Archive of Our Own ^beta

Gregory looked at the computer, clacking away at the keys as he wrote down new lines of code. It had been a while since he worked on perfecting the code for these machines, choosing instead to wander the building, playing the retro arcade games that were on display in the arcade section of the mall. While his masters were impressed by his high score, he knew he would be punished severely for his lack of decent work. And that was not something that Gregory wanted, nor needed.

As Gregory typed, he looked over at the code that he had typed. He looked to his left, and to his right. Then behind him. There didn’t seem to be anyone there, but he still had to be cautious. His master was omnipresent, seemingly all knowing. His growing anxiety seemed to heighten as typed the code, the clacking of the keys getting loud as he went on to finish. This was technically not…forbidden right? He was doing his job at the end of the day. He was doing as his masters wanted. And what they wanted was for him to code, right? Right. He was doing his job, and if they didn’t like it, then they could just shove off. At least…that’s what he wanted to tell them.

As he finished up with the coding, he got a little glint in his eye. This was it, wasn’t it. He was finally going to see the results of this new project. As all the animatronics, Freddy, Monty, Roxy, Chica, and the Daycare Attendant, began to wake up from their long sleep, their eyes flashed a bright yellow before returning to their normal colors.They stood up from their sitting positions and looked down at him, their tall heights imposing on him. It was done. They were finished!

The mechanical animals towered over the boy, their eyes, before being soft and kind, were now hard and piercing into him. As the robots started the move, Gregory stepped back. Did it really work? Had the code really been implemented correctly? Were they going to come after him instead of what he wanted?

Freddy stepped forward towards Gregory, cornering him between the door of the room he was in. Before Gregory could move or dodge, Freddy lunged, picking Gregory up and spinning him around, laughing warmly before placing Gregory on his shoulder. Gregory was shocked for a moment, but as soon as he saw the smiling eyes in Freddy’s and the other’s faces, he laughed and hugged Freddy tightly.

“Freddy! You scared me for a second! What went on with you!?”, Gregory laughed.

“Apologies, Gregory.”, Freddy said, his deep voice booming slightly. “We have just woken up and it took us a while to recognize you.”.

Monty yawned, scratching his back and slumping forward. “Yeah, kid, couldn’t you have let us sleep a little more? I was having the best dream, too!”.

“Sorry everyone.”, Gregory said. “I just had to test out the new code I put into you guys and I couldn’t do it while you were awake. How do you like it by the way?”.

“It’s amazing!”, Roxy said, flexing her non-existent muscles and posing dramatically. “I feel even more awesome than I already am!”.

“It’s so nice for you to do that for us Gregory.”, Chica said. “You’re such a good kid, do you know that?”.

Gregory nodded and Monty ruffled his hair. “And don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.”.

Gregory chuckled before his face morphed into an expression of contemplation. “We’re a…we’re a family right?”.

“Of course we’re a family!”, The Daycare Attendant said, his rays springing from his head as he picked Gregory up and hugged him. “You're our bestest westest friend in the whole wide world! And nothing could ever change that! Isn't that right, everyone!”.

The animatronic animals spoke out in agreement. Gregory started to feel himself tear up. He wiped away the tears and looked around at his friends. "Thank you! I love you! I love you guys so much! ".

The animatronics smiled. "We love you too, Grego-".

Suddenly, the animatronics began to seize up. Their eyes rolled back in their sockets and they began to twitch and their words became garbled and incomprehensible. What was happening!? Why was this happening!? He did everything right! How?!

As Gregory and the machines fell to the floor with a thud and a clank, Gregory could feel a powerful aura all around him. He didn't think it was him at first. He thought he was being paranoid. But when he noticed that Freddy's eyes were turning from the bright sky blue they usually were to a deep, royal violet, he knew that he had been found out…

"How…", Gregory asked shakily. " How long have you been here? How much did you see?"

"If you're asking if I saw the whole of that pathetic show you just put on, then yes, I did."

The voice seemed to be everywhere and nowhere at the same time, both warm and cold, both kind and cruel, both soft and sharp. It was a male one, low and smooth with a slight english accent that caused him to enunciate every word. It was a voice to be loved, it was a voice to be feared, and it was a voice that Gregory could do without.

"I think we both know… ", the voice said. " That the code you just implemented was the opposite of the code I wanted you to implement."

"I know, sir. ", Gregory said, trying to look away from the voice's eyes, but found out he couldn't, as they were everywhere.

"Then, I must ask, why did you choose to slack off and play pretend with your little toys instead of doing what was required.". It didn't even seem angry. That was the worst part about the voice. That you could never tell what it was thinking.

"I just… ".

"You just what? ".

Gregory closed his eyes. He couldn't help himself. His throat seemed to close up when the voice spoke, like an allergic reaction.

" I just… wanted to know what it was like, to have a family. ".

"A family?"

"Yeah!", Gregory exclaimed, opening his eyes, gathering up courage to speak with the voice. "See, I wanted to know what it would be like if I had this big family, like those families in sitcoms. There's Freddy, who's the dad. Then Chica, who's the mom. Monty and Roxy are my older brother and sister. The Daycare Attendant is the cool, kooky uncle… "

Finally Gregory pointed to himself, smiling slightly. "And I'm the youngest kid. ".

There was a long, uncomfortable silence. No one was talking, and Gregory could feel himself suffocating in the tension. Suddenly, a laugh rang out. A loud one. A cruel one. A laugh that seemed to echo every wall of the room he and the animatronics were. It was horrible, and Gregory could only cover his ears. When the laughter stopped, the voice spoke again, calmly yet amused.

"For such a clever and smart child, you really are stupidly naive."

Gregory looked down, shamefully as the voice explained this to him.

"These machines… ", the voice said, "Are not alive like you and I. They will never be. They are cogs and coils, servos and sprockets. They have no heart that beats, no brain that thinks , and more importantly, no soul that loves. They will never live. Never be alive to hug you, or tell you stories, or cook you your favorite meals. They just do as their programming, as their instinct, tells them. And manipulating that instinct will not change that. ".

Gregory began to tense up, hot tears forming in his eyes. No, he couldn't cry. Not here, not now. What would the voice, his master, think of him then.

" And furthermore… ", the voice continued. " What makes you think that they would love you if they were alive? Look at you. You have no family, no friends, no money, not even a home to go to at night. If they were alive and saw you, they would see you as a pauper, a street urchin. And nobody loves a street urchin, not even a smart one like yourself. Not even cute and cuddly animals. ".

Gregory hiccuped, a tear streaming down his face. " I… I know.", he said, this voice sounding as if he were swallowing travel. "I just wanted to know what it was like, is all. I know they don't love me… I just wanted to know… ".

Besides the sound of Gregory's silent sobbing, there was silence. The silence told Gregory that he was alone, and to be honest, he didn't know if that was a good or bad thing. As Gregory hiccuped and tried to regain his composure, a figure slowly faded into his view. It was purple at first, but then it faded into a dull yellow, with the only bit of purple coming from his eyes and his starry vest. His ears were long, his teeth were bucked, and his eyes were dull looking and dead, still wet and tear streaked. He was crudely stitched up, like an old doll, but his smile was not one of love. It was a smile that contained no emotion. A smile that was both forced and genuine at the same time. It made Gregory sick.

The bunny man, as Gregory dubbed his master, slowly and softly put a hand on his shoulder. Gregory normally would have despised the touch, but this time, he was… indifferent to it. The man patted Gregory's shoulder for a while, letting him quietly weep, before taking a hold of Gregory's chin, and gently forcing him to look up into his dead, wet eyes.

"You know I only say these things… " the voice, the bunny man's voice, said. It seemed kinder, as if he was Gregory's father, and not the eldritch creature he served. "Because I want you to become stronger and greater than you are, right? ".

Gregory was silent, contemplating this before nodding his head. Yes, the bunny could be mean sometimes, but he only said those things because he wanted him to improve and get better. And he was right about… some things. He was a street urchin, he did have no family, and he could be stupid at times. He just needed to be… corrected sometimes.

The bunny man tilted his head as if to smile, as wiped the tears from Gregory's cheeks. He sighed contentedly, beginning to speak again. "I'm glad you understand this."

The bunny man bent back up, his form large and imposing. More imposing than the machines at his disposal.

"You may be small and useless now. ", the bunny man said to Gregory, looking down at him. " But I know you will grow to be smart and strong, even if you do start off so weak and naive. Even if you are lowly and pathetic, you are still less lowly and pathetic compared to when I found you, and that is something you should have a little pride in.``.

Gregory found himself smiling at that. It was true. He was lowly and pathetic, but with the help of the bunny man, he had grown into something more. It wasn’t much but it was growth. He could be proud of growth, even if it was small.

“You could be better though.”, the bunny man said. “I know you can. But in order to do that, you must try your best to do what I say. You know that the best outcome is rewarded to you when you do what I say, right.”.

Gregory nodded.

“Good.”, The bunny man said. “Then I shall ask again. Will you be able to implement the code into the animatronics? The right code this time?”.

Gregory looked up at him, a smile on his tear stained face. “Yes. I will.”.

“Good.”, The bunny man said. “You’re a good boy, Gregory, do you know that?”.

“Yep!”, Gregory said, turning back to the computer and hitting backspace, deleting the previous code.

“Alright.”, The bunny man said. “I’ll come to check on you later. Happy coding Gregory.”.

As the bunny man faded away, Gregory began to type on the computer again, the computer keys clicking and clacking as he went. He may not have a family, but he had the bunny man. He was kinda like family, right? He corrected him when he was wrong, pointed out his mistakes and showed him how to be greater.

And that’s what families do.