Freedom (Poppy Playtime Fanfic)

Ch. 2

"Nadia, wait up!" Aisha spoke as she tried to keep up with her daughter's pace. Although they arrived at PlayCare holding hands, Aisha knew Nadia's happiness of being here would cause her to break away and race towards Home Sweet Home with only one objective on her mind: seeing her best friend and only friend, Theodore Grambell. 

With Aisha not far behind her, Nadia almost burst through the front doors, racing down the halls until she found Theodore's room, pushing through the door, and stopped when she saw him sitting on the bed. 

"Hey, Theo!" Nadia exclaimed as she made her way to him and sat on the bed next to him, "Are you ready? Momma said we can go now if you are ready." 

"Yes!" Theodore cheered, "I couldn't sleep last night because I was so excited. Are you sure I'm allowed to go with you?"

"Yeah, Momma asked the people and they said you can go out with us for one day so Momma planned a whole bunch of places to go today!"

"Oh wow, that's awesome! Where are we going?" Theodore asked. He had never been allowed outside, let alone out in the real world and going to real places so this was an experience he yearned for and appreciated. His time and life were spent in a dome with fluorescent lights and no access to the outside world, this was a privilege he'd only receive once and a privilege the other children would never experience. 

"Momma said we are going to get breakfast first, then after that, we are going to the park, then the aquarium, the zoo, and the toy store. Momma said we're gonna try to do everything today! I'm so happy you can come with us!"

Finally catching up to Nadia, Aisha entered the room, a warm smile forming when she saw Nadia and Theodore. Theodore was already ready to go, wearing the best clothes he had with his shoes already tied. Aisha felt pity for the boy as he was not only an orphan but he wasn't even allowed to go outside and live life as a normal boy. Nadia had all the privileges and opportunities Theodore couldn't even comprehend and that alone tugged at her heartstrings. 

All the orphan children were like this. Granted, PlayCare sheltered them, fed them, clothed them, and educated them but none of them could live normal lives as children. All they could do was hope and pray that someone would take an interest in adopting them. Adoptions did happen but they weren't on a massive scale so for some of the older children, most if not their entire lives were spent in PlayCare, not aware an entire world existed outside the dome. Aisha wanted to give at least one of the children a taste of the outside world. 

Shaking her head, Aisha dismissed her thoughts for now and reached her hands out to Nadia and Theodore, signaling for them to come with her and they happily followed her. As they exited PlayCare, Theodore curiously looked around, PlayCare was the only area he had been exposed to so his eyes wandered wildly around the establishment, taking in every color and corridor his eyes could process. His "imaginary friend", The Prototype, had described the facility outside the PlayCare but seeing and processing it was different than what he was told.

After what felt like forever, they reached the lobby of Playtime Co and Aisha waved to the desk attendant before holding the door open for Nadia and Theodore, letting them exit first. Stepping outside, Theodore instinctively closed his eyes as the sun's rays hit him. Feeling the warmth of the sun and seeing the brightness of it was a first for him and he knew he was one of the lucky children to experience this. 

Walking to the car, Aisha helped the children enter the car and buckle them in before getting in the driver's seat and buckling herself, adjusting her mirrors before starting the engine and driving off. As they departed the factory, Theodore looked out the window and watched as they passed the building, studying the scenery around the factory that consisted of vast fields and the field of trees leading into the woods off into the distance. Just for today, he was free from the factory and the horrific crimes that were being committed inside.