A/N: Hey guys, I apologize in advance for this epically short chapter. Unfortunately, my brain decided to focus all synapses on thinking about my new Pokémon story as well as another new project, something based off of the Subnautica games but hopefully on a bigger, better scale. I'm barely through the prologue of that one so it's long game where my Pokémon one just keeps going (at 10k+ words a chapter no less). Not a lot happening here, then, obviously but I promise next chapter will be better and longer. I think I need to burn myself out of Pokémon at least since that's the most focused right now. Actually, it's probably due to the excitement of Scarlet and aViolet being fully open world 'mon games as opposed to the regular formula.

Just consider this a transition chapter, from what and to what exactly I don't know but still. Know I am not dead or abandoning this just focused on something else for a while. Feel free to check it out, much drama, so Pokémon, such insanity running through my mind. Alright, bye for now.

Chapter Six

Blood Thicker than Time

1998..

..ick.. Nick?.. Nick?! Nick shot up from his bed, looking around for the phantom voice that had called him, seeing no one around him. Then he realized why as he heard it again in his head.

Who are you? I don't recognize your voice.. Nick tried sending a message back telepathically, only so far usable in tandem with Veronica.

Oh my God it worked! Weird. You don't know me, but you will. Just know that I'm.. home.

Home? Wait, you mean you're..?

In the present, twenty twenty-two to be exact. And there's no need to worry, alright? Everyone's okay.

Nick couldn't believe it. Someone other than Veronica could communicate with him, and from twenty plus years in the future no less. So Sameera..

Is fine, yes. Her and your child both. She just misses you, as I'm sure you do her.

Nick smiled, at least now knowing Sameera was safe. Thank everything she's alright. If it hadn't ended that night..

But it did. Despite you being hurtled into the past, the entirety of Afton is gone. You did it, Nick. You saved our town from falling to any more of his wicked plans.

Good. I couldn't live with myself if I had left home behind and there was still a target on any of our backs. But again, who are you? How do you know who I am?

The mental voice giggled. Oh, of course I would know your friends. I may have only really just connected with them, but family is family, right big brother? And as Nick tried mentally shouting at the voice for an answer to why it had called him big brother, there was no answer.

2022..

Erika opened her eyes and startled slightly at the sight of Rhonda and Sameera hovering over where she had been sitting. "Well?"

Erika nodded. "I managed to talk to him. Although I think I left him more confused than clear-headed. I couldn't hold the connection long, or I'd have asked him how things were progressing where he is."

"It's okay. The A.I only said it could be possible, not a done deal. At least he's still alive and alright." Sameera said, releasing a breath she didn't know she had been holding.

The three girls thought that was all, until Erika gasped. Hello? Came Nick's voice in her head.

Nick? How did you?

You left my head so suddenly that I figured you had to be in some sort of meditative state, so I just emulated that action. Surprised it worked, though.

Alright then. Let me ask you something, then. Has anything changed there? You are in ninety-eight, right?

Umm.. Yeah, I am. As far as I can tell, not much has changed since whatever happened here originally. Well, except for Bianca..

Ronnie's sister, yeah we know. She's Leon, Meera and Rhonda's therapist. She's.. umm.. also my mom.

Your.. mom? But, her and Ronnie only agreed to.. hold on, you're my sister, aren't you? A twin I never knew about, which is why our abilities let us talk like this at all.

And we have a winner. Give him a prize. Nice to meet you, big brother. My name's Erika, but you'll know me plenty well soon enough. We're trying to figure a way to help you get back here because you.. well..

I've already heard it from Henry. Or as everyone there would know him as our teacher Mr. Tyme. He told me the original me put himself further in the past, and that that me lost his powers doing so.

Yeah.. Listen, Nick..

Don't try apologizing for not being there or anything like that, because I can already tell that's where you're going with this line of thought. You probably weren't given much of a choice, and neither was I. I was born to defeat Afton, but then that begs the question of how we wound up as twins. I was supposed to be an only child. Not that I don't mind having a sister. Just make sure they stay safe, please.

I will. Of course I will. They're family, right? I gotta get back to the girls, I probably look insane to them right now. Stay safe, Nick. We'll make sure we get you home.

I have no doubt. Thanks, Erika.

It's what family is for, big brother. She felt the connection snap as she was pulled back fully into reality, the other two girls looking at her. "He figured it out, didn't he?" Sameera asked, smirking.

"Yeah, wow you guys told me he was quick to learn things but that's impressive, either way. He said there was a Henry helping him, or a Mr. Tyme? He said they were the same, I think."

"Henry.. Could he mean..? But then why wouldn't Mr. Tyme have told us any of this?"

"The same reason my sister wouldn't." Chimed in Veronica. "It's obviously to keep time moving forward without more hiccups."

"Either way, I think this might mean we need to go see Mike and Henry. They're the only two with more knowledge about all this than any of us teens, even Nick with his damn time-hopping."

"Yeah, that seems like the best-" Sameera was interrupted as Elizabeth flew into the room.

"Thank God you guys are here! Mike wants you guys down at the school, some important meeting."

"Really? Why do I get the feeling this meeting was planned before we were born?" Veronica asked, channeling more Rhonda than herself.

"It probably was, with how insane things have gotten since we first escaped the Pizzaplex. Honestly, the whole ordeal seems to have crossed us over into predetermined territory days ago." Sameera agreed. "Liz, he isn't waiting there with your father's old business partner, is he?"

"Henry? Not that I know of. Your history teacher is, though. Mr. Tyme."

"And you are an AI who would recognize a fake name when you saw it, right? Elizabeth, Mr. Tyme is Henry Emily. Nick confirmed it, time be damned, because him and Erika here have that twin bond while never having met in person."

"Wait, what are you talking about? Nick's an only child, isn't he?"

The teens looked at each other in confusion until Veronica realized what the issue was. "Guys, Elizabeth died before Nick went back to nineteen ninety-eight, so she wouldn't be affected by the ripples in our memories, meaning Liz is one of the only ones still existing with only the old timeline in her memory bank."

"Old timeline? Ripples? What the fuck are you kids talking about now?"

"Ugh, literally the truth of the matter, Elizabeth. The truth is, your nephew got sent back in time to when Veronica herself was actually alive, and is now rewriting history to try and make the peace we've achieved now stay. But, he got pushed even further back to when our parents were our age. He made sure your little sister," Sameera pointed to Veronica. "Was adopted by the parents who raised her whom now had another daughter. Now, Nick is his own father in addition to Erika here, with Veronica's now foster sister. But, that also technically makes our Nick the one still currently in the nineties working against Afton, most likely, and destroying what will probably be your father's resting place until, as this is a time loop sort of scenario, time resets with us infiltrating the Pizzaplex. Now, since she's basically caught up, shall we get going? I kind of want to see what Mike wants. His body can't possibly last too much longer, it was on pretty short legs at Christmas, and he's been on vacation as a cover to everyone who doesn't know his secret since. It's surprising to even hear he's back in town."

"Agreed, so let's see what uncle Mike needs us all for. If he even knows about me yet." Erika said, getting up from the couch.

"I'm sure he does. If Henry knows about all this, then he's probably clued Mike in as well. It has been said that Henry was the one hiring Mike in all the old Fazbear restaurants to stop all of William's schemes." Sameera grabbed her keys from the bowl near the front door and the girls all filed out into the van to drive to the school.

Thankfully, being the early evening, there weren't many people still around at the high school. Mostly there was the two night time janitorial staff and whichever teachers decided they needed a couple extra hours to finish setting up future lesson plans. As the girls went to the door, Henry was there. "Ah, there you all are. Thanks for coming. Any news from our friend?"

"Oh, Nick's already revealed quite a bit to them, Henry." Elizabeth said, causing the older man's eyes to widen in surprise.

"Oh, you finally got clued into it too, Liz? Sorry you've been in the dark but before Afton was destroyed, or at least that infernal Glitchtrap, but unfortunately Nick's meddling could only do so much in the grand scheme of changing everyone's memories around to allocate a new timeline."

"I don't care about that. I just want to see Mike and figure out why he needed the kids all here."

"Then come inside, the principal is up in his office. This isn't going to be an easy conversation." With that, the teens followed the Fazbear co-founder into the school.