Inked in Mystery
Chapter 4: Forbidden Friendship
The next day, at the TerryToons Studios, Keffan goes around in the wheelhouse of his dads. He is crazy about worry. What if Aiden didn't survive his solo visit to Bendy's studio? And if that demon had devoured him?
« Keffan, what's the matter, sweetheart? » Gandy worries, putting down what he is doing to approach his son who jumped (not having heard him come in).
« Daddy? Aiden has arrived? » the kitten asks.
« Not yet, kid. » SourPuss answers by turning the page of his diary. « Heckle and Jeckle have no filming this morning so if they want to sleep in, we will not see them before lunch. »
Keffan tightly squeezes his plush, obviously very worried. His official dad kneels in front of him and checks to see if his tremors are due to a fever but he doesn't detect any abnormal temperature.
« My kitten, what's wrong? » the goose worries. « You are all pale and you are trembling like a leaf. »
« It's your nightmares that put you in this state? » SourPuss worries as he approaches.
The kitten looks at his dads and nods. It is true that his nightmares disturb him a lot and as he promised Aiden, he can't say that he really saw what makes him so scared.
Gandy and SourPuss look at each other with a small smile, reassured that it is only Keffan's nightmares that scares him so much.
« Keffan, sweetheart. » the goose smiled. « These are just nightmares, bad dreams, and you're in a good position to know that in our world only good dreams come true. »
The kitten sighs and squeezes his plush. Seeing that their boy wasn't going to be calm until he saw his friend, SourPuss took him by the hand and dragged him out of the house.
« Come on, let's go see Heckle and Jeckle. You will feel reassured once you see Aiden. »
Aiden sleeps deeply in his bed, wrapped in his blanket and hugging his pillow against him. Jeckle comes in and smiles at seeing his chick so peaceful. Without a sound, he goes to the bed, sits down and strokes the feathers still fluffy of his son.
« He is still sleeping ? » Heckle whispered, poking his head into the opening of the door.
« Yes, but he had to get up in the night to eat. » the other magpie smiled, lifting the empty plate that was on the bedside table. « The poor sweetheart, he really didn't have much sleep in the last days. »
« Well, Keffan had his nightmares and by day they had to make idiots in the studios. »
Jeckle turns to his husband with an air of saying ''whose fault is it? ''... when someone knocks on the door.
Heckle enjoys the distraction to get out of the room and avoid the hassle. The other pie sighs, rolling his eyes before leaning toward his son.
« Aiden, treasure. » he smiled, shaking his baby's shoulder gently. « Honey, you have to wake up. »
The chick moans and stretches all his way... before covering himself with his blanket, making his mother laugh.
« Sorry Aiden, but you have to get up. » he insists, removing the blanket, fully revealing the little bird who is grumbling, rolling himself in a ball against his pillow.
« Another 5 minutes, Mom ... »
« Jeckle! » Heckle suddenly calls from the front door. « Can you bring Aiden here, please? »
Although intrigued, the magpie takes his chick who grumbles in his arms before joining his husband.
Aiden rubs his sleepy eyes and finally emerges from his sleep to see his mom lead him to the entrance where there is his father... with SourPuss and Keffan. As soon as he sees the chick, the kitten releases the hand of his Daddy Cat and runs to Jeckle, surprising the three magpies. SourPuss explains after seeing the look of his friends.
« Keffan still had nightmares, and this morning he was circling like a caged animal so he was scared. I thought bringing him here to see Aiden would calm him down. »
« Ah! You did well, SourPuss. » Heckle said before looking at his husband, who glared at him and put Aiden down so Keffan could hug him. « If you want, we can keep him here this morning and bring him back to the studios at the lunch break. »
« That's what I thought to asking you ... if you don't mind, of course! »
« No, there are no worries. » Jeckle promises by forcing a smile on his face for SourPuss even though his eyes still say to Heckle, ''I'm going to kill you.''
« Keffan, I can't breathe! » Aiden grumbles, caught in an embrace of the kitten.
A hug with a force he thought only possible in Toons bears. The three parents burst out laughing, amused to see their children so close and the kitten also reassured to see Aiden safe and sound. The chick wiggles and finally escape the hug before driving his friend in his room.
« Aiden, you haven't eat your breakfast yet! » exclaims Jeckle.
« I'll take it after, Mom! » the chick yelled, closing the door under Heckle and SourPuss's laughs.
Once locked in his room, the little magpie turns to his friend Tunman, crossing his arms.
« What? » he is annoyed, shrugging his shoulders. « I was scared for you, it's normal, isn't it? »
« Did you hold your tongue? » his friend asks, almost glaring at him.
« I didn't say anything, don't worry, but I was two fingers away ... No but seriously, Aiden, what were you thinking of yesterday when you wanted to go back alone? I made the worst possible movies in my head! What would I say to adults if you had been sucked by this demon? Fortunately you changed your mind visibly ... »
« Not at all! I was there last night. » replied the chick, bending his chest.
« WHAT? » suffocates the Tunman.
Aiden puts his hands on his mouth to silence him, annoyed by his almost phobic fear, and explains:
« Yes, I went back last night, at first I wanted to be discreet ... and I met another Toon in this studio. »
« Huh? » Keffan wonders. « There are other monsters like him? »
« But stop it! They are Toons like the others... or almost! » defend the chick. « And even though Bendy isn't the ideal host, Boris is very nice. »
« Boris? »
« That's the other Toon who lives with Bendy. He's a ghost-wolf... even though in the episode ''The Sheep Song'' he looked very much alive. »
« Wow, wow, wait! » his friend interrupts. « You tell me that in addition to this demonic devil, there is a wolf ghost that played in episodes with him except that in these episodes, he was alive? »
« In short, that's it. »
Keffan takes his head. It was getting too complicated for him. A demonic Toon who was forgotten and who should have disappeared but who was still alive, a ghost-wolf Toon who appears alive in his episodes, and then what? A bastarded Tunman cherub who drinks the blood of Bendy's victims?
« I don't feel well... » mutters the kitten, disgusted by his own thoughts.
« Oh! You're nice, Keffy, but you're not sending your breakfast and your hairballs back to my room! » Aiden warns, grabbing his friend, ready to guiding him out.
« No, it's okay. » the kitten grumbles. « I hope you're happy now... »
« I'm going back again tonight. » the little magpie admit.
« WHAT!? But you really want to get killed or what? »
« Keffan, I'm sure Bendy isn't proof: Boris is super nice! »
« But Bendy ... »
« I'm sure there is something more serious behind all this and that Bendy is nice! I want to help him, Keffan, but you have to keep the secret! »
Keffan is about to argue ... but Aiden seems so convinced that he doesn't know what to say to convince him that it's a bad idea. Sighing, he gives a little smile to his friend.
« I pinky promise, no? »
Aiden smiles with all his teeth and jumps on Keffan's neck, chirping ''Thank you thank you thank you! ''... when the belly of the little magpie begins to chirp, reminding him that he hasn't eat anything this morning. Keffan bursts out laughing.
« The superiority of the Tunmans over the Toons: they don't forget to eat! »
« Yak yak yak ... » squeaks the chick. « It's not like we really needed it! »
In a joking tone, the two friends pull their tongues out before running out of the room.
At the lunch break, Heckle and Jeckle went to the studio with the kids ... but they were surprised to find SourPuss alone and Gandy nowhere in sight.
« Daddy Cat? Where's Dad? » Keffan asks, causing a grunt and the blush of the Toon cat.
« Keffan! »
« Sorry ... » the kitten mutters.
« Gandy said he had something to settle so he won't be here by the day so I asked Roger if he could watch the brats today. »
The two magpies freeze and look at SourPuss as if he were crazy.
« Roger? »
« What ? »
« If he's as talented as in his episodes, maybe we have trouble getting in. Don't you think so? » Heckle mumbles.
« Oh come on ! » the cat sighs. « You know that he won't be alone! His wife is at home this afternoon! She works only in the evening. »
« It's not necessarily better, if you want my opinion. » Jeckle sighs, looking at the children.
Keffan and Aiden looked at each other and giggled, knowing what an afternoon under the supervision of Roger Rabbit of Maroon Studios mean.
Later that afternoon, the two boys draw peacefully at the feet of Jessica who is sitting on the couch and is recovering a touch of red on her lips. She looks down at the little ones and smiles... when a little red-haired girl with a rabbit-like face but no fur (except behind her cheeks) with long red hair and two big white rabbit ears leaps at Keffan, making him groan with annoyance while Aiden chuckles by closing his notebook before she notices the sketch he makes. This is the daughter of one of the most heterogeneous couples that little TerryToons have ever seen: Candice Rabbit! The daughter of the famous Roger Rabbit and the beautiful singer Jessica Rabbit. Although very human in appearance, we couldn't doubt that she was entirely Toon.
« Hello boys ! » she chirps, squeezing Keffan as hard as she can.
« Candice honey, go gently with your friends. » Jessica sighs softly even though she cannot hide an amused little smile.
« Yes mom ! » the girl smiles, straightening up and making the military salute, making her mother laugh.
« Who's ready for a little football game, kids? » Roger asks as he enters the living room, a soccer ball in his hands.
As his friends scream with joy and gets up, Aiden puts his notebook under his feathers and gets up for followed the others ... but when he passes in front of Jessica, he decides to take advantage that he is now alone to ask a important question to the young woman Toon.
« Mrs. Jessica? »
« Yes, Aiden? » she smiles, leaning towards the little magpie.
« It may sounds weird, but... how do you know if you can trust a person? »
The red-haired woman frowns at the strange question of a child so young ... but she smiles and answers:
« Well... the first thing you can trust is the opinion people have about that person. For example, I inquired about Mr. Eddie Valiant before going to see him to ask him to help my husband. »
« Yes, but... sometimes the opinion that others have is wrong. Excuse me if I'm honest but ... you look more like what Dad calls a 'femme fatale' than a mother. » the chick adds, making the adult laugh.
« It's true, trusting the appearances and opinions of others for a Toon isn't the ideal. I was drawn that way even though I'm not bad. For the Toons, you can listen to what others are saying but the best thing is to make your own opinion. For that, observe, get to know and, most importantly, look that person right in the eye. » the beautiful singer seriously explains. « Us, the Toons, we are made to laugh, have fun and most of us play a role, but there is one thing that doesn't lie in a Toon: his look! Nobody can lie by the look. If you have a doubt, look into this person's eyes in front of you, and there you will know immediately. »
Aiden thinks about what his friend's mother has just told him ... then he smiles.
« Thank you very much, Mrs. Jessica. » the chick thank.
« Aiden, where did you go? » Roger calls from the garden.
Under the laughter of the Toon rabbit's wife, the little magpie runs to join his friends to play.
That same evening, in SillyVisions Studios, Bendy goes around in circles, moving from one room to another like a caged animal (which is a bit the case even if he could leave his prison if he wanted to) grumbling. Sitting at a desk, Boris is quietly observing old scenarios ... when Bendy arrives in the office. The wolf sighs as he hears the devil get upset alone.
« You mumble. » the wolf ghost sighs, drawing the attention of the little devil that he had not seen him.
« No, I'm not mumbling! » Bendy says.
« Oh no, that's right! » the other Toon exclaims with a small smile. « You speak in your beard! And the best is that you can do it when you don't have hair on your chin! You don't even have hair at all. »
Bendy glares at him, restraining himself from spitting ink in his face (knowing it was as harmless as a postilion) when his gaze lands on a box full of photographs on the desk next to his friend.
Furious, he rushes to a drawer to get out a brush he sticks in his mouth before almost tearing the box from the hands of Boris. He sorts the pictures and all those where there are humans are put aside. The wolf looks at this little game and sighs when he sees his friend pulling the brush covered with ink from his mouth. With black ink, he covers the faces of humans (with an extra layer for some) grumbling, mumbling.
« Bendy, let go of it and stop this nonsense. » Boris sighs.
« I do what I want ! » Bendy gets upset.
« No, especially when it's to make you sick for unimportant things. Humans are out and not in the studio. »
Bendy looks up at Boris, glaring at his friend before bitching:
« You annoy me, Boris, I'm still at home here and I don't want to hear about humans anymore! »
« You're the one who annoys you alone. I'm just saying that you have too harsh resentment. Humans haven't come here for years and you know why! » the wolf growls, attracting yet another furious glare from the devil. « Then you'll make me happy and forget the Humans, leave them for what they are, and stop putting ink on Henry's pictures! It becomes childish! »
Bendy sighs, chasing the ink that begins to dribble from his forehead and then furiously throws his brush before closing the photo box ... when the hinges of the door creak. Straightening up, the two SillyVision Toons come out of the office, stand in a hallway to see the entrance ... and see a little Toon magpie arrive smiling.
« How do you want me to forget the humans if they send me the chick every night? » the star of the studios grumbles before moving away to join the newcomer.
Aiden smiles when entering the studio and digs under his feathers to get out his notebook when ...
« What do you want now ? »
He raises his head to see Bendy come to him, visibly annoyed.
« I promised I would come back! » Aiden smiled. « So here I am, and I have a little something for you! »
The little devil observes the chick, frowning, ready to act if he makes a suspicious gesture... when the little with black feathers tears a sheet of his notebook before handing it to the Master of the Places with a big smile. Boris approaches to see... and smiles as he sees the childish sketch of Bendy.
« Awww it's so cute! Doesn't it you remember our little fans, Bendy? Every week, we had about ten sketches like that. » the wolf smiled.
Bendy is dark ... then he crumples the sketch in his fist by shooting the child who is freezing, worried by this brutal reaction.
« Why did you come back? What are you trying to do, friend-friend? Why ? ANSWER! » he yells, furious.
Aiden looks at him, puzzled and worried ... before looking down.
« I just wanted to make you happy. It must be sad to be locked in the same place for 30 years, and... you don't look so mean when we look in your eyes. »
Bendy freezes, forbidden ... then he sighs.
« Anyway, you won't leave any time soon. » Bendy mumbles, going away to Henry's office. « So go! Search! When you're finally tired, warn me, chick. »
« Aiden! »
Bendy stops and turns to the chick who looks at him with a neutral air that is strange for his age. Understanding that the little devil didn't understand, he explained:
« My name is Aiden and not 'chick'. »
« Yak yak yak! » the Toon squeaks as he walks back to the desk, the sketch still in his hand.
He hears Aiden speak with Boris and the Wolf guides him through the studio, leaving him alone in Henry's desk. He sits on the stool and sighs as he puts his feet on the desk before balancing his seat. Slowly, he unfolds the sketch and looks at it with a small smile... before a few tears run down his cheeks.
« Henry would have found it too cute ... » Bendy thought, wiping his tears before hanging the sketch with one of the officials left on the desk.
While Boris shows the old screening room where the whole team was gathering to watch the episodes, Aiden notices flower pots filled with dirt and some with stems left in it.
« Boris, what's that? »
The ghost-wolf turns to the chick and looks at the flowerpots before having a small smile.
« Go look for yourself. »
The little magpie looks at Boris before heading for the pots to take one with stems. The flowers were drawed and they had just disappeared. Intrigued, he goes away in the studio looking for the responsible... and finds him in the desk. He is also intriguing to see his sketch next to the ones make by Henry. Taking a deep breath, he approaches shyly.
« Bendy? »
« Hmm? » mumbles the little devil, looking up to see the chick with the flowerpot where three poor stems still stand.
« Why did you erase those flowers? » Aiden asks.
In fact, he saw no other explanation for the disappearance of these flowers except that the master of the place has erased them. Bendy frowns as Boris (hidden in the corner of the hallway) chuckles.
« I didn't erase them, I ate them. »
« You eat flowers? » the chick is surprised aloud.
« Well, we can be a demon and be vegetarian! » he replies, shrugging his shoulders.
With a calm gesture, he grabs one of the stems and chews quietly under Aiden's bewildered look, making Boris laugh. The wolf approaches and smiles while kneeling next to the chick.
« You mustn't have heard much about Bendy's vegetarian side, am I wrong? »
« Everyone says Bendy is a monster ... » Aiden admits, a little ashamed.
Bendy misses strangling himself with his flower stem.
« What? They're kidding me, right? I've never hurt a fly! »
Furious, Bendy gets up and moves away, grumbling. Aiden vaguely hears « dirt of Humans » or « if I ever see him again » before he disappears into the hallway. Boris sighs and then looks down at the chick.
« Don't worry, he's a little shaken, but it'll be fine with him. He just thought the Toons would see him differently, without listening to what the humans would say. »
The little magpie feels sorry for the little devil... then he turns to the wolf.
« Boris? Do you have other episodes to show me? » he chirps, enviously.
The blue Toon looks amused on the face and then takes the chick with him to the projection room.
Lying in the old recording studio of episodes, Bendy tries to change his mind ... when he hears the laughter and applause of little Aiden. Intrigued, he plunges into a task of ink and travels silently to the projection room.
Through the thin film of ink that keeps him in the task (and therefore invisible to others), he sees Boris smiling as he watches Aiden dancing happily to the music, trying to imitate the Bendy on the screen dancing in singing, wearing a tuxedo with a cane in his hand. The little devil rolls his eyes as he sees the chick wagging awkwardly on the rhythm, making the gentleman so he get out of the puddle, alerting Boris who has gotten used to hearing him go out of this strange mode of transport, and goes to the little one.
Aiden is so taken in his game that he doesn't hear Bendy ... and jumps when he feels a gloved hand grabbing his shoulder.
« If you want to dance, chick, don't just imitate what you see, you have to let yourself be carried away by rhythm! » the devil explained by stopping the film.
He rewinds to the beginning of the song and, leaving the beginning dialogue to end, he make appear an ink cane while his episode character comes on stage.
As soon as the song starts, Bendy starts performing the movements he was performing in the episode. He begins seriously, his eyes closed and without the shadow of a smile (unlike his character on the film that sings with a huge smile worthy of the greatest musical shows), as if it hurt him... then the rhythm begins to become more danceable, forcing the dancing devil has accelerated the movement, making the round trips by following the rhythm with his feet and his cane, eyes always closed. The rhythm accelerates once more and the song stops, leaving Bendy to run a series of fast steps (where he stopped Aiden to show him)... and there, the little magpie is surprised to see the little black and white Toon who seems almost possesses ! A small smile appears on his face.
Boris is also surprised and leans towards Aiden.
« I think you're bringing back to us the old Bendy! » he whispers happy.
« Really? » the little TerryToons wonders.
« Bendy hasn't danced in years even if he always loved it. And at the beginning of his dance, you must have seen that he wasn't having fun. He was doing it for pride, but now he's back. He lets the music guide him, and he enjoys it. »
Aiden looks at Bendy and, indeed, the little devil seems to have regained the joy he had in the episode. The Bendy of the episode restart singing... and Bendy begins to sing with him. He has the impression of being caught in a dream where he relives his years of glory and his heart filled with hatred seems to start beating for what he loved above all else: dance! He lets himself be transported by the rhythm and relives the scene as the day he filmed it. He sings, full of energy and finally feeling himself for the first time in 30 years. When the music stops, he tilts as in the movie.
As spectators in the movie applaud, Aiden also applauds, pulling Bendy out of his reverie and blushing when he realizes he has gone aboard.
« Teach me to dance like you! » the chick beg by going to stick in the legs of the devil.
Bendy seems lost and looks up to Boris. The wolf is overjoyed to see that his companion wasn't as blinded by Hatred as he feared. But the old star seems completely lost.
« But... why do you absolutely want to bond with me? » Bendy stammers.
« Because you're great! » Aiden smiled. « You're a very talented Toon and I'm sure your episodes would still please if we took them out! And now that I've seen you danced, I know you're not bad! I'm sure even if I'm didn't stop, you wouldn't have done anything to Keffan! You are neither a monster nor a demon! You are a Toon who has been forgotten and wounded... even if I don't know why. »
Boris smiles, admiring at the outspokenness of the little magpie... and Bendy begins to cry. At this moment, he feels horrible to have treated so badly this little one who could only be one thing: an angel! Bursting into tears, he squeezes Aiden very hard against him, letting ink dripping on his body and forehead. The little magpie is surprised... but he sees that the ink doesn't hurt him. It doesn't even mix with the painting that composes him. Then he squeezes as hard as he can the devil in his little arms to comfort him... and Boris joins the embrace.
While Bendy thought he had lost everything, a little angel named Aiden had entered his studio and the little magpie promised to uncover the end of the story and free Bendy despite the fact that this friendship was forbidden.
This is chapter 4!
Aiden confronts the ban to understand what happened to Bendy and finally manages to bond with him :)
For the part where Bendy dances, I advise you to watch the video "Putting on the Ritz original movie 1930" before. That way, you will see the movements he may have made in his episodes and read the scene while listening to the song (I think it's pretty cool ^^)
Will Aiden come to understand what happened to Bendy? Will he help him? Discover it soon :)