●===========================●
___
[ ◇ ]

!New attraction!

Hide and Seek

Come play hide and seek with the animatronics at Toasters!
Where a new update in their system makes your animatronic pals able to play this game with you and your friends!

●===========================●

Heads up, before anyone goes typing way in the comments how this isn't possible in the time line, read 'till the end. :)

--------------------------
___
[ ◇ ]

Toasters ONLINE (short) stories:

"Too loud, too quiet"
(Chapters xxx - xxx)
Word count: 2761 words.

----֎----

  Sunlight shone trough the windows of Toasters, a restaurant currently loved by most of the neighbourhood kids. It would only be a little hour before the place opened and the halls would be filled with sounds. Voices, laughter, music, it would all start in a little less than an hour.

"...It's quiet..."

The employers were preparing for another busy day, the animatronics placed in their usual spots. (Behind the curtains of the main stage, around the prize corner, so on) and as the last few minutes ticked away, muffled voices from outside started to appear.The children and their parents must be ariving by now.

An employee walked towards the huge dubble-door-entrance of our restaurant. A key, hanging from its chain, swung around his index finger. As he whistled the femiliar thune of the restaurant's theme song, the man inserted the key into the keyhole, twisted it, pushed down on the door handles and pushes the two, see through glass doors, open.

Children excitedly started talking to one another as the doors opened. Their voices becoming louder and louder once the man, who opened the doors for them, stepped aside and allowed them entrance.

"..It's loud.."

An hour passes, and while it does, more and more children entered the building. There was a stage performance of the Toasters band as well, not even ten minutes ago, and the kids then located in front of the main stage, had chanted along the hole performance. Laughter wrecking their joy-filled frames and the adults smilled at the happy atmosphere.

Most animatronics left the stage afterwards, the drummer and dancer stayed behind to entertain the children who stuck around the stage.

The main singer, a cat like animatronic, was currently busy with a birthday party, under supervision of atleast one Toasters' employee, while they took pictures.

In other sections of the restaurant the noise wasn't any better. The prize corner was crowed by a group of young kids, around the age of 6 maybe, (together with their parents) all wanting to try and achieve one of the Toast kitten plushies or stuffed animal versions of the (other) animatronics.

("I want that one! Can I get that one, mommy?? Pleeeeaaaaaaseeee?"  One child asked his mom. "Noooooo, so close!!" Another cried after a ball was thrown towards the bottles and missed the pile by a hair length. "Go, dad! You can do it!!" Another, by far the shortest one there, cheered as her dad did the attraction for her, determined to get his little girl one of the prizes laying on the shelf.)

"...It's loud..."

At one of the tables, a dark blue bunny was asked by the children to tell them a story, not just any story though! No, the reason these kids loved and preferred to hear the robots story over any employee's, is because the large bunny would use these funny voices when progressing through said story. Even if he himself was programmed, the story teller always managed to create lively story adventures for the kids to enjoy. And it was never the same story! Sometimes the brave (more like anoying-) kids, butted in about some new details of a character, and the bunny would include that in the story.

Whenever he was talking about a risky scene, the children would listen wide eyed, some forgetting how to breath once the characters (almost) got caught. If a funny moment was included, they would laugh, shaking in pure joy and some had to wipe at their teary eyes to either prevent themselves from crying, or to stop said crying.

("And just as our captain had gathered everyone aboard- BAM!"  Spooky's fist collided with the table, the loud "thud" catching the kids of guard. The youngest ones pipped up in shock, while others huddled closer together. "Lightning bolts wrecked the now completely darkened sky, a dangerous rumble echoing trough the captain and his crew's ears a few seconds later. Odering his men around, our fierce capt'n took a hold of the stiringwheel. The sea, so peaceful before, acting up like a wilde animal. It's waves slashing at our ship. Throwing some men overboard!" The story teller turned from looking at once side, to the other out of nowhere in his last sentence. His arms up in a "scaring" movement. The children next to him shrank back, eyes wide. For a moment it stayed quiet, nobody dared to speak up.
The animatronic's pupils scanned over the slightly frightened children until-

Someone leaned onto his crossed legs, making the bunny look down at them. A girl, perhaps 9 years old, had her arms crossed while she leaned over one of his legs, looking up with curious eyes. Unlike the other children, she didn't seem all that frightened by the scene he was talking about. "What happened after that?" She asked, if Spooky were (still) human, he would have smilled down at her. "Well lass, you see-")

At the end of his stories, the children would clap and cry out about how amazing it was. Sometimes some of the kids even gave the bunny a hug, saying a "thank you so much for the story, Spooky!" Afterwards, most of the children would run off to find their parents, enthusiastically crying out to them about the story they just heard.

"..Too loud.."

Somewhere after most children received their food, an announcement read trough the speakers of the restaurant.

"Attention, boys and girls, in 10 minutes our daily game of hide and seek will commence! Please gather at the main stage to participate. Other than that, have a great day at Toasters."

Excitement and kids rushing towards the stage followed the anouncment. All of them wanting to partisapated in the new game. (It was going to be great!) The curtains were closed, while the stage lights projected  the words: "Hide and Seek" on the red fabric. No animatronic was in sight, perhaps because they might give away a child's hiding spot by accident.

(̶O̶r̶ ̶m̶a̶y̶b̶e̶ ̶i̶t̶ ̶w̶a̶s̶ ̶s̶o̶m̶e̶ ̶o̶t̶h̶e̶r̶ ̶r̶e̶a̶s̶o̶n̶)̶

"Only 5 more minutes before the hide and seek game will commence. Please join us at the main stage if interested!"

The open spot in front of the podium was occupied by the children, all sitting and grinning widely at the announcement that their little game was about to start. They talked with eachother while they waited. Voices, young and old, girly, "manly", squeaky- all at once they filled the air.

"..Too.. Loud.."

That was, untill a woman, in the Toaster's official female employee uniform, walked on to the stage. Standing in front of the still closed curtains she held no microphone, for she had a headset on, so it wasn't necessary. The thing most worth mentioning however, was her very open en welcoming expression.

"Hello, everyone! Glad you've all decided to join us, at Toasters, in our daily game of Hide and Seek!" Cheers followed at that and when they died down, the woman continued, "I hope you've all had a great experience so far.  Are you ready for some action??"

At the (loud) positive responce she got, her welcoming grin was replaced by a serious expression. "Now, before we begin however, there're going to be some rules regarding the game so everything will run smoothly, okay? Breaking one of these will mean disqualification!"

"Rule Numb3r 0Ne¡--"

(Error Error)

(It se3ms-)
(s0meth¡ng's wr0#g witH the-the cHapter.)

(begin rEloading)

(...Loading...)
(..loading..)
(.loading.)

(loading comPlete.)

(redirecting to chapter)
(continuing froM whEre left off)

(̶P̶L̶E̶A̶S̶E̶)̶
-

(continue)

"-Only if something goes wrong. In any other sucomstances, no screaming. Alright?"

There were nods, and some vocal answers to the (order-) question. The woman smilled at them again, clapping her hands together she executed the last part of her job.

"Alrighty, kids! Listen closely. When I give the sign, these curtains behind me will start open to reveal our animatronic Seeker." The woman half turned to point at the large red curtains hiding the main stage from their view. "Do not move before they start counting! They need to do a quick scan first, to make sure they dont bother the other guests, who didn't want to partisapate. Moving before they start counting means no partisapating in the game! Once they start counting, you run and Hide. Okay?"

After letting that sink in, the woman breathed in for a moment. Then she spoke again, announcing: "Show time."  And snapping her fingers together. The curtains behind her started sliding open slowly, a large silhouette starting to appear as the lights turned to reveal the hidden identity of the robot. And as the curtains had fully opened.

It had became very quiet

All participants stared at the dancer animatronic, there was no light in his eyes like there would normally be. No, they were pitch black now. As if the animatronic was deactivated.

"..It's quiet.."

Then, his voice sounded trough the room. "Starting countdown. 30... 29... 28..."

Eyes widened, children scrambeled in all directions, jumping behind chairs, tables, stuffed animals- anything they could find as a hiding spot.
"...24...23...22..."

Kids hid behind the speakers, ducked behind the counters, hid in the window curtains or in the ballpit. It was truly a sight to see. Adults watched on in amusement as their children tried coming up with the perfect hiding spots or ways to make their current one less predictable.
"..18...17...16."

A boy, around the age of 5 maybe, on his hands an knees, hid underneath one of the dinner tables. Not too far from the stage, but still far enough not to be spotted emidetly. Honestly, he wasn't too happy with his current spot, but what else could he do? He only had 16 seconds left, (if not less!) to find another hiding spot, but if he didn't manga too do so, he'd be an easy target!.. not that it changed much about his current situation.
"..15...14...13."

"Pssst, kid." Stiffening, the boy hesitantly turned to look over his shoulder. A man, (¿) an employee, dressed in a purple version of the males Toasters' outfit. This made him sigh in relief, even if the game hadn't started yet, it was already working on the child's nerves. The employee houd crouched down, to the childs hight, as he smilled down at him with a hint of sympathy. "You chose a tight spot boy, Marc is our Seeker today. He always checks the dance floor and tables first." The man warned, to the growing panic of the boy.
"..12...11.."

The man quickly moved his hands up in a "wow! Calm down" motion. If there's one thing he absolutely couldn't have right now, it's the boy having a panic attack over some hide and seek game. "Listen, i know another spot you could hide in, but you need to stay low, and stay quiet. Okay, little guy?

".10.."

The boy took a deep breath as he heard the number, the last few seconds would follow soon, and if this man- no, not just a man, he was a Toaster employee, (he was a professional, he just had to be!) if he was right, it would mean Game over for him, right from the start.

And that's no fun.

So he nodded, crawling towards the man while glancing over his shoulder again to look at the animatronic on stage, still counting. Good. (Unfortunately for him, because he didn't keep his eyes on the man, he couldn't see the satisfied look, the slightly wicket uptilt of his mouth, the pure insanity present in his eyes, for just a second, and then it was gone. All of it, hidden behind a polight smile.)

".9...8...7."

The man told him where to go, he said he couldn't come with to show him exactly, but he gave easy enough directions. For some reason though, he wasn't allowed to stand up while moving over there. And once he would be there, the man said, he shouldn't speak, under any sucomstances. It was kinda silly.
"if you speak, you'll get caught, boy. So don't. Not on your way there, not when you are there." So he didn't.

He was crawling past the stage now, his heart pounding hard in his chest. The animatronic's shadow loomed over him, so close, SO CLOSE, is he going to make it?
"..6...5...4."

"Behind the curtains on the right, there's a door, almost hidden. It doesn't lead to the outside, it's dark, but don't fight, boy. The darkness can't hurt you." The man's words echoed in his mind as he made his way over to the curtains. It was a strange way to describe the hiding-place, but meh, as long as it would do the trick of keepping him hidden, he'd accept it.

Less than 4 seconds left.

He moved the the red fabric out of the way, curling it around himself to hide him form sight, now facing the wall.
"..3.."

"When you're there, reach for the floor, put your hands in the almost hidden opening, click the buten, open the door and do not forget to close it afterwards."

The last step, the only thing he had to do before he would be hidden from the seeker, the last thing standing in between his chances of winning.

He reached down with both hands, moving them over the carpet ground untill he spotted it, the small dent in hidden practically completly trough the carpet. Only able to be found, when knowing what to look for. Putting this hands in the dent he pushed upwards, an almost inaudible "click!" followed.
".2."

Pulling the hidden door open slightly, it revealed darkness, just as the man said it would. He couldn't see anything inside, just the grey-ish tiles still visable by the small amount of light the cealinglights could provide behind the curtains. The boy took a deep breath, before he shifted inside.

"..1.."

And then, everything happened at once.
The door behind him fell shut, not because he closed it. This shocked and scared the boy out of his mind, making him jump as far away from the thing as he could.

For a split second nothing happened around, or to him. Then, the sound of metal clamping shut on something and intense pain shooting up his spine from all angles. Something was holding him into place, something dug into his skin with a painful amount of force behind it. He inhaled sharply at the suddenniss of it all, it sounded more like a whimer, but no fresh air filled his lungs. Something was preventing it from from breathing. He couldn't breath. Omg.He couldn't breath! 

Panic, millions of thoughts, all going too fast for the 4 year old to keep track off, raced trough his mind, only making it worse. He needed to breath, if he didn't-
He tried again, pain shot trough his chest when he did so, every time. And every time, the pain became more intense, as if something was crushing him, the more he tried.

One thought, one live saving thought entered his brain.
He screamed.

"It's loud, so loud, in here."

"...But it's quiet out there.."

He screamed again, and again, and again. The metal parts of whatever was holding him, digging deeper, and deeper, into his skin. The space between the material becoming smaller and smaller, brusing, cruhing him, his ribcage, his bones. He was lucky nothing had happened to his head so far.

Another scream, filled with more pain. Desperate, to be heard, echoed trough the dark room.

But the walls of these dark rooms are sound proof. No matter how hard he would try, no matter how much he would be struggling, no matter how long he'll  be able to hold on.
(Not that he will be much longer.)

No one will ever hear his muted screams of pain.

He got what he wanted though.
He didn't want to be found, right?
And now?

No one will ever find him again.

There is no escape.
There is no happy ending to this either.
There's only sound. Muted screams, while the theme song of the Toasters' restaurant  echoes trough the speakers on the other side of the same soundproof walls. The sound of happiness.
(̶A̶i̶n̶'̶t̶ ̶t̶h̶a̶t̶ ̶f̶u̶n̶n̶y̶?̶)̶

The sound of a song.
A song about life, a happy song.
A loud song. Too loud actually.
Too loud, too happy.
Untill it becomes quiet.
(̶M̶u̶t̶e̶d̶)̶

..Too quiet..

----֎----

(^End of story^)

So uhm-
Should- Should I feel bad? Probably.

Also I finished writhing this today when tecnically I shouldn't have been writing, but I need to get my mind off of ...something... that happened yesterday. So there's that.

●==================●

___
[ ◇ ]

THIS STORY IS NOT CANNON TO THE ORIGINAL TOASTERS' STORY LINE

●==================●

Anyways, that was
"Too loud, too quiet"

Hope you enjoyed, 'till next time.

Ps: can you find the hidden message? >:}

●==================●

_______
[              ]
[Credits]
[______]

Toaster
-Owner: XxToastNotHerexX
Marshmallow
-Owner: Y-Studios
Heidi
-Owner: SeafeatherOwO
Spooky
-Owner: GhostySpirit
Marc
-Owner: Magpie2593
Toast kitten
-Owner: Snowkit100
Rasper
-Owner: Meowscles_UwU
●==================●