1 & 8

1 & 8 is the friendship between 1 and 8 from the 9 fandom.

9 (Short 2005)
1 and 8 don't appear until the end, when 9 retrieves the talisman, allowing for their souls to be set free. They had already been claimed by presumably the Cat Beast at that point in time.

9 (Movie 2009)
As explained in the flashback, at some point 1 grouped all the Stitchpunks who were created at the time together, with 8 doing most of the heavy work. Together, they hid under a helmet when the Great World War happened, though 8 showed a bit more independence and empathy for his kind at the time, he lifted the helmet for 3 and 4 and willingly waited when 5 had his eye broken beyond repair.

At one point, the group took shelter in an abandoned cathedral, with 1 being the designated leader and developing a paranoia of never letting anyone go outside unless absolutely necessary. This caused friction within the group, causing 7 to split from them, taking the twins with her. 8 did not dare question 1, his best traits were his physical strength and his loyalty, he was never too bright so he only mindlessly followed 1's orders. This seemingly gave him a purpose as an enforcer of 1's beliefs and punishing those who dare question him.

9 learns this the hard way when he awakened, with 2 going missing after being captured by the Cat Beast in his presence. Since 5 was the one who took pity on 9 and nursed him back to health after the encounter with the beast, 1 had an immediate reason to dislike 9 and be disappointed in 5, an opinion that 8 gladly reflects.

Nonetheless, 9 manages to convince 5 to scout out to the factory and save 2. However, during their trip to the factory, 9 reawakens the machine with the talisman he found in the room he woke up in. Trying to pull it out again caused 2 to have his soul sucked out, so 5 and 9 flee the scene along with the resurfaced 7 whom they befriended along the way. Trying to find answers about the Machine and the talisman, they find a clue with the strange symbols engraved on the talisman, which 5 recognizes as the same symbols that 6 always draws in his spare time. 6 being one of the stitchpunks who lives at the cathedral under the watch of 1 and 8, 9 and 5 reluctantly sneak into the cathedral after 7 told them not to, hoping to find answers there. However, they are quickly captured by 8 and brought back to square 1.

1 is furious at 9 once again for his reckless actions resulting in 2 getting killed, telling him and 5 that warned them, which 8 bemusedly repeats as a way of mocking them. 1 is not in the mood for 8's buffoonery and tells them to "subjugate" them, having to explain to 8 what the word means, 8 gladly takes all of their belongings away. However, before 1 could punish them further, the group is attacked by the first creation of the Machine, a Winged Beast, who immediately targets 1. 7 returns to the cathedral to try and help them fight it, with 8 actually complying with the others for the first time since his master is in danger. 8 ends up being the one who defeats the beast by taking the fight outside and using his weaponry to get it tangled up in an abandoned plane's propellers. However, the resulting explosion causes a fire that burns the cathedral down. Everyone manages to evacuate in time, but 1 is devastated by another one of his symbols of power being taken from him. In a rare act of mutual kindness for both of them, 8 places a comforting hand on 1's shoulder, which 1 fully accepts for once.

They end up settling for the library as their new shelter space, with 1 putting 8 on guard duty. 8 however uses the opportunity to be completely alone for once and decides to have some fun by holding a magnet he always carries against his noggin, leaving him in a state of ecstacy. This has the unfortunate side effect of not noticing the latest creation of the Machine approaching, with 8 falling victim to the Seamstress and getting stitched up into being unable to move and stored inside her tube body. 1 later on also gets stitched up the Seamstress during a ranting session, but 7 and 9 manage to interfere, but not without 7 getting captured instead. 1 wakes up a bit later, still in shock, his first concern is where 8 is. 9 fills him in about 7 and 8 being captured, with 1 at first being uncooperative in 9's plans for a rescue mission, remembering what happened "last time". However, 8 ended up being a bit too important for him to consider another loss, so he reluctantly joins 9 and the others on their way back to the factory.

With 9 insisting on going alone while the others prepare a trap for the Machine, 9 couldn't interfere with the Seamstress delivering 8 to the Machine, getting his soul sucked out too. When 1 sees 9 and 7 escaping the factory without 8, he intends to set off the trap with them still inside, shocking 5. However, 7 and 9 manage to escape in time and the trap sets off, seemingly killing the Machine.

Celebrating their victory, 5 then discovers that the Machine is almost completely unharmed and able to move outside the factory too. He immediately gets his soul sucked out when he warns the others, but they manage to escape to a bridge, intending to let the Machine fall to its doom. 6 however saw 5's soul inside the Machine, realizing that his soul, along with 2's and 8's must be trapped inside of it. When 6 gets his soul sucked out, 9 tells 1 and 7 about what 6 said, they can't destroy the Machine before getting the talisman back. 1 however has no reason to care anymore, he believes that the rest are truly gone for good and does not want to risk more deaths, which 7 agrees with.

9 then isolates himself from the group, but manages to find a message from the Scientist telling them that he and all of his friends are parts of his soul, showing him how to use the talisman correctly. 9 immediately interrupts 1's attack on the Machine, managing to get through to 7, but 1 is deadset on destroying the thing that claimed so many innocent lives. However, 9 manages to get through to him at the last minute, pulls the remaining ones aside to explain the use of the talisman and that he intends to sacrifice himself so another one of them could take the talisman while it's open and turn it against the Machine. Before he could do that, 1 sacrifices himself, allowing 9 to live to enact the rest of the plan. The claimed souls, including 1 and 8 are sucked out of the Machine, rendering it powerless.

9 then holds a funeral for the fallen, opening the talisman for one last time and allowing their souls to step out for one last goodbye. 1 and 8 had greatly humbled after their deaths, giving 9 and 7 warm smiles before passing on to the next life with the others, allowing for rain to pour on the dour, dry world.

Fanon
The relationship between 1 and 8 is often seen as one of the more underappreciated parts of the movie. Many love that they are depicted as genuinely affectionate and empathetic towards one another, despite their nastiness towards everyone else. Especially with how easy it would've been to just have them be horrible in general, their bond allows for a bit of humanity in a place where most wouldn't expect it.

Many headcanon that 8 sees 1 in a similar light as 5 sees 2, setting up a deliberate parallel and making a neat sidepiece to the headcanon that 1 and 2 are brothers. Unlike that relationship, shipping 1 with 8 is extremely rare, largely due 8's slavish devotion to 1 often being seen as him lacking mental maturity. The idea that 8 has a one-sided (pun not intended) crush on 1 does have its supporters, however.

Fandom

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