Mable: Hello! I have a request today. As you probably know, next Wednesday is going to be Christmas! While I'm going to have the chapter ready in time for posting, I was wondering if it might be better to push and get the chapter posted on Tuesday instead. I could imagine having trouble reading on a busy holiday. ^-^ So, just let me know if you think it would be better to do the usual Wednesday posting or if Tuesday would be better. For now, Enjoy!

Almost Feels Like Home

Chapter Eighty

"Chance?"

At the sound of his name, a single yellow eye opened, and the world returned once again. Chance found himself staring at Fritz who was knelt before him. The technician gave him a tired smile.

"Glad to see you back with us. The tornado's over so it's time to go," Fritz said. The bear wouldn't argue with him.

Especially not when his body felt so cold after sitting in this basement. Especially not when that magician's words were inserted right back into his head. He escaped his thoughts briefly, but now they barged in again.

"Did he just wake up Lefty Loosey? Is he up yet?" a boisterous voice asked from somewhere else in the room. Chance immediately cringed at that familiar, bubbly, clownish tone. The clown, of course; as though he wasn't having a hard-enough time without him. Without any provocation or answer, Ennard seemed to suddenly appear behind Fritz and leaned in much too close. "Well, well! Rise and shine, Freddybear!"

Ennard giggled like it was the funniest joke in the world. Chance twitched and glanced over at Fritz. The technician noticed and gave a sympathetic smile and a half shrug. "We're going to be leaving soon," he said.

"Oh, not too soon, I hope! I haven't even gotten a chance to tell Lefty here about the big news!" Ennard gushed. Whatever the news was, Fritz must've not known it as he looked confused. The clown ignored him and leaned in a little closer. Anymore and Chance might've considered pushing him back, but he wasn't really feeling up to a fight. "So, a couple of guys and me headed down into ARI and guess what?~ Turns out I was one of the technicians down there! Yup, got a name and everything: Ben Hansberry! Ha ha, you know what that means?"

He leaned in even closer and lowered his pitch significantly. "It means I'm not just some husk hoarding souls. I'm just as alive as you were." He stayed close, blue eyes staring intently, until Fritz took his shoulder and pulled him back. Ennard gave a low chuckle as his voice returning to normal. "Whaddya have to say about that?"

At first Chance didn't know what to say or think, but then it started to sink in a little deeper. This thing, this strange clown, had been a person too. All of these animatronics had been people. That set a dangerous precedent for the questions that had slowly been growing for weeks, since Charlie had brought them up and the magician had worsened them. There was something he needed to know.

"What do you know about the golden bear?"

This took both clown and technician off-guard, with the former recovering quicker than the latter. "I think he ran a scheme to off all his employees," Ennard simply stated.

Fritz sent him a sharp look. "Thanks, Ennard," he said dripping with sarcasm. He looked back to Chance and added, "What Ennard means is-."

"Off his employees… You think he was Henry too, don't you?" the bear asked. Both now stared silently again, with even the clown seemingly picking up the tenseness and starting to feel awkward. "…He was Henry, wasn't he? Charlie was right. Henry was in one of these suits and everyone knew it but me…" Chance dropped his head pitifully. "I can't believe this…"

There was a long pause where Fritz didn't know what to say. He looked to Ennard questioningly, who just shrugged, unsure where to go next. Apparently Golden Freddy was a topic he wasn't willing to speak extensively about. So, the technician decided to try. "So… I didn't know Henry, but from what you said about him-."

"What I said about him? I didn't even know him. There are years of his life that I know nothing about, and he NEVER came to me. I worked in that pizzeria for years. Slaved away at Freddy's and all those cheap knockoffs and he couldn't even-!" Chance only stifled himself because some of the others were starting to pay attention. Specifically, he didn't want Charlie to hear him, even though he didn't know where she was. He stopped once he looked over and saw Springtrap leering at him from across the room.

Instead, Chance looked to Fritz with determination. "Where's the Puppet?"

"Mari?" Fritz asked in confusion.

"The magician said he would know about the golden Freddy, so I'm talking to him. Where is he?" Chance asked shortly. His moods were continuing to swing at the drop of a hat, so Fritz didn't stand in his way.

"In there with Mike. I don't know if he's awake yet or not." With that, Chance stood shakily and staggered over to the door with a stiff gait. He disappeared inside, leaving the two to stare.

"Now that was not what I was expecting," Ennard admitted. "I thought maybe he'd get defensive or something, or call me a liar, but going off about Golden Freddy? Yikes."

"Yikes is right… Wait… Wait, you said Ben Hansberry?" Fritz looked to Ennard in recognition. "I think that might've been a name on that technician list we found. I'd double check, but I can't remember where it is."

"Ha, really? I didn't even remember that! Shame I didn't pick up my name faster or that could've been a dead giveaway ages ago!" He chuckled and looked to the side at the sound of footsteps, seeing Springtrap walking up beside him. The suit was still staring after Chance with a tight glare even while standing over Ennard. "I'm guessing you heard that moment of discomfort too?"

Springtrap answered with a distrustful noise akin to a growl, and he continued glaring at the door even when the bear was no longer there. He eventually said, "Get up and we'll move Baby."

"Good idea! Scott's already getting antsy about going home and the cats gotta be starving. Poor little guys and girl!" In the process of standing Ennard got a new wave of inspiration and abruptly grabbed Springtrap by the shoulders and turned him towards him. It was just abrupt enough to cause him to jump and his mouth to snap shut. "Hey, why don't you come with us?! It'll be just like old times! You and me splitting a real small space and trying not to kill one another!"

Springtrap stared at him for a moment like he was almost considering it. Unfortunately, reality caught up to him, and his spirits instantly fell. As much as he wanted them to go back to how they were, he knew that they couldn't. "That wouldn't be a good idea, Ben. You know it wouldn't. It would be stifling," he said. Hearing him say his name caused the clown to twitch, and his somber tone was sobering.

"So what? You're just gonna keep living in this cold, little, rundown warehouse? This place is a dump! You can't- You can't really be happy here!"

"I'm not looking to be happy. I'm looking to stay alive as long as I can, and that means sacrifices must be made," Springtrap insisted. He reached up and gently pried off the clown's hands from his shoulders.

Ennard seemed disappointed with this. "…Can I at least get you a mattress or something?"

"Go home and get fixed," Springtrap said firmly. "Stop worrying about me."

That was the end of it. Ennard brushed off Springtrap's brusqueness and left to put on his flimsy disguise. He was still disappointed but not willing to continue fighting a losing battle. But he hasn't the only one who was disappointed. Springtrap wanted nothing more than to snatch up that offer and find a way to replicate their old life, but he knew he couldn't. Not when he was like this and not when Ennard was happy where he was. As much as he wanted him back, he would have to be satisfied with this distance, and take solace in what small threads remained.

Fritz, who was still there and heard the whole thing, chose this time to speak up. "I'd offer you a room at my place, but the only one is right beside Chance's."

He supposed it could always be worse.

It had been quiet in the back room since everyone had left. Mike knew he would have to wake Marionette soon to go but wasn't in any rush. Trying to get around the others crowding the stairs was going to be a chore, so it seemed smarter to let Marionette get as much rest as he could. He was curled up nearly into a ball, just like he would to fit in a small box, but instead resting in the man's arms against his chest. Mike held him and made sure not to let the office chair tip.

Occasionally he would reach down and feel over the wound on the Puppet's leg. He felt as it slowly faded until there was no longer any evidence of it being there, then just rubbed the area gently. It was a lucky break that it had been the leg and not the mask or things could've ended differently. From how tired Marionette was, it was clear that it had been a strenuous fight.

"I should've just sucked it up and went down there with them." Mike's intrusive thoughts returned to remind him of his regrets. "I could've at least made for a distraction or something. Brought the taser and started waving it around the second things started crawling out of the vents. Might've not stopped them, but it could've helped." He hated this feeling of disappointment and gave a slow exhale. "I've got to think about something else. I'm going in circles like this…"

A different topic, any topic. Maybe about their plans when they got home. "…We're going to get home and find the house gone and we're going to get stuck living at the pizzeria. Sleeping in the office, washing up in the sink, listening to non-stop pirate shanties. The workday that never ends." Mike scoffed with slight amusement. "This was a great idea."

It was then that he noticed footsteps approaching the door. They sounded heavy enough to be an animatronics' but weren't accompanied by the usual tell tales to identify who it was. He guessed it was Springtrap, then looked up to see Chance stepping into the doorway. They locked eyes for a silent moment before the bear slowly looked down at Marionette still curled in his grasp.

"Whatever this is, it can't be good," Mike thought suspiciously. He readjusted his arm around Marionette as he spoke, not betraying his feelings with an apathetic tone. "Hey. Are you guys taking off?"

"Not yet. Not until I get a few answers," Chance said, his determined tone forewarning what was coming.

"And here we go again. Counting down until the screaming match," Mike thought. "I'm guessing Fritz told you about everyone sneaking out and heading over to Afton Robotics?"

"The clown did, but I don't care about that. All I care about is… The Golden Bear." All at once, Chance's voice lost all the power and veiled fury hiding beneath it. It dropped to that soberness that accompanied any mention of Henry. Now it was even more painful, like a wound being reopened and burning anew. "I need to talk to him about the golden bear."

"He had a long day and he's pretty much out right now. There's not much I can do about that, but if you want to stick around until he wakes up on his own then be my guest." He really didn't want to wake Marionette up for a confrontation. Especially when the puppet was so exhausted that he hadn't woken up already. "If you really want a colorful description of Golden Freddy, ask Foxy. He's got his opinions."

"…Did you know Golden Freddy?" Chance tentatively asked. Mike was just as tentative to answer. "Mike, I know you and I've had problems, but I need to know whether or not my son was in that suit."

"…Alright, you really want the truth? Yes, that was Henry. I should know, I met him," Mike said. He spared him the events of how he met him for the older man's sake. "Pretty much everyone out there knows about 'the golden bear' in one way or another. He was pulling a lot of strings."

"That's what the magician said… He said a few things that got me thinking. Like how Marion was… close to Henry. Something about that," Chance vaguely explained. It didn't take a genius to realize that Max had said something else. Max wasn't the kind to go easy on people from what Mike had heard. "When Charlie told me that Henry was in one of the suits, I didn't believe her. I thought someone was lying to her, but for someone to lie to everyone-."

"Let's not beat around the mulberry bush here, Chance. When you say someone you mean Mari," Mike said with growing irritation. He didn't know if it was talking about Golden Freddy or the very subtle hints of distrust he sent at Marionette. There was a long pause where the bear just stared at him, taken aback by the interruption. Mike wasn't done, "Sorry to burst your bubble, but if anyone was twisting truths it was Golden Freddy. You should just be happy that you've gone this long without figuring it all out."

"Figuring it out?"

"Henry wasn't a good guy, Chance," Mike said bluntly and quietly. Nobody else needed to hear this. "He had his priorities backwards. One minute he was bringing back the dead to stop the Purple Man. Then he decides that's not enough and has them chasing the nightguards too. Most of them he knew. Then he decides that the animatronics staying alive is a bad thing, and he makes this call on his own. He's choosing life and death for everyone like he's playing the stock market, and frankly I'm tired of dealing with the crashes every time he makes a bad call."

"…Marion told you this?" Chance asked in shock. He didn't even sound doubtful or suspicious, just utterly floored.

"No, he didn't. Henry told me all of that. Came straight from the bear's mouth," Mike corrected. His eyes narrowed. "Mari loved Henry. He would've done anything for him. And what did Henry do? He took-."

Realizing what he was doing, the security guard clammed up. He knew exactly what he was about to say and it was the one thing he wouldn't say around Marionette. It turned out to be the right choice too, because right at this second he noticed exactly his tense and still the striped one was. He didn't rouse at all even with all this noise.

"He's definitely awake… and he doesn't need me bringing up what came out of or went into Goldie's mouth," Mike realized. He took a deep breath to control his emotions and tried again. "It's not your fault that he made the choices he did. I can't even say for sure what I'd do in the same situation, but I can't cover for him. Chance stared past at the boxes behind him. Mike raised a brow at him. "Are you still with me?" The bear nodded stiffly. The security guard reluctantly softened up. "Are you going to be okay?"

"No, Mike, I don't think I will," Chance said bluntly. Mike started to say something when the bear suddenly cut him off. "There wasn't any point to it, was there?" He slumped sideways on the doorframe tiredly. Staring at the floor with a half-lidded eye that almost looked as glazed as the blackened one. "…I used to have these nightmares about him being trapped in that backroom and not being able to get to him and get him out of that suit. It got to the point that I was having them every night. Thought it was a sign, but it wasn't, was it?"

"You thought Henry was trying to reach out to you?" Mike guessed. Chance nodded stiffly. "What happened?"

"You know what happened, Mike. I pushed away my family, I ruined my marriage, and now here I am, stuck in this suit… He wasn't ever reaching out to me. He didn't reach out to me once." Chance's head dropped as his voice lowered. "And what am I supposed to do now? Now I'm the one stuck here and he's long gone…" He fell silent.

This gave an opportunity to speak so Mike took it. "I don't want to get sentimental about this, but maybe make your time worth it? Stop trying to fight with everyone and try to make good of the time you've got? Make amends, build some of those bridges back up, figure out something to do with your time," he suggested. "What do you have to lose?"

Chance looked up at him and even with his expressionless face, Mike could tell that he was torn. This had been the most human he had been in ages, since the first met back at Hickory Dickory's, and it was the first time he really felt sorry for him. He wasn't a scared and confused child lashing out, but that didn't make Chance any more aware of the true weight of his actions. Not until now.

"Maybe," the black bear finally agreed. He slowly drew back away from the wall. "Maybe…" He looked down at Marionette one more time before seemingly deciding to give up on trying to converse with him. He already had too much of it, and he turned towards the door to leave. He paused before he stepped out and looked back to Mike. "…I regret it, you know. I regret the whole deal. I regret starting that fire."

"It's over, Chance. It's okay to try and move on with your life. I'm not going to hold that against you," Mike affirmed.

"It made me a monster, didn't it?" Mike said nothing as Chance took his first sluggish step out of the room. "A monster in a bear suit…"

As Chance headed out to the main room, Mike was left alone with Marionette once again. He gave another deep sigh before he looked down at the Puppet. "He left."

Slowly, Marionette unfurled himself enough to look at the door. Instead of anger or even sadness, there was a surprised look on his face. "I never thought he would say that… The regret, I mean. The acknowledging what he did was wrong."

"Neither did I. Guess that's what turning into a bear does to you," Mike said. Trying to ease the mood felt like it wouldn't work, not when the tone was so confused. He didn't feel right bringing up his grievances with Golden Freddy while Marionette had been listening. "About what I said about Henry, I was just blowing off some steam. I know we squared things with him and we're all good now."

"No, you meant it, and you were right. Goldie let his emotions control him and it hurt others. It's important for us to remember that so we don't make the same mistakes… But, well…" Marionette looked towards Mike slowly. "There was something that Chance said that bothers me. His dreams about Henry."

"Yeah?" Mike could tell it was something more serious than just being upset talking about Goldie from that tone. "Why's that?"

"…I used to have dreams about Goldie too. You know that I have vivid dreams, Mike. Sometimes it feels like they're showing me something that happened long ago or that will happen very soon, but I am never sure. The only difference would be the dreams I had about Goldie. They were very detailed and controlled and the things he would say or show me in them always felt to be on purpose. I could feel his turmoil through them, but I thought it was me. It wasn't until I found out that he didn't move on that I realized he could've been creating these dreams."

Marionette reached out to lay a protective hand on Mike's shoulder. "Tell me, Mike… When you have these dreams about Old Man Consequences, how do you feel?"

Dread welled up in the security guard's already unsettled stomach. Now he was catching on. "What are you getting at?"

"See, when I had the dreams about Goldie, they would make me feel emotions beyond the context of the dream. Sadness, guilt, maybe a little frustration; it sounds like Chance's were the same," Marionette explained. "What about yours?"

It took Mike a second to think about it enough to answer. "It's weird. When I'm in these dreams talking to him, I just feel normal? I'm aware of what's going on and I still feel comfortable. Like, even when I'm paranoid that something's up or have this suspicion that something he's saying might have a double meaning, I still feel safe and secure. What do you think that means?"

"I couldn't say for sure. It could be that Old Man Consequences is a spirit or animatronic like Goldie was who's reaching out through your dreams. He never asked you to find him or mentioned that he had a body somewhere?" Marionette asked with a tilt of his head. He sounded a little less grim, but his protective grip was still there, so it was clear that he wasn't completely trusting the feeling of the dreams alone. "Or maybe just said something that might've alluded to it?"

"Nothing I remember… There is one thing. His face is kind of blurred out and foggy, but it almost looks like the face of a suit. But the way he talks about the place he acts like he's stuck there. He said that I could leave at any time, but he couldn't." Suddenly Mike remembered something and snapped his fingers. "And you know what else? I asked him why he wasn't going into your dreams and he completely dodged the question. We got off topic when we started talking about Burke."

Marionette hummed thoughtfully. "It could be possible then that we are dealing with the soul of an animatronic that no longer has a body but has not been able to move on."

"…Wait a minute." A new uneasiness settled in as Mike clicked a few pieces together. Even muddled with medication and illness, he picked up a new suspicion. "You don't think that if this is a spirit without a body that it's looking for one, do you? He mentioned something about 'hooking me in' to get me there and I don't know if that was wordplay or he was being serious."

For a split-second Marionette got a look of panic, but it then started to slowly recede. "That could always be a possibility… Though if that was the case, I wonder why he would wait. Or better yet, why he would devote so much of his time to helping us?... That could still be a possibility. Has he ever tried to touch you?"

"Touch me? Heh, no. Even if he did, I wouldn't let a glitchy, red crocodile make a grab for me," Mike assured. He leaned back further on the chair. "Maybe I'm just being paranoid."

"Or maybe he's waiting for us to get an unpossessed animatronic for him to bargain for. It would be much easier to possess something like that than to try fighting for control of a living human or an animatronic. Maybe that's why he's not tried to reach out to me. If he doesn't have a body, then perhaps it could be problematic… I don't know, this is all new to me too. Until we understand more, we should be careful." Marionette's pupils began to glow as he looked to Mike again. "And please, don't let him touch you."

Mike gave a weary thumbs up and Marionette squeezed his shoulder again before rising from the chair. He then offered his hand. "Let's go home, Love."

The security guard took his hand and he and his puppet headed out into the front room. They stepped out just in time to see Foxy and Springtrap trying to maneuver the Candy Cadet up the stairs. They got him a few steps up before the robot suddenly came to life with flashing lights and shifting arms.

"Do not drop Candy Cadet. You will not get candy if you drop Candy Cadet or a story. Do not drop Candy Cadet," the Candy Cadet began to repeat. Somehow it still sounded like a prerecorded message even though it was the most sentient thing he had ever said. Foxy grunted as the bot's arm thumped on his head.

"Then stop thrashin' like a mackerel and let us get ya up the steps! We ain't got all day!" the pirate growled as he pushed with his shoulder. Springtrap gave no comment, but he seemed to share the sentiments.

"Good thing we waited to come out or that might've been me up there," Mike said with a small smirk. He looked around the room and noticed that the little animatronics were missing, along with their blond caretaker. "Jeremy must've already left. Hope they got home alright."

Any further comments were cut off when arms hooked around his and Marionette's shoulders. Even before he looked he knew it was Ennard and looked back to see him wrapped up in his disguise again. Except he was wearing his clown mask instead of the Freddy one. Mike raised a brow at him. "Hello?"

"Hello, hello! I don't believe we've met," Ennard said excitedly. He yanked his arm out from around Marionette and jammed a hand towards the nightguard. "Ben Hansberry, ex-technician and full-time clown."

It took Mike a second to realize that he recognized that name and once he did the second brow shot up. It didn't seem like Marionette remembered the significance, but he looked mildly surprised.

"Ben? Where did this come from all of a sudden? Or… Did you remember this while we were in Afton's?" The Puppet lowered his voice to ask, "Is this why you had that incident in the tunnels?"

"Bullseye! Yeah, it turns out me and Michael used to split take-out, so we're all good now and I remembered my real name!" Ennard sounded so excited by all of it. Meanwhile Mike and Marionette exchanged a confused look, one that the clown ignored. "I'll catch you both up on it some other time. I've gotta help get all the carriers together so we can get out of here. Good luck with the house!" He drew back and headed off to Scott, leaving the two standing there in an odd silence.

Eventually Mike managed to find the will to ask, "Split take-out… Is that a euphemism?"

"If it was, can we pretend it wasn't?" Marionette asked with a much more embarrassed smile. One he barely managed to cover by time Charlie came over to them.

"Glad to see you both up. I was just coming to get you," Charlie greeted. "I was talking with Natalie about the storm and I was wondering if we could maybe drive by my old house? It sounds like there might've been damage over in the area and I want to check in." She looked mildly concerned. "There's nothing there I can't live without, but I want to see for myself and make sure."

"Sure, we have time," Mike agreed. It would at least give him a reason to drive around and take full assessment of the damage the town sustained. He watched the stairs as the Candy Cadet was finally made it up them. Without a word or even the protection of a cover, Springtrap pushed him out and continued to the warehouse. He would have to catch up with him later.

Foxy continued out to the van while Chance started to slowly make his way up the stairs. Mike couldn't see much more than his back and still could tell that he was downtrodden from earlier. Fritz followed him carefully, like he expected to catch him if he fell, which he probably wouldn't be able to. Natalie and Louise were following at the bottom of the stairs, with the latter noticing Mike and the others as they walked up and giving them a smile.

"Well, uh, this wasn't what I was expecting… but it's been a lot of fun! I mean, not fun-fun but better than hiding in a bathtub under a mattress," Louise said. It sounded like she meant it too, and she even looked more comfortable compared to how hesitant she had been throughout the affair. Considering that she was one of the staff members working around living bots daily, Mike considered this a good thing.

"It's not always this exciting, but it has its perks. Bring your cats to work's storage basement day," Mike remarked with a smile. "Work here long enough and eventually you'll adopt your own robot."

"Actually, I think I'm more of a dog person. And that's only after I get my own car," Louise jokingly replied. "Next time let's bring down a couple more games with us. And some snacks, I'm starving."

"Me too! I can't wait to get home and get some wires in my teeth!" Ennard chimed in. He was currently trying to find a way to carry all three cat carriers. A few moments later, right as Chance and Fritz headed out the door, there came a honking from a car upstairs. "Uh oh. Her majesty's getting impatient," he teased.

"I'm coming. I'm just about ready," Scott said. He closed and zipped up his suitcase before coming to grab the third cat carrier from Ennard. He led the way to the stairs, pausing to look at the others. "You folks take care. There's probably powerlines down all over the city. I'll call everyone tonight and make sure you all get home alright."

"Sounds good. You too," Mike said. He decided not to mention that he was planning on driving over to Henry's. All it would do is succeed in making him more worried and the Phone Guy's hands were already shaking from the nervousness of seeing what state his house was in. They started to climb the stairs when Charlie spoke up.

"And, Ennard… Thank you for everything down there. I don't know what we would've done if you hadn't shown up," she thanked honestly.

Ennard turned his head towards her and she noticed a glint in his eyes, maybe even a literal glow in them. "Thank you for taking such good care of Baby! You're always sooo good with her. Ha ha, no wonder she's so sweet on you!" He then winked at her and continued up the stare, leaving Charlie even more confused.

It didn't help when she heard Marionette quietly say to Mike, "Now that time it was definitely a euphemism." Mike hummed in thoughtful agreement. Charlie would've flushed if she could've.

"I think I know what he's suggesting, but it's not like that. Lending someone your jacket isn't something worth reading into," the Security Puppet denied. She just wished that Marionette's default smile didn't seem so suspicious. She was distracted when she noticed neither were carrying a cat carrier. "Did… Anyone see Moppet?"

That smile dropped as he and Mike exchanged a glance, realizing what they had forgotten.

About ten minutes later, Moppet was found clawing at some cardboard boxes in the other room. She was scooped up, dropped into the cat carrier, and brought to the car with them. Mike drove the car around the warehouse before stopping beside the front door and getting out. "I'll be right back. Two minutes, I promise." And he meant it, because he was ready to get home.

As he entered the warehouse, he could hear Candy Cadet mumbling from somewhere.

"But as the kitten grew bigger it grew hungry, and the rats kept feeding it more and more. One day the kitten wasn't satisfied with their meager meals and began to yowl into the night and beg for more. Deciding that there was no other option, one of the rats decided to feed the other rat to the kitten in the hopes that it would sate its hunger. He set a mousetrap and with a snap, snap, the second rat was no more. So, the rat fed the other rat to the kitten. But the kitten was not fulfilled, because it had grown into a cat. With a snap, snap, it ate him up too."

"Glad to see that surviving the tornado didn't dampen his spirits," Mike thought with a shake of his head. He headed towards the office, realizing along the way that the Candy Cadet was in there with Springtrap. It was odd to imagine that Springtrap, as anti-social as he was, would willingly subject himself to Candy Cadet's morbid stories. He knocked on the doorframe and let himself in. "Hey. We're about to head home. I wanted to stop in and touch base before we left."

"It takes more than a little fire to throw me into a tailspin," Springtrap said. He was sitting at the desk and currently charging the Handunit. It looked like the computer was being booted up too, so he was probably going to use it to check the news, if they even had internet in this weather. "You should get home and do something about that cough."

"That's the plan. Just wanted to see how you were holding up." Mike hesitated as he considered how Springtrap would handle sentimentality. If he got too sappy it was liable to weird Michael out, or at least make him think Mike was overly sensitive. "You never forget your first Foxy and Friends disaster party. Some people have a little trouble walking it off that first time."

Springtrap rumbled in amusement. "This isn't my first time. You forget that I was involved in the last Freddy opening and abrupt closing."

"But you didn't come to the afterparty. That's when the fun starts; when the adrenaline wears off and everyone starts feeling how busted up they are. Then we go through the stages of grief until we eventually drag ourselves home. Case in point: we're leaving."

"It was worth it, if that's what you're asking. Going down there. Now I can move on," Springtrap offered unexpectedly. There was a long pause of silence. Then he repeatedly tapped on the keyboard to try and rouse a response. "Or I would if this computer would start up."

"Glad to hear. Thanks for taking care of Mari and Charlie," Mike said. He then started to head out, pausing to nod at Candy Cadet- just in case it was alive- and headed out the door. He had a feeling that Springtrap was going to be fine on his own.

Soon he was back in the car and they were driving over towards Henry's house. While the clouds had thinned out considerably, it wasn't the blue sky and bright sun that might've been more assuring. There would be no rainbows after this storm, but at least it didn't look like there would be anymore rampant weather for the moment. As Scott predicted there were powerlines down, only causing a minor detour for them while possibly taking power from a dozen others.

That was when they started to see the real damage. Mike drove past ambulances and firetrucks crowded around and trying to find any unfortunates who hadn't taken shelter. It was understandable too, because it was as though the entire street had been leveled. Some remains of houses still stood and there were a few ones who had been spared, but most of them had sustained massive damage, leaving little more than shattered wood and battered foundations.

Unfortunately, Henry's house was not spared. While at the end of the tornado's path and less damaged than the ones before it, the home's roof had caved in and one of the walls had collapsed in on itself.

Just seeing it in that state was enough to cause Charlie to release a cracking choke from her music box. She raised up further from the back seat as Mike slowed to a stop in front of it. Fortunately, the only people out and accessing the damage were further down the street, giving her a chance to push back the tarp and look at her old home.

"I can't believe it…" Charlie said. She was aghast by it, even if she didn't live there anymore. The thought of never going back to the house was a jarring one.

Marionette laid a gentle hand on her back. "I'm so sorry, Charlie," he apologized. She started to snap out of her trance and shook her head with a ring.

"No, it's okay. I'm alright, I'm just… In shock. I wasn't even worried about this place until Natalie brought it up. It never even crossed my mind…" Charlie's face twisted in sadness as she looked at the remains of her childhood home. There was no going back there now.

Mike noticed her disappointment and shut off the car's ignition. "I think I might take a quick look around and see if there's anything we can salvage. And if you want, I can drive you back over here tonight and we can get the rest of the stuff," he offered.

"Thanks, Mike. There might be some stuff left that we can take... I know I didn't take everything with me the first time," Charlie agreed. She gave him a small smile before looking back at the house again sadly.

"Just be careful. Don't step on anything loose; there's a basement and you have astoundingly bad luck with floorboards," Marionette warned, still patting and consoling the other puppet.

"At least this time I can pretty much walk to an ambulance," Mike said. He exited the car and headed towards the house.

He had to head to the back door to get in but found once back there that it too was barely standing. He was almost glad that Charlie could only see the front façade and not the damage inside. She would surely see it later- sick or not, he had every intention of coming back- and he hoped by then it would be a little less painful. Maybe a few hours of letting it settle would ease the next blow.

Even parts of the house that weren't completely destroyed looked rough. The china cabinet in the kitchen had been knocked forwards and was now jammed against the refrigerator, blocking off the pantry door. The living room was mostly intact while still having the damage Springtrap left it with. Except for and stacked furniture now knocked over and the windows being blown out. There was glass everywhere. The TV screen was also shattered, and old pictures lay on the carpet.

The master bedroom was a lost cause. Mostly because he couldn't get the door to open. It was wedged up against something without him seeing what it was, but it sounded like something wooden. The back of the house was a total lost cause and he wouldn't have been surprised if the fallen roof blocking the way was hiding a hole that led straight through to the basement. He took Marionette's advice and decided instead to head into Charlie's bedroom. Once again, things were a mess. The lamp was knocked to the floor, the windows were blown out, and things were scattered everywhere.

"What a massacre," Mike muttered. Just the sight of it made him very concerned about their home's chances. He was just about to leave when he noticed something barely poking out of the closet.

Marionette wished he could help Charlie more than he was. He pulled the blanket around her shoulders and over the back of her head before wrapping his arms around her. "It's going to be alright."

"I know. I don't even know why I'm this upset about it. I didn't live in the house for years, and the short time I did wasn't exactly full of fond memories." She finally turned away from the window and back to him. "I guess it's more what the house represents."

"It's your childhood home, Charlie. Of course you're going to have some attachment. You can learn to love a house even if you have bad memories from it," Marionette said with a sympathetic smile.

Charlie considered this for a moment before nodding in agreement. "I guess so. Still, I'm going to be happy to get home." She would be fine returning to the house she had been calling her home since her accident, sleeping in the bed that had become her own, living the life that she had made in these last months. That was a somewhat comforting thought.

They stayed like that for a few minutes. It just felt nice being comforted; Charlie absorbed as much of it as she could. Until there came a tapping on the window. Marionette looked out from the blanket and instantly got a befuddled look, like he didn't know what he was looking at. Another tap, but it had to be Mike, so Charlie uncovered herself and looked as well.

A pink cheeked doll face stared back at her. With its thick brown hair and puffy blue dress, Charlie recognized it as Ella, one of her many childhood toys. Specifically, the doll she had kept in her closet. It looked to be in good condition considering the state of the house, with the only damage being that the teacup in her hand was chipped and there was a small crack on her chin.

Mike flashed a smile as he opened the car door. "Apparently your closet is built like a bomb shelter," he explained as he handed it to the Security Puppet. She carefully took the heavy doll.

"I can't believe she made it out without getting shattered. This can't be real porcelain, it must just look like it," Charlie suggested as she tapped the doll's face. A small smile began to bloom on her face. She hadn't shown much interest in Ella for years and the doll had never been one of her favorite toys, but having its comforting weight in her arms felt significant. At least something had made it out.

"I thought maybe you'd want to take her before the looters got desperate and snatched her up," Mike explained. It was clear with her mechanisms that she wasn't the typical plaything. Though she would probably be worth more to Charlie than to scavengers.

"I could see why, she's adorable!" Marionette chirped. His confused look quickly switched out for an eager smile. "Let's keep her."

"Only if you promise to walk her and feed her, and never put her in our closet, or under our bed, or pretty much anywhere I'm going to run into her in the dark," Mike agreed before shutting the door and circling the car to get in. Marionette chimed in amusement and pulled the blanket tighter around them. They were up to their usual antics again, handling this disaster like it was just another day.

Charlie was thankful for that. It kept her hopeful as they drove away from the remains of her childhood home.

Mable: Let's hope that's the only major loss… And keep our fingers crossed.