It was already past midnight by an hour, and all the entrance and exits of the Pizzaplex were now closed and sealed for security. You were actually on time when you got to work, you needed quite the rest since you finished helping out with the recent events. After meeting up with Rose earlier, you headed straight to the Pizzaplex by the time it reached midnight, just a few minutes before that.

You immediately set on to prioritize your tasks first, knowing full that when you bump into the animatronics, your time will be well spent with them instead.

You're not trying to be rude, nor were you thinking of them as a mere distraction, but you also couldn't help but treat it so. Working while hanging out with them will only seem rude.

The steps up to the Main Atrium wasn't long, you haven't caught sight with any of the animatronics yet. Usually, they leave their greenrooms at 1 A.M., but since they're comfortable with both you and Vanessa, they're comfortable enough to leave as soon as midnight—or even before that.

The first thing in your relatively short list of tasks is to check up on the instruments that were delivered just earlier—to serve as reserves in case any of the instruments get damaged. After so, you'll check the lighting on the planetarium-looking attraction by the upper levels—where a dome-shaped glass ceiling allows the sun and the stars to be seen and adored, a resting place for grown ups alike.

Since they want to promote a more comfortable experience, the dome was sealed with a protective film that prevents the sun from scorching the attraction with its radiant heat. Similarly, LED lights in the shape of stars were scattered on walls, but the technicians have yet to test their workability.

They simply just can't go on a day without instructing the night guards of tasks related initially with their own.

You made your way to the Main Atrium, taking in the atmosphere while walking in strides towards the show stage. You learned that the elevated platform there is the fastest route to Parts and Service, instead of taking the service route like how employees SHOULD use.

Not that you care, as long as the job is done, would they dare argue?

When you got to the stage, you pressed the controls, allowing the platform to tremor for a moment, and eventually descend down the tunnel-like structure, which leads to the aforementioned place of service.

While walking, you browsed your tablet to gain an overview of what other tasks are required of you—most of which requires your presence only at the planetarium-like attraction. With that said, you looked ahead and pushed the double doors that led to the Parts and Service area respectively. However, what you didn't expect is for an animatronic to be there.

Inside the protective cylinder is Bonnie, currently inactive as the process was held to completion, but manual intervention is required to thoroughly end the task. You placed the tablet down on the table nearby and accessed the old-looking computer, checking the status and eventually confirming the procedure as complete.

The protective cylinder opened, and the binds that holds the animatronic in place was removed by automation. The animatronic himself slowly booted up afterwards. He looked at you and seemed to tilt his head slightly in confusion.

"Oh? It's you. I thought the technicians were—"

"They were, but they usually leave the final step to us night guards." You replied, checking your tablet briefly and eventually going over to one of the open display rooms where the box of instruments should be placed.

You didn't wait for Bonnie to reply anymore, you opened the box and found three guitars inside the relatively large box. Only thing left is to examine their quality, which is fairly easy.

Ever so gently, you manually checked for any damages, going far as to strum a few times to see if it was finely tuned. You felt the presence of the animatronic nearing you—their footsteps were never quiet to begin with.

"Do you... know how to play the guitar?" Bonnie broke the silence with a question, his eyes held great interest while listening to you strum.

You placed the guitar back down on the box, bubble wrap was placed underneath and between each instrument to ensure a layer of protection. "I played it before, but I rarely do so nowadays." You replied, your fingertips grazing the surface of the oakwood instrument, ready to be painted the next working day.

The animatronic smiled through the expression of his eyes. "I'd love to hear you play. Do you have anything else to work on? Maybe, we could hang out? I want to get to know you more, as the others speak highly of you." He urged, waiting just outside the room as to not look so pushy.

If that was even possible at the moment.

"Well, all my next tasks are located at the Planetarium." You informed him in a way that you'd usually inform Freddy, especially when the animatronic purposely cross paths with you at certain times.

"So, is that a yes?" Bonnie asked again, his sincere eagerness is slowly becoming prominent in his voice.

You simply stood up and walked out the room. "You can tag along if you'd like." You replied once again and began walking out of the Parts and Service area, marking your task as completed in your tablet.

The animatronic followed suit behind you, which you didn't mind at all. The both of you took the ride from the elevating platforms which ascended to arrive at the Main Atrium, the silence of the area shifting to the calm ambience of the area. Lights were dimmed at night time, but they were still ever so bright. The holograms projected onto the stage was switched off, and the colorful lights shifted into a single tone with multiple shades—which makes it less irritating to the eyes at night time.

The trip up the escalators which were inactive, were brief, you avoided opening any topics for the time being. It seems that the animatronic too has been pondering over some thoughts that none so far was mentioned until you arrived at the entrance of the said attraction.

With your security pass, it was easy to get inside. The animatronic behind you simply followed.

On one hand, you actually missed having Freddy follow you around—you were much more comfortable and secured beside the bear more than any other animatronic. However, he must've been quite busy, and Bonnie happened to have quite the amount of free time and leisure.

You looked around the place for a moment, lights were dimmed, and couches littered the main area of the attraction which served as a resting place. "I have work to do, you can sit down or whatever." You lazily instructed and immediately got to work.

The power module near the counter was accessible via your security badge, allowing you access to the wires, buttons, and switches that controls the array of parallel connections of lights. Upon pressing several buttons, several lights of warm yellow masked the artificial stars on the walls, enlightening the room with its warm glow amidst the night's sky. You used a twist knob to slowly adjust the frequency and brightness of the lights to where it was comforting to the eyes.

The rest of the procedure requires similar actions as well, adjusting the light frequency and brightness while ensuring everything is working. It took you around an hour to successfully coordinate and synchronize the lights in a hue that you see fit. The warm lights of stars illuminated warmly—compared to the sharp glare of lights earlier. Other lights of the arrays of blue and white also highlighted a glow on various areas of the attraction, making it alluring to watch and see in the dusk of the night.

The animatronic nods for a moment, admiring the work you've done with his fingers beneath his chin, watching you close the power shaft with a slap of a hand. "Interesting, it appears, you could do more than simple night duties, (Y/N)."

You merely looked at him and cleared your throat. "Oh um... well, thank you, I suppose." You replied, unsure on what else to say.

Either he was complimenting you, or he looked down at you in the beginning?

"You're flustered, are you alright?" he approached you, holding a hand out to touch your face but you took a step back.

"I'm... I'm fine..." You? Flustered? You subconsciously raised a hand to touch your cheeks, and indeed, they're pretty warm.

But isn't it due to your cold hands?

"Why don't you take a seat and have a break, hm? All that walking must've tire you." He gestured for the large couch nearby.

You laid your eyes on that specific couch—it was the exact same couch which you and Freddy sat on before, the time where he played the guitar that one night.

You could vaguely remember things since the incident where you got hurt, but certain details like your time with Freddy recently flashed before your eyes like a memory trip. You could recall how you and Freddy started, where he was weary of employees—such as yourself.

But you could also recall the warming days where he kept you by his side, protected you, and made you feel very differently.

The only thing you couldn't remember is your past deeds, the voice that vaguely lingered in your memories, and how you got hurt.

The important details were always absent.

The animatronic was standing in your way, his gesture to the couch was emphasized when he nudged an action. In the end, you plopped down on the couch, feeling your tensed muscles relax upon contact with the soft material of the seat.

It really reminds you of Freddy.

Your thoughts were probably too preoccupied that you failed to notice the animatronic who gently sat beside you, yet the shift of his weight on the couch was prominent that you noticed it right away.

A question was something you were about to bring up yet in his hands were an oakwood guitar—one of the newly delivered instruments which you were taking care of just moments ago.

Where did he get that?—or rather, how? Where did he hide it?

Surely, it wouldn't fit nicely in his stomach hatch, right?

"Relax, this was here since earlier. The staffs liked to play with it between breaks, so, they kept it behind the counter." He explained and strummed a few times, his blunt yet prominent claws lightly tugged on the guitar strings with ease.

You would've asked if he knows how to play it—only to remember that he's a robot, he could learn through A.I. programming—and that he's Monty's senior in the role of the band.

No wonder.

"You know, even if I was decommissioned for a long time, I can still remember what happened in the past. Is it the memory chip? I don't know, but it always felt like I could recall the chords and frets like how humans do." He mentioned, looking at you briefly before proceeding to strum the guitar strings in a solidified tune. It didn't take long before he began playing a simple tune, forming into a song.

You couldn't find it in yourself to distract him, only to render yourself silent and listen to the melodious tune which he plays. However, compared to Freddy, he doesn't utter a tune, nor could he find it in himself to sing. His guitar spoke for him, the tune of an unfamiliar tune rendered you into a peaceful state. You smiled for a moment, leaning on the backrest of the couch and closed your eyes, allowing the sweet symphony of the instrument being played to dance in the area. It wasn't a lullaby, nor a romantic prose made through music, it didn't need the creator's voice, nor any unnecessary commentary.

It was soothing to hear.

"This was one of the songs I usually play with Freddy whenever something was wrong, it cheers him up almost immediately. You could say that we're really close back then." He mumbled, yet it was audible to hear. His fingers lightly grazed the guitar strings, strumming lowly before stopping for a moment. "But when Monty came, I distanced myself to give him enough room to grow. I'm well aware of how I was shadowing him behind."

His voice dragged lowly for a moment, his fingers strummed through the strings every now and then, his eyes half-lidded, staring at the blank wall adorned with stars that illuminated. "You don't blame me, do you?" he then glanced your way, his eyes were a bit solemn, yet the strumming didn't cease, but neither was it played simultaneously.

"Blame you of... what?" you were absentminded, having to ask after enjoying the piece he was playing.

"Of being the reason why Monty had a hard time after I was... decommissioned." He ceased his strumming completely, earnestly awaiting your response.

You don't know how to answer, only to advert your gaze instead.

At some point, you did blame Bonnie. You firmly believed that Monty couldn't have done anything wrong, and the process of Bonnie's decommission was by the decision of the higher ups. However, you don't know whether to side with Monty or Bonnie in this predicament.

"To be honest, I don't know." You didn't want to lie; you don't have enough facts to even assume. However, you wouldn't want to hold any bias or prejudice against anyone.

The animatronic hummed in reply, seemingly dissatisfied with your response, but decided not to pry further. "Alright, I understand." He ended and once again, began stumming the guitar, playing the exact same song which he was playing moments ago.

"Can you tell me what song that is?" you asked—a pretty nonsensical question to ask, but anything would suffice if it ends to forget the conversation earlier.

"Romance De Amor, it's a classic between Freddy and I." he chuckled and continued playing, seemingly to hold the piece precious. "This song marked the beginning of our discovery of sentience, leading to who and where we are—since we used our own will to find this song and learn it."

You nodded as you listened to his words, slowly, you began to learn more about the animatronics.

Freddy never told you this before, but he never talked about Bonnie. You understood this from the moment you caught a glimpse of the idea that Monty was pointed as the culprit of his decommissioning.

But is he, really?

"Well, you play just like Freddy, almost like you could copy him." You decided to randomly point out—a fruitless and thoughtless idea to shift the conversation elsewhere.

Like Freddy, he would lean back, close his eyes, and listen to his own melodious strumming. The only difference is that the animatronic is Bonnie, and not Freddy.

"Oh, well." He gave a short chuckle of laughter before ceasing his strumming—which he has been continuing for sometime now. "Back in the beginning of the Pizzaplex, we were only programmed to play certain songs and melodies. But after we gained sentience through the A.I., we basically learned from each other. Freddy taught me to play, and I taught him some songs I've learned." He pointed out, doing certain strumming techniques which you've mostly seen Freddy do.

It became an occasional thing for Freddy to play the guitar at night time, mostly, when there is nothing left to do. You became his number one audience, admiring and loving every melodious symphony which he creates.

It was one of the aspects that made you like Freddy more than the rest, a connection that couldn't be severed even through the loss of memories.

"You know, its been a lonely night for me, the rest are busy doing self-routine updates for the time being. If it's alright with you, can I tag along wherever you're going?" he decided to question, his eyes beaming with expectations. The guitar held in his grasp now lost its place as Bonnie's primary interest, his eyes now glued to you.

You could've rejected him, but since everyone else is busy, what's so wrong with hanging out with the bunny? After all, he's new—well, newly returned, that is. He's still grasping the ropes of how things changed since he last got himself activated.

It wouldn't hurt to have another companion, right?

"I guess I don't mind."

You could only agree, what's the worst that could happen?

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

At the hallway of Rockstar Row, the dull lights were dimly lit, bringing a solemn atmosphere surrounding the artifacts that served as entertaining displays of the past. Like Chica's old cupcake from the previous locations to sheets of newspapers celebrating the foundation of the company were plastered on walls.

From one of the greenrooms, the orange-themed animatronic left his respective greenroom, stretching for a moment to warm up his servos and gears from within. Updates that were necessary had just been completed, and only at this hour did he finish his respective updates. It wasn't a major update, rather, it was an entire chunk of data which was saved in his systems—the data consisting solely of Bonnie, as well as his role as a new recurring member of the gang.

His first thought was to check up on you, since, knowing your clumsy antics and tendencies, you might catch yourself in a complicated situation while alone.

It also became his routine to check up on everyone before he does his own thing. He was certain that the rest were in their greenrooms, since he was notified to be the first to finish installing updates, while the rest were still dealing with theirs.

He took several steps to the Main Lobby, planning on going up to the Main Atrium when he noticed something—or rather, someone.

Someone was in the Prize Corner at the second floor, the blonde shade of hair moved and swayed ever so slightly, giving him the idea that the other night guard—Vanessa, was there. As a courtesy, he began approaching the prize corner to check up on her, since only scarcely was he able to greet or oversee her situation.

"Greetings, Officer Vanessa." He greeted when he was but a few feet away from the woman.

The woman was startled, losing her hold on her flashlight as the object fell from her grasp, rolling just less than a feet away. "Freddy—can you not?!" she hissed, reaching forward to grab her flashlight, loosing interest in what she was previously doing.

The animatronic raised a brow from the sudden change in behavior, she is usually snappy, but not THIS snappy. "Are you alright? You've been tensed these past few days." He decided to ask, stepping closer to observe the female's reactions.

He does know his boundaries, but the change in behavior of Vanessa was hard for him to simply overlook.

The woman released a sigh, perhaps, she was thinking for a moment before glancing up to meet eyes with Freddy. "Can I ask you something?" she suddenly ask, her cryptic eyes held an unspeakable emotion within them, her emerald eyes were slightly dull.

"Of course, I will try to answer as best as I can." The animatronic pledged as he took a step back to give her room to move. Based on his scanners which he initiated earlier, Vanessa seemed to be restless.

Not that he'd want to scan anyone without their consent, he's just worried, and chances for them to reject his offering will be evident.

Vanessa took a while before she could collect herself and stand up, her eyes darted for a nearby swivel chair and eventually took a seat. Her shoulders were tensed, but calmly, she composed herself before looking at the animatronic—whose standing there, patiently waiting for her.

"A few months ago, (Y/N) and I got into an accident, right?—an incident, rather." She trailed off, giving him the prenotion of what they're going to converse about. Her eyes lifted slightly to see the bear's reaction—but there was none. So, she continued. "Do you remember what happened to (Y/N) and I? Like, how we got injured, or what happened before that?"

The animatronic casted his eyes aside—he simply couldn't recall. There is a core memory data stored in his memory chip, but due to his resetting—it was locked. It seems, he himself had set a password to access it months ago, but he could no longer remember that. "No... I apologize, Officer Vanessa. The data in my systems have no information on that whatsoever."

The woman's emerald green eyes were downcast as she shifted her gaze away. "I understand..." it sounded like she has many more to say but chose not to speak further.

Instead, she stood up, grasping her flashlight with one hand, and a tablet assigned to her in another. "I'll get back to work. If you're looking for (Y/N), her task is mostly in the planetarium attraction." She mentioned before heading out.

The animatronic could only watch Vanessa's retreating form in silence, his eyes slightly half-lidded.

Vanessa's tensed about something, and it might have something to do with the events that transpired in the past. The memory data of such is still locked and backed up in his memory chip, he just needs to recall the password to bypass the security which he himself has placed.

Perhaps, his past self has predicted something might happen and automatically backed up the said data with its corresponding password.

Just, what exactly is this memory that he's so keen into protecting?

Meanwhile, Vanessa sped-walked towards the grand double doors of the Superstar Daycare. Her routine mostly involves visiting this place, though, as much as possible, she avoided the animatronic stationed here. Compared to you, she dislikes interacting too much with the sentient beings.

She felt this need to always secure herself...

However, she also knew that other than Freddy, the next animatronic to probably remember what happened before.

Is the Daycare Attendant.

It comprises of several reasons, which includes how the animatronic was disconnected from the main office due to malfunctioning. On the other hand, they were also found with severe damages, yet their memory chip was never wiped clean—they were never reset.

With what build up of confidence she has, she took the staircase down to the daycare area, the double doors were not locked, making it easy for her to push open like saloon doors.

The place was messy, something quite common from the animatronic whose A.I. is reduced to match those with children. It was easy to spot the Daycare Attendant too, considering how he's on the playmat in the middle of the Daycare. He was lying on his slender figure, the upper body propped up while he seemed to be coloring a page from a coloring book. Crayons of various shapes and colors littered the ground, and he must've been too preoccupied to notice Vanessa's entry.

With a slight clearing of the throat, the animatronic paused and looked up at the security guard who entered his area, a sense of unease lingered within him.

The Daycare Attendant was already fond of you—but they never interacted too long with the other security guard—Vanessa. It wouldn't be a surprise for suspicion and unease to linger his thought process.

"Yes? Do you need something?" he may have come off as rude, but he really didn't expect her presence.

"Just a few questions I'd like to ask, nothing major." She walked forward, allowing the double doors to swing closed upon her entry.

The Daycare Attendant was weary, but didn't run, nor rush off rudely. "Ask away." He motioned, sitting down on the playmat in a kid's position in sitting.

The security guard sat down in front of him, facing him in a position similar to his, as if meditating. "I know that you know something, Sun. Could you tell me anything about the incident a few months ago?" she pursed her lips a bit, her fingers fidgety on her lap. "The incident involving me and (Y/N)?"

Upon the mention of your name, the Daycare Attendant seemed to perk. You were his favorite person, after all. "Why are you asking me this?" he still couldn't help but be cautious of Vanessa.

The security guard gave a firm look. "It's very important for me." She sighed, adverting her gaze. "Lately, I've been hearing whispers in my dreams. I figured that it might have something to do with the incident a few months ago. If possible, can you tell me anything about it? Like, who was the perpetrator?" she asked, mentioning briefly of her own intentions to hopefully, gain what little ounce of his trust.

However, Sunny was a bit elusive. "I'm really sorry, I don't know." He reasoned.

It was a lie, he did know something, his systems were never reset during that night.

It's just that...

He really doesn't trust Vanessa.