Autophobia

Chapter 1: One of THOSE Days

"Hello, boys and girls!"

It didn't matter how many times Charlie heard that boisterous animatronic voice- it made her jump every time, at least at 8 in the morning. She looked up from the dozens of party favors in front of her to see Nedd Bear waving to invisible children while Pigpatch, Orville, and Happy Frog sprung to life beside him.

"It's a wonderful day here at Junior's Pizza! Let me introduce you to my friends!"

Charlie tuned out the rest of the familiar dialogue and went about setting a nearby table. She neatly placed an animatronic minifigure on each colorful foil plate along with a piece of paper and crayons. Her father had children's drawings all over the restaurant- it was all a part of the charm, he said. And charming it was, with purple and green walls, endless streamers, an old-school arcade and, of course, her father's iconic creations.

Mr. Hippo added to the animatronic banter from his corner of the restaurant as she steadied a Pigpatch figure, and Charlie immediately knew something was off. There was no clicking sound emanating from the purple mascot- his jaw was completely slack.

"...Dad?" She called, staring at the animatronic's gaping jaw.

"Yeah?" Her father's tone told her that she'd caught him in the middle of inventory.

"Nevermind!" She turned on her heels and headed to the back room, where she carefully dug through her father's multitiered toolbox, making sure it stayed organized to his liking. Malfunctioning jaws were an easy fix- all she needed was a medium-sized screwdriver and wrench, both of which she found quickly. By the time she made her way back out to the showroom floor, her father had placed some boxes on the prize counter. She had to move fast. Mr. Hippo's eyes followed her as she approached him from the right side of the stage, her tools in hand. She wondered if he understood her intentions.

"Too many stories, eh Mr. H?" The 19-year-old carefully felt for the power switch that was situated on an unmoving joint in the animatronic's neck. There was still no sign of Henry, and she relaxed. He was wary of her maintaining the robots even though she was following in his engineering footsteps. She'd even created an animatronic of her own. It was really only a vacuum with a self-sustaining power supply and light-up eyes, but she knew what she was doing.

After turning Mr. Hippo off, Charlie stood on her tiptoes in order to examine the moving joint that connected the robot's jaw to his head. It was working fine- there had to be an internal issue. After scanning the room one more time, she removed the hippo's mask and revealed the intricate endoskeleton underneath it. All she had to do was press the button directly under his jaw to reveal the internal components...

"Charlotte!"

She stumbled backwards and hugged the large purple hippo, who didn't quake in the slightest. She turned to face her father with a sheepish smile but only got a scolding expression in return.

"Dad, it's fine. I was just trying to fix-"

"Charlie, those springlocks-" Henry sighed, running his fingers through his graying brown hair. "...I know you want to practice, but tell me first."

"You were busy."

"Charlotte."

She sighed and stepped off the stage, extending the tools towards him.

"Just... you can watch. Please just watch."

Charlie opened her mouth but thought better of it- he was already in a mood. On any other day she would've protested, but a busy, rainy Saturday with six birthday parties wasn't the day. She pulled up a chair and watched him work, the urge to tinker getting stronger and stronger.