Chapter Text
Michael had made a lot of mistakes in his life, the biggest was the torment he visited upon his younger brother. Fast-forwarding to the aftermath of the Accident, Michael had drastically changed his attitude and had issues recovering from the trauma. His mother had sent him away to a psychiatric retreat, to heal and be treated by professionals without personal bias towards Michael. It was the last time he'd seen his mother alive; she had written him three separate letters to read in private should she ever go missing or be found dead. It revealed all of her suspicions of his father, William, and what she feared he'd done as his sanity slipped away.
It would be four years before Michael had officially recovered from his trauma and the abuse William had dealt to him; his mother had been clear that Michael was not allowed to return home before his recovery was complete and his doctor clear him for release. Michael had no issues with this, not minding that he misses his mom's funeral, terrified of being in the same room as William, paranoid that William would abscond with him if he returned. Unaware that his father died at Fredbear Diner, Michael had thrown out clothing that he wasn't emotionally attached to, then replaced everything in the house with new furniture and remodeled the home.
He stayed in Hurricane to complete high school, feeling unnerved by the isolation that he received by students and some of his teachers, Michael had decided to move away for college. He dedicated after school to working a part-time job as a mechanic at an auto shop to gain extra income, refusing to squander the money left behind by his mother, and donating half of his inheritance, from owning Afton Robotics, to organizations researching treatments for cancer. He opened his home to a fellow survivor of abuse, Vanessa Atherton, after finding her passed out in the alley on his way home in the rain. He waited for her to recover and trust him enough to come clean about her home life and who hurt her, the bruising matched how his father had beaten him.
They grew closer to each other as the days passed, with Michael developing feelings for her. He wanted them to be a couple but was scared that his feelings were from someone relating trauma with the other. Vanessa had eventually moved in with her aunt in a different city once her parents were found neglectful and abusive to her; the same day she was leaving, they promised to write to each other before she kissed him on the cheek and hugged him goodbye. Confirming she felt the same about him but wasn't ready for a relationship yet, Michael naturally accepted this and promised to give them a chance when she was ready. It wouldn't be till college when they would run into each other again and the sparks between them would rekindle like a forest fire.
They would dance around the other for months, inviting the other to each other's friend group before both groups pushed them into a date, and it would quickly grow into a month before they kissed and started officially dating each other. Standing strong against Henry and the truth behind Michael's past and mistakes, this would culminate on the day of his near-death accident at the Robotics warehouse. With Ness being the first to arrive before the paramedics arrived, Michael woke to her malnourished body clutching his arm in her sleep. His doctor would speak to him privately, informing him that he should've died from his injuries and inquired if he knew how he survived long enough to be brought to the hospital. One look at the sleeping girl beside his bed was all he needed before answering. He had someone waiting for him and he refused to leave her alone.
The truth was he lied to the doctor about his survival, after finding the plans for the Scooper in the warehouse, he was aware of how he lived through the attack from Ennard. The mysterious liquid known as remnant, he had amassed a well of it from his trauma and pain, it was then infused with his will to survive and combined with his refusal to leave Vanessa and break his promise to her had motivated him to persevere through all the pain. He had watched as his mother's desperation had driven her to use her powers as a soul to preserve his injured body from further blood loss before vanishing into the night as Vanessa pulled up to his car.
After his death at the hands of the cultists, his very being was put through Hell and back resulting in his meeting with Spring Bonnie and the Man in the Wall. Thanks to advice from Bonnie, he was able to convince the Man to help him come back to life, to finish off William and his followers. Resurrection had healed Michael's destroyed body; I went with Vauban and Revenant. Two of the versatile Warframes, Revenant was a warden whose body was damaged by Sentient energy and Vauban, tactical, is an expert at controlling the field.
Revenant used the power of the dead against his enemies, dispel damage with a shroud, even summoning a barrier of lasers to cut down enemies. Michael has shown himself not above using weapons of any kind to defend himself, same as Revenant who utilizes the energy that damaged him to a deadly degree to win.
Vauban wields traps of varying uses, from controlled shock to anti-gravity or concussive force. This plays into Michael’s affinity for destruction through arson, defense through electricity, and penchant for tinkering with machinery like the animatronics; since Vauban is an inventor and Michael worked with animatronics leads to a better match of skills.
Because of the nature of his resurrection and him wearing his old Foxy mask, the Lidless One used the memory of Michael's time at Fazbear Fright as a basis for his transformation. With the rise and fall of day to night Michael will always be subjected to the change, and the more he fights it, the more pain he receives. Yet he is left more man than monster in a precarious situation, as the more he gives into the shift, the more beast-like he will become. Thanks to the power of Agony, Michael can walk through his target's memories, dredge up their worst nightmares/fear, and detect possessed animatronics and undead people.
Compiling that with his hatred and desire for vengeance on William might thrust him into the world as a monster instead of a man. It's all up to his choice on what to do.