Day 5Ax1 - Swamp Jazz

"You must have a way with the animatronics."

The day's dreams were images of distorted memories from the past night. They had contorted and distorted into nightmares and visions of Monty actually catching you. A few times you had awoken in a cold sweat only try force yourself back to sleep. The previous day had concluded on such a good note too, you were at a loss why your subconscious was freaking out so much.

Maybe it just didn't have enough time to process everything.

It being the end of the working week also gave you a bit of anxiety, you wanting to finish Bonnie today.

After losing count of sheep many times you finally get some rest in, waking late in the evening. Too late, actually. You panicked when you saw your clock display just past 8.

In a blur of a rush you wash yourself, scarf some food down and prepare for the coming night. Your brain was still half asleep as you rush to the plex, hoping that public transit would be faster tonight.

Before you realize it you find yourself standing in front of the monstrous plex. It had been the warmest day of the fall so far but not enough to wear just a t-shirt. A breeze blew past your back causing shivers.

Vanessa was standing by the door awaiting your arrival.

"You're late." Was the first thing she said to you in her annoyed tone. She didn't even look up from her phone.

"Uh, sorry about that. I overslept."

Vanessa looked up and smiled. "I was just playing. It's fine." She beckoned you in. "After what happened last night I don't blame you."

In you stepped into the familiar pizza plex. Neon light showers and a golden statue of Freddy greeted you.

"They're working on getting you your own access key soon. Then I won't have to let ya in each time."

"That's good."

Your brain was on amiss with tire but it dawned on you that you wanted to ask Vanessa something. You walked up to the golden Freddy statue looking it over.

"Oh, also Monty wanted to talk to you when you get a chance." Vanessa puts her phone away now giving you her full attention. "He's already asked a few times when you're coming in so you should get to it sooner than later. He's been acting weird tonight."

Monty was asking about you? Uh-oh. He was doing so yesterday too and look where that led you.

"He's..he's not mad is he?" The prospect of another Monty 'fight' took your mind away from how weary you were. Surely he wasn't pissed again.

"Huh?" Vanessa looked at you in disbelief. Then it hit her. She shook her head. "No, no. I mean weird in the other way. He's been really helpful tonight, even helping the janitor bots clean. They said he was completely different today too, playing with kids, inviting people to his room. The rep even called me; said it's the best behaved he's ever seen Monty."

"Really? Is that right?"

"He kept his light on all day too. Hell I've never seen the inside of his room until a hour ago."

"Is everything okay with him?" You were still in disbelief. The last time you'd seen him he was a mess both emotionally and psychologically. "Any upgrades or anything?"

Vanessa chuckled. "That's what I thought too. Nope, after you had finished your talk with him he started acting more friendly last night. The workers even told me that they were just going to board his room up temporarily but apparently he tore down the boards and invited some guests in."

"Wow. Maybe he had a change of heart."

"I'll say. You must have a way with the animatronics."

You were still slightly sceptical of the whole 'new leaf' act he had suddenly been doing but your curiosity was begging you to check it out. With such an interesting start you decide to make that your priority.

"I think I’ll go check him out then. Where is he?"

"Last I checked he was in his room. He's probably still there. He's been cleaning it up."

"Okay, I'll be there." You nod to Vanessa and go off on your way. You plan to talk to Monty then just use his shortcut to reach your workshop.

Halfway there it hit you that you were supposed to grill Vanessa on her role in the SB-9 incident. Annoyed you set a reminder in your phone a few hours from now to get her testimony.

On your way to Rockstar Row you catch glimpses of some final day workers exiting the place, their uniquely coloured uniforms giving them away. It looked like it was just you, the animatronics and Vanessa tonight. Exactly like it had been every night. Were there even any other security guards you ponder? You hadn't seen any the past few days you've been working. Maybe you just hadn't ran into any? Maybe the animatronics themselves doubled as security. Turning the hall to enter the Row you notice the wall the mop bot had slammed into last night was cleaned and repaired. There wasn't any sign of the chase that had occurred here last night.

Well, maybe not all signs. You do find a small screw on the ground where two walls met. You pocket it.

Rockstar Row looked the same as it had the past few days. Neon lit, black and covered in a hazy glow. Passing by Freddy's room the lights were on an curtains not drawn but he was MIA. Roxanne's room was in a similar state as she was also absent. For being their personal rooms it sure was random when they were actually there. Your mind off of it as you hear some kind of sound emanating further down the hall.

At first it sounded like someone violently rubbing pipes together and then like someone squeaking on helium but then you hear it cleared. It was the sound of a saxophone. At the very least it sounded like they were struggling to play. Approaching you could hear it was coming from Monty's room.

There's no way it could be... The playing varies between blowing the loudest notes you heard and occasional bouts of working notes.

You step in front of the viewing side of Monty's room. The glass was indeed still missing and you could see all the way into the room.

It sounded a bit like free jazz, albeit without the skill required. Peering round the corner into the green coloured room you see it.

Monty sitting on a chair, playing the saxophone while a plushy of him watches. [https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/5347fd06-56ca-4d36-8584-e8dd38de8e12/df7c95t-c381a89c-1515-4c7e-9474-29c74271193b.png/v1/fill/w_1280,h_720,q_80,strp/swamp_jazz_by_odaocer_df7c95t-fullview.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7ImhlaWdodCI6Ijw9NzIwIiwicGF0aCI6IlwvZlwvNTM0N2ZkMDYtNTZjYS00ZDM2LTg1ODQtZThkZDM4ZGU4ZTEyXC9kZjdjOTV0LWMzODFhODljLTE1MTUtNGM3ZS05NDc0LTI5Yzc0MjcxMTkzYi5wbmciLCJ3aWR0aCI6Ijw9MTI4MCJ9XV0sImF1ZCI6WyJ1cm46c2VydmljZTppbWFnZS5vcGVyYXRpb25zIl19.rSVXuqf8zJrETG2n3k8x41Cj5bx8edAEiHj-5hE2hCg]

(I know the pic isn't entirely accurate, I made this pic way before writing this part, please bare with me).

There was Monty, sitting atop a chest in the corner of the room clearly focused on the saxophone with his mouth practically covering most of the sax, struggling to play. He was so absorbed in his practice he didn't notice you, his eyes were closed as he his mind was fully on the saxophone.

He had an audience. A tall chair was in front of him, upon it sat a small plushy of Monty.

How was he even playing? He doesn't have lungs. Considering he had the sax lodged half into his mouth you figure it was connecting to something in him to play. Nevertheless you find the scene of Monty playing to be quite humorous.

He was in tune with his instrument, his tail swishing almost in rhythm with his futile attempts at playing.

You had to admit despite his relative inability to play he was getting at least some notes right. He had some sort of skill with it. He wasn't completely awful.

Not wanting to spy on him you decide to make your presence known. You knock a few times on the side of the exposed wall.

This is enough as he nearly jumps upon hearing you. His eyes go wide with anger but calm down when he realizes it was just you.

His expression changes further however as you see his tail start swishing faster at your presence. "(Y/N)!" He shouts.

"Evening Monty." You say, stepping into his room now. While you were briefly in here yesterday, with the lights fully on you got a good look at the room. It had the same layout as Freddy's. There was a door on the side, maintenance shortcut obscured by purple curtains, a couch, table and arcade machine in the same corner. There was a chest that Monty was sitting on you figure probably taken from somewhere else, it looked more 'piratey' than everything else here.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

You wonder if this used to be Bonnie's room at one point.

"Look what I got! I've been practicing since we closed. It's not that hard!" Monty says holding up the saxophone. You recall making an offhand comment about saxophones yesterday. Monty must have taken it to heart.

He was enthusiastic, like a child showing off something cool at show and tell.

"Where did you even get that?" You ask. It's not like the plex had extra instruments lying around did they? It was also too small for him.

"Hehe, I traded some kid a ton of tickets for tonight. He let me borrow it." He giggled, proud of his bargaining skills.

So it was a stolen instrument then? That can't be good.

He was acting far different than his murderous rampage yesterday. It was refreshing.

"Are you sure that's okay?" You ask, slightly concerned about the legal implications.

"I already spoke to the boss, they're gonna try and get me a better one than this. This one is too hard to play."

"I'd imagine. For one you need breath in order to play one and uh, you don't breathe. How are you even playing it?"

"Well you see I just put it in here." Monty said as it shoved the saxophone down his throat.

"Theeargh-I-juughust-blaooow." He tried to say, the saxophone was blocking his throat and must have been interfering with his voice box. He blew a few notes then removed it so he could speak properly.

"What do you think?"

The technician in you understood what he meant. The reed must have been vibrating thanks to scraping his voicebox so when he talked or made sound it would cause the reed to make sound. Then he would exert him to have the pistons and machinery in him "blow" which with enough pressure could sound through the rest of the instrument. You wondered if he even knew what he was doing.

You had to hand it to him. How he came up with that was beyond you but he was very intelligent for doing so.

However you could see a few issues with it namely scratching his voice box. He was also over-exerting himself damaging internals.

"I think it's really smart you figured out how but I think you should wait until the real one comes in."

His face drooped a bit in disappointment. "Why?"

"Well, it looks like your damaging yourself doing it. Just wait till the new one comes in. Plus it'll be easier to play."

"You think so?"

"I know so." You give him a thumbs up. Monty just puts the saxophone down, he was done playing it for tonight.

"Vanessa said you wanted to speak to me?"

He perks up upon you saying that. "Yes." He nods. "I remembered some other stuff."

"About the incident?" You ask. Monty nods again.

"But first, I want to know something." He said, slightly worried.

"Alright, shoot."

"Have they said anything about replacing me? Don't lie." He was clearly still anxious about getting decommissioned. You couldn't blame him, even if there was a lot of anger towards Bonnie he was still jealous of his position deep down.

"Have you heard anything?" You ask, maybe something set him off today?

Monty just shook his head. "No, they were all nice to me today, they didn't even care much about my rampage last night. I-I think they're planning to. They can't though! I made a pact with Freddy. If I go, then he goes too!"

"Well-"

"They always get mad when I do something like that. But this time they didn't! Something is up. I know it." Monty was practically dripping with paranoia.

Probably a vestige of his massive distrust of everyone here, you think.

"Look, they won't replace you, or even Freddy for that matter. If it helps they weren't mad because I left a note last night saying that it was a an accident and we worked things out."

"You did?!" Monty asked, surprised.

"Plus, I've already been told that you did a great job today. I really wouldn't worry about anything. You'll be fine."

"Thank you."

Monty's shoulders slump in relief at your news. You were serious too, you weren't going to let them decommission him.

"Now then, what did you remember?"

He perks up again. "Right."

"One of the first times that Bonnie took control of us I tried to fight back but he laughed and said that I was being naughty. That was so something he would say."

"And you're still convinced it had to have been Bonnie?"

"Of course!" He said motioning with his arms.

You hadn't noticed it until now but Monty's room smelled of freshly cut grass.

"I just-I can't prove it." He sighed.

"Well if it makes you feel any better I spoke to another animatronic last night and he sort of did corroborate what you said about Bonnie."

This got his attention fully and he placed both of his hands on his legs expectantly, tail swinging madly. "Really? Who? I knew I wasn't the only one! Who was it?"

You reveal your source. There was no harm in it anyways. "It was the daycare attendant."

Monty gives a look of surprised at the fact and muses of it. "Huh. I've never really interacted with him recently. I'll have to talk to him later."

"I spoke to Freddy last night, he wasn't sure about Bonnie but he said that I could have been mixing memories. I was badly-er-I couldn't remember a lot about what happened anyways that night." Monty stuttered.

There it was again. He broke eye contact again to look at the saxophone this time. There was seemingly one detail that Monty had been avoiding discussing about the night with regards to Gregory but you decided not to press for now. It didn't seem relevant to the discussion at hand.

For now there was one person you wanted to know about.

"I want to ask you about-"

"Wait!" Monty said suddenly shushing you. He paused as his eyes darted around behind you. You turn to see what he was looking for then turn back as you hear him rustle.

With such speed he grabbed the saxophone and stuffed it in the chest and took a seat upon it. It takes a minute to figure out what freaked Monty out. Then, in the distance you heard something in the row. It was the sound of metal hitting the ground. It was one of the animatronics. You look behind you to see Roxanne entering the row near Freddy's room. Wow, he had good hearing.

Roxanne sees you peering out of Monty's room and waves you to. You wave back, a smile on your face. You look to Monty.

"Don't tell her anything!" Monty says, almost whispering. You nod. Guess he wanted the sax part to be a secret.

Monty looked guilty. You knew why, but you didn't understand why he'd feel guilty about it. You decide to pause your questioning until after Roxanne was gone.

She eventually passes by Monty's room noticing the two of you discussing. "Hey Monty, (Y/N)." The both of you say hello. "So, what are you two up to? Everything alright?" Seeing you and Monty alone together made her slightly concerned. It had only been 24 hours since the two of you squared off in the plex.

Both you and Monty nodded at Roxanne. "Monty and I were just discussing last year’s incident."

"Ah, you're still trying to figure it out?"

"Yeah, something likes that."

Roxanne crossed her arms. "Well, as long as you two aren't trying to kill each other I'm okay."

"Monty and I just had a little misunderstanding last night, right Monty?"

Monty snapped out of his thoughts. "Y-yeah. We're cool now." He smiled with slight suspicion. He still looked guilty from the saxophone playing. Was he even paying attention?

"Say, (Y/N), what's the status of Bonnie?"

"Well, he's mostly done. Just need to run a few tests. If all goes well then I'll turn him on tonight."

You hoped that wouldn't set off Monty but looking at him it seemed as if he was thinking of other things. He was still trying his best to look innocent. You wondered if Roxanne even noticed, let alone cared of Monty's jazzy guilt. His mind was racing with visions of Roxanne opening the chest he was sitting on and being 'exposed'.

"Ooo, I can't wait! I gotta get ready. Call me before you bring him up."

"Sure." You give a thumbs up to Roxanne.

"I'll be in my room for a bit. Monty!" Roxanne called, startling Monty nearly causing him to fall off the chest.

"W-w-what?!"

"Come by my room later. We need to get ready."

"SS-sure, Roxanne." Monty said.

Roxanne skipped happily to her room leaving you and Monty alone again.

"Wait, t-tonight?" It was if you words finally registered. Monty snapped out of his trance. "He's coming back tonight?!" You look back to Monty, he looks frantic.

"If all goes well, then yes. Is that okay?"

"Y-yeah, I-I just gotta prepare. You-you sure there's nothing wrong with him right?"

"I've looked him over already and I need to run a bunch more diagnostic but it looks like whatever happened to him is gone now. I replaced nearly every part on him."

Monty still looked uneasy. "But he's gonna be mad, he's gonna try to kill me!"

You put a hand up to calm him. "Don't worry. I'm going to talk to Bonnie and fill him in on everything that happened from the incident to how you were forced to harm him." You say, hoping to calm Monty's nerves. "Relax, be happy he's coming back."

"A-alright. Just please make sure he doesn't do anything bad. Be careful." He said with genuine concern for your safety. You couldn't help but hope nothing went wrong.

You nod. "I will, I promise."

Some of Monty's fear subsides though you could still see he was a little anxious. You decide to change the subject.

"So, about last year’s incident. I just have a quick question about it."

"Aight."

"Could you describe Vanessa's movement that night?"

"Vanessa, eh?" He asks scratching his chin.

"She ordered us to catch Gregory and I saw her a few times later. But at some point I stopped seeing and hearing her. Even after I dealt with...Gregory."

"Do you remember any specific times?" 'After a point' wasn't specific enough.

Monty just shook his head. "No. It was so long ago. I saw her for most of the night but stopped seeing her after I-well-no-I didn't see her after Gregory. There was a long gap."

As if remembering something embarrassing he looked away shyly. With Monty there had been one part of the night he'd been almost avoiding. You noticed he'd done it a few times. Now it was time to press. You had to be careful here, the last thing you needed was him flying off the handle again.

"There's one part of that night you keep avoiding talking about. What happened with you and Gregory?"

"I-it doesn't matter. It's not important." Monty said, still not making eye contact.

You still had one bargaining chip however. "If I scratch your chin will you tell me?"

Monty's expression instantly changing from disinterest to curiosity to happiness. He was weighing the options. Whatever he was hiding you doubted it had anything to do with the investigation otherwise he would have told you.

"Argh! Fine. But you don't tell anyone about this!" He said pointing at you.

"I won't tell a soul." You nod.

Monty sighed. "During that night Gregory and I had a scuffle and well....I lost. He cheated!" You couldn't help but feel a little let down. You'd already known Gregory apparently 'slew' the animatronics, of course he would have beaten Monty.

"I-ilosthalfmybody." Monty said quickly, glossing over it. Your eyes widen. Sure you knew the animatronics were 'damaged' but you didn't that it was that bad.

Gregory took out half his body? It was like peeling an onion, the layers of damage this animatronic had on him.

"Brutal." You say.

"I had to crawl around the rest of the night like that, trying to find Vanessa or anyone that could help. I was still under control of Bonnie so I couldn't ask Gregory. Not that he would. It was his fault!"

You felt bad you had forced it out of him.

"I didn't see Vanessa after I was destroyed."

"I'm sorry."

"I bet you are." He said, annoyed.

"You're okay with Gregory now right?"

"Hmph. It took a lot of Freddy holding me back and coaxing but I eventually forgave him." Monty said crossing his arms.

"Now then." He said firm. "I want my scratches." He lifted his chin up, waiting for you.

You approach the gator animatronic and reach up and start scratching. He instantly leaned into you. You had to stand on your toes to reach him, his treasure chest making him taller.

He was enjoying the gesture and you notice his tail swishing a lot more aggressively behind him. As you scratch closer to where his throat was you notice his leg twitching in enjoyment.

"Oooo, that feels so good." He coos.

"Could you lower your head slightly?" You ask.

Without answering he complies and you scratch the top of his head too, giving his Mohawk a few brushes. After a few minutes you let go leaving Monty with a huge smile on his face. He was in bliss.

"T-thanks." He says almost panting.

Whomever added this feature; you had to give them props. It was the perfect thing to pacify them.

You wondered if you could have done it to Freddy during that chase, how things would have turned out then.

"Well, I gotta get to work. Don't do anything rash now." You say to Monty.

He looks up and nods. "I'll see you later." He says.

You motion goodbye and you step into the back part of his room where the shortcut was. He lets you go and before you know it you are in parts and services. You see your 'office' just to the left. From the door's sign you could see light peering through it.

Was someone else in there? With caution you approach it, carefully listening to hear movement in the office.