"Andy?"
His eyelids fluttered at the sound, then his body was slightly shaken, forcing him to leave his much-needed nap. Painfully opening his dark blue eyes, he looked at the face of a giant yellow rabbit. He held back a start of surprise when his memory reminded him that he was in a toy factory making living toys, and that no, this was not a dream of his mind, surely disturbed by what he was experiencing. Letting out a grunt, he sat up, yawning deeply under the curious gaze of his long-eared friend.
"Did I...sleep for a long time?" he asks, massaging his eyes.
"Twenty minutes, I wanted to let you sleep but you said you were in a hurry so..." he finished his sentence with a shy shrug that made the human who was stroking his head chuckle slightly.
"Thanks Al...you're right, it's not very professional of me to fall asleep while Poppy is waiting for me...and my grandfather...by Zeus, when I tell him all this, he's surely not going to believe it," he said with a little sadness at the end.
His sudden departure must not have gone unnoticed by the nurses at the hospital. He had been coming every day for months to see if his grandfather was ready to come out of his coma. As the days went by, he got used to the sound of the heart monitor, yet no longer hearing Gabriel's cheerful voice left a huge void in his life. After his mother's disappearance, it was his grandfather who took care of him. He found a job in a garage to pay for his schooling, in addition to the bills and all the other essential things to help him feel better after the tragedy that had shaken their lives. Andy will never be able to thank this man enough for dedicating his whole life to him with the sole purpose of making him smile, and he feels all the more guilty for having abandoned him to answer a mysterious, poorly written anonymous letter about a possible clue to what happened ten years earlier. Yes, he looks far too much like that kid too stupid to turn back before being eaten by the big monster hiding in the dark.
"Do you have a grandfather? Why isn't he with you?" asks the Bunzo toy innocently.
"He...he's very sick," the human replied simply, removing his cap, running a hand through his blond and pink hair. He sighed, looking at his headgear with a bitter smile. "To think I used to think he was invincible, you know, like a superhero."
"...sorry," Alphonse said softly, looking down, but Andy wasted no time in putting his arm around him, surprising him a little.
"Don't make that face, he'll pull through, I'm sure of it," he assures with a smile. "Besides, you'll be able to see for yourself once you get out of i-
"Nobody leaves"
The phrase echoed through the Game Station. Frozen, Andy slowly turned his eyes and studied the toy's distressed face, which seemed about to cry. He remembered what he had said about Daisy and that Mommy had told them never to leave here, except that the Smiths couldn't accept that. Why should they all live here? It's unfair!
"Al, listen to me, when it's all over we can leave, Huggy let me go and I'm sure we-"
"He's not the scariest one..." he muttered in a frightened manner, drawing his knees up to his chest to hide his face while the human studied his words.
(That confirms my hypothesis, someone is directing Huggy and it's clearly not a joker...) he said to himself, absentmindedly rubbing the rabbit's back to comfort him.
But who? That's the question that's been bothering him since his first steps in the factory. At first, he thought it could be Leith Peirce or at least a company executive who might have survived, except that seeing the strength of Huggy and Mommy, this theory doesn't hold water. No single human can hope to prevail against them, which means that it's a much more formidable toy that keeps them locked up. It's not a thought that pleases him, but it's better to consider the worst rather than be caught off guard. Glancing at his long-eared friend who's looking depressed, the human looks at his cap with a small smile.
"Tell me, if you could make one wish, what would it be?"
...
Silence, yet he waits patiently knowing that rushing things is not a good idea with children, even those resembling man-eating toys.
"I...I think that..." Alphonse ventures timidly, rubbing his cheek wet from a single tear, "...that I would like to have a family..."
"...his blue eyes silently gazed at that fluffy face, then gently he wiped away his tears with his thumb. "Very well then, from today onwards I, Andy Smith, hereby declare that you, Alphonse Smith, will be my little brother."
His head rises so quickly that he fears it will fly off his neck; incredulous, he looks at the smiling face of the human who seems to enjoy shocking him in a few words; his mouth opens to...say something, but his throat tightens with the emotion that overwhelms him as he sees the sincerity in the eyes of the blond who keeps his smile in place while continuing to speak.
"I'm still too young to be a dad, but having a little brother is possible, and besides, you already have the name that m-
A hug of unusual strength takes his breath away, lowering his eyes to the rabbit he responds to its embrace, he doesn't say these things lightly, call it the syndrome of the madman wanting to save toys or the thing of saving people from Harry Potter, in any case he will keep his word, Huggy, Poppy, Alphonse, he will save them and leave this factory.
#BOOM!#
The sudden noise makes them sit up, rising with their hands gripping the handles of their Grabpack, they creep towards the source, then frown together at the sight of the gang of mini Huggy there, fighting each other to get out of the pile of bodies falling from who knows where, to the side the red Huggy looks at his fellows with his hand on his forehead in a sign of helplessness at the stupidity of his acolytes.
"I didn't expect to see them again so soon," the young man honestly admitted, crossing his arms, then he watched the redhead run towards Alphonse and start gesturing and shouting that only he could understand.
"They found a path but...they can't move forward without Grabpack," he explains with a sullen expression. "And she says it's not big enough for you."
(Too bad, I was hoping to catch Poppy right under Mommy's nose, oh well, let's not cry over spilled milk...anyway, I have to finish the last game, with a bit of luck maybe she'll keep her word? If she doesn't like liars then...why am I trying to forget that she's crazy? Come on Andy, one problem at a time...)
"So here's what we're going to do," he said, pointing to the last game. "While I'm doing the last game, you and the Huggy Bears will go and rescue Poppy."
"What?! No way I'm letting you down now!" the little rabbit protested, stamping his foot on the ground like a child having a tantrum.
"Alphonse," he knelt to look him in the eyes, but the toy sulked, crossing his arms and looking to the side. He placed his hands on Alphonse's small shoulders and began to speak patiently. "Alphonse, listen to me, I don't know what's going to happen, and honestly, I wish I had a different plan, but..." He inhaled his own doubts, which were flooding his heart. "Listen, I know you don't like Poppy, but right now she's all alone, locked up, or worse. Nobody deserves that, do you understand?" The toy's sullen expression gave way to doubt, and then he dared to look at Andy, who, for his part, hadn't lost his smile. "So that's why I'm counting on you to free her, so I can concentrate on the rest, okay?"
"...I don't like it," he said, sighing heavily.
"Me neither, but it's the best we can do, and besides, I trust you," he assures, withdrawing his hand to form a fist extended towards Alphonse, who looks at him with admiration. "We'll see each other again later, okay?"
Hesitant at first, he finally rolled his small hand into a fist and punched it against the one who today has become his first friend and brother at heart.
"Okay! But...you promise you'll come back, right?"
"I promise, and know that a Smith is a man of his word," he said proudly, straightening up. "Go ahead, and take care of each other, okay?"
Quickly agreeing, he turned to Huggy's gang, who started shouting and guiding him towards the famous secret path. Once the little toys were out of sight, Andy's smile faded. He wished he could be as confident inside, but he wasn't crazy enough to believe everything would be alright. He didn't know how far madness had taken hold of Mommy's mind, and if her hatred for him outweighed his principle of not cheating. So it would be all or nothing for him. Heading towards the last lever, he activated it, ignoring Stella's voice, who was far too preoccupied with Alphonse. He would never have believed that this little toy would become so attached so quickly, nor that in return, he would make him a member of his family. Life holds many surprises.
Walking down the corridor, Andy looks at the half-erased drawing of what looks like the unlikely fusion of a caterpillar and a dog. His attention is fixed on the door giving access to the closed game room. Taking the open door, he enters a maintenance area which he explores with his eyes, looking for another cassette. Not finding any, he goes to the back of the room and discovers a cardboard cutout of the dog/caterpillar, which he doesn't really remember despite his knowledge of Playtime. Shrugging, he presses the red button.
"Do you want to play with PJ?"
"...PJ...PJ..." repeats the human, taking his chin between his fingers thoughtfully. "Wait...that's it, I think...yes, grandpa bought me a game that's about you, you had to give you bones and if you ate one too many you lost," he remembers with a little laugh while pressing the button again.
"Am I a pug or a caterpillar?"
"Honestly I don't know, but at least your accent is interesting," he joked.
"I crawl on my one hundred and four legs!"
"Well, it must not be easy for you to buy shoes, huh?"
"Hmm! I'm hungry for some delicious bones...do you have any bones for PJ?"
"That's funny, but now you remind me of Scooby-Doo," he chuckled, then pressed the button again, which only produced barking noises. The last noise was just static, as he expected. "Well, it seems we'll be meeting soon, PJ... and something tells me it's not going to be as fun."
Turning to the next electrical puzzle, Andy took a moment to understand that to reach the second receiver, he needed to pass current through the handle that allowed him to pull himself up. He thought to himself that it was an original safety measure, like everything else. All this time, he heard a really annoying noise, like a machine, so constant and repetitive was it. Not wanting to hear it forever, he finished his work and retraced his steps, discovering the door opening to reveal the most imposing of the three rooms. Looking up, he saw shining rings suspended in the air. The rest was hidden by a wall imitating a castle rampart. It really looked like a children's playground. The music from Playtime started playing, drawing his attention to the TV showing the rules of the game. A statue, which to him looked just like a game of "Red Light, Green Light," then the TV displayed a picture of the famous PJ... needless to say, the flash didn't make him look at all cute in the eyes of a human.
"The adorable PJ Pug-a-Pillar will follow you! If PJ reaches you, your trial is over!"
That's all. Good luck!
The noise started again, looking to his left he squinted as he switched on his flashlight and his stomach made an uncomfortable jump when he saw the head of the giant dog emerge from a dark corner, its tongue hanging out and its big black eyes fixed on him, he didn't have time to concentrate on that before a flickering light illuminated the silhouette of the games organizer.
"It was always so sad to see the children leave… They called me 'Mom' because I was the closest thing to her. But they would come to play and never come back." She pauses, as if this memory genuinely troubles her. He notices that her voice changes between Mommy's and this other, more sincere but much darker voice: "They left Mommy to die alone. Mommy didn't deserve that!"
(So she was genuinely attached to the children...the loneliness must have affected her to the point that she no longer lets anyone leave) the human quickly reflected (Maybe she's not so bad? Maybe emotionally unstable, but maybe we can find common ground?)
"But you?" This time her voice was laced with venom, making him recoil as she saw the incandescent green eyes that glared at him. "You worked here. So if anyone deserves to die alone...it's you!"
...
"Wh-what?! What?! Wait, are you-" Mommy's silhouette disappears as his heart and brain speed up as the reality of the situation hits him full force.
(This is crazy! She thinks I'm an employee?! That's why she hates me for no reason!)
His panic attack was interrupted by the sudden opening of the door announcing the start of the deadly game. The lights faded as horrible carnival music filled the room. Andy ran with all his might, wanting to put as much distance as possible between himself and the hundred-four-legged abomination that was chasing him. When the light returned, he stopped, observing the path he still had to travel. In front of him was a ladder allowing him to access the rings and fly over a pool filled with foam cubes, surely there to slow him down. The light went out, and Andy used his Grabpack to attach himself to a ring. He managed to grab the next one with some difficulty just before the light returned. Suspended in the void, he watched as PJ walked slowly, following the path of his run like a dog sniffing out a scent.
"Don't panic..." he told himself, breathing as calmly as possible despite the infernal rhythm of his heart racing with fear. "I can do it...no, I must do it! If she wants to see me lose, then she's going to be disappointed!"
The light goes out and the human swings to the very end. On the last hold, he propels himself forward towards the pipe, crossing his arms over his chest. He slides inside and lands on the foam mats that cushion his fall. Looking up, he sees the three tunnels ahead, separated by their difficulty. Faced with this choice, he decides to choose the hardest, hoping it will slow PJ down. Crawling inside, he tries not to listen to the noise of the hundreds of tiny paws working to propel the carnivorous dog/caterpillar faster towards its prey, subject to the whims of the music that stops and starts whenever it feels like it. Turning and climbing, then descending, he finally reaches the end of his journey. Looking at the immense foam pool with large yellow cubes arranged for walking on, Andy wastes no time jumping in, congratulating himself on having done so much exercise in his life. Glancing back, he feels relief wash over him as he sees PJ's large head emerge from the tunnel while he is halfway through, maybe that-
When the light returns he feels his hopes being dashed, his eyes watch as what should have been the finish line is covered in debris.
He...cannot win this game.
Mommy played with him from beginning to end; she had no intention of giving him the train code or freeing Poppy...
She mocked him, like a spider watching a fly struggle in its web before devouring it alive...
...
"...for a minute he doesn't move, then his gaze hardens, his grip on his Grabpack tightens and he raises his chin "No question of giving up!"
Anyone else would surely have been paralyzed by fear or despair, but Andy Smith isn't the type to give up so easily!
Looking around, he tries to find a way out. PJ keeps getting closer, but he ignores him. That's when an idea crosses his mind as he thinks back to the observation rooms where Mommy was. Looking to the side, he sees what he's looking for. Squinting, he finds a point of focus. Throwing out a hand while jumping, he quickly pulls himself up. Closing his eyes and protecting his face, he crashes through the glass. Staggering, he gasps at the sight of the observation room. Seeing a door with blood underneath, he rushes towards it to escape, but no matter how hard he forces or hits it, it won't budge. Turning back, he looks for an exit, which appears as a hole in the floor. Hesitating, he finally decides when he sees two blood-stained sheets of paper lying on a table.
As soon as his hand closes on the paper, he freezes, listening to the sound of glass being crushed.
...
Slowly his head turned back, his wide-open eyes watched PJ's face frozen in that expression of constant joy, exposing his teeth and the inside of his mouth, which Andy watched. Then slowly he began to smile in the same way as a poker player going all in. Quickly he plunged into the hole as the fluffy body twisted like a snake and lunged at the human, who closed his eyes, waiting for the impact as he fell.
#BOOOOM!#
"...hmmm..." the human painfully opened his eyes, looking at his hand clutching the leaves he had just found and groaning in pain. Landing on a Grabpack was no good for his back. "Not...cough! My best idea..."
Slowly getting up, he runs his hands over his body and head and sighs with relief, putting his cap back in place, he runs his hands against his lower back, grimacing in pain, fortunately he can still move.
"Anyway...where did I end up?" Looking curiously at the cavern, he glances down at the half-collapsed corridor on the other side, squinting at the pipes suspended in mid-air that might allow him to reach the other side. "Come on, it's time to-"
A falling stone at his feet stopped him in his tracks. Raising his head, he swallowed a cry of terror at the sight of PJ... then his brain paused for a very long time as he saw something he struggled to comprehend: part of PJ's body had managed to slide into the hole, but the rest hadn't followed, leaving him suspended in mid-air. But what really made his brain do somersaults was the fact that PJ's face was open, not as if he were injured and bleeding profusely, horrifying the human, no, it actually looked more like the inside of a cockpit with a symbol and levers controlling what appeared to be a huge animatronic. Suspended by his little fingers from the hatch in PJ's face was the pilot, who looked very much like PJ except his body had the same proportions as Bunzo's, wearing blue overalls. His head was the same as PJ's, except his mouth was closed and his eyes were more expressive, given the degree of anger with which he looks at him.
"You filthy cheat!" exclaims the player character... or rather, she sees the little girl's voice coming from the toy dog, which growls despite its precarious situation, even wiggling its feet as if it could hit it from its perch. "Mommy wanted to see you die! You should have lost! Just wait until she finds you, you'll see! She won't let you get away with it that easily!"
(...I...I don't even feel like laughing) the human sighed mentally, running a hand over his face to stifle a laugh at the sight of the toy insulting him while hanging from its vehicle. "Uh...listen PJ-"
"Shut up! I'm not like Bunzo! I would never betray Mommy!"
(Is it because a dog is loyal?...why am I wondering that? I have to run away before Mommy arrives) yet his feet remain in place as he assesses the height at which PJ is standing and the ground, sighing he purses his lips (Me and my big heart!)
"PJ," he tries, raising a hand.
"I can't hear you! Lalalalalalalal don't talk to humans! Lalallalalalalalala!" she shouts at the top of her lungs, closing her eyes like a capricious little girl.
"Okay..." he sighed, placing his hands on her hips while looking at her boredly. "Listen to me or not, but you might hurt yourself, so let me help you, okay?"
"If you come near me, I'll bite you until your bones are gnawed away!" she promised, glaring at him.
"It might be difficult from here," he joked, positioning himself under her with outstretched arms to catch her.
"What are you doing, human?!"
"I'm waiting, they announced a flood of PJs today."
"Grrrrr!"
In the end, her fingers finally gave way, but instead of letting herself go calmly, she fell headfirst towards him with her mouth open to bite him, but luckily he managed to grab her from behind by grabbing her overalls. The little girl struggled violently, trying to hit his knee, but that made her spin around, making her even more furious. When Andy finally let her go, she quickly got back to her feet while brandishing a screwdriver that she had hidden on her.
"Don't come near me, Human!" she spits, her paws tightly wrapped around her weapon, which the human eyes cautiously. "Now you'll stay here until Mommy comes for me, and then you'll get what you deserve!"
"What I..." he blinks slowly then raises his hands in surrender. "Listen, PJ..."
"Shut up! Humans are nothing but liars! Mommy told me so, and everything Mommy says is true!"
"Apart from giving me the code and freeing Poppy," he said bitterly, which made the toy tremble even more with rage.
"Humans do not deserve a reward!"
"...PJ...look at me," he demanded forcefully, taking a step forward that startled PJ, who brandished his weapon at him. "Why do you think I deserve to die?"
"Because you work here!" she yells, growling, her eyes narrowing in hatred. "No point denying it! You wear the cap!"
"The case..." he says, lost, looking up at his headgear. "What does my cap have to do with the fact that you want to kill me?!"
"Only the best employees get this stuff! Everyone knows it!" she shouts, waving her hand around. "I'm not as stupid as Bunzo! He doesn't know things, but I do! Mommy explained everything to me about t-
"PJ" the human interrupts him, then slowly he grabs the edge of his cap and removes it under the suspicious eyes of the humanoid dog who stares at the youthful face of the human who shakes his head making the hair of his ponytail ripple "How old do you think I am?"
Squinting dangerously, she didn't move at first, then she took two slow steps towards him to better inspect his face, then she came back, her hands gripping the handle of the screwdriver while pinching her lips together, her small body trembling in place as she groaned in annoyance.
"I don't know...and it's not important! This cap is proof! There's au-
"It was a gift from my mother," he said suddenly, shaking the aforementioned proof to support his statement. "Actually, my grandfather earned it working at the gift shop, but he insisted that she be the one to give it to me," he explained in a heavy voice, recalling happy days shared with his family. "I received this cap when I was twelve years old, and I've had it for ten years... to remember my mother..."
...
She doesn't move at all anymore, the trembling has stopped but her mistrust hasn't completely subsided, her eyes remain fixed on his, searching for traces of the lie this human is spouting just to avoid ending up in shreds, instead in his blue eyes she found nothing but disarming sincerity, slowly she lowers the tip of her weapon slightly.
"...did you come to kill us?" she asks coldly.
"No...I came to find out what happened here, nothing else," he firmly asserts.
"...you won't like the answer, if I were you I'd leave here...especially since you can," she sniffed sarcastically.
"Perhaps, but between a life of unanswered questions and bitter disappointment, I've already chosen to go all the way."
"..."PJ lowers her weapon completely, then her eyes look at the wreckage of her disguise blocking her exit, then she looks back down the corridor on the other side, sighing as she puts her weapon back in her overalls pocket while keeping an eye on the human with pink bangs. "I don't trust you...but I..." she takes a deep breath, crossing her arms, visibly annoyed at having to ask the human for help. "I need you to get out! So until further notice, you'll be my hostage, understand?!"
"Your hostage?" he asks curiously.
"Yes, Mommy will judge if your story is true," she said, raising her nose in the air. "She alone will decide your human fate; I'll make sure you don't run away!"
"...okay?" he said, raising an eyebrow as he watched PJ step forward and climb onto his back, settling onto the Grabpack for more comfort.
"Alright then, hurry up and move! I don't want to keep Mommy waiting! Oh, and if you do anything shady..." the tip of the screwdriver moves dangerously close to the human's neck, who swallows hard. "I'll make you bleed like a pig...understand?"
"I-understand," he said nervously.
(That...did it go well?) he said, adjusting PJ's body slightly against his already heavily loaded back, then he aimed at the pipe and fired, swinging in the void he reached the other side.
"Where have you been? The game is over, you won! Come back and Mommy will give you the code. I promise!"
He stops, listening to the echoes of the giant toy's voice resonating all around him, looking back he sees nothing but PJ's sullen face.
"What are you waiting for? Move forward!"
"Okay, calm down, I'm not a horse," he sighed, deeply regretting Alphonse's presence; thinking of him, he frowned with concern.
"Mommy must be looking for me, otherwise she wouldn't say things like that," said the humanoid dog, putting her arms around Andy's neck.
"What kind of thing?"
"She hates lies, she hates liars."
"...I had noticed..."
Having reached the end, he pulled himself up again, and once on his feet, he heard Mommy's voice again.
(Muffled laughter) Mom knows the game is really difficult, but Mom just decided you won! (High-pitched laughter) Come back!
(Not twice, Mommy)
Advancing with a determined step, he stops when he sees a promotional poster showing the Long Legh family reunited, resuming his walk he wonders if they too existed with Mommy, although he doubts it, there would be traces of their passage, continuing to advance and hoisting himself up to a handle.
"Mom doesn't like cheaters! The rules are so simple! If you die, Mom will watch! (High laughter) COME BACK TO ME!"
(...we shouldn't linger here) he worries, listening to her hysterical laughter and the fact that her voice is becoming more terrifying, surely frustrated at not finding him.
(Grumbles in frustration) HOW DARE YOU DISOBEY ME! I WILL FIND YOU! I WILL FIND YOU! And when I find you… (High-pitched laughter) Where are you?! WHERE ARE YOU?!
Panting after running with so much weight on his back, Andy climbs the steps leading to a purification zone of... he doesn't know if it's water, but he doesn't want to fall in to find out. Approaching the basin, he looks at the three possible paths and then the two walkways that can be moved via the console seen above.
"Let's see..." he did a quick mental calculation and it made him sigh in annoyance. "No way to get directly to the Game Station." In the background, PJ watched him straighten his cap as he walked towards the console. "And one of the paths requires a toy..." he looked at the one strapped to his back, which in turn gave him a dark look. "Understood, sorry!"
Pressing the first button, he looks at the second, frowning, and finds a note with a pink VHS cassette on the back; curious, he reads the note first.
- TRANSFER REQUEST -
Experiment 1222 - Subject: "Mommy Long Legs"
- Marie Payne
Capabilities:
Mama Long Legs possesses the unique power to stretch any of her limbs hundreds of meters. This includes her fingers, arms, hair, neck, waist, and legs. She is very hostile toward the staff but is very maternal and warm toward the other experiment subjects, whom she fiercely protects.
Issue:
This hostility quickly becomes problematic, but there may be a solution to put it back in its place.
Proposal:
Mommy would be perfect for managing the children in the playroom. She has a mother's gentleness, and even a rambunctious child can learn to "listen to their mother." It makes sense that seeing these children daily would improve her behavior, and it's highly unlikely she'd misbehave in their presence. Have her transferred to enhanced security immediately. The conditioning can begin.
...it's strange but when Andy read this he was only half surprised, somewhere he suspected it, creating life is...absurd and impossible, he thought of many possible scenarios and somewhere even if it seemed ridiculous or naive to believe that his monsters were just accidental creations, but now after reading this paper plus the performance evaluations he took a few minutes earlier he is now sure.
The Toys Were Humans
Mommy was Marie Payne, and Playtime used her to manage the children who, by dint of getting used to her, called her Mommy...and today no children are there, disturbing her psyche because there is no mystery for Andy when reading the word Conditioning...the scien-no- monsters who changed her into this did something to make her believe that she is Mommy Long Legs the toy.
(So that means that all the others...it's...) the human realizes with horror, looking at the paper with fear, then he looks at the video cassette with fear in his stomach, not noticing PJ's face turning into an emotionless expression, putting the cassette in the player he watches the image change showing a woman in her forties with a tired look on her face, her bushy hair stuck together and tangled as well as a cut on her left temple, her pink blouse is crumpled and stained with drops of blood, and her hands are attached to a pair of handcuffs.
"Well..." Leith Pierce's voice breaks the silence, a pair of large hands adorned with a gold signet ring on the right. "Dr. Harper, do you know why you are here?"
"..."the woman remains silent, her eyes fixed indifferently on the table in front of her.
"You assaulted three of your colleagues, as well as Dr. Sawyer. According to the investigation report, you reacted badly to Dr. White's request regarding Experiment 1222 and the subject," he said clinically. "Needless to say, your behavior is unacceptable. Here at Playtime, we hire competent and well-intentioned people to make our company the best in the country. Why would you want to ruin everything over a disagreement? You are one of our best people, and we still need you."
"...slowly her gaze rises, a spark of life still shining...where is she?"
"Dr. Harper, that's enough"
"Where?!" This time she screams in rage, her fists slamming on the table as her face moves closer to the camera. "Where is my daughter?! I told White and Sawyer she's no longer involved in any of this! You have no rights over her!"
"We have all the rights, Dr. Harper!" boomed the man's voice, completely unimpressed by the doctor's outburst, who froze as he listened to the rest of the speech. "And now, subject 1222 is finalized...a word of advice: pull yourself together quickly...otherwise we'll have to part ways with you."
The man's hands disappeared as Dr. Harper burst into tears, cradling his tearful face in his hands.
"No!...my god, not...not...her...my little girl...my little Marie..."
...
How long did he stay there? How long did he stare at the black screen? How long before he realized that he, too, was crying?
It was the worst possible thing.
He suspected something dark must be lurking here... but experiments on human beings? And according to Harper, Marie was a child, which makes him want to punch Leith or vomit at what a toy company did in the shadows without anyone suspecting a thing. The worst part is realizing that his mother worked for these monsters... Andy feels genuinely capable of setting it all on fire, erasing all traces of these atrocities so that no one will ever think of doing it again. Swallowing his rage and tears, he angrily wipes his face, then he remembers the toy that was present during the viewing, except now he knows that this toy... no, it's a person, just like him, except that someone wanted to play God and thought they had the right to transform human beings into objects of entertainment for... for what, in the end?!
"You..." he hesitates, his lips having become dry and his throat tightening, he shows the pink cassette "You knew?"
"...no," her eyebrows furrowed. "I didn't know anyone cared about Mommy this much, she never talked about it...even though none of us like to talk about...before." She crossed her small arms defensively while inhaling deeply; clearly, she didn't like the subject at all. "Bunzo and the Huggy brothers don't remember anything, I have some memories, but I try not to think about it so as not to upset Mommy."
"Why would that upset him?"
"Because she takes care of us, she doesn't want us to remember our lives before, it's...too painful," she whispers. "That's why I try not to think about it anymore...so I don't forget that it was Mommy who saved us when..."
"When what?" he asks, kneeling before her, but she refuses to look him in the eyes.
"Never mind...I don't want to talk about that," she replied.
"...very good but..." he looks at the tape in his hands "Mommy needs to see this"
"What?! Are you crazy or what?! She'll have killed you before you even opened your mouth!" she shouted angrily.
"..." he blinked slowly, surprised by what he had just heard. "Am I dreaming, or are you worried about me?"
Given that she tried to plant it a few minutes earlier, he is really surprised that she cares about what might happen to it in front of Mommy; her remark freezes the toy for a second, and it spins around completely to hide its face.
"Who cares about you?! I don't care about you at all! You're just my hostage!"
Smiling indulgently, he thought to himself that PJ...
"Hey...did you have a name before?" The question made her tense up; wincing, he looked away, running a hand over the back of her neck. "Sorry, I'm asking because I gave Bunzo one—well, I mean Alphonse, because he couldn't remember his."
"...why are you telling me this?" she asks in a pouty voice.
"Because you are not toys"
His statement was made with such conviction that it shocked the little girl trapped in a dog's body; turning around, she looked at the dark blue irises shining with strength and confidence.
"You don't deserve...all this! You should be outside having fun in the sun...not being devoured in the dark," he said, standing up and holding out his hand to her. "Please, I have to show this tape to Mommy. She might not know that Harper tried to save her...and I think you know she needs to know that...that her mother wanted to be there for her, just like she was there for you."
...
Slowly, the small hand covered in purple/blue fur grasped hers.
"Winry"
~P~
WHERE IS THAT HUMAN?!
Her arms and legs fluttered to follow his movements as she weaved her way through the Game Station to find that damned cheater! He had to lose! That was how it was supposed to go! He had to be devoured by the others, he had to die alone! That's what he and all the others deserved!
"Cheater...Liar! Where is he?!" growled Mommy Long Legs furiously, her eyes bulging with hatred.
~P~
"Come on, come on," said the human, staring at the scanner which finally finished validating the Bunzo toy found just before. Opening the door, he ran to a PJ conduit, or rather Winry, following him. Finding a fork, he chose the one on the right. Seeing a yellow door, he tried to open it, but like so many other doors, it remained closed. Cursing this, he looked for a way to open it and came across a room with a cardboard cutout, which he ignored, as well as the television set. Looking through a wire mesh door, he saw a new puzzle related to electricity.
"Wed...Wednesday!" he swears, turning back as Winry giggles behind him.
"Too difficult for you, human?"
"Firstly, I'm Andy and not human, and secondly, I really want to file a complaint with whoever designed this place!"
"You're not the only one"
Having arrived on the other side and seeing the complexity of powering the door, Andy almost destroyed everything as he was so tired of falling into walls when he wanted to move forward in a straight line, gritting his teeth he continued to work to restore the power, once finished he let out a whistle of joy.
"Hey, I found another one!" said Winry, showing a cassette which she immediately put in the player.
"This is a pre-recorded message intended to address the numerous complaints about an alleged 'very, very large spider' that has been roaming the premises."
"Playtime would like me to remind everyone that spiders of this size... do not exist."
"And if they did, I quote: 'We would already be dead anyway.' End of quote."
"In any case, you can all be assured that the company is sending specialists to the site to assess the situation and put an end to the incessant complaints."
"Complaining seems to be everyone's main contribution to this endeavor. It's just a spider. You are all safe. Please carry on with your work."
(The mere fact that the press never learned anything is incredibly frustrating!) he said to himself, almost impressed that no one ever discovered the giant toys or the experiments on humans.
Advancing to the yellow door, he tries to open it, but once again it is blocked.
"By Zeus! Why isn't it working?!" Turning back, he followed the cable which disappeared through a cracked wall, but when he shone his flashlight inside, he had the unpleasant surprise of seeing a kind of operating room stained with blood. Stepping back, he ignored his headache, passing a hand over his face.
"That must have been the door to the Game Station that we opened," Winry said suddenly, pulling him out of his thoughts. Looking at the pug toy's face, he nodded, and the two returned to the vents with Andy in the lead.
#BAM!BOOM!#
"Andy!"
"...ouch..." said the human simply, lying on his stomach. Getting up, he raised his head and saw Winry's worried face peeking out. "Everything's fine...but I don't think I can get back up. Listen, go to the Game Station and tell Alphonse that everything's okay, alright?"
"And why should I obey?! You're my hostage, I'll have you know, so I should be joining you instead of letting you escape!" she retorted through gritted teeth.
(It's really cute to see her all worked up) he thought to himself with amusement. "Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere until I'm sure everyone is safe."
"...promises the"
"I promise, and if I lie then you can gnaw on my bones," he jokes, making the toy dog snort in annoyance.
"Your interest...be careful," she said in a biting tone, then more softly as she passed over his head.
Once Winry's noises disappeared, he turned towards the closed door, clicking his tongue, he went in the other direction, convinced that there must be another way in, raising his eyes he began to aim with his Grabpack when the darkness spat out an elastic nightmare making him retreat hastily, covered in marks and an expression of anger on his face indicated to Smith that the hunt for Mommy had not calmed him at all.
"I asked you to play fairly and you cheated! I hate cheaters!" she shouts, tearing out a pipe in her fury.
The shape of his fingers lengthens and hardens, his whole form seems to tremble in place as it stretches, making his shape more monstrous than originally, his pupils dilate to the point that he can no longer see color and his voice borders on hysteria.
"Now, we're going to play one last game! It's called... hide-and-seek!"