AN: Happy Moter's Day everyone!
Linda could be described in many ways. A kind woman who loved to bake. A gardener that loves to have a yard full of flowers. A loving wife with a good husband and a nice home. Some who could be incredibly stubborn with a fiery temper whenever pushed the wrong way. But for Linda herself, she always first and foremost considered herself a mother. Even though her children were all grown and a few even had families of her own, Linda still did her best to look out for them and make sure they're doing well.
Then Henry returned with a new batch of children. They weren't children in the traditional sense, a bunch of toons created through dark magic and they had a lot of issues after all they had been through. They were cautious around Linda, a combination of not wanting to accidentally hurt her and not trusting her because of how much pain humans had caused them. But she was determined to love and care for them, helping them find happiness in their new start.
Boris was the easiest to win over. All Linda had to do was feed him and he was happy to trust her. He also enjoyed laying his head on her lap so she could scratch his ears while she was reading on the couch. The Butcher Gang were also fairly easy to form attachments with her. They needed a purpose to help them adjust and Linda was able to provide that purpose. Not even her own children had been as helpful in doing chores as those three were. Linda was so happy when she was surrounded by the three of them teaching them the wonders and beauty of the outside world. Alice was a little trickier as the angel was pushing everyone away at first. But as Bendy and Boris were able to reach out to her toon side, Linda was able to reach her feminine side. Linda and Alice ended up having a lot of girl talks as Linda would brush and style Alice's hair.
Now Bendy was a hard nut to crack. While the little devil cared deeply for everyone else and did his best to help the others, it was obvious he was keeping most of his own issues to himself. Even after all this time, Bendy still took a while before informing everyone what he was going through. Henry said it was because the toon had been rejected so much that he was afraid of opening up in case he accidentally says something that leads to him being rejected again. It broke Linda's heart to see how much the little devil carried around.
And now with this latest incident, revealing in full the new form Bendy had been alluding to for a while. While they didn't doubt that Bendy was still the sweet toon they knew, there was still some tension after seeing him almost kill Tom. Unfortunately, the little devil picked up on this easily and was keeping his distance. Linda was determined to make sure the little devil was still loved. Carefully opening the door to room Bendy and Boris shared, Linda silently entered. Bendy was curled up on his bed, absentmindedly stroking Ink Blot.
"I'm fine Henry…" Bendy mumbled without looking.
"I'm not Henry," Linda replied softly, sitting on the bed near him. She gently laid her hand on his back, ignoring the way he tensed briefly under her touch, and rubbed him as he slowly started to relax. "He's not the only one who cares about you, you know…"
"… I know…" Bendy whispered, though he still hadn't moved from his position. "But it's better if I don't get near the others…"
"Bendy…" Linda sighed, scooping the toon up into her lap, making the little devil whistle in surprise. Linda held him close and started rocking gently as she talked to him. "You have got to stop seeing yourself as a monster… We've all been over this with you already…"
"But I'm dangerous…" the toon protested, weakly trying to escape.
"We're all dangerous," Linda scoffed, holding him closer and resting her chin on his head. "I think what Joey did to you all in the studio demonstrates pretty clearly that humans are capable of doing terrible things to others and each other. But just we have the ability to hurt each other doesn't mean we will. It's the same with you. Just because you have the ability to hurt someone, doesn't mean you will…"
"But I almost did…"
"So what! The point is you didn't. You're still learning about these new abilities so mistakes are bound to happen, but even there, you were still willing to listen to Henry. If you were a monster, you would have just gone through with the kill no matter what Henry said. We all see you for the toon you are, you just need to see that as well…"
Bendy didn't respond but he did clutch onto Linda. Linda just kept rubbing the toon and started humming softly. She knew it would be a while before Bendy would ever be completely well and it would not be an easy road. But Linda was going to be with him and the others every step of the way.
After all, no one ever said being a mother would be easy.
