A New Day (5)
Fritz honestly didn’t have any expectations for how the day would go. It would probably be on a scale from incredibly boring to very shitty and there would be nothing he could do about it. But there was still the potential for the day to be interesting. Being paired with Chica, his favorite animatronic, was sure to at least be more bearable and fun than whoever Monty was. Plus, Mazercise is right by the food court! Sure the food is no doubt cheap and mass-produced but hey he can appreciate variety. He glanced at Vincent, his eyes swimming with curiosity and a hunger for knowledge. Fritz kept a small smirk from forming on his lips, knowing Vincent was probably envious of him being able to work underground today. Before they parted ways, Fritz warned Vincent to “try not to cause too much chaos today.”
Vincent simply rolled his eyes and responded “No promises” before walking toward the mini golf attraction. Fritz leveled him with a deadpanned stare of exasperation before continuing to Mazercise.
Mazercise had two sections: the main studio which looked like a normal dance studio with Pizzaplex decorations and cheesy positivity posters adorning the walls, and an actual maze section somewhat like the layout of Fazerblast. Of course, there was a receptionist desk in front for customers and employees to check in. Standing in front of the desk was a man with blonde hair, emerald, green eyes, a green button-up shirt, and a backward black and white baseball cap. His nametag read “Max” under the title of technician, an odd place for him to be seeing how Mazercise had minimal tech outside of lighting.
“Heyyy new guy, name’s Max. I’m just here to give you a quick rundown of the day then head back underground to help with maintenance. Chica on weekdays does a couple of light exercise sessions then the maze for the rest of the session. On weekends parents can sign up for exclusive exercises mainly consisting of yoga. A lot of ladies like coming here for the unique experience, but girls tend to like it for Chica’s upbeat personality and the music. There is a lunch break at noon but you’ll have to watch Chica. Because she likes food so much, they had to install a stomach hatch to clean the unprocessed food out. You probably won’t have to do that today but just be aware it’s not pretty or fun. Also, of course, sometimes you’ll get a downright nasty woman who either harasses other customers or staff. You have the authority to tell them off and then either report them to Chica or Atkins from your Fazwatch.”
Fritz held in an annoyed groan. I guess the more things change the more they stay the same… Fritz was (unfortunately) accustomed to ignorant people commenting or harassing him about his weight, not that he could change it anyway. Frankly, he couldn’t understand why people couldn’t mind their business, it doesn’t affect them anyway. He simply shrugged and went about the morning prepping all the equipment without Max. Max seemed like an alright guy, someone like Chris (god he missed Chris...) whom he could chill and joke with about the oddities of Freddys. Heck maybe he’d believe him about the whole ‘time traveling’ theory (he still wasn’t 100% certain but that’s what research is for).
“Oh hi, you must be one of the new employees!” A bright, peppy voice shocked Fritz out of his thoughts. He looked over to see a tall animatronic white chicken sporting 80’s accessories and colorful patterned shells; Glamrock Chica. “My name’s Chica, I hope you can enjoy Mazercise with me today.” Chica gave a blindingly bright smile, radiating optimism and excitement. It was nearly impossible not to smile back.
“Nice to meet you Chica, name’s Fritz, and I’m supposed to help supervise the morning before moving to Parts and Services for the afternoon.” Fritz gave a smile and a small wave after shutting the storage door. While not a comfort character, Chica has always been a positive icon in Fritz's childhood. She proudly advocated for enjoying food and fun regardless of societal factors. Proudly sharing your interests without judgment was something Fritz stuck to wholeheartedly. Of course, not everyone enjoyed Fritz's particular interests (paranormal activity and video games), not even some of the guards, but the two who did became lifetime friends. He'd always treasure them.
Unfortunately while reminiscing he completely missed the barrage of questions Chica enthusiastically rapid-fired at him. "What's your favorite food? Do you prefer mornings or afternoons?" "Do you like exercising? Have you met the other animatronics? Do you want to meet the others? I have a pass I can give you!"
"Woah uh my favorite food is pizza, afternoons, no, no, maybe and sure!" Fritz struggled to keep up with Chica's string of questions, thank Jeremy their rambling fixation sessions had prepared him.
“Great! I'll work on getting you a green room pass for them all! Anyways, all you have to do today is be friendly, have fun, and help hand out these coupons for the food court when we’re done.” Chica pulled out a coupon book full of deals and offers for various restaurants within the Pizzaplex. It made sense from a business model: get people to “exercise”, then give them deals for unhealthy food so they feel rewarded and come back for more exercise. Is it morally grey? Yeah, but this is Fazbears. If there’s any way to make money with as little risk of ruining their credibility they’ll take it. Fritz just gave a fake smile, put on his customer service face, and opened the door for the incoming customers (not noticing Chica's slight worry behind him...)