"Time is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear, too long for those who grieve, too short for those who rejoice, but for those who love, time is eternity."

– Henry Van Dyke.

——

Bryan looked up at the stars, body burning as he lifted himself up ever so slowly from the pavement that he has found himself on. The air current slowly gliding across his face. Blood splatters were everywhere, as far as the eye can see for a human at-least. The roar of the wind was deafening, the cackles of the thunder seemed to rejoice at the destruction of everything around it.

A newspaper flew, tearing into the wind and spreading its contents to every place the wind can carry, the date still... the date. Bryan couldn't read the date.

A scream left his lips as he jumped up, slamming his head against the concrete with a groan. The suns rays cascaded across his torn up face as he sat up, looking at the area around him. There were no stars, or blood, no tearing winds and cackling storms. Nothing, just the pizzeria he has grown so accustomed to.

Yet it looked different since yesterday. The air seemed much more toxic, radiating malice. Something was wrong. It felt so wrong to Bryan that it sent a rack of shivers up and down his spine.

"What is going on?" He whispered to himself, his voice hoarse from the screaming. People, no, animatronics had ran out of the pizzeria to see what the commotion is about.

Pools, the pizzeria had a pool? When did this happen?

"Uh... hey guys!" Bryan rubbed his neck, the itching seemingly not going away. His jaw felt tight as he spoke, as if it would snap at any moment if he were to talk to much.

"Hi." Helpy stared at the human in confusion, the blood obviously catching her eye but she didn't exactly have anything to say about it. Minding the humans privacy for the time being.

Bryan smiles at her, one full of hope. "Helpy? Uh..." he looked at the others in confusion. "Who are they?" He pointed to the other animatronics. A animatronic who seemed to look like a frog bounding over from the pool area. Bryan rubbed his head, everything blurry for the time being.

"Why is there a pool in a pizzeria... you know... what ever it's called?" He asked the two, not exactly wanting to announce that he doesn't know who exactly most of the animatronics are.

"Are you okay Bryan?" The frog chirped, laying a hand on his shoulder. "You seem a bit... in a mess at the moment."

"I'm fine...." his voice trailed, obviously not knowing who to call this animatronic. "Do you happen to have a name I can call you? I didn't exactly get it when you walked over."

"Uhm... I'm Happy Frog!"

"And Who are they?" Bryan pointed to the rest of the people at the pool area, not seemingly bothered by the owners arrival.

"Well.." the frog animatronic turned to Helpy, confused. "Helpy here will introduce them to you! As they... you know... wait. Bryan. What's the last thing you remember by any chance?"

Bryan tapped his chin for a moment, the thought not having crossed his mind. What was the last thing he remembered. Memories pooled in, complicated and all over the place. Whatever memory he had was as scrambled as eggs. "Well.. i was with Spring-trap and we had just gotten Lefty! Yeah I remember now. Okay uh... I had to go into the vents in order to do some daily checks up with the other two animatronics I owned. And then Spring-trap came in.. Wait no. We all didn't arrive together in the ventilation system. Only Helpy and I did at first. But for some reason, Spring-trap and Lefty showed up and I don't exactly remember what happened after that to be honest."

"Okay!" Helpy looked over to the pizzeria for a moment. This was odd, but it is not the first time this has happened before. Helpy can remember countless other times where Brayan came to the pizzeria in a disarray. Sometimes he hardly remembers anything at all, spooked out of his mind. Or other times, he would be super happy even though he could only remember so little.

"This isn't the first time Happy Frog, it happens from time to time."

Bryan, while the two female animatronics had been talking, wandered over to the pool. "Woah! This looks so cool! Though who implemented it. I don't remember implementing a pool..." he took a look at the animatronics around him. "Or buying you guys and gals! Well... hi! I'm Bryan" he extended his hand to the bunny animatronic. "You look like Spring-trap, Though your exterior.. you know... looks newer."

A.I Afton nodded, having gotten used to these odd occurrences by now. "Hey Bryan. Well.. I guess you can call me A.I Afton!" Bryan's smile only widened when he saw the diving boards, gaze turned away. "Bryan?" The golden bunny animatronic walked over to the human was obviously making talk to himself, and looking around the pools many features.

"Welcome to my pool Bryan!" Happy Frog hopped onto a lilli-pad that was floating precariously on the waters surface.

"Wait you own this pool?"

"Yeah! Do you like it?" Happy questioned, sitting cross legged on the floating pad that was bound to submerge at any moment, but yet it didn't. It was an odd sight for Bryan, as he has known of Lilli-pads, but not these kind that defy all logic in a sense.

The fox animatronic that had been watching the whole ordeal just decided to let the others handle it, as they seemed to be better suited for it. Rockstar Foxy has known if the occurrences, he even has seen them once or twice. But, the way Bryan was talking to everyone, acknowledging everyone besides Helpy as if they were all new was something completely new to him.

Did Bryan loose his memory somehow on the way here? Could it have been the fall. Or possibly it could have a correct correlation to why he is bleeding from a cut on his scalp.

——

Bryan continues to converse with the other animatronics, finding out the others name eventually. He will admit that the time it took to get each of their names was a bit on the longer side than he desires but oh well! "Wait... when did i buy you all again?"

"Well Bryan. It's hard to exactly explain that." Bellora explained. "You bought me at an auction, and I don't think you remember anything about a auction."

"Yeah your right. I don't remember any of that? Or... maybe I do. Everything's a bit distorted at the moment in my head."

Bryan seemingly loosing himself inside his own head hasn't noticed a particular animatronic looming behind him, peering at the pool along with the human that stand in his way. The shadow the animatronic casted due to the suns angle had awoken Bryan from his thoughts that seemed to suck his focus away.

"Hello Bryan."

The voice was deep, basically radiating masculinity if Bryan had anything to say about it. A touch of insanity and malice, but other things to Bryan  couldn't exactly depicted from the voice alone.

"Hello?"

Bryan turned his body to look at the voice's bearer, noting a animatronic has been standing behind him. This animatronic looked worn for wear, very worn for wear. Wires poking and exposed for the world, it's body basically looked as if it had no outer protection at all. Where eyes should have been on the animatronic were nothing but sockets, with red lights dancing in a small section just near the center of the socket itself . It was peculiar, this animatronic looming in front him obviously knew the human, while on the other hand, the human had defiantly no clue who this animatronic could be.

Bryan let out a scream as he tumbled backwards, feet leaving the ground as his body tumbled into the pool back first. A large splash could be heard as Bryan drifted downwards for a split second, shocked .

Laughter could be heard from the A.I Afton Bryan had just met, the human pushing himself up and pulled himself up. "Oh my god. I'm soaking wet!" Bryan groaned, rubbing one of his hands through his damp hair in order to try and dry it off faster. His socks, along with every other piece of clothing the human has on was completely soaked.

Wait, what was he wearing?

Bryan looked at his clothes, finding them to be highly fashionable, a major improvement from what he was previously wearing. His love for Pokémon depicting his style of choice, but now.. it appeared that there was no Pokémon colors at all. Instead it appeared to be Gucci clothes! How did he have enough money to buy this?!

"Oh come on Bryan. It's not that bad" Afton watched him from where he was perched on the lifeguard tower.

"But I'm soaked!"

"We know Bryan. You just took a tumble into a pool. You are bound to get wet."

"Is this Gucci" Bryan pulled his hands underneath his sleeves, hands making their way to his collar so he could spin the shirt around and see the tag. It was indeed Gucci! "Oh my god it is!"

"You just now noticed your wearing Gucci..?" The molten animatronic snickered, though his thoughts trailed off faster than he could say them. "That could possibly not be real Gucci."

"It is real though!"

"also.. I never got your name sir?"

Molten stood there, dumbstruck for the fact that the human who has always mentioned that he despised him, doesn't know who he is? This has to be a trick?

"I... I am Molten Freddy."

"Hi Molten! I'm Bryan. But you kinda already noticed that already." Bryan was waving happily to the other, spinning his shirt back into its proper direction.

"Wait... oh my god someone's drowning! I'll save you!" Bryan dove into the water, having spotted the fox animatronic standing on the bottom of the pool floor. The animatronic, much to Bryan's dismay was extremely heavy, Bryan hardly able to get him or her to surface. "Wait... your an animatronic? Of course your an animatronic why wouldn't you be."

The fox seemed to be a tad bit annoyed by the fact he was pulled to the surface, Bryan having made a fit over nothing. It was sweet though, he had to give the human credit where credit is deserved. He seemed to always be sweet and caring, up to this day, even when it has come to these episodes. Selfless, that was something the fox hasn't seen much of since his times at the old pizzeria all those years ago.

The place where he died.

"Hold on hold on I got this!" A.I Afton announced, standing and looking down at the pool.

"I'm fine I'm fine!" Foxy grumbled, pulling himself up from the water as Bryan followed after.

"Are you sure your okay? Your.. your wires are soaking."

Afton somehow, during all of this managed to get a small one person boat and place it in the water, none of the other animatronics having heard or seen it.

"Wait... what?! How do you have a boat."

"Oh this is just.. wow." Foxy shook of the water from his furry coat, using his available hand to try and wipe the majority of water remains off of him.

The group of animatronics and the one human seemed to fall in sync with each-other, their conversations witty and each remark thrown making another laugh or cringe, depending on what was being said at the time. The general conversations varied, going from how the pool was built, to fish in the pool.

It was wild, but Bryan loved it none the less.
Even after getting to know these animatronics, he felt like he has known them for so much longer than he can recall at the moment. He felt like he has known them for months, but yet he can't remember anything about them. Can only remember the specific day, yesterday to him. He hasn't checked a date yet so he might be dreaming, he could possibly be dreaming due to how absurd everything that around him was.

The date. Why would he have to worry about the date? Dates don't change, time can't flow in two directions at once. Or can it? The portal is quite a force to dab with, a inter-dimensional breach between a world of games to the harsh reality.

Is the portal even there?

——

Standing by the portal now, the feelings of others to come seem to fill Bryan with a sense of nostalgia and dread. Anger pushing its sway into his system like a bull charging at a red blanket. He's mad, but at this moment Bryan doesn't know why.

A group of people surround the portal with him, the lights shining off each of their metal exteriors. All of his new friends, his new comrades that Bryan wants to hold to his heart? But why does he feel this way? Is it just the heart playing tricks or is there something seriously... odd about the scenario that this is playing out to become.

The portal hisses, it shrieks and cries and gurgles, it spits its rage in many ways. It seems alive at this point. Bryan wouldn't dare say anything else. Each time he enters, something warps, something inside of himself becoming something he knew for sure wasn't normal, ordinary. He wanted to be ordinary, yet now, as he stares into the dark abyss of the unknown. Lights seemed to not want to go down there, if it even counts as down in a sense that it is a portal. You could be jumping up, due to the portals breaching of common scientific evidence.

Its to dark down there, in the void below.

The anger seeks. But doesn't show.

Darkness dwells where light can't hide.

Through the narrow between the cracks of time

Bryan held his breath for a second. Taking in the poem that he recalled from somewhere. Probably something he had made up if it really came down to trying to piece together where it came from.

"Alright. 3.. 2... 1."

Bryan let out a scream as he plummeted downwards, body soaring yet falling. The bashing of multiple memories, multiple scenarios seemed to ricochet off his minds walls like a ball. The screams he let out were silent in the void.

It felt hot, to hot this time around.

Why is it so hot in a place where not even light can penetrate.

Or is it all in his head?

——

Our uniqueness makes us special, makes perception valuable - but it can also make us lonely. This loneliness is different from being 'alone': You can be lonely even surrounded by people. The feeling I'm talking about stems from the sense that we can never fully share the truth of who we are. I experienced this acutely at an early age.

-Amy Tan

——

It felt like an eternity, falling through an endless void that seemed to never change, never falter. It was almost consuming, the way it taxed on Bryan's subconscious. Every passing moment, every time a dip occurs, something always breaks. Wraps and changes with the new developments that occur.

Bryan at this moment in time felt nothing but regret, regret he has never felt before but does not understand why he feels this way. It was problematic, taxing on his energy reserves. He felt robotic as his mind was lured deeper and deeper into the endless abyss of time.

Sleep is such a taxing thing is it not, if your not really sleeping to start off with.

——

Bryan awoke to a sunny morning, the sun shinning happily above the horizon. Birds chirped as the song of nature carries through the air like a wake up call.

"Time to start a new day!" Bryan chirped as he tosses the sheets off his sweaty body. He was soaked in sweat, from his head all the way down to his toes. It appeared like he had jumped into a body of water in his sleep. "It will be nice to see Jon again. I miss him." He sighed. "I started the business and I think I can get him on board as-well. He would love working as a business owner!" The hat wearing male ran around his room, finding clothes and tossing them on, after he dried his body of course.

Everything seemed off when he approached Jon's place, something felt off. The aura around the place just didn't seem comforting to him, no matter how nice Jon is. Something seemed to linger. So as he knocked on the door, twitching and holding himself up high, he was met with Jon. But not the Jon he remembers.

The once clown looking male had now taken on a more traditional look, and to Bryan it scared him. It scared him for the fact that he didn't know his friend had changed! He should know this about his friends, right?

"Hey Bryan." Jon greeted, his voice unnaturally void of emotions, sounding like a robot more so. His eyes cold and calculating. "I see you decided to take on your old look."

"What do you mean Jon? I have always been like this..." Bryan trailed. "Well. I wanted to tell you that I had gotten a pizzeria a few days ago. And I wanted to see if you wanted to stop by and look around?"

"I have already been to your pizzeria Bryan."

"You have? Was it during the day time. I know I don't have much stuff there yet, as I am still trying to get a proper amount of income to afford it."

"Bryan... what are you talking about? You are defiantly up there in wealth and overall popularity."

"Uhm no? How would that exactly work Jon. I just got the pizzeria a few days ago. Yesterday I actually bought Lefty! Though he followed us into the vents..." Bryan started to trail, his words humbling as he allowed for his mind to let loose.

"I see... wait. You said that Lefty followed you into the ventilation systems?"

"Yeah, he did. I remember him getting way to close and then everything going dark. I don't know if the light busted or not but Spring-trap managed to get him under control."

"Bryan. What date is it today?"

"February 15th, 2018. Why are you asking this Jon. It's the same for you too. Well actually, I think it's the next day so make that the 16th!"

"Okay okay... well... that's nice Bryan! It's good to see you sticking your feet into the business soil and rooting yourself." Jon at the overall conversation seemed skeptical, the whole conversation was highly absurd. He just gotten into a little bit of a problem with Bryan, who was so much different from this way that it was like a slap to the face, so what could this be?

Could it have been a sort of memory relapse, as that can happen under a strenuous amount of tension. But to this degree? Is it possible it's something else? Such as the portal that Bryan seems to have at his place? Could the bucket of bolts cause something to go wrong in the others head?

"Bryan. I want to be honest with you but right now I don't know if I can."

"What do you mean Jon?"

"Well... you seem different from yesterday that is for sure.. are you feeling well."

"Yeah. But I need to head back to the pizzeria, would you like to come with me?"

"Sure. But I should have you know that I can not stay long as I have my own pizzeria to care for."

"You do! That's awesome. When did you get it? I was actually wanting to talk to you about getting one but I see you have also rooted yourself into the business as-well? I also didn't ask earlier, but which chain is your pizzeria for?"

"Fazbears."

"Cool! Mine is to, we can be like... work buddies. Yeah. You could give some advice and I can give some advice. We can be a great team you and I."

"Yeah Bryan.. Yeah."

Jon wanted to tear his hair out, the absurdity of this reaching critical levels. Spring-trap wouldn't like this one bit, but who is he to care. The rotten animatronic can just buzz off for all he cares. But for some odd reason, he couldn't at the moment keep everything together in his head. Bryan is acting just like how he used to, before everything at his side of the business started to fall apart at the seams. The pizzeria is still doing well, just tainted a bit by bad reputation due to the poison fiasco.

"Come on then Jonny boy! Lets get going." He hopped down the street back the way he came.

"Alright Bryan! But slow down."

——

Bryan walked into his pizzeria and walked straight into a metal door, the bong resonating making him wince. "Ow."

Jon let out a snicker, standing firm just behind the male. "You do know that there are security doors there right?"

"Yeah. Well, I do now. I think Spring added them last night. But oh well." He looked around the front area for the keycard, Jon slipping his own keycard out and opening the sliding door. "Come on Bryan."

"How did you manage to get one Jon? These are newly made.. or at least newly put in."

"Well. I have met Spring-trap and he has his own that he wanted to share."

"How do you know Spring-trap?"

Crap! Jon growled to himself, his face reddening due to the embarrassing situation he has put himself in. It seems as if this Bryan doesn't know of his connections to the green corpse animatronic. "Well... I met him yesterday during the day hours. He was nice enough due to my connections to you.."

"He better have been good. He wasn't even supposed to be spotted. I need to think about getting him a new exterior model. That may be nice.. ya know.. to give him something like that."

Did Bryan just say that? Dear god this version of Bryan is just so naive, but this innocence is just something Jon didn't have the heart to squash. "Yeah. I'm sure he would love that."

"Well. Lets go!" Bryan stepped through the now open door to see the pizzeria is just a tad bit different.

When did they get a bigger stage?

And a bigger everything.

——

Time is finicky, something that can be malleable and convoluted. It can be changed if your not careful. But there is always someone that just manages to mystify lady time. Someone who doesn't stand out in a negative light.

Some say it's coincidence.

But time seemed to not follow Bryan Films around the way it should.

Spring Bonnie or A.I Afton as everyone has become used to calling him didn't understand. He didn't understand how everything could have been this weird. Bryan was never an exact embodiment of a cocky business owner, yes he has had some moments but that gets smothered by all the good deeds the human has done over his year or so of working in the business industry.

A.I Afton defiantly made some theories on the predicament Bryan seems to have found himself in. His first guess was that the portal was acting up, sending Bryan through a multitude of memories and or selves that he could recall. Or maybe it has something to do with a mental illness Bryan could have possibly obtained.

Whatever it was, has defiantly caught the attention of the animatronics other half, the darker half if he is going to be specific. The human spirit embodying a animatronic.

Bryan has become a catalyst for something so much more complicated, something that could ultimately be world changing. Yet for now. As A.I Afton sits in his workshop, working on the bear, his mind becomes clouded by the renegade thoughts that managed to slide its way in.

So many things, so many probabilities for what is to come.

He just hopes that Bryan can solve whatever is going on with him before Spring-trap swoops in, snatching the questions and forcing answers he desires.

The crazy animatronic may be... crazy. But when it comes down to something, that animatronic will not back down until he discovered it.

A.I Afton would know, as he has that thought process as-well due to the ties with the other Afton.

Time will tell for the human, only time will tell.

——

Bryan watched the place in awe, the stage lights defiantly catching his eye. Everything seemed so beautiful.. yet how was this all added in a night while he was gone?

Had Spring brought people in to fix up on the issue? He could trust the animatronic because he seemed to have known a lot about the company before hand, way more than any other animatronic should. To a degree it creeps the human out, how much the animatronic has intel wise, and money wise. How did an animatronic even have a bank account anyways?

But this seems to much, something impossible that could hardly be done in the span of under 24 hours. "Wow.. I have... this is.."

"Impossible?" Jon quipped in, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah!"

"Your impossible" Jon mumbled, not meaning it to be in a bad way. But Bryan is very much so an impossible person to predict and compare to anyone else.

"What was that Jon?"

"Oh nothing! Nothing." He grinned sheepishly. "I was just thinking to myself, that's all"

"Okay. I do that to sometimes."

He waddled in, inspecting the animatronics on the main stage while Jon branched off to go look for Molten Freddy. He has some serious words with the animatronic that he does not want Bryan hearing.

"Molten Freddy" Jon hissed once he was far away enough from the human. "Get out of those vents right now!"

"Bossy much." The animatronic gave a Cheshire grin as he hopped down from the vents behind the male, causing him to jump. "You seem to forget who has the power here."

"Obviously you don't lap dog."

"Ouch, I am wounded. Oh the agony." Molten fanned his face in a way of showing how much he 'cared' for this conversation and the jab Jon threw.

"Cut it, what did you do to Bryan?"

Molten raised an eyebrow and leaned against the nearest arcade machine. Well that is what it would do if it had eyebrows anyways. "What makes you think that I have done anything."

"You are always up to tricks Molten".

"Indeed I am, but I am one to gloat about my achievements. What is happening to Bryan is something I myself am not involved with. Whatever is happening is just something that has been going on for ages now."

"What do you mean this has been going on for ages.."

"It's exactly how it sounds you squishy human. Bryan. Is. Weird." Molten clipped each word in order to try and make it stick. "No matter how much I try, I can not figure out what the human is in comparison to the weird stuff happening to him. His memory is all over the place, lapsing at such weird intervals that it could almost be random. But over the months, it has been gradually more and more common I guess."

"So... you have done nothing to agitate Bryan's mind in any way, shape or form since you have met him?"

"Well.. I can not say that I haven't."

"Molten!"

"I feel no shame for that. Now shouldn't you go and talk to your bubbly human.. who seems to be someone from the beginning if it comes to attire alone."

"Ah. The Gucci phase has not arrived yet I guess."

"You are right. Now go. I have business to attend to elsewhere."

Molten hopped up onto the ceiling, maneuvering his way into an open ventilation grate and closing it behind him, leaving Jon to his thoughts.

——

Jon walked back to the main stage to find Bryan poking at the rockstar animatronics that were at the moment shut down to a recharge mode. Jon can relate to that as his animatronics at his pizzeria tend to go into a recharge cycle after an extremely tiring day, multiple parties can have that affect on a person or animatronic alike.

"Bryan?"

"Jon! Come look, these animatronics look so cool! One of them even has maracas! I have never necessarily played a maraca but it sounds fun". Bryan was giddy, basically hoping up and down in the same spot. He looked as if he was lost in his thoughts and imaginations.

"Yeah.. those are the rockstar animatronics."

"So.. you know? It's weird... but i swear I have seen them before?"

"Is that so? How odd."

"Yeah.. it's like I have met them before but.. like.. it's all clouded for some reason. It's foggy. I can sort of get like an emotional attachment from it, but it seems I can't get a visual to correspond to it. It's.. its kinda like Deja vu, I guess."

"You guess?"

"Well.. ya know. It's sort of like I feel like I've been here, in this exact scenario."

"I know how Deja vu works Bryan."

"Sorry Jonny!"

Jon sighed and rubbed his neck. "Okay okay. I get it. So you seem to be having deja vu episodes.. correct?"

"Yeah!"

"How often do you get them?"

"Every time I see the animatronics."

"Oh.." well that is defiantly something he needs, more questions! So it seems that Bryan still has sections of the memories he has supposedly 'lost' in the form of Deja vu? "Do these episodes harm you in any way.. like emotionally or physically?"

Bryan looked down, suddenly quiet as his rambling ceased. "Sometimes I guess."

Jon's eyebrows raised in alarm, eyes becoming serious. "Bryan. What do you mean they have harmed you?"

"Well... a day or so ago, I had woke up outside the pizzeria, my nose bloody. And all I could feel was that sense that it's happened before. Like it was meant to happen you know?"

"I do not know Bryan, this is very weird." And trouble, Jon grumbled.

"Okay. Well. Can we get off of the subject and change it something a tad bit more interesting. Like how many more lights there are here".

Bryan started once again to ramble, his mind opening like floodgates, the tension he had built up form the array of questions seeming to follow the flow.

Bryan walked around every inch of the place, from the farthest of bathrooms, to the duck pond in the far right corner of the pizzeria. Everywhere was basically in the grasps of the human, everything felt so real... but at the same time, not. In a sense that it seems so preposterous for a broke pizzeria owner to afford all this stuff.

Wait, how did he manage to afford all this?

Did Spring-trap really spend this much on the pizzeria.

Yep, it's decided, Bryan mused, 'I am totally going to get him a new suit as a thank you present.'

——

I believe in everything until it's disproved. So I believe in fairies, the myths, dragons. It all exists, even if it's in your mind. Who's to say that dreams and nightmares aren't as real as the here and now?

- John Lennon

——

The portal. In all its glory, stood in the middle of the backroom, consuming a large chunk of the floor. Bryan watched it with interest as the animatronics who were online followed him, standing on different sides of the dark swirling void below them. The fox animatronic was awake along with a frog, a purplish black bear who seemed to be missing an eye, a ballerina dancer looking animatronic, a miniature baby looking animatronic and the animatronic who looked like they had been thrown into a blender. Even Jon was standing by the portal.

"Well... uh.. Jon how do you know the portal is here?"

"Spring-trap showed me when I met him?"

"Okay... well.. is everyone ready?"

The fox animatronic scoffed at Jon, who in return glared back in return. Bryan rubbing his head in confusion. "Hey guys, what's wrong? Can we just all play mini games together and have fun.. you two seemed to not really like each other.."

"we are just going through a.. predicament is all laddie." The pirate grumbled, his hook bathing in the glow from the light streams behind him.

"Yeah Bryan. Nothing to serious."

"Alrighty is everyone ready?"

A chorus of "yep"'s and "Sure"'s sang through the air as Bryan bent his knees , counting down from three.

"3..2...1!" Bryan jumped in, letting out a scream as his body once again tumbled downwards into the vacuum that separates the multitude of realities.

The others followed, but Bryan couldn't see them.

He could only see himself.

And the 30 others who look exactly like him responding to a scenario inside his head.

Are these memories?

Or are these just fantasies?

What exactly could be playing in the space that fills where space can't fill? The epicenter of all. The existence that lay between existence.

Memories swirled like a vicious tornado at this point in time, banging and clawing at his internal walls.

Just hold on Bryan.

It will be all better soon, just wake up.

Wake..up..

——

Bryan walked into the pizzeria once more the next day, for him at-least, noting that it was back to how he remembered it. The lack of anything besides the 1 person sturdy stage and the animatronic on it. Some tables lay here and there , but everything was how he remembered it!

In the corner, near the stage, the sounds of giggling made its way into Bryan's ears. The sound warmed his heart up just a tad bit more as he walked over to see the old beaten up animatronic and the A.I were listening to Lefty talk. Or in this case, the animatronic bear was cracking up some horrible jokes that Bryan didn't necessarily get?

"Hey guys!"

"Hey Bryan" , the raspy voice of the bunny animatronic greeted his ears first, followed by Helpy.

"Hey Bryan! Your early?"

"Yeah." Spring-trap nodded to the A.I.

"That's not exactly true.. because by the clock I think I made it on time?"

"Oh.. oh! We must have lost track of time."

"Well.. Yeah! Hi guys, how are you all." Bryan was happy to talk to his friends, feeling as if he hasn't talked to them in ages.

"I am good... just messing around with Lefty here. Managed to fix a few of the issues that we had went through yesterday."

"But your all online. And Lefty seems to be cracking a few jokes here and there?"

"Yes indeed! I am at the moment done with him so we are all just listening to Lefty's jokes."

"Alright, I'll bite. What jokes do you have up your sleeve Lefty?"

Lefty just stood there, silent, his form unmoving as the lights in his eyes remained off.

He wasn't even on?

Bryan blinked and stared off at the ceiling for a split second, looking back to see Spring clicking his furry fingers in front of his face. "Bryan? Bryan? Hello Bryan?"

Bryan groaned and rubbed his head, sitting up and staring off into space. "Ow my head. What happened?"

"You fell. Well. Sorta. You kept mentioning how Lefty was making puns, seemingly from my point of view it looked like you actually were talking to someone." Spring sat down on the side of the stage, his body putting most of its weight on it.
The stage groaned under the pressure but didn't budge.

Bryan was at the moment on the floor, his head on the legs of the other animatronic, who seemed to be looking down at him in a worried fashion. "Uhm. Why am I on your legs Spring?"

"Well. When you passed out, you kinda took me down with ya."

"So you didn't shove me off or anything like that?"

"No. I'm not that heartless."

"That is a total lie Spring-trap and you know it" Helpy yelled from across the other end of the room.

"Shut up Helpy!"

"Make me you trashcan."

The animatronic growled in annoyance, but decided not to do anything. This argument could be put off for a later date. But now, they just lay Spring uncaring of the position.

He may be a heartless killer but that doesn't mean he doesn't enjoy some sense of normality, even if it's not what he would deem normal.

"I think we should go to the shop, and buy some stuff! We really need to fill this place up" Bryan announces as he stood up, legs wobbling but calmed after a few solid seconds on them.

"Alright! Lets see what you can buy." Helpy was on her way to the door, spring following in hot pursuit behind her. Bryan followed as well, the group of animatronics and human leaving the pizzeria and making their way to the shop.

——

"And here we are." Spring walked through the entrance of the shopping center, Helpy having been in the lead.

"Alright! Lets see what I can afford, there are a lot of things to buy. Like the speakers." The human pointed at the speakers that had been perched on the shelf above their heads. "Arcade games". Bryan rubbed his hand on the top of the game, nostalgia creeping in.

"Well. Lets see what's in stock and let's see what we can buy out of what I have!"

"I can get a advanced speaker set. A deluxe speaker set. Yeah.. the other hands are pretty expensive." Bryan skimmed past those, not wanting to buy them at the time. "A one person steady stage"

"We already have that."

"I know Helpy I am just calling out what is in stock at the moment."

So Bryan looked back down at the list of what was in stock and once again began to read aloud to the other animatronics in the room. "Two person steady stage, Happy Frog, Mr Hippo, Pig-patch, Nedbear. Okay.. so these seem to be the animatronics they have in stock."

"Okay.. so we can afford to buy the speaker sets, the double sturdy stage, and the foil party sets. Do you guys have any suggestions on what I should get?"

The response back from the other animatronics were almost instantaneous, "Well. A two person sturdy stage".

"Well.. yeah I agree with them." Spring looked back up at the Human was stood at the counter, eyebrow raised in question. "If we are going to bring in new people, don't we need a bigger stage?"

"You do bare a good point there... alrighty.. there has it! I have officially bought the double sturdy stage!"

"You do know it's called the Two person sturdy stage Bryan."

"Yes yes I know Helpy, but I shall say it however I want to say it!"

"Suit yourself."

"Well.. come on! I have already bought the stage so let's head back to the pizzeria and see how it looks!"

So after that, the trio walked out of the store, blueprint to the stage in hand unknowing of what they are going to see when they get to the pizzeria.

****

"Okay this stage is amazing!" Bryan yelled out giddily, running around to get better angles of it from across the pizzeria. He loved it! It filled up the space a lot more than the single sturdy stage or one sturdy stage accomplished. The pizzeria now has a more.. cheerful and uplifting vibe now that it's not as empty as it used to be days ago.

Spring and Helpy as well seemed to be monitoring the stage from a much closer area. Their shadows following them as the light managed to hit them in just the right angle that their shadows seemed to cross.

Though why does Spring's shadow look human like, it's silhouette having the same structure similar to that of a man. The part of it being a man was obvious to Bryan, as the shadow had no version of bunny ears anywhere on its head.

How odd.

Helpys shadow looked identical to her own physical attributes, fitting her almost to a tee, given the fact that the shadow was a physical representation of the lack of light.

Bryan also took a look behind him with his head in order to see a shadow, but to his horror.

He seemed to have not one, but three shadows. Each of them latched onto his shoes, never letting go even after Bryan jumped after seeing them.

The shadows seemed to be trying to claw its way up to him, their movements far to out of sync with his own.

Down down the rabbits hole

One must go, but mustn't seek

The answer that lies at the darkest bleak

Anger lies, happiness flies

In the expanse of the basis of life.

Bryan let out a moderately loud gulp, swallowing back the saliva that seemed to have built up in his throat.

'Why are the shadows talking...'

'And more importantly...'

'Why can't the others hear them?'

——
End of Part 2
——