We May Fall But We Help Each Other Get Back Up

Pure reflex born out of fighting for his life hundreds of times in this cursed studio allowed Henry to twist away from Bendy's strike in time, leaving the Ink Demon to crash into the couch that had been behind Henry. Henry's heart raced and his grip on his ax tightened. He prepared to swing but stopped himself. He couldn't hurt Bendy… not now… not after knowing he really is the sweet toon he created forced to be a monster by Joey's madness…

Unfortunately, the Ink Demon showed no such restraint. Taking advantage of Henry's hesitation, the Ink Demon grabbed onto Henry and slammed him into the ground, his hand closing around Henry's throat.

"Bendy… Stop! Please…" Henry wheezed, forcing the words past Bendy's tightening grip. "This isn't you… Don't let Joey control you… We're in this together…"

While Henry spoke, he raised one and cupped Bendy's face, stocking is thumb gently over the ink. Whether it was Henry's words or his gentle touch, Henry wasn't sure, but he could see Bendy snap out of his villainous role. Bendy's grin lost its predatory edge and he immediately let go of Henry, stumbling away from the man with a distressed whine. Henry immediately started coughing and gasping as his body tried to get back the oxygen he had been deprived of. Bendy backed up into the wall, gripping his head as his instincts and thoughts battled against each other.

"B-Bendy…" Henry coughed, reaching towards the struggling Demon as he got to his feet. "It's alright… I know you can fight this…"

Bendy whined again and shook his head, an ink portal opening up next to him.

"No Bendy!" Henry pleaded, hurrying to the fleeing Demon. "Don't run from me… It's alright!"

Henry managed to grab onto Bendy's wrist before he disappeared completely into the ink portal, causing the Ink Demon to freeze.

"You don't have to run off because you slipped up this time," Henry assured, hoping to get through to Bendy. "Come on, let's talk this out… we won't solve any problems if you leave…"

Bendy still seemed hesitant, but he slowly stepped back out of the portal, letting it close behind him. Bendy pulled his hand free but didn't try and flee anymore. Henry tried to give him a comforting pat, but Bendy flinched away before Henry could touch him.

"Hey, it's alright buddy… I'm not going to hurt you…" Henry tried to say but paused when Bendy shook his head and gripped his arms close to his chest. "Bendy… you're not going to hurt me either…"

Bendy whined again and Henry swore Bendy gave him a disbelieving glare.

"Just because you hurt me just now, doesn't mean you will again," Henry replied quickly. "We're trying to break a loop that we've been trapped in for hundreds of cycles. We knew it wouldn't be easy and that we'd have obstacles to overcome. I know you've been fighting the instincts Joey has forced upon you this whole time and it's amazing that you haven't slipped up at all until now. The only thing we can do is press on… so let's get going, Bendy…"

Henry held out his hand to the Ink Demon, giving him an assuring smile. Bendy began reaching for Henry's hand, but then pulled back.

"Bendy… I don't blame you for attacking me…" Henry sighed. "Do you blame me for all the times I've killed you at the end of this loop?"

Bendy immediately shook his head.

"Then you shouldn't blame yourself for all the times you've killed me. You managed to snap out of it this time and I know that if you end up slipping again you'll come out of it again. I meant what I said. I trust you, Bendy… you just need to trust yourself…"

Bendy still seemed nervous and skeptical, but eventually, put his hand in Henry's. Henry gave Bendy a large smile before, leading him back to the elevator. Bendy hesitated before stepping on and he shied away from the others. Henry just gave his hand a comforting squeeze but didn't force him to the others. Bendy would approach the others when he was ready. Henry went up to Alice's door alone, dropping off the ax. When the Butcher gang barged in, Bendy killed them as they passed by the elevator, leaving only a few searchers for Henry to take care of.

"You can stay here Bendy," Henry assured as the elevator went down to Level 14. " I can sneak past the Projectionist on my own. I'll be back before you know it."

Bendy seemed like he wanted to protest at first, but as soon as he heard the Projectionist was on this floor, he nodded in agreement with Henry. With the close call he just had with Henry in the Heavenly Toys area, Bendy doubted he would be able to resist killing the Projectionist as soon as he saw him. Henry gave Bendy a gentle smile and a reassuring pat on the shoulder before heading off.

As Henry began wading through the ink, he couldn't help but wonder what he was going to do about the Projectionist. He wanted to save the Projectionist, of course, knowing that he had been Norman, but he wasn't sure if he could. The Projectionist had always seemed more on the feral side of Ink Creatures, like the searchers and Butcher gang clones, so Henry wasn't sure if he was sentient enough to be saved.

Still… he had to know for sure before he could back a decision. His mind made up, Henry snuck around until he was near a little miracle station and could see the Projectionist ahead.

"Norman!" Henry shouted, immediately getting the Projectionist's attention. "We're trying to break out of here and to bring as many people as we can with us! If you can understand me at all… Please give me a sign!"

The Projectionist turned around and gave one jerky nod before screeching and charging at Henry. Henry quickly ducked into the miracle station and watched as the Projectionist slinked off. That was enough for Henry to have hope that Norman could be saved as well, though it would probably be best to wait until they were in the storage area before breaking him out of the cycle. They still had to deal with Alice first after all…

Satisfied with what he learned, Henry finished gathering the hearts he needed and heading back to the elevator, completely ignoring Alice's commentary.

"It seems we've reached the end of my to-do list, my little errand boy," Alice said after Henry dropped off the hearts. "I hope you and those little tag-alongs enjoyed our time together. I'll always treasure it. Return to the lift. It's time to go home."

"But don't you come with us?" Henry half-heartedly suggested, knowing that Alice still had her own agenda. "We're all getting out of here after all."

"I refuse to be anywhere near that Demon!" Alice said in anger, before taking on a sweeter tone. "Besides, I have a few things I need to do first. Once I'm done, I'll make my own way out."

Henry just rolled his eyes and headed back onto the elevator.

"So she going to drop the elevator with us in it," Henry informed the others as the elevator rose and Alice began rambling. Sammy and Boris seemed shocked and confused by Henry's statement, but Bendy just nodded, understanding the Henry knew from experience. "Bendy, I want you to make sure that she doesn't get her hands on Boris. Don't kill her if you can help it, but she absolutely must not get to him. I might black out, but I'll be fine. Boris is your main priority."

Bendy nodded in determination, but he stuck by Henry's side as Alice began to laugh maniacally. Bendy curled around Henry as the elevator began to drop while Sammy huddled next to Boris. Henry hoped everything would turn out alright as the elevator crashed.

Henry awoke to the familiar sight of Boris shacking him. Sammy was hovering nearby, but Henry couldn't see Bendy from his position. Alice hummed as she approached from a nearby corridor, only to be tackled by Bendy before she could get close to Boris.

"Let me go you disgusting monster!" Alice screeched as she clawed at Bendy, though they had no effect on the powerful Ink Demon. "How dare something as tainted as you touch an angel like me! Take your filthy hands off! I command that you release me!"

Bendy paid no mind to Alice, focused more on keeping a grip on her and holding her off the ground. Henry let out a small chuckle at the sight that turned into a cough. Though Bendy had defiantly kept Henry safe from the worst injuries, he was still a little banged up. Boris rubbed Henry's back until the coughing subsided then helped him to his feet.

"This is your last chance, Alice," Henry said as looked at the captive Angel. "Either join us and work to get out of this place, or you can be left here to rot. And if you even think about coming after Boris again, well Bendy would just have to take care of you…"

This was a bluff of course, as he wouldn't want to force Bendy into killing anyone if it could be helped, that's what Joey was doing after all, but he needed to get his point across to Alice. Luckily Bendy caught on to his line of thinking and gave Alice a menacing growl. Alice's already pale skin turned white as she froze in Bendy's grip.

"F-fine…" Alice eventually said, failing to sound calm and collected. "I'll join you on your pointless goal. Just keep this beast away from me!"

"Bendy…" Henry replied and Bendy immediately dropped Alice, letting her fall in an undignified heap. Alice rose to her feet and tried to seem unaffected as she brushed herself off while Bendy went to Henry's side.

"You are living a fantasy story if you think you can escape," Alice scoffed once she composed herself. "But I'll play along… for now…"

"It may be a story, but we're rewriting the ending," Henry replied with a knowing grin, getting a hissing laugh from Bendy. Henry couldn't help but feel proud as he lead his growing group forward, even as Alice continued to complain and started an argument with Sammy. He and Bendy were changing things ad soon they'd be able to save everyone. Just a little longer and then they'd all be free…