"Okay, we're here."
Seven year old Gail blinked sleepily as her daddy got out of the car. He had woken her up early this morning, saying he needed to meet an old friend. Her daddy smiled at her when she got out of the car, picking her up when she silently requested. They walked up the stairs of the apartment building to one of the doors. He knocked. There was a moment of silence before the door opened, revealing a man with greying hair and gripping a cane.
"Henry!"
"Joey."
The man's eyes landed on her, brown and friendly. "You must be the little one!" Gail couldn't help but nod, gripping her daddy tighter. "Oh, seems we have a little shy one."
"Did you need something Joey?"
"Yes, yes. Come in!"
Gail got set up with paper and crayons in the living room as Daddy and the man who told her to call him Uncle Joey talked in the kitchen. She drew, wincing when her father's voice suddenly raised. Then, there was footsteps. Daddy entered. "I'm gonna leave you here with Joey for a bit, okay?" he said, hugging her. "I'll be right back, I promise."
"Okay."
He smiled down at her before leaving the room. She could hear the door shut. A feeling of coldness rose up in her stomach when she heard the car drive away. There was a moment of silence before Joey entered. "Hey there."
"Hi."
"I have a little present for you." There was a funny look in his eyes. He pulled it out of his pocket- a little plush. "This is Bendy the Dancing Demon." He made it wave a white gloved hand at her. "He says hi." Gail giggled as she took it, hugging it. It let out a squeak. "Would you like some tea?" She nodded. The two entered the kitchen and he got the kettle started. He started to talk.
"Once upon a time, there was a very brave man. One day, he received a letter from his friend, who he had once made cartoons with..."
He continued telling the story of the brave man and the monsters and demons made with ink as the tea was made. Gail didn't notice the sprinkle of white powder he put in hers. "Poor little wolf!" she said when it was revealed what the mean angel had done to him. He nodded in agreement as he brought the cups over. "And so the brave man, the tough wolf, and the real angel fought the monsters. Then they traveled further until the man fell through the floor."
"What happened to him?"
She took a sip of her tea.
"He was forced to travel alone..."
Gail sipped her tea some more.
"And then he finally made it to the projector. The demon watched as THE END came onto the screen, glowing brighter and brighter as the light started to eat away at him..."
She was sleepy. Why was she so sleepy?
"And then there were free. The end."
The teacup clattered out of her fingers.
Joey quickly caught the little girl that was falling asleep. "It worked." he said simply.
Holding Henry's daughter close, he sat down in his wheelchair and wheeled to a door that hadn't been opened. Inside, the smaller version of the Ink Machine he had built hummed with the churning ink inside it. A pentagram was burned into the floor. Setting Gail down on it, Joey set to work lighting the candles.
"I know this isn't your fault," he said to the sleeping girl. "But when I needed Henry the most, he wasn't there."
It wasn't his fault.
It wasn't
He pulled out a letter opener. Setting a small bowl under it, he gripped her hand and sliced open her palm, the cut thin enough to heal easily. Blood welled up and fell into the bowl. "We'll make a nice little fairytale for him."
Joey started to chant, the candles rising. They continued to rise as he spoke, flicking the blood on the pentagram. His voice rose, the candles high...
Then the chant ended and the candles went back to normal. Joey smiled.
Bounding up Gail's hand, he sat the sleeping girl on his bed. He left the room, heading to the sink. He started to clean the teacups, hearing the door open. He knew that Henry was standing there, beat up and clothes stained with ink.
"Henry! I didn't expect you until an hour later. Now you're just trying to impress me."
When Gail woke up, she headed into the kitchen.
"Tell me another one Uncle Joey."
It wasn't until her mother called hours later that she realized something was wrong.
