Strength in Unity

                                    

                                          

   It's been a week since we were all transferred back to our old location due to the ongoing investigation that's taking place where we were stationed. The repeated instances of children going missing caught the attention of the authorities, and they eventually found out who was responsible for everything. Afton may have been smart, but his overconfidence made him sloppy with his cover-ups. I had Bonnie's help with telling the others, and we were able to expose his secret after finding traces of blood on the cleaning supplies. Unfortunately before they had a chance to catch him, he was long gone. He's still out there somewhere on the run, but I'm sure justice will prevail in the end. It has to for the children's sake.
   My relationship with everyone is still a little shaky, but it's mostly back to normal. I'm happy to say that Freddy has allowed me to start performing again. Sadly, I wasn't able to get a replacement for my suit since they don't keep those in stock anymore, but he did manage to get me a new face to replace my badly damaged one. The lengths he went through just to make it up to me made really touched my heart. He's been trying to be nice to me ever since he found out what William had done, and has apologized profusely about everything. Chica also doesn't act like I'm a rabid animal anymore, so that's a plus. She even gave me a hug the other day as a show of how much she trusts and appreciates me being around.
   This location is definitely a downgrade from the new place, but it feels more like home now that the old gang's back together again. I'm not sure what ended up happening to Toy Foxy though. The last time I saw her, she had told me that she was too badly damaged to be fixed completely. Hopefully she gets a major overhaul in the future. I can't stand the thought of her being scrapped. 
   I'm helping Chica clean out underneath the stove when I see Freddy push past the doors. He asks her if he could borrow me for a moment so that we could have a quick chat. His smile of course turns to his usual grumpy look once we are out of her sight. The security door slams behind us as we step into his office, ensuring that we have complete privacy. I mentally brace myself for whatever argument we're about to get into, but I'm instantly thrown off by his relaxed demeanor.
"Is this about your microphone? Because I promise that the replacement is on its way" I state defensively
 "What? No, this isn't about that. I just wanted to talk about the thing going on between you and Bonnie." He says with a knowing smile.
  "thing?- w...what do you mean by that?" I stutter while feeling like a deer in the headlights.
 "Oh come on Foxy. I may be a mean old bastard, but I still know what love is. I've noticed the dynamic you two now have. Frankly I'm surprised how long it took you to hook up." He says while playfully punching me in the arm.
  "Your not... bothered by it? About the whole idea of us..."
  "screwing each other? Not as long as it's after sundown and behind closed doors." He replies gruffly
 I feel myself blush at his bluntness. I was just going to ask him how he felt about us being a couple, but I guess that also covers that base. It's very unusual for him to act unprofessional or to even swear. Maybe this is his way of trying to cut the tension between us.
  "Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that I'm not against you two being together. Just don't let it affect your work output, and try to not make it so obvious in front of the kids, alright?
  "You got it, Captain." I reply brightly, relieved in knowing that we don't have anything to hide   anymore.
   After I'm done in the kitchen, I check to see if Bonnie needs help with anything before we open. I fuss with his bowtie as he tells me that he's all set, and mentions that my part will be at the end of the performance. I still have cases where I freeze up every once in a while, so Freddy is only going to give me a short part to ease me back into performing in front of crowds. Nobody has really been able to figure out why I have this problem. I think it's more of a psychological reason rather then technical, so Bonnie promised that he would help give me emotional support while I work through this issue. I also don't have nightmares as often ever since we started sleeping together. On the rare occasion I do, it's usually about losing him, so when he wakes me from them it makes me feel better knowing that he's safe.
    I stand on my toes to give him a kiss on the cheek, quickly glancing around to see if anyone noticed. Bonnie of course takes the initiative to embarrass me further by leaning in and giving me a full loud one on the mouth. He laughs at my panic as I shove him away and leap past my curtains before any of the kids have a chance to see me. I expect Freddy to look irritated with us already pushing our luck with his rule, but he appears to be barely holding back an amused smile at our audacity. That damn rabbit. Always trying to bring him down to his troublemaking level. He drives me crazy sometimes, but that's what I love about him.
   I wait in anticipation in the darkness as I listen to Freddy and Bonnie joke around after finishing with their last song. The children laugh as Chica tells them off for one of the jokes they made about her cooking, and they banter until Freddy changes the subject to mention the closing song I'm about to sing for them. The curtains swing open before I'm able to finish my prayer, and the whole group of kids turn their attention to me.
 Surprisingly, they don't seem to mind my appearance as they listen intently to the ridiculous tale that I start the song with. Thank God Freddy got me a new face, because I'm pretty sure they would have had a different reaction to seeing me the way I looked before.
 I glance over at Bonnie to see how he thinks I'm doing so far, and he smiles reassuringly while giving me a corny thumbs up. The stress gradually fades away, and my voice carries more steadliy as I continue on. My perfomance goes on without a hitch, and before I know it, I come the end of the song with a decent amount of kids cheering me on, including Bonnie and the rest of my friends.
    Life has been pretty rough these past couple of months, but I feel like it's helped me appreciate the small victories more. I'm aware of the dark world that we live in, more than ever. However, it has become less daunting with the acknowledgment of the good that also exists within it. I feel that things are going to get worse before they get better, but at least I won't have to face it alone anymore.


_END