#but it is in keeping with miss pendle's way of doing things to do her morning chores Very Fast in her nicer clothes

[chiropteracupola]

A girl about town.

[cosmic-has-moved]

Rehired [Chapter 3]

Ao3 Version: [HERE]

Different day, same antics at the same usually hours. It was chaotic yes, but it always has been to the point it was regular.

Everyone at the studio was doing their usual thing, writing, singing, drawing.

Except Audrey, who was on another errand run for Susie who since morning has been completely ignoring yesterday's incident. She would be lying to herself if she said it didn't bother her, but Audrey knew better than to argue at early hours.

"Run along now, my little angel~"

She hated how much the actress saying that made her stomach flutter. She also hated how much she was hesitating to speak up about her feelings to her.

The artist had been tasked to collect misplaced voice scripts for the actress and give them to her, they should really have folders for these things.

After collecting them all while chatting to other staff she comes across to keep her sanity, lord forbid she loses that. She made her way to the elevator to drop off the papers, hoping to finally speak to Susie about their relationship.

While waiting for the doors to open, Allison walked up next to Audrey and they both greeted each other with a smile.

"Are those voice scripts you're collecting?" She asked gesturing to the pile. "Did they get misplaced again?"

"Yup" Audrey answered, "They should really put these in folders, that way I wouldn't have Susie making me run around for them." She chuckled quietly to herself.

"Susie?" Allison blinked in surprise, "Susie Campbell? She works here as well?"

The elevator doors opened to reveal Susie standing inside of it, arms crossed with a bored expression. Until the two saw each other in mirrored shock, Allison's being one of surprise while Susie's was anger.

It had only now occurred to Audrey upon the two looking at each other, did she ever think about Alice's two voice actor's relationships towards each other. She quietly panicked as she followed Allison into the small elevator, the air immediately densing up as the doors closed.

"You" Susie harshly whispered while glaring at miss Pendle.

Allison looked down at Susie, a look of guilt and remorse on her face as Susie clenched her fist. "Susie, I-"

Susie cut her off, "Are you here to steal my voice acting role again?!" She pointed an accusing finger at Allison, who didn't even flinch at the outburst.

Audrey tried to slip away but was stopped by Susie who grabbed her arm tightly, hating that the touch nearly made her groan in need.

"I'm not here to do such a thing, Susie." Allison got closer to them and gently held Audrey's shoulder, "Let her go and I'll explain, okay?"

The actress's grip got tighter on the artist's arm that she gasped in pain, "Oh no, my little errand girl is staying right here." She tugged to lower the artist to her level and smirked, "Right, honey?"

Audrey could barely respond probably as her heart was racing and her brain was going all over the place, "Yes, ma'am." Her face blushed faintly.

A frown grew on Allison's face, "You're still dragging others around as your errand runners?" She forcefully removed Susie's hand from Audrey before stepping between them. "But besides that, this is between us, Susie."

Susie glared up at the older woman and crossed her arms, "I personally like to have witnesses around for when I am about to murder someone." She gripped onto Allison's shirt collar. "And I want her to hear what you have to say for yourself about replacing me."

Allison swiftly kicked her foot back to press a floor button, causing the elevator to finally move. "Now I understand why she was sick yesterday." She mumbled to herself while her face shifted back to remorse. "Just let me explain, Susie."

As the elevator doors opened upon reaching the selected floor, Allison motioned to the artist to leave, which she happily did to Susie's frustration.

Audrey didn't even look back as she powered walked back to her office, still unknowingly holding onto Campbell's scripts. Only ever realising after she sat down at her desk in a huff and looked down at the papers, cursing to herself for not just giving them to her.

Placing them down on her desk and straightening herself out, Audrey slammed her head on the wooden desk with a thud. Her screams of frustration muffled by the furniture, before she slowly lifted her head up and rested her chin there.

"Maybe I should have stay with Allison. Susie might actually kill her for all I know, but maybe she isn't capable to do so?"

The artist gripped her head as a painfully sharp headache began approaching, was this from the lack of sleep or something else?

Rolling her head to face the window and look at the cloudy skys, Miss Drew sighed. She thought about Bendy and how he's coping while she's at work dealing with so much drama, drama that she never really told him about.

She thought back to yesterday and how he showed concern for her, does he always worry while she's gone? Does he get lonely? Maybe she shouldn't leave him alone too much, maybe using her vacation days would help.

"I hope Bendy is doing okay, staying his usual happy self while playing with his trains." She mumbled to herself while a tired smile formed on her face. "Perhaps I should take him to the ink world again so he could play with the others, it's been a while and I'm afraid he gets lonely a lot. Yeah that sounds nice..." Her eyelids became heavy as she tried to fight off sudden weight of sleep.

When she next woke she found that there was a cup of coffee in front of her face, the warmth nearly causing her to fall back asleep. Sitting up and stretching before grabbing the fresh cup, she had wondered who left it there and more importantly, where was Miss Campbell's scripts?

Turning in her chair to examine the room, she was surprised to see both Allison and Susie speaking to each other while looking over the missing scripts. No battle wounds or torn clothing on them or anything, it was a shocker.

"Thank you for the coffee." The artist spoke out after taking a sip of beverage getting the two's attention, the hot taste easing her nerves.

Allison walked over to her and smiled, "It's nothing, dear. We're just sorry you had to see that earlier, we have talked it out and there's no ill will between us now." She looked over at Susie, "Isn't that right, Susie?"

The actress faked a smirked and replied sarcastically, "We indeed did, pet."

Sighing from the response but knowing it's the best she could get, Allison sat next to Audrey on her desk. "I hope it wasn't too awkward for you."

"Honestly." The girl chuckled, "It wouldn't be the first time I was in between two people being bitter towards each other, perhaps I attract it."

"Oh just blame Allison." Susie suddenly stood next to Audrey that it startled her, "It was her choice to work here." She said before walking passed them towards the door.

"I didn't even know you worked here, yet alone even know that you returned to voice Alice Angel again." Miss Pendle crossed her arms. "And who tried to prevent her from leaving again?"

Waving a dismissive hand at the woman, Susie opened the door and looked back at them. "Whatever you say." She looked over at Audrey and blew at kiss towards her, making the poor girl turn red. "See you later, pet~" That's when she left the room and closed the door.

Letting out a short sigh and looking down at the other, Allison grabbed a chair and sat next to her. "I must say, you chose an interesting woman as your partner."

Audrey froze and her face turned red, "Partner? As in girlfriend?" She asked in a panic. "Susie's my girlfriend?!"

Quickly realising her mistake and holding her hands up to calm the girl down, "You two aren't? I just assumed based on how she acted towards you."

Audrey quickly shook her head, "We're just work colleagues! Is that how we're viewed?"

Allison laughed nervously, "I mean, I have been told you accompany her quite a lot by other animators. How long has she been so." She paused for a moment to think of the proper word, "Flirtatious towards you?"

The question caused Audrey to bite her bottom lip, "Around the time we first met. I didn't even know she was being flirty, just being extra friendly." She crossed her arms in a hold. "I even thought my feelings were making me over think it..."

"So you do like her? Romantically?" Allison asked before leaning close, taking a mental note of Audrey's sudden change in mood.

"I guess so." The artist looked down at the floor in deep thought. "I haven't experienced falling in love before, so it's all so new to me."

Leaning back in her chair and continuing, Audrey looked out the window. "Does being in love involve constantly craving their presence? Melting as soon as they touch you? Losing sleep because all that appears is their face?" She looked back at Allison with a blank expression, "Does it involve becoming someone new?"

Miss Pendle shifted her gaze to the ground in thought before looking back at Audrey, "You mentioned how you never fell in love before, how far does that go? Have you ever had a first kiss or even been on a date?" She held her hands together and rested them over her lap. "Of course you don't have to answer if you don't feel comfortable to."

Thinking back through her life so far, Audrey tried to remember a single time she had experience such feelings or even been put in a romantic experience.

There was a time during her school years that a few asked her out, but she rejected them due to no interest in them.

Her first heart skip was Susie, her first kiss was Susie. But why her?

"It's Susie." She answered, "But I don't know why." The same headache returned but faintly.

"Can I try something, Audrey?" Allison asked and scooted closer to Audrey after receiving a nod, her hands slowly raising to the girl's face and gently holding it.

She flinched at first at the touch and closed her eyes shut but quickly loosened up, her face nestling into Allison's hands as a needy sigh slipped through her lips.

The same lips that felt another pair press up against them, the touch making Audrey's eyes to snap open and push Allison away in surprise, her hands covering her mouth while staring wide eyed at the other who shared the same expression.

"What about that didn't you like?" Allison asked while scooting away, clear embarrassment in her gestures.

"It wasn't Susie's lips!" Audrey angrily threw her hands up before realising what she said and proceeded to bury her face into her palms, Allison hesitantly patting her back. "But I also didn't hate it..."

"I want to kiss you again, but I also want the kiss to be from Susie." The artist groaned loudly in frustration and removed her hands from her face. "What's wrong with me?"

Looking at her in sympathy, Allison could only answer with what might help.

"Tell her how you feel" She smiled at her to assure her, "With how affection she's appears to be towards you, she could be in the same boat as you."

Audrey smiled at her and gave her a hug which she returned, "Thank you again, Allison."

Chuckling to herself while patting the girl's hair, Miss Pendle sighed happily. "It's all about honesty, it's what makes problems and relationships heal." Her gaze shifted away from Audrey. "I just wish Joey took it to heart."

Lifting her head up after remembering something and looking at Allison, she asked her a question that had been nagging her.

"How did you know Joey Drew was my father? I only knew about that information about two months ago."

"That pin you have, it was something he made himself and only showed to people he trusted. I was one of those people." She stood up off the chair and put the chair back. "I'm honestly surprised that he has a child, he never really appeared to be a loving husband or father type of person."

"But now that I look at you after figuring it out. You're a splitting imagine of him, you have his eyes and hair." She crossed her arms, "It's a funny coincidence that you work at your own father's studio without his involvement."

"I" Audrey began before laughing softly, "I guess that makes sense." She sighed in relief. "It seems we both have a strong fascinating with Bendy, perhaps I unconsciously knew about him and that's why I became hooked."

"Perhaps, but we might never know." Allison added before continuing, "But I must ask, do you know your mother or?"

"Oh" Audrey thought for a few seconds to think of a logical answer, not wanting to reveal that her mother might've been the ink machine. "I never knew my mother, not even sure she's alive to be frank. I was mostly in an orphanage for as long as I could remember."

She tried to continue speaking, but harsh memories stopped her and Allison could tell.

Placing a hand on the artist's shoulder, she reassured her. "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to." As Audrey slowly nodded, she stood up off the chair than walked over to the door and opened it. "But other than that, I'll leave you to it. Take care, Audrey."

They waved at each other as she left and closed the door, leaving the artist alone in the room.

Audrey sat at her desk feeling a small burden fall off her shoulders.

___

After finishing her shift and making her way home after getting off the train, Audrey began thinking about Bendy again.

Was it really right to just put him in the ink world when she had time to? Does he feel lonely without her in both the apartment and ink world?

A huge wave of guilt washed over her. Audrey had always wanted to bring the little guy to work with her, but the fear of what the world would do to him lingered all over her.

She had to keep him safe.

Walking into the apartment complex and taking the stairs up to the needed floor, Audrey walked into her home and greeted Bendy who was no where in sight.

"Bendy?" She called out slightly concerned as she wondered around. "You better not be in the washing machine again."

Suddenly to her absolute horror, Bendy in his ink demon form crawled out of the bathroom on the ceiling, eating what looked to be one of her clothes.

Jumping up and grabbing onto his horns, Audrey glared at him. "Get down right this instant, young man!"

The demon only replied with a snarl before climbing down to the floor and allowing the young woman to safety stand back on the floor, his voice speaking in the usual distortion. "You took forever!"

"I know and I'm sorry..." She sighed in guilt, holding his head in reassurance. "I was just caught up with work and other stuff, is there anything I can do to make it up to you?"

Sitting on the floor and crossing his arms as his body slowly shrunk , he growled a response. "I just don't want to feel alone..." He hugged her, "But I also know that you can't risk leaving your work or taking me with you."

Audrey held him in her arms as he finally shifted back to his toon form. "I've been thinking about how lonely it must be here for you, buddy." She walked over to the couch and plopped him down next to her. "And it just feels wrong leaving you in the ink world as well."

The toon looked up at her and rubbed his teary eyes. "So maybe, I should get you a little buddy to keep you company while I'm gone?" She smiled as his eyes lit up. "You want me to get us a pet?"

His rapid nodding made her giggle as she patted his head, "Okay then, any type you have in mind? Like a cat, dog or a lizard?"

Bendy looked around the room in thought before running over to the bookshelf, getting out a book with a cartoon cat on it. It was decided.

"A cat? Okay, buddy." She watched him run back to her and jump back on the couch, "I'll go get you a friend tomorrow, but you gotta look after them, okay?"

Audrey giggled as he happily nodded and did a salute pose, "Alright, little guy." She picked him up and stood up off the furniture. "Now let's get you some real food and put you to bed."

Bendy silently laughed before hugging her tight. She had a very good feeling for the up coming days.

[mwolf0epsilon]

How would all the studio crew, post-transformation, react to an adorable puppy? (Hopefully some won't think it's food!)

Henry Stein - Despite being the proud owner of a massive Estrela Mountain dog, Henry is actually more of a cat person. He can see the appeal of a loyal pooch though. Doesn't really have much of an opinion other than he likes petting them. Being faced with a cute puppy he'd likely melt.

Glasses Woolly Triplet - Sheep and dogs don't often mix, but then again Glasses likes Boris and he's kind of a dog right? If he sees an adorable puppy he'll likely puff up and proclaim himself cuter.

Sammy Lawrence - They're goofy, smelly and drool all over. 10/10 would not recommend owning one in a tiny apartment, but is the kind of guy to hang out with the dog in a house party situation. He's a big softy for pets at heart, so he'd likely dote on a little puppy.

Wandering Sin Bendy/Andy - Unlike Sammy he openly adores dogs. If confronted with a cute pup, he'd beg his pa to let him keep it.

Jack Fain - Jack has always wanted a dog, so if he found a puppy he'd decide to adopt it. He'd be the kind of owner to talk about his pets like they're his children too, so you can bet he'd walk around with a wallet full of puppy photos.

Pigtails Woolly Triplet - Like Glasses he isn't really a fan of dogs, but he'd certainly enjoy the company of an itty bitty puppy if Jack adopted one. Might even take up Boris's position and try to teach it how to do some mischief.

Susie Campbell - She's more of a cat person but she can't say no to taking in a cute puppy. She'll treat it like royalty too.

Miss Twisted - Well it's not Cerberus, but it sure looks cute! Hopefully it'll grow up into a big scary beast of a dog so she'll have the coolest pet of all! Also she wants to paint its nails and get it a spiky collar.

Norman Polk - He already has Stripe so he'll likely give the puppy to someone else. Most animals are scared of him anyway, so he doesn't want to risk the heartache of the pup disliking him.

Cameraman - Puppies are too much trouble. They chew up everything, pee on the carpet and need training. He's a busy camera thank you very much! He would much rather prefer playing with someone else's pets instead.

Allison Pendle - She's definitely a dog person, but her hands are already full with a very grumpy wolf. Maybe someday when she feels ready for such a big responsibility she might get a pup. For now she'd probably coo at one and give it little scritches before handing it off to more capable hands.

Alice Angel - She likes dogs! Everyone knows all dogs go to heaven, so she's always happy to meet a new pup or two! She'd be too busy keeping the other toons out of trouble to really care for one tho...

Thomas Connor - He'd go weak at the knees at the sight of a puppy. Tom is a sucker for dogs. Would immediately want to adopt it too, no questions asked.

Boris the Wolf - Oh look! Another little cute fella to teach the ways of Boris the Wolf! Where's his wooden nickel? Little guy needs to learn how to pickpocket pronto!

Shawn Flynn - He likes dogs, sure, but uh... Best keep that pup away from his dolls...

Bendy Doll Trio - NOPE

Grant Cohen - He's allergic to fog fur. Living with Buddy, Tom and Stripe is already a pain because of how much they shed, so he'd not enjoy the idea of having a puppy joining in.

Edgar the Spider/Edvard - Shares Grant's allergy but it only ever flares up when it's most funny/inconvenient. He'd still want to pet the puppy though... He's a sucker for cute things due to his nature as an Edgar clone.

Buddy Lewek - Because he couldn't own a pet before, he'd probably beg to keep the puppy. Would even resort to puppy dog eyes. How could he just turn this poor little pup away?

The Brute - He is Brute. Demolisher of Faces, Taker of Wallets, and Protector of Tiny Cute Things. Puppy is a tiny cute thing, he will protect.

Abby Lambert - Considering she lives alone and has contact with what little family she has + the other Ink People, she'd get a puppy just for the company. It likely becomes her muse at some point just because she needed a drawing model... She'd also name it something like Monet or Picasso.

Doc Hackenbush - He has a cat. Plus the apartment he lives at is tiny. Would be unfair to subject a dog to such a cramped living space... He's still a licensed vet tho, so he probably has contact with tons of animals anyway, so no loss there!

Bertrum Piedmont - Err... He's a giant ride... He'd rather avoid animals right now...

Lacie Benton - Indifferent to pets. She'll stop to give them pets if they approach her, but she's not really much of an animal person. Will definitely kick anyone's ass if she sees them throwing stuff at wildlife or trying to kick a dog. Mistreat animals, get beat up by a pissed off animatronic.

Emma LaMonte - She's neither a dog nor cat person. Emma would rather devote her attention to parrots. Particularly the chatty kind. She's a bit of an eccentric.

The Ink Demon/Binky Demon - Animals are terrified of him and he's devastated by this. Would avoid the puppy at all costs just so he doesn't have to see it run away from him.

Mel's Butcher Gang/Charley, Barley and Edgar - Charley won't allow the group to get a puppy because Edgar is already enough of a handful. Single parents raising a spider son! Maybe when he's older Edgar might get a puppy...

Incomplete Butcher Hang/Buck and Edwin - They'd adopt a puppy and call it Charles. You can tell they're trying to fill a void...

Detective Adam Sinclair - He's too old for a pet, and he already has a talking taxi cab to keep him company anyway. If he found one he'd probably take it in... Just until he can find it an owner. Yeah, that's it.

Gaskette - No. Please get it out of his seats, that thing isn't potty trained!

Joey Drew - He's fascinated by dogs, but most animals attack him on sight these days, so he might try to make a pet rather than adopt one.

Bendy the Dancing Demon - As much as he wants a dog, observing Joey reading up on Cerberus is starting to concern him greatly... If only someone else could see or hear him, he might be able to tattle on this particularly half-baked scheme.

[realm-sweet-realm]

Angel of the Ink Machine, chapter 8: Letting it Die

Thank you to everyone who has read through this entire story. I’ve wanted to write it for months, and the fact that it was as popular as it was makes me really happy. Thanks as well to my writing partner for helping me to create it.

---

In the end, it was the leaking ink that did it. It was about a month after Allison was fired that the four performing toons noticed people getting sick from it.

It had been after a regular day that Allison received the call from Susie. The next morning, she put on her favourite purple eye shadow, red lipstick and white dress, knowing that she might not have another chance to dress up for years.

Allison walked into a police station whose front was desk staffed by one overworked police woman who had been arguing on the phone while shuffling papers.

Allison spoke to her as soon as she had half her attention. “I’m here to turn myself and my ex-partner in for multiple murders. I have proof.”

The woman’s eyes went wide. “Come with me,” she said, and soon she was in a room, sitting across from a police officer.

“This young woman just confessed to multiple murders.”

“Alright. Tell me everything.”

“It’s going to sound insane,” Allison warned. “But okay. I helped create the living cartoon characters that are currently making headlines. I am one of them, and I used to be a regular woman. In order to turn a person into a cartoon, you have to kill them. Together, we killed Susie Campbell and Wally Franks, the latter of which is currently on a missing persons list. I can prove that I and my partner, Joey Drew, did in fact kill these people by leading you to the human remains. I also know that he killed a few more people on his own, but I don’t know how many. Will you come with me and let me show you the bodies?”

The police officer looked stunned. “Yes. In fact, I order that you do. Keep in mind that lying to a police officer is a crime and that anything you do can be used against you in court.”

“I plan on being completely compliant.”

Less than an hour later, the doors of Joey Drew Studios opened to the angel of the ink machine, followed by five police officers. She had no key to the very basement, but she knew the other way down. She instructed the police officers to gather onto the top of the ink machine, and pulled on chains until she found the one that made it descend, just as Joey had done on the night that they had met.

The ink machine touched down on the basement floor, and Allison ran to turn on the lights.

How impressive this place had looked months ago. And how crowded it looked now. It looked as though Joey hadn’t come down to this room since he’d last used it to sacrifice. Perhaps he never intended on returning to it. There was the cage of research subjects- once rodents, now mutilated toons- stuffed into cages. There was the ground, littered with once-used pentagrams. There was the poor, whimpering Boris caged in the corner, now along with a Charley with an empty eye socket and two missing limbs. Every wooden surface was stained grey with ink, every metal surface slick and greasy with it. And there were the coffins, marked with the names “Susie,” “Allison,” “Wally,” and “Henry.” Allison allowed herself to hope that that meant Henry was the only one Joey had transformed on his own.

Allison’s excitement at handing herself and Joey in turned to somber regret. How had she ever romanticized this?

“The bodies are over here,” Allison said, guiding them over.

“Four?” a police officer asked. The others busied themselves opening the coffins to see that the coffins were in fact full.

“That I know of. I encouraged Susie to let us kill her, and I slit Wally’s throat. I also agreed to being killed myself. Every one of the creatures in the cages represents an animal we tested on. Anything else you find isn’t my doing.”

The police officers milled about, prodding at the ex-rodents, taking notes on the ink machine, and searching for more useful information. Two of them poured out a trough of ink that had been set up to catch leaks. The thick ink oozed away to reveal human bones, including four skulls. Allison clasped a hand over her mouth. If she were still flesh, she would have went cold. She’d given Joey a measly four hours, and he’d killed five people in that time- that was, unless one of those skeletons belonged to Norman. But she didn’t want to think of that anymore.

Allison excused herself to the only other room in the very basement: Joey’s private sanctuary. She just needed to be alone until the police needed her for questioning or were ready to take her in. While inside, she took out her knife and sawed through her horns. If Joey ever came down there again, he’d find her horns and attached halo left on his desk.

Soon, Allison found herself laying on the bed in her holding cell. She could handle women’s prison- at least, she hoped the stregnth and durability she had as ink creature would help protect her from the other inmates. On the bright side, she wouldn’t age at all during her time in prison. She’d told the cops that they absolutely could not allow Joey to turn off the ink machine, because that would kill all of the ink creatures, including herself. They also knew that if she were destroyed, they would have to pick her up from the ink machine. As a result, the police had secured the basement levels. She still worried- there were so many ways to turn the ink machine off from the upstairs, and while Joey had surely skipped town to avoid the police, he could easily order a GENT worker to do it.

A few nights later, the cops told Allison that Joey had been arrested, and Allison could finally breathe easy.

The court battle went on for months as lawyers argued about which of their victims should be called “murdered,” and which warranted a lesser charge of “assault with grievous bodily harm,” since the victims were still alive in a sense. There was argument as well over how many of the murders Allison had been a part of, and which she deserved to be charged as an accomplice of for not coming forward about earlier.

At some point during this time, Allison received a phone call.

“Hey, Allison. This is Henry. Susie told me everything. Thanks for putting an end to this. I’m the one that Joey left in control of the studio, and I just wanted to let you know that I’m going to do my best to look after this situation. Thomas is working on a portable ink machine as we speak, and if that works, we’ll turn off the old one and rent a storage unit to keep the new one in. That way no one else will get infected. For now, I’m just having everyone wear face masks and keep away from the most dangerous areas. I’ll probably be able to bail you out, assuming that you can apply for bail- and that it isn’t too much. If our lives depend on the ink machine, they depend on the company making enough money for us to maintain it, and Joey left us in some pretty serious debt. So... yeah, that’s where we are. Just thought you should know.”

Allison was glad she was on the phone so that she didn’t have to force a smile. “Thanks, Henry.”

“I was thinking about maybe selling the old ink machine to research. I’ll make sure it’s a reputable one, of course. I imagine you have a lot of free time right now- maybe you should write down anything that you would want them to know.”

“That’s a great idea! I will.”

As soon as Allison had the chance, she was writing. She’d never written before, but having something new and meaningful to do with her time was exciting.

My name is Allison Pendle. I am not a good person. I remember being ten years old and first overhearing my parents worry over the person I would become. I terrified them by becoming addicted to crack at sixteen and wasted their money on rehab. I did more things to get ahead as a Broadway actress than I want to name. I am a thief, a liar, and a compulsive thrill-seeker. And yes, I facilitated the use of this machine with the full knowledge that it required human death.

I have always been good at rationalizing things to myself. The fact that I of all people know that this machine is evil to its core should tell you that it is. Please keep this in mind as you experiment.

There was so much to tell. Everything about how the machine worked, what it was like to be an ink creature, and of course, whether she could safely sell out any of the people she’d met on the black market. It was the next adventure, and she was ready for it.

[eventidedaydreamer]

What is everybody's strengths and weaknesses in your Bendy Au?

:) oh >:) okay

Joey Drew: 

Strengths 

he knows a lot of things, 

Intelligence

he can be very charming and can win people over easily, 

he’s the kind of person that you immediately like when you meet him, 

he knows how to leave a good impression.

If you actually get to know him he can be very bubbly and excitable.

Weaknesses 

he can’t read people, 

he’s brain smart but he isn’t emotionally smart, 

he doesn’t get it when someone shows emotions in a way he isn’t familiar with. 

He lashes out when he’s reminded of unpleasant things.

He knows how to turn everyone into ink creatures through sacrifice but he doesn’t stop to think if he should.

His coping mechanisms are not very healthy

Jealousy, clingy, its hard for him to consider that people can have more than one friend

Henry Stein:

Strengths 

He’s very tough (have you seen how much he falls?? and he’s OLD) 

Probably broke some bones when he was a kid so now he has stronger bones. 

He can handle a LOT of pain, 

he’s cool under stress and pressure, 

he’s a hard worker and a very talented artist.

He has a good memory

Weaknesses 

He has trouble expressing himself 

He’s a people pleaser and has a hard time saying no (something he’s worked on and is better about after he met his wife), 

He underreacts to things and overthinks a lot (overthinking is another thing he got better with after he met Linda)

Wally Franks:

Strengths 

One of the FRIENDLIEST people you will ever meet, 

and hes really really funny

He somehow knows everyone’s name even if he only met them once three years ago, 

It’s like he’s living life at a different speed because it seems like he spent the whole day with you but he also had time to see ten other people the same day?? 

He seems innocent and as if his perfect bubble of the world would pop if you mentioned something upsetting but the reality is he’ll listen to anything you need to get out and then give really good advice followed up with his usual humor.

He trusts that there is good in everyone and gives people second chances

Weaknesses 

He does really stupid things a lot

He’ll connect pipes wrong, resulting in later damage and messes

He’s always getting himself hurt, jumping too many stairs at once, making someone really angry and running for his life (Sammy’s the main one that’ll actually chase him down)

It’s like he has no sense of self-preservation 

(HOW IS HE NOT DEAD?!)

He is really trusting and some people take advantage of that

He opens himself up to everyone and forgives a little too easily

Sammy Lawrence:

Strengths

He knows how to stick up for himself and others

Hardworking

He is damn good at his job and won’t let you forget it

Sarcastic

Honest

Mature

He can hear the music as he’s writing it, feel it in his head when he sees sheet music

Very independent 

If he considers you a friend, he will go to extremes to get back at anyone that hurts you (Just ask Jack, he’s been friends with him the longest!)

It is unknown how many instruments Sammy can play, the band make guesses all the time and Jack is asked on a weekly basis but refuses to comment

its an ongoing discussion 

Determination, he’s the only one that will actually chase Wally til he catches him

Weaknesses

He’s angry almost constantly

The glass is half empty

Doesn’t hold back snide remarks (but if the remark is about music in some way you better listen there’s advice hidden somewhere)

Yelling, but it’s mostly just a very loud “WALLY FRANKS!” followed by running footsteps and Wally’s giddy laughter

I N S O M N I A C

constantly has bags under his eyes

A Perfectionist, Only the best can come from the office of Sammy Lawrence even if he forgets to eat while doing so

yeah thats another thing, he forgets about things like eating, sleeping, ya know, human things

He’s intimidating, the string of constant negativity doesn’t make many friends

Workaholic 

He’s become dependent on the few friends he has to break him out of his  work until its done mode and remind him to eat and sleep (Jack, Wally, Norman and Susie a little.)

because :) it would be a shame :) if one of them :)  went missing :) huh?

Susie Campbell:

Strengths

Hopeful and optimistic

Friendly

She has a really pretty face, shes really pretty in general

she gets a lot of attention because of it

shes tougher than she looks and uses it to her advantage

she is really clever

Flirty and a romantic 

an exciting storyteller, she can make a trip to the refrigerator sound interesting

Weaknesses

Possessive

she wants to hear all the gossip until its about her

is really jealous of the smallest things

she may seem like a little innocent flower but she’s the thorniest rose in the garden and you are growing a little too close to her

Alice Angel means everything to her, its the best way to distract her from anything else :)

the second best way is to mention her star-shaped birthmark/freckle

Norman Polk:

Strengths

Observant 

He’s very good at guessing things correctly

He seems to know something about everything and everyone

A really great listener

He also just has good hearing in general, easily eavesdrops 

Physically strong, he can lift anyone with ease

Wise and careful

he has some pretty sound advice in him if you ask for any

has a very good control on his temper and is calm and cool even in heated arguments or dangerous situations

a good people reader

is very understanding

Weaknesses

He’s scary, just how he likes it

People get the wrong ideas about him (He’s just sitting there! Is he watching me?)

to be fair, he might be

He doesn’t attempt to get to know people unless he sees a reason to

gets into other peoples business 

He’s always lookin’ for trouble

too curious for his own good

doesn’t talk about his feelings

Jack Fain:

Strengths

He’s so good at rhyming that he does it subconsciously on a regular basis

Creative

Empathetic

He’s not afraid to show emotion

Forgiving

Generosity

Gentle and soft

Humble

Patient

Selfless

Weaknesses

He can be really emotional a lot of the time

He spaces out a lot

he can seem like a crybaby

Doesn’t take credit for things he should

Lies about how he really feels to make other people comfortable, he doesn’t want to be a bother

puts himself down to make other people look better

Really shy

doesn’t stick up for himself

too passive

worries a lot

Johnny:

Strengths

He really loves his job

He’s a romantic at heart

very sweet and considerate

Loyal and devoted

Sees the best in people

Weaknesses

He falls in love way too easily

ignores flaws even when they’re concerning

can easily become an emotional mess

fears being rejected more than anything else (bro just love him he’s too sweet)

Shawn Flynn:

Strengths

He’ll tell someone off when they’ve done something wrong

believes in karma and justice

likes sewing while he’s talking/doing something else

really good at multitasking

Luck of the Irish

like he misses getting injured by mere inches

this makes him the perfect Go and Do Something Stupid companion with Wally

He’s really proud of his heritage and his work

Weaknesses

Shouts a lot

He can be too prideful and overconfident

isn’t into mercy or forgiveness 

can and will turn anything into a rivalry if its the last thing he does!!

the downside to being his friend is that its dangerous to hug him because he puts needles through his clothes so he can find them later

he says its built in protection

and Wally says ow

Thomas Connor:

Strengths

He’s been good with anything technical since he was little and only got better at it with age 

Honorable

Hardworking

Mature

Weaknesses

He believes in a one strike and you’re out ideal, leaving him to not trust some genuinely nice people (but he also doesn’t trust some questionable people so he sees it as justifiable)

Reserved, doesn’t attempt to get to know anyone

he can work too hard

Pessimistic

Allison Pendle:

Strengths

Boy can she give an inspirational speech

She’s very generous

Brave 

Levelheaded

She’s a lot stronger than she looks

you should hear her belt out a song

Weaknesses

prefers to fix other peoples problems rather than deal with her own

she’s really competitive 

she gets herself hurt a lot

can be a little too fierce

Grant Cohen:

Strengths

Math, he’s good at math

he was like yeah i can do numbers I’ll be an accountant! (bro im sorry u got Joey as a boss)

He’s a good singer (which seems random unless you know)

Weaknesses

A N X I E T Y

really cannot talk to anyone

his words get all jumbled up

if he had the internet he’d constantly be searching things like, how to explain to your boss that his decisions are putting the company in dept? how do you stand up to your boss?

has bad panic attacks

Bertrum Piedmont:

Strengths

He’s super confidant

Not afraid to get his hands dirty

Even though he almost always is dressed up nice

He makes sure he looks presentable

He acts like a dad to people he likes

Cultured

Very determined 

He can and will do anything out of spite and you can’t stop him because that will only give him more reason to

Weaknesses

Really prideful, gets offended over little things

is pretty arrogant as well

it’s really hard for him to change his mind after he’s made a decision 

refuses to lose, even if it’s really obvious that he has

he can be condescending 

doesn’t like or participate in humor, he’s always deadly serious

He can be over dramatic a lot

Lacie Benton:

Strengths

nothing seems to surprise her

calm and chill

a really good listener, the kind that you know can keep a secret

doesn’t take herself too seriously or anyone, (Bertrum finds her company to be one of his favorites after he figures that out)

shE WEARS WHATEVER SHE WANTS BECAUSE SHE DOESN’T CARE ABOUT YOUR OPINION SHE JUST LIKES WEARING PANTS

Weaknesses

stays quiet about important things, she ain’t no snitch, who cares if she witnessed someone stealing something

Super apathetic about life

kinda isolated (Norman says hi)

Lazy but only because she can do it really fast and well so you can wait for her

Linda Stein:

Strengths

It’s a good thing she’s so confidant else Henry would have just looked at this pretty lady and never introduced himself

shes like really good at gardening, talk about a green thumb!

Affectionate 

knows when to be gentle and when someone needs tough love

and shes good at distributing both

shes so brave

Eager and excited easily

super patient 

Understanding

Weaknesses

she can come off as too forward and a little too fast

can get a little frazzled

Forgetful (Henry helps with that)

she doesn’t want to invade anyone’s boundaries but doesn’t ask what they are so its a tug of war within her

Sorry this took so long, I wanted to really think about it and do it justice! :D

[thesightingofthedoodlewizard]

This is in the middle of an AU for Bendy I have in mind, but I might never get to this part and I just really wanna write this so there.

Summary

Sammy wandered into the music department, the old place he’d haunted for nearly 30 years. If Henry wouldn’t let him go outside yet he might as well go see if the place had collapsed. It hadn’t. Somehow either option would’ve made him grouchier.

He went up to the projectionist booth, flipped the switch, and started running down to play the right notes. He’d have to change that music combination since Henry knew it. Just because he was the reason Sammy was sane again, didn’t mean he’d want that-that…. Ugh. He’d figure out what to call Henry later. Right now he was too tired to think, and just wanted to go into his sanctuary.

Once that old door banged open Sammy strolled in to see the damage. Nothing much had changed. Thank goodness. But some bacon soup cans were missing. He’d have to restock if he wanted to hide in here for as long as he used to. Though Henry would probably pull him out if he tried to. The idiot. A week wasn’t that bad if you had everything you needed.

Sammy sat down at his desk, and put his head in his hands. The events of yesterday flooding back now that he had some quiet. Why did he and Susie end up doing that? Sure it was nice to just record some audio like old times, but why had she hidden that voice recorder in there too. Augh. He was such an idiot.

He still didn’t know why she’d wanted to sing that song either. She could’ve just played Alice like she always used to do. Though spending so long as a twisted version of Alice butchering other characters would put a bad taste in your mouth for that. But why hadn’t she picked one of the old songs from the cartoons? Instead, You Are My Sunshine!? Anything but that sappy slop. He sighed leaning back in his chair, remembering the sound of her voice as he played the banjo in accompaniment. Such a sweet melody. He’d been glad when she liked his twist to the old tune. Put a little bit of personality into it. It definitely needed it.

After the song was over, she’d pulled that recorder out of nowhere, and flipped it off. Why had he just sat there instead of grabbing it while it was in his reach? Another sigh. Then she’d played it back. At least it had sounded ok. Would’ve been better if he could’ve spent time actually fixing his part instead of messing around. He hated unfinished work. What had really surprised him was to hear his own voice mixing with hers. When had he started singing? Good gosh why had he done that. If that tape got out Wally really wouldn’t let go of that whole ‘magic’ thing now. And if others found it? Sammy might as well go back into that puddle forever.

She said he’d sang beautifully. It was nothing compared to her voice but at least it was some backup. He did wonder why she brought up his old tip of putting yourself in the song. Why had she said he’d done that perfectly? That woman was a mystery. Then why could he not stop thinking about it and just let it go? He should be mad that she has blackmail on him now. But he really just wanted to keep working on it, so he could see her eyes light up when the song came together.

What was going through his head?! There’d never been this much noise when he was by himself! It was so distracting! Maybe she’d been right about asking if he had something to tell her….

No, they were just business associates! Coworkers! Yeah, they might be chummier than any of the other people working there could ever get with him, but that didn’t mean anything. Just work associates, keep it all business. Just like old times. The old times when he’d tell her to sing it one or three more times even after a good take. That was just to make sure they had enough good takes to work with. The old times when he would use a bit more cello in because she always loved it. The old times when he’d watch her sway in the booth and not try to stop her, even if it’d ruin the take. What was the matter with him… he had it bad didn’t he. No crushing it down this time he supposed.

Maybe he should tell her? Oh goodness no. He couldn’t do that. He didn’t even know why she still was friendly to him. He’d been the one to tell her about Pendle. Why didn’t she hate him?! It would make everything easier. Then he wouldn’t have to tell her…. But maybe he didn’t? He’d written dozens of songs for a cartoon, and sure Jack Fain did the lyrics, but he’d been doing that long before they hired Fain. He could do it that way… at least get it out of his system. Yeah… that could work.

Maybe he could write something that wasn’t as jumbled as the race of thoughts in his head.

[gadgetgirl71]

Top Ten Tuesday 16 March 2021

Welcome to this weeks Top Ten Tuesday. Originally created by The Broke & The Bookish, which is now hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl. Each week it features a book or literary themed category. This weeks prompt is:

Books On My Spring 2021 TBR

Girl in the Walls (ARC)

Synopsis: Girl in the Walls is a story of overcoming grief, of unconventional friendships and learning that we shouldn’t always fear what we don’t understand. It is about understanding the difference between a house and a home and what it means to lose both. She doesn’t exist. She can’t exist. Elise knows every inch of the house. She knows which boards will creak. She knows where the gaps are in the walls. She knows which parts can take her in, hide her away. It’s home, after all. The home her parents made for her. And home is where you stay, no matter what. Eddie is a teenager now, almost a grown-up. He must no longer believe in the girl he sometimes sees our of the corner of his eye. He needs her to disappear. But when his fierce older brother senses her, too, they are faced with the question of how to get rid of someone they aren’t sure even exists. And, if they cast her out, what other threats might they invite into their home?

Pages: 323, Publication Date: 18 March 2021

The Best Things (ARC)

Synopsis: Warm, funny, life-affirming and true, The Best Things is the joyous debut novel from much-loved comedian, writer, actor and presenter Mel Giedroyc.

It’s the story of a family who lose everything, only to find themselves, and each other, along the way.

Sally and Frank Parker have it all.

Then one day, because of Frank, they don’t.

As the bailiffs move in and the money runs out, Sally realises that she and her children don’t have a clue about how to survive.

Or do they?

The Parkers are about to discover that the best things in life aren’t things at all.

Pages: 432, Publication Date: 1 April 2021

The Dictionary of Lost Words (ARC)

Synopsis: In 1901, the word ‘Bondmaid’ was discovered missing from the Oxford English Dictionary. This is the story of the girl who stole it.

Esme is born into a world of words. Motherless and irrepressibly curious, she spends her childhood in the ‘Scriptorium’, a garden shed in Oxford where her father and a team of dedicated lexicographers are collecting words for the very first Oxford English Dictionary. Esme’s place is beneath the sorting table, unseen and unheard. One day a slip of paper containing the word ‘bondmaid’ flutters to the floor. Esme rescues the slip and stashes it in an old wooden case that belongs to her friend, Lizzie, a young servant in the big house. Esme begins to collect other words from the Scriptorium that are misplaced, discarded or have been neglected by the dictionary men. They help her make sense of the world.

Over time, Esme realises that some words are considered more important than others, and that words and meanings relating to women’s experiences often go unrecorded. While she dedicates her life to the Oxford English Dictionary, secretly, she begins to collect words for another dictionary: The Dictionary of Lost Words.

Set when the women’s suffrage movement was at its height and the Great War loomed, The Dictionary of Lost Words reveals a lost narrative, hidden between the lines of a history written by men. It’s a delightful, lyrical and deeply thought-provoking celebration of words, and the power of language to shape the world and our experience of it.

Pages: 384, Publication Date: 8 April 2021

The Summer Job (ARC)

Synopsis: Have you ever imagined running away from your life?

Well Birdy Finch didn’t just imagine it. She did it. Which might’ve been an error. And the life she’s run into? Her best friend, Heather’s.

The only problem is, she hasn’t told Heather. Actually there are a few other problems…

Can Birdy carry off a summer at a luxury Scottish hotel pretending to be her best friend (who incidentally is a world-class wine expert)?

And can she stop herself from falling for the first man she’s ever actually liked (but who thinks she’s someone else)?

A snort-out-loud romcom for fans of The Flatshare.

Pages: 352, Publication Date: 15 April 2021

Cunning Woman (ARC)

Synopsis: Lee is a magnetic new voice in historical fiction and CUNNING WOMEN is sure to be loved by fans of The Essex Serpent and The Mercies.

Spring of 1620 in a Lancashire fishing community and the memory of the slaughter at Pendle is tight around the neck of Sarah Haworth. A birthmark reveals that Sarah, like her mother, is a witch. Torn between yearning for an ordinary life and desire to discover what dark power she might possess, Sarah’s one hope is that her young sister Annie will be spared this fate.

The Haworth family eke out a meagre existence in the old plague village adjoining a God-fearing community presided over by a seedy magistrate. A society built upon looking the other way, the villagers’ godliness is merely a veneer. But the Haworth women, with their salves and poultices, are judged the real threat to morality.

When Sarah meets lonely farmer’s son Daniel, she begins to dream of a better future. Daniel is in thrall to the wild girl with storms in her eyes, but their bond is tested when a zealous new magistrate vows to root out sins and sinners. In a frenzy of fear and fury, the community begins to turn on one another, and it’s not long before they direct their gaze towards the old plague village … and does Daniel trust that the power Sarah wields over him is truly love, or could it be mere sorcery?

Pages: 332, Publication Date: 22 April 2021

Lost Property (ARC)

Synopsis: Dot Watson has lost her way. Twelve years ago her life veered off course, and the guilt over what happened still haunts her. Before then she was living in Paris, forging an exciting career; now her time is spent visiting her mother’s care home, fielding interfering calls from her sister and working at the London Transport Lost Property office, diligently cataloguing items as misplaced as herself. But when elderly Mr Appleby arrives in search of his late wife’s purse, his grief stirs something in Dot. Determined to help, she sets off on a mission – one that could start to heal Dot’s own loss and let her find where she belongs once more…

The Perfect Life (ARC)

Synopsis: HAVE YOU EVER WANTED TO BE SOMEONE ELSE? Vanessa has always found it easy to pretend to be somebody different, somebody better. When things get tough in her real life, all she has to do is throw on some nicer clothes, adopt a new accent and she can escape. That’s how it started: looking round houses she couldn’t possibly afford. Harmless fun really. Until it wasn’t. Because a man who lived in one of those houses is dead. And everyone thinks Vanessa killed him…

Pages: 400, Publication Date: 5 August 2021

The Summer Villa (ARC)

Synopsis: Three women. One summer reunion. Secrets will be revealed…

Villa Dolce Vita, a rambling stone house on the Amalfi Coast, sits high above the Gulf of Naples amid dappled lemon groves and fragrant, tumbling bougainvillea. Kim, Colette and Annie all came to the villa in need of escape and in the process forged an unlikely friendship.

Now, years later, Kim has transformed the crumbling house into a luxury retreat and has invited her friends back for the summer to celebrate.

But as friendships are rekindled under the Italian sun, secrets buried in the past will come to light, and not everyone is happy that the three friends are reuniting… Each woman will have things to face up to if they are all to find true happiness and fully embrace the sweet life.

Pages: 384, Publication Date: 8 August 2019

Trusting Taylor (Silverstone #2)

Synopsis: Former military man turned government assassin Kellan “Eagle” Trowbridge isn’t looking for love. He’d rather keep his head down at his cover job as an employee of Silverstone Towing. That all changes, however, when he meets Taylor Cardin.

Beautiful, smart, and witty Taylor instantly falls for the mysterious tow truck driver, who comforts her both in the aftermath of the car crash she sees firsthand and when the police dismiss her as a credible witness because of her prosopagnosia, or face blindness. Eagle, on the other hand, can remember every person he’s ever met—and the two counterparts forge an immediate connection. But someone else is just as intrigued by Taylor’s unique condition as Eagle is…and his intentions are downright deadly.

Soon, Eagle and Taylor are too caught up in each other to see the danger that’s approaching. But as time runs out, they’ll discover their love isn’t the only thing fighting to survive.

Pages: 278, Publication Date: 2 March 2021

Ransom (Laurel Springs Emergency Response Team)

Synopsis: A new series from the author of the Moonshine Task Force Series! Laurel Springs, AL is about to be hotter than a mid-August thunderstorm. When the Moonshine Task Force is absorbed into a new entity, Laurel Springs Emergency Response Team (LSERT) new faces come to town, new love is born, old love is found again, and there’s a plethora of drama and romance happening all over the tri-county area. LSERT puts police, firefighters, nurses, doctors, K-9 handlers, and EMT’s all in harm’s way as they work to keep the area safe from any threat. Emotions run high, passions ignite. Come with me, back to Laurel Springs, in what’s sure to be a wild ride! Ransom Thompson For years I’ve wanted two things – to be a member of the Moonshine Task Force and to be the man Stella Kepler can’t live without. One out of two isn’t bad, or so I tell myself. Being the only K-9 handler for The MTF presents its own share of obstacles, but me and Rambo? We make it work. Life is status quo, until I’m called in to help with what appears to be a hostage situation and Stella is right in the middle of it. This is my one chance, and I’m not going to blow it. Stella Kepler When I’m stuck in an examination room holding a hurt woman and a man with a gun, I do the only thing I can. I sneak out, call 911 and hope help comes quickly. It does. In the form of Ransom Thompson. He and I have known each other since we were babies. Our mother’s are friends, our dad’s work together, and we’ve always been friends. Only, the last few months I’ve started to notice things. How mature he is, how alpha he can be, the chiseled six-pack, and the abundance of ink spreading across his body. When I offer to cook him dinner for saving me, neither one of us know how that one moment will change the course of the rest of our lives.

Pages: 227, Publication Date: 5 January 2019

Until next week.

[adobe-outdesign]

The Big Grand DCTL Review/Critique

In my previous liveblog I said that I’d do an overall review/rating kind of thing to summarize my thoughts on the book, so here you go.

No Spoilers: So I’ll preface by saying the book isn’t bad. It has it’s... moments, but it’s pretty enjoyable overall. The FNAF books, for example, were fun to read but they were also a hot fucking mess. This is not a hot fucking mess  - it has its flaws but it’s pretty decent over all.

Spoilers below the cut:

The Canon-ness of the Book

I would like to say first off that I really don’t think this book is meant to be 100% canon - not to say it isn’t canon, but I don’t think it’s supposed to lie up with the games perfectly.  It was approved of by Kindlybeast, but they didn’t write it - Adrienne Kress did, they just helped to develop it.

To explain better: There are a lot of contradictions in this book with the main lore. Some are more minor and could potentially be waved away, but others are extremely glaring. Here’s a short list of the ones that come to mind:

In the book, the Ink Machine is secret and almost no one knows about it. In the game everyone knows and actively complains about the machine on a daily basis. In the Employee Handbook, there’s even a memo from Joey proudly introducing the Machine to everyone.

The book claims you put ink into the Machine and it changes it in some way (effectively running on ink). In the game, it seems to produce ink itself - Joey’s memo kind of indicates this, as does the blueprints, and Wally’s “who really needs that much ink anyway” makes less sense if they’re putting ink into the machine rather than it making the ink.

Plus on Thomas’ board he has a list of the gallons of ink produced each day, with the highest amount written with exclamation points - if it ran on ink this doesn't make sense, as to get 423 gallons of ink he would’ve had to have put 423 gallons of ink into the thing to begin with.

Sammy is wildly OOC in this, as he’s basically a feral asshole throughout the thing, while in canon his merch description calls him a “decent person” and he generally seems agreeable most of the time, except for when he’s annoyed. The book even claims he doesn’t refer to women by their last names, while Susie’s tape tells us the exact opposite (as according to her he referred to Allison as “Miss Allison Pendle”).

Bertrum is also OOC in this - in canon, he’s extremely egotistical and hates Joey for multiple reasons. In the book, they’re buddies (even hugging each other) and Bertrum seems more humble. He doesn’t even correct Joey on calling him “Bertie”, when he had an entire tape about how much he dislikes being called that in the game.

The timeline for this part is also very wrong - it’s treated as if they just met (which could explain why Bertrum doesn’t dislike him yet)... but Bendyland was in progress for years before the studio went to hell, and he even has his BATDR tape (wherein he’s actively disliking Joey) dated years before this book takes place.

This also makes it kind of impossible for him to be the octopus ride like in canon, because he literally just joined the studio when Joey started killing people (and keep in mind that designing and building a ride like that would have taken at least a year or two).

The ink is, for some reason, somewhat alive, able to move around on it’s own and possess people. This was never indicated in the game, ever.

Buddy wakes up as Boris. In the game, stuff like Grant’s tape indicate the ink creatures wake up and then transform (the files even have an unused transformation tape from Wally, who’s likely our Boris). You can kind of headcanon around this one if you try though.

At the end, Norman and a few background characters die. Joey says he didn’t use the machine on them because they had been infected by the ink for too long and didn’t have souls any more. This means that, according to the book, The Projectionist cannot exist (as Norman wouldn’t have had a soul to use and Joey outright says he couldn’t/didn’t use the machine on them in the first place).

Some of these are pretty minor, but some of them are extremely glaring and even casual gamers would pick up on this stuff.

Basically, we have two options: Either Kindlybeast doesn’t know their own story/characters too well, or they didn’t require this to line up perfectly with the games. Except the first option doesn’t make sense, because they’ve recently published stuff that contradicts what’s said in this book in favor of matching the actual lore from the games, proving they do know their own story.

For ampel, Bertrum’s BATDR tape, which lines up with the game’s lore and corrects the mistakes in DCTL, was released in March - long after this book was in production. The thing about the Ink Machine being secret was also disproved in the recently-released Handbook, which instead says they employees do know about the Machine, just like they do in the game. So Kindlybeast do know these things don’t line up with canon.

I think basically they approached Adrienne and were like “hey, can you write a prequel novel based on our game?” and while they offered her some guidance, she mostly just did her own thing based off of it (she even said it felt like working on fanfiction while writing it) and Kindlybeast liked it and published it. It’s an adaptation of the game and its lore, done by a new person - things tend to change in adaptations. I don’t think they needed or cared if it lined up like puzzle pieces, they just wanted a good story, which they got. It is canon... but it’s also not, if that makes sense.

So for our intents and purposes I’d consider this semi-canon - take what you can as canon (which is most of it, as the most major contradictions also tend to be the shortest scenes) and ignore the stuff that doesn’t line up with canon, unless otherwise stated by Kindlybeast or confirmed in BATDR.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Overall, I’d say this book is about 70% good and 30% bad. When it is good, it is really, really damn good - but when it’s bad it leaves an awful taste in your mouth that’s hard to get rid of.

The Good:

Like... the majority of the book, really

Buddy and Dot are wonderful characters with strong personalities. They’re super likeable, bring some much-needed heart into things, and have great chemistry.

While some of the aforementioned characters are majorly OOC, the ones that are in-character (Joey and Norman are good examples) are amazing - every scene with them is gold and the book really fleshes out their personalities.

Some of the new lore tidbits are great, and help explain some things in the game (like how Lost Ones are created) or are just interesting (like Sammy drinking the ink and the idea of the ink being able to infect people, which sounds like something that could have directly come from the games).

The book goes into way more depth about what being a cartoon/ink creature is like, which is some much-needed exposition and is extremely interesting.

It also has a ton of heart and good intentions. I was worried about it being overly dark, but if anything it has far more sweet moments than depressing ones.

The Bad:

The contradictions I mentioned above. Some of them are easy enough to ignore, but some are incredibly jarring and take you out of the story (and make it impossible to take it as 100% canon without breaking the space-time continuum).

I kind of mentioned it above, but the stuff with the ink being alive and possessing people comes right the fuck out of nowhere, has nothing to do with the game lore, is completely tonally dissonant to BATIM as a whole, and literally has nothing to do with the plot of the book, like, at all. It feels like a few pages from a Venom novel got mixed in with the early draft and no one remembered to remove them before publication.

The racist shit - it’s only like 1% of the book, but when that 1% of the book ruins a really good character it’s a pretty big deal.

A random NPC dies for no reason and this death has more relevance to the plot than Norman, who dies off-screen.

Also consider: They could’ve found Norman first, Buddy runs off to get back to his house, Norman follows and gets killed via neck snap. Fixes both problems at once.

There’s very little tension during the horror moments because we already know Buddy will die but not until the end and that Dot will live.

The Ink Demon acts more like an xenomorph than the Ink Demon in this - his behavior is bizarre and it feels pretty generically horror movie monster-ish compared to how he acts in the game.

The Ugly:

The B-plot with Buddy’s grandfather should have been cut. I know that sounds harsh, but really think about it: what effect did it have on the plot? It only crosses with the A-plot twice, and both times nothing came out of it. It gives Buddy a chance to learn how to draw and he goes through some character development, but I find it hard to believe that couldn’t have been accomplished by expanding the A-plot.

The main problem is that A) this is a BATIM novel so we want to see the studio, not Buddy’s relatives at home, and B) it makes it kind of slow towards the middle, wherein the stuff with the studio barely progresses while we keep cutting back to the B-plot.

I didn’t dislike reading it or anything, but it makes the plot flabby, and slicing it out would’ve given us much more time in the studio and the characters we like rather than trying to juggle two plots at once, effectively streamlining it and making for a more cohesive story.

The ending (like the last 5 chapters) is a hot mess in multiple and varying ways:

Sammy shows up and... gets knocked out by a projector. Which is funny, but it amounts to nothing plot-wise and makes Sammy’s whole appearance kind of pointless

Killing off a bunch of characters, one of which was a main character, off-screen

The weird Venom shit that has nothing to do with the plot of the books or the games and amounts to nothing

Bendy acting fairly OOC, especially with how he goes about killing people 

Buddy grabs the idiot ball bard by trying to drown a creature made of ink in ink, then standing right near the spot so he can be grabbed and killed

Not only does the “can’t use them because they had been infected for too long and no longer had souls” thing not only raises the aforementioned plot hole with the Projectionist, but it raises a plot hole in the book itself: When the other are exposed to the ink they die, but when Sammy drinks the stuff he turns into a Lost One. Which one is it?

Keep in mind that that was more bullet points in those 30-some pages than I have for the entire rest of the book

There are only like... two actual horror scenes in the book, and one of those is the climax. While it makes sense that too much couldn’t have happened before the ending, it feels like there could have been more than that.

Not all of the characters from the games appear. I know it’s a tall ask but it’s also easy to see how they could have been integrated, and some of them could have easily taken the roles that were given to NPCs instead.

I feel like this book would be more engaging as a non-fan, as the plot tends to progress like a mystery, with you learning a bit more about what’s happening with every scene in the studio... except as a fan you already know what’s happening, so there’s little to keep you engaged until you get into that nice juicy lore at the end.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s lots of little details that tell us new info and the character interactions are great, but a lot of the scenes are just like “Surprise, Sammy is crazy!” and it’s like thanks, we already knew that. The mystery is supposed to build and move the plot forward, but there’s effectively no mystery.

Overall Rating

I’m worried this review is going to come across as overly negative, as it’s much easier to critique what’s wrong than it is to say “this part was good!” like 200 times. But all of the stuff I was talking about that’s an issue? That’s like... 30% of the book, maybe less. Some of the most problematic scenes you could literally remove and loose nothing plot-wise (which is frustrating but you know). The bulk of the book is very good, the lore stuff when handled correctly is amazing and it even provides some extra answers that we didn’t have before, and the characters are great.

Overall, I’d give the book a solid... 7/10, I think. Not perfect, but pretty damn decent all around. If you’re a fan, I’d highly recommend picking up a copy if you haven't already.

[twistedhaloau]

Twisted halo deepdive #3: Cloud 9 studios

Setting

Layout

The studio is nothing like it once was, in a place that was once bustling with busy animators, infighting voice actresses, overworked musicians, and corporate espionage there is now only the dark and quiet embrace of the ink. The studio is slowly falling apart however has now become more of a cursed location rather than a tangible place within our real world. In fact it exists within yet outside of our dimension due to the tampering and influence of the Ink machine dwelling within it.

As mentioned above the studio is falling apart, the walls are leaking, ink is tucked away behind every wall almost always ready to burst through the boards and planks, hallways have been flooded with viscous ink and artificial light is hard to come by. However oddly enough even without electricity the artificial lights run and the walls and planks will always repair themselves much like a wounded body will eventually scab and heal. The place is an eldritch location, a genus loci if you would and it is almost incomprehensible. It contains hallways that twist into impossible architecture, stairways that lead to nowhere, impossibly large oceans of ink and expansive caverns, and an overall structure that is continuously shifting and changing which aids in eating away at the sanity of those who dwell within it. 

Within the studio residents from the ‘real world’ will eventually lose their comprehension of time and space, there are barely any working clocks down in the studio and after a while residents begin to lose track of how many days and nights they have spent within the accursed place. Even if they find a working clock time works very differently in the studio in that it speeds up and slows down in an unpredictable pattern that is extremely disorienting to residents. 

The studio is constantly building upon itself and for this reason you can never truly map out the studio, it is making additions every minute and if you were to reach the edge of the studio you would see planks of wood slowly forming more spaces for you to explore. The studio has grown so massive that it could be considered a country or small world in of itself.

History

Founded in the years just after the Great War, Drew Stein Studios was the creation of two young men with a pencil and a dream, Joey Drew and Henry Stein. In those early years, the studio was hardly known, an old run down office building indistinguishable from the hundreds around it in the outskirts of the city, and in a like fashion, the short animations the duo produced barely scraped the American Zeitgeist of the time. Every now and again a short little animated ad for floor cleaner, or some odd soda, just enough to keep the lights on, and not much more.

That is until the duo captured lightning in a bottle, with the creation of the Bendy cartoons. With the people’s eyes on them, for good or for ill, the duo soon found themselves with a team beneath them. That small team eventually expanded further, to in-house musicians, voice actors, editors and revisionists, the whole nine yards. The studio was no longer surviving, but thriving. 

It thrived, at least, until the book was thrown at them. The Good Book. 

Despite the family friendly antics of the shows seminal character, those of the cloth felt it’s portrayal of one of hells own was bordering on an outright endorsement of satanism. How could a demon, dancing or otherwise, have a kind heart? It was downright unchristian.

They say lightning never strikes twice; and if you asked them, it wouldn’t be clear who caught it this time, but the creation of Alice Angel was not only the solution to their problems with the church, but elevated their ratings to new heights. Her high marketability and decrying of the flapper lifestyle made her an instant favorite within the households of Americans across the nation. Alice soon overshadowed her demonic counterpart, who had taken a role closer to antagonist to the lovely angel, his mischievous streak now no longer being all in good fun. 

With the rapid success and acceptance of their new poster girl, the studio re-branded to Cloud 9 Studios, and production of Alice Episodes kicked into full swing. The Angel herself had been voiceless up until this point- Joey and Henry never agreeing on an actress that could fill her roll- until one miss Susie Campbell, a bright, kind, exuberant girl with the chords to match, chipped in hers. The Angel now had a voice to call her own, and the people fell in love with her all over again. 

But the golden age wouldn't last forever. The economic crash soon to come would put great strain on the studio. They never failed to put out an episode, but everyone felt the scarcity. Tensions grew between the original duo, who now regularly squabbled over matters of business and contributions to the studio’s flagship product. Joey was well known to harass his employees, and though Henry kept his partner in check, the magic of the studio slowly began to bleed out. Even so, not one soul left, whether through loyalty, fear of economic ruin, or fear of Joey's wrath. 

That was, until the second Great War called the young men of America to a foreign shore. The studio hemorrhaged half its work force throughout those months, and had no choice but to replace its staff with a newly emboldened mass of female workers, of which most notably was Allison Pendle. Another voice actress, who’s station was not so lofty as the Lonely Angel herself, but was nonetheless one she took pride in. 

But even this didn't seem to put the studio right again. 

Joey and Henry, over irreconcilable differences, had officially split. Joey had changed. The man was always a notorious womanizer, a common trait for the time, but he went beyond that in the absence of his friend. The quality of the animation dipped in this interim, and while the show still remained popular, it was definitely on the decline. And with it's fall came the rise of Joey’s true colors. 

Abuse, harassment, degradement. It was as if Joey had made it his personal goal to make everyone as miserable as possible. The details of what the employees suffered at the hands of their boss are not well known, but what is, is that poor Susie received the worst of it. So, one day, with a heavy heart, she left her station, and the angel behind. 

With that, the studio’s fate was sealed. The show became lifeless, a husk of its former self. The last trace of heart and soul bled out, and nothing remained to take its place. When ratings dropped, the studio scrambled to squeeze as much money out as possible. Blatant product placement, soulless shilling, the whole nine yards. But it was too late. At least, so it seemed.

Those men from the church had the right of it. Joey had dabbled in the occult, and believed he had finally found a solution. This was his creation, his great work. He could not, would not let the show, the studio that he built with his own two hands go quietly into the night. The characters lacked heart? They lacked soul? Well, what if they were given one? Not one that mattered, oh no, certainly not his. A janitor, a messenger. Someone who wouldn’t be missed. Like peeling away layers of skin, Joey would tear out the workers soul, and feed it into his ink. 

Cloud 9 Studios exploded into popularity once again. The characters seemed livelier than ever, as if they could almost jump off the screen and shake your hand. And while the public was slow to accept her, Allison Pendle was a serviceable replacement for the darling dancing angel. Joey Drew had done it again. 

And yet still it wasn’t to last. His miracle ink soon ran dry, and the characters diminished once again. One life was not enough. Two lives and the cartoon lasted a week. Ten lives and it lasted two. The human soul has diminishing returns, and there was only so much blood he could spill in a day. What could he be missing? Maybe they were all into something. He replaced the soul, in every sense, but these coffin stuffers were the dregs of the studio. They lacked heart. Real love for the show, for the characters. For THE character. 

When he called upon Allison, she answered. Perhaps it was in fear of angering her taskmaster, perhaps a promise slipped off a forked tongue. Whatever the case, Allison made for fine Ink. The weeks passed by, and months after that. With her, the show never lost its luster. Sure there was talk when the angel fell silent, but that was the way of things in the business. The show was at last truly saved. No more lives need be taken. 

But… what of the studio? Sure, it was lucrative beyond measure… but Joey was an old man. Not terrible so, but age wore heavy on his brow. Disease had taken root, and grew within him as an inverse tree. What would become of the studio when he was gone? He built it with his own hands, with his dream and his dream alone. Who would take over when he’s gone? Who could carry on his legacy? Would he be forgotten, his studio turned to rot? No one could stand to the challenge, this he knew. No one was an equal to Joey Drew. In that moment, as he lamented the failure of his cells, he was struck with inspiration. He could breathe life into the pages, he could transfer soul into the inert. His ink had the power to make living that which never lived. What could it do to a person? 

The first experiments were failures, but not without promise. The inken blobs little more than insults in the vague shape of man. But, they did not seem to die. Stomp them, slash them, hack them apart. They would simply retreat into the ink. There was still something missing. The conversion was imperfect, the soul was diminished in the transfer, there was little to sustain the creature spawned. Quantity over Quality was the simple answer to a simple question. 

The machine was the complicated answer. A terrible engine meant to grind the sediment of one's being, with an equally terrible efficiency. Constructed with the help of a dubious contractor, one by one employees were fed into its pipes. Out of fear they willingly, and unknowingly, walked into the slaughter. The creatures that took shape finally had form, a form that delighted Joey. Alice Angel, his greatest success. They were fractured, of course, broken by the trauma of splintering, of a hundred souls swimming in piecemeal. But Joey would be different. Joey would be master of the well. He would rise in the ink. 

Those employees that remained were gathered into the chamber of the machine, and, as the black Ichor spilled forth, each and every one drowned in the ink, their essence siphoned down, deep into the terminus, where Joey sat upon his throne. Joey had defeated death, with not but a pencil, with not but a dream. Or so he believed, as his act of mass murder bore sweet fruit. 

Only the miscalculation of a single handyman, one pipe that could not bear the strain of a thousand lives, burst beneath the pressure. The process was incomplete. Human souls and ink spilled out across the hardwood floor. 

As Joey, in ink clad, was overcome by the flood, one soul saw out through the chasm of screams. One soul saw him weather the viscous current. He was imperfect, and yet the ink still bent and flowed to his will. What could a perfect being accomplish?

[free-pigeon-bread]

Going through a batim phase, here are some character head canons/bios.

Joey Drew:

- Started the company in the 20s when everything was good and easy and he did it with no idea of how to run a company

- thinks he's rich but he lives in a one bedroom apartment eating cold mac and cheese.

- has a really deluded perception of himself, he sees himself as a swanky bachelor with his own company but he's just broke guy that has bouts of psychosis

Sammy Lawrence:

-grew up on a farm so he is strong. While at the farm he played the fiddle but dreamed big and ventured to the big city of New York, because of his belief in dreaming big he made friends with Joey, who quickly employed him making him one of the older employees of the studio.

- He does have a particular fondness of things that remind him of home, like the banjo which his father played and Jack, who also grew up on a farm but came to the city as a teen ager for work.

- Gets to work early to use the coffee machine while no one else is there, unfortunately (for Sammy) this means he has to interact with Wally Frank's when he finishes his shift the day before to get the keys.

Jack Fain:

- A country boy, raised on a much smaller farm than Sammys. He was the youngest child growing up and his parents were very protective of him growing up so he didn't do that much manual labour and had a pretty breezey child hood.

- His sister would play tunes on the piano and Jack would like to make parodies of the songs she sang. She was very complimentary about them and encouraged him to do it for a living.

- His sister died of small pox before she'd become the famous pianist she wanted to be so Jack felt like it was his job to become a lyricist. So he snatched up the opertunity to write for the bendy cartoons.

Henry Stein:

- Has one of the two and a half brain cells that float around the studio, the other belongs to Lacie Benton and the half is fought over by Grant and Wally.

- Talks to inanimate objects while on the job, sometimes rehearsing conversations he plans to have with other people because he's a bit of a perfectionist.

- Very respectful, refuses to be unnecessaryily mean to other people and does his best to be polite

-joined the company because he had the skills and Joey was an old friend

Susie Campbell:

- Originally from a well to do family in Rhode Island, she took professional singing lessons as a kid and prides herself on her voice. Comparing it to the likes of Helen Kane.

- Snatched the role of Alice Angel as she saw it as her way to make it properly big and get invited to massive parties and get gifts of chunky diamond jewelry.

-she lives in a better part of New York which is paid for by her family. She travels for about an hour each day to get to the studio and arrives 'fashionably late' most days.

Allison Pendle:

- Another farm kid. She's the oldest of her siblings and is the mum friend in any friend group. Yet she always looks the youngest.

- Lives with two of her friends in a progressive part of town. Her friend , Lottie helped her get the job after hearing her sing in the shower.

- Feels a bit out of place being one of the few people at the studio that's actually sane.

Wally Franks:

- A teen that's far to optimistic to be living in a time period to be known as the great depression, treats every cent he earns like its a million dollars. Unfortunately he wouldn't treat riches very well and as such he only keep enough to pay for food and pay rent, he's even missed a couple of rent dates too.

- has always lived in the city, the more dangerous end mind you. He had three old siblings growing up and they were all dreamers, once they hit eighteen they moved out to make a fortune. Wally did the same when he moved over to the studios side of town. He hasnt heard from any of his sibling since.

- He REALLY wants a dog but he knows he can't afford one but he's befriend every stray hound on the block and even earns a couple extra dollars by walking some better off people's dogs.

- Joined the studio expecting riches and fame, like all those other animations studios but instead hes gotten stuck scrubbing the floors.

Thomas Connor:

- Posably hasn't slept in a week, probably hasn't slept for a month. He is determined not to fall behind in his work because that would mean trouble from GENT and his... Employer

- Is in love with Miss Pendle, kind hearted with good intentions. Likes to think about starting an American dream type of living situation with her.

- likes to act all gruff and mean around Wally but it's only to toughen him up, inside Thomas sees him as an unofficial son. He is determined to see Wally with an actual job one day.

-only works there because GENT makes him do it.

Lacie Benton:

- Her grandfather was an engineer, her father was an engineer but her mother only had one child and it was a girl but the family legacy refused to change tradition.

-  Towards the end of her fathers life and started blue prints for house service robots. He died before he could make them and Lacie is doing her best make the bendy-matronics as close to the blue prints as she could muster.

- She is also a GENT imployee but likes it at the studio because people are so worried about themselves that they leave her alone.

Bertrum Piedmont:

- Was alive in the victorian period and acts as such. He uses flamboiant words and would probably faint if he ever saw a flapper, let alone talked to one. Very opinionated too, anti-communist anti-nazi anti-KKK. Which is all pretty understandable.

- Comes from old money, owns a GIANT mansion on the other side of town. Met Joey at an up and coming business man party and was somehow tricked into working for him.

- No one may call him Bertie. Ever.

Shawn Flynn:

- Irish if you hadn't guessed it. Very prepared to belt out the Irish national anthem if need be or just drunkenly shout in your face.

- He drinks and fucks and fights and Lord help anyone who makes a deal to arm wrestle. He actually lives in the tavern, rents a room every night and if he doesn't have enough he'll sleep out back.

- sometimes his drinking problems cause problems at work, which can range from hungover to painting the bendy dolls crooked to outright fighting and swearing in the break room.

Grant Cohen:

- Tried, depressed and really really stressed.

- Met Joey at the bar the night he'd been sacked from his old place and joey lept at the change of easy hire.

- Is a very good accountant but the job he's got is just mad, it's the ultimate loss making company. He very often has to turn to drinking to calm down.

Norman Polk:

- Likes his alone time and can get very irritated if he has to do anything social for a long period of time. In contrast to this he does like people watching.

- he also rarely speaks to other people but of he does it's very down to earth and honest, he doest really care what you think about him or what you say to him.

- No one knows how he joined the company, not even Joey. One day he was just there, doing his job, really well.

My ask box is totally open and I'm bored so you'll likely get quick answers!

[inkylegacy]

Joey Drew Studios, 1942

Anybody fancy a historically accurate fic about what my version of Joey Drew thinks about racism and stuff like that?

Many thanks and much love to the super smart @ichaisme​ who helped me with all the details because I don’t know that much about american history (well, now I do).

This is specifically set during the times of japanese internment.

(au masterpost)

"Mr. Drew?"

 "Yes, to what do I owe the pleasure officers?" 

"We are searching for one of your employees, a certain Ichiro Morita. Have you seen him?" 

"Ichiro Morita?" The tall man seemed completely disconcerned, tapping his chin in thought. "Morita, Morita..." 

"Mr. Drew, we don't have all day. An elderly japanese man, as far as we know the only one working here." 

"Ah! Now I remember! You'll have to excuse me, I run a quite big studio here, I cannot possibly remember every single one of my workers." He attempted an easy smile, though it quickly fell at the dark glares the cops gave him. "One of our musicians, though lately he has been making some trouble. He hasn't come into work for nearly two weeks, I was just on my way to the head of our music department to get Mr. Morita fired for this. Anything else you'd like to kno-"

A short shuffle, a flurry of motion, then everything froze. One of the two cops had grabbed Mr. Drew by the collar of his suit, standing on his tiptoes in order to glare up at the tall man. "If we find out you lied to us, Mr. Drew..."

"Whyever would I do that? You really think I would help the japanese, in times like these?" Joey Drew was completely unfazed by the threat, barely even pulled forward by the pull of the other.

"We've heard about the likes of your.. company. Hiring blacks, jews, asians. Being a bit of a sympathizer, aren't we?"

"An opportunist, more likely." Straightening up to his full height and forcing the cop to let go of him, he made a sweeping gesture to the halls around them. "These desperate people are the cheapest workers one can get! I don't have to give them many breaks, can make them do longer hours, and all for a meager little pay! This is not sympathy, this is business. This is how it is done in our country! So how about you get back to collecting that runaway japanese and I focus on running a successful company, hm?"

A beat of silence, two sets of eyes glaring up at one. "Alright... Hopefully we won't have to see you around all too soon again, Mr. Drew. And if that japanese man does show up here..." the one who had not spoken much until now conceded, motioning for his colleague to leave.

"I will of course do my duty as an upstanding american citizen and immediately report him. Have a good day, officers."

"To you too, Mr. Drew."

He did not move until the studio's door fell shut behind their uniformed backs, and even then only untensed a minimal bit. Eyes focused on the exit, until approaching footsteps caught his attention instead.

"Ah! Mr. Drew! I didn't expect to see you here, if you'll excuse me-" The short, nervous woman tries to turn on her heels and return the way she came, hoping she had not disturbed her boss.

"..Miss Pendle, wait." She instantly froze, and slowly turned back around.

"Y-yes? What is it, sir?" Wary eyes watched Joey walk a little closer to her. 

"You are... korean, right?" 

"...Yes. Why?"

He glances at her suddenly tense posture, squared shoulders. Another step closer, voice dropping into a whisper. "Times are harsh, Miss Pendle. Especially for people like you." 

"With all due respect, Mr. Drew, I'm more than aware of this."

"I did not expect anything else. But Miss Pendle... If anybody ever gives you trouble here in the studio, I want you to instantly report it to me. And if things get even worse out there, come to me as well. This studio is a big place, with many twisting and winding hallways. Quite hard to find people in here that do not want to be found."

Her mouth opened and closed a few times, incredulous. "So you're saying... Morita-san-"

"I'm not saying anything, of course. But nobody knows this studio better than I do, especially not anybody from outside."

Allison searched his face, only slowly nodding after she apparently found what she had looked for. "Okay. I'll keep it in mind, Mr. Drew. Now then, I believe Mr. Lawrence is waiting for me in the music department.."

"Of course, of course. Have a good day, Miss Pendle!" Unlike with the policemen, this time his voice held almost a hint of warmth in it, a sliver of genuinity.

"You too, Mr. Drew." They parted ways, Allison continuing down the hallway to the music department, and Joey... after one last glance at the front door, he made his way to the elevator, heading much deeper down into the studio. He should probably pay the safehouse a little visit, inform his guest about the earlier unpleasant encounter.

[magaprima]

Part 3 Episode 4

So snake lady Harvey had the hots for, slept with his Dad and stayed overnight. Obviously to get close to Harvey, but still....eep. And she’s in his Mum’s freaking dressing gown

‘it’s just an excuse to have drink wine and have a picnic’. And what is wrong with that Sabrina???

Zelda licking the bowl of Hilda’s baking. Love it

Mary is looking through magic books???? And tries to hide it. But omg the mother of the child Lilith returned has turned up to thank Mary and Mary is just getting more confused as the woman says ‘Lucy says you found her in an ice cream freezer and then you returned her to me’. I think Mary thinks she’s having blackouts. Mary, come here, let me hug you because you’re so fucking confused, but at least Lilith is giving you credit for good things not bad ones. 

Talking about the Pendle Coven suffering power loss in 1612 for offending the Dark Lord. And says that’s why they were all killed by Witch Hunters as they were defenceless.

Zelda ‘he’s a sore loser. he’s cutting us off like the petulant brat he is’ exactly right. Zelda is so not afraif when confronting Lucifer and I love it. The woman fears no one. And now Lucifer is dobbing Sabrina in it. Although I love Zelda’s reply 

‘What do you mean Lilith’s not Queen of Hell? Of course she is’. I wish it were so Aunty Zee, I wish it were so

Aunt Zelda does not give a shit Sabrina is Queen of Hell, she is still her Aunt and she’s going to drag her for this shit. She doesn’t take Sabrina saying her usual bull about doing things to save people or because it’s right. ‘You did it because you wanted to. You did it because you like power’. Yep, right on the money.

Ambrose not knowing what he’s going to wear to go to hell. Oh Ambrose, darling. He is geeking out in hell so much and even Lilith seems mildly amused

Sabrina thinking hell’s power comes from a battery and Lilith being like ‘no they come from Lucifer, because he’s an angel you eejit’ And the way she literally snorts with laughter when Sabrina suggests finding another angel. 

Zelda feeling abandoned and left behind by her family because Ambrose wants to travel, Hilda is getting married and Sabrina is Queen of Hell

Okay so we’re making a power beer keg out of an angel. I can get on board with that. Along with Dorian calling it ‘the vintage’. And then Sabrina has found out Nick’s new kink is torture. Apparently Lilith broke him to the point of making it enjoyable. Oops? 

More bloody music. We get lyrics on screen? And I’m skipping through it for now. Aha carnival people have appeared. fuck off. They’re celebrating Ostara so that means this is around March 21st. But why are they demonising this holiday as something unknown to the coven despite the fact Ostara is celebrated by many witches? Myself included?

Elspeth is also my fave now because she openly said ‘should we say a prayer of thanks to Lilth first?’ and the carnival people are not impressed by this. but they obviously know who Lilith is. 

Nick apparently reeks of sex. The snake woman isn’t wrong

Zelda calling the carnivals ‘drifters’ made me laugh out loud. She’s an expert at throwing shade it would seem

Hilda is talking to the woman who read Mary’s palm, and she tells Hilda that Hilda is a weaver. Weaver is an ancient term for spider. As the first spider was a woman who weaved...there’s a whole mythology which I won’t get into here. But I have heard that Hilda gets turned into a spider. And I think it’s because this woman does not like that Hilda keeps spiders as pets ‘they are not happy. How can you possibly know what a spider feels?’

OMG THE FORTUNE TELLER IS CIRCE SHE’S FUCKING CIRCE. WE HAVE CIRCE, PAN, MEDUSA, PUCK AYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY MY PAGAN HEART CAN’T COPE. But ahem circe just put a spell on Hilda witthout her realising. 

And Circe is calling the Church of Night ‘heathens. They enslave animals. Keep them as pets’. The boss corrects her and says no they’re familiars, they’re satanic witches. I think that might be why he was all ‘you pray to Lilith and not your dark lord’. Well, really they should be doing yes. 

So apparently Pagan Witches and Satanic Witches are different breeds, and Pagan Witches died out when Satanic Witches ascended, which makes sense, because the old gods beliefs faded as abrahamic religions took over. But this means my theory was right in that there were witches and powers before Satan. Which means I’m probably right in that Lilith’s power comes from somewhere else too and that’s why hers don’t fade. And my theory that Lilith was the first CREATED woman, not the first woman, because humans were already to worship the Old Gods before Lilith was even in existence.

I’m kinda siding with the pagan witches here, because Nick kills the snake that bit Dorcas, and Medusa woman says ‘We are guests in this place. The snake lives here’ and this is ALWAYS my argument

Roz is freezing and shaking, but now after Harvey did some witch hunting, I’m thinking she’s being turned to stone by Medusa

Eep Nick has a wee temper. ‘I detest teen angst’: I agree Zelda, I agree

‘I was a plaything for Lilith’. Is it wrong that I laughed?

Nick telling Sabrina she wasn’t worth it. Bloody teen angst with a side of hell.

Agatha trapped by Pan, Dorcas attacked by Medusa....god it’s like a slasher with a pagan edge. And Lucifer giving Nick drugs. Red mercury for a rush apparently

What’s weird is despite saying they’re Pagan Witches, this moon bath in the hare moon is all Pagan Witch? All that’s missing is a call to one of the Old Gods.

Ew use spoons, you heathens. Did they use the moon pie to eat the moon away???

Everyone having a serious conversation while in their underwear in the woods is a funny image

Roz has been turned to stone by Medusa. Called it! And now the pagans have filled the Academy with snakes and are telling the coven to bow to the old gods, or die basically. How very Christian of them. 

Dorcas has also been turned to stone and I think Agatha has been...nymphed?

Because of all this Zelda decides to free the Dark Lord, because he’s the only power to fight them. So annoying. Writing wise why not have them call on Lilith? Like women power for the win? Why only Lucifer? Only Lucifer is gone and Nick looks like he’s ODing in his place. 

[crookedhalc]

headcanon questionnaire: susie campbell.

—    BASICS.

▸     IS  YOUR  MUSE  TALL  /  SHORT  /  AVERAGE    ?

average. although she runs on the shorter end of the average-height spectrum.

▸      ARE  THEY  OKAY  WITH  THEIR  HEIGHT    ?

definitely. not overly short, yet not nearly too tall. perfect for high heels.

▸      WHAT’S    THEIR    HAIR    LIKE ?

black, wavy, medium length  –  unless caught in some storm outside, her hair is always styled and ends around shoulder-length, give or take a couple inches.

▸     DO    THEY    SPEND    A    LOT    OF    TIME    ON    THEIR    HAIR     /    GROOMING ?

yes.  my god, yes. however; unlike what her coworkers may believe, this habit does not stem from vanity.  underneath the charm and confidence her acting abilities have allowed her to easily project, lies deep-rooted insecurities.  although many factors contribute to this fact, her appearance is one of them.  susie will usually wake up early each morning just to be sure she looks her best.

▸      DOES  YOUR  MUSE  CARE  ABOUT  THEIR  APPEARANCE  /  WHAT  OTHERS  THINK ?

again, yes.  for the same reason listed above. susie has struggled with insecurities since childhood despite her striking features.  she is also big on impressions and dressing for occasions, so she is always styled accordingly and will think sour of someone for not doing the same.   if someone were to, for an example, dress sloppy at work? judged.

—    PREFERENCES.

▸     INDOORS  OR  OUTDOORS    ?  

indoors. although a walk around the city occasionally never hurt. she does enjoy snow, though.

▸     RAIN  OR  SUNSHINE    ?

sunshine. rain can be awful messy.

▸     FOREST  OR  BEACH    ?

beach.  she’s a “sunbathing, sunglasses and floppy sun-hat wearing under a large beach umbrella” kind of gal.

▸     PRECIOUS  METALS  OR  GEMS    ?

gems.  diamonds are a girl’s best friend, are they not? fun fact: susie’s favorite gem is a ruby.

▸     FLOWERS  OR  PERFUMES    ?

flowers, although she is one to wear perfume. it’s just that flowers typically are given by someone else, so there is sentiment behind them.

▸     PERSONALITY  OR  APPEARANCE    ?

appearance.  at least, regarding herself. when it comes to others and the company she keeps? personality is what matters to her.

▸     BEING  ALONE  OR  BEING  IN  A  CROWD    ?  

both.  when it comes to her role and career as an singer/voice actress, naturally she prefers to address a crowd.  susie has no issue talking to the press or greeting fans -- she puts her heart into Alice Angel and wants nothing more than for the people to love the character as much as she does.  susie also adores her job, so she will socialize with coworkers often to be sure everything on her end is done fluidly and correctly the first time.  sharing her passions and relating to certain people may encourage her to go out of her way to talk to them occasionally, however; once she is off the clock and home, susie is always alone.

▸     ORDER  OR  ANARCHY    ?

order, preferably.  but she causes anarchy at times.

▸     PAINFUL  TRUTHS  OR  WHITE  LIES    ?

painful truths.  as pretty as white lies can make her feel, susie would rather be hit with the painful truth. she values honesty and being upfront; this prevents both parties from wasting another’s time and doesn’t keep her blissfully unaware of some secret, which in turn makes her feel like a fool once the truth is revealed. “alice, though? ohh, she doesn’t like liars.”

▸     SCIENCE  OR  MAGIC    ?

magic.  "dreams come true, susie. dreams come true.”

▸      PEACE  OR  CONFLICT    ?

conflict. as much as she wishes and likes things to run/resolve smoothly, her fiery temper can often cause escalation and conflict arises if she feels wronged.

▸     NIGHT  OR  DAY    ?  

day. it’s during daylight that she is able to do what she loves and inch herself closer to accomplishing her aspirations.

▸     DUSK  OR  DAWN    ?  

dawn.  see above. susie is that gal to get up super early not only to start her long, morning routine -- but simply out of excitement to get to work.

▸     WARMTH    OR    COLD ?    

warmth. although later in “life”, she gets used to the cold.

▸     MANY  ACQUAINTANCES  OR  A  FEW  CLOSE  FRIENDS    ?

many acquaintances.  although not particularly healthy, susie would prefer to have many acquaintances all held at arm’s length. although fairly easy to get along with and not one to necessarily look to start trouble (unless particularly spiteful due to an event), it’s susie’s inability to completely trust other people that keeps her from opening up. it takes a special type of person to earn and maintain her trust.

▸     READING    OR    PLAYING    A    GAME ?

reading.  scripts, headliners, music sheets - oh my!

—    QUESTIONNAIRE.

▸      WHAT    ARE    SOME    OF    YOUR    MUSE’S    BAD    HABITS ?

pettiness, primarily. susie campbell may have an outstanding work ethic, a passion for her dreams that rivals joey drew’s himself, and an enthusiastic determination that sets the bar - but she is the definition of “hell hath no fury like a woman scorned”. get on her bad side and it will be nothing but dagger-like glances, spiteful sabotage, backhanded remarks, and a redirected determination to see that person wriggle like a worm on a hook until they bleed out. 

▸      HAS  YOUR  MUSE  LOST  ANYONE  CLOSE  TO  THEM    ?        HOW  HAS  IT  AFFECTED   THEM    ?

this answer is rather timeline dependent. while alive, susie was not terribly close to her family. her own birth hadn’t been planned and she was born rather late in her parents lives; her own always felt overshadowed by her overachieving, elder sister. susie keeps in contact with her mother via letters, but only updates the family when there is good news to boast about. in a way, losing her studio family was susie’s biggest loss. she lost not only coworkers, but the closest she’d allowed herself to friends in the longest time. she lost her dream and she lost love. mix that level of heartbreak with surfacing desperation, and then a failed ritual to become the one thing you feel your truest self being, and it would cause anyone to slowly lose it.

▸      WHAT  ARE  SOME  FOND  MEMORIES  YOUR  MUSE  HAS    ?

her life at joey drew studios. up until the afternoon where she had walked in on allison pendle in her recording booth, the time spent at joey drew studios were the best years of susie’s life. she felt as if she had it all: a dream role where she genuinely related to the character and cared about its workings, a stable job where she was valued and treated more than fairly, a position in a booming company that would one day elevate her name in lights, she had coworkers she got along and could finally laugh with, an unexpected love she found more than charming - everything she had worked towards and that you could write home about. 

▸     IS  IT  EASY  FOR  YOUR  MUSE  TO  KILL    ?

oh yeah.  easily. at least, when she has become “malice” angel post-sacrifice. when alive, the concept of committing murder never crossed susie’s mind, despite her high level of pettiness when scorned. however; once the ritual is performed and is confirmed a failure, malice’s mental spiral downward eventually creates a monster that finds disemboweling fellow ink beings for personal gain as nonchalant an action as drinking morning coffee.

▸      WHAT’S  IT  LIKE  WHEN  YOUR  MUSE  BREAKS  DOWN    ? 

a solitary affair.  a private struggle carried out behind locked dressing room doors and drawn blinds.  her inability to fully open up to other people results in any battles lost within the confides of mock confidence in her head being dealt with alone. typically taking place in her apartment, often triggered by her own reflection or paranoia having built up after a rather rough week, clothes from susie’s closet may end up thrown on the floor as well as her elongated mirror covered or possibly broken - depending on the degree of the breakdown.

▸      IS  YOUR  MUSE  CAPABLE  OF  TRUSTING  SOMEONE  WITH  THEIR  LIFE    ?

no, not until it was her life and soul susie was handing over to joey willingly in order to become the living Alice Angel.  up until then, her trust was scarcely handed out.

▸      WHAT’S  YOUR  MUSE  LIKE  WHEN  THEY’RE  IN  LOVE    ?  attentive and passionate, susie is a soulmate before all else. while she enjoys the flirts and compliments of suitors like the next gal, it takes a very someone special to tear down the nailed planks around her heart and encourage her to give it away. once in love; however, susie is completely and utterly loyal. to be at the point where love is involved, she would already have a tight grasp and understanding of the man in question. his change of mood and when something is upsetting him wouldn’t be concealed from susie easily and her attentive nature would hone in on attempting to correct the situation for his sake. because she does not let people in easily and finally doing so meaning she’d have bonded with the individual, there would also always be an underlining fear that she would lose said love. on a more surface level, though, susie is also very passionate. considered a modern woman for the time period, she will not hesitate to initiate a kiss or more once in a relationship with someone she truly loves. looking at you, @drewgod ‘s joey drew.

TAGGED  :    by the very missed @overindulges < / 3 !

TAGGING  :   @drewgod, @monstriiss, @deliciousfear & anyone else ! remember to repost, NOT reblog !

[mwolf0epsilon]

First off, before everyone comes after my butt with their "No Fun Allowed" and "Cringe" signs, this is in no way something to be taken as gospel or insightful. It's not a prophetic enforcement of canon. It's literally a theory done for fun, and to try to piece the Bendy Crack up Comics into the general and messy lore of the BatIM franchise. 

Most of you get this and don't need a big wordy warning about fanon interpretation, but a lot of peculiar people tend to show up in my ask box hoping to start a fuss over my headcanons and AU ideas, so I thought to be nice and leave a polite and diplomatic "Kindly Fuck Off" sign at the door for them.

With that said, there will be mild spoilers, carry on of your own volition, down below under the cut that will definitely show up because Tumblr mobile is a functional app that's never given me trouble!!!

---

[[MORE]]

The Bendy Franchise has an established issue with cohesion in its lore. We all know what I'm talking about, we all have reservations about canonical character discrepancies (game vs novel vs guidebook) and we all have been racking our brains with a few holes in the timeline, as well as how BatDR (which is neither prequel nor sequel) will fit into this, since it's connected to BatDS and that's an established prequel to BatIM.

Granted I myself am missing a lot of pieces, having to scrounge around for info since I can't really get any of the reading material myself and rely heavily on @british-hero (who owns the novel plus got her copy of the comics yesterday), a very incomplete wikie, and analysis and theories from SuperHorrorBro's Bendy videos.

Heck, I also rely on a lot of gameplay footage, because BatIM has a bit of subtle storytelling through visual design of its levels, and hints of how certain characters work through a few game mechanics.

Through this mishmash of collecting puzzle pieces for the greater picture I even have a few notes on my phone to piece together certain events in established dates, something which comes very in handy for this theory since it talks about two particular characters, the Projectionist and Brute Boris (and I guess Twisted Alice to some extent but it's more of a note on some interesting thoughts I have of her).

Without further ado, here's what this theory is all about: Why did Norman become the Projectionist, and why did Twisted Alice turn Buddy Boris into Brute Boris?

If you think about it, there's only two creatures in the studio that really seem out of place in the world of BatIM, and that's Prophet Sammy and the Projectionist. Neither are inherently similar to any of the cartoon characters, nor are they considered to be Lost Ones. They're certainly not Searchers, but while we know Sammy is unique because his method of transformation was different, we never got an explanation for Norman's. It could be that it's a process similar to BatDR's new enemy type that's larger and seems to have bits and bobs stuck to it, but then those big guys seem like the equivalent to Swollen Searchers for the Lost Ones. The Projectionist doesn't really fit the puzzle.

Or at least he didn't.

With the introduction of the Crack up Comics collection, we get three new characters that were definitely designed in the same manner that the Butcher Gang was. Beginning with a corrupt monster forms and then giving way to perfect and pristine rubberhose toon forms.

I'm talking about Miss Twisted, the Brute, and Cameraman.

The villainous trio from the Souper Boris comic strip.

To us it's obvious the artists created them in parallel to Twisted Alice, Brute Boris and the Projectionist, but to the actual canon this actually has a bit of an impact on the Projectionist's existence.

Why, you ask? Because those characters were introduced between 1936 and 1940.

Bendy Crack up Comics table of contents, showcasing the publishing dates of the strips.

For anyone who doesn't know (either from not paying attention to the Joey Drew Studios channel audio logs, or from not owning the books) the Ink Machine wasn't conceptualized or installed until 1942/1943. Putting that into perspective, the only other thing that happened in Joey Drew Studios in 1940, was the conceptualization of Bendyland (which is likely the origin of the idea for the Ink Machine itself).

This means that Cameraman existed well before the Projectionist ever came to be, and that made me think about another thing: The Ink's apparent sentience.

I'll be frank, the Ink is very hard nut to crack. I consider it a form of alchemized entity, others consider it pure black magic, and I'm pretty sure Joey Drew himself had no idea what he was dealing with when he began using it. The fact of the matter is that the Ink is alive and that it has its own agenda. One that coincides with Joey's, out of mutual interest.

In the novels it seems to want to be free, but it can't exactly do that as a formless liquid, so it tries to body-snatch people (ex: Sammy and Buddy's grandpa).

When Joey tries to use it to give life to Bendy through nothing more than using the Ink and a template (likely a character model sheet) the Ink tries to follow the model but immediately becomes a distorted humanoid version of it (which honestly rings so many fucking alarm bells on its own). Things… Escalate there on out, with Joey trying to perfect the method and only managing to succeed through Daniel Lewek (and many other nameless Boris Clones), Allison Pendle and Thomas Connor.

An important thing to take from this, however, is that by trying to perfect this method Joey not only taught the Ink to reshape things into viable referenced material, but that he had to have lost control of just how many souls were being pumped through the Ink Machine for him to monitor and keep up.

Sammy started killing people when he completely turned, and it didn't seem to take long for him to cut down people in likely both the music and art departments. At this point he had no self-restraint and was completely wrapped around inky fingers and Joey's lies. 

Norman is one such potential victim, and Dot and Buddy even passed by his ink-wrapped body while fleeing.

Now, the thing about trying to follow a specific guide and not having the actual means to make it exactly the same thing, is an easy enough notion to get (as shows like "Nailed It", and years of trying to perfect visual style mimicry, have taught me).

The Ink likely had the template it needed (maybe a printed copy of Souper Boris that got thrown around in the chaos), the insight of what Norman's role in the studio was, the amount of mass it needed to consume and transform his dead body, but not exactly the right sort of… Centerpiece for it...

Cameraman using his lens to light up his path.

But what's a projector besides a bigger fancier camera? Both blink, both take film, same thing right? The ink doesn't see the difference and just stitches together this humanoid bootleg cameraman with the pieces it finds that are similar enough.

Mechanical blinky head? Check.

Strange round disc near the belly? There's a speaker. That's round! Check.

Film? There we go, a nice big round reel full of film in it, let's put it near the head, that's how it works right? Check.

Lastly, no Joey to actually direct this artistic recreation of a one-off character. The Ink did it all by itself while he was off getting his hand broken by a rightfully upset Buddy Boris.

If you look at it objectively it makes sense that being the projectionist tasked with not only recording and maintaining the projectors themselves, that the entity in the Ink would pick Cameraman as a template for Norman's transformed self.

It also makes sense that the Projectionist is so off-putting in the studio. He's almost perfect, but not quite because there just weren't the right materials. He's stuck in between Twisted Alice and the Butcher Gang clones as another failed recreation.

Moving on to the next question on why Twisted Alice turn Buddy Boris into Brute Boris, when she hadn't done the same to any of the other Boris Clones.

It's hard to say really, but I think it all comes down to who Twisted Alice really is. It's very likely that, as Susie Campbell, she would have knowledge of the comic strips. A few were most likely made into cartoon shorts even (which isn't an unusual assumption to make), and maybe Susie voiced a few background characters for said shorts.

Susie may have lost her role as Alice, but before Joey came to her with his proposition for the "special project" it's very likely that she remained in the studio, forced to do the voices of characters that weren't noteworthy or that she felt completely disconnected from (talking chairs and singing hens really don't become beloved fan-favourites) . Maybe if the Souper Boris story was made into a short, she might have voiced Miss Twisted (which honestly would be personally insulting considering she once had the role of the main heroine).

Point is, Susie knows her lore, and that translates to Twisted Alice's repertoire of insightful knowledge on the abominations lurking around the studio.

She never did turn other Boris clones into brutish lackeys because at the time she didn't need to. But it doesn't mean she hadn't considered it. Henry's disruptive behaviour is just what she needed to put that plan into motion.

There was already a "Cameraman" walking about, one that could easily rip apart anything it came across, so acquiring the means to recreate the "Brute" would have been benefiting from her point of view. The Projectionist doesn't take orders and can't be reasoned with, so if she could make something just as strong that took her orders she could, theoretically, be safe from most terrors in the studio. If that didn't work, she would still likely send others to their death by simply sending them down to Level 14, or maybe lure the Projectionist to them herself (just because he doesn't take orders doesn't mean she can't use him to achieve her end goals).

Miss Twisted, the Brute and Cameraman in their evil swamp lair.

But why Buddy Boris specifically? Why couldn't she have used any of the bodies laying around? Freshness most likely. Rigor mortis is probably still a thing, even for living cartoons. Easier to work a fresh dead body than a bunch of stiff wolves.

That's at least why I think Brute Boris is a thing. Susie's knowledge of most Bendy cartoon/comic strip characters, taking inspiration from the Projectionist's presence, and honestly a very twisted sense of humor and irony. In her quest to become a Perfect Alice, the heroine of the show, she ended up becoming just as antagonistic (although more sadistic) as Miss Twisted, a Bendy comic strip villainess.

[realm-sweet-realm]

The death and rebirth of Susie Campbell

Alright, you asked for this and I’m glad there was an interest. Contact me if you think it needs a trigger warning and I’ll add one.

---

April 20th, 1941.

Susie stared at the door to Joey Drew's office. This was it. She'd spent all morning going through scenarios in her head as to why Joey had called her here.

She was getting laid off, surely. Joey Drew had little in the way of voice work for her now that she couldn't play Alice anymore, so he was going to lay her off. Adding to that the little accident she'd caused with Bendy a week ago, it seemed like that was the most likely reason.

At least, it would have been, if he hadn't called her in at 11:30. He'd done that a bunch of times over the past eight months, and it was always for the same reason: to take her out for lunch, then give her the afternoon off to head to his house and into his bed. She'd convinced herself that there was no problem with it. Sammy wanted to wait until marriage, and, well... well, Susie couldn't quite find a justification that didn't make her out to be a monster. She didn't know why she always fell for his charms, and eventually she stopped even planning to resist. Joey made her feel like the most desired girl in the world, and she just never knew how to say no.

And she always wanted there to be a next time, even if she wouldn't always admit it to herself. She remembered the first time it happened, he'd called her to his office and apologized the next day. He even called her Ms. Campbell- a show of distance and respect. He'd called their affair inappropriate, and an abuse of his power over her. Then, as she was leaving, he'd said, "And Alice?" She'd turned around. "I'll see you around." He'd had a vaguely predatory look on those electrically, intensely blue eyes of his, and it made her heart race. Susie liked it. Since, she'd always paid attention to what he called her: Ms. Campbell (I'm hanging my head, keeping my distance), Susie (we've forgotten last time, right?), or Alice (I'm coming for you). It was fun. Was he all torn up about it, or was he just keeping her on her toes?

The thought of all that made her teeth grind. Thankfully, he'd been smart enough not to do anything of the sort in the last three weeks. He'd be the most tactless man in existence to try such a thing after taking her role away without even telling her to her face. She, however, had tried such a thing. She'd taken him out drinking, gotten him nice and drunk, and asked him: "why did you start pursuing me?" His answer?

He'd just been diagnosed with post-polio disease. He felt powerless. And then he saw a tiny woman, pretty, barely over half his age, under his employment, and in a relationship. He saw a way to feel powerful again. And Alice (he'd called her "Alice" while drunk. She'd taken notice) had just folded like putty in his hands. A little flattery and a little charm was all it took. He did it once on impulse and thought he could leave it at that, but he was wrong.

Susie had left him right then and there and taken a cab home. Needless to say, there was plenty of screaming that night. She wasn't sure Joey even remembered his confession the next morning.

One thing was for sure, though: whether Joey called her Ms. Campbell, Susie, or even Alice today, she was going to summon her inner Alice and take it with grace. If he wanted lunch, she'd slap him. If he wanted to fire her, she'd accept it without a fuss. She'd never show him tears. Never.

Alright, she thought to herself, time to do this. She briskly opened the door and took a seat across from her boss, meeting his eyes with a blank stare on her face. Joey was giving her a warm smile.

"I know how much that part means to you, Susie," he began. Good, her neutral name. "Alice means a lot to me, too. All my characters do! In fact, I’ll let you in on a little secret. I, too, really believe my characters are more than just drawings. They’re alive. They’re a part of us. And I want people to know them as well as I do. I want people to be able to shake their hand, spend an afternoon with em’. Love them. Susie, I’ll be straight with you. I’m putting together a small project… a little ceremony. If it works, a lot of dreams will come true. And I want you to be a part of it. I want you to bring Alice to life once again. What do you say?"

"Ceremony? Well, I- can Sammy come with me?" Susie had no idea what this "ceremony" business could mean, but first and foremost, she wanted to make sure there was nothing lewd about it.

"Why, yes. In fact, he's already coming."

So it wasn't about getting her undressed. This was real- she was going to be Alice again! Susie's heart fluttered at the thought. "Perfect! I won't miss it for the world!" she sang. She got up to leave.

Then, a thought came to her. "Wait," her voice turned cold as steel. "Why me? Why aren't you giving this to Ms. Pendle? I thought you wanted her to be Alice!" Susie grit her teeth and glared at him.

Joey reached over and lifted her chin. "Susie, look at me. All I want Allison to do is stay cooped up in that recording booth. I want that because I have bigger plans for you. You're a better Alice than she ever was, and after this ceremony? Well! Not only are you going to be remembered as the face of Alice Angel for years- no, decades- you'll make her character more famous than you could ever imagine! Someone has to voice her, but you... my real Alice? You'll be her."

Susie could practically feel herself tearing up. "Thank you. I'll do it. Come Hell or high water, I'll be there.

"Good. Sammy will pick you up at 7:15."

---

"So, what is the ceremony going to be like?"

Sammy knew that the ritual was for the best, but looking upon his girlfriend, he couldn't help but feel guilty. "Well, sweetheart, it won't be pleasant," he warned.

"Oh, I don't even care!" she said dreamily, draping herself over him in the back seat of the taxi. "I'm so happy. I'd been agonizing for weeks, hatin' him because I thought he replaced me. But it turns out I'm his favourite after all!" she chirped, adding in, "I'm Alice Angel!" in a sing-song voice.

Sammy smiled. It was good to see Susie so happy. It always was, but especially since she'd been so bad-tempered lately. They really were like twins: two essentially happy people with serious bad sides (hers, admittedly, harder to arouse but harder to live with). That was good: it meant they knew how to handle each other. "Well, that's good. Now, listen. This is going to change more than you think, but I promise, it's gonna be what's best for you. It's going to make you and a lot of other people happy. I can explain the whole thing afterward. Oh, and here we are."

Sammy could feel Susie's nervous anticipation as they entered the building, but it was clearly a pleasant anticipation nonetheless. He led her to a small, empty room, where they met Joey Drew. He smiled warmly. "Good evening to you two! So, Susie, are you ready for our ritual tonight?"

Wanting to look independent, she let go of Sammy's hand. "Yes," she said with confidence.

"Step one, put on this blindfold." He handed her a white piece of cloth. Susie obeyed without hesitation. Joey struck out his fist, allowing it to end up inches from Susie's nose. She did not flinch. Satisfied that she was blinded, he turned to Sammy. "She's ready. Guide her down to the special room with me, alright?"

Sammy nodded. They traveled down to the giant ink machine and went inside of it, finally arriving at a room containing four glass pillars. One of them had a pentagram drawn before it. This did not surprise Sammy: he'd helped draw it. He even knew what kind of pentagram it was. Unlike a revival pentagram, which with a demon's help could revive the dead, or sacrificial pentagram, which sent the slaughtered straight to the Gods, this was a binding pentagram. Joey Drew retrieved a bottle filled with liquid and containing a rag from a cabinet kept on the side of the room. "Alright, Susie," Sammy began. They'd decided ahead of time that he should be the one to guide her through this step. It would be the most difficult part for her. "We're going to put a cloth over your face. All we need you to do now is to breathe in, alright?"

"But why?"

What Sammy supposed to do? Lie to her? "Susie, it's hard to explain. But just trust me that it won't be painful in any way. I promise. Ready?"

Joey put the rag over her face. Susie collapsed, and he caught her and lowered her to the ground.

"Joey! She hadn't agreed yet!"

"Oh, my bad."

"Damn right, your bad. I'm not doing this to her without her consent. We're waiting until she wakes up to try again."

"Consent? She already agreed to this! You were just asking if she was ready. And if we wait until she wakes up, then she'll know that we're using chloroform on her. Come on, let's just get this done."

Sammy hesitated. Then, he gathered up all 95 pounds of his girlfriend and carried her over to the pentagram. She'd agreed to this earlier. This wasn't wrong. Joey took a razor-sharp blade and a strange, hand mirror-shaped object out of the cabinet. Sammy got the paper with his lines out of his pocket. "Ancient Gods of the world, I summon you. Bind the soul of this sacrifice to the ink. May you reign eternal, amen." He repeated the lines over and over as Joey approached Susie with the knife. Elsewhere in the studio, two carefully tended shrines were glowing.

Then, Susie stirred, subtly at first, then violently. Joey wasn't sure what to do and simply put a hand on Susie's chest, centering his weight over her so she couldn't get up. "What's going on?" she asked, her voice raised in panic. Sammy was stuck chanting. If he stopped mid-ritual, God knows what could happen- spells like this were finicky and dangerous. Susie's cries for help made it a serious test of willpower. Joey looked over to his grimacing friend and began to recite the lines with him. Glad to be able to stop, Sammy went over to his girlfriend and cupped one hand around her face.

"Sh... it's okay. It's gonna be okay. This is only gonna hurt a moment, alright?"

"What's going on, Sammy?"

"Normal procedure. Everything is according to plan. This going to hurt, but only for a bit."

The thought occurred to Sammy that rituals probably weren't meant to be this time consuming. Could something as simple as that disrupt the spell? He didn’t want to find out. He nodded to Joey. Susie tried to say something, but Joey began to slit her throat before she could speak. Her cries turned into gurgles as the blade sliced ear to ear. She took over a minute to faint from panic. Joey got out the seeing tool and held it up. By now, his voice was shaking as he recited the lines. It was only his second time murdering someone, and hadn't gone cleanly. Sammy was so distressed that he wasn't sure he could take over for him. It took several minutes for her to bleed out. When she did, her soul escaped, and, watching its movement through the seeing tool, Joey caught it. He pressed his palm against the glass tube. "Ancient Gods of the world, I summon you now," he said. Ink flooded the tube.

The two men stood in silence for several minutes. Once the shock of the situation wore off a bit, Sammy spoke up. "That. Was an unmitigated disaster!"

"Yes. Next time, I'll make the chloroform five times as strong, and we won't waste time arguing," Joey said blithely. Then, he noticed how upset Sammy looked and realized he ought to show some empathy. "You alright? I'm sure Susie will be ecstatic."

"Sure. I'm fine," Sammy answered, sounding not at all fine. "Does it get easier, Joey? Killing?"

"Well, I can only speak for myself, but this one was actually a lot harder for me. The last one I just knocked out with a paperweight and had his throat slit in not even a minute. It was almost... fun."

Sammy hoped it didn't become 'fun' for him, or Wally Franks would be dead eight times over. A lot of other people, too. He glanced at Susie's corpse and felt like he was staring into the abyss of what he could become. "Well, let's go to the ink nozzle. She'll be coming out soon," Sammy said.

When she did, however, all that came out of the ink machine was a shapeless blob of ink. It fell to the ground with a plop and began writhing, attempting to figure out how to move. It emitted a cry like a baby. Sammy gasped. Joey was first to speak. "Don't worry. I'll figure this out. She won't look like that for long. Just help her back onto the pentagram, Sammy."

Sammy gathered the slug-like ink creature up in his arms like a baby. It-she, he supposed- was heavy, cold, wet, and ugly, and he could feel cold ink running down his shirt, but by now the situation had put him in such a daze that very little could have upset him. Walking back to the room with the pedestals, he looked down blankly at what was supposedly Susie, and gave her his best attempt at a comforting smile. Once he was back at the pentagram, he plopped down with the creature on his lap.

"Done!" Joey called from the other room about a minute later. "Twist in the film, is all. This time, I promise it'll work!"

Sammy got up, moved Susie's corpse, and gently lowered the creature onto the pentagram. "Sorry about this," he said, before repeating the process as before: the chanting, the throat-slitting, the capture and use of the soul. He then went back to the ink machine and held his breath that Susie would turn out alright this time. In minutes that felt like hours, the slender figure of a woman appeared from the machine, panting and shaking. She looked at her hands, felt all over her body, then turned to Sammy with a shocked, ash-grey face. "Sammy, what happened!?" she cried as tears began to fall from her eyes.

[queenofcats17]

The Outbreak Part 2

@bornoffireandwisdom had more ideas after my last outbreak story and I wanted to write them.

Once again, this Murray Hill belongs to @circus-craze

Joey was in a mood. For the most part, he’d encountered rather little resistance in the corruption of his workers, but there were still little pockets of survivors. Such as the Benton woman, Connor and Pendle, and dear Bertie. Not to mention, his experiment with Susie hadn’t worked out nearly as well as he’d hoped it would. She was still strapped to the table, barely conscious and sobbing quietly. She did look like Alice, he’d managed that much, but he’d misjudged a few things and her face...

“I had such high hopes for you, Miss Campbell.” Joey sighed, leaning on the table. “No one was more devoted to Alice than you. But it appears you’re just not perfect enough.”

“Not perfect...enough?” Susie’s words were slurred, her speech hampered by the gaping holes on her left cheek. “But I’m...Alice.”

“Evidently, not Alice enough.” Joey cooed, sticking a finger through one of the holes to touch the exposed muscle and gums. How strange. Her body was composed of ink now, and yet it still felt like the flesh of a human. Although his finger came away wet with ink, not saliva. 

“Perhaps Miss Pendle will provide a better result.” He wiped his hand on his pants, ready to walk away.

“No!” Susie shrieked, struggling against her bonds. “Alice is mine! She’s mine! You can’t take her away from me!”

“Yes yes, of course.” He waved a hand dismissively. 

“YOU SAID I’D BE ALICE!” Susie screamed, almost managing to break her restraints. For an instant, Joey’s temper flared. The air in the room became heavier and Susie suddenly found it harder to breathe.

“Don’t raise your voice at me, Miss Campbell,” Joey said calmly, adjusting his bowtie. “I did my best with you. But you just weren’t willing enough. This is your fault.” He left her shocked and whimpering as he went to check on Murray.

Since most of the studio had been corrupted by this point, Murray had moved on to running tests on the Searchers and those who hadn’t yet turned. His most notable test subject at the moment was Sammy, who’d been tied to a chair and was currently growling and straining against his bonds trying to corrupt Murray. Joey had ordered Sammy to sit down in the chair earlier and Murray had tied the music director up.

“Interesting.” Murray murmured to himself, noting a few things down on his clipboard. He’d put on gloves in order to be able to touch Sammy without being corrupted himself, although the protection they offered wasn’t nearly as much as he would have preferred. The ink was potent, and Murray would rather have had a full hazmat suit in order to observe the corrupted individuals. But he didn’t really have access to that so he’d made do with what he had.

The results of the virus on the employees truly was fascinating though, especially in regards to Sammy. Unlike the Searchers, Sammy still had a physical body under the layer of ink. His skin was deathly pale, dark veins standing out in stark contrast to the pale flesh. Ink leaked from Sammy’s mouth and eyes, as well as from any cuts he might have sustained. The Searchers themselves had bodies entirely composed of ink, as though their physical bodies had been dissolved. However, they showed signs of being able to form physical bodies if the need arose. The ink also seemed to be able to regenerate lost limbs of its victims. There were a few employees who’d been missing limbs prior to being infected and had regained them upon their transformations into Searchers. 

“Truly fascinating.” Murray leaned closer to Sammy, wiping away some of the ink around his eyes. Sammy took this opportunity to snap at Murray’s fingers, although Murray managed to snatch his hand away in time. 

“I’ll have to be more careful,” Murray muttered to himself, bowing his head to scribble furiously on his paper. Joey smiled as he entered, walking soundlessly up behind Murray and clapping a hand on the scientist’s shoulder. 

“You seem like you’re having fun.”

“Agh!” Murray fell off his chair, landing in an undignified heap on the ground.

“You really need to pay more attention.” Joey chided him as the other man clambered to his feet. “You never know what could sneak up on you.”

“I-I know.” Murray cleared his throat awkwardly. “Erm, I wouldn’t say I’m having fun exactly. But this is fascinating!” His whole face lit up. “I’ve never encountered anything like this before! The way their physical bodies seem to have been broken down and absorbed into the ink but they still have the ability to hold some sort of concrete form-”

“Mm-hm.” Joey made a vague noise of acknowledgment. He wasn’t paying attention to what Murray was saying anymore. He didn’t care how the infection worked, so long as he was in control of it. 

“Right...” Murray’s face fell and he bit his lip. “So...Is there a reason you came to visit me?”

“I just wanted to see what you were doing, make sure Lawrence wasn’t giving you any trouble.” Joey waved a hand toward Sammy. “I’ll be out for a bit. I have to locate Miss Pendle. Miss Campbell didn’t work out as Alice.”

“That’s unfortunate.” Murray shrugged, turning his attention back to Sammy. “Well, best of luck, Mr. Drew.”

“Make sure not to die.” Joey slapped Murray’s back. “It would be terribly inconvenient for me to lose you when we still have so much work to do.” Murray made a small squeak at the dark tone in Joey’s voice, hunching over his clipboard more. Joey smiled, starting to whistle as he left. 

It wasn’t too terribly hard to locate Thomas and Allison. Joey could see through the eyes of the Searchers and knew the couple was holed up on in Alice Angel’s meet and greet area. Allison had somehow managed to get ahold of a sword and was proving to be much more dangerous than Joey had thought she’d be. He’d anticipated Thomas putting up a fight, the man wasn’t exactly small or weak, but Allison was a surprise.

“Well well well. Look at you.” Joey’s nose wrinkled in distaste. “What a pair you both make.” It wouldn’t be too hard to overcome them, but it would certainly be irritating. Especially since Allison had a sword. Where had she even found one of those? He allowed himself a small growl of frustration, stepping through one of the ink puddles and coming out in the Heavenly Toys lobby. As he stepped out, he felt the presence of a good many Searchers surrounding his quarry. More than he’d anticipated. Enough to easily overpower Allison and Thomas, if used correctly. 

For a moment, he was surprised. Then he began to smile. 

“Well, this might be easier than I thought.”

.

Lacie and Shawn were headed down to Bendy Hell. Lacie knew full well that Bertram was probably alright, but she had to check anyway. Besides, she and Shawn really needed a safe place to hole up for a little, and Bertram was their best bet. Most wouldn’t think Bertram was the sort who could handle himself in a fight, but Lacie knew what he hid under his suits. Shawn was almost catatonic, muttering to himself in Gaelic. 

“Shawn, you gotta keep up,” Lacie said, looking back at the toymaker. “We’re almost there.”

“Mm.” Shawn nodded vaguely. Lacie stopped walking, causing Shawn to literally run into her and stumble back. 

“I’m sorry about Grant.”

“‘S not your fault,” Shawn mumbled. “I should’ve been there for him. Shouldn’t have let him get hurt like that.”

“You can’t blame yourself,” Lacie said firmly, putting a hand on Shawn’s shoulder. “This is Drew’s fault. He’s behind all of this.”

“I let this happen to him.” Shawn showed no signs of having heard her, staring into the distance with unfocused eyes. “The poor boy. I should’ve been there for him.” 

Lacie sighed heavily and withdrew her hand. “You’re going to end up getting yourself killed, Flynn.”

“Maybe that wouldn’t be so bad,” Shawn replied. Lacie’s head snapped up. Before Shawn could properly react, Lacie had slammed him up against the wall. Shawn let out a small yelp of surprise.

“Don’t you dare say that.” She growled. Her calloused fingers dug painfully into Shawn’s shoulders. 

“I’m not letting you die.” She leaned in close enough that their noses were almost touching. “You don’t get to just roll over and die. Not on my watch. Do you understand me?” Shawn stared at her, his expression flat and unreadable. 

“Do. You. Understand. Me?” Her grip on his shoulders tightened. Shawn winced, pressing his back against the wall and lowered his head. They stood there for a long time, Lacie staring at Shawn and Shawn refusing to look at her. 

“Shawn. Please. I can’t lose you too.” Lacie didn’t often beg. But she was tired. And she didn’t want to lose another one of her friends. Not after seeing what had happened to Grant.

“He needs someone to protect him,” Shawn said, his gaze still firmly on the floor. 

“For Christ’s sake.” Lacie took a step back, pinching the bridge of her nose. “You’re just going to give up then? Just roll over and let Drew win?”

“Grant needs someone to keep him safe!” Shawn snapped. “Who knows what he’s going through right now! I can’t just leave him like that!”

“Fine! Go on and get it over with!” Lacie gestured around them. “This place is crawling with things that are dying to rip your throat out! I’m sure one of them would be happy to end your miserable life!” Shawn’s face twisted in a snarl. He spat at Lacie’s feet before storming off. Lacie watched him go, arms folded. 

It only took a few minutes for her to regret letting him go off on his own. She’d just let one of her best friends literally head to his death. Her throat felt tight. She should have stopped him. She should have tried to force him to come with her. But...No. He wouldn’t have given this up. Grant was his little brother in all but blood. 

“You’re such an idiot, Shawn.”  She muttered to herself, trying to blink away the tears. She took a deep breath. In through the nose and out through the mouth. She had to keep going. She was almost there. She just had to make it to Bertram.

.

Bertram had never been fond of Joey in the first place. In his opinion, the studio head was a spoiled brat with obsession and attachment issues. This ink plague certainly wasn’t helping his feelings toward the other man. He was almost certain that whatever this was, Joey was behind it. He had to be. Bertram had mostly been left alone by the creatures his coworkers had transformed into (they seemed to have enough sanity left to still be rather afraid of him), but there had been a few brave Searchers that had ventured into his ride storage area. Bertram had fended them back with a fire ax he’d pulled from a wall.

“Drew certainly has some explaining to do.” He huffed, shaking some excess ink off the ax. “I can’t wait to hear what excuse he has this time.” He glanced to the doorway. He wasn’t sure how long he could hold out. He had some food, yes, and a little water, but not enough to last him a substantial amount of time. Besides, once Joey figured out he hadn’t been taken, Bertram had no doubt the madman would come looking for him.

This wasn’t how Bertram had imagined dying. He hadn’t really imagined dying at all. He’d known it would happen, death was an inevitability, but he hadn’t really thought about it all that much. He’d mostly just assumed he’d die from old age, decades in the future. The idea of dying at Joey’s hands was infuriating. Bertram tried to focus on his anger. If he was angry, he couldn’t be scared. But the fear crept in nonetheless. There was no way out. Even if Bertram could make his way to the upper levels, Joey had likely sealed off all available exits. Bertram was powerless to stop whatever was happening. That was perhaps what terrified and frustrated Bertram the most. He couldn’t do anything.

“I hope Lacie’s alright.” The words slipped out before he could stop himself. That was another thing that had been nagging at him. He didn’t know what had happened to Lacie and the uncertainty was eating him alive.

“Oh, don’t worry. She’s doing quite well.”

Bertram froze at the voice. 

“Drew.” He turned around slowly, gripping the ax. His breath caught in his throat when he saw Joey, though. Or, at least, who Joey had with him.

“What’s wrong?” Joey asked with a sinister smile. “Aren’t you happy to see your little girlfriend?” He held Lacie by the hair, dragging her along as if she was a rag doll. Lacie was fighting back as best she could, but her movements were weak, and Bertram could see the black spreading through her veins. She was pale and sweating profusely. 

“Let her go.” Bertram’s expression turned positively demonic.

“Oh, you know I can’t do that.” Joey laughed. “She’s going to be a part of my family. And so are you. Besides, even if I physically let her go, it wouldn’t make a difference.”

“Bertie, run.” Lacie gasped. “Get...Get out.”

“Don’t encourage him.” Joey chided her, yanking her head up. Lacie let out a yelp of pain, trying desperately to dislodge Joey’s hand from her hair.

“Let her go!” Bertram yelled, taking a step forward. He had the ax up and ready, but his hands were shaking too hard to properly wield it.

“I already told you, I can’t do that.” Joey’s smile widened. “Now, are you going to join my family willingly? Or do I have to give you some...incentive?” His eyes darted suggestively over to Lacie. 

“You bas-” Bertram started to curse the studio head out, but Joey sharply cut him off.

“Language.” His expression changed to one of mild irritation. “Do I have to wash your mouth out with soap, Bertie?” That patronizing tone, the way Joey clicked his tongue and shook his head as though dealing with a little boy. Bertram saw red.

“I am a grown man! Do not speak to me as though I’m a child!” He roared, raising the ax and running toward Joey. Joey reacted calmly, taking a step back. Before Bertram could swing the ax down, he found himself faced with a different foe. Joey had dragged Lacie up, using her as a human shield. Bertram froze, the ax above his head. 

“Alright, incentive it is, I suppose,” Joey said. He smiled wide, showing all of his strangely white teeth. His eyes began to glow red and Lacie screamed. Joey’s grip on her hair tightened. Ink began to pour from every orifice of her body. Her eyes, her nose, her mouth. 

“Stop!” Bertram fell to his knees. 

“Join my family, then.” Joey’s voice was sweet and gentle. 

“I’m not going to join your damn family!” Bertram yelled, tears streaming down his face. Joey pouted, legitimately pouted. 

“I’m being reasonable.” He huffed, reaching down with his free hand to take Lacie’s arm. For a moment, Bertram was afraid Joey was going to snap her arm. Instead, Joey dug his nail into the flesh of her arm. Once he’d opened up a wound, multiple Searchers appeared around him. Leaning down, Joey allowed one of the Searchers to place a hand over Lacie’s wound. The dark veins bulged and Lacie screamed, her voice distorting as the ink spread across her body. Joey hummed to himself while Bertram watched in horror as the ink consumed his dearest friend.

“I asked you nicely, Bertie,” Joey said, letting go of Lacie. She fell to the ground in a heap before slowly getting back up. Her body was mostly covered in ink now, her eyes two uniform glowing circles. 

“Lacie?” Bertram whispered. 

“Not quite.” Joey grinned. Then Lacie launched herself at Bertram.

.

Joey had Bertram put into his precious octopus machine. As tempting as it would have been to have Bertram at his beck and call, Joey rather preferred having Bertram be immobile, forced to sit by himself and think. The mind was one’s worst enemy after all. And Bertram did think. It was all he could do. He sat in his ride, lamenting his fate and the corrupted body he now inhabited. He wasn’t a part of the hivemind, so he couldn’t even feel the comfort that came with the presence of the others. He only had the silence.