Art by me!

⚠️⚠️QUICK QUESTION (PLEASE READ THIS!!)⚠️⚠️:
Would you be interested if I put a little "something something~" for future chapters when it comes to shipping? 👀👉👈
It's nothing too intense but I was just curious on your opinions first. And don't worry, it's for only one ship... I can't tell you which one yet, but I just need some feedback first PLEASE.

Let me know what you think.

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The place looked beautifully lite, not a spec of dust or spiderweb could be seen.

Despite the lack of people inside, the sign out front read: "Open! Come on in!", as if it was encouraging anyone who walked by to take a peak.

Now honestly, neither Hat Kid, The Follower, Fran, or even Freddy was expecting something like this. It was probably a little silly to get astonished by. Tattletail however seemed a lot quieter than his cheery-self.

After all, this was just a toy store they were looking at.

But this toy store seemed.. different. The layout inside, it was pretty mesmerizing. Very colorful. Like a child's bedroom got expanded and turned into a store.

At the entrance inside, stood a blue giant figure, with a yellow ribbon around its neck, along with red smiling lips and big yellow hands. Lights shun up towards the character as it stood in a waving position, surrounded by giant colorful alphabet blocks. In front of the statue, was a "Welcome!" sign.

Behind, were isles and isles of toys, all neatly stacked on their shelves. At the start of the isles, a poster was hanged of different toy characters. Everything looked like a kid's paradise.

Excited as she already was, Hat Kid ran through the double doors like a mad man who was on a sugar high, giving into the entrancing vibe the store shared.

Without much other choice, the rest followed inside. Tattletail remain quiet and still in The Follower's arms.

One of the other things they noticed was a sign and a button, right at the entrance that read: "Press here!"

Fran gladly volunteered to do so as a message over the speakers began to play. It was a female, her voice sounding enthusiastic and welcoming.

"Hi kids! We're so happy you could come and visit us! Before you leave, make sure you get a toy from our wonderful section of friends here! All created by three of our most fun and amazing toy companies! Playtime Co., Fragment Games, and Waygetter!
And just a reminder, there's no need to worry about the prices! Playtime doesn't come with a price! Just make sure you scan your chosen toy on the scanner near the main door! Now have fun, kids! And thank you for stopping in at "Playtime 'n Friends!" We'll see you next time!"

Freddy turned around towards the main doors. The scanner was indeed there, just like the lady had said. Above it, was a reminder poster with the same blue smiling character as the statue: "Nobody Leaves Without A Toy!"

"Nobody" huh? ... Out of curiosity, the bear grabbed the handles to open the main doors.

.... ...But they wouldn't open.

Suddenly becoming frantic, he struggled with the handles, eager for their only exit to be opened, but to no avail. He yanked and pulled but nothing worked. The Follower attempted to help, trying the handles himself, kicking the door, anything to leave, to escape this place.

But nothing did the trick. They were stuck there.

"Are we... locked in?" Fran asked hesitantly. The bear sighed in defeat, giving up. He glanced at the poster again. The lady's words over the speakers echoed in his robotic head. Would picking a toy from this strange place really help them leave? .... Guess it's worth a shot.

"Looks like we are going to need a toy to get out of here." Freddy announced."But.. we can use Tattletail, can't we?"  Fran asked as she suddenly remembered that Tattletail was indeed also a toy.

Freddy and Follower's eyes fall on the purple furby, who looked in both directions nervously.

"I think we can. But I have a feeling the rest of us are going to need a toy." Freddy explained. "Me, you, and Hat kid can find a toy to use." "Can we take them home?" "Well.. They said they were free.." Freddy cautious looked around the store. "But just in case, we should keep a lookout if anyone says otherwise." Fran nodded. "Ok, I'll keep a look out." Freddy smiled, them turned to The Follower. "Is that ok with you?" The fluffy puppet also nodded.

In the end, they all decided it would be best if Tattletail went with Fran and The Follower went with Hat kid, who was found mesmerized by the giant blue character statue this whole time. They went their separate ways, agreeing to return at the main entrance when they're done.

And Tattletail still remained quiet.

....

The whole place did seem.. a bit odd. The lights gave an almost warm, cheerful vibe to them and balloons were littered for a touch of more cheerful color, but no music was played over the speakers. The only sounds any of them heard was their own footsteps.

Hat kid was the first to find something that caught her interest. It was that same character from the front of store. Except only in smaller doll form. Guess she really did had her eye on it since they came in. She excitedly ran to one of the boxes in the character's isle and held it, reading the writing with wonder.

"Huggy Wuggy", is what it read.

"Your hugable, lovable new friend! He'll hug you till you pop!"

The girl smiled, feeling charmed by the fluffy toy. She found it cute with it's happy smile. The Follower however, frowned seeming.. a bit jealous. He didn't want to end up being replaced by that toy as the best blue fluffy hug monster. The thought worried him, but even so, he made no move to stop her. If she wanted it that bad, then so be it. As long as she's happy.

Hat kid hugged the box, claiming that this would be her new toy. She couldn't have been more thrilled.

....

Freddy walked down the isles, his big robotic steps echoing the aestheticly beautiful halls. The lack of dust or filth of any kind kept coming back to him. It's as if this place was completely brand new.

But if that were true, then why hasn't anyone stepped foot in here yet? Not to mention the fact that all the toys were free and now they need three more just to leave? It was like this store was waiting for them specifically. Something definitely wasn't right, yet despite his best efforts to keep wandering on the many, many questions he had, Fred continued his mission.

The shelves were fully stocked. There was so many choose from and honestly, they all seemed interesting and unique in their own way. One was a green little robot guy, another was a stretchy pink lady, another a goofy blue guy with a golden crown, another a dog who was also a caterpillar and so much more.

But the one that caught Freddy's eye, one that he did not expect at all, was a doll. A doll with red pigtails and blue bows in her hair, a blue dress, pale- white porcelain skin, rosy cheeks, and to top it all off, big blue eyes. She wore a canny resemblance to a certain someone he knows, with the same red pigtails and doll-like face.

On the contrary however, she was all red with green eyes. And an animatronic like himself.

The bear picked up the box, reading the packaging.

"Poppy Playtime." It read.

Her name was Poppy huh? So the place was named after her.

There was also a side note in the front that read: "She smells just like a Poppy flower!" How adorable is at!

.... .... ...Wait.. Don't Poppy flowers not have a smell to them?

He turned the box around to find a brief description of the doll.

"The most incredible doll ever invented. Her name is Poppy and she is the first truly intelligent doll in the world. Just pull the string on her back, Poppy gives her answers."

The bear hummed in amusement. She sounded promising enough. Turning the box around, he examined the doll again. Maybe this should be his toy. Even if she doesn't live up to her description's expectations, she did remind Freddy of his friend. He smiled, feeling satisfied as he started walking towards the front of the store.

.....

Fran held Tattetail close as they went their own ways around the store.

They decided to explore upstairs by taking the escalator, despite Fran already finding a toy of her own. It was a Green Party Horn with googly eyes. Not the most creative toy here, but it still made her smile and laugh.

On the second floor, they stumbled upon a different set of toys. Furbies. But not just any furbies. But Tattletails.

Fran was baffled. She walked the isles of unboxed furbies and noticed something unusual. There were only yellow and blue furbies. No purple ones and not even any other colors.

It wasn't long before she found a VHS tape, labeled: "Tattletail commercial 1998." on a table next to an old fashion tv.

Feeling more curious than ever, she placed her new toy and the purple Tattletail down, inserting the VHS in the tv. The commercial booted up as the Tattletail theme song played in the background. It advertised the furbies, including a purple one, much to Fran's surprise as well as a larger furby. She seemed to have a cassette build into her torso, having the ability to play various VHS tapes, presumably to children, having them being listened to like a bedtime story. She was also brown, compared to other colorful furbies.

Her name was Mama Tattletail. As her head slowly turned to the camera, Tattletail couldn't help but shrivel as she spoke. Fran happened to take note on his frightened behavior. The commercial ended with its company's logo, "Waygetter." The VHS tape was spat out by the tv as everything went quiet again.

The girl turned to her Tattletail and picked him up. His eyes suddenly darted from side to side again as if he was being accused of something bad. "Did you come from this toy store?" Fran asked softly. Her only response was the furby's ears dropping slightly, as if he was silently admitting his answer. As if he knew what this store was.

A store lonely and quiet for someone who had been one of the first to become conscious..

He saw his chance..

He had no choice but to leave..

And he never looked back.. He hoped he'd forget about this place's existence..

Until today..

The girl bore no ill will to the toy, indeed she smiled, accepting this new information. "It's really amazing that you came from such a fun toy store." She ignorantly complemented.

Heh.. Yeah... "fun"... Tattletail laughed, though it sounded more anxious than anything.

Fran grabbed her new toy and headed down on the escalator to meet up with everyone else. She found them waiting by the main entrance, toys in hand as she explained to them what she had just discovered.

It wasn't too much of a shock, but it still was a surprise to hear. Tattletail didn't care about his information being spread. He just wanted to leave.

They finally scanned their toys, including Tattletail himself. And it worked! The fronts door unlocked with a loud "Click!"

The moment they got home, the three wasted no time in opening their toys.

Monika was in awe of Poppy's beauty as soon as she noticed Freddy unpacking her. Fred and the others expressed to everyone their findings. About the mysterious toy store. About how it was both alarming and amazing. About how they couldn't forget a moment like that.

Meanwhile, Tattletail was just happy to be home. His new home.

Where welcomings are more genuine and friendly.

Where things are less lonely and scary.

Where he can find real love from others, and not from terrible mother.

Yes sir. Tattletail wouldn't trade this experience with any other toy.

Merry (very late) Christmas everyone!! 🎄🎄🧸🚂🎁

I was planning for this to come out on Christmas Day, but then I couldn't get it done in time and I was so disappointed. Either way, thank you for reading this far!

I'm glad I was able to throw in some of Tattletail's backstory this time. But I'm not done yet. I still have one more big chapter to post before the end of 2022 😉😉

See you in the next chapter!