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The day the studio fell apart was the worst day of Buddy's life. The image of that demon dragging off his little brother was burned into his mind like images on camera film, his sister's terrified screaming stuck in his head like a terrible, agonizing melody.
For whatever reason that thing had hunted Bo down specifically. Buddy had tried to shield him, but to no avail. It had backhanded him, sending him flying into a wall, knocking his head hard enough to make his vision swim.
Ali had kicked and punched at it, screaming all the while. It hit her hard enough that she'd bounced across the floor, skidding to a stop by the elevator shaft. The demon then tore the gate open and threw her over the edge, her screams piercing in the deathly quiet of the studio.
The music department was very different from how Bendy remembered it. Years ago it had been bustling with activity, voice actors in their booths and the band practising the latest tune. Now it was abandoned and the heavy silence was a warning, the last remnant of voices long since past. It set both Bendy and his companion on edge.
One voice remained, but its owner was very different from how Bendy remembered. Sammy Lawrence was about as friendly as a hungry bear, growling included. But the way the man raved now, it was clear that there was only broken pieces left behind. A desperate man clinging to the idea that he would be saved. Bendy never thought he would miss Sammy's complaining.
Glancing over at his replacement he noticed the other toon was carrying a recording. “Whatcha got there kiddo?” he asked, reaching out for it. However, Buddy pulled it close to his body in an unusual show of rebellion. Bendy put up his hands in a show of surrender. “Whoa there kid, I just wanna know what ya found, that's all.”
Buddy looked conflicted, several moments passing in silence before he hit the play button on the recording. At first it sounded as though the recording was simply static, but the static changed in pitch and tone. A voice with no words that was joined by a piano. It was played a little clumsly. The tape ran for awhile longer before the sound of a door slamming open and a shout of “What do you think you're doing?!” prompted the recorder to end the tape.
Bendy chuckled in wry amusement at the other toon’s antics. If Buddy wanted to hang onto the tape he wasn't going to stop him. “Don't quit your day job kiddo.”
Getting Sammy's office open was an ordeal, but at least it was over with. Bendy didn't think the music department had been this huge when he'd left. “You keep a lookout kid, lemme know if we got any unwelcome guests.” Buddy nodded, taking up post by the door. Pipe at the ready, Bendy stepped inside the office.
He'd barely flipped the light switch before something swept his feet out from under him. “What the- OW!” Whatever his attacker was, it was now smacking him in the chest. Bendy heard Buddy come rushing in and let out a grunt as a blunt metal object was dropped on him. It looked like the bottom half of a music stand, with cloth scraps wrapped around it to form a crude handle.
Bendy got to his feet, pipe at the ready, but faltered at the sight before him. He blinked rapidly, wondering if he'd knocked his head harder than he thought. Buddy had his arms around another toon. She looked kind of like Alice, but off in that same way Buddy was. Her hair was blonde, but appeared to have been scribbled over with ink. She was roughly Buddy's height, clearly young, and she wore a pair of ill-fitting glasses.
Clearly the two knew each other if the way Buddy was actually smiling was any indication. “So kid, feel like introducing me?” The other toon's attention was immediately on him, glaring with clear distrust. Buddy said something to her and she responded in the same voiceless static. A short conversation passed between the two before she relaxed her tense posture, but she still looked at Bendy warily. Not taking her eyes off him she bent down to retrieve her weapon.
“Did Alice get out too? Is that why there's more a you running around?” At the mention of Alice the others’ moods visibly darkened, clearly there was some history between them. Buddy shook his head in response, then gestured between himself and her, implying her connection to him. Bendy nodded slowly, not quite understanding. “Uh huh. Okay, sure. Still, what do I call ya? Brat #2 is out of the question, and calling ya Alice would just be weird.”
The small angel pointed at him when he said Alice, then made a gesture for shortening the length of something. “So, something like Alice? Allison?” She shook her head and repeated the gesture, visibly annoyed. “Shorter than Alice?” She nodded at that and Bendy thought for a moment. “Ali?” She gave him a thumbs up, a small smile on her face.
Ali rested the music stand on her shoulder and schooled her features into what she probably thought was an intimidating scowl, but looked more like a pout. With the way she had practically glued herself to Buddy’s side she clearly wasn't going anywhere. “Great, just what I needed, another brat following me around.” Bendy grumbled, running a hand down his face. Well, at least this one could hold her own in a fight, that was a point in her favor.
Meeting Boris and Alice again had been a relief for Bendy. He'd tried not to think about it, but he had feared that his friends might have lost their lives to one of the horrors lurking in the studio. However, Alice seemed to have some sort of grudge against the two smaller toons, which he really didn't understand.
At the sight of Buddy and Ali her smile turned into a sneer and she turned to Bendy. “What are they doing here?” She asked, voice deceptively calm.
Taken aback Bendy simply shrugged. “The kid followed me and she followed him. Ya know, after she mistook me for some kind of pinata.” That apparently hadn't been the right thing to say as Alice's expression only darkened and she whirled on Ali.
The little angel looked up at her defiantly while Buddy glanced warily between the two. “You little brat! How dare you, I should-Boris let me go!” She snapped as the wolf grabbed her arm.
“No. The studio's gone to hell and you're still holding on to old grudges? It's time to bury the hatchet Alice.” The angel grumbled but relented. At Bendy's confused stare Boris said “I'll tell you later.” He then turned back to the two young toons. “Say, where's your little shadow? He never was far behind either of you.”
The scowl disappeared from Ali's face, her expression crumbling. She turned her back to the three original toons, her shoulders trembling. Buddy looked exhausted and miserable at the question, his sister's hand held tightly in his own. The sadness, the grief was thick in the air.
Out of everything Bendy had gone through since returning to the studio, the toy store was the first nice surprise he'd had. The plush merchandise was cute, although he'd never say that aloud. Buddy and Ali seemed to like them too, the two were having a ball with a pile of the squeaky ones. It was nice, hearing them laughing like death wasn’t always hanging over their heads.
Bendy would let them have fun for another minute or two, he could scout ahead a bit by himself. However, as he walked through the maze of shelves he started to feel uneasy. Cute as the toys were he couldn't shake the feeling of eyes on his back. He stopped for a moment and heard the soft shuffle of footsteps behind him. He turned around, swinging his pipe with a shout.
He'd swung high apparently as his pipe hit nothing but thin air. Bendy looked down and met eyes with the tiniest toon he'd ever seen. His ears were floppy and too big for his size, like he'd yet to grow into them. He had a canine like design, the freckles and overalls making it clear what Bendy was looking at. This was the third one Boris had been talking about.
... And he'd nearly taken the kid's head off. As the pup turned and ran off in a panic Bendy scrambled after him. “Hey kid, wait! Don’t run!” He wasn’t quick enough however as the other toon had disappeared amongst the shelves. How was he going to explain to Buddy and Ali that ‘yeah, your friend’s alive actually, but I nearly killed him and he ran away in terror. Sorry.’
Bendy slowly walked up and down the aisles, figuring the pup couldn’t have gotten far. “Hey kiddo, I’m sorry I swung at ya, could ya come on out please?” Inwardly he cringed, completely out of his element at the moment. Gentle and coaxing wasn’t really one of his skills. “Ali will probably kill me if I come back empty handed kiddo.”
As soon as the young angel’s name left his mouth, out of the corner of his eye Bendy could see the pup peek around the corner of one of the shelves. He pretended he didn’t notice the other, walking aimlessly. “Your little friends just miss you terribly, if I tell ‘em I lost you they’ll just be heartbroken.” A soft static-filled voice called out and Bendy turned to face the little toon. The pup was trembling and he had a death grip on a small, hand sewn toy, but despite his fear he stood in the open. “You gonna come back with me kid?” The other gave a stiff nod, but stepped back when Bendy stepped toward him. “Yeah, I probably earned that didn’t I?” The demon muttered under his breath.
He heard the squeaking before he even spotted the kids, finding them caught up in their fun. “Hey brats, I got ya something!” Bendy spoke lazily, but he kept a close eye on their reaction. Ali seemed to be struck dumb with shock, and Buddy looked like he couldn’t believe his eyes. Then a small blur barreled into them, sending all three to the ground. The two then latched onto the smallest toon, as though he would disappear if they let go. Even without words, the joy and relief was clear in the static of their voices.
Bendy did not find the scene heartwarming, and he definitely wasn’t developing a soft spot for the brats. Don’t be ridiculous.