Chapter Text
The car rumbles under your hands, which are planted loosely on the steering wheel. Thumb picking at some loose thread while you stare out the windshield. It’s a dark and humid morning, a semi-conscious glance at the radio clock blinks five twenty-two. You look back out the window as your gaze drags like sandpaper over the brick outer walls of the standalone building, and the little park beside it.
It was surreal. First you find out your job burnt down in a freak accident. Next you find out that all the paperwork you signed had some sort of weird NDA agreement in it, on top of the mystical management going, ‘Hey! You know how you got super close to our asset? That you caused some AI growth that was unexpected? Yeah well you’re going to be working for us the next five years or we’ll sue!’ and then you were on an ‘all expenses paid’ trip across the country for some sort of new job offer that would need, and you quote: “Your unique expertise in robotics and childcare.”
Like, what did that even mean? Also they were going to sue you? For apparently ‘messing’ with their ‘asset’ oh yeah sure, because that's all Sun and Moon were to them!
You smacked the steering wheel, and the car honked. It startled you into focus. Right, you were outside of that daycare, for your first real day on the job.
Leaning back against the seat, your head thumps against the headrest and you release a sigh. You were definitely overthinking this, weren’t you? It was just going to be a normal day at work. Whatever was behind those doors is just the new norm. Nothing to sweat about!
With a deep breath and a smile plastered onto your face, you opened the car door and slid your backpack onto your back. Today will be a good day! It was just like any other daycare job.
It was everything to sweat about, and it was not just like any other daycare job. As soon as you opened the door you were met with the warm light of the entrance. There was a couch and a few chairs as well as the front desk towards the back of the room, and there next to the desk was the open entrance to the playroom, and through the doorway was a head full of sunrays..
He perked up at the sound of the bell above the door, and like double vision, you swear you saw two Suns, one in front of you, and one from the past, in his daycare, cleaning away at the play mats just like this one before you was doing. This one’s eyes were a beautiful shade of green instead of the piercing egg shell white. And his rays had a slight shading to them, getting redder in tone towards the base of his rays.
This was not your Sun, this was a ghost. This Sun wore white paint smocks with sleeves that fell to about elbow length, and had long pant legs. Around his waist was a little brown apron. There were deep pockets in the apron, as well as a little pouch on the front of his smocks. Stitched in were yellow swirling patterns and stars thrown about the smocks. Huh, already this Attendant was more dressed than Sunny and Moon combined.
He stared at you for a few seconds, and it was then you noticed he even had the same wide smile
After a few seconds, this Sun’s head tilted down in a greeting nod, “Heeelllllooooooo Sunshine! You’re sure here early.” A bright, but calm sounding voice carried to you. It made your heart drop to your stomach, and as your eyes darted up, so did a hand to your chest. “..Sunny?” You asked, tentatively.
He tilted his head, and his rays jostled in their track, spinning the opposite way a tiny bit. “Sunny? Is that a new nickname for me, friend?” He asked, his green painted optics flicked about your person, from your comfortably baggy green flannel and plain colored shirt, the scuffed up little brass whistle that rattled when shaken, to your green shorts and the silly clogs on your socked feet. “Ah.” You mumbled, you knew you should have worn sneakers at the least.
The Attendant across from you stared at your clogs for a moment, before looking back up at you and stopping for a moment on the whistle. “So. Friend. I am going to assume you are the front desk assistant? You’re a little late actually. Should’ve been here Five on-the-dot!” The Attendant stood, patting his servos off on his apron.
You stare at him, wide eye and feeling like your brain was about to explode. “Uhm, Traffic.” A half assed response, there was no traffic at five in the morning. “I need the bathroom.” You mumble. tightening your grip on your backpack strap.
He looks at you for a moment, but with a flair of his hands that quickly disappear into his smocks (Did he have pockets there too?) He bounces his head to the left. Or well, your right.
“Just down the hall, its technically your own private bathroom, just for our employees, and you’re the only one here!”
You give his wide smile a look, eyebrow ticking upwards. “Don’t you work here too?” You ask, already taking half steps in that direction. It was behind the front desk. And you did start a conversation. You weren’t rude.
This Sun tilts to the side and then to the other, bouncing between the balls of his feet- Oh, he’s wearing socks. “Well, I’m just a-”
“Just an animatronic. Right, shoulda’ known.” Stopping by the desk, you drop the lunch kit down and backpack, shoving them under the desk.
Turning decisively down the hall with a sneer on your face that scrunched your nose, you noted there are four separate doors, two on each side sort of offset each other. Though you guess the colorfully decorated ‘Bathroom’ sign on the far right one was the one you were looking for.
Sun doesn’t say anything further, so you continue on to the bathroom, making sure to lock the door behind you.
The first thing you notice is how colorful the bathroom is. The walls are painted fun colors with splashes and, a hand print that was way to big to be human, right. The bathroom bulbs didn’t flicker and were a bright color. The porcelain throne was clean and a small shelf was mounted above it on the wall, decorated with space themed items and a few bathroom necessities. The sink was basic and set in a small counter that, when looking underneath, was already stocked with any products you could imagine needing.
It was… quaint. It was an ok bathroom to have mostly to yourself. You looked in the mirror, which was mounted above the sink respectively, and really take in your reflection. Your hair is pulled out of your face, but still looks messy. You could almost mistake it for a stylish messy if you squinted. You had bags under your eyes and you knew that there was a Moon somewhere in the world with metaphorical burning ears.
You crack a smile at the joke, and it looks awkward on your face. Your eyes start to burn the longer you look at yourself, tears spring to your eyes and your chest ached. Looking down to the faucet you reach out and turn the sink on, splashing cold water onto your cheeks which were beginning to flush. Now was not the time, hold it together!
When you leave the bathroom, Sun is nowhere to be seen, but you can hear movement from somewhere in the building. Stopping by the front desk you take a glance at two monitors which hold feed from security cameras outside and around the building. You also notice a folder neatly set out in front of the monitors.
Shuffling through to the double doors, you peak through the open entryway to see the playroom, play mats on one half and carpet on the other. There's even a rug with colorful squares and the letters of the alphabet on it. It reminded you of kindergarten.
Sun stands off to the corner, at what looks like more of a teachers desk. there's a little plastic file holder that he’s rifling through.
Shoving your hands into your pockets, you lean against the entrance. Eyes looking over the room. It honestly looks just like any other daycare room. Posters on the wall Fazbear themed of course, plus a ‘Numbers and ABC’ themed one and plenty of little knickknacks for the kiddos.
It’s quit for a while, just watching him do whatever it is he does, or looking around the room. The more you look, the more you think that this room could be pretty cozy. Eventually the silence is too much for you.
“I’m sorry.” You hum. Pointedly keeping your eyes directed towards the floor. It was mighty interesting.
“Whatever for?” Sun asks, chipper yet so much more.. Adult like? It was glaring how different he was from Sunny. Scrunching up your face at the carpet, you chance a glance at the Attendant.
He’s looking at you, but his head is still pointed downwards to the files. His servo is still flicking through them too. Its a little uncanny, but you are kind of used to those sorts of things. Animatronics, right? Marvels of the world. You can practically see the dollar signs in your managers eyes. Huh, now that you think about it, Do you even have a direct manager here, besides Sun?
“Well, I kinda..” You shrug, kicking the toe of your clogs into the carpet. “Snapped at you. That wasn’t fair.” You shrug again. Sun pauses in his rifling to fold his arms across his chest and lean his hip against the edge.
“Thank you, that must’ve been mighty difficult for you!” His smile is eternal, his optics flick across your face as if looking for something. It makes you nervous.
“Ah, well it wasn’t fair to you.” Silence. Sun stands a little taller and meanders over to you, fixing things here and there on his way. “It’s also a bad first impression, huh?” You mumble, itching at your cheek. Nervous tick. “Yeah, it would be a pretty garbage first impression if I was sneered at. I’m sorry.” You take a deep breath, pulling your hands out your pockets to fiddle with the whistle tied around your neck. It hangs just in the middle of your sternum.
“I'm.. Opinionated about animatronics, I suppose.” You pull your phone out of your pocket to check the time. five forty-three. “And- I worked with a different.. Fazbear model. They were close friends.. They were treated unfairly by management, and a lot of adults. It makes me really angry you know?” You scowl at the ground and Sun’s approaching socks. “I’m-! They were my friends and people can just be so mean!” You huff at him.
Sun chuckles, coming to a stop before you. He places a heavy servo on your shoulder. “It’s ok, sunshine! You’re just a passionate fellow, I get it! I know some kids can get fired up about their interests.”
You feel a little off at that, like Sun was just trying to brush off your sentiments. Like he was still just an object. (Like they all aren’t worth the right.) “It’s not just an interest. You’re a person! Just like they were! They had likes, dislikes, ideas and feelings! Just like I assume you do, right? What about your Moon? Does he?” You ask, reaching up to grab his hand and holding it hopefully.
Sun offers you a confused look. “I’m sorry, Moon? Did they not tell you? I’m a newer model, a singular AI. There is no naptime attendant. Just me!” He sounds so cheerful, despite this little hiccup. But to you this was..
You pause, hand wrapped around his wrist. You stare blankly just under his left optic, your other hand is clenched around your whistle, grip tight. “What?” You whisper, disbelieving.
Sun looks a little more concerned now. He gently pulls his wrist from your hand. They fall flat to his sides. “There is no Moon AI. Just me, Just Sun.” He says, a little blandly. His smile feels small.
As if frozen, you can’t seem to move. His optics holds your gaze, but you still can’t manage to look him in the eye. His gaze keeps you rooted to the spot. Your hands drop to your sides and mirror Sun. You can’t even think right now, nothing enters your mind.
“But, naptime? Who… Where could- how?” You can’t seem to make a response, and either through pity or feeling awkward himself, Sun gently pulls you to the front room, where the seats await adults and children alike. He pulls you behind the front desk and directs your body to sit in the swivel office chair. “Did they really not tell you? That’s not very responsible of them!” He says, as if to just fill the void.
You snort and reflexively respond with, “When would management ever want to tell their employees anything?” Sun seems a little taken aback, and a little uncomfortable. “Well, that’s- Hm! Surely they meant to? Did you read this here?” He reaches over you to nudge that file you spotted from before, his digit tips gently pushing it, before that meticulous behavior you suspect all Sun’s have kicks in and he fixes it to be perfect. “Surely in there..?”
You slap a hand down on the file and drag it towards you. Flicking it open reveals a congratulatory paper about how they’re ‘So proud to have you working in their new establishment!’ and that they ‘Have high expectations!’ Bullshit. You flip through a few more papers like insurances, pay, liability nonsense, and stumble upon a small booklet titled “Daycare Attendant Solstice Model, Care and Upkeep.” Flicking it open reveals schematics of Sun. Stuff like where wires run, the endo skeleton, components. It all kind of reminds you of the human anatomy text books from school.
You look through the book, forwards, backwards, upside down and right side up. But you can find no mention of Moon.
You look over your shoulder to see Sun, hovering over you and reading along with you. “He’s.. Really not there?” You ask, tentative. Sun just shrugs. “Nope! Never had one.”
Maybe its the way he seems so unbothered about it, or maybe its the fact the universe seems fit to torture you. Either way, this.. You couldn’t deal with this.
“Right, Uhm. Look its almost six, we’ll be opening soon, I really should..” You toss the folder back onto the desk and go to stand. Sun backs up, throwing his hands up and nodding. “Right! Right right right. Yep! Good luck kiddo!” He slides his hands into his smocks pockets (Seriously, where are they?) and just like that, he’s in the back patiently awaiting children.
And sure enough, not even three minutes past six, tired adults are bringing in sleepy children, whom are ushered straight back into Sun’s awaiting arms. You can hear him greet each one with a soft, but enthusiastic voice. hummed ‘Good morning!’ is given to each one. Mean while you greet each adult, have them give you basic information. You’d been told that these adults had signed up online, all they had to do was come by, check in, and then leave.
So that's what you did for a few hours. You checked in the adults and introduced yourself. Getting greetings and introductions in return. It was easy work, really. You didn’t understand why management sent you here, Sun could of handled this just well by himself.
After the last adult left and you wished them a good day, you stood from the desk and meandered over to the rooms entrance. Sun noticed you near immediately. “One second, Sunshine!” He called, servos full of stuffed animals as he passed them out to a few children who asked. A little boy, Erin, reached out and snatched the little rabbit before someone else could take it, and Sun tsked. “Now, Erin, that is not how we ask for things. Hand it over.” He held out his servo to Erin waiting for the rabbit.
You looked away to the front, the sun lit up the parking lot well now. It was still a cloudy day, but a day none the less. Bouncing steps vibrating through the floor brought you back to focus, as Sun bounced around children and made his way to you. With a flourish that made some kids giggle, he stopped before you with a grin.
“Pretty busy today! Oh my, just like a busy bee, we’re a hive!” He turned to stand next to you, watching the children meander around. “Did you need something, Sunshine?”
“Ah, yeah I just wanted to let you know, that Maddy was the last kid today. This is it.”
“Oh perfect!” Sun clapped, which drew a few kids attention. “Then I'm going to close these doors here. Breakfast is in an hour thirty, and then lunch is at ten.” He gently ushered you out, one long arm already reaching around and just like that, you were staring at two double white doors, painted with silly swirls and nonsense you didn’t care about.
Probably time to sit down and read that folder.
Boredom was a quick disease, and reading through that file was like crawling through quick sand. Curiosity getting the better of you, and a cramp in your leg, gave you the grand idea to look around. You checked the cameras just in case anything might be happening, but nope.
Heading down the hallway behind you, where the bathroom was, you head for the door adjacent to the bathroom. Opening it just gave you a supply closet. You were kind of surprised it wasn’t locked. Shutting it and turning back down the hall you opened another door. This time you found the small kitchenette. It was pretty cozy in there, everything was mini sized. Very cute.
The next door was locked, and that gave you a raised eyebrow. Why was this door locked, but the supply closet, you know, full of cleaning supplies along with other things, not? “Hmm..” Jiggling the knob a little just in case it wasn’t caught did nothing. Strange.
Something to ask Sun about, you supposed. Might as well head back into the Kitchen and grab some breakfast for those munchkins.
Wheeling the cart full off breakfast stuff like milk carton, cereal and a few healthier options, you found yourself before a sea of hungry children. A few of the quieter ones rested in the back, between the book shelfs in beanbag chairs or on the floor. They must’ve eaten before coming here.
As Sun handed out the rations, you couldn’t help but wonder. “So.. Sun, How exactly do you do a naptime if you don't have a Moon?”
Sun paused, looking over his shoulder at you. He deftly set the tray of food in Harry’s outstretched hands and turned to you. “Well, I guess thats for me to know, and you to find out!” His tone was teasing, light and fun. But something about it felt weird.
“Oh. What about the locked door in the hall?”
He turned to the cart and handed out the last tray. “We’ll talk about that tomorrow, a little too busy right now for that, friend!”
And just like that, you were headed back to the kitchen with more questions than answers.
After a long, long day at work, it was finally time to close up. Sun demanded he clean the play room, stating it was because “You hadn’t made a mess in there!” or something. So you dutifully swept up the front, small kitchen, and bathroom. Then washed what little dishes you might’ve made during the day and left them to dry on a drying rack.
And just like that, You were wishing Sun a goodnight and heading home after a fourteen hour shift. When you finally got home, you didn’t even stop to grab a bite from the kitchen. As soon as the door shut you were wrestling your work clothes off and slipping into something comfortable. All the while you wore that whistle. When you finally crashed in bed, you felt all the aches in your body.
You’d think sitting for most of the day wouldn’t be a bother. But you’d be wrong. Your back ached, and you arms were sore from what kids managed to sneak attack you while delivering food. Demanding little things they were, with their “ups! ups!” But, none the less you thought they were cute.
Maybe Sun would let you arrange some sort of pizza party for them or something. You remember a few of those in school. They were always so fun.
Rolling over with a groan and a pop in your hip, you nestled into the comforter. Tomorrow was another day…
The whistle glinted under a soft golden light, the brass metal reflecting off a streetlight peaking through the window curtain. You gently picked it up and held it aloft.
You once lost it. Back in the Superstar Daycare. You had freaked out over it. Looked everywhere for it. Back before you had it on its necklace. It was part of your routine with the children so you couldn’t lose it! But you did. Moon thought it was hilarious until he realized just how much the damn thing was stressing you out. Sunny was just as nervous as you. You’d found that Sun was like a sounding board, Whatever you put forward, Sunny often reflected. So you were both just an unending hurricane of frantic searching.
You never did find it that night. But, through whatever luck, Sun returned it to you that next morning. Good as new if a little scuffed up, And with a rattle. That was the night before the fire…
Tears sprung to your eyes, and in the deafening quiet of the night, Your sniffles were like a siren going off.