Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Well, they were together again.

It had been 3 days since Ben Tennyson and Julie Yamamoto restarted their relationship on a serene 9th November night. Like with all romantic things, there was a spring in Julie's step. Ben finally started to look genuinely happy and starting to enjoy himself, turning into a little bit of the old Ben Tennyson (the good fun-loving bit). They had already shared breakfast everyday since then, because making up for about 4 years is apparently pretty hard.

Kevin was overjoyed, primarily because he now had some company. Ship was happy for Julie and ecstatic that Ben was a regular sight once again. Unfortunately for Julie though, her group of friends lost it once they heard of the happy reunion.

"OH MY GOD!" Clarissa squealed and effectively broke all the windows of the cafe the four of them were sitting in.

"I can't believe it! Jules, I'm so happy for you!" Iris said, pleasantly surprised as she held Julie's hand. 

"It's official: fairytales do exist," said Chloe.

Julie rolled her eyes, but failed not to smile. "Thanks guys."

"So, did he take you out yet?" 

"Guys, relax, it's only been 3 days," Julie replied.

"So?!"

"He still has his responsibilities fighting the bad guys, me coming back isn't changing who he is," she said. "Besides, I know Ben. I have a feeling he will start to feel overprotective, and I don't blame him for that."

"Hmm... that is true," Iris said. "But I'm very glad you guys could get back together. Doesn't happen all the time, and when it does, it's usually in some shitty romcoms."

Julie chuckled. "Yeah.." 

Her phone then buzzed. "Oh, could be him."

But when she opened the phone, it was an unpleasant surprise. It was a message from Herve. Seeing their friend's face fall, the 3 were a little worried. "Jules, what happened?"

"It's Herve."

"What?! Why would that dickhead text you?"

"It's another pathetic apology text," Julie said, barely suppressing a scoff. "Some boys are just idiotic."

"Has he been stalking you Jules?" Clarissa asked with an undertone of fury, ready to defend her friend should the need arise. If you know Clarissa well, let yourself be warned that the fangirling was meek in front of the overprotective woman who was all too ready to hit death machine mode for the sake of her friends.

"No.. not yet anyway," she shrugged. Another text popped up soon, making them groan. "Christ, what now?"

But this time, her heart skipped a beat when she saw who had texted her. Her friends caught the look, and a conspiratorial smile emerged on their faces. "Ooo, who is it now?"

Julie looked up unimpressed. "Funny guys. It's Ben," she added, letting herself entertain them anyway. 

"Oh my God, what did Hottie Superboy text you?"

Trying to convince herself that she shouldn't like that nickname, she said, "He's invited me to a date tomorrow," Julie said, trying not to sound too excited (even though she was). "But the location is a secret."

Fangirling was Clarissa's department, but Iris was suppressing the urge to yell in delight. "Oh my God, he has everything planned. You have such a romantic boyfriend!"     

Julie smiled to herself, simultaneously listening to her usually level-headed friend's words and daydreaming about how the date would be. Her friends giggled at her flustered look. But then her eyes lit up when a new text rolled in.

"Oooh, now what?" Chloe asked. Julie's eyes narrowed in confusion. "Just give me a minute."

Julie got up, feeling her friends intrigued, as she walked outside the restaurant. The message was from Ben, who read: You have a package outside your house.

But as she looked up nonchalantly, she lost her breath when she saw who was on the other side of the street. Ben Tennyson stood with his hands in his pockets, smiling widely as he looked at the dumbfounded look on his girlfriend's face, his fingers raised in the form of a small wave to her. Julie's expression turned into a grin and a shocked laugh as he walked over to the other side, before he opened his arms and pulled her in for a hug.

Julie put her arms around him, essentially colliding into him. Ben buried his face in her shoulder, and pressed a kiss to the temple, while secretly hoping that the paparazzi of Bellwood was on holiday. When Julie pulled back, she was beaming, and Ben wanted nothing else.

"I thought you were busy with that assignment-"

"I was," Ben said. "But I couldn't help crashing my girlfriend's friends meeting."

Julie blushed and giggled. "I'm not mad."

Ben smirked, as he asked, "Well, did you tell them?"

"Yeah, just now actually," Julie said. "They.. reacted the way you think they would."

Ben glanced at the glass walls of the restaurant in confusion. Julie could help but grin, simply because she knew what he was looking at. 

"There's no way. The glass is still intact," he said, which made Julie burst out laughing. "Who made this glass?"

"Yeah, I'm surprised myself."

"Well, let me try now," Ben said with a daring voice. Julie smirked. "You'll have to pay a fortune for those windows Mr. Tennyson. Are you sure?"

"More than sure Ms. Yamamoto," Ben said with a wink, pressing a kiss to her lips. When they strolled in, the thoughtful looks on Clarissa, Chloe and Iris's faces turned to shock and fangirling.

"OH. MY. GOD."

Chloe closed her mouth in shock and still yelled. "HOLY SHIT!"

Iris grinned widely. "Oh hell yeah."

"Ben Tennyson is here." Clarissa said in a hushed whisper. "Chloe, Ben Tennyson is here."

"I know darn it!" Chloe whispered back furiously.

"God, Julie, you never told me he was so ripped!" Clarissa greeted them with a mischievous smile, as if she didn't already know that.

"I agree Clary," Chloe replied with another evil yet good-natured smile. "Look at those muscles.."

Ben smirked at Julie's furious blush as he turned to face her. "I didn't know you told them everything."

"Shut up," she replied with mock sternness. Ben giggled at the look on her face, her smile widening as she tried to hold back the blush. It was not the first time he'd seen a scene like this play out in front of him, but he still couldn't help but enjoy every second of it.

"Relax guys, I'll settle them down," Iris said, playing peacemaker. 

Ben whispered in Julie's ear, "I didn't expect to be the center of attention," as Iris used her intelligence to control the fangirl reactions of her friends.

"Oh please, you love the attention," Julie said with narrowed eyes and yet more of that mock sternness. He could see the smile playing on her lips, and absolutely loved it. 

As they sat down, time passed as Julie's friends quizzed him on aliens, what his most dangerous mission was, how he met Julie, and of course, how many hours he spent in the gym. Julie was not surprised to hear the answer was 5. She'd seen him there - shirtless and absolutely grinding it out. As Clarissa just daydreamed about Ben in the gym, Chloe asked him the million dollar question.

"So, Ben.. where's the date happening?"

Ben raised an eyebrow playfully. "Nothing escapes the gossip girls, I see."

"Well, they would've found out anyway," Julie shrugged, though she was a little sorry - Ben would've wanted this to be between them. "Sorry they found out," she whispered when her friends were talking amongst themselves. 

"You don't have to be," Ben said. "Plus, you're not wrong. They have super senses."

But then Iris looked at the restaurant door, and a look of anger flashed on her face. "What is he doing here?!"

Ben and Julie looked straight ahead, and the same anger and disappointment was etched on their faces when they saw Herve enter the joint. Herve raised his hand to Julie, trying to not appear awkward. "Hey Julie! Long time no see!" 

Ben glared at him, who either pretended not to notice Ben, or just didn't as it is. He wasn't wearing a 10 jacket after all - he was in a dark blue overshirt and a light blue t-shirt. In recent times, Ben knew he couldn't just be wearing green and 10 all the damn time, so switching it up made sense. He'd got choked in the same black t-shirt and whatever disco retro stuff he wore after that for 2 years. He'd chucked that one out of existence, mainly because it now brought back unpleasant memories, and also because his green jacket was a thousand times better.

"What are you doing here?" Julie asked coldly. But before the Frenchman could reply, her friends stood up in defense. 

"Oh, look who's here! The ex-boyfriend, trying to swindle back the girl, huh?" Clarissa asked mockingly. Ben would've burst out laughing if that was on a phone call. Julie just grinned. 

"Don't worry Jules, we got your back. We'll make sure he knows his place," Chloe said. Herve started to shake, sensing he'd walked into hostile territory. But he had no idea just how hostile the place was until his eyes landed on Ben and widened with surprise. So he wasn't pretending, Ben thought with some surprise of his own.

"Ben? What are you doing here?" he asked, a repulsed look on his face.

Julie clenched her fists at Herve's attitude, but Ben simply huffed, amused and annoyed, and stood up, as she raised her eyebrows in surprise and yet amusement. Julie's friends looked with both surprise and smirks as they made way for him to stand face-to-face with the guy whom he previously respected but now would keep out with all his life.

"Well, hey photoman," Ben said. "Sorry, but uh.. we two have.. got back together," he grinned. Julie loved the joy and pride emanating from his voice. 

"Julie, you can't possibly considering getting back with this guy?" 

Julie's friends bristled with anger, but Julie herself signalled them to calm down. A mischievous smirk played on her lips, because she couldn't wait to see how Ben would respond to her ex-boyfriend's insult.

To everyone's surprise, including Julie's, Ben pulled out a pair of blue shades and put them on with a resigned smirk. He made Julie's breath catch in her throat and her friends swoon.

"Look champ," Ben started, "I don't think you quite understand. You don't have nearly the same chance of making an impression on Ms. Yamamoto over here like I do, knowing from experience. This is.." he turned to look at his grinning lover with a smirk, "nothing like you've ever experienced. Did I tell you how amazing it was, kissing her, walking hand-in-hand, and all this time I didn't even know you guys had broken up! I found out 3 days ago, and well... my bedroom became a lot less silent since then. So, I really don't see any reason why any of us would change that, even if you've broken up with your.. "cousin"."

Him calling her 'Ms. Yamamoto' was making him stutter, but the lines ahead made her friends swoon even more, almost unable to control their shrieks, and Julie was blushing like crazy. Herve attempted to save face, which was pretty much a haphazard last-minute plan which was gonna meet with a horrible demise, and had already been put on life support when Ben revealed he knew the details of his infidelity.

"Well, I didn't mean-"

Ben interrupted him. "You know Herve, with.. just one flick of this watch," Ben raised the Ultimatrix up, "I could.. turn into a towering monster.. a ghost who could freeze you to a very painless death, multiple aliens who could electrocute you, or even.. an alien who can actually do anything, like recreating the universe. I'd hate to do any of this, but I could be forced to. Julie calls the shots here, not me," he shrugged almost helplessly.

Now Herve was absolutely pale. Julie and her friends watched in shock and amusement at how dark Ben went. The French photographer's eyes widened, and he tried to stammer a reply, but he was too frightened, before he rushed out of the restaurant, terrified of what could happen if he stayed a second longer. Everyone burst out laughing as Ben huffed like it was another day in the office.

"Ben!" Julie laughed, "you scared him off so badly!"

"That was.. epic!" Clarissa yelled. "Well, he won't be bothering you anytime soon."

"A true superhero!"

Ben giggled, before playfully bowing as his girlfriend's friends clapped in response. Julie simply blushed and smiled, looking away.

--

The next day, Ben was at his house. He couldn't wait for his date.

"Hey Tennyson," Kevin strolled in with a smile. He remembered the first time Ben and Julie had been on a date. He had so much fun. In the years between, so much had ensued. Kevin was just grateful that somehow things had managed to come back to them being together. Seeing the enthusiasm on his best friend's face made his day.

"Hey Kev," he handclasped him. 

"Big day! Atleast you have a license this time," Kevin said. Ben laughed at the memory, almost sad that Kevin wasn't gonna drive them there. Almost.

"Yeah," Ben nodded. "God I can't believe this is actually happening."

"Me too," Kevin admitted, "but I'm so happy it is."

Ben beamed. "You missed us."

Kevin shrugged with a smirk. It wasn't a question. "Ya know it, Benny boy." Ben rolled his eyes with a smile. So often it was just comedy at their expense, but Ben could sense the loneliness Kevin felt sometimes, especially with Gwen gone.

"Where are you taking her though?" Kevin asked. Ben raised an eyebrow, a conspiratorial smile playing on his lips, and his grin widened as realisation hit the Osmosian combined with nostalgia. He exclaimed with shock and rightly guessed the place to which Ben was taking her.

"Mhm," Ben nodded, his grin retained. "I can't wait to see her reaction."

"Oh my God, Tennyson, you're officially a date master!" 

"Thank you Sir," Ben laughed. "Alright... um, what should I wear?"

"Just wear a shirt that threatens to burst with all those muscles," Kevin said with a mischievous smile. "As it is, I doubt you guys are gonna have your clothes on by the end of the night."

Ben bit his lower lip, trying to fight back a grin as he narrowed his eyes at Kevin's words, knowing there was nothing wrong with what he had said - which meant the situation was absolutely dire. As Kevin walked away with his smirk intact, Ben sighed and shook his head. He locked his door - he was beyond happy at the fact that Kevin hadn't broken it this time - then walked over to his wardrobe and looked at his shirts, scrutinizing them with the same laser eye focus with which Bruce Wayne looked at the Batsuit.

He pulled out a black tailored jacket, before his eyes landed on a white t-shirt. He smirked at the vision of taking off that jacket on his bed as she blushed, her hands moving through his waist as she pulled off the t-shirt. He snapped out of it soon, trying to tell himself to relax. And if this information was needed, he failed miserably. Telling his imagination to screw the half-hearted attempt and just resume, he finally pulled out a pair of black jeans. He didn't always wear black ones, but he could give it a shot.

Satisfied, Ben placed the apparel on the bed. His eyes then flashed to the Ultimatrix on his wrist. He sighed as he looked at it, silently hoping that it wouldn't interrupt this date. He had a lot to make up for, and he would be damned if what made him famous and a superhero would get in the middle of valuable time with the person who made him genuinely happy and safe.

--

Evening fell, and Julie grinned at the mirror. She giggled at how silly her smile felt. She was wearing blue denim jeans with a white dress with puffed sleeves - Ben found her unbelievably adorable in puffed sleeves, a little more so than her other attire, or lack of it - and smiled to herself. She had never expected this to happen when the year started; hell, she never expected this to ever happen. She shared Ben and Kevin's insightful feelings on this.

She picked up her phone, and there was a message:

Hey, I'll be there in 15 minutes.

This had come 10 minutes back. So he was gonna be here in 5 minutes. Her heart beat faster and faster, as she held the phone to her chest. But not much time passed before she heard a car pull near her house. She panicked, fixing her hair in the mirror quickly and ensuring she had her perfume on. She practically slammed the door open as she went outside, and her heart skipped a beat and then relaxed when she saw him leaning on the car door, perking up as he saw her. He gave her a gentle smile, and his breath caught when he saw her and took her in.

Julie was so glad that her blush wasn't noticeable.

Ben stood there, mesmerized as she walked up to him. She shyly waved at him, but the awe didn't leave his eyes. He walked up to her, still admiring her. To her, it wasn't something absolutely out of the world - but she was glad Ben felt that way.

"Wow.." he breathily said. "You really know what I love, don't you?"

Julie giggled. "I do." She pressed a gentle kiss to his lips, as he pulled her in gently to deepen it. They pulled back shortly though, because there was a date to get to. 

"So.. will you tell me now?" Julie asked, expectantly. Ben flashed her a naughty smile. 

"Get in the car, and I just might."

"You really have all this planned," Julie laughed. Ben smiled. 

"Well, it's.. not a normal date," he said, his hand reaching up to her hair. She could see the emotion under the playfulness; he never did expect to stand here with her, taking her to a date after their past had seemingly become just that - a simple phase that happened. 

"Ben.." she softly spoke, her hand reaching to his neck, "I really missed you."

His eyes softened, and his voice was heavy with emotion. "I missed you too," he said breathlessly. If she was standing further away she wouldn't have heard him. Their noses found themselves touching, as they took in his marine scent and her jasmine scent, before Ben gently pulled back and smiled just as tenderly.

Julie then walked over to her car door, before turning to Ben with a flirtatious smirk. "You're looking hotter than needed, Mr. Tennyson. We'll have to make sure no other girl hits on you."

He smirked and let out a gentle laugh, before he got into his own seat. 

"Oh, I was more concerned about the boys because.." he said, before he trailed off to let his eyes admire her, as her heartrate quickened when she realised she was under his gaze. The fact that it was darkening outside and the car's light wasn't on made it even more sensual. She laughed, before saying, "I'm sure you can handle me getting a little attention." 

"I hope so," Ben said with a pretend sigh, and they shared giggles before he started the car and drove off towards the mysteriou location - well, mysterious for her. Just a minute later though, Ben said, "Now, I can give you one hint."

"What's that?"

"We've been here before," he said. 

Hmm, what could it be? The lake with the fireflies? Nah, probably not. Mr. Smoothy's was out of the question, and the mall sounded too dull. Whatever this place was, and the way Ben said the hint with a husky voice, told her there was something significant about this, something that belonged between them alone - once a bittersweet memory that only one of them eventually truly cared for, but now a beautiful recollection which was about to be revisited.

As Ben drove, holding Julie's hand, with them talking about simple matters, Julie started to feel a sense of deja vu. The road she was on, the surroundings, all seemed familiar. She remembered being in a car with Ben beside her in this place, even though he was driving now, not in the backseat as before. 

"Ben?"

"Mhm?"

"I.. feel like we've been here before," she admitted. 

"Really?" Ben asked, a little intrigued, but mischievous inside. He knew Julie would start to unravel everything - this was step one. In their talking, she hadn't noticed the road until now, and Ben was happy at that. 

"Yeah.. you were not driving, but we were in a car, and..." she trailed off. She was really engrossed in this mystery now. Ben smirked to himself, before telling her, "I think that means you're starting to figure out where the date will be."

"Well, you could tell me now," she said.

"No, Ms. Yamamoto.. that would ruin the surprise," he winked, before he looked ahead. "Or maybe not."

He said that dramatically while slowing down the car, which made Julie look straight on the road where Ben was looking - and inside, she lost her mind. Her eyes widened, she managed to recollect everything in a flash and she turned to Ben, flabbergasted as he smiled at her expression. 

"Where are you taking her though?" Kevin asked. Ben raised an eyebrow, a conspiratorial smile playing on his lips, and his grin widened as realisation hit the Osmosian combined with nostalgia.

"No way, the pier!?"

"Mhm," Ben nodded, his grin retained. "I can't wait to see her reaction."

They had just reached a pier - the same pier where, more than 8 years ago, they had their first ever date. And her reaction was absolutely worth it.

Julie looked at him with surprise before seeing the pier sign. It was unchanged, expect for the fact that it was lit up, more people seemed to be there -  Ben's 'this place is packed on weekends' line hit her immediately - and overall it was brighter and yet, somehow the same. She got out of the car, with Ben following soon, as he looked at her, knowing memories were flooding back for both of them.

"It's the pier.."

Julie stood there, but was interrupted when Ben pressed a kiss to her cheek, hugging her from behind and resting his face, lit up with a boyish grin, on her shoulder. He looked up at the sign dreamily. 

"The very one," he replied. Julie turned to him, just as dreamy as he was. "You like it?"

"Oh my God, I love it Ben!" she exclaimed, rushing to capture his lips and loop her arms around his neck. Ben melted into it immediately, holding her waist before she pulled back. She was still overjoyed at the sight of the old place. She sighed. "You planned this too well."

Ben giggled. "Why thank you."

She held his hand, their fingers locked as they walked in. There were people around, some noise, but overall, it wasn't crowded or chaotic. People were simply having fun, and Ben and Julie stood there, all the memories flooding back. The pier was more than just a pier - it was a walk down memory lane. Ben saw the uncontrollable smile on her face, and prayed that they would never have to suffer the pain of separation again. She'd suffered enough, and Ben had realised that he had too. Seeing that tender look on her beautiful face was worth every physical pain he bore and every minute of his life that passed by.

"People are actually here this time," Julie noted. 

"That's fine.. even now," Ben started, before his voice dropped, "we have the place all to ourselves."

She looked at him with even more love and awe. Her heart swelled, and he smiled when he saw her realise the meaning of the words which she had said on that quiet night 8 years ago. He even said it in the same gentle, soft manner that she had. This guy remembered every little detail.

"You still remember?" she asked with a shaking voice. He smiled back, and kissed her temple, before looking at her fondly. "I do. You held my arm, just looked me in the eye... I wasn't gonna forget."

She kissed his cheek. "You're the best boyfriend ever."

"I've re-settled into the role for just 3 days now, and I'm already honoured," Ben said with a laugh which she shared. "So, shall we go crazy?"

Julie threw him a challenge as she laughed. "Bumper cars first!" 

Ben blushed as he giggled. Her enthusiasm was a fever.

--

In mild terms, they had a lot of fun. Ben lost a bumper car showdown after 10 minutes of intense action and frequent deadlock. Julie made fun of him as she celebrated, and Ben smiled while he shook his head. They walked out, as Ben stumbled a little. 

"You okay?" she said with a laugh.

"Yeah," he said quickly. He then turned to her, and ended up chuckling to himself, making her let one out as well. As they walked, they saw the cotton candy stall in front of them. The blue and pink flavours were still there. Ben signalled with his head, "Hey? You want one?"

Julie smiled at the arrival of another fond memory. "Hmm.. yeah. You?"

"I don't have cotton candy because it's not exactly healthy.. but I'll have it for once."

Ben bought 2 of them - one blue and one pink. As they ate it, Julie smiled expectantly, waiting for Ben to grin with blue teeth again. Ben caught the look on her face, and smiled knowingly.

"I'm not getting blue teeth again," he said defensively. Julie raised an eyebrow in challenge and shot a sexy smirk at him. Ben let his lips part and pursed the side of it with his tongue flirtatiously. He took a bite, and then chuckled at the situation. But then he turned to Julie, who had burst into laughter. With just that, Ben realised Julie had outsmarted him again.

He sighed and shook his head resignedly, before continuing to eat, unable to fight the smile on his face. This time, her laugh wasn't gentle and shy, but it was enthusiatic and joyous. He smiled gently at her, and she smiled back, lost in each other's gaze. She then laughed gently just like she had back then, before Ben could take no more and leaned in to capture her lips. 

The kiss was passionate, with Ben taking his time to taste her. They were in no hurry to pull back. When they eventually did, his hand was still on her cheek and her's was on his shoulder. Ben knew the toothbrush could wait. 

"Just like 8 years ago," he murmured with a smile.

"Yeah," she replied, just as breathless. 

--

They kept going around the pier, enjoying the rides - Ben was surprisingly not sick when he got out of the rollercoaster, even though he looked incredibly relieved - Julie must have had something to do with his health not getting compromised. They stopped at one of the stalls as they chatted lovingly. 

"Hey, what about getting that teddy bear?" she asked. She held his arm and stood close to him. Ben couldn't help but smile at how intimate it was. Sharing moments away from his heroic life as a normal person with someone like her - what more could he ask for? He smiled to himself at her touch, before her attention shifted from the light brown teddy bear in the stall to his eyes. 

"We'll have to check with Ship," he said with a teasing smile. "Will he be able to handle that big fellow?"

"Mm.. not sure," she said with just the exact tone of mischief that Ben carried. "You know what? We'll convince him." 

Ben, smirking at the parents-style conversation they were having, took up the challenge. Sure enough, his aim was precise as the balloon burst. Even the way he held the gun and aimed was attractive for Julie - it could've been because of the longing, or maybe just because Ben Tennyson effortlessly entered the category of a sexy boy - easily top 5 for the general public, and her unanimous No. 1. 

When he won the bear, he handed it to her and smiled at the childlike joy with which she clutched it close, before she pressed a kiss to his cheek. They walked along arm in arm, discussing a name for the teddy bear - Ben found Larry to be a good one, while Julie thought Snuggles fit the silly but cute category. He laughed at how funny the name was, before pressing a kiss to console her.

And then they stood in front of the same jet ride which Ship had taken over on their first 'first date'. 

"Oh God.. remember when Ship took over it?" he said.

"Yeah," she laughed. "God, that date was absolutely crazy."

But then they were interrupted by a familiar voice. 

"SHIP SHIP!"

They had expressions resembling a deer caught in the headlights when they recognised it. And when they regained their senses, Ben could only muster a single reply.

"Remind me to never say that again?"

They turned to their side, and to their surprise, Ship was sitting there, anxiety practically radiating itself from him. 

Chapter Text

"Ship, what's wrong?" Julie bent and asked, a little wary and cautious to ensure no other person at the pier saw a green and black dog-like alien and freaked out, called the authorities and then caused needless problems. Ben found a lonely corner in which they could talk.

"Ship Ship!" his voice was really terrified. Julie's eyes widened as she understood what he was saying, and she turned to Ben.

"Ben, Kevin's been captured," she said worriedly. "Apparently, some robots got him and took him to their master.. atleast that's what Ship can tell."

But then she noticed that the colour had drained out of Ben's face. His expression was one of half-suppressed shock. He then closed his eyes, and leaned on a railing, looking down while clenching his eyes further, before he unexpectedly hit the railing with an angry fist, making Julie stagger back in surprise. She saw as he rested his elbows on it as he covered his face with his hands. Clearly he was worried.

No.

He wasn't just worried about Kevin.

He was more worried that not only was his best friend in trouble, but the timing was the most horrible timing he could've imagined. His hero duties had rolled in yet again, and now in the middle of the one time he just wanted to kick them out the window. Memories of his and Julie's time being interrupted in similar ways now flooded his mind as he tried to calm down. But the sight of all this broke Julie's heart.

She realised what the true extent of his feelings was. He had never seemed so frustrated - and given the tumultous times he'd faced since January, that was saying something. His muscles tensed, his body language practically screamed depression, and all the joy and fun had evaporated in thin air.

"Ben?" she quietly spoke to break the silence, resting her hand on his shoulder. He looked up slightly, but then looked away. He was afraid yet again, the fear tinged with guilt - though he knew she would say it wasn't his fault that his best friend was in trouble. With a steadying breath, he steeled himself to face her, as if he needed courage to look at a person like her.

"Are you.." she asked without completing the question. Ben sighed, a broken look on his face. 

"This was supposed to be our time," Ben finally said in a low voice. "I've had more than 4 years of my shit to make up for, trying to repair what happened and just spend some time with you, but all that ever happens is this piece of shit coming in the middle of everything!" he yelled, startling her as he almost hit the watch against the railing, before realising it wasn't such a good idea. He instead leaned on the railing again. Julie, sensing the overflowing guilt, turned him gently towards her.

"Ben, it's not your fault," she said. Yep, he knew it, and he was grateful that she said it. "You are a superhero at the end of the day-"

"Superhero my ass," he interrupted in a low voice. "I was a teenager with a fancy toy and too much ego."

"Ben," she started sternly, not ready for his self-loathing just when she'd thought it was fading away, "Kevin's your best friend. I love you, and I know you love me, but you also have a responsibility to the innocent. You can't give up the universe for my sake-"

"I can," he said, with fiery determination and love. "At this point I'm more than willing to."

She understood the strength of the feeling behind his words, which made her heart melt, as she soothed his shoulders, pulling him close. He was still feeling hurt. Being in her arms was just the right cure. "Hey."

He turned to look at her. "Yeah?"

She raised a hand to his cheek, wiping away the hint of what would've been a tear rolling down his cheek. "It's okay Ben. Kevin needs you." Ben took in a shaky breath, looking away. He needed help, and he needed it now. Julie felt bad at the previous times their dates got interrupted because of Ben's hero life, but now, seeing just how broken and angry he was, it made her feel even worse.

"I don't.." he started shakily, before continuing in a trembling voice. "I don't want this to happen.. whether it's my fault or not, it makes me feel horrible. I just want you to be with me."

And now she had to fight back a tear. "I'm always here, Ben. Where am I going?" she replied, trying to comfort him by holding his hand, while Ship sat in the background. He looked at her lovingly and yet with remorse. He was getting sick of his hero life getting in the way when it came to her. Sensing that he was not feeling much better, she suggested, "What if I come along?"

Ben perked up, though with surprise and not exactly happiness, because this was an alien mission and to hell he would be damned if something happened to her. "Ship can come along with me. That way I'll be safer. Plus, you're there to protect me as well," she said, putting on a hopeful face.

"I don't want to drag you into all this," Ben said. "My alien life is the reason.. we.. if I just had a normal life without all these things, we would've never broken up, I would've never been such an asshole to you all these years... you have a life as well. I can't expect you to forget your life just because mine is full of space and alien threats."

The confession was painful, and yes it was heartbreaking. Now Julie's heart was absolutely shattered. She enveloped Ben in a hug, holding him close until she could sense he was feeling better. And Ben had melted into the hug the moment she did it, resting his head on her shoulder, seeking comfort in her arms and trying to relax. "I'm sorry.." 

"Don't be, Ben," she said warmly. "I'll come with you and we'll help Kevin. It's gonna be okay."

Ben pulled back, and to her enormous joy and relief, a smile appeared on his face. It still managed to make her heart skip a beat. He shook his head, still in awe of the girl who had always loved him. "What am I going to do without you?"

"Exactly why you'll never be without me," she said, holding his hand and pressing a kiss to his lips. "Now, how do we find him?"

"Tracking down the signal of his Plumber Badge seems like a great idea," Ben said. "But I think Ship could tell us what happened when Kevin got captured."

From the Mechamorph pet, the couple gathered that Kevin was out on a drive when he encountered the Techadon robots. He had sent a distress call on Julie's Plumber Badge, and Ship was in the room where her badge was kept, when Kevin's signal popped up. Ship got the hint, letting Kevin know that backup was coming even though the message got cut off, rushed to the pier while tracking Ben's Ultimatrix like how he'd tracked the old Omnitrix during the previous version of his and Julie's first date, and now there he was.

"Okay.. we'll need the jet for this," Ben concluded. "We'll track down his signal from there. That way it will be much easier."

"Okay, we have no time to lose," Julie said.

"That we don't," Ben admitted. "Come along Ship."

--

When he opened his eyes, Kevin was in a cell. Bars of steel stopped him from going outside. It was cold, hard rocky ground on which he was lying. As he shook his head to shake off the haziness, he looked around and saw purple walls of rock around him. 

Ugh.. great, he muttered. Where he was?

"Ah, Kevin, old friend!" He heard a shrill voice next to him say. He turned around, and immediately, his condition went from bad to worse. He groaned and slapped his hands on his face at the sight of the person locked in the cage next to his. At that moment he wished for release into space, a shitty rom-com, a melodramatic film, or even an opera performance - hell, even all at the same time. 

"ARGIT?!"

"Nice to meet you too," Argit said, clearly trying to ignore the look of exasperation on the Osmosian's face. "We seem to have fallen upon tough times."

"It wasn't before I saw your face," Kevin said. Miffed, Argit glared at him, before saying, "Is that a way to treat your old pal?"

"Shut up. What is this place?" 

"Well, Vulcanus established a base on this planet. He made these underground floors of sorts. The first one has weapons and ammunition."

"And the second one has prisoners," Kevin concluded. "In other words, us." 

"Precisely," came the reply. Kevin sighed. "Now how the hell do we get out of here?" he wondered.

"I have a plan," Argit perked up. "We can-"

"No."

It was honestly not a surprise that Kevin didn't want to hear a word from Argit, knowing the porcupine alien had some sneaky motives behind it.

"Oh, come on Kev, we need to get out of here-"

"Ya think I'm relying on your plans to get out of here? 10 years ago it would've worked. Unfortunately for you, we're in the present."

Argit just smacked his head for ideas, knowing Kevin was unrelenting. 

"God, I hope that signal reached Ben and Julie," he muttered to himself.

--

In the Rustbucket III, Ben, Julie and Ship stood in the middle with the jet on autopilot with the coordinates of Kevin's location locked.

"Who do you think got him?" she asked.

Ben sighed. "Vulkanus."

Julie tried to quickly forage through her memory as to who Vulkanus was, and good for her, she remembered rather quickly. "The baby with the big armour?"

Ben laughed at the description, a laugh which Julie shared. "Yeah. He made a deal with the Techadon robots. Remember the guy who captured me while we were playing tennis, and then Gwen and Kevin got my powers?"

Julie giggled. "Oh God, don't remind me. Kevin driving a car is terrifying enough, God help me if he ever turns into Wildmutt again while doing it." Ben couldn't help but shake his head, somehow holding back another burst of laughter. 

"So they create robots, lots of them, all designed to take me down because I'm still apparently in high demand in atleast one place," he shot a wink at her, and she blushed, knowing very well the turmoil and grief that would befall the other place once they found out that Ben Tennyson had been rendered out of reach permanently, "but I can't believe that Vulkanus managed to make a deal with them. He's definitely become rich. There's literally no chance two groups like these would be together if not for the money."

"How long has this been going on?" Julie asked.

"I found out about this in June from.. that arms dealer who I.. dropped off that cliff," he said, his words breaking at the end as he winced at the recollection of his Batman moment. Julie was a little taken aback, but both regained their composure soon enough. "They were trying to smuggle weapons on Humungousaur's planet.."

"Ya, I remember you telling me that," she said. 

"I don't know what this has to do with Kevin," he said honestly, "hopefully he didn't do something stupid."

Sensing his discomfort, Julie placed a reassuring hand on Ben's shoulder. "He'll be fine. Don't worry about him."

He gave her a soft smile as thanks, before the jet signalled that their destination was close. Their eyes were focused on the sight outside the window, and it was one Ben realised he could recognise.

"I've been here before," Ben said. "Vulkanus has a base here, apparently. We'd gone there once when I turned into Rath for the first time. There's a cave on this place - that's where you find him and his minions. Well, I'm assuming it's robots now."

"Where do you think they're holding him?"

"It could be in the cave, but I should scan the place. Maybe he's holding him somewhere else. The cave would seem too obvious." 

Ben lowered the jet far enough from Vulcanus's base to remain undetected. Once they landed, the ramp opened, and they walked down, Ship loyally following Julie. The silence was mesmerizing yet deafening; Julie had forgotten what it was like to visit an alien planet. Sure, she'd been to the Null Void to save Ben from an unusually sadistic Albedo, but that was not exactly outer space per se the way this was.

"Okay, apparently Vulkanus made some changes to the overall surface structure of the planet," Ben spoke, using a device to analyse the planet's external features. "He has a tunnel built. That tunnel leads to two floors, with metal bars on each. They could be cages, designed to hold prisoners, or even store weapons for all I know, functioning as both a prison and cache. We'll have to be careful though. He and the robots would obviously be on rounds, and they'll be able to understand if there are intruders."

"Does Nanomech sound like a good idea?"

"Perfect, actually," Ben said. They walked on for a while, wary of any hidden surprises - thankfully, there were none. Vulcanus had apparently not bothered to fortify the rest of the rocky world, and Ben and Julie weren't complaining. 

"We shouldn't be too far now," he said. And sure enough, they found a small slope, walked down and when they found themselves at the base, they found a wall which they understood was the back of prison and weapons storage. There was a small gap just above their heads.

"Guess I won't need Nanomech," Ben shrugged. "We can get in through there." 

With one smack of the Ultimatrix dial, Ben turned into Four Arms. The iconic Tetramand got Julie up on her shoulders, and stood firmly as she got a grip. As she did, she saw Kevin just below, sitting quietly and unaware of the rescue mission. 

"Kevin!" she whispered. Perplexed at the mention of his name, Kevin jerked up and looked around, before his eyes fell on the frankly unexpected sight of his best friend's love sitting on the seating space the gap had.

"Julie!"

"Ben's just down there. Hold on, we're getting you out."

Once she signalled to Ben that she was home safe, he stepped back and took a jump, and found himself holding the gap the wall had, small but enough to fit a 21-year old human being as he reverted to human once he got hold of the wall. He climbed up, and waved at the sight of his almost bewildered but incredibly relieved buddy.

"Hey Kev," Ben said in a slightly strained voice, before he managed to adjust himself. The two of them quietly managed to land on their feet.

"Boy, it's so good to see you guys here."

"What happened with Vulcanus?" Julie asked.

"Please don't tell me you bought something," Ben pleaded.

"No, of course not," Kevin said. "He's got revenge on his mind from everytime I managed to make a fool out of him. Considering he knows me well from when I used to be involved in all this alien smuggler business once, and that literally no one wants to piss off Ben Tennyson anymore," that one made Ben's eyebrows raise in amusement, "he got me here."

"Well, we have to get you out of here-"

"Ah, Ben Tennyson!" Kevin groaned at the interruption, and Ben turned to the cell beside, and immediately groaned as well. "Argit," he murmured.

"Nice to see you again, I.. who's this girl? Where's your girlfriend?"

Julie's bile rose at the off-handed remark. But Ben stood confidently. "She's with me," he said as a matter of fact.

"No, that other girl with the-"

"My girlfriend is with me," he repeated, emphasizing every word. Julie smiled at his protectiveness and his confidence, feeling proud that he was her boyfriend. Kevin looked on, just as proud. "Right here, and she's more than capable of shutting you up."

Getting the hint, Argit then shakily moved on to what he was planning to say. "So, uh.. what I was saying, is.. could you help me get out of here?"

Ben raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. But he pretended to consider. "Hmm.. tell you what? If I help you get out of there," he said, but with a voice that made Kevin and Julie understand that Ben wasn't being serious, "will you let me kill you?"

The remark was so cold, so unexpected and yet Kevin ended up laughing with shock. Ben shot Argit a questioning look, mockingly asking him to consider. The porcupine alien shuddered, and stammered. "Um.. c'mon now, I'm being nice to you-"

"So the answer's no. Got it," Ben said, effectively switching on ignorance mode. He turned his back to the smuggler, knowing very well that he would need their help to get out. Even Argit wasn't foolish enough to let his ego get in the way and attack them with his quills instead of letting them find him a route to freedom. 

"What about the Techadons?" Ben asked when he faced Kevin.

"He's clearly spent a hell lotta money," Kevin admitted. "He's got robots doing all his work, coming from mining on other closeby planets, guarding the place - there are Techadons everywhere in his area."

"Did you see any of the red workers he used to have?"

"Nope," Kevin shrugged. "Not a single one."

"Alright, we just have to-"

The sound of footsteps from above interrupted Ben's words. "Oh shit, it's them."

"We have to hide, quick," Julie said. 

"Kevin, we need some help. Get me on your shoulders, I'll get up there."

Doing as he was told, the Osmosian lifted Ben to the gap, where he quickly grabbed Julie's arm and pulled her up. Granted, there wasn't much room for sitting for two people, but if you think Ben and Julie would object to this instead of sensing heat on their cheeks and feeling nervous, you're out of your mind. They quickly got down back to the slope side, when Ben turned into Nanomech. 

The insectoid alien flew up, quietly seeing the scene. 4 Techadon robots were there, and so was Vulcanus.

"Well Kevin 11," Vulcanus bellowed. "I'm gonna enjoy settling this score."

"And how do you plan to do that, babyhead?" Kevin asked defiantly. 

"Take them," he commanded. The robots opened the doors and took out Kevin and Argit. 

"Hey, c'mon, big fella, we have a great history. We can negotiate, surely?"

"Shut up you filthy imbecile!" Vulcanus yelled. He walked ahead, with the robots taking along the prisoners. 

"I share that," Kevin said out loud so Vulcanus could hear him. Not that he cared, and not that Vulcanus gave him a response. Ben, watching the whole scene, flew down and reverted back to human. 

"They're taking Kevin and Argit back up," Ben said. 

"What does Vulcanus mean by settling this score?"

"Kevin wasn't exactly clean back in the day," Ben shrugged. "Pretty sure Vulcanus holds a grudge. No wonder Argit's there as well. This has to do with arms dealer business. Whatever it may be though, we need to get there quickly."

Chapter Text

Once on the surface, the Techadons restraining Kevin and Argit continued to follow Vulkanus. As they walked on, Ben and Julie rushed up the slope, before embarking on silent pursuit. It felt like the good old days. 

As they reached nearer and nearer, and reached the point of tip-toeing, they found a perfect vantage point to remain undetected and see what was going on. And they could see it - the open area with the cave, Techadons on guard, before they noticed their master coming in with their friend, the two guards, and that two-legged piece of filth, and stood tall in respect.

"He's got quite the force," Ben remarked.

"How do we get past them to save Kevin?" Julie asked.

"Pretty simple.. we don't."

"What?"

"They have that place surrounded. There's no way we can simply sneak Kev out of there. It's gonna be fireworks today. Welcome back Julie."

"My pleasure," she remarked with a smirk.

--

In front of the cave opening, Vulkanus stood with the guards restraining his two prisoners. "Now, unless you have something valuable to say.. or give, for that matter, you might as well savour your last moments."

"Look, Vulky, I know we had our rough spots but you don't kill people like this man!"

Kevin had a point. If anything, Vulkanus had been comic relief. "I'm no longer that joke you and your friends thought I was. You are no Ben Tennyson."

"Vulky my friend-"

Argit was promptly shut up with a bang on the shoulders from one of the guards at Vulkanus's silent order. Kevin snickered, but then the mood became serious again as the guard restraining him pushed him ahead. Vulkanus was heading inside the cave. As Ben and Julie watched, they caught the sight of a massive gun in his hands as he marched outside the cave.

"Level 10 weapons, and I must say, very destructive. It will only take half it's power to turn you two to ashes. And this is just one," he continued, "I have a storage of weapons from Level 8 to 10 in this cave, and that tunnel where I held you. And this is my prize weapon, the one I can conquer worlds with. So, say goodbye-"

He was interrupted when a massive object hit the ground, destroying 5 Techadon robots and creating a cloud of smoke. As the other robots jerked back, and Vulkanus tried to see what the source of the commotion was, the smoke cleared, and two figures stood there. One was Julie in her battle armour, and the other, who brought horror to Vulkanus, was Ben in the form of Humungousaur. The monstrous dinosauroid alien stared into the eyes of the arms dealer, whose hands started to shake. If he was a human, he would've already sweated 2 buckets.

"Long time no see Vulkanus," Humungousaur said with a smirk. 

Taking advantage, Kevin slid under the robot and absorbed his metal, dodging a fist and creating a flail to damage it's head. Argit scampered past the cave for dear life and cover, as Humungousaur stormed the place, swatting aside Techadon robots. He held up his arm to block their blast and laser attacks, while Julie showed amazing skill. Using her battle armour's strength, she managed to take down the robots as if she'd been doing this for ages. Ben looked at her, awed by her amazing ability. 

"Someone taught her well!" Kevin called out, as he damaged another robot and ran up to Ben. "Did you see the gun?"

"I did. Are there more in the cave?"

"Yeah. Level 8, 9 and 10. I don't know what-" Kevin paused to take down another guard as Humungousaur used the interruption to hold two robots by the head and batter them into each other before throwing them away, "I don't know what he has planned. But it doesn't sound good."

The three continued to wreck havoc. Vulkanus meanwhile tried to fire his gun at Humungousaur, but the dinosauroid alien dodged the blast, and threw a broken robot at the armoured villain to knock him off his feet. Julie and Kevin managed to take down the rest of them without hitches.

Vulkanus stood up, the gun in his hands. But Humungousaur knew very well that while that gun could cause serious damage even to him, he had a perfect equalizer.

"Well Vulkanus.. hate to end it here." Saying that, he hit the dial on his chest, as his colours changed - brown was covered in green, spikes were formed on his chest, and the tail was modified to one with a spike. Looking up with a cold glare at Vulkanus, who was now positively frightened, he yelled, "Ultimate Humungousaur!"

Without hesitation, the evolved Vaxausaurian fired rockets at Vulkanus, who fled for his life. Argit, still behind the cave, saw the sight and rushed to a better spot away from the cave, not far from where Ben and Julie were originally hiding. 

"Guys, you might wanna make some distance!" He called out to Julie and Kevin, who rushed back before the rockets then found their way to the cave, as the weapons exploded. He knew Gwen wasn't there to create a manna shield. The cave erupted and a tower of smoke was created in the sky, fire at the base of the now-destroyed weapons cache. Vulkanus looked in abject horror. And Argit, who was planning to atleast try and sneak out one of the weapons, was just as dismayed.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!" He yelled, but he was soon silent. Ultimate Humungousaur had walked up to him, and now grabbed him by the throat. Vulkanus's grip on the monstrous alien's hand was nothing. With a smirk, Ultimate Humungousaur said, "Looks like the Techadons weren't good enough Vulkanus." 

He crushed the armour by the sides, until it was crunched and positively wrecked like a cold drink can. He yanked out Vulkanus's actual body and tossed it away. He flung away the trashed armour. 

Meanwhile, Argit was watching the whole scene. With the weapons destroyed, all he could think of sneaking out in silence, hoping no one would notice. However, as he was trying to get past them, a hand grabbed him up by his quill hair. 

"And where do you think you are going?" Julie asked sternly. Argit groaned at this, quite frankly, unsurprising failure. Ultimate Humungousaur then walked up to him, and created nightmares in the sneaky porcupine-like alien's head by glaring at him with an angry expression. He did a head tilt, which confused Argit, until he realised it was a cue for Julie to knock him out with a fist to the face.

"I've called the Plumbers," Kevin said as he joined them. "They'll take him and Argit."

A bright green light engulfed Ben as he reverted to himself and Ship turned back to his original self. He and Kevin turned to Julie.

"You were amazing," Ben said proudly.

"It's as if she's trained for this," Kevin said. "You got yourself a keeper and a badass, Benny boy."

"Don't call me Benny boy," Ben said in irritation. He groaned and rolled his eyes. Julie just giggled at the embarassment Kevin dealt her boyfriend - just like the old times.

The Plumbers were soon on the spot, dragging away the armour-less Vulkanus and the still unconscious Argit. The trio then walked back to the jet, with Ship in Julie's arms. And there, Kevin saw it.

Genuine happiness, warmth, safety and a sense of relief. All of this was in Ben's eyes as he laughed and talked with Julie. It had been more than 4 years since he'd seen this - them together, smiling and hand-in-hand. But now, it was even better than the first phase of their relationship, because Ben now truly treasured and guarded his love for her. In the first phase, it ended up fading as Ben's fame rose - exactly why it's the first phase. With Kai, or anyone else, it never quite felt right. 

There wasn't that same intimacy, that same gentleness in the air, and neither was there a moment of peace. With others, it was just another one of Ben's chaotic alien adventures. But with Julie, time slowed down for the better. With her, he wasn't - atleast not nowadays - Ben 10, saviour of the universe and world-famous hero. With her, he was Benjamin Kirby Tennyson - loving and caring, sweet and goofy, broken and hurting, yet hopeful and protective. He was broken and hurting, but she was always healing him with every word, laugh and touch.

As they reached the ramp of the jet, Kevin, clearly tired after his bumpy night, called out to them, "Yo guys, what're you gonna do now?"

"Hmm... we had a date," Ben grinned as he looked at Julie, who shared said grin.

"Ugh.. I'm not driving back home," Kevin said. He wasn't irritated at them of course - God ever forbid that. He simply didn't know what he was going to do once he reached home. Sleep, sure, but he was feeling rather bored than sleepy.

"Well, you can come along with us," Julie suggested. And Ben knew he wasn't the only one Julie could lighten up, when Kevin perked up, gave them a tired but gentle smile, and replied, "Not a bad idea."