Hi people, just a story that I came up with on a whim and decided to share with everybody. I don't own Fusion Fall or any of the characters, all that good stuff belongs to Cartoon Network. This story has some language and boys kissing up on each other, so if you get offended by either or both of those, then get off this website because there's shit like that everywhere. Seriously. Have a Happy New Year though :D
Yeah, I'm not good at these things so I'm just gonna shut up and let you read the story now. R&R if you want, and flames will be used to roast delicous marshmallows on :)
"Jingle bells! Jingle bells! Jingle aaalll the-" WHAM!
"Billy, would you just stop it with that stupid song? You've sung it a hundred times yesterday, killed it for the night, and then revived it to sing it all over again and make our ears bleed!" Mandy growled as she uncurled her fist which had been previously used to punch Billy. Billy gave her a comically hurt expression which made Ben chuckle as he watched them from his seat at the kitchen table.
"But Mandy, it's Christmas! Christmas songs should be sung on Christmas to spread cheer and love for baby Jesus!" Ben casually sipped his hot chocolate as he watched Mandy shoot back, "It's Christmas Eve, you dope, not actually Christmas, and you're making James Pierpont do barrel rolls in his grave with that voice of yours. Now go spread your holiday cheer somewhere else."
"Oookay, Mandy, but I think you should try being less of a Grinch and more of a nice person because you never know when Santy Clause is watching you!" Billy laughed and sprung out of the room to join the massive party on the other side, leaving Ben to smile at his retreating figure as Mandy snorted. "Like hell that'll ever happen. I'm not surprised he still believes in that Santa crap, but then again he has the brains of a boulder." Ben laughed at this before he said, "Ah, leave him be, Mandy. Everyone feels a spark of joy around Christmas- at least, Christians do."
"Christians do-with the exception of everyone else," Mandy replied as she took her cup of lukewarm hot chocolate and gave it a disdainful look before dumping it down the sink, which sat underneath a window that offered a terrific view of the snow covered landscape. Ben shrugged before he stood up and casually strolled out of the room to join the Christmas crowd.
What first met his ears were the holiday jingles basically blaring out of the stereo as he came out of the relatively quiet kitchen, and then he was enveloped by the drone of various conversations and laughter that the partygoers were having between one another. The entire front lobby was bedecked with enough Christmas decorations to make St. Nick shit himself, and the outside was no better.
At least the other rooms were saved from Bubble's and Deedee's decorating wrath, Ben thought to himself as he surveyed the joyous crowd before feeling a hand clap on his shoulder. He turned around to face a grinning Numbah Four who, humorously enough, had reindeer antlers on his head. "Aye, Ben, for a second I thought you'd died and gone somewhere else, you'd been sitting in that kitchen for so long!" Ben grinned back and said, "Compared to this, the kitchen is a graveyard!" "Well, with Mandy in there, I'm not surprised it is!"
They almost had to shout over the radio which had been belting out, 'Rocking around the Christmas Tree' along with other noisy obstacles such as a wily, shouting group of people who were attempting to form a Congo line to go around the large Christmas tree in the middle of the room. From the looks of it, one of them even had the classic lampshade on his head. Most likely Billy.
"Aye Ben, I was thinking about catching Kuki under the mistletoe. Whaddaya say about helping me find one of those stupid sprigs so I can wave it over her head?" With a laugh and a shake of his head, Ben replied, "You'll need to get Deedee for that. I'm not carrying any mistletoe on me right now." Numbah Four suddenly peered over Ben's shoulder with a look of pleasant surprise. "Speak of the devil, there's Kuki over there! An' she's got mistletoe in her hand! Just my luck! Seeya 'round, Ben!" And with a final clap on the shape shifter's arm, the Australian teen made his way over to the young Asian girl who was totally not looking in Numbah Four's direction and giggling excitedly.
Note the intense sarcasm, Ben thought, half smiling at the puppy love shared between the couple. Aw, puppy love- reminds me of the times I'd fallen victim to such a thing. 'Course, those are all in the past. I've no such desires anymore.
Walking around the room and making casual conversation with anonymous beings, it wasn't long before Ben noticed that Samurai Jack was nowhere to be found in the room. I wonder where he could be, the teen thought before his eye caught Dexter sitting beside and talking with Blossom on a loveseat. I'd ask Dexter, but I don't want to ruin the moment he's sharing with his number one love interest. Seems everyone has a love interest except for me.
Glancing around once more, he spotted the Scotsman laughing hard with Uncle Max on the other side of the room. The Scotsman would know where he was, Ben thought rather excitedly before catching himself. Wait, why the hell am I getting excited over the possibility of the Scotsman knowing Jack's whereabouts? Do I really want to see Jack that bad? Ben frowned a bit, but he couldn't deny the fact that he did indeed want to see Jack that bad. Not for any sort of reason he could decipher at the moment, though.
I just wanna know where he is that's all. And with that thought,Ben found that he had already made it halfway across the room towards the pair. He managed to hide himself from Princess's sight with the knowledge that she was armed with mistletoe and was prepared to use it mercilessly on Ben- an idea that did not appeal to the shape shifter at all.
He made his way through the rest of the crowd before he stumbled out in front of his Uncle Max and the Scotsman, who both stared at him with amusement. "Hey Ben, how're you liking the party?" Max chuckled at the teen. "Looks like someone pinned a Santa Claus hat on you." Ben lifted one eyebrow, slightly bewildered before he reached one hand up to his head and plucked off what was indeed a Santa Claus hat.
"Ha! Someone must've put it on me when I was heading towards you guys." Ben smiled then looked at the hat before shrugging and putting it back on. "Hey, do you know where Jack is?" He asked the Scotsman, who was holding a mug of ale in his hand. Have a cup of cheer, Ben thought automatically before mentally slapping himself. Damn holiday tunes. The Scotsman laughed. "He must've gone off an' hidden himself from the lot 'o us, laddie. D'ya think a man such as 'imself would be in a crowd with the likes o' us? He certainly ain't no partygoer, that's fer sure."
Heh, he's right- that's why Mandy's been hiding in the kitchen, she'd rather chop off one of her limbs than play Dirty Santa.
"So you don't know where he is, like at all?" The Scotsman grinned at Ben before he leaned in. "Ay'll give ya a hint, laddie- he's outside somewhere." Ben furrowed his eyebrows. "Why the heck is he out there? It's freezing!"
"That don't bother 'im a bit. He's dealt with much worse before, trust me on this." The Scotsman leaned back before he nodded at the teen and walked away, leaving Max to stare at Ben with something similar to confusion. "Why do you want to know where Jack is so much?" Ben cocked his head at his uncle's question before he responded with, "I just wanted to know if he was having a good time with the rest of and not stranded out in the snow where he is now." Max chuckled again. "Gosh Ben, he's not stranded- you're making him sound like a lost puppy. Go on then and find him, I won't bother you anymore."
"Aw c'mon, you never bother me," Ben said, grinning at his uncle before he walked off towards the front door of the lobby, intent on his destination. When he swung the door open, a cold wind blasted at him and nearly knocked him off his feet. Holy shit, it's cold out here! Ben wrapped his arms around himself and walked outside anyway. Clad in only a pair of jeans and a green sweater –courtesy of Gwen as an early Christmas present- Ben decided that he was just way too lazy to go and grab himself a coat.
He looked both ways out onto the snow covered street, searching for any traces of footprints but only with dim hope. They were most likely covered long ago by the snow blowing around. He caught sight of the woods on the edge of the city, barely decipherable among the dark horizon but that posed no problem to Ben. He knew those woods like he knew the back of his hand. After all, he had been chased and almost killed immeasurable times whilst going out on missions he had taken upon himself there.
He trotted through the snow and eventually got to the woods, where he then started up a jogging pace over the branches and dead leaves along with other forest debris that were hidden from the sky and therefore most of the snow. He paused for a moment, thinking to himself, If I were a hermit samurai, where would I hole myself up? Then an answer came to him, clear as day. The river, of course! No one likes to go near frozen water except to ice skate, and the river ice was too thin for that- the perfect place for a seclude.
He ran through the woods, icy wind whipping at his face and making his nose run, but Ben paid no heed. It wasn't long before he burst out into the clearing where the river was, his heart pounding beneath his chest. He caught his breath, gasping in the cold air and breathing it out in long bits of fog. Running had warmed him up pretty good, and though it was cold, Ben found that it wasn't unbearable.
Ben had only guessed this spot on a whim, he prayed to himself that Jack wasn't halfway across the continent, sitting somewhere in the twisted forest. Looking at the river which was covered by a thin sheet of ice, Ben bit his lip. Of course you wouldn't find him frolicking out somewhere in the snow, he thought as he began walking his way down the river.
He walked for a little ways, suddenly deciding that Jack was just nowhere to be found and thinking that maybe he should head back to the warmth and safety of Dexlabs when he suddenly heard a voice behind him.
"Ben?"
"Nnngh!" Ben almost sprang into the river from the sound that broke the silence surrounding the wooded area. Thankfully though, he caught himself in time and turned around to stand rigid at the samurai who stood in the darkness. He grinned sheepishly in an attempt to cover what he had almost done. "Hey Jack, party's at Dexlabs, not in the woods. I thought the invitation said that."
"It did," Jack said curtly, "But I would rather be out here instead. Nothing personal at all, I am just not a big fan of crowds." Ben shrugged at the statement. "I see where you're coming from," the teen said, rubbing the back of his head and looking anywhere but at the man he had formerly sought after. "Is that why you are out here too?" Jack questioned, stepping out of the shadow of the woods and into the moonlight, his breath a ghostly fog in the air.
Little bits of snow were in Jack's hair, making a sharp contrast against the jet black locks, and his skin was a little flushed from the cold wind. Ben thought this was adorable for some reason, and his mind was suddenly caught up in an image of Jack flopping over backwards on the ground and making snow angels, something that was so un Jack-like that it was rather hilarious.
Stifling his laughter, Ben searched for an answer. "Well no, actually, I was just wondering where the heck you were. A big, hairy bird told me that you would be out here."
"Ah, I see," Jack chuckled and then looked at Ben with a concerned expression. "Why are you not wearing a coat? It is very cold out here." Ben pointed out at him, "Hey, you're not wearing one either." Jack just gave him a look before he asked, "Where did you obtain such an unusual head covering?"
Ben blinked at him. "Oh, this hat? You've never heard of Santa Clause before?" "I've heard about him, yes- but I have never seen him before." Ben gawked at Jack for a second before he rapidly gathered his thoughts together. Calm down Ben, he's a foreigner, and this is his first Christmas. Everybody knows Santa Clause.
"I guess hearing about him is good enough," Ben said finally before he suddenly thought of something. "Hey Jack- have you ever had a snowball fight before?" Jack cocked his head to the side like a puppy- again, very adorable. "Why would you want to fight with balls made from snow? Such an idea seems rather pointless." Ben sighed heavily. "Because it's fun, Mr. Practical. C'mon, I'll show you how it's played."
Ben bent down and began scooping up a ball of snow, his hands becoming cold from the contact- but thankfully there was no more wind. He stood up and tossed the snowball up and down in the air while he smiled at the confused samurai. "What are you going to do with that?" Jack questioned innocently. Ben snickered. "Hit you with it, of course."
"Now why would you-" FWAP! Jack was caught off guard as the snowball whacked him square in the chest, and Ben turned from him to run the hell away, all the while laughing. God, I hope he doesn't take that the wrong way and try to kill me. He dived behind a bush and started making more snowballs. He forgot the last time he threw snowballs at anyone, but it had been a time way before the war started.
After gathering a considerable amount of snowballs, Ben looked out from his bush- not a Jack in sight. Maybe he just got mad and left me, he thought, suddenly becoming embarrassed from his previous actions toward the samurai. He stood up and started brushing the snow off his pants and then- WHAM! A snowball hit him on the back of his head, and the snow's cold sensation trickled down Ben's neck to seep into his sweater.
"Ack!" Ben exclaimed as he whipped around to see Jack about ten feet away, tossing a snowball up and down in the air in a fashion very similar to Ben's own snowball tossing, with a look of amusement on his face. Ben grinned at him. "Guess I deserved that." Ben suddenly swooped down to grab a snowball that he dropped, but when he looked up, Jack was gone. BAM! Another snowball hit him, but this time it was on his left arm.
Ben quickly searched the darkness and was rewarded with a flash of white. "Aha!" He threw the snowball towards the white flash and heard a satisfying WHAP that was definitely not a tree but a moving object since the target shouted. Ben smirked as he grabbed another snowball. The game was on.
Half an hour and tons of snowballs later, Ben leaned beside a tree to catch his breath. Jack had gotten him way more times than vice versa, and the majority of the snowballs had melted and seeped into his clothing. He shivered at the feeling of the wet clothing on his skin. He wanted to take off his shirt, but he had no idea what that would say to Jack. Maybe Ben just liked to get naked around him? Ben laughed out loud at the thought, but suddenly covered his mouth, scolding himself for giving away his position.
He barely managed to dodge a snowball that sailed past his head and onto the tree. Peering into the woods, he saw Jack step out into the clearing, his arms crossed and a grin on his face. "Are you ready to admit defeat, Ben?" Ben raised an eyebrow at him. "Admit defeat? HA! Let's see you catch me first!" He stuck his tongue out in a playful manner and then took off into the woods, darting and jumping every which way. He couldn't hear Jack behind him, but somehow he knew that the samurai was giving chase.
The teen leaped over a dead branch before he felt arms wrap around him in midair and pull him back against a firm chest. Ben gasped at this and struggled to escape, but Jack kept his grip on the shape shifter. Ben stopped struggling and his eyes widened as he felt the static closeness of Jack's lips against to his ear. "Got you," Jack whispered huskily, and all at once Ben felt himself go noodle-limp in the other man's grasp. His voice- oh my God he's so close I could just turn around and-
Butterflies had erupted in his stomach at the next thought that followed. He felt Jack stiffen at his sudden limpness and was suddenly turned around to face the other man. "Are you all right?" Jack asked, alarm apparent on his features. Ben managed to choke out a "Never better," but then Jack reached out unexpectedly and brushed back a lock of Ben's hair, which was damp from both sweat and snow. Ben froze at this, his eyes locked on Jack, waiting for the next move.
Jack's hand hovered on Ben's face as if unsure where to go, but then it moved down to gently cup Ben's chin. In the darkness Jack's eyes were black, pitch black and they shined with an emotion that made Ben's chest swell up with all sorts of feelings- feelings he never thought he had for the other man. They stared at each other for a few moments, and then Jack suddenly moved his hand away from Ben's face, embarrassment apparent on his features. Ben heard a rustle of leaves above them and broke eye contact to look up.
On the branch right above them was mistletoe- big, dark green mistletoe that swayed gently even though there was no breeze. Almost as if it had been trying to get their attention.
A force of nature wants us to kiss?
"Jack…have you ever heard of what the mistletoe is used for on Christmas?" He looked at Jack, who had followed Ben's gaze to the branch above. Jack looked down at him with a blank face and shook his head. "Well," Ben said, grinning slightly as he stepped closer to the other man, "you have to kiss someone when you're both under it."
Jack blinked once, twice; suddenly, he moved his face closer to Ben's. Ben closed his eyes without thinking and he felt the samurai's warm breath tickle his lips. Closer now, just an inch away-
And then Jack moved up and kissed Ben's forehead.
A huge wave of disappointment swept over the teen, and he opened his eyes to see Jack looking away from him into the trees with a stoic gaze. He smiled half-heartedly. "I think you missed," he said quietly without thinking, but he knew in their proximity that it would be impossible for Jack not to hear what he said. Jack turned slowly to look at him.
"You have yet to kiss me." his voice came out calm and smooth.
Ben seemed taken aback by this, but then he saw how serious Jack was about the whole thing. "We are supposed to kiss each other- I kissed you, now you must kiss me back." Silence hung thick in the air between them. Ben's knees started shaking and he was afraid that they would buckle out beneath him; but he composed himself and turned to lean toward the samurai with tight lips.
Ben closed his eyes and turned his face to where he would kiss Jack on the cheek, but then Jack moved and he found his lips brushing against the other man's instead. Ben froze in place, and the samurai took it upon himself to close the distance. They met in a sudden, passionate kiss, Jack wrapping his arms around the teen to press their bodies flush against one another.
"Mmph," Ben said in surprise, his exclamation muffled by the other man's mouth. His arms wrapped themselves around Jack's neck and brought them closer together still. When they finally broke away, they stared at each other for a moment in complete silence before Jack chuckled.
"You taste like cinnamon."
Ben grinned and replied with, "You taste like peppermint."
Jack stroked a hand across the teen's back before he leaned in and pressed his lips gently against the other's once more, pulling away slowly. "I'm glad you came to look for me," he said, winking at the shape shifter. Ben reached up and took the Santa hat off his head before he placed it on Jack's; he giggled at Jack's cutely baffled reaction to the hat.
"Ho ho ho- Merry Christmas, Jack."
Jack grinned at him and the mistletoe above them seemed to sway happily. "A very Merry Christmas indeed."
A Merry belated Christmas to 'yall and a Happy New Year! (I did most of this story overnight so now I'm exhausted lol)