Chapter 35: One Big Happy Family

Linda felt nauseated as she sat anxiously near the phone, not even sure if Henry would call home. It was still hard for her to believe that they were free from Joey Drew Studios, and part of her felt like she was just dreaming and she would wake up to find herself somewhere in the ink-flooded studio. That feeling washed away as Linda felt something touch her shoulder and she turned her head to see Alice. Tom was standing not too far behind looking like he didn't know what to do with himself.

This was all new to the toons; they never had a life outside of the studio. Not one they could remember at least.

"Heard anything?" Alice asked.

"Not yet." Linda sighed as she lightly shook her head. "I hope he's alright."

Alice smiled slightly and gently patted her shoulder.

"Henry has gotten himself into a lot of trouble before, I'm sure he'll be fine."

Linda couldn't help but chuckle at the remark.

"True, if there was anything that time in Joey Drew Studios has proven, it's that Henry always finds a way."

The moment was interrupted as the phone began to ring, causing Linda to jump slightly and fumble to answer it.

"This is Linda Stein, who's calling?"

"Hey Linda, it's me." Henry's tired voice responded.

Linda heart fluttered and settled with relief.

"Oh thank god. Where are you? Is everything alright?"

"I'm about to head home now." He replied. "I had to explain the situation to the police without making it seem like I was crazy. Fortunately, one of the cops was an old buddy of mine and didn't suspect I had anything to do with Joey...They concluded it was some freak accident with the machine he kept in his house."

A look of confusion appeared on Linda's face.

"'Machine'?"

"I was just as confused as you were." Henry continued. "But they found it during their investigation, and it was ink was spraying everywhere. I guess Joey kept an ink machine of his own."

They were both silent for a moment, which felt like an hour to Linda, before her husband spoke up again.

"How is everyone doing?"

"We're doing alright." Linda replied. "Everyone has seemed to settle down a bit, but I'll have to check on Bendy. He's still having a hard time."

"I bet he is." Henry said. "He's probably going to struggle for a while, but we'll be there to help him through it. I'll be home soon. Love you."

"Love you too." Linda responded before they both hung up.

Alice was still standing near Linda as she raised a brow.

"Everything okay?"

"Henry will be home soon." Linda assured with a small smile. "Where's Bendy?"

"I'm not sure." Alice replied. "He was with the others just a bit ago, last I knew."

Linda stood up and made her way into the dining room where she had last seen the other toons.

Boris and The Butcher Gang were playing a game of cards, though it seemed they couldn't decide which one. Boris was playing Go Fish; 'Charley' was playing Poker; 'Barley' was playing Old Maid, and 'Edgar' was trying to build a pyramid with his deck, but the cards wouldn't stay standing. Linda giggled at the comical sight before gently tapping on Boris' shoulder to get his attention.

"Do you know where Bendy went?" She asked as the toon wolf looked up at her.

Boris looked over towards the stairs and pointed.

Linda walked over to the stairs and took them up to the second floor of the house. She walked down the hall, peeking into the rooms until she spotted a familiar inky form in the third room: Henry's drawing room. She opened the door a bit wider to step in and saw Bendy sitting at Henry's desk, staring at a sketch of himself.

"Bendy?" Linda called out, keeping her voice soft so she would not startle the toon.

The little toon devil turned his head to look at her, his grin contorted to that of a frown as inky tears pooled at his pie-cut eyes.

Linda approached and scooped up Bendy into arms and sat down on the chair he was on. Bendy snuggled into her as more inky tears spilled down his face.

"Oh Bendy..." Linda sighed sadly. "I wish I could take the pain you're feeling away.

She held him closer as she slightly tightened her embrace.

"You have been through so much for so long, but now you don't have to fight anymore. You can rest easy now and live a new happier life with Henry and I."

Linda looked down at Bendy as she felt him look up at her with wide eyes. Though they were toonish, they were full of emotion and innocence.

"Would you like that, Bendy?"

Bendy's smile slowly returned as he wrapped his arms around her neck and nuzzled her cheek.

"I'm home!" A voice called from downstairs.

Henry's voice.

Linda carried Bendy down to meet him, and felt the toon tightened his grip on her. She could tell he was anxious and perhaps thought Henry would be upset with him. She supposed she still somewhat harbored the same abilities that were given to her during her time at Joe Drew Studios to know what Bendy was really feeling, they just weren't as strong now as they were then.

As they got to the bottom step, Linda could see that Henry had himself surrounded by the others welcoming him back. Boris was hugging him while The Butcher Gang were circling around his feet, garbling loudly. Alice and Tom just stood of to the side, enjoying the sight.

Henry greeted each of them to acknowledge their greetings before making his way towards Linda.

Linda watched as he looked down at Bendy and held out his hands. Bendy was a bit reluctant as she passed him over to Henry, but relaxed slightly as he noticed the man smiling at him.

"I meant what I said before, Bendy." Henry said as he hugged the toon. "And I still do. I do not blame you for all the hell I went through in that studio. You're still my Little Devil Darlin'."

Bendy hugged Henry back, and Linda could see they were both crying tears of joy. She hugged them both and felt the others join in the embrace as well.

That evening they celebrated their freedom playing games and having a grand meal together, which they also spent in remembering those who could not be saved from the studio. It was a bittersweet moment, and some tears were shed between Henry and Linda as the others took their moment of silence.

When it was time to turn in for the night, Linda and Henry made sure everyone had a place to sleep before heading to bed themselves.

Linda enjoyed the comfort of a bed more than she had ever before, and she was sure Henry felt the same as he plopped down on the bed, almost immediately falling asleep. However, she knew he was still awake by how he smiled when she looked at him.

"It's great to be home." He said.

"Yes it is." Linda replied before giving him a kiss.

Before they could drift off to sleep, they felt something moving from beneath the covers. Linda pulled up the covers and chuckled as she saw Bendy grinning up at her.

"Alright Bendy, just for the night." Henry yawned, rubbing the space between the toon devil's horns.

"I have a feeling this will be a common occurence." Linda said as Bendy made himself comfortable between them.

"Yeah, you're probably right." Henry replied, closing his eyes. "Our family just got bigger."

"One big happy family." Linda smiled as she turned off the light.

The three of them soon drifted off to sleep.

The End

Author's Note: Woo, this took forever for me to finish. I lost the notebook I was writing this story in, I couldn't think of how to write the chapter, and I was busy with a whole bunch of stuff. I apologize for taking so long to write this ending, but this story is now finished and I can now move on to other story ideas. I also wrote/edited this chapter on my phone, and I would not recommend it.

Thanks to those who have followed and faved this story, I hope this was worth the wait.