Hello! Sorry for my silence lately, been finishing up a graduate degree! Wanted to get this out for Blottart's birthday, especially since I definitely want to do more with this idea. I just like giving troubled folks earnest younger folks that will follow them around like lost puppies, what can I say?

Was initially going to do a different idea next, but this one ended up grabbing my attention, especially since Bendy in the Vigilante AU has some very personal history involving scars and missing eyes, talkin' very much about a certain fallen angel here... I'll probably end up doing my other idea later, as well as bringing Alice into the story proper as I very much wanna get all the kids coming out to play, but gotta address some things first. Hope you enjoy!

Cracked Façade:

Really, Lolligo should have been surprised he'd gone this long without an incident. He'd been living at the Vigilante for almost a month now, and his bathroom wasn't a part of his bedroom like it was in the upstairs suites. And his ink was slow to move in when he'd just gotten cleaned up. He'd mitigated it a little by waiting in the bathroom some nights, but that could take a while, and really, it'd be infinitely more comfortable to settle down in his room and let things happen as they naturally would.

So, well, that had been his thought as he edged out of the bathroom, a shirt loosely buttoned and his slacks and shoes hastily thrown back on. There was a faint hum of nearby conversation, Lolligo throwing his attention and efforts into moving as stealthily down the hall as he could. Just get to the door, it was right there, just get there, get in, settle down for about thirty minutes, everything would be fine…

"Hey, Lolligo!"

Oh, hell, the azure demon couldn't help thinking, even as he turned and threw on a smile that he knew was a touch strained, a hand automatically coming up to cover his right eye. Or, more rather, his lack of one.

Bendy, for his part, practically bounded down the hall like an overeager puppy, a grin cutting across his face as he skidded to a stop next to the azure demon. Lolligo could belatedly spot Will coming along at a much more sedate pace, but for the moment his attention was entirely on Bendy, given that the younger demon was the one actively trying to talk to him.

"Hey! I didn't know you'd gotten back! I was just—" And, yep. There it was. Young he might be, Bendy wasn't about to ignore the obvious right in front of his face. Lolligo stamped heavily down on a groan as the ink-black demon spoke up, eye concerned as he looked over Lolligo's face.

"Lolli, are you okay? Is something wrong with your eye?"

"I-It's fine. I'm alright, I just need to get to my room—" The one issue with his retreat was that it looked far too jerky given that he was now fumbling to move backwards with a hand still over his eye, Will's expression also starting to show some concern as he came near.

"Did you do something to it? Let me see…" The sheep's words were punctuated by him reaching up to Lolligo's face, the azure demon knowing that with his height he had some advantage but unable to avoid a flutter of nerves as he leaned away.

"N-No, there's no need for that, I just need to lie down for a bit, it'll be fine—"

"What'll be fine?" Bendy innocently asked, with no small amount of worry. Lolligo couldn't help wincing a little at the tone, though in retrospect this was an equally bad thing to do; now he really looked like he was hiding some kind of injury.

"I, it's nothing, I'm alright, I just, I really need to go to—"

And, well, what happened next felt like something out of a vaudeville act. Lolligo's staggering, backwards walk to his door got caught on something, the demon toppling backwards and his arms flying out to catch himself and hopefully not smack his head on the floor. He was able to avoid that, landing on his rear and somewhat on his tail, ow, but even worse was the fact that the fall had left his eye completely uncovered.

A fact that he did not realize until he looked back up at Will and Bendy to tell them he was okay, and heard them both gasp.

"Oh, wow…" Will's hushed voice spoke up, Lolligo registering the tone and the sheep's utterly stunned expression, looking down just in time for Bendy to let out a sick-sounding moan as he spoke up.

"We, we need Phil, we need a doctor…"

"No we don't!" Lolligo yelped, rushing to stand as he whipped around, blindly feeling for the door as he tried to keep his scarred face down and out of sight. It had to be close, it had to be, he had to get out of here, had to get out…

"L-Lolli, please, th-that looks really bad, you really, really oughta—" Bendy started, hands shaking as he tried to grab the bigger demon's arm. But the touch did not feel in the least bit helpful, instead Lolligo was feeling confined and trapped, his nerves and reactionary fury rising in a dangerous cocktail as he shook Bendy off.

But the smaller demon was still trying to grab him, even as his hand found the doorknob, and when Will began to speak up again the azure demon's patience snapped.

"STOP!" Lolligo found himself hollering before he realized it. "For God's sake, just STOP IT! I DON'T NEED HELP!"

The words were ringing off the walls, the azure demon still overloaded enough that the dead silence they caused didn't quite register. All that mattered now was that no one was grabbing or pulling at him, they were leaving him the hell alone—

Except when Lolligo actually looked at the pair, he was greeted by a sight that all but ripped his footing out from under him again. Will had gone pale, averting his gaze and moving back with an expression that screamed well, alright, you didn't have to SHOUT like that, and Bendy, well…

Bendy was actually in tears, though desperately trying to hide it as he looked down and blinked furiously. A faint sniffle still leaked out, Will automatically reaching out to rest a hand on the younger demon's arm. It was a good thing given that Lolligo's limbs currently felt like they were swimming through molasses.

You IDIOT, SAY SOMETHING

"I-I'm sorry, I—" LOOK WHAT YOU DID "—I, I didn't, there's nothing wrong with, it looks worse than it…really is…"

They were looking back up at him, and though there was a slight glimmer of reproach in Will's gaze now it did have its fair share of pity, in a compliment to Bendy's which radiated upset and hurt.

Just finish what you need to say and go. The thought seemed like the safest course of action right then and there, even if Lolligo felt like he was being an awful coward as he opened the door to his room.

"I, I'm alright, I'm sorry, I just need to lie down for a bit." The words were quickly spoken in that rapid-fire way he used when he was feeling overwhelmed, a thought briefly flashing through Lolligo's mind that Sunny, Leo, or Angela would've seen through him right now in an instant if they were here.

But they weren't, and Bendy and Will didn't stop him as he slipped into his room to be alone. Where he deserved to be.

The fact that the room wasn't exactly big made the whole thing feel all the more like a cage. The window was a minor saving grace, but for the moment Lolligo felt like it might as well have had bars on it to match the claustrophobic feeling. For a lack of anything else to do, he sat down on the bed, giving that a moment before he turned it into a slump against the blankets and pillow. His stomach reminded him that it was almost dinnertime, and dinner would be out there, in the kitchen, but Lolligo couldn't bring himself to move. Instead, his mind rode a slow spiral of careening thought, a voice internally screaming at him as he replayed the past few minutes over in his mind.

There were so many things he could have done better with that, suffice to say, and the familiar-yet-not internal voice wasn't shy about letting the azure demon know he'd screwed up.

What the fuck is wrong with you? He was trying to help you and you SCREAMED at him. You made him cry. They were both just trying to help you and you were too much of a selfish, stupid FAILURE to handle it properly.

Distantly Lolligo realized that his head was starting to hurt, a squeezing pain that compressed his skull from either temple, zinging in arcs over his scalp. His jaw was also clenching, he should probably stop doing that, right?

But the only thing he really felt able to do at the moment was to roll onto his side, staring across the room at nothing as that recriminating internal voice tried to howl at him through what felt like a layer of cotton. Words and phrases blurred, but the feeling of it stuck fast, of failure, failure, never enough, never good enough, you don't deserve them.

Even with these factors though, Lolligo's eye took longer and longer blinks before shutting entirely. Perhaps he shouldn't have been so surprised, he'd been up early this morning on some job. Hell if he could remember what it was now.

It was almost a relief when sleep finally claimed him.

Something wasn't right, Lolligo registering the feeling with a sick swoop in his stomach as he came to. The light in the room had gone down, it must've been hours later, but there was something else that stood out to him as wrong.

The darkness didn't seem right, there was a shifting, sort of undulating quality to it that the azure demon knew he didn't like. Darkness wasn't supposed to move, after all.

At first, it was merely confusing, if not slightly concerning, but then Lolligo recognized the manner in which the movements were happening, the faint electric freeze creeping up his spine, and the towering shape currently advancing out of the darkness.

And his blood chilled, elemental terror seizing his thoughts. He knew that birdlike shape, knew the sheer size of it in both physical and seemingly abstract space, even as his eye would not fully focus on it, not take in the breadth of the thing. Perhaps such a thing was preservation, but Lolligo couldn't say he felt particularly safe, especially since he was coming to the rapid realization that he could not move. Couldn't twitch a finger, couldn't even call out even as cries frantically beat at the back of his throat. In a strange distant way, he couldn't help the brief comparison to what a child must imagine when they think of monsters, this feeling of being stared down, considered, by something so much bigger than yourself, something you knew likely only saw you as something to be taken, or even snuffed out without much thought.

Oh god please oh please someone ANYONE PLEASE COME BACK I'M SORRY I'M SORRY PLEASE DON'T LET ME DIE HERE PLEASE I'M SORRY PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE HELP ME—

And then it was like something, broke, dropping Lolligo back into reality as he started awake with a wild jolt. Briefly he felt like he was drunk, or delirious, rolling off the bed and hitting the floor with a thud as his hand automatically went for the light on the bedside table. Thankfully he was steady enough that he didn't knock the damned thing over, perhaps if Lolligo had been thinking clearly he would have wondered if such a thing would've counted as a miracle.

But, at the moment, the azure demon's only thought was that he had to get the lights on, had to see. If it was still here, well, maybe he could run, but he had to know where it was.

Though when Lolligo turned on the light, and flipped around to actually see his room, there was nothing. No darkness, no…no it. Everything was clean, orderly, like it had been before Lolligo had fallen asleep. The only difference was that night had clearly fallen, the world outside the window having gone over to a near pitch black.

…How long had he been asleep? The thought had Lolligo wincing, especially as he registered that distinct feeling of having likely reached the point of officially skipping a meal. Maybe it was late enough that he could sneak down to the kitchen and be relatively unbothered, and either way, the earlier issue with his eye had been resolved with a curtain of blue ink.

Going to the door, the azure demon had been about to head out when he realized that the space in front of his room was occupied. By Bendy. The younger demon had jumped like a frightened cat as Lolligo opened his door, the taller devil getting a brief glimpse of the utterly terrified look splashed over Bendy's face before he huddled in on himself, head down as though he were a child afraid of some reprisal.

What Bendy might have been doing there was anyone's guess, though the younger demon might've been waiting simply out of fear for Lolligo's health, for all Lolligo himself knew. Either way, it made the earlier feelings of guilt, shame, and recrimination come back about ten times stronger, that harsh inner voice nearly edging in to have its say before Lolligo forcibly choked it back.

He was going to need to talk to Bendy anyway. If anything, Bendy coming to him had made the whole thing about ten times easier. Even with that motivation, and those points, Lolligo still felt like he was fighting around a tightness in his throat as he unconsciously mirrored Bendy's posture. Shoulders rolled inward, eye down, though in Lolligo's case it was joined by the addition of his tail coiling close to his legs.

"Bendy, I-I am so sorry. I shouldn't have yelled like that, no matter the reason. I-It was…" Though trailing off in the middle of an apology wasn't good manners, Lolligo couldn't help his distraction. The younger demon hadn't moved, hadn't given any sign that Lolligo's words were really reaching him in any way. Now, while Lolligo might've considered that this was because Bendy wasn't accepting the apology, there were certain tells that were making him more worried for the younger demon's health than anything. For starters, Bendy was keeping his head down, faint tremors running through his frame like a beaten dog fearing another hit.

Why is he so scared, I'm apologizing, I'm not even yelling anymore…

"Bendy? C-Can you, are you alright?" Lolligo asked, leaning down in a somewhat fruitless attempt to look the younger demon in the eye. Not that Bendy made it easy, and why he might've been trying to hide his face became clear enough with the wobbliness of his answering question.

"…W-What d'ya need me to do?"

Something was wrong here, and while Lolligo knew the whole incident had kicked it off, he wasn't sure it was entirely because of him. This seemed to come from some deeper root, something that the azure demon was not privy to. Something that felt…uncomfortably familiar, in its own sort of strange way.

Though, as Bendy chanced a glance up at Lolligo before hurriedly looking back down, the older demon realized that he'd been quiet for too long. He needed to say something, and he didn't want Bendy to leave, not in this state, what to do…

"I, I don't need you to do anything, but I would like it if you sat down for a second? If that's alright?" He tried to make it seem as inoffensive and nonthreatening as possible, even giving Bendy the option to back out if he wanted. But Bendy didn't seem to register the lighter tone, or even the possibility that he could leave. Instead he simply nodded at the floor in between him and Lolligo, mumbling as he replied.

"Okay…"

Lolligo easily moved to the side, letting Bendy into his room. A part of him wanted to steer the kid, he almost looked like he was going to bump into something, but Bendy stiffly walked over and sat down on the side of the bed without help. Lolligo, for his part, started to close the door before going with his first instinct and leaving it open a silver. It might mean that they'd be overheard, but maybe Bendy would feel less trapped and calm down?

Though it didn't seem to be working, something that Lolligo cottoned onto as he tried to move across the room as carefully and deliberately as possible before taking a seat on the bed closer to the wall. It left a clear line of sight to the door; the younger demon could easily get up and leave if he liked as Lolligo was in the opposite direction. But, even with all of these, Bendy had barely looked up, or even acknowledged that he'd noticed. Instead he stayed huddled in on himself, gaze riveted to the floor as his frame shivered slightly. With the somewhat leveled vantage point Lolligo could also see a telltale shimmer swirling in the younger demon's eye, Bendy's breath faintly hitching in that way someone's would if they were very close to tears.

Well, moment of truth…

"Bendy, what's wrong? If this is about what I said, or the fact that I yelled, or my eye, I'm sorry, you shouldn't have to deal with any of that, I wasn't thinking straight, but I will try not to do it again, I'm sorry." Lolligo hoped that his words would be enough to reach Bendy, and even with the slight amount of worry bleeding into his tone he tried his best to keep his inflection calm, even-keeled, hopefully more on the soothing side. But, it didn't seem to be working, Bendy flinching at the first sign of talking and whimpering out an apology of his own once Lolligo had finished.

"N-No, it's okay, I, I shouldna pushed, that's why you yelled, I messed up…"

The mumbled words were confusing at first, and it took a few seconds of staring before it clicked and the realization came through like getting dunked by a bucket of ice water. Lolligo's shoulders slackened, eye staring at Bendy as his mouth opened a little in shock. Bendy thought the yelling was entirely justified. To the point where he didn't think Lolligo losing his temper justified an apology. And Bendy hadn't done anything wrong! He'd been worried, there was nothing wrong with that!

The younger demon, for his part, hadn't noticed the change given that he'd looked down, shying away like Lolligo was going to start shouting again. Or do something much worse, the thought briefly bringing a red tinge to Lolligo's vision before he steeled himself, unable to help an internal thought he knew he'd probably never be able to voice.

Allen, where the HELL did you find this kid.

But being angry didn't solve the problem in the here and now. In fact, it was being angry that made this problem in the first place. So, with what felt like a great deal of effort, Lolligo shoved the last of his fury away, consciously taking a quick breath before he finally spoke.

"Bendy, can you promise me something?"

"Uh-Uh huh?" The younger demon asked, voice wobbling as he haltingly looked Lolligo in the eye. He just as quickly looked away but it did feel like progress, emboldening Lolligo to continue.

"If I ever say or do something that makes you feel upset, uncomfortable, or unsafe, I want you to…well, honestly, smack the shit out of me. No one should be screaming at you, Bendy, that's not…" The azure demon could feel himself getting worked up, choking back a harder diatribe as he took a breath, and tried to finish his thought, hopefully at a much more sedate tone that Bendy wouldn't be frightened by. "That's not right. You don't deserve that."

"B-But I don't wanna h-hit you." Bendy said after a pause, the younger demon's teary eye furrowing in confusion as he spoke.

"Then, please tell me. If I ever do something or say something that makes you feel uncomfortable, upset, or unsafe, please, please tell me, because I never want to make you feel like you're feeling now, ever again." Lolligo repeated, going on instinct and bridging the gap between himself and Bendy at least partly by resting his hand on the younger demon's shoulder, lowering his head a little so he could properly look Bendy in the eye. Just to be sure the message was heard, even if Lolligo had a feeling he might need to reiterate it more than once for it to really be listened to.

Oh well. He'd do it. Bendy deserved that much. In this place, he needed at least a few people who would be fully honest with him. And, well, if Lolligo wanted to be honest, at least in some capacity.

As much as he could be, anyway…

"Okay." Bendy finally answered, looking down briefly before his gaze drifted back to Lolligo's face, the fraught expression worrying at first before he spoke on his current thoughts. "I-Is your eye still…?"

Ah. Well. That would probably have to come up at some point, wouldn't it. Though Lolligo knew this likely wasn't going to be anything Bendy would like to hear.

"…Yes, unfortunately, that is permanent." Though the words had Lolligo looking away, unwilling on some level to really discuss the issue, the sounds of barely suppressed crying yanked his attention back as the azure demon's eye widened at the tension and upset outpouring from Bendy. "Oh, Bendy, Bendy, please don't, I'm alright…"

"I, I just…" Bendy tried to articulate through what sounded like a tight throat, the younger demon hunching in on himself as he fought a losing battle to not dissolve into tears. "It, it reminds me of, s-something bad, something really bad…"

"Bendy?" Lolligo spoke quietly, holding out his arms in a silent invitation. It didn't take Bendy long to flop forward, head softly thumping against Lolligo's chest as the bigger demon's arms closed around him. It wasn't long before hiccup-y shivers had overrun Bendy's frame, Lolligo's hands falling into the automatic habit of rubbing circles along the ink-black demon's shoulder blades. Briefly Lolligo couldn't help being reminded of his mother, though the instant he registered the thought the azure demon tucked it carefully away. He could think on it later, but not now. "Whatever happened, I'm right here. Nothing happened to me now, I'm not going away. This happened a long time ago…and, I'm a little broken, but I'm not gone, okay? Listen to my heartbeat. I'm here, talking to you. I'm not gone, just remember that."

It did feel like Lolligo was reaching for a bit, as he didn't know for sure what had happened to make Bendy react like this. But, there were some hunches he could act on, one of them being that whatever had taken place, it had likely involved some very permanent, if not fatal consequences. Perhaps the younger demon had even lost someone he'd considered important in…this, Lolligo wasn't even totally sure how to describe it. Accident, maybe? Though he was cautious about naming and therefore assigning a meaning to it, without knowing the full context. But there was a part of him that balked at directly asking Bendy about it, the younger demon was upset enough as it was.

Still, the words apparently did reach Bendy, given that while his voice was still choked and warbly from crying he did speak up into Lolligo's shoulder.

"Yer not broken…"

"Alright, a little messy then. But like I said, this happened a long time ago. I'm not in danger now, see?" The words were delivered with the same casual comfort as before, and while there was still something of a laugh in Bendy's resulting snort the sound did get choked by the first fairly audible sob Lolligo had heard since this started. Briefly he gave the younger demon a gentler squeeze, tone dipping back into a more hushed lull as he went on. "Shh, I'm okay, I'm okay, you are too, everything's okay, I'm here…"

It took another few minutes for Bendy to fully calm, and though he didn't pull away he was feeling coherent enough to ask an actual question, something Lolligo was almost relieved for.

"D-Did someone hurt you…?"

…Though now he'd have to answer it. Albeit, it'd probably be best to go with the truth, right? At least from Lolligo's perspective, there wasn't really that much to tell. Everything before his mother had found him was, well, more or less a blank. It was something he'd just come to terms with, even as it made answering questions like this a little awkward.

"…I, I don't know. The most I remember is recovering afterwards, and it taking a bit. For all I know, it could've been an accident." Except something in Lolligo's mind whispered that it wasn't, it wasn't an accident, it had been on purpose…but those thoughts weren't really helping in the here and now so he quietly tucked them away. They, and his scars, weren't the concern right now, the distraught demon in front of him was. So, for the time being, he focused on Bendy, listening to how the kid's hiccups began to quiet down. Bendy eventually flipped around, facing more or less out to the room but with his head leaning against Lolligo's shoulder.

Better, but not willing to completely withdraw yet. Oh well, Lolligo didn't mind letting Bendy hang there, opting for a casual slouch with his elbows propped up on his knees rather than an at-attention posture. The moment just felt too languid for anything else.

It probably would have stayed that way if Lolligo's stomach hadn't decided to choose then and there to remind him that they had missed dinner and that was just unacceptable, truly. Lolligo couldn't help a frustrated groan as the noise tapered off, it wasn't like there should be much lying around whole hours later, though Bendy quickly spoke up.

"Oh, yeah, I was supposed to let you know, Miss Marigold told Paul to hold your dinner, but you should probably come and get it now."

"Then we should probably get going then." Though there was a telltale hesitation, Bendy glancing away as he fidgeted. Easily reading the moment, Lolligo continued with a somewhat knowing, fond smile. "…Unless you had something else you wanted?"

"U-Uhm, I was just wondering—!" Bendy yelped out, eye roving away as the younger demon fumbled through his next words. "I-I thought that, people, when they're, they're missing eyes, 'n-'n stuff, that they wear things like eyepatches, or have glass eyes, but you don't have one…?"

Alright, fair question for a curious kid, and Lolligo didn't mind getting into the schematics of it. It was, after all, a fairly normal part of his life now.

"Oh, no, no, this works just fine for me, though I sometimes use eyepatches too. Really, I would say it's different for everyone, though I'm not very keen on shoving something into my eye sock-et…" Lolligo had been candidly talking, though at the mention of shoving things into eye sockets his own gaze was immediately drawn to how Bendy's complexion went pale as milk, the younger demon freezing before slumping a bit, eye dozily blinking as he started to wobble. With a panicked inhale, Lolligo rushed to pull the kid back into a hug, if anything just to keep Bendy upright, patting him somewhat frantically on the back. "Yeah that's personally uncomfortable for me now please try to breathe Bendy. Breathe, please? Deep breaths…"

Alright, no more talk of messing with body parts around Bendy, it clearly wasn't good for him. Though whatever spell Bendy apparently had had at the idea, he was thankfully able to move on from it quickly, given that it wasn't more than half a minute before he was talking again, albeit with a slight stammer.

"I-I just thought'a those because, y'know, pirates are missin' eyes an' that's what they do."

It was a fair thought, and, well, Lolligo supposed it made sense. When thinking of people missing limbs or eyes, pirates were usually what came to mind. Well, that and soldiers, though he was somewhat happy that Bendy's thoughts had jumped to pirates in retrospect. It was an easier topic to get into, and, well, the azure demon and pirates did have something in common…

"Well, I do like the ocean, but like I said, the ink works just fine."

"You like the ocean?" Bendy asked, stammer thankfully gone and though the younger demon's eye was still a little bloodshot from crying, his gaze was clear and bright as he curiously considered Lolligo.

"Mhm."

It was a mild enough answer, but Bendy's eye squinted as he seemed to look at Lolligo a lot more closely, like there was something on the bigger demon's person that he was trying to puzzle out. Though before Lolligo could get too nervous, Bendy asked a question that was both endearing and utterly hilarious.

"…Are you sure you're not a pirate?"

Lolligo's immediate impulse was to laugh, though he wasn't sure Bendy would appreciate that. Instead, he tried to buy a few minutes to compose himself by asking a question of his own.

"Which pirate do you think I'm most like?"

"I don't knowww! One of the great ones!" Bendy whined, his mouth wiggling in a smile even as he thunked his head into Lolligo's shoulder like a moody child. It made the grin that was blooming over Lolligo's face grow just a little stronger, a glint of mischief overtaking the azure demon's eye.

"Well, if I was, I think the only treasure worth having…is right here!"

Bendy squawked as Lolligo stood up, then reached over and threw him over his shoulders, the yelp turning into strangled giggles. Especially as the azure demon's fingers happened to find his ribs.

"Nooo!"

"Thinking this treasure's awfully noisy!" Lolligo crowed, grinning like a loon as Bendy fought to speak through fits of laughter.

"L-Lolli, no, I'm not treasure, stoppit, stoppit, the blood's rushin' to my head, LOLLI—!"

"Hmm, fair enough." Lolligo conversationally responded, right before he dumped Bendy's giggling frame onto the bed. "Besides, you're supposed to bury treasure."

And with that Lolligo grabbed the extra blanket that had been sitting at the end of the bed, casually flipping it to cover Bendy, who let out a shrill 'HEY'. But before Lolligo could attempt to continue the rough-housing, Bendy managed to get his head out from under the blanket, catching sight of something in the doorway and calling out.

"Miss Marigold!"

And, yep. That was Miss Marigold in the doorway, standing like she'd been there for a while, politely stifling a giggle as Lolligo hurriedly spoke up.

"OH. Hello. Miss Marigold, w-we were just about to go…"

But even as the azure demon tried to stammer his way through an excuse, the toon cat was still smiling, waving it away as she answered.

"Oh, don't worry. I'm glad you're feeling better, Lolligo! Apart from dinner, was there anything else you needed tonight?"

Honestly, she'd done more than enough already, Lolligo's gratitude entirely real as he responded.

"No, no, I should be fine. Thank you for talking to Paul."

"Not a problem, though you really should go, he's been getting somewhat impatient."

He likely was by now. Lolligo hadn't talked to the Vigilante's chef much, but his impression of the man had been that Paul was not someone that liked to be held up. It couldn't have been that late, in retrospect, but Lolligo was pretty sure he didn't want to leave Paul waiting that much longer.

But as Miss Marigold was leaving, Bendy managed to untangle himself from the blankets and call after her.

"W-Wait, Miss Marigold!" And, as she was turning back around, the younger demon went on with complete earnestness in his tone. "What pirate do you think Lolligo would be? I don't really know all the famous ones."

Alright, well, if anything Lolligo could say that he hadn't seen that innocent conversation topic coming up again, the azure demon unable to keep some nervous tells from leaking out as she gave the matter some honest thought before responding.

"Well, obviously not Blackbeard, he's too much of a gentleman. Maybe Calico Jack? I couldn't say for sure." Miss Marigold finished, Lolligo feeling a slight flush climbing in his face at the matter-of-fact thought of him being 'a gentleman'. He managed to snap out of it just in time to remember to wave as she did, throwing on a hasty smile. "Have a good night, you two!"

The pair of demons listened as Miss Marigold's heels clacked off down the hallway, the room silent for a moment before Bendy spoke up with a strong sense of confusion in his tone.

"…I dunno who either of those guys were…"

"It's alright, we can find out something about them later. But, I definitely still need to get dinner." And, upon seeing a yawn slip out from the younger demon, Lolligo went on. "And you can go to bed if you need to."

"But I don' wanna sleep, I wanna stay up with youuuu…" Bendy whined, frowning heavily as he blearily blinked up at Lolligo. While there was a part of the azure demon that couldn't help ruminating on Bendy's apparent choice of career, and how poor of a fit that felt right now, there was a much larger, and louder part of him that couldn't help feeling more than a little warm. That was the part that Lolligo let have its say as he reached out and pulled Bendy into another hug.

"But you're clearly tired, Bendy. I'll see you tomorrow, though, okay?" And, when that didn't get the younger demon any closer to moving. "I'll walk you to the stairs?"

There was a bit of pouting on Bendy's part, the very exhausted younger demon squinting irritably up at Lolligo before he gave an overburdened sigh like the azure demon had asked him to climb Mount Everest.

"Fine."

Lolligo wisely kept his satisfaction at Bendy's agreement to himself, easily falling into step with the smaller, ink-black demon as they went down the hall. Overall, it was a good, peaceful moment, it just ended up coming to an abrupt end when Lolligo realized that they'd come to the stairs, and he rapidly remembered what was up there.

True, the larger suites were there, Bendy's room included, but Allen's office was also there, and it was moments like this that reminded Lolligo of, firstly, what he'd managed to land himself in, and secondly, that he was sending a relatively unaware kid up there to sleep.

He'd given an automatic, if not slightly strained grin as Bendy wished him a groggy goodnight, the younger demon easily falling into another hug and Lolligo taking that opportunity to keep a very close eye on the top landing. What he was looking for, even he wasn't entirely sure. Maybe he was just worried that Allen would see this tender little moment and decide to throw on another restriction or two, really make it so Lolligo would have to give up something important to keep an eye on or even talk to the younger demon. The "owl" had, for the most part, seemed to be alright with them talking outside of work, but Lolligo knew that Allen knew that Bendy was Lolligo's weak spot. And, while Allen seemed invested in making sure Bendy would become a bootlegger, he could change his mind, he could always change his mind…

Or maybe IT would be up there, waiting like a bird of prey but so much worse, SO MUCH WORSE and ready to catch to tear to HARM TO KEEP THEM FOREVER—

The thought had Lolligo inadvertently giving Bendy a somewhat more protective squeeze, the azure demon feeling how the tension was ramping up through his body as he tried to put the brakes on the brewing panic. Couldn't do anything about it, after all, better to just focus on the here and now.

Even as his mind briefly ran with a somewhat frantic line of thought, hissing for the azure demon to take Bendy and run just run and keep running far far away where IT will never find you…

"Lolli…?" Bendy murmured, snapping Lolligo out of his thoughts and back into the present moment, in which the younger demon was looking up at him. Even through a fair amount of exhaustion, the confusion was evident in Bendy's face, and Lolligo knew he did not have it in him to get into what had just gone through his mind right now.

Even if he could explain…

"It's alright, Bendy. I'm alright. I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Sure. See you tomorrow." Bendy hummed, tiredly grinning before he headed up the stairs, Lolligo watching him go with a grin that drooped the moment the younger demon was out of sight.

Couldn't do anything about it. Better to just keep your head down. Even as it felt like a yoke setting in heavier and heavier around his neck.

Seeing as he'd already kept Paul waiting long enough, Lolligo hurried back the other direction to get to the kitchens. Though he refrained from barging in on the grounds that that likely wouldn't be helping the chef's mood. Instead he knocked, waiting for a somewhat polite 'come in' before he headed over the threshold.

And given that it was very, very easy to spot how Paul's expression went from neutral to slightly irritated, Lolligo figured that he'd better get on with the apologizing. He had, after all, completely skipped the usual dinner hour, and Paul very much did not have to stay. And hold his food, which the azure demon could see still being warmed up on the stove.

"I'm terribly sorry for being late, thank you for waiting."

"It hardly matters. Besides, the one you should be thanking is Miss Marigold. She insisted that I wait for you." The man said, doling out portions of food on a plate. Honestly, it was all Lolligo could do not to just move forward, as it smelled fantastic but he wasn't sure he was done being yelled at. Though all Paul did was set out the plate on the table, gesturing somewhat impatiently at the azure demon standing by. "Now eat, you've missed the normal dinner call by two hours."

Lolligo took that as his cue to sit down, and Paul took his leave a little while later, leaving the azure demon alone to get through his meal. As he did, Lolligo couldn't help mulling a little over the events of the day, particularly of the past few hours. And, well, perhaps it was worth mulling over a bit, he'd definitely had his fair share of ups and downs within those past few hours.

For starters, well, he definitely owed Will an apology too, though the sheep had likely gone home already. Lolligo would have to keep an eye out for him tomorrow, or even seek him out. Potentially the latter, their paths did not always cross during the workday…

And, while the logistics of how to make up for his earlier blunder was definitely helpful, the azure demon's mind couldn't help trailing back to his interaction with Bendy, as well as the more complex cocktail of emotions it brought on. Lolligo knew he didn't like the notion that the younger demon had been so brow-beaten in his previous home that he'd been ready to simply take whatever tender mercies Lolligo might've offered, even if it might've consisted of a more hands-on mode of punishment. It did feel, oddly personal to him though, to the point where Lolligo couldn't help ruminating a bit over his first few interactions with the younger demon. Had there been marks, signs of abuse, that he might've missed? Carefully hidden bruises, injuries, anything that could point to some physical bit of evidence as to what he was suspecting Bendy's home life might've been like?

You know that if they were hidden, you likely wouldn't have noticed, and even if you had, what on earth would you do about it now?

Good point from the voice of reason, though Lolligo couldn't help moodily staring off into his food as his emotional side stewed over it. There was the thought, he could look into Bendy's history. He knew Bendy's full name, and that the kid had some past in show-business that Lolligo had passively noticed from the sidelines of the city's glitz and glam. But it wasn't his scene and quite frankly he barely knew anything about what those circles entailed. Something about it had nudged him off, made him want to stay away. Perhaps he'd have to get over that knee-jerk urge and do some actual digging.

But, then again, would that be rude? Bendy was entitled to his own privacy, just as Lolligo very much took advantage of his entitlement to his. Besides, unless some signs of abuse started cropping up again then there wasn't much that could be done. Bendy had quit the life, gone to be a bootlegger for Allen. He was away from the people who had hurt him, or at least Lolligo hoped he was.

…Maybe that would be another conversation he'd have to have with Bendy, some point in the future. Let the kid know he had recourses if old issues started cropping back up. Allen likely wouldn't want anything interfering with his business, but Lolligo knew he'd sleep a little easier knowing that Bendy would reach out rather than thinking he had to handle it alone.

Why should he trust you though? What reason have you given to make him think YOU'RE the trustworthy one?

The smaller, more insidious thought made Lolligo pause, even as another that reminded him of Angela, Sunny, and Leo spoke up in an answer.

It's not wrong to be worried about someone you care for, and it's not wrong to want to protect them. Your life and problems don't really factor into that. If you care, then you care, and if he wants you to, you can act.

Bendy would just have to want Lolligo to act, and, well, that conversation could come up later if the younger demon was okay with it. Probably along with the conversation about reaching out regarding past problems, Lolligo could probably work it in. Hell, maybe Will might even want an in there, even if the sheep might not be so willing to get his hands dirty.

Like Lolligo was thinking of doing when he remembered the wide-eyed, terrified expression on Bendy's face at even the hint of disapproval, and how slow that had been to fade. It conjured vague images of shadowy figures screaming at the younger demon, even striking him, Lolligo feeling a heavy scowl settle in on his scarred face as he rested it on tented hands.

…Yeah, probably going to have that conversation soon, if only for his own peace of mind. Or what little of it he was likely to find given his current situation, Lolligo automatically moving to clean up. Hopefully Bendy wouldn't be too adverse towards talking about it, though with the notion of protection attached it might bring down some walls. The thought was a comforting one, Lolligo internally tucking the matter away for later as he went back to his room.

Tomorrow would be another day.

Hope you all like this one, and I'm hoping to get more out soon by the end of the month, as well as some original works on Tapas! Please drop a comment if you can, and hoping you all have a good night and a wonderful holiday!