Finding Freedom {Freedom AU} [Book Two](FNAF/UT)

Chapter Sixteen

  It was another booming business day at the pizzeria. Freddy and his gang were performing as per usual. Kids were running from the arcade room, to the dining room, to the party room repeatedly. In between stops was when they'd actually take bites of their food.

After having just finished a number, the gang stopped singing for a short moment. It was usually at this point in the characters' performance, where they would usually promote special deals that the restaurant was having, or things like that.

It was also the time of day when they would start getting hungry or thirsty. But, like they'd been doing for several years now, they pressed on until closing.

While Chica was doing her bit about the company's mailing list, Freddy noticed a figure in dark clothing walk into the room. They were wearing black pants and shoes, along with a black jacket. Their hands were shoved into the pockets. They also wore a black fedora, along with a thick black scarf that covered their mouth. Freddy was unable to tell if the scarf was just bulky, or if the person's face was deformed.

Before Chica finished speaking, the person came over to the show stage, and looked up towards the bear. For a moment, the two made eye contact. The strange figure had the same sapphire blue eyes Freddy had. They also seemed to have dark unusual skin around their eyes.

As Freddy watched the figure then slowly walk back the way he came, he suddenly heard his name being called. "Hey Freddy, how about that next song?" Chica asked him in an out of place cheery tone. As though she were asking him if he'd zoned out. At that, the bear was brought back to reality, and to what they were doing.

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"Gold?" Freddy asked his brother, as he approached him. "Can I see your photo again please?" Gold gave him a nod, before pulling it from his inside vest pocket. "Here ya are." He said, handing the photo to his younger brother.

The moment it was in his hands, did Freddy quickly begin looking at it hard. Gold obviously noticed how he was trying to look at the ripped edge. "Fred, what're you lookin' for?" He asked, confused by his brother's behavior. "I..."

"Hey guys." Sophie greeted as she approached the two. Gold gave her a nod of acknowledgement, before she too noticed how Freddy was staring hard at the photo. "What are you doing Freddy?" The girl wondered confusedly. "Looking... at this photo."

"She can see that, Fred. What are you lookin' for?" Gold asked again. Freddy let out a small sigh of defeat, as he lowered the photo from his face. "Nothing." He answered, looking a bit sadly at the photo.

"Whose photo is it?" Sophie curiously asked. "It's mine." Gold told her. "May I see?" She wondered. Freddy looked to his brother for approval. Gold nodded, and Freddy handed the half photo to Sophie.

Taking a moment to look at it, Sophie first muttered, "Oh." A moment longer, and the brothers then heard from her, "Oh!" She looked from the photo, and to the brothers, then to the photo again. "Is this you guys?"

"Yeah." Freddy confirmed. "This'll probably sound insensitive, but I don't know why I didn't even think that you guys age." Sophie admitted. "We do." Gold confirmed, as a thought crossed his mind.

An amused smile grew on Sophie's face. "Aw man, you two were so cute when you were little!" She commented, all while handing the photo back to Freddy. "Thanks." He answered.

"Well, I have to check on something in the office. See ya!" With that, Sophie walked away from them.

"Hey Gold, something weird hap-" Before Freddy could finish, his brother had already vanished. Sporting a look of unamusement, Freddy simply mumbled, "Well, fine then."

"Puppet?" Gold called, approached the Marionette. He was in the Parts Room with Bonbell, engaged in conversation. "Just a minute, Bon." Puppet excused, before giving his attention to the golden bear. "Yes?"

"You all have stopped aging!" Gold suddenly told. Bon and Puppet both looked at him as though he were crazy—Bon more so than the Marionette. "Why do you say that?"

"You remember when you tried asking me about that weird... weird thing, you said happened, years ago?" Puppet thought for a minute, before he realized what Gold was talking about. "Yes, and?" The Marionette inquired. "I don't believe any of you have aged since then."

"That's ridiculous, Gold." Bon commented, before looking to Puppet for some backup. The bunny could see he had a serious look of consideration on his face. "Right, Puppet?" Puppet briefly looked to Bonbell, before looking back to Gold.

"I was thinking the same thing the day the Twins were brought here." The Marionette confessed. "What?!" Bon practically exclaimed. "I thought it sounded stupid, but the more I consider it..."

"It might just be true." Gold finished. "And, not long after they got here, did they come to me basically saying whatever that was, happened to them." Puppet told. "They don't seem to be aging either, which because they're so young, we would've started to notice by now."

"How in the world would that even happen?" Bon began to ask. "It would be impossible for someone to do something like that to us!" Puppet looked at the bunny. "Gold's ability to teleport, or Vixen's ability to mangle herself should technically be impossible too." He pointed out. Bon didn't have an argument for that.

Looking back to Gold, the Marionette then asked, "What do you propose we do about it?" Puppet wondered. Gold thought for a minute. "We have an idea of what happened to everyone, but now what?" Puppet added. Gold slowly began to shake his head. "I don't know."

"Wait a minute." Bonbell interrupted. "Were you the only one unaffected by this, Gold?" He asked, looking at the bear. "I think so." Gold answered, before Puppet then asked, "Where were you before I asked if you felt something changed?"

"I had been outside. I remember I'd heard a gust of wind before I came back in." Gold answered him. "I'm pretty sure that wasn't wind." Puppet told him, before adding, "But I guess that explains why you didn't know what I was talking about. You weren't in the building where you'd also be affected."

"This is weird." Bonbell commented. "How about, until we find a solution for this, we do not point it out?" Puppet suggested, to which the other two agreed.