Chapter Text
There's been some human making trouble in ToonTown, which Bendy is very unamused with. Very small trouble, he'll grant, but trouble nonetheless and he's not going to tolerate a human causing any kind of trouble in his town. He's going to make sure it's dealt with swiftly.
His crew, some of the Lost Ones, have finally caught the little shit after all, bringing them down to a room in the basement for him to deal with at his earliest convenience. And he'll go down in just a moment, as soon as he's done with his business upstairs. Club's almost closed after all.
Bendy smiles and nods to the patrons from behind the bar like there's not a problem in the world, chuckling in good nature and generally making sure everyone's happy until the bar is closed. The angels have one last show to put on before everything’s shut down, but it won’t be too long now.
Aaannnddd it's finally time!
"I'm headin' downstairs," he informs everyone through the radio once inside his office. He gets a series of confirmations.
"Do you need any help?" Tom asks, gruff and lowly. "A Lost One told me they didn't secure the human and they're different from the usual trouble."
"Why the fuck didn't they secure the bastard?" Bendy growls, cussing in annoyance.
"Didn't say, Boss," Tom replies. Bendy still curses, then requests whoever's able to come as backup just in case. Boris comes bounding in, grinning happily. Bendy and him head down through the hidden staircase and into the hall.
"Which room?" Bendy grumbles, looking through them until they find the correct one. It's one of the... cleaner rooms, without the usual tools inside which irritates Bendy more.
His irritation dies, for the most part, and he stops in his tracks when he actually sees the human curled up in the corner and staring up with wide terrified eyes though....
...... It's just a tiny little girl. One of the baby humans, hardly a threat to anyone by the looks of it. Especially with the look on your face and how you’re trembling like a loose leaf in the wind.
..... Okay he gets why the Lost Ones didn't tie you up like normal, but he's still pissed they didn't tell him. .........He didn't look over the report either though......
Bendy sighs, cursing under his breath, irritated still and making you flinch and bury your head into your shoulders more. You're not making any noises though, much to his surprise. He'd think you'd be wailing by now, that seems like all the human brats do anyway.
Then again.... He's never really had to deal with a child before..... He's not sure how to do this exactly.
"Jesus fuckin' christ," Bendy sighs to himself, taking a few long strides over to where you've curled up in a ball. Your eyes impossibly widen further, scrunching up even more and wincing when he kneels in front of you. Bendy reaches for you, but pauses when he sees something smooshed against your chest. Something black. "Whatcha got there, kid?"
You only peak an eye up at him, tiny fingers digging into whatever it is. He gives an unimpressed look.
"Not going to ask again," he warns, eyes narrowing.
Tears start dribbling down your cheeks, replacing the tracks that were already there and cleaning more dirt off your face, but you do reluctantly give up whatever's in your possession. Bendy takes it, surprised by the face staring back up at him.
It's one of his dolls, obviously dirty and stained, but it's his chubby face in doll form. Even an original by the looks on the tag.
Nothing's inside of it, he notes. It's just a normal stuffed toy.
"Where'd you get this?" Bendy asks, eyes still narrowed on you. You just let out a pathetic little whimper, looking between him and the doll. You flinch again when he shifts, Bendy hardly amused with your silence. But he guesses he could care less about where you got the damn plush. He has more pressing things to worry about, and tries to soften his tone. "How'd you get into ToonTown? And why are you here, kid?"
You just whimper again, head tucking down and only half looking up at him through terrified, watery eyes.
"C'mon, Kid, this is serious," Bendy presses, growing more impatient. "I need to know what you're doing here and how you got in."
Just a few small squeaks and raspy breaths come from your mouth. Bendy's eyes narrow further, making your shivering increase.
He swears, if you weren't a fucking kid.
"Boris," Bendy asks, looking over at the wolf. The said toon perks, apparently pulled from his staring at you in shock. His wide eyes turn to Bendy, blinking once. The demon motions to you, making you flinch though he doesn't see that. "Little help here."
Boris nods, heading over to kneel in front of you too. Doesn't seem to help settle your nerves any though, just frantically switching your eyes between the two and continuing to shake.
"Hiya!" Boris greets, grinning despite your terrified gaze. Boris lowers himself a bit more, putting on the friendliest look he can. You only let out a whimper, which Bendy's pretty sure they only heard because they're so close and it's dead silent. Boris' head tilts, ears lowering a bit more. "Hey, don't worry, we're not going to hurtcha!"
You hardly look like you believe it, still curled up and crying like you are. Like you're fully expecting them to hurt you for routing around in some garbage cans.
He would've, if you were an adult doing it. But since you're a kid, he's not going to. But he does need to know what a human kid is doing in ToonTown rooting through garbage bins. If your guardians set you up to do their dirty work or something like that, actually looking for something. But you've gotta start talking for him to do that.
Boris is having about as much luck as Bendy was though, further irritating the demon's already short temper. So when Tom asks if he needs more help, he demands everyone comes down and meets them in the hall.
"What's the problem?" Alice asks, leaning against the wall. "You look mad, are we going to have some fun?"
"No," Bendy growls, tapping a heel on the ground. Alice raises an eyebrow. "The human that was causing problems is a kid. We couldn't get a word outta her though."
"A kid? As in a child?" Allison asks, blinking in disbelief. Bendy nods, crossing his arms. "Oh."
The group looks even more confused. It should be impossible for anyone to get into ToonTown due to the defenses meant to keep humans out, built ever since that incident a few years ago. So how a child of all things managed to slip past all of them and get in... Well, it's strange.
"Are you thinking someone sent her in?" Alice asks, tilting her head.
"We don't know. That's what I want to find out," Bendy growls, pulling out a cigar to puff on.
"Hmm. Let me try," Allison offers, smiling. Bendy raises an eyebrow at that. "Both you and Boris could be.... scary to kids, you know due to your heights and she's already in a scary and stressful situation being down here. Maybe-"
"Yeah, yeah. Go ahead," Bendy grumbles, letting out a sigh. Allison nods, heading into the room.
You haven't come out of your corner, not even to grab the doll Bendy left in front of you. It's something Allison obviously notices as she sits down in front of you.
"Hello," Allison greets, tone soft and calm. You still freeze, looking up at her with wide and fearful eyes. Allison picks up the toy though, looking over it before looking back at you and holding it out. "Is this yours?"
You don't respond for a good minute, but your eyes darting between it and her gives a clear sign that you do want it. Allison holds it closer to you, but you press yourself further against the wall like you're expecting her to smack you with it.
"Here, you can take it," Allison offers, holding still as you stare at her. You do eventually reach a shaking hand out for it, pausing before grabbing it like you were expecting her to suddenly yank it away from you. You hold the toy tight to your chest again, curling around it like it's some prized treasure.
Who knows though, maybe it is to you.
"Where'd you get that?" Allison then asks, looking from the doll to you. "Did someone give it to you?"
You don't respond for a moment, but then you give the slightest shake of your head.
"No? Did... you find it somewhere?" Allison asks. A slight nod. "Where did you find it?"
You don't respond to that, but Allison waits patiently for one anyway. It seems the longer she stays quiet, the more panicked you get though.
"A-a dumpster," you finally whisper, voice squeaky, quiet, and raspy. Like you were struggling to even get that much out. The way your face scrunches, it may actually be painful.
Bendy throws his hands up in exasperation though, then runs a hand down his face. Slightly annoyed that all they had to do was wait quietly for an answer and you would've given it.
Well, at least you're talking finally.
"Can someone go grab a bottle of water?" Allison asks, glancing over her shoulder. Boris runs to do so, handing it to Allison before quickly leaving the room. Allison sets the bottle near you, then points at it. "Drink that. It'll help your throat."
You do as she says, hands still trembling as you grasp the bottle. After a tiny sip, you quickly drink the whole bottle. Your relieved look doesn't last very long before it quickly turns back to nervous as you look up at Allison again.
"Alright. Now, we really need you to answer some questions for me. You're not in trouble though, okay? We just need to make sure everyone's safe, alright?" Allison asks. You huddle closer to your toy, but your attention is firmly on the woman in front of you. "Did you come into ToonTown alone?"
A nod.
That releases some tension.
"Were you sent into ToonTown by anyone? Like your parents or any adult you know?"
You shake your head.
More tension is released.
"Okay. So, what are you doing in ToonTown then?" Allison asks, head tilting.
"Chased," you whisper, voice still impossibly quiet.
"Chased? You were chased into ToonTown?" Allison asks, eyes narrowed. You nod, shivering a bit more.
That certainly catches everyone's attention, bringing the tension back. Allison keeps her calm appearance, tapping her fingers against her leg.
"Who chased you?" She asks, leaning down a bit more. You shrug. "You don't know? Can you describe them for me?"
"They... They were big. Big men with big vans," you reply, fingers digging into the toy's head more.
"Can you tell me why they were chasing you?" Allison asks.
"They wanted me to get in the van and go with them," you whisper, making the toons grimace.
"And where were your guardians?" Allison then asks. The tears come back with a vengeance, but you actually sniffle this time. "Did something happen to them?"
"Left," you rasp out, barely audible even down in the basement.
"They... left you? What do you mean they left?" Allison asks.
"Left me in an alley," you whisper. "Told me to not come back."
Bendy actually freezes at that, but to be fair most of them do. Grimacing or drooping in pity for the poor little human. A growl leaves Bendy's throat though, the demon beginning to pace.
They only have your word about these things, so you could have been trained to say this if caught, but Bendy has his doubts about it. Just do to your general disposition and the way you're acting. You're obviously very terrified and kids obviously don't make for very good spies, ever. But they always have other ways to verify things, you can never be too sure.
They do need to find out more things about you though and he relays that to Allison.
"I.. see," Allison says, in regards to your last statement. "Uhm... How old are you?"
You only hold up five trembling fingers, making the grimaces deepen.
"Only five?" Allison asks, brows furrowing. You nod. She curses in her mind. "I see. You're... awful young..... Uh, do you know your parents' names?"
You do, in fact, and give them out. You give your name too when Allison asks for it and she repeats it with a nod.
"Nice to meet you," she grins. You hesitantly echo her words, voice breaking slightly. "I'm Allison. Do you know either of the boys who were in here with you previously?"
You shake your head, surprising them slightly. Allison hums.
"Well, one kind of looked like your toy, didn't he?" Allison asks. You glance down at it, then nod. "Yeah, he does! That's because the toy was modeled after him!"
You look between the toy and her a few times, then towards the door you saw Bendy walk through. He scoffs, arms crossing slightly.
"Yeah, really," Allison nods, grinning slightly wider. "His name is Bendy. Do.. you know what we are?"
"...... Toons?" You say, hesitantly and unsure. Allison nods.
"Yep! We're Toons. Have you heard about us before?" She asks. You blink, but hesitantly nod. "What'd you hear?"
"They said..... that you were bad," you whisper, ducking your head into your knees again. "And that you eat kids."
".... We don't eat kids," Allison says, blinking a few times. Bendy scoffs, shaking his head. A few of the others do too, more than a little annoyed. "Did they say anything else about us?"
You nod.
"What else?" Allison prods. "Did they say anything about doing something to Toons?"
You pause for a moment, looking like you're thinking about it.
"They said they wanted to hurt Toons," you answer, making their eyes narrow.
"And who said that?" Allison asks.
"I don't know who. Dad had them over," you say. Bendy lets out an annoyed breath, rubbing a hand down his face.
"Alright. Did they say anything about how they were going to hurt Toons, or when?" Allison then asks. You pause for another moment, then shake your head slowly. Your eyes narrow slightly though.
"They said something about... a group though? That was gonna...... raid? And that they were looking for members," you do tell them, making the group jump to attention. "But... they didn't say anything else about it."
"Dammit," Bendy growls, fists clenching a bit tighter.
"Alright.... Do you know if your mom or dad joined this group?" Allison asks. You shake your head, making the angel hum. "Okay. What were your parents like?"
You dig your chin further into the stuffed toy's head, rubbing your arm. Bendy eyes the action, pausing his pacing again. Allison hums, eyes narrowing a bit.
"Were they nice?" She asks, though they all doubt it based on them abandoning you in an alleyway. You don't respond to the question though, only staring at Allison and gripping your long sleeve shirt. The angel hums again. "Did they.. hurt you?"
You wince, but don't respond. Which is a good enough answer in Bendy's eyes, which makes him growl.
"Could you show me?" Allison asks, gently and as soothingly as possible.
That definitely gets a reaction out of you, and not a good one. You violently shake your head, eyes wide and clutching your shirt's sleeves as tight as you can. You try to scoot further away from the woman as well, but you're already as far back into the wall as you can go.
Another confirmation as far as the demon is concerned.
Allison backs off though, raising her hands in surrender.
"Alright, alright. You don't have to show me," she soothes. You're still shaking like a chihuahua though, and Allison doesn't think she's going to get much else out of you right now after that. So she stands, says bye for now, and leaves the room to let you hopefully calm down a bit and talk to the others.
Bendy glances over you again. Shaking and clutching that doll of him like it's your last lifeline. He observes your tiny frame, made even tinier by the position you're huddled into. Your rather sunken face and bags underneath your eyes. Tired and obviously starving by the looks of it. Your clothes are ratty and torn, ill-fitting. Your hair's a mess too, obviously hasn't been brushed in ages. Though you look like you haven't had a bath in ages too.
..... All of it, your appearance and what you've told them, hit a little too close to home....
"So.. what are we going to do with her?" Alice asks, raising an eyebrow. "Boss?"
Bendy growls, glancing to the side. He taps his heel against the floor while the others stare at him, waiting for an answer. Bendy eventually just curses, turning back to the others with a glare.
"We're gonna keep her until we can officially figure out if she was telling the truth or not," he decides, growling slightly.
"You think she was lying?" Allison asks, brows furrowed.
"I don't know," Bendy growls.
"We're not keeping her down here, are we?" Boris asks.
"No, of course not," Bendy grumbles. They give him a curious look, but he doesn't answer them and just heads into the room again. You tense when you see him walking towards you, but he just holds out a hand. "C'mon, kid."
You look between him and his hand, but do take it. Nervously, and you wince like you're still expecting to be hurt. He just pulls you to your feet though, then tugs you towards the door. He only pauses for a minute outside, glancing at his crew.
"Let's go," he grumbles, heading for the stairs. They glance at each other, then Bendy, then you before shrugging and following their boss up the steps.
Guess they'll just follow his lead, like always.
_____
Bendy set you up in one of his manor's rooms, which you looked around in disbelief at. He sent the Angels to pick up some human things you'll need, whatever those are, and a couple changes of clothes. Boris is in the kitchen, making you, and whoever wants dinner, something to eat. Then he sent some Lost Ones to check out and find your parents, and to see if there's any missing kids reported that look like you.
Bendy's currently standing in the doorway of your temporary room, watching you cautiously check everything out. You're acting like you expect something to jump out at you, or him to suddenly come and.... attack you? He's not sure what you're expecting, but it doesn't seem like anything good.
He, unfortunately, relates a little too much to that.
The angels finally return, holding a few shopping bags in their grasp. You jump at the sound of their voices, spinning around to see who's shown up now. Bendy lets them through and they set the bags on the bed to sort through them quickly.
"Alright! We got you some things," Allison announces, grinning at you. You blink in surprise, nervously eyeing the bags.
"You're going to take a bath," Alice states, eyeing you for a moment. You shrink a bit, but nod.
Good thing too. Alice wasn't asking, after all.
The angel takes two bags, then shoos you into the bathroom. She leaves Allison and Bendy in your room. Allison looks back, but then goes back to laying some clothes out on the bed.
"Her clothes are too light for winter," Allison states plainly.
"Yeah, I noticed," Bendy replies, tapping a heel against the floor and listening to the sounds of the water starting.
"Do you have any idea of what you're going to do if she was telling the truth?" Allison asks, glancing at the demon over her shoulder. Bendy remains silent, eyes darting to the bathroom door. Allison sighs, looking back at the clothes she laid out.
They wait for Alice to come back out, which she does an hour and a half later. You're a lot more clean, and wrapped in a towel. Your hair's in neater order too, the color actually able to be seen cleanly. Seems like Alice even tried to clean your toy up a bit too, seems cleaner and a bit damp anyway.
"We have a few nightgowns you can choose from," Allison grins, getting on your level again. You tuck your chin more into the towel, though mostly look confused. The angel motions to the bed. "See. These are the nightgowns! You can pick one and wear that tonight."
You peek up at them, eyebrows furrowed. You then glance at them again, as if waiting for something.
"Go on and pick one," Allison encourages.
You reach out a shaky hand and grab one off the bed.
"Okay. Put that one on then," Allison says, standing up and taking a few steps back. You clutch the towel a bit tighter, glancing at the three nervously.
"Go ahead, Kid," Alice says, shaking her head. "I've seen it all already after all and I am going to tell them."
A whine crawls up your throat, but you do reluctantly let go of the towel to quickly pull the nightgown over your head. But that was enough time for Bendy and Allison to see what Alice was grimacing about.
You were obviously starved, your ribs and hipbones way too prominent for anyone much less a child to have. But there's also dark, red-splotchy black and blue bruises all over you. There's a rather large one over your stomach, which reaches to your side as well. There's a fresh bandage over where it reaches your rib though, Alice's work by the look of it.
Bendy nearly growls at the sight, but swallows it with a look from the angels.
The nightgown is a bit big for you, but covers enough for you to relax a bit again it seems. You look up at the three, all of them sharing a look with each other. But eventually their eyes turn back down to you.
"C'mon, I'm sure Boris has something ready for you to eat," Bendy states. Your eyes brighten a bit, but you don't actually seem too hopeful.
You do obediently trot over and take his hand when he holds it out though, following him back through the halls and to the kitchen. The angels follow closely behind.
Boris turns when you enter, Bendy lifting you up to sit on one of the barstools. Boris quickly grabs a plate and sets it in front of you, you looking at the plate with wide eyes.
"There you go! Eat up!" The wolf grins. The angels and Bendy shake their heads when Boris looks up at them, too sick to their stomachs to eat. But Boris sits down with a plate himself, eating the food happily. You look between the four adults and the plate nervously.
"Go ahead, Kid. It's yours," Bendy sighs. You take a hesitant bite, then start eating like you expect them to take the food away from you. They definitely don't.
"Did you like it?" Boris asks, tilting his head. You look up from your cleaned plate, then nod. Boris' tail wags happily, smiling proudly. "Good! I'm glad!"
You blink a few times, but then look back as Bendy tells you it is time to go to bed since it's... very early in the morning. You follow him back up to your room and climb into the bed. He checks the windows, just to make sure they're securely locked, then shuts the bedroom door behind himself. He heads off to his own room afterwards, ready to destroy some shit and he does just that.
You jump awake when he knocks on your door the next afternoon apparently, pushing it open to see you staring wide eyed at the door while still in bed. He fixes his dress shirt's sleeve, glancing up at you.
"Get dressed. We need to get going," he states, a sigh in his voice. You nod slowly, crawling out of the bed and grabbing a sweater and pants to slip on. "Grab the coat too, it's cold."
You're also just going to need the extra layers due to how thin you are, according to what he could find anyway.
You do as told, slipping a heavy, warm coat on. Bendy nods, motioning for you to follow him. Then you're off to the club, Bendy setting you up at a corner of the bar where he can keep an eye on you while he gets ready for opening. You sit there patiently, watching him set chairs down and wipe the bar top off. The others file in as well, all getting ready for the day ahead.
The next week is like that too. You sit in a spot where Bendy and his crew can keep an eye on you while they work, ignoring the questioning glances they get from patrons. Bendy hardly trusts you alone in his office and you'll get in the way in the kitchens, so sitting at the bar it is. You don't bother anyone though. They give you some paper and crayons, and a glass of water and some food, and you're set the entire night. Though you don't seem to like being surrounded by people. Even if you have somehow fallen asleep a few times, which resulted in Bendy having to carry you out to the car at the end of the day.
It's taking forever to find anything out about you, which is more than a little irritating. You're apparently not registered as a missing child anywhere as far as they can tell, the Lost Ones haven't found your parents yet, and they haven't found out what the organization you were talking about was.
They're going to need some more help, just in case. Which is great, because they have more help on the way.
Bendy spots Cuphead and Mugman entering the building, bright and early like he was expecting of them. You glance over your shoulder to nervously observe them, pausing what you were doing.
"Hey, Boss!" Cuphead greets, though both of the dish toons quickly spot you and freeze in their tracks. They have a mini stare down with you, which only makes you more and more nervous the longer it goes on.
"Hello, Cuphead, Mugman," Bendy returns, tossing the rag he was using to polish the bar and successfully getting their attention back on him.
"Uh," Cuphead just points at you, looking between you and Bendy a couple of times. Bendy tells them your name, then gives a quick rundown of what's going on.
"Ah," Mugman replies, glancing over at you again and apparently still a bit speechless.
"Ah, geeze," Cuphead grumbles, rubbing the back of his neck as he glances over at you again. You're still nervously watching them. "So you're just going to keep her until you get an answer? What are you going to do once you've gotten it?"
"Haven't decided yet," Bendy replies, lowly enough that you can't hear them talking about it. The dish brothers hum, still glancing between you and Bendy. Bendy only allows them a few more minutes of comprehending the situation before clapping to get their attention back on him again. "Alright, we've only got a few more hours before the club opens. Let's get going."
"Sure thing, Boss!" Both brothers nod, jumping to help Bendy get ready for the day. You reluctantly go back to what you were doing as well, swinging your feet back and forth from the stool.
Mugman looks over as Sammy stops beside you, placing a basket of something down beside the paper in front of you. Looks like some fries is all.
"Hello, Little Lamb. Everything going okay over here?" He asks, leaning over slightly to look at you. You nod, Sammy straightening up again with a clap, even as it makes you jump. "Good to hear!"
"I told Sammy to check in on her every so often and to bring something for her to snack on with him," Bendy tells Mugman, sliding a drink over to a waiting patron. "He's doing surprisingly well with her."
"Huh," Mugman nods, impressed as he watches Sammy run off to check on other patrons. Then he watches you scarf down the fries like you were expecting someone to snatch them away from you. "She really is hungry, isn't she?"
"Like I said, she was apparently starving," Bendy shrugs, glancing over at you himself. "I assume that started even before she was on the streets, just based on how she acts like someone's going to rip the food out of her hands at any minute."
"Poor thing," Mugman frowns, but the two do have to get back to work. It's not a slow day after all.
While a busy night, it's not a very eventful one either. They're able to close up without an incident, though Bendy and the two mugs stay a bit longer so Bendy can fully get them up to speed on a few things.
"Jesus Christ," Cuphead frowns, the two brothers looking through the file created for you. Specifically at the photos Alice took of your bruises and injuries. You're hiding a lot under those clothes of yours.
"Uh... Have you taken her to a doctor?" Mugman asks. "Humans are... rather fragile, who really knows what, uh, could come from all this."
"Got to find one that'll keep their mouth shut first," Bendy sighs, leaning over the bar.
The brothers nod, moving that particular file aside to look at other ones Bendy's given them. They talk for a while about these cases, which means that by the time they're ready to go home you've fallen asleep in your seat. But you cleaned up after yourself beforehand. The paper Bendy had given you tucked into the folder, the crayons back in the packaging, and all of it tucked neatly away in the bag you were given to carry it all in. Seems like you tucked your toy in there as well.
Bendy sighs, carefully getting your coat back on you and picking you up along with shouldering your bag. Something he likes to think he's gotten good at doing without waking you up, though it's always a 50/50 chance. You don't stir this time luckily, so he's able to carry you out to the car without a problem. Cuphead and Mugman watch this with surprised looks, glancing at each other as if to ask if the other saw that too.
"Are you two coming or what?" Bendy asks, glaring back at the two as he leans back into the club.
"We're coming, we're coming!" Cuphead replies, raising his hands in defeat. "Ya grumpy old man."
"Shut up," Bendy grumbles, smacking the back of his head as he walks by.
"Hey!" Cuphead complains, raising his hands in disbelief. Bendy just rolls his eyes as he locks the club's door and makes sure it's secure.
"Don't wake the kid up," Bendy warns, turning back around and shoving the keys into his pocket. The brothers give a thumbs up, carefully climbing into Bendy's car, the said demon following along. Mugman glances at you still sleeping peacefully beside him, brow raised. He shares a look with Cuphead, then shrugs.
Well, this ought to be interesting.
_____
The cup brothers have to admit, Bendy's more paternal than he seems to think. They also think he's grown more attached to the kid than he'll admit. Especially with the way he's actually taking a lot of care in watching over you, making sure your needs are actually met and you've got some form of entertainment when everyone's busy at the club. Also making sure you're safe and keeping an eye on you while he's busy bartending, snarling at anyone who tries to mess with you and snapping at people to mind their own business.
And the fact that he could've just set you up in one of the safe houses for the Lost Ones to watch and been done with it, but he didn't. He's taken that responsibility on himself.
It's something they think the others have picked up on as well, but they already seem pretty fond of you as well. Both the angels will come over and check on you between tables and their performances, Alice has taken it upon herself to make sure you're clean and your hair and clothes are in proper order, Sammy frequently checks on you as well and will often be seen teaching you little songs, Boris appears delighted to play and cook for you whenever possible, and Tom just often hovers nearby wherever you are. Especially when you're with Allison and in the kitchen at home with Boris.
While Cuphead isn't a huge fan of kids, he has to admit you aren't a bad one. You're incredibly quiet, more than a little reserved and especially jumpy. But with your suspected past, the jumpiness isn't too surprising. You're definitely not a troublemaker like he and Mugman were though, you actively try to avoid getting into trouble. Even if it makes you seem like you're walking on eggshells around them all the time. He's tried interacting with you a whole lot more, just to see if he can get you to liven up a bit. He hasn't gotten very far yet.
Mugman likes you enough. He thinks you're cute, and has a lot of pity for the situation you've found yourself in. Plus, while you're obviously still nervous around and don't really trust anyone, you're really sweet. He's noticed the way you'll follow all of them around, even if you'll quickly scamper off if they say anything to you. He's gone about his business in the house, stretching out tasks that'd usually taking him just a few seconds to do just to see how long you'd follow him around for. The answer is the entire time.
You follow Bendy the most though, only going for the others when he's told you to shoo. Always clutching that doll of him like it's the most precious thing in the world. Everyone finds it kind of adorable, they know. Bendy doesn't seem to care all that much, especially since it's not like you're actually demanding his attention. Cuphead and Mugman both have caught Bendy with you on his lap multiple times while he was working in his office; you passed out while he's focused on paperwork. They're sure the others have as well, but no one's commented on it.
The only thing that no one is really sure of, is how you're feeling about all this. Especially with your habit of remaining silent unless forced to talk. You seem alright, and settling in alright, but it's still hard to tell what you're thinking or feeling at any point. But you don't seem.... upset at the very least. Not terrified, so that's what they'll have to take for now.
You definitely seem the most comfortable around Bendy, especially with the amount of time you spend around him in particular. Seeking him out the most out of all of them.
And it's Bendy you're currently hiding behind and staring up at the stranger in the club, an absolutely nervous and nearly terrified look on your face.
The demon had finally found a doctor that'd work with him, a Toon one that had studied human medicine. And which is sworn to secrecy under threat of a painful end, curtsy of the demon mobster currently talking to her.
Cuphead leans against the bar, watching Bendy talk to the doctor and you anxiously squeeze your doll right behind him. Mugman leans on the bar from the other side, watching this all go down as well. They know Tom is by the exit, Boris just on the other side of the kitchen doors. Alice, Allison, and Sammy are somewhere around the club too. All waiting for a sign from the boss should anything.... go downhill.
"Alright then, let's get this done with already," Bendy says, leaning back on his heels. The doctor nods, eyes turning down to look at the little human hiding behind the mob boss. You immediately stiffen, eyes widening.
"Hello there," she greets, you just remaining frozen. Bendy shifts to reveal you, looking down at you himself. Your eyes dart to him, then back to the doctor, your knuckles going white with how tightly you're gripping the toy in your grasp.
Bendy kneels down, making your eyes dart to him again. Your attention mostly stays on him as well when he leans a bit closer to you.
"She's just going to run some tests to make sure you're doing alright," he tells you, tilting his head a bit. "Have you ever seen a doctor before?"
You shake your head, making the demon sigh.
"Alright. Don't worry, you'll be fine," he says, ruffling up your hair a bit. He then picks you up, setting you down on a barstool. He leans against the bar top and motions the doctor to hurry it up.
She does, going through various general checkups that normally happen, along with examining the few cuts and the bruises. You don't seem to like her touching those though, based on the way your face actually scrunches up in discomfort. A whine actually struggles to leave your throat, the most amount of sound they've heard from you in a couple of days.
"Other than the obvious, she seems.... okay," the doctor states, a bit of a sigh in her tone. "I'll have to take some samples of her blood to check if everything's as it should be."
"Take blood samples?" Bendy asks, eyes narrowing.
"Yes," the doctor replies, slightly nervously. "If she was on the streets for a lengthy amount of time, she could've picked up any number of diseases or viruses that would need to be taken care of. I can use the blood samples to check for those."
Bendy hums, nodding slowly.
The doctor writes something on the clipboard in her hand, then trades it for a kit in her bag. The three men, and you, watch her very closely as she does so. They watch her even closer when she takes your arm and inserts the needle, drawing out red liquid with it.
Bendy places a hand around your hip with the whimper you let out, patting your leg comfortingly.
"Do you know what those other markings are?" The Doctor asks, pointing towards your arm. Bendy's eyes narrow, taking your arm to look closer at it himself.
..... There are little marks on the inside of your elbow. They must have missed them because of the bruising initially.
"Where did those come from?" He asks you quietly, pointing at the little marks.
"Needles," you mumble, just as quietly.
"Needles?" Bendy asks, eyes narrowing slightly. You nod, not looking at your arm again. "What were the needles for?"
"I don't know," you whisper. "The men mom and dad had over would just put whatever was in the needles into my arm. I didn't like it, it didn't feel good."
"Do you know who those men were?" Bendy asks, a bit of a growl in his chest. You shake your head, the demon humming before looking back at the doctor. "Some humans were injecting something into her. She doesn't know what it was."
"I'll..... have to look into that," the doctor frowns, writing down more on her clipboard. Bendy only hums in response, eyes narrowed further.
The doctor then leaves after giving them a list of things to watch out for, just in case, and saying she'll be in touch. You immediately relax a bit more once she's out of sight, tugging your sweater back on.
Bendy just sighs, patting your hip again before straightening and glancing over the others currently in sight.
"Alright! Let's get to work, we have a club to open soon!" He yells, receiving a series of agreements and rushing feet.
_____
"I don't like the look of this much," Cuphead groans, leaning over the desk with a grimace. Bendy just grunts, head leaning on his hand while he looks through paperwork. "I don't know how these bastards are hiding so well, or hiding what they did. Where the fuck are the records of this kid and what the hell did they do to her?"
Bendy just grunts again, tapping a pen against the paper in front of himself.
"I mean, your informants don't usually take this long!" Cuphead continues, standing straight again to pace around. "And they're freaky good at getting the info you want. So what the hell is taking so long this time?"
"Patience, Cuphead. It's not like we had a whole lot of information to go off of to begin with," Bendy grumbles, finally moving to rub his eyes.
"They've found things faster with less information before. I know they have!" Cuphead replies, spinning back to face the unimpressed demon.
"By the sounds of it, the kiddo's parents weren't in any actual crime organization. They just knew people in one," Bendy sighs, leaning his chin on his hands. "Or a potential one at the very least."
"Potential?" Cuphead asks, eyes narrowed.
"A new anti-toon group looking to recruit members," Bendy replies. "That's all she apparently heard about it, but it could be bigger by now."
"Well that's fucking great," the dish sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. "That's just what we need. More anti-toon bullshit."
Bendy just grunts again, looking back down at the paperwork in front of himself. Cuphead paces for a few more minutes, apparently just thinking. But he eventually speaks up again.
"If she was being raised in an anti-toon household, why's the kiddo so okay with us?" Cuphead wonders, tapping a finger to his chin. "You'd think she'd be fighting us more or something."
"Couldn't tell you. Maybe it just hadn't sunk in," Bendy replies, waving a hand towards the other toon. "Not exactly like the kid's a fighter anyway, Cups. Doubt she'd have the strength to even try."
"Point taken," Cuphead relents. He sighs, dropping down into the chair across from Bendy with a groan. He slouches in thought, resting one elbow on the arm of the chair and his chin on his fist.
"Why don't you go find the kid and play with her?" The demon grumbles, trying to focus on his work.
"Mugs is doing that," Cuphead grunts, looking through his phone.
"So you have to be in here bothering me?" Bendy growls, glaring at the toon in even more annoyance. Cuphead nods with a hum, making the demon growl again. But he doesn't say anything else, just turning back to hopefully get more work done.
And he does, for at least half an hour.
"Hey, Boss. Look at this." Cuphead sits up again and spins his phone around to show Bendy the screen. The demon growls, annoyed at once again being pulled from his work, but he does look at the screen to see a news article pulled up. The first picture being the demon himself holding your hand and walking somewhere, likely into the club based on the lighting.
Well isn't that fucking great.
Bendy snatches the phone and reads through the article in annoyance, but finds that it doesn't actually have much information in it. It's mostly speculation, gossip, which is good. But your little face being on the front cover doesn't do much good for you, not with how jumpy and nervous you are. Especially considering it means more eyes and attention is going to be on you.
But perhaps, this will be useful.
"What're you thinking? That look on your face means you're coming up with something, which usually isn't a good sign either," Cuphead states, eyes narrowed on the demon. Bendy chuckles at that, spinning the phone back to the dish toon.
"I think we may just be able to use this to our advantage," Bendy grins, chuckling darkly. Cuphead's eyes just narrow further.
Spread out over the next few weeks, Bendy has made sure the paparazzies have had plenty of opportunities to get nice photos of you and him. The crew too when possible. The angels have taken you out to get some nice new custom clothes from the tailors, the dish brothers have taken you out on walks around the town, Tom and Boris have taken you to a few parks to play at, and Bendy's done plenty of the above too. Nice family outings were included too, just to play up how nice of a family they are.
You're utterly confused by all of it, they all know that. You have not a clue about what's going on or why they're doing this, but you have not uttered a single complaint or question about it. Bendy's more than happy that you've just gone along with the whole thing.
Now he has an interview set up to talk about his "new daughter" in an official sense. His whole plan is made even better, kind of, by results from your little check up. You have Toon DNA in your system somehow. Which doesn't make a whole lot of sense if your parents were hanging around with anti-toon bigots, but he guesses you could be a half-toon. A very realistic human half-toon. Could be why your parents treated you the way they did.
But! He can use this and a little forged birth certificate, and you'll officially be "his." He hopes this will draw out some of those little rats, maybe even your real parents if they're lucky.
And lucky they are.