Whew, that last chap was a bit of a doozy (thanks to everybody that read all of it!) so here’s Shooting Stars Aus chapter 3 Aftermath:
To start off lemme add some insight to what happened while the glamrocks were making their way through the plaza (before being alerted by Dave and racing to face him on the stage) Gregory was being cared for by Sunny with Vanessa and Honey Bee (the cute wet floor sign that befriended Gregory). Despite their efforts to barricade the doors and seal it from allowing anyone in Foxy had burst through the doors and attacked them; Sunny (has a more aggressive desire to protect since he works with smaller children) was quick to dodge with Gregory in his arms-Honey Bee pushing Vanessa out of the way of a lunging Foxy. The four raced about dodging and weaving away from the pirates swipes and snapping jaws, the blocks stacked around the play room being scattered across the floor in the process. Sunny passed Gregory’s unconscious form over to Vanessa and she along with Honey ran around the tunnels to hide. Sunny diverted Foxy’s attention onto him and in a badass show of aerobatics flipped circles around him while chucking blocks at the fox and flashing him (I hc that Sun lights up like a living nightlight) that ends up blinding him and giving Sunny time to recover. But one thing leads to another and Foxy alerts the remaining security bots to him and the difficulty level gets harder-a couple security bots sneak up on Vanessa and attack, hurting her in the process and rips Gregory from her grasp-they try to drag him away but Honey charges at them and knocks them out of the way. They get surrounded and Sun leaps in to help-but Foxy recovers and lunges through the air and slashes Sun down. Vanessa attempts to shield Gregory and Honey rushes in front of them as Foxy swipes again-cutting her down too. Vanessa tries to run with Gregory and trips-gregory falling over and coming to. Vanessa stuns Foxy with her flashlight and gets pulled down by a fallen security bot and then Gregory gets in the way trying to reach the fallen flashlight and gets slashed in the stomach. Foxy snatches Gregory up per Dave’s orders and takes him away.
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To the present the glamrocks (Monty carrying an unconscious Dave along-he got tired of hearing him talk) hurried down the fire escape to the front of the building to where Freddy was cradling Gregory in his arms and working fast the group secured two delivery vans; Vanessa, Chicka, Freddy and Gregory got into one and Bonnie, Monty and Roxy got into the other. (Vanessa was too injured to drive so Chicka did-sitting in the drivers side while Vanessa sat in the passengers. Listening to Nessa’s instructions. As for the other van Bonnie took the wheel insisting he knew what he was doing-not going further as to how.) They hopped in and drove off to the hospital where Gregory was taken to the ER. The group of bots (Sun stayed behind with Dave in tow to tell police what happened) remained unmoving in a waiting room (nurses and patients stared at the animatronics in shock and awe, some wanting autographs and others to talk with them but it got to a point security had to usher them away and have the area closed off) Gregory was put under and was having surgery done in the meantime. Monty tapping his foot staring at the floor, Chicka sitting worriedly with Roxy holding her hand and cupping her back with the other (the wolf’s ears were folded back and her tail flicking uncontrollably), Bonnie was leaning against a wall ears twitching and worriedly watching Freddy pace back and forth repeatedly on high alert waiting for a doctor-anyone to tell him what’s going on (he’d be covered in the boy’s blood and despite nurses suggesting he clean up he’d refuse too worried about Gregory to care). Under the anesthesia Gregory’s consciousness drifted through the darkness he’d succumbed to..
Gregory’s eyes fluttered open and his vision met with the sight of a light blue sky speckled with fluffy clouds. He blinked a few times in confusion..was he still lying in the parking lot? Why couldn’t he feel any pain either?-and why didn’t his body feel cradled-“D..dad?” Without thinking he sat up, surprised at the lack of pain that greeted him but even more so the endless fields stretched out around him; his head frantically jerked left and right but found the parking lot and the pizzaplex had seemingly vanished into thin air. “Where are you?!” Leaving him in an unknown place he’d never seen before..he leapt to his feet and stood frozen on top of a what he now realized was a grassy hill over looking a beaming sun over the horizon. “Hey, don’t be scared-” A soft voice said from behind; startled he quickly spun around and stared at the tall willow tree that sat with its thick roots raised from the soil and scattered about like broken strings of a web. “Who are you-where am I?!” Gregory exclaimed instinctively backing away about to make a run for it when a small boy about his age stepped out from behind the trunk. “I’m Evan. And this is..a safe place.” The boy-Evan walked slowly towards him then past him to sit on the hills curve as Gregory’s gaze followed with a surprised expression. Speechless he took in the other boys appearance and for a split second felt like he was almost seeing a double of himself except the boy was scrawnier in stature, chestnut locks scruffier with dark chocolate eyes that seemed to shimmer in the sunlight and sun kissed freckles peppered his pale face. “Come sit with me.” After a moments thought Gregory complied and moved to take a seat beside the smaller boy. It wasn’t like he would get far in such an unfamiliar place and they were seemingly the only two people around. “Okay...but..what is this place and how did I get here? This doesn’t make sense..” Evan watched him as he spoke, eerily quiet but for some reason it wasn’t unsettling...Then it struck him-the daycare...Foxy...the feeling of falling..and then being in his father’s arms... “Am I DEAD?!” He began to panick when Evan reached out and grasped his shoulder shaking his head. “You aren’t dead. It’s a little complicated...the easiest way to put it is your body and soul are temporarily split between two planes of existence; your body lying asleep in the waking world and your restless soul in the world beyond.” Evan paused long enough to allow Gregory to think over this newfound information then continued. “As for how you got here...” The smaller boy sighed. “It was me. I brought you here but only because I needed to speak with you.” Evan’s face fell as he looked away, quieting to allow the other boy to wrap his mind around what he said. They sat there for a moment as a crisp breeze brushed past them, causing the tender blades of grass around their out stretched legs to sway and tickle their skin. “Why though?” Gregory asked breaking the silence. “Why me?” Evan continued to stare out into the distance as Gregory watched him stare unblinking at the endless rolling fields of tall grass and wildflowers. Unable to find it in himself to be angry..something about the other boy felt familiar somehow-though he couldn’t figure why that was. “I’m at peace but I’m restless. I can’t find it in me to leave beyond this place until my wish has been heard.” Evan answered at last, tearing his gaze away from the scenery. “And you’re the only person who can grant it.” Gregory was taken aback by his words..suddenly feeling saddened by the truth. It was then that the smaller boy’s face softened-the slightest hint of sadness twinkled in his eyes as he drew out a long sigh. “All I want..is for you to take care of my brother for me.” Gregory cut him off before he could continue. “Your brother? But..I don’t know any other kids..” He jumped as the other boy laughed. “He’s much older now but you know him well.” Gregory strained to picture who he was referring to but his mind went blank.
“He also goes by a different name; though you call him dad.” Evan chuckled at that. He never imagined his brother would ever have a kid of his own but now he was glad to see they’ve both found happiness with each other. “Freddy?! He’s-your?!” Evans train of thought was suddenly brought back to the present at Gregory stumbling over his words. “Yeah. The person he used to be was. Now he’s someone entirely different. It’s a long story that I don’t have the time to tell..besides I think it’s better if he tells you himself.” The silence that followed felt as though time itself has slowed to a stop. “There’s so much I want to say..but can’t. My time is about up.” Evan breathed in the fresh air one last time, glancing back at the sun shining brightly in the sky. “Promise me you’ll look after him..even after he tells you..whenever that may be. It’s not something he’s proud of and I don’t want you to think less of him. And if it’s not too much to ask, tell him I forgive him-for everything.” -‘After all’, Evan thought to himself. ‘He’ll always be my brother.’ Before Gregory could ask anything else the boy beside him had begun to fade away, turning to gaze at him with a look of longing. Without a second thought he nodded despite the tidal wave of questions that would go unanswered. “I will.” He replied his voice sincere. “I promise.”
“Thank you Gregory.” Evan’s face lit up with a smile as the ghostly image of him burst into thousands of speckled stardust that got carried off by the wind. The world around Gregory spun into a tornado of blurring lights and color until it all had faded into black..and he woke blinded by a room with white walls and beside him the hunched over figure of Freddy came into view; his small hand engulfed by his father’s large paw.
