AN: aaaaay. How's it goin'? Yeah, its been a while. Sorry about that. I've just been in a slump, but I think I'm pulling out of it. I wrote like half of this chapter in one sitting. It's a long one!

Now, there has been some confusion over whether or not Alice is in this au, especially with the awesome new chapter. Keep in mind that this fic was started back when only chapter one was available. Alice did not exist to the masses yet. Unfortunately, I had quite a lot written already when chapter two came out, and I didn't want to rewrite the whole thing to add her in, so I thought up a reason for her absence in the au. This explanation has been posted on the blog already, but I'll put it here as well. It is as follows: Alice was added to the show later on (as stated in the game), by that time, Bendy and Boris had already been brought to life via the ink machine, and had been living in the studio for a couple years. Unfortunately, it was also around this time that Joey began to fear his creations. He became convinced that they were going to turn on him, and he didn't want to add another character to aid them. Thus Alice was never brought into the world. Bendy and Boris were deprived of a little sister all because Joey thought they were dangerous. Not long after, Joey had his breakdown and closed the studio doors.

(recap: the toons are now in Henry's house, chilling in the Library on the top floor)

It was once the laughter died down that Bendy spoke up about Henry's promise. "So, you said you'd tell me about my feets!" The little demon said, bouncing excitedly in his seat.

Henry grinned and chuckled at Bendy's antics before getting up and walking toward one of the book cases. "It's just 'feet', Bendy, not feets. And I think I have a book that will interest you." The man said as he ran a finger along the many colorful spines in front of him. Finally, he plucked a book off the shelf and began flipping through it as he turned around and walked back to his chair. Henry sat back down and turned the book around so Bendy could see, pointing at an illustration on one page. It was a drawing of a fire-spitting demon with goat legs, bat wings, horns, and all. "See, this is what a traditional demon is supposed to look like. They don't really exist, but your design was based on them," Henry explained.

Bendy gently took the book from Henry and sat it on his lap, staring at the scary illustration. He looked up at Henry, a worried expression on his face as he pointed at himself. "I'm supposed to be one of these things?" He squeaked.

Henry smiled reassuringly at the distressed ink creature. "Loosely based, obviously. You're supposed to be a demon, but you aren't really a demon. Like I said, they don't exist. Kind of like how Boris is supposed to be a wolf, but obviously he isn't really a wolf. But see-" Henry reached over and pointed at the drawing. "You've got the horns, the tail, and the hooves! Like I said, it's just how you were designed back when you were a drawing on paper. Your heart is pure as can be, so don't worry about what the book says about their behavior."

Bendy looked relieved at Henry's explanation, and looked back down at the drawing curiously. He tilted his head and pointed at the bat-like wings protruding from the horrible demon's back. "Why don't I have wings?" He asked.

Henry was silent for a few moments as he thought. "I'm not sure. Joey was the one to design you both, not me. Maybe he thought wings would be too hard to animate constantly?" The man sat back in his chair, a hand on his chin as he studied Bendy. "You know what? You'd look pretty nice with a pair of wings. I'm sure you'd love to fly, too."

Bendy's eyes sparkled at the notion. Henry stared at the toon for a few more seconds before shrugging. "Well, it can't be helped. I wish I was around when your character was still in development, maybe I could have mentioned adding wings."

Bendy looked crestfallen, his bottom lip trembling a bit as he touched a finger to the illustrated demon's wings. He didn't say anything else, though. Henry felt bad for the little creature and reached out a hand to pat Bendy's shoulder. "Maybe one day I'll be able to take you flying. There's a little airstrip in town that does helicopter rides over the valley. It's a bit of a tourist attraction. One of the pilots is a buddy of mine. I'm sure you'll love it."

That seemed to cheer Bendy up a tad, but he still looked down. Henry smiled sadly and gave the demon's shoulder one last pat before standing up. "Well, we'd better get you two settled in! Your rooms are this way." Henry waited for the toons to stand from the couch before leading them across the room to a wall where, between two spaces in the book cases, stood two doors.

"Here are the guest bedrooms. Well, I guess now they aren't guest bedrooms anymore. There's another one downstairs, but I'd rather you guys stay in these ones, since mine is just over there-" he pointed down the large room, toward the stairs. They couldn't see the door because of an obstructing book case, however. "-so you can come to me for help in the night."

Bendy looked from one bedroom door to the next. "Which one is mine?" He asked.

Henry moved forward to open one. "Well, they're both the same in terms of furniture and size, so just pick whichever one you like best."

Bendy and Boris peeked into the open room and saw that it was of a decent size, around 140 square feet, with a queen sized bed situated under the window located on the wall opposite the door. By one side of the bed was a nightstand with a lamp, and on the other side was a dresser. A small desk and chair stood against the right wall. The left wall had two doors, which Henry pointed out, saying one was a closet, and the other led to a joint bathroom that was between the two guest rooms.

After scoping out the room, Bendy was quick to run inside and inspect it further. He pulled open the drawers on the dresser and desk to see if there was anything inside. All he found were old papers and pencils in the desk and nothing in the dresser. He opened the closet, but quickly shut it when he saw that it was empty. Finally, he pulled himself up onto the bed and began to jump, giving the mattress a springiness test. He seemed satisfied with the results and, after one last leap, let himself fall against the soft blankets.

Bendy made a humming sound before he abruptly sat up. "This will do perfectly!" He decided with a grin.

Henry felt relieved. Watching Bendy search the room made him realize how bare it really was. He intended to fix that. "I'm glad you like it, bud. Tomorrow I can go buy you both some things to brighten it up. Unfortunately, you can't come shopping with me, but I'll be sure to get what you want. For now, let's go eat dinner and head to bed. Tour's over." The man said before pushing away from the doorframe and beaconing the two toons after him.

Bendy grinned and scampered after him, slipping once or twice on the hardwood floor. Boris followed much more sedately, but had a small smile on his face nonetheless.

Soon, the two toons found themselves seated at the island counter as Henry heated up two bowls of leftover stew in the microwave. Bendy watched the contraption with wide, curious pie-cut eyes. Henry could tell the little guy was just bursting with questions about all of the new and unusual things he had never seen before. Such as the LCD tv in the living room, the house phone by the spice rack, and the CD player plugged in at the edge of the island counter against the wall.

Once the stew was done heating up, Henry presented it to the two of them. "Ta-da. I may not be the best cook, but even my culinary inclined sister agrees that my beef stew is pretty good. Sorry you can't have it fresh. I'm much too tired to cook tonight." While Henry spoke, Bendy was busy digging into his food, while Boris poked at his with a spoon.

"You sure it's safe?" Boris asked, giving the microwave a nervous glance. "I-I don't like the look of that doohickey you put it in."

Henry chuckled. "That's a microwave. It uses radio waves to heat up food. It's perfectly safe. Reheated food might not taste as good as freshly made food, it still gets the job done." Henry nudged Boris' bowl closer to the wolf. "C'mon. Eat up. Ah, unless you really don't want to." Henry quickly backpedaled. "I'm not forcing you. If you don't need food to live, then you don't have to eat."

Boris gave Henry a searching look, eyes narrowed. After a few seconds, he seemed to come to a decision and returned his gaze to the bowl. After giving it a few sniffs, the wolf finally began to eat. He seemed to be enjoying it, but he didn't say anything. Henry was pleased anyway.

After dinner, Henry had to carry Bendy up the stairs. The poor little guy had eaten two whole helpings of stew and fell asleep in his third bowl. Boris was also sluggish as he followed Henry across the library. Henry himself was feeling tuckered out, but he wanted to get his two charges to their beds before he even looked at his own.

Boris entered his room on his own, and despite wanting to help him get settled, Henry knew to keep his distance. Instead, he whispered a good night to Boris before his door closed. He didn't know why he felt the need to tuck in the thirty-four year old wolf anyway. He just did. Bendy, however, did need to be tucked in, as he was still fast asleep in Henry's arms, snoring softly.

As quietly as he could, Henry opened the squeaky door to Bendy's room and padded across the plush carpet to the bed. Balancing Bendy against his shoulder with one arm, Henry pulled the blankets back with the other. He lowered the little demon onto the bed and pulled the covers up to Bendy's non-existent neck.

Just as Henry began to straighten up and walk away, a pair of arms wrapped around his neck, keeping him from leaving. Bendy sluggishly cracked open his toonish eyes and gave Henry a little smile.

"Thanks, Hen. For helpin' us," Bendy murmured sleepily, pulling Henry down for a hug.

Henry's lips formed into a tearful smile as he returned the hug, even as his back protested painfully at the awkward angle. "You're welcome, buddy. Good night," He whispered back.

Bendy's arms went slack, and Henry pulled away. The little guy was once again fast asleep. Henry smiled warmly and readjusted the blankets around him before patting his head and turning away. The man walked quietly out of the room, but not without one last glance back at the bed where his dear friend slept.

With a warm feeling in his chest, Henry got ready for bed himself, thinking of all the things he was going to do for the two toons the next day. He wanted to do everything they had missed out on. He wanted to make up for thirty years of lost time. He knew it would be tough, nigh impossible, but he was determined. He would pluck the moon from the sky if that was what it took to make his friends happy.

It was calm that night. The halls were dark, and the only sound was the occasional creak of the old house and the faint chirping of crickets outside. There was one resident that wasn't so serene, however.

Bendy tossed and turned in bed, his whole body shaking, caught in the throes of a nightmare. Finally, he woke in a violent fit, which in turn caused him to get tangled up in the covers. Terrified, he fought against the cocoon of blankets that had been so comforting when he fell asleep, but now trapped and smothered him. Despite being scared out of his mind, Bendy didn't make a sound. He didn't want to wake anyone up. He knew nothing good would come of it. Joey might-

That thought ended when Bendy and the blankets rolled off the bed and hit the floor. The jarring drop dazed the panicking demon for a moment, which was enough for him to realize that something was different. The studio didn't have blankets. Nor did he remember falling asleep on top of something. In fact, he couldn't remember going to sleep.

Bendy once again tried to untangle himself, this time much more calmly. He succeeded and was greeted by the fresh air of his dark room in Henry's house. Not the studio. While that was comforting, the shadowy walls of the room were no longer welcoming. They were cold and confining. He was all alone. He and Boris shared a room back at the studio whenever they had a moment's rest. Or when Joey left for long periods of time, and left them alone in a small locked room, dreading his return just as much as they hated the dark confines.

Bendy whimpered and shook his head quickly, trying to banish those awful thoughts. He didn't feel safe. The room was too big, yet too small at the same time. He had to leave.

The little demon scrambled out of the cocoon of blankets and ran to the door. He opened it as quickly as he could, still trying to be quiet. As soon as his hooves hit the wood floor of the library, however, any attempt at silence was thwarted. Bendy jumped at the sound of his own feet against the wood. The clacks seemed impossibly loud, ringing in his head and making his anxiety shoot through the roof. He was making too much noise. Joey would be there any seco-

Again, Bendy shook his head, tugging at his horns with his hands and curling in on himself, eyes shut tight. "Stop it. I'm not there. I'm with Henry. Henry is safe." As soon as he said that, Bendy let go of his horns and swiveled his head around to look at the door Henry had gestured at, saying it was his and that they were free to come to him if they needed anything.

Bendy moved his tail within reach and wrung it between his hands nervously. Should he go to Henry? He said they could come to him if they needed something. Bendy didn't know what he needed. He just wanted to see Henry. To be reassured that he was safe.

With one final twist of his tail, Bendy let go and began to walk across the wood floor to Henry's room as quietly as he could. He didn't want to wake Boris. He didn't hear a thing, which meant his friend was sleeping soundly. Boris always made noise when he had nightmares, unlike Bendy. If he wasn't having a nightmare, then Bendy didn't want to disrupt him, no matter how much he craved his best buddy's company.

Bendy arrived at Henry's door, and he froze before it, fighting back the urge to twist at his tail again. He was nervous and a little scared, but he just kept reminding himself that Henry was safe. He wouldn't be mad if Bendy woke him, right? Eventually, Bendy lost one internal fight and won the other, and opened the door with his right hand as he clutched his tail with his left.

The room was dark, and didn't smell like old books like the library did, it smelled like mint and coffee. The smell was comforting, somehow. Bendy, feeling a mite braver, stepped over the threshold and realized, to his dismay, that Henry's floor was hardwood, not carpet. Bendy slowly but surely made his way into the room and around the bed he could barely see in the darkness, trying not to make so much noise. He hated having hooves.

Finally, the little creature stopped at the side of the bed, where he could just make out a shape in the blankets. Once again, Bendy's anxiety made an appearance, but he quickly made up his mind before he could back out.

"H-Henry?" Bendy called quietly, reaching up and tapping what he thought was Henry's shoulder under the covers. "Wake up."

It wasn't long before the blanket lump moved, and a familiar head poked out. Henry groggily rubbed his eyes and looked around. "Chrissy? That you?" The man mumbled.

Bendy shuffled his feet, and winced at the noise it made. "N-No, it's me."

Henry was now almost fully awake. He reached out and turned on his bedside lamp before propping himself up on his elbow and looked down at the toon. "Bendy? What's wrong, bud? Do you need something?"

Bendy was relieved that Henry looked concerned and not mad, but the man's question made him pause. Yes. He needed something. What that something was, he didn't know. He just felt that Henry could give it to him, whatever it was. Bendy realized he'd been staring off into space for a while, and was quick to recover and try to answer Henry.

"I... I don't know... I just... I-I couldn't- the dark. I can't stand it. I keep seeing bad things in the dark. I keep thinking of bad things in the dark... I'm not safe alone in the dark." The demon haltingly stuttered, once again unconsciously twisting his tail harshly between his hands. Bendy tried to force out more words, but Henry's hand entering his line of sight made him flinch back and fall silent.

"Hey..." Henry murmured soothingly, "its all right, bud. I get it."

Bendy nervously looked up at the man and saw his warm brown eyes staring back at him, putting him at ease. Henry's hand moved again, drawing his gaze. Henry gently tugged at Bendy's tail and the demon slowly unclenched his fists, relinquishing the limb.

"Try not to do that to yourself. It looks like it hurts." Henry said as he let go of the tail before looking back at Bendy, who was busy staring at the floor, cheeks an odd grey color that Henry identified as an embarrassed blush. The man chuckled softly and reached out to tip Bendy's head back up to meet his eyes. "I get it, bud. C'mon. Climb up." Henry shuffled over onto the other side of the bed, leaving a space.

Bendy looked confused. "C-climb up?" He echoed. Then he realized what Henry meant, but only became more confused. "You mean get into the bed? W-why?"

Henry scooted back over so he could see Bendy. "You had a nightmare, right? You're in a place you're not used to, and you don't want to be alone. My niece has night terrors all the time when I babysit her. If she has a particularly bad one, she'll come in here and sleep with me. It seems to help with the nightmares." He explained gently.

Bendy perked up a little. "R-Really? It helps?" He asked, hopeful.

Henry nodded. "It does. When I was little, I would crawl into bed with my parents when I had a bad night. In this very room, too. It sure helped me. Maybe it will help you?" Henry moved back over and patted the space he made. "If this doesn't help, we can try other things. There are a few ways to help with night terrors. We'll find one that works." Henry promised.

Bendy jumped and scrabbled at the blankets to pull himself up onto the bed. Sometimes he hated being so small. Henry had to help him, but he eventually made it. For the second time that night, Henry tucked Bendy into bed. Once he was settled, he reached over and turned off the lamp, plunging the room into darkness. This time, though, it didn't bother Bendy.

'Maybe Henry's on to something.' He thought. Bendy turned into his side, facing Henry, who had his back to the ink creature. "Hey Hen?" He whispered.

"Hm?" Henry grunted in response.

"Who's Chrissy?"

Henry turned a bit so he could face Bendy. "She's my niece. Why?"

Bendy shrugged. "Dunno. You said her name when I woke you up."

"Ah, well she's the niece who has night terrors, so I guess I thought you were her." Henry said before turning away again. "Good night, Bendy."

Bendy was silent for a minute, just staring into the darkness. His thoughts turned to why he came to Henry in the first place. "Hey... Hen?"

Henry didn't turn this time, only grunted to indicate that he was listening.

"We're safe here, aren't we? We'll never have to go back to the workshop?"

Henry rolled over completely to face Bendy, a sad look on his face. "Of course, bud. You'll never have to see that place again if I can help it. You'll stay safe right here with me and Boris. Joey will never hurt you again. I promise." Henry said it with so much conviction that Bendy believed him without a second thought.

The toon smiled wide, a nice warmth blooming in his chest. "Thanks, Henry." He whispered.

Henry smiled back and reached out an arm to pet the top of Bendy's head. "You're welcome, bud. Now, go to sleep. We have a big day tomorrow."

Bendy nodded, yawning as he felt his eyes grow heavy. It didn't take long for both of them to fall asleep. Soon the only sounds were the soft snores of Bendy and the gentle breathing of Henry.

Neither woke to the sound of the door opening. Nor did they notice the weight that settled itself at the end of the bed. A third sound joined them, the snuffling snores of a wolf.