She was two.

"There you go," Francine assured as she lowered Jackie on the bed. Jackie gripped the blanket and tried to blink back the tears in their eyes. However, the metal their eyelids were made out of didn't work very well. They were just making their sight blurry. Francine figured Jackie just needed a nap, so she tucked them in and went on her merry way. She wasn't exactly wrong about Jackie wanting to be alone either.

"Hey Francine, where's Jackie?" Freddy questioned casually. He hadn't seen Jackie since the Mimic incident from earlier that day. He was pretty sure the Mimic wasn't back, but he wanted to be sure. He couldn't be too careful with an entity who wanted to kill him.

However, Francine said absolutely nothing. She had been incredibly short with him as of late. She was still very mad with him about not telling her that Puppet was dead. It was a sore subject to say the least, but she had never given him the complete silent treatment before. She wasn't that malicious. She shouldn't be capable of being that malicious at all.

"Francine?"

"They're in the guest bedroom on the third floor," Francine answered curtly yet calmly. She never even turned around to look at her dad. It hurt Freddy, but he understood why she was mad at him. He wouldn't have been able to act so… half-polite himself.

"I see, but why? Doesn't she usually sleep in her box?" Freddy continued to question. Francine rolled her eyes. She hated how Freddy couldn't get the hint. Francine didn't want to talk to him, but she was being nice. She was going to start ignoring him pretty soon. She had tried just then, but it seemed like a bad idea to not tell her dad where Jackie was. They were supposed to be his problem.

"They didn't feel well," Francine said bluntly and less calmly thanked before. Freddy suppressed a grimace and thanked his daughter before starting to walking up the stairs. He was going to let Francine mellow out. He didn't think he could get a word in at the moment. In reality, he was an idiot.

Freddy knocked on the door if the guest room to no response. So, he knocked again. He again got no response. He didn't hear the tell tale sounds of Jackie's fans walking overtime like they did whenever Jackie was doing anything they licked to do or the sound of Jackie's music box playing faintly. He heard silence. Jackie was either asleep or just plain staying still, which Freddy couldn't picture in his head at all.

"Jackie?" Freddy called out as he pushed the door open. Jackie was indeed just laying there. They had a blanket tucked around them, yet they seemed uncomfortable. Freddy approached with caution. They had no idea who was in control, and one person kind of wanted him dead. However, Jackie didn't make a sound or even a movement. Freddy was ninety percent sure that was Jackie looking so sad.

"What's going on?" Freddy puzzled as he crouched down at the bed. Jackie whimpered and brought their knees to their chest. They wanted to disappear. What if they got in trouble? They didn't know how getting sick worked, but they had to have done something wrong.

"I'm sick," Jackie mumbled with shame. Freddy sighed sympathetically and patted Jackie's head. He figured as much. He was still worried about the Mimic suddenly springing out and attacking him, but he could defend himself. Jackie was actually pretty brittle. They had to be to switch into their different costumes. Freddy was pretty safe.

"Not much I can do. Medicine probably won't work on you when you're not that bio-organic yet," Freddy informed regretfully. Jackie hid their face in the blanket which hid their entire body under the lavender piece of bedding.

"You're a huge meanie. I want Francine," Jackie pouted. Freddy resisted the urge to chuckle. He knew Jackie's favorite person in the house was Francine, but there was only so much an infant could do. He felt like a horrible parent for doubting his daughter, however he was convinced he knew his daughter pretty well. There really aren't many secrets with most two year olds.

"I don't know what she's going to do that I can't," Freddy teased. Jackie pouted and hugged themselves tightly. Francine went away when Jackie wanted her to and didn't appear when Jackie didn't want her to. She was much better than Freddy right then.

"She's gonna… I dunno. She's gonna do something," Jackie mumbled. Freddy shook his head in amusement. Jackie was not as amused, but they didn't say anything about it. All their words were running out in the head. They were tired. If they just closed their eyes…

Freddy sighed as Jackie fell asleep before Freddy could say anything. Jackie started breathing softly, but whether that was real or simulated was up for debate. It didn't matter. Freddy just stood up to leave. Jackie didn't need Freddy hovering. Jackie could sleep by themselves. Freddy thought about getting Francine since Jackie wanted her around so much, but he decided against it. She didn't want him to talk to her.

Chapter Text

Jackie didn't feel sick anymore. However, they did not want to leave their box. This fact greatly annoyed Toy Chica, but there wasn't much she could do. She was still determined to get Jackie out of the box despite that.

"Jackie, you need to get out of your box. Hiding in there won't get you out of this," Toy Chica called out. She knocked on the outer flaps of Jackie's box. Jackie didn't respond. They were ignoring Toy Chica to the best of their ability. Toy Chica wasn't having this. She had worked with Jackie on preparing this day for so long. She banged her fist on Jackie's box and waited.

"No! I'm gonna make a fool of myself!" Jackie shouted from inside the box. They very much convinced of this and no one could talk them out of that. Jackie had tried to talk themselves out of it and failed, so why should they listen to someone else.

"I'm going to be right there with you. You're not staying in there all day," Toy Chica assured sternly. Jackie whimpered. Toy Chica sighed. The closet had never acted so anxious before, minus their fear of water. Jackie was very scared of water. They were way too scared of water in fact, but they were not scared of people. Jackie loved people. They lived toe be around people and talk to people and generally annoy people.

"I'm not doing anything!" Jackie whined. Toy Chica wasn't having almost at her ropes end when she got an idea. She pushed herself off of the box since she was leaning on it and started walking towards the stairs. She stopped right in front of them.

"Oh, Francine! I need your help!" Toy Chica called upstairs in a sing-song voice. She waited at the base of the stairs for a response. At some point she heard shuffling and small, angry stomps heading towards the stairs. Toy Chica giggled. Francine was just like her mom and it was adorable. Toy Chica barely even noticed the angry part of the situation.

"What? I'm a little busy," Francine grumbled loudly. Her bad mood was clearer now. However, she decided to go to bed pretty late last night no matter what either of her parents said, so this wasn't exactly shocking news.

"Jackie won't leave her little box, so I need your help. You're the Jackie-whisperer after all," Toy Chica elaborated flatteringly. She was willingly to let the sass slide since Francine was busy arguing with Freddy. They were still fighting. Toy Chica had decided not to take a side. She had only met Puppet once, so she didn't know any nuances about the situation. Francine wouldn't tell her either and Freddy just said it wasn't important.

"Oh! I completely forgot you guys were going to the Pizzaplex today. I want to come!" Francine exclaimed. She bounced on her heels excitedly as she thought about everything that could happen. Then she bolted to meet her mom.

"No…" Jackie groaned as Francine ran down the stairs as fast as tiny legs would carry her. They could carry her very fast actually. She ran up to her mom and started pulling on Toy Chica's hand to get her to walk. She was quite a determined two year old. Though, Toy Chica didn't pose any resistance to walking towards the living room where Jackie had placed their box to hide in.

"I'm not going," Jackie said defiantly. Toy Chica rolled here eyes. She was almost one hundred percent sure that Jackie had said that at least two other times in the conversation. The two had been going in circles for god knows how long.

"I'm opening your box! You're not getting out of this that easily!" Francine teased. She grinned as she pried open Jackie's box and hoped inside. Jackie yelped and Francine practically cackled. Then what Toy Chica could only assume was a scuffle ensued. The situation was quite amusing to her. She was glad Jackie seemed to be losing though. She'd have been cornered otherwise.

"Get out!"

"Nope!"

"I said get out!"

"Never!"

"Fine, fine!" Jackie relented. They popped their head out of their box as Francine hurdled herself over the edge. Jackie looked defeated when they rested the side of their face on the edge of the box. It was funny in a weird way.

"There. So, you're going to take me with you?" Francine asked expectantly. Toy Chica nodded, which caused Francine to beam in return. She had gotten more invested in Jackie than she had planned, but that happened with most of her 'projects' as she liked to call them. Freddy wasn't doing a good job with Jackie as his project anyways.

"It's gonna be a train wreck!" Jackie cried out. Francine reached up to pat Jackie's head sympathetically. She may have just tackled the, inside of the box, but that was for Jackie's own good. She had a method to her madness.

"MapBot is going to love you, Jackie!" Toy Chica countered surely and excitedly. Jackie didn't seem to believe her. They started shrinking away from the top of their box and back into it before Francine grabbed one of their pigtails. She held on with the help of her magic as Jackie was much bigger than her and made of metal. Jackie could drag down Francine, if Francine didn't use magic, in five seconds tops.

"Even with the murderous version of me?" Jackie murmured. Toy Chica nodded, but only after her heart melted at how sad Jackie looked. She definitely like Jackie more than Funtime.

"It's not you, so don't worry," Francine reassured convincingly. Jackie let their arms fall out of the box and hang limply as they mulled over Francine's words. They did not believe Francine, but they were not going to tell Francine that. That would be rude even if it was honest. Freddy was a confusing person who didn't explain socializing very well. Freddy still expected Jackie to just magically understand it one day. Freddy could be dumb sometimes.

"If you insist…" Jackie mumbled as they hauled themselves over the lip of their box. They didn't know why they felt so nervous. They had been so confident until the reality him them. Nevertheless, mission get Jackie out of their box was accomplished.

Jackie paced on the second floor of the Pizzaplex. They had a pit of anxiety in their stomach longer than the slide that twisted around itself, which resided in Jackie's box. Francine and Toy Chica stood next to them as they were trying to be supportive. The thing is, being invested in anything doesn't exactly lend itself to patience. Francine may understand many things including emotions, but she felt emotions like any other toddler.

"Jackie, MapBot is right in the in the center of the atrium. You should go say hi!" Toy Chica suggested enthusiastically. Jackie didn't even pause to respond. They just kept pacing. They were going to wear a hole in their rubber shoes at this rate.

"I swear I'm going to explode before I even get a word out," Jackie retorted. Francine rolled her eyes as she was fed up with Jackie's antics. So, she floated off of the ground behind Jackie and shoved them over the railing. Jackie fell all the way over the edge and a metallic splat sounded throughout the entire atrium. Francine looked rather smug.

"Francine!" Toy Chica yelled angrily. She was not as smug. Francine looked at her mom and rolled her eyes. Toy Chica wanted to shake her daughter sometimes, and this was one of those times. Francine had inherited her mom's sass, and her mom hated it and loved it at the same time.

"I can't see them letting us drag them down there, ever, so I did it the easier way. Besides, it will take a lot more to break Jackie than falling down two stories, mom," Francine explained nonchalantly. Toy Chica looked down at the somewhat pathetic mess that was Jackie lying face first on the dirty Pizzaplex floor. She wanted to scold Francine, but she didn't.

"You know what, you make a good point," Toy Chica reluctantly agreed. Jackie would've never let anyone make them do anything they didn't want to without a fight. Francine might be able to overpower Jackie, but Jackie was almost pure metal and Toy Chica had zero magic.

Meanwhile, Jackie was hurriedly peeling themselves off of the floor. This was not a good look. They scrambled to a kneeling position to at least regain their bearings. They felt like their insides were being squeezed out of their chest specifically. Though, it didn't feel like the Mimic. The Mimic's rage and desire to hurt people was like sitting to close to a campfire or eating anything spicy with no spice tolerance. There was none of that.

"Are you okay?" a robotic voice inquired. Jackie looked up to see non other than MapBot. All of Jackie's thoughts came to a standstill. MapBot's face looked like any other S.T.A.F.F. Bot to most people, but MapBot's was different to Jackie. Then, something stood out to Jackie.

"I thought you just said 'Please take a map'?" Jackie asked with true curiosity. Mapbot froze. She held one of her maps in her hands and started fidgeting with it as if doing that would make her disappear. Jackie giggled. Why were they so nervous earlier? If MapBot was just as nervous to talk to Jackie as well as vice versa, Jackie had no reason to be nervous. That realization felt amazing. Jackie's insides weren't being squeezed anymore.

"Um, no? I just do that so people leave me alone. Sorry if that's rude, but you know how customers get," MapBot explained awkwardly. Jackie nodded knowingly. The little girl banging on their box asking, no, demanding chicken nuggets just a few days ago was what immediately came to mind.

"Why are you talking to me then? That seems counter-in… counter-in-two-eh… It wouldn't work," Jackie stuttered. Then their face went red again. How could they forget that failure was a possibility? Just because MapBot appeared to like Jackie know didn't mean that feeling was set in stone. Jackie could theoretically mess this up so badly that MapBot started to hate them. The tight feeling Jackie's chest returned.

"Counterintuitive. Anyways, I've seen you a round a few times and we talked that one time even though we didn't really-"

"Map! Where did you wander off- Oh. You're talking to him," a random security bot said with disdain. Both Jackie and MapBot tensed up. MapBot slowly turned around to see someone she appeared to recognize.

"Uh, yeah actually. What's it to you?" Mapbot sassed unconfidently. Jackie giggled again. Mapbot was a lot more lovable when she weren't putting on an act. She even had a good act. Jackie was falling more and more in love with MapBot by the second. MapBot was just perfect! She even knew where things were. Jackie got lost fairly frequently.

"As one of your many siblings, I think he's is weird," the security bot argued rudely. Jackie felt a pang of hurt at that comment. Yeah they were weird, but no one needed to point it out. No one had pointed it out. Freddy did point it out, but he pointed out behaviors and that felt different to Jackie.

First of all, rude. Second of all, leave me alone!" Mapbot argued back. Jackie wanted to shrink into the shadows behind them and crawl inside their box. How could they let themselves get dragged out if it's protection. Francine was a toddler, and infant practically! Jackie felt their fans began to work harder to keep their internal systems functioning as well as tears brimming in the corner of their eyes. They didn't like crying.

"Well excuse me for looking out for you," the security bot muttered. They turned around in a sweeping manner and rolled away. MapBot sighed a sigh of relief and released the map she was gripping tightly ever so slightly. It was too creased to be given away now.

"Sorry about him. James takes being a security bot a little too seriously," MapBot said in an attempt to clam the situation. They seemed rather concerned for Jackie, but Jackie didn't notice. They had gone into the shadows to hide, but now the darkness was scaring them. They weren't thinking clearly anymore. This is why they wanted to stay in their box! They were rough enough around the edges to cut themselves and it hurt a lot.

"James is one of the ruder ones, but most are fairly tame with new people!" MapBot tried to reassure. They rolled closer to Jackie so they could better help the predicament even if they didn't understand it. Then Jackie let out a sob. They felt pathetically.

"Oh- Um, take a deep breath. We can go find whoever you came with!" MapBot suggested. They grabbed Jackie's hands and dragged them towards the stairs and thus into the light. Jackie let out a sigh of relief immediately. MapBot paused and smiled at Jackie. She thought they were so cute, bit that train of thought was cut off by Jackie hugging them suddenly.

"Thanks for not hating me…" they mumbled. MapBot was surprised, but she didn't pull away. She didn't want to pull away. She wanted to say something, anything actually, but Jackie bolted before MapBot could get a word in. MapBot could ask Glamrock Freddy for Jackie's number probably…

Chapter Text

Jackie liked ice cream, but they couldn't really taste ice cream. They could taste most things, but not hot or cold things. It has to be room temperature. So, Jackie just ate ice cream for the experience. The coldness in their mouth was nice and ice cream without add-ins had a cool texture.

Today, the entire family was getting ice cream. They couldn't leave Jackie home alone, that would be stupid, so they bright the silky jester. This did require them to teleport instead of taking the car, but no one really cared. At said ice cream shop, Francine ordered a strawberry, vanilla swirl. Jackie ordered the same thing because Francine was their favorite person in the house. She let Jackie sleep next to her bed when Jackie was scared.

Jackie bite their ice cream since they couldn't feel pain from the cold. They wouldn't be able to do that for a while. However, they did spit out the ice cream almost as fast as they had yanked it from the teller's hand and sat down. It was only two footsteps for Jackie.

"…Is everything okay with your ice cream?" Freddy asked cautiously. Francine and Toy Chica stared at Jackie in confusion. Jack stared at the remainder of their ice cream. They could taste it, which should've been good. But why did it taste bad? Jackie had eaten plenty of strawberries as it was the only they'd eat for a week straight, and they liked lists of vanilla deserts that weren't too cold to taste.

"It tastes bad," Jackie whined. They immediately shut their mouth after that. They hadn't meant to whine. It was ice cream, ice cream they should like too. Freddy grabbed the ice cream cone out of Jackie's hands gingerly. Then, he took a taste of it himself.

"It tastes normal to me, Jackie," Freddy pointed out. Jackie shook their head vehemently. That ice cream definitely tasted wrong. Francine tasted it and then Toy Chica did the same. They all had the same verdict. The. Ice. Cream. Tasted. Normal. Jackie refused the ice cream back, so Toy Chica ate it in one bite. Jackie was a little miffed, but they brushed past it. It was a speck of dust in the grand scheme of things.

"We can get you plain vanilla. You'd probably like that," Francine suggested. Jackie furrowed their brows in thought. They did not want more ice cream. The previous ice cream cone had ruined ice cream for them forever, but they didn't want to dare risk Francine getting upset.

"Fine, but I'm only trying it," Jackie stipulated. Francine rolled her eyes, though she was smiling while doing so. She asked Freddy for his wallet and scampered off to the window of the ice cream shop. She bought the desired item and ran back to Jackie. She ran so fast she was able to leap onto the bench Jackie was sitting on to stand next to them. It was especially impressive since her eyes met the edge of said bench almost exactly.

"Thank you," Jackie muttered. They didn't want the ice cream still, but they were somewhat happy to oblige Francine. They took a very small lick of the ice cream. They tried and failed to suppress a smile. It tasted normal.

"Do you like it?" Francine questioned in a slightly teasing tone. Jackie pouted, but took a bite of their ice cream. Freddy grimaced at the sight, but went back to eating his ice cream sundae. Though, it had melted into a chocolate sludge by now. Everyone kept enjoying their ice cream, and so was Francine. The thing is, she wasn't just enjoying her ice cream. She was starting to compile a list.

Chapter Text

Jackie had thought about that encounter with MapBot over and over and over again. Toy Chica, Freddy, and Francine tried to comfort them, but Jackie wasn't hearing it. Their chances were dead. They could never show their face in the Pizzaplex again. Their life was over.

Today, Jackie was lying sprawled out on their stage. Michael had given Jackie a pop-tube, partially to annoy Freddy and partially to keep Jackie from losing it. Michael didn't like loud noises anymore than Jackie did. Freddy was, indeed, very annoyed. The only walls of the pizzeria that sufficiently blocked out sound was the ones of the security office. However, this day was unlike the previous three days of Pop-tube torture.

Freddy was suppressing a smirk as he walked over to Jackie. Jackie was compressing and stretching their pop-tube like usual. Freddy wasn't fazed this time. He had a letter in his hand his brother had given him.

"Oh, Jackie! I have a surprise," Fredy called out. Jackie immediately perked up and rolled over so they could scramble to their feet. They winced as they felt one of their metal parts jab into their new organic parts. The slow transformation had been causing similar issues. Jackie's mechanical body was made to compress and stretch. Their endoskeleton wasn't exactly a stationary piece of tech.

"What is it?" Jackie asked excitedly. They bounded over to Freddy as fart as they could, which was rather fast. Freddy held out the letter in his hand, making sure to add a bit of dramatic flare. It was similar to a stance one would take before dancing with someone.

"Ooh! What does it say?" Jackie puzzled as they took it from Freddy. Freddy blinked at Jackie. He didn't know what to say. Jackie stared at Freddy expectantly. The two stared at each other, waiting for the other to say or do something. Freddy was dumbfounded. Jackie was acting as normal and bubbly as ever. The scene was odd.

"You do know how to read right?" Freddy questioned incredulously. Jackie made a 'kind of' gesture with one of their hands. Freddy sighed. He gestured for Jackie to hand the letter back over. He would read it, though he doubted this method would garner the same reaction.

"Dear Jackie. I hope this letter doesn't seem too forward, but knowing you I doubt it. I know we haven't talked much, but I'd love to get to know you more. We can go out to do something sometime! I'm looking forward to seeing you. Sincerely, MapBot," Freddy read out. Jackie was frozen in shock. Then they fell backwards like a cartoon character. Maybe they had been watching too much Looney Tunes with Francine.

"What was that noise?" Michael asked from the security office. Freddy carefully stepped over Jackie and walked closer to the hallway Michael was in. Jackie needed a second to get out of shock anyways.

"Jackie got asked out. They're surprised," Freddy explained. Michael started laughing, almost cackling. Freddy waved the letter in Michael's direction to seal the deal. Michael eventually got his laughter under control enough to stand up once again. Michale sat on the ground a surprising amount. He wouldn't have a desk if he had it his way.

"I'm surprised too? Who made that stupid decision?" Michael asked while still giggling. Freddy looked back at Jackie to make sure they weren't hearing what Michael said. He then frowned at Michael in the way a disappointed parent would.

"Mapbot did. I'm surprised Jackie didn't scare him off…" Freddy muttered. Michael walked over to Francine to get a look at the letter himself. He read it slowly, as he read everything slowly, but her looked intrigued once his brain finally bothered to process the words. He was just as much of a drama queen as his siblings. Freddy managed to snatch the letter back just as Jackie was recovering from their fall.

"Freddy…" Jackie whined. Freddy walked over to Jackie and helped them to their feet. Jackie was shaking from anxiety. They had an idea of dating and love that was very idealistic. This was real. There was a real, palpable fear of failure. They would fail. They were sure of that.

"Take a deep breath. There's one more thing in the envelope," Freddy redirected. Jackie looked at the seemingly empty envelope in Freddy's hand. Michael ran over as soon as he heard what Freddy said. He wanted in on the gossip. It truly was a wonder why Evan and Lizzie liked drama. All three people in the pizzeria gathered around this envelope as Freddy pulled out a map. A map with a large, painted heart on it.

Michael patted Jackie on the back with a big grin on his face. Freddy started talking about how he would figure out her to contact MapBot for Jackie. However, Jackie didn't feel like they were there. Their ears were ringing. They felt weird. Why did they feel weird. Shouldn't they be happy?

Why did they feel like they didn't deserve this?

Chapter Text

Jackie wanted to hide in their box all day again. They wanted to disappear. They had no idea how going on a date was supposed to work. They didn't think they were good enough, plain and simple. They were going to make a fool of themselves.

However, Francine wasn't having this. She was going to get Jackie to go on that date if it was the last thing she did. She knocked on Jackie's box as she stood outside. She heard an unintelligible and muffled response from inside the box. She hauled herself onto the top of the music box and knocked again. This time she didn't get a response.

"Jackie! Open up!" she demanded. She hard a yelp. Jackie was either being stubborn or something was wrong. Francine highly doubted something was actually wrong, but do her due diligence couldn't possibly hurt.

"No! Go away!" Jackie yelled. Francine sighed. She pried the other side of the lid up and flung it off. She hoped down, almost face planting in a box of clothes. She got up and saw Jackie sitting on the ground, angrily sewing something. Jackie waked over to them, but Jackie turned their back to the child. Francine disregarded this and sat next to Jackie. She was going to win whatever this fight was really about.

"I'm not leaving. MapBot is waiting for you," Francine informed sternly. Jackie pouted, stabbing the needle they were using into the fabric sections of their arm as if it was pin cushion. Francine grimaced. She had no idea how much flesh Jackie had a part of them, but that would hurt regardless.

"I'm busy," Jackie insisted. Their voice wavered like they wanted to cry. Though, they weren't going to cry in front Francine. Their big, 'stupid' emotions weren't Francine's problem. Francine carefully plucked the needle out of their arm, pressing her finger against the small hole to seal it up with her magic. She was one hundred percent sure that Jackie would've fallen apart by now if her and her dad didn't put them back together.

"What are you making?" Francine inquired. Jackie paused, running one of their hands over the patches of leather they were working with. They hadn't made many bags, and most of those were totes, but they could work with leather.

"A bag, like the ones mailmen have in those old movies," Jackie explained quietly. They had been making it for MapBot, even if they weren't sure if they were ever going to get enough courage to see her again. They kept the letter MapBot had sent them and the map, though they still couldn't read it. Francine hummed. Peering at the mismatched bag in the dark. It wasn't completely made yet, but the vision was obvious.

"Oh, why?" Francine probed knowingly. Jackie pressed their palms into the floor so their entire body wouldn't shake. They knew their thoughts about not being good enough was objectively wrong. MapBot obviously didn't think the same things. The letter they couldn't read proved as much.

"Um, it's for MapBot. I don't really have full pieces of leather to use, but I think it's nice enough," Jackie explained. Francine nodded. Jackie slowly started sewing the pieces together once more. The inside of the fabric was quite messy, but Jackie could cover it up with some of the other fabric they had. They wondered if it would be pretty enough. Though, they might have been projecting with that question.

"I don't really know if I can give it to them, but I still made it!" Jackie exclaimed as their voice shook. Francine patted their leg as Jackie kept sewing. She watched in silence as Jackie kept working. She figured things could wait for this gift.

"I think you should give it to them," Francine remarked after a while of silence. Jackie put the sewing needle in their arm once again as their hands were shaking too much to continue to sew. They couldn't go anywhere today. They would absolutely lose it. Francine wrapped her tiny arms around Jackie's. Jackie's throat let a small, tiny, definitely not heartbreaking cry.

"I can get dad to help you reschedule. You can even write them a letter," Francine comforted. Jackie smiled slightly. They absolutely could not write, but the idea was enticing. Actually, they might be able to get Toy Chica to be able to write it for them.

"Thanks, but I really want to stay in here," Jackie mumbled. Francine patted their leg and stood up. She could get out of the box herself. She was the only who could do that. She floated towards the ceiling, disappearing into it. That wasn't the same way Jackie left, but they supposed it was more of Francine's weird magic. Jackie didn't understand magic and they never really would. They didn't really care to. Besides, they needed to finish the bag.

Chapter Text

Mapbot hummed to the tune of the Glamrock Anthem. Jackie figured they must've heard it a million times, but they didn't mind MapBot humming it. MapBot had grown fond of the 80s music instead of tired of it. Most of the other S.T.A.F.F. Bots thought it was weird, but they thought MapBot was weird in general. They didn't love their little sister any less, yet their curiosity hurt as it came from a place of confusion.

Jackie turned their head to look at MapBot. Jackie's back was flat against the cold floor, but they didn't care. There weren't many places to lay down in the Pizzaplex that the others wouldn't find them. They could go to the West Arcade, but DJ Music Man was a snitch. He was also loud.

Jackie took in the face of their girlfriend. Their faceplate was perfectly round and dent-free aside from a small dot where there nose would be. Mapbot had fallen down the stairs after they were first assembled. Jackie thought it was funny, even if MapBot was thoroughly embarrassed. Though, she was embarrassed about a lot of things. Like the small fuzz of fibers caught in the seem between her faceplate and the back of her head.

Jackie liked everything about MapBot. She was perfect in their eyes. Jackie tightened their grip around MapBot's hand. MapBot kept humming the tune, the tune starting to get stuck in Jackie's head. They giggled. They didn't really care as long as it reminded them of her.

"What are you laughing at?" Mapbot asked cheekily, turning their head on the same fashion as Jackie. Jackie shrugged. They didn't think MapBot would appreciate them laughing at her humming. Jackie didn't want her to stop. MapBot's humming sounded like soft techno music. Jackie wondered if they could get even more infatuated with their partner.

"Uh huh… Well, keep laughing at nothing," MapBot joked. Jackie kept giggling. MapBot rolled onto her side with some effort as she had no legs, but she was used to it. None of the S.T.A.F.F. Bots had legs. Jackie rolled over too. They could see more of her faceplate now.

"I'm not laughing at nothing. I laugh when I'm happy!" Jackie argued playfully. Mapbot snickered, reaching out for Jackie's face. She knew that Jackie didn't express emotions like a normal person. She didn't know why, but she didn't need to. She had gotten used to Jackie's expressions by then. Jackie scooted closer to MapBot, curling so that they wouldn't accidentally shove her when they stretched.

"It's gonna get dark soon," Jackie mumbled offhandedly. They weren't supposed to stay at the Pizzaplex after dark for obvious reasons. Jackie would rather stay at the Pizzaplex all night for some night, but they decided to not argue. However, they liked to leave before it got dark.

"Do you turn into some sort of Eldritch horror at night? You always leave so early," MapBot asked with a small jab. Jackie giggled once again, but it wasn't genuine. They hadn't told MapBot about much of their old life. They said they had been in storage for a while, but they only mentioned the part about them being turned off. Not mention that they hadn't even said anything about what the bits and pieces they remembered from before storage.

"I have a curfew," they groaned dramatically. Jackie pushed themselves off of MapBot to roll onto their back dramatically. MapBot laughed before sitting up with the help from a nearby table. She put her hat back on her head. Jackie looked so cute to them then.

"I don't even have a curfew. Have you really broken that many fire extinguishers?" MapBot continued to joke. Jackie started to blush. It was fairly light since their circulatory system hadn't fully developed yet, but their entire face would've turned bright red otherwise. They had mentioned their hatred towards fire extinguishers before. Mapbot had thought it was funny luckily, but Jackie regretted opening their mouth as soon as they said it.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Jackie deflected poorly. MapBot burst out laughing. Jackie pouted and sat up. MapBot pulled herself closer to Jackie, but Jackie didn't resist. Jackie actually rested their head on MapBots.

The two sat in the silence for a small amount of time. Jackie didn't mind the pause, even if they really wanted to go home before the sun set. Jackie brought their knees up against their chest and wrapped their arms around MapBot. MapBot started humming the Glamrock Anthem again. They both felt so cozy. The cold concrete and sound of poorly installed machinery did nothing to dampen their feeling.

"I really should get going-" Jackie began. Then MapBot put a hand up. Jackie immediately stopped talking, thought it was mostly because they couldn't figure out why MapBot was smirking like that. She didn't really smirk. It just wasn't like her.

Suddenly, Jackie was met with a faceplate against theirs. They were momentarily even more confused before it hit them. It was a kiss, their first kiss. Jackie wanted to explode from delight. They swished their hands from side to side. Mapbot had to lean away so she didn't get hit. Sue eventually managed to sneak her head back under Jackie's arm. She wasn't going to let them leave just let.

Chapter Text

"I got in trouble for opening a portal for you last time," Francine reiterated. Jackie just increased the intensity of their puppy eyes. They really wanted to visit Sun and Moon. Jackie really didn't care about Freddy's rules.

"Fine! But don't use those puppy eyes on me again," Francine relented. Jackie cheered. They were going to see Sun and Moon. Jackie missed their sort of family members. They watched as Francine made a circle in the air, projecting a hole in space and time into the air to her side. She stepped back and gestured for Jackie to enter so she could close it before he grandfather noticed.

"By- Wait… I have an idea!" Jackie exclaimed with a smirk on their face. Francine groaned. Suddenly the back of her shirt was grabbed and she was pulled into the portal she never intended to enter. She was going to punch Jackie one of these days.

"We're here!" Jackie yelled out. Francine squirmed to get away from Jackie's grip since she was still being held by the neckline of her shirt. Jackie eventually set her on the ground with great care. Francine looked around to see where they were. They were in Sun and Moon's house. The house seemed rather empty, but Francine just wanted to go home. She couldn't even rat Jackie out without telling on herself.

"Jackie, get out of our house!" Moon screamed from his room. Jackie pouted, putting hands over their ears. Francine frowned. She liked Moon because he was cool and would be serious with her, but Jackie was like one of her pets. They were all adults, but you better prepare to die if you insult them.

"We kind of can't! They pulled me into my portal!" Francine screamed back. It was silent for a few moments. Moon was getting increasingly more scared of this toddler each time he saw her. He eventually opened his bedroom door and slowly walked down the Astor's. He stood in front of Jackie and Francine like a child who just got scolded. Francine smiled a little. Jackie smiled a lot.

"Hi Moon. Can you send me back. I kind of don't want to get grounded," Francine said while exaggerating her baby voice. Jackie pouted, hanging their arm and entire upper body down. They looked so upset.

"I guess not after all… Why am I even here?" Francine asked incredulously. Jackie thought for a few moments, and then they shrugged. Francine felt her magic swell up in her body. Jackie was asking to get thrown into a wall. Francine wouldn't do that though. She didn't want to hurt Jackie. She was only frustrated. However, Jackie was completely oblivious to the level of which Francine was pissed off.

"Uh, Francine," Moon called over quietly. He gestured for Francine to come closer. Francine obliged since Jackie was distracted by some fairly large holes in the wall. Moon crouched down to Francine's height, even if it wasn't quite low enough.

"Can't you get him to leave? You know we really don't like them," Moon whispered. Francine smiled a forced smile. She gestured for Moon to lean closer. She had some words for the former daycare attendant.

"Listen, they came to see you and Sun. They like to spend time with you. If you have a problem with them, tell it to them. They're an adult," Francine scolded quietly. Moon would've been sweating bullets if he had the ability to sweat. He didn't remember Francine being this scary. He watched as she walked back over to Jackie, trying to get them to not stick their fingers into the holes Jack so kindly poked.

"Jackie!" Jack yelled from the balcony. Jackie looked up and their face immediately lit up. They ran right past Moon, nearly knocking him over, and up the stairs. Francine watched as Jack and Jackie acted like little kids who hadn't seen their best friend in forever.

"Moon? What's going on?" Sunn asked as he poked his head out of the kitchen. Moon pointed up at the chaotic duo on the hallway balcony. They were chattering about things they wanted to do and what not, Jackie talking a lot faster than Jack. Sun sighed. Francine had a lot less patience for Sun as she had no real attachment to him, but she had even less patience for him after his child had ripped out one of her feathers.

"Hi Sun," she greeted out of obligation. She could have a few centimeters left on the fuse thread to her bomb of frustration and still be polite. Sun's mood immediately switched up, waving at her.

"Hi Francine! I haven't seen you since- nevermind! Did you come with Jackie?" Sun asked in his daycare voice. Francine made a 'kinda' gesture with her hand. Sun nodded as if he understood what Francine was trying to say. He didn't understand at all, but such is the way with toddlers. Francine was a little irked he acted like he understood when she was more than happy to explain, but she was tired of grinding her teeth and moved on.

"The ceiling has glowing stars on them!?" Jackie shrieked. Jack nodded vigorously and grabbed Jackie's hand to lead them to the basement. The two ran past Moon once again and disappeared into the basement.

"Those two are a headache and a half," Sun mumbled. Francine ignored Sun's comment. She was planning on following Jack and Jackie. She would talk to Moon, but Sun would probably dumb down the conversation. She did exactly what she said she would. Moon was too busy talking to Sun to send her home. She also wanted to stay just incase either brother needed to be set on fire.

The play in the basement was uneventful. Jack gave Jackie a tore. Jack ate sponges and Jackie tried them. Jackie didn't like them for the same reason Jack did, but no harm no foul. Francine just rifled through the cabinets to try and steal Lunar's snacks.

"We should do a spy mission," Jack suggested while him and Jackie were sitting on the floor. Jackie nodded excitedly. This caught Francine's attention, who was eating Lucky Charms dry. She knew spying on people didn't lead to anything good most of the time, but this was just a game. She would just follow behind them. She could be invisible so no one would know she's there.

"How do you play spies though?" Jackie asked curiously. Jack began to explain how they'd crawl on the floor and get as close to a conversation as possible. Jack explained how they used to play with Dazzle, but Dazzle wasn't really good at it. Francine was living for the Dazzle slander.

Eventually Jack and Jackie made it to the actual playing part. They quietly crawled up the stairs and Francine floated invisibly after them. The two look so silly crawling on the floor. It was endearing. They crawled all the way to Sun and Moon, staying undetected by going through the kitchen. Francine didn't know Jackie couch be so quiet.

"I mean, he keeps coming by. Is he that dumb?" Sun inquired suspiciously. Francine frowned, but she kept her cover. She wasn't going to set Sun on fire in front of Jack and Jackie, even if the fire would be figurative.

"I don't really think he's all there in the head. He was in storage alone for sixty years after all," Moon added. Francine could see Jackie visibly shrink back from the edge. Though, Jack was slowly creeping closer to his uncles. The angry look in his eyes made Francine smile. She didn't think Jack would pounce on Sun and Moon either. Jack was a good kid for the most part.

"I mean, the only thing Jack does is eavesdrop. Jackie is just an all around menace to society," Sun complained. Francine was glad Jackie had one of the worst attention spans known to man. She didn't want Jackie to be around people who hated them so much.

"I am a good eavesdropper!" Jack said from behind Sun. He had a mischievous glint in his eyes. He knew exactly what he was doing. Sun froze and Moon jumped. They had a well deserved 'oh shit' look on their faces. Francine lowered herself to the ground next to Jackie as she slowly made herself visible once more. Jackie flinched at her sudden presence, but they were rather committed to the spies bit.

"Jack! You can't do that bud," Sun chastised playfully in an attempt to brush off the situation. Jack shook his head and quickly scrambled to his feet. He looked pissed. Francine was glad Jackie made a friend out of Jack.

"You're talking shot about my friend, in front of them," Jack said matter of factly. He was channeling the days of the Creator's control on him. He could remember how uncanny he sounded with a monotone voice. That, combined with the even greater 'oh shit' moment seemed to break Sun and Moon. They froze like they were one of the non-sentient animatronics returning to a resting. Though, this was a resting state of fear.

"Jack, we didn't mean to-" Moon began.

"To him," Jack instructed while pointing at Jackie. Jackie was now half hidden behind the counter, holding back tears. Francine stood next to them protectively while holding her rattle like a weapon. She was willing to transform it into a weapon if need be, thought it was unlikely to come to that.

"Jackie, we-" Moon began once again.

"I don't want to fucking hear it!" Jackie screamed unexpectedly. Sun thanked whatever outside furies that Solar was in rest mode and Dazzle was playing with Earth. Moon was wondering what was up with people not forgiving this family all of the sudden. This may have been an extreme case, but the instances were piling up.

"Francine," Moon called on with a begging tone. Francine got the biggest smile on her face. It was almost creepy. Moon immediately regretted asking her for help. She seemed oddly protective of Jackie.

"You made this bed Moon. Now, why don't we go find Monty to open a portal for us, Jackie?" Francine said as if she was relaxed. Jackie nodded, letting Francine help them up. Sun and Moon stood there in shock. They shouldn't have been surprised Jackie was hurt by figuring out this information. The twins had always assumed everything would click into place for Jackie when they found out.

"Gosh, I haven't seen my godfather in forever," Francine remarked offhandedly. She walked out the back door hand in hand with Jackie even if it wasn't the most convenient path to take. She wasn't going to make Jackie walk past Sun and Moon again. They would stand in confusion and think about what they did. They would feel guilty. She'd make sure of that.

Chapter Text

Jackie hated their job. It was loud, and then there was the stupid Wendy's Girl. Jackie was hiding in the entrance room of their box while the girl on the outside banged and banged and banged on the box.

"Give me my nuggets!" the girl screamed. Those stupid girls equally stupid parents did nothing. They either didn't notice, or they didn't care. Either way, Jackie wanted to strangle them. They put their hands over their ears, slightly disturbing their hair. It was slowly becoming bio-organic, separating into different, wiry chunks. Toy Chica helped Jackie do it each morning.

"I said: Give me nuggets!" The girl shrieked. How she managed to get up on Jackie's stage without anyone else noticing was beyond Jackie. The pizzeria was already loud. There were so many people there that it was hard for anyone to walk around. They were so done.

"I said I don't have nuggets!" Jackie yelled back. They were quite temped to rip the head off of the Wendy's Girl, but Jackie didn't want to get yelled at. The girl kept banging on Jackie's box and screaming for nuggets. She'd go from begging and sobbing to demanding and screeching that she deserved it. She was a little narcissist in the making.

"Leave me the fuck alone!" Jackie finally snapped. They pushed their box lid open and glared down at the girl. She looked so shocked and… indignant?! The store must have had a sale on audacity or she was rich and spoiled.

"How dare you swear at me! I'm going to-" She was cut off my a swift flick to the forehead. She started screaming at the top of her lungs, but luckily it wasn't loud enough to get the attention of anyone besides the kids already watching. They thought this was hilarious. On the hand, Jackie wanted to shrivel up and die. The girl was so loud. She was crying over not getting chicken nuggets from Jackie that she could order from the kitchen.

"Oh shut up! I don't have nuggets. Go away!" Jackie screamed. The girl blinked up at Jackie, who was entirely out of their box. She looked shocked. Had no one ever said no to this brat? Jackie got told know all the time and they were only as weird as they were when they got out of storage.

"Y-you're ugly!" Wendy's Girl retaliated. Jackie started shaking. This child needed to get an attitude check. Jackie picked up the child by the armpits and underhand-tossed the girl into the crowd of kids watching. She landed with a thud and started screaming her head off. No adults looked get way. Jackie would've felt bad if hearing her cry in pain didn't feel so good.

The screaming and other sounds started to ring in Jackie's ears. They remembered a vague memory of Edwin yelling at them for something similar. That memory brought tears to Jackie's eyes, but it was so fuzzy. Everything felt fuzzy actually.

Jackie slowly steeped off the stage, carefully to not step on any kids. They did step on Wendy's Girl's dress as she was getting up, though that wasn't on purpose. Jackie didn't even notice. They walked past the crowd of kids, past the first row of tables, and past Freddy's office. They opened the front door and stepped outside. The sound of the cars only made the crushing feeling in their chest worst. There were tears in their eyes.

They kept walking away from the loudness of the pizzeria. They put their hands over their ears too. Jackie hated loud noises. They hated to so much. No one seemed to understand. Jackie felt alone. They kept walking, not entirely aware of where they were.

Suddenly they felt as if their entire body locked up. It felt like they suddenly put into a position of non-control of their body. Jackie's panicked, squished feeling only increased as they felt themselves being dragged backwards. They weren't walking, but being dragged along. Their ears were still ringing. They couldn't hear anything, not even the cars only the road. They were rather close to the road actually.

"Jackie! Oh my god. Don't walk into the road!" Freddy scolded. Jackie blinked at Freddy a few times before bursting into tears. They sobbed and cried as the world around them blurred. They heard Freddy's voice, but not what he was saying.

Everything was wrong. However, everything would get better. Nothing would be horrible forever.

Chapter Text

MapBot rolled along next to Jackie. Jackie was giving her a tour of the pizzeria. It was very small compared to the Pizzaplex, but she thought it was cute. The two rolled down the dark hallway in the back of the building.

"The homeless guy works back hear on the security office," Jackie informed. Mapbot chuckled. She was well aware Michael wasn't homeless, but the nickname Jackie gave the man still made her laugh. Jackie burst into the security office with the energy of a Broadway actor. Mapbot followed behind cautiously. Michael grumbled as he had almost spilled his coffee all over himself from being startled.

"Jackie, what the ll do you want?" Michael questioned. Jackie giddily ran over to Michael and spun the poor security guard around to face away from the cameras. Michael blinked a few times before groaning in annoyance. Jackie was the babe of their existence.

"Meet my wonderful girlfriend!" Jackie introduced excitedly. Mapbot waved nervously. Michael went from annoyed to intrigued. He shook MapBot's hand and went through the typical pleasantries. Mapbot liked Jackie's friends. Michael had never expected MapBot to be this… scared if people? It was hard to describe correctly.

"It's nice to meet you," MapBot said timidly. Michael nodded. He hopped Jackie would be less off the walls energetic now that they had someone else to spend time with. Michael didn't exactly appreciate being interrupted ever second after the customers left.

"Nice to meet you too. You'll have to excuse me, but I have to go back to work. I have things to do," Michael shooed off politely. Jackie rolled their eyes, but they took MapBot's hand and led her out of there. Jackie showed them the back, the kitchen, and the arcade area. Jackie was about to show Mapbot what the main stage looked like from the performers perspective when Freddy walked past.

"Oh, hey you two. Enjoying the tour?" Freddy inquired. Jackie nodded and MapBot gave a small yes. Mapbot adjusted their hat as Jackie helped tame the gun way onto the stage, aka. not the steps that were made for that exact purpose. Freddy turned to see Michael leaving his office to refill his coffee cup. Freddy was done with paperwork that didn't require Michael's, so he supposed he could make some small talk while Michael took a break.

"Hey, Michael. Did Jackie introduce MapBot to you? She mentioned doing that," Freddy asked to make small talk. Michael took his headphones out and took a few seconds to process the question asked to him. He couldn't function without his coffee.

"Uh yeah. MapBot's nice," Michael mumbled. He just wanted to go to the break room and get more coffee. Small talk hurt his head, or maybe that was excessive coffee intake. Glamrock Freddy said Michael was going to have a heart attack one of these days.

"I know. He's always been a mystery, but he's really nice," Freddy added. MapBot froze. It was common for the S.T.A.F.F. Bots to get misgendered. Their design was fairly androgynous and it was hard for them to tell each other apart on top of that. However, MapBot was hurt each time it happened. She was good at acting like nothing bothered her, but it did. It wasn't something she could brush off like the other S.TA.F.F. Bots did.

"Mapbot? Is everything okay?" Jackie queried quietly. MapBot nodded and continued to let Jackie dance with her on stage. MapBot couldn't dance that well due to her lack of actual legs, but MapBot let Jackie do whatever it was that they were doing. She tried to ignore the small ache in her chest. Freddy didn't mean anything by what he said. She tried to convince herself that it didn't matter.

"Are you sure?" Jackie pressed. MapBot nodded once again. She didn't want to bother Jackie with it. Jackie didn't really get the concept of gender anyways. They wouldn't understand. Besides, MapBot was enjoying the little dance.

"They seen pretty happy together," Michael commented. Freddy nodded in agreement. He was just about to let Michael go so he didn't get kicked in the shins for withholding coffee, but Michael was horrible at ending conversations. Michael didn't even want to talk to people. He just couldn't escape the trap of small talk. It was hard for most people, though Michael was downright horrible.

"I'm happy Jackie found her someone. She seems so happy with her boyfriend," Freddy replied. Jackie paused. Michael stared at Freddy in confusion. MapBot wanted to shrink in on themselves.

"I don't have a boyfriend," Jackie corrected calmly. They went right back to awkwardly dancing with MapBot. Jackie was trying their best to figure out how to dance with someone without legs. The S.T.A.F.F. Bots' lack of legs or lack of lower body at all, it depended on the model, had always been inconvenient. MapBot had never expected it to be inconvenient in this way though.

"Oh, sorry MapBot!" Freddy apologized profusely. MapBot said it was fine because it was fine now. People made mistakes. MapBot was trying to be more focused on dancing now. They were starting to actually get the hang of it.

Chapter Text

Jack, Jaq, and Jackie skipped around the Pizzaplex. Jack had managed to hijack his dad's portal, so he brought Jaq over to Jackie's dimension. Jackie let Jaq hang around their shoulders. Jackie had mentioned MapBot while they had raided the FazPad, generally making a mess of the place, so the trio was looking for Jackie's girlfriend.

"Is she pretty?" Jaq asked curiously. Jackie nodded. All the S.T.A.F.F. Bots looked the same, but MapBot had a different air to them. A certain level of aloofness towards some things and anxiety towards others. She was just plain different.

"She hands out maps right?" Jaq inquired. Jackie nodded once more. Jack was listening to the conversation intently, though their eyes were scanning the Atrium for any sight of the specific S.T.A.F.F. Bot. Jackie coughed his Foxy plush close to his chest. He had left the plushies of his parents at home so they could rest. Jackie didn't think Jack owned voodoo dolls, but anything could happen honestly.

"There she is!" Jack called out. He hoped over the railing of the second floor and Jaq launched himself after. Jackie clambered over their railing to follow their friends. The three ran towards MapBot, who was throughly surprised by the unexpected visit. She was happy to see Jackie though.

"Hi!" Jackie cooed. Then leaned their head in MapBot's creasing her hat a little. Jack and Jaq stood in front of the two with pent up excitement. MapBot hugged Jackie, trying to hide behind them. She wasn't a fan of new people. She never had been and she never will be.

"So, these are my friends. That' Jaq with a q, or JQ and that's Jack. His name is spelled normally," Jackie introduced. MapBot nodded along, taking stock of who was who. Jaq looked like Jackie but without pigtails and a lower body. Jack looked like moon but without pigtails green and orange as the color pallet. It was a very ragtag bunch.

"Nice to meet you miss!" Jack greeted excitedly. MapBot waved, still partially hidden behind Jackie. Jackie hugged her back, clinging to her like a koala bear. It was very cute.

"Nice to meet you too!" Jaq squeaked. The two others ran up to MapBot and Jackie and swarmed them in an attempt to observe the couple. Jack went over to MapBot to inspect their messenger bag full of maps, and Jaq was trying their damnedest to climb up Jackie's leg. MapBot knew Jackie could be a little much, but Jackie's friends were something else.

"I've only ever seen Jack around before," MapBot murmured. They had seen Jack causing chaos and generally being a nuisance, but the kid seemed nice enough otherwise. Jaq was another story. They had shorter, more curly looking hair than Jackie. Jaq was also covered in grime the Mop Bots would be pissed about cleaning off of the floor. Had no one ever bothered to clean Jaq?

"I'm from another dimension!" Jaq exclaimed. MapBot would've blinked in surprise if she had eye lids. She looked to Jackie to confirm this, and they nodded their head. MapBot sighed. There really was nothing normal around here as Michael liked to say.

"T-that makes sense… kinda," MapBot stuttered. She didn't know there were other dimensions, though she could probably cry to Glamrock Freddy about it later. He was the S.T.A.F.F. Bots' unpaid therapist. The bear was surprisingly good at it. The S.T.A.F.F. Bots hated everyone in the Pizzaplex, humans and other animatronics alike. Though, Glamrock Freddy was mostly well liked. He wasn't dismissive of their existence like everyone else.

"Yeah! JQ is from a dimension where everybody is the opposite," Jackie added. MapBot did not appreciate the lore dump. However, the giddy looks on everyone's faces made it somewhat worth it. MapBot could stand at least act curious.

"In what way?" she asked, her voice cracking from pure confusion. She felt like her systems were going to melt from thinking too hard. She was good at disassociating, not science fiction. Jaq stammered over a few words because they had forgotten the correct one. Eventually they gave up and flopped against the cold tile floor. The Mop Bots were really going to throw a conniption over that.

"Genderbent!" Jack answered as if he was on a gameshow. MapBot chuckled to hide her jealousy of the other version of her. That MapBot's life much, much easier. She still questioned whose bright idea it was to even program the S.T.A.F.F. Bits to have a gender? It probably had something to do with the Pizzaplex's location of Utah though.

"That's cool… Do you guys want to do something?" MapBot brushed off. Jack, Jaq, and Jackie paused to think for a moment. They could pause long though as something had shattered the silence around the group conversing.

"Jack! What the hell are you doing!?" Solar's voice boomed across the atrium. Jack froze. Jaq and Jackie were confused before they also froze. MapBot was confused. It was just Solar. He could be a little scary, but he was generally not there. He hadn't been around at all as of late actually.

"Scatter!" Jaq screeched. The screech caused MapBot to flinch, or maybe it was Jackie. It could be both. Jack and Jaq ran off immediately, bit Jackie stayed behind for a few seconds. They kissed MapBot, twice, and hugged her one last time. MapBot barely even processed that Jackie ran off after their friends. She was just plain happy.

"They're not going to find us in here, right?" Jackie asked cautiously. Jack had led all three of them to the basement of the daycare. Hardly anyone ever went down there and it showed. Water drip from the exposed pipes. Whether the liquid was from condensation or a leak was unclear.

"Nope! We probably won't get found until we want to be," Jack assured. Jaq hoped alongside their two friends with legs. They weren't too worried about the escape. No one from their dimension really cared where they went. Moonie cared a little, but not that much. Though, they did have a question for Jackie. It had been on their mind ever since they had reached the basement.

"We can sit down where thar ominous light and those old benches are," Jackie suggested while whispering. Jack had assured him no one would be able to hear them unless they came down here and that no one would even think of them hiding here multiple times, but Jackie still worried.

"Jackie?" Jaq called out as they were pulling themselves onto the slated bench. Jackie sat on the left and Jack sat on the right, giving Jaq ample space to sit. There wasn't much to do in the basement besides sit.

"Yeah?"

"Do you kiss MapBot a lot?" Jaq queried innocently. Jackie's face turned bright red. The grabbed Jack my the lip of their poorly molded on, metal hair and threw them at the shower across from the bench and ominous light. Jaq yelped and Jack burst into a fit of uncontrollable laughter. Jackie was rather proud of themselves. Now, all that was left to do was wait.

Chapter Text

"What are you doing in the kitchen at 2am?" Sun asked angrily yet sleepily. He was standing in the doorway of the kitchen, staring Moon down. Moon was in the middle of eating cereal straight out of the box like always while cooking an omelette.

"Food," Moon explained with a mouthful of Cheerios. Sun was glad he hadn't woken Solar up for this. Sun had been tempted to do so because Moon never listened to his brother, but Solar would've screamed at Moon for chewing with his mouth open. Sun only wanted everyone in the house to be asleep. He walked over to Moon and snatched the box of cereal away.

"Hey!"

"You can't be cooking at two in the morning," Sun scolded. He was very annoyed with his brother. Moon had always been a night owl, and Sun had always hated it. Moon still looked annoyed.

"You're a buzz kill," Moon pouted with food still in his mouth. Sun watched as Moon finished the omelette. He wasn't about to waste the food Moon had made. He did insist on eating half of the omelette flavored sandwich though. They quietly munched on the sandwich, both thinking about Moon's sandwich curse. The sandwich tasted good though. Suddenly, Sun noticed two beady eyes in the dark.

"Jack… Why are you up right now?" Sun groaned. Jack crawled forward, almost dragging himself across the floor. Moon snickered as he saw the kid. He looked so silly army crawling.

"Watching," Jack said matter of factly. Sun tore off a piece of his sand which and held it out to Jack like the child was a dog. Jack normally would've eaten it, almost biting Sun in the process, but he didn't take it this time. He just stared at Sun, like the former daycare attendant had personally slighted him. Sun held his hand out for a little longer, but eventually pulled back.

"Why are you watching us?" Moon questioned once he finished chewing a piece of his omelette. Jack crawled under the dining table, clinging to a chair leg. It was impressive with the way he clung to the chair since it was so much shorter than him. Molten had described Jack as a folding chair.

"Apology," Jack explained with a slight hint of anger underneath his voice. Sun and Moon looked between each other with confusion. They hadn't done anything to Jack. They actually didn't interact with the kid much period. The two scolded him sometimes, but Jack had never held a grudge because of that before. Sun thought about Jack being jealous of him, though Jack's current ire was directed at both twins.

"…For who?" Moon pressed. Jack frowned. He let go of the chair leg and crawled out from under the table. He stood up and put his hands firmly on the table. Due to his lack of pupils, it was hard to tell who exactly he was looking at. However, he was obviously glaring at something.

"Jackie," Jack answered after a while of silence. Sun grimaced and Moon let out a little 'oh.' Both knew that they definitely owed Jackie an apology, but it had been… three or four days? They hadn't cared to remember the exact date. They thought Jackie would get over it. They figured Jackie probably had gotten over it already. Sun and Moon were honestly surprised Jack remembered the incident happened.

"Well, we are sorry. We tried to tell him that," Sun placated. Jack shook his head. Remember what Moon and Moon only tried to say. It certainly wasn't going to be an apology. Jack w as forgetful, but he wasn't stupid if he didn't want to be. Though, he certainly thought he was dumb.

"Try again," he insisted. He crossed his arms. Moon sighed and looked at Sun. They had a whole conversation without words. Sun was sure Jack would forget about it. Moon thought they should just go to make Jack drop it certain. Neither of them ever thought that they could be in the wrong. They never once thought that they should actually be sorry. Jack wanted to take them.

"It won't take that long," Moon said as he stepped out of the portal. Sun grumbled and followed Moon. Sun didn't want to go. He didn't think it would be worth it. He didn't think there was a point other than to shut Jack up.

"Francine is going to chop our fucking heads off," Sun mumbled. Moon sighed. He thought Jackie wouldn't care, that they'd go right back to trying to be a little family with Sun and Moon. To Moon, Jackie was a thing. They were a thing that annoyed people and bothered people and got in the way. Moon was used to living in his little bubble of seven people. Other people weren't complex to him. They were only good or bad.

"She isn't going to do that. We're just going to talk to Freddy and Jackie, then leave," Moon comforted. They rang the doorbell and waited. They heard Freddy"s voice call out for them to hold on a second while padded feet approached the door.

"Sun! Moon! What brings you two here?" Freddy greeted. He seemed completely unaware of what was going on. Sun and Moon were glad. They didn't know how protective Freddy was of Jackie, but Francine had to have gotten her behavior from somewhere.

"Uh, we wanted to talk to Jackie. Figured he'd be happy to see us," Sun answered awkwardly. Freddy told them to hold on a moment and disappeared into the house after inviting them in. They waited there for a while since Freddy's house was like a three story maze. Sun and Moon didn't mind all that much. They waited in the living room, observing the place around them.

"You're not supposed to be here. The little chicken doesn't want you here," a voice hissed. Sun took a deep breath. He had completely forgotten CatNap existed. Moon seemed confused, but he almost burst out laughing when CatNap peeked his head above the couch he was hiding behind. He looked positively annoyed. He even had his eyes squinted.

"We were invited in. You can't kick us out," Sun retorted. Moon was still stifling his laughter, something CatNap appeared to be unfazed by. He was glaring intently at Sun. He obviously remembered his introduction to this dimension and his… unwelcoming it was.

"I don't have any allegiance to the bear. I only listen to the little chicken," CatNap argued. Sun rolled his eyes. Though, he was impressed that Francine got a giant, purple, humanoid cat to listen to her. Sun felt CatNap's eyes scanning both him and Moon. Catnap was calculating, not unlike the way he was in the game. Moon did know that the timeline of CatNap's dimension was a little different though.

"That's rich, but you really can't get us to leave," Moon chuckled. Sun giggled along with his brother. Catnap rolled his eyes. Francine wasn't going to be too happy about this turn of events. However, CatNap knew Francine wouldn't be mad at him.

"I'll tell the little chicken. She'll be so happy to see you," CatNap informed sarcastically. Sun huffed and Moon chuckled once more. There was no way that Francine would actually care what her pet cat told her in Sun and Moon's minds. Francine was two. Most two year olds didn't really see pets as anything other than toys, and most two year olds were also vaguely aware that their toys weren't real.

"Oh, Toy Chica took Jackie to the Pizzaplex. She's helping Glamrock Chica move and Jackie's doing their own thing," Freddy said as he walked back down the stairs. He seemed apologetic.

"Oh, that's fine. We'll come back another time," Moon assured. Sun grumbled something about this being a waste of time under his breath, but Freddy didn't hear him. Moon said goodbye and opened the portal back to their dimension. Once the twins were gone, Freddy looked at the balcony to search for someone in particular.

"They're gone Jackie," Freddy attested. Jackie peeked their head out from around the hallway. Freddy didn't know why Jackie didn't want to be around Sun and Moon all of the sudden, but he knew better than to ask. Jackie didn't need a reason.

Chapter Text

Francine sighed as she poured the kettle of hot water into the cup in front of Jackie. Jackie finally started drinking the tea, but Francine's was too bitter. Francine made Jackie peach tea now, which didn't bother her. Francine just liked to sigh.

"Thank you!" Jackie exclaimed. They blew on their cup as Francine poured her own. She had green tea, as bitter tasting as when you burn your tongue. She was surprised Jackie liked tea, considering their fear of water. However, Jackie didn't know tea was water and Francine wasn't going to be the one to burst their bubble.

"You're welcome, Jackie. It's no problem actually," Francine replied. She felt a strange sense of parentification towards Jackie. She didn't mind. Jackie needed someone who was willing to burn people at the stake for them until they learned to light the match themselves.

"I have a surprise for you when I'm done with my tea," Jackie teased. Francine made a small 'ooh' sound to show her intrigue. Jackie's surprise usually amounted to pieces of glass and scraps of fabric. It was quite reminiscent of a cat giving their owner dead rodents and birds as gifts. It made sense in a way, but it still felt weird. Francine had a little Treasurebox where she kept Jackie's little gifts.

"I'm exited to see it," Francine added before taking a sip of her tea. Jackie babbled as they drank their tea. Francine listened even if she didn't commit much of it to memory. She was snapped out of her half listening state when Jackie plopped their box on the ground.

"Are you getting the surprise?" Francine inquired much like a preschool teacher would. Jackie made a vocalization of agreement and continued to sort through what sounded like fabric. Suddenly they popped back out much like the jack in the box they were themed after. They were holding a onesie that looked like a CatNap toy. Catnap had gotten Francine an authentic one whenever he went back to his old dimension for old time's sake.

"That looks so pretty Jackie!" Francine cooed. Jackie smiled their signature, big, goofy smile. They handed it to Francine and waited her judgment. Francine appeared to look it over, pretending to judge it. In reality, she didn't know the first thing about sewing.

"Do you like it?" Jackie pressed. Francine nodded. She thought CatNap would like it to. It would go well with her other memorabilia. She some of her dad and her mom and CatNap obviously. She had some of her other family and other family friends. It was a way to feel close to them. Francine also liked the idea of having new pajamas.

"Thank you so much! I really love it," she verbalized. Jackie smiled even bigger. It was nice to see the, actually smile instead of the one plastered onto their faceplate. Francine loved it when Jackie shared their special interest with her.

"I'll go put it on. You could dress up too," Francine suggested. Jackie nodded, descending into their box immediately. Francine disappeared into her bathroom to change. She was excited to show everyone. She thought Michael would think it would be rather silly especially. It was well made and even looked like it had been washed. Toy Chica had been helping Jackie wash all their costumes. Francine was glad to have such a great family.

Chapter Text

Jackie laid face down in their pillow room. They felt horrible. Their stomach hurt. They wanted to disappear. There was a reason they decided to ignore people trying to get their attention. Jackie was glad they were the only person who could open the lid. Unfortunately, the conveniently forgot about Francine. She could open the box just as easily as Jackie, and that's just what she did.

"Jackie! You're late for work!" Francine called out. Jackie groaned and buried themselves under the piles of pillows and blankets. They didn't like that the powerful, magic child could open their box at will. It could get very annoying like it was now.

"Go away. I'm not going today," Jackie mumbled with no real conviction in their voice. Francine hoped around the pillow room, careful to not fall into the huge pit of pillows and blankets. She was using her magic to find Jackie, but it felt like it was muffled in the box. She was determined though. The magic box was no match for her magic.

"You can't do that without a good reason. At least make up one. Wait, don't do that. Lying is bad," Francine corrected. She hovered above the spot Jackie was underneath. She put her hand on a pillow directly above Jackie and tried her best to sense the cause of Jackie's distress.

"I'm sick!" Jackie complained. Francine would beg to differ. She also thought it would be a good idea to get Jackie out of the pit of bedding. Jackie was from sick actually. Francine reach through the last layer of pillows and grabbed Jackie's arm. With some effort, she levitated Jackie through the mess and started pulling Jackie into another room. The duck room to be exact.

"You're a meanie," Jackie pouted. Francine chuckled. She stepped into the grassy room and laid Jackie in the middle of the island. The ducks and geese in the room swarmed Jackie, sitting on them.

"Well, you're not sick. You're going to be fine," Francine assured as she sat next to Jackie's head. Jackie pouted. Francine took a piece of watermelon off of the nearby picnic table and fed it to a nearby goose. She loved geese and was glad that Jackie let her feed them regularly. Meanwhile, Jackie was a little miffed by Francine. The kid just barged in, picked them up, and told them they were being dramatic! Quite rude if you asked them.

"I am sick. My stomach hurts," Jackie retorted. Francine chuckled. She could easily explain what was going on to Jackie, but she wasn't supposed to know. Funtime Freddy didn't exactly have a filter, which worked well for an early understanding of certain things for Francine.

"I'll get mom and tell dad to leave without you. I promise," Francine informed. Jackie still pouted, but they didn't protest or bother getting up when Francine left. One duck sat on their chest and Jackie got absorbed with petting it. On the other hand, Francine threw herself over the edge of the box and into the actual house. Her parents stared at her while waiting for an answer.

"Ow. Anyways, they're not going to work today. They're fine, but I think it's better if they don't," Francine explained. Freddy and Toy Chica looked confused. Jackie didn't hate going to the pizzeria. At least they didn't say anything about hating it.

"We can't let them shirk responsibility," Freddy pointed out. Francine looked her dad in the eyes, using her biggest puppy eyes ever. Her face said "I need you to trust me.' It worked. Freddy sighed, and said goodbye to his wife and daughter. He kept in the car and Francine gestured for her mom to jump into the box after her. Jackie was still lying in the middle of the island, and a considerable amount of ducks were laying on them.

"Jackie, is something wrong?" Toy Chica inquired gently. Jackie opened one eye lid to scrutinize the situation. They wondered if Toy Chica was going to make them go to work.

"I'm sick," they finally responded. Francine shook her head. Jackie nodded in retaliation. Toy Chica was more confused than before. Jackie was fine, but they weren't? If mad no sense to Toy Chica. Nevertheless, she trusted her daughter. Francine was a smart girl and had become a good judge of character after Freddy's memory got wiped. Francine must have seen something that Toy Chica couldn't.

"Okay… Does something hurt?" Toy Chica asked as she crouched down next to Jackie. Francine sat on one of the benches, feeding the birds that flocked to her. Jackie pointed to their stomach. Toy Chica sighed in amusement. She wished Francine wouldn't be so cryptic all the time.

"I think Francine is right. You're gonna be just fine," Toy Chica comforted as she hopped Jackie's nose. Jackie glared at Toy Chica. Jackie felt dismissed. Toy Chica chuckled. No one needed to get worked up in a twist. Though, Toy Chica didn't know how to hold this conversation. Jackie was probably in a bad mood already.

"Why are you both so mean?!" Jackie caterwauled. Francine stifled her own laughter. She knew Jackie didn't understand what was happening, but it was still a little funny to her. Jackie didn't notice Francine's behavior either. No harm, no foul after all.

"We're not being mean, Jackie. I do need you to get us out of your box though," Toy Chica instructed. Francine was about to tell her mom to just walk out of the box when she remembered that her and Jackie were the only ones that could do that. Now that she thought about it, getting out of the box was almost impossible to explain. Francine had always just walked into the entrance, or the visible box space, and she'd climb out.

"Oh, I can do that. Come on," Francine stood up. She tried to magically placate the frustration of the ducks and geese since she stopped feeding then fur five seconds, but she could only make them just annoyed. Pocket dimensions sucked.

"You what? Actually, Nevermind. Come one Jackie, let's get up," Toy Chica coaxed. Jackie begrudgingly got up, grumbling the whole way. They were in the sourest mood they'd ever been in. They were convinced they were. Their stomach hurt, of course they were sick. Everyone crawled out of the box except Jackie. Jackie just popped their arms and head out. They planned on just slipping back in and going to sleep.

"Not so fast, Missy," Francine scolded. She pressed her hand against the box at the same moment that Jackie tried to slip back into their box. Jackie frowned in confusion. They couldn't slip out of the entrance. It took a lot of effort to effect whatever made the box work, but Francine was doing it.

"Get out of the box. We're trying to help you," Francine instructed forcefully. Jackie begrudgingly slunk their way out of their music box. Francine let go of the box and tried to catch her breath. Whatever that infinity box was made out of, it was magic resistant. What was it that Moon says about Star Power and magic being non compatible? Maybe that asshole was useful for something.

"You didn't need to do that!" Jackie bickered. Francine shoot Jackie an angry, exhausted look. Francine was tempted to let Jackie go back into their box and deal with this by themselves. Francine wouldn't actually do that though. She could never bring herself to do that to anyone.

"I'm going to make myself a sandwich. This is your problem, mom," Francine asserted. Toy Chica shrugged. She didn't really care. Jackie would probably focus better if it was just one person too. Francine went to the kitchen and started making herself a Nutella sandwich. No one would know and it wasn't the end of the world. She sat on the floor, taking out her little secret notebook.

She vaguely heard gasps and chuckles from the foyer. She wasn't paying attention. She looked at her notebook. It was filled with random things. It contained she found important, drawings, random things she overheard. She had a lot of conversations with Moon.

She hoped she wouldn't have to ask him any questions.

Chapter Text

Moon was minding his own business in the back office trying to stay away from everyone. He wasn't doing anything necessarily important, but he looked busy. Unfortunately, someone in particular didn't care if Moon was busy or not.

"Moon!" Francine calked out angrily. She popped in on top of his desk. She had managed to break her seal on dimensional travel by sheer force of will. Her anger may have played a part in that brute strength, but she liked the thought that she had that much raw power better. She sat on Moon's desk and took out her notebook. She had questions.

"Jesus, Mary, and Joseph! What was that for?!" Moon screeched. Francine rolled her eyes. She hadn't meant to scare Moon, but the portal was open in haste. She wouldn't have landed on his desk if she could help it.

"Oh, shut up. I have questions," Francine brushed aside. Moon sighed and slumped back in his chair. He was ready to be interrogated. Francine took one of Moon's pens and took a deep breath. She would get her answers.

"So, could Star Power be used to make a pocket dimension?" She asked bluntly. Moon blinked at Francine. He didn't know how to answer his question or if he even should. Why did Francine even care? She had magic. Moon ran through everything in his head. Francine's question was simple at surface level. You could, but it wasn't easy.

"Um, yeah. Why?" Moon finally answered. Francine scribbled something in her notebook. Moon looked at the paper, but the handwriting was illegible. Francine hummed, thinking of what she would say.

"Jackie's box. How could you test for it?" Francine questioned. Moon thought about it for a second. He didn't know much about Star Power, but he knew the basics. That being said, Francine's question didn't make sense to him.

"Everything is made of Star Power in some way," Moon explained. Francine scribbled something down, crossing out others. Moon didn't know Francine could write. He also didn't know how she could read her own handwriting. It looked like literal scribbles to him. He peered at Francine!s notebook once more. The writing was cursive. He should probably try and learn to read cursive at some point.

"You said magic couldn't affect Star Power, at least not very well," Francine pointed out. Moon thought again. Francine had always loved pick Moon's brain, but she had never been so pushy about it. She was angry. Moon still didn't understand why. He hadn't thought for one second that Francine would care about Jackie. He didn't think anyone would actually care for them. He didn't think at all actually.

"Most things aren't pure Star Power. They're things," he elaborated. Francine took more notes quickly. She was on a mission. Moon sat there patiently. He didn't think this interaction meant anything. Kids were curious. Francine was just a kid.

"That makes no sense," Francine pointed out while she was still writing. Moon paused once again. He didn't know how to explain what he meant. He stared at his desk in confusion. Francine sat there patiently. She would wait as long as she needed to. She needed to prepare herself to get grounded when she went back. She would be in so much trouble.

"I can look at his box if you want," Moon suggested eventually. Francine rolled her eyes at Moon brushing aside her question. She used to respect Moon. It was hard to think that she ever did that now. Moon waited with bated breath for Francine to say something. A slight feeling of dread started to creep up his spine. Francine was intimidating.

"You really think I'd let you?" Francine queried incredulously. Moon blinked. He didn't understand why Francine would do that. He knew that she heard what he said, but he could apologize. Wouldn't she want him to apologize?

"What are you talking about?" Moon asked while chuckling uncomfortably. Francine stared Moon down. If looks could kill, hers would. Moon guessed that she could make it do that if she wanted to. It would take a lot of energy though.

"I'm not dumb, Moon. I was literally there when you said what you said. I knew what thought before that too," Francine condemned. Moon felt his heart drop into his stomach. Toddlers weren't supposed to understand. Why would Francine even care? Moon would've thought that Jackie would scare Francine. Moon was comforted by the fact that Francine was a better person than he was though.

"Francine-"

"I don't care," she stated matter of factly. She closed her notebook. She didn't think it was worth it to be here much longer. She could probably talk to Monty instead. Her godfather would probably be a lot nicer about the situation. Monty was worried out by Jackie too, but they were polite about. Francine had only figured going to Moon would've been easier. Moon would, and did, ask less questions about what she was doing.

"I'm not wrong though," Moon retorted defensively. Francine closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Moon was being argumentative for the sake of being argumentative at this point.

"They thought of you as family," Francine said as calmly as possible. Her voice wavered as she spoke. That sense of parentification was making itself useful. Everyone in Francine's household cared about Jackie, but Francine was truly the only one who would fight. She understood why. It wasn't worth it to fight the handful of people you could trust as an animatronic in a world full of humans.

Most of the time.

"He's dangerous though," Moon argued. Francine bit her tongue. She didn't want to say something she'd regret. Though, she wouldn't regret saying what she did. Moon was still useful as condescending as that sounded. She wouldn't use his help on this matter any longer, but she never really knew.

"They're a lovely person," Francine debated. Moon looked genuinely confused, but a hint of guilt peeked through his expression. He was trying his hardest to reason his actions for himself. Francine relished in the uncomfortableness Moon was feeling. That joy mad and her feel a tad bit guilty, though she didn't try to stop herself.

"Hasn't he hurt you or something?" Moon challenged. Francine took Moon's pen in her hand and squeezed it. It was all she could do the not lodge it in Moon's head. He was starting to deserve it more than ever.

"Jackie would rather die," Francine protested. She pressed the pen into the desk as hard as she could to release some of her anger, the wood cracking beneath the writing utensil. Moon didn't huff of sigh or even look annoyed. He stared ahead with an empty look as he often did when he was thinking. Francine found it a little insensitive that he would do that at this moment, but she was glad he was thinking.

"If you say so…" Moon muttered. Francine slammed her hands, open fisted, on the table. Moon jumped. He could see the anger in Francine's eyes, swimming with all the cosmic horrors. Francine's eyes were terrifying.

"I know so!" she exploded. Moon stayed absolutely silent. Francine stood up and brushed her shorts off. She grabbed her notebook and put it under her arm. The entire office was eerily quiet. Francine looked calm on the outside as she got herself together. She took a stack of sticky notes too just to hammer home her point. It was extra salt in the wound.

"I could turn your motherboard into sand if I wanted to," Francine intoned without inflection. Moon put a hand over the back of his head like that could stop her. Francine smiled at Moon, and it was her normal smile. That was a thousand more times creepy than what Francine said alone.

"Thanks for telling me the stuff. I'm going to leave, and try not to show your face around my house again. Cleo's a good lieutenant you know," Francine mentioned casually. Moon only watched as Francine jumped through a portal that seemed to materialize out of nowhere. He just sat there. He was more than terrified now. What the hell did Cleo had to with this? Cleo's a cat. That fact made the situation for frightening.

Moon was going to avoid the cats for at least a month now.

Chapter Text

Jackie pushed Francine's door open silently. They didn't want to wake the toddler up. Jackie slowly inched closer to Francine, making sure to avoid the creaky floorboards. They sat in front of Francine's bed and laid down on the rug. Jackie didn't like randomly remembering things. It was upsetting. It hurt their heart. It made them want to cry.

David was a sweet kid. He was a really sweet kid. Though, Jackie knew that David was okay now. Jackie knew that it happened over half a century ago, and a decade and a half if you only counted the time they were awake.

They curled up on themselves, almost under Francine's bed. Freddy had convinced them to not run away, but Jackie was still unsure. They liked Freddy, but Freddy knew what he got himself into when he told Jackie to stay. Francine had no choice. Toy Chica had no choice. Francine said that Jackie was like their sibling, fribling actually. Jackie knew Francine was well aware of the situation, but they still felt the same way.

Jackie looked up at Francine's small sleeping form. She was so small, so fragile. Jackie didn't care about Francine's feelings if it meant Francine would be safe. Francine would get over it. Francine would-

"Shh. It's okay, Jackie. I'm not going to you leave," Francine quietly comforted. Jackie hadn't realized she was awake. Francine's finger grazed over Jackie's face in a comforting way. Jackie felt calmed, but not enough to fall asleep. They'd rest though. They weren't going to bother Francine more than they already had. They closed their eyes and gut comfortable. They'd be just fine.

"Hmmm… You know, I like to act. I actually used to act a lot of plays that I'd download off of the internet with a friend of mine," Francine rambled. Jackie opened one eye to look up at Francine. They weren't touched that Francine would talk to them until they fell asleep.

"My friend's name is FC. He's a fox, Foxy's son actually. He's a really good actor. It was programmed into him," Francine continued. Jackie was listening intently. This FC guy seemed interesting. Francine seemed a little… sad when talking about FC, but Jackie thought talks ga bout it would make her feel better. Francine liked to talk about things that made her upset.

"He taught me everything I know. He's a Lottie dumb, but I love him. He's my best friend, even if I haven't seen him in almost a year," Francine added. Jackie was starting to drift off to sleep. Maybe they could meet FC one day. They trusted Francine's judge of character. She was smart.

Francine looked at Jackie who was half asleep. She felt bad for reading their mind, but she had to do that to see the Mimic. Jackie wouldn't mind anyways. Jackie didn't care about their privacy much. It was a little entertaining to see Jackie's little thoughts about getting MapBot gifts too. She sighed. She was tired herself, though he was tired in a different way.

She didn't want to keep acting like she didn't know as much as she did. That she was scared by things. She had known about so many things before anyone else did, and it so much longer before anyone told her. She also didn't see a better way of life.

FC had said something about pretending so everyone thinks what you want them to think. FC was smart, but only when bothered sit still. She took his advice to heart. It didn't work well for FC, but he was lied to. Francine was essentially an all knowing deity. She couldn't be lied to. She knew it was manipulative, but she only had so much power in the grand scheme of things. She had to make sure she got what she needed one way or another.

Eh, it was fine. If it all caved in on her she'd be fine.

Chapter Text

MapBot felt awful. She had gone through her day as normal, acting as if she wasn't there. She handed out maps. She honestly didn't remember half of her day. That was the method to her madness. Most people ignored her and the people that didn't didn't stick in her memory.

She leaned against a random wall in the atrium. Her eyes were closed and she didn't know where she was. She would zone out some point on the morning and come to sometime in the evening. It was never the exact same time each day. She knew it was unhealthy, but it was fine. Even her siblings had started remembering not to talk to her during the time she wasn't really there.

She had lost track of all the talks she had from the older S.T.A.F.F. Bots, mainly the ones on security and mopping duty, about 'needing to get her shit together.' That specific line was a direct quote from Judy. She was one of the few Mop Bots that actually paid attention to people besides each other.

MapBot sat in the ground with a hard thud. She didn't have any legs, so she'd probably regret sitting down when she inevitably had to get back up. She was tired. She didn't know where she had gone or where she started, but her wheels were sore. She absentmindedly rubbed her fingers over the seems in the messenger bag Jackie had made them. It was a heartfelt gift.

She finally opened her eyes. She was on the second floor, next to some arcade she didn't bother to read the sign of. She was waiting for someone to bother her. She was almost glad the Chef Bots were stuck in their restaurants. They were all very chatty.

"Hi!" Jackie called from down the walkway. Mapbot smiled, pulling herself up with a nearby potted pant. Jackie was jumping up and down to get MapBot's attention. It was habit that MapBot had noticed. She had never asked about it, but it was interesting. MapBot wasn't the most observant person, and that was an understatement. Though, she did pay attention to Jackie.

"Hi. You're here early," MapBot remarked. Jackie frowned, looking at Freddy for something. The short bear was just about to leave, but he stopped to check the time on his phone. He understood way more gestures than MapBot did. She did at one point, but she had forgotten.

"Nope, we're here right on time. I'm going to go annoy my brother now," Freddy said quickly. MapBot giggled. For what it's worth, Glamrock Freddy didn't get nearly enough credit. He did a lot for everyone in the Pizzaplex, including every S.T.A.F.F. Bot that he could get to. Mapbot turned her attention back to Jackie. Jackie seemed confused.

"Why did you think we were here early? Don't you have a built in clock or something?" Jackie prodded. Mapbot hummed the daycare theme nervously. She didn't know how to explain that she just blacked out for half of the day.

"Um, I didn't check it. I was going off of intuition," she explained nervously. Jackie smiled and moved right past their original question. They started pulling MapBot towards… somewhere. MapBot was not good at remembering where things were. She had at least one map at hand at all times. She had never needed to know where things were off the top of her head.

"So, I was thinking the FazPad has coffee and people go on coffee dates. We could have a coffee date!" Jackie suggested excitedly. MapBot nodded along. She couldn't drink, but the idea was nice. She didn't even have a mouth open actually. Maybe Glamrock Freddy could fix that.

"Uh, yeah. The FazPad is nice. I've lays liked the way it looked," MapBot mumbled. She took the time to check her clock while partially listening to Jackie talk about how they put all of Francine's artwork into their box's glory room. It was eight thirty-seven. MapBot was glad she didn't have a mouth to form a frown with. She usually started forming new memories at around six.

"So, I was playing Buckshot Roulette with Francine and Toy Chica since it's a fun game. Francine's really good at it," Jackie commented. MapBot didn't know anything about kids, but she found it word a toddler played any form or roulette, digital or otherwise.

"Toy Chica was confused that Francine told me how many live bullets there are each round, but I'm colorblind so I can't actually tell them apart," Jackie added. MapBot didn't know that Jackie was colorblind, but she'd make sure to keep that in mind. She wondered what it would be like to not see colors normally. It was an interesting experience to her.

"Uh huh… Why are guys you letting the child play roulette?" Mapbot questioned. Jackie laughed and pulled MapBot into the FazPad, leading her to a specific seat. MapBot sat down as directed, still listening carefully. Her day felt better now.

"She suggested it. She likes the game," Jackie elaborated casually. Mapbot chuckled. She watched as Jackie got themselves a cup of coffee. Jackie had clearly never used a coffee maker, but MapBot still watched. She guessed it was the honeymoon phase of the relationship. She hoped Jackie thought about her the same way. She didn't see why Jackie would though.

"Is something wrong? You look sad," Jackie queried gently. Mapbot shook her head and smiled as much as she could with her eyes. When you didn't have a mouth, you got very good at faking a smile. Smiling with her eyes was something MapBot had learned rather well.

MapBot didn't say much for the rest of the time. She smiled with her eyes, but not with her soul. She couldn't shake all the feelings that wanted to drag her down into the depths of hell, but she could ignore them. No one bothered her, so why did she bother herself? She had everything she could've realistically hoped for and a little more. She refocused on Jackie once more. She could suck her feelings up for a little longer.

Chapter Text

Francine sat in her room writhing in her notebook. Her parents knew she could write, but she never wrote in cursive in front of them. She learned purely because she knew Toy Chica couldn't read it well and Freddy wouldn't go snooping in her things in the first place.

Francine didn't know exactly what she was doing, but she just wrote. She poured her heart out onto the page until she had tears in her eyes. When the first tear made a splat on the paper beneath her, she paused. She took a deep breath and wiped her eyes. She closed her notebook and hid it in the small portal behind her favorite picture. It was one she had of her and Jackie. She printed it out herself.

She sighed and slowly lowered herself to the floor. She was tired. She didn't want to pretend anymore. How tiring was it to act almost twenty four seven? She figured she should probably ask FC about that the next time she saw him.

She stared up at the ceiling and thought about how much she hated her life. She took another deep breath and clenched her hands. She knew how to be fine in front of people, but she had never been able to suppress those emotions in private. They were like angry little demons that listened to everyone else but her out of spite. Francine unclenched her fists and slowly dug her sharp nails into her legs. She didn't think of it, but she did it.

A sticky and warm substance touching her fingers brought her back to reality. She held her breath so she didn't scream. She hadn't meant to. It hurt. She hated it. Tears firmed in her eyes, so she squeezed them shut.

She sat there until everything felt okay again. She could've healed herself, but it felt she couldn't move. She felt helpless. She was in a home full of people who would hug her until she felt better. However, she couldn't go to them. She had an image to uphold. Some people got to see through the facade, but those people never knew what they were seeing. She was either threatening them or they wouldn't put two and two together.

Francine understood a lot. She understood that most people didn't and would never understand that she wasn't in need of a sugarcoated world. She just took their white lies and spit them out when they weren't looking. No one noticed. No one ever would.

Francine knew she'd be fine. She'd have dinner and be put to sleep and wake up and go to daycare in the morning like she did everyday. She wouldn't always stay at daycare. Sun and Moon's replacements were notably bad at keeping track of children. Francine had better things to do anyways. Such as writing in a secret notebook incoherently and hurting herself. Those things took up a lot of time.

Speaking of which, she was going to be late for pick up time if she didn't get going. She took one last deep breath and disappeared from her room. No one would ever know. No one needed to know.

Chapter Text

Moon knew Francine told him not to come around her house anymore, but he shoved away his fears for a task. He thought giving her information on Star Power would establish a sort of rapport between the two. He took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

The door swung open and there stood a very angry chick. She had her hands on her hips and everything. Moon had to suppress a laugh. Francine was too cute to be taken seriously. Moon did have enough of survival instinct to keep a straight face though. However, his survival instinct wasn't that strong. He'd have to fight to keep his laughter to himself.

"What are you doing here?" Francine asked pointedly. Moon didn't trust his own mouth, so he handed the binder of printed files, tests, and reports over to Francine gingerly. She grabbed them and skimmed through the pages. She appeared to be pleased.

"Thanks. Now, you should probably get out of here before I make good on my threat," Francine warned. Moon nodded and turned to walk away. That's when Francine felt eyes on her. It wasn't the typical feeling of getting watched by her good for nothing grandfather- wait. Where did that come from? Back to the point, Golden Freddy's watch felt different. This gaze was in the room with her.

"What's going on?" Freddy asked in an accusatory manner. Francine's entire body tensed up. There went the entirety of her very meticulously cultivated persona. It was gone in one, singular sentence.

"… I was just giving Francine some lab reports on something she was interested in," Moon explained while obviously omitting some things. Freddy walked closer to the front door. Francine gripped her skirt so hard she heard it faintly tear. Jackie would fix it though. Jackie liked to sew things. Francine would get to sit in their lap while they did it too. She'd definitely need comfort like that after this ordeal wrapped up.

"What was it about that threat?" Freddy pressed. He looked at Francine as he spoke. She didn't say anything. She felt tears brimming in her eyes, but not from guilt. If they knew she was more a true than she let on, that she purposely hid things, her life would be figuratively over.

"Francine," Freddy called in a demanding tone. Francine stayed silent. She knew anything she said would be used against her even if this wasn't a police interrogation. That was just common sense. Moon stood there awkwardly. He wanted to leave. Francine wanted him to leave. Though, Freddy obviously wanted answers before Francine went anywhere.

"Fine. I'll ask your grandfather if he was looking right now," Freddy said threateningly. He was under the impression Francine didn't know Golden Freddy could see everything all at once. Whether he was actively paying attention was another thing, but he'd still remember.

"I'll just get going now…" Moon mumbled awkwardly. He walked off presumably to go place down his portal and Freddy went back into the house to find his pone. Francine was shaking. She knew she was a manipulative, little pain in the but. She also made sure no one else knew that she was that. She should've been more careful, more consistent with her persona. She should've just told Moon to leave.

All the things she should've done didn't matter anymore. It was over. She was going to be in so much trouble. She couldn't possibly lie her way through this. She felt her basic buzz at finger tips. She wasn't going to do that. No way.

Unless she really needed to.

Chapter Text

Francine was getting lectured and she only sat there. She didn't say anything. She didn't look away. She wasn't even paying attention. Freddy's words didn't mean anything to her. She knew what she was doing. She knew she was ruining herself. She knew she was making everyone else's love better.

She would go back to what she was doing and everyone would forget this ever happened. They always did. Frankie had a point about no one dealing with problems, but he didn't know what things were problems. Francine was dealing with them. She just needed to be more careful. She was a rat. She understood so much. So, she sat there. Her eyes were empty, but no one noticed. It looked like shame.

Francine looked over the areas she had set strings down. She decoded it wasn't advisable to put strings on people after going back too far in her grandmothers memory. There was the Pizzaplex, pizzeria, Barry's house, Sun and Moon's old house, etc. There was nothing of note.

"Francine, I asked you a question," Freddy chastised. Francine blinked back to the location in pent of her. She should've been at least half paying attention. She looked at her dad with a somewhat scared face. She made it look like she was only scared of the consequences. It was in character for her little persona. She had much too like a stone. She looked like she had no feelings.

"Why would you even say something like that? And to say that he should leave before you did that?" Freddy scolded. Francine suppressed an eye roll. Moon deserved it. She didn't know where she got that though. She had just thought of the things she could do she supposed. It wasn't hard.

"I said it because I knew I could. I don't make threats I can't follow through on," Francine said matter of factly. She knew there was no point in acting like she didn't understand at the moment. She'd start doing it again as soon as everyone forgot. Most of the people in her life were easily fooled. The guilt from manipulation crept back into her thoughts, but she figuratively chased it off with a broom.

"First of all, you physically can't do that. It would take a lot of power. Second of all, you shouldn't be following through on any threats," Freddy pointed out. Francine almost choked on her own laughter. She had turned glass to sand before. Turning a motherboard to sand would be harder though.

"I would never dream of killing someone's unless they were hurting someone. He was hurting Jackie," Francine explained calmly. She knew that wouldn't compliment satisfy her dad's disappointment, but she really didn't want his full disappointment. She couldn't care less about the opinions of most people. However, she loved her dad. She only ever wanted to make him proud, even if she planted a seed of resentment in herself.

"He was just answering your questions. He wasn't hurting Jackie," Freddy argued. Francine allowed herself a small frown. Moon hadn't told Freddy the whole story. Though, she didn't think it would make her actions right in Freddy's head.

"You're not going to understand. Stop trying to," Francine snapped quietly. She could feel her dad's startled eyes bore holes into her head as she avoided eye contact. She couldn't have not snapped. Freddy didn't understand. He would never understand. He let his dad be all mysterious and operate on his own morals, but Francine couldn't. Francine knew she was two and this was normal. The double standard still bothered her despite that.

"Don't talk to your father that way," Toy Chica instructed with a wavering voice. Francine had genuinely surprised both of her parents. It was amusing, yet she kept frowning. It wasn't enough of an emotion to make her stop seething.

"I'm sorry for being rude to you, but I'm not sorry for what I said to Moon. I would do the same thing for you," Francine elaborated. Freddy took a deep breath. Francine prepared for another classic dad-lecture, 'You have a responsibility to be a good person and not use your magic for evil' or something else like that. She wasn't using it for evil. She was protecting Jackie with what she had. Moon wouldn't stop if just asked.

"I do understand that you care about Jackie and felt the need to 'scare' Moon off, but you can't say that," Freddy said gently. Francine practically recoiled at the sweet words. It was so full of artificial patience it made her stomach hurt. She could survive this if he was honest.

"I understand that Moon is your friend and that you want me to be a good person, but I don't care about anyone that would those things about anyone," Francine retorted. It felt good to not act. However, she was worried about when she was actually like her fabricated persona. Art imitates life after all. It was only easier to get what she needed and leave with her dignity if people thought it was normal toddler stuff.

"He didn't say anything."

"Yes he fucking did. He said a lot of things I should've punched him for. You don't know anything and you're lucky people try to keep it that way!" Francine screamed. The room plummeted into stunned silence.

Freddy was sure he put a filter so that Francine couldn't swear. Freddy was sure that Moon was telling the truth. Freddy was sure he knew his daughter. Freddy was sure he was kept in the loop. Freddy wasn't sure anymore. He knew what things he should be putting into question now. Keeping people in the dark was a dangerous road to go down. It never ended well, but how was Francine to know that.

"I'm going to my room. You come up with something to ground me from," Francine grumbled as she stormed off. Freddy and Toy Chica watched as Francine stomped up the stairs. They loved their daughter. They really did, but where did the one they knew go?

"Francine?" Jackie called out tentatively. They wanted to make sure Francine wasn't too upset. She said those things for them after all. It was basically the least Jackie could do for her. Francine opened her door and waved Jackie inside. She had a backpack on her bed and a suspiciously empty closet. Jackie had no need for packing when they tried to run away, but they were still aware of what that meant. It's not like they had never watched TV.

"…Where are you going?" Jackie asked. Their voice indicated that they were about to cry. Francine hoped into the air so that she would be closer to eye level with Jackie. She liked floating too.

"Don't worry. I'm coming back. I'm just visiting a friend to cool down," she reassured. Jackie let out a sigh of relief. Francine was coming back. Francine didn't lie. She wouldn't lie to Jackie …right? No, no. Francine was a good friend, a good sister. She took care of Jackie. Freddy did too, but on a surface level. He didn't know what Jackie needed at any given moment. Francine did.

"Can I come with you?" Jackie pleaded ever so slightly. Francine shook her head. Jackie pouted. Francine smiled a little. She didn't want to leave. However, she knew a lot of things, like I've said many times. She knew she was going to do something stupid if she stayed her any longer.

"I'll be back in at least two weeks. If I don't, you can be mad at me," Francine stipulated. Jackie huffed in begrudging acceptance. Francine got an idea. She dropped to the ground and ran to get something from her cubbies that have the fabric baskets. When she ran back, she had a brand new notebook in her arms. She pressed it into Jackie's arms.

"I can't read, or write. Don't you have empty sketchbooks?" Jackie complained. Francine rolled her eyes in a playful way. Jackie wasn't trying to be rude despite the outcome. They just liked arbitrary rules. They hated drawing in notebooks for example.

"I can make it read to you and put your thoughts on paper. I'll make it so obit sends to me and I can use my notebook to write back. Like texting," Francine pitched. Jackie's eyes lit up. Francine was glad. She didn't want to leave Jackie with nothing. She was going to be gone for a while and Jackie did use her to calm down somewhat.

"I'll write all the time! I promise," Jackie squealed. Francine smiled. She touched the notebook and channels her power into it. She felt the connection solidify, so she let go. It was done. She was officially leaving. She had given herself time to back out, but that time had been cut short.

"Okay. I'll leave sometime tonight. I'll read you one last bedtime story, and I'll read you all the ones you want when I get back. Okay?" Francine added. Jackie nodded. They assumed their position on Francine's bed and Francine grabbed a book from her half packed bag. As she began to read, she began to feel more sure about her decision. She'd be fine. It was only temporary.

Her parents wouldn't be that mad.

Chapter Text

Francine stepped into the Pizzaplex silently. She looked up at the cutouts. Lefty, Foxy, Ballora, and Monty. She admired the art. It was nice. She took her backpack and walked to the theater. She felt so grown up. It was a wonderful type of anxiety.

She pushed her way through the daycare doors and fought the urge to bolt right to the daycare like she did every morning. She saw Moonlight sittings the desk. She couldn't be seen from where he was sitting, but being able to see through things was an ability of hers. She kept walking, going up the floral stairs and running her hands along the railings. It wouldn't happen anywhere else in the Pizzaplex, but Sun was a neat freak in every dimension.

"Oh! Who are you?" someone squealed. Francine looked up at someone who looked like her grandma, but wasn't her grandma. Francine stared into the eyes of the girl to get a good read. She saw another spirit back there. She smiled. Ghosts could never truly die, even if they burn.

Where do you think ghosts go when they don't have an afterlife?

"I'm Francine. FC is here, right?" Francine inquired carefully. The Puppet look-a-like name died excitedly and stated off into the distance. Francine shuddered. Did she look that creepy when she was observing her strings? It looked like the girls soul left her body. She looked dead. Eventually she blinked and looked back at Francine.

"He's chasing Monty up and down Rockstar Row," the girl answered. Francine burst out laughing. That was the most FC thing she had ever heard. The other girl started giggling too. Francine couldn't wait to see FC. He would just as chaotic as always.

"Okay. I'm gonna go fi-"

"Wait! I-I'll go with you," the girl said desperately. Francine squinted her yes slightly. Trying ti find where the girl's mind ended and where Puppet's began was hard. However, Francine was going to do it. Eventually she found attachment issues, duh. Francine nodded and started walking next to the girl. She let the girl ramble and ramble and ramble. She talked more than Jackie

When they reached Rockstar Row, Monty had made her way into Ballora's room. FC was now sitting on a display case. Francine looked over the green rooms. Foxy's room was basically neon orange and fire truck red and Ballora's was lavender and baby blue. Francine loved the way everything looked.

"Shhh. I'm gonna scare him," Francine instructed. The girl didn't ask any questions. She only plastered a giant grin on her face. She looked so excited to see FC's reaction. Francine hoped into the air and floated above her fox friend. He didn't see her yet, but he seemed to bktcie that someone was watching. He was about to call out to the girl when Francine pounced on his back like she did when they play fought in her old backyard.

"Motherfuc- Oh, it's you. Wait… Why the hell are you here?!" FC asked in an incredulous tone. Francine lifted slightly so FC could roll onto his back. She lowered herself once more, making sure FC couldn't get up.

"I ran away. Much like you did I presume," Francine explained casually. FC sighed. He wriggled and squirmed to escape Francine's pin, but was ultimately unsuccessful. The girl walked close, yet didn't intrude on the conversation. Francine eventually slow fell off of the basing and let FC hop down beside her. He seemed somewhat happy to see her, though he was obviously more pissed about being snuck up on.

"I didn't run away. I am just testing to see if my father will come looking for me," FC grumbled. Francine rolled her eyes. Something had always truck her as odd about Foxy, but she was committed to the bit. Toddlers did speak up against authority figures, at least not well raised ones.

"Well, good luck with that. Anyways, I'm gonna be staying here for a little," Francine elaborated. FC raised an eyebrow but did not press. Francine saw the other girl's earlier grin return ten fold. She was really that lonley. Francine didn't see how it could hurt to spend time with the girl. The girl had magic visibly flowing through her. They could do magic things together, things she couldn't do with Star Power.

"Rude… and you can't stay here. Eclispe is going to kick you out," FC argued. Francine smirked a little. FC sighed. He knew what this meant. Francine hadn't always been articulate with words, buts he had always been powerful enough to need that for most people to know.

"I'll just come back. I. Won't. Leave," Francine teased. FC chuckled. This was going to drive Eclipse mad, positively insane, and FC was here for it. He couldn't really leave. Technically he could, but someone would be worried about him. It was an odd feeling to have people care if you left or stayed. He had spent most of his life going wherever he so pleased whenever he so pleased. Especially when he worked under the Stitchwraith.

"Well should introduce you to everyone! They'll be so happy to meet you!" The girl finally piped up. FC flinched, but this was typical Funtime Freddy and Jackie behavior. Though, silence didn't mean anything good for them.

"I'd be honored… whatever your name is. I really should've asked for it," Francine said awkwardly. FC was about to say something along the lines of, "Great job' in an overly sarcastic tone, so Francine smacked him in the shins before he could. FC took a deep breath. Francine usually wasn't like this in front of other people, but it had been a year since they had last seen each other. Francine also had no fucks to give clearly.

"My name is Charlie, and today I will be your tour guide!" Charlie exclaimed. Francine chucked and started following the girl in overalls. FC followed behind, nit eager to be ditched by his best friend after just reconnecting. This was going to be one of the long days.

Chapter Text

Charlie immediately took Francine to Ballora's room. It was beautiful and purple. It was nothing like the green room of Glamrock Chica that Francine has spent so much time in. She saw Monty and Ballora sitting close to her. It was a nice environment.

"Charlie, you have to stop bringing people over from other dimensions," Ballora scolded lightly. Francine froze in surprise. The Glamrock Ballora from her dimension had a very high pitched squeaky voice that wasn't too pleasant in general. This Glamrock Ballora's voice was much nicer. Francine was glad almost. It still felt uncanny in a way though.

"I didn't bring her! She just kind of appeared and asked to see FC," Charlie argued. Monty and Ballora looked at each other skeptically before catching FC and Francine nodding in agreement. The two relented, though they were clearly a little annoyed.

"That's nice and all, but Eclispe is going to send her back to wherever she came from," Monty point out. Francine laughed again. The idea that someone could keep her out of anywhere was hilarious in way. The only person who could do that was her grandfather, and he didn't know where she was. She was here for however long she wanted to be no matter what anyone else thought.

" He can try. I'm just visiting though. I don't plan on staying forever," Francine corrected. Monty shrugged but Ballora still looked concerned. Francine looked up at FC who was just kind of there. He had always been like that around other people. It seemed like he never changed.

"That's wonderful, sweetheart. It was nice to meet you," Ballora closed. Francine scrunched up her face at being talked down to, but she let it slide. These two had no way of knowing how powerful Francine was. Francine didn't even know the limit of her powers herself. She didn't want to find out. That would mean pushing herself past her limits and that never ended well for anyone.

"Let's go see Sun and Moon!" Charlie yelled out as she quickly teleported her, FC, and Francine away. Francine didn't stumble like FC did when they appeared. She teleported a lot. It wasn't hard to keep your balance if whoever casted the spell did it carefully enough.

"I like the different cutouts. Monty looks less creepy," Francine commented. FC and Charlie looked at her like she was crazy. Francine returned the look. FC looked at Charlie, but Charlie kept staring at Francine. Eventually Charlie kept walking and Francine eagerly followed behind. No one mentioned the strange moment they all had.

"Hello? Who's there? Oh! Hi Charlie! Hi FC! Hi- uh …other one," Sun greeted, trailing off at the end. Francine snorted in amusement. Sun crouched down and looked at Francine like she was a small animal at the zoo. She let him purely so he could look through his eyes and into his mind. She saw Moon as she somewhat expected, but she also saw the lists for many ingredient labels on cleaning supplies. Totally, very interesting stuff.

"My name is Francine. I know who you are too. Charlie is giving me a tour," Francine explained. She had a feeling that she'd be reexplaining that a lot to many different people. It was probably going to grow old.

"Well, it's very nice to meet you Francine. Would you like to meet Moon?" Sun asked in his classic toddler voice. Francine scrunched up her face once again at the thought. She had recently threatened to kill her Moon, and she had no idea of this one would be the same. She doubted it though. This dimension seemed to have a better air when it came to the people in it.

"I would love to," Francine lied. She knew it was likely just her Moon who would do those things to Jackie, but she still felt oddly protective. She took a deep breath and watched as the faceplate change colors and the arrays shrunk into their compartments. It was an interesting process.

"Hey, kiddo. Sorry, I'm not good at introductions," Moon mumbled. Francine chuckled and waved it off as no big deal. Charlie immediately launched into how Francine just appeared and everything that happened after. Francine wasn't paying to the story, but rather everything around her. Moon was paying close attention to what Charlie was saying and FC was staring into the distance, like he always did.

"Dude, stop that. We're supposed to be having fun. You can't have fun if you're not here," Francine chastised in a whisper after elbowing him. FC blinked in slight confusion. No one cared if he zoned out or for how long.

"Uh, yeah. I still have that list of movies we wanted to watch together," FC whispered. Francine smiled and gestured for FC to get it. She wasn't surprised FC had never used it before since he couldn't read. They had never guessed that they wouldn't see each year for such a long time. Francine would be happy to read it to him.

"That's cool, Charlie. I think your friends want to watch some movies. You should ask Eclipse about it," Moon gently redirected. Charlie's face lit up and she turned to Francine and FC. Francine looked at FC and FC looked back. They didn't want Charlie to come, but they knew she wouldn't bother them.

"Let's watch Mrs. Doubtfire. It's one of my mom's favorite movies," Francine suggested. FC shrugged and Charlie nodded eagerly the three walked up to the theater. Charlie ran, but that is mostly irrelevant. When they entered, it was just Eclipse in the theater. Francine was glad. She liked meeting people, but she had had quite enough of it for the day.

"Eclipse! We wanna watch a movie!" Charlie exclaimed. Eclispe looked up and scanned the room to see Charlie, FC, and Francine. He stared at Francine, so Francine stared back. Eclispe eventually looked away, but he looked at Charlie instead.

"Why the fuck are you here?" Eclipse snapped. Francine rolled her eyes, yet stayed smiling. She bounded up to the concessions counter and floated to eye level with Eclipse. Eclispe crossed his arms and stared Francine down.

"I have run away from home and traveled to the dimension FC was in. Now, we're going to watch a movie and leave you alone, but you have to set it up first," Francine instructed. Eclipse was a little miffed an actually toddler just tried to order him around, but he decided it wasn't worth it to argue. He grumbled as he walked into the actual theater and started messing with the projector. FC and Charlie ran and Francine leisurely floated after them.

"So, why did you run away?" Eclispe questioned as he looked up from his projector. Francine paused, letting her legs hang in the air. She didn't know if it was a good idea to divulge her frustrations to anyone, let alone Eclipse. He knew he couldn't kick her outs but he could get her dad's number rather escorted. She was still so angrily.

"I threatened to turn Moon's motherboard to sand for saying stuff about someone I care about," Francine mumbled. Eclispe stuff,Ed a gruff laugh. The idea of a someone who looked like a stuffed animal talking like a mafia boss was incredibly amusing.

"He probably had it coming. I don't care if you stay as long as you don't bring world ending monsters here and you don't bother me," Eclispe shooed. Francine nodded. Those were reasonable terms and conditions. She floated over the sea of seats to join FC and Charlie. This little vacation was just what she needed. She was so tired of day to day life. This was new. This was fun. She was finally fucking free of pretending.

Chapter Text

Jackie had gotten yelled at earlier. They didn't like it. It made their ears ring and their entire body feel smaller. Eventually they managed to get away and sneak into Francine's room. Freddy and Toy Chica probably wouldn't for Jackie in here.

They sank into their box and took out the notebook Francine had given to them. They opened the notebook and paused. They knew they just had to speak and the words would get their way to Francine, but they had no idea what to say. You're in big trouble? You git me yelled out? Where are you? Are you having fun? There were so many things Jackie wanted to say. They were kind of mad if they were being completely honest.

"I miss you. I don't like that you left. I didn't tell anyone where you went or that I knew you were going to leave, but I think they know that I know," Jackie rambled. They watched the words etch themselves into the page. They couldn't read the words, but they were still mesmerized by the efficiency. So, they waited and waited and waited for a response.

"I miss you too. I hope you don't get in trouble, but I'll get you any candy you want if you do," the book read aloud. Jackie stared in awe as the words magically appeared from seemingly the other side of the page. It was incredible.

"Come home soon, okay? I think you have your parents a heart attack," Jackie dictated. They busied themselves with a nearby pillow while they waited for Francine to respond. Jackie figured that Francine was walking or eating or in the middle of a conversation with someone else. Jackie could be patient. They had waited ten years in storage and didn't feel like waiting anymore, but they'd do it for Francine.

"I'm coming home on two weeks. You can tell mom and dad if you want. The sooner the better I guess. I'll try and get you souvenirs," Francine comforted throng the book. Jackie sighed. They'd rather be with Francine, here or wherever she was. Jackie did like stuff though.

"I'd like lots of plushies for my pillow room," Jackie requested. They received a small check mark from Francine's end. Jackie decided to close the book since Francine seemed to be busy. They hugged themselves and the book. They were probably going to get yelled at more when they told Freddy and Toy Chica how long Francine would be gone.

However, Jackie took a moment to put themselves in their shoes. If it was David who ran away, Jackie would be so mad at the accomplice. So, Jackie took a moment to prepare themselves. Francine was coming back and they deserved to know that.

Even if all of this was because of them.

Chapter Text

"What do you mean she ran away?!" Toy Chica screeched. Everyone stood there in silence. Jackie wanted to disappear. Maybe they should've gone with Francine. She didn't scream.

"I- uh… She said she was coming back," Jackie added nervously. They hated how all eyes were on them. They were a performer, but they never liked it. They were made to preform for one kid and one kid only. This made them uncomfortable beyond belief. It didn't help that Glamrock Freddy and Michael were there. Everyone was watching Jackie and they couldn't stand it.

"See? I knew it wasn't the end of the world. I ran away all the time when I was a kid and I always came back," Michael assured. Suddenly everyone stared at the only human. Everyone knew no one probably ever looked for Michael, but the nonchalance was unsettling.

"She's not even in this dimension anymore. She can't travel dimensionally. Even if she did run away, something else must have happened," Freddy explained. Jackie tilted their head in confusion. Francine could certainly open portals. She didn't usually go through them, but she could do anything if she wanted to. Jackie was sure of that.

"She said she was staying with a friend," Jackie commented. Everyone started to think. They had called Spring Bonnie to see if she ended up there somehow and she wasn't there. Francine didn't have any other friends aside from Barry, unless…

"FC is in another dimension…" Freddy muttered to himself. Everyone else stared at him like he was crazy. Jackie thought that made sense. Francine did say she still considered FC to be her best friend despite not seeing each other for a long time. Why wouldn't she go to him? The question is, where is he? They'd have to know that to find Francine.

"Who the hell is that?" Michael piped up. Glamrock Freddy scolded him quietly, but Freddy started explaining that FC was an old friend of Francine's that moved dimensions with Puppet. Michael was invested as soon as Foxy was mentioned.

"Is he still in the dimension those guys all moved to?" Glamrock Freddy asked. Freddy shrugged. Toy Chica was practically shaking with both rage and worry. Jackie was rocking on their heels. Michael was semi zoned out like he usually was. This wasn't going anywhere. Jackie wanted to write to Francine. They wanted to ask about what it was like where she was instead of thinking about where they were. They understood why Francine left.

"That doesn't change the fact that she can't travel dimen-"

"Yes she can!" Jackie exclaimed. Everyone was staring at them again. Freddy and Toy Chica looked the most shocked. They had done everything to protect their daughter and she still managed to beat every protection they had in place.

"She knows a lot more than you think she does. She knows a lot more than all of us actually!" Jackie chastised. They were stomping their foot like a child, but they thought it was deserved. No one was listening. Francine didn't want them to listen before, but she did now and everybody was still keeping their ears plugged. It was so frustrating.

"She's a smart kid, we know that," Michael mumbled. Toy Chica was completely still, a very odd sight. Francine was like her mini her. It must hurt to know that she pushed her away, even if she was in the right.

"I'm not saying you were wrong, but it's no wonder she snapped under the pressure. She's so much more like herself when she's not around you guys," Jackie continued. Freddy wasn't sure if he wanted to yell or cry. He was so mad, but the ire couldn't be placed. Was it for Francine who was lying? Was it for Jackie who let her run away? Was it at himself for failing as a parent? Maybe it was just the latter.

"Uh, we should get to the that dimension to see if she's there. It's worth a shot," Glamrock Freddy deflected. Everyone nodded to his idea, ignoring the uncomfortableness of what Jackie just said.

"Ugh! You're all impossible!" Jackie screeched as they stomped off to the garage. The others stared at the tallest one in the room as they disappeared from sight. They had all grown so used to ignoring the uncomfortable things in life. It had never crossed their mind that this was a bad thing. Golden Freddy let his sons learn things the hard way, and Michael and Toy Chica's parents were never around enough to teach their kids anything.

Jackie would come around though. They always did.

Chapter Text

Two weeks was a long time to be away from everything you knew and loved. However, Francine was starting to like it here. She wasn't staying. She didn't think she could handle constantly duplicating food so she wasn't stealing for the rest of her life. She'd certainly visit more often though.

"You can look into my memories?" FC gasped. His eyes were as big as moons. Francine giggled. She didn't make a habit out of reading minds, but she didn't skim them when she first met people. She didn't do that when she had first met FC. Though, she didn't want to ever do that based on what she had heard. FC was kidnapped in front of her twice for the love of Christ. Francine was keeping that can closed.

"I haven't read your mind, silly. I don't really read them thoroughly anyways. That's a bad idea," Francine elaborated, sticking her hand up in the air for emphasis. She was laying on her back and so was FC. It was a comfortable rug.

"There's not much to read anyways," FC remarked. Francine hummed to herself. It was the tune of Jackie's box. She could hear the music if she focused enough. She missed them. Jackie was always sewing her things and giving her glass bottle they probably stole. They were always chaotic in a way no one else was. The people here were chaotic too, but in a contained way. It was like watching animals in a zoo. It got boring after a while.

She wondered if anyone was looking for her. She wondered if they were patiently waiting for her to return. She wondered if she'd ever stop wondering. Wondering almost got her killed when she was younger. Nothing good came of curiosity.

Did Francine even want them to wait for her? She didn't want to be bothered, but there was no way of knowing if they were anxious or indifferent regarding her absence unless they came looking for her. Francine was too young for this. She had been her entire life, and yet no one cared enough to properly protect her innocence. They tried, but they still let her know what was going on. They still told her she had the potential to help.

"Do you miss your dad? I know you ran away and don't plan on going back, but do you?" Francine asked tensely. FC paused, gathering his thoughts. He quite liked not having any parents. He didn't need parental love. He had friends, or more accurately, Charlie.

"I miss the good times. I really, really don't miss him," FC responded in a mumble. Francine silently, although it was very loud in her head, cursed herself for asking that. It was insensitive and she really should've known better. She played the not knowing any better card before, but that was t the detriment of people she didn't like.

"Well, you could always come back with me. You can stay wherever you want, but there's always space in my room," Francine offered. FC scoffed, but he didn't mean it. Charlie would be the only one to miss him, but he was still waiting. Everyone was waiting. Why was everyone waiting?

"Can't. I'm going to wait a year to see if my dad looks for me. I probably won't go with him, so we can be roommates in like, eight months," FC explained. Francine stared at FC. He was waiting for someone to care. He was waiting for his own damn father to prove that he cared. Francine tried to imagine what it would be like to wait for her parents' approval. She couldn't wait a year, let alone eight months.

"You could just snub him. Say you were tired of waiting," Francine implored. FC shook his head. He had made a promise. He was going to wait, even if it killed him. It wasn't a problem to him.

"In my note, I said I'd give him a year. It's not like I wouldn't mind visiting you, but it can't be permanent yet," FC added. Francine sighed. She'd be a good friend no matter how stupid she thought that plan was. If Foxy hadn't come to look for FC yet, he was never going to. It had been four months already. There was nothing else to wait for in Francine's eyes.

"If worse comes to worse, you can share my family. There's plenty to go around," Francine joked. FC wanted to raise an eyebrow. Hadn't Francine ran away from her oh-so-wonderful family? That wasn't the point. Both of them were delusional in FC's eyes.

"Once everything settles down, I'm going to have a conversation with my parents and it will all be water under the bridge!" Francine exclaimed. She seemed so sure of her plan. FC wasn't as convinced. Though, he wasn't going to be the one to rain on her crazy parade. Besides, he wanted someone to be crazy with. Maybe that was selfish. Scratch that, it was selfish. He didn't care though. Anything beat being alone.

Chapter Text

"I really don't like traveling through portals."

"Michael, you've said that about twenty times in the last five minutes."

"Because it's true!" Michael argued. Glamrock Freddy patted Michael on the head. Michael was in a pouty mood, more so than usual at the very least. Freddy was used to it though.

"You'll be fine. We just have to ask Eclispe if he's seen Francine. We'll be back in no time," Freddy assured. Michael crossed his arms and grumbled something unintelligible under his breath. Maybe it should've been slightly concerning that Michael was like this all the time, but you get desensitized to his whole demeanor if you're around it long enough.

"If I throw up from going through that portal one more time, it's gonna be on you," Michael threatened. Freddy laughed and walked into the theater. The two at the counter stopped to stare at the two of them. There was a Roxane, and of course, Eclipse.

"…Eclispe"

"Yes, I can see them. I know who they are," Eclispe explained dryly. He was typing away on his computer, not once taking a moment to lookup from his work. Michael thought it was rude, but he had been ruder himself. Who was he to be a hypocrite. Freddy walked up to the counter, waving nervously at the pair before hurriedly waving Michael over. It was like herding sheep.

"Why are you guys here anyways?" Eclispe questioned indignantly. Michael leaned on the counter. Practically not sleeping was catching up to him. He was lucky Scarlet's foundation matched his skin too.

"We were wondering if you had seen Francine lately," Freddy replied. Eclispe paused and stared intently at his hands as if he was contemplating his next moves and/or words very, very carefully. However, Roxanne seemed to light up with an idea. She walked out from behind the counter and towards the projecting room of the theater. She gestured for Freddy and Michael to follow.

"She's watching a movie with the others," Roxanne explained. She went over to the projector and paused it. A series of annoyed and positively upset 'hey's and groaners erupted from the very lowest seething area.

"She was hear the whole time? Not scared?"

"Didn't she stare death in the face and offer him a cookie?"

"She was seven months old"

Freddy and Michale descended the stairs to be met with stairs. Roxanne waved the oncoming questions off for the most part. Though. Francine was hiding behind FC. She didn't seem happy to see her uncles. FC seemed less than amused himself, but not particularly defensive. The lady who looked like Puppet looked curious and the other three kids, flickery in the way Evan and Lizzie were, stared intensely with intenser disdain.

"I'm not going back. I've only been here five days," Francine stipulated. Freddy blinked in surprise. This seemed rather planned out. Toy Chica had mentioned a good chunk of Francine's essentials were packed. That included most of the clothes Jackie made her.

"Your parents are worried about you kid. You should be grateful they even give a fuck," Michael retorted. Charlie gasped and the three ghost kids giggled. FC looked away as if he agreed with both parties. You can't really chose a side when both sides aren't wrong. Francine kept nodding behind her best friend. She wasn't going down without a fight.

"Just because William couldn't care less if his kids lived or died doesn't mean that has to be my problem," Francine countered. Michael didn't respond. What was he supposed to respond with? Francine roasted him to hallow chars.

"Francine, we don't talk about people that way," Freddy scolded. All the kids, except Charlie, rolled their eyes. It seemed like Francine had found her people. It pained Freddy to say this, even if in his head, but she seemed so happy. It was unsettling ti see Francine act so adult. What if they had gotten her mixed up with a different Francine?

"We have the sane dimensional signature," Francine answered despite not being asked. She had just read his mind. Charlie let out an awed gasp and everyone else laughed at Freddy's shocked expression. It was fairly hilarious to a group if emotionally detached kids.

"Can we bring you home? I don't want your mom to rip me limb from limb," Michael pleaded slightly desperately. The whole reason they were there instead if Francine's parents was to minimize the fight they'd have to do to get her back if she went willingly, which she definitely did. However, this was turning out to be more difficult than initially anticipated. Michael wished he had refused.

"You can send her here to ask me herself. I'll be back in nine more days. Just wait," Francine instructed dismissively. Michael let out a defeated sigh. He really didn't want to fight anything that could kill him, let alone a person who he cared about. That seemed wrong after his childhood.

"You know what, let her. If she isn't back in nine days we take her by force," Michael suggested entirely seriously. The whole room burst into laughter. Even Freddy was laughing despite trying to actively scold Michael. They'd get Frankie to pull them out and have J's lie stand in between them and Toy Chica while they delivered the bad news. Or…

Michael looked at Freddy and Freddy looked at Michael. They could just lie. They could say she wasn't there and avoid getting mauled to death. That seemed like a viable option. Though, Toy Chica wouldn't be the only one out for blood if this secret got out.

But what's the worse that can happ-

"Bye!" Francine shouted as she opened a portal beneath Freddy and Michael's feet.

That, that was the worse that could happen.

Right?

Chapter Text

"I miss you so, so, so, so much. I wish you took me with you! Everyone is so worried and they're all yelling at people," Jackie dictated. The underlying meaning was that everyone was yelling at them. They wanted to do what Francine was doing, meet her new friends, not be stuck with the others.

"I miss you too. You should walk away when people yell. It should help," Francine suggested through the notebook. It had been eight days since she left. Jackie looked around the entrance of their box. They had been nice enough to tell Francine's parents that she ran away even if they were and that they pushed Francine away. Jackie still wasn't going to tell them that they were in communications though.

"I want you to come and get me. It's so tense here and I hate it," Jackie mumbled to the book. The words inscribed themselves onto the page as tears pricked at Jackie's eyes. They hated crying. It felt good and they liked the salty content, but Jackie remembered when he would cry at Edwin's house.

"I told you not to cry. Didn't you want this?" Edwin taunted. The slap was still fresh. Edwin had never slapped Jackie for crying before. Why was it getting worse? Edwin grabbed one of his empty beer bottles. It shouldn't hurt. Jackie hadn't been built with pain receptors. That's what Edwin said. Each strike hurt. Every single object broken of their head hurt. Jackie wished Edwin had already made good on his threat to kill them.

"No one is going to hurt you. I promise," Francine comforted from the other side of the paper. Jackie curled up on themselves more. Their box was in the garage like it often was. They felt sick to their stomach, but not in a truly ill way. Toy Chica hadn't yelled at them, but the plate was thrown.

"They almost hurt me on accident! I want you to come and get me. I don't want to be here anymore!" Jackie begged. There was no immediate response. What if there wasn't any response? What if Francine thought Jackie was a crybaby? A sob came out of Jackie's throat. They wanted to curl up and wait for someone to bang on their box and demand for them to come out.

"What did they do?" Even the town of the book was tentative. Francine was clearly suspicious. Jackie' voice shook as they tried to speak, but it was hard. They had to though.

"You killed him! You killed him!" Edwin screamed. Jackie pressed their hands over their ears. Their entire body hurt. Edwin's stupid steel toed boots were kicked hard enough to send Jackie's entire body into pain. They had forcibly detached their voice box so they couldn't cry. They didn't want this particular incident to get worse. Then the glass came down in their head. Glass. So much glass. Jackie liked whole bottles.

"Your mom threw a flower vase and it almost hit me. She said she was really sorry but it was still really scary," Jackie answered. They waited with bated breath. They had never tried to tell anyone that things happened to them, before or now.

"Did she sound genuine?" Francine prodded. Jackie drew a small yes with a crayon. They still didn't know any of the letters, but they were proud of their ability to copy words in the exact handwriting of the notebook. They could write yes and no and their own name. They couldn't tell you how to spell those words or what letters were in them, but they were still quite proud. Though, that proud feeling didn't help anything know.

"Yeah. Freddy yelled at her. There was a lot of yelling," Jackie assured. There was a pause on Francine's end. Jackie paused on their own end. They were waiting for a savior who would never come. They were sick from waiting.

"Don't say you're sorry. You're a damn monster. You're going to hell. You'll be run over by a car again and again to pay," Edwin threatened. Jackie's voice box hung limply in their throat. It felt like they couldn't breathe. They didn't need to breathe. They still wanted to breathe. They didn't want to die. They kind of didn't want to die. David would've wanted Jackie to live. Jackie hoped David would've wanted them to live.

"If it gets any worse, I will come and get you. I really don't think it will though," Francine guaranteed. Jackie hiccuped from crying. They wondered if they could still detach their voice box. They hated the sound of their own crying. They really didn't want to bleed out though.

"Your mom hasn't gotten that angry since. She really is sorry," Jackie convinced. They were shaking now. They wanted to punch something just get rid of the soul crushing fear in their body. They hit things when they were upset. They had tried to stop doing that, but Francine chose to play fight with them instead. It was fun, even when Francine won. Jackie didn't think of the times they were hurt then. They hadn't fought back in those moments.

"I'm glad. Please keep out of the way though. People already don't trust you," Francine implored. Jackie's shoulders slumped at the reminder. They had overheard Glamrock Freddy mention that Frankie had gotten more insistent on getting rid of Jackie as of late.

"You should be grateful I even keep you around. I'm going to tear every wire from your endoskeleton one of these days," Edwin warned. Jackie frantically wiped at the burn marks on their arm. There were several circular burn marks on the stretchy nylon. Edwin was still smoking the same cigarette he used to hurt Jackie. Edwin had taken to smoking, drinking, and doing god knows what else instead of working.

"I know that. Anyways, I'm going to take a nap. I'm exhausted," Jackie muttered. They got a responding check mark and a smiley face from Francine. Jackie smiled lightly. At least they coukd feel that she cared.

Jackie knew that Toy Chica cared and that Freddy cared and that MapBot cared, but it was hard to feel it sometimes. Speaking of MapBot, Jackie really missed their girlfriend. MapBot knew all the easily accessible short cuts and how to bribe the other S.T.A.F.F. Bots for free stuff. Sometimes she would just beg them to give her what she wanted, and they usually gave into her as she was their baby sister. She made the Pizzaplex feel fun again.

Jackie would ask Freddy to drive them there. They hoped it didn't feel like they didn't care that no one knew where Francine was. They did, even if they weren't as worried. They had loads of trust in Francine's abilities and actions. She would always come back.

No one in this world could seem to die.

Francine would be no different.

Chapter Text

Jackie sat still as the brush went through their wiry hair. They were going to try a ponytail since all of their had become real hair. Toy Chica was brushing it softly since it was mildly matted. Jackie didn't like brushing much, but they tolerated it. However, they hadn't done it in a while. Francine usually brushed Jackie's hair. She didn't need to brush it since she could use magic, but she would brush it to get Jackie more comfortable.

"I'm really sorry for throwing that flower vase you know," Toy Chica reiterated. Jackie huffed. They knew Toy Chica was very sorry. Jackie wasn't even mad. It was an accident. Toy Chica threw things all the time and she never hit anyone. She made sure she never hit anyone.

"It's not a big deal. You didn't mean to," Jackie assured. Tot Chica sighed and kept brushing through Jackie's hair. She didn't comment when they pulled away or sank below the back of the couch to hide for a few minutes. Jackie's hair wasn't that tangled, but their reactions weren't about the pain. This was the least Toy Chica could do too.

"It doesn't make it ok," she whispered after a long silence. Jackie wanted to shake her and say that they didn't care. As long as no one intentionally tried to hurt them, they didn't care. At least it was full of anything sticky like beer. It did have water in it though, which was the reason Jackie cried.

"Please stop apologizing. I'm not mad. It takes a lot more to break me than that to break me," Jackie comforted. Toy Chica took the freshly brushed hair and began to braid it into one braid. She knew it would take more than a broken vase to break Jackie. It took a hell of a lot to break Jackie. The thing is, she still shouldn't have done that. She knew Jackie had been physically abused before, but just how bad was it?

"I'll stop apologizing, if you admit I was in the wrong," Toy Chica stipulated. Jackie turned their head to glare at Toy Chica. Toy Chica kept a decent grip on the braid. Jackie wasn't about t admit to be wrong.

"But you're not!" Jackie exclaimed in frustration. They looked down at their lap and Toy Chica kept braiding. Jackie's hair had grown a significant bit since it started becoming real. There were no more words spoken in that moment. There was no need to. Bot parties had their understanding of the situation and it wouldn't be easily changed. So, they continued on in the, now more comfortable, silence.

Chapter Text

"Thanks for visiting," FC mumbled. It was the morning of the fourteenth day. FC didn't want Francine to leave. She promised she'd visit for movie nights, but it wasn't the same. He knew he didn't have to wait months for his father to never come find him, yet he felt obligated to. He couldn't not.

"I'm not gone forever. It's not like I'm dying," Francine joked. FC started to tear up. He remembered when Puppet said goodbye to him. She had said something similar. What if Francine didn't come back? What if… What if… What if… He was shaken back to reality by Francine grabbing his hand. She had a small, sweet smile on her face.

"It's okay. She's not really gone you know," she comforted. FC didn't even bother with staring at Francine like she was crazy. He decided she was, no questions asked. It's not like she could see Puppet. Puppet was dead.

"I'm not crazy."

"I thought you wouldn't read my mind."

"You were crying."

"Thanks, I guess," FC mumbled. Francine chuckled and stared to pull her friend along. She was going to meet Charlie at the Prize Counter because Charlie had a going away gift. Charlie was a good kid, if way too energetic. She was also a tad bit dumb, but Francine was used to that. Funtime Freddy being an idiot did do at least one good thing for her.

"What do you think she made?" Francine conversation. FC grumbled and let himself be dragged. The longer it took for Francine to get the Prize Counter, the longer Francine stayed. FC had always been good at stalling. He stalled his own murder for goodness sake.

"I dunno. Something that will probably explode if you touch it," FC mumbled. He remembered when Charlie tried to summon him a milkshake and it exploded on his hand when Je grabbed it. That had really scared him. He didn't want anything to do with Charlie's surprise, but he wanted to be near Francine for longer. He didn't want to be alone. He really didn't want to be alone.

"Oh, don't be such a party pooper. I can keep it from exploding you know!" Francine retorted playfully. She snapped her fingers just to prove a point. FC rolled his eyes. Obligations be damned, he hated this.

"Anyways, it was lovely seeing you. I'll come visit soon. Probably at the end if next month!" Francine rambled. New tears pricked at FC's eyes. Francine was his only friend. He wanted her to stay. He needed her to stay. Sure, he was friendly with the others, but he wouldn't dare call them his friends. He lost his last friend in this dimension when his mom died. If Francine just stayed, FC would be whole again.

Right?

"Don't cry! This isn't goodbye. Heh, that rhymed," Francine giggled. FC tightened his grip on her hands. He wished he could keep her here without hurting her, physically or emotionally. He missed having someone care where he was, if he ate, if he was okay.

"Promise you'll come back? Promise you're not going to die or something?" FC begged. Francine blinked at her friend in shock. She knew he was scared of that happening, but she didn't think he'd say anything. That was a horrible thing to hope for, yet Francine still did. She squeezed FC's hand and smiled at him. She made a promise to herself.

"I'll stop by every Thursday night for dinner, or I can pick you up and we can eat at my house," Francine suggested. FC pulled Francine into a giant hug. He was so thankful. Someone cared. Someone actually fucking cared.

"Okay, you big baby. Let's go find out what Charlie made," Francine redirected. FC grumbled and put Francine back down. They walked and chatted like they weren't about to end this wonderful vacation. FC had never really been a happy kid. He was a good actor and he faked so many emotions his whole life. He didn't want to start riding that again. He had been happy all the time Francine was there.

He wondered if he'd ever feel that way again.

Chapter Text

Charlie hugged Francine tightly when the shorter girl first arrived at the Prize Counter. FC glared slightly, but Charlie didn't notice. She placed Francine on the Prize Counter and pulled a giant book out from behind the counter. A giant scrapbook actually.

"I made it for you! I took pictures and took the tickets and wrote down little things you!" Charlie squealed. Francine tapped the counter beside her and it fluttered open. She admired each picture and every taped in ticket and piece of broken items that Francine had broken. It was very well thought out. It also closed evenly despite the encounter of texture and items were in it.

"I love it…" Francine chocked out. She ran her fingers over the cover. It was typical scrapbook material, but the magic that it radiated gave the surface a slight buzz to it. It was special.

"I'm glad you do! I can't wait to see you next time you come and visit!" Charlie exclaimed. Francine patted Charlie's hand. The other could get way too excited way too easily. Francine was patient though. She thought Charlie appreciated that. However, Francine did understand why the poor kid got pushed away so frequently. Charlie was so, damn much. She was the living embodiment of overstimulation actually.

"I'm going to come back to bring FC to my house for dinner. I'll ask my dad if there's room for one more," Francine offered. Charlie shrunk into herself a little. She was well aware she reminded people of Puppet. It didn't bother most people here, but it would probably bother Freddy.

"You don't have to do that. I don't think he'd want me there," Charlie deflected. Francine looked at Charlie with pity. Her dad wasn't good at letting go. It was an unfortunate trait that he had passed down to his daughter. Though, Francine wasn't an insensitive jerk about it. Puppet wanted this. She wanted to die to save everyone she loved and she wanted to give her body to Charlie.

"If your fears come to fruition, I will host my own special dinner parties without him," Francine comforted. Charlie stared at her. Francine realized Charlie didn't know what fruition meant. She resisted the urge to face palm and just rephrased her own words.

"Sorry. If what you're worried about actually happens, I will host my own dinner parties with him," Francine reiterated. FC had to keep a hand over his mouth to stop himself from laughing out loud. Charlie had a lightbulb-esque expression on her face. It was adorable and slightly sad. She was eleven. She should be able to use context clues to figure out what 'fruition' meant.

"I mean, if you really want to. I'm not a big fan of dinner parties anyways. I like eating at Chiles!" Charlie redirected. Francine analyzed the face smile. There were too many things to fix in this world, too many people to deviate enough time to loving, too many people she wanted to punch.

"I can take you to Chiles then. Next time I'm here I will definitely do that," Francine amended. Charlie smiled. FC felt a tad bit jealous, but he didn't say anything. He knew when to keep his mouth shut. This wasn't about him. It did hurt the attention hog part of him heartily, but he ignored it. Ot really, really wasn't about him. Francine was coming back. She wouldn't be gone forever.

"I need to go soon. I want to be home before my parents loose it," Francine explained gently. Charlie frowned and FC's existing frowned deepened. They knew she was leaving, but they still didn't want her to go. She could stay forever. What was one more kid going to do?

"My parents never cared where I was," FC muttered. Charlie stared at FC with a pitying look. Francine looked at FC the same way. He was jealous, and he had every right to be. Being around kids who were loved must have hurt.

"That's because neither of your parents were good parents."

"Puppet was a good mom."

"Uh huh…"

"I'm going to tackle you."

"Bye!" Francine said hurriedly. A portal opened up beneath her and she fell through it. Charlie waved goodbye, but FC huffed. Francine landed on the carpet in her bedroom. She didn't want to leave her room yet. She would have to face her family eventually, yet just the thought made her sick. She had run away. She could just go back. She wanted to go back. However, everyone was expecting her.

There was no turning back now.

Chapter Text

Home was odd place to be. The air felt suffocating, or maybe that was just Francine hyperventilating. She wanted to go back. She didn't feel this stressed there. Nevertheless, she stepped out of her room and into the hallway.

She carefully walked down the halls. She knew her dad would've taken at least this day off, if not the whole two weeks. She could feel everyone's presence in the house. She felt her stomach twist. She actually felt nauseous. She had never been this anxious before. The feeling only made her more scared. Would she be in trouble? Would they hate her?

"You're finally back!" Jackie screeched. Francine flinched from the loud noise, but hands immediately grabbed her and started spinning her around. Jackie was really excited. Francine only wished for them to stop spinning her in circles. It was making her dizzy.

"Jackie…" she whined. Jackie stopped spinning just as Toy Chica reached the stairs. The lady ran up to the second floor and hugged Francine tight. Francine winced. Her mom was strong, but this was a bit much. She managed to wriggle into a more comfortable hold. Jackie was doing a little happy dance. They were so excited.

"I missed you so much!" Toy Chica exclaimed. Francine settled into her mom's arms. She could senesce that her dad was somewhat frozen in shock, so she didn't mind his absence. She wasn't in rush to see everyone anyways.

"I missed you guys too," Francine said quietly. She was still anxious. The joy would wear off at some point she'd be in big trouble. However, she'd enjoy the honeymoon stage as long as it lasted. Eventually she saw her father cautiously peek around the edge. She held her hand back as she pulled her father up to the floor everyone else was on. He seemed a little shocked, but Francine wasn't going to wait for him.

"Francine! I can't believe I went so long without you!" Freddy called out. He held his daughter close to him, but not in the initial bone crushing hug that Toy Chica did. It was a lot better on Francine's opinion.

"I want to hear all about what you did!" Jackie squealed. They had heard some of it from the notebook, but Francine never went into much detail. Their conversations were mostly about comforting Jackie. They had really hated Francine's little vacation. Francine pulled out of Freddy's grip and floated over to Jackie once again. Jackie held Jackie absent their chest once again. They were warmer than before.

"I'll tell you tonight at bedtime," Francine placated. Jackie smiled and twirled around one more time. Francine let a wash of her own magic cover her. She wasn't fine, but she could pretend to fine rather easily. She was very good at pretending.

Francine was bombarded with questions about dinner and who she was with and what she had been doing. She didn't want to say anything yet, so she answered evasively. Her parents kept trying to hold her and she let them, but she always somehow ended up back in Jackie's arms. Jackie was really good at holding people. They were very comfortable.

They had dinner and Jackie took great delight in feeding Francine. Francine could feed herself, buts he kept Jackie. Their excitement was enough of a reason for her. Jackie did almost forget to eat their own dinner though. Francine took the opportunity to use the utensils herself.

"We had whatever we managed to steal from the grocery store without getting questioned. There aren't any people in that Pizzaplex that actually need to eat," Francine explained. Her parents stared at her with slight concern. She ate her pasta normally though. She seemed to be okay. They had no doubt that she would be okay, yet they were still her parents at the end of the day. They would worry about her until the day she died.

"Can I steal from a grocery store with yo-"

"No," Francine shot down quickly. Jackie pouted, but they kept eating their food. They liked the idea of crime, but probably wouldn't be fond of getting in trouble for said crime. They were still learning that actions had consequences, just not physical ones.

"You're no fun," Jackie mumbled. Francine poked them with her foot to get their attention. She gestured her head towards her parents while they weren't looking at her and smiled. Jackie just blinked at her. Though, Francine knew they'd ask about it later. Jackie was bad at reading body language from a mix of neurodivergence and a decade of isolation. They could read the general vibe of body language. They deduced that it was secretive.

Soon it was late. Francine hadn't been paying to the conversation. She was analyzing the room around her. There were dents in the walls from several thrown objects, most likely the work of her mother. There were outlines of old drawings of everyone or just Jackie and her.

Francine begun to wonder if she was a replacement for David. Jackie wouldn't do it on purpose, but they certainly babied Francine. Jackie missed David a whole heck of a lot. Maybe Francine was missing some context, but she didn't want to be a replacement. She was her own person. She ran away because she felt she lost autonomy. The argument was just the straw that broke the camel's back.

"It's time for bed, Francine," Freddy informed as he scooped Francine into his arms. She leaned against his chest and gestured for Jackie to follow them. Jackie did as they were told and followed behind the father-daughter pair.

"What book do you want to re-"

"Twins!" Jackie yelled. Freddy blinked at Jackie in bewilderment. He had no idea what book Jackie was talking about. Francine sighed. She had gone to great lengths to keep up her facade. She even pretended to have a low reading ability. It was impressive for her age of course, but graphic novels weren't on the level she presented. She had gotten Michael to buy her graphic novels in exchange for training Yarnaby.

"It's a graphic novel. I'll get it," Francine mumbled. She slipped out of her bed and went over to her secret bookshelf hidden behind her other one. She pulled a fake floor like a lever and each book switched. She had quite the extensive collection.

"I didn't know you liked graphic novels," Freddy commented as Francine handed the book to him. She climbed back into bed and began to tuck Jackie in. She was waiting for Freddy to start reading. He didn't. He was obviously waiting for Francine to explain her secret bookshelf collection. Francine waited a few more tense seconds for anything. There was nothing.

"Michael got them for me. I trained Yarnaby, he paid me with books. I've been dreading them to Jackie," she explained as she snuggled into Jackie's lap. They wrapped their arms around her, obviously to the tenseness around them.

"That's nice sweetheart," Freddy mumbled. His mind was elsewhere as he read. He wondered if he had failed as a parent. Francine was a completely different person know and it seemed purposeful. Francine was smart, too smart for her own good. Was she going to burn out? Had she done so already? What could Freddy do for his daughter? Did she want him to do anything? He wonders if he'd ever know.

Francine wished her father wouldn't ask so many questions.

Chapter Text

"Mapbot!" Jackie called out as they ran up to their girlfriend. They got no response. Jackie waved their hand in front of MapBot's face, but they only got a map shoved in their hand. They already had many of these.

"Please take a map."

"Did I do something? Why aren't you talking to me?" Jackie asked with a wavering voice. The MapBot in front of them didn't respond. Her bag was out of maps. Jackie huffed and shook MapBot a little. There was no response. It was like MapBot had turned off, but they were still blinking. Jackie was confused and worried. Freddy had already walked away. There was no one to help Jackie.

"If you want her to wake up you have to reset her," a gruff yet robotic voice instructed. Jackie turned around to see another S.T.A.F.F. Bot, a Map Bot to be specific. They seemed more than a little annoyed.

"How do you reset her?" Jackie inquired quickly. The Mop Bot took their mop and jammed it against a button on the side of MapBot's head. Soon she blinked like she just realized she was there. She looked at Jackie and smiled. Jackie smiled back. They were still very worried, but they were more focused. It felt like they hadn't seen her in forever.

"There. She's fine," the Mop Bot grumbled. MapBot glared at the other S.T.A.F.F. Bot intensely. She looked like she wanted to strangle the other. Jackie snickered, pulling MapBot away from her intense ire temporarily.

"I thought I told you guys not to reset me," MapBot complained. The Mop Bot rolled their eyes and rolled away. Mapbot hugged and leaned on Jackie. When on an even surface, they couldn't fall over if they tried. However, Jackie was warm in a way that MapBot's own systems were not. Disassociating used far less power than being actively aware of everything around her. After all, it was less work.

"Sorry about that. I was a bit out of it," MapBot admitted sheepishly. Jackie only smiled. They didn't know how to put their questions into words, so they just didn't. It wasn't worth the frustration to do so.

"As long as you're okay! We can go play some arcade games now," Jackie suggested. Mapbot nodded and subsequently let Jackie drag her towards the nearest arcade room. Mapbot lingered on the word 'okay'. She wasn't okay. She had never really been okay. She didn't care though. She was fine with not being okay. She could live with that. No one seemed to notice anyways.

Chapter Text

Toy Chica had bestowed a very special task upon Jackie. The task was to wake Francine up. Francine wasn't a morning person, but she generally got through it without many complaints. She was a lot happier after breakfast.

"Francine! The sun is up and you should be too!" Jackie exclaimed. Francine groaned and rolled over. Jackie snickered and pulled the blanket off of Francine. She grabbed at it, stubbornly refusing to open her eyes. Jackie threw the blanket to the side and crouched next to Francine. They placed their chin on the mattress so that their eyes would be the first thing Francine saw when she woke up.

"Go away mama. I'm sleeping," she grumbled. Jackie froze. They had never heard someone say that out loud before, but this wasn't the first time they were called that. Francine was just half asleep though. She didn't mean it.

"Can I have apple slices, Mama?" David signed in the way he always did, fast but very crisp and clear. It was excellent form for someone his age. Jackie went to grab the Apple cutter when they paused. She turned around and started signing faster than they could comprehend themselves, but David seemed to understand. He was a smart kid.

"I'm not your mama, Davey. Your mama is Fiona. You can look at her pictures in the mantle!" Jackie signed frantically. David tilted his head. He didn't think he did anything wrong. Jackie didn't get and even when David did do something wrong. Jackie was a lot nicer than Edwin.

"Why can't you be my mama?" David asked innocently. Jackie froze. Jackie had a lot of rules that wasn't programmed into them, but rather beat into them. Edwin did that to both Jackie and David. It really didn't strike either of the younger ones as weird. The thing is, Jackie coukd still fear the pain. Edwin got really, really mad each time David called Jackie 'mama'. David would never get in trouble luckily, but Jackie didn't want to get hit.

"Your daddy said I can't, Davey. I'm Jackie, not mama," Jackie explained as steadily as possible. It was all they could do to sign clearly. They wanted to curl up on the floor and shake until Edwin turned them off. Edwin was terrifying as hell.

"Fine. You're Jackie," David signed coldly. Jackie's heart broke. David wasn't trying to be mean, but the disappointment was palpable. Jackie let David pull pranks on Edwin all the time, and the kid truly didn't understand the difference. David wanted Jackie to be his mama. He never knew Fiona. Jackie wished they could be David's mama too. That would be the end of them though. Jackie couldn't be David's anything if they were dead.

"Oh, hi Jackie. I still don't want to wake up," Francine said in a slightly more energetic voice. Jackie pressed their hands into the floor so that they couldn't shake. Their eyes burned. Tears, it was tears.

"Whoah, whoah. What's happening?" Francine asked softly. She sat up in her bed and rested in her knees. She cupped Jackie's face in her hands despite the hand difference. Jackie launched themselves at Francine. Francine wasn't a breakable child. She'd survive being pounced on by an emotionally unstable hunk of metal. She took it quite well actually.

"Cone here, you big baby. We can sleep in together," Francine offered as she dragged Jackie up into her bed. She did use plenty of magic, but Jackie didn't need to know that. Francine appreciated the being cuddled anyways.

Chapter Text

Love is like a rollercoaster some say
It was more like a lazy river today

To her, it was better like this
At this time, everything was bliss

Aware and awake
Loving for loves sake

Before the darkness sets in, everything is good in the light
Every heart feels heavy yet light

Goodbyes don't even hurt
Time apart only last for spurts

Tomorrow is a new day,
But there will be no new way

Chapter Text

It's not like the S.T.A.F.F. Bots were bad siblings, they were just distant. There were so many of them and they all formed cliques. There was a log of names so they didn't get repeated too often, but no one truly adhered to this list. You just put a name you liked next to your serial number and leave it. Mapbot was the only one who looked at the list. She could list every serial number attached to a name.

Her name wasn't on the list though. Hers didn't need to be. There was only one of her. She was the only Map Bot, hence being named MapBot. Comedy Bot and Magician Bot were the same way, but they kept to themselves. They were lost in their own shared delusions.

Mapbot stood on the third floor, overlooking the atrium. It blended together in her vision, her lonley vision. She woke up on time this day, so Jackie wasn't here yet. She wished she could leave and never return to the this godforsaken place, but she couldn't leave her siblings behind. What would she do without her siblings? Probably be fine, but I digress.

"Do you ever think there's more for us out there?" a voice whispered. Mapbot looked to her left. The Security Bot to her side had 1583959 plastered on the side of their arm. Elise, this one's name was Elise. MapBot didn't know which Elise was who, but the Security Bots were nice in general.

"I mean, Rob got to go with that one family and… whatever his name was went to work for Glamrock Chica," Elise added. MapBot nodded along. It had been such big deals for those two to get away, but there were more important problems to happen afterwards. Things like repairs and sorting through scrapped S.T.A.F.F. Bots. That's what the list of names was really for, if you could still read the serial numbers that is.

"I know you have that clown girlfriend of yours, but do you ever want more. There's more than flashlights, maps, mops, and ovens. We're just not allowed to do those things," Elise continued. MapBot's lack of a response signaled that she wasn't there, but MapBot didn't see any reason to correct Elise. The S.T.A.F.F. Bots liked to vent to her about things they felt they couldn't to Glamrock Freddy.

"I wonder if this is all you ever want somedays. Why do you let yourself disappear into your head all day?" Elise asked to no one. She seemed more mad anything. Every S.T.A.F.F. Bot was mad at being trapped in this damn building.

"You know all our serial numbers by heart. You have a connection to the outside world. Why won't you take a chance at living. Anything is better than trapping yourself in your own head," Elise argued as her voice glitched. It was painful to watch.

"Take a map," MapBot says clearly. She was great at faking that line and that line only. She took a map out of her messenger bag and held it out in front of Elise. Elise took it, unfolding it gently. The inside showed a map of the Pizzaplex as expected, but there was something written in pen along the path ways. Elise's grip tightened as she read.

Together forever

Together for never

You all hold a special place in my heart

Love,
Mapbot.

"You cheeky little bastard. You knew I was here this whole time," Elise said, her voice glitching with artificial tears. Any emotion in a S.T.A.F.F. Bot's voice wasn't intended, but it was genuine.

"Yeah. Customer maps are kept in my chest cavity, silly," MapBot teased. Elise pulled her sister into a hug. The map would have nowhere to go but over the grave of unsalvageable bots, but it was meaningful. Elise could put it over them herself and that meant a lot. Mapbot knew it did too. That is why no specially messaged map was the same, at least to her memory.

"MapBot! I missed you!" Jackie called out as they ran over. Elise smirked with her eyes before pulling away from the hug and rolling away. Mapbot couldn't discern what that smirk meant, but she'd chastise Elise over it later. She had a partner to hug.

Chapter Text

Toy Chica brushed Jackie's hair carefully as always. She always tried to be gentle. She always wanted to be gentle. Jackie seemed more at ease with the situation than before too. Maybe she had one it enough times. Maybe she had been nice enough times.

A distant ringing in her ears reminded her of how loud her ears rang in that moment. She didn't mean to throw it anywhere near Jackie. They had a tendency to just appear places, and they appeared right where Toy Chica had planned to be free of potential victims. Jackie didn't seem too phased by it after the fact though. They seemed so calm. So… so not upset with her.

"Do you what your typical hair style?" she asked calmly. Jackie nodded, staring at the fabric in their lap. They were sewing something, but they refused to tell Toy Chica what. She thought it could be a gift for her, but she didn't want it to be. She didn't think she could accept it.

"I see. The buttered pasta of hair styles it is," she said with a bit of disdain. She wanted to do something cool, but Jackie liked their hair. They said it was a part of their brand. There were things much more synonymous with them than braided pigtails, but Toy Chica figured pocket dimensions and dead children weren't an intended part of said brand.

"Buttered pasta… Do we have any left? I want I eat it cold," Jackie queried quietly. Toy Chica snickered. She found it weird yet endearing Jackie preferred cold food over warm food, even butter pasta. The congealed crumb of penne, Jackie's favorite pasta shape, was delicious apparently.

"I'll check the fridge when I'm done," Toy Chica offered. Normally she wasn't trusted with anyone's food, yet she was with Jackie's. She wouldn't dream of eating Jackie8s food, even if it looked good. Jackie ate a total of five things to Toy Chica and Freddy's knowledge. They also tried to eat whatever Francine ate, but they typically didn't like it. Funtime Freddy was the same way actually.

"Thank you," Jackie said quietly. Toy Chica smiled. However, she stayed focused on Jackie's wiry hair. Jackie took their needle and stabbed it through the fabric their arm without much thought. The pulled it all the way through, satisfied with the oil and blood mixture covering the thread. They were going ti wash their final product later anyways.

"Jackie… Did you just…?" Toy Chica said with abject horror on her face and in her voice. Jackie stared at up at Toy Chica while befuddled. They had always done it this way. The thread needed something to stick it together when it frayed.

"I have to get it wet so I can sew properly. I won't have to struggled to thread the needle either now," Jackie said as they dabbed a their fingers in the bloody substances pooling in the rivets of their arms. Toy Chica grimaced. She didn't like blood, but this was straight up body horror. It didn't help that the smell of car oil and blood was very unpleasant. It was horrible actually.

"You could out the string in your mouth, not soak it in your own blood," Toy Chica implored. Jackie furrowed their brows in confusion. Before they had blood, the oil worked perfectly well. Their mouth didn't have wet stuff in it- oh…

"I kind of forgot saliva was a thing," Jackie said before continuing to sew. Toy Chica was glad she taught Jackie how to deep clean clothes. That dress must be disgusting. She couldn't even think of the other clothes Jackie made. Just the thought of them was gross. Jackie seemed unfazed still. Blood was pooling in their arm ridge, slowly dripping onto the couch.

"Let's get you a bandaid, kid," she said while avoiding the unsightly horrors. She was good at getting bloodstains out of things, but Ste made a mental note to ask Jackie first tips. They had to be really damn good at it.

Chapter Text

Moon didn't like being stone walled. It gave him time to think. He didn't even do anything wrong. Everything was a lot and he wasn't thinking straight. As much he didn't show that almost being captured scared him, it did. It really did.

"It was an emergency…" he muttered to himself. He was curled up in his bed, still cold despite the amount of the blankets covering him. Though, the cold was coming from inside of him somehow. It was as if his mind was just trying to make him suffer for funsies. This was wonderful, just wonderful. It was the most effective breakdown he's had in a while.

"Like, I know you just want to be useful, but- I didn't think there was time," Moon continued. He had always talked to himself, but he never talked to people who weren't there unless he was alone. It was easier that way. It made the allegations of still being insane easier to deflect.

Moon thought if every other person he made feel like they weren't wanted. It wasn't great for his downward spiral, but did he care? Fuck no. Why would he care? He just went through the list, quite the long one should I add. He went over every single incident, obsessing over what he could've done differently, done better, done right. He was just a fuck up anyways. What hadn't he ruined?

The there was that one. That specific one who was just so annoying, who had indirectly almost gotten Moon murdered. You know, the normal rigmarole for him. What was it with him and people wanting him dead? He was annoying, but he wasn't that annoyed.

"Wait… Oh my god, that makes so much sense!" Moon exclaimed as she sat up, most of the blankets he had on top of him crumpling on top of each other. Of course Jackie was so clingy. They wanted someone to care. They were built to be a backup family member. They'd want to be accepted by someone they considered family.

"That's something I can fix," he said to himself, more determined than ever. If he could only find his portal-placer-thingy. He'd be all set fur a visit. He could only hope Francine didn't Thanos Snap him on sight though.

"There's Michael being grumpy and there's Bonnie doing Bonnie things and there's Chica cooking and there's Freddy singing and there's me dancing," Jackie rambled. Francine sat patiently, happy to sit through the babble she had heard at least three times in the past fifteen minutes. Jackie would add five details to the the drawing and do the whole speech again.

"That's very nice, Jackie," Francine repeated. She was kind of bored of this, but she didn't let it show. She could still put up a convincing act to most people, even if it didn't work on her parents anymore. Jackie honestly mattered a lot more to her than they did unfortunately.

"Someone's at the door," Jackie said before the doorbell rung. They kept drawing, leaving Francine puzzled as to how they knew that before the bell rung. She shrugged it off because she had to answer the door. Her parents were doing couple things, which could be anything from cuddling to stuff Funtime Freddy had so graciously taught her about.

"Oh, it's you," Francine grumbled when she peaked through the peephole. Moon didn't have anything with him, no gifts to possibly justify his presence. Well, guess it was time to commit her first murder.

"State your business," she demanded as she swing h door open, floating in the air menacingly. Moon rocked on his heels nervously. Francine relaxed her stance just a little. Guilt clearly permeated every inch of his body, but the origins were unclear and untrustworthy. Francine had made Jackie her problem, so she was going to do a good job with them.

"So, I think I finally understand," Moon blurted out. Francine furrowed her brows. Moon would have to be more specific to even a drop of sense. Francine didn't hold out hope though. Moon did talk before he thought most of the time.

"My point being that I understand what Jackie wanted this whole time. I'm sorry, and I want to tell them that because it's real this time," Moon blabbered. Francine smiled slightly, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. She was still debating letting Moon in because Jackie didn't exactly like Sun and Moon anymore. Understandably so actually.

"Hey, Jackie! You have a visitor!" Francine called into the house, gradually moving to float on her back. Jackie looked up, obviously becoming disappointed once seeing how it was. They were more disappointed it wasn't MapBot though. MapBot had been acting weird and it was worrying them.

"I thought he didn't like me," Jackie pointed out in genuine confusion. Moon coughed into his hand awkwardly, Francine staring daggers right where his motherboard was situated behind his faceplate. The threat of murder was still very obviously on the table, and would probably never get taken off. Moon had to force himself to remember that dying was still a possibility.

"He's sorry, actually sorry," Francine explained. Jackie looked at Moon skeptically. Moon stood there, accepting that he definitely deserve to be scrutinized. How tried to focus in the fact that he was not dead and that he should be grateful for that.

"He can come see my drawing of work then," Jackie suggested. They waved Moon inside, pointing at their drawing despite being mad. Most art didn't wait for grudges. This art certainly didn't. Moon tentatively stepped inside, sitting next to Jackie. It was just Jackie saying the same thing over and over, but they would occasionally throw in insults about the Wendy's Girl, perfect tea honestly.

"Are they always this calm now?" Moon whispered to Francine while Jackie was saying who they drew once more. They like to repeat things. They were scared to forget for one, and two they liked the way syllables felt. Francine did respond though, but it was only a sort of flip-flop of her hand.

"Today that one girl threw her chicken tenders at me, so I threw them back and she cried," Jackie interjected. Moon snickered, afraid to fully laugh. Francine dud shake her head in amusement though. The Wendy's Girl had it coming. She had been harassing Jackie fur the longest time, caking them ugly and then demanding nuggets and hitting their bis like a lunatic.

"I am sorry, Jackie. I was too caught up in myself-"

"Shh… I'm trying ti draw you. You have to stay still," Jackie instructed, reaching over their drawing to grab a dark blue marker with their accordion arms. Jackie didn't seem to care that Moon was apologetic because they didn't care about what he had done anymore.

Moon did stay still as he was drawn. It did feel like torture though. He hated stating completely still, but Jackie would correct him each time he ,over which he hated more. It was the least Moon could do anyways, especially when a magic fiddler was staring you died with murderous intent. That option was still on the table much to Moon!s chagrin. He could ignore that. He did hope Sun would too.