Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The first thing Cassie was made aware of was the pain searing through her left leg. It started at her ankle, where the pain was at its absolute worst, going up to her knee. Gradually, more of her body felt pain; her right arm, chest, ribs, and a dull ache which dwelled throughout her cranium.

The second thing she was made aware of was the cold, damp earth she found herself laying on. She shifted herself so she would no longer be laying on her injured arm, the limb gently dropping onto what could be a puddle. Another damp substance clung to her hair in clumps, a cold liquid dripping down her exhausted face which twitched at the awful feeling.

The third thing Cassie was aware of was the darkness as she opened her eyes. It was far too dark to see, and she didn't know where her flashlight was– even then, it'd already died, and would surely not have survived that fall. She was blind in this place. It was useless.

The fourth thing she was aware of was her stomach churning. She felt sick, in more than one way. The events of the past hour, or more, because who knew how long she'd been laying here, came flooding back.

Gregory.

Not Gregory.

The elevator.

The plummet.

It was then that Cassie finally broke, after god only knew how long she'd been laying there processing the situation. She sobbed into her arm, the cries sounding broken with her strained voice barely even getting out.

Approaching footsteps were what made her suddenly go dead silent.

"Cassie?"

==

"It's not your fault. I know you did it for me. To save me..." The mic broke up for a moment, returning feedback. "But make sure it doesn't follow you."

Silence.

"Cassie? Hello? Can you hear me?!"

A metallic sound and a garbled scream comes through the headphones, then the only sound to be heard is digital feedback.

Gregory stares at the screen, lost in his own head. He's overthinking every possible outcome, every reason why Cassie wouldn't respond. Trying to rationalize and tell himself it's okay.

But he'd heard the very same clang he had when one of the atrium elevators had failed for him and Vanessa, jolting downwards and needing them to carefully crawl out via a vent.

He knew something was wrong, and that's when he slammed down the headphones in despair.

"No! No, no, no, no, no! This can't be happening!" He yelled in a whisper, not wanting to wake the house and bring attention to himself. It was already a habit to do so, given his in-hiding status– along with Vanessa and the stolen part of an animatronic Fazbear Entertainment so desperately wished to find– but even so, in that moment it was late and said members of the house were sleeping or having an overnight charge in the very same room, powered down.

He didn't want to cause panic, and he knew Vanessa might stop him from trying anything– Cassie was as good as dead. But Gregory wouldn't accept that. He couldn't! Cassie had been his best friend, and his other friends, well… One was missing, and the other he couldn't speak to otherwise he'd risk both his and Vanessa's safety.

Ness was protective of him, and he didn't quite understand why she went to the lengths she did– Gregory could walk free and be safe, as far as he was concerned. He was just some kid who caused property damage, because said property had tried to kill him. It wasn't like he'd go to jail for that, unlike Vanessa, who wouldn't be believed if she told the truth about Vanny. Ness always looked like she knew something more, though, something Gregory didn't.

That didn't matter, though. Not enough, and especially not right now. He had to think, and he had to think as clearly as he possibly could at a time like this. Cassie was in danger– no, he wouldn't think about her being dead. There was a chance, albeit small, she'd survived, and he was banking on that chance.

Without sparing another second, Gregory grabbed the nearby faz-watch and connected it to the computer, opening any files he'd need such as updated maps (he'd edited these in MS Paint to show which areas were blocked by debris), notes he'd collected on his first venture in the megaplex as well as various keywords and passes he'd need for any security measures.

While that was loading and the watch itself was updating, he quietly rummaged around the small basement for his Freddy-themed duffle bag, throwing various tools and items into it that he'd surely need. A crowbar, a wrench, a golf club, his replacement talky, Vanessa's faz-wrench, his fazerblaster and faz-cam, as well as anything he could consider using as a weapon.

Creeping up the stairs and into the kitchen, he added handfuls of snacks (mainly the unhealthy kind) into the bag. Satisfied he had enough to last and the right tools to get around or protect himself, he snuck back down into the basement to grab the watch.

Shutting down the computer, he swiftly fumbled around with the wristwatch until it was strapped firmly around his wrist, then slipped on his (like his bag, Freddy-themed) shoes. The last thing he did before picking up the duffle bag again was put on a thick, black hoodie, the chill of the night air and the pizzaplex's empty walls concerning him.

Now, Gregory was ready. He didn't have a plan, but what else could he do now? He may have been risking everything, but… So much had already gone wrong for him, and part of him was sure he wasn't even aware of just how bad things were. He didn't want to lose Cassie on top of everything else he'd lost.

He had to save her.

"Gregory? Where are you going?"

The boy froze as Freddy's tinny voice spoke up. He didn't even turn to the bear animatronic head, not wanting to see the expression he could only imagine on his face.
"I have to go. Cassie, she… She needs me. That thing, it… it's free and… I can't explain."

"I… Who is Cassie? Is she a friend of yours? Is… She the-"

"Can you be quiet?!" Gregory snapped, swivelling to face him. "If Vanessa finds out I'm going, she'll stop me."

"She only cares for your safety, as do I. You cannot go back there, Gregory. It is not safe. It will never be safe, and especially not alone. If that thing is free, it will kill you. You know that."

"I don't care! I can't leave her to die down there!" Gregory was almost in tears again. He mentally told himself to be strong, keeping a stoic expression. "I might be the last hope she's got."

Freddy grumbled, but out of sadness rather than anger. He was worried, and rightfully so; Gregory couldn't blame him. He, too, seemed confused on what was going on most of the time, and didn't understand all of Ness' measures– although he followed the rules to the fine details, he was far less stubborn with Gregory.
"I'm worried, Gregory. I don't want you to get hurt. I cannot let you leave like this." The bear head sighed. Gregory's hands curled into fists.

"You wanna know who she is?" The boy's voice was barely above a whisper. "She's my last friend. I was the only one to show up at her birthday party, and we stayed together the whole day. Hung out every so often after that, too. A year after my last best friend and my counsellor went missing. Then my parents. I had nobody left, and Cassie let me stay with her for a while. It would've been hard to explain why I was basically living there to her dad… But then he had to go away for a while. She was so kind to me, which I don't get a lot... Point is, we're close."

Freddy stared in shock. Gregory had never told him about any of this. About his friends, his parents, school, anything! He'd always been silent, saying he'd 'tell that story eventually', only to never follow up. Vanessa had looked uncomfortable when it was brought up, too, although he didn't know why. Maybe similar subjects hurt for her to talk about, so she'd understood.

And yet, right now, Gregory was finally spitting it out at Freddy, almost in silent rage.

"Gregory… I–"

"She's all I have left of my old life, before I had to get stuck hiding away with you and Vanessa." His voice was bitter, biting back bile that rised from his stomach as he remembered shattered remnants of his history, barely telligible between the gaps his mind made that he couldn't fathomably fill with information. "Look… I love you both, but I have to do this. For me, and for her. Okay? So… Goodbye."

Gregory was quick to run out of the basement, grabbing the keys to the back door from a hook on the way up the stairs. Freddy didn't utter a word, unsure whether he should wake Vanessa or not. He didn't want to stop the boy, and yet, his robotic heart ached to keep him safe. At least, he realised, Gregory had taken the faz-watch. Once the boy had gotten at least a little distance, he could keep some form of eye on him.

The thing that truly made the bear unable to speak, though, had been Gregory's utter, blunt integrity as he'd said 'I love you both'. It was something he'd never said before, and never in such a tone that made Freddy feel like even more of a guardian figure to the boy. It filled him with anguish, and yet joy at the same time.

He decided to linger on the feeling for a while before attempting contact.

==

"Cassie."

The broken robotic voice repeated her name. Cassie would recognise it anywhere, even with the ringing in her ears threatening to make her head burst.

"Roxy… Roxy, I'm here, please… Help me..." Her voice was barely audible, a choked sob escaping shortly after she spoke. She shook all over, the cold chill biting at her body and making the pain increase.

"It's okay, Cassie." Roxy whispered, "I'm here now."

Cassie was carefully lifted to her feet, the animatronic mindful of her pain. She wrapped her good arm around the bot, using it to support her weight as she took slow steps forward. It was slow, but it was a way, and that's all that mattered. Cassie felt herself crying again.

"You came after me… Roxy, you came after me…"

"I couldn't leave you. Why ever would I do that?" the voice softly uttered.

Cassie couldn't believe it. Between her rushing thoughts, she felt a warmth in her chest. Roxy had gotten away from that thing! She'd found Cassie, and would keep her safe. She trusted Roxy, although now a twinge of worry poked at her mind.

Gregory had been her closest friend, and yet look how that'd turned out. What if Roxy was the same?

…No. This was her only hope of escape now, or she'd die down there. Die in agony and suffering, which she sure as hell didn't want to do. So she accepted this, relished in the fact that Roxy was really here and was helping her get out. She could think on what she'd do to Gregory when they met again later, and she was determined to make whatever painful thing that would be, happen.

She felt herself slipping on the ground, shortly after her swirling thoughts ended, her mind barely able to stay awake.

"Oh, sweetheart, here… Let me carry you. Rest. I'll get you back to the surface."

Cassie noticed the ground below her disappear as she was gently swept up into the cold steel arms, her vision hazy and noticeably getting darker even in the pitch black.
"Thank… You…"

The world fell silent as Cassie let herself rest. The last thing she could see in the darkness was Roxy's yellow eyes gleaming down at her as the drowsiness overtook her, sending her to sleep with a shadow of a smile.

Roxy would keep her safe.

Chapter Text

Bills, bills, junkmail…" Vanessa grumbled as she began the walk back down the path to the small home, scooping up a newspaper beside the doorstep and humming. Sunday, August 12th. . She'd honestly lost track of what week it was. She didn't remember, or bother with, most things anymore. She'd thrown on the nearest thing that morning, sweatpants and a T-shirt covered by her usual purple plaid flannel shirt. 

She wasn't one to read newspapers much, but sometimes there were some… Interesting things printed in the Hurricane Weekly , so it could at least be entertaining. She pushed the door closed behind her and locked it– with four individual locks– then dropped the mail onto the kitchen table. 

Vanessa flipped the coffee machine on and leaned on the counter, looking through the paper's personal columns. Some were simple; questions that needed answers the internet couldn't immediately deliver, anonymous messages to people who read the paper every week, insane conspiracy theories about bears being sighted for the first time in decades in Hurricane, short dialogues from the older crowd who wanted to share their knowledge or the joy of their family– that kind of thing. 

Vanessa focused on one of the stories. It was from an older man in his late eighties named Richard, and he talked about how his daughter had found a wonderful man and had beautiful children who were there for each other through it all. They had gotten a new house, a pet shepherd dog, and supported the man financially in his battle with cancer. A vision of the perfect family, really. 

It did begin to make her think about what her life could've been like if she hadn't worked for Fazbear Entertainment at all. Would she have finally taken Luis up on his offer for a coffee? Would she have found someone else? Would she have had kids? Adopted? Would she have avoided being trapped in the depths of her own mind to satisfy what was, essentially, just a computer program? 

Maybe having the perfect life just wasn't for her. 

At the same time, she couldn't say she entirely hated what she had now; as awful as it'd been to be controlled by something else, to be in hiding from the law and unable to see anyone she'd once considered a friend or workmate, Vanessa liked her life now. At least, a little. She'd grown attached to Gregory, all things considered– although, the two were definitely not like mother and son. They were more like siblings, who'd always get into fights and make up with ice cream and Mario Kart afterwards. 

Freddy acted almost like a parent to both, which was usually hilarious due to his situation– a head wasn't very threatening as a parental figure. He was mostly parental to Gregory, though, who would always get angsty and grumpy when Freddy used a parental tone of voice on him. 

The house, one which had belonged to Vanessa's grandma before she passed, was a little messy both visually and as a family, but… It was her family now. To Vanessa that was already, in some way, perfect. Maybe not her ideal family, but she wouldn't change it for the world. 

She chuckled, stirring her now-ready coffee and tapping her fingers on the counter as she took a sip. Breakfast– she needed to make some breakfast. Since she was in a good mood, she was considering making eggs and bacon or pancakes for herself and Gregory. The house was silent, though, a tell that the boy was asleep. 

"Gregory!" She called, taking another sip of coffee. After hearing nothing, she neared the stairs and called again. "Gregory! Breakfast!" Still, the house was silent. Vanessa groaned, putting her coffee down on the table and going up to her room. This was where he stayed, for now, since she didn't want to kick a kid onto the couch until she could afford a second bed. 

Knocking on the door, she called again. "Hey, little man! Are you gonna come get some food or what?" the door creaked open ajar as she knocked. With a frown, she checked the room, only to find it empty. He wasn't sleeping, doodling at her desk nor looking through her stuff in the closet. 

She didn't panic, because his absence usually meant he would be in the basement– either talking to Freddy, messing with a random endo head he'd stolen to code with, or playing Roblox. 

Usually it was the latter of the three. 

So, sighing again, she went downstairs and opened the basement door. 

"Are you ignoring me, kid? You aren't bullying some poor helpless kid in that game again, are you-?" She turned the corner to find the room dark, the only glow coming from the small custom-built charger Freddy's head sat on, as well as his eyes. She switched on the light, and there was no Gregory to be seen. 

"Freddy, where is he?" 

"Vanessa…" The bear muttered, his eyes forming a frown on his face. "He ran off last night to look for his friend." 

"What? After I specifically told him not to?! If he steps foot on those school grounds, he could be–" 

"No, he is not at his school." Freddy looked at the floor, avoiding the woman's eyes. "He went to the Pizzaplex. His friend went there, to… Look for him. She was tricked. He is free." 

"He? You don't mean…" Vanessa put a hand to her head. "You're joking. You're actually joking. Not only is the Mimic out, but Gregory went to the Pizzaplex, knowing it wants to kill him specifically?!" She laughed, but the situation wasn't the slightest bit funny. "Why wouldn't he tell me before running off?" 

"He was worried you may have stopped him. I swear, Vanessa, I wanted to stop him too, but there… Wasn't much I could do." Gregory's voice still rang in the bear's head. The earnesty, the love, and the hitch of fear. He hated to think of the boy out there all alone, especially with the Mimic now free and hunting him. It was unlikely his friend had even survived, as awful as a thought it was. 

"Well you could've done more! You have no idea how much that awful thing is involved with his life– how much it did to him!" 

"Well, you refuse to tell me that information! You think I do not worry about his safety every day?! I cannot exactly stop him, Vanessa, when I am just a head!" The bear snapped, looking hurt and annoyed. It wasn't often he used a tone like this, incredibly rare in fact, but Freddy was tired of not knowing everything that was going on. 

"Okay… Okay." Vanessa collected herself, looking around and noticing most of her tools missing. He took everything but the kitchen sink, I see. "I'm sorry, Freddy. I know you can't do much to stop him. We're gonna have to go after him, as soon as we can– and I promise, I'll tell you everything, okay?"  

"Hmm… Okay. We will go together. I also already have Gregory's copy of the new Pizzaplex map… We had tried to guide his friend earlier in the night... although I didn't know exactly who this friend was until now."

"Right." Vanessa took Freddy's head and joined him up to the computer, switching it on. "Get literally any other files you need, I'm gonna get things together so we can leave immediately." 

She exhaled, looking at one of Gregory's drawings of the three of them tacked to the wall. 

"Don't get yourself hurt, kid. We're coming." 

==

The Pizzaplex lobby was a vast, empty, dark and cold space that chilled Gregory to the bones– even with a thin hoodie on during a warm summer night. From the scaffolding perched at the windows high above the main doors, he could barely see an inch in front of him. The moonlight didn't light the shaded hall enough for him to see, so it was time to pull out a flashlight; and the moment he did, he once again remembered just how big the glorified pizzeria was. 

Gregory assessed the newest damages and changes of the lobby. The banner from Fazbear Entertainment claiming they'd be back soon was new. He shook his head and snorted. How could they reopen the place at this point? 

The walls were just the same, with some having gained more cracks or streaks of dampness and mould from the weather. Fresh graffiti was plastered everywhere, from names of urban explorers to warnings from previous visitors saying they 'hadn't made it out alive'. 

He carefully hopped down the scaffolding then climbed down to the floor using the ladder that luckily still remained, wandering through the hall and tracing his finger along some of the names that seemed familiar to him. Had old classmates come here? Friends? Could they have seen the animatronics, once friendly colourful faces that would sing and dance for them, now tarnished and destroyed by what they thought was just an earthquake? 

Although, they had gotten further damage in the quake. Nobody could really point their fingers at Gregory for the animatronic's destruction anymore, at least. 

After climbing the gift shop stairs and crossing the store to the elevators, Gregory paused. Both elevators were out of order, one blocked by debris and the other seeming to have fallen recently– what could he do now? There were no other entrances to the atrium, and the daycare hallway was… 

Better than nothing. 

He'd need to get through the daycare anyway, although getting further than that without the V.A.N.N.I. mask would be easier said than done… So getting anywhere else through that way was likely impossible. 

But, the boy was out of other options, and he had to try. 

So with a sigh, he kicked at the daycare doors a few times. Eventually after a hard enough kick that simultaneously made his leg hurt, one door swung back to reveal loose debris that fell with a crash. Gregory covered his ears and groaned with a wince, the thunderous sound echoing through his head. Grudgingly, he began the trek through the destroyed remains of the hallway, of which the walls of the atrium and most of the bathroom, plus the plumbing and wiring above it, had fallen into. 

By the time Gregory had crawled through, he was covered in scrapes and bruises from accidentally coming into contact with loose items multiple times, and narrowly avoided some of the ceiling tiles falling on his head. To add insult to injury, he tripped on something and added a knock on the head from a pipe to his list of injuries. Gregory cursed under his breath, holding his head. He would use a different route out of the building after that mess, or die trying. 

As if things weren't bad enough, Gregory stared at the daycare shutters. They were forced shut, crumpled in one place, and surrounded by fallen debris. The giant gold statue of the daycare attendant had its hand sticking out, as if it had torn the metal like paper. There was no way Gregory was getting through there. 

He almost felt hopeless, until he turned and noticed something about the shutters to the atrium. At the bottom right corner the metal was torn and pushed up, like something had pulled the metal back and forced its way out. It was definitely big enough for Gregory to fit through, although just barely. It was a way in, though, so of course he would take it! 

The boy rushed over and got down on his hands and knees, assessing the size of the tear. Carefully, he pushed himself forward, being wary of the sharp edges and pressing himself closer to the ground to just about bypass it. He was able to crawl through the gap, but managed to snag his leg at the last moment. 

"Agh! Ugh, stupid door!" He pulled himself up from the ground and kicked the metal shutter, doing nothing but cause a loud noise and his kicking leg to hurt again. With an annoyed grumble, he continued on his way, quickly checking his leg injury before getting far. It wasn't too deep, he'd probably be fine. 

Gregory trekked down the atrium's frozen escalators and across the tiled floor, which despite a layer of dust still managed to look shiny. His flashlight panned over the giant light fixture that had fallen at some point, shattering tiles and leaving a crater in the floor surrounding it. He didn't remember that being there the last time he was here, either. The flashlight lit up the smiling cartoonish faces of the glamrock band, giving Gregory a shiver. It was a strange sight to see the grinning faces again after so much had happened at the Pizzaplex. 

An odd shape beside the fallen sign caught his attention. It looked almost like… A broken eggshell, stained with rust? He shone his light at it, tilting his head inquisitively. Instantaneously, the shape pulled itself up with one arm, revealing itself to be Chica. She let out a robotic scream, clawing her way towards Gregory but unable to move. The boy screamed, turning on his heels to run from the broken robot. 

"W… Wait! Please! Stop! G… Gregory...!" 

His blood ran ice cold. She was speaking. Turning back to her, he shook his head. 

"How are you… Talking? You shouldn't be able… To talk." 

"Please, don't be scared!" The chicken– if you could still really call her that– pleaded, her body falling flat against the floor again. "I won't hurt you. I promise." 

"How can I trust you?! That thing could be controlling you… Again!" Gregory backed away. "How the hell are you talking to me?!" 

"A little girl… About your age. Sh… She fixed my voice!" Cassie. It had to be her, right? Chica tried to push herself up again to make eye contact with Gregory. "Please, let me talk to you. I'll prove to you that I mean no harm… That I'm a friend. Don't you want to be friends, Gregory?" the animatronic tilted her head. "Don't you feel bad about what happened to me? You know I'd never want to hurt you, right?" 

"Okay, okay!" Gregory yelled, sighing and sitting a little away from Chica. "I can't just trust you at the drop of a hat. Not after what happened. You were trying to kill me!" He knew now that when they'd been after him, the animatronics were under Vanny's control, that… Monster in the sinkhole's control. He should be able to trust the robots again– but with said weird endo free now, he couldn't take chances. Chica could easily be baiting him in for an attack. 

"I know… But I had no control over myself. You clearly know that already." Chica tilted her head again– then, suddenly, she lurched forward and grabbed the boy, holding him against the light fixture with her face twisted into what could've been described as a snarl. "So why did you destroy me?! My friends? Why did you give parts of us to Freddy? Why did you do it?!" 

Gregory screamed, thrashing in an attempt to get her off. This was exactly what he was afraid of– although he'd assumed Chica wouldn't be as aggressive as the others given her nature as the motherly hen of the band, it turned out he was very wrong. 

"Get off me…! I-I'm sorry! Back then, I didn't know! I was desperate, and scared, I had to do something to keep myself alive!" He continued to thrash about, to no avail. Chica hissed at him, similar to what Gregory could only describe as a raptor from that forty-two-year-old movie he liked. Her grip only got tighter on his arm. 

"You took my voice. You didn't need to do that to defend yourself, did you? 'Upgrading' Freddy with our parts. Who do you think you are..?" Chica growled. Gregory leaned away, trying his absolute best to free himself, but regretting doing so as Chica's grip only tightened. He felt tears prick at his eyes. 

"I honestly thought it would help… And it did, a little! A-And I freed Vanessa, she was under the same control as you! Please, I'm sorry you ended up like this because of what I did. I didn't know what else to do, I swear! I was just scared! I'm sorry..!" Gregory began crying a little, something he silently cursed himself over, but also something he couldn't help. He didn't want to look so weak and scared, but that was exactly what he was at that moment. 

Chica leaned back slightly, eyeing Gregory carefully and loosening her grip on his arm. He noted the bruise she'd left. She then backed off a little, giving Gregory his space back. 

"I… I'm so sorry. I don't know why I snapped at you like that– and I hurt you… Oh, goodness…" She twitched and her eyelid casing lowered, suggesting she was trying to frown. "Are you alright?" 

Gregory was, quite frankly, stunned by the change in behaviour. He knew these animatronics had their quirks, especially Chica, based on employee notes he'd found. But never did he expect something like this to happen. 

"No, I'm not okay. How can you even ask that?!" He nursed his bruise, backing away from the animatronic. He didn't want to be anywhere near her again. 

"I'm sorry." She repeated, propping herself against some rubble and trying to make eye contact again. "You had no need to apologise, sweetheart." Chica uttered softly. "Not really, anyway. I don't blame you for what you did to us. Although it hurts… And… And… I am upset at you, both of you… I understand why you had to do it, and I know Freddy well. He… He wouldn't abandon his friends if it wasn't serious." Gregory couldn't tell if that was a hint of malice in her voice, or her voice straining due to her systems being faulty. She let out a synthetic sigh. "I don't know what in my system caused me to be so… Mean about it. I'm sorry, Gregory." 

While she sounded genuinely regretful, Gregory still wasn't convinced. He could've just narrowly avoided death, for goodness sake– he wouldn't be quick to trust any of the robots here. 

"...Whatever." He got ready to leave again. There was no point sticking around, as far as he was concerned. 

"Wait, your leg! You should get to a–" 

"It's fine ." Gregory muttered, looking at the wound. Blood trailed down from it and stained his socks a dark burgundy. 

"No, you are broken. You need first aid! I know there is one that still functions in–" 

"It's fine. I'll get there in my own time." Gregory insisted, then turned away from her to leave. 

"Please don't leave me here. Please ." She begged, reaching for Gregory. "I never wanted to hurt you. I mean that. Please don't leave me all alone… Please!" She sounded extremely upset, and it tugged at Gregory's heartstrings. He didn't want to let her free, not now, not ever. Not after she'd just proved he still couldn't trust her. 

"Bye, Chica." 

"Please, Gregory! Please!" She sounded like she was… Crying? Although Gregory knew it wasn't possible. She could be trying to manipulate him! He stood his ground, walking away from her. "Please…" 

Gregory cursed himself again for having a good-hearted nature. He couldn't leave her. For some reason, he felt inclined to trust her. He turned, eyeing the robot carefully. She was on the ground now, making sounds that could've been crying– creepy crying, at that– having given up hope. Gregory groaned, walking back to her. 

"Please don't cry. I'll help you, okay? Just… Don't hurt me again." He knew he was playing a dangerous game, now. But he also knew a lot more about these animatronics after seeing what the Pizzaplex hid behind closed doors and living with Freddy. They were, somehow, completely aware– artificial intelligence. They could think and feel, yet could also be taken advantage of and used for things unimaginably dark. It's what happened to them– and somehow it'd happened to Vanessa, too. 

That thing in the basement was possibly the most dangerous thing the world had to offer, and it could just take over people by using virtual or augmented reality? It was not only a terrifying concept… But it surrounded Gregory, everything wrong with his life being able to be pinned on that awful robot. He'd often wondered if it affected him, since he had a strange kind of amnesia for the past two years… Like he hadn't even been there for them. 

But that could be explained by other problems he had, right? 

He didn't like to overthink it. Besides, Vanessa would tell him, she'd worked here and been under his control that whole duration, and was able to remember it all. 

"I won't. I promise I won't." Chica muttered, pulling herself forward again. "I'll keep you safe in return." 

"Okay." He hoped he wouldn't regret this. 

He couldn't lift the fixture, but he could attempt to pull her out; although, when he tried, it had little effect. He kept pulling on her repeatedly, unwillingly inhaling the nasty stench of rotten food, oil and grease as he did so, until she finally came loose and lurched forward onto the ground. 

"Chica?" 

Reluctantly, Gregory nudged her with his foot. The animatronic whirred and pushed herself up, still just about able to balance despite the foot that'd been trapped having lost its casing and now being twisted backwards. 

"Thank you. I promise to protect you from anything here that would try to harm you." Chica twitched, ambling over and placing her hand on Gregory's shoulder. It made him flinch slightly. 

"Sure… Thanks." He exhaled a shaky breath, backing away a little and cutting to the chase. "You said a girl fixed your voice box. I think it's my friend, and we need to move, now, in case she's hurt, or…" Gregory didn't let himself finish. "She's… In the sinkhole, under the raceway. With that thing." 

"Alright. Come on then, Gregory… I know a shortcut." Chica limped past him, leading the way towards Kid's Cove. Gregory kept a distance between them in case of an emergency, his breath hitching as he tried to calm down from what'd just happened. 

It remained silent for a long time before either one of them spoke up; and it was Chica, eager to put the boy's mind at ease. She also just wanted to know a few things from him. 

"Do you like dinosaurs, Gregory?" 

"Um, yeah." Gregory's face relaxed very slightly. "Why? Are you gonna tell me chickens are descended from the T. Rex? Because that's not actually factually correct. All birds are descended from-" 

"Oh, I know, I know!" Chica chuckled, rotating her head 180° to face Gregory. He immediately felt tense again at that. "Another kid already told me that. Very angrily, mind you. Do you have a favourite non-living dinosaur?" 

Gregory thought for a moment. He hadn't been thinking about dinosaurs for about a year, which probably didn't sound like much but it felt like a long time to him. Scattered facts came to his mind, and he mentally compared some of his favourites. The truth was, he found it hard picking a singular favourite– there were so many cool species ouy there! 

"Yutyrannus. It's a tyrannosaurid, a feathered one. I always just thought they were super neat. Most people say T. Rex is their favourite, but I think one covered in fluff is better, personally." He smirked to himself. "Imagine having one as a pet. Giant scary guard dog that eats people and gives you cuddles? Sign me up!" He laughed, but faltered a little. While the conversation was putting him at ease, he also was still wary. What if Chica was just trying to soften him up so he'd lower his guard? 

"That's very cool! I… Suppose." Chica let out a broken chuckle. "Every dinosaur is cool in its own right, don't you think?" 

"Mmm…" Gregory dismissively replied. Chica decided maybe it was better to get right to what she wanted to ask. 

"Why did you edit my code?" 

"Oh… Well…" Gregory hummed quietly. He supposed he could tell her that. "Vanessa and I found out about that thing that was controlling her– controlling you guys, too. We wanted to stop it for good, and had to create a security system for that so nobody would release it! Of course, since you guys are pretty trained at the whole security thing, in my experience…" Gregory muttered the last part bitterly, "I made it so the M.X.E.S. would call the nearest one of you to a location if someone used the V.A.N.N.I. mask there." 

"Wow… That's very clever for a boy of your age, and very responsible. I admire that. Although, wouldn't using my friends and I for that… Hurt people?" Chica paused, turning fully to face the young teenager. He shrugged sheepishly. 

"It's uhh… The best we could do. Even if it was kinda brutal. But I mean… It was that or risking the lives of possibly hundreds, you know?" 

"I see. That's… A very tough, adult decision to have to make. You are very brave." 

"Eheheh… Thanks." Gregory awkwardly laughed. He didn't feel all that brave. 

"I was curious about before then, though." Chica spoke softly. Gregory only stared at her, confused. 

"I never messed with your code before that. I would know, your code was a pain in the ass especially ." Gregory muttered. The broken commands that caused her to eat trash had basically destroyed half her code, so Chica had taken far longer than the other two in that respect. He would remember messing with that any other time. 

"Are you sure?" Chica asked again, to no avail as Gregory only shook his head. 

"I'd remember." 

Chica hummed, and continued forward towards the daycare shutters– blocked, but a nearby vent accessible via catwalk could get him through. He wasn't entirely sure about Chica, though. 

He did begin to question what she'd said, however. What if he was wrong? What if he wouldn't remember? 

Gregory tucked the thought away at the back of his mind. 

He could think about that later. 

Chapter Text

The jingling of bells and tumbling of objects a short distance away from Cassie was the clamor of noise to wake her up. She groaned and rubbed at her head, feeling better than when she'd last been conscious, though still barely able to think. She didn't feel much like taking in her surroundings immediately. All she really recognised as her eyes adjusted was that her surroundings were brighter than before, the quiet hum of electricity nearby soothing to the ears. 

"Ohh you're awake! Little girl, please lay back down and rest!" A familiar voice chimed. Cassie rubbed at her eyes as the daycare attendant slowly came into view. He seemed to be Sun right now, frantically waving his arms around in an attempt to stop Cassie from moving any further.

Cassie sighed and decided to obey him, although rolled on her non-injured side to see him. 

"What am I doing here? I was… In the sinkhole…." 

"Oh, someone kindly brought you up here! You were injured badly– I don't know why all the first aid stations are out of order…" The animatronic seemed to think for a moment. "But you're in luck! I was first aid trained!" He skipped closer to her, taking her hand. "How do you feel?!" 

"Uhhh…. Fine, I guess..?" Cassie cleared her throat. "My head hurts and my leg still aches… I'm super out of it." 

"You'll be alright! You just need to go home and rest up!" The sun animatronic chuckled, as if Cassie would have a parent or carer just appear and take her home that moment. Of course, that wasn't possible. 

"Can I just rest here for a while, please?" Cassie asked politely, knowing Roxy must have taken her to the daycare and would likely come looking again. But where was she now? Why would she have left her side? 

Sun hummed curiously at Cassie's question. 

"Well, maybe, but… It's closing time in an hour!" He wrung his hands out, looking around wildly. "Oh, I can't believe I even have a guest with all of this mess everywhere! Let alone that you'd need to stay..! But, if we have to wait for your parents, that's okay!" 

Cassie sighed. She probably couldn't stick around, it was safer not to, right? She had to get out– and with her in the daycare already, that meant she didn't have far to go. But what if Roxy did come looking for her? Would she know Cassie had left? No, thinking about this can come later , Cassie realised, I need to get out of here first. 

"I'm fifteen, now… I can go find my dad on my own, it's okay, really. He'll take me to a hospital, too, so I'll be much better!" Cassie sat up once more, ignoring the Sun's frantic hand shakes again. "I don't have far to go, I'll take it easy!" 

"But your leg! You can't walk on your leg!" 

"I could use something as a crutch..?" Cassie shrugged, sheepishly grinning. " Please ? At least let me try?" She put on her most innocent face, one she was usually using on her dad to get the last cookie out of the jar, or the last chocolate bar in a pack of five. It always worked on him; and it seemed to work on robots too, since the sun animatronic grabbed at his face and whined. 

"Oh, okay..! I trust you'll be careful…" He spun his head around like an owl, studying the surroundings to look for something vaguely reminiscent of a crutch. "Oh!" He danced over to a pipe, then spun back to Cassie and held it out like she was being knighted. "Will this work? I know it isn't exactly what you need, but, but! I think it will do the job just fine! But, please , be careful…" The sun looked nervous– despite his unmoving facial features, his body language gave it away. 

Cassie chuckled. 

"Yes! That's great, thank you." She took the metal pipe from The Daycare Attendant, slowly lowering herself to the ground after doing so. It took a moment to get a good enough balance, but she just about managed with it and took a few steps forward. The crutch wasn't great, a little too short for her liking, but it would suffice until the dull ache left her leg. 

"Are you okay? Does it hurt? Is it not fun? Do you need help? Do you?!" Sun frantically yelped, looking all around Cassie for any signs of pain. She quietly laughed him off, waving her free hand. 

"Relax, I'm okay! I can get out now and go home. Thank you so much for helping me!" Cassie slowly went up to the animatronic and awkwardly hugged him, not wanting to lose her balance nor cut herself on the jagged plastic and metal jutting out of the thing. The robot seemed a little surprised, carefully wrapping its arms around her. 

"Awww, okay! Please take care little girl!" As Cassie backed away, he twirled over to the doors and pulled them open, tilting his head and waving. Cassie waved back, smiling and leaving the daycare play area; she paused as she passed the doors. She felt bad about the fact that the animatronic was programmed to continually clean as if guests would come tomorrow morning, and that he would be left here all alone.

It would be okay though, right? Fazbear Entertainment was supposed to be reopening the place. She highly doubted that would seriously happen, with the disgusting state of the place… Although it was likely they'd at least come back for the robots. The company likes cutting corners, her dad had said not long before the Pizzaplex fell; they'll always be back, no matter what, and don't like spending a ton of money on a set of brand new animatronics. Also keeps maintenance costs low, apparently.

"Have a Faz-eriffic day!" The daycare attendant chimed as the doors closed in Cassie's face. She hummed to herself, feeling a little guilty, but deciding not to overthink it. She couldn't exactly sneak the robot across town, anyway– she'd already considered that with Roxy before shutting the idea down. Even if she tried, her dad wouldn't be super jazzed about the idea when he got home. It was for the better this way. 

Cassie began to walk, slipping on the VANNI mask so that the endoskeletons ahead of her didn't notice her ambling by. The MXES system was down now, so it wasn't like they'd be appearing to send the bots after her anytime soon– another thing she felt sort-of guilty about. Now that thing that pretended to be Gregory was free, and… 

She sighed, needing to sit down for a moment. She was still in utter disbelief at what Gregory had done– he'd seemed so kind , so caring of a friend, and yet he'd done that? She couldn't fathom why. How . Even if it was for the safety of everyone else on earth or something, surely that rotten endoskeleton could find another way out, just as Cassie had found another way in? 

She couldn't understand it. Gregory was a mysterious kid, but not one she'd think capable of harming anyone– especially not after what he'd said only a year ago that very day. 

"From now on, I'll be by your side no matter what!" 

==

August 11th, 2033. It should've been the happiest day of the year for Cassie, as it was every year. 

She'd pulled out all the stops, hosting her thirteenth birthday party at the Pizzaplex and inviting everyone she knew– even the popular girls who'd giggled a little at her fancy, hand-made glittery invites behind her back thinking she wouldn't hear. Or maybe they knew she'd hear, and that's why they made fun of it– didn't matter. What mattered was that everyone should be there, since it was an entire class, neighbors, even some of the kids in the grade above her, that had gotten invites. 

But that was the thing. Nobody was there. Even after an hour, no one had turned up. Her dad was busy working, too, she couldn't run to him– nor did she want to. She felt like he'd be embarrassed by the scene of his thirteen-year-old daughter running to him for help. 

So, she wouldn't run to him… But she still couldn't stop herself crying. It started as a sniffle, then broke into a sob as the reality of the situation clicked in her brain; nobody , not even her apparent friends , had shown up to her birthday party. Not even any random strangers wanting free cake had sat at the table!

Cassie ran from the atrium, not wanting anyone in the crowded hall to notice her, slinking away into a dark corner of a hallway that was probably not meant for guests to use. She didn't care, though… She needed to be alone. To wonder what she'd done wrong, why she'd put her heart into every word on every individual invite only to have it torn away from her. 

The minutes that passed as she cried into her knees felt like hours. Her Roxy-themed makeup smudged into her legs and ran down her face, her tears not stopping but her heavy breathing calming down after a while. Cassie wasn't sure how long– could've been a couple of minutes, but it sure didn't feel like it. She fell silent, still sniffling and hiding her head in shame. 

She hadn't heard someone approach until the very last moment, a shuffling footstep several paces down the hall. Cassie slowly looked up at the person encroaching in her space, scared it would be someone there to tell her off– only it wasn't. 

It was a kid, not much older than her, backing away from a turn in the hall and staring down it with a muddled expression. He spun around, looking disorientated, then had to double take at Cassie. He looked like he'd just walked out of a spaceship with how confused his expression read; and possibly a bush given the state of his hair, his knees and Freddy-themed outfit covered in faded dirt. 

Cassie didn't speak, and went back to hiding her head. The strange boy was probably exploring, hiding from staff and cameras… Or a weirdo. She didn't want to continue acknowledging him in case he talked to her. 

Unfortunately for Cassie, his slow, shuffling footsteps drew closer. 

"Hey, there… Are you okay?" 

Cassie exhaled sharply, raising her head again. 

"Do I look okay to you?" 

"No… Sorry. Dumb question." The boy kneeled beside her, clearing his throat. He still looked a little out of it, but attempted a smile. "You know this isn't a party room, right?" When Cassie remained silent, he frowned a little. "I know you don't know me, and I don't know you, but… You look like you need some help right now. So… Do you wanna talk about it?" He attempted a soft smile again. He was being friendly, the first person to do so to Cassie today. Maybe she could talk to him, just a little… It could help. 

"Yeah. It's just that… I.. It's my birthday today, and I'm supposed to be having this… Really awesome party." She barely smiled at the thought of what she'd wanted for the day. "But then…" She teared up again, and avoided the boy's eyes out of embarrassment. "Nobody showed up." 

She expected the boy to laugh at her. But then, to Cassie's surprise, he scoffed and rolled his eyes. 

"Their loss! You can have a great party without those losers." He paused, searching his pocket for something while sticking out his tongue at an angle. He produced a napkin, slightly dirty in one corner, and held it out for her. "Happy birthday by the way, uhhh…" 

"Cassie." She gingerly took the napkin, wiping her eyes and being sure to avoid the dirt patch. "It's Cassie." 

"Cassie! My name's… Gregory. He paused for a moment as if he'd forgotten. It almost made Cassie laugh. "Why would nobody show up anyway? I've known you for like, twenty seconds, and you're already super cool in my opinion." He got off his knees and sat in the same position as Cassie. 

"Ehh…" Cassie shrugged. "I think people just don't like me. I'm the weird kid of my class, I guess… People always laugh at my drawings, and my interests– people don't like that Roxy's my favorite, either. Even my friends didn't like me enough to come." 

Gregory tilted his head like a confused puppy. "That's lame. I think these people just suck. Thank god they didn't come to your party." 

Cassie chuckled, finally laughing for the first time since entering the Pizzaplex. Maybe Gregory was right about that… Maybe she needed better friends. 

"Yeah… You're right." 

"You bet I am! Also, Roxy's a pretty normal favorite to have. There's nothing weird about that! I bet she'd love your makeup, too!" Gregory grinned. Cassie's face soured as she realized her makeup was now an absolute mess . 

"I don't think so. It's ruined now…" 

"Nahhh. Looks better that way." He kept smiling, and it became infectious. Cassie giggled, nodding.

"Yeah. Y'know what, it does!" 

Gregory chuckled too, then gently nudged her. 

"Hey, since those losers wanted to ruin your day, how about we go do something way cooler than a deluxe party package?" 

"What do you mean by that?" 

Gregory smirked. "A while back, I found a way into the old Foxy's Wild West attraction. The whole thing is hidden behind the hair salon, and half of it still works! We could, y'know… Sneak in?" 

Cassie's eyes widened. 

"I can't do that! What if we get caught? My dad will lose his job!" 

"Hey, relax! First of all, I'm a master at breaking and entering. Second of all…" He stood up and held out a hand. "I'm not gonna let you get in trouble. Trust me." 

Cassie deliberated the choice… For about ten seconds. Then she sighed and took his hand, pulling herself up and grinning. She didn't care for the rules right now, rather wanting to have fun. She was nervous about going somewhere she shouldn't… But she also felt a little like breaking the rules for just one day. 

"Okay! Where are we going?" 

"Just follow me." Gregory started down the hall, from the direction he'd entered. Cassie followed behind, constantly checking behind her for staff. 

She really hoped he wasn't tricking her. 

==

By the end of the day, Cassie had smiled so much her face hurt. Despite the lack of people turning up, she managed to enjoy it more than any other party she'd ever had! 

As promised, Gregory snuck the two of them into the old west area of the Pizzaplex through an unguarded door near the salon, and they managed to ride what little there was left of it before quickly fleeing at the sight of a security guard. They went on to enjoy the various attractions one by one (avoiding some of the more… Annoying ones, as Gregory put it), took photos and won prizes in the Fazcade. Gregory had won a Freddy-talky, while Cassie had won a giant Roxy plush toy. She also actually got to meet Roxy, after all! 

It was a day she wouldn't forget anytime soon; so good, that she was disappointed when she had to go home at the end of the day. Her dad was waiting near the gates at the lobby, grinning ear to ear as he noticed her. Cassie gave a smile back, but didn't run over just yet. She turned to Gregory first, who was staring off into the distance with his face twisted into a quizzical, almost slightly upset-looking expression. 

"Hey, Gregory? You okay?" Cassie placed a hand on his shoulder. He flinched at the movement, making Cassie immediately regret it, frowning and removing her hand. 

"Huh? Oh yeah, uh, sorry. Just lost my train of thought." 

"Oh… Well, I've gotta go home now, so… It was super nice meeting you, and I wanna say… Thanks. I think my party would've been awful if not for you. I still can't believe nobody showed up after I thought they… That they liked me. They said we were friends, after all." She exhaled with a glare, then softly smiled. "Who knew a total stranger would make the day actually fun?" 

"No prob. Strangers are just friends waiting to happen." Gregory raised his finger matter-of-factly. "And, friendship isn't just a word. It's a meaning ." 

" Woah ." Cassie gasped, "I didn't expect you to say something like that!" 

"Well, I'm just full of surprises." Gregory winked and chuckled. "It was really cool meeting you too. I don't know how anyone couldn't like you, honestly." He shrugged nonchalantly and shoved his hands in his pockets, then tapped his foot on the floor quietly. His face contorted into another thoughtful one before he spoke again. "Do you wanna hang out again soon? I uh… I'm at this place a lot, usually in the arcade, so…" 

Cassie hummed. 

"Yeah. That'd be nice. Wait, do we not go to the same school? I swear I might've seen you around before, a long time ago, with two other guys…" Gregory seemed to tense up slightly at that, shaking his head. 

"Maybe. We must be in different classes or something. Anyway, your dad looks like he's gonna explode if you don't go over to him soon, so maybe you should go?" He chuckled, pointing at the man now pacing the entrance while holding two paper bags likely full of gifts. Cassie giggled, nodding at the boy. 

"Yeah, I should. I'll see you around?" 

"Yeah. See ya." Gregory waved, but paused. "Oh, uh, Cassie?" 

"Yeah?" 

"If you ever need a friend from now on, I don't mind being that friend. I kinda haven't talked to anyone in a while… It gets lonely, y'know?"

"Yeah… Yeah. I think we can be super good friends." Cassie nodded, smiling again. 

"Great! In that case…" Gregory stepped closer, holding out his hand. Cassie slowly took it, returning the shake Gregory suddenly gave it. "From now on, I'll be by your side no matter what!" 

==

Cassie held back tears as she remembered the day. It truly was one she considered her best, yet now it was tainted– ruined by who she thought was her best friend. Surely there'd be an explanation, a reason, anything! She had to find out what was up with Gregory, and why he'd decided dropping his so-called bestie down an elevator shaft was his greatest idea yet. 

Getting up and adjusting the makeshift-crutch-pipe once again to walk, she heaved a heavy sigh. She would find Gregory and ask him what the hell was up. 

And she wouldn't stop until she knew the truth. 

Chapter Text

Getting into the daycare without the V.A.N.N.I. mask wasn't as difficult as Gregory had first assumed it'd be. A vent led directly into the attraction, after all! Although… Chica would still have to find a different way through. He was put a little at ease with that as he waved goodbye, remaining wary of the animatronic and the chance of her messed-up programming reactivating at any given moment. 

Once he'd entered the wrecked hall, he headed straight towards the theatre. While yes, he was supposed to be going to the Daycare Attendant (who would help with his injuries due to the first aid here being out of order after all), he'd rather not see that thing ever again. He would survive a little scrape, anyway. Cassie mattered more to him than a little injury– or even a big one, really. 

He didn't want to rest, or waste a single second he could be spending getting to her. He'd wasted enough time with Chica. 

But then, Gregory paused. Looking ahead of him, he realised he wasn't alone. The endoskeletons were all roaming around up here, now stood frozen in a line all staring directly at him. He couldn't be certain how their programming was reacting right now, whether they'd try to harm him or not.

He backed away slowly, keeping his eyes trained on the metal frames. He glanced to the daycare play area and back again– they came closer. He didn't trust them one bit. Maybe getting through the daycare was the only way past the wall of endos after all, though the idea made Gregory groan in annoyance. Seriously, again? At least this time it looked like the lights were on. If the celestial animatronic was still hanging around there, it'd probably be stuck as the sun right now. Sun didn't seem dangerous, seemingly exempt from the strange code that made the others go berserk. Moon was a different story. 

Not wanting to take any chances with the endoskeletons, Gregory hopped up onto a broken statue part, and what was originally part of the staircase, onto a hardened foam ledge. From there he climbed the netting a little to find a hole, clambered through and landed in a ball pit (that was luckily still full). 

Immediately, Gregory switched his flashlight off and hopped out of the pit, ducking behind it. Sun's head turned one-eighty-degrees and scanned the area, pausing to watch the pit carefully. Soon enough he decided he'd heard nothing important and went back to cleaning up rubber mats and shapes. 

Gregory let out the breath he didn't realise he'd been holding, then looked around. The exit doors were on the other side of the play area, and the play structures were easily accessible; it wouldn't be too hard to sneak by and get out that way. He just had to stay quiet– something he was always good at when he needed to be. 

Darting into a structure, he hid behind a fallen Roxy head cutout and kept his breathing slow, freezing in place in hopes the animatronic wouldn't notice the footsteps– luckily, he was simply humming the Pizzaplex theme song, having heard nothing. It was then that Gregory began crawling through the huge structure, making it a good enough distance before being forced to change course. 

He didn't remember the layout, nor had he been in the structures since the Pizzaplex had fallen into disrepair; so navigating was not only difficult, but confusing and annoying. The place was a mess, and he was navigating in the dark to avoid Sun seeing his flashlight. Gregory huffed quietly in despair. 

He'd gotten turned around about five times and was beginning to get angry, but then a booming noise sounded all around him, every light in the room and every electrical device being completely wiped out in a wave. The sudden silence was deafening. 

Gregory held his breath again, looking over at the animatronic. It was already gone. Gregory could hear it protesting to itself from nearby, fighting for control. 

"No! No! I-It's not naptime yet! It… No, I need light! Need, need, need… No more Sun! No more light! Forever, and ever, night!" a cackle erupted around the daycare. Gregory hid in the dark dead end he'd gotten stuck at, thinking through his options. 

Now, Moon was free. Gregory was in far more danger than before. But, he'd done this already– the power went out and he'd dealt with Moon. He could do it again! He just had to stay low, stay focused, and above all, stay quiet . After all, this time Moon didn't even know he was there. 

… The Faz-Watch beeped a little tune. 

Gregory struggled to muffle the noise, glaring at the watch once it fell silent. He checked the notification:

Freddy: Hello, Gregory! Vanessa and I are at the entrance! Could you tell me where you are?  

Gregory scowled, and waited, eyeing his surroundings, fearing Moon would jump out at him… But he never did. Even after what felt like an hour had passed– checking the watch, it'd only been 5 minutes– Moon did not seem to have heard it. He was still absorbed in keeping control of himself, screaming about night lasting forever and the Sun being in an eternal nap. 

Gregory began moving forward once more, sneaking around the structures until he got to an opening; he'd need to run across to the other structures now, so he was especially at risk. 

…But it was his only choice if he wanted to get out. Exhaling softly, looking left and right before making his move, he dashed across the opening; luckily the rubber, cushioned flooring mostly hid his footsteps. He was halfway across the area, hopping over a tumbled cage, when the watch beeped again. 

Freddy: Gregory, please do not ignore me. I know you did not want to be followed, but we cannot risk you being harmed. Where are you? 

Gregory looked all around hinself wildly as a chuckle seemed to surround him from all sides. His head began to hurt. His eyes stung. He felt dizzy. A number of sudden symptoms he could only describe as his fear turning to panic. No. I can't act like this right now. I need to get out of here. 

Gregory took a step, aiming to run again, but his arm was immediately grabbed before he could get anywhere. He found himself yanked back, now facing the Moon side of the Daycare Attendant. 

"Naughty boyyyy! You shouldn't be running around here so late at night!" He hissed, throwing Gregory back. He stumbled away, but managed to keep himself upright. "It's time for your nap!" Moon bitterly yelled, reaching for Gregory again. He had to run! 

He started rushing towards the doors, his legs going numb and his breath feeling shallow. He choked on the air, feeling like his lungs were filling up with cotton wool. Everything got so loud, and yet so quiet at the same time, his vision tinting darker and white stars sparkling, dancing across his vision. He paused, attempting to catch his breath, but it never came back– so, he tried to keep running. 

…Only to end up immediately on the ground. Gregory wheezed, feeling winded, the world spinning around above him. Moon's round head came into view as he took hold of the boy by the shirt, lifting him up and pulling him right to his face, which tilted to show a grinning row of humanoid teeth. 

"Nighty niiiiiight!~" He giggled menacingly, but it was now muffled to Gregory's ears. He felt himself be dropped to the floor, his vision fading to black as his head hit the tile. 

==

"Cobol?" 

Everything felt wrong. It was so cold, and yet he could feel nothing at all. A disturbing numbness travelled deep within his nervous system, giving him the illusion that he was floating. He was in a soft, gentle and quiet slumber that he couldn't yet wake from. 

"Cobol..?" 

It was peaceful, and yet, something kept tugging back at reality in an attempt to break his tranquillity. A dull ache resonated in his abdomen which only grew with each passing second. Eventually it became unbearable, agonising. It felt like a twisting knife. He would soon surely scream out in pain. 

"Cobol! Hello?!" 

"Huh?!" He snapped to reality, wiping his eyes and squinting. His vision was still blurred for a moment, but once focused, his eyes took in a corkboard full of newspaper clippings, family photos, and a number of scribbled sticky notes in a cleared-out central area reading beginning, rise, climax, fall, catastrophe. At the side of the board was a photo of his two friends; Ellis Acosta and Tony Becker. He was there too, in between them with a sly grin and one arm around each of them. And he was…

He was at his friend Tony Becker's house. Something didn't feel right, though… But that could wait. He'd clearly been out of it for a little while there. 

"Did you listen to anything I just said?" Tony asked, his arms crossed and an eyebrow raised. The boy laughed and shrugged sheepishly. 

"Might've been in another world for a sec, sorry." 

"Oooh, what was it like?" Ellis leaned forward, grinning at him. "Did you see any cute girls? Or boys?" He laughed. Tony rolled his eyes. 

"Will you both please take this seriously?! I thought you actually wanted to help with this assignment, for once?" Tony scoffed, looking at the floor. The boy– he'd been called Cobol– couldn't help but feel bad for his joke. 

"Dude, we always help. We're your editors! Can't have it going to Soto with grammatical errors and silly mistakes, as you always say." Ellis raised his finger matter-of-factly. Cobol got up off the bed and sat in front of his two friends, eyeing the papers on the floor. 

"Yeah, but that's not helping me actually write it , is it?" 

"Well, you're the one who says it messes with your flow when we–" 

"Shh!" Cobol hushed them, getting their attention and pointing at the pages. "What are we writing this story about, anyway?" 

Tony stared at him as if he was about to burst a blood vessel in his head. 

"Are you serious, Cobol?! We've been working on this for almost a whole week! Or, I guess, I have! Mrs. Soto reminded us about this literally…" He checked the clock behind him. "An hour and a half ago!" 

"Sorry. Must've been paying attention to something else." Cobol shrugged, but found himself frowning a little. It wasn't that he'd been distracted again, as he usually was doodling instead of listening– no, he simply didn't remember. This wasn't just a slip of the mind, either. He felt like he couldn't remember anything that'd happened all week. Maybe he was just tired, though. 

"Jeez, Cobol…" Tony huffed. Before he could continue, Cobol interrupted, remaining curious why he was being called that name. Was it his name? It didn't feel like it was supposed to be his name. Yet for some reason, he just couldn't recall. 

"Why do you keep calling me that?" He tilted his head like a confused puppy. Ellis was amused, while Tony's eyes narrowed. 

"Cobol. The thing you wanted to be your numb de plumb?" Ellis teased, smirking at the scolding look he received from Tony. "I'm Junkrat, and this is Burgundy." He introduced himself and Tony's pen names with an exaggerated voice, giving a bow. 

Cobol stayed quiet as Burgundy passed him a paper with plenty of nicely handwritten words on it, as well as a printed sheet. "Here's the first draft and the assignment. Ring any bells?" Cobol ignored Junkrat's snicker and focused on the page. 

He'd been right. He didn't remember this. Not a word. He felt his chest tighten and his head hurt as the reality of something being wrong set in. His hands began to tremble, and his friends noticed. 

"What? Bro, you got amnesia or something? Get replaced with a doppelganger? What's this whole act for?" Junkrat laughed, but Burgundy didn't. He looked concerned. After a few moments, Junkrat stopped laughing and awkwardly fell silent. Now he, too, looked a tad worried. 

"Cobol? What's wrong?" Burgundy gently took hold of Cobol's wrist, causing him to flinch a little. He looked back up at the other boy, trying to put on a smile. 

"I'm fine! Just uhh.. Got scared of how good your writing is." He managed to fake a laugh well enough that Junkrat chuckled, although still the two seemed to know something was off. 

"...I'm gonna just… I'll be right back." Cobol scrambled up and went into the bathroom, staring at himself in the mirror. Things started coming back to him slowly, but even then, he was still confused. 

His name was Gregory Bowman. 

He was working on a creative writing project for school with his two friends. 

His mom gave him money and said they could all go to the Pizzaplex after working on the project, before waving him away without a goodbye. 

For some reason, he felt sick when he thought of these people, as he did when he remembered his name. 

What was wrong with him..? 

Before he could question how the scar on his cheek had disappeared and his missing front tooth had magically grown back, everything went to black and his body felt numb once more. 

==

Gregory woke up again in class. He didn't remember anything from the lesson and got himself in detention because of it. He'd blacked out in the middle of that. 

Next, he woke up in the Pizzaplex, watching… Bonnie..? But again, blacked out before he could make sense of it. 

Then, he woke up in the Pizzaplex again, in a hall. He stumbled through it, then came across Cassie. He spent the whole day with her, but it played more like a slideshow in flashes– before he blacked out once again, near Fazerblast. 

Next, he was… At home. He hadn't been there in a long time after he'd run away. Wait, he'd run away? Why did he do that again? He blacked out just as he noticed red, stained footprints on the carpet. 

The Pizzaplex again. He stood beside Freddy, who was sitting hooked up to a machine. The screen read a number of messages, but upon squinting he made one specific line of code out. 'PROTECT GGY {REJECT ALL VARIABLES}'. He blacked out. All feeling was gone again. 

==

It stayed dark for what felt like hours. Slowly, but surely, light came back into Gregory's vision. He'd awoken in the school library, standing before an irritated Tony. Strangely, he didn't remember this memory either; all of these memories were a blur, or completely absent from his mind. Whatever Gregory was experiencing right now, he just wished it would end . It was making him feel sick. It made him feel scared . 

"Thanks, Greg ." Tony exaggerated politeness in his tone, then scowled. Gregory frowned, confused at the situation. "See you tomorrow." 

Wait! What's wrong? 

Tony? 

Tony?! 

The words didn't come out. 

The words didn't come out. 

Gregory waved, but he didn't want to. He grinned, cocking his head. He wasn't doing this. He was studying Tony for a few moments, looking him up and down as if he were a predator surveying his prey, searching for weakness. Gregory tried to pull himself away, but he couldn't move. He wanted to scream at Tony to run, because something was seriously wrong, that this wasn't him, but he couldn't make a sound. 

He noticed Tony's face scrunch up a little in discomfort, which only made him feel worse. This… 'Fake Gregory' was scaring his friend, and who knew what else it wanted to do? 

His body turned and began to walk away. Gregory exhaled, happy that Fake Gregory would be away from his Tony. He wasn't sure what'd happened, but Tony looked upset and uncomfortable the entire time. It made him feel unwell. 

Unfortunately, Fake Gregory spun on his heels after a few steps and took one step back towards Tony. “Listen,” Fake Gregory spoke, sounding exactly the same as he did, “how about you meet me at the Pizzaplex when you get out of

here. In an hour or so? I have some people I want you to meet. We’ll

have some fun, and you’ll forget all about the story and getting

detention.”

Story? Detention? What was he talking about? Why would Tony get detention? That simply wasn't something Tony did. If ever he did, he'd be in there beside Gregory and Ellis. Had Fake Gregory, or Ellis for that matter, dragged him into something? Was it their usual messing around gone wrong? 

Tony didn't look too interested in the idea of the Pizzaplex, ignoring Fake Gregory's invitation entirely. He only pressed further, however. “Come on, say yes. We’ll get you cheered up.”

Once again, the world went back to darkness and Gregory felt nothing. 

==

Gregory woke one final time to find himself at the Pizzaplex again, standing with Tony. He was twirling around some kind of arcade pass on a lanyard like a toy, while Tony stared at him in a mix of horror, anger, and fear. He didn't recognise this memory either. 

"You're GGY. Y-You. Gregory. GGY. I should've seen this, I should've known, but… You? A murderer?! That's not you! That's not…" Tony's breath caught in his throat as he backed away. 

Gregory stared at him, unable to speak. 

Murderer? 

No. He wasn't. He'd never hurt anyone, and Tony knew that. Fake Gregory was setting him up. That thing… Wasn't him. It couldn't be.  

"You're good , Tony Becker. You're very clever. I knew you were on my trail a while ago. That's why I had Freddy follow you." Right on cue, the animatronic bear appeared nearby, staring at Tony with a blank, eerie expression. Gregory couldn't believe it… He was hallucinating, that was it! He was just having nightmares or something, it had to be that! There was no way that any of this could be real. 

"I couldn't let you spill my secrets to everyone, now, could I? Couldn't have you telling anyone what happened to those people. I needed to clean up my loose ends, and I thought that was just the Bowmans– until I read your little story, of course." Fake Gregory snorted. Tony backed away, scrambling for any escape and looking for any weapon he could use at all. Unfortunately, nothing was around him. 

"Your… Parents? Greg, did you… Did you kill your own…" 

"Shush now, Becker." Fake Gregory hushed him, taking a step closer. "Nobody will ever know who the mysterious GGY is, nor what he did, just like how nobody will ever find you." Fake Gregory's voice twisted into something dripping with malice as he pulled out a boxcutter from his pocket. 

Tony tried to run, but Freddy grabbed him and forced him into the nearest wall, causing him to cry out in pain. Gregory yelled out for him, tried to hit Freddy, anything, but nothing worked. 

He couldn't do anything but watch .

"It's a shame, though. I was hoping I wouldn't have to do this. Nobody would've batted an eye if Gregory Bowman went missing, a kid with well off parents that never even loved him. Parents are gonna disappear the same day, after all." Fake Gregory scoffed. Gregory felt his heart sink. He realised what this was, now. "Although, I guess it'd be easy to pass off your disappearance too. Plenty of people had it out for your dad, after all." 

"Let me go!" Tony screamed, thrashing and flailing around in an attempt to get away. "I wish you did go missing! I wish I'd never met you!" Tony screamed, his eyes full of tears. The words cut Gregory to the core. Please! That's not me! I'd never hurt you! 

"Don't worry. I'll go missing soon. I just need this body a little longer…" Fake Gregory hissed. Tony stared, confused, reading Fake Gregory's face as if studying for a test. It was a behaviour he often showed when he was questioning someone, searching their face for the truth, or for a lie. "No… No, no, you're not…" 

"Goodbye, Tony Becker." Fake Gregory waved and smirked, then stabbed Tony in the stomach. Gregory felt the pain in his own stomach and wanted to double over, but he still couldn't move. Fake Gregory did nothing more, letting Freddy take over. 

Gregory had to watch. 

He was forced to. 

Forced to watch as his friend was brutally murdered right before his eyes. Forced to realise everything, for every detail of the last two years to finally be in the light; not forgotten, not hidden, no longer compartmentalised. 

He was the one holding the knife. Giving the orders. 

But by 'he', he didn't mean himself, really. He meant that thing. 

The Mimic . 

==

Gregory sat up and screamed, backing away and falling off a table onto the floor. He heard the Daycare Attendant, now Sun once more, frantically yelp for him to not do something . But Gregory couldn't hear, he could only see the images replaying in his head on a loop. 

He got up, and ran. Out of the doors, out of the daycare, into a corner of the theatre where he skidded to a stop and hid away, his legs unable to carry him further. He breathed heavily, so heavily he felt like he couldn't breathe at all. He was shivering, unable to focus, the images still in his mind. He wanted to vomit, but at the same time couldn't even bring himself to do that . He grabbed at his hair, squeezing his eyes shut tight. 

Tony wasn't just missing. 

He was dead. 

He was dead, and he'd killed him. 

That thing was in his head. It'd controlled him just as it had Vanessa. 

It surrounded Gregory, everything wrong with his life being able to be pinned on that awful robot. 

He'd often wondered if it affected him, since he had a strange kind of amnesia for the past two years… Like he hadn't even been there for them. 

But that could have been explained by other problems he'd had, right? 

He hadn't liked overthinking it. Besides, Vanessa would have told him. She'd worked here and been under his control for that whole duration, and was able to remember everything. 

She should have told him, but she didn't. She'd lied to him. Kept this from him. 

"Why did you edit my code?" 

He'd shaken his head. "I'd remember." 

He hadn't remembered. 

Gregory couldn't handle it. Despite the fact he always tried his hardest not to cry, nor to show much emotion at all that could make him feel weaker, he felt the act crumbling away quickly. It was all too much, all too overwhelming. 

He felt every negative emotion at once. He wanted to scream, to destroy the place, to hide, to die , but he couldn't change anything. 

What'd happened, happened . 

He curled up on the floor and, for the first time in several years, Gregory let himself cry. He yelled into the carpeted floor, punched at it, pulled at his hair, as if any of it would get the thoughts to go away. 

But nothing changed. Nothing could be changed. He knew now that this was reality . 

And right now, he really hated that stupid robot. He really hated Vanessa. Freddy. His parents. Anyone that could have possibly contributed in the slightest to getting that thing in his hea–

Gregory froze, gulping down a heavy lump in his throat and staring at his quivering hands. 

It was still there.

The Mimic was still in his head. 

Chapter Text

Cassie had been progressing through the Pizzaplex at a less-than-steady pace for around an hour, the pipe-crutch causing her sluggishness– but she had no other choice, unless she wanted to make her leg feel worse. The catwalks would've been almost impossible to navigate if she hadn't already activated everything she needed to get past the area previously. That being said, the slippery surfaces were difficult to deal with. 

The fall down to the gondola ride could've seriously injured Cassie given her pre-existing injuries, but luckily a rubber mat had been left close enough to the empty spot between gondolas on the inactive ride that she could land safely enough, and continue forward. The vent before that was an especially difficult thing to navigate, though. 

By now she'd made it to Chica's Bakery, choosing to sit on a half-broken and splintered bench to rest for a while. She couldn't walk as far as she wanted right now, but it was okay– it would be okay. She just had to get to someplace where she could access the entrance again. Besides, the power had decided to go out while she was sitting there, and she didn't feel like walking in total darkness for a bit– even with the flashlight she'd scooped up in the Daycare. 

When power was restored, Cassie found herself staring blankly into the space before her, trying her hardest to remember the layout of the Pizzaplex for a clue on where to head next. A broken, static-filled voice suddenly came through her Roxy talky. 

"C-a–ie… C–sie…" 

The voice was that of Roxy herself, broken already from her damages but also due to the unstable connection to the talky. Cassie swiftly pulled the talky out of her back pocket, silently cursing at how stretching her arm there caused her muscles to sting, and pushed the button on the receiver. 

"Roxy?! You're breaking up, but I can hear you. Are you okay..?" 

"Y…s.. Wh..re…. you?" 

"I'm at the cupcake shop. I'm sorry for leaving the Daycare, I just wanted to look for answers. Um… How are you talking to me, actually?" 

"Stole…. Gre….talk…" The words could barely be made out, but Cassie understood. Stole Gregory's talky. Cassie smiled to herself. 

"Okay..! Why are you breaking up so much? Where are you?" 

"Rac….way…needed……..so….ing."

"Okay…I'll try to get a little closer and we can talk again, okay?" Cassie sighed, pulling herself back up. Although she wanted to rest really badly, she also wanted to help Roxy. The thought of sneaking her across town, at this point, honestly sounded like a much better idea than running around looking for evidence of foul play. Gregory wasn't even at the Pizzaplex, what could she hope to gain here? 

She could look for clues another time, anyway. That thing was still in the basement, and if Gregory could really drop his 'best friend', which could've killed her, over that? It had to be seriously bad. She'd be better off well-rested, healed, and with a weapon– also, possibly, a six-to-seven-foot tall wolf animatronic– than in her current situation. 

"Tha….you. See… ou… Cassie."

Cassie placed the talky back in her pocket and grabbed the slender metal pipe, propping herself on it and beginning the walk through the area. She shoved on the mask to pass a blockage, and took note of the mysterious lack of Chica. 

Maybe she was just in the other kitchen area? It didn't really matter. With M.X.E.S. nonfunctional, it was likely Chica would be a nice, normal, friendly robot chicken again. If that was the case, Cassie kind of hoped she'd run into her– Chica had always been her second favorite. The only thing she didn't like about her was her tendency to stare at people uncomfortably… It always gave her bad vibes, even if she knew it was a glitch and wasn't exactly Chica's fault. 

Cassie continued on past a pile of rubble, replaying the elevator incident in her head, over and over again. It made rage bubble up inside her, along with a number of other emotions she couldn't quite describe. Betrayal. It was an emotion she'd gotten used to feeling, thanks to plenty of kids pretending to be her friend before turning their backs on her the moment she took the wrong step. She should've been able to shrug off Gregory's deed, right? 

But she couldn't. It wasn't just because it was suddenly much more serious than not letting her sit at the lunch table– it was because Gregory had truly been a friend to her. The best she could've asked for after years of people taking advantage of her kindness. 

And the times after her birthday proved he should've been a friend she could trust. 

==

A few days after her birthday, Cassie had gotten a text on her phone from an unknown number. "Hey. Is this Cassie? It's Gregory." She was shocked to see it sitting there in her notification tray, immediately opening it and typing out the question of how he'd even got the number. She realised the answer at the same time he'd sent a second message– Her number was on the invite. She'd given him a copy at the party (which he'd commented on looking amazing, then added lightning bolts claiming it looked more eye-catching and cool that way). 

He asked if he could come over, and it was a particularly stormy day, so of course she told him "Wouldn't it be better to stay home?" But he refused, said he didn't want to spend his whole day there alone. So then, she let him come over. 

Gregory looked the same standing on her doorstep as he had at the Pizzaplex, but somehow worse than before. More tired, paler, hair messier with evidence of it being cut with something that definitely wasn't scissors, covered in dirt, cuts, bruises and scrapes, and wearing the same clothes as he did at the party. 

Cassie had immediately pulled a face unintentionally, and Gregory noticed. He'd leant on the doorframe and smirked. 

"Don't I look great today?" Cassie had grimaced in response, stepping aside. 

"Get your shoes off. My dad would freak if he saw mud all over the carpet." The cream coloured carpets had been her mom's choice before she passed. So the two tended to not wear shoes inside, nor let guests wear them. "Also, Gregory– have you even changed since the party? Washed?!" 

"Uhh… I don't have to answer that, right?" Gregory had chuckled while kicking off his shoes. Cassie frowned. Did she really have to make friends with the gross kid, or was there something wrong? 

"I don't think you should sit on the couch without washing first. You look gross." 

"Thanks, but the rain washed me." Gregory shrugged, still grinning. When Cassie didn't budge, he sheepishly looked away. "Okay, uh… This is gonna sound weird but… Can I use your shower and borrow some clothes..?" He looked scared to even ask. Cassie wasn't against letting him do that, but it did bring up a lot of questions. 

There were also the scabbed cuts and the bruises on his body. 

"Gregory, is everything okay..?" She didn't want to pry, she really didn't, but she was concerned for her new friend. Maybe things were bad for him back home..? 

She realised she barely knew a thing about Gregory other than his love of Freddy and the fact he drew comics (that also usually featured the bear). 

"Peachy." Gregory badly lied, before letting out a sigh and running a hand through his greasy, tangled hair. "Okay, look, it's… It's a lot to explain, okay? But I can tell you, if you just let me get the opposite of smelly and gross?" He threatened to touch her as if he had a deadly disease. Cassie backed away and nodded with rapidness. 

"Alright! Don't touch me! I'll leave some clean clothes on my bed, okay? And I'll wait down here for you." Cassie led Gregory down the hall and pointed out the bathroom, plus her room, and gathered an outfit that would keep Gregory warm during the chilly, stormy weather. She was taller than him, so it was likely the clothes would all fit– although they would probably drape over him a little. But it was better than what he was currently wearing (which was all swiftly thrown in the washer so it'd be done before her dad returned from work). 

The outfit she'd picked consisted of pink sweatpants, a white shirt and a red Roxy-themed sweatshirt with an embroidered design of her grinning face on it. Cassie also left a pair of pink fluffy socks on the bed ( all of her fluffy socks were either pink or purple, and all the purple ones were dirty). 

When Gregory walked into the living room wearing it, he looked embarrassed. Cassie giggled at his misfortune. 

"What? Don't you like pink?" 

"Actually, I do." He struck a pose as if he was a fashion model, then strutted further into the room to stand in front of her. "I look amazing like this." He placed his hand on his hip and smirked as he looked down at the overly pink outfit.

Cassie laughed again, gesturing for him to sit down. When he sat, he crossed his legs and turned to her. "The thing I wasn't a fan of… Well, don't you have any other sweaters?" 

"Yeah, but that one's my cosiest. And you looked, like, really cold when you first came in. I thought you could use it for a while. What's wrong with it?" 

"Well… Nothing. Just not the biggest fan of Roxy. No offense– but it'd be cooler if it was Freddy themed." 

"You want everything Freddy themed! I bet you collect all his merchandise or something. Anyway, Roxy's cool too, you know she's my favourite. What did you expect?" 

"Fair enough. Also, I did, actually." He grinned proudly, although it faltered a little. Cassie noticed the past tense of did. 

She stood up. 

"Want some hot chocolate? I can make it really good." Cassie smiled, noticing how Gregory's eyes lit up like a child on Christmas. 

"Yeah! Please!" 

So the two had hot chocolate, and talked. Gregory was hesitant to say anything, going off topic and asking Cassie about her home life more than anything. She did reply despite knowing it was a distraction, though; told him about it being just her and her dad. Her mom passed away seven years ago, although it felt like much less– cancer had taken her. She told him that her dad worked at Freddy's, as a technician, and she'd spent a lot of time when she was younger in the Daycare while he worked. 

Now, she tended to spend time at home and didn't visit the Pizzaplex as often as she'd liked. She didn't like being alone, but having no friends and especially with the disappearances… It made her hesitant to step foot in the place at all anymore. Some days she'd rather work on school projects than go there anyway, away from the overwhelming noises, smells and sights of the megamall. 

Eventually, she managed to get Gregory to speak up. 

"My parents were awful. They messed everything up for me, Cassie." He paused, taking a deep breath and running a finger along one of his many scratches. "I couldn't stay with them any longer, it was too much. So… I left." He eyed her carefully and lowered his voice, as if admitting this information could kill him. "I left, and I'm never going back." 

Cassie stared in complete shock, not knowing exactly what to say. She wanted to comfort him, help him, because that's all she could do. 

"Oh, Gregory… I'm so sorry. That's awful, that shouldn't have to ever happen to anyone! Especially someone as kind as you." Cassie felt like crying– she was empathetic and emotional, she couldn't help her voice breaking. Gregory's lip quirked a little in a half smile when she called him kind, and his eyes seemed to be watery too. 

"Thanks… Cassie." His voice broke too, and he took a deep breath. Cassie was immediately thinking of options. 

"Okay… You can stay here. My dad probably wouldn't like that normally, but this is a special case! I mean– you're homeless!" 

"Don't call me that..!" Gregory hissed, but backed down fairly quickly. "Even if you're right… I can't stay here. Your dad would call the police or something." 

"Which he should?!" Cassie said in disbelief, "This is serious, Gregory! Your parents shouldn't be–" 

"Well I'm serious, Cassie!" Gregory suddenly raised his voice, standing up and looking uncharacteristically angry. "I can't have an investigation going on. I can't have all this attention and pressure right now. I just need to be away from them! There's no evidence they're even that bad, how would that look to the police? Police who probably don't even give a shit?! And–" Gregory froze, realising how loud and rash he was being, then slowly sat back down. "...Sorry. I just… I don't want that to happen. Not yet. Okay?" His voice broke even more now, and it was clear he was trying to avoid tears. 

Cassie frowned, but slowly nodded. 

"You know you're literally covered in evidence, though, right?" 

"Not the way they'd see it. Not the way my parents would spin it. I've tried before." Gregory huffed. "It's helpless to do anything right now. I have a phone, I use the closest McDonalds for WiFi, and I have somewhere to go if I'm desperate– if you'll have me." He shrugged. "Could be worse." 

"Of course, I'll always let you in. If it's late, you know which window leads to my room, plus I'm on the ground floor. Just knock and I'll be there, okay?"

"Yeah.. Alright. Thank you. It uh, means a lot." Gregory sipped his hot chocolate, looking smaller than usual. He still looked frail, cold, and scared. Cassie placed her hot chocolate down and opened her arms. 

"Hey. Come here. You look like you need it." 

Gregory placed his drink down beside hers and shuffled closer, letting himself be hugged and hugging back. 

"Thanks, again. You're a really good friend. I don't know why people would ever turn you away." 

"Heh… That's just people, I guess." She sighed, squeezing the boy gently. "I'm super glad I met you. It's really nice having a friend like you." 

"Same here. You're really cool." He pulled out of the hug. "Can we watch TV all day or something?" He eyed the TV as if he'd been waiting forever to see one again. She could understand why, now.  

"Yeah. Wanna binge crap on YouTube all day?" 

"Absolutely!" 

==

They'd trusted each other with such sensitive information. How could he just go and abandon her like this after they'd been so close? For weeks after that they'd stayed together on and off. Talk about personal things they wouldn't dare tell anyone else. Gregory would appear at the window and stay the night, sometimes at the door and her dad would greet him with a kind smile. He'd use the shower when her dad was away from home, she'd give him snacks, let him stay for dinner– it was almost like he was becoming part of the family. 

She would've called him family without hesitation, but now? She wasn't so sure. 

"Cassie? Can you hear me, Cassie?" Cassie's Roxy talky buzzing and speaking broke her train of thought. Roxy's voice was now almost completely clear. 

"Roxy! I can hear you now! I think I'm about to enter the server room…? Should I come to the raceway?" 

"No. But you should keep going. I can meet you halfway. How is your leg?" 

"Uh… It's fine. Sun gave me a makeshift crutch, so… I'm managing." Cassie grumbled, her leg still aching from walking. The pipe really wasn't the best. 

"That… Is good. Thank Fazbear that awful Entity is gone for good now, too." 

"Who? M.X.E.S.?" Cassie questioned, frowning. "I know it could've done something awful to me, but it was just doing its job. I'm only mad at how it does its job." She placed the mask on, entering the server room. "I may not be happy with Gregory, but I don't think that thing–" 

"You don't know anything about him!" Roxy suddenly roared. Cassie had almost forgotten Roxy's attitude towards Gregory, when she had thought Cassie was him. The concerns that were in her head back then had now turned to a bitter worry. 

"What did he do to make you hate him so much..?" 

"He destroyed me. He took away my eyes! And I'm going to make him pay for it. I'll keep searching. He can't hide forever!" Roxy sounded uncharacteristically aggressive, which Cassie half couldn't blame her for, but also felt uncomfortable with. It felt wrong for Roxy to want to harm a kid. Especially her best friend– she scolded herself. Ex-best friend . 

"Why would he do that to you? I know he wasn't your biggest fan, but–" 

"He's horrible , Cassie. He wanted to deactivate me for good . He wanted to do the same to you . I know you liked him, but he is the worst ." Roxy's words sounded like venom being spat out through the talky. She growled as she spoke, as if trying to hold back a scream. "I want to deactivate him . You should too." 

Cassie stared at the talky in silence. Something felt wrong about this. While Roxy was angry, would she really want to kill a kid?! No matter what he'd done, Gregory was a kid. The animatronics shouldn't be capable of, nor wish to, bring harm to a child . 

The missing people around Hurricane and the supposed rumors about the history of Fazbear Entertainment popped into Cassie's mind. Maybe it wasn't entirely impossible. But she didn't want to think Roxy would be like that, so she tried to dismiss the thought. 

There was also the fact a robot that could mimic whatever it wanted was running around, who very much did intend to harm kids. 

The last thing it'd interacted with was Roxy . 

Cassie breathed shakily, raising the talky one last time. She needed to stay wary, no matter how much she believed it was Roxy on the other end. She'd thought the same with Gregory and been wrong, after all. 

"I'm sorry, I've gotta go. I can't talk while getting through here. I'll talk to you later, okay?" Roxy remained silent for several moments. Then, the talky buzzed again. 

"...Okay. See you then, double number one." 

The nickname tugged at her heart, but Cassie ignored it, wiping her eyes and sniffling. She was scared, and confused, and didn't know what to believe anymore. She just wanted to get out, and if she'd find Roxy on her way? That'd be great! But if not, she wasn't going to stick around and look for her anymore. Not yet. This wasn't some adventure in an abandoned mega mall, it was dangerous and it was terrifying, and she couldn't trust any voice she heard. Things in here wanted her dead, and she'd rather not end up as a Cassie casserole for a broken robot skeleton. 

So, with a sigh, she began to walk onwards. 

==

A while into walking through the server room, Cassie had needed another break. Her body couldn't go on like this constantly, and her head felt muddled and painful from the visuals of the AR world. She had a realisation, in that moment, that the room didn't necessarily need the mask. 

It would be impossible to just exist in an AR world while she was physical– there had to be a real-life counterpart to this room! Plus, with the M.X.E.S. no longer here, they couldn't stop her from taking the mask off. So, she removed it. 

The purples, pinks and blues of the AR world disappeared, the room turning a dark, dreary grey and black. She grabbed the flashlight that she'd shoved in her spare back pocket, flickering it on to look around. 

Cassie was sitting on catwalks, precariously perched above the remains of what she could only assume was once Rockstar Row. She'd only been there once, getting a poster signed by Roxy at her party– now the hall was, like the rest of the place, in ruins. The catwalks didn't look particularly safe , either, barely hanging from metal framing all around the ceiling. 

She shifted, getting ready to go someplace a little safer; until a noise nearby caught her attention. A yell. Worse than that, a yell of pain. Someone was in Rockstar Row, and they were hurt. 

Urgency kicking in, Cassie sprung up and carefully navigated the catwalks to a metal stairwell. She found herself near a security office as she went down, narrowly avoiding missing steps and having to jump a gap awkwardly. By the time she'd managed to get to the bottom of the hall, she could hear the person's voice clearly. They yelled again, cursing repeatedly and breathing heavily. 

Cassie turned the corner to find the person standing there. 

A teenage boy, not much older than Cassie but far taller, with a dusky skin tone and curly black hair that was stuck to his face from sweat and covered his eyes. He wore a red jacket on a gray shirt that had some band Cassie had never heard of on the front, as well as torn-up black jeans. His deep green eyes, full of terror, shone back at her in the dark. 

"Agh?! Who are you?? Get that goddamn light outta my eyes and help me..!" The boy yelped. Cassie panicked, putting the flashlight aside on a ledge so she could still see. 

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry! Are you okay?!" She then noticed what was wrong. The boy's arm was caught in fallen rubble beside a stage, a broken button laying on the pile nearby. He'd probably tried pressing it and ended up with his arm trapped after things slid down, Cassie could only assume. 

"Do I look okay?! Help me get out of this, please!" The boy begged, trying to pull his arm out and yelling at the pain it brought. "I can't feel my arm anymore, holy shit…" He looked petrified. Cassie came closer, lifting some rubble away piece by piece. It was difficult, especially with her own busted-up arm, but she tried her best to get the boy loose and hold back the tears that threatened to spill out of her. 

With one specific bit of rubble being moved, the mess shifted and pushed down on the arm a little harder. The boy cried out, trying to use his free arm to help Cassie remove more broken concrete and parts of beams. 

Eventually, he could pull his arm out, and he swiftly stumbled away from the rubble as more of it collapsed. Cassie was by his side immediately. 

"That was close… Are you alright?" 

"I-It's fine, it's just bruised…" The boy nursed his arm and shakily sighed. "I never thought pressing the showtime button would do that . I thought some funny-looking broken robots would jump out. Damn…" He eyed Cassie now, raising an eyebrow. "Wait, I know you. You're in the same grade as me but we don't share any classes... But you won that art award once, I think. So it's uhh… Cassidy?" 

"It's Cassie." She responded, slightly annoyed. Somehow, people always got her name wrong, and usually they'd say Cassidy. It'd gotten tiring to hear. She was at least happy to hear someone recognised her, especially for winning an art award. It was a drawing of Roxy she'd spent days on, that nobody had remembered. "And you are?" 

"Ellis." He held out his good arm for a handshake, attempting a goofy smile. Cassie took it and shook his hand, a frown still on her face. 

"What are you doing here? Do you have any idea how dangerous it is here?" 

"I could ask you the same thing!" Ellis breathed a laugh, wheezing a little, clearly exhausted from his struggle. "Urban explorers don't usually get this far into the place before their video ends with them running from something. 'Course, I always thought it was fake. There's literally nothing here, besides the place falling the fuck apart!" Ellis gestured to his arm. "So what, the animatronics didn't find you? They aren't even here? Nooo wayyyyy! I never expected that!" 

Cassie huffed. 

"They are here, actually. And they are dangerous. Or, were. Maybe they still are. I– I don't know! All I know is this place really isn't safe, and we need to get out." 

Ellis looked surprised, concerned, and slightly excited. 

"They're actually here?! No way, dude, I'm stealing Monty." 

"Good luck with that. Monty… isn't functioning, anymore…" Cassie muttered guiltily. She still felt bad, knowing him chasing her probably wouldn't have happened if not for M.X.E.S. Unless, of course, they were killer robots anyway. Or that basement robot was controlling them somehow?! She still didn't know what to think. It was a mess . 

"Oh… That sucks. I'll just steal his corpse!"

"Oh my god…" Cassie facepalmed, ignoring Ellis. She began walking forward, leading the way out. Ellis caught up to her, walking slowly beside her to keep pace. 

"Hey, I'm not serious. I didn't really come here to do anything like that. There's… Something else." Ellis sounded off, but Cassie wasn't given a chance to question him. "What happened to you? You look awful. And did you break your leg?!" 

"Elevator fall. But I'm okay… Barely. My leg isn't broken, but it hurts a lot. I probably need a hospital when I'm out of here…" 

"Jeez… That's really bad. Sorry." 

"It's okay. I can walk, that's what matters for now. I wasn't kidding when I said this place was super dangerous." 

Ellis stayed walking alongside her in silence for a while, kicking stones, wrappers and cans away when he got the chance. Cassie's thoughts circled around, still not certain why Ellis would be here if not to explore. Was he looking for someone, too? Did that robot attempt to trick him? What if–

She couldn't stand it anymore. She stopped in the middle of the hall. 

"Why are you actually here, Ellis?" She asked. He stopped just behind her, kicking the floor while looking down. 

"It's really stupid." 

"Go on." Cassie urged. Ellis sighed, looking around before coming closer and lowering his voice. It wasn't like anyone was around, but he still seemed to want the information to stay between them. 

"Two years ago, I lost my best friend. A few weeks later, my other friend went missing. Both disappeared here . And I guess I thought, now that the place is dead and nobody's gonna be stopping me getting in, maybe I could find evidence? Clues? Just anything, I guess." His voice cracked a little with his words, Ellis trying hard to stay strong. "I still really miss them, and I know they're probably… Gone. But I can't just let them go yet. I need to see something, anything . You know..?" 

Cassie frowned. She knew how it felt. When Gregory stopped showing up at her door and missing posters popped up around town, she was distraught . She imagined Ellis felt the same. 

"I get it. My friend went missing too. I thought he turned up in the end, but.." Cassie stopped, shaking her head. "It wasn't him. It's horrible that it happened to you twice." She didn't know how to tell Ellis in a believable way about the robot that'd fooled her, nor that the friend she held dear had hurt her. 

Not yet. 

"I'm sorry that happened to you." Ellis exhaled, folding his arms. "Guess we have that in common..?" He laughed, but the joke wasn't funny. He started tearing up as he laughed, shakily, sharply inhaling a breath. "The last thing I did before Tony disappeared was ruin his story, man. I fucked it up for him. And our friend, Greg, he insisted it'd be fine– and then after Tony disappeared, he just wasn't the same, then he disappeared, and–" 

"Hey, hey! Calm down!" Cassie placed a hand on his arm. "It's okay. I'll help you try to find something, okay?" She comforted, heaving a sigh. She felt bad for him, but couldn't say her heart didn't stop for a moment when he'd said Greg . It could've easily been a different kid, but Cassie knew Gregory was in the same grade as her, and a Greg had entered the same art competition she had, and if she'd seen the art itself she'd probably know for sure– either way, it was likely they were one and the same. 

"Okay. Thank you…" Ellis wiped his head with his sleeve, throwing his hair back. "You don't have to do that if you wanna get out. I think you need to get help right now." 

"I'll be okay. Besides, you said one of your friend's names was Greg. Is his full name Gregory?" 

"Uhh, yeah." Ellis responded, shocked. "You know him?" 

"Yeah. He's the friend of mine that went missing." Cassie had a million more questions now, but they could wait for the journey ahead. They probably had a while to go. She didn't think it fair to keep from him that Gregory was alive , though. So she'd at least tell him what she'd been worried about saying. 

"I need to tell you something about him. He's not here– but I thought he was. A robot was using his voice to lure me here, so I would free it, thinking it was Gregory. That's the dangerous thing I was talking about, and I know it sounds absurd, but it's true." Cassie exhaled. Ellis stared in shock as he slowly absorbed the information. 

"That sounds unreal, dude. But actually like, kinda believable? This place is full of weird high-tech stuff, I wouldn't be surprised if there's a robot that can pretend to be people." He shrugged, looking at the floor. "I guess you didn't find him, then…" 

"Well, no… But he's alive. He's okay. He contacted me after I found out that it wasn't him." Cassie muttered. Ellis' face lit up. Telling him the next part could break him. 

"He's alive?! Holy shit, man, he's– that means Tony could be okay too! A-And he's out there! Maybe even with Greg! Oh my god…" He was deliriously happy, laughing with a grin on his face and tears brimming in his eyes. Cassie felt her stomach twist. 

"Yeah… He guided me out of there, to an elevator, but then…" Cassie scowled. "He dropped it. Said he couldn't risk that thing coming for him. So yeah, he's the reason I'm using a pipe as a crutch." She folded her arms. Ellis momentarily paused, his smile faltering before returning. 

"Greg– little short-stack Gregory– attempted to murder you? Is that what you're saying?" He was trying not to giggle. Cassie glared at his ignorance. 

"Do you seriously think I'd lie about that?! I thought he was my best friend! And he just… Dropped me! Literally! You have no idea how scared I was, how hurt, and–" 

"Hey, Cassie, look, I know you're seriously badly hurt, but like, c'mon–" Ellis wiped a tear. "I really can't see the little guy doing that. Greg's not the kinda kid to do that. He cares too much about people he's close to, in my experience. He's completely harmless."

Cassie scoffed. Harmless . If what Roxy told her was true, and that was Roxy, plus the elevator incident, Gregory was far from harmless. 

"I almost died because of him!" She snapped. Ellis simply shrugged at Cassie nonchalantly, stepping closer to her and leaning a little to make eye contact. 

"Look, and hear me out here. You said that the robot that copies people, copied him? What if it just… Did that again? Tricked you again? Like, I wasn't there so I wouldn't know, but just… Think about it!" 

Cassie frowned. Good god, Ellis was right. How could she have not thought of that at all? But then, what if that was wrong? What if Gregory truly had attempted to… She groaned, covering her face. 

"I don't know, okay?! Everything's so confusing! I don't know what to believe anymore!" Cassie felt tears prick at her eyes again. Did she really have to cry now?  

"Hey… Hey, it's okay." Ellis placed a hand on her shoulder. "I think you've really been through it today. Maybe you should rest before going anywhere, yeah? I think you seriously need it. Time to process stuff, too." He gestured to a nearby room, that happened to be Freddy's. It was the only one that hadn't fully caved in. "Wanna go chill in there for a bit?" 

Cassie exhaled, sniffing quietly and staring at the room lit only by softly flickering LED lights. She had to admit, rest sounded amazing right now. Roxy would be okay for a bit, if it even was her. So, with a slow start, Cassie began walking towards the room. She heard Ellis follow, and he kicked the locked door open for them to get inside. 

She swiftly sat on the couch beside a giant Freddy plush, leaning on it for support. Ellis sat on the floor, giving her space. 

"If you wanna sleep or whatever, I'll keep a lookout. I don't really know you, but you seem cool. Plus, any friend of Greg's is a friend of mine." He awkwardly smiled. Cassie smiled back and nodded. 

"Okay… Thank you. I should do that." She placed the pipe on the floor and got comfortable on the couch, which having been custom made to fit both hoards of kids and Glamrock Freddy's large animatronic body, was big and soft enough to feel like a bed. Cassie let out a loud sigh and closed her eyes, knowing sleep would take her fairly quickly because of her exhaustion. 

"I can't wait to see Greg again. I hope Tony's okay." She heard Ellis mutter as he fiddled with old merchandise left scattered on the floor. Her thoughts would've been racing if she wasn't so tired . She knew one thing for sure, she hoped this Tony kid was okay. She remembered him being one of the missing kids in a news report– his last name was Baxter or Becker, if she remembered correctly. 

First she'd rest, then she could figure out her feelings towards Gregory, how she could tell if Roxy was being mimicked or not, as well as what to do and where to go next.

Cassie's breathing slowed, and her mind finally got its rest. 

Chapter Text

Twenty minutes had passed by the time Gregory was once again conscious, he assumed he'd passed out from the stress or completely blanked out in his breakdown. Either way, he felt exhausted as if he'd just woken up. He was, however, aware again. 

Aware of a bitter, coppery taste from biting his lip hard enough to draw blood, aware of the bile threatening to rise from his stomach, the pain increasing in his temples, the quiver of his entire body as he struggled to crawl forward in an attempt to get up, aware of so many awful feelings that it would take too long to list them all in his head. It took several attempts before he was even able to stand, knees unable to stop trembling as his nerves tensed up. 

He knew, underneath the fear and the shock and the horror of the situation, that he didn't have time for any of this. That thing was still in his head! It could reappear at any moment, dragging Gregory's consciousness down deep into his mind and locking it away so that he could take over, have his fun. It terrified him to think about, because he still didn't know everything. He still didn't remember it all, much of it still fuzzy– he knew Vanessa was free, he'd freed her himself! But what about him? 

Had his consciousness been trapped in an arcade? Had it not? Had he just been too vulnerable, easy to control for the robot– or, the virus-like entity that came from it– or had something simply happened at the end of its reign to cause the amnesia? 

Dr. Rabbit . He remembered the pen name he'd used while working on that project– while that thing was in his mind. Just like when it'd been in Vanessa's and chosen the nickname Vanny , it'd chosen one for him. 

So, he'd call it that. Dr. Rabbit . 

Gregory slowly rose from the ground fully, leaning back on a wall to support himself. He had to give his eyes a moment to readjust, and his brain another to catch up. 

He realised, now, why everything had seemed so off for so long– Gregory knew the ugly truth he'd desired for so many months. He had to move on already, stop the mimicking robot before it could hurt anyone else– or make Dr. Rabbit hurt someone. 

He had to do it for anyone he'd unwittingly hurt. For Tony . For Vanessa. Despite him wanting to yell at her for keeping something so big from him, he knew she was affected by that thing too. She knew better than him, having a memory to go with it. Maybe she'd kept it from him to prevent him from remembering such gory details… Remembering how the blood had trickled down his arm and how he'd smirked at Tony's terrified face. 

Gregory had to stop himself from gagging again. 

He didn't know if he'd be better off knowing this information or not right now, so Vanessa got a pass for the time being. However, he knew she was too terrified of that thing and would sometimes freeze up; he didn't blame her, but it wouldn't help right now. Even if she wouldn't do that, Gregory didn't care. He'd stop that thing on his own so she didn't have to get hurt either. 

And of course, how could he forget Cassie? He'd do it for her. After all, she could be dead right now too because of that thing. The thought made his skin crawl, but he didn't even push away the possibility of it anymore. At this point, he expected it. 

He had to get rid of that thing once and for all, even if it got him killed. M.X.E.S. had to be put back online immediately, the animatronics active in security mode again, so nobody would ever be hurt by it again . 

Gregory didn't think any further, wiping his tear-stained cheeks and storming towards the theatre's gigantic screen. He glanced around wildly for anything he could use as a weapon, though nothing looked that useful. Just trash, rubber mats and shapes, broken wood and a broken S.T.A.F.F. bot, but nothing he could use to move on. 

So instead, Gregory unzipped the duffle bag he was clutching onto and grabbed the nearest heavy item– a wrench– and smashed it into the screen with a large thump . He did it again, over and over until the screen cracked and shattered. 

He continued on, smashing the screen up, swinging harder and harder each time. He began stabbing at the hole he was making, pushing through and knocking away chips of plastic, until the hole was big enough for him to fit through. The wrench was dropped back into the bag, and Gregory breathed heavily, attempting to catch the breath he'd lost from attempting to smash through the thick theatre screen. 

His shoulder ached now, far worse than it already had from the heavy bag weighing down on it, but he didn't care– so did the rest of his body! Why would his shoulder make much difference? He kicked at the opening to remove some stray plastic, then began to crawl through the opening he'd made. 

As he crawled, he cut himself on jagged glass and plastic, biting his lip and gritting his teeth in an attempt to deal with it. He ended up in the film room that sat on the other side of the screen, then began crawling into the nearby vent. 

It was far harder getting past the theatre without the mask, but he didn't care . He had to get to the sinkhole now . He had to destroy that thing. 

Gregory continued through the vent, then began to power through each attraction of the Pizzaplex. He was absolutely determined to get to the raceway as fast as possible. If the way through wasn't clear, he'd make it clear. If there was no path, he'd find another way. Many times as he walked, Gregory would look at his surroundings and be reminded of one of the awful memories he now had– he'd get a flash, or see it differently entirely and have to double take. 

He'd get glances of himself in reflections and swear he could see bunny ears, before looking again and seeing nothing of the sort. All he could see was his body covered in dirt, scrapes, and blood. 

Gregory had gotten to Bonnie Bowl within half an hour, which was probably record timing in the destroyed plex. Bonnie Bowl should've been easy to navigate– just walk through, get to the curtains to Bonnie's green room, use the vent to go to fazerblast. But this was where his first obstacle stood; or rather, crawled . 

Around fifty or so mini Music Men in total, crawling around the place like a dozen baby spiders. They wouldn't bother Gregory if he went the long way around the bowling alley, having to cross the lanes and climb over some rubble (which was annoying) but he'd rather avoid them than run into them. Even outside of security mode, they were still curious little things– and he was not a fan of the idea of them crawling all over him. He shuddered . 

Taking the long route around the alley, Gregory took note of his environment. Call it the 'scenic route', or something. He guessed he should do that anyway to calm himself down, rage still bubbling within his gut and making him feel sick to the stomach. It helped ground him when taking note of specific things in his surroundings when he was having a panic attack– it'd probably help now, too. 

The bowling alley was just as decrepit as when he'd last been here, although slightly worse (as most of the building was, in his experience). A large hole was in the floor that hadn't been there previously, evidence of the giant thing in the basement tunnelling up here at some stage, and new graffiti lined various walls and pillars. It was interesting to see it here, since graffiti this deep in the Pizzaplex was something Gregory assumed highly unlikely. Nobody should really get this far– unless, maybe, they'd been desperately looking for Bonnie? 

Gregory shrugged the thought off. They probably wouldn't even find him here, since he knew Bonnie had gone missing at Monty Golf– and the body likely disposed of. Otherwise, a guest could've stumbled on him, or staff– and it didn't seem like even staff knew what had happened to him. 

He did wonder about it a lot, though, Freddy's feelings for the bunny and his unwillingness to speak of him making the boy want to find him for himself. 

…But today wasn't that day. Today, he needed to stop that weird endo. If Bonnie was still around… It could wait. As much as he loved Freddy, there were lives to save. 

Gregory was pulled from his thoughts when a wind-up Music Man stood on his leg, tapping Gregory's ankle inquisitively. The boy was startled badly , kicking out his leg and booting the mechanical spider across the hall and into the wall. He cursed under his breath. 

"Ugh! You scared me, you creepy little… Thing!" He suddenly realised, after not speaking for a while, how hoarse his voice sounded from crying and yelling. He cleared his throat and swallowed, hoping the feeling would soon pass. 

Gregory was startled again as a loud, grating grinding noise sounded nearby; upon looking around, he saw that the wall the little Music Man had gone into… Had lifted up . It was a door. And just as it moved, an animatronic hand grabbed the bottom of it, attempting to pull it up. Although at first it struggled, it soon shoved the wall upwards with a strong enough force that it dented , and the robot stood at full height, the shape remaining shadowed by darkness. 

Gregory couldn't really tell what it was, until it took a stumbling, limping step forward, and a pair of blue rabbit ears were illuminated by the low light of the bowling alley. Gregory stared, taking a step back as he realised just who he was looking at.

"I shoulda known you'd be back here." 

It couldn't be. But it was . Just as Gregory had pondered the whereabouts of Bonnie, he'd appeared as if by magic . He felt some of his worse thoughts fizzle out as he stared at the bunny, thinking he could cry. Not only would Freddy be delighted, but Bonnie would be Gregory's biggest ally right now. He figured he needed that, and still wasn't feeling the best about Chica–

Who Gregory realised he'd just left at the daycare. Oops . He had too many thoughts to remember that. 

"No way… Bonnie?!" Gregory's voice cracked, still broken up from screaming out. "Is that you?" He'd never physically seen Bonnie before, and he was an interesting sight to take in– even all destroyed. 

Bonnie was in complete disrepair. He'd been smashed up, half of his head caved in and destroyed, chipped casing creating jagged holes and cracks along his entire surface. His chest had suffered the worst of the damages, large scratches running through and large amounts of his insides spilling out through the gaping hole created in the middle of the scars. Bonnie's left arm was shoddily bolted on with scrap material, along with his torso and both the joints of his right leg. This leg was twisted behind him, unoperational, as was his left arm which hung gently swinging beside him. 

Both Bonnie's chest and the insides of his arms were caked in a strange, faded light brown substance. Gregory assumed it'd be old rust or oil, maybe a bit of both. 

His damages all pointed to him being scratched and beaten and having things smashed into him, which immediately pointed Gregory's mind to Monty . 

Bonnie had disappeared around two years ago; which was roughly when, as Vanessa had told him, Vanny had first taken over. Or, the thing . Perhaps it'd done something to the animatronics too, and it was around the time Tony disappeared too. 

Disappeared . Gregory mentally scoffed, feeling bile rise up again. He couldn't think about it. He shouldn't . 

"Of course it's me. What? Didn't expect me to get back up?" The rabbit laughed, although it, nor his voice, sounded like lighthearted banter. Bonnie's voice was dripping with malice . Surely something with his voice box was just broken, right? Or maybe he was mad he'd been left so long. Gregory could sympathise. 

"You've been missing for years… You were seriously just here? Couldn't you get up? Were you trapped? Whatever happened to you, it's okay now– the place is closed, I can get you to Freddy and-" 

"Freddy?!" The rabbit's voice snapped, his fingers gripping the wall harder and causing a jarring scraping noise. "What did you do to Freddy, you little brat?!" He took a step closer, dragging one foot behind him. Gregory took a step back. 

"I didn't do anything! He's okay! Well– he's just a head. But he's okay! I saved him when-" 

"Oh, I bet you did, kid. I'll bet you did." The rabbit rushed closer, raising a hand towards Gregory and reaching for him. Gregory took off, luckily not having to run that fast to get away from the bunny; dragging his leg made him extremely slow. 

"Stop! I know you're upset about what happened to you, but I promise, I didn't do anything to Freddy! Staff bots tore him apart, and I kept his head safe." Gregory yelled back to the bunny, pausing for a moment. The rabbit slowed down, thankfully. 

"I dunno what happened to Freddy after, and I don't particularly care, kiddo." Bonnie hissed, dragging himself closer. "It's about whatchya did before that's got me unsettled." Bonnie stopped for a moment, hitting his leg as he noticed some nails threatening to drop out. "I ain't forgotten, no matter how much you had me broken." 

Gregory stared, confused, then his eyes widened. In one of the visions while he was knocked out by Moon, he'd seen Bonnie. It'd moved on too fast for him to register anything, but he remembered in that moment where he'd been. 

Monty Golf. 

"No… No, no no no, that wasn't… Bonnie, whatever you saw, whatever you think , I didn't-" 

"I ain't listening to you, brat!" Bonnie reached for him again, narrowly missing Gregory's hair as the boy ducked away, but still he managed to pull a few strands out. Gregory was quick to start bolting away, running as fast as he could carry himself to the curtained stage. He kicked things out of the way and tore at the fence with bolt cutters, thankful that he'd decided to bring them after all. 

He pulled himself through the tiny gap– but wasn't fast enough. Bonnie had caught up, and now had his hand firmly on Gregory's leg. The bunny had an extremely strong grip, squeezing so tightly that Gregory assumed it'd leave a nasty bruise. 

"Let me go!" He kicked out with all his might, the wired fence catching another part of his leg and scraping it. He bit his lip, hard. "Bonnie, please..! Let go of me!" 

"I ain't letting you go ever again. I know what you did to Freddy. I know what you did to that kid. You're a vile little kid, and I ain't gonna let you get away this time!" Bonnie gripped harder, yanking Gregory's leg. The metal fence dug deep into his leg from the yank, and he yelped at the pain. 

"I didn't do anything…! I didn't…" He kicked out one final time, his foot finally landing in Bonnie's face. He shuffled back, ignoring the searing pain in his leg as he stood up and bolted for the vent. 

Bonnie stood at the gap, reaching through and growling. He had no problem getting in, though; he simply pulled himself through, tearing and unravelling the metal wire as he went, scratching up his damaged body even more. He stood tall once again, glaring down at the boy and clutching at his chest. 

"I scratched my dang paint job for this!" Bonnie yelled, now striding towards Gregory slowly with the presumed knowledge that he had nowhere to run. The boy tried not to laugh through his fear, the idea of an already destroyed robot getting upset at his paint being scratched away slightly hilarious to him. 

He knew where he had to go. So he climbed up to the vent, pulling the poster down. Bonnie gasped behind him, rushing closer. 

"Drop that, you little runt! That's special to me!" 

Gregory backed up against the wall, then formed a devilish idea in his head. He held up the poster between two fingers with each hand. 

"Come any closer, and I rip it." He warned, raising it up more in the light. Bonnie gasped again, freezing in place. 

"You wouldn't dare." 

Gregory made a motion as if he was about to tear it. 

"NO! Please, don't!" Bonnie frantically took a few paces back, his eyes widening. "I'll do anything, just don't you dare touch it! Or any of the Freddy merchandise you see in here!" 

"I won't. If, we can talk." Gregory breathed out, his exhaustion showing. "Please. I promise there's more to it than whatever you saw, or whatever happened. I swear . And Freddy would say the same, you can even ask him later. He misses you a lot, you know. If you hurt me, he'd hate you." Gregory muttered, his voice getting quieter as he spoke more. Bonnie glared again. 

"Who do you think you are?! You know what you did, there ain't no explaining that!" 

"Please..." Gregory exhaled heavily, noticing just how much he was shaking. "My name's Gregory. And I think I have amnesia, or something?" He laughed awkwardly, avoiding eye contact with the clearly-still-angry bunny. "I… I don't remember what I did, and I'm… I'm really scared, okay?"

Bonnie hummed, sitting on his chair nearby and pulling his non-functional leg over the other to cross them. 

"You're saying you hurt that kid and you don't even remember it?" 

Gregory's heart skipped a beat. 

"Yeah..."  

Bonnie let out a metallic huff, leaning his head on his hand. "Nice cover story. It's only the one everyone uses when they're desperate!" The bunny laughed. "You can't seriously not remember it all! 

"Please, just tell me what happened! What you saw! I need to know… Please." Gregory begged. Bonnie sat for a moment and hummed. 

"Whatever, kid. I'll tell you what I saw." 

"Okay… Thank you, Bonnie." Gregory muttered. The thanks wasn't returned before Bonnie started speaking. 

==

Bonnie hadn't expected an eventful evening, but now every night at the Pizzaplex seemed to bring some sort of darkness with it. By that, he didn't mean night time; he meant something sinister. Freddy had been acting off for a few weeks, but it hadn't been particularly worrying; he'd just pause and stare sometimes, then be back to his jovial self seconds later. 

A glitch, the rabbit had assumed. 

Turned out he'd been right to have his doubts. 

For that night, Bonnie had seen Freddy in a different light. Seen the darkness in him, even. He had wanted to say hi, but as he approached, he realised two children were there after closing. Arguing. Or, he once again assumed. He never got close enough to hear, but he saw clearly what happened next. 

The smaller of the two boys stabbed the other in the stomach. The taller stumbled back, where Freddy grabbed him and… Punched him to the ground . 

That wasn't Freddy. There was no way he'd ever do that. But Bonnie wouldn't give himself a moment to think, instead charging in and rescuing the child before Freddy could cause more damage. He kept running, unwilling to look back, only looking ahead of him and at the child in his arms. 

"Bonnie…? Y-You saved me…" 

"Hey, kiddo…" Bonnie was sure to keep his voice soft, as to not make the boy feel threatened by his usual boisterous personality. "I gotcha, yeah. I gotcha. You're gonna be okay, y'hear? I'm gonna get you some first aid, then we're getting you outta here." Bonnie didn't stop, continuing on to Monty Golf– it unfortunately had the closest first aid station, not the atrium. 

"I knew I liked you most for a reason…" The boy half-smiled, coughing afterwards. Bonnie dashed into the elevator and pushed the button with his elbow, keeping the boy close. 

"Yeah? I'm your favourite?" He chuckled, giving a smirk. "That's nice to hear, but not surprising. What's your name?" 

"Tony… Becker. Tony Becker." The boy muttered. Bonnie nodded, holding him slightly tighter. He was glad the child was managing to stay calm despite the situation he was in; it'd help a lot . Although it was also slightly worrying, Bonnie knew he hadn't lost too much blood yet– he'd be okay for now. He just had to be fast. 

The elevator doors opened, and Bonnie ran out only to pause. The fastest route would not be through the mini golf course… But possibly the catwalks. 

He dashed towards the stairs up to the catwalks, his balance on the tiny steps awkward especially without his arms free, but he managed to climb them fast regardless. Once up, it was a sprint until he could get to the other side of the course, no more obstacles lying in his way. 

At least, that's what Bonnie would've hoped. But Monty was up here, and turned to the bunny the moment he noticed his footsteps; the gator stared down at the kid in his arms, who looked a little intimidated now. 

"Monty, step aside. This is a serious emergency, a kid's been stabbed!" Bonnie was frantic, eyeing the gator with desperation. He looked annoyed, but it was probably just his demeanour; he'd been acting off like that recently, for some reason- likely a glitch. Although now, Bonnie began to doubt his assumptions. 

"Nah." Monty scoffed, showing his rows of teeth in a smirk. Bonnie gasped, staring at him with rage. 

"Monty, what the heck is wrong with you?! I'm holding a seriously injured kid here! I know you've been a huge grump recently, but I-" 

"He's seen too much, knows too much. He's gotta go, bun." Monty growled, raising his claws. Bonnie backed up before he could do any damage, shock running through his system. It wasn't just Freddy, Monty was wrong too! Bonnie shook his head. What if Roxy was like that? Chica?! He knew all his friends had been acting strange, eerie, but this was insane . 

"Okay, kid, I'm gonna have to put you somewhere safer, 'kay?" Bonnie gently placed Tony in his chest cavity, closing the hatch once he heard a quiet 'okay' and beginning to speed-walk around Monty. He just had to make it to first aid. 

But once he'd gotten to the other side, Monty had already cornered him. 

"Bon Bonnnn… You shouldn't be disobeying." Monty hissed, approaching slowly. "You don't wanna end up in parts 'n service again, do ya?" 

"Monty… I can't let you hurt this little boy. He's just a kid!" 

"He's tresspassin'!" Monty scoffed, stepping closer. "He ain't supposed to be here." 

"And?!" Bonnie snapped, "He's just a kid . We don't hurt kids, Monty." He searched Monty's face for anything other than anger, but there was nothing there. 

"We ain't gonna hurt him. He just needs a little lesson. Security will deal with him." 

"He was stabbed, Monty!" Bonnie shook his head in disbelief. "For heaven's sakes, what's wrong with you and Freddy?!" 

Monty hesitated, searching Bonnie's eyes for a second. 

"I…" He shook his head and glared again. "I ain't gonna be stopped by you, bunny!" 

Bonnie didn't have time to reply before Monty slashed his claws through Bonnie's chest, pushing him back against a loose railing which immediately broke with his weight. Bonnie fell, hitting his leg and his arm on the way down to the floor. When he landed, he felt the boy kick open his stomach hatch and clamber out, now looking battered and bruised and slightly more bloody than before. He stared in wild fear. 

"Bonnie… Are you okay?!" He coughed and spluttered. Bonnie stopped caring for himself entirely in that one moment. 

"Goshdarnit, who cares, kid?! Get yourself over to first aid now . Don't look back. Just go, I'll be alright. Parts 'n service will fix me right up, make me all pretty again, but you're in serious trouble. Please just… Get yourself help and stay safe. Don't trust any of us, don't trust the S.T.A.F.F., just get away ." Bonnie pleaded, giving a half-smile. "You're a survivor, kid, I can see it in ya. It'll never be safe here for you now, so don't ya ever return, 'kay? Run. Live a good life, Tony Becker. I'm glad I met you." 

Tony nodded, watching him for a moment before limping back to give the rabbit a hug. 

"You're much different than I thought in person. Way nicer, like I hoped you'd be. I'm glad I met you too… Thank you so much for saving me." Tony was quick to leave after that, running towards the first aid station nearby. 

Bonnie watched with a smile, just as Monty appeared above him. 

He'd done what he needed to do. Even if it killed him, he felt somewhat fulfilled. It didn't change how scared he was, though, as he realised he couldn't move. As Freddy appeared above him alongside Monty– then Roxy, and Chica too. The four of them stared down at him, and a child came between the four of them. 

He scanned for the child's  guest profile. 

" Gregory Bowman, 12 years old, Fazcade username GGY ." 

Bonnie growled under his breath. He wanted to say something, but he wasn't given the time. 

"Finish the job." The boy's voice was cold, and he turned away no sooner than he'd said it. His four friends, in sync, looked from the boy to him and raised their weapons of choice. 

Bonnie's eyes widened as he realised this was it. He may never see them again, and his last memory would be of their corrupted minds destroying him. 

If he could feel sick, he would never feel more sick in his life than he did now. 

He prayed that Tony would survive. 

==

Gregory stared at the bunny in awe. Despite the bunny looking mortified, Gregory… Was smiling . 

"What the hell are you grinning at, huh? What? You proud of yourself?!" Bonnie hissed. Gregory ignored him. 

"Tony might be alive. I might not have…" Gregory paused that thought. "There's a chance. There's a chance he's okay . I…" Gregory let out a small laugh, years brimming in his eyes. "Bonnie, I know you don't trust me, and I don't blame you after that, but… I was under the same influence as your friends. Freddy managed to escape eventually, then everyone else did when this place shut down. I don't know when it ended for me, but.. I think it might've been the same day as Freddy."

"Oh, yeah. What are you, a robot, too?!" 

"No..! I don't know how it works, okay? But it made me hurt Tony. It made Freddy hurt him, it made everyone hurt you… I'm sorry it all happened. But I…" Gregory laughed again, choking back what was presumably a sob. "I'm so glad you told me all this. I don't care how small the chance of him being alive is, there's still a chance!" Gregory dropped the poster he held, causing Bonnie to frantically grab it and hold it close. 

"You ain't just feeling guilty?" 

"No! You have no idea how scared I was.." He slowly lowered himself, shuffling over to Bonnie. He realised the stuff he assumed was oil was actually Tony's… Once again, he ignored the thought. "Thank you for helping him. If it wasn't for you, Tony would be definitely dead. You might've saved him, if… If he got out…" Doubt finally wrapped itself around Gregory's mind. He frowned, staring at the wall. 

Bonnie sighed, patting his head awkwardly. 

"I'm sure he's okay, kid. Like I said, he seemed like a survivor." Bonnie looked Gregory up and down. "What's this thing you say messed with everything?" 

"I don't know if it has a name, but I know what it is. It's a weird endo that copies things– copies their voices, y'know. Apparently it can act as a virus, too, and that's what it did to the entire Pizzaplex. Part of it got into Vanessa's mind, part of it into mine. Right now it's free, and it could destroy everything all over again… That's why I'm trying to get down there to stop it. To get the security system working again." Gregory explained, watching Bonnie carefully. The bunny hummed. 

"Okay. I'll give ya one chance with this, but I'm keeping an eye on you. How are you gonna get down there?" 

"Fazerblast. There are corridors that lead to the Raceway." 

"Through the vent?! Ugh!" Bonnie stomped a foot, standing up. "I can't keep my dang eye on you like that!" 

"You can find another way and meet me down there! I'll wait, if I have to. But… I'm in a rush. I have to save my friend, too– her name's Cassie. Please, don't make me regret trusting you." 

"Same goes for you." Bonnie squinted, backing away slowly. "I'll see you down there, kid. And I won't dawdle, for her sake." 

"Yeah. Thanks." Gregory quickly got up to the vent and went straight down it, not wasting any time crawling through and running down to the main arena of Fazerblast.

==

Once Gregory had gotten a good distance through the wrecked lazer tag arena, he slumped down on the ground and let out a loud exhale. He glanced at his leg, which oozed with crimson liquid and had dripped all along behind him. It'd ruined his red, white and neon blue Freddy-themed sneakers. 

"Aw, man." was all Gregory could muster, sinking back against the wall and groaning. It hurt so much, but he had to just deal with it. There was nothing he could do. 

He almost passed out when he heard two resounding bloops nearby. Opening his eyes and turning his head slightly, he could see Freddy's headless body standing stock in the middle of an aisle, looking directly at him. 

"Hey, Freddy….s body. You aren't mad at me too, are you? I think I've had enough of mad animatronics today, eheheh." He winced as his leg seemed to sting even more, his breathing noticably shaky as he took a deep breath. "Why'd you make that sound, huh..?" 

Freddy, obviously, didn't answer. He simply turned around and walked away, thundering footsteps becoming nothing but a gentle distant tap. Gregory relaxed again. 

At least, he did for a few minutes. It wasn't long before Freddy returned with a red bag in hand, then slumped down beside Gregory. The boy felt his lip quirk up in a smile. 

"Oh… Wow. I should've recognised that noise from before. You know I'm hurt, don't you?" He gratefully took the medical kit, unzipping it without a sparing thought and immediately pushing aside useless items. He found some antiseptic wipes and bandages, luckily just enough for him– plus the wipes hadn't dried out. He breathed a sigh of relief. 

"I know you can't hear me, but thanks, Freddy." He gave the bear's arm a gentle pat. He responded by placing his hand on Gregory's head, messing up his hair in an attempt at ruffling it. Some got tangled in his endo and got pulled out. 

"Ow! Be careful!" Gregory giggled, begging to wipe at his wound. It stung so much that he winced again, biting down on his lip. Freddy kept his hand on Gregory's shoulder now, silently supporting him. The boy had managed to wipe at it all and get it bandaged swiftly, giving it a quick glance over to see if it was bad enough to need stitches. 

Luckily, it just about wasn't. He didn't know if he could stomach doing his own stitches. Maybe normally… But not today. There was too much in his mind making him feel sick. 

"I met Bonnie. I can see why you liked him, I think. He's a bit of an asshole, I dunno." Gregory giggled, looking up at the faceless bear. "I can't wait to tell you. For you to see him. You'd be so happy…" He leaned over on him. "I know you've felt lost without any of them around. Without your routines at the Plex. I'm sorry. I should probably save all that for when you can hear though, huh?" 

The bear remained quiet. 

"Yeah." Gregory sighed, opening up his Faz-watch and typing in a message. 

Gregory: I'm okay, Freddy. I'm in Fazerblast right now, on my way to the raceway. I have some really good news, but I think it's better if you see it yourself! 

…I'm sorry I left without you and Ness. Please stay safe. I love you both. 

Chapter Text

When Cassie woke up, she arguably felt much better than she had before. Although her body still ached and it begged for even more rest, her head felt clearer and didn't hurt so much.

She was startled by the sound of Ellis snoring, having collapsed on a pile of plush toys. She chuckled, sitting up and giving him a nudge with her foot. He made a tired grumbling sound and waved her away, eager to get more sleep. 

"Ellis, come on. We have to get moving." 

"Aww… and I was just getting cosy…" Ellis muttered, rolling over to face her. He let out a yawn, rubbing his eyes and sitting up slowly. "Where are we meant to be going?" 

"Well, I've had an idea." Cassie leaned forward, grabbing the pipe she was using as a crutch as she did so. She'd thought through locations where they could find any sort of evidence of foul play, and it'd been narrowed down to one thing. An office . Security footage would be stored there, if the tech still worked, and it was entirely possible they could find a clue at the very least. 

"Alright, spill."

"There's an office around here, if I remember right. I think I passed it on the way to you? It's a huge office, should hopefully have at least one computer still working. I know it's not exactly a super high chance, but like… We could find a clue there!" Cassie stood up, passing Ellis and pushing the broken door aside. Ellis waited for a moment before he stood up, taking his time because of his injured arm. 

"Okay, good thinking. I doubt we'll find much though, surely the place is too destroyed? Or the company would've hidden stuff like that? Given it to the police?" 

"Not necessarily… It's worth a shot, right?" Cassie shrugged. Ellis hummed, thinking for a moment, then gave a shrug back and nodded. 

"Yeah, you're right. Let's go find it." 

The duo entered the large hallway once again, struggling to pass fallen rubble and having to climb over or crawl under most of the mess. Cassie scooped up a Roxy-themed bag as she climbed past her greenroom; it could really come in handy. 

They hadn't gotten very far when Cassie heard a crash from behind, and grabbed Ellis' shoulder to stop him. He whipped around to look at her, startled.  She was holding a finger to her lips. He mouthed 'what's the big deal?', so she pointed behind. 

The two stared, keeping themselves silent. A crunch that sounded like glass underfoot came from the darkness. Cassie and Ellis exchanged glances, not willing to utter a word to even ask who it could be. They were both too shaken up to even try. 

More crunches coming towards them, the silence between each step getting shorter, was what made Cassie's heart start racing. She pushed Ellis back gently, muttering under her breath. 

" Run ." Ellis backed up, but the two still couldn't tear their eyes away. It was when they saw the two glowing red eyes pierce the darkness accompanied by a low, bellowing growl that they finally moved, and Cassie screamed out. "Run!" 

The duo didn't look back, ducking and diving through the wreckage. Cassie was slower, given her injured leg, but pushed on all the same. M.X.E.S. was deactivated, Monty shouldn't be giving chase at all! Maybe he was just naturally aggressive? She didn't know, nor care right now, it didn't matter. She just had to keep going. 

Ellis jumped over something, and Cassie couldn't see herself doing that with her leg, so she slid down onto her hands and knees to crawl under; the gap underneath was tiny, but she'd fit. It was slow going, though– and she didn't have time for that! She had to… 

Twenty-or-so stabbing sensations in her leg released a scream from her lungs, the sound coming out in desperate anguish. She tried kicking her leg, but the pain only increased. She tried her other leg, attempting to boot off the jaws wrapped around her shin. 

"Hey asshole!" Ellis yelled, hitting the robot with a thin, broken metal beam repeatedly. "Get the hell off her!" He stabbed it in the eye, breaking the plastic casing and causing it to let go off Cassie. It bellowed and climbed up the slope of broken concrete, Ellis stumbling back over to Cassie in desperation. He pulled her out of the crevice, helping her stand back up. They were silent as the metal form of Montgomery Gator stared down at them from the top of the concrete and metal mound. 

Monty eyed them for several moments, squinting and letting out a low hiss. He looked between them, taking a step back. He let out a quiet bellow, lowering his head. 

"Sorry. Thought you were somethin' else." the voice was scratchy and broken, but it was his. Ellis looked like he couldn't believe his eyes, which never left the gator as he turned and retreated. They focused on Cassie once he'd gone. 

"Not exactly functional?! He almost tore your leg off!" He snapped, immediately regretting it when Cassie flinched. "Sorry. Are you okay?" 

"I'll be fine. It doesn't look that bad…" Cassie shone her flashlight at the wound. It looked like a giant dog bite and it had drawn blood, but it didn't look as serious as it had felt to her at first. "I'm just lucky that it was my bad leg…" She sighed, eyeing where Monty had been standing.

She didn't understand. He'd been shocked, left in that electrified water. How had he–

It clicked. 

"The power went out!" Cassie piped. Ellis frowned at her, not getting it. 

"...Uhh, yes, and?" 

"I left Monty in electrified water. When the power went out, he must have escaped. But… His behaviour is still odd. He just let us go!" 

"Yeah… He said he thought we were something else?" Ellis shrugged. "Weird. Maybe he thought you were a Pizza." Cassie glared at him, but it wasn't out of malice. 

"Watch it. Let's just get to this office already… I seriously need to sit down after that." 

"Got it." Ellis nodded, leading the way. "He would make a cool guard dog, though. Might have to steal him after all." 

"Oh my god…" 

==

The security office was, as Cassie had thought, really big. Half of it had collapsed entirely, but the other half was fully functional. 

"Yes! There's bound to be something here! We should check all the drawers for things that could be useful." Cassie cheered, limping over to a drawer and opening it. The only thing in there was Roxy merchandise, including a framed photo. Interesting. 

"I see one with a lock!" Ellis pulled on the handle to the drawer of a filing cabinet, but it didn't budge. "As expected. You check all the open ones, I'll try picking this lock… If you have a hairpin?" 

Cassie sighed. 

"You're lucky I carry some around." She searched her pockets. There was only one left, so it was likely the others had all fallen out. Bummer. "I only have one." 

"That's okay, it'll work." Ellis took the hairpin and shoved it into the keyhole, fiddling around. Cassie continued looking through drawers as he did so. 

The drawers and cabinets mostly contained paperwork, messy and revealing nothing too interesting. Employee work reports, technican notes, security improvement letters, postcards, personal belongings, polaroids of the animatronics, Pizzaplex brochures, kid's drawings, and so on. She'd gone through all of them by the time Ellis cracked open the filing cabinet. 

"Hey, I got it! Come here!" Ellis stepped back, gesturing to his handiwork. He'd somehow dented the cabinet. "Voilà. One freshly opened filing cabinet! Nobody will even know we've been in it." 

"You dented it." Cassie giggled, standing on her tiptoes to look at the contents. Ellis simply peeked in, having the height advantage. 

Within the cabinet were various items, a small yellow note left atop it all. Cassie picked it up. DESTROY was all it said. She threw the paper aside. 

"Oh, this is definitely the stuff Fazbear Entertainment doesn't want people to see. I think we might have gotten exactly what we wanted." 

"You're serious?" Ellis nervously chuckled, scratching his neck. He clearly wasn't ready for what could be revealed about Tony's whereabouts. "Okay... Do you wanna look through? I think I gotta just sit down for a sec." He perched on a nearby desk chair, which cracked and fell slightly as he did, but luckily didn't fall over or break completely. 

Cassie nodded at him, taking a look at the drawer once again. There was some kind of square thing Cassie didn't recognise that looked old, a few scattered flash drives, disks, tapes, a voice recorder, and a Glamrock Bonnie themed Faz-watch. At the very bottom was a folder labeled 'scrapped animatronics'; within sat multiple blueprints and sketches, depending on how far along in development each animatronic was, Cassie assumed. The blueprints were of Foxy and Mr. Hippo, along with some she didn't recognise such as a white tiger, a pink bunny and a pink and white deer with colourful hair. Cassie liked that one. 

There were some more robots she recognised, such as a retired bot that would clean the play structures. Apparently, they'd originally planned on an El Chip animatronic, too… Cassie could see why that one was scrapped. Other robots listed didn't seem familiar at all, all part of attractions. 

There was also a list of retired attractions, plus schematics and photos to go with them. She made note of the sheer amount of AR and VR booths that'd been discontinued, including a fantasy-themed one she remembered Gregory called his favourite when they'd first met. 

What intrigued her most were the things that likely had important material recorded on them. So without spending any more time thinking, she opened up her new (albeit very dirty) Roxy-themed backpack and stuffed everything into it, leaving the drawer empty. She slammed it shut and carried the bag to the nearest computer, where Ellis had sat down. 

"Woah, not taking any chances, huh?" 

"It's interesting, even if it's not all that useful in the end! There are some things here we definitely need to look through, though." Cassie pulled out one of the USBs, inserting it into the already-started-up computer and waiting for it to load up in the file explorer. She tapped it without a moment's notice, and scanned the contents. 

Folders, all with dates, all from specific months at the Pizzaplex. A chunk of folders from July 2033, then August and October of the same year, March, June and October the following year, and May, June and July of the current year. There were less for the previous years, but various still existed. As she double clicked the newest one at the very top from July 2035, it listed only one folder; 16/7/35 . She double clicked again. 

Within the folder were a multitude of video files, all security footage from the Pizzaplex in various locations. She frowned. Why were these dates so specific? She felt her stomach twist. 

"Hey, this one seems to have a bunch of security footage from specific dates… They could be the dates of the disappearances, but there's way too many. The number of files here outweigh the amount of disappearances." Cassie muttered. Ellis swiveled his chair over, leaning his elbow on the counter beside her. He squinted at the screen, and his eyes widened. 

"Dude. Go on that one, right now." He pointed at a specific video. Cassie could barely make it out until she squinted too, realizing she recognised the blue outfit and chocolate brown hair. She tapped it, and waited with biting impatience as it loaded. 

Once it was finally up, Ellis and Cassie watched as Gregory, worn out and breathing heavily, hid away from Roxy in the prize counter. There was no audio, but it was clear from her face that she was snarling. She moved on, and Gregory ran. The video kept playing with nothing happening, so after skipping through to be extra sure, Cassie closed the video. 

She'd seen a video like that, but Gregory was being chased by some… Weird, dancing white rabbit. One that, strangely, shared her mask. 

"That was Greg. He was here, what date is that… July sixteenth, literally just last month. Why was he here after closing, and hiding from Roxy?" 

Cassie remained silent, opening another file from not long before the last. She watched as Roxy aggressively punched and ran into a security door that Gregory was on the other side of. Monty passed behind her, stalking the door. They were hunting him, like animals. 

"Monty too..? Something isn't right here. You don't think the animatronics are like, evil, like people say? Right?" 

"They're not evil." Cassie muttered while rolling her eyes, scrolling around and opening another file. She watched as a kart raced around the track, then– "Oh my god. He's the reason they look like that?!" Cassie couldn't believe her eyes. The way the kart had just plowed through the wolf like she was nothing made her feel awful. Why did Gregory do that? And then, why take her eyes? 

"Woah. Greg's got some serious beef with them, huh?" Ellis chuckled. Cassie shot him a glare, but then frowned. Ellis had a point– sort of. Why would Gregory need to destroy them? This also meant that Roxy on the talky had told the truth . It couldn't be the mimicking robot– who she'd settled on calling the Mimic. 

Gregory was one of the missing kids. Had he gotten away, and the animatronics tried to hurt him? Even still, why take parts of them? 

Another video made her realise the answer. Freddy was helping him! And Gregory had upgraded him throughout the night. She still wasn't sure if that was necessary, though…

She skipped around the folder, playing through multiple videos and getting a rough idea of what'd happened. He'd escaped . The rabbit lady was the security guard. Gregory had played a game, and she'd just… Taken off the mask? Given up? And taken him home?! 

…But how? Gregory's parents… They died after he disappeared. Murder. She must have taken him in or something, but why would he trust her? There must have been something more that Cassie didn't understand yet. Curiosity getting the better of her, she decided to look into more folders. 

Ellis gave passing comments and seemed to be perking up a little, although still he was anxious. Cassie couldn't blame him, they could easily accidentally stumble on something involving Tony. They at least both had concrete evidence that Gregory had been here, for whatever reason, and had escaped. 

She picked the folder from the week closest to her birthday, two years ago, when kids had gone missing in chunks. 

No sooner than she'd opened the first file in the folder, had she regretted it. 

Security footage of a murder . The rabbit lady. Cassie closed it before she could see too much, as it was obvious what happened next. Ellis was closer to her, jaw stuck agape. Cassie's breath hitched. 

"The missing kids. Murders . There's just footage of it, right here. And someone planned on destroying it. She wanted it covered up. Oh my god..." Cassie immediately put two and two together. "This company wanted it covered up! It's like all those rumours said, about the kids in the 80s!" Cassie turned to Ellis in a panic, the boy jerking his head to face her after staring at the screen for an uncomfortably long time. 

"Yeah… You're right. Holy shit you're right. I-I feel sick, man…" Ellis ran his hand over his mouth, staring slack at the screen again. "The rest of these, you don't think.." 

"I don't know..!" Cassie felt herself tearing up, and fought hard to keep them from falling. "I don't know if I wanna even check…" 

Ellis took the initiative for her, grabbing another file from elsewhere in the folder. It was the same story. He'd close and check multiple, a slew of the gory incidents, murders, everything was here. 

"Ellis, stop, please, this is horrible… I can't watch any more!" 

"Okay, okay, just… Let me check this one further up, different week. See if it's the same story. If it is, I'll stop. I promise. I just have to see, it's like– it's like I can't stop thinking about it." 

"Okay, fine! But I'm not watching." Cassie turned her chair away, resting her hand on her forehead. "I can't believe this is happening…" She blocked out her tears, wiping her eyes feverishly and trying her hardest to just breathe. Things like this happened, but for her to see it first hand… She was glad she and Ellis had avoided seeing too much gore and blood in the footage. The killer was clean with her work, and they'd clicked off before seeing the lifeless bodies of people– not just children– before it'd gotten too late. 

"Cassie?" Ellis' voice resounded, shaky and sounding full of fear. Cassie frowned, but didn't turn. Something worse must've happened. 

"Yeah..?" 

"Turn around." 

"No. I don't wanna see." 

"Turn the fuck around." Ellis sounded far more desperate, almost yelling at her. The tone shook her to her core, so with hesitation, she turned. 

The sight before her made her stomach flip several times. 

The video was paused, and had been paused on a horrific moment. 

On the screen sat the crumpled, bleeding body of a young boy, around 12, with dark brown hair. Before him, boxcutter in hand, stood none other than Gregory . Freddy stood behind the boy on the floor, paused in the middle of slamming his fist down. 

Cassie felt bile fill her throat. 

"That's… That's… That's fucking Tony, Cassie, that's, that's Tony, and that's Greg, and…" Ellis stood up, hands on his head clawing at his curls. "He killed him. He killed him. How, why, why and.." Ellis ran out of the room. Cassie was too frozen to stop him. 

She closed the video and unplugged the flash drive, shoving it in her bag and powering off the PC. 

She'd seen enough. 

Her ragged, exhausted face stared back at her in the blackened monitor as the news settled in her brain. Cassie's eyes felt glued to the computer, her body glued to the chair.

She couldn't move. 

She could barely think. 

Gregory, a murderer . Worse, he'd killed his own friend. And with that news came the dreadful realisation that he'd definitely dropped her down the elevator in an attempt to do the same to her. 

Her stomach felt like it was doing backflips. The phrase repeated itself in her head. 

Gregory. A murderer. 

Gregory. 

Murderer. 

Gregory. 

She finally felt the contents of her stomach clawing to get out, so she pulled over a fallen plastic trash can and unloaded it all. Somehow, it didn't feel as bad as how the rest of her felt; she couldn't even describe how she felt. 

After a few moments to see if she needed to do it again and deciding she was okay for now, she kicked the plastic bin away gently and stood up. Her legs carried her, with Cassie barely even really aware, out of the door. She found Ellis there with his head in his hands, and she sat down beside him. 

Ellis looked up at her. He'd been sobbing, his face a mess and twisted into a dejected grimace. Cassie only had to take one look at him to start crying as well, bawling into her knees and hugging herself tight. She felt Ellis shake and cry again against her, leaning over slightly as if it could comfort him even in the slightest. 

They stayed like that for what could've been hours . Cassie didn't know how long it'd been. 

All she knew was that she felt ill, that she felt scared, that she had been so, so stupid to ever trust Gregory. And who the hell was the rabbit lady?! Did she work with him? The security guard… She was the security guard. The one Gregory had been chased by, and willingly gone with at the end of his night. 

It didn't make sense. 

None of it made sense. 

She gave herself a headache trying to reason why, what happened, everything . It was all too much, an all-encompassing sense of utter dread and despair as she realised maybe she'd never know. 

No. 

She couldn't accept that. 

She'd find Gregory, and she'd make sure he told her everything . Why he'd killed Tony. Why he'd attempted to kill her. Likely killed several others. Then, he'd pay the subsequent price. 

She stared down at the V.A.N.N.I. mask in rage, the plastic bunny head blurred in her tear-streaked vision. 

It was only fair.  

Chapter Text

"Kid? Wake up. Wake up! Kid, I said wake up, dangit!" 

Gregory woke with a start, eyes wired and staring up at the shattered form of Bonnie as he tilted his head at the boy. 

"Woah, were ya in deep there, kiddo?" 

"I… Huh?" Gregory rubbed his eyes, then looked at his hands. They were covered in dried blood. Although he knew it was his own, it didn't make his stomach squirm any less. "Yeah, yeah, sure… I'm just tired." 

"Yeah. You look it." Bonnie crossed his arm (singular, since the other wouldn't budge) and looked at the destroyed bear animatronic beside him. "This is what happened to ol' Freddy, huh…?" 

"Yeah…" Gregory carefully stood up, stumbling back as he did so. He still really didn't feel right, and napping had barely even had any effect on him. "His head's with Vanessa. They're here, in the building somewhere… Looking for me." Gregory sat on a nearby tumbled arena wall, eyeing his bandaged shin. Bonnie gave him a guilty frown. 

"I'm sorry I hurt ya so bad, kiddo. I didn't think I could trust you, thought you were… Y'know. I still don't know if I can trust you. But all the same, bringing harm to a child… Feels so wrong . I'm sorry." 

"It's okay. Not the first time Freddy's friends have tried to kill me." He dryly laughed, wincing a little as he lowered his leg back down to earth. "Freddy helped me, he got me a first aid kit from somewhere." 

"Oh, yeah?" Bonnie turned to the bear, softly grinning. "Even without a head, you're such a sweetheart, buddy." He waited for a response, but didn't get one. He almost looked offended. 

"He can't hear you. He only knew what was up with me because of pain sensors, or something. I think he knows you're there, and who you are, but can't really register any emotion. That's what the head does." Gregory stood, taking the empty spot up beside Bonnie. "This part of Freddy didn't miss you, or even know you disappeared. He isn't even reacting to you standing here." 

Bonnie scoffed, glaring down at the boy. Gregory's eyes shifted to the bunny, and he pulled a nervous grin with a shrug. He was simply telling the truth! 

"Thanks, kid. Way to make a bunny feel better." 

"Look, you'll see the rest of him later if you stay with me, I promise!" Gregory started towards the exit, giving Bonnie's deadened arm a pat and lowering his voice. "You can do whatever gay stuff you want then." 

"Excuse me?!" Bonnie gaped, dragging himself at top speed to stop Gregory in his tracks. "What did you just say?!" 

"Nothing! Nothing." The boy's smirk said otherwise. If Bonnie could blush, he assumed the bunny would be. Bonnie leaned forwards, squinting at him. 

"How'd you know?" 

"It's pretty obvious by the way Freddy talks about you." Gregory backed up and spun his way around Bonnie, continuing forward and clearing his throat. "Oh, Bonnie? Why, I do miss him so dearly. His brilliant white smile, those shining ruby eyes that glimmer like the very cosmos above, his incredibly dorky voice–" Gregory giggled, finishing off his mediocre impression of Freddy. Bonnie steamed. 

"He does not sound like that!" The bunny huffed, but immediately came around. "He thinks my eyes are pretty?" 

"Oh my god." Gregory laughed, although it was still strained and tired it sounded a lot more genuine than any he'd let out previously that day. "He really does. He usually drones on a little like that before he gets too upset thinking about you. And I get it, I think…" Gregory paused in the middle of a doorway, staring blankly ahead. "I… I get it." 

Bonnie came up behind the boy and placed his hand on his shoulder. Gregory cursed at how easily he flinched, which made Bonnie immediately pull his hand away. 

"Hey. I'm sure your friend's out there, somewhere. Alive. I mean, just look at me. Against all odds, I survived, somehow… And I'll bet he managed to do the same." 

"You would say that. You're a robot." Gregory muttered, clenching a fist. "You can be put back together. Your code can be put in something new. You could live forever if you wanted to." Gregory turned, shaking his head. Tears had formed in his eyes once more. "Tony's human. He was hurt, bleeding out, terrified, lost in this awful place with all of your friends chasing him. And Vanny. And… Me." Gregory breathed a fake laugh again. "There's no way he made it out alive." 

Bonnie sighed, leaning down slightly to speak quietly to the boy. He still didn't touch him, although made a movement as if he wanted to. 

"You can't give up on him like that. Even if there's a small chance, then there's still a chance." 

Gregory exhaled heavily through his nose and glanced at the vent before him. 

"I don't know. I'm not holding out hope. It doesn't matter, anyway… He'd never forgive me, even knowing the truth. Why the hell would he believe the truth?" 

"But-" 

"Please… Let's not talk about it right now." Gregory muttered. He turned back to face Bonnie. "Is there any other way we can go besides a stupid vent? I don't want us to get separated again." 

Bonnie hummed, tapping his chin. Then, he pointed up at the ceiling with a grin. 

"I know a staff entrance that leads to the utilidors. If it's not collapsed, we can get to the raceway from there. Follow me kiddo– and keep your chin up, okay? Like I said, don't give up. Only losers give up, and you ain't a loser, are ya?!" He winked. Gregory huffed again. 

"No…" 

"That's right, you're a winner, starlight!" The robotic bunny gave Gregory a fingergun. He was trying his best, and the boy at least somewhat appreciated that. He reluctantly followed after Bonnie, who led him to an alternate exit and stairs down to the utilidors. It was pitch black down there, so Gregory reached for his–

His flashlight. 

It was gone. 

"No… No, no, no! Why?!" Gregory kicked a discarded Roxy plush on the floor and covered his face. Bonnie swiveled to him in one movement and stepped forward. 

"Hey, what's up, little bunny? You scared of the dark?" Bonnie looked like he was about to sneer. Gregory glared at him. 

"I can't. I don't wanna go in there. It's too dark. And I don't care what you think of me, if you think I'm not cool or whatever, I'm not going without a light!" He hugged himself. "I hated being in the dark for so long." He fell silent, not willing to look at Bonnie. He heard the bunny drag himself closer and kneel behind him. 

"Hey, I'm sorry. I didn't mean any harm. It's okay to be scared of the dark, especially after all you've been through. I can't carry you like this, but… If you wanna close your eyes and hold my hand through here, you'd be welcome to." Gregory turned, and Bonnie tilted his head. "Promise I ain't gonna make any fun of you, alright?" 

"...Okay." Gregory muttered, shutting his eyes tightly and taking hold of the rabbit's plastic hand. Bonnie walked him forward, keeping quiet apart from the loud drag of his foot against the concrete flooring. 

Gregory didn't like his eyes being shut much better than being in the dark with his eyes open . Thoughts swirled around his head; memories, flashes of everything that'd happened to him over the past three years, disturbing visuals of crimson and scarlet, neon lights and glitched rabbits. His friends, his family, everything he'd once held dear that had now been left rotting in the dust. It all made him feel so scared, so sick, and it made his mild head pain turn into a migraine. It felt like it lasted for days. 

Then, it was over. 

"Open your eyes, kid. We're here." Gregory's eyes fluttered open to see the raceway, or what remained of it. He breathed a sigh of relief at the nightmare being over. 

"Thank you, Bonnie." He began leading the way again, taking deep breaths to ease his nerves that'd gone numb with his anxiety. Bonnie followed behind, remaining quiet. They carried on for several minutes, navigating the remnants of the raceway with difficulty. Every step, Gregory willed for it to be over; he wanted to slump on Vanessa's couch with tons of junk food and a trash movie so badly right now. Vanessa would yell at him for eating all of her snacks, as she usually did, and he'd let out his usual evil gremlin laugh at her and run off. 

He missed moments like that. Vanessa had been the closest thing to family he'd had in years . Despite only being gone for a few hours, and the fact he was still stewing his anger over her not telling him the truth… More than ever, right now, he just wanted to be held by her. For her to rub his head and tell him everything would be okay, to make him feel safe in this volatile world he'd ended up in. 

He was so desperate for that feeling that he'd shed a few tears over it, frantically wiping his eyes and hoping Bonnie hadn't noticed from behind. 

But then, a creak and a snap in the floor behind him made Gregory whip around within half a second, his eyes dancing around Bonnie. Bonnie had frozen in place. 

"It's okay, little fella. Just old, creaky floors! It's alright!" No sooner than Bonnie attempted to move again, the ground below him snapped and collapsed, bringing the bunny down with it. 

"Bonnie! No!" Gregory dashed forward, being mindful of the edge that could easily take him down too. "Bonnie?! Bonnie! Are you okay? Please, answer me!" 

The silence lasted a few moments. 

"I-I'm okay, starlight. It's okay. I just fell somewhere in the sinkhole, I'll get back up there, okay?" Bonnie audibly shifted, although Gregory couldn't see him in the darkness. "Just keep going forward, and be careful. You don't wanna end up falling like I just did, do ya?" He chuckled half-heartedly. 

Gregory sighed. Of course he'd be left alone again, just as he was getting comfortable with the company he had. 

"Okay. In that case, I'm on my way." Gregory got back up and turned, speed-walking in the direction of the door that led down to the sinkhole. He couldn't stop now, he had to go faster. He'd find Cassie, he'd get the stupid endo that caused all his problems locked up for good, he'd reunite Bonnie with Freddy– he'd do everything! His heart was set on it. He wouldn't let his thoughts and memories of what he'd unwillingly done hold him back. Nothing could stop him now. 

"Where do you think you're going?!" 

Gregory froze. 

He knew that voice anywhere . 

He hesitantly turned, and there she was . 

Beaten down, barely functional with various missing parts and massively infuriated, stood a snarling Roxanne Wolf. 

==

"Cassie!" 

Murderer. 

"Cassie, wait up!" 

Gregory. 

"Cassie, please, stop!" 

Gregory, a murderer. 

"Cassie-" 

"Will you shut your mouth?!" Cassie snapped, her face twisted into a snarl. Ellis frowned, looking smaller than her despite the height difference. 

"Hey, look, I'm upset too, but don't take it out on me! I'm trying to tell you we're going the wrong way. We wanna get out, right? This way goes to fuck-knows-where. Back there goes to the entrance!" Ellis frantically pointed with a trembling hand, still severely shaken from what he'd seen. 

Cassie's snarl eased, and she let out a sigh. She really hadn't meant to snap at Ellis. She assumed she was just tired, and angry, and in this situation somebody should be. 

"I'm sorry. You're right. I'm not in a good headspace, I shouldn't have snapped at you like that." 

"Man, I get it. I feel so shaky I can barely walk." He laughed, but it wasn't funny. "And I feel really sick." 

"Me too." Cassie muttered, hugging herself. The feeling of dread wouldn't leave, no matter what else she tried to think about. 

A crunch nearby made them both snap around to the culprit, the two of them far too on edge to take chances. Chica's destroyed frame flinched back as they both did so, the bird tilting her head. 

"Oh, goodness, I'm sorry if I scared you! But I needed to come over the moment I saw you. I'm so glad you're okay!" 

Cassie looked from Chica to Ellis. Chica was looking at her . 

"Uhh… Me?" 

"Oh… I don't mean to sound as if I only care for you. I hope you are both okay, you both look exhausted." Chica cooed, sounding as if she were talking to children much younger than they were. She stepped closer, holding out a hand. "Do you need some help, cupcakes?" 

"I… We're fine. Thank you, Chica." 

"Are you sure that's Chica?!" Ellis muttered, leaning forward and covering his nose. "Looks like the terminator covered in moldy Swiss cheese." Chica visibly recoiled at the statement. Cassie elbowed him in the stomach, not hard enough to hurt but hard enough to warn him. 

"Hey! Be nice to her. She looks… Great!" Cassie drew out the words, very clearly not meaning them but not wishing to sound rude. Chica was a mess, there was zero hiding that. She held out her hand to the bird animatronic as some form of apology. 

"It's okay, I know I'm not at my best right now." Chica muttered, taking Cassie's hand. "I wanted to thank you, Cassie. You gave my voice back! I didn't have time to say anything before." Besides 'pizza' , Cassie mused. She'd assumed the bird had shut down for good after that, as much as the idea upset her. 

But then, she'd thought that for all of them, and they all seemed to be still kicking.

"The fact you're okay is amazing, dear! I was so worried about you." She kneeled to Cassie's height. The girl shrugged. 

"I wouldn't really say okay…" 

"Oh… You're right. You look terribly broken." Chica ran her finger along stray blood from Cassie's leg, staring at it for several moments as if in analysis. "You need to get to a first aid station. Both of you do." She looked at Ellis, who still looked disgusted by the bird's rotten stench. 

"Maybe, but we'd rather get out of here." Ellis muttered, looking around for an exit. "Hospital might be way better than a dingy little first aid kit from this place." 

"Oh, sweetheart… I'd love to get you out of here, but you can't leave just yet. At least… Cassie cannot." Her purple eyes locked back into Cassie's golden browns, and the dirty eggshell-white head tilted. "Someone's here, looking for you! He ran into me, wanting help. I lost him, though…" 

Cassie's nerves suddenly filled her stomach. 

"Who…?" 

"Gregory! He said you could be seriously hurt and he had to get to you immediately. I've been trying to find either of you for hours!" 

Cassie could swear her heart stopped. 

"Gregory. He's here?" Cassie muttered. Chica eyed Cassie curiously, her happy demeanor diminishing. 

"Aren't you glad..?" 

"No!" Cassie snapped, looking back at Ellis. He looked scared, but was simply staring at Chica. Whether the news had sunk into his head or not, Cassie couldn't say. Her head turned back to Chica. "Where is he?" 

"I think he's going to the sinkhole. Why?" 

Cassie didn't answer Chica. She began running, limping with the pipe but barely keeping her foot off the ground. It stung, but now she didn't care . She had to get answers. 

Ellis ran after her, called after her, but she wouldn't stop. 

She couldn't . 

She kept running until she got near the raceway, where she slowed down a little to catch her breath. She grabbed the Roxy talky, pulling it up to her face and raggedly breathing into it. 

"Roxy. Gregory hurt people, seriously badly. You were right about him." 

"I know." Roxy's voice broke through the static, her tone dark. "I'm going to get him, and I need you to help me. Can I trust you to do that, Cassie?" 

She stared at the road ahead, hearing Ellis catch up to her from behind and the ambient clatter of rubble from somewhere ahead of her. Cassie sniffed and pressed the button on the talky once again. 

"We break him down. I need answers first. Then, do whatever you want with him." Cassie spat, feeling her stomach twist again. The words leaving her mouth felt so wrong , but the rage in her mind knew better than her heart. Gregory was a serious danger, and had to be dealt with. 

As gruesome as the idea was, at least she wouldn't be the one to be doing it. 

"Okay, double number one. I'll see you soon, Cassie." 

==

Gregory scrambled past crates and broken staff bots, his mouth and throat feeling like it was full of saltwater. He spat it out and kept running, he had to keep running . From behind him came a crash, and he didn't bother to turn and look at what had done it. He already knew. 

"Get back here! You aren't going to get away with any of this!" 

Her arm scraped against things as she shoved them aside, her legs pounded on the tiled flooring so fast she sounded like a train passing by. With each smash of nearby objects game a grunt, a yell, a scream of anguish. 

"Give me back my eyes!" 

Gregory felt his eyes fill with tears, stinging as the air whipped into them while he ran. He couldn't stop running. He could never stop running. He had to keep going, he had to get to–

Roxy slashed at his leg and barely missed, her claws grazing his skin and causing him to trip over a metal canister. Gregory yelped out in pain, but still didn't stop. If he did, he'd surely die. His leg was writhing in pain, but limping would only slow him down; although he couldn't help limping a little, he tried his best to just tough it out. There was no other option. 

"Gregory! You aren't getting away this time!" Roxy yelled, charging faster and knocking Gregory down to the floor. He backed away frantically, left up against a wall with nowhere else to go. Roxy closed in, an animalistic growl accompanying her words. "You can't run away now." 

"Please…" Gregory whined, looking for anything he could use to fight back or get away, anything . It was no use. He closed his eyes and waited for everything to stop. 

Footsteps nearby drew his attention back to earth, his eyes opening immediately in hopes that maybe Vanessa had arrived; only to be surprised by two different faces. 

There, standing a few meters behind Roxy, was Cassie… And Ellis . He felt like he was dreaming. He wanted to run to them so badly, but still Roxy was approaching. He looked at her, then at them. 

"Help me…" The sound of his voice came out as a pathetic whimper. Gregory mentally cursed himself for once again sounding like a scared little kid, but at the end of the day, that's all he could be right now. 

Gregory's heart sank when Cassie's frown turned into a glare. 

"You know what to do, Roxy." 

Even Ellis didn't stop her. 

They knew everything, Gregory knew at that moment. They knew, but not the whole story. He had no idea what version of it they'd been told. The one thing he knew was that they saw him as a murderer. A monster . 

Roxy lunged for him, and his eyes snapped shut. 

A loud crash sounded, but nothing ever touched him. 

Gregory's eyelids hesitated, then slowly opened to reveal Bonnie standing there in front of him– protecting him. 

"You ain't bringing a lick of harm to this boy, Roxy." Bonnie growled. Roxy simply stared, without eyes to see, and tilted her head slightly with curiosity. 

"Bonnie…? Bonnie, that's really you?!" She reached out to him, placing her clawed hand on his face and feeling the damages. "Where did you go… What happened to you?!" 

"Why, you don't remember…" Bonnie let out a half-hearted chuckle. "It's okay, Wolf. I'm back now, that's all that matters. But…" He shook his head, pushing Roxy's hand off of him. "Why are you trying to hurt the kid? We ain't supposed to hurt any children, no matter what." 

"He destroyed me! He took my eyes!" Roxy roared. Gregory finally felt his strength return as he stood up and puffed out his chest to look tougher while yelling back. 

"I did what I had to! You were trying to kill me! You deserved it!" 

"That wasn't my fault, you little rat!" 

Cassie stepped forward, standing beside Roxy with a steeled glare. 

"You killed people, Gregory. You killed people!"

"I didn't! I couldn't control myself, it wasn't me! It was-" 

"I don't believe your dumb excuses!" Cassie hissed, grabbing her Faz-Wrench and switching it to taser mode. Gregory gulped and backed away. 

"Now, now, settle down!" Bonnie stepped between the two, looking down at Cassie. "Hey… You're Reyes' kid, aren't ya? Cassie, wasn't it?" He crouched to her level, giving her a lopsided smile. "I remember your dad used to talk about you all the time when I was undergoing repairs." It was an attempt to calm her down, and it was working. Cassie's glare eased, and changed to something more somber. 

"I… Yeah. He liked you a lot…" 

"Yeah. I was his dang favourite! But y'know, he always had a bigger favourite than me; it was always you, carrotstick." He tapped Cassie's nose. It would probably elicit a giggle normally, but this time she gently swiped his hand away. 

"Stop it. I know what you're trying to do." She sighed, glancing at Gregory. He frowned at her, she glared back. "Why are you protecting him?! You should know better than anyone what he did. I saw the footage!" Oh. So that's what she and Ellis found . "Why would you trust him?!" 

"I have good reason to." Bonnie stood back upright, looking between the three of them, then to Gregory. He probably looked so tiny and helpless right now, and the feeling sucked . "The kid isn't lying. After spending time with him, I know it to be true. I was always a good judge of things like that." The rabbit looked back to the others. "He ain't no serial murderer. He's just some kid who got used as a puppet. The very same happened to officer Vanessa… And the very same happened to my friends. Same thing that made 'em all chase this poor kid to begin with." 

Cassie and Ellis both looked like they were processing an entire book of information. Ellis shook his head, finally speaking up. 

"So, what, possession is just a thing now? And you expect us to go along with that?" He let out a laugh. "Oh man, the stories about Freddy's really were all true." 

"It… It wasn't like that. Not exactly." Gregory finally spoke up. He scratched his arm, a nervous twitch, and stepped forward. He ignored the shuffle back that the two attempted. He pointed to the mask Cassie had in hand, gesturing for Cassie to show him. Reluctantly, she lifted it. 

"What? The mask?" 

"Yeah. Uh… When you put that on, for the first time, did it… Chip you?" Gregory pointed to his temple. "Like, here? And it hurts for a while, feels like a headache?" Cassie stared at him, mouth agape. She bit her lip. 

"Yeah. It did. How do you know that?" 

"Heh. Remember my favourite AR booth here, a few years ago? The Princess Quest spinoff I used to tell you all the lore of." Gregory held his arm again, smiling fondly at the memory. "I got a bad headache at some point while playing, before it got discontinued. I figured it was nothing. The next thing I remembered was waking up in the Pizzaplex two years later , in front of a rabbit lady holding a knife, who slashed me and gave me this." Gregory pointed to the scar left on his cheek from the incident. "Today, when that stupid Moon thing got me, I finally got a taste of what happened while I was out all that time. I didn't get to see everything, but enough to tell me something had been in my head exactly like Vanessa." 

Cassie shook her head. 

"No… It can't be. Who even is Vanessa?! The security lady?" 

"Yeah. She was the rabbit lady. She had no choice. Manipulated, threatened… She was more aware than I was, though. She remembered it all. I don't know how I did it exactly, but I freed her with… An… Arcade game?" Gregory was still questioning the logic himself. "And she helped me after that. Helped me get out and gave me a place to stay. And every day, I can tell she's terrified she'll get taken over again. She apologises so much. I don't know how it happened to her, but I know what did it to her." 

Cassie simply stared. Tears were in her eyes. 

"How can I trust you…?" 

"You see things that aren't really there, don't you? That chip… It makes you see things." Gregory muttered, his shaking easing as the two talked. Cassie shook her head again, starting to cry. 

"Well why was Roxy after you? All of them?! If you were working with them, then–" 

"They were all working with Vanny– that's the rabbit lady. I had to be killed because I wasn't useful to him anymore. I swear I only did what I did to them to save myself, and I had no idea what was going on. It was just instinct, or whatever." Gregory took a step closer. Cassie didn't move this time, and Ellis remained silent as he, too, processed the information. 

"You're saying when you went missing… It was because of something in your head, something that didn't belong there..?"

"Yeah. Something like that." Gregory stared at her crying face, and felt his own eyes building up tears. "I'm so sorry Cassie. I'm so sorry you got lured here by that thing and it tried to hurt you. I should've contacted you again, I was just scared it'd hurt you, I… I never realised it already planned to. I didn't know it could . If I'd known, I–" 

"You couldn't have stopped it." Cassie dropped the taser in her hand and rushed forward to hug Gregory. Despite everything, she felt just the same as she had when they'd last hugged. He held her back with that same hesitation he often had in hugs, and held onto her tighter than he'd ever done before. He felt her shaking, and realised they were both crying. 

"I'm sorry." 

"I know." 

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Gregory repeated, his eyes flicking over to Ellis. He was silent. "Ellis, are you… Are you okay..?" 

"No dude. No I'm really fucking not." Ellis started crying himself, coming forward and joining the hugging session. "Did you have to watch it happen, man?? What happened to… To Tony...?" His voice croaked. Gregory nodded. 

"He was so scared, Ellis. I'd never seen him so scared. He got away but I don't know if…" Gregory went silent, crying taking priority. The trio stayed like that, in silence, for a while. 

"Oh goodness…" Chica muttered, coming up behind them all. She looked up to see Roxy and Bonnie staring at the hugging teenagers, and her jaw dropped. "Bonnie?!" 

"The one and only!" He let out a quiet laugh. "Come here. The kids need some time to process all this stuff." 

Chica limped over and pulled both her friends into a hug, as best she could manage with her destroyed body. Roxy's head immediately leaned on hers.

"I missed hearing your voice, Chica." 

"Awwhh… I've missed you. Both of you." Chica eyed the rabbit fondly. "You were gone for so, so long… I'm so glad you're back." 

The two groups remained hugging without a word, until Gregory spoke up. 

"I'm going to need your help getting M.X.E.S. back up and running, and trapping that thing again. It's gonna be hard, but… That thing is behind all of this. It has to be stopped." 

"You mean… The Mimic..?" Cassie muttered, looking Gregory in the eyes. He raised an eyebrow at the name, but before he could answer, the door to the sinkhole behind them slammed open. 

A tall, lanky figure with two wolf ears, a rubber dog mask and large strands of destroyed hair hanging from its metal scalp emerged from the darkness. It stepped out into the light; it had scraps of Roxy's casing from her legs and arms, had stolen her hand as a replacement for its lost one, and had one arm raised towards its chest as if imitating a dinosaur. It flashed the group a jarring grin, but looked directly at only one person. 

"Cassie… Cassie. Welcome back, Cassie." 

Chapter Text

The raceway fell silent. It felt colder all of a sudden, as if the very presence of the robot had brought a detestable chill to the area. Nobody really knew what to say, staring at the grinning endo in hushed terror. It tilted its head and squinted, taking a number of strides forward, arm outstretched and reaching for the children. Before it could get very far, Roxy charged into the robot, slamming it against a nearby abandoned forklift. 

"How dare you pretend to be me! You think you can trick Cassie like that and get away with it?!" Roxy clawed at the Mimic, all the while repeatedly slamming its head into the metal vehicle. "You are not me!" 

The Mimic let out a metallic hiss, elbowing Roxy away from it and kicking her back. She stumbled backwards but didn't fall, simply rushing torwards it again. She slammed her fist into the Mimic's head. It glared at her, enraged, then backed away to give itself some more space. It then crashed its own balled fist into Roxy's jaw, making the robot wolf fall back, landing on the tiled flooring with a resounding clatter. 

The Mimic made a jarring, grating metal sound that could've been described as a laugh, grabbing Roxy by what remained of her chest and lifting her up off the ground. His other arm raised, the hand opening with a click and preparing to tear Roxy's head off. 

"Let her go!" Cassie yelled, attempting to run forward but being grabbed and pulled away by Gregory. Luckily for her, Chica and Bonnie immediately rushed forward to stop the robot from doing any more damage. The two of them bounded into the Mimic, pushing it into the wall and causing it to release Roxy. The three animatronics circled it, waiting for the right time to strike. 

"Cassie, please, we have to go! They'll be okay, they're robots. Whatever happens, it can be fixed, okay? We can't be fixed. You can't. We have to get you out of here before that thing tries to kill you." Gregory pleaded, shaking Cassie's shoulder to keep her attention. Cassie couldn't tear her eyes away from the fight, but she let out a loud sigh and nodded frantically. 

"Okay… Okay. Let's get the hell out of here." 

With that the trio ran off, climbing over rubble and tearing down the hall. It was then that Ellis finally spoke, shaken out of his silence. 

"What the hell is that thing? And Greg, why is it so against you?!" 

"I'm the reason it was trapped down here. Well, half the reason, anyway. It was already down here for… Who knows how long. I don't know what it is, but I know it tries to trick people." Gregory pushed aside a cart, helping Cassie climb something before gesturing to Ellis to climb up the same way. "It pretends to be something it isn't to get what it wants. That's what I'm getting, anyway. But why it does that, and what it really wants… I don't know. All I really know is it likes brutally killing things." Gregory shuddered, climbing up after his friends. 

Ellis stared at Gregory, eyes wide and frantic. 

"So what, it's the terminator? And it pretends to be people you know, to kill you? Why would Fazbear Entertainment make that?!" 

"I don't know! I already told you, I don't know anything about it! I don't know why it'd do any of this! It was probably just created by a bad person with bad intentions." 

"And that thing… Controlled you?" Cassie muttered, turning to look at him. Gregory shrugged, looking to the side. 

"Only explanation I have. What else could've done it? It was messing with Vanessa, after all. If it wasn't the thing in her head, why would she even know about it? Plus, it's the sole reason the animatronics are so… Messed up. Aggressive. Violent. I don't doubt it's behind it all." He sighed, climbing over a fallen popcorn machine. "It's all a mess, and right now I don't even wanna think about it. I just wanna go home." 

"Yeah. Me too." Cassie agreed, carefully climbing over the same cart. Ellis caught up to them, almost tripping over said cart in his rush. 

"Same. I don't know what to think. It's all just… A lot… And with the stuff about Tony, I…" Ellis went quiet. Gregory flinched, looking away from him. Cassie frowned at them both. 

"Hey, it'll be okay. We'll figure this out. We've been through all this together, after all." She gave a hopeful half smile. Nobody returned it. 

A loud slam scared the trio, making them all spin around at once to find out what the deafening sound had come from. The broken body of Bonnie slid down the wall, sparking with his head twisting unnaturally– even for an animatronic. His limbs had all been severed, save for half of one arm. 

Gregory was the first to yell, limping over and shaking the robot. He didn't respond. Cassie turned back to where the robot had been thrown from, to see Chica's head be pulled off and her endoskeleton ripped out by the empty, gaping hole in her stomach. Now she shrieked. 

"Chica! No, no, no!" She backed into Ellis, who was attempting to calm her down, but she didn't listen. Her eyes had already caught the destroyed, fractured body of Roxy. She wasn't moving. 

Cassie didn't have time to say anything, though, as the Mimic appeared from nowhere beside her. He'd climbed up the wall within seconds. She backed up as he almost grabbed her head, the movement making her fall back. Gregory and Ellis grabbed her in unison, helping her get back up and retrieve the pipe-crutch before running. 

The Mimic didn't get much time to run before Monty crawled into the room, biting on the robot's ankles. He was attempting to rip the legs off, to absolutely no avail. He was simply grabbed by what was left of his mohawk, pulled up and slammed down into the concrete. The Mimic did this repeatedly, pieces of Monty chipping off and the hair eventually snapping. The Mimic, despite losing his hold, continued to smash him up by grabbing Monty's rib cage instead. 

The kids ran away while the Mimic was distracted, having to find another way out now that the first had been blocked. They'd ended up back where they started. 

Cassie breathed heavily, glancing back to the scene several meters away. The Mimic had destroyed all of them, brutally. It was extremely strong, and wasn't ashamed to show it. 

"What do we do now?!" She yelped, her eyes watering again. "The animatronics are all destroyed!" 

"There's a way out, a door to the Raceway that Bonnie showed me. It isn't blocked by that thing right now, either, like the other exits. Just follow me, okay?" Gregory nodded in a direction and started running, partially ignoring his injured leg again to go faster. Cassie and Ellis were able to keep up, staying close to him and following his directions. 

They'd almost made it when the Mimic jumped from the stands of the raceway and landed in front of them, rearing up and twitching, ready to strike in an ugly twist of fate. The trio had skidded to a stop, with Cassie at the front. She now faced the thing that'd been tricking her repeatedly, that'd destroyed the animatronics, the thing she believed was the reason for everything. She was tired. 

"Why can't you just leave us alone?! What did we ever do to you? You're a monster!" She yelled. The Mimic growled, tilting its head like a confused puppy. 

"Why do you hate me, Cassie? I'm just being a friend." It spoke in Roxy's voice again, stepping forward. 

"You're not Roxy! You're not my friend! Roxy would never do this." Cassie stomped her foot, screaming so loudly at the lanky metal skeleton that she thought her throat might explode. The creature took offense to her words, roaring at her and charging forward. It didn't have much of a distance to cross. 

It was already upon her when it threw its hand up in the air to grab her, likely kill her brutally as it had with the robots… But within those few milliseconds, where Cassie squeezed her eyes shut in terror, when she thought she should feel immense pain, where she thought she'd be dead… Nothing had happened. She did, however, feel herself be shoved aside. 

Then, she heard Gregory's blood-curdling scream.

Gregory had pushed her out of the way. 

He'd taken the hit. 

It'd hurt Gregory. Badly. 

He'd saved Cassie, without hesitation. 

She opened her eyes to look at the scene, her heart racing and stomach flipping. 

The Mimic's claws, stolen from Roxy, had slashed into Gregory. It then used the back of its other hand to throw him aside, realising it'd hit the wrong target. Gregory was slammed into a wall, a loud grunt and a crack emitting from his body. Cassie felt the scream get taken from her before she could make the sound, unbridled trepidation running through her entire system. Ellis yelled for him, but it was muffled to her in all the din. 

The Mimic charged forwards again, but was interrupted by the large form of Glamrock Freddy plowing into it through the open door. Freddy knocked it back and let out a mighty roar, the first time Cassie had ever seen the character get angry. He pushed the Mimic away repeatedly with attacks, giving the kids room to breathe. 

A woman came through the door shortly after him, and gestured for the kids to come to her. She was blonde, pale and wore a purple flannel shirt, her eyes green and her face littered with freckles. Cassie didn't know her, but she recognised her from the Pizzaplex. If she had to take one guess, this was Vanessa. The woman took notice of Gregory and looked petrified, running over and quickly scooping him up. 

"Gregory?! Gregory! Can you hear me?" She was gently shaking him in her arms. He groaned softly. 

"Ness…a… Hurts…" was all he managed, Vanessa understood immediately, standing up with the boy in her arms and nodding at Ellis and Cassie. She started to run back the way she'd came, and Ellis didn't hesitate to follow. 

Cassie stayed a moment, though, looking down at the Mimic and Freddy's fight. Freddy's head had been reattached, and he was pushing the Mimic towards a hole in the raceway that went somewhere in the sinkhole. He was trying to re-trap it, or at least give them time to escape, she assumed. Happy enough with that answer, she chased after the two that'd ran off, her mind thick with thoughts. 

Was Gregory okay? What would they do now? What if that thing destroyed Freddy? What if it came back? What if it escaped? 

She shrugged it all off, catching up to the pair. Vanessa turned to her, looking terrified; she really couldn't blame her. Her own face probably didn't look much different. 

"Stay close! We can't risk that thing hurting anyone else. What were you doing lagging so far behind?!" 

"I'm sorry, I just wanted to check Freddy was okay..! That thing tore all the others apart when they tried to help us!" 

"I noticed…" Vanessa looked down at Gregory sadly. "Okay, kid, you need to stay awake, okay? You're gonna be okay." She looked back at the other two teens. "I know a staff exit, as long as it's not blocked. I brought my old card just in case it's locked up. We should be able to get out of the Pizzaplex quickly that way, it worked as an alternative fire escape for staff. Just stay close, and don't look back. Freddy will be okay."

The two nodded, and so began the run. 

The hallway wasn't far, and luckily hadn't fully collapsed. The doorway had, though, so Vanessa didn't need a keycard– just an awkward squeeze through a triangular hole in the wall. They'd gotten outside after that, and Cassie immediately breathed deeply in the fresh, cold night air. It was refreshing, and somewhat calming in the situation. It was also so, so freeing to finally be out of that awful place. 

They continued running, getting to Vanessa's navy blue car, big enough to fit just about all of them, in record pacing. Ellis got in the front seat hastily, while Cassie got in the back. Gregory was gently placed in the seat opposite, Vanessa throwing on his seatbelt and telling him it wouldn't be long until they'd get there. Gregory simply smiled and nodded, muttering a thank you. 

Cassie didn't let her eyes leave Gregory. She wanted to keep an eye on him– no, she needed to. She had to make sure he stayed awake. He was barely managing, his eyelids fluttering and his breathing slowing. Cassie decided to strike a conversation, something that could distract Gregory slightly from the anguish and give him a reason to keep his eyes open. 

"Gregory? Hey, Gregory. Look at me." Her voice was shaky, scared, at first. She cleared her throat and tried to slow her breathing; a relaxed demeanor would be much better for Gregory right now. It'd make him feel less scared too. He'd probably feel like it'd be okay that way. 

"Mmmh..?" Gregory muttered, eyes shifting towards Cassie and his head turning slowly. He blinked as if the head movement itself hurt. "Whatsiit?" He drawled, his voice scratchy. Cassie tried to ignore the tears in her eyes and be strong. For Gregory. 

"Remember those nights, the cold ones? The ones where it'd be snowing, or there'd be storms? When you'd come over… You'd show up at the doorstep, soaked, and my dad would tell you off for walking through that awful weather?" 

"Hmn.. Yeah… Remember." Gregory let out half a chuckle, "He lemme in, 'n I stole cookies." He grinned at the memory. "We'd watch TV." 

"Yeah… I remember we stayed together a few days, when my dad was away for a while. You remember what we did?" 

"Ate junk 'n watched movies… Allllll week." He chuckled dryly, leaning slightly closer to Cassie. "Didn't you get sick…" 

"We both did, dummy." Cassie giggled, "We spent a day recovering under blankets. We played Stardew. I miss that." 

"Yeah…" Gregory nodded slowly. "I wanna do that again someday." 

"Soon." Cassie reassured, avoiding the thought of anything worse happening. "Soon, like, when you've recovered enough to handle playing a game again. I'll bring my laptop to the hospital! And we can play there, as soon as you feel like it, okay?" 

"Heh… Okay." Gregory's smile didn't falter once while he talked, occasionally wiping the blood from his nose that slid into his mouth from doing so with a small grimace. "You're such 'n nice friend. Thank you." It was now that his smile finally started to fall. Gregory’s eyes flickered to each member sitting in the car, eventually deciding to focus on Vanessa. “Ness… I’m so sorry for leaving, not asking you about going, and, and getting hurt, and…”

“Hey, no, you don’t have to apologise for that.” Vanessa said with a sigh, eyes looking up at the mirror occasionally to check on Gregory as she spoke. “You only did what anyone would do. You should have told me first, absolutely, but– Gregory, don’t think for one second I blame you for going at all. For getting hurt. It’s not your fault you got hurt.” 

Gregory frowned. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but not a sound came out of his mouth. He’d fallen silent again. A minute or two had passed when he gently, quietly cleared his throat and eyed the back of Ellis’ head,

“I’m sorry. For what happened to… to Tony.” Gregory could barely speak the name, guilt written all over his face. “I’m so, so sorry. I never wanted to hurt him. It made me. I promise I never…” Gregory choked, tears beginning to trail from his eyes. Ellis shook his head.

“Dude, no. Look, I… I’m having a hard time understanding any of this, but if what you said is true, it’s not your fault.” Ellis’ voice went uncharacteristically quiet and low. “You and Tony, you were like… So good together. I thought you were gonna steal him away or something. Replace me as his best friend. But I only thought that because I could see how much you cared about each other– how honestly good of an influence you could be. Most of the time.” He chuckled, hugging himself. “I can’t imagine how bad you feel right now. I don’t think I ever will. But I know for a fact it’s not your fault.”

Gregory shook his head.

“It still wouldn’t have happened if not for me! I wanted to move here, not my parents! If I’d stayed away, you’d all be okay!”

“So?!” Ellis snapped back, “If not you, it’d just be some other poor kid being forced to kill his friends. A kid who ain’t as strong as you, who wouldn’t be able to handle it.”

“You think I’m handling this?!” Gregory snarled, causing Cassie to step in and grab his shoulder.

“Hey! Calm down, he didn’t mean it like that.” She shot a glare at Ellis, who sunk in his seat. Vanessa sighed as if she’d dealt with enough screaming of children to last a lifetime. 

“Please, everyone, calm down. I’m already rushing here, I don’t need the added argument. Gregory, you seriously don’t need to apologise for anything. Okay?”

“Okay.” Gregory muttered bluntly, frowning at Cassie. He looked exhausted from the one yell alone. She gave his shoulder a comforting rub.

“Hey. How about we talk about something different?”

“I’m sorry you got hurt.” Gregory muttered, ignoring her words as well as what Vanessa had said. “You didn’t deserve to get hurt trying to save what you thought was me.”

“Gregory…” Cassie huffed, undoing her seat belt and shifting a seat over. She heard Vanessa complain in the background, so she immediately clipped in the middle seat’s belt. Gregory looked confused, until Cassie very carefully gave him a hug. He winced a little, so Cassie changed the placement of one of her arms. “Stop blaming yourself for everything. It isn’t your fault. You’re so kind to everyone, and you always want to help. You’re sweet, you’re not a monster. Please, don’t ever see yourself as that.” She felt herself need to cry again, but held together as best as she could. Gregory didn’t seem a hundred percent convinced of her words, but he slowly returned the hug.

“Thank you, Cassie.” His eyes fluttered closed again. Cassie shook him gently, willing him to stay there. 

"Don't do that! Keep looking at me!" When he didn’t respond, she glanced at Vanessa in a silent plea for help. Vanessa focused on driving, but she saw her eyes shift to Cassie and her head nod with a slight smile before she went back to focusing. That meant Cassie was doing well, it'd be okay. 

"Gee, sorryyyyyy. Can't 'mm man rest 'is eyes 'round here?" Gregory chuckled. Cassie sighed, eyeing him carefully. Gregory probably wanted jokey conversation again, not thinking about memories he'd missed like she’d tried previously. That would only upset him given the information he'd uncovered that day, and how much he blamed himself for it all. Cassie silently cursed at herself, and crossed her arms. 

"Y'know, your eyes are like… Unnaturally big. You look like a puppy." 

"Aww. Thanks." 

"Not a compliment! You act like one too! You tilt your head like a dog when you're confused, and you looked like you'd rolled in dirt when we first met." 

"Judging the homeless now, are we Cassie?" Gregory spoke louder now, clearer, the talking helping a little. He giggled when Cassie's face fell. 

"No! You know what I meant! Gregory!" 

"I'm messing with you!" He giggled again, almost breaking into a laugh until he grabbed at his stomach with a guttural grunt of pain. Cassie cursed herself again. She'd made it worse. 

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry, Gregory, I didn't think, I didn't mean–" 

"Shh, chill, chill, Cass…" Gregory muttered, sitting back upright. "I'm fine. Okay? Just hurt a little. I-I'm fine." His voice shook, and he swallowed. He looked back at Cassie, giving her a kind smile. "You're making me feel better. It's okay." 

"I'm still sorry…" Cassie fell silent, feeling immensely bad for the boy. He looked at the floor, staring at his bloodied hand. Then, he huffed and looked at Cassie again. 

"Cassie… Cassie, listen…" He muttered, making eye contact with her. He looked upset. Cassie frowned. 

"Yeah? What is it Gregory?" 

"I'll fix Roxy. Promise. 'M not gonna let her stay broken. You deserve it." He softly smiled. Cassie started to protest. 

"No, you don't have to do that. That'd be insanely hard. It's really okay. What matters right now is you!" 

"Mmm, whatev'. Still doing it. After all the shit today… I… I think it'd be nice." Gregory could barely get the words out once more, but he didn't seem to care. He carefully moved his arm towards Cassie, the limb trembling and his hand still coated in half-dried blood. Cassie tried not to gag at the sight of it. "Still… Besties?" 

"Always." Cassie took hold of his hand, ignoring the blood entirely and focusing on Gregory's face. He softly grinned and let out a little laugh, resting his head on the car window once more. 

"Thanks." 

His eyes started to close as the car pulled into the hospital's car park, sleep taking over him. He probably couldn't even hear Cassie's pleas for him not to fall asleep, his head already lulling to the side and falling silent. 

She was tearing up when Vanessa shakily breathed, turning to her. 

"It's okay. We're here." 

Chapter Text

Cassie wasn’t entirely sure how much time had passed, but it sure was passing. It all felt rather numb. 

Everything flashed by, replaying in her head in frames. She'd been taken to a room after around five minutes, gotten a check over and been asked what had happened. Vanessa had told them all to say they were just urban exploring behind her back– that way nobody should get in trouble. Hopefully. So, that's what Cassie told them. 

Doctors and nurses came in and out; she'd gotten an x-ray, her wounds had been cleaned and dressed, a cast was applied to her leg, creams to her scrapes, and some kind of surgical glue that felt like a knife trailing over her skin was applied to stitch up two of her worse injuries. Once it was all done, she was handed a few pieces of candy and was given the chance to have visitors. 

She had to give permission for Vanessa to be let in, since they weren't family, and a staff member asked for her dad's number. She'd given them both the home and mobile phone numbers, but didn't hold out hope on him answering. Then, she was left alone with Vanessa. 

Vanessa held a coffee and looked weary and drained. She took a seat beside Cassie with a dejected sigh, looking her up and down eyeing multiple bandages and casts. Vanessa didn't know her, and Cassie didn't know Vanessa, but the woman smiled kindly and invitingly. Cassie could likely trust her too, if Gregory could. She also realised she had many questions for this lady.
“You okay, kid?” She asked quietly, gently, as if too loudly would hurt Cassie. Given her migraine, she actually appreciated it.

“Yeah, I guess… Any news?”

“Gregory? No. Not yet. All I know is he’s getting stitches right now." Vanessa sighed, looking distressed but trying to hide it– likely not just for Cassie's sake, but her own too. "But he’ll be okay– don’t worry. He hasn’t lost much blood or anything. He’ll be alright, so don’t overthink it, okay?" 

"Alright." Cassie muttered. She had overthought it. Every second she'd been taken care of by medical staff, she'd been thinking about Gregory. She'd been worried. Petrified he'd die. Trying her hardest not to end up bawling for what nurses would assume was no reason, or just pain. She couldn't be a crybaby– not now. 

"That other kid you were with is alright, too." Vanessa continued, "They checked him and gave him the all clear. He’s waiting for his mom to arrive now.”

“What about that thing?” Cassie muttered, barely able to make eye contact. Vanessa nodded slowly.

"You're all okay. That’s what matters.” When Cassie's face didn't lose its worried expression, Vanessa shrugged and shook her head. "I've contacted Freddy. See?" She held up the Faz-Watch, the one that'd been Gregory's. "He'll respond soon, no doubt about it. He told me he's attempting to trap it right now." 

"What if he can't?!" Cassie sat up taller, ignoring how her back ached at the movement. "What if he's torn apart like the others?!" 

"He'll be alright, Cassie. Whatever happens, that thing isn't gonna hurt anyone again, especially not you two. I'll make sure of it." She didn't look wholly convinced herself, but Cassie dropped it. Vanessa could probably tell she wasn't satisfied with the answer. "The animatronics can be repaired too, don’t worry. If you really wanna save them all, I’ll steal all their heads for you. Sound good?" She eyed Cassie again with a smile. Cassie chuckled and nodded.

"Yeah. It sure does."

Eventually, a nurse came into the room and told Cassie exactly what she’d expected to hear.

"I’m sorry, Miss Reyes, but we couldn’t contact your father. We’ll keep trying."

"Cassie is fine," She muttered while glancing up at him, "I don’t expect him to pick up. He’s away on a… Work trip. I was staying with Gregory and Miss Vanessa here while he’s gone." Cassie gestured to Vanessa, who looked slightly honoured at being referred to as a temporary guardian when they’d only just met. 

"Even if that is the case, we’d still like to tell him of your condition. We’ll keep trying regardless until you are discharged."

"That’s okay. Thank you." Cassie forced a smile at the nurse, who returned it and left. Once he was gone, Cassie fell back in the bed. 

He’d been gone longer than ever before. She was so worried something had gone wrong this time, her father’s insistence to investigate Fazbear Entertainment taking over his life to the point he’d picked being a technician for them. Cassie didn’t know why, but she’d respected the decision.

Only now, he hadn’t come home for almost a month. He’d promised he’d be home for her birthday.

She ignored the thought, not wanting to worry about it right now. 

"Vanessa is fine." The woman beside her spoke up, as Cassie realised what she'd said. Vanessa laughed, and it made Cassie feel like laughing too. 

Cassie stayed in that room for another thirty minutes before she was allowed to leave, and immediately she sat along with Vanessa and Ellis outside of Gregory’s room, waiting for him to wake up. Vanessa had gotten a second coffee, and now Cassie had tea; Ellis had decided not to get anything. 

A shorter woman with curly hair styled into an afro and wearing a pink fluffy dressing gown rushed into the hall. Ellis groaned, covering his face.

"Ellis Acosta! What the hell have you done this time?!"

"Mooooomm..!" Ellis whined, standing up and going to her in an attempt to get her away. "I was just looking-"

"At that damned Pizzaplex, I know! You know how I feel about illegal urban exploring! You’re grounded, young man!"

"But-!"

"With all due respect, Mrs. Acosta, Ellis was looking for something important." Cassie spoke up. Ellis shot her a glance, and she realised maybe she shouldn't have said anything. 

"Important? Like what? It'd better be something that magically makes grades better!" 

"Mom, please…" Ellis sighed, sitting back down. "Can we sit down and talk?" 

The change in Ellis' demeanour made his mother immediately sit beside him, placing a hand on his knee and asking if he was doing okay. Cassie wished her dad was here to do the same; it felt so scary without him. He always knew what to do in serious situations, while Cassie didn't . She'd just break down and cry. It was a wonder she hadn't yet. 

"My grades have been slipping because… It was just the anniversary of Tony's death a week ago, mom. I can't stop thinking about him this year. I went to the plex to look for something that'd give me any answer at all. I couldn't stop myself from doing it and, in the end, I just went for it." He sighed, his breath shaky from starting to cry. His mother held him, rubbing his head and rocking him like any mother would. He didn't seem to care that people were watching, which was something Cassie hadn't expected from a boy like him; he didn't care, and let himself cry into his mother. 

"Ah, mijo… It's okay. I do not blame you for anything. You know you can talk to me about these feelings, right?" 

"Mhm. I will from now on. I'm sorry." 

"There's no need for that, now. Did you find anything?" She gently asked, cupping his cheek. Ellis shook his head. 

"No." 

Cassie didn't say anything. Of course, if Ellis said his friend had been mind controlled to kill Tony, that would turn a lot of heads. It was better he kept that to himself, she guessed. 

"I wanna wait for Greg to wake up before we go home. I need to see him. Is that okay?" 

"Of course, mi querido. What happened to you all? I told you those robots were evil." 

"It wasn't that, mom… we just had some accidents. It's okay, really, I promise." 

Cassie sighed and leaned over tiredly, the conversation fading into the background. Vanessa didn’t seem to mind it, slowly putting her arm around Cassie. The girl sipped at her tea every few minutes, so slowly that it managed to go cold. 

She felt tired despite the caffeine, and her thoughts faded into nothing. 

==

The Pizzaplex was silent, something it'd never really been before– even at night the place was loud. No life seemed to be left in it, not even the robotic whirr of machinery could be heard, only the distant creaking of something surely soon to cave in. Part of the raceway had caved enough that birds could be heard chirping in the early morning sun outside, casting tiny rays that scattered across the racetrack. 

The destroyed form of Freddy lumbered across the tiled flooring, his head giving a slight twitch every few minutes and one hand clutched to his stomach. Despite being something not exactly alive, he felt awful . It felt like he'd been shaken and thrown around a million times, and lived to tell the tale. 

Freddy's foot came to a stop at the head of one of his friends, which he picked up gingerly and stared into the eyes of. 

"Oh, Chica… You did not deserve this fate. None of you did." He looked at each of his friends with a frown, stepping over to chica's body and reattaching her head as best as he could. It would stay on, but wouldn't stay upright anymore. It drooped over onto her chest, her eyes rolling around like marbles. Freddy held her in one arm, then scooped up the body of Roxy to do the same. He carried them up the steps, placing them gently beside Monty, who was left in an even worse state. 

Freddy took Monty and shoved his jaw and arm back into place, attempting to do the same with his mohawk but having no luck. The bear sighed, his eyes wandering over each of them. 

"I don't know if you can hear me, but… I love you all. It was an honour playing by your side. I will never forget those times…" He stared at the ground mournfully. "Even though I know it is possible to get you all back, back to how you were before the program that ruined us all was installed to the system… I still feel a great sadness. Loss. I suppose you cannot blame me." 

A glint nearby caught Freddy's attention, something that made him stand up immediately and rush over. A blue hand, which connected to a blue arm, and a… 

Freddy scooped up the animatronic's body, staring at the face of it with what could've been a mix of both sorrow and glee. 

"Bonnie. You were here. You came back… And you defended him?" Freddy pulled the bunny closer, as if he could return the hug. "Gregory may have surely been broken, or even deactivated, if not for you. I thank you immensely. Although it hurts that I couldn't… Speak to you again…" Freddy stopped holding Bonnie so close, looking instead at the bunny's tattered face. If Freddy had a heart, he felt it breaking all over again. 

"I'm so sorry, Bonnie. So sorry I could not get here sooner. So sorry I never found you. I promise, we will see each other again soon. You will be able to talk to me again, as I know you would have missed." He hummed, softly chuckling. "You always loved watching me read stories to the children. I know you didn't hang around for those same old stories every time, did you now?" Freddy began walking back to the others, gently placing Bonnie down along with them. 

"You'll all be brought back. I will not rest until I see all of your smiles again. I missed you all, so much." Freddy felt his mechanical heart fill with love as he thought about them all, but also about Vanessa and Gregory. His life had been ever so different since the fall of the Pizzaplex, and he'd become adjusted enough to it, that… Maybe he preferred it. Having a family. It made him feel like he was fulfilling a bigger purpose than Fazbear Entertainment had designated him to. 

"I must protect this place now, from the outside world. I will protect you all, and ensure that the Mimic does not get out. I will not leave you again, I promise." Freddy held his hand to where a heart would be, and he began his journey back to where he'd come from. A metallic screech sounded, and Freddy felt like sighing. He pushed himself against a forklift truck until it gave, falling into a hole and making escaping it impossible. From below, the metallic scream came again. 

"You are not getting out. You will not escape and harm my friends ever again." 

"We'll get out somehow, just you wait!" A bellow in Monty's voice came from below. "We'll think of a new plan. Something you'll never expect." Roxy's voice. "You can't stop us!~" Chica's. 

Freddy let out a low growl, but ignored the sneers of his friends' voices. He knew it wasn't really them. 

"Ain't it just gonna be swell? Yippee!" Freddy growled again. The voice was unmistakably Bonnie's. 

"You can try all you like, but you will not break me. You will never break me. I know who my friends are, and you are not one of them." Freddy sat down, staring at the forklift. The voices continued on, but he wouldn't let them get to him. 

He'd stay strong, for all of his friends. 

Especially for Gregory. 

==

Gregory was barely awake when Cassie blasted into the room, making him jump out of his skin. He stared at her with wide eyes as she frantically sat beside him. 

"Jeez, Cass, give me a heart attack while I’m here too, huh?"

"I’m sorry!" She whined, looking full of regret. Vanessa walked in, pulling up a chair beside her. Gregory smiled at the two, although it was never as wide as before. He didn't feel right, and he knew why. A lot was on his mind. Being forced asleep for so long certainly hadn't helped him, either. The bad thoughts never seemed to stop flowing. 

“Well, hey guys. I’m uh… I’m okay now. I feel better at least, I mean. My head doesn’t hurt, I don’t feel dizzy, but I'm still in pain.”

“I was so scared you'd be dead,” Cassie breathed, “do you know how long you’ll be here?”

“It wasn't that bad, really…" Gregory let out a small laugh. "And uhh, overnight.” He muttered with a groan. “I just wanna go home already.” 

“It’s okay. We’ll stay with you the whole time!” Cassie cheered, grinning ear to ear. Gregory felt himself smile again, although only slightly. 

"Thanks. Is Ellis still here?" 

Right on cue, Ellis walked into the room looking a little shy. She sat on the opposite side of the bed to Cassie and Vanessa, eyeing Gregory closely. 

"H-Hey man. You okay?" He looked scared. Gregory felt his heart sink, but nodded regardless. 

"Yeah. As okay as I can be. Are you okay?" 

"I dunno, dude. Maybe. I'll be fine. Just a little traumatised, I think." 

"You can say that again." Gregory muttered. He itched his hand, the skin feeling dirty despite nothing being there. He wanted to wash them, but it'd been done already. No matter how much they were washed, though, he doubted the feeling of blood being on his hands would ever go away. He kept eyeing the doors, windows, jumping at sudden sounds and movements. He was so on edge, maybe Cassie would have almost given him a heart attack. 

"I just wanted to see you were okay before I left. So…" 

"Yeah. It's okay. It's already morning, we've been up all night. You can go home now, I ain't leaving until tomorrow morning." Gregory huffed at his predicament. Ellis nodded, standing up slowly. 

"There's a memorial in school for you and Tony, by the way. In the library. Maybe you wanna check it out someday, or something. They just added it last week." Ellis shrugged. "It might be funny if everyone saw you alive and well, huh?" 

"No." Gregory briskly replied, his face falling. "I can't go back there. To that room. I'd only think about the last day he was…" Gregory froze, his eyes watering again. No no no no, why was he doing it again?! 

"Hey, it's cool, man. I get it. I wouldn't wanna see it either if I was you." Ellis scratched the back of his neck. "I'll keep what happened to myself. What I know. Unless I have a reason to do otherwise." Ellis was serious, not messing around this time. Gregory nodded.

"Yeah. Got it." 

When Ellis left, Gregory was left in the company of Vanessa and Cassie for the rest of the time. They'd come in, and go out, stay the night or get kicked out until Cassie would come sneaking back in and lay beside him to stay hidden. The very moment they were able to leave, Vanessa drove them home, making a quick stop at Cassie's so she could grab some necessary items and clothes. Vanessa had also delivered the good news that the Mimic was trapped once more, and Freddy was okay, guarding it. Gregory felt his worries ease a little, and could tell Cassie's had too. 

That day was spent watching movies and eating junk on the couch together, just as Gregory wished. Despite all that was plaguing his mind, he couldn't be happier. 

==

"Hey Greg?" 

"Hm?" Gregory looked up from his drawing, eyeing Cassie as she walked in wearing Roxy-themed pyjamas. She seriously had Roxy-themed everything . 

"Since we have to sleep in the same room… Can we keep the light on? I reall y don't like the dark." 

"No problem. I hate the dark too." Gregory nodded, deciding not to mention just how much he hated the dark and going back to doodling. Cassie came over and watched for a moment, humming. 

"Freddy?" 

"Yeah. But like, this is my AU. He's a space pirate captain." 

"Wouldn't that fit Foxy more..?" Cassie asked, scratching her chin. Gregory huffed, placing his pencil down. 

"No, Foxy is his rival . That's the whole point." 

"Well I'm sorry, I don't know anything about your Freddy's AUs!" Cassie stuck out her tongue, and the two fell into fits of giggles. 

"I'll tell you more sometime then. If you want, I mean." 

"Mhm. Anything that'll get our minds off that thing , yeah?" Cassie went to sit on the bed, picking up her dirty Roxy bag and looking at the contents. 

"Yeah." Gregory stood up, deciding to sit beside Cassie and peeking over. "What's all that?" 

"Evidence." Cassie muttered, frowning at Gregory. "It's how I found out what y– what the Mimic– did. I haven't looked at it all. I don't know if I want to." She sighed, tipping it all out on the bed. "There's blueprints for scrapped animatronics, though. I guess that's cool." 

"Oh… Huh. I might look through those, at least." Gregory held one up, eyeing the figure of a pink rabbit that looked a lot like Helpi. "Kinda cool." 

"Hey, kids?" Vanessa appeared at the door, peeking her head in the gap. The duo looked up at her, and she gave a small smile. "What do you want for dinner? I was thinking of making spaghetti." 

"Oh, yeah! That sounds great!" Gregory grinned. Cassie stood up, pacing over to Vanessa. 

"Can I help? I know how to make it really good! My dad taught me! I think it'd really perk Gregory up." She smiled at him. He tilted his head– wow, Cassie was right . He really did tilt his head like a puppy. 

"Oh, okay! I never get a willing volunteer for dinner." Vanessa chuckled. Gregory stuck his tongue out at her. She simply laughed, as did Cassie, and they left the room together. 

Now Gregory was left alone. Alone with his thoughts. Usually that wouldn't be good right now. He sighed, deciding to think more about an idea for his next comic to take his mind off anything else– only for something in the pile Cassie had left to catch his eye. 

There were flash drives, memory cards, a floppy disc, a number of papers, and a voice recorder. Specifically a Panasonic DR60, something Gregory knew the model of from his small dabble into paranormal investigation a while ago. It was a model of voice recorder that'd been discontinued simply because people would pick up voices in dead silence that didn't belong to them. 

Gregory picked it up, curiosity getting the better of him. Could it contain an EVP– electronic voice phenomena– of a ghost from the Pizzaplex? Freddy's past? Or was that all just fake stuff that people made up for views? 

Taking a deep breath, he clicked the replay button. 

"Oh, is it– is it recording? It is? Okay, yeah, got it."

Gregory's heart stopped. There was no mistaking that voice, the vocal tone, the pitch, all of it . The clarity of the voice told him it definitely wasn't a ghost, either. 

The voice belonged to Tony Becker . 

"So, uhh, hey, Greg. Hopefully you found this, or… Or Dr. Rabbit, GGY, whatever the hell the name you wanna go by is. If that even is you, and you weren't replaced by some serial killing robot clone… Haha. I just know whatever tried to kill me sure wasn't you, or surely I never knew you at all. 

But I know people well, Gregory. I know and I analyse people well enough to know when something's wrong. I don't know what happened to you, but I know it doesn't make any sense.

I left you this to tell you I'm alive. I got out. You didn't kill me. And if you really are a secret serial killer, well, this is my way of gloating, to say you never got me. If not, and there's really something else going on, like this guy who helped me says, then… Guess this is my way of telling you I'm okay. It's been a month since it happened as I record this, and I heard you went missing too. Apparently. Maybe you're dead, hell, I don't know."

Gregory just about smiled. Tony had gotten away, and he knew something was up– or at least, had an idea. What guy was he with..? And how did he know Gregory would just happen upon this recording? 

Even then, it'd been two years since it was recorded. 

"This guy's cool. Into investigating, like me. He's dug up a whole lot about Freddy's, Greg, you wouldn't believe it– heh, look at me. Talking as if you didn't stab me in the stomach. I guess I just… I don't know. I felt like we got along better than I did with Ellis sometimes. I hope he's okay, though… I can't get into contact with anyone right now. Too risky. Not even my family. This guy knows what he's doing though, and even though it hurts… I get it. It's a simple safety precaution. 

I'm making this really long, aren't I? Sorry. I'll get to the point. 

If you wanna find me, and you are the real Greg, I'll give you this one clue that nobody but you would understand. 

Remember Mega Void? I kept raging on the train level because of that one thing, near the bridge. Only the real Gregory knows what that was. You'll find a clue there, in the real life equivalent."

Gregory gasped. The bridge . There was a fox enemy. He had to go to the train bridge, and pray that the clue still existed today.

"Good luck." Gregory assumed the recording was about to end, and sighed. There were so many new questions on his mind, he wanted to ask them so badly. But he couldn't. Suddenly, Tony's voice broke his train of thought again. 

"I miss you. The real you. Unless this is the real you, but fuck, I don't want it to be!" He sounded upset, taking a deep breath. "I know Cooper's got good reason to assume what hurt me wasn't you, I just… Shit. Well, you don't know his last name, it's fine. Whatever. 

I know you have a better mind for riddles than Ellis so you'll know what to do when you get there. If you wanna bring him along though, I can't stop you. Just bear in mind he'll know what happened between us if that happens." It was too late for that, Gregory knew. 

"Bye, Greg. Hopefully I'll see you soon." The recording ended. Gregory simply stared at the recorder in silence. 

"...Bye, Tony." 

He placed the recorder down and exhaled heavily, looking up at his glow-in-the-dark-star-covered ceiling. No matter what, he would find Tony. He'd apologise. He'd do anything to tell him what'd happened. He was determined now, and he let himself smile, and cry, and laugh. 

Tony Becker was alive.

To be continued,

in:

Whatever Happened to Tony Becker?