Discovering the Past

by Tora Stariun

Iza Fasben knew her father hid many things from his past, but what happens when he leaves a property in his will she knew nothing about? What if the property is an entire abandoned pizzeria? What will she discover and are certain memories better left buried?

13. Chapter 13

Hey everyone! Tora here! Before this chapter begins, I just wanted to make a small announcement. Due to time restraint involving school, Discovering the Past will be going on a short hiatus. I want to stress that I will be continuing this story, I will continue updating the story again starting on May 17. Thank you all for supporting me and my story, it has honestly meant a lot and I truly love writing for this story and I will see you again real soon.

I do not own Freddy Fazbear or any other Five Nights at Freddy's characters, only my own original characters. Now please enjoy!

Everything was dark as the world sat silent and unmoving; solid midnight turned to glittering dusk as light filled the empty void and gradually washed away the darkness before completely taking over.

Iza groaned while her eyes sluggishly began to open; annoyance filled her as her peaceful rest finally ended. A weak scowl crossed her lips as her cloudy vision adjusted to the familiar blurriness seen without her glasses.

She rubbed her eyes and yawned; lying down, Iza stared at the ceiling and allowed her other senses to take in her surroundings. Her brow furrowed; something felt off. Everything was quiet, nothing moved nor uttered a sound, but at the same time, none of it felt wrong or out of place. It was merely serene; it was a feeling Iza was not used to.

And yet somehow, that feeling was familiar; it almost felt like she was home. Finally, Iza decided to move; slowly, she stretched her arms and legs.

Her body was sore but similar to the surroundings; it wasn't something terrible but rather a sensation she craved as her body welcomed the long stretch.

Pushing herself upright, Iza scanned the fuzzy room. Through her blurry vision, Iza made out what seemed to be a bedroom and thought it was the interior of her room. Instinctively Iza reached to the left for her glasses that rested on the nightstand but got nothing but air. "What the?" Iza mumbled.

She tried again.

Nothing.

"Where are my—"

Instantly hundreds of images flashed through her mind, reminding her of the previous night's events. Startled by the sudden flood of memories, Iza shot up and slammed her leg against something hard. Iza grimaced at the slight pain and looked down.

Iza saw the blurry outline of a table with something bright orange on top. Her fingers grazed over the object and realized it was soft to the touch. Iza's hands crossed the frigid wood before finally landing on something metal, her glasses.

Excitement rushed through her. Iza hurriedly placed them on her face before her jaw dropped; this was not her bedroom. At first, she panicked but quickly calmed down when she realized where she was.

Iza was in Freddy's room, the familiar 1980s aesthetic and orange bear posters on the walls reaffirming her observation. "Definitely not a dream," Iza mumbled to herself as she massaged her stiff shoulder.

Looking around, Iza noticed the room was darker than usual. The large red curtains were drawn over the wall-length window, and the lighting was dimmer than she remembered; she was also alone. "Where is everyone?" Iza scratched her head before looking back at the table.

Now clear, Iza saw the bright orange object. She picked it up, and the soft fabric unfurled to reveal an orange sweatshirt sporting the same cartoon version of the Glamrocks she had seen on the flier when she first arrived.

Iza stared dumbfounded at the clothing before a slip of paper on the table caught her eye. She reached down and held up the note.

Hey Iza,

Thought you would want a new sweatshirt to replace your old one. I got it from the gift shop. I hope you like it!

—Chica

She reread the paper several times. Confusion overcame Iza as she thought about why she would want to replace her current sweatshirt; until she looked down. Iza's eyes widened.

Her once black and blue sweatshirt was beyond recognition, the entire right sleeve was gone, and her hood was held on by a thread while the length of her torso was either stained, torn, or missing. In addition, the fabric was littered with holes that revealed the black undershirt below.

Iza gawked at the state of her clothing, then smelled it; she nearly gagged at the stench. Iza stripped the old rags from her body without a second thought and placed the new orange hoodie on. The fabric was softer than she realized, and it felt like a cloud on her skin.

"Thank you, Chica!" Iza hummed as she set her old clothing on the table. "Now," Iza clapped. "Let's find everyone."

Suddenly Iza's attention was drawn towards the massive curtain as muffled shouting reached her ears. She walked over to the hanging drapes and grabbed hold, ready to pull them back.

"Iza?"

The girl froze, and Iza snapped her head around. Squinting through the darkness, Iza spotted the unmistakable glow of Freddy's blue optics; she stared in disbelief as Freddy walked over and kneeled down. Despite the dim lighting, Iza could clearly see the light glinting off Freddy's new and now repaired form.

Freddy scanned the shocked Iza and placed a hand on her left shoulder. "How are you feeling?" he asked, his deep voice full of concern.

Iza looked up but didn't respond. "Iza? Are you—" He was immediately cut off when Iza rushed forward and wrapped her hands around Freddy's torso. The sudden movement caught him off guard despite his size as Iza buried her face into her grandfather's chest.

Recovering from his shock, Freddy slowly returned the embrace. For several minutes they remained like that, then finally, Iza spoke quietly. "I'm so happy you're alright."

Freddy's eyes opened at her words as he stared down at her raven head before hugging her tighter. A smile filled with relief and joy crossed his robotic features. "I'm better than ever thanks to you, Izzy," he whispered back.

Iza pulled back and looked at Freddy; a bemused smirk on her face. "Izzy?"

Realizing what he said, Freddy immediately backpedaled. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to call you that. It just—"

Iza erupted into laughter. "No, no." She waved her hand dismissively. "I like it; call me whatever you want!"

Despite her assurance, Freddy turned away, embarrassed as he released Iza and stood up. But, much to his dismay, Iza continued to laugh at him. Freddy sighed in defeat, then looked Iza up and down; he smiled. "Despite my blundering, your energy seems a lot better. Was that sleep rejuvenating?"

Iza perked up and stretched her limbs again. "You could say that." She grinned. "Apart from my injuries and being a bit stiff, I haven't felt this good in days!"

Iza dropped her arms and looked around. "Where is everyone? And why are you here alone?"

"I just finished charging in the back." Freddy pointed towards another door in the center of the back wall. "I'd just activated and heard sounds from in here, came in and saw you."

She nodded in understanding. "Then where are the others?" Iza questioned.

"Probably outside, I was charging for about five hours, so I don't know where they are."

"I wonder if they were the ones making those noises I heard earlier," Iza said, scratching her chin.

"Most likely," Freddy replied. "Monty and Chica have been assisting Inox in getting used to his new body."

Iza froze as she remembered the fate of her friend's old body. Immediately Iza rushed toward the exit, not seeing Freddy's giant foot. She tripped over the tan casing and fell forward; Iza braced herself for impact. Nothing.

Cracking open an eye, Iza saw herself hovering only inches from the floor. She looked back and saw Freddy, who had caught her by her left arm. Suddenly she was pulled upright into the standing position.

She looked up at Freddy, who gave her a strange look. "Careful," he teased.

Iza rubbed the back of her neck. "Sorry about that," Iza grumbled. "Roxy was right. I need to control my impulsiveness."

"I'd have to agree with her," Freddy said, more serious. "While I think it's great you can react quickly in certain situations, you must learn to control it before you hurt yourself."

"Little late for that." Iza gestured to her battered body. Freddy gave her a sour look, and Iza dropped the comedy. "But you're right; some self-discipline would do me good."

Freddy nodded, content with her answer, and walked toward the door. "Shall we go then?"

Iza's eyes brightened, and she nodded excitedly. She jogged carefully over to Freddy as he started opening the rusted door. The familiar groaning of metal against metal filled the air as the gate begrudgingly slid to the side.

Bright light poured into the room and slightly blinded Iza. She covered her face with her sleeve. Once her pupils adjusted, Iza followed Freddy out of the room.

The hallway was better lit than Freddy's room and seemed to have more than when she first arrived. Iza could hear the same muffled sounds from before from down the hall.

She recognized Monty and Chica's voices. But then saw the other animatronics gathered in a circle with their backs to her.

Monty's voice echoed off the expansive walls as Freddy and Iza moved closer; because of her position, Iza was not visible to the other animatronics as she stood slightly behind Freddy. "Come on!" Monty shouted. "You nearly had it that time!"

Although Iza could not see, she heard something metallic stomping against the tile, almost angrily.

"Try it again!" Chica cheered on. "You're almost there!"

They were talking to someone in the middle of the circle; Iza wondered who it was when an unknown voice responded to the encouragement. "I'm trying," the voice retorted, clearly frustrated. Iza didn't recognize that voice; it was male but sounded like a teenager. "It's difficult."

"Oh, please," Monty replied. "'Difficult' is just a way to say 'easy' before you accomplish your goal!"

All sound ceased. "What?" the voice asked, confused. "What does that even mean?"

Monty's smile dropped. "I don't know. I'm not good at giving advice."

A round of shared snickering escaped the others before they turned their heads to the sound of Freddy's heavy footsteps."

"Freddy!" Chica exclaimed. "How was your charge?"

"It was good, felt good," Freddy replied happily. "Charges have felt a lot better since our tune-ups."

"SPEAKING OF WHICH!" Sundrop chimed in. "HOW'S IZA DOING?!"

Freddy smirked before he stepped aside. "Ask her yourself." Freddy moved to the left and revealed Iza; the others stared at her in shock.

She raised a hand to greet them but was quickly cut off by Chica pulling her into a bone-crushing hug. "Iza!"

The others hurried over to look at Iza in the tight embrace. They waited for Chica to finish hugging before she finally released her. Iza took a deep breath. "You are strong," she laughed.

Chica ignored the comment and stared at Iza's orange sweat sweatshirt. "You're wearing it!" she squealed. "How does it feel?"

Iza stepped back and pulled on the shirt to better look at the cartoon Glamrocks. "Pretty good! It's very soft, and I definitely welcome a change of clothes after what happened to my last sweatshirt," Iza replied. "I owe you one."

Chica glanced at Iza before she resumed the hug, except this one was gentle and less energetic. "Thank you," Chica spoke, barely above a whisper. "Thank you for fixing us."

Iza exhaled and returned the hug with a smile. "It's no problem, Chica, but the real credit goes to Roxy and Monty. They are the ones who set up the machine and retrieved the parts; all I did was play a memory game."

"Please," Monty interrupted as Chica and Iza released the embrace. "Don't be so modest. Take pride in your accomplishments!"

Roxy rolled her eyes at the gator's remarks but quickly joined in. "He's right, weren't for you, we'd all be in the scrap pile."

Iza sighed and itched her hand. "Still, you guys helped me a lot." Iza shook her head and looked around. "Either way, I'm glad you're all alright. Where's Inox?"

Silence accompanied by tiny footsteps filled the quiet hallway as Monty, Chica, and Roxy parted ways to reveal the owner of the unknown voice.

It was the new animatronic from before. Now that it was standing up, Iza could see the android in great detail.

Standing around five feet tall, its silver body was slender and resembled a masculine physique. Neon green lines ran from its feet and hands along the length of its limbs before joining in a glowing circle just above where the collarbone would be.

Matching lines etched at the corners of its mouth ran along its chin before ending at the same circle. Despite the pleasant aesthetic look, the android didn't seem pleased with its body. Its arms were tightly pressed against its chest as it gazed nervously at Iza.

This robot was strange; nothing about it was familiar; its demeanor, appearance, nor voice was recognizable. Everything was different, everything except for its eyes.

Iza stared at timid optics, a golden color that she knew all too well. "Inox."

The android perked up at his name. "Hey, Iza," he responded silently, his jaw smiling apprehensively before disappearing. His arms pressed tighter against his body, and he shied away from eye contact, almost as if Inox was uncomfortable at the sight of his friend.

Iza said nothing as she walked up to him, reaching a hand out; Inox slightly reconciled when she came closer. He looked away, refusing to look her in the eye.

She stopped. Pain tugged at her heartstrings while seeing her best friend in this state, and although she didn't show it, his reaction hurt personally.

Everyone was silent, unsure of how to proceed when suddenly, an idea popped into her head. "My goodness!" Iza hollered, startling everyone, especially Inox. "Whether it has been a lifetime or two, it has been forever since I last saw you, my good sir!"

Iza walked closer to Inox, who was too confused to even attempt to move away. "The last time these weary old eyes laid upon you, you were but a young and little thing. But that's not the case now, no siree. Now you're all grown up!"

Silence followed Iza's performance. Inox's golden optics gazed upward and Into Iza's caring brown ones. "Iza?"

The girl smiled. "It's great to see you, Inox."

Inox glanced up, then hung his head. Soft chuckling sounded before gradually getting louder. Soon Inox laughed hysterically, and suddenly he rushed forward and enveloped Iza in a hug.

The abrupt movement slightly threw Iza off balance, but she just as quickly returned the embrace. Tears welled in her eyes as she wrapped her left arm around Inox's torso and her right about his head.

The world seemingly disappeared as laughs and sobs tore from Iza's throat, holding Inox closely. Despite all the loss and adversities they had experienced, Iza forgot it all as she thought she would lose him if she let go.

Her eyes closed, Iza muttered nonsense, and her grip on Inox tightened until she forced air from her own diaphragm.

"Inox," Iza murmured. "I can't imagine what you must be feeling right now; I'm not sure if you're mad at me for replacing your body or if you're nervous about what I think. But what I do know, and I want you to know, is that I will never leave you. It doesn't matter how you sound or look. Your friendship will always pull me back. You're my brother and best friend, and that is the only thing I could ever want."

Inox responded by tightening his hug. Eventually, the constriction became too great for Iza, and she pulled away, breathing heavily but smiling goofily. "Thanks, Iza," Inox said, smiling. "You're the best friend I could ever ask for."

Iza laughed and looked around at the other animatronics, realizing they had witnessed that spectacle of hers. "Also sorry to greet you that way," she said, wiping away the water from her tear-stained face. "I didn't know any other way to break the ice."

Inox grinned and gave her another hug; his mouth moved as he talked. "Honestly, your approach played out much better than I imagined." Inox stepped back and looked over his friend. "Hey, Iza?"

"Yeah?"

"Never change."

Iza giggled before giving him a final hug. "You too. Although." She scanned him. "Seems like that's already happened. How do you feel?"

Inox looked down at his body and raised a hand, eyeing the glowing lines on his forearm. "In all honesty, very strange. It's been so long since I've been upgraded, I forgot what it felt like."

He traced the neon line. "Although I will say I am fond of the color scheme Mr. Fasben chose, I'll admit, it's been difficult getting used to my new height. And don't get me started on the moving mandible."

Someone snorted behind them, and everyone turned to see Music Man. "Yeah, don't get him started on his movable jaw," his voice said sarcastically through the fazwatch. "He's only been going on about it for the last six hours. The only reason I didn't say anything was that Iza had the fazwatch."

Inox rolled his eyes. "You're one to talk; from what I heard, your bodies have fixed features."

"And I work it with style!" Music Man posed dramatically.

Everyone, including Inox, snickered. "Anyway," Iza interrupted. "What were you guys working on before Freddy and I came over?"

Inox's face brightened. "Turns out Mr. Fasben gave me more than a physical upgrade." Inox glared intently at the ground, and a second later, Iza jumped back as a hologram shone from his eyes. "Remember when we first arrived, and I said I could connect to the interior map here?"

"Yeah?" Iza stared off into space. "That almost seems like a lifetime ago."

"True, but anyway." Inox gestured to the screen. "Part of that upgrade allows me to project images from my internal hard drive into a hologram."

Iza's eyes nearly burst from her sockets. "Are you serious?! Not even the most advanced androids can do that!"

"I know! It's awe—"

"SORRY TO INTERRUPT!" Sun interjected. "BUT WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THE MOST ADVANCED ANDROIDS?! YOU GUYS KEEP REFERRING TO US BEING ABLE TO FIT IN WITH THE OUTSIDE WORLD AND OTHER STRANGE THINGS! WHAT DO YOU MEAN?!"

The others looked at her curiously, the same question on their minds. Iza went to speak but was quickly cut off by Freddy. "I also apologize for interrupting, but could you explain that after we get you something to eat? I am worried you haven't eaten anything for a while."

Iza's stomach released the loudest rumble she had ever heard as if on command. "Let's do that, lead the way."

—

"I was out for how long?!" Iza nearly jumped from her seat as she stared wide-eyed when she heard Roxy's words.

"Iza, sit still," Freddy complained as he wrapped fresh bandages around the human's right shoulder. Together, everyone in the dining room where Iza had previously eaten and gotten to know them before.

Right now, Iza sat in her black undershirt while her new sweatshirt rested on the table while Iza allowed Freddy to redress her wounds. "Seriously, sit still. You're making this difficult."

Iza laughed. "Sorry, Freddy." She turned back to her original position and let Freddy resume his work, but she kept her eyes on Roxy. "How long was I out for?"

"Twenty-three and a half hours." Music Man reiterated for Roxy. "After you finished your repairs, you and I were just talking and scrolling through the fazwatch when you suddenly started crying. You kept repeating the year 2059, then just went to sleep."

Iza tensed when she heard the number but quickly shook it off; Freddy noticed her change in body language. "And proceeded to sleep for an entire day?" Iza gawked. "Jeez, I must have been out of it. When did you guys wake up?"

"They came around about an hour after you fell asleep; Inox was the last to wake up."

Suddenly a door burst open, revealing Chica holding two large pepperoni and sausage pizzas. "Orders up!" She set the plates on the table and placed a smaller one in front of Iza.

Before Iza could thank her, Chica quickly disappeared into the back before reemerging with an extra-large cup with the words Fizzy Faz printed on the side. "Thought you might want a drink, dear."

"Thanks, Chica," Iza grinned before downing the entire glass of water. After finishing, Iza wiped her mouth with her left hand, "I really needed that." Her voice sounded less hoarse than before.

"So," Monty inquired, gaining everyone's attention. "Y'all going to explain what the outside world is like?"

Freddy finished wrapping Iza's arm. She flexed her bandaged limb and laughed along with Inox. "Sure." Iza rubbed her chin. "Where do I even begin?"

Inox sat down next to Iza. "Mind if I take this one?"

"The floor is yours."

Inox nodded, then stared forward. "Since 2045, robots have become almost as common as smartphones among humans. They all have pretty much gained full sentience and live among humans."

Freddy froze as he and the others stared at Inox. "Animatronics live like humans?"

Inox shook his head. "Not exactly, it requires a much more detailed explanation, but to make a long story short, humans and robots live together. Although androids cannot live on their own, they must be registered to a creator or person, but other than that, they have quite a bit of autonomy."

"That's why you keep saying to come with you," Chica replied, holding a silence of pizza. "We would fit right in."

Iza snapped her fingers. "Exactly." Iza smiled. "Dad was a driving force when building the newest generation of sentient animatronics. Although looking back now, a lot of his work makes sense, he was building a world based on the family he already had."

The Glamrocks looked at each other, then at Iza and Inox. "It's great to hear how we inspired Gregory." Freddy's ears dropped. "But we just wish we could have known that part of his life."

Iza's shoulders dropped at his response. "I'm right there with you. Growing up, I never really had family outside of Dad, Nana, and Inox."

"Did your mother's side not have anyone?" Roxy asked.

"No, it did. My Mom's side of the family is ginormous," Iza replied. "Mom was the youngest of eight siblings, so I had cousins to spare."

"WHY DID YOU NOT SPEND TIME WITH THEM THEN?!"

Chuckling, Iza looked at Sun. "It's rather difficult to see them where you live in another country. Mom wasn't born in the United States; she came here when she was twenty years old and met my Dad around two years later."

"Did you ever get to see them?" Freddy questioned.

Iza nodded. "I did. I saw them maybe once a year. We would visit them during the summers and stay for about a month or two."

"Were they nice?" Chica asked.

"Of course! Those were some of my favorite memories as a child, and it didn't hurt that my grandparents loved Dad." Iza laughed. "He used to joke that his charm swept Mom off her feet, but Nana always clarified that Mom made the first move, not Dad."

"Sounds like Gregory," Freddy mused, then his voice got quiet. "Iza, there's something we wanted to ask you."

She looked back at them, her mouth stuffed with pizza before swallowing. "Shoot."

Freddy hesitated before proceeding. "Why did you get so upset when you read Gregory's old work logs?"

Iza tensed. "What?"

"Music Man told us about your reaction when you heard the year 2059. Can you explain it?" Freddy's face pleaded. "Please."

Iza looked around, scratching her hand before standing up. "You know what I haven't done in a while? Use the bathroom. I'm going to go find one." She grabbed her sweatshirt and slung it over her arm before hurrying toward the door.

The animatronics looked at her strangely. "Iza?"

She looked back. "Do you guys know where the bathroom is? Cause I don't think I've gone since I got here."

Inox walked over to Iza. "Iza!" he shouted, getting her attention.

"Inox, can you use your map to find one?"

"Iza, just tell them!"

Iza snapped her head around. "Tell them what?!" she screamed. "Tell them about the worst year of my life?! About how everything went downhill after 2059?! About how Dad—" Iza couldn't finish her sentence as she yelled in frustration and threw the sweatshirt on the floor.

"Wait, what about Greg—" Monty's voice was cut off as he received two elbows to the chest. "Ow! What was that for?!"

"Dude," Roxy deadpanned. "You are terrible at reading social cues. Shut up!"

Monty growled something before sulking in his chair.

Returning her attention, Iza blinked tears from her eyes as she stared at Inox. "Just tell them," he said softly.

Iza's bloodshot eyes darted between Inox and the others before hiding them. She grabbed the sweatshirt off the table and put it on, pulling the hood over her head. She sat back down. "I'm sorry," Iza mumbled. "This is not a subject I like to talk about."

"Take your time," Chica hummed.

Iza nodded and took a deep breath, rapidly scratching her hand. The Glamrocks, despite their understanding, leaned forward in their seats eagerly. Iza took another deep breath. "The year 2059 was the year Dad's suffering began."

The others' eyes widened. "He was diagnosed with an aggressive form of skin cancer. He got treatment for it, but…"

Inox held Iza's hand. "But it kept coming back, coming and going every few years. Dad always seemed to get better, but the damn thing kept mutating and changing. On and off for nearly twelve years until last month he…"

Seeing the poor girl on the verge of tears for nearly the hundredth time, Freddy spoke up. "We can stop talking about it. I'm sorry we asked. I didn't know it caused you so much pain."

"It's fine." Iza turned away and hit her face.

Freddy looked at the others, and they nodded. He sighed. "I know it won't make up for what happened, but you can ask us anything if you want."

Iza slightly perked up as she faced Freddy, an earnest look in her eyes. "You're serious?"

"Yes."

Iza looked at the others, which reaffirmed what Freddy said. Iza looked down, choosing her following words carefully. "Okay then, what do you guys know about purple optics?"