A/N Hope everybody is ready for the second part of the Night 5 aftermath! This chapter is going to be a bit more exciting than the last one, because I'm going to have some feels, some revelations, and, most importantly, Chica! I've seen a few of you guys that have been wondering about her, and I'm glad to have instilled some excitement in you about that. Now we're finally getting to it, so I am particularly looking forward to your feedback on how I wrote her. Anyway, this chapter is going to be a fun time, so I hope you enjoy it. Alright, here it goes.

Emotions were high as everyone descended the stairs to the basement. Everything they were feeling was evident on their faces as they prepared themselves to reunite with the Pizzaplex's resident guitar player. Excitement, exhilaration, nostalgia…nerves. The last feeling was felt by Fifi particularly. How could she not. Glamrock Chica, practically her idol, had seen her attack an innocent child just a few hours ago. What was she going to think? Would she just immediately reject her after what she did? When the mouse reached the bottom of the stairs, she looked out ahead of her, and that basement hallway never seemed so long.

Walking past her, Gregory saw her troubled look, and noticed how she was twiddling her thumbs. He stepped to her side and put a reassuring arm around her.

"If it's any consolation," he said with a careful smile, "I'm nervous too. She may have helped us back there, but…I still did some pretty awful things. I just hope she'll let me make it up to her."

Roxy, who was in front of them, gave a light chuckle. "I'll just tell you right now, kid, you've got nothing to worry about. Neither of you. She's nothing if not understanding, so she'll hear you guys out. And, to put it bluntly, she's probably the sweetest one out of all of us."

"She is," Freddy agreed. "Perhaps that is why she was chosen as the mascot for Mazercise at the Pizzaplex. She definitely has the air of an energetic caregiver, so why not put that energy to good use?"

"Ha! I'm still shocked that was her attraction, though," Gregory retorted. "What, with her pizza addiction and everything."

"Well, they were operating on the logic that they could sell more junk food if the kids were more active," Vanessa confirmed. "Obviously, that was flawed, but Chica still got popular for it."

Roxy chuckled. "Well, I guess that doesn't matter anymore. I'm just glad we got her back."

The blonde nodded. "Yeah, me too."

They finally reached the door at the end of the hall and Vanessa turned around as she grabbed the doorknob.

"I hope everyone's ready," she said intently.

In response, the others quickly nodded, though Fifi did so a few seconds later than everyone else, likely due to the nerves. Satisfied, Vanessa turned around, opening the door as she went, and when they all looked in, they could clearly see that Chica was up and about. Of course, she was completely restored on the outside, once again sporting her white casing with a pink leotard. Her eyes were properly placed in their sockets, and the lower half of her face was replaced as well, including her beak. She appeared to be doing stretches, meaning her mobility was restored as well, and the vocalizations she made as she stretched confirmed her voice box was replaced. And above all, she seemed to be in rather high spirits.

"You're absolutely sure everything is moving as it should?" Henry's voice rang out from the monitor behind her.

"Trust me, Henry, I feel awesome!" the bird perkily replied as she stretched her left arm. "I was expecting a difference in mobility, but every move is just so fluid!" She stopped when she saw the others were now in the room with her, and in a sing-song voice she called "Heeeeyyyyy!"

Vanessa laughed at the familiarity of the moment. "Well, it looks like someone was glad to get out of that diner," she playfully remarked.

"Oh, you have no idea!" Chica responded. "I can't thank you guys enough. So much has happened in the past month."

"I can imagine," Freddy concurred. "How are you feeling now though, Chica?"

She hesitated a moment before responding, "Ask me after I've had a pizza."

Most of the room erupted into laughter at that point, Freddy and Roxy in particular. The two of them were so overwhelmed having their friend back, they rushed right to her, taking her by surprise when they wrapped their arms around her.

"Geez, the things you miss out on when you're not able to talk!" the chicken happily exclaimed.

"Sorry, Chi." Roxy said, tears of joy building in her voice. "It's just…we missed you so much!"

"Awww, same here!" She put an arm around each of their shoulders. "It's so good to see you guys again!"

The group hug lasted a few more seconds until Chica finally noticed the 10-year-old boy looking intently at her. He quickly averted his gaze and gave a guilty smile. She pulled away and walked over to him.

"It's good to see you too, Gregory," she said softly, kneeling down. "I was wondering if I'd ever get to see you again. You know, now that I've got my head on straight…Bet I gave you quite a scare, huh?"

"Heh, heh. Yeah…" he anxiously scratched his head. "Speaking of which…I'm really sorry for throwing you in the trash compactor. I know I could've done something to help you back then, but…I didn't."

She gingerly placed her hand on his good shoulder. "Gregory, it's okay. If I was in your position that night, I probably would've done the same thing. If anything, I'm the one that needs to apologize."

"Hey, no worries. I know you weren't in control back then, so you can't blame yourself for that."

She gave a small smile. "Thanks…Still, I can't believe I let myself get so out of it!" She anxiously ran a hand through her ponytail. "Tell me…I barely remember eating out of the garbage. Did I actually do that?"

The boy stifled a laugh. "I hate to tell you, but you did."

"Ugh, I'm never going to live that down…Oh well."

As she was shrugging at her last two words, the mouse animatronic standing next to Gregory caught the bird's eye. She cast her eyes down when Chica looked at her, almost out of shame, it seemed.

Chica turned to Gregory with an inquisitive look. "Uh, not to be brash or anything, but…can you introduce me?"

"Oh! Right…" the boy stammered. "Uh, Chica…this is Fifi Fieldmouse. We found her at the diner on Monday, actually. Fazbear Entertainment kind of…threw her out before she had a chance to debut."

"Oh…I see," she turned back to Fifi. "I guess you were waiting to see me for quite a while, huh?"

Eyes still downcast, the mouse slowly nodded.

"Well, it's nice to meet you, finally! I saw William got to you pretty hard earlier, but…you feeling okay now?"

After a second, Fifi shook her head. "Not really," came her pained response.

Her head dropped even further after saying this, until she felt Chica's hand under her chin. She looked up, surprised at this sudden gesture.

"Look at me, sweetheart," the bird said softly. "No matter what he made you do…no matter what he made you think…that's not you. Okay? I don't blame you at all for what happened earlier, so please don't feel ashamed. Just don't lose sight of who you really are, and you won't lose to him again. Think you can do that?"

For some reason, those words hit Fifi harder coming from Chica than anyone else. She wasn't sure why at all, but the way the words reached her seemed to instantly relieve the pain in her chest. This whole time, the mouse hadn't felt fully confident in herself and who she was, but hearing Chica speak just now gave her a bigger boost than anything had before during this whole experience. Her eyes widened in a mazement, and after a second, she gave her idol a content nod.

"That's what I like to see," the chicken smiled, and she welcomed Fifi into a tender embrace.

"…Thank you," the mouse said as she sank into the warmth of the hug.

"No problem." They pulled away. "And just so you know, if you want to try to control that little ability of yours, I'm more than willing to help. If you guys are going after William, you're gonna need all the help you can get."

"So, you do know about William, then?" asked Freddy intently watching the scene.

Chica stood to turn and face him. "Better than anyone, Freddy…Better than anyone."

"Just speaking with her before you came in, it's clear to me she has a huge number of Susie's memories," Henry chimed in. "Her A.I. has removed William's virus in the same way Roxy's did, and I think the memories may be why, especially considering Susie was the first of the missing children."

The bird chuckled in spite of herself. "That still happened a bit later than I would've liked. When that night started at the Pizzaplex, I basically lost all control of myself. I had no idea what was going on. I was just mindlessly wandering looking for the prey that was set for me. I got my senses back a little bit after the incident with the trash compactor, but I still didn't fully get my control back. The goal of finding Gregory just kept pushing to the forefront in my head…until some rubble fell on top of me during the fire.

"Next thing I knew, I was waking up on the scrap piles under the diner. I just remember a bit of fear as I took that first look around me, because I knew what that meant. But then there was a strange sense of familiarity as I looked around some more, and then, Boom! Everything hit me at once. Susie's memories, what past Chicas saw, what I was doing the night before, and who made me do it. That's when the fog in my head finally cleared, and I bet that's when my A.I. got rid of the virus…I just wish it could've done that before anything bad happened."

Roxy stepped toward her old friend slightly. "Give yourself some credit, Chi," she said. "Tragic as it is, I think you had a bit of an edge having that girl's memories. I didn't get rid of that stupid virus 'till Wednesday."

"Well, I would've helped you, Roxy, and I was going to. I heard you crying for help when we were first down there, but I just wasn't fast enough. Cassidy and Baby got to you first. I did my best to get to you, but I was so far away. Even after Baby got you though, I wanted to find you and help you, but every time I got close, I'd get cut off by S.T.A.F.F. bots or Endos or whatever other lacky William sent out. I knew what was going to happen to you, and I did not want you to go through that."

The wolf let out a breath, clearly shocked and touched by what was just said.

"You really did all that?" she said emotionally. "Man…I don't deserve you as a friend, Chica."

The bird shook her head. "I disagree. In fact, I think you deserve so much more than I can offer. All of you do after what you've been through."

"Hold on," Gregory interrupted. "So, does that mean you've been trying to help us, too? This whole time?"

"Of course, I was, Gregory!" she confirmed. "When I saw you Monday night, I was overjoyed! I thought, 'If that little kid can manage to survive a whole six hours with all of us going hog-wild, surely he can manage to put a stop to the madman that started this whole mess!' But then, with your bad experience before, and me not being able to talk, I guess I should've expected there'd be some misunderstandings. Again, though, I'm really, really sorry if I scared you."

The boy gave her a smile. "Well, hey, it's like Henry just said. You got rid of the virus, so you don't have to worry about it anymore. It's all water under the bridge now, and if you want to help us, how can I say 'no' to that? Speaking of which, if I haven't said it already, thank you so much for saving me. And Fifi, too!"

"Yes," the mouse chimed in. "Thank you. If it weren't for you, I would've become a monster. I was so close to it, and I never want anyone to feel the way I did. I'm glad you don't either, so…yeah. I can't thank you enough."

Chica smiled back. "It was the least I could do."

Vanessa took in the scene, the weight of everything she herself had done up until this point no longer on her shoulders. She definitely wanted it to last a bit longer, but once again, it was time to get down to business.

"Well, if you want to help, we're definitely going to need it," she said. "To start, I'm going to ask the question that's been haunting us since this whole thing began. Do you know what William is planning to do?"

The bird nodded intently. "Yes…I know."

Everyone then gathered around in front of her and anxiously waited for her to tell her side of things. She inhaled deeply and began.

"There was a memory that Susie had, not long after she died and possessed the original Chica. A mechanic had come in to do some maintenance, but looked a little closer than he should have at the animatronics. At least by William's standards. All it took was a peek under the chest casings for William to completely go off on that man. Knowing him, it would've been safe to assume he was just keeping his murderous rampage under wraps, but then, when he was alone, he took a photo out of his wallet.

"It was of an old woman sitting on a park bench. He started talking to it, and it seemed like he was grieving. I'm guessing it must have been of his grandmother or something, because it seemed like he was just longing for the glory days. At least at first. But as he kept talking, there was a change in his tone. He kept going on about how self-righteous it was for people to move on. From a death, from a friendship, a relationship…anything. Then he started boasting about himself and everything he's done, saying that he'd make the company into something people wouldn't believe. But the scariest part was when he said, 'They may have forgotten you, but they won't forget me. I'll make sure of it.'"

Her audience looked at each other, visibly confused.

"Okay, well, that still kind sounds like he wants immortality," Gregory said. "He told me that was just the beginning of what he wants, so there has to be more than that, right?"

"Well, it's the main thing," Chica clarified. "He's always been afraid of dying more than anything. Even after he's found countless ways to come back…Funny thing about him coming back, though. When ever he did it, he always had help. What's going to happen when that help runs out?"

Freddy's eyes widened in realization. "That's right! Every time he's come back it was because of an outside force. A piece of him was hidden somewhere, and when someone found it, he was free to wreak havoc again."

"Exactly, but he knows without that outside force, he won't come back, so he wants to eliminate that possibility. He thought he had his answer when he learned how to create a computer virus, but even someone as tech-savvy as him knows that technology isn't the most reliable thing. So, he turned his attention back to what he was most interested in manipulating—people. He studied both the soul and technology for so long, that he thought he could find a similarity between the two and exploit that similarity so he could come back. Basically, he wants to hack people's souls."

Vanessa was beginning to get some harsh flashbacks at this.

"Well, he already tried that on me," she hissed. "He got in my head when I was testing that VR game, but I pushed him out. That plan failed."

Chica shook her head. "He doesn't see it that way. I was barely there for the conversation he had with you on Thursday, but I heard him talking to you about his views on science. Basically, Vanessa, he doesn't view you as anything more than a failed experiment. Something to improve upon. To streamline. He's not going to stop until he gets his formula on that perfected, and as of right now, what he thinks he'll need to do that…is the right kind of Remnant."

Gregory was feeling sick just thinking about that stuff again. He felt worse around that than he did when Vanny was using her cloaking device.

"And he thinks he's going to get that from me?" he inquired. "I mean, yeah, I've been through a lot in my life, but why is he so sure that I'm the one he's going to need for that?"

"There were others like you that he's killed, Gregory," the bird continued. "Kids that experienced every peak and pitfall of life before they were even your age. Cassidy was one of them. She had a good life all in all, though. A good family, great friends, anything she wanted. But a lot of bad things happened to her, too. Her parents lost all their money, and they were homeless for a while. Then she lost her grandparents, and she started getting bullied really bad. Pretty soon, she poured herself into everything she could get her hands into to make a better life for herself and her family. Even though she had a different situation, she was just like you Gregory, a kid that grew up way too fast.

"When William killed her, that put an end to things for her, but it just made a new beginning for him. The Remnant he got from her made the animatronics move like clockwork, and he was so pleased with the result, he kept seeking out more of it. He even tried to force it out of his own son, Evan, by torturing him endlessly. Unfortunately, though, or fortunately depending on how you look at it, someone else put that poor kid out of his misery before things got taken too far. Still, William's been looking for that intense quality of Remnant ever since, and right now, given what you've been through, Gregory, I don't think there's a better candidate than you."

The boy scowled and crossed his arms. "A kid that grew up too fast, huh? All I ever did was try to survive, and everyone tries to kill me for it. I guess Afton's just the next person in line for that."

Vanessa leaned down and put her hand around his shoulder. 'Not if I can help it,' she thought, and she was about to say it, too, when—

"OH, NO! THAT'S IT!" Fifi cried in horrified realization.

"WHAT?" most of them called as they jumped at her sudden outburst.

"Don't you remember what Foxy said? About the huge shipment of S.T.A.F.F. bots coming from the Pizzaplex on Sunday? They're all going to have the virus! If William gets his hands on Gregory before then and uses his Remnant to update the virus…"

"Then he'll have a whole legion of slaves to find human test subjects to corrupt," Freddy continued shaking, "thus ensuring more chances for him to return!"

"Now you're getting it!" Chica confirmed. "And if it works, what's going to stop him from spreading it even further? He won't stop until everyone bends to his will."

Roxy frustratedly kicked an oil can next to her on the floor. "That sicko!" she growled. "Why'd I ever think he and his stupid daughter would do anything good for me? For anyone?"

"He's got a knack for that, Roxy," the bird answered, "and he passed it down to Elizabeth. He already poisoned her mind! Why not do it to everyone else? Susie lost everything because he did that to her, and it sickens me to see how even that wasn't enough for him."

Having finally spoken out after more than a month, Chica felt a sense of relief wash over her. But there was also a sense of dread as she was not sure at all how the group would take this information. Would they recklessly go in and risk their lives out of sheer anger, or would they just run away from the whole situation out of fear. She had seen those two extremes through Susie's memories and she didn't want to see her friends go into either mindset. Therefore, one could imagine her shock when she looked up after a moment to see every face plastered with a look of determination.

"Then our course is as clear as ever," Vanessa spoke up. "We need to end this. He and everyone that follows him have ruined too many lives. Tonight, we find a way to get rid of him, for good, and make sure he can't come back."

Chica put a hand to her chest, "…Really? You want to do it?"

"We do," Freddy confirmed, "Vanessa and I both have first-hand knowledge of how he makes people suffer. We cannot let him do it to anyone else."

"First-hand knowledge? What do you…Wait! Michael!?"

The bear nodded. Her breath taken away again; the bird stared at him in awe.

"I should've known," she said with a grin. "I guess this is right on par with you, isn't it?"

"I don't know that I would say that. As I said, I don't want anyone else to suffer."

"…Wow." She turned to Gregory. "But what about you? You know you're the one William's after."

"I know," he replied smugly, "but he's not the first one. I've had to deal with people like that ever since my parents died. It's all I thought there would be in the world. But now I've found people worth fighting for, and no matter what it takes, I'm gonna stop the psycho that's trying to take that away from me."

The chicken looked astonishedly at everyone again. "And none of you are scared of what might happen?"

"Chica," Roxy said firmly. "…Of course, we're scared…but that's not going to stop us."

Chica felt like she would cry from pure joy from what she was hearing. "Roxy…"

"There's gonna be some changes for all of us here," the wolf continued. "I, for one, am done trying to hide from my problems."

"So am I," said Fifi. "Maybe you guys are right. Maybe…knowing what I know now…I can actually do some good. At least I have a new way to defend myself now, and at least…I'm not alone anymore."

This earned the mouse a loving squeeze from Gregory. "Feels good, doesn't it?" he laughed. "And if things go well tonight…we won't have to worry about it for a long time."

Vanessa, with a satisfied grin, turned to face Chica. "Well, looks like everyone else is on board. What say you?"

The bird looked around the room once again. Most of the faces she had seen were familiar, but she had never seen them light up like this. And the faces she didn't know somehow gave her a sense of familiarity that comforted her even more. It was almost like…she was with the best family she could've picked to entertain at the Pizzaplex. She immediately knew she had to protect the warmth she was feeling. A huge smile found its way onto her face.

"…Geez," she said. "How do you expect me to say 'no' after all that?"

Nothing more was needed to prompt the group into a round of cheers and high-fives. It was evident now more than ever that they were a team, and they were willing to do whatever it took to stop this madness.

"Only question now is…how are we going to do this?" asked Vanessa after the excitement died down.

"I think I may be able to help with that as well," came Henry's voice. "I've made some preparations earlier this week, but to fully see them through…I think I'll need to come to the diner myself. That is…if you'll have me."

They all eyed the monitor screen curiously.

"Are you sure, Henry?" Gregory asked. "I mean, there's a lot that could still go wrong."

"Of course, but if everything you've done this week is any indication, I think you'll be able to handle yourselves just fine. I don't know if you all have realized, but you have become as close a family as anyone could want. William did a lot wrong in his life, but there are some things that even he can't destroy. So, please trust me when I say that all of you together can take what he throws at you, and I want to help you stop him as well, if you'll let me."

They all drew closer to one another after his speech, knowing he was right.

"You're a part of this family too, Henry," Vanessa decided. "If you want to help, we'll be happy to have you."

"…You don't know how much that means to me."

The blonde smiled, then she turned back to the others.

"Alright," she said. "There's still quite a bit of time before we go, but we need to spend it preparing. If you need to rest and recharge, you better do it now. Anything you want to take with you, you better grab it. We're out of here at eleven o'clock, and we need to be in the best shape we can be in by then. Got it?"

They all responded with shouts of affirmation. Satisfied, she motioned them to go out the door, and they complied.

"Oh, and Chica!" she said, stopping the bird as she passed by. "…I do have leftover pizza in the fridge. Help yourself if you want."

Chica gave a slight smile. "Don't mind if I do."

A/N And there we go! I do hope none of you thought this was going to end after Night 5. When has a game in this series ever ended after Night 5? I suppose I did tell you that was going to be the case, but just so no one misunderstands, I will be starting Night 6 with the next chapter. In the meantime, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I've been getting some excellent feedback from the last chapter, and I apologize for making you wait…again. Please, though, let me know if you liked how I wrote Chica. I wanted her to have an energetic vibe, but sober up a little from that when going through what happened with William, so let me know how that worked. Again, though, I hope you liked it and leave a review if you can. See you next time.