Awake and Alive

I don't own Five Nights at Freddy's. Scott Cawthon does.

Summary: Mike thought he understood everything going on at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, but, really, he has no idea. He never thought the animatronics might actually be capable of feelings, let alone have one of them actually…love him. Enough to turn him into one of them, perhaps?

Notes: Takes place in an AU where the kids aren't in the suits and the animatronics are just sentient robot…things

Well, here's the last chapter, guys! I'm really grateful to all those who favourited, alerted and especially reviewed this story!

…

Finding Chica had to be quick and it had to be easy. Like when finding Freddy, he asked the animatronics if they'd seen her. No luck with Foxy, he'd been in his cove all day. Golden Freddy was mute; no such luck with him either. Freddy was too busy with his cub to notice any of the other animatronics' positions (though Mike caught him continuously glancing at Bonnie). It'd been the purple bunny himself who had informed Mike on the whereabouts of the animatronic chicken, and Mike couldn't say he was surprised when he was told.

The kitchen was the only room that didn't have camera feed, only static, so there was no way for Mike to check on her there. Besides, he'd always had a feeling that was her favourite room, what with the bib and the amount of time she had spent in there during his shifts. Mike had thought Chica was just messing with him, clattering those pots and pans like that.

Mike had cringed when Bonnie had told him how Chica had been lately. As the bunny told it, she'd retreat to the kitchen straight after the customers were gone, return to the stage to mess with the night guard, then hide away in the kitchen again. She was most likely afraid that Mike would come out of the backstage area and catch her, so she went to the only place he wouldn't. Bonnie had been to see her a good fraction of the time, during which she lamented to him her unrequited feelings, while he offered her the best hugs he could possibly muster (according to the others, Bonnie gave the best hugs, so that must've meant the ones he gave Chica were pretty good).

After that, the dead man had gone as fast as he could to the kitchen; he didn't have much time left before the day staff turned up. He'd wasted enough time having his little breakdown in the Freddy Room with Phone Guy, who had promised to tell him more about the old restaurant when he got back. Mike had done research on Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, but not so far back as to know about the restaurant that had been open in 1987. Phone Guy explained very little to him before he left, including the Puppet's part at that place and the toy animatronics (which, apparently, were scrapped). There was still more to discover about this restaurant chain, back when he was safe and sound with his idol.

For now, he had a fucking robot chicken to apologise to.

Mike couldn't believe he honestly felt this bad about upsetting Chica. To be honest, he hadn't been thinking about her much lately, since finding out Freddy's secrets. But all that was out of the way now, so he was pretty much forced to patch things up with her. After all, he was going to be…living at this place for the rest of his days (unless some miracle occurred), so he might as well get used to all the robots attempting to be his friends (or more, in Chica's case). He was already pretty used to Bonnie, he supposed. So far, the rabbit was probably his favourite (if he had to pick, anyways. He'd rather not because, oh, you know, they had KILLED HIM). Freddy? Still least favourite. No, wait. Maybe that Puppet thing was. If that was even an animatronic. Fuck knows what that thing was.

Nevertheless, Mike was already realising that he was talking to the animatronics as though they were people and honestly considering their feelings on things. If he didn't know any better, he would've said he was going insane. Good thing he knew better.

As Mike approached the kitchen, he listened out for any noises that would alert him to Chica's presence. He couldn't hear much in there; it was usually silent unless the robots were messing with cutlery. He did, however, hear the voice of the Chica boy. His voice was too quiet for Mike to really identify what he was saying, but he didn't hear Chica saying anything back. He imagined the boy was trying to comfort her. How thoughtful.

Hesitantly, Mike opened the kitchen door. He'd only been in the kitchen once and that was to wash his hands after he accidentally laid his palms on the dusty surface of the office's desk. It was a cramped little room that absolutely reeked of old pizza; no wonder Chica liked it here so much. The pots and pans she and Freddy liked to mess with during the night were hung on the walls, prepared for the staff that would show up very soon. There was barely any walking space between the steel cupboards and the ovens and stoves; Mike had to wonder how Freddy and Chica even managed to stalk their way through here. He had to question that later; time was running out.

She was so noticeable as she sat there, her yellow contrasting against the black and white tiles so much so that she stuck out like a sore thumb. Mike wondered briefly how long she'd sat there, back to the oven and knees to her chest. The Chica boy sat beside her, little hands on her arm as he tried to literally shake her out of her depressed stupor. Mike didn't see a chance of that any time soon; not from the kid, anyway. Hesitantly, he stepped further into the room, his feet surprisingly making no noise (she'd see him as the Freddy suit, after all). The Chica boy, nevertheless, seemed to somehow sense he was there and looked up as soon as he got close. Hurriedly (and with a great deal of struggle), he got to his feet and stuck his arms out at his sides, attempting to keep Mike from getting or even seeing Chica, "You can't be here!"

"Hang on, listen for a sec -" Mike tried to approach, but the boy jogged forward to stop him.

"No! Now…g-go away!"

"Hey, c'mon," Mike looked down at the boy; he looked ready to wet himself. "Just lemme talk to Chica -"

"No!" The Chica boy pushed at Mike's legs, attempting to shove him out of the kitchen. His attempt did practically nothing, but Mike admired his attempt. "G-Go away!"

Mike frowned considerably. While he admired this kid for standing up to him (mentally, he told the boy he'd better back off cause Mike had already faced men twice his size and won), this was wasting precious and valuable time. For a moment, he considered pushing passed the kid or stepping over him or, in the very least, telling him to fuck off, but that wouldn't give him a good name with Freddy, so he resisted temptation. Even so, Mike felt his anger begin to rise, "Listen, kid, I need to talk to her before the people show up, so - if you don't get out of my way - then I'm gonna have to -"

"It's okay," Mike and the Chica boy jolted, then looked over at the chicken by the oven. She hadn't moved from her position at all, "Let him in."

"A-Are you sure…?"

"Yeah. It's okay."

The Chica boy suddenly looked unsure what to do, especially as Mike looked down at him smugly. He didn't mean to be so bad-tempered with the boy, but he was wasting his time by making him stand there doing nothing. The little boy gulped nervously in the presence of someone he knew could beat him up, looking back and forth between he and Chica. As he stared at the kid, Mike realised how much he must've frightened him. What was he doing? He, a grown man, practically bullying a little kid like that? God, what a prick. "…Hey." The kid looked up at him, still looking pretty ready to wet himself (ghosts couldn't do that…right?). Mike did his best to sound gentle, "Why don't you go…find the other kids? Uh - the girl with the Freddy mask is with the bear himself, if you wanna go…join them?"

The boy took one last glance at Chica before he nodded, looking like he was choking back tears, and scurried out of the kitchen quickly. Mike promised himself he'd apologise to him later, after he was done with Chica. Once the boy was gone, Mike's stomach flopped. He was alone with Chica now and time was running out.

It was now or never.

Mike gulped and approached her slowly; he hadn't done something like this in ages. Not since those two girls he'd lost due to his anger, and they were pretty crappy attempts in themselves. This was entirely different: this one was a robot and…and…

…It wasn't hugely different at all, was it?

All were girls, he'd broken the hearts (or…servos - whatever) of each one and now he was here apologising. Admittedly, the difference being this one had helped murder him, but…she hadn't known what she was doing. Like Freddy said, he was the only one who was aware of anything they did. Really, she more committed manslaughter than murder. Now, Freddy - Freddy had committed murder. That wasn't Mike saying he forgave her or anything; he didn't and he never would. But, if he was going to be here for a while, then the least he could do was try and get along with everyone, right?

Right.

Mike stopped just beside her, cleared his throat awkwardly, then asked, "Uh…can I…sit down…?"

Chica didn't reply at first and Mike had the right mind to repeat himself, then she shrugged and muttered, "Sure."

Mike awkwardly took his place beside her on the floor, almost falling over the feet of his suit as he did so (still wasn't quite used to how bulky these things were). He cleared his throat again, sat back against the oven and…said nothing. Gee, he really wasn't good at this 'conserve time' thing, was he? Damn it. Mike forced himself to relax and focus on the matter at hand. He was a Schmidt, damn it. Schmidts didn't give up. "Listen…Chica…about the other day…I, um…" Wow, real manly there, Schmidt. "…sorry about…yelling at you like that…That - That wasn't alright…sorry…" It was totally alright.

Chica didn't reply to him immediately. For a moment, she seemed to consider not replying at all, then she sighed sadly in the same manner as when he shouted at her, "…You don't love me…do you, Mike Schmidt…?"

"No." Mike said immediately. Realising he probably sounded a bit cruel, he added, "Sorry."

Chica gave that same sigh again, only this time she added a little whine at the end and rested her head in her folded arms. Mike's brow furrowed. Well, this was going well. One would think he would've at least practised what to say beforehand. The ex-night guard rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. Whether Chica noticed or not was up for debate, as she gave yet another sigh, "…Figures…"

"I'm sorry, Chica…" Mike said quietly. Can't believe I'm fucking doing this…

Chica moved as though she was shrugging, hugged her knees tighter, then said, "…Guess I kinda saw that coming…"

Oh, that was just sad. "Look, Chica…you're a…great girl and all…" I really can't believe I'm fucking doing this… "But…you and me, we're…different…" I could've gotten a part in a freaking romance movie. Jesus… "I mean, we're just…too different…yeah…"

"We're both animatronics." Chica supplied, trying to find some loophole in what Mike had said. They weren't really all that different, right? Mike Schmidt was just being silly!

"Uh…yeah…" Mike said awkwardly. He'd already told Freddy he wouldn't confess their secret to the others (ugh, God, it was their secret). Doing so would just get the bear pinning Mike to the nearest wall again and Mike was pretty sure no amount of telling off from Bonnie would get Freddy off of him then. "But…uh…I'm a…different make than you. Yeah - uh, I was made elsewhere and, uh, it'd be frowned upon if we were to…" He trailed off, rubbing his head. "…Besides, honestly, I…don't love you…"

"But…could you?" Chica asked, a small spark of hope in her tone. "I-If we were the same make and all?"

He had to be careful how he worded this. Freddy had already warned him before about upsetting any of his pals; Mike really didn't want to see what the bear had in mind as a punishment. Not that he was saying he was scared of Freddy or anything. Just wanted to avoid conflict. "…No. No, I don't think I could."

Nailed it.

Chica's face fell, "…Oh…" She hugged herself tighter, looking away from him again. If she were human, Mike was sure she'd be crying. Then again, if she were human, they probably wouldn't have even been in this scenario.

"Chica, I'm sorry, I just -"

"It's because I'm uninteresting, isn't it?"

"…What?"

Chica still wasn't looking at him, simply refused to, and there was a certain wobble to her voice that made Mike actually ponder if these things could cry. He doubted they could shed actual tears, but could they sob? Could they get so sad like that? He wouldn't know. He'd never watched any of their shows and never adjusted that much when he modified their AIs on his later nights. If they could smile, laugh, growl and display other emotions in such identifiable ways, what would stop them from crying too? Mike's brow furrowed as Chica continued, "Everybody loves Foxy, Bonnie and Freddy! Foxy was so popular when he was still performing; he put the rest of us to shame! Then he was put away and now Bonnie's the most popular! I see lots of kids dressed up as him when we're performing! Lots of kids as Freddy too, but I barely see any of me! They all draw them too and make the paper plates and everything! I barely get that! It's not fair! Everybody loved the old Chica, back at the other place! She got drawings! She was so 'great' that Foxy still has her stupid head! Just cause she was all thin and pretty…Then they brought me back out and they - everyone…just didn't like me." She buried her face in to her arms; her shaking was evident enough to Mike that she was shedding imaginary tears.

Mike stared at her, unsure of how to approach this. Come to think of it, the drawings he'd seen children draw…did tend to involve Bonnie quite a bit. Freddy too. The posters in the restaurant, he could understand, since the place was named after Freddy, but…still. And wasn't it a kick in the nuts that he too had made Bonnie's likeness into a paper plate just minutes before? Yes. Yes, it was. Mike looked away awkwardly; she'd see him as a Freddy suit, but he still didn't want to give anything away in his face. He really couldn't believe this. Not only was he sitting on the floor with one of the things that had killed him, but he was actually…pitying them. Feeling sorry for them, even. Mike gulped. He was going insane quicker than he thought he would.

Still, he supposed he could see where she was coming from. How hurtful must it have been to have to listen as another version of yourself got all the popularity you wanted when you weren't locked away in a room? How upsetting must it have been that, when you were finally let out of said room, one of your friends was still in the way of your popularity? Then, when that friend is put away, your other buddy does the same? Mike was sure Bonnie and Foxy hadn't meant it, probably didn't even realise they had in the first place, but it still must've hurt. The biggest hit to her self-esteem, though, must've been the part he played. Distantly, he recalled her telling him she'd never cuddled with anyone before (since that was so important and so intimate for these things), so that must've meant she'd never been with anyone romantically before. Mike had come along, stolen her…heart (or whatever) and then shattered it to pieces; the only guy she'd ever liked had broken her heart and couldn't love her back.

Damn. That was harsh, wasn't it?

Mike sighed a little, "…Y'know about Foxy, then?"

"Everyone knows about Foxy. It's why we don't go in the cove - he's paranoid someone will steal his precious little treasure!" Chica replied with as much sarcasm as she could muster.

Yeah, he wished they'd mentioned that before he'd gotten a faceful of hook. Mike raised a brow, looking at her out of the corner of his eye. "Do you…like Foxy…?"

"Ew!" Chica's head sprang up, looking at him like he'd grown two heads, "No way! He's like…a brother to me! Yuck! Mike Schmidt!" Mike put up his hands in surrender. He was definitely the first guy she'd ever liked. Chica's face fell again, albeit slower this time. "It's just…I wish he didn't like her so much…They were…really close when she was still around…"

"They were a thing?"

"Uh-huh. I was forced to watch."

"Ouch."

"Yup…"

"That must've sucked."

"Hm?" Chica looked at him confusedly, "Sucked what?"

Mike choked back a chuckle, then cleared his throat quickly before he could laugh. Too damn innocent. "Uh - nothing. Nevermind. I was just saying - must've been bad."

"It was…" Chica looked away again, "Bonnie liked Toy Bonnie a lot; they were always together. Freddy and Toy Freddy barely ever talked cause Toy Freddy was scared of 'im and Freddy was always following Bonnie around. Way too paranoid he'd break again." Sounds like Freddy, Mike thought as he nodded, a sign that he was still listening. "I didn't see much of the other Foxy…I was always in the backroom. The others didn't pay any thought about me…" She sniffled.

Mike cringed at that and rubbed his head. God, the poor thing. He had no idea her self-esteem was really that low. The part of him that didn't regret yelling at her knew that he still would have if he had known what he did now, but the part of him that did…now really wished he had worded it differently. "Chica…I'm sorry that all happened to you. That…must've felt pretty bad. But, hey, I've been through some tough shit too and, y'know, it's hard, but…hell. I'm gonna sound like a total idiot here - it…does get better." Oh, God, I sound like those bastards at my anger management… "And…if it makes ya feel any better…you're my favourite…"

There was a sudden pause in this moment, during which Chica seemed to freeze over entirely, like her servos had locked tight. Mike, for a moment, considered shaking her, but she suddenly raised her head, putting a stop to both that plan and - metaphorically - Mike's dead heart. "Y…You mean that, Mike Schmidt…?"

"Sure." Mike shrugged. "You're the only one that didn't make me piss myself, I'm sure. Bonnie creeped the fuck outta me and Foxy was my nightmare fuel. Freddy was…Freddy. Was not ready for Freddy. Golden Freddy was a son of a bitch. But you - you were…alright." Chica didn't respond, so Mike decided to reassure her, "Besides, I always said 'hi' to you, right?"

Alright, it was probably a bit cruel for him to say this to her. True, she was the one he found the least scary during his time on the night shift and, yes, she was the only one who hadn't left him sitting in a puddle of his own urine. But…he wouldn't have classified her as his 'favourite'. He didn't have favourites - they had KILLED HIM. 'Least hated', yes, but not 'favourite'. And fuelling her idea that saying 'hi' to her all the time was a sign that he liked her probably wasn't the best idea, but to hell with it. If it sped up his apology, so be it. He'd deal with whatever consequences there were later.

Mike almost jumped out of his suit as Chica suddenly squeaked loudly, her own equivalent to a grin quickly forming on her face (which, to her, was her mouth opening widely…huh. So that was why that happened when she was outside his window. Go figure). "Mike Schmidt!" She squealed loudly, then flung herself at him and hugged him tightly.

Mike immediately froze up. This wasn't like Bonnie's hug. Bonnie's hug was out of protection and he had considered it a bother, as it had interrupted his fight with Freddy. Chica's hug was out of love and he simply considered it…uncomfortable and awkward. Gently, he pushed Chica back, "Uh…"

"Thank you, Mike Schmidt!" She chirped, eyes practically sparkling. "D-Does this mean you love me back?"

Wait, what?! "Chica, we just had this fucking conversation! No!" Chica's face fell, so Mike quickly amended, "I mean - no, sorry, I don't. Still." He let go of her and shuffled back a little. If Chica was so easy to influence like that, he had to be careful with what he did around her. Sometimes, he could've sworn Chica had the most childish mind out of all of them. "I mean…we barely even know each other. Why the hell do you like me anyway? You know squat about me!"

"Well…" She twiddled her thumbs (an action which looked totally wrong on a killer animatronic, by the way) and suddenly looked shy, "…I know that you're handsome…and I like your voice…and your eyes are really pretty…"

Alright. You can stop that now. "Well…I, uh…I'm flattered, Chica, but…I still don't think anything's gonna…happen with this. In fact, I know it won't." Chica's little smile fell. "But, hey, like I said: you're the one I think is…alright. Bonnie made me piss myself, Foxy was in my fucking nightmares, Freddy was being a total bastard and Golden Freddy just…is really fucking creepy."

Chica giggled, her hands covering her bill, and Mike raised a brow, "You talk funny, Mike Schmidt!"

Mike's eyes narrowed now. Why the hell did they all say that to him? He was speaking normal English and so were they, so why did they think he talked funny? "I don't talk funny. What d'you mean by that?"

"You talk funny, Mike Schmidt! It's like 'Bonnie made me brrrraaaaabbbfff myself' and 'Foxy was in my brrrraaaaabbbfff nightmares' and 'Freddy was being a total brrrraaaaabbbfff' and Golden Freddy just…is really brrrraaaaabbbfff creepy'!" She burst into laughter, pointing at him and tilting her head to the ceiling. Her laughter echoed faintly in the room.

Mike stared in confusion. "The hell? I don't talk like -" He paused as she laughed harder and the realisation hit him. She hadn't said any of the swear words and instead replaced them with sounds that made no sense…because that was how she heard them. "They don't understand swearing." He muttered to himself, giving his forehead a slap because it was so obvious. "Of course they don't. They have the minds of kids, they're not gonna know what swearing is. Doesn't process through their AIs or…whatever. Holy crap. Can't believe I didn't even notice…" He rested his head back against the oven as he waited for her to quieten down. It was times like this he really wished his father had been alive long enough to tell him how to speak to women or, in the very least, that he had taken up Phone Guy's offer of getting advice about how to handle a chicken animatronic who happened to be in love with you. Not that Phone Guy would know a whole lot about that, but whatever. Mike's eyes widened - Phone Guy! "Oh, shit! What time is it?!" He frantically searched the kitchen for a clock, then gave up and whipped around to her, "Chica!"

"Hm?" Chica blinked and forcefully silenced herself, "Mike Schmidt?"

He leaned toward her slightly in his attempt at hurrying her up, "Are we okay now? You're not upset with me anymore? Cause, if you are, Freddy will kill me." For a second time.

Chica blinked twice, then turned from him and played with her fingers, "Well…I was never upset with you, Mike Schmidt…Can't force you to love me, after all…That'd be wrong. And really rude too." Mike nodded several times. Yeah, it would, now hurry the fuck up! "So…" She gave him another shy look. "Maybe…we can be friends?"

Doubtful. "Uh…sure, Chica. That's fine." It's really not.

Chica gave him a sweet smile and another hug. This time, he patted her twice on the back to hurry up the sign of affection, then the chicken suddenly pulled him to his feet. "C'mon, then! I think the people are gonna come in soon!"

"Right!" Mike said hurriedly, turning and making his way out (accidentally dragging Chica along the way, though she didn't seem to mind that). Mike finally let go of her when they reached the middle of the dining area. The dead man jumped when he caught sight of the two other animatronics sitting on one of the tables out of the corner of his eye.

Bonnie and Freddy had their backs to he and Chica, so neither had noticed them come in. Not that they could really notice much anyways, since Freddy's booming laughter echoed throughout the room and destroyed any other sound. It made Mike cringe, though Bonnie only stared at the bear in wonder and awe. "Y-You…laughed at one of my jokes…" The bunny muttered, his ears twitching.

Freddy looked to him with a smile, "Well, of course I did!" He put a hand on Bonnie's shoulder, "You're funny, Bonnie!"

Bonnie looked down at Freddy's hand, then back to Freddy's face, his eyes still wide and his mouth in the shape of an 'o' (Mike didn't even think the animatronics could make that shape with their mouths). Suddenly (and this was enough to make Freddy jump, so Mike had to give Bonnie props for this one), Bonnie jumped up and lunged at his partner, throwing his arms around him, "Oh, Freddy! You're back!"

Freddy chuckled whole-heartedly and returned Bonnie's hug, "What're you talking about? I never left!"

"You're not a grumpy grump anymore! My Freddy is back!"

Holy shit, that's weird…Mike thought, not only because Bonnie had called him his Freddy, but because he could see Bonnie's foot had popped up. You're the girl in this relationship, Bonnie. Hope you realise that.

"Yeah…" Freddy stood up from the table to hug Bonnie properly, "Sorry I've been such a jerk lately, Bonnie. I…just got stressed about some stuff…"

"Aw, Freddy!" Bonnie broke the hug and held Freddy's hands in his, "Is that all? Ya silly bear - ya shoulda said something! I coulda helped!"

Freddy blinked twice and Mike knew he was contemplating telling Bonnie about his secret. Then the bear simply smiled, "Yeah. Yeah, you could've. I'm sorry, Bonnie. I won't do that to you again - I swear by that. That's a Fazbear Promise for you right there."

"Oh, Freddy!" Bonnie cooed, then pressed his nose to Freddy's. Freddy's jolted lightly, then smiled and leaned into it. Mike guessed that was their version of a kiss. Or maybe they had kissing and this was equivalent to pressing foreheads. They had big heads, after all - couldn't exactly angle them to touch properly.

The dead man stared at the two with a deadpanned look, then suddenly shouted, "HEY!" Bonnie jumped at least a foot in the air, his ears shooting up as he screamed, and Freddy jolted where he stood. "Ha!" Mike laughed triumphantly, "Finally got one of you fuckers to scream! About time you did that!"

"M-Mike Schmidt! Chica!" Bonnie exclaimed, turning away from them in embarrassment and putting his hands to his cheeks.

"Gosh!" Chica walked among the tables toward the stage, "You guys are so lame!"

"Says you." Freddy grumbled, picking his hat up from where Bonnie had accidentally knocked it off. The bunny murmured an apology for that, but the bear shrugged it off as he brushed off the brim and placed the hat back on his head.

Foxy came sprinting into the room a second later, "Aye, me shipmates! The sun be up and the people be arrivin'! Time t' get back to yer places!"

Mike slipped something off of the nearest table, then made his way toward the backstage room before pausing and turning to Foxy, who was just stepping into Pirate Cove, "Hey! Foxy!"

"Hm?" The fox turned to him, one foot already in his home, "Aye, lad?"

"Fuck fuck fuckity fuck." Mike said simply.

"…Ye talk funny, lad."

"Ha! I know!" Mike waved a hand, "Sorry. You were, like, the only one who hadn't said it. Carry on." Foxy nodded slowly, not understanding the joke, then disappeared into Pirate Cove.

"Ha ha! You talk funny, Mike Schmidt!" Bonnie called from the stage as he stood in position, guitar in his hands.

"I know, I know." Mike opened the door to the backstage area, then turned back to address another animatronic, "Hey! Fazbear!" Freddy looked over as he picked up his microphone from the floor. Mike raised two fingers to the eye holes of his suit, then turned them around to point at Freddy's. Freddy stared for a moment, then smiled in amusement and returned the gesture to Mike. The dead man snorted, then turned and made his way into the backstage area, shutting the door behind him. As soon as the door shut, he sighed, then -

"Hey, Mister."

"Oh, holy SHIT!" Mike jumped, looking down at the ghost children with wide eyes and one hand over his heart, "Fucking - Okay, everyone in this goddamn restaurant gets bells! Then I won't have a freaking heart attack every time one of you enters a goddamn room!"

The kids all stared up at him, then giggled together, "Gosh, Mister!" The Freddy girl exclaimed, "Papa Bear was right - you're funny!"

Mike offered a little grin to her, then was distracted by the incessant pulling of his right thumb. The Chica boy looked up at him with pleading eyes, "Mister, Chica's not still sad, is she?"

Mike smiled, "Nah. She's fine now." The boy visibly relaxed, his shoulders falling from their tense state. "Hey, listen…kid. I, um, I'm sorry I bullied you earlier. That…really wasn't okay."

The kids all looked to the Chica boy to confirm this, looking most horrified, but the chubby boy just smiled, "It's okay, Mister. I'm just happy Chica's happy! I forgive ya!" He leaned forward and hugged Mike's leg. Mike rested a gentle hand on top of his head, then looked down at the other kids.

They were all so bright and fun, with all their little quirks and their different personalities. It was really no wonder why the animatronics loved these kids so much because, honestly, Mike felt himself getting pretty attached too. Phone Guy had warned him (jokingly, of course) that that would probably happen - these kids were so gosh-darned cute! In return, they all seemed to love Phone Guy and, he'd be darned, he could've sworn they were starting to love him too. It made him feel a little warm inside. These kids were lonely and unsure of what to do half the time, but knowing that he was one of the only people that they would trust made it seem a bit better. Until, of course, he remembered why and how they got here in the first place, and his smile dropped. "Kids," he started with a tone serious enough to get their full attention, "…I am so sorry for what he did to you…"

The kids all froze, letting out little gasps of their own. They looked to each other worriedly, as they had long since formed a silent agreement to never speak of that incident, and checked each other for any tears. As always, they remained in their eyes, but didn't fall. After they were all sure no one was too upset, the Freddy girl looked up at Mike, "Aw…it's okay, Mister." Ever the optimistic, she added, "It's not so bad, anyways. At least we get to see Papa Bear and the others more often! So long as the Purple Men don't see us, we're fine!"

Oh, God. They call us Purple Men…I was a Purple Man to them. "Well…you don't have to worry about that." Mike's lips lifted up and revealed his teeth to make a grin as he gestured to himself - his very human self - with one thumb, "Your Big Brother Mike's here to protect you!"

The four children gasped happily and the three that weren't already clinging to Mike's legs did just that. Mike bent down to hug them back the best he could, smiling widely to himself. Finally, he felt like he could protect someone. He hadn't entirely felt that with his mother, since he knew anything could've happened to her either while he was working or while he slept and he knew no amount of money could save the rest of her mind from being scattered. He simply did the best he could, however, as her son and only family left in the world. With these children, however, he'd keep them safe from all that could hurt them. That wasn't much, considering they were spirits, but it was the thought that counted.

The Chica boy raised his head, "So, are you gonna marry Chica, Mister?!"

"What - No." Mike spluttered out.

"Of course he's not!" The Foxy girl exclaimed, her hands going to her hips, "He likes Hello!"

"What the - I'm not gay - what?!"Mike exclaimed next, looking absolutely flabbergasted and feeling his cheeks burn.

"Nuh-uh!" The Freddy girl stepped back and took up the same position as her new argument partner, "Schmidtty likes Chica!"

"The hell did you just call me?" Mike muttered.

"No! He likes Hello! They hug a whole lot - that's how I know!"

"Holy shit, you saw that?"

"Him and Chica hug a lot too!"

"Well…"

"No, they don't!"

"Yuh-huh!"

"Nuh-uh!"

"Kids, kids!" Mike waved his hands, unable to take much more of this. The girls looked up at him. "I-I don't like either of them like that! Really!"

The girls stared at him, giving him the critical eye, then said in unison, "You're lying, Schmidtty."

"What?! No, I'm not! And would you stop -"

"Yeah, I swear to God that door shut just now."

Mike froze as he heard the voice outside. His body couldn't move for a moment as he listened, then he mentally swore. The manager and the janitor had arrived.

"What? Come on! Look: Freddy and his pals are up on stage! And look," Mike heard the distant sound of a curtain being opened, as well as a grown man gasping in fright, "Foxy's stashed back in here!" The curtain was closed and the manager continued, "For God's sake, man, it was just the wind!"

"Nothing's ever the wind around here, man. What if it was…the yellow one?"

"Oh, for fuck's sake - seriously?! He doesn't open and close doors, stupid!"

"How do you know? He could!"

"He doesn't. I know."

Holy shit. The fucker even knew about Golden Freddy. Son of a bitch. Mike turned to address the children, only to find them gone. He blinked and looked around for them, but they were no where to be found. The manager's voice - as hoarse and gruff as it was - must've scared them off. Mike cursed mentally.

"Alright, look, you freaking coward, I'll show you!"

Mike's panic levels increased dramatically as he heard footsteps coming his way. Shit, shit, shit, shit! He ran around the table to the sealed doorway to the Freddy Room and pulled the slab of wall off, then slipped in and pushed it back into place, just as the door to the backstage area opened. "See?!" He heard the manager exclaim, "Nothing in here! Unless Schmidt's come back from the dead or something, nobody's been in here!"

You son of a bitch, you think that's funny? Mike scowled as the door shut. He listened out for any more sounds that would alert him to his ex-boss's location, but silence met him. That is, until -

"Hello, hello!"

"OH, SHIT!" Mike shouted, then he whipped around to where Phone Guy sat, "Do you all WANT to kill me for a second time?! Warn a guy when you're gonna say something, jackass!" It took literally two seconds for him to process that he had just called his idol a jackass and he went to apologise profusely, but Phone Guy's hearty laughter beat him to it.

"Ah, Mike. You're funny! Really brightening up my time in here, you know."

Mike smiled and walked toward him, "Yeah, you too…" He took his place beside Phone Guy, resting his back against the wall. He sighed as he finally relaxed. Honestly, there hadn't seemed to be a moment in this place so far where he could stay calm. He was going to take full advantage of this one.

"So, spill the beans, Junior. Did you manage to apologise to Chica?"

"Mm-hm."

"And? Is she happy now?"

"Yup."

"Well, that's good. Sad animatronics -"

"Bad for business. I know." Mike finished off tiredly. Ghosts couldn't sleep, but that didn't mean they couldn't get fed up.

Phone Guy's smile (and Mike was sure he had one beneath that Freddy head) most likely dropped at that, "Hey…Mike, you okay?"

"Yeah, it's just…" He sighed, "…just feels like all of this was for no reason, you know? Alright, I apologised to Chica and I understand Freddy's motives for killing all of us, but what now? I can't come back to life - my body's all mangled up in here. What was the point?"

"Maybe it's just to settle you into your afterlife?" Phone Guy offered up. "Technically, we kinda are still alive - in a way. Complicated. But, just remember, Mike, it's the Puppet's fault we're all like this. There isn't really much to do with something that wasn't our faults. Besides," he placed a hand on Mike's shoulder; gentle and comforting, as it always was. It made Mike look at him, "I think you're paying too much attention to the big picture and not enough to the little ones. Alright, we're dead and there's nothing we can do about that. No cure for that. But now we can take care of the kids and we can make sure Freddy doesn't hurt anymore night guards (if we can). Honestly, I'd say we're doing pretty well for ourselves. Wouldn't you, Mike?"

Mike stared at him for a few seconds, then let out a chuckle and shook his head, "Jesus - how the hell do you know what to say all the time?"

"Oh, not all the time." Phone Guy released Mike's shoulder to wave his hand, "I didn't know what to say when my daughter asked where babies come from." Mike burst into laughter at that, shaking his head more fondly now. "Yeah…her mother had to handle that one…" He rubbed the back of his head.

Mike wiped his eye with a finger as his laughter died down, then he finally realised he was holding something. "Oh! Hey, Phone Guy, look," he held up the slip in his hand. He'd left it on the dining area table earlier when he went to apologise to Chica and now he'd finally remembered to share it with Phone Guy, "this is my mom, see."

Phone Guy leaned closer to look at the photo in Mike's hand, "Hm…she looks nice, Mike. Very motherly. You have her eyes. And her nose."

"Heh. I know."

"Oh, and look at that! She's wearing a Freddy pin! That's great. I still have mine too!"

Mike chuckled and placed the photo down between them. It still made his chest ache, knowing he would never see his mother again, but having that photo made it more bearable. He rested back against the wall, "…So…we just gonna sit here for the rest of our days?"

"That's the plan!" Phone Guy chirped. Mike chuckled, "Hey, don't worry, Mike. I'll, uh, keep you entertained if you keep me entertained."

"That another deal?"

"Can be if you want."

"…Alright." He offered his hand to Phone Guy, who took it and shook it almost immediately.

Both men sighed through their noses and basked in the short silence, as Phone Guy was quick to interrupt it. "…Hey. I've been meaning to ask."

"Hm?"

"What's this doing here?" He pointed to the object by their feet.

Mike raised his head to look at it, then frowned, "Aw, shit," he muttered, glaring at the fan as though this was its fault, "I meant to take that back…"

"Why do you have it anyway?"

"Made me feel safe." He answered truthfully, though without thinking, and flinched when Phone Guy laughed. He rubbed the back of his head and looked away in embarrassment. "I'll…take it back after those idiots have gone."

Phone Guy's laughter died down to a chuckle. He looked Mike up and down, noted his discomfort, then reached across and gently set a hand on top of Mike's. "It's alright, Mike. I'm not judging you - I'd have probably done the same, if I had thought of it. We're all human here, you know." Some more than others, Mike thought as he cast a glance to the tiny box in Mark's lap. Nevertheless, he smiled, making Phone Guy smile gently, "For what it's worth, though, I'm pretty glad you're here. It's, uh, it's gonna be a good eternity - you and I."

Mike snorted in amusement. "God, that was fucking corny." He raised his head slightly, "Did you practise -" He froze. The hand on top of his was very much human and definitely not the hand of one Freddy Fazbear. The younger male stared at it before the knowledge that this was his chance to really see his hero came to mind. Mike's eyes followed Phone Guy's arm up and, finally, rested on his face.

Phone Guy was a young-looking man with a rounded face and creamy skin. His blond hair was cut short, reaching only the very top of his neck, and would've seemed a little bit messier if it had not been for the security guard hat on his head, which flattened his hair down enough to make it stay put. His lips were currently formed in a smile as he stared back at Mike with bright green eyes that seemed completely untainted, even with the situation he was in and the things he'd seen and were aware of in the world. They were as young as ever; it made Phone Guy look all the more friendly. Only the eyelids that half-covered his eyes displayed his age. In front of those were a pair of rimless glasses, which somehow added to this innocent look about him. Like Mike, he was still dressed in his uniform, though his was neater; the tie done up properly and all the buttons in place and the sleeves rolled down to his wrists and the shoes nice and shiny. It put Mike's uniform to shame. There was a nametag clipped to his right breast pocket, but it was tilted at an angle, so Mike couldn't see the name scrawled there (it didn't matter - he'd always be Phone Guy to him). He was taller than Mike too, by the look of him. Skinny as well. This man needed to eat a burger. Or two. Or three.

Mike had barely noticed he was staring as he took in every detail; Phone Guy surprised him by speaking, "Well, Mike? Do I live up to expectations?"

"I…" Mike struggled to speak for a moment. It was weird seeing Phone Guy's face at the same time as hearing his voice, but Mike found he liked it. He smiled, "A little, actually."

Phone Guy's smile brightened, "Well, that's good. I'd hate for you to be disappointed with me!" He grinned, displaying perfectly strong teeth.

"To be honest, Phone Guy, I'm just happy you're here with me."

Phone Guy faltered, then his grin widened, "Same here, Mike." He didn't remove his hand from Mike's; simply slapped his own thigh with his other hand, "Well! We should try passing the time, huh? How about I tell you about the old location, hm, Junior?"

"Seriously?" Mike asked. Phone Guy gave a nod, "Well - yeah! That'd be great. Go right ahead, Phone Guy."

"Alright, Mike. But I warn you," Phone Guy's bright grin never fell, "you won't believe some of the things that happened there…"

…

Author's note:

Oh, wow. We at the end already? Time sure does fly, huh? No, not really.

Anyways, I just wanted to say a big thanks to everybody who favourited, alerted, reviewed and…well, just everybody who read this! I was really hesitant to write Five Nights at Freddy's fan fiction for a while, so you guys have really boosted my confidence in this! Thank you very much! You guys rock!

So, now that it's over, I can bore you with a long-winded author's note. But, first, a couple of review responses, since you guys aren't logged in and I feel like I owe you:

Nightmare Taco: what Chica's been doing was pretty much explained at the start of this chapter: she was moping. As for Foxy, he was going about his business. Doesn't really do much. Talking to Toy Chica, probably. Honestly, Foxy wasn't as much of an importance as he was…'the other animatronic'. Sorry, Foxy.

Dream Burrito: Oh, no, Phone Guy really is that nice. It's not an act at all. He's just a saint.

Uh - anyway. Back down to business:

The entire story is inspired by Five Nights at Freddy's fan songs 'An Animatronic Love Song' by EileMonty and 'Stay Calm' by Griffinilla (the voices of the animatronics in that song inspired the ones in this fic). The story itself is named after 'Awake and Alive' by Skillet.

To anyone who actually wanted Mike and Chica to end up together - sorry, but I was never gonna go down that route. I don't ship humans and animatronics. Even if the animatronics are humanised, I don't go there. Besides, Mike won't and can't fall for any of them because they killed him and he'll never forgive them for that. The best Mike does with any of them is be civil toward them. If Mike and Chica were gonna end up together, I would've marked it as a pairing. So…yeah, sorry. It was forever going to be one-sided.

Speaking of pairings, I'm glad you enjoyed the Freddy/Bonnie! The entire purpose of putting Freddy/Bonnie in was to show Mike that the robots could love. Chica would've looked pretty delusional if she was the only one saying she loved someone, so I shoved my second favourite ship in here to even things out a bit and give her an example to work with. Somewhere during the planning stages, my third favourite snuck in there and I rolled with it cause Foxy deserved a wee bit of attention (although, originally, that was going to happen after Mike confronted Freddy, rather than before, cause that incident with Foxy was gonna happen while Mike was looking for Chica, not Freddy. Originally, he just sorta ran into Freddy).

Phone Guy's entire purpose in this story was to be emotional support for Mike. Let's be honest, I put Mike through a lot of crap during this, so he deserved to be happy at least once. Plus, it would've been a bit weird if Mike had possessed a suit and none of the other night guards had, so I just had to put Phone Guy in there. Phone Guy is pretty much my favourite FNAF character overall as well. Wouldn't be the same without him. His relationship with Mike was originally supposed to be a father-son one, but somewhere along the way, it morphed into a close bromance. I'll readily admit that Phone Guy/Mike is something I ship. In fact, I'll even confess it's my OTP for this fandom (and, right now, overall). But, rest assured, in this AU, Mike and Phone Guy are just close friends who like to hug a lot.

As for the other night guards - yes, that was Markiplier (Mark), Tiny Box Tim, jacksepticeye (Jack), lordminion777 (Wade), muyskerm (Bob), MandoPony (Andrew) and…myself as the other Freddies. Honestly, I could not have had this story without Markiplier. Like Phone Guy is to Mike, Mark is my idol and my hero, who has saved me on several occasions. He got me over my phobia of FNAF (yes, it was a legit phobia. If you showed me pictures of the robots, I would've slowly begun to cry and I would NOT enter a room before turning on the lights and checking around the corners) and the horror genre altogether (I was a coward, what can I say). I mean, FNAF used to be my nightmare fuel (considering my fears of animatronics, the dark and loud noises), but watching Mark's playthrough got me over that and he made me laugh. Now, I'm one of Five Nights at Freddy's biggest fans, who has played all three games and is eagerly awaiting the fourth! So, hey, a little tribute to Mark in there…even though I killed him. Uh - sorry, Mark. It was…necessary…I also drove you insane…huh…Hey! You got Tiny Box Tim! That's…nice…hehe.

Originally, Scott Cawthon was gonna be one of the Freddies, but I figured, y'know, Phone Guy pretty much is Scott, so…yeah. Putting two of them would be unfair to everyone else. Plus, Mike would be wondering why they sound the same.

For anyone who liked this story, I'm pleased to tell you it's part of a trilogy! The prequel will be set during FNAF 2 and will focus on Foxy and Bonnie (since this one had Chica and Freddy driving the plot along) and the night guards will barely appear. I think you'll like Bonnie and Toy Bonnie's relationship (God knows I do…). The sequel to this takes place during FNAF 3 and will focus on Phone Guy, Mike and Purple Guy. I'm aiming to write the prequel first, since that'll be going in game order, and I don't know how long that'll take. It's still in its planning stage; they both are.

I also have other FNAF stories all in motion, including one where the animatronics are humanised (I'm a sucker for humanisations. All pairings from here will also be in this fic. There is an abundance of Freddy/Bonnie, for anyone who digs that. It will contain a few more that didn't appear in this one and Golden Freddy will be more focused on than here) and another where Phone Guy/Mike is bound to happen (if anyone ships that, though it's still on the fence on whether they'll be romantically involved or not. It leans towards romantic, though), as well as little one-shots and drabbles here and there. Not done writing for these characters yet!

So! Long-winded author's note over, so I'll finish this by saying, again, thank you again so much for reading! It really boosted my confidence (I've had a hard time writing lately) and I've been really happy to write for so many awesome people! Kinda shocked me how fast this thing got hits and reviews, so, again, BIG THANK YOU for that!

Alrighty, then. Awake and Alive is over and I've got other FNAF fics to plan and write, so…be sure to see you then! Bye-bye!