AN: Another day brings forth another chapter! Happy Halloween!

Kidding. For me, it's the beginning of Halloween (cause that's my holiday), so October 1st ain't just the beginning of the month for me. It's more than that and it's a huge mood! I'm ready for those cloudy and rainy days so I can focus on writing, drawing, and watching crime documentaries with a mug of coffee in one hand and a piece of cake in the other.

Hope everyone is doing alright in the world, and I apologize for the delay! Suffered a bit from writer's block again, again, and again! Ugh, so glad I finally got it to pass and here we are! Chapter ten!

By the way, Allison's past from this chapter forward will be key in understanding how and why Ben exists in the first place. There will be hints moving on and eventually we'll learn as to how a child is able to be brought about in the studio to begin with. So in a sense, these events will lead up to her encounter with Bendy and what went wrong between the two. So keep watch!

You guys enjoy! After all, I've kept you waiting long enough!

Disclaimer: I do not own any Bendy and the Ink Machine characters. I own Ben Angel.

"Tom!"

Allison took no hesitation and let the rage overcome her as she charged straight for The Projectionist - whom she and Tom have unfortunately been fighting since exploring around the eleventh floor. Tom had been doing the best he could to take the creature on alone in order to protect his angel, but it seemed that she was currently needed more than ever to help him out on this one. For if not, they would both surely meet a gruesome end.

Allison was not going to lose her partner to such an ink abomination and knew she had to take action. With an enraged war cry, she lunged at the creature and sliced at one of his arms, causing him to screech in alarm, before she lifted her foot and sent him a powerful kick to the head. The monster had been caught off-guard and fell back, giving Tom enough time to get on his feet so they could hurry and escape. The wolf wasted no second and grabbed Allison's arm as they immediately scurried away just as the creature got back up and began to give chase after them.

So how did an angel and a wolf end up in this kind of squabble to begin with? Well, let's just say Tom could let his recklessness get the better of him sometimes, and that's usually what leads the pair to have such unfortunate situations like these anyway. Though Allison usually gave him a good lecture on these kind of scenarios, she usually was the one that had to do the saving.

Ah, typical Tom. Stubborn as always.

"There!" Allison shouted as she pointed to one of the miracle stations coming up their path. The pair quickly jumped inside as soon as The Projectionist had turned the corner. However the creature ultimately became confused when he no longer saw his two victims that he'd previously been pursuing. This didn't interest the creature enough to explore where they went though, so instead, he felt more at ease upon their disappearance and began to turn back the way they'd came.

Allison and Tom watched him go until he was out of sight, but just before the wolf could even think of stepping out, Allison grabbed hold onto one of his ears and jerked his head towards her. Tom winced at the act, but quickly frowned in annoyance as he knew this was just going to be another one of those 'moments' where a woman would angrily vent to a man for such negligence.

And unsurprisingly, this wasn't new in their relationship.

"That was really stupid Tom! Really smart of you!" Allison scolded him as she released hold of his ear, watching him stroke it gently. "You know better than to go and attack without precaution! You could've been killed!" Tom said nothing but send over a glower her way before she sighed with defeat, "You know that one day I might not be able to save you, so what's going to happen when you end up in that situation and I'm not there?"

Tom looked down and avoided eye contact. He didn't like when she brought up claims like these. For every time she did make one, it always made him worry that he'd one day lose her. Nobody knows when their end will come, but sometimes, it could just be waiting right around the corner. And that's what he feared most.

Allison smiled and cupped his cheek to force him into looking at her. "You know that I will always trust you. But if you really want to protect me, don't enforce yourself in situations you know you can't handle. I want you to look out for yourself just as much as you do for me, alright?"

Tom nodded steadily as he softened in her touch, immediately regretting his actions. He needed to stop making such foolish mistakes like these! Even if most of the decisions he made were just to protect her, what more could he possibly do when that day comes and he'd need to defend himself? Allison couldn't always physically be there to save his rear end every time!

Rumors had begun to spread that several Lost Ones and Searchers, including the former cartoonist himself, had unexpectedly managed to be free from the never-ending cycle. How? Well, the answer still wasn't clear and was part of the reason why Tom and Allison were outside of their sanctuary today. They've been searching for days, endlessly looking for any kind of clues as to why souls were moving on.

Allison was a bit upset that Henry had left without notice, but was still happy for him nonetheless. However, what allowed him and others to leave yet still made her and Tom continue in being victims of the darkness? Was it the Ink Demon? Did he have something to do with what was keeping them both trapped here? Allison didn't know, but with no luck in finding any evidence so far, she was quickly coming to that idea...

They returned home and figured to try the eleventh floor another time when The Projectionist wasn't roaming around. Tom was still displaying a bit of annoyance from earlier and figured he needed to get some rest while Allison tried her best to remain optimistic about these lingering thoughts. Shutting the door behind them, the angel sighed with defeat. Knowing of what she needed to do next, Allison headed over to the nearby table and went for her bucket of ink. Then, she walked over to the painted wall and continued her row of tallies of the years since Henry had left.

"And that makes forty." Allison said to herself.

Taking a step back, the angel frowned and overviewed the wall. She secretly hated viewing these lines of ink she'd mark, but if it's truly been forty years since Henry had left the studio, and other souls were getting the advantage of freedom, why didn't her and Tom seem to have that chance?

Surely there had to be a reason, right? There's always a reason!

Allison was desperate at this point to return to the former life she knew she once had. Though she didn't remember anything about her former self, that didn't mean she was not willing to return and find out. This 'otherworld' of a place full of darkness, sin, and not to mention monsters, was beginning to prove too much. All of this isolation and fear that she had to endure living in was something she just couldn't take anymore.

She didn't believe there was a chance, but if she could find any truth as to why she was here, then hell! She was going for it!

And all she needed to do was talk with a certain music director to find out...

Henry sat on the foot of his bed sketching another image of the Boris he'd befriended during his first time at the studio. It didn't take him long to remember that familiar smile and cheerful demeanor, which was what was still keeping him sane at the current moment. Upon no longer being a prisoner of the endless loop he could call Hell, Henry still felt like he was trapped there somehow. It was as if part of his purpose wasn't finished yet, almost missing something, but he didn't know what that could be.

Since escaping, Henry learned much about the studio and the role the Ink Machine had in it. Writing on the walls usually helped him remember if things weren't clear, but upon learning of the ink from others who'd fallen victim made him realize that there was indeed more 'unworldly' things transpiring there.

Henry had been thinking about Ben very much lately, considering that he offered to give him a tour of the real world the next time he returned. However, the cartoonist was a little reluctant in returning, but only because he still was trying to decipher and question the child's existence. How did Alice have a child in the studio if she was technically 'undead'? From what he knows, the ink only brings those who are dead to life.

Wait...

Henry's eyes widened and he immediately grew tense as the pen dropped from his hand onto the pad. Putting the pieces of the puzzle together, he knew what this meant and how it could have happened. If that were the case, he needed to return to the studio at once and unfortunately become the bearer of bad news. As soon as he got the proper rest he needed tonight, and consulted with Linda about expressing things like this to children, he would set foot back into the studio to find Tom and Ben...

And explain the dark truth...

It was peace and quiet in the safehouse and Tom couldn't be more than pleased upon its tranquility, especially with a two-year-old minding his own business on the other side of the room with some plushie dolls. Though the child still was incapable of proper speech communication, that didn't mean he still wasn't learning. In fact, Ben was such a bright child and was very inquisitive when it came to learning something new. The toddler was smart enough to even help Tom with his arm sometimes. Of course only handing the wolf the right tools needed whenever working on specific functions, but still very intelligent.

However blessings usually brought about curses and Tom knew at some point Ben was going to wonder about his mother. Should he even tell the boy about her? I mean, they still had to deal with the Ink Demon from time to time, so what more stress did he want to enforce on his son when he was only two and seemed to be the happiest munchkin in the world? He didn't want to enforce such a burden on him at a young age!

Tom continued working on some mechanics before he felt something tug at his pants. Looking down towards the source, the wolf softened upon seeing his son gazing up at him with those wide innocent eyes, pleading for Tom to take a break and spend some quality time with him. As much as Tom really needed to focus on other tasks right now, he knew he couldn't refuse.

Ben grinned widely as Tom accepted his request by taking a step back from the table and playfully lifting his arms and wriggling his fingers as a sign of play. Ben got the memo and squealed with delight as the wolf began to chase after him. With not much room and knowing they couldn't step foot outside, Tom made sure to be very careful whilst playing with his son. The baby may be adorable, but boy was he a fast little skipper!

Tom finally managed to capture Ben and instantly got to his knees and began tickling the toddler. Ben chortled with glee and that's when Tom grabbed the baby, rolled onto his back, and began to hold Ben high above him. Tossing and catching him in his hands every time.

Seeing his son laugh made all the dark hell Tom was suffering from temporarily disappear. Children were little miracles from birth, and their energy was something that uplifted the cloak of dark as they carried the light. Though Ben may be some kind of monster underneath this skin, that still didn't mean it could forever be kept at bay. After all, Ben inherited everything from Allison...mostly.

Tom figured that eventually he was going to have to tell Ben the truth, but even then did he not truly understand what underlying secret was being kept from him since...

Tom regained consciousness as soon as Alice had released hold of the button from shocking him. He'd been tied up for several days now, shocked over three-hundred and forty times, and received several slaps across the snout from the 'angel' herself whenever he would give her looks she didn't approve of. Overall, he was enduring a great deal of Hell being strapped up like this. But so far, thinking about his memories with Ben seemed to have him continuing strong.

Boris sat before the torture room quietly satisfying his craving of dead Butcher Gang clones his master had murdered. He crunched at their bodies greedily - tossing whatever parts weren't edible into a pile behind him. He also kept occasionally jerking his head back in case of any unusual trespassers his master ordered him to be wary of. When the coast was clear, he continued back to filling his monstrous appetite.

Tom grimaced upon watching the brute, but was immediately shocked again by Alice for another two minutes. Though he no longer was the man he once was, that didn't mean the pain of such cruelty was still there. He didn't know why, but this was far more painful than he realized it was supposed to be...

He couldn't even fathom how Bendy had felt when he'd done this to him all those years ago.

"Interesting. You haven't died yet." Alice joked with a deep chuckle as soon as she released him, "Either you're stronger than I realized...or... I'm just not trying hard enough. Hmm, no matter. I have you right where you belong."

Tom was too weak at this point to stay awake. He knew he couldn't keep fighting forever, for he was slowly succumbing, and clinging onto life as best he could. At this point, he knew he needed a miracle, but with no Allison around anymore to help with that, it quickly became apparent that there was no hope left for the former Gent worker.

At least he would be with his wife now...

And their son would finally have the freedom he solely deserves...

Ben released an angry war cry as he charged at the wall of the monster's stomach, nearly knocking himself out cold, while Allison continued to watch him tirelessly. It'd been about four hours since being eaten alive and sitting here doing nothing, but at this point, the angel didn't know how they could escape such a bowel if in less than an hour they would fall victim to the acidic aroma and become digested.

With a frown, Allison watched the young child try and continue getting a reaction out of the monster by kicking and punching the wall. Children always seemed to have a strong tendency of determination, especially for obstacles they couldn't handle, and Ben seemed to be one of those youngsters that would fall down and scrape his knees, yet still keep getting back up.

"Spit us out ya slimegus!" Ben shouted before sending the monster another sharp kick.

"Ben."

"You think you can digest me? Me?! The king of fun!?"

"Ben..."

Ben formed both of his hands into tight fists as he blew at them, determined to send the monster a really good punch. Releasing another enraged war cry, the child charged straight for the wall again, but accidentally slipped on some ink slime and crashed face-first into the juicy lining. Allison winced and jerked her head away, but looked back and chuckled to see that Ben was now covered in the stomach's secreted substance.

"UGH, Gross! Now I'm the slimegus!" Ben whined whilst examining and trying to wipe off his goopy features.

Allison watched the young boy continue cleaning himself down and couldn't help but express a soft smile. There was just something about this child that made him seem different. Almost...familiar. After comforting him prior for a short time, there was some kind of light there...almost motherly...that she didn't seem to understand.

After Ben finished, he turned his head and noticed that Allison had been staring at him. Okay this was a little odd of her, but not that he didn't mind her staring any more than she already was. He awkwardly bit his lip and immediately looked away, feeling his cheeks flush, but couldn't help but look again from the corner of his eyes to check if she was still looking.

Yep.

His pupils turned away, then several seconds later, looked again.

Uh-huh.

Ben started to get slightly uncomfortable with her continuous staring and laughed anxiously, scratching the back of his head. "Uh Alice? Why do you keep staring at me like that?"

Alice maintained her smile at the child, but didn't seem to notice that she was making him uneasy. "Staring how?"

"I dunno, like you wanna eat me or something?"

Allison's eyes widened and she was taken aback by the child's words. Eat him? Why would he think she'd wanna eat him by the smile she was giving? That was peculiar.

"I guess Tom has taught you of the many dangers you should be aware of?" she asked, hoping to break whatever tense state she had accidentally brought him in.

Ben scoffed in response before finding a piece of rock and skipping it across the lake of juice. "I wouldn't say there's many dangers that I should be worried about."

"Besides the Ink Demon." she remarked.

"Pssh, well yeah, that's everybody's problem." Ben snickered before tossing a broken piece of pencil. The monster then released a soft growl, vibrating their entire surroundings, that was enough to make Ben and Allison freeze in alarm. Believing he was making the monster upset, Ben gulped nervously and held his hands out in front of him, gazing around. "Sorry big guy!"

When the monster relaxed, Allison's eyes glanced over to the stomach juice and saw that it was beginning to bubble up a little bit more, "We need to find a way out of here...and fast. Won't be long until this beast empties its stomach out down to the next step."

"And what could that be?" Ben asked.

"Digestion."

"You mean dung?"

"Yes."

Ben gagged in response to that, and knew they had no time to waste from this point forward. He and the angel needed to find a way out of here, find home, and reunite with Tom. But how on earth were they going to accomplish such a task when they literally were inside the body of an ink monster?

Wait...

Ben sat the table and was presented with his first bowl of bacon soup. After spending the first seven years since birth of not needing to consume any kind of meal, the boy's hunger was finally beginning to emerge and that meant he needed to eat something big time.

Despite the intimidating demeanor, Tom was panicking inside and absolutely on edge upon how Ben was going to take this. He didn't know if the boy would take the spoon beside the bowl like a normal human would, or he'd let the monster out and devour it like a wild animal. Either way, Tom didn't need to worry about feeding his son anything for seven straight years so this was indeed a big step in seeing which side of life he was currently on.

Ben smiled up at his father sweetly, unfazed by the tension of his pounding heartrate, and turned back to the steaming bowl. Tom was slowly backing away just as a precaution, but his fears came true when Ben ignored the idea of using the spoon and devoured the entire bowl. Tom froze in absolute fear upon what'd he just witnessed. I mean, the precious little boy he was used to seeing just grew a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth that only a monster like Bendy could have. How could someone consider that normal!

Ben released a soft belch and licked his lips satisfactorily. He then turned to look at his father and smiled as if nothing bad had happened. However, he felt his stomach getting uneasy on him and making him feel too sick to move. Then, he felt the warm sensation of the soup quickly rising back up his throat. It was such a foul feeling that the boy knew he had absolutely no control over what would happen next.

Tom saw the boy heaving signs of vomiting and immediately began to panic. Running around the room in search for the nearest bucket or trashcan, Ben was instantly presented with an empty bucket and retched all the contents of his meal back up. Tom winced upon hearing the splashes of puke, even hearing some piles of the broken glass hitting against the sides of the bucket, and had to keep looking away.

Needless to say, Tom had to empty out the bucket ten times again that night...

Ben shuddered upon reminiscing the events of that day, feeling a bit sickened upon recalling all that vomit, but gasped with realization when he knew what needed to be done. Of course! Vomiting! If he was a creature of the ink capable of having a stomach like the monster he and Allison were in, then that meant it could vomit too.

"What is it?" Allison asked, noticing his expression.

"I know what we gotta do." Ben addressed before walking up and explaining to the angel, "When I was younger, I ate something that didn't agree with my stomach, so I threw it back up! What if... the monster didn't realize that eating us was a bad idea...and we make him spit us back out!"

Allison liked where he seemed to be going with this, even if it did sound slightly gross. "I suppose that's a good solid plan you got there. Problem is...how are we going to make him?"

"Easy." Ben stated before reaching for Allison's crucifix behind her belt buckle. The angel gasped and tried to keep him from taking her collectible, but said nothing more as he gestured to the item in his sizzling hand.

"This is our key out of here!" Ben winked, slightly wincing upon his hand burning more and more the longer he held the item. Then with no hesitation, he threw it as far as he could into the contents of the monster's stomach.

"Ben!" Allison gasped, "That was sacred! If this is really going to work, why didn't it happen earlier when we'd been eaten?"

"Alice...Alice...Alice." Ben tsked, folding his arms before sending the angel a sly smile, "That's simple. You didn't let him finish eating."

Allison said nothing else as she and Ben turned over to stare at the crucifix floating in the middle of the stomach murk. Smoke began to emerge around the cross and the juice began to boil as the crucifix quickly began to sink and dissolve into the inky acid.

Ben smirked and knew that this was indeed going to work. No monster created in the studio could resist the power of the cross.

Allison gasped when the beast began to unleash a powerful retching that nearly knocked the two angels off their feet. The walls of the stomach were quickly contracting upon each gag, and the contents of the stomach were bubbling up and beginning to form waves.

However Ben was unfazed by the chaos happening around them, and was so ready to get out of here!

"Ben!" Allison shouted as she reached for the child's arm, gazing around anxiously.

"Yeah! You might want to hold on to something!" Ben exclaimed.

Henry had been in the studio for roughly two hours now and was silently strolling along the ink river, cautious and weary for the ink monster that would sense and hear the movement of his boat if nearby. Lucky for him, it didn't seem to be anywhere around today and probably was lurking deep within the ink, resting away or hunting off another section Henry was nowhere near on.

After having the proper advice given to him by his wife, Henry was here today to discuss with Tom and Ben about the unfortunate theory he'd pieced together. Hopefully, Henry thought, Tom wouldn't kill him for this and Ben wouldn't hate him.

Almost reaching the end of the tunnel back to the main dock, Henry's boat decided now was a good time to just die and no longer operate. And after hearing that dying revving of the engine, that definitely was not a good sign!

"That doesn't sound good." Henry said.

He took a look behind to see if any ink had gotten stuck in the paddlewheel again, but when it was clear, that's when the human knew he was indeed screwed. Great. Fantastic!

Stuck in the middle of an inky river inside a dark tunnel. What an easy way to die.

Just before he could even get the idea of checking inside the throttle, Henry was taken aback when the tunnel began to shake and cause waves, slightly shaking his boat side to side.

What in the-

And that's when Ben and Allison were spat out straight from the river like cannonballs, heading straight for Henry's boat.

Unfortunately for the older man, he didn't even get the chance to react to what was happening as Ben had crashed straight into him while Allison plummeted near the end of the barge. Upon the immense discomfort it was currently in, the ink monster took no interest in messing with its victims any further and swam away.

The trio groaned in discomfort upon the harsh impacts and slowly began to regain their strengths. Just as Henry was about to get up however, he groaned when he was pinned down by the ecstatic child sitting atop of his torso.

"Henry!" Ben beamed. "You came back!"

Upon hearing the name she thought she'd never hear again, Allison focused her attention onto the man Ben was currently fascinating over. Could it be? No, it couldn't! How could he be here if-

Allison watched as Henry found the proper strength to lift Ben off him and stand back to his feet. Her expression only changed into one of further shock and confusion as she noticed that this was indeed the same man that she'd met from so long ago. Ben was too busy inspecting Henry's humanistic features by circling around him and poking at his torso and legs to even notice what was happening.

After dusting himself off from any debris on the barge, Henry's eyes locked straight at Allison's. Could it be? No, it couldn't! How could she be here if...

Before Henry could ponder any further, he was quickly caught off-guard when Allison ran and quickly embraced him.

"Henry!"

Henry hugged the angel back and knew right away that this was indeed the Alice he knew and remembered. How she was alive and well hugging him, right here right now, he didn't know, but that didn't matter. What mattered was that he was so ultimately pleased to see her again.

Ben had stepped out of the way and smiled at the two adults expressing their tender moment. He felt a little stray for not being well-known in this studio as he would like, but he tried to remain optimistic and reminded himself that they probably have known each other long before he was around.

But seeing them so happy...so full of emotion...Ben felt like he was only granted this sort of affection once in his life.

But that was okay!

Henry was surprised to suddenly hear Allison quiver and sniffle with tears, but knew that this was purely out of joyous emotion. Comforting her, Henry stroked her back and quietly counseled her. She then pulled away and began to wipe the ink tears underneath her eyes, slightly smearing it altogether.

"Henry...you came back!"

Henry nodded softly in response.

"But...how? Why?!" she exclaimed, "H-How can you come back if you were free? Why would you want to come back here?!"

"You said it yourself Alice. We're here for a reason when there's always a reason. Even when we don't understand the meanings behind them."

Ben's eyes widened with reverence upon Henry's words. He'd never heard a statement as bold as this before! And he had a feeling this would be something that'd stick on with him later.

Allison wiped away the remaining set of tears from her eyes, sniffling and laughing anxiously. "I've been searching for an answer for so long! I never knew why Tom and I never got our second chances, but I suppose you're right. Maybe it's right in front of me and I just haven't been looking hard enough!"

"Wait..." Ben jumped in, giving his full attention as soon as he'd heard his father's name, "You and Tom were human?!"

Allison hadn't expected for Ben respond to such conversation and chuckled with a nod. "Yes. We all are."

Henry immediately shifted his eyes to the ground and silently returned his attention to the throttle to see if he could fix the problem, avoiding such conversation.

"Wow! So that means I'm human too?!" the child asked excitedly.

"You have to be...otherwise how else would you be here?" Allison chuckled. However she grew concerned when Ben seemed to be breathing hard...and somewhat... hyperventilating upon this news. "Ben? Are you alright?"

Ben placed a hand to his chest, feeling the effect of his heartrate going faster and faster. He was human. He was human! Human! Not a monster, not Bendy's son, and not another creature of the ink!

He was Ben!

And he was human!

"I...I...think I need to sit down for a second." Ben exhaled nervously, slightly shivering out of both shock and excitement.

"Here." Allison insisted as she gestured to her lap while beginning to cross her legs and sit down. Ben slowly walked over and sat in the angel's lap, too stiff and shaken to move, and couldn't help but feel absolutely overjoyed after hearing this news. Allison noticed that his hair was slightly mangled and began to stroke it back to it's original form. Shivering to maintain his composure from freaking out, Ben swallowed hard and just blankly stared straight ahead. This was absolutely the most greatest day he's ever had in his life!

"Ben...are you alright?" Allison asked, finally noticing his peculiar behavior. "You look like you've seen an Ink Demon."

Before Ben could respond, he and Allison jumped upon Henry shouting in alarm when he jerked his arm back from having messed with the wrong wire inside the throttle. Wincing, the older man shook his hand to relieve the pain and that's when Ben immediately grew curious and hopped back to his feet to come over.

"Henry, what happened? You okay?"

Henry grinned at the child upon expressing his concerns. "I'm alright buddy."

"What'd you do?"

"Just a little shock. Nothing too harsh."

Ben frowned and took a look at the immense amount of wiring and mechanics inside the throttle of the barge. It seems Henry was having trouble in restarting the boat, and since it wasn't complying with being repaired, Ben figured he needed to step in. Lowering to his knees, Ben peered inside and when he found the source of the problem, he smirked and took no hesitation in getting to work.

"Ben, what are you doing? Don't mess with those. I don't want you getting hurt." Henry implored.

Ben didn't reply as he continued his focus on grabbing and properly adjusting the wires to their respected ports, careful not to shock himself in the process. Allison and Henry watched with both interest and awe as Ben continued his work. Never before have they seen such a child doing or knowing so much about repairing!

Ben could feel that the silence behind him was the two grown-ups watching and waiting for him to complete his task, but he didn't mind. This was nothing new to him. In fact, he's been doing this for years now, and sometimes, it could be very relaxing. Biting his tongue to properly place the wire into a port far inside the throttle, Ben finally managed to get it in all the way, and slid back out.

"And that's a wrap!"

"You fixed it that fast?" Henry asked as Ben shut the door to the throttle and jumped back to his feet.

"Henry, I don't know if you knew what you were doing, but you switched out the power wire for the one that powers on this." Ben stated as he pointed up to the stage light above their heads. "That's why you hurt yourself."

Allison giggled while Henry remained completely silent, feeling slightly embarrassed. He thought he knew what he was doing, but it seems a child knew much more about mechanics and repairs than he did. Not that he was complaining of course!

With a small chuckle, he looked down and slightly shook his head whilst his body began to quiver with laughter. Allison noticed and began to laugh even more upon seeing Henry succumbing to the humor, and this in turn made Ben smile and have a laugh of his own. He didn't know what was so funny, but whatever he said that was so amusing, it just felt so good to see them giving in to the absurdity of it all.

"You got me." Henry replied with a warm smile, "Guess that means I should be learning from you instead, Ben."

Ben scoffed and felt himself flushing shyly at the comment. "Pssh, no! Really, it's nothing! I just learned from the best wolf in town."

"I can see that." Henry grinned as Allison got back up on her feet and began to take control of the barge. When it powered on without a problem, they began to set sail and drift further down the tunnel.

"You got that right." Ben winked.

Alice had finally grown weary of constantly torturing Tom and knew she needed to take a break before continuing further. Knowing she would be stepping out, she glowered at her unconscious prisoner and shifted her focus to Boris waiting for any orders or instructions she may have.

"Boris..." she chuckled, "Be a good boy will you? Watch over our guest."

Boris said nothing and immediately complied with his master's orders by turning his attention to Tom. Smirking evilly, Alice said nothing more and stepped out of the torture room. Hell, even a foul creature like herself needed one after committing such endless torture to a former man that'd been affiliated with her arch-rival in the past life.

In fact, indulging herself on some hearts sounded like that would be the best thing to do right now.

The Projectionist wasn't the only one in this studio who had a thing for the intriguing organs. Unlike him, Alice had a ferocious appetite in satisfying her perfection with the life force of others in order to feel complete and wholesome. Keeping them locked up in her own personal sanctuary, the twisted angel would always come and devour the lives of those that were far less superior than her.

And unlike Norman, she had something far more valuable than just another typical inky organ.

No. What she had inside her sanctuary...was the answer she never knew she was looking for.

Stepping inside her inky haven of dismantled bodies and cages, she slowly strolled over to her personal bureau. Summoning the key from the palm of her hand, the angel took no hesitation to unlock the drawer and slowly pulled it open to view the object she'd been looking forward in seeing again. With a smug expression crossed over her face, Alice grabbed the substantial worth and delicately held it up close to her lips.

However instead of feeling hungry for life, she was more hungry for power.

After all...this wasn't just your average heart.

Holding the organ close, she knew that her time to rule over the studio to become powerful and perfect was far closer than she could possibly think...

And she could not wait to meet him.

"Mother will see you soon." she whispered demonically before planting a tender kiss to the pumping organ.

Pulling away, she grinned and knew that much work needed to be done in order to welcome such a child like Ben...

For a mother's love would always be unconditional.