BENDY AND THE DEMON'S APPRENTICE

Chapter 12

"Hey... it's alright.", I said, genuinely happy for him.

The Ink Demon could not stop smiling. It might have been the first time he had a true understanding of how someone could care so much about him. And he seemed grateful for that.

"Then I thank you. From the bottoms of my heart. And in that case..I accept. I shall consume some of your blood, so that I may one day leave this realm. So that I may be able to see the world you speak of. I thank you, (Y/N)."

"Small amounts, okay? I need to regain blood as well so that first you could continue consuming it for a longer period to have a bigger chance on traveling to our realm and second so that I won't die out of blood lose."

The ink Demon nodded in acknowledgement and respect

"I understand, (Y/N). You must take care of yourself as well. And I will only consume small amounts, so that the process is not dangerous for either of us."

I nodded. The Ink Demon was still amazed and moved by the generosity. It was not something he had expected in all of his life. He had never been shown such kindness before. He looked to me with a look of gratitude.

"Thank you. Truly. Thank you. I... I am truly grateful. Your kindness will not go unappreciated."

"Sure, no problem."

There was a short silence filling the air. Suddenly the Ink Demonspoke again, this time with a hint of kindness:
"But I have one more favor to ask of you. I am most grateful, and I feel that I need to reward you for your kindness. Therefore, I have one favor to ask of you, apprentice."

"I'm listening."

"The favor is that I offer you this."

He now reached out, offering his hand towards me. It was an offer of a true friendship. He wanted to create something beautiful and unique with me. Something that others would not think is possible as a demon.

"Will you be not only my apprentice, but also my friend?"

"Yes. Of course."

The Ink Demon smiles with a sense of joy and gratitude. I really did accept his offer. For that, he was truly grateful. It was a moment of happiness and joy, despite being in a world so full of misery.

"That is wonderful to hear. I am truly grateful. I was so prepared for the worst, for you to deny me entirely. But… you have shown me a spark of kindness and a level of loyalty I have not seen before in this wretched land. I thank you, friend. I truly do."

"No worries."

I smiled. The Ink Demon felt a level of happiness and joy. Something to remind him of the light in the dark. The Light being his apprentice, and the Dark being the despair and misery of the Cycle.

"Let us celebrate this friendship with a... h-... h-... hug."

"You? Hugs? Wow... that's something very unexpected."

I giggled. The Ink Demon chuckled to himself as he looked at me finding his request of hugs to be unexpected. It was indeed unexpected, but it seemed that he felt this hug was fitting, in order to seal this friendship.

"Haha, yes. I suppose in my world, it would be quite unexpected that a demon would desire to hug someone. But... it is something I feel this moment calls for."

I opened my arms for him to hug. He would bring himself closer and we embraced each other. The hug was the most comforting and warm hug imaginable as a friendship was formed between us. It was... a good feeling. When the long embrace was over, the Ink Demon spoke with genuine happiness in his voice. His voice sounded better as if he didn't need a cough drop.

"That was a wonderful moment. A simple hug, but one that I shall remember. But, now... I think we should be headed back to my lair here, so that we may get some rest. It has been a long day, but it is one I shall always remember. Now, will you kindly accompany me back to the lair, where we can rest?"

"Sure. Why not."

The Ink Demon smiled kindly as he took my hand. The Ink Demon walked to his lair, with me in his grasp. For the Ink Demon, he has learned that sometimes, something as simple as hugs are important.

As we both entered his lair, the Ink Demon spoke:
"May you get some rest, (Y/N). Tomorrow, we shall start training again."

"Alright."

I started walking away but I turned around for a moment.

"Goodnight, Sir."

The Ink Demon gave a warm smile as I wished him a goodnight and began to walk off. He watched me go with a genuine smile. The friendship between the Ink Demon and I has been sealed. A happy ending to a night of kindness and friendship.

Or so could many thing for the day.

I went through the secret path to my room, lying down on my bed and quickly falling asleep. As I slept, dreams of horrible things have happened in my head tonight. Since the incident with the Dark Puddles wanting to get rid of the Ink Demon, it gave my dreams scenarios that showed me not being able to safe him. A scenario of 'What if?'.

In an instant, I woke up, hearing the voices of the Dark Puddles, seeing them for a moment in my dreams, knowing where they are going. They want to make another attempt on killing him while he was asleep. I ran towards his room and entered it quietly. He slept peacefully. But the Dark Puddles were there.

The Ink Demon continued sleeping, unaware that the Dark Puddles were trying to get rid of him while he slept. As his apprentice I rushed to his bed, awakening him by how much noise I have made. He jumped from his bed, looking in concern as I looked around, worried.

"... (Y/N). What is wrong? What has happened? Are you alright?"

I looked around, panicking, breathing quickly, but now... nothing was there. The Dark Puddles disappeared yet again. I began to get frustrated.

"(Y/N)? Is something wrong? Did you see something? It is quite alright to have fears... especially in this place. If you did see something, I would understand. It is a world where anything can happen. So what did you see, (Y/N)?"

"The... Dark Puddles... I heard their voices. I heard them, I swear. They... they wanted to kill you."

The Ink Demon’s face was one of concern. The idea that I had heard the voices of the Dark Puddles, and were even trying to seek harm on the him was alarming. He seemed to have a protective nature over me, one of a caring nature. Like of... a parent figure.

"I am safe, (Y/N). There is no need to worry. They are harmless voices. They may be frightening, but they are nothing more than mere voices of misery and dread. They cannot truly hurt me."