Archive of Our Own

Bendy groaned and rubbed his forehead. What a headache. Where the hell was he? It was a dark room. A thin rug and a dark wood table took up most of the space. There was a floor-to-ceiling window, dark clouds rolled overhead. The street was several floors below. He was in a city of some kind. The cars were tiny below, following the lights and flow of traffic. Everything was stone and concrete and muted. 

The door opened behind him. Bendy whirled around, hand up, ready for anything. 

Well, not anything apparently. 

A familiar young man with raven dark hair and ice-blue eyes opened the door. He froze, hand on the doorknob, expression deadpan. Bendy didn’t know how he was supposed to react. He didn’t sense any magic, didn’t see a halo. Maybe this wasn’t who he thought it was. Before Bendy could utter a word, the youth turned his head and called out the doorway. “Okay, who broke the one rule we all agreed on?” David demanded. 

“Label your food in the fridge?” a female voice questioned in confusion.

“Put your trash in the trashcan?” another female voice added. 

“Don’t clip your nails at the dinner table?” a male voice spoke up. 

David—or maybe not David—scowled, unimpressed with their answers. “Get in here,” he ordered. “And those are just common sense,” he muttered, turning back to Bendy. Bendy stood, hand still up, ready to defend himself. David was dressed rather nicely in a dark blue button-up and black slacks. 

Red curls came into view as another familiar face popped her head into the room, her green eyes widening upon seeing him. “Oh, that rule,” Leila said, her surprise melting away into concern as she stepped around David. She was wearing one of her black button-up tunic vests that she wore for adventuring and climbing, but only the top button was done and it was paired with a white crop top with some kind of picture printed on it and a pair of dark jeans. Her boots were more like combat boots than what he remembered and the bag slung over her shoulder appeared to be canvas rather than leather. She pulled a cellphone from her back pocket and pointed it at him, the camera shutter going off.

“Oh for heaven’s sake, what is it? Did we set the chairs against the wrong wall for you princes—Oh hell.” Rachel froze in the doorway. Her hair was black, like her brother’s but it was cut short. Really short. One side of her head was buzzed and the other was cut to barely the length of her chin. Her makeup was dark, her jewelry was thick and paired with painted black nails. A little diamond jewel in the side of her nose caught the room’s light and winked at Bendy. She wore a black shirt with black leggings and combat boots. Her shirt was loose and untucked. Another person bumped into her at her sudden stop. 

“Ouch Rach, what’s the holdup?” a tall lanky man complained behind her. He had a head of messy, grayish hair. He had pale gray eyes and tan skin. His shirt sleeves were rolled up to the elbows and, when he yawned, his canines appeared a bit sharp. He was wiry and slouched, but still stood taller than the youths around him with a bit of scruff on his chin. He looked at Bendy and sighed. “Well damn. I didn’t think we were doing that badly.” 

“What? What is it?” another voice called out from behind him. 

“We gotta demon,” the man said. 

“What!” the fella outside the room exclaimed, his voice cracking with the demand. The man pushed Rachel further in and headed to one of the chairs. He collapsed into it, seemingly uncaring of the situation. The boy that came into view behind him was thin, gangly, and seemed to be the youngest out of all of them. His black hair was a mess, nearly hiding big brown eyes on a child-like face. He wore a t-shirt with some kind of logo on it and jeans with rips in them. “Oh no, you have got to be kidding me!” he bemoaned. 

Leila tapped away on her phone. “I took a picture, but his appearance isn’t matching any known demons that have already been cataloged,” she said pensively, pausing in her tapping and swiping to share a look with Rachel before turning to Bendy again with a concerned frown on her freckled face. “Boris, would you be a dear and get the demonology book from the top shelf for me? Someone thought it’d be funny to put my reference materials where I can’t easily reach them.”

Rachel and Boris both shot the man deadpan expressions. The man snorted at them. Rachel opened a cabinet and pulled out a canister and a rod. Bendy was too shocked, gawking at Boris. Human Boris! Oh, oh, oh, oh no. No, no, no. Nah-uh. Cuss this. All of this. Cuss Chaos or Bill or whatever cosmic planned this stardust! 

Meanwhile, as Bendy had a mental scream match, Rachel poured a line of white powder across the room, separating Bendy from the group. Boris got on his toes and pulled out a book from a top shelf and handed it to the scholar girl. Leila dropped her bag against the wall and was quick to open the book and start flipping through pages. 

Rachel and Boris headed out of the room. Bendy came back to himself and eyed the remaining three in the room with him. Well, cuss. Now what? Bendy made eye contact with David. The boy was watching him with the same deadpan, blank expression he always had. Bendy flicked his tail and crossed his arms, leaning against the wall. If they were expecting him to talk first, they had another thing coming. 

The sound of paper turning filled the silence. David was immovable. Leila was focused. Funny enough, it was the adult that seemed to be getting nervous with the silence. His leg started to tap faster and faster. Bendy watched him as a bead of sweat formed at his temple and slid down the side of his face. 

“Would you stop watching me?” the man snapped at Bendy. 

“Don’t speak to him,” David warned, a finger to his lips, his icy gaze not leaving Bendy for an instant.  

“Being rude is a good way to get us all killed. So if you can’t be polite, kindly keep quiet, Reide,” Leila added, looking at the man pointedly before returning her attention to the book in her hands.

Holy cuss, that was Reide? Bendy refrained from gawking, barely. But he couldn’t help staring at him. That scruffy-looking man? Well, he did seem to have the brimming energy of the wolf demon. Why the hell wasn’t he a demon? Or was he hiding it? They seemed to have demons here though! What the cuss was going on? And him kill them all? For being snarky? Guess Hell rules applied, but he wasn’t sure about that. Best to remain quiet and guarded for now. 

Reide had clammed up after Leila’s warning but Bendy could tell that his staring was bothering the man. It was kind of funny since his Reide wouldn’t have just sat there. 

Boris and Rachel returned, their arms full of odd things. A fire poker, a pickax, a shovel, and a bunch of knives of varying sizes. Bendy blinked owlishly as the two passed them out to the others. Well, that was weird. Were they gonna attack him with those? They looked like they could hurt but he could handle them. He mentally checked that he had his magic and as far as he could tell, he was fine. 

“Ya know,” Bendy spoke up for the first time. Reide jumped in his chair. Boris froze. “I think I’d find weapons more offensive than words.” He shrugged as they all watched him tensely. “Just saying.” 

“He talks more like a normal person than any other demon I’ve ever seen,” Rachel muttered in surprise, blinking at him.

Well, cuss. How was he supposed to know that?

David narrowed his eyes. Had he blinked at all since entering this damn room? “Leila, found anything yet?” 

The shorter girl frowned as she glanced up at David and then looked at Bendy again. “Well, he’s too big to be an imp and I’ve ruled out incubus as well, since he hasn’t tried flirting with anyone the entire time we’ve been here,” she said matter-of-factly. 

“Not a nightmare demon, it’s the middle of the day,” Rachel muttered.

Leila nodded. “Did you and Boris happen to find a summoning circle while you were out?”

“Nothing, not even ingredients,” Boris muttered. 

David sighed. “Alright then, whoever did it, you’re not in trouble. We aren’t going to report this, so come clean so we can figure out what needs to be done to manage this situation.” 

The room remained silent. Bendy raised a brow. His tail flicked curiously. Every gaze except for David’s went to Reide. The man bristled. “What! No!” 

“Who else?” Rachel waved a hand at the rest of them. 

“I didn’t summon a damn demon!” Reide pointed at Bendy. “Why the hell would I!” Boris shot a worried glance at Bendy. 

“Language Reide,” David reminded him. 

“Whatever! It wasn’t me!” Reide snapped. 

“Oh come off it! You’re the one with the most motive here.” Rachel accused. “None of the rest of us were unfairly kicked out of college. None of the rest of us are working a dead-end job at a gas station, angry at the world.” 

Reide jumped to his feet, pickaxe firmly in hand. “That’s a load of—” 

“Enough!” Boris stepped in between them. “Fighting among ourselves isn’t going to help.” 

“Well, we can’t just stand here forever.” Rachel twisted her hands around the fire poker’s handle. 

Bendy watched this whole drama unfold quietly. He kinda wished he had popcorn. 

“There’s also the chance he was sent to target us,” Boris whispered. Bendy heard him regardless. 

Leila tilted her head curiously at that. “But the only one here who has a reason to have a target on their back is Reide. The rest of us haven’t done anything yet. Maybe after this job, but . . .”

“Oh hell.” Reide dropped his head in defeat. “It can’t get worse.” 

“Well, he didn’t kill you on sight?” Rachel said, sounding half unsure and half comforting. “So that’s something.” 

“Oh whoopee.” Reide rolled his eyes. “I feel so lucky.” 

“Leila, can you—” David tilted his head toward Bendy. Bendy didn’t react, but he was ready to shatter the window and run for it. 

The girl nodded, closed the book and handed it to David, then turned to face Bendy. “Would you care to sit at the table with me and talk?”

Bendy looked her up and down. She wasn’t armed with any of the odd ends they had brought in, but Bendy wasn’t an idiot. The Leila he knew always had a knife on her. If he went to the table, he’d be placing himself further from the window and putting it behind him. “I’m comfortable right here, but you can do whatever you’d like.” 

“Standing it is then,” Leila agreed cheerily, though her eyes watched him with a certain wariness as she rocked back onto her heels and then forward onto her toes before repeating the process. “Let’s start with some introductions then, shall we? You may call me Leila. What can I call you?”

“Ben.” Bendy smirked. 

“A demon named . . . Ben,” Reide said slowly. “Really?” 

Rachel elbowed him in the ribs. Hard. “Shut up!” 

“Isn’t that too, I dunno, human? Aren’t they supposed to sound . . .” Boris’ whisper trailed off and he ducked his head sheepishly. 

Leila just nodded like Bendy’s answer made complete sense. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ben. Can you tell us why you’re here in our . . . associate’s apartment?”

“Hey!” Reide whined. 

Bendy snorted. Poor Reide. Demoted to ‘associate’. That was rough. “Matters, can you tell me why you folks aren’t reporting this?” That had stood out to him. Were demons illegal here? He had his magic, so he could change how he looked, but if there were angels he needed to figure out how to hide from them. Easier said than done. 

“Because, while summoning a demon is illegal, we don’t rat on our friends,” Leila said and then glanced at Reide before adding, “or trusted associates.” The man pouted and sunk back down into his chair. 

“You people rather get arrested all together then?” Bendy was only guessing at that, but he didn’t want them to know how little he knew. They were still holding knives and an axe after all. 

“As of right now, no one can prove any of us summoned you and we have bigger problems if someone else summoned you and sent you. Which brings us back to why you are here, in this apartment.” She looked at him expectantly. 

“Dunno,” Bendy said honestly, staring at her amused. “Why are you here?” he turned the question around on her. Not really clever, but he was getting about as much as he was giving. 

“Son of—This is going nowhere!” Rachel growled in exasperation. “We should just—you know—and figure out the rest later.” 

“If Reide is being targeted, we have to know who sent him,” David said calmly. 

Bendy shot them a look. Try to get rid of him? He wasn’t just gonna stand around for that kind of nonsense. Leila glanced over her shoulder at her friends before returning her attention to him, her face pensive. “Sounds like I make your friends nervous,” Bendy commented. “What do you think I’m gonna try to do?” 

“That mostly depends on the contract that brought you here, but the minimum puts at least one of our lives and possibly soul, if one of us is your summoner, in jeopardy. Caution is to be expected.” Leila crossed her arms and shifted her weight to one side.

Bendy hummed and looked around at the group of kids and Reide. They had all been tense the whole time. Watching how they addressed him and whatever was on the floor must have been some kind of defense. Hell knew if it worked on him or not. They didn’t seem like they wanted to be a threat to him. If it was just caution, he might be able to talk his way out of a fight and get some needed sources for information. Better than hoofing it alone. Okay, he was going to take a chance. 

Bendy walked over to the half of the table on his side of the powder line and pulled out a chair. He sat down with a flick of his tail and rested his folded arms on the polished top. “Well, you don’t have anything to fear from me. None of you folks summoned me and I’m not here to off anyone either.” Bendy grinned. 

They all stared at him. They shared a look and then looked back at him. Reide spoke. “There is no way we’re believing that, right?” 

Bendy frowned. “Why wouldn’t you?” David was right—Oh. Damnit! Human David. And cosmics help him if talents were an actual thing here. Damnit, damnit, damnit! Well, now what? 

“Reide!” Leila hissed in reprimand. Well, if Bendy didn’t do it, his ‘associates’ just might kill him instead. Reide ducked his head like she had smacked the back of it. The girl took a calming breath and then pulled out the chair opposite Bendy and sat down. “I suppose that brings us back to the question, why are you here?”

Bendy shrugged. “Your guess.” Rachel looked like she wanted to use that poker on him. 

Leila sighed and rested her arms on the table, propping her head up with one hand. “So your contract likely states that you cannot tell us why you are here. And if you really aren’t here to kill anyone, then some stupid git has sold their soul for the low price of keeping an eye on at least one of us, most likely Reide.”

“Wow,” Rachel said. 

“B-but what if he’s here to ruin our work?” Boris asked. “What are we supposed to do in this situation?” 

“Well, we could ignore him,” Rachel muttered. “Or seal him out so he can’t enter, which, I mean, we already did. He’s not getting past these salt lines.” She gestured at the ground. Bendy glanced down. So it was salt. Huh. Weird, okay. He hadn’t heard that one before. “But that’s going to make leaving tricky. Or . . . you know.” 

Bendy sighed. “You say that like I can’t guess,” he muttered, annoyed at this point that there was an obvious line between talking to him or not. Rachel flinched like she hadn’t expected him to address her directly. “Not a moron, miss.” Rachel blinked owlishly. “And I’ll put up a fight if any of you start something,” Bendy warned. “I’m not some pushover, but I’m not going to come after you either, alright? Might as well consider me as just some random fella that’s passing through.” 

Leila ran a hand through her hair, fingers catching on knots in the curls, and turned in her chair to look at David. “If he is here to keep an eye on us, it’s not like he can report back while trapped behind the salt lines. I’d say we just carry on business as usual and just remember to be polite. We do have deadlines to meet.” She tilted her head. “Thoughts?”

“Seems risky to me.” Boris looked out of the room like he expected more demons to pop up out of nowhere. 

“I don’t like it. I rather we know what the contract is.” Rachel scowled. 

“We’re on a deadline though, we have to remember what our goal is here,” David said softly, thoughtfully. Not the whispers and mutters trying to keep Bendy out of the conversation, just a musing reminder. “The demon is a distraction at best, but as long as we can contain the situation, nothing in our plans has to change. As long as we are sure no one here summoned him.” It was the first time he looked away from Bendy and gazed around at the others in his group directly. 

Reide tsked and scratched the back of his head. “What a damn mess. Doing the right thing shouldn’t be this hard.”

Bendy raised a brow at that. 

Leila snorted. “If it were easy, more people would be doing it. The best way to prove no one here is the contractee is to verify that there are no marks of contract. So unless someone wants to volunteer to do a striptease, let’s get back to work.” She grinned mischievously at the others.

“You wish.” Reide smirked. 

Rachel kicked him. “That’s harassment coming from you.” 

“I was kidding!” Reide hissed in pain, hugging his leg. 

“I think we’re good,” Boris said bashfully. David only grunted. 

“Uh,” Bendy spoke up. A what? How the hell was that going to show who the deb—contractee was? He inwardly winced at the other half-formed word. He didn’t want to think about that. His voice had done a great job of stopping the room still and killing any sort of lightheartedness the girl’s teasing brought. “How about a meal for your trapped demon?” 

“Sure,” David said. 

“What?” Reide complained. 

“We’re caging him, not torturing him,” David said. Again, Bendy really doubted this line of dinner spice was going to stop him from walking out of there like it was any other Tuesday. 

Leila stood from her chair and wandered over to the kitchen to go through Reide’s fridge. She stared at the contents for a moment before pulling out some carrots, an onion, and a block of yellow cheese. “I hope you like soup,” she said as she placed the items on the counter. She then opened the pantry and hefted up a bag of potatoes and plunked it next to the other ingredients. “Reide, where’s your chicken stock?”

“Top shelf,” Reide answered dejectedly. 

“Stop sulking and get it down, would you? I’m making enough for all of us.” Leila rolled her eyes but smiled at the man goodnaturedly. “Boris, you want to wash or chop veggies?”

And just like that, they went about their chores. Bendy watched, intrigued that they could ignore him when they had started out acting like he was a huge threat. David left with a nod to Leila. Reide did not stop pouting until Leila started some soup-related jokes. Rachel was quick to join in, much to Boris’ dismay. The weapons didn’t exactly disappear but they were set aside. Bendy looked at the door. He could get up and just walk out into the hall, find the exit and stroll his merry way into the city. Didn’t sound like the best plan if demons were illegal. He could hide himself with his magic, but he had no idea who or if they could detect magic here. No, the safest plan was to play along. For now at least. No matter how much it annoyed him. 

Leila setting a wooden tray with a large bowl of steaming soup and a glass of water on the table pulled Bendy from his thoughts. She then took Rachel’s fire poker and used it to push the tray over the salt line to his side of the table. “Granny’s world-famous, cheesy potato soup!” she declared with a beaming smile as Reide carried the big pot of soup over. Rachel and Boris followed behind with spoons, bowls, and glasses of water. “Rach, can you get David?”

“On it.” She rolled her eyes like it was a great annoyance to her before disappearing into the hall. 

Bendy eyed the soup. A human Granny was in this world. That was a weird thought. He wondered if her cooking was as good as his Granny’s. Stars, he missed that old girl. While the others filled their bowls Bendy sampled his with the plastic spoon that had come across with the bowl and the rest. The patter of rain hit the window behind him in a soothing pattern. The soup tasted great. Almost perfect, but there was a tinge to it. No zest, or whatever. He knew what it needed. Bacon! Always bacon. But there was none to be had. The only other thing that could help was probably salt. 

Bendy looked from his soup to the line of salt on the floor and to his bowl again. Well, floor salt was far from the worst thing he’d ever eaten. No, no. He had to play the part. It was a warm meal, he had a damn break. But it was such a shame. 

While they were busy, he reached down with his tail and took some of the ground powder. He made sure they weren’t watching him. Bendy waited, careful to be sure he wasn’t noticed and sprinkled a measured amount into the soup before dusting his hands off on his pants. 

There was a clatter on the other side of the table. He looked up to see a pair of wide eyes staring at him. Whelp. He hadn’t been as subtle as he had hoped. He took his spoon and tried it since he feared he’d have to start running or something. Ah. Perfect. Or as close as one could get without bacon. 

“What. The. HELL? ” Leila said in shock. The others looked at her in surprise. 

Bendy’s brows flew up. A Leila that cursed. Really cursed. Didn’t see that every day. “What?” he asked innocently. Bendy quickly ate, keeping his eyes on his panicking meal companion so she couldn’t sneak an attack while the other two were lost to confusion. 

Leila was suddenly right next to Bendy, poking and pinching his arm. “Ouch! Hey.” Bendy frowned at her. No knife yet. He was ready though. 

Leila frowned. “No summoned demon can cross a salt line! Are you really a demon?” she demanded. She pulled on his horns. “Is this some kind of prank? A damned good cosplay? Where is the zipper?” She pushed his lip up with a thumb and tapped his fang. “These are costume fangs, right? They have to be fake!”

Bendy swatted her hands away. “I’m real! Stop that! Damn, can’t a fella eat in peace?” 

“He—Leila! Get away from it! What the hell are you doing! Are you trying to get killed?” Reide squeaked grabbing the axe like Bendy had started to breathe fire. 

Leila was undeterred. “You’re a con! A hell of an actor to pull the wool over our eyes this long! But I’m on to you! How’d you get this thing to move like that, huh?” Bendy was about to stand up and restrain her grabby hands when the girl caught his tail and gave it the cussing mother of all yanks. 

Bendy yelped because starfallen damnit that hurt! He shoved her away. It was a knee-jerk reaction. He didn’t really decide to do it. He just had to free his tail.  

David and Rachel walked in at that moment. Bendy ducked as an iron poker came flying at his face. The window cracked behind him. Leila was yanked away by the back of her collar. “What the hell is this!” Rachel howled. David patted Leila down, looking her over like he expected to find wounds or burns or some stardust. Bendy lifted his hands in surrender. 

“Leila’s lost her flipping mind!” Reide squealed. Boris looked between Bendy and Leila with bugged-out eyes. He hugged the shovel handle like it was a security blanket. 

“How are you eating salt?” Leila demanded, leaning toward him despite David’s arm keeping her in place. She turned to look at the boy. “He’s eating salt! He grabbed it off the floor and put it in his soup! I left it unsalted on purpose and then he salts it like that’s a normal thing for demons to eat!”

Bendy raised a slow brow. He smacked his lips. “Lady, I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He lifted the empty bowl. “But it is a damn good soup!”  

The girl wordlessly shrieked in frustration and tried to launch herself at Bendy again. “Don’t give me that bloody rubbish! I saw you put that salt in your bowl! I saw you!”

“No, no, bad,” David said. “It’s not safe,” David said pointedly. He handed his knife to Rachel and wrapped his other arm around Leila, pinning her against him and lifting her in the air so she couldn’t go at Bendy. “Cool it,” he ordered. 

Leila went limp in David’s hold. “David, let me go. I need answers. I need them, David,” she said flatly, shaking the arms around her middle.

“You can get them from here. You don’t have to touch him.” David gave her a deadpan look over her shoulder. 

The girl whined, kicked her legs out uselessly from where she dangled in his hold, and pouted before turning her attention back to Bendy. “What are you, exactly? No other demon I’ve seen, heard about, or even read about is able to touch salt, let alone eat it!”

“Well, I am a demon. You manhandled me enough to know every fang and horn is real. Also, rude. Hasn’t anyone ever told you not to pull a fella’s tail?” Bendy flicked his tail spike flippantly and slouched back into the chair. He massaged the poor, thin limb gently. His poor tail. 

“How was I supposed to know your tail wouldn’t pop off? Demons can’t eat salt, so it being a piece of impressive costumery made more sense! Explain how you aren’t burning from the inside out,” Leila demanded, giving him a hard glare. 

Rachel blinked at him warily. “He ate salt?”

“Look at me. What does a guy have to do to prove himself? Fly?” Bendy propped his feet up on the corner of the table. 

“Explain. The. Salt,” Leila said pointedly, she watched him unblinkingly.

“Uh, or maybe we should worry about the fact that the salt could be useless and we’re just standing around like a bunch of idiots waiting to be eaten by the world’s weirdest monster!” Reide held out his axe more like a ward than a weapon. 

“Shut up Reide.” Rachel rolled her eyes. 

Bendy gave him an unimpressed glance. The fella flinched. Oh for cuss sake. Bendy scoffed. “I’m not planning to hurt anyone as long as you don’t try ta hurt me. Berries?” His eyes went to the pot on the other side of the table. “And maybe I’ll answer questions with a second serving of soup.” 

“What does fruit have to do with anything?” Boris frowned in confusion. 

“Well, I could leave instead and then none of us get to be happy,” Bendy said impatiently. 

Rachel pointed the knife at him. “Shut it! Leila, what do you think? What the hell is he? Some other kind of monster trying to pretend to be a demon? Not a fairy, he didn’t try to count the salt.” Count it? Why the cuss would he count salt? 

“I honestly have no idea,” Leila sighed in frustration. She narrowed her eyes at him. “Answer some questions and you can have seconds,” she said evenly, apparently having given up on getting free from David’s hold any time soon. “But any funny business and you won’t even have to wait for hunters to get here, I’ll banish you myself.”

Bendy narrowed his eyes. “Deal, I ask first. What the hell are hunters?” 

“Deal! Did you just make a demon contract Leila!” Reide’s voice jumped an octave. 

“Calm down,” Rachel scoffed with a dark scowl. “The least he’d have to do is a handshake to make any deal official. She’s fine Reide.” She glared at Bendy. “But I’m watching you, whatever you are.” 

“I’m not in the mood to make any offers like that.” Bendy rested his chin on his open palm. “I’m not lookin’ for souls, just soup. And whatever the hell hunters are.” Bendy gave them a cheeky grin. 

Leila swung her feet idly and then nodded. “That sounds agreeable. Hunters are individuals that hunt down supernatural creatures.” She patted David’s arms and looked up at him. “I want to sit.”

David eyed her suspiciously before lowering her and letting her go. He didn’t reclaim his weapon from Rachel. He crossed his arms and leaned against the doorframe instead, eyes studying Bendy. 

“What are you?” Rachel pointed at Bendy with the knife, not that it was close enough to feel threatening. She had thrown a fire poker like a spear so he shouldn’t underestimate her though. 

“A demon,” Bendy smiled, “like I said. Asking again won’t change the answer either.” 

Boris shook his head. “But the salt—”

“A special demon,” Bendy cut him off. The human Boris scowled at him. Bendy shrugged. “Not my fault the demons you’ve heard of have a salt allergy I don’t.” He was getting tired of this question. 

“You aren’t actually under a contract, are you,” Leila said as more of a statement than a question from the seat she’d reclaimed across from him. She stared at him with searching green eyes.

“Depends which one would get me in more trouble.” Bendy smirked. He started tapping out a little ditty with his fingers on the tabletop. 

Leila narrowed her eyes at him, leaned forward, and dragged his bowl toward her across the table. “A lie,” she said simply, not breaking eye contact with him. “A lie will get you in more trouble with us.” She gestured around the room with one hand before letting it rest on the table next to his empty bowl. 

Bendy furrowed his brows. Well, it wasn’t the best setup, but the glass was cracked behind him. He was sure he could jump out if things went sideways. He wasn’t too worried since he could feel his magic and the salt hadn’t bothered him. But he wanted answers too and more soup. How did this place work? What were the dangers? How did he get out of here? He sighed knowing he had to give a little if he wanted more of anything. “I’m not under a contract.” 

Reide choked. Boris stared at him like he was a ticking bomb. The kid turned to Rachel and Leila. “Can demons do that? I thought they had to be summoned and, ya’know—” He gestured vaguely with his hand. 

“Never heard of it happening before,” Leila acknowledge, nodding as she ladled more soup into Bendy’s bowl, “but it is the only thing that explains a demon being able to not only cross a salt line but eat it as well. Demons are weak to salt because their physical bodies aren’t actually on the mortal plane when summoned. Ben being able to touch salt shows that his physical body is indeed on the mortal plane.”

“He’s really here!” Reide squeaked. 

“Hello!” Bendy waved cheerfully. The man let out a rather high-pitched sound and dropped like Bendy threw something at him. Bendy covered his mouth and struggled to hide his laughter. Didn’t matter how many times it happened, it was always funny. 

Leila sighed and glanced down at Reide. “Yes, he’s really here. Reacting like that every time he moves isn’t going to help anything.”

“How is that possible?” David asked curiously. 

“It shouldn’t be,” Rachel grumbled. She crossed her arms, glowering at Bendy. 

“And yet here I am! Soup please.” Bendy tilted his head and held up his hands expectantly. 

“One more question. If no one summoned you, what do you want being here? And I mean more than the soup,” Leila said flatly.

Dangit! That’s exactly what he was going to say! Bendy snorted at having her ruin his fun. “A quest for the best soup in all the land,” he said instead with a cheeky smile. 

Rachel growled. “Oh for the love of—”

“Now you are just being silly, Ben. That’s still about soup,” Leila sighed. She pushed the bowl toward him. “I still want a real answer. It’s important.”

Bendy sighed and lifted his spoon. Well, she had given him soup. He tested it. Made a face and reached over, slowly, to pick up more salt. Ignoring the sputtering of the only other adult in the room, he added it to his meal and stirred it in, making eye contact with each human there. He smiled as Reide, Boris, and Rachel squirmed. Leila looked like she might just throw the ladle at him if the twitch of her eye was any hint. “Ta get outta ‘ere,” he said honestly. He twitched. Forget it, jump eat the soup. Bendy tried it again. Damn, hot food was the best. He smiled at the unease of the humans as he oh so casually broke their rules and bent their understanding of how everything worked.

“You don’t just mean out of this apartment, do you?” Leila asked quietly, her voice more gentle than it had been the entire evening as she watched him. 

Bendy slurped. He gave her a deadpan look and pointed over his shoulder with his thumb. “Ya really think  that flimsy glass could keep me in here, toots?” 

The girl snorted. “No, if the salt doesn’t do anything, I don’t suppose a normal window would be up to the challenge.” She pushed the bowls that had been practically forgotten since he’d touched the salt line toward the empty seats around the table.

Bendy smiled warmly. Messing with them was fun. 

“Seriously, did you walk out of one of my grandpa’s old movies?” Rachel asked. “You talk like some old main lead to a black and white drama or whatever.” 

“You mean Casa Blanca?” David asked. Rachel made a face. Bendy carefully hid his surprise. He’d heard about it, but it hadn’t been released yet. What cussing year was it here? Stars guide him. If that was ‘old’ he’d have to be careful. His speech was already dating him apparently. 

“Can we talk about what we’re going to do here? You all are acting way too casual!” Reide slapped a hand on the table. “There’s a demon physically here right now! Not tied to anything, if it’s telling the truth, and free to do whatever it pleases! This is a bit of an emergency!” 

“ He is happily eating soup at the moment, so I’d say we are safe to do the same,” Leila said, then looked at Reide pointedly. “Don’t call him an it. That is rude and we’ve already been over being rude.”

“Says the girl that stuck her hand in my mouth and, oh yes, pulled my tail.” Bendy raised a finger. Leila shrugged and nodded concedingly. “Don’t worry though, I like soup over raw meat most of the time anyway.” Bendy smirked and ate another spoonful. 

 “Most of the time!” Reide gasped.

“Sushi is good too.” Bendy shrugged lazily. He was just too easy. 

“You make it too easy for him to tease you, Reide.” Leila shook her head and sighed. Reide sputtered at her. “Anyone else eating?” 

David shrugged away from the doorframe and took a seat. Rachel sat closest to Bendy and the salt line. Her darkly make-uped eyes shooting him warning glares. Boris sighed in seeming defeat and sat across from David leaving the other chair across from Rachel empty. Reide eyed it and Bendy warily. Bendy winked at him. 

“So, if that’s all your questions, I have a few more of my own.” Bendy set his half-eaten bowl down. The humans eyed him. 

“I suppose that’s fair enough. Though we might have more after you’ve asked yours,” Leila said, idly stirring her soup with her spoon.

“How common are contracts? What human laws apply to them? And where is a large source of magic here?” Bendy asked in a business-like tone. “Also, what’s the recipe for the soup? I must have it. And is there a place I can obtain a map?” Bendy smirked. “And is he for sale?” Bendy pointed at Reide. The man lifted the axe, half jumping out of the chair like a frightened cat. Bendy laughed. 

Rachel rolled her eyes. “Sit down moron. We aren’t selling you to a demon,” she glanced at David, “unless?” He shook his head and she pouted. 

“Oh ha-ha! You all are a bunch of damn comedians.” Reide pouted. “How the hell did I end up in this situation?” That was Bendy’s question exactly. 

“Honestly, I’m still trying to wrap my head around a demon named Ben,” Boris muttered. 

“Oh yeah!” Bendy perked up. He laced his fingers together and rested his chin on them, tilting his head to the side. “That reminds me! How do you folks do names around here? Like is it a thing I needa watch out for? True names? Did you give me your real names? Ya’ know what I mean, doll?” Bendy smiled coyly. 

“If I hadn’t already ruled it out, I’d think you were an incubus from the flirting alone,” Leila laughed.

“Don’t fall for me now.” Bendy winked. David frowned. That only made Bendy smile all the more. So it was like that, hmm? 

“You’re cute, but not really my type,” Leila shot back with a small smirk. “And I do know what you mean about true names. Which is why I know yours isn’t really Ben, it’s just what you’d like us to call you. None of us have given you our names, you just know what to call us. And for a contract, either you would need to know our full names or we’d need to know your true name. We’ve played it safe enough on both sides, Ben.”

Bendy hummed. That would have to do then, names are powerful here. Good to know. “And the other questions?” He lashed his tail back and forth like a pleased cat. 

“Contracts . . .” Leila scrunched her nose and shared a look with Rachel. “They are illegal, like all magic, so they aren’t super common. But they happen often enough that just about everyone has seen a demon at some point or other. And the more money and influence a person has, the more likely they can get away with making one without legal repercussions. Which is a load of rubbish, but that’s how the world is for now.”

Bendy sighed and rolled his head to the other side. Of course all magic was illegal. They couldn’t make it easy for him! Cosmics forbid! “So money is power,” Bendy muttered bitterly. 

Leila nodded with a frown. “Pretty much. As for sources of magic . . . “ She bobbed her head back and forth in thought. “I’m not sure how large of a source it is, but there is an exhibit of magic items at the college. I found out about it while researching the layout of the place.” She looked at Reide. “Doesn’t the gas station have maps for sale?”

Reide nodded slowly, still eyeing Bendy like he’d attack. “And the magic items display isn’t like Merlin’s wand or anything. You’re not gonna get really fancy stuff at the college.” 

Bendy waved a hand dismissively. “I’ll figure it out.” 

“What are you going to do?” Rachel asked curiously. It was the first time she had stopped glaring at him. 

Bendy sat up and rubbed his chin. Oh, the possibilities. “Well, a road trip. Maybe some sightseeing, a few pictures for the family, a couple of restaurants along the way, maybe some knick-knacks to remember the trip by. I mean, I’m not loaded, doll, but ya’ gotta enjoy the lil’ things, right?” Bendy smiled. Rachel scowled. 

“As lovely as that sounds, Ben, I believe she meant what are you going to do with the magic display outside of its value as a road trip attraction?” Leila stuffed a spoonful of soup into her mouth as she watched him curiously.

Bendy sighed. She was focused and not falling for his games anymore. How boring. “Okay doll. I’m gonna use ‘em as a doorknob,” he answered honestly. It wasn’t like they’d be able to stop him after all. He just needed a strong enough source of magic along with his own. Then he’d be able to bust outta this stupid game with those cussers from above. 

“What does that mean?” Boris asked. 

“Oh hell! He’s gonna open a portal to Hell and unleash all the demons upon the world!” Reide raised the axe and pointed at him. “It’s just like the Hellraiser movies! We won’t let you have your way spawn of evil!” Bendy blinked. He was going to what now with what and do what? How the hell did this schmuck get to that conclusion? The man lunged at Bendy, who was a little less than worried. 

Just as Reide made to bring the axe down, Leila launched herself practically in Boris’ lap as she leaned into the Reide’s space, a knife held near his throat. “We are not attacking him based on assumptions. Put the axe down and sit your ass back in that chair.”

Reide froze. A bead of sweat ran down the side of his face. Bendy grinned. “Ah! There’s the knife!” He had been wondering when that would make its appearance. “Good call, doll.” He lowered his eyelids, his smile turning sharp. “After all, I did say I wasn’t a threat until attacked.” Bendy let his eyes glow faintly with the warning. 

Reide gulped. The friendly mood cooled. Which was unfortunate, but necessary. He slowly lowered his weapon and backed away from Bendy. 

“Good boy.” Bendy flicked his tail and folded his arms. “I’m not opening any hole to a nightmare realm. Just taking a ticket outta ‘ere.” Bendy twitched at the phrase but kept his smile. “Literally wanna get outta your hair.” 

“O-oh,” Reide muttered, his face reddening. 

Bendy snickered. “You could have just axed me.” He smirked. “Well, in a way you did.” 

“Oh no. He has puns.” Boris looked horrified. 

“Cut me some slack, I’m trying not to lose my head over here.” Bendy grinned proudly. Rachel snorted. 

Leila snickered and flipped her butterfly knife closed. She took a step back so she wasn’t on top of Boris anymore and patted him on the shoulder. “Sorry about that Boris, things got kinda dicey there for a minute. Really balancing on a knife’s edge.” She grinned as the boy groaned.

“I’ll take my place as a doormat if it’ll stop the puns,” Boris retorted with a grimace. 

Bendy blinked. “Isn’t that a bit overkill?” 

“Ben, how are we supposed to believe anything you’ve told us so far?” David asked all of a sudden. The demon looked over at the pale boy. “How do we know you aren’t tricking us? Sent here for some reason?” 

Bendy lost the smile. That was a good question. Human David didn’t have a way to tell if Bendy was lying or not, and he understood not taking a demon for their word. Best to cut to the chase. “What do I gotta do to prove myself?” Bendy countered. 

There was a tense moment of silence as the four kids looked at each other before Leila sighed. “I can think of one way you can prove yourself,” she admitted hesitantly. She crossed her arms on the tabletop and leaned on them as she looked at Bendy. “You can tell one of us your name. Your real name.”

“Ha!” Bendy threw back his head with the single, barked laugh. He lowered sharp eyes on her. “You have to be joking.” 

“I had a feeling you’d say that. But it’s the only thing that I can think of to prove you aren’t tricking us. You wouldn’t have to tell all of us and you can even choose which of us you tell. None of us has any interest in making a contract, so it’s not like we’d be using it either.” Leila shrugged and tilted her head. “It’s really up to you at this point.”

Bendy crossed his legs, fisted his hand on the table, and rested his cheek on the fist. He pointed at Leila. “How can I be sure ya don’t try ta tangle me up with my true name, huh? I don’t have any guarantee you wouldn’t use it. That’s askin’ an awful lotta trust from me, dollface.” 

‘Dollface?’ Rachel mouthed with an expression of confusion. David subtly frowned at Bendy again. He didn’t pay them any mind, focusing completely on Leila. 

Leila took a deep breath, keeping eye contact with Bendy the whole time, she said, “Then how about a name for a name?”

“Oh, hell no!” Rachel protested. 

“That’s way too dangerous!” Boris agreed. 

“It’s a trick! We can’t fall for it,” Reide growled. The voices of protest mingled together in an annoying wave of sound. Leila didn’t flinch though. She was watching Bendy. 

Bendy smirked. “Well, look at this one’s moxie.” He snickered, showing his fangs. “Fine. A hostage for a hostage then.” Bendy held out his hand. “Deal?” The others went silent, frozen. Both Boris and Reide paled at the word and offered hand. 

“Wait,” David spoke. “We should discuss who it is.” 

Bendy raised a brow. “I thought I got to choose.” 

David gave him an icy look. “You choose who you tell. That doesn’t mean it has to be the same one that gives you their full name.” 

Bendy tsked. “Seems a bit skud ta me. After all, I only have myself.” 

“That is more than enough!” Reide hissed. “Too much even!” 

“You’re too much,” Bendy pointed out. Reide flinched when Bendy’s eyes landed on him. “Fine, have your little talk.” Bendy folded his arms. “But I will turn it down if I don’t like it.” And he’d probably have to jump out the window at that point. Whatever. He’d done far more than bust a window. Look, it’s even cracked now! Far easier to jump out of! He could fly! He could fly far away before they could throw all those knives . . . probably. He flicked his hand and the empty bowl slid across the table and gently tapped against the pot of soup. 

Leila blinked at the bowl, then at Bendy, then ladled soup into the bowl without a word. Bendy made a beckoning motion with his hand. The shadow under the bowl lifted on one side and smoothly pushed the bowl back over to him before disappearing. Reide made a weird keening sound. Boris jumped at the bowl moving by itself. Bendy snorted and chuckled and picked up his spoon. He took a bite and looked up at the gawking table. He waved his spoon. “Well? Go on. I won’t wait all day, ya know.” Rachel and Boris snapped their mouths shut. Reide looked like he was ready to faint. 

And they said Bendy was a drama king. All this over a tiny shadow show. It was almost sad. 

Leila turned to David. “I’ll do it,” she said determinedly. 

“I’m against it,” David said instantly. 

“Then I can,” Rachel said. 

“No,” David said. “I should.” 

“Hell no! You’re the damn leader, moron!” Rachel snapped. “The team needs you.” 

Leila nodded. “I suggested it, so I should take the responsibility for it.”

“He’s too interested in you,” David said. “That could be just what he wants.” Ouch. Harsh much? But he was probably jealous. Bendy couldn’t blame him. 

“If he likes me, then I’m more likely to get out of this unscathed,” Leila argued.

“Or more likely to be dragged off to the depths of terror that is hell!” Reide jumped in. 

“Oh, is that you volunteering, Reide?” Rachel asked sweetly.

“Hell no! I like living!” Reide balked. 

Boris half raised a hand. “I could—”

“No,” all of them said together. Boris slumped in his seat, folded his arms, and pouted. 

“We need you for the team,” David said. 

“You need all of us for the team.” Rachel rolled her eyes. 

Leila touched David’s arm to get his attention. “This is dangerous no matter who does it. Wouldn’t it be better to increase our odds of a good outcome by it being the person least likely to tick him off?” She tilted her head and stared at him imploringly.

“But it could tempt him to try something,” David retaliated. 

“Better for that person to have an idea about demons then, huh?” Rachel pointed out. David frowned at her. 

Rude, but fair. Bendy kept eating his soup. 

“David, it’s not like I’m defenseless. And worse comes to worse, I know you’ll have my back. I don’t think it’ll come to that though,” Leila said and squeezed his arm gently. “Please? Trust me?”

David looked from her to Bendy. Bendy raised his brows. He swallowed his spoonful and shrugged. “She has the knife after all.”

David narrowed his eyes. “Very well,” he said reluctantly. 

Bendy grinned. “Berries, ‘cause she seems like the only one of you that wouldn’t abuse my name even if she’d pull my tail.” Leila sighed in resignation and pointedly looked at Bendy. 

“Again, why the fruit?” Boris asked. 

“So doll, we gotta deal?” Bendy stood up and offered his hand again. All of the others looked from Bendy to Leila. 

She gave David’s arm another squeeze and then turned to face Bendy. “Deal,” Leila agreed and reached out to shake Bendy’s hand.

Reide groaned. “This is such a bad idea.” 

“I dunno. This could be the start of a beautiful friendship. Wouldn’t ya say, Leila?” Bendy raised a brow. 

Leila gave him a calm smile. “I’d say we’re going to find out.”