It was Thanksgiving, and the Kettle family had just finished their traditional turkey dinner. They were at the dining table in the kitchen. The plates were empty plates save for a few crumbs, wilted lettuce, and a turkey skeleton.
"Well, this was a great dinner, and judging by your bellies, I'd say you had a great dinner too," Kettle said.
"O' yeah," Cuphead mumbled as he rubbed his belly.
"You said it," Mugman said as he rubbed his belly. "I don't think I can eat another bite."
"Now who wants pie?" Kettle said as he brought out an apple crumble pie.
"I do! I do! I do!" Cuphead and Mugman repeated.
"And tomorrow, I whipped up a special treat," Kettle said. "French toast for breakfast."
"Yay!" Cuphead and Mugman cheered. "Thanks Elder Kettle."
"Oh boy. I can't wait." Cuphead said.
After a few hours...
The boys were readying themselves for bed. Mugman was brushing his teeth while Cuphead dressed in his pajamas.
The cup tripped, fell backwards, and bumped on a chair where his pants and shirt were draped. Out of his pant pocket came Joey's journal and it landed on his face. Cuphead got up and held the book in his hand.
"Oh, yeah," Cuphead said. "I should return this." Then he looked at the dark sky outside and shrugged. "Eh, tomorrow." He slipped it back into his pant pocket before slipping under his blanket.
As Cuphead slept, he started having nightmares about the Keepers and Wilson Arch. He dreamed of the Dudley monster but when he called Bendy's name, the little devil did not appear. Dudley opened his jaw and—
"AH!" Cuphead screamed as he sat up on his bed. He curled back up and closed his eyes to go back to sleep, but he could almost feel the nightmare creeping back up in his mind. "Maybe some warm milk will help me," he muttered.
Cuphead got out of bed when he spotted the journal sticking out of his pants pocket. He grabbed it and headed downstairs to the kitchen. After bowling the milk, and pouring it in a glass jar, Cuphead lit a candle and sat on a chair while the journal lay flat on the table.
"I know I shouldn't, but reading always made me fall asleep anyway," Cuphead said.
As he read through the pages, Cuphead's stomach churned. The things in this book were terrible, morally speaking, and it angered him when he read about some of the stuff he wrote about the little devil.
'I wonder how much blood I could take from Bendy before it actually hurts him. Well, only one way to know for sure,'
Cuphead's hands shook with anger. "What a creep. Not even The Devil would hurt Bendy like this," he said.
The cup also read about how angry Joey was at Henry for leaving the studio.
'I gave Henry everything, I trusted him and he up and leaves me like this. How dare he!? I'll make sure he pays for this someday.'
The cup was about to close the book when noticed something odd.
"Huh, these two pages are stuck together," Cuphead muttered. He slowly peeled the two pages apart.
Suddenly, a yellow light shined from between the pages.
Cuphead's eyes slowly adjusted and soon he was looking into the light. It was so dazzling the cup couldn't look away. As he watched, Cuphead could hear soft whispers coming from the light, his face dropped into a blank expression, and, unbeknownst to him, his eyes began to reflect the yellow color of the light.
The Next Morning...
Mugman woke with a yawn, he stretched out his arms and rubbed his eyes before he opened them.
"Hey, Cuphead race downstairs for French toast?" Mugman suggested. There was no answer. "Cuphead?" he asked. Mugman leaned his head over the side and saw the bed under him was empty. He looked around and saw Cuphead's pajamas were neatly folded on the chair and his day clothes were gone. "Oh, must've got a head-start." He said.
"Cuphead, Mugman. Come down here right now," Came Elder Kettle's voice and he sounded mad.
"Coming, Elder Kettle," Mugman said. Without changing, the mug rushed downstairs and found Kettle in the living room with his knuckles on his hips, a frown on his face, and tapping his foot. "Yes, dearest Kettle?"
"Where's your brother?" Kettle asked.
"I don't know, he wasn't in bed when I woke up," Mugman said.
"Well, when I woke up you know what I found?"
The mug shook his head.
"I found this!" Kettle exclaimed as he held out his wallet.
"Okay," Mugman said.
"It was on the floor and all the cash is gone," Kettle said. "I had at least thirty dollars in there. I'll ask you this just once. Where's the money?"
"I don't know, Elder Kettle. Cuphead and I would never steal money from your wallet."
Kettle looked at Mugman's earnest face before shouting in the air. "Cuphead! Come to the living room this minute!"
No response.
"Cuphead!" Kettle called out.
Still no response.
"Hmmm, okay. Here's what's gonna happen. You get dressed. We're gonna find Cuphead, ask him if he knows where the money is. If he doesn't have it, we'll look around until we find it. But if it turns out that Cuphead stole it, he's grounded for life."
"Yes, Elder Kettle," Mugman said. "But honestly, this is Cuphead we're talking about. He's...not always in the right but he wouldn't steal money from you."
"I suppose you have a point," Kettle said. "But it is pretty suspicious that both Cuphead and the cash are missing."
"But Elder Kettle what would Cuphead buy with thirty dollars?"
Far from the Kettle cottage in an 'undisclosed location'...
A possessed Cuphead was drawing a summoning circle with a new bottle of ink surrounded by expensive-looking candles. He poked the tip of his finger with his pocketknife, and a few drops of blood fell onto the ink. Cuphead began to read Joey's journal and started chanting in some foreign language while the blood and ink mixing.
As Cuphead kept chanting, the flames from the candles burned brighter and the ink from the circle gathered and formed into a large mass.
Meanwhile...
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK
Linda opened the door, she looked down and saw a bouquet of roses.
The roses were turned aside and Bendy smiled nervously up at the woman.
"Hello, are you Linda Stein? I'm—"
"Oh my gosh... you're so cute!" Linda said. She wrapped her arms around the little devil and gave him a tight hug.
Bendy choked. "Henry! Henry!" he gagged.
Henry walked over. "Linda, whose at the—? Oh. Bendy," he said. "Glad you're here."
Bendy gasped and pointed at the arm around his neck.
"Honey, he can't breathe," Henry said.
"He needs to breathe?" Linda asked.
"Yes, Lin," Henry said.
"Oh, sorry," Linda said before she let Bendy go.
Bendy gasped for air and he handed the roses over. "This is for you," he wheezed. "Also, you knew it was me?"
"Sure," Linda said as she took the roses. "Henry and I were married when he worked at the studio, and he told me about you. Course, he didn't tell me about the... devil stuff until later though."
Bendy looked at Henry. The man shrugged.
"She's my wife, I couldn't hide it from here. Not that she gave me much of a choice." Henry said before he whispered. "You'll understand when you married."
"Well, thank you for the roses Bendy," Linda said. "I'll put these in some water before we go into town."
"You guys are going into town?" Bendy asked.
"Yes, we're going shopping. Come join us! We're also going to the Arch Studio today." Linda said.
"Really?" Bendy asked.
"Yeah. Mr. Arch cornered me yesterday and asked me to come visit the studio. I said, 'Sure, why not?'."
"Um... yeah, sure. Let's go," Bendy said.
"Oh good," Linda said as she patted Bendy's head before she grabbed her coat.
Henry got his and the three drove to the city in the car.
An hour later...
Mugman was going around the city looking for Cuphead.
"Cuphead! Cuphead! Cuphead!" Mugman cried out. Just then he spotted the cup boy across the block in a crowd facing away from the mug. "Cuphead!" Mugman called out. But the cup boy didn't respond. "Cuphead?!"
The crowd dispersed until only Cuphead, and some tall figure stood next to him... and they were holding hands.
"Cuphead! What are you doing?" Mugman shouted as he ran towards them.
Again, the cup ignored the calls and walked across the street and turned the corner with the stranger.
"Cuphead!" Mugman shouted before running after his brother.
In the Arch Gate Pictures parking lot, Henry, Linda, and Bendy had just parked the car and the little devil changed into his kitten disguise.
"What's with the fake nose?" Linda asked.
"I don't really want to be seen as Bendy the dancing demon in there," Bendy explained. "With this look, I'm just Bendy Scratch, the dancing cat."
"Hmmm. It's cute." Linda said.
"Okay, here we go," Henry said before he got out of the car.
Mr. Felix Arch met them in the parking lot once he heard the man arrived. He walked up to Henry.
"Mr. Stein, it's good to see you again," Felix said as he shook Henry's hand. "I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving,"
"Hello Mr. Arch, and yes thank you. I hope yours was good too."
"It was, thank you," Felix said. "And... don't tell me, you must be Mrs. Stein, nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too," Linda said.
"And this is...?" Felix said as he looked at Bendy.
"This is our... family friend's second cousin. Bendall." Henry lied.
"Yeah, we promised we'd watch him for a few hours." Linda lied.
"Huh... oddly specific but alrighty," Felix said before he leaned down. "Would you like a free button?"
"Sure," Bendy said.
"Here," Felix said before he handed Bendy a pinback button that said, 'Shining Star' with a star picture on it.
"Gee thanks," Bendy said with fake enthusiasm before he stuffed it in his pocket.
"And for you Ma'am. A coupon for our gift shop." Felix said before he handed Linda the coupon paper.
"Thank you. See you fellas later." Linda said before she left for the shop.
"Don't you want to go shopping too?" Felix said.
"I'd rather stay with Mr. Stein," Bendy said as he stepped closer to Henry.
"Yeah, I gotta keep him close," Henry said.
"Alright, let's talk inside," Felix said.
The three started walking into the studio. "I gotta tell you Mr. Stein, it's great to meet someone who actually worked at Joey Drew Studios... I mean, besides Wilson. Let me show you the Drew exhibit. I think you'll like it."
Felix took Henry and Bendy through the employee entrance.
Meanwhile, a tour group was being formed on the other side of the studio. Brassica, the female broccoli woman led the group.
"My name is Brassica and I'll be your guide today," she said. "This way please,"
Among the group were Cuphead and the stranger who covered half of their face with a hat but from people could see it was a human man with a white shirt, black waistcoat, long brown pants, and black shoes. The tour group walked in as Mugman breathlessly ran across the street after them.
Before Mugman could reach them, he was stopped by a bear guard.
"Whoa, little guy," the bear said. "This tour started already. You'll have to wait for the next one."
"Y-You..." Mugman said as he tried to catch his breath. "You don't get it. My brother just went in with that group."
"I'm sorry but I can't just let you in unless you have an adult with you,"
"Okay, sure, I understand!" Mugman said before he tried to slip past the guard, but the bear managed to block him with his paw.
In the Drew Studio Exhibit...
Henry and Bendy were shown around the room by Felix. A wave of nostalgia washed over Henry as he looked at the stuff. He felt Bendy squeeze his hand and then he noticed the little guy was shaking.
"Uh, Felix, hang on a sec," Henry said before he leaned down and looked into the kitten's yellow eyes. "Are you alright?" He asked softly.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Bendy said as he looked away.
"C'mon, talk to me,"
Bendy looked back at Henry. "It's just, I got a weird feeling..."
"Do you wanna leave?"
"N-no. I don't want to run away. I'll be alright,"
"Alright but if you want to go don't hesitate to tell me, okay? You won't hear me judging."
"Okay,"
Henry stood up. "Sorry, Felix, you were saying." He said.
"I was just saying it must have been amazing working alongside the genius businessman Joey Drew."
Bendy rolled his eyes.
"Oh, yeah, it was like... like nothing else I've ever done," Henry said.
"Amazing," Felix said. "My father used to tell me what a great man Joey was, and he was a favorite guy to my late uncle Nathan. Between you, me, Bendall, and the floorboards, I think Uncle Nathan liked Joey more than his son," Felix then chuckled.
Henry chuckled awkwardly.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't even mention it, but I'm actually worried about Wilson." Felix said. "You see, he went missing a while ago and I haven't heard a peep from the police. We weren't that close but he's still family you know. I just hope he's okay."
Henry patted Felix's shoulder. "I'm sorry to hear that, I'm sure it'll be okay," he said. he couldn't look at Felix as he said this though.
Bendy shook his head 'no'.
Just then, the tour group entered the exhibit.
"Here we have remnants of the Joey Drew stu— Oh hello Mr. Arch," Brassica said. "Everyone here's Mr. Felix Arch. The manager of Arch Gate Pictures,"
"Oooh," said the group.
"Hello everyone, it's great to meet you all." Mr. Felix said. "And you're all very lucky right now because here with us is Mr. Henry Stein, the former head animator of Joey Drew Studios."
"Oooh," said the group.
Henry waved and smiled nervously at the people. "Uh, hello everyone." He said.
"Say Mr. Stein, since you were there all those years ago, maybe you can tell us a little bit about the studio back in the day?"
"Certainty," Henry said with gritted teeth.
Bendy hid himself behind Henry's legs.
The man cleared his throat. "Working at Joey Drew's Studio wasn't always easy, but I made some good memories there that I wouldn't trade for anything. Thank you," Herny tried to leave but Felix stopped him.
"Does anyone have any questions for Mr. Stein?" Felix suggested.
One trumpet woman raised her hand.
"Yes, mam?" Henry said.
"What was Mr. Drew like and what was it like working with him?"
"Joey. He was-... he was a good manager. Firm but fair. Ambitious but not sloppy. He was always very enthusiastic when it came to his work ethics. And he always a man of many, many, many words." Henry chuckled.
The crowd chuckled with him.
"Some days I wanted to say something like, 'Geez, Joey, give your jaw a break will ya'? Someof us want to hear ourselves think.',"
Bendy chuckled along with the crowd.
"But overall. Joey was my friend before he became my boss, but we were still friends until the end."
One hand rose from the crowd and before anyone could speak, a male southern voice spoke up.
"To what end exactly? You mean when you left the studio and abandoned the friend who took you under his wing?"
The hairs on Bendy's back stood up when he heard that voice. He looked from behind Henry's legs and saw a man step out from the crowd.
"Because you sure weren't there till the very end. You left, and I had to pick up the pieces."
"I beg your pardon," Henry said.
"Oh you can beg all you want Henry, but it won't change squat. The point is you betrayed me."
The stranger took off his hat, revealing his face. The same face that was printed on the walls and carved on the statue.
Joey Drew.
The crowd gasped when the man's eyes glowed a bright yellow.
"It's a ghost!" the Telephone cried out.
The tour crowd screamed in fright and left the exhibit. The only ones left were Joey, Henry, Felix, Bendy... and Cuphead!
Mugman, having gotten passed the bear guard, managed to make it into the building just as the tour group ran away.
"Something tells me Cuphead is this way," Mugman said to himself. "He's usually where the trouble is," He ran towards the Drew Studio exhibit.
Henry and Bendy's eyes went wide, and their faces turned white when they saw the man's face.
"J-j-Joey!?" Henry asked with a stutter.
Bendy was equally shocked seeing Joey Drew but what also surprised him was seeing Cuphead standing next to the man and holding his hand.
"Cup? Cuphead?" Bendy called out softly.
But Cuphead didn't move. His face was expressionless, and his pupils glowed yellow.
"Hello, Henry," Joey said before he looked toward frightened Felix. "And this is my replacement as studio manager."
Felix gulped.
"Leave him alone, Joey...'s ghost?" Henry wondered.
"Ghost? Well, I'm more like the memory of the man Joey Drew. Which one could argue is what a ghost is... but for now just call me Joey."
"Okay, 'Joey', how did you get here and what are you doing with the kid?" Henry said and gestured to Cuphead.
"The how is none of your business," Joey said. "And as for little Cuppy here, he's a friend, he helped release me into this world." He walked away with Cuphead as he looked around the room.
"Cuphead. What is he talking about? What are you doing with him?" Henry questioned... but the cup didn't acknowledge him. "Cuphead?" he said.
"So you know each other?" Joey asked as he looked towards Henry. "How nice. Well, I'm afraid talking to him is rather pointless. He only sees and answers me. Ain't that right, little guy?"
"Yes, Mr. Drew," Cuphead replied in a monotone voice.
"ENOUGH!" Bendy yelled. He stepped out from behind Henry, broke the display case with the banjo, grabbed the instrument, and swung it at Joey.
The man blocked the swing with his forearm and pulled back after the impact.
"You got less than a second to release the cup from whatever hold it is you got on him or I'll knock your block off, you lying, manipulative, son of a jackal!" Bendy demanded.
Joey stared at the kitten blankly for a second before he smiled.
"Well, now this is a treat. First Henry, and now my little star." Joey said with glee.
"I'm not your anything!" Bendy said with venom in his voice. "Now release the cup or else!"
"I wouldn't be too tempted to try that again, after all, any pain I feel..." Joey said as he showed the bruise on his arm before showing the same bruise shape on Cuphead's arm. "Cuppy here feels too."
Bendy gasped softly.
Joey said. "Now put down the banjo, Bendy."
The kitten's arms shook with rage but, not wanting to risk Cuphead's life, he dropped the instrument.
Joey chuckled. "Good boy," he said smugly.
Bendy growled.
"Isn't this nice? Me reunited with two of the most memorable people from my past and in a room surrounded by our lives work." Joey said as he gestured around the room. "Though I have to say, the collection here is smaller than I imagined. Is this really the best you could do erm-... what was your name again, young man?" he asked Felix.
"Felix Arch," he answered.
"Arch? Any relation to a Nathan Arch?" Joey asked.
"He was my uncle," Felix said.
"No kidding? Well than get out," Joey said.
"What?"
"Get out! You're spoiling my moment!" Joey yelled.
Yelping in terror, Felix ran away. He stopped in the hallway to catch his breath when he felt a light tapping on his arm. He screamed.
"Excuse me," Mugman said after he tapped Felix's arm. "I'm looking for my brother, he's a boy with a cup for a head. Have you seen him?" he asked.
Felix stuttered as he pointed his fingers towards the exhibit.
"A thousand thanks kind sir," Mugman said before walking to the doors.
Felix ran away.
"What do you want?" Henry questioned.
"Originally, I wanted to return to my studio but after I got here, I found out it's been 30 years and my studio is gone," Joey explained.
Mugman tiptoed into the room.
"Clearly I can't go back to my studio, but since you're both here, now I only have one goal in mind... revenge," Joey said. "You two helped build and then destroyed my life's work. Now I'm going to return the favor."
"Yeah, how?" Bendy questioned. "You're just an ink copy of the old man and I'm pretty sure we can take ya'."
"Oh I have my ways," Joey said as he pulled out the 'Illusion of Living' from his pocket.
Bendy's blood froze when he saw the book in Joey's hand.
"Brings back memories, doesn't it little devil?" Joey said.
Bendy growled and his fur liquified.
"Don't even think it," Joey warned. "As long as me and the cup are together, you can't hurt me,"
Mugman jumped on Joey from behind and pulled on his mustache. Joey tried to hit the mug with the book, but Mugman bit the man's hand.
Joey and Cuphead exclaimed. The ink man lost his grip on the book and Mugman grabbed it.
Bendy ran forward and pried Cuphead's hand from Joey. Once they were apart, Bendy pulled Joey towards the floor and threw Cuphead over his shoulder before he ran for the exit.
"Mugman, Henry, let's bounce!" Bendy shouted.
Henry grabbed Mugman and held him under his arm before running out. He stopped for a second and stomped his foot onto ink Joey's stomach.
Joey gasped from the pain.
"I've always wanted to do that," Henry said before he ran.
Joey grumbled as his body melted into a yellow-eyed ink blob monster.
Cuphead pounded his fists on Bendy's back.
"Stop that!" Bendy shouted.
"Let go of me, you weirdo!" Cuphead shouted.
Mugman looked back and saw the black blob heading their way.
"Faster!" Mugman screamed.
Meanwhile...
Mrs. Stein was walking to the car with a bag of gifts. She unloaded the stuff into the trunk.
"Now to fetch the fellas," Linda said as she swung the key ring on her finger.
That's when she heard gasping. She looked to the side and saw Bendy and Henry with two cup kids running away.
"Hey, Hen—" Linda called out until she noticed the ink blob chasing after the guys. "Oh my!"
Passersby were shocked when they saw the monster and screamed before running away.
Henry and Bendy ran down the street. The ink blob was relentless in its pursuit.
"Bendy, can't you fight that thing as the demon?" Mugman questioned.
"I can't just turn into the demon in the city!" Bendy shouted.
"He's right, people could get hurt!" Henry said. "We need an empty place!"
"The fairground!" Mugman called out. "It's usually emptied this time of year,"
They separated hoping to lose the monster. But the creature merely split into two smaller blobs and continued to chase the.
"Oh c'mon!" Bendy and Henry shouted.
Cuphead looked at the blob thing but thanks to the trance, all he could see was Joey Drew.
"Mr. Drew, help me!" Cuphead cried out.
"Shut it Cuphead!" Bendy yelled. "That guy's not your friend,"
"Shut it, ink gremlin!" Cuphead shouted. "You don't know what you're talking about!"
"More than you, you porcelain-headed puppet!" Bendy shouted.
The little kitten ran faster and turned a corner.
"You can't escape me!" The Ink blob shouted before it turned the same corner. When it looked ahead in the dead-end alley, it saw that the two boys were gone. It roared.
Meanwhile, Henry and Mugman ran and turned a corner only to find a dead-end alley. The man turned around, but the exit was blocked by the ink blob.
"I'll enjoy getting rid of you, you traitor," the ink blob said as he stretched out his arms.
Henry prepared for the grab and Mugman covered his eyes... when-
BANG
Ink splattered on Henry's surprised face.
The ink blob was just run over by a green car and Linda lowered the driver's window.
"Get in." the woman said.
Henry opened the back seat door, put Mugman in the back seats, and then hopped into the passenger's seat.
"Go, go," Henry said.
Mugman and Henry buckled their seatbelts before Linda drove the car away from the alley.
"Are you alright, Henry?" Linda asked, "And how about b—... who are you?" she asked as she looked in the rear-view mirror.
"Hello, I'm Mugman, nice to meet you," the mug greeted while still holding onto the book like a lifeline.
"Nice to meet you too." Linda greeted him in a friendly way before her mood shifted to seriousness. "Now can either of you explain to me what the heck is going on here?" she questioned.
"Honey, I'll explain everything on the way to the fairground. First, turn left here," Henry instructed.
On the empty fairground, Bendy was digging in his pockets until he found the ink bombs while Cuphead, still entranced, struggled on the ground after being tied up with rope by the little devil.
"1, 2, 3, 4, 5," Bendy counted. "This should be enough to get 'em."
Cuphead glared at Bendy with his bright yellow eyes. "Just you wait, my buddy Mr. Drew, will save me and kick your butt,"
Bendy straightened his back and took a sharp breath before speaking to the cup with an even tone.
"Joey Drew is not your friend. You just think that because you're under some spell. I'll tear him apart for that too,"
"Ha! Empty words from an empty-headed monster," Cuphead said.
Bendy was silent for a second before he looked at the cup. "Don't talk to me like you don't know me. You do know me." He said.
"Actually, I do know you," Cuphead said. "You're the little devil and you're an enemy to Mr. Drew. He made you famous and you turned against him. I read about it in his journal,"
"You read the journal?"
"Of course I did, it's how I met Joey, and he opened my eyes to the truth. You're the weakest of the two devils and you're only meant to be used."
Bendy took a deep breath and tapped his fingers on his hips.
"You know, Cuphead," Bendy said evenly. "You didn't always think that. You actually felt something very different not long ago."
"It doesn't matter what I thought before. You can't make me change my mind now," Cuphead said.
Bendy forced Cuphead on his back with his foot and leaned closer to him. "You wanna bet?" he whispered.
Cuphead's body trembled after Bendy plopped down on top of him and purred against his chest. His face blushed bright red when the little devil closed the gap between their faces. Their lips brushed together.
"ROAR!"
Bendy looked up as the ink blobs melted back together into one blob monster. He then looked down and saw the yellow pupils in Cuphead's eyes were replaced with heart-shaped pupils.
The blob monster raised his fist and slammed it down towards the two boys.
CRACK
The monster lifted his fist, the boys were gone.
Bendy managed to slip away and pulled Cuphead away. He set the cup against a tree.
"Sorry, buddy, but I gotta go to work," Bendy said as he squeezed Cuphead's wrist to make sure he still had a pulse. Thankfully yes. "Sit tight for me till I get back thanks." He said before he pecked the cup's cheek with a kiss, "Mwah,"
Cuphead sighed before he closed his eyes, smiled, and slumped against the tree. His face was still red and now little hearts were dancing around his head.
Bendy, holding the ink bombs faced the ink monster. He was about to detonate them when the ink monster suddenly changed back into Joey Drew.
"Bendy wait, we don't have to fight," Joey said.
"Well if that's how you feel then please, feel free to just lie down while I beat you to death," Bendy said.
"Wait, Cuphead and I could still be connected. You'd kill him if you kill me,"
"N'ah. I'm pretty sure I cut whatever ties you two had," Bendy said as he gestured to the sleeping Cuphead. "And by the way, keep his name out of your mouth!" Bendy shouted as he threw a melted punch to Joey's lip and the man fell back. He looked back and saw that Cuphead was still sleeping peacefully, unaffected by the punch. "Phew," he said softly.
Bendy then detonated the ink bombs in his hands.
BOOM
The little devil was covered in ink before his body absorbed it all and he transformed into his terrifying ink demon form.
Bendy lunged at Joey who then turned into the ink monster and the two broke into a fight cloud.
A green car drove up to the fairground.
"Wha-what are those?" Linda asked.
"That blob thing is Joey's ghost-memory-thing, and that demon is Bendy," Henry said as he pointed out the beings.
"How is this happening?" Linda asked.
"It's probably because of this," Mugman said as he held out Joey's journal. "Bendy said it's filled with demon magic and Mr. Drew had it." Then he gasped before he opened the book. "Maybe there's something in here we can use,"
"No," Linda said before she grabbed the book and closed it.
"Hey!" Mugman exclaimed.
"We're not using demon magic. It's too dangerous." Linda said firmly as she put the book in the glove box. "It didn't do any good for Joey or Bendy. I mean look at what it did to them." she gestured to the ink creatures.
"Sides', I don't think we need it," Henry said as he pointed a finger towards the fight.
The ink demon threw the ink blob down and the blob changed back into Joey. The ink man was coughed before the ink demon pinned him down.
"Time to get rid of this memory," the ink demon said.
"Even if you kill me, you'll never destroy the memory," Joey said. "I'm just a pencil and a dream away,"
The ink demon opened its mouth.
Henry, Linda, and Mugman ducted their heads so they wouldn't see what the ink demon would do. They can only imagine what was happening thanks to the horrible sounds. They didn't move until it went quiet.
Henry lifted his head and saw that the ink Joey was gone, and the ink demon just stood there before his body melted down into Bendy. The little devil was swaying on his feet, and he looked exhausted.
"Bendy!" Henry said before he got out of the car and ran to Bendy. He picked up the little devil and held him in his arms.
"'m okay," Bendy muttered as he leaned his head against the man's shoulder.
"Bendy, what did he do to you?" Henry asked softly.
Mugman ran up to them. "Are you okay? Where's Cuphead?" he asked.
Bendy pointed with his tail towards the tree. Mugman gasped and ran over to pick up Cuphead.
The cup's face was no longer blushing. he was just sleeping peacefully while still tied up.
Linda cautiously walked closer to her husband. She flinched when Bendy turned his head to look at her.
"Linda, it's okay," Henry said to reassure his wife. "Bendy won't hurt us,"
Seeing the little devil tired, dirty, and scuffed tugged Linda's heartstrings. She took out a handkerchief, licked it, and wiped Bendy's cheek.
"Sorry sweetie, it'll be okay," Linda said.
Bendy smiled.
They all walked back to the car. Linda took the wheel, Mugman sat in the passenger seat while Henry sat in the back with Bendy and Cuphead in the back seats.
"So, where can I take you and Cuphead?" Linda asked.
"Home, please. Make a right at the exit." Mugman said.
They drove to the cottage, and Mugman looked back at the sleeping Cuphead.
"Is he going to be okay?" Mugman asked.
"He'll be fine," Bendy said. "He's probably just tired from being possessed. It would knock me out too."
"Alright," Mugman said. "Could someone check Cuphead's pockets and see if you find any money?"
Henry looked at the mug questioningly before checking the cup's pockets. He didn't find any money, but he found receipts.
"Whoa, he spent a lot of money today. Ink bottles... candles- Scented candles," Henry said. "About to $30 worth."
"Great, Kettle's going ground him forever," Mugman said.
"Why?" Henry asked.
"Kettle found all the cash stolen from his wallet and suspected Cuphead. How am I going to explain this to him?"
Bendy pulled out his wallet. "No need," he said. "Here's what you do,"
Later...
In the Kettle cottage, Mugman was just wrapping up the story for Kettle while Cuphead was still sleeping on the couch.
"And that's when we escaped the giant bird's nest after I skillfully escaped my ropes, and I dashed back here carrying Cuphead for a full mile and now we're back home."
Kettle looked at Mugman suspiciously for a moment before he smiled with satisfaction.
"Makes perfect sense to me," Kettle said. "Now stay there while I fetch the rope-cutting knife." He said as he walked into the kitchen.
Mugman let out a phew before he slipped something under the couch seat cushion. Kettle came back and he cut the rope around Cuphead. Mugman pulled out the couch seat cushion slightly and some cash fell to the ground.
"Hey, what's that?" Kettle said before he leaned down and picked up the cash. "Hey, it's the three $10's I lost, but how did they get under there?"
"Maybe they we're misplaced?" Mugman suggested.
Just then, Cuphead stretched out and yawned before he sat up.
"Is it time for French toast yet?" the cup asked.
"Oh, Cuphead you're awake? How do you feel?" Kettle asked.
"Okay I guess, but I'm hungry too. Can we eat?" Cuphead asked.
"Hmmm, well, you didn't steal my money but it's already past noon," Kettle said. "Oh, what the heck, c'mon boys, French toast for lunch."
"Yay!" Cuphead and Mugman cheered.
Kettle walked into the kitchen and the boys were about to follow but Mugman pulled Cuphead back.
"Cuphead, are you feeling all right?" Mugman asked softly.
"Sure Mugsy, why?" Cuphead asked.
"Don't you remember anything? About Joey, and the book, and the ink monster thing from this morning? Any of it?"
"Hmmm, I guess I don't. But I do remember going into the kitchen and reading some of that illusion book while drinking milk."
"You read the book?" Mugman asked. "And then what?"
Cuphead rubbed his chin with his finger. "I-... I don't remember," he said. "I was reading. Then I must've fallen asleep and then I woke up here."
Mugman sighed.
"Boys, I could use some help in the kitchen please," Kettle called out from the kitchen.
"Be right there, Elder Kettle," the boys said.
"Look I'll tell you what happened later. At least what I know happened. Let's go help Kettle," Mugman said.
"Okay," Cuphead said with a shrug.
The cup brothers walked into the kitchen.
Meanwhile...
Bendy, Henry, and Linda were in the garage of the rental house. Bendy had just finished drawing a square on the ground with the summoning chalk.
"This is how I get home," Bendy said. He cleared his throat. "Surface world I'll see you later, down I go in this elevator." He recited.
The ground shook and the Underworld Elevator appeared in the garage.
"Now, place the book against the wall of the elevator," Bendy instructed.
"Okay," Henry said before he walked to the elevator and set the book on the corner of the floor inside.
"And that's it," Bendy said. "I'll see you guys later?"
"You bet Bendy," Henry said as he scooped up the little devil and hugged him. "We'll be here through Christmas,"
Linda came over and petted Bendy's head, "Feel free to drop by but maybe keep the book at home," she said.
Bendy smiled and purred happily before he was released. He went into the elevator, waved goodbye, before closing the door, and the elevator burned down into the ground.
"Was it this crazy back in the studio 30 years ago because if it was then you missed out on a few details," Linda said.
"I swear I didn't know about that demon form until recently," Henry said. "Joey never should have gotten mixed up with demon magic and he definitely shouldn't have hurt Bendy. He had Bendy under his thumb, and I couldn't stop it in time, maybe I should've-"
"Henry, there's no use dwelling on the past like that," Linda interjected softly. "Besides, you're here for him now. You can make up for lost time."
Henry smiled. "You're right, thanks Lin," he said before he kissed Linda on the cheek.