THWACK!

The hideous sound echoed around the room, making the hearts of the class rush suddenly. While the other students tried to put down the "hair-standing" feeling, it was known that the source of the horrible noise apparently was the effect of a grouchy, semi-angry teacher slamming a ruler into her desk. She rubbed her temples; as if she had something better to do than teach small, stubborn brats in an enclosed classroom.

"Class, I have an announcement." She said sternly, straightening her posture to enforce her "all-powerful" position. "Apparently, we have a new student that will be joining us this semester."

A familiar face in the crowd led out a big yawn. Yes, the familiar face was no other than the rambunctious Ben Tennyson, who appeared to be in a bored state. Tell me something I don't know, he thought drowsily. The educator calmly took no more than a small scroll of paper from her desk, examining it thoroughly with her beady eyes shifting from the top to the bottom.

"Ah, yes. Class, I would like to introduce you to our new addition, Ms. Jennifer Decada." She said monotonously, obviously thinking that this was a complete waste of time. At the exact same time, a young girl entered the classroom, stumbling on a crack in the floor. The whole class laughed as her books spilled across the checkered floor, with she picking them up hurriedly; her face flushing furiously. Ben raised an eyebrow at the class, feeling rather uncomfortable at the sight. Being a hero and all, seeing someone like her being laughed at made him feel at bit angry at the class.

"Ugh, would you guys quit it already!" he cried, not withstanding the building frustration within himself. It seemed as if they quieted down a bit, but there were still some who were laughing.

"Ah, yes Mr. Tennyson. Back to my announcement; would any of you care to show this young lady around the school campus?" inquired the teacher. None bothered to raise a hand.

"Then it is settled. Ms. Decada, you will have to explore the school yourself." She continued, looking stonily at the poor girl. "You will be seated at the back. Now, back to our lesson…"

Making her way towards her seat, a flash of sunlight bounced on her bracelet causing Ben's attention to shift. He analyzed her bracelet carefully; finding the design rather strange… it somehow resembled the Omnitrix in a more conventional way, causing his suspicions to rise. But then again, it was probably a new fashion statement. He took no further notice of it, but the design disturbed his thoughts occasionally. He spotted a nearby classmate of his trying to start a conversation with her.

"Hey! It's nice to meet you, Jen." He spoke casually, playfully leaning near her. He was apparently one of the more popular students, finding the girl a bit attractive. "I'm Brad. Care to come over for a party at my house this Saturday?"

Most of the students gasped at the boy's sudden statement. He wouldn't normally invite anyone to come over! Her first day of school, and she was already hated by one-half of the class. Yet, Jennifer's reaction was even more surprising. Looking away quickly, she hid behind her pile of books, not bothering to say even one word. He was left dumbfounded, deciding to never ask the girl for an invitation ever again.

DRIIIIIIINNG!!

The class sighed as they heard the recess bell. Finally, first period has ended! The class gathered into a frenzied mob as they stormed out the room, not bothering to hear the announcement about the lesson. Ben stretched his arms out and cried out in thanksgiving, finally glad to have a break. Yet, shortly before he left the room, another classmate of his approached him shortly

"Hey Ben, have you noticed something strange about the new girl?" he asked. Ben shrugged, hoping that it had nothing to do with Brad or her introduction.

"Dunno. What is it, anyway?" he asked dazedly. The boring lecture seemingly numbed down his reflexes.

"Have you noticed that she looks like you?" he said even more astonished. "I mean, from the hair to the face… and she also looks a bit fragile… also, she has such a weird bracelet!"

"Wait a sec… she looks like me?!"

"Yeah! Haven't you noticed? All you have to do is change your eye color to brown and you'd practically be twins!" At this point, he grabbed Ben's shoulder aggressively.

"You're crazy! Sure, she has a weird bracelet, but looking like me? No way!" he retorted, brushing off his friend's hand off his shoulder.

"Fine, think what you will, but I'm not the only one who noticed that. Almost all of the class thinks that you look like her."

"Who said so?"

Just then, the two of them spotted Jennifer walking across the hallway, head bowed down embarrassedly. A group of girls happened to pass by her, their eyes widening slightly.

"Hey, isn't that Tennyson? Wait, why's he in a blouse…"

Ben glared daggers at his friend who was at that point beaming an "I-told-you-so" grin.

"Okay, fine! We look the same! I get it!" he cried irritatedly.

"I'm glad that you've met my point."

Walking down the dense, crowded hallway was definitely no walk in the park. Sometimes it feels as if you had to use a manual on how to maneuver yourself around the noisy crowd that could probably stomp your toe with a strong foot or could push you on the floor any minute. It was also a known fact that you could possibly be lost in it, the chances being one in two. It would also be impossible to find someone you actually knew in the crowd, so that's why it was considered a miracle when Ben found his twin cousin Gwen in the crowd (who was apparently on the verge of strangling someone any minute). Leaving his friend, he went up to his cousin he most loathed/liked.

"You know, you owe me big time for this." She grumbled, taking a grudging look at the school. Ben led out a mischievous grin.

"Yeah, yeah… but then again, it gives me more time to bug you! Plus, it's not like I wanted you to transfer here." He replied, trying his best to sound innocent.

"Hey…" Gwen's face began to look blank as she spotted a figure walking along the hallway, her expression mildly shocked.

"Hello? Earth to Gwen?" said Ben, waving his hand uncontrollably in front of her face. Gwen snapped out of the trance, her face returning to its normality.

"That was weird." She stated suddenly.

"What was weird?" Ben asked curiously.

"I thought I saw you walking around in a blouse."

"AAARGH!" Ben suddenly cried out in exasperation covering his head briefly. "For the last time, that's not me! That's the new girl, Jennifer!"

"Jennifer, is it? Wow, now I have an excuse to bother you."

Ben glared. He had a feeling that she would never, ever let him forget this. His vengeful thoughts were drowned out by another flash of her bracelet.

Why did it seem so… odd?

Okay, I have decided to place the Author's notes at the bottom. I'll be typing them here when I have some important updates or announcements to place. Also, if there is a grammatical error in it, let me know. This is the same when there's something wrong with the plot, since I haven't been watching many Ben 10 episodes lately. :P

Keep in touch!

-Paite