My Lovely Family
Chapter 6 - Cassandra
Frank took Natalie and her sister back home. They gossiped about the party all the way home.
"Did you see how Ben was tacky?" Natalie asked.
"Yes. Where in the world people wear a black suit with a green tie?" her sister replied. "He looked like he was at the circus."
"Well, it was expected…" Natalie said, "Did you take a look at his parents?"
"I could see very well that they are ragtag, no class whatsoever. Especially his mother, that old-fashioned tasteless lady."
"Didn't it look like she was dressed like an old woman going to the bingo?" Natalie asked.
"For me, it looked like she was trying to reel in some old rich man at the bingo." her sister answered.
The two sisters laughed a lot as they made fun of Ben and his parents. They fiercely criticized Gwen's choice of husband but covered the girl with praises about her dress.
Frank didn't like his wife and sister-in-law bad-mouthing his nephew. Mostly because they judged his brother Carl and Carl's wife Sandra to be lower-class people.
After leaving Natalie's sister at her home, Frank drove back to his home and tried to talk to his wife about her attitude. But she didn't admit her mistakes, and said, "I'll do everything I can to separate that wretched bum from my daughter. And I will do that before they have any children."
(Opening theme)
Ben and Gwen had a great honeymoon. They started in Monaco but later visited several countries. When they returned to the United States, they received great news from Grandpa Max: The Plumbers had built a headquarters for them in Keystone, South Dakota (home to Mount Rushmore, the Plumbers' main headquarters).
There was only one problem: South Dakota not only prohibited cousin marriages but also considered them a criminal offense. The state even recognized marriages made in other states, such as New York, but the Tennysons feared being discriminated against.
"Everyone knows you're married. It will be no problem" said Max.
"That's not what Harangue thinks" answered Ben, pointing to the television.
The journalist, an openly declared enemy of Ben, reported that the couple had returned to the United States after their honeymoon. Harangue said, in a scornful tone, that he didn't see any reason for the couple's worldwide attention.
"He's the one who talks about us the most" Gwen commented.
He still accused Ben of making a mess in the US Senate, as the entire US Congress was debating whether all states would approve cousin marriages. The Tennyson case was one of the most cited by the congressmen in favor.
Max turned off the television, "You shouldn't care about what Will Harangue says. If he had to choose between saying one good thing about Ben or praise the Devil, he would do free marketing for the Devil."
Ben and Gwen laughed.
"There's so much you need to catch up on. Why care about what this idiot says?" said Max, "He's jealous because he's nothing but a useless dull man. And so, he is trying to make his name at the expense of a great hero couple like you."
The cousins spent some time talking to their grandfather, and then finally moved to their headquarters. It was a huge tower, with floors similar to those of a normal building and others like a control center. It was certainly the perfect place for them to live, as the villains grew stronger and worse.
A week later, after learning how the headquarters systems worked, Gwen and Ben put another plan into action.
Despite having his body almost completely wrecked, Vilgax still posed a threat to Earth. Knowing that he could have a difficult battle with the Tennysons, which could end his life, the alien had started a large-scale production of robots to carry out more harmful attacks. He had the help of several Cerebrocrustacean scientists, including Dr. Psychobos, to make the machines resistant to some of Ben's most powerful aliens.
Thousands of robots were expelled from Vilgax's ship, designed to attack every Plumber base on the planet. No helper of the former Conqueror of Worlds knew where Ben Tennyson lived now, so they thought it best to carry out multiple attacks. It had been a few months since the cousins had married, which led the villains to believe that this was the perfect time to catch them off guard.
"So the ogre indeed has fallen in love with the princess," Kevin said with some disdain as he read the newspaper that reported the return of the Tennysons to the United States.
"Yeah!" Julie replied. "They're indeed together."
"I knew they were getting married, but I thought it was a strategy to unite against the villains."
"What kind of strategy would that be?" Julie asked, "If so, they could simply live together."
"People like to deceive others, Julie…" Kevin said.
Kevin remembered his mother, who although she had a duty to take care of her son, left him to fend for himself after he developed his Osmosian powers. When they told Mrs. Levin about Devin's death, the Plumbers had offered her help to train Kevin if he had inherited his father's abilities, but she preferred to get rid of him and let life teach him its lessons.
"Did you marry me just to deceive me?" Julie asked nervously.
Kevin took her hands in his, "Of course not! I love you, Julie! I'm just making fun of Tennysons. Because I still think they don't make a perfect couple."
"And why not?"
"And you still ask? She's a princess, and Ben is far from being the prince charming," he replied.
Julie wasn't jealous when Kevin referred to Gwen as a "princess". She knew he was extolling her qualities, but he had decided to love Julie and form a family with her, not Gwen.
News from Keystone sparked a great euphoria in the universe. The reason came from a doctor's appointment.
"Congratulations, Mrs. Tennyson!" said the obstetrician. "You're pregnant."
The headlines reported Gwen's pregnancy as the event of the year. Harangue's broadcaster decided to take the program off for a while so that it would not offend the unborn child.
Max and Rook were the first to greet the couple.
"I can't believe I'm going to be a great-grandfather!" Max cried with excitement as he hugged his grandchildren. "Congratulations, Gwen! Congratulations Ben! I know you'll be great parents for this child."
"Oh, imagine when this little thing grows up," Rook said excitedly. "Please, call me when you schedule the ultrasound."
"Of course we will, Rook" Gwen replied. "We want you around, always."
"Thank you, Gwen! And please teach Ben right about this parenting thing."
Everyone laughed.
Carl and Sandra received the news euphoric and chose to visit the couple in Keystone as soon as possible. Frank, Natalie, and Ken were in the same state. Now Ben's mother-in-law didn't consider separating them during that time, only after the birth of her first grandchild.
Upon arriving at headquarters, everyone wanted to congratulate Gwen and Ben. Her mother was running ahead.
"Congratulations, my daughter!" Natalie said, hugging Gwen. "Oh, my daughter's going to have a baby! Thank God!"
"Congratulations, baby girl!" exclaimed Frank, hugging his daughter. "You will be a great mother! May the Lord enlighten you!"
Ken came running to hug his sister and kiss her belly, which still did not look pregnant. Carl and Sandra also congratulated their son.
"Oh, Ben!" Sandra said in tears, hugging her son. "You will give us our first grandchild!"
"Congratulations, son!" it was Carl's turn. "We're very happy for both of you."
After congratulating their daughter-in-law, Carl and Sandra patted her belly.
"When the baby will be born?" asked Sandra.
"If all goes well, in September" answered Ben.
"In September we'll have this precious little thing," said Sandra, making a voice that adults often use when talking to babies.
But the pregnancy did not interrupt the cousins' work. Gwen was managing the company's accounts at home and assigned Rook to replace her at NASA for a while. Ben was still fighting the villains, but his wife stayed at headquarters on medical orders. Her family and some Plumbers took care of her.
Several aliens committed crimes. They were not as powerful as Vilgax or Dr. Animo, but they also caused trouble. Ben had unlocked a control on the Omnitrix that allowed him to switch to another alien without returning to his human form first. With that, he beat the criminals faster. Still, he missed Gwen fighting beside him.
So far, Ben had only faced small problems involving these aliens. But the greatest threat was yet to come.
At week 24 of the pregnancy, the Tennysons went for the third ultrasound exam to find out the sex of the baby. At first, only Ben and Gwen entered the room. They were enchanted by the images, sharper than before, that showed some of the child's organs, such as the heart.
"Do you wanna know the sex?" asked the doctor.
"Yes, doctor" replied the cousins at the same time.
After a few moments the answer finally came:
"It's a girl."
Emotion washed over both of them, who looked at each other with affection. The first child to be born to them would be a girl. When their parents, Grandpa Max and Rook were able to enter the room, there was a scene of tears.
"She'll be beautiful and intelligent just like you, Gwen," said Natalie.
Days later, an army of Vilgax' robots invaded Keystone and began attacking its inhabitants, humans, and aliens alike. Ben and Gwen knew it was a typical trap to catch them. They always went to face the danger though, because they couldn't let people down. However, Gwen had to stay home while Ben left to face the invaders.
As Upgrade, he managed to take over a robot and use it to shoot the others. It seemed like a very simple victory when a giant robot appeared before his eyes. Upgrade tried to merge with the larger robot, but the robotic armor was immune to the powers of Galvanic Mechamorphs. That was when the robot's hand grabbed the hero and raised him to its head, where Psyphon was.
"Ben Tennyson! Long time no see you!" exclaimed the villain. "How long ago? Eight years?"
"Nice to see you again, Psyphon …" Upgrade sneered.
"You may have taken out my master for now, but that doesn't mean it's the end. Soon we'll dominate your entire planet. And neither you will stop us."
Ben tried several aliens, but none could even scratch Psyphon's mega robot. The villain retreated to his ship, promising further attacks. Mysteriously, the Omnitrix did not allow Ben to turn into Atomix nor Way Big. And without Gwen's help, it would be a very difficult fight.
Ben went back to the headquarters and told about his fight to Gwen. She was already aware of his defeat, as a replacement for Will Harangue questioned Ben for his inefficiency.
"Oh, it wasn't for lack of trying," Ben said, visibly annoyed. "If they criticize me so much, why don't they do better?"
"Calm down, Ben. We'll fix it. Psyphon is not one of the strongest villains we've ever faced."
"No, but his robots are very strong. Even Upgrade couldn't affect them. Oh, I don't know what I'll do without you, Gwen" he lamented.
In the days that followed, Ben would at least try to take down Psyphon, but the robot was stronger, and some criminal aliens took advantage of it to commit crimes. The Plumbers tried to hit Psyphon with their weapons, leaving Ben free to arrest the offenders, but this was the only advantage of the strategy, as the robot suffered no scratches. On one occasion, Psyphon even hurt Ben.
Back at headquarters, the hero was consoled by his wife. He was sorry that he couldn't do more than he was already doing, and she was saddened that she couldn't help. That was when Azmuth appeared in front of them.
"I think I may have the solution to your problem," said the Galvan.
He picked up a small metal box and continued.
"This is a device I developed for women who were pregnant and needed to fight. It's a replica of the Omnitrix. And it can be taken off later."
The cousins' eyes were glazed.
"By using it, the mother can turn into stronger species and fight like any soldier" Azmuth explained. "But there's one small detail: along with the mother, the child is also transformed into another species. In some cases, nothing happened, but many children were born with mutations, and needed an Omnitrix to return to normal form, even if the device had to be recharged every 20 minutes."
Gwen and Ben were worried. They were unwilling to sacrifice the life of the unborn baby.
"We have no right to decide her fate," said Gwen. "Thank you, Azmuth! But we can't sacrifice our daughter's life."
"It's a girl?!" Azmuth was in one of his rare emotional moments.
"Yes, it's a girl" answered Ben.
"Congratulations on the firstborn! She may turn out to be a great heroine like her parents" said Azmuth. "Even so, I'll leave the device with you. The decision is up to you."
Azmuth left and Ben and Gwen went to sleep. They lay in bed and talked for a long time, trying to find another way to defeat Psyphon without risking the baby.
The next day, the villain returned with even more robots. Ben used his most powerful aliens, but none could beat him. The Plumbers tried but were taken down like flies. There was no hope anymore. Earth was preparing to surrender to Psyphon and his master Vilgax. Gwen looked at the device and looked at her struggling husband.
"I can't take my Anodite form," Gwen thought. "I would lose the baby. On the other hand... if I put on the Omnitrix, I can help Ben. But I'm not going to condemn my daughter to live as a mutant from birth."
Ben was very weak. The mega robot picked him up and prepared to crush him when a large flash of green light appeared on the horizon. Suddenly, a female Petrosapien lunged at the robot's head, and with her hand full of mana she stroke him with a powerful punch, making him drop Ben.
Gwen changed forms and incorporated her magic into alien bodies. Vilgax's robots were immune to Ben's powers, but not to her mana energy. Within half an hour, after a series of counterattacks, the robot was finally destroyed and Psyphon was transferred to an extra maximum security prison in Galvan Prime.
The Omnitrix made Gwen return to her normal form. After the battle, she made an urgent appointment with the doctor to know about the baby's health. And to everyone's happiness, Gwen's Anodite side had created a mana barrier that protected the girl from the Omnitrix transformations. She was developing very well.
After nine months of gestation, Gwen's waters broke. Max took the couple to the maternity quickly. The Rust Bucket was still a very fast vehicle, even with so many years.
On September 19th of that year, the firstborn of the Tennysons was born. She was a beautiful, healthy girl with dark blond hair and green eyes.
"She's blonde just like me! Sandra said, excited. "She's just like me, Carl!"
"She's beautiful, Sandra. Just like her grandma" answered Carl.
Natalie and Frank were looking at their granddaughter.
"She's so beautiful, Lily. Reminds me of when Gwen was born."
"She was a beautiful baby, just like her," Natalie answered crying with emotion. "My granddaughter!"
Ken and Max were also amazed at the sight of the newborn.
"Beautiful beautiful beautiful! I can't wait to hold my niece" Ken said.
"And I can't wait to take my great-granddaughter for a ride in the Rust Bucket!" Max said.
When the grandparents and uncle finally got into the room everyone stepped closer to Gwen's bed. The baby slept on her mother's arms.
"Have you chosen the name?" asked Max
"Cassandra" answered Ben.
Sandra grinned.
"Cassandra! A beautiful name! Cassandra Tennyson."
Newspapers from every corner of the world reported the birth of the newest member of the Tennyson family. Cassandra would grow up to be a brave and funny girl, whose appearance and personality was very similar to her father's, but with hair similar to her grandmother's.
Author's Notes
Just as long as she's healthy, nothing else matters.