Once the cruise ship docked, people came pouring out to see the sights of Inkwell City. But one human man seemed hesitant to disembark. He was middle-aged with blond-grey hair. He's wearing a white shirt, brown pants, black shoes, suspenders, and a dark coat.
He steps on the dock and walks down towards the city. He hails a taxi and gives him instructions.
"You're heading pretty far from town, mister," said the rat cab driver.
"Yeah, well, my friend lives far from the city," the man said. "It'll be good to see him."
Soon they make it to the fence of the kettle cottage. The man walks to the door, knocks, and waits. Elder Kettle opens the door.
"Hello?" Kettle said.
The man salutes. "Stein, reporting, sir," he said.
Kettle chuckles. "Stein...? Henry Stein? Is that you?" he said.
"Yes, sir, I hope you don't mind, but I just got off the cruise ship and thought I drop by,"
"Not at all. It's good to see an old army friend. Please do come in,"
Henry walks inside, and Kettle brews up some tea.
"I'm glad to see you, but I wish you had sent me a letter in advance," Kettle said. "I would have whipped up something special."
"Don't worry about it, sir," Henry said.
Kettle smiled. "Elder, soldier. I'm not your commander anymore," he said. He brings the pot to the table and two teacups.
"Alright," Henry said. "Thank you, Elder," he pours the tea into the cups.
"I am surprised you didn't want to be in the city. You used to grow up here if I remember correctly."
"I did, but I wasn't really itching to see the city. It's probably changed a lot in the last... however many years,"
"How long has it been, Henry?" Kettle asked.
"More than thirty years ago," Henry said. "But it hardly matters. I came to see you and have an unsurprising day."
"Well, if that's how you feel, then fine. How's the family?"
"They're great. Linda's gone to see her mom in the Rockies, and Ben is starting an internship after college,"
"Oh, that's wonderful. You must be so proud of your boy."
"I am. How are your boys? Uh, Cuphead and Mugman,"
"They're doing well. I think they're still upstairs. I'll call them down," Kettle stands up and walks out of the kitchen.
A few minutes earlier...
Cuphead and Mugman were playing with marbles in their room when Bendy climbed up into their window.
"Hey, fellas," Bendy said. He has the kitten's nose drawn on his face and is wearing a cape.
"Hey Bendy," Cuphead said. "What's with the cape?" he asked.
"I was hiding my tailless backside from my dad. I told him I was feeling dramatic. Thankfully he bought it." He whips the cape over his shoulders, "But think he's noticed I'm hiding something, and I'm running out of excuses," Bendy said. "I need ink to regrow it."
"Don't you have ink at home?" Mugman asked.
"It's not that easy," Bendy said. "I used all of my monthly ink supply making those ink bombs, and I can't ask my dad without him asking why so I came here."
"I know where we keep some," Cuphead said. He grabs an inkwell from the desk.
"That's my calligraphy ink!" Mugman yelled.
"I'll get more for you later," Bendy said.
Cuphead hands the bottle to the kitten. Bendy opens the inkwell and drinks it down. After he's done, he wipes his lips and looks back at the stump where his tail should be. It only grows an inch longer.
"That's it?" Cuphead asked.
"Oh, I guess it's been a while since I've done this. I'll need more ink than this," Bendy said.
"No problem, we can get some more at Porkrind's," Cuphead said.
"Oh boys, come downstairs and say hello to an old friend of mine," came Kettle's voice.
"Be right there, Elder Kettle," the brothers said automatically.
"C'mon, we can go to Porkrind's right after this," Cuphead said.
The boys walk downstairs, and Kettle is waiting for them.
"Oh, you're here too, splendid," Kettle said, looking at Bendy. "Come into the kitchen, boys."
The boys walk into the kitchen one by one.
"This is Cuphead," Kettle said.
"Hi," Cuphead greeted.
"Mugman," Kettle said.
"Hello," Mugman greeted.
"This is their friend, Bendy," Kettle said.
"Hello-..." Bendy said, but his words died out when he saw the man's face.
"Boys, meet Henry Stein," Kettle said.
Henry's eyes widened when he saw Bendy's, and he gasped.
"He was in my troop while we were in the army," Kettle said. He then noticed the man's shocked expression. "Is something wrong, Henry?" he asked.
The kitten and the man just stared at each other for a second before Bendy broke the gaze and ran away and left the kitchen. He kept going till he ran out the front door.
"Bendy?" Cuphead asked. He follows the kitten.
"It was nice to meet you, sir," Mugman said quickly before following his brother.
Henry stuttered.
"What's the matter?" Kettle asked.
"That was-... I-" Henry stuttered.
"Henry, you're shaking," Kettle said.
Cuphead goes out the door and sees his friend leaning against the fence.
"Bendy, are you okay?" Cuphead asked. He places a hand on Bendy's shoulder.
"Y-yeah, I'm fine," Bendy muttered.
"You sure, buddy? You look kinda pale," Cuphead said.
"Are you alright, Bendy?" Mugman asked after catching up to them.
"I'm fine," Bendy said firmly while still holding onto the fence. "I just-... wasn't expectin' to see him,"
"You mean Mr. Stein? Do you know him?" Mugman asked.
Before Bendy could respond, Henry walked out of the cottage and looked at them.
"Bendy?" the man asked. "Is that-?"
"Nope! Nope! Nope!" Bendy said.
He then grabs the cups and runs away, carrying them. The little kitten runs as fast as he can.
"Bendy! Stop!" Mugman yelled.
"Yeah, we'll miss Porkrind's!" Cuphead said.
Bendy eventually slows down, drops the cups, and then he stops.
"What was that?" Mugman asked.
"What?" Bendy asked.
"What do you mean what? Mr. Stein tried to talk to you, and you just ran away." Mugman said.
"That's-... that's not why I ran," Bendy said defensively. "I just-... want to get a move on with the ink thing."
"But Mr. Stein-"
"Is not important!" Bendy shouted.
Mugman and Cuphead crossed their arms.
"What?" Bendy asked.
The brothers don't move and just look at the kitten sternly.
Bendy growled for a second before letting out a breath.
"Fine," Bendy said, sounding calmer. "Yes, I know Henry Stein. I knew him from a long time ago." He leans against a tree.
Cuphead and Mugman's expressions softened.
"How long ago?" the cup asked.
"More than thirty years. Almost as long as the butcher gang. But Henry was different. He's a couple of years older than those guys, and I wasn't much older than I look now. Henry and I spent time together for almost a year, and he was nice to me. I liked him, and I thought we were friends."
"So, what happened?" Cuphead asked.
"He was here one day, then gone the next. He left Inkwell, and I never heard from him again," Bendy said. "He didn't even say goodbye, and... some people once said that it was my fault."
"Your fault? How?" Mugman asked.
"He got too nervous being around a devil," Bendy said. "So, he left to save himself," He brushes himself. "But then I crossed Henry out of my life, and I never thought about him again. In my mind, Henry Stein is dead and buried,"
"But Bendy, he's still alive, and here, maybe you could talk to him?" Mugman suggested.
"Why on earth would I want to talk to him?" Bendy asked.
"So you can have closure,"
"Closure!?" Bendy shouted. "I don't need closure! He abandoned me just before Joey-!" his fur started to liquefy, and his hands were shaking. He noticed this and took a few calming breaths before his fur solidified again. "I don't want to talk about it anymore."
The boys had more questions, but they didn't want to frustrate Bendy any further, so they didn't ask him any more questions.
"It's okay, Bendy," Cuphead said. "If you say you're done, you're done. Now let's get you some of that ink," he holds his hand out to Bendy.
Bendy looked back at Cuphead and smiled before taking his hand and walking with him.
As Mugman watches them, he feels like there is something different and weird about this. Moreover, he's got this strange feeling like... he's the third wheel.
Unfortunately for the three, finding enough ink for the little devil's tail regrowth proved to be harder than expected. Porkrind's was closed, then they went to the city to find a hardware store, but someone had just bought the last big bottle of ink.
Bendy groaned as they exited the store.
"It ain't over yet, Bendy," Cuphead said.
"Feels like it," Bendy said.
"Don't worry, it can't get much worse than this, can it?" Cuphead said.
Just then, some invisible force pulled Bendy away from his friends. The little devil tried to fight it, but this pull wouldn't let go.
"You just had to ask!" Bendy shouted as his body shrank down, his cape fell off, and he was sucked into a bottle.
Charley pressed down the cork to seal it. "We got 'em!" he yelled. He and the other gang members were hiding in a red car parked outside the store.
"You!" Cuphead yelled. "Give him back!"
"No," Charley said. "Barley, step on it!"
Barley was in the driver's seat and stepped on the gas. The cups ran after them, but the car was too fast.
"We'll never catch them on foot," Mugman said.
Just then, Kettle's truck pulled up next to them, but Kettle wasn't there, and Henry was at the wheel.
"Get in!" Henry said.
Cuphead and Mugman jump in, and Henry steps on the gas pedal.
"Mr. Stein, what are you doing here?" Mugman asked.
"I'll explain everything if you answer this question for me," Henry said. "Do you know what Bendy is?"
"Yeah, he's our friend, and he needs help," Cuphead said.
"That's not what I-"
"I know what you meant, but shouldn't you know the answer too? You two knew each other thirty years ago before you ditched him!"
"Ditched him?! I didn't-."
"Mr. Stein, this is hardly the time for questioning," Mugman said. "We've got to save Bendy."
"You're right. Just do as I say, and we'll get Bendy back!" Henry said.
They found the butcher gang's car and followed it out of town. Henry drives the car up to the side. Once they got close, Cuphead and Mugman started throwing stuff at the gang. Edgar stood up and used his many spider legs to try and block the stuff from hitting his gang. The cup threw a wrench, the spider missed it, and it hit Barley right on the back of the head. The sailor was knocked out, and the red car spun as it neared right over a waterfall. Charley managed to move his foot around and hit the brakes just before they reached the falls. Edgar, not wearing a seat belt, was propelled overhead and down the falls.
"Edgar!" Charley yelled. He jumps out of the car and looks over the falls, but the spider has vanished.
Henry jumped out of the truck, ran over to Charley, and then punched him square in the jaw. Soon the two men broke into a fight cloud while Cuphead and Mugman watched.
"Get 'em, Henry! Get 'em!" Cuphead cheered.
"Give me the bottle!" Henry yelled.
"No way!" Charley yelled back. "I'm not letting this little creep get away from me a third time!"
"I'm not giving you a choice!" Henry yelled.
"Why the hell should you care? He's a demon" Charley yelled.
"Because I do care. He's my little devil!"
Henry kneed Charley in the stomach and the man loses his grip on the bottle.
Cuphead runs and grabs the bottle. He tries to remove the cork, but it's stuck so Mugman tries it, and it opens immediately. Bendy is poured and he screams in frustration. Without thinking, the little jumps into the cloud and starts clawing at Charley. He gets a scratch over Charley left eye, which makes the man scream. Henry grabs Bendy and he backs away from the curled-up Charley.
"Let me at 'em!" Bendy yelled, swiping his claws in the air. "I wanna claw his eye out!"
Henry kept Bendy in a tight hug.
"Bendy, no, he's not worth it," Henry said. He looked at Charley. "I suggest you leave or else I'll let the little devil have his way you after all."
Charley growled before retreating to his car, with Barley just waking up and driving away.
Bendy scratches Henry's arm, the man yelps in pain before dropping the little devil.
"What was that for?" Henry asked.
"For letting them go." Bendy snapped before going to the truck.
The drive back to the cottage was quiet. Uncomfortably so. Bendy refused to even look at the man. Once they reached the cottage, the boys stepped out, but Henry raised his palm towards Bendy.
"Can we talk?" Henry said.
"I got nothin' to say to you," Bendy said, trying to walk away.
"Wait, Bendy," Cuphead said. "Maybe hear him out,"
"Bendy, I have to leave soon, and now I just really think we should talk before then," Henry said.
"Oh, so now you announce you're going to leave. That's new," Bendy said. "Where was that thirty years ago?"
"Bendy, please," Henry said.
"We're... just gonna go check on Kettle," Mugman said, pulling Cuphead with him as he walked away.
Bendy and Henry walk to the side of the truck that isn't facing the cottage and lean against the truck.
Henry cleared his throat, "Bendy-"
"Why did you do it?" Bendy asked, cutting Henry off.
"Do what?" Henry asked.
"You know what the hell I'm talking about. Why did you just disappear and never come back?"
"I didn't want to, Bendy, but I didn't have much of a choice. I was a young man, and the army was enlisting men like me into being a soldier for war."
"The army?" Bendy asked.
"I would've told you myself, but you weren't in the studio at the time."
"Oh, so it's my fault then?"
"No. None of it was your fault. I thought Audrey or even Joey would've told you,"
"Audrey may have mentioned it, but you never contacted us again, and Joey and Wilson, they said you... you left because of me. That you-" Bendy squeezed his eyes shut, and his fists shook. A black tear fell from the corner of his eye. Suddenly, a pair of arms wrapped around him, and the little devil stood there in shock.
"I don't know what they told you, and you don't have to repeat it, but Bendy, my leaving was never because I was angry with you or scared of you. I had to leave for official reasons, and I guessed Joey never forgave me for that, so he lied to make me the bad guy in your eyes."
Henry pulled back and looked at Bendy directly. He wipes away the tears on the little devil's face.
"When I heard about the studio fire, I just somehow knew Joey had gone too far and could only pray that you, being a devil, had somehow survived."
"You prayed for me?" Bendy asked.
"Yes. But I didn't think I'd see you again. You've grown some,"
"Well, it happens. Even to the best of us," Bendy joked.
Henry chuckled.
"Now that's the little devil I know," the man said. "I can't imagine what you went through all those years ago or how you must've felt all this time. If I knew the outcome, I would never have left. Bendy, I'm sorry. Can you forgive me?"
Bendy stuttered, looking uncertain. Henry placed a hand on Bendy's shoulder.
"You don't have to answer that right way," Henry said. "It's been a long time, and I'm sure you'll need more time to think about it. Oh, I have something for you," Henry goes to the trunk and pulls out a large bottle with the word ink written on the sticker. "When you ran away in the cottage, I spotted your tail and noticed how short it was. I figured you needed more ink. So, I got the last bottle they had at the store. Think of it as a peace offering."
The little devil takes the bottle and looks up at the man.
"Thank you," Bendy said.
A while later, Henry waved at Elder Kettle, Cuphead, Mugman, and kitten Bendy before stepping into a cab. The driver takes the man back to the docks.
"It was nice seeing an old friend again." Kettle said before walking back into the cottage.
"Yeah, it was." Bendy whispered to himself before following the kettle family inside the cottage.