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Henry had a plan. He needed to end this. He created a job listing for a pizzeria. He felt bad for whichever poor soul would get the job but he had to lure them here. One of them was William Afton, his old friend. William was a monster. He murdered children, and he murdered Henry’s own baby girl. Henry was horrified with himself for being friends with such a man. Henry’s plan consisted of having the…” volunteer” salvage animatronics. There was two animatronics that needed to be salvaged. Once they were there he would set the pizzeria ablaze, ending it all.
Besides salvaging William, Henry had created an animatronic specifically to be salvaged once it fulfilled its purpose. The animatronic was called Lefty and its purpose was to catch the Puppet. It hurt Henry to do this since the Puppet was possessed by his beloved daughter Charlie. But she needed to rest. Henry couldn’t save her when she died so he would save her now.
Henry didn’t know how to feel when his job listing was accepted. He was ready for this all to end but he didn’t want to hurt Charlie. In a way, he was killing her again. She died once and then lived on through the Puppet and now he would end the Puppet. He knew this was for the best but he didn’t want to hurt her. He knew he needed to though.
Henry kept tabs on the progress his volunteer was making. The first animatronic to get salvaged was some sort of weird wiry Freddy mess. Apart of Henry was curious to know how that thing came into existence but he knew better than to question what William might have done. And then William arrived. He was grosser than before, more decayed. More of his body was exposed. Henry had never stopped wondering what happened to his friend that turned him into this. William had always seemed so charming and normal. But a normal person couldn’t kill so many people so easily. The only one left before he could set his plan in motion was Charlie.
The next animatronic to get salvaged was Baby. Elizabeth. Henry would be hurting two people he loved with his plan. Elizabeth was William’s daughter, she got scooped by Baby and died. Her soul went on to possess Baby. He knew it was for the best that she was here too but he hated to hurt the people he cared about. Her being here made Henry wonder if she even remembered him. Maybe it would be better if she didn’t, she’d been hurt enough by the people she loved. But it made him sad to think all the memories they shared could have been forgotten.
And then finally, the moment he both dreaded and needed came. Lefty was here and had gotten salvaged. His daughter. This was ending tonight. These tragedies would be put to rest and forgotten. But first, he had to tell his volunteer about how to escape the eventual fire. Henry came into the pizzeria a bit before the night shift. He was worried the volunteer would think he was just some senile old man but they’d gotten through the night shifts so surely he had some credibility. He saw a man cleaning up the party that had just ended. There was about an hour before the night shift would begin. The man looked disfigured and rotten. Bone was showing through his purple skin. Henry knew this man. It was Michael Afton. William’s oldest son.
“Michael! My boy, what happened to you?” Henry sputtered. How was Michael alive when he was missing chunks of skin? Michael turned around looking surprised, but that surprise quickly turned into delight.
“Uncle Henry! I missed you so much,” Michael cried, looking sad. Michael quickly walked over to Henry before giving him a tight hug.
“W-well you see, I kind of got scooped. It’s not a big deal though,”
Henry chuckled sadly. His boy never changed. He was still the same sweet little boy Henry knew. Henry didn’t want to do this, but he knew he had to get to the point.
“Michael you’ve done such a great job. You salvaged them. But now I need to end this. Tonight.”
“What do you mean? What exactly are you ending…” Even while saying this Henry could tell Michael had a faint idea of what Henry meant.
“This was all a part of a plan. I'm setting this building on fire. William will die. Charlie and Elizabeth will be at peace. But don’t worry, there’s an escape route planned for you.” Henry looked at Michael, a part of him deep down hoped Michael would tell Henry to stop so he wouldn’t have to hurt his girls. But Michael simply stared at him.
“Uncle Henry. I don’t want to leave. I’ll be here when the building burns down,” Michael calmly said. It took Henry a moment to understand this. Michael would die if he stayed here.
“No. I’m not killing you, Michael. You're still alive. You're going to live your life after this. You need to,” Michael seemed so calm. Henry wanted more of a reaction, just anything out of Michael. He couldn’t do this.
“I’m already dead, I’ve been dead for thirty-six years. I need a break. I want to rest. I'm exhausted. I spent my life trying to stop my father so what will I be living for once he's gone? And I want to be with Elizabeth and Evan. A family should stick together, right? Besides, I miss Evan. I miss seeing the real Elizabeth.” Michael said this all with a sad smile. Henry knew there would be no changing Michael’s mind. He’d always been so stubborn. And Henry could understand, what good was his life without Charlie?
“...Fine. I don’t want to but I can’t stop you can I?” Henry quickly hugged Michael.
“Oh Michael. I love you, you're like a son to me.” Henry looked at Michael, seeing the joy in his eyes.
“I love you too. Now I have to get ready for my shift Uncle Henry,” Michael said, walking off.
Henry set the fire. This was ending. It was over. Finally, after years of pain, this would be over. All tragedies are best left forgotten, including this one. They could all rest. There would no longer be the fear of tomorrow. The never-ending worry that they’d never get peace. Except for one. William would never get peace, for he didn’t deserve it. William deserved eternal pain for everything he put people through.
Henry was ready to see his baby girl again. He died a simple death, and though he’d never know this he made Michael’s final moments happy.
But right before Henry died, Michael sat in the office. It was getting hot. He smelt the smoke and he could hear the fire crackling. It was time. He was getting his happy ending, even if it didn’t feel deserved. He’d kept a picture of him, Evan, and Elizabeth in his pocket ever since he got scooped. Now, he took it out and stared at it. He held Evan’s Fredbear plush. He kept that next to him at all times since Evan died. He would get to see his family again. His siblings. His mom. The people most important would be there with him. Michael was struggling to breathe, more so than usual. His time was up. As he felt his consciousness fading he felt himself smile.