11:45 PM
As he approached Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria, Mike observed the plastered wall just above the front doorway; marks of what seemed to be supports that once connected the billboard-sized sign of the former restaurant stood out, showing that the outside had not been refurbished in any way for likely over twenty years. Only five months before, he had been walking down this same sidewalk on his first night on the job, ready for what he had foolishly thought to be a simple night shift; how much the building had taken from him mentally and emotionally was still rather debatable.
That night, however, would be different; with his hidden weapon locked safely in its case that was currently strapped to his back, his vengeance was inevitable. Unlike every other time he had entered those doors, he was not defenceless. That night, he was going to discover if monsters could die.
Bemused at the thought, Mike shifted the case on his back slightly and continued to approach the pizzeria; with the animatronics' doom finally in his grasp, he started to consider how he would engage them. It was obvious that stalking the hallways would be a very bad idea, as he could either be attacked from behind or bull rushed by the four of them. With this considered, he decided that he would use the office to his advantage by waiting for them to try and attack him one-by-one. Bonnie would likely be the first; maybe it would demoralise the rest.
Noticing that someone was just leaving the pizzeria, Mike was not surprised to see that it was Garfield himself that was likely having a 'late night'. After this had occurred one too many times during his first week, Mike had finally decided that he was deliberately doing it to frustrate Mike. The manager was holding several pieces of paper in his hands, likely reports on several of his business transactions that may or may not have included Freddy's. Whatever happened to be on those papers was likely dangerous, seeing as any of the more 'shady' transactions would get him arrested.
Though that possibility wouldn't help in the slightest; if it just so happened to be Mike who discovered these reports, the already-doomed Night Watchman would probably be dead by the end of the week. Any action taken against Garfield—even if Mike wasn't involved—would still likely end that way.
Looking up, a flash of shock and frustration showed in Garfield's hazel eyes as he saw his employee. "Mr. Schmidt." His mouth muscles slowly twitched into an irritated smirk as he spoke; due to the more 'active' nature of the animatronics—no doubt done deliberately by Garfield as a way to lower the chances of Mike surviving—the man who always got what he wanted was seemingly getting more and more impatient that Mike was not simply keeling over. That thought almost angered Mike further. "I see that you're early once again; just can't get enough of the shift, hm?"
Annoyance from his smug tone started to rise up to Mike's face, causing the Night Guard to simply shrug as a way to redirect that anger; making direct eye contact with Garfield, a passive-aggressive stance worked its way to Mike's body language. Deciding that simply not talking to the manager was his best approach, as the last few times he had started speaking whilst also attempting to keep his temper from fraying, it had ended up with him losing control and saying something he would come to regret. Only responding in simple answers would likely help him in many ways, including maybe Garfield himself getting annoyed by Mike's silent treatment without having enough to really punish him for it. It was the perfect combination: Mike wouldn't get himself into a further mess and he would be able to anger the man who had ruined his life one too many times.
In response to the silence, a frown replaced Garfield's smirk as he seemingly tried to deduce what Mike's game was; losing his interest, Garfield straightened up as he spoke once more. "I wanted to tell you that tonight might be slightly different; not too much, but enough for some notice."
