FNAF Security Breach: Ruination

by FrostByterFang

Cassie's descent into the bowels of the PizzaPlex's depths posed numerous ramifications. After Gregory's supposed betrayal, she needs to find a way out of the derelict building with the assistance of the broken-down animatronics. Gregory meanwhile attempts to rescue his friend from the depths of the PizzaPlex. FULL summary inside. Main character focus is Cassie & Glamrock Bonnie.

20. Wrath Unbound

Author's Note: To take a famous a quote from Scott Cawthon himself: "Bonnie doesn't abide by the rules of time, space, or the laws of physics."

So if that's canon, guess that makes Bonnie the BIGGEST rule-breaker ever.

On another note, if you see the '...' at the beginning of a POV break, its more omniscient. Its no longer focused on a single titular character and their thoughts.

---

~Just a day before current events~

GLAMROCK BONNIE

He wasn't the only one trapped in darkness.

Inside the AR world, the digital version of the PizzaPlex itself and sealed away deep inside the S.T.A.F.F network, the rogue A.I rabbit was slumped over on his knees. Literally, sitting on his heels and knees with his back hunched over; his head cast downward and eyes shrouded by the shadow of his bangs and flopping ears. He truly looked the part of the tortured hanged man in this lonely world; and he knew he was the sole soul inside this place.

Being alone for so long without contact was already maddening within itself- but he knew he wasn't the only one suffering here.

He's seen it through their eyes; the eyes of the mop bots. He saw the state of this place; felt the tremors of the PizzaPlex as its foundation slowly began to degrade throughout time. He's heard Monty's growling in the walls; Roxy's wailing, and Chica's floundering about as she slowly -but surely- began to short out and die a slow and painful death.

He'd only been the start. By the time Vanny's work was done, the PizzaPlex has been forsaken by staff and left to rot after its riches were emptied out. He and his friends were consciously left to die in this stronghold of sorrows. They had no way out; and even those who CAN see a way out, cannot get there. Its not like it mattered anyways; not when their battery will die within an hour of leaving this place.

It was inevitable; this slow fade into obscurity. Once the last of the recharge stations finally quits working, all his friends will shut down. He however, he will remain for however long the building had power; for as long as the AR world here was online. He will be the last one to finally die a second and final death; one so much worse than the first. He will die utterly alone here after having finally lost the last vestiges of his sanity; after having painstakingly watched all that he loved literally wilt away and vanish into the debris of this crumbling hell-hole.

He was a watcher of fates now; a guardian sentinel who cannot hope to take action with the digital shackles Vanessa and Vanny have imposed upon him. He will wait and watch until eventually, his friends die and he too will join them in silent obscurity.

Bonnie was a skeptic by nature; scoffing at the idea of salvation at this point. He's been disappointed by any developments being resolved into something peaceful throughout the time he's been here. He's seen employees talk of his disappearance, murmur of his whereabouts, and deliberately leave him in his solitary confinement in that ball recycling room once the few that actually learned about him learned of him. Worse, Vanny made sure to silence anyone whose actually FOUND him. Her crime spree continued, and she's killed over and over again.

He lamented his failure. He's cried in his solitude in this place. All he can do is watch as she continued to hurt, maim, ruin and kill anyone who goes poking their noses where they don't belong. He's prayed she won't touch Cassie; and so far, at least THAT hadn't happened.

She stopped coming to the PizzaPlex. He figured it was for the better. He didn't want her coming around here where Vanny can find her. She was safer outside of here-Even though seeing her had become his only highlight. Watching his friends tear themselves apart in his absence wasn't exactly a great way to pass the time while he stayed locked inside a digital prison.

And speaking of which-

The staff ignored any pleas and haven't maintained his comrades. Chica got worse with time, for instance. She wantonly harmed whoever got in her way while she pursues a single slice of pizza; and Roxy has locked herself up in her room for long hours to cry her soul out once one man told her she was a MONSTER. And Monty? The poor gator couldn't fight Vanny's thralls after she 'upgraded' him. It didn't matter that he knew hacking; for she removed his ability to fight back at all. The gator knew he was helpless and considered second-rate in Bonnie's shadow; and he became his feral self again.

And Freddy...

Bonnie remembered the night that boy stayed here. He's watched the one called Gregory traipse the PizzaPlex to escape Vanny. Bonnie had been rooting for him! Truly, he was. He'd been happy his chip has saved Freddy and -by extension- Gregory too. The two evaded her, and then they faced her-

Only for Freddy to get ripped apart and his head carried out by that same boy. Worse, the kid went out with VANESSA, of all things; the very same woman whose trapped him (both boy and HIMSELF) in here.

Freddy hadn't argued with them. Perhaps he knew it was pointless, seeing as he was only a talking head- but he could've been a BIT more vocal about leaving. On the side, Bonnie noticed they've hadn't come back but the one time; to get this security program set up-

And Bonnie hated that.

That program they used... M.X.E.S. It FORCED his friends to switch into Security Mode so they can hurt whoever enters this place. They were to act as obstacles so no one can free this other thing here. Bonnie didn't know what it was, but did Vanessa and THAT KID really have to use his own friends against their will jointly? To make the program control them and defend the PizzaPlex from any intruders who could inadvertently free this other mind here?

He doesn't know about the Mimic; and he still doesn't, even now. He's been calling it 'the other mind'. The other A.I mind that's been trying to escape. Its creeping fingers slithered across the PizzaPlex in silence; its vice imposing and only getting stronger. Bonnie supposed Vanessa returning to keep it sealed made sense... but why did she and that kid have to do this?

And Freddy... Did he NOT want his friends free? Or at least, shut down so they weren't SUFFERING anymore?

NO! Instead, they've turned his friends into half-feral guard dogs. They made M.X.E.S do this thing with his friends- connect with them digitally, and beckon them over to wherever this 'other mind' was wreaking havoc.

Now, Bonnie knew he didn't see everything that went on sometimes. He will miss a detail or two on occasion when he wasn't casting his broken mind around from one mop bot to another. He can only SEE through the mop bots. If the mop bots weren't in that room, he wasn't going to know what happened in there! Simple as that.

However, he's seen enough to know that his friends were now but ghostly shadows of their former selves- and he, right along with them.

He's tried escaping this place several times. If this 'other mind' can do it, surely he can too?

But no- his shackles were too tight. He has failed to get free, and he can only continue to watch... to watch and wait- until eventually, his friends will die doing a dog's work to keep this other mind bound here.

He wasn't okay. He's long-since given up in his solitude here. He's long-since stopped counting the days. He didn't WANT to keep counting; as it only maddened his devasted mind. He will occasionally turn on a mop bot to peek at the activity inside the PizzaPlex. Seeing through the eyes of these things felt like someone getting a burlap sack wrapped around their head and tied on; like he was half-blind. The images weren't always great quality, nor was it easy when the little bots started to malfunction too. They began to tick down with time; and Bonnie started losing his eyes around this place.

The times he gained access to the mop bots and glimpsed his friends, his heart broke anew. He couldn't keep watching Monty slither around with literally only HALF of himself remaining; slowly and slowly still transforming into a growling, biting menace that ate EVERYTHING he can get his teeth around. There was no sentience there anymore; just an endo with really shape teeth and a baser mind akin to a rapid dog.

Roxy meanwhile floundered around and smashed her face into everything; eventually losing pieces of her chassis and her fingers. She cried all the time; derided herself until she was spiritually broken. She was shattered in spirit so completely, that she stopped trying to fix herself. She only sat in her salon some days, crying it out in front of a broken mirror she herself has smashed. She won't move for long periods either; not until her battery forced her to move on and find the last available recharge station her memory informed her of.

And as for Chica-

Bonnie felt his teeth grit at this; his shackled paws shivering beneath him as he had front row seats to watching the once sweet hen reduce herself to THAT state. She couldn't see, couldn't walk sometimes, and she will literally turn on and off like her battery wanted to quit on her, but it WON'T let her die peacefully. It stubbornly remained active; and the poor chicken kept wandering around looking for food she couldn't even keep inside. Her torso has rotted away; and Chica, upon realizing she can't literally stomach her precious food anymore, shoved a trash bag in her belly to keep her coveted snacks in. She turned into a cheesy, greasy, moldy zombie version of herself; unable to speak or cry for help-

But he ALWAYS heard her cries. His ears, even from in HERE, can pick up her silent tears.

Chica screamed digitally too. Not many can hear it; in fact, Bonnie doubted even his own friends can catch it. However, Bonnie had been able to pick it up through the mop bots and catch the fact she had been viciously FIGHTING Vanny for months and months now. She used a similar distress signal he did; a signal that sounded like a cry when heard on certain frequencies.

And then one day, her tears stopped.

Chica just... gave up. The instant he stopped hearing her crying, he knew she was truly gone. Her brain and body had eroded to a point where its robbed her of her sentience; and she likely did not remember missing Bonnie and Freddy so terribly. She likely didn't even know she was STILL underneath the thrall of the virus that plagued her fragile brain. She was barely above the level of feral Monty was; simply shuffling about and piling food into her rotten core.

He couldn't look at her anymore. There wasn't anything there to look at, after a point. Bonnie has seen her die; but her body had yet to realize it. It was too much.

And even in these varying states of decay, his friends were doing the bidding of M.X.E.S every time an intruder entered the PizzaPlex and started pecking away at the debris here. People legitimately died coming in here for a cheap thrill; his friends being summoned by the enigmatic program to do away with any potential threats. These strangers sometimes nearly unlocked this 'other mind'; and M.X.E.S will have whoever was nearest come and-

He can't do this anymore. He can't keep WATCHING this. He can't.

Haven't I been punished enough?

Bonnie stopped tuning into the mop bots whenever a motion sensor was tripped in them. He'd only find roaches half the time anyways. He barely had the sense to check himself mentally anymore. His brain was scattered amidst a BUNCH of bots; so he wasn't all there some days. He was driven insane with the quietude of the AR world; but checking the outside world wasn't always better either.

With that said- he ignored it at first when he got another sensor tripped in one of the mop bots on this particular day. He paid it no nevermind; figuring it was another bug or maybe Chica finding more garbage to wreck herself with. He couldn't keep checking on her without wanting to burst out in tears every time. He just can't keep doing this-

And then he heard HER voice:

"Oh- wha- How is this thing... screaming?"

Bonnie blinked out of his half-sober stupor; his pixelated body shuffling uncomfortably as he looked up at one of the mop bot images floating above him. Confused, he let one ear flop heavily as he elevated a heavy paw to touch the image of the bot whom he heard the sound originate. The bot transformed into a video screen; and he sized it up so he can see-

Only to find himself looking into the eyes of Cassie-

Or rather, the rabbit mask ON Cassie.

He felt his jaw DROP as he watched her pensively toe her way over to the mop bot in-question; her location telling him she was in a lavatory somewhere nearer to the front of the building around Monty Golf. She lifted the mask off her face, blinked at the tiny bot, then pulled it back on. She JUMPED at whatever she heard through the mask.

Bonnie was absolutely STUMPED. He leaned into the screen, wishing desperately it could take him to the other side. He found the fact that she was WEARING THAT AWFUL THING bad enough; add in that she was deep inside the plex when his friends can be summoned to her anytime to do harm-

If he had a pulse, it would be skipping beats.

His lower mandible trembled as he eyed the girl, observing in somewhat-slow comprehension as the girl neared the bot again and prodded it with the fazwrench. She did nothing to it yet, only experimentally poked.

"Why... how is it SCREAMING?" She reiterated as she jerked back in surprise, her hideous mask covering the shock that's likely bloomed there. "Can these things talk?"

She can hear my distress signal? SHE CAN HEAR IT? He thought in utter disbelief.

Bonnie stood up now; Vanessa's digital shackles heavy on his limbs but not pulling him back to the white floor of the network dungeon he was in. He pressed a paw to the screen again, frowning as the girl knelt beside the bot and patted its head; from what he can tell of the angle and the way she held her limbs.

"Oh... I'm sorry. Are you in any pain?" She asked the bot. "Can you hear me?"

Yes. Yes to both!

He would be struggling to regulate breath, had he an actual chest to use. His pixelated body huffed in memory of his physicality though; the buck wilting noticeably as she didn't seem to hear his thoughts. Of course, once again, he was disappointed by the fact that despite the ability of the mask to catch his signal, it can't relay the message of the prisoner himself.

Cassie patted the little bot again, gently wiping its camera eyes clean. She even lifted the mask off again, showing more of her lovely face. She had grown but little in the time she's been gone; no doubt still roughly the same size he's seen her last. She was also wearing a Roxy-themed sweater with the star decals; hazel eyes a honey-glow shimmer in her mocha face. Her hair was noticeably more volumized too; as if she can't control it half the time and it took all her efforts to tame it into the twin pigtails she wore.

"I'm sorry... I dunno what to do for you," She told the bot solemnly. "Do you hate being awake?"

Yes. Oh my god, yes. I fucking hate it here and I want it to STOP!

Bonnie grazed a thoughtful talon across the bot's screen, sighing even though its not like he can actually do so. It was just a habit-born gesture at that point. Seeing Cassie again was making him realize just how painfully LONELY he was here; and how upset he was at his current impotence.

The girl meanwhile had seated herself in front of the bot, turning her fazwrench over and sliding the mask back on. She started messing with the bot; as if trying to find the answers to its current conundrum just by via a once-over. She let out a frustrated huff upon not finding any clues as to what to do for the bot.

"Oh man... I just don't know! Why are you screaming? Can't you tell me?" She faced it forward again and tilted her head, "Should I turn you off?"

Honestly, that'd be a blessing, he wondered intrusively. But you shouldn't be here! You'll get HURT!

He expression grew leaden as he watched the girl hold up the wrench again. She placed it against the bot experimentally; and seemed to find something she's been searching for.

"I'm sorry," She mumbled at the bot. "I'm sorry ahead of time. I just don't think being awake in this place is any good for you, is it? Maybe... maybe you DO want me to turn you off?"

Bonnie sighed heavily, wondering what in the world he can do to signal her right now-

And then it clicked.

Blinking furiously at an oncoming idea, he pressed his talon to the screen- commanding the bot to inch forward. Cassie jerked when it did.

"Oh- okay! Okay then... Please forgive me, then. Um- how do you- Ah!"

Bonnie watched as she placed the fazwrench against the bot; and a sequence showed up on its belly. This sequence allowed a manual override in times of maintenance, so she was able access its settings and turn it off.

Bonnie felt another piece of mind blink out, making him jolt at the weirdness of it. Every day that goes by and a mop bot shuts off, he could feel himself slipping away. It wasn't completely unpleasant; but he knew it will eventually rob him of his sentience completely. He would be a husk of his former self too, if enough of these things shut down.

But Cassie was HERE now. Maybe, he can find a way out. He just needed to get the right bot to do the right thing-

And protect her from the 'other mind' and M.X.E.S, He concluded with absolute resolve.

He still had enough of his senses to perceive and extrapolate Cassie's path too; waiting eagerly each time she coasted in front of each mop bot. He will show her the places where she can hide here; and a way forward to his final resting place. She will see where his body lay-

And hopefully, JUST maybe, he can get fixed and help her out of here.

---

Present Day-

---

GLAMROCK FREDDY

He couldn't be happier bear.

Things were turning out so well! Freddy had not only come back to save Gregory's friend (as well as his own! Cassie was a long-time familiar for them all), but he got his body back. And not only that, but he now had Chica walking beside him! And his best friend was being repaired as he and Chica went to fetch Monty- Oh, he couldn't be bouncing more!

As he and Chica went down the tunnel from the raceway's entrance, he'd pause to face her; extending a hand to grab hers and help her over some obstacles or holding her hand just for the sake of it. The sensation of control over his life was a marvelous and cathartic feeling; and Freddy not only having some mobility to himself already afforded an improvement in mood alone- let alone this. He had Chica beside him again, even though he once thought he's lost her forever. He was dizzy with relief and giddy with the rush of freedom he had.

He was humming- almost singing.

At length, he started singing really low; as he recalled he had a copy of Chica's glitchy voice box and didn't want to stun her. It started as a low hum at first, then built into a chipper, melodic murmur that he realized was completely his own. Chica listened, unable to join in all the way thanks to her voice box too, but she hummed and chirped when she could (she sounded so adorable, in his opinion). Being able to try to sync up with Freddy afforded her a lightening in mood as well. Soon, she was providing music to his lyrics and they were laughing about it and attempting to sing together even though it bugged them out.

The joys of making a song just for the fun of it... He never dreamed he could have it, no matter how mundane or simple it was. And here he was, doing it with her right now! He resolved to get their voices boxes tuned and adjusted so they can sing together at some point- that was a new dream to embark on!

Bonnie once told him that he wanted to write their own music. And now, with the PizzaPlex closed and Freddy and his friends well on their way to freedom, he couldn't help but be ridiculously happy by this portent. He can sing whatever he wanted! And he can do so with his FRIENDS. All of them! What other person in the whole wide world can say they had the luxury?

No one. He knew this, and it helped him come to grips with himself. He truly was a lucky bear- and not just a lucky bear, but he was a lucky FREDDY. What other Freddys out there in other PizzaPlex's can say they are enjoying the same comforts he was experiencing now?

To that end, he felt none. Yes, Freddy was still saddened by the fact that they were still in a very trying situation, but together... they can do anything. He was so confident in that and it was empowering in ways he's never envisioned. He was soaring on high.

He flexed his arms; the sensation of even having them back such a fascinating concept. He could feel the tension build in the coils and wires as a signal bounced through his limbs; letting him know things were running mostly as they should. His claws stayed wrapped tenderly around Chica's hand, his thumb rubbing at her knuckles here and there. He couldn't feel the touch without any chassis there, but he knew it was there regardless. He decided that once they returned to Parts & Service, he'll nab himself some new chassis pieces so he can have touch again. The sensors were attached to the insides of the metal, after all.

Until then, he'll make due with Monty's naked claws and wait until Roxanne had a new set of limbs for herself. He wanted his fuzzy-wuzzy paws back, if he had to be honest. He wanted to touch, cradle, hold and embrace. His paws were a fascinating feature unique to him; a teddy bear's paws. He was able to pat and wipe away tears with those paws. To hug and gently caress and carry. He missed having them. He couldn't wait to fix his friends' hands and get his own back soon.

He turned towards Chica, smiling at the hen constantly and pulling her along. She burbled at him sweetly and smiled enough so that her eyes half-closed from it. She made such lovely noises- interesting and fascinating in all the right ways. Like a broody but happy hen sitting on a bunch of expecting eggs. She thrilled at him sometimes; and he always adored the throaty resonance of it.

Vanessa showed Freddy what the actual animals looked and sounded like in the time he spent living with her and Gregory. Chickens were, indeed, huge eaters! Chica happened to emulate a lot of their sounds too. He'd been learning what they were and tried to understand them. Apparently, chickens literally spent a lot of their day grazing and pecking at anything that moved. So that was normal. Chica floundering around for food at night in the garbage and being the mascot for it aligned.

How hilarious, Freddy said to himself. It only made him chortle at her antics and hug her all the more for it. He's never been annoyed by her grousing; and he'd be one of the only ones who felt that way. Sure, he's always felt saddened if her digging around for garbage inadvertently hurt her, but he never faulted her for it.

As for the other creatures, Freddy was alarmed to find out that actual bears were... Well, not very nice. He was glad he was special, then. If he'd been programmed to behave like a real boar grizzly, he would've been the reason the PizzaPlex closed a LONG time ago- not Vanny. Grizzlies were extinct now, but they were the biggest and meanest omnivores on all four legs; besides polar bears. Imagine his surprise when he saw videos on these creatures with Gregory, sitting up late to watch these documentaries with the boy because of genuine curiosity.

And watching them fight.

That was... something.

He felt his grip on Chica tighten when he recalled the strangely interesting and almost coordinated way they wrestle. Like nature's pro wrestlers- using pins, locks, and weight throwing. He hoped it'd never have to come to it while he's here- but worse case, what if Freddy had to use something similar against their enemies? At least he was glad for his own size and strength in that facet- as it'd only prove a boon while they're trapped in here.

He liked the wolves and their pretty songs. They sang all the time! It was beautiful, and he couldn't wait to see the look on Roxy's face when she saw what an actual wolf was and how their voices really meshed as a family. Wolves singing as a unit and warring alongside each other- helping to raise children as one. The pictures seemed romanticized, but they were magnificent. An intrusive part of Freddy hoped that, once they left here, they can maybe be like that. Living at Vanessa's house like one big pack. It may be a pipe-dream, but its another he aspired to have.

To be a family again. To be a family of their own choosing, of their own creation.

That is worth fighting for.

On the subject of gators- He had to admit, he didn't expect to see a bunch of baby gators in a mom's mouth and her defending her babies like that. So cute and strange! He hadn't known gators were also so... lazy. And while strong and huge, they apparently don't jump like Monty does. Funny world.

As for rabbits, Freddy was intrigued to notice that there was so many types. There was also hares and rabbits, and the different ways they behave and live. And their coat colors! SO MANY. He tried picturing Bonnie with stony, gray-blue fur instead of the sharp neons and mauve touched tints he had. Or, Bonnie with the rabbit's typical browns and rusts. Or maybe even white or patchy or pie-bald.

So normal rabbits weren't purple or blue... huh.

Freddy wondered if, after they leave, they can maybe change their shells out for furs? Fake ones, of course. Furs and skin like the old animatronics had. Picturing himself in something less flamboyant was interesting- and Chica with real feathers? She could pretty herself up all the time! And Roxy with god-knows how many palettes she can chose from for her new look! She'd be over the MOON if she realized she had so many creative outlets in which to doll herself up.

As for Bonnie... the ever fruity one, would probably pick colors just to make them clash on himself and make himself look so silly just to get a laugh out of the kids. He could take white fur, dye it patchy green, and then stick on a brown or awful color and parade around boasting how amazing he still looked. He'd easily be the most offensive thing ever concocted and the thought prompted more giddiness from Freddy.

He could dream!

And he was allowed to dream, and to make it come true. They just needed to leave first.

Meanwhile, back in the present, he helped Chica down and surprised her with another impromptu hug as he did. He put her down gently, then guided her forward. Cassie pinged them that they were going the right way, which heartened him further.

"But be careful," She said. "You need to turn off the power conduit in order to get Monty out of there. If you try sticking your hand in that water as it is..."

"I know! We shall be especially careful," Freddy returned confidently. "Do not worry, dear Cassie! I assure you we'll be alright."

"Okay. And Freddy? I'm sorry about Monty..."

"I do not blame you at all. Monty wasn't himself after a point," Freddy conceded. "No one is to blame for the turn in his personality, beyond Vanny. And I think at length, Monty himself might have been messing with his own programming... like Bonnie did."

"You think so?" That was Gregory's voice that time.

"Correct! Monty and Bonnie were spending time together. I figured Bonnie was showing Monty how to resist Vanny's control at some point after being hacked once. Monty's personality warped with time... and now that I dawn back on it, I couldn't be more positive."

Chica gakeled next to him lowly, blinking thoughtfully. "He wasn't so... belligerent at first. But then he turned into a... s'cuse me for saying it, but a bit of a jerk after a while. Like, an annoying, over-arrogant, aggressive one." She softened her expression, "I'm not trying to insult him... but his personality kinda went down the drain once Bonnie was gone. I think Bonnie was why he was even able to keep it together."

"Well... with Bonnie coming back shortly, Monty will be okay. Just a bit behind in terms of dates," Cassie mumbled.

"I can't believe Bonnie had copies of our personalities..." Chica mumbled, her expression distant but no less rueful. "He never said anything. He's so... so... Oh! As soon as you wake him up, give him a slap for me!"

There was a laugh on the childrens' end. "I think Roxy will do that for you. She's been grumbling for the last few minutes about how annoying and hopeless Bonnie is," Cassie went on. "And she's not even using his real name... instead, she's using swears, nicknames and insults in its place. Seems to prefer 'carrot-breath, 'carrot-face', 'fruit cake', 'Easter mascot reject', 'pain-in-the-you-know-what', 'butt-hole', 'big foot', 'titanic toes', 'blue boy'... just to name a few. I think that says a lot."

Freddy smiled at the empty air, chortling at the image that casted of Roxy insulting Bonnie to his face. Like old times, he wondered. "Well, that sounds normal! And its a good sign that she's feeling better." He squeezed Chica's hand again, albeit gently. "On that note, we'll be seeing you shortly! I think I see the hole leading to the area- I'll let you know once we find Monty!"

"Please be safe," Cassie beseeched of them.

Having entered a normal tunnel, the pair paused and looked at the wall. Sure enough, some sort of force had caved it in. It's a fairly large aperture; with Freddy easily climbing into it and pulling Chica up. They took the same route Cassie had taken more than half a day ago; backtracking to the water-logged tunnels.

"I'm nervous," Chica bluntly threw at him. "I can't imagine how bad he looks... And I can't imagine how bad I was."

Freddy's smile died there, but he said nothing in relation to Chica's condition. He couldn't. There was no way in hell he'd tell her her old body was still in Parts & Service; in a sealed-off room acting as its tomb. He couldn't imagine the look on her face if she saw just how terrible she'd been.

Monty worried him too. According to Cassie, he had no shell left and wasn't discernable from a regular endo, beyond having a set of gator jaws and a wacky hair-do. The frame and rigging from Monty's old body will provide support for the new one; but the personality from beyond the point Bonnie had saved him from will be gone forever. The Monty Freddy knew was utterly lost- or dead, if one had to be more literal.

But, from the sounds of Chica's words, it wouldn't be missed too much. Monty wasn't exactly agreeable after a point; proving to be rather hostile on some occasions. Too often, Monty's room was thrashed and the noises that came from it said enough of the gator's frustrations. He was unstable and dangerous after a point- likely tampered with to a violent extent by Vanny. Frankly, while Freddy still wanted Monty back, he did not want an unstable Monty around the kids.

No. Maybe having his personality set back like this wasn't the worst thing ever- as terrible as Freddy felt saying that. At least he'd be friendly again. Mostly.

Freddy squeezed her hand again, then let go. He had no idea how much pressure he'd been applying- and it's hard to estimate when he had no chassis or wires for rudimentary nerve sensors in his paws anymore. His body, when it was feral, had worn all the wires out of it by ripping everything around it apart. Once Monty and Bonnie were done, Freddy knew he'd have to have some kind of decent repair done on himself. Vanessa was tech savvy thankfully, so she can maintenance them outside the PizzaPlex too... but it'd take money she didn't have and resources she had no access to.

Hm. He hadn't thought about it, but... how the heck can they stay functional outside the PizzaPlex? The cylinder and armature has been doing the majority of the work and shortened repair times. But now, without it, Freddy knew they'd be thrown back considerably should they be damaged outside of here.

"Oh biscuits," he muttered.

"What?"

He passed Chica a concerned look, "Once we leave this place, we'll have to find a way to help Vanessa out good and proper. She'll be the only thing really keeping us maintained. Sure, we can maintain each other with the right know-how... but getting the parts for it? Vanessa would have to do that with her own money and... goodness, we may need to take parts with us before leaving this place behind completely! I don't even know if we'll even have the time for it..."

Chica frowned, then gripped him anew, "Maybe Eclipse, being as fast as he is, can shuttle bits and bobs from Parts & Services to Vanessa's car? How big is it, exactly?"

"She took a Freddy and Friends party bus from the loading docks when we left here months ago. Like the one in the cartoon? She hadn't been able to get a new car for herself beyond that. We may be too much for her..." Freddy frowned. "We're expensive to repair and find pieces for. The money we made performing went into getting replacement parts in case of accidents. I guess we had our own kind of paycheck at that point... But still, we'll have to help Vanessa out considerably and step it up. Otherwise, I fear we will be rendered nonfunctional again before super long, even living outside of here."

Chica nodded grimly, a finger going to her beak, "Would Vanessa really take us into her home? I'm kinda... I'm skeptical, I won't lie." Her expression furrowed heavily, "It seems to good to be true- and I know if I'm having a hard time believing this, you know BONNIE will."

"She took me in, and lovingly," Freddy coaxed. He grabbed Chica's hands, holding both in his own, "She worked on me every day- er, on my head. She found a bunch of ways to help me out. She was starting a pet project on giving me mobility again, but I'm glad to say she will not have to keep doing that since we have my body back. But now... she'll now have to deal with having so many of us! And she has Gregory to raise on the side! I don't know about Cassie... And I dunno if we can all fit in the car..."

"The party bus is big enough, was it not?"

"Er... it IS, but it'd be very crowded. And it has a weight limit... all of us together may be too much. Oh... We may have to see if there's another vehicle here then... there is so much to do!" He face-palmed; the talons clanking noticeably as it hit his face, "This will be one heck of an undertaking. Once we find Monty, we may need to set out with Roxy and get another vehicle going. This isn't even including the fact we still have to face the Mimic and the other thing to worry about! Biscuits!"

Chica freed one of her hands and removed the one from his face. She smiled into it, "We're a buncha geniuses! We'll get it done. And now that we have no blocks on our personalities and no rules to abide by... we can adapt and download manuals into our storage and help Vanessa fix things. We can learn, and we can do it freely! Bonnie did it, and its saving our lives, even now." She started to pull him along again, "I wanna smack him, but Bonnie's why I'm here. I know that much."

Freddy didn't say it, but his tightening paw said enough.

Chica continued, "Bonnie proved we need to be brave enough to go forward, and we can. His preparedness is saving us leagues worth of troubles on the side. Yeah, it scrambled and violated privacy and stuff... but I like how bold that is. Again, I can be happy knowing that because I know he did it for us. He did it because he loves us to death- literally to death! Literally drove himself into nonfunctionality for us." She tightened her grip back, her expression doleful. "-Knowing his intentions were good and actually yielded good results, despite the means, I think I can forgive that violation of privacy (and some morality...) and put it behind me. You know?"

"Yes, I suppose you are correct," Freddy said. He bobbed his shoulders uncertainly, "I can see why he did it... if I knew what he'd been doing at the time, I probably would have discouraged it. But we're reaping the benefits of his hard work now, so... I suppose I literally cannot comment." He leaned in and whispered conspiratorially, "But don't tell him I said that!"

"I won't if you won't... it'll go to his head," Chica rolled her eyes.

"Done deal."

The two nodded, then proceeded into flooded shaft.

---

VANESSA

To think, she was using her technological know-how to help the very asshole who nearly fucked her over. Who would've guessed?

But, she couldn't deny the fact that this was a long time coming. Bonnie never deserved what happened to him, and she felt there's so much that lingered between them. They needed to clear the air, and they both needed to be set free of this nightmare. At least with Eclipse here, Vanessa felt she could eventually move on and accept what happened in some part. To finally move her life forward as a normal person should. She just hoped Bonnie would be just as accepting-

Although a nasty part of her highly doubted it.

As it were, Bonnie literally took no time at all once the armature got to work. In minutes, it reconnected and replaced wires easily. It welded his remaining chassis back together in seconds; straightened his limbs, and auto-corrected and tested movement in just a few minutes. Vanessa herself hadn't been needed after a point; letting the machine finish the work while she observed safely from outside the cylinder. She ran the repair module too, making sure it's using the correct sequencing to right Bonnie's muddled brain. His chip and new reader were installed, and he had new eyes- thanks to the spares Monty had. The dent in his cranial face plate was bumped out too, so that his left optic can sit straight in its socket.

Vanessa had to go back in and try running one last diagnostic on his limbs; and open his stomach hatch so she can finish installing the last touches and drive upgrades. Roxy had helped her with the new motor assembly and installation- which took the longest to do. Vanessa had to check it and make sure it wasn't running too hot under preliminary tests as well. It's like running a car, strangely; taking the wheels off and letting it run for a little while just to see if it ran into any issues. From what she's seen so far, the rabbit's new heart was not only better than ever, but running with peak efficiency even though Vanessa implemented new programs and let him keep his upgrades. He was barely heating even though he was running stresses that had him puffing hot air prior to his decommissioning.

In hindsight- now that he was finished (save for the last few touches), the woman couldn't be more anxious being in here with him. He was stronger than ever and no doubt smarter. He will not run into the same problems he had before- and not as easily. Being within ANY measure of distance of him was making her heart forget what a normal rhythm felt like.

She forced her breath to level out as she bent over him; her hands inside his chest cavity and feeding the last bit of coolant into his newly replaced tank (and yes, you can bet she was especially twitchy here). After checking his core temperature and seeing if there's any holes in the new wires pumping the rusty colored coolant (it looked like blood... why the heck did have to be THIS specific color?), she was satisfied to see that Bonnie was done. He can now run programs without heating too fast or alarmingly so. And because of this, she knew he can commandeer the M.X.E.S program and make it his own. In digital warfare now, Bonnie was king.

That was way too much power for any one bot to have, but they had no choice. They needed all the advantages they can get right now. Each bot had to tuned in specific ways. Vanessa already resolved that once Freddy returns, it'll be him next -beyond Monty- who gets a check-up. He needed his limbs recalibrated so he had the strength available to get them out of a pinch.

Back to the matter of digital warfare, her personal labtop couldn't do it anymore- and she wasn't keen on revisiting the pizzeria ruin beneath them so to switch M.X.E.S back online. Going to the underground involved finding an alternate tunnel in- seeing as all elevator access had been cut completely. No one can get back underground again; beyond whatever enigmatic route the Mimic had taken to leave it. Most likely a tunnel system the creature made allowed it to escape.

She inhaled, then shut his stomach hatch. He was finally done.

"Okay guys," She called outside the cylinder. "Guess he's ready... goody for me."

She walked out, getting chills down her spine and hugging herself in worry. Gregory blinked at her in confusion, getting up from his spot on the floor and meeting her half-way. "You alright, Vanessa?" he queried gently in that weird, counter-tenor rasp of his.

So she said in one breath, "Kid, we're about to wake up a humongous, 8-foot, now 450 pound rage-filled roid-rabbit from hell from a terribly long dirt nap whose also been locked in solitary confinement for a LONG time with no human contact or means of keeping his sanity in check. That's also not taking into consideration the fact he now also has the computing power of this entire PizzaPlex under his freshly sharpened, steel-tipped claws and he'll irrefutably be out for MY blood the instant he gets up and realizes he's also been improved with fancy new upgrades and duds. So yeah, peachy keen!"

She passed him a thumbs up, giggled uncertainly, then moved to the repair module, "...I'm going to ask you all to kindly let me get a five-minute head start in running away before we press this button here. No wait, scratch that: Ten minutes. Give me TEN minutes to run for my life."

Roxy nearby snorted, prompting Vanessa to toss her a hard glance. The woman added on to that, "Oh, go ahead and laugh for now, but nothing about this is funny: Cuz guess what, sis: He will not listen to reason if he locks eyes with me- especially after the way we parted ways. His Security mode is just... fucked to hell and back because of what he's been doing with it during his reprogramming. He will go barreling through us like a hot knife through butter just trying to get to me. Been trying to correct it but he's rearranged his programming so much that I'd have to sit here for WEEKS trying to correct what he did manually."

Cassie blinked and folded her arms next, "Can I ask something?"

"Yeah, kiddo?"

"I know we established Vanny was a different person but... did you ever do something to Bonnie personally? Surely he'll understand that you're innocent in time-"

"That's just it..." Vanessa hung her head and sighed there. "Vanny may have been the one to bury him, but I was the one who put the nail in the coffin. I imposed those digital blocks on him and sealed his security access after I stopped being Vanny. He knew who I was, and he was STILL trying to be a problem even AFTER being decommissioned. Can you believe that?"

She threw up her arms. "Vanny kills him- legit pretty much kills him, and he STILL persists in being a pain in the ass, even from beyond the grave! Remember those wet floor bots and their malfunction? He was trying to use them to get help! To say we don't get along is putting it mildly. And frankly, I dunno if he'll see the difference between Vanny and Vanessa. If he does know the difference, he may just straight ignore it. His priorities when it comes to tangible threats is the most bonkers thing ever. Granted, blame some of that on his Security mode. That's always been bugged..."

"Still doesn't sound like him..." She muttered contemplatively.

"No, but kid, he was pushed so hard and he was constantly stressed," Vanessa informed them with a sympathetic note. "It wasn't just me who was hurting him... but one of the staff, his manager Mr. Cromwell, was threatening to shut him down. Bonnie was bullied around badly; he just pretended to not let it bother him. He acted normal around his friends as best he could- and he wouldn't ever talk about his problems. I legit feel bad for the guy... And if I didn't feel bad, I wouldn't be here right now doing this-"

She shook her head, throwing a hand at his direction, "I know he's a good person in his own right, but... it doesn't change the fact that the way he changed himself in the end was... well, it ain't good. His willingness to cause bodily harm is the BIGGEST factor here. He's still a nice guy towards kids and his friends... Just not to me and who he perceives as a threat. God forbid the wrong person pisses him off outside of that!"

Cassie passed everyone else a significant glance. Roxy nearby, who'd been leaning on the wall with her arms folded flicked her new ear (it was an easy fix). Eclipse was still spinning in his stolen office chair, rapping his fingers on the floor boredly but no doubt listening with interest. Gregory picked up the labtop from the floor and put it on the repair module, leaning against Vanessa next.

"I won't let him hurt you," he dead-panned. "You have my promise on that."

Vanessa breathed, her arm wrapped around his shoulders and giving a little shake. She smiled as she recalled what he's already done for her to free her from Vanny. "I know, kiddo. I know. You've been nothing but my little hero for a while now."

"Maybe he should stay in the cylinder for the moment... keep it closed," Eclipse offered nearby. "If you ran away, you'd probably appear more like a criminal to him. Maybe if he sees you around the boy and us it could paint a better picture-? Although I also suppose its still risky being around him, period."

Vanessa shook her head dubiously at that, "You kidding? That'd piss him off MORE!" Her hand rested on Gregory's shoulder, thumb rubbing it in circles as she passed both the attendant and the comatose rabbit a glance. She returned her attention to the module next, moving the mouse around and sighing, "Diagnostics on his reader is complete. He's not only fully integrated into his chip and body now, but any copy of his personality in the main server is now removed. Don't need to be opening that can of worms again."

Roxy had been giving Vanessa the stink eye, but now it was on Bonnie with interest. She produced an uncertain sound and asked, "So.. what, are we gonna do it now?"

Vanessa considered, then turned to the labtop. "Freddy? You hear me?"

"I do! You alright?"

"We're done with him... I think we can wake him up now."

"Is Eclipse and Roxy in there with you still?"

"Yeah, but if you're asking if any of them can stop Bonnie if he sees me, then no. Roxy WON'T and I doubt Eclipse could for long... Bonnie has Monty's strength augmentation in him. I stupidly left those in. In fact, I pretty much beefed his ass up thinking it could help us get out of here..." she chuckled ironically, "Hahaha... I may be in danger."

"I wouldn't let him get up just yet, then... not until Chica and I get there. I can hold him back, if he charges. Wait 'til we get there. We have Monty, by the way."

"That went okay?"

"Yes, although... I wasn't wholly prepared for what I was going to find. There really isn't anything left on him that IS useable... save for the frame of his face and the teeth. His motor is more than burnt out and his upgrades are all fried. At the very least, we can put him to rest and take what we can for a new endo."

Vanessa passed everyone else a look, then said, "Freddy... are you sure you want to do this for Monty? I understand if you say no. Keep in mind, his personality would be set all the way back to before Bonnie was decommissioned... and that's quite a ways back. We have less to work with him than we did with Chica-"

"What does THAT mean?" Chica was heard saying on the other end.

Vanessa winced as Freddy was heard waving her off. The hen huffed with an audible pout in her tone.

"Nevermind that for now, dear Chica. At any rate, she and I have been talking about it, and we're aware of that fact that... Monty is... well. You know. We decided we are ready to say goodbye to him if we really can't do anything for him. If Roxy and Bonnie do not want Monty to come back as well -to let him rest- then we will concede to that decision and respect it. But as it is... Bonnie saved Monty's personality for a reason. He believed that we can save him- and it worked for Chica. So I will defer to the idea that he'd want to see Monty back as well!"

"Yeah... I guess. Roxy? How do you feel about this?" Vanessa tossed.

The wolf snarled, but only bobbed her shoulders in answer. She just didn't have anything to say, it seemed.

"I'm gonna say Roxy's a-go on the decision. Guess we're doing this," she reported to the ursine.

"Noted. Once we return with Monty's frame, I will head to the daycare and find a new endo to use. Worse case, I can't get over there and we have to grab his legs from Monty golf instead and still repurpose the main body... either way, the motor will have to be entirely replaced regardless."

Vanessa rapped her fingers on the computer, shrugging at Gregory all the while. He shrugged back. She passed a look at Cassie, got a nod, and then, "Alrighty papa bear. See you in a few minutes. Bonnie will be up and ready once you get hereeee-? What're ya'll lookin' at?"

She blinked; noticing Roxy's ear twitching towards the cylinder. In fact, the wolf was now arrested on it completely, her jaws slowly parting in blunt shock. Vanessa noticed the kids very much doing the same, Eclipse stopping his drumming and sitting up in his chair. It's like they were moving in slow motion- stuck in pain-staken relief against the shock on their faces.

The woman felt her gut sink, then turned around-

-And found the rabbit already standing up.

He was pressed against the glass completely- eyeing her like he wanted to eat her alive. His breath misted the glass; fogging his outline but letting his crazed, red-lit laser eyes stand in horrid, jagged relief against the opaque glass and gentle blue of his usually placid visage.

And the fucker's grin couldn't be more Cheshire in its madness.

---

...

It happened to fast, nobody had time to react:

Bonnie had ripped the spiked bracelets off his wrists; wrapped his fingers into them like a pair of make-shift brass knuckles, and punched the glass of the cylinder with such force, it CRACKED right at the get-go.

While it had been made to stop any animatronic under maintenance, it couldn't stop a determined, maddened, strength-augmented A.I with no inhibitors on its upper body and on a bloody warpath. He WAILED on the glass with such ferocity that it jointly scared everyone in the room- the sounds akin to gun shots each and every time. The spiked, metal bracelets helped to drive weakness into the stormproof glass. He kept punching; each blow so powerful it can be felt even from a ways away.

Eclipse jumped up and stood between Vanessa and the cylinder, yelling over his shoulder, "RUN! RUN ALREADY! SCREW WHAT I SAID A MOMENT AGO AND JUST RUN!"

Vanessa whimpered as her beryl gaze took in the violent storm that was Bonnie's spiked fists on glass; snapping out of it only when Eclipse spoke. She rapidly nodded her head, then she fled. She didn't look back either; knowing that glass maybe had half a minute before it gave.

She could've removed Monty's strength upgrade; but in all fairness, Bonnie would've likely kicked the cylinder open to compensate for the lack of strength his upper body would've been deprived of. He had so much strength in his legs that he once actually threw out his back -literally, THREW IT OUT- just trying to make a jump earlier on in PizzaPlex history when he'd been a younger A.I figuring out his limits. He's always been incredibly strong- so much so, he can accidentally tear himself apart if he did the wrong thing. All of them were capable of this, actually.

As if her mind was being treacherously laid open, Bonnie threw a round-house kick at the weakened glass; using his all-powerful feet to do what his upper body couldn't. He roared as the shards (as well as the entire panel) went everywhere in the room. Everyone screamed as the glass panel hit the floor heavily; Gregory pulling Cassie behind the repair module to avoid the glass as well as inadvertently hiding the kids from view. The lights in the repair ward began flickering red thereafter as a breach in the cylinder was detected.

"Red Alert! Red Alert! Containment breach detected: All staff report to the nearest safe room," cried out the hand unit's voice.

Bonnie was through the open port so quick, even though his huge shoulders got caught once on the metal frame holding the cylinder's door shut. He snarled and snapped his jaws wildly; teeth clicking together with audible screeches as he finished heaving himself free of the frame. He was already throwing his talons around too; groping half-blindly in his rage for purchase as he clambered free.

Eclipse made the terrible mistake of jumping in front him with the intent to stop him-

But Bonnie didn't give him the chance to make another move. No, he charged STRAIGHT into Eclipse, grabbed him, and deliberately THREW him into Roxanne just to keep the both of them from seizing him! And then, he was out the door bolting after Vanessa in a literal heartbeat.

"VANESSA!" Gregory hollered, booking it after her.

Eclipse detangled from Roxy nearby, spitting in static and groaning. Roxy shook as she got up too, baring her teeth as she charged out to follow the boy. Eclipse meanwhile rushed to Cassie's side and stroked her head.

"You okay-?"

He barely had enough time to ask before Freddy screamed from beyond the labtop, "WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON? IS HE AWAKE?"

Cassie turned to it and screamed back, "HE'S GOING AFTER HER! HE GOT HIMSELF UP!"

"FLAMING HELLFIRE I FORGOT HE CAN DO THAT!"

Freddy swearing was one thing- but it goes to show just how bad this was. Cassie turned from the labtop, calling after Bonnie- but the mad bunny was deaf to all pleas.

How did he get up so fast? HOW and when did he do that? The machine should've kept him asleep, The girl wondered.

Cassie assumed that Bonnie was employing those timer settings he had already; recalling Helpi's words about Bonnie attempting to get himself up earlier on when he'd been decommissioned. Now that he was unshackled and his personality returned to his body, hacking past the settings that kept the bots in rest mode during maintenance had been a breeze for him. It didn't help that his new computation power had a hand in it too. Literally, they didn't consider that and now it's blowing up in their faces.

Vanessa meanwhile surged into a utility tunnel; moving with more speed than she ever recalled having in her entire life. Bonnie was throwing himself madly around behind her; his own weight and the sheer force of his momentum (as well as his large feet) kept tripping him up on sharp corners. She couldn't out-race him, but she can out-maneuver him. In a straight hallway though, he'll undoubtably catch up.

She thought fast- looking for vents to slip into-

And heard the mad buck miss her hair by centimeters right behind her; the air from the whoosh of his red paint-tipped claws giving her an idea of just how close he was. She also heard his jaws snap shut; steel screaming and wailing as he continued sticking to her shadow.

Vanessa recalled her taser, but using that on him would only make him MORE mad! Granted, how much madder can he get? He's literally trying to maim her right now!

She didn't have time to reach for it, sadly; having hesitated too long: The woman felt the air rush out of her in a great gale when Bonnie seized her middle with a vicious swipe and threw her into a wall. Stars colored her vision; the former guard slipping down the wall's surface as the rabbit loomed over her-

She heard jaws snap and crazed growling in the next second- someone had seized him.

"RUN, DAMMIT!"

Roxy's voice, and something like a God-sent deliverance.

Vanessa whimpered and slapped a hand to her waist; definitely bruised already. And if that moisture was anything to go by, he had lodged a claw or two in her for a second there. At least it wasn't worse.

She opened her eyes; only to see that Roxy had latched onto Bonnie's back and was pulling his arms up with enough force to jerk him backwards. Although he was considerably larger and stronger than she was, Roxy was giving him a run for his money. Albeit, it won't work for long. Roxy even bit into his high-collar so she can stay gripping him; her legs tangling with his own to throw him off balance. Bonnie all the while was trying to reach over his shoulders and grab her; like Eclipse had done with Freddy's body. Thankfully, Bonnie's high collar was not only limiting his vertical ability, but his flexibility. He snapped wildly; ears flapping and slapping her face every time he jerked his head too fast.

He then threw himself BACKWARDS-

And right into a wall.

He KEPT doing it too; smashing poor Roxy between the wall and himself. He stunned her briefly into weakening her grip- but she didn't relent. He slammed her again and again and again; cracking the wall while using his paws to try and tear her legs off by force. She kept her legs locked though; so he crushed her against the wall one last time; finally forming a perfect indentation in STRAIGHT concrete.

The blistering, raw vitriol on his face was enough to chill Vanessa straight down to her core anew; so she bolted before Roxy was further weakened.

She was already gone by the time Roxy finally released him; moaning and slipping free from his back. Her head lolled on her shoulders as she slid to the floor; unconscious for the time being.

Bonnie paused once to look back at her. He was sane enough to know he'd hurt her plenty now and there'd even been a flicker of repentance on his torn visage; not that anyone saw it. He even hesitated to pursue Vanessa for that second, jerking upon his footing as if torn between helping the wolf and chasing the very thing that's hurt him in the first place. However, he wasn't about to let his long-time prey dip like nachos and cheese it-

Not after he JUST got out of that digital jail cell.

Mentally resolving to fix her up later, he bellowed his wrath as he devoured another corner; back on the hunt.

Vanessa meanwhile was appreciative of the save, having not expected Roxy to run interference at all. But the problem remained however: How the HELL were they going to calm him down long enough to tell him just how bad this place was? They needed him in order to leave, and yet he was so pissed off he hadn't seen the way he scared those kids! In fact, he might not have even SEEN them.

Normal Bonnie wouldn't have ever kicked out the glass like that if he knew it would've hurt them. Also, normal Bonnie WOULD'VE NOTICED they were in there with him. At least that glass in there wasn't like normal glass; and it didn't have the exact same shattering effect as weaker windows. The few errant shards aside, all it did was stay in one whole piece as it fell from the cylinder. No real harm done. But even then, the panel was heavy and could've fallen on someone. Bonnie's lack of care was frightening in the facet that he had pretty much become the epitome of unstoppable force-

Now for the immovable object.

Vanessa found a vent and crawled into it; and she didn't need to go far. She just needed to hold here until Freddy got here. In fact, he'll only be half a minute, if her calculations was correct.

In the distance, she heard the sounds of a frenzied animal screaming and railing in savagery untamed; and then a heavy set of titanic steps bolted down the way she'd come. Bonnie sounded like he managed to get Roxy off. And considering the speed of his trajectory, knew exactly where she was.

In which it was confirmed when he finally spoke:

"Ohhh... Summer-Eyes!" He sing-songed in a voice like cyanide, razor-blades and sandpaper. His voice took on a throaty nuance; raw-sounding and teasing as he moved, "Where'd you go off to in such a hurry? I wanted to THANK YOU for oh-so kindly fixing me! Also... I coulda swore we were still PLAYING a game here!"

She heard something crash; broken apart in such a way indicative of his fury and impatience. She ducked her way into the vent further as he stomped over some debris and kicked it aside. His voice rose a few octaves as he thundered, "You're wasting my time here, sweetness. Tick tock tick tock! Alice's favored white rabbit- always late for another rendezvous! What kinda hole did you just jump into now? You afraid the Queen of Hearts is gonna behead ya? Nah nah- you ain't gotta worry 'bout that-" There was an acidic, wicked cackle as he added on lowly, "Not when I plan on doin' it instead."

Something else was shattered; the woman cringing at the noise made and smacking her hands over her mouth. She was shaking so badly now, she wondered if he can hear it.

"-Last I checked," he bantered on in a completely and deceptively composed croon. "-Weren't we playing hide and seek instead? Or was that chase-? Nope, it was chase. I remember now. Silly me! Sorry, you'll hafta forgive the rusty memory. Its been soooOOOO LONG!" CRASH! "-Now with that said, you tagged me... and now, I have to tag YOU! So come on out, beloved Summer-Eyes. COME ON OUT AND DANCE WITH ME! I had a very special dance saved up JUST for you! Or keep on hiding at your own peril- not that THAT'S gonna work. Cuz you and I both know I can also smell your blood."

He stopped near her vent, kneeling down next to it to peer into the depths. His ears twitched tellingly; and no doubt, Vanessa knew he could also hear the treacherous throttle of her pulse. His maroon gaze glittered; head cocked and smile wider than it should be for a bot with a stiff facial structure. With the feeble light casting dramatic shadows across the tunnel behind him, it only made his sinister visage all the more darker- and by extension, make his crimson eyes all the more lurid in the gloom.

He smiled. And then he whispered gently at her, "Oh... for shame, sweet thing. Getting yourself in a hole like this. You didn't even make this FUN! Ah well... guess its a lesson to be had here, my dear pretender: For you can't out-dig, out-pace, and out-race a REAL rabbit, like myself." His gaze narrowed, his pupils pinning within his skull as he crooned, "I'm gonna fucking RUIN you like you ruined ME."

Vanessa gasped and kicked backward frantically when he started ripping into the ventilation; trying to claw at her in a thoughtless, animistic way. She made the mistake of eye contact; her green gaze catching his red-pupiled one. Both his natural eye color and the black camera portion making up his irises were red; the laser light behind his optics a fearsome, piercing glow as it shone into the shaft.

He stopped after a minute of fruitless clawing, much to her surprise; pulling back out of the vent entirely with a low-toned growl that sounded so abrasive it's like listening to a metallic earthquake. His retreat was so sudden and alarming that it instantly made her suspicious. She heard a curious sound next; blinking and wondering what the heck he was doing. Then, she heard a heavy CLANG and saw purple hit the floor-

He'd taken OFF his high collar.

He could do that? She thought with dawning horror.

He bent down again, and experimentally shimmied his head in-

And both of them realized he could just fit, now that his arms were unencumbered.

HE COULD FIT?

HE COULD FUCKING FIT!

Vanessa actually screamed this time; slipping just out of reach of his blood-tipped talons. She back-pedaled further into the vent; giving up on waiting on Freddy at this point. She HAD to get out of his reach!

Sadly, the squeeze was tight and it slowed her down. She didn't fit in here too well as she used too; having lived a life of leisurement in the last few months and its given her a few choice pounds to consider. It didn't help that she'd never been able to fit in here as well as her kid can anyways.

She admittedly almost pissed herself when Bonnie grabbed her ankle and wrenched her backwards-

"Gotcha," he purred at her all too sweetly and quietly; his tone even a bit on the intimate side. He was enjoying this WAY too much. His grin was literally the stuff of the reaper's own nightmares.

She whipped around to try and free her ankle-

-Just as she and the buck were BOTH pulled from the vent entirely.

Vanessa and Bonnie jointly "Oof'ed!" when he'd been forcibly yanked out; the woman lying on her back and covered in dust as she looked up to see what could've pulled Bonnie and herself free of her hiding spot-

Freddy.

She couldn't be more tearfully glad and breathlessly dizzy with relief to see him. The bear had gotten a hold of Bonnie's own ankle too; having simultaneously yanked him and the woman out of the vent and standing over his best friend with his terrible, realistic teeth bared. Bonnie turned his head and snapped his jaws warningly- but hadn't let go of Vanessa. He paused however when he saw Freddy boring over him, his expression melting away in favor of clear hesitation and fear.

He CLEARLY did not want to engage with Freddy, out of all bots.

"Let. Her. Go," The ursine growled warningly, pronunciating every syllable in a painfully slow drawl.

Bonnie narrowed his maroon eyes, briefly evaluating his odds-

And rebelliously did the opposite:

He SQUEEZED on her ankle with the intention to crush it.

In hindsight, he was trying to disable Vanessa's ability to escape him again; since he knew he was about to be in for a fight with the bear and he'd have to go hands-free in order to do so. He could get back to Vanessa later AFTER he got free of Freddy. Still, nobody here had expected he'd do something like that despite his prior reservations of pissing off the orange ursine.

Vanessa yowled when his grip on her ankle tightened; reaching over and taking her taser from her waist. She jammed its prongs into his still-spike laced paw; but didn't turn on the current. She just needed him to let go- not electrocute him. She JUST fixed him, after all. She didn't need to fry his systems when they needed Bonnie.

She got lucky when he relented for a split second; the rabbit grunting in annoyance when his paw forcibly relinquished her. She then shimmied her way back into the vent to watch, having to drag her useless leg inward. Bonnie hadn't finished crushing it- but it was no less stressed.

When Bonnie squeezed her, all it did was make Freddy instantaneously mad. He even looked like he was going to roar, but he didn't do so: Bonnie's ears will definitely break at this proximity, should he use Chica's voice box. Instead, the bear SAT on the rabbit's back itself; his arm going around Bonnie's throat and pulling back in a choke hold that no doubt bent his vertebra to its limit. It was a professional wrestler's move meant to make him submit- a way the bear can end the fight immediately-

Not that it worked. Bonnie bucked and rolled with all the strength he can muster in his ridiculously powered legs; Freddy effectively thrown off when his friend swapped dominant positions. The two started tussling in earnest; Bonnie snapping teeth and trying to shove the bear off- with Vanessa noticing he wasn't doing anything more violent than staying on the defensive.

He hasn't completely lost it, she noticed through her haze of pain. He's avoiding hurting Freddy.

Bonnie noticed already the bear wasn't trying to claw his eyes out; nor rip off his arms. No doubt it was slowly dawning on him that maybe the bear wasn't being used by Vanny and was acting of his own volition. On that note, the rabbit's expression shifted into something like worry and blunt confusion; no doubt trying to gauge the mental well-being of his friends amidst the maelstrom-

Right. He probably thinks I'm controlling Freddy, Vanessa realized. He may wind up thinking he's being ACTIVELY betrayed-

Just as she wondered that, Bonnie's expression slanted into pure horror and bitter venom. His teeth gritted again, his gaze a painful quality that actually had Vanessa thinking he may change his mind about holding back-

But he didn't, thankfully. Now he tried to leap away once more-

Just for Freddy to seize his leg again and yank him backwards; dragging him to himself and giving him the same hug he used on Roxy earlier on. With his arms wrapped around him, Bonnie literally couldn't escape! The buck struggled greatly; then smashed the back of his head into Freddy's nose to force him to let go!

Freddy's eyes pinned and he hollered in pain as his nose squeaked cutely. It was a rotten move -considering that his nose was actually his biggest weak point- but it got him to release his caging embrace and the damage wouldn't be anything permanent.

Now Bonnie turned on a dime; his gaze focused on Vanessa yet AGAIN. His expression was even WORSE than before too, paralyzing the woman with the sheer amount of toxicity found within it-

Just for the buck to get JUMPED by another bot.

Chica had leaped into the fray; having been idling nearby for the last half a moment. Vanessa hadn't noticed her; but she recalled the hen had been partnered with Freddy when they went to fetch Monty. Of COURSE Chica was here; she'd been here the entire time. Still, the hen clearly didn't want to fight anymore than the bear or bunny did; having taken a long time to decide on what to do.

Bonnie hadn't seen it coming- nor had he heard her. With his senses so firmly arrested on Vanessa and Freddy (and his thoughts likely lingering on the possibility that his friends were actively betraying him right now), he's completely missed Chica's arrival. He fell to the floor with an "OOMPH!", rolling around with the hen giving him a mortal embrace. She wasn't strong however; and too easily, Bonnie was able to pull her arms off.

"LEGGO CHICA!" He barked at her face, just as he went to try to kick free.

"NUUUUU- NEVER AGAIN! I'M NEVER LETTING YOU GO!" She vehemently swore.

Bonnie was taken off guard by the watery-eyed quality of her expression and words, despite her inability to cry as a human would. He made the mistake of staring into her eyes, actually froze, and giving her a slack-jawed expression like he was seeing something there he hasn't before. He didn't wait around however; as Freddy was recovering nearby and he can hear Roxy and Eclipse coming too (his ears had twitched in their direction). He hesitated, but he indeed got her in the gut with a weak kick. It only shoved her off; not really hurt her. Chica rolled away with an audible grunt-

Just for Freddy to replace her. He seized Bonnie in another talon-to-talon match-up; stopping Bonnie's charge with his own paws. Freddy was just a hair's width stronger than Bonnie too; keeping the buck from getting any nearer to the woman by locking claws. Their claws kept clanking and sparking too; igniting every time Bonnie's wrist bands and talons met Freddy's own borrowed set.

Vanessa can see it now, but Bonnie was losing... though it didn't look it at first. He was losing in his own head; wilting noticeably the longer this went on. His expression lessoned in its intensity then what it was a second ago; gritting his teeth as he pushed against the bear with their talons locked like eagles in free-fall. Spiritually speaking, his fight was getting cleaned right out of him. It showed in his eyes and the trembling nature of his body. His claw-hold had grown shaky as well; getting shoved backward by the bear and unwilling to hit Freddy again as he did earlier.

In fact, something like real sobriety had found him again; the buck blinking rapidly as his gaze slid to Chica and back to the bear. He and Freddy kept their eyes locked for a painful, suspended moment too. Both of them had lost their will to continue; their wrists shaking and broken faces reflecting their unwillingness to press this home.

And then Bonnie hoarsely cracked out, "Wha... what am I even doing? The fuck am I-" He shook his head in denial of his situation, "I'm... I'm hurting you guys... over HER? The hell have I-"

"Then desist... please," Freddy begged of him right after.

Bonnie's large ears lowered; steam pumping around his muzzle in a thin veil. It wasn't thick like Freddy's plume however; who hadn't been maintenanced and his motor was severely neglected. Freddy was already panting somewhat actually; the clouds heavy around his sharp-toothed mug. The strain on him hasn't been missed by the buck entirely.

On that note, Bonnie willingly conceded and let go of Freddy's paws. He fell to his knees, hung his head, and simply stayed that way.

Down the hall, Vanessa heard Roxy and Eclipse approach; the two carrying the kids and stopping short. Gregory was struggling in Eclipse's grasp; trying to get to Vanessa.

Bonnie could've beaten Freddy, in hindsight- he had better power, stamina and efficiency now. He's even stood his ground against Roxy and Monty before and managed that fairly well with a weaker motor-

But the look on his face right now? He looked like if he was to keep fighting like this, he wouldn't even bother lifting his claws again. Even now, he looked positively defeated in every facet.

"I don't understand..." He murmured, at length. His tone was low, vulnerable. "Why're you protecting her?"

"Because I will not have anymore of this senseless blood-letting," Freddy asserted stoutly but calmly; standing back to his full height and staring down at him. "No more. This has ended a long time ago, and it doesn't need to continue when we have children to take care of."

Bonnie growled again, but it had nothing of his prior vigor. "That's what you don't seem to get: She's a THREAT to them!" He desperately tried to argue.

Freddy inhaled and held; a sign of his worn nerves and an attempt to keep himself calm. He argued back, "No! Vanessa isn't a threat to them! YOU are! That stunt you pulled back there-" He pointed in the general direction of where the cylinder room was. Now his voice raised- an unusual and RARE sight in itself. Granted, it wasn't as high as it should be. "You could've gotten glass in their eyes! And that whole panel? ITS HEAVY. That almost landed on the kids!"

"I... there was kids in there?"

"You didn't notice?" Freddy blinked.

The buck shook his head, only to slowly pan his eyes over to said kids when he heard Gregory wriggle against Eclipse again. He flapped his jaw in realization of this. Now he felt ashamed; good and proper. WORSE- he glimpsed Cassie beside Roxy, and Vanessa can see the moment where Bonnie thought he could die of shame alone. His expression flickered, and he immediately severed his gaze from her like he wasn't good enough to even look at her.

Gregory caterwauled and kicked meanwhile; then he THREW himself off of Eclipse and bolted towards Vanessa. He slid over and shakily looked her over, his eyes watery and limbs rattling. To his credit, the kid didn't cry, nor did he look like he will. He threw his arms around Vanessa's shoulders; burying his face into one of them. After that, he glared at the rabbit- his expression absolutely venomous.

"You're not touching her again," He spat.

Bonnie blinked slowly; eyeing the boy in blunt confusion. Now he was swapping glances between Vanessa and Gregory- no doubt puzzled about what he was seeing here. Last time Vanessa checked, Bonnie has likely only seen them argue and quibble.

Now he looked at Freddy, then the others. A frown formed, then he leveled it towards his lead singer, "I don't understand. I saw her CHASE that boy around!"

Freddy waggled his ears and tilted his head. "You... you did?"

"I was in the mop bots!" He spat, a paw flying to his torn breast plate. His expression contorted again; eyes narrowing and teeth showing, but his lowered ears and chin lift betrayed an immense amount of hurt roiling around within him. "It was all I can do! I was stuck in that room for so fucking LONG! All I can do was watch the world slither by while I stayed stuck in time! I SAW her nearly kill that kid! What the ever loving FUCK is going on here?!"

Gregory huffed again; his tiny, skinny body subtly shaky against Vanessa. He slumped heavily against her as if he'd been the one to run a mile and not her.

Bonnie looked at Monty now- his skeletal remains having been placed on the floor at some point by Chica before she had thrown herself at him. Now he looked at the hen, who was back on her feet by now and giving him this look of raw pity and unfiltered pain. His gaze then swapped back to Cassie- and it noticeably softened into something else Vanessa couldn't parse outonce he caught the girl's eye. He worked his jaw, wilted, and stared at the floor as if afraid of her judgement. Vanessa found the observation curious.

"I've been in that room for too damn long, Freddy," he continued in a considerably weaker tenor; as if all the fight had drained out of him completely by now. His tone was brittle; containing a winded rasp to it as he went on. "You have no fucking clue how it felt being stuck in that damn S.T.A.F.F bot network, unable to break free of it, all the while that fucking WOMAN-" His claws pointed to her over his shoulder, "-Went on a god-damn killing spree! Do you have any idea how many kids actually DIED to her and I couldn't do more than WATCH? Why the fuck are you stopping me from DOING MY JOB?"

He started to slump forward; his muzzle eventually hitting the floor and his shoulders jumping as sobs took him. His paws balled into fists; stretched out in front of him like he was bowing to some higher power, "I don't understand... why are you on her side? After what she's done to ALL of us? I don't get why..." His voice snapped completely; static garbling over itself as he sputtered, "-Why you left with them! Why you picked them! You picked them over us! I saw that kid hurt Chica in the kitchen through the eyes of the mop bot! I saw him hurt Monty out of SPITE-" His teeth showed; his forehead buried into the floor, "I saw all of it. That night when our friends were decommissioned- DAMNED to a fate they couldn't fight back from!"

Gregory winced against Vanessa, as if physically struck. No doubt he was feeling terrible for that night all over as well.

He pulled on his ears now; banging his head once on the ground and dragging talons through his scalp, "You leaving with them- I saw our friends ROT away here. I rotted with them! All of us, DAMNED HERE! I heard Chica SCREAM in her own body!"The hen warbled nearby at these words. "You don't hear it- None of you can hear what I hear. None of you understand. I hear them! I've heard ALL OF YOU CRY FOR SO LONG!" His torso bunched up; then he heaved and cried in a despondent, defeated warble, "You left us all in darkness. You left with the ones who've killed us and left us to rot in a waking nightmare- after I've once begged you... BEGGED you. To save them-

"How can I call you my brother now after all that?"

Gregory would've spat out something in Freddy's defence; likely about the fact he didn't have a body- but Vanessa seized the boy's limb and shook her head at him.

There was silence for a while after that- no one said anything, moved, or commented. Freddy couldn't even budge; his mismatched eyes widened saucers in their sockets as he beheld the rabbit like he wasn't seeing things straight. The bear's hands were all that moved; clenching and unclenching rapidly but doing no more. It was hard to tell if Freddy would even do anything after a point- as it is, anyone who knew Freddy knew a wave of shame had overcome him as well.

Nearby, Chica slowly and carefully toed her way over to the wailing rabbit, knelt down, and gently grazed a hand across his now bare back. When Bonnie didn't respond, She leaned over him and put both arms as well as herself over his spine like she was trying to protect him from further harm. With no high collar in the way, Chica was able to wrap her arms around his shoulders fully and bury her face nearer to his neck area. She sniffled, and then cried with him.

The sound seemed to break everyone out of a daze; thee crowd milling about uncertainly upon their footing. Roxy nearby produced a low whine; the sound feeble and trailing off almost as soon as it was birthed into being.

Vanessa huffed deeply; her body tired and worn as her hand stemmed the holes in her waist all the while. She said nothing however; will not say anything, even though she knew its likely the smell of her blood was filling the nostrils' of the bots. She felt Gregory put a hand to her side to help stem it; but thankfully it wasn't so bad anymore. The scratches were wide, not deep.

Cassie was heard hiccupping not too long there-after; the girl no doubt feeling for the rabbit in great measure. She was helped by Roxy over to him; pausing before Bonnie and Chica's slumped forms and kneeling down to them. All the while, Freddy still hadn't moved; as if he severely malfunctioned and couldn't figure out how to start up again.

At Cassie's proximity, Bonnie finally moved again. He lifted his head weakly from the floor; ears having no feeling or control in them as they stayed sagging to his head. He blinked out of sync; the motion super slow as he beheld the girl in what Vanessa knew was no less than a high regard. He slowly got into a sitting position; Chica letting him up as Cassie reached over and gently touched his face.

Bonnie's eyes fluttered in wane surprise when her hand briefly grazed whiskers, then shut as Cassie gently rubbed his one remaining cheek; the other hand combed through the dirty, mussed fur on his scalp like she was living her dream of petting him again. She scooted closer, then leaned in and hugged him; unable to get her arms completely around his chest but trying no less. She cried now; her whimpers more like a nymph's sighs as she sobbed exhausted tears over what remained of his breast piece.

Freddy watched them this entire time, unable to say anything; to do anything. He blinked once; his nose producing a whooshing noise as the last bit of steam fled his body. He couldn't look at Bonnie anymore; unable to do more than stare between his figure and the ground in clear shame. He eventually turned on his heel; and started to walk away.

"Wha- Freddy," Chica spoke up, reaching out to him. "What're you-?"

He kept walking; picking up Monty and stubbornly facing the direction of the Parts & Service repair room. He obviously intended on making due on helping the gator, but it was hard to say what he'll do after that. He only walked in a trance-like state; didn't produce a single noise or word as he left the group in the hall.

Bonnie didn't even look at him or follow his movements. He just shut his eyes again and jerked; fighting another sob himself. His paw went over Cassie's back; not even daring to use the one with Vanessa's blood on it. His chin rested on the girl's scalp; and he couldn't look smaller despite being the intrusive size he was.

Roxy said nothing meanwhile, she merely bent down and put her muzzle to Bonnie's jaw-line; butting against it once or twice. Her arm went around Chica and Cassie too; her snout resting against the rabbit's cheek in what could've passed as apology. He seemed to sag into it as a response; and the gesture heartened them both into a tighter ball.

Eclipse was now bent over Vanessa, helping to staunch the wound and sighing forlornly to her. He tended her wound with an emergency medical pack he had stored in his chest hatch.

"Should we go after him?" Vanessa eventually asked Eclipse, her gaze on where Freddy had gone.

He shook his head, "I think this is beyond us now, Vanessa. Let them process. I think this day has been too long on ALL of us, and we're all in need of some space." His bony hand grazed Gregory's face next, then he looked over at other animatronics and Cassie. "These children haven't been to bed in a while. Mayhaps after we've all had a brief respite, we'll be a bit more clear-headed? I can go with Freddy to find Monty some parts while we all cool off. I don't think staying around here will do Freddy or Bonnie any good."

Bonnie's ear twitched at them at the mention of his name- no doubt he can hear them, but he stayed in his position resolutely. His embrace of the girls' remained completely unfettered in the pregnant silence that followed. He wasn't sniffling anymore- and frankly, Vanessa didn't think she's ever heard such a noise from him. EVER. It was so... tiny. The sound of his tears. It was like listening to a child about Cassie's size rue; and he was fighting to hide them from abusive parents who simply didn't understand what he was crying about and would tell him off for showing the weakness.

The sound will stay with her for the rest of her life.

"Yeah, I... okay. I think I'll concede to your judgement there," She said to the attendant. Her other hand found Gregory's head, gently ruffling his messy hair. She couldn't look at Bonnie anymore- it was too hard to do so.

Its not even all the way my fault... Its all Vanny's. But still, why do I feel like I'm still completely responsible for what happened?

"Can you move? How bad is it?" Eclipse patiently queried. "Your ankle-"

"Its fine. Just need to be slow and stay off it for a while. All things considered, it could be worse," she affirmed with a shrug. "We need to not be in here. I mean... We gotta fix Monty, right? And figure a way out of this death-trap before the stupid Mimic-thing and that... other thing, find us." She inclined her head, "You know, I think... this PizzaPlex has made us all a little crazy. We've been in here long enough, huh?"

"On that, I think we can both agree," Eclipse sighed, his own tenor a gentle murmur. "The sooner we get out of here, the better."

He helped the woman up; supporting her weight with Gregory's help. They'd begin walking back to the repair ward too; with the former security guard casting glances back at the huddled bots on the floor.

She winced when she caught Bonnie's single opened eye- the woman feeling chills when she realized he'd been watching her. As she was being pulled away though, it closed again as he embraced Cassie. He didn't do anything to break that hug either- as if that one hug was all he could hang on to.

So strange, she wondered. His behavior around her- After being snapped out of his rage, he couldn't be more docile. He'd been so focused on Vanny before- stretching himself to the absolute limit in terms of determination in his pursuit that he'd been crashing into both his friends and literally just about every standing obstacle in his way. But with Cassie here, it could help the rabbit mellow out a tiny bit. Just a bit.

He's too unstable, that couldn't be more obvious- but at least he shouldn't be trying anymore attempts on Vanessa's life so long as the girl stayed near. And while that is a cowardly concept to consider, Vanessa also had no intentions of letting herself get deaded since she had a boy to raise now. Once they all calmed down a bit, hopefully she can get a word in edgewise without having him rip off her limbs one-by-one-

Although even that seems to be pipe-dream as of right now. Best to stay out of his sight until he and Freddy got to talking again, she figured. Speaking of which-

"That wasn't fair of him to say that," Gregory spat suddenly. "Freddy didn't exactly have a choice when we left! Not like he could've bodily stayed..."

"I don't think that's the point," Vanessa cautiously told him. "Freddy's always wanted to come back here... but I wager he hesitated asking us to come back because we were... well, we were figuring ourselves out at the time and he understandably didn't want to risk us coming back and getting hurt. But still, him not wanting to come back because of our own expense means his friends stayed suffering for that long: That's what Bonnie's getting at-"

She sighed heavily. "He feels like Freddy picked US over his family- and WE'RE the ones who hurt them! He feels betrayed and confused- and it didn't help that Freddy and the others came to save me from him. They really gotta talk about it... Once they both take a minute to themselves to cool off, hopefully they can discuss that between each other. We both know Freddy can't characteristically pick between his friends; despite whatever Bonnie says."

"Right!" Gregory harrumphed.

"On the side, Bonnie's understandably hurt right now... and fresh out of solitary confinement in Hell's own personal digital penitentiary. He's going to be uh... uh, reasonably hurt for a while. I think with a bit of time, he'll relent and forgive Freddy. Hell, I bet they'll forgive each other in the next 24 hours- knowing them." She smiled, but the gesture was especially weak, "He loves Freddy too much to let anger keep him from forgiveness. He's already given EVERYTHING he had for him."

Gregory hummed at that, looking back over his shoulder even though they've left the room behind. "Is it safe to leave Cassie with him?" he wondered aloud.

"I ain't gonna try and get that kid away from him. Are you? He adores Cassie; contrary to what many believe. She honestly can't be in safer hands right now."

Gregory looked like he was about to argue the opposite, but then Vanessa ruffled his head and said, "Yunno... let him have that hug. I feel like he needs it a lot right now. Cassie will bring him around. She has that way about her, you know."

"I thought Roxy was the favorite? I don't get it... Why'd she want to hug him after she just watched him charge you like that? That was SCARY!"

"Cassie's got a long-standing relationship with ALL of us-" Eclipse supplied easily. "Excluding myself, the alter, Eclipse. Even Moon loves that girl to death- she's always been good about her nap time! But I digress- As for Bonnie... Bonnie was her dad's favorite and the REASON why Cassie got to know us in the first place. Bonnie's always been the anchor. Her father's love for the bots is shared with his girl, but it all started with the rabbit of his childhood. Sentimentality is a strong motivator here." He shrugged a single shoulder, "Bonnie is also... as far as I can see, perhaps Cassie's way of being close to her late father in memory. If it makes them both feel better to stay near the other, I daresay she's in safe hands too!"

Gregory snorted, "Not with the way he threw that glass..."

"He likely didn't see or hear her. He probably has bad PTSD like I do... and tunnel vision," Vanessa shrugged, completely understanding of his predicament. "Its a bitch when you're angry enough. First thing he heard upon waking up must've been my voice and it instantly pissed him off. Didn't know a bot could suffer from tunnel vision like that... Kinda goes to show how human they can be sometimes. Yunno?"

"...Weren't you just calling him a killer, terminator rabbit on steroids not that long ago? Not that that's inaccurate..."

"Shut up and keep walking you mouthy little twerp. I never said you could contradict me."

"But I just agreed with you-"

"Semantics. Now shut it."

Gregory snorted back at her, but didn't deem it fit to counter. Both of them were too wore out for further commentary. They merely tossed the huddling bots and girl another glance and left. And all the while, Vanessa still couldn't shake the feeling that Bonnie would be watching her until she was well out of his sight. She had no plans of staying near him anytime soon.

Best NOT to go there.