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Maisy the Mutt wasn’t exactly what one would call “organised”. She was no slob to be sure, but she was always rather lax regarding her cleanliness. But if someone were to have seen her during the past few hours, they might have been inclined to disagree.
Maisy had just spent quite some time making sure her house was completely spotless. Every speck of dirt, every bit of dust, all completely removed. And why was she being so meticulous? Because she had guests coming over, of course! But these weren’t just any guests, oh no, these were extra special guests.
Sometime after Maisy had found herself in The Library, she had quickly discovered that there were others like her out there. Not just within the library, but beyond it as well. Other archives, dedicated to preserving the histories of the media long past. So, naturally, she did what anyone would do in her situation: get in contact with them and have a chat!
After introductions and a day spent together, Maisy and two of the people she’d met decided to keep in touch, meeting up every few weeks to play games. This time, game day would be held at Maisy’s house. As such, she took it upon herself to make sure it was perfect for her new friends. And speaking of…
A knocking sound distracted Maisy from her thoughts. Excited, she rushed over to the door and flung it open, revealing the peeople on the other side. One was shorter than the average person, with blue hair, a blue vest, and striped pants. His skin was a bright yellow, and covered in a thin layer of fuzz. The other was even shorter, about Maisy’s height. His skin was black, while his face was a brilliant white. He wore a grey suit with a red bowtie, and his head curved upwards, giving them a horned shape. They reminded Maisy of two of her friends, Winerva and Lancer.
“Wally, Bendy!” She exclaimed, eagerly shaking the puppet’s and demon’s hands, with Bendy’s being far more excited. “Good to see ya! How’ve you been?”
Indeed, one of the people before her was none other than Wally Darling, star of the then-popular puppet show Welcome Home. However, the show was abruptly cancelled due to mysterious circumstances. However, it seemed a group of people were interested in keeping the memory of Wally and his friends alive, archiving whatever they could find on a website.
The other was Bendy, the star of a series of cartoons that started around when Maisy’s began. Unlike her, however, Bendy’s career would end not long after, due to the company that created him, Joey Drew Studios, going under. Many year’s later, a company known as Archgate Pictures would purchase the rights to Bendy and his friends, creating an archive of all their old adventures. Unlike Maisy’s or Wally’s, Bendy’s archive was actually a phisical place one could visit. However, that didn’t stop Maisy from reaching out to the two of them and striking up a friendship.
“Hello, Maisy.” Wally said in his usual monotone voice as he and Bendy stepped into Maisy’s house. “It’s nice to see you too. I’m doing just great. How about you?”
“A whole lot better now that you’re here, that’s for sure.” Maisy replied as she led the two to the table, where they all sat down.
“That’s good to hear. So, what are we going to be playing this time?”
“I’m glad you asked, pal!” Maisy answered as she pulled out a small carboard box. “I found this nifty little game while I was poking around outside The Library, and I figured it’d be good for a laugh or two. It’s called Uno.”
“Uno? That sounds like fun. But how do you play?” Wally asked, tilting his head slightly.
“Well, we all get about seven cards. And whoever gets rid of all their cards first wins. But you can only play cards if the numbers or colors are matching. If they aren’t, you’ve gotta keep drawing cards ‘til you get one that does.” Maisy recounted the rules to the best of her ability.
“Well, I guess we could give it a shot. What do you say, Bendy?” Wally turned to the Demon, who nodded enthusiastically, giving two big thumbs up.
“Alrighty! I’ll get us shuffled, then!”
With that, Maisy got the cards out of the box and began to shuffle them.
“So, how’re things back in the neighborhood, Wally?” She asked as the cards flew between her hands.
“Oh, things are just great. My friends are doing alright, and I’m making all sorts of new friends. Ha ha ha.”
“Good to hear. How ‘bout you, Bendy? Things goin’ alright in your place?”
In response, Bendy pulled out a pencil and a sheet of paper and began to write on it. When he was finished, he pushed it in front of Maisy and Wally, with them both leaning over to read it, with Maisy making sure not to drop the cards as she did.
“Yeah! Audrey’s teaching me all sorts of things, and it’s nice being able to get out of the Studio!”
“Audrey… That’s your sister, isn’t it?” Wally asked. Bendy turned the paper over and wrote on it some more, before stopping.
“Uh-huh! She’s the best!”
“That’s great, buddy. And, uh, what about your big brother? He ain’t gonna cause any problems, is he?”
Bendy pondered for a moment, before extending a finger, as if to ask for a minute. Then, he placed his head down on the table, covered by his arms. After a moment, the back of Bendy’s head began to shift and pulse, before suddenly, a second mouth opened on the back of Bendy’s head, full of razor-sharp teeth. Then, after a moment, the second mouth began to speak.
“You do not have to worry about me.” The harsh, raspy voice of the Ink Demon said. “I have no interest in playing a children’s card game.”
“Really? Alrighty then.” Maisy replied, not sounding nearly as shocked about this as most would. “But if you ever change your mind, let us know and we’ll deal you in!”
The Ink Demon merely gave a guttural sigh in response, before the second mouth closed, disappearing. As it did, Bendy’s head came back off, with the demon looking disoriented for a moment, before shaking himself off.
“Are you alright?” Wally asked, with Bendy nodding in response.
“Alrighty then! If that’s the case…” Maisy placed the well-shuffled cards down on the table, handing seven cards to herself and the others.
“Let the games begin!”
The game was getting intense now. For fifteen minutes the three of them had been going at it. Bendy was the closest to winning, with only two cards left in his hand. Maisy placed a red “five” card down on top of Wally’s red “four”. Just then, Wally placed a “skip turn” card down, skipping Bendy’s turn and going straight to Maisy’s, who retaliated by playing a “reverse” card. Seeing his opportunity, Bendy placed down a “+2” card. Wally responded by placing down a yellow “+2” card. Maisy likewise placed down her own green “+ 2” card, forcing Bendy and Wally to draw two cards.
The cards were laid down faster and faster. A one, a reverse, another reverse, a third reverse. Then, Wally pulled out his trump card: the Wild “+4”. Undeterred, Bendy played his own, as did Maisy. Before Bendy could relax, Wally placed down a second “+4”, forcing Bendy to draw 8 cards. Afterwards, Maisy placed down a regular “Wild” card. In response, Wally placed down two “Skip” cards. Before either of them could react, Wally placed down his final card.
“Uno out. I guess I win. Ha ha ha.” Wally stated casually, as if he hadn’t completely demolished them. The other two were silent for a moment, processing their crushing defeat. Then, Maisy got up, walked over to Wally, and shook his hand.
“Good game, Walls. You really wiped the floor with us, hehe.”
Bendy was quiet for another moment, before snapping out of it and giving Wally a smile and a thumbs-up.
“That was really fun. We should play this again sometime.” Wally stated as he got up from the table.
“You said it, Walls. We’re having it at your place, right?”
“That’s right. Home can’t wait to see you both again.” With that, Wally and Bendy made their way to the door, before stepping outside.
“Well, I’ll catch you guys on the flipside! Say hi to your pals for me, will ya?”
“I will. Goodbye, Maisy.” With that, they waved goodbye, Bendy’s being much more animated, of course, and took off, leaving Maisy by herself. As she closed the door and headed back to the living room, all she could think about was how she was going to pay Wally back the next time they played.