Lessons

Disclaimer: I do not own Ben 10.

A/N: Taking a small break from Reminder to just dish out some fluff, and what better place to start than during 'My big fat alien wedding'? Yes, I know they're related. Sod it. Tension was too real. Inspired by the works of 'Cheza-Belle', on deviantart. Enjoy!

Ben didn't like following Gwen's lead on much of anything. They just didn't mix. She resented his laid-back attitude towards life and his ability to actually have fun, and he disliked her for, well… she reminded him of all the things he wanted to be, but never seemed to be capable of being. She was smart, he was not. She was strong, he was not. She was fierce, something he could only try to be.

And she was boring as hell most of the time. He wasn't jealous of that trait, but it did make it harder to get along with her, even if he did care about her. He could admit that much to himself, and part of him knew she did too.

Ben trusted her 'to kick alien butt', as she put it, and he also, strangely, trusted her with his life without a second thought. And she'd trusted him with hers. Where it mattered, she had been there for him again and again, and he for her. Which was probably why he found trusting her with something as insignificant as dancing difficult; Gwen stood by him when it mattered. When it didn't, what was to stop her from putting him on his back and kicking him? Kicking each other had become second nature to them after all.

But, sometimes, he took a leap of faith. And, sometimes, listening to Gwen absolutely rocked.

Feeling a grin fight it's way onto his face, he released a tense breath. "Hey, I'm dancing!" He exclaimed joyfully. And wasn't that a surprise, most of all to him. He looked at Gwen and found her smiling back at him, no tricks, no cutting remarks. Perhaps a little bit of smugness. Mostly, she just seemed proud. "What else is there to this?" He asked, eager. Gwen snickered at him, but there was no malice in it.

"Now you want to learn, don't you?" She teased, eyes twinkling with mirth as they slowly circled the room in their dance. He barely had to pay attention to his feet now.

Ben flushed with embarrassment and brushed off her comment. "Yeah, yeah, I'm a regular teacher's pet now. So what else is there?"

Gwen smirked, a coy expression on her face. "Seeing as I'm the teacher, that would make you my pet. I should get you a leash." Ben glared at her and flexed the fingers on her side to let her know that he could darn well turn this into a tickle fight. Gwen realized and backtracked quickly. "Well, there's twirls, we can try-" She was cut off when Ben raised his arm, challenging her to think fast. And of course she did, because she was Gwen and getting one up on her was harder than knocking Vilgax's teeth out.

She followed the motion with ease, twirling beneath his hand with a grace that he had always envied. Not now though; now he just admired it. Spinning outward, he extended his arms as he'd seen people do on TV and she did the same, lowering herself into a curtsy before spinning back into his reach, where he caught her, acutely aware of his hand on her side now that he placed it there himself, rather than her doing it for him.

He smirked in her face, enjoying her surprised expression. "Got it. What's next?"

Gwen's answering smirk matched his. "Well, if you think these twigs can handle me, we could try a dip."

"Not sure if you're calling me weak, or yourself fat." Ben wondered as they started waltzing again. Gwen swatted his shoulder in response and he snickered when she rolled her eyes.

"You are so insufferable, why am I even helping you? I should just let you mess up." Gwen wondered right back at him, not missing a beat when Ben lowered her into a dip. He grinned down at her, having little problem keeping her light frame aloft.

"Because you love your dear cousin?" He suggested, to which Gwen groaned.

"Please just drop me so I can hit my head and forget you ever said that."

"You're the boss."

Ben moved his supporting hand away, but Gwen was always faster than he was, so she raised both her arms and wrapped them around his neck, pulling him down with her. The resulting fall knocked the wind out of him. Pushing himself up with a pained groan, he glared down at Gwen.

Who still had her arms wrapped around his neck. And was close enough that the tips of their noses were touching.

Any words he had been about to say died in his throat. They regarded each other for a split second, a second that felt like an hour. He saw Gwen tilt her head in slow-motion and knew that he mirrored the motion, feeling his eyelids drop.

"Hey! Stop the roughhousing already!" Max's voice cut through the moment, causing them to jump apart, beet red. "How many times have I told you? If you have to fight, use your words. Save the aggression for the aliens." Max scolded patiently, if a bit irate. They uttered an apology. Max regarded them, exasperated. before shaking his head and turning around, moving to the kitchen in the front, leaving them alone again.

Gwen took a steadying breath. That was all sorts of weird. She concluded from the mess that were her emotions right now. She shuddered. Read one too many trashy romance novel.

She looked at Ben, and the poor boy looked even more out of his depth than she felt. Which shouldn't be a surprise; give Ben a chance to save the world and he would leap in without hesitation, and succeed while at it. But something normal? That left him dumbfounded. As if nearly smooching your cousin is normal, a voice in the back of her head griped at her. She shoved it to the back of her mind with vigor.

"That was, uhm, lucky." Ben remarked, scratching the back of his neck. She could agree on that count, but a change of subject was need. Quickly.

"You did good. I didn't know you could listen." She praised with a quirky smile before averting her eyes. Her effort had the desired effect.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Ben grin. "What can I say? I'm just that awesome." His grin turned into a shy smile, which made her feel comfortable enough to look at him straight again. He continued, almost mumbling the rest. "And I had a pretty good teacher. I didn't know you could teach at all."

Gwen smirked at him, putting one hand on her hip and raising the other to knock on his forehead twice. "I can get anything through that thick skull of yours if you take the time to listen and think, for a change." She teased. Before she could retrieve her hand, Ben caught it in his larger hand. Funny, how he was an inch shorter but still had slightly larger hands.

"Have you got a anymore lessons for me, then?" Ben asked, still shy. But curious. Open, in a way she hadn't seen often. Gwen smiled back, breaking her hand free to ruffle his hair.

"Yeah, I can think of a thing or two."

A/N: I just needed to get some fluff out. I love Reminder, but it can get a little heavy. Hope you enjoyed.