Berdly

It was a Friday evening, and you were currently sitting on the floor of Berdly's bedroom, controller in hand, with the lights dimmed low. The only real illumination came from the computer monitor. On the screen, the bedroom from Five Nights at Freddy's 4 was way more intimidating in the darkness of the room.

Berdly was sitting beside you, wings folded confidently across his chest. He had insisted that he was an expert at horror games. You weren't entirely convinced.

"Alright," Berdly declared, adjusting his glasses, "the objective is exceedingly simple. Check the doors, listen carefully, and do not succumb to irrational fear."

You gave him a look to say 'I know how the game works, dude'.

"What? Don't look at me like that! I've already analyzed several gameplay guides. I am fully prepared."

You turned your attention back to the game. The bedroom was quiet. You checked one door. Nothing. The other... Nothing. You returned to the center of the room. A few seconds passed, and you went back to check the left door again, then-- a terrifying animatronic suddenly lunged onto the screen.

You jolted violently, nearly dropping the controller as you yelped, and Berdly burst into laughter.

"HAHA! Oh, that was PATHETIC!" He pointed at you, practically wheezing. "You actually jumped! It's just a video game! How can someone with your supposed intellectual capabilities be defeated by a collection of pixels?!"

You shot him an annoyed look, red-faced.

"Oh, don't give me that look!" he continued, grinning. "I told you, fear is merely the brain's irrational response to perceived danger. Once you understand that, these cheap tricks become completely... un-scary. Here, allow me to have a turn."

You gave him the controller and let him play. He was actually pretty good, and pretty confident about playing too. He'd almost made it to the end of night 7! But that didn't last. There was another character he forgot about.

"See? Look! 4AM, I'm so close--!" Then Berdly SHRIEKED as Nightmare flooded his vision, the difference in the jumpscare compared to all the other animatronics seemed to really get him. He practically launched himself backward, grabbing onto your arm on instinct.

"AAAGH—!"

Silence. The two of you froze. Berdly stared at the screen.Then at you. Then down at the hand currently gripping your arm. His face went bright red under his blue feathers.

"I-- uh--" He immediately let go. "I WAS JUST TESTING YOUR REACTION!"