NOTE: The MEATTLY owns BATIM. I just make fanworks for it.

Pit-pat, pit-pat. That's the sound rain makes when it falls on to your hair. You don't even notice. You're busily cutting through bushes and thickets of trees. You need to get away. A thorn bush makes itself a new home in the side of your leg. You forget yourself in yell in pain. You hear him shout out after you followed by a gunshot. You're so alert because of the situation right now that you could swear you hear the splintering of the tree as the bullet lodges itself into the bark. You don't take a moment to breathe and collect yourself. You keep running and you lose yourself in the pit-pat of your heartbeat rather than the rain.

You feel like you've been running for hours when the rain starts to get worse. In fact, you've probably only been running a good 20 minutes. Long enough for a change of scenery. At the edge of the woods is what looks like the dilapidated street of a town. You hope against hope for only a moment. Your dreams are dashed by the dilapidated roads and darkened windows of the town. That's when you spot it. A thin brick building built between an old shop and an apartment building. It's just thin enough that you're sure it must've been built in an alleyway. You can see a faint yellow light peering through beneath the old wooden doorway. Grass becomes pavement as you slam your feet into the ground as you make your way to that building. You were hoping for anything at that point. You were hoping for a phone, or a place to hide, just something.

The door slammed behind you before you had any chance to shut it yourself. You considered yourself lucky when you didn't hear his voice after that particular noise. You hadn't even stopped to think about why the door seemed to be able to lock itself. All you knew to do was have your back pressed to it as you slid down to the wooden floor and bury your hands into your arms.

The state your in speaks volumes to your current situation. You are bleeding from the thorn attack and your clothes are in tatters. Your hair is a mess and all you can do is scream into your hands. You don't even notice when a gloved digit pokes your shoulder.

"Awfully rude not to introduce yourself when you make an acquaintance toots"

There's a very fake Brooklyn accent. You laugh without meaning too. You briefly wonder if you've gone insane before you look up. Look at you, laughing at a person you just met.

As you raise your head, you consider again the idea you might be crazy. Some type of...creature? It was impish in its appearance. All of it was black except for its gloves and a grinning cartoon face. It..he..leaned forward to get a good look at you.

"Human huh. Ain't seen many of those since the big cheese left. Of course, I expect you ain't the Henry I been waiting for all day. You're uh, little too endowed to be him doll face."

The creature looked away as if searching the room for something with his eyes. You noticed an impish tail as he walked over to a dusty old jacket. It was a rusty brown color with spectacles still in the pocket. The chair he'd lifted it from was covered in cobwebs and you expected no less from the jacket. Still, it looked much warmer than you felt. The creature dragged the jacket over to you. All the while he didn't bother looking you in the eyes.

"Hurry and put that on would you? A woman all soaked through like that can't be all proper-like. Yeah?"

You just nodded after realizing why he'd been averting his eyes.

"Got a name sweetheart?"

He asked after you covered yourself. You were right. The jacket was warm on you. Full of cobwebs, but warm. You muttered it quickly under your breath. He stroked his chin and nodded in approval.

"The names Bendy myself. Bendy the devil dancin' darlin at your service."

The thing...Bendy...said before giving a small bow. He walked back over to the chair and dusted some of it off. He offered it to you but you shook your head and he plopped down on it in your stead.

"In a getup like that, I'm guessing you was having some boyfriend troubles? The cad probably don't know how to treat a lady. Am I right?"

Bendy doesn't wait for an answer as he just stares up at the ceiling.

You decide to tell him about what lead up to your meeting. You tell him about the date gone wrong. You tell him about the gunshot. You tell him about how you got your bloody leg. You tell him why you are hiding in his home. Then, you ask him. You ask him what he is. You ask him if he's real. You ask him if he's some kind of monster. You ask if he's just some guy in a costume. You ask just as much about this fellow Bendy as you've told him about yourself. Finally, he tells you to calm down. You realize you've talked so fast that you're not even sure he could make sense of the blur of words you were throwing at him.

"That's spooksville alright dollface. You can hide here as long as you need. At least until my pal Henry comes a knocking, you'll have to be on your way before then. At the rate he's going though, I'll be dried ink!"

Bendy howls in laughter at a joke only he seems to be in on. In that moment he seems maniacal. You don't notice. You are warm and your host has been nothing but a perfect gentleman. Well, gentle creature?

"Ink?"

You ask him. He leans further back in his chair and just nods. He tells you the long story of how he was made. It's a truly in-explainable story full of crazy artists and desperate ploys at fame. He didn't much like his story. He mentioned he'd rather forget it and move on. But there was something he had to do first. You assume he means about Henry, but say nothing. It's a personal matter for him and you two are practically strangers.

"Sorry I ain't got no rooms to offer you up for the night. The place ought to be quarantined what with all the stuff dirtying it up. There ain't any bedrooms or bathrooms either. Do you believe that? Who builds a studio and doesn't add the essentials?"

Bendy's odd voice is starting to become relaxing. Despite the odd situation you are in, you feel very safe. If he were to show up, then you had no doubt Bendy's appearance would stall him long enough for you two to make a quick break for it.

"By the by dollface, who even is after a sweet thing like you anyway?"

Bendy asks. You shake your head but you tell him anyway.

"Joey Drew."