A/N: Hello, hello, nerds! Hope everyone's Christmas was delightful, and happy (early) New Year!

Hope you all enjoy this chapter... I have a surprise gift at the end.

Chapter Eight: AGAIN & AGAIN, AROUND & AROUND

ALLISON

"You're married?" Audrey burst out, struggling upright from her place in Henry's arms.

Allison laughed, spinning in a circle with Tom. "Very. Tom!" His warm nose snuffled at her neck.

Tom brushed tears from her cheeks, both of them grinning. "Yes. Very married," he said, and beamed down into Allison's face as she laughed.

His voice, she thought. Deep, gravelly, warm. I missed it so much.

A wave of sadness washed over Allison, and she felt new tears prickle at the corners of her eyes. "How did we not remember?" she whispered, and Tom pulled her in tight, nearly crushing her against him. "How did we not remember this?"

"You had no memories," Henry pointed out from the sideline. "Except for his name."

Allison laughed and pulled back a little, staring up at her husband. I miss his face, too, she thought, and scolded herself. Be grateful for this much, girlie. "I did manage that much. Did you know…"

"Yep," Tom confirmed, and she could tell he was thrilled to use his voice after so long. "But I couldn't say it." His eyes glinted with anger for a moment- uh oh, she thought- until he swept her up again and spun in a circle, chanting, "Allison. Allison. Allison!"

"Tom!" she protested, hearing Audrey giggle in the background. "Put me down, you blithering idiot!"

He set her down and dropped to one knee, smiling up at her. "Allison Connor. Happy to meet you."

Allison laughed and pushed his shoulder. "Thank you, Sir Thomas. Much obliged." She turned to look at their friends, smiling at Audrey, still crumpled in her father's arms. "He's got a wit when he's excited."

"And otherwise," Tom objected.

"But he can be a complete dolt at other times," Allison continued, ignoring him.

"I can hear you," he said in her ear and grabbed her around the waist.

Allison laughed- until she saw Henry. He forced a smile, but she could tell her thoughts were elsewhere. Linda.

She gently disentangled herself from Tom's arms and knelt, reaching out to touch Henry's shoulder. "Henry. We'll find her. She's here somewhere, right? We know this place inside and out, and I don't think the Demon- Bendy," she amended at Audrey's look, "I don't think he'll come after us." She smiled at him. "Halos, after all."

Henry looked at her, pain and relief warring in his eyes. "Thank you."

Tom began to pace behind her, and a smile tugged at Allison's lips- that cadence of his steps was very familiar, both as Thomas Connor and Boris. The familiar foot pattern halted suddenly, and Tom asked, "What does Linda look like?"

Henry opened his mouth to answer, but Audrey gasped and reached inside her jacket, tugging out a small bundle of papers. "Sorry, Dad, but I grabbed the family picture on my way out. I hope that's okay?"

"Smart move," Henry told her, and ran a glowing hand through her hair. "I'm proud. That looks like more than one paper, though…"

Audrey tugged the bundle apart and spread them out on her lap. She pointed to a photograph, and Allison felt Tom move close behind her to look. "That's us. Momma hasn't changed too much since then."

Allison smiled at the tiny Audrey, noticeably smaller in the picture than now - growth spurt - before she turned her attention to the woman in the picture.

Linda. Her skin, dark, had a weather-beaten look, her nose was crooked in one place, her hair swept over her forehead in a riot of curls. But her eyes were wide and warm, and her smile was wide, and happiness was written across her face as clearly as Audrey's golden messages.

Linda reminded her of someone. Or something. Allison couldn't quite lay hold to the memory.

"Your wife is beautiful, Henry," Allison said, quietly.

"I know," Henry responded, with equal parts wry humor and sorrow lacing his voice.

Her gaze drifted over a drawn, pale Henry and halted. "You still have blond hair? After the ink?"

Henry smiled. "I think I got washed out, more than anything."

Audrey turned to look at him. "Your hair was brown in your older pictures! From the Army."

"The Army?" Tom asked.

Henry nodded. "Brief stint as a pilot, after I quit working for Joey. Didn't last long, actually. Got knocked out of the sky in the first few months and lost most of my sight in my left eye." He shrugged. "They sidelined me after that, working on cartoon animations to promote the War. Hated it, no life to those things, but I got my pension and a great recommendation."

"The War?" Tom frowned at Henry, who suddenly looked stricken.

"You have great eyesight," Audrey said, the end of the sentence trailing up as a question.

"Ink can do amazing things," Henry told her, visibly relieved at the change of subject. He raised an eyebrow at Allison. "Like regrow an eye."

Allison laughed and reached up to touch her cheek. "It's nice being able to see straight again, that's sure."

"What actually happened to you?" Henry asked her. "I don't think I ever got an answer to that."

Allison felt Tom's hand on her back. She sighed. "A new Alice found me. I don't think she appreciates our similarities."

"A new Alice?" Henry asked, his voice low. Audrey paused in the middle of unfolding a white paper to stare up at him.

Allison grimaced. "Indeed." She stared off into space, preoccupied by that lingering memory of Linda- or someone like her. "She's different. No eyes, for one. I think that's why she took one of mine. Maybe she planned on cutting out the other-"

Oh, no. Allison slowly straightened, staring off toward the halo-emblazoned door. Oh. No. That's who.

"Henry," Allison said quietly, and turned to look at him.

She watched all the color literally drain from Henry's face, leaving him white and black like one of his drawings.

The memory flickered into her mind, and this time, it stayed: the ghostly image of a laughing woman, traced over a wailing dark angel.

Audrey gasped, looking between the two of them. "No. Not Momma."

Tom laid a huge hand over Allison's shoulder, no needs worded to phrase his grim question.

"Yes. Linda is the new Alice, I believe," Allison said heavily.

So that's who Linda reminds me of, she mused. Or rather… who reminds me of Linda.

Tom was not the only one pacing the floor.

He was actually trying to keep pace with Henry, preventing him from beating down the door bodily and going after his wife.

Allison watched from the shadows with Audrey, who had curled into herself at Allison's side, eyes glazed. Perhaps from exhaustion. Perhaps from something else.

Henry spun toward the door, and this time Tom had to jump in his way.

"Get a grip, man," Allison's husband growled, surprising her- maybe a bit of the Boris is still in there. "Getting yourself killed won't help her."

"I can't just wait here," Henry growled back. Allison blinked in surprise as his shoulders rippled, black ink rising and falling like waves in a pond, seeping through his shirt and then receding again. "I need to get to her, I need-"

"You need to take a minute," Allison snapped, and both men turned to her, surprised by the bite in her words. "Linda seems to have a good head on her shoulders, from what you told Audrey a little ago. She definitely wouldn't want you rushing in blind." She softened her voice. "We need a plan. And then we're going to go get her."

Henry groaned and raked his fingers down his face. Black trails left behind slowly faded, absorbing into his skin.

Allison sighed. "Come sit down, Henry. Tom, drag him over if he doesn't listen, please."

Shepherded by Tom, Henry slowly walked over and dropped to the floor, putting his face in his hands. "I told her it was safer now," he said, his voice muffled.

"And it was, to your knowledge," Allison told him. "You did what you could."

"Not your fault, Daddy," Audrey whispered, curling over into Allison's lap.

Henry bit off a short laugh and dropped his hands. "How can we…"

"Your daughter healed us. She helped you," Tom said gruffly. "She can do the same for your wife."

Henry's eyes brightened, and he looked at Audrey, who was watching the action from wide, slightly dazed eyes. He hissed out a breath through his teeth. "It's so dangerous. Especially for Audrey."

"What's dangerous about it?" Allison asked, filling her voice with cheer. She ignored the warning look Tom threw her. "Not too difficult. We distract Linda, we hold her down, then Audrey jumps out and works her magic."

"Allie," Tom said quietly.

"Obviously I'll be the one to distract," Allison said, tipping her head to the side.

"Allison."

"I'm the perfect choice, Tom," she said shortly. "She doesn't like me. My voice carries. She wants to get her hands on me? Fine. Let her try. Then Henry can jump out from behind - hopefully the sound of his voice will confuse her, and he should be able to hold her long enough for Audrey to reach her." Safely, she added mentally.

"Allison. It's not safe. At all," Tom warned. He squared his shoulders. "I'll do it."

"She won't go crazy for you like she will for me," Allison told him, and reached out, careful not to disturb Audrey, who was now breathing steadily and slowly, eyes still wide open.

She took his hand. "You can protect Audrey, and me, if it comes to it. We just can't hurt Linda. At all."

Henry shook his head. "I can't let you-"

"You're not letting me do a thing," she snapped at him, surprising herself. "I'm married, too. If it was me out there, and Linda here, we'd be doing the same thing. I'm choosing to help a woman whose position I am uniquely qualified to understand."

She stared at the two men, putting a bit of her temper into her glare. "We're both Alices. We both lost what we love most. She's hurting- she doesn't have eyes, Henry," she barked when he looked ready to interrupt. "The Machine brings you back according to your emotions, more or less, it's not really science. Your wife has literally cried her eyes out. She doesn't speak, she just wails. She wants you and she doesn't even know who you are, all right? Fine. It's dangerous. I don't care."

"I get a say in this, Allison," Tom said evenly, quiet until she reluctantly looked at him.

He sighed, the tension in his shoulders releasing a little more. "You're right. But. Henry. I don't want to hurt Linda. I still won't let your wife hurt mine."

Henry barked a short laugh. "Roger that, Tom. Don't worry, she won't get that far." His shoulders moved again, rippling, and Allison frowned- what is that? "I'll have her long before that. All I ask is that you protect my daughter to the best of your ability, as you already have."

Tom nodded, his mechanical hand tightening into a fist. "I can do that."

Allison let a long sigh of relief escape. "Right. So that's-"

Audrey jerked upright. "Someone's coming."

They all fell silent. Allison strained her senses outward.

From somewhere outside came a sound, muddled but identifiable: a low groan.

"They shouldn't be able to get this close," Allison whispered, cold worry pouring down her spine.

Tom pointed to the door, their only exit. "From there."

Henry hissed an angry breath, rising to his feet with Tom. The two men shifted, putting themselves between the door and the girls.

Tom snatched up his axe - Henry reached for a nearby pipe.

Allison's mind whirled. A Searcher? How? I warded the whole area, thoroughly. Is it the new Ali- I mean, Linda? Fear prickled across her scalp. The Demon?

Allison stood, lifting Audrey up with her. The girl stumbled once on her feet, fumbling her knife from her pocket, but Allison shook her head and gently pushed her toward the back of the room.

Audrey opened her mouth to protest, but Allison laid a finger against her lips warningly. A moment later, the groan sounded again - just outside the door? - and Audrey's eyes flickered. She slid back, keeping her back to the wall.

Allison grabbed a wrench from a shelf and carefully stepped forward, as quietly as possible, to join the men by the door. Tom motioned her back, pointing to the lever, and she took a pace back, gripping the wrench. Henry looked at Tom, counting down on his fingers, as Tom wrapped a hand around the lever: three, two, one…

Tom threw the lever down and sprang forward with a howl, Henry right behind. Allison lifted her wrench, ready to bring it crashing down on the head of whatever monster lay outside-

A cacophony of groans spilled through the doorway. Instead of wreaking havoc, both men stumbled to a halt halfway down the hall.

Allison kept the wrench high and squinted. She could barely make out in the darkness some inky creature, laying at the men's feet.

Allison heard low words and a sharp question, answered by a shaky, mid-tone voice. Not Tom, not Henry- whatever it is can speak?

Both men sharply looked up into the dark of the hallway beyond, and Allison squinted, barely able to make out a Searcher's arm emerging from the darkness.

Henry said something to Tom and handed him the pipe. He bent down, grabbing the ink figure by some limb and tugging it back toward the door.

Tom clearly wasn't happy- she could tell by the set of his shoulders- but he hefted both weapons, leapt beyond the figure on the floor and lunged into the dark hallway beyond.

Allison bit off a cry - the groans sound like there's more Searchers out there - but she heard a low growl followed by several agonized moans. He's well aware.

Henry pulled, leaving a huge trail of ink behind him. Allison pushed the door wide for him, listening to the sounds of thump and swoosh mingle with groans and bubbling. Strangely, the figure in Henry's arms seemed to be completely silent, hanging limp.

Allison drew in a deep breath as Henry and the body neared, stepping back so that he could enter with his burden.

Tom ducked through right behind and slammed down the lever, leaving them sealed safely in the room once again. He was covered in black ink from the hands up to the shoulders, his once white gloves drenched.

Tom shrugged at her - just another day on the job - and Allison blew out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. She turned back to Henry and his creature, just as he laid it to the floor.

The ink figure, a vague imitation of a man's body, twisted and slowly turned over, slumping limp against the creaking boards.

Allison gasped at the sight of the figure's normally-smooth face. It was torn to shreds, pulled open like flower petals, leaving a gaping hole in the center of the face, mutilated mouth just below. The hole was hemorrhaging ink, gurgles and bubbles welling from some interior source, pooling over the creature's temples and around the back of its head like a halo.

"Henry… who…?"

At the sound of her voice, the shredded face turned toward her. Bubbles popped and writhed from his face. She saw the torn Demon mask wrapped around his hand before he spoke, but it was his voice that sent ice shooting through her.

"Angel, please. Help me," begged the Prophet.

TO BE CONTINUED

/\/\/\

A/N: Maybe I rated this story too gentle. 'Teen' might be a little too polite for some later scenes, as teased here with Sammy's... injuries.

Well, no time to beat around the bush! Because it's Christmas season - and frankly, because I'm a little impatient to get to the later parts of this story, which I absolutely love - I'm dropping Chapter 10 as well. You all deserve it. (Well... I don't know you. Maybe you're a serial killer. If so, please stop reading this story and seek Christ. I don't wanna give you any ideas.)

On to Chapter 10! See you there, in the end notes. -Sam