Night 7: “Ivy! Ivy, wake up!” I open my eyes blearily, trying to figure out why my room is so cold. Then I remember where I am, what happened last night, and what Springtrap said. Springtrap… “Ivy? Are you okay?” Plushtrap’s worried eyes bore into mine. “Y-Yeah, I’m fine. Just tired, that’s all.” I slowly stretch my aching limbs, trying to figure out a plan. My stomach rumbles quietly, reminding me that I haven’t eaten in almost 24 hours. “What time is it?” I ask him, rubbing my eyes. “Almost midnight, I think. I just heard the dayshift leave.” “Let me check that bandage, okay?” Plushtrap hesitantly holds out his injured hand, and I sigh in relief when I see that his oil leakage seems to have stopped. “How are you feeling, Plushtrap?” I ask, weakly standing up. “I’m okay. You look horrible, though.” His expression changes from mild worry to sheer terror as footsteps are suddenly audible. “Hide.” I grab him and duck behind a pile of spare parts. No way am I going to go down without a fight! “Plushtrap? Ivy? Where are you two?” Springtrap’s voice doesn’t sound mocking like it did last night. In fact, it sounds…Worried and sad? Is he that good of an actor, or is he actually feeling guilty from last night’s little escapade? Either way, I’m not moving from this spot until he shows that he’s genuinely worried. I hear the tumbler clicking, and then I see Springtrap’s shadowy form enter the room, his white eyes glowing dimly. I can’t see his expression, so I don’t know if he’s sincere. I hate this uncertainty, but there’s nothing I can do except to wait for him to reveal what he’s really thinking. “I-I know you’re both in here…And I just wanted to say that I understand why you’re hiding from me. H-Vincent took control last night. I thought I had him under control, and then he broke through my mental barrier and took over. I couldn’t stop him until daytime, and then I couldn’t come and get you out of there; the others would have jumped me in order to kill you.” I hear him take a sobbing breath, and my heart aches. I want to trust him so badly, but…Last night was so horribly wrong. I don’t ever want to go through that again. “And if you never trust me again, I understand that too…Just please promise me that you won’t trust Shadow Freddy. Please. He will kill both of us. He doesn’t want to help you so that you’ll survive the two-week deadline; he wants to help you so that he can betray you later.” I nod slightly. I know that Shadow Freddy is twisted, and means to do both of us harm. “F-Finally, I just wanted to say that if you don’t want to see me ever again, I’ll just stay in here. I’ll lock myself in when you two leave, and you’ll never have to worry about a repeat of last night. I-I promise that I won’t even try to get out of here.” I see him kneel down and bury his face in his hands, and then I hear him start to weep. My emotions win out, and I slowly reach for an animatronic arm before I stand up, clutching Plushtrap in my other hand. He looks up when I move, and his expression falls even more. “O-Oh…I see you’re prepared. Go ahead. H-Hit me. G-Give me what I d-deserve.” I kneel down next to him, trying not to cry. “Springtrap, everyone loses control sometimes. You’re not entirely at fault here, anyways. The…thing…possessing you is more at fault than you are.” He manages a weak grin, but then looks away. “I-I shouldn’t be near you. What if he takes control again?” “Springtrap, you need to calm down. The less sure you are of yourself, the more likely it is that he’ll win in the end.” I look into his eyes and add quietly. “Then you wouldn’t be able to protect me very well, and we’ll both be in trouble.” He looks into my eyes, relief and concern mixed in his expression. “S-So you forgive me?” he asks slowly. “On one condition. You guard me on my way back to the office so I can do my job and leave in one piece. Also, try to control yourself, okay?” He nods and picks me up off of the floor carefully before standing up and sprinting down the hallways towards the office. I cling to him, closing my eyes and still holding Plushtrap with my other hand. His presence is comforting, and I’m grateful that Springtrap built him for me. I feel Springtrap stop suddenly, and I open my eyes to see that we’re surrounded by Phantoms. I see that they’re all eying Springtrap in a very sinister way, and I swallow quietly before pressing myself against him a little more. “Well, well, well, what do we have here?” Shadow Freddy’s glowing, blank orbs peer at us out of the darkness before he steps forward, grinning widely. Springtrap’s eyes narrow in disgust, and even Plushtrap looks angrily at him. “What, no ‘Hi, nice to see you again, old friend?’ I’m disappointed. You were very welcoming to the human last night~!” His grin widens, and the Phantoms snicker in the background. “Shut it, you freak.” Springtrap’s eyes turn red again, and he gently sets me down next to him.
“You have no business spying on her. She’s an innocent, and you’re trying to corrupt her!” “Oh, this is MY fault all of a sudden? Ha! I’m not the one who nearly attacked the human last night!” I can’t take it anymore. Shadow Freddy has been an annoyance up ‘til now, but this is taking things way too far. “Stop this!” I cry out, and both instantly hush and turn to face me. Springtrap looks horrified, and Shadow Freddy looks like he’s having fun. “Aww! The human wants to say something! Go ahead, little lady! Speak up!” I resist the urge to march up to S. Freddy and punch him in the mouth and stay where I am instead. “You’ve been trying to trick me this entire time, Shadow Freddy. You’re not innocent in this situation either, so don’t act like you are. As for Springtrap, he can’t exactly help it.” “That’s very true. And why is that?” S. Freddy leers at me, daring me to continue. “That was in the past, and isn’t relevant here,” I reply evenly. Springtrap’s eyes are darting around, and he is clearly uncomfortable with where the confrontation has led. “Well, we all remember that terrible series of events like they happened yesterday. A child like you has no idea of what we’ve been through, and has no business speaking when she shouldn’t.” His voice gets lower and lower until it’s a growl as he speaks, and I shrink back a bit. Springtrap puts a comforting arm around my shoulder, and Plushtrap cuddles closer to me. “Enough of this, Shadow. What do you want with us?” Springtrap’s voice is calm, but I can feel his hand shaking when he rests it on my shoulder. “I don’t want anything to do with you. You are nothing more than a pile of spare parts that should have burned to ashes long ago. But to them, well…that’s a different story, isn’t it? You did just destroy their hosts, after all. And we’re almost powerful enough to awaken the others. I’m sure Fredbear will be happy to see YOU again!” Springtrap gasps, just loudly enough for S. Freddy and I to hear. He grins, and I look up at Springtrap questioningly. “Who is this…’Fredbear?’” I ask him quietly. “Why, he’s Springtrap’s best friend! Or at least, he was. Then Springtrap showed his true colors, and Fredbear doesn’t really like him anymore.” S. Freddy grins, and I pale slightly. “Don’t worry, Ivy, I won’t let him get to you,” Plushtrap whispers in my ear. “I suppose I should let the human go for now. I’m sure the Master will want to meet her!” “NO!!” Springtrap’s cry makes even Shadow Freddy jump. “I’ll die before I’d let that stupid Puppet meet her. She deserves to retain her sanity!” “Did you just insult the Master?” Phantom Bonnie’s voice slithers out of his mouth like a twisted melody, and I feel a cold chill go down my spine. “No one lives if they insult the Master…” Phantom Mangle adds, and I don’t dare look up into its soulless eyes. “You will pay for this,” Phantom Freddy’s deep voice sounds like the tolling of a death knell. My knees nearly buckle, but Springtrap catches me in time and holds me close. “I think we’re scaring her!” Phantom Chica’s statement is punctuated by a horrible cackling that makes me want to tear out my eardrums. S. Freddy is laughing, his white eyes glowing brightly. “Are you scared yet, human? Do you see what we’re capable of? Do you understand why trusting me sooner would have spared you all of this pain?” I shake my head. “No. If I’d gone with you in the first place, I’d be dead by now.” Plushtrap nods his head, silently agreeing with me and boosting my confidence a bit. “Such distrust! I swear, these humans get less and less likable the more of them you meet! Oh well, there will be plenty of time to break your mind later~!” My eyes widen, and Springtrap takes a step closer to the blackish-purple bear. “Try anything foolish, and I will rip you into pieces so small that even your stupid Puppets won’t be able to put you back together again.” S. Freddy just waves him off. “Hah. I’d like to see you try, bunny boy!” I put my hand on Springtrap’s shoulder. “Don’t lose control again, please,” I whisper. He slowly backs off, mumbling something unsavory under his breath. “Well, we’ll be going for now, but we’ll see you later!” Before either Springtrap or I can do or say anything, the entire group vanishes. I’m about to ask what the heck just happened, but that’s when I hear sobbing coming from a dark corner. “H-Hello?” I whisper, slowly approaching it. “I…I’m so lonely…I just w-want to be noticed…” I see the tip of a reddish-brown ear poking out of the shadows, and I suddenly become curious. “Who are you?” I ask quietly, stopping near the source of the voice. “Ivy…” Springtrap comes over to me and grabs my hand gently. “Don’t talk to him. He’s a fraud.” I’m about to reply, but the chimes sound, and the owner of the voice vanishes. “See you tomorrow,” I mutter, heading for the door. Plushtrap snuggles into my arms a little more, and I manage a wry grin as I cuddle him closer. “Be careful, okay Springtrap?” I call over my shoulder.
