"Well, this isn't this working," Ladybug remarked.
The two of them had played through Sammy's song twice now, and so far, nothing had activated in response to it.
The Bendy cutout in the projector booth didn't help matters.
Chat scratched his head. "Maybe there's something we're missing?"
"I think we are," Ladybug answered. "But for the life of me, I can't think of what it is."
"Maybe this tape has something on it," Chat said, picking it up and turning it on.
The tape crackled and a woman's voice came out of it. "It may only be my second month working for Joey Drew, but I can already tell that I'm going to love it here!
"People really seem to love my Alice Angel voice. Sammy says she may be as popular as Bendy someday.
"These past few weeks I have voiced everything, from talking chairs to dancing chickens. But this is the first character I have really felt a connection with. Like she's a part of me.
"Alice and I, we are going places."
"Okay, that wasn't helpful," Chat said, tossing the player to the side. "At all."
"But that is a good idea though," Ladybug added. "There's probably a tape around here somewhere that can tell us what to do."
"Yeah, what a coincidence that people leave tapes lying around where they would be useful."
"Yeah," Ladybug drew out, eyes narrowing slightly. "What a coincidence."
Chat tensed. Ladybug had that face, the one that promised that someone would be in world of pain soon.
Still, they had bigger problems to worry about at the moment. "There's going to be a lot of ground to cover," he pointed out. "I think we should split up."
Ladybug gave Chat a flat stare. "Chaton, hundreds of horror movies have proven why that is a bad idea," she answered.
Chat grinned. "I would like to think that we are better prepared than your typical teenagers," he replied.
"Okay, fine," Ladybug decided. "But we keep in contact. And if one of us finds something unusual, we call the other one."
Chat shot off a salute. "Right-o, M'Lady!"
-MToLaCNBatIM-
Ladybug was inspecting a pool table when a call came through on her yo-yo. Opening it, she asked, "Did you find something, Chat?"
"Yes!" came his excited voice. "Come to the projector booth!"
"The what?"
"The room above the music room."
After nearly getting lost, she managed to find Chat in the room overlooking the band room with the Bendy cutout sitting in one of the music stands. "So, what did you find?" she asked.
"This!" Chat said, holding up a tape player labeled Norman Polk before pressing play.
There was a crackle and an older voice came out of the tape.
"Every day, the same strange thing happens. I'll be up here in my booth, the band will be swinging, and Sammy Lawrence just comes marching in and shuts the whole thing down. tells us all to wait in the hall.
"Then I hear him. He starts up my projector, and he dashes from the projector booth like the little devil himself was chasing behind.
"Few seconds later, the projector turns off. But Sammy, he doesn't come out for a long time. This man is weird. Crazy weird.
"I have half a mind to talk to Mister Drew about all this. But then again, I have to admit, Mister Drew has his own peculiarities."
The tape clicked off, and Ladybug thought on it. after a minute, she addressed Chat. "Alright, here's what we're going to do…"
-MToLaCNBatIM-
"Ready?" Ladybug called, looking up in the music room.
"I feel like I should be asking you that," Chat answered from the projector booth. "But still, ready!"
"Hit it!"
There was a click, and an old cartoon started playing on the wall behind her. Ignoring the antics on screen, she ran through Sammy's song, letting out a whoop when the sealed door opened.
"We did it!" she cheered… just before a loud crash sounded behind her. Turning around, she saw Chat Noir lying on the floor in a heap on top of some crushed cutouts. "What happened to you?" she found herself asking.
"Thought I'd take a shortcut and just jump down," the dazed catboy replied. "Didn't think the cutouts would meet me in midair."
Ladybug raised an eyebrow. "But the cutouts were up… there…" the area where the cutouts had been was empty. "Something screwy is going on around here. Let's get that leak cleared."
"Right," Chat said, following Ladybug into the sanctuary, snickering when a thought occurred to him. "How much did Joey pay Sammy to put this in here?"
"I'm just wondering why there is a toilet in here."
"Well, when you gotta go, you gotta go."
"Right. Well, let's make like a certain janitor and get outta SWEET CREATION KWAMI!"
Chat had thrown half his staff, spearing through the head of the Bendy cutout that had peaked around the corner. "There's someone in the room!" he cried, running with the other half raised, Ladybug close behind him.
Only to confront an empty room. "Where did they go?" Chat asked, sounding as nervous as she felt.
She was almost relieved when the inky torsos started popping out of the floor again.
-MToLaCNBatIM-
One one-sided beat down later, and the pair of heroes were back at Sammy's office, where they met the next obstacle.
"I thought we drained this stuff!" Ladybug groused, glaring at the ink that was still spewing furiously.
"Maybe there's another valve?" Chat asked, scratching his head.
"Where? We've searched the entire floor, and there's no place it could be hiding."
"Actually, I think we drained the ink that had flooded the Infirmity."
Ladybug groaned. "I swear this place is nothing but fetch quests," she grumbled.
-MToLaCNBatIM-
"And what do you know, another one," Ladybug sighed as the two of them looked at the place where a valve should be.
"Maybe this will help?" Chat asked, pulling on a lever that said Utility Access. "Onward and downward."
The pair walked down the stairway, weapons at ready. "Down here, we are all sinners," Ladybug remarked at a particular piece of graffiti. "Well, someone's a bit gloomy,"
"Yeah," Chat added looking down the hallway. "LB, look!"
Ladybug turned around to see a black figure slip into the ink. it vanished so quickly, all she caught was the glimpse of a hat and…
"Did that thing have the valve handle?"