Ultimate Fairy: Volume II

by pyrohelixdrago

Ben Tennyson has found himself in another universe, one filled with magic he never imagined. He comes across a few wizards who invite him to their guild, Fairy Tail. With no immediate ways to return home Ben must adapt to this new world, form new bonds, and grow stronger with his teammates to overcome many obstacles. Adopted from Ultimate10

39. Chapter 39

A/N: Hey everyone! Sorry for the long wait. Before I continue, I wanted to share some news I have planned for Ultimate Fairy going forward.

Looking back, I will admit that the Galuna Island and Phantom Lord arcs are my least favorite in this story and, quite frankly, the least interesting. The reason? Well, I don't believe I introduced enough changes in them; especially when you have a character like Ben there who could've done more.

Honestly, the only things those two arcs added to this story specifically - aside from the canon material - was Ben obtaining Beelzebash (which will come into play later), Ben showing off Way Big and triggering the rumors about him, and Ben realizing just how powerful Earthland wizards could be after his fight with Jose.

Those points aren't insignificant, but still... more could've been added.

At the time, in 2014, I had just adopted Ultimate Fairy from The Incredible Muffin and was not comfortable branching off too far from the source material. Things are different now. After listening to criticism and reading other writers' stories that aren't completely reliant on the source material, I've decided to really make Ultimate Fairy its own story going forward - for the most part.

It'll still pay respect to Fairy Tail and follow the canon arcs. It just won't be a carbon copy of Fairy Tail arcs with a little bit of Ben Tennyson sprinkled in like the Galuna and Phantom arcs were. I realize now that's boring and just plain disrespectful to Ben.

However, with all that being said, I will NOT be rewriting the Galuna and Phantom arcs. Primarily because it would take too much time to rewrite them AND I would have to make changes in the chapters after them to reflect the new events that transpired. At that point, the entire story would have to be rewritten which I don't want to do.

Okay, now that that's out of the way, let's finally get on with the show!

...

Ultimate Fairy

Chapter 39: Too Cool for You

...

Six days had passed since the Harvest Festival had ended, and things in Magnolia were starting to return to normal. All of the damages caused in the Battle of Fairy Tail had been or were currently in the process of being repaired. Many wizards had spent the day after the Fantasia Parade taking part in the repair efforts in order to reconcile with the townspeople affected by the fighting.

Kardia Cathedral, which had sustained the most damages, had been fully restored thanks to Clockwork. However, Ben had run low on stamina and transformed back to his human form right after; much like he did after repairing the guild hall after it had been wrecked by Gajeel.

Ben was willing to continue reversing the damage across the rest of Magnolia upon resting for a while, but Makarov declined the offer and stated that the guild would pay for reparations – not wanting to completely rely on Ben to fix his and everyone else's messes. The master did offer Ben his sincere appreciation for restoring the cathedral since the repair cost for the massive building would've cost a fortune! Nevertheless, that didn't stop the short old man from bawling his eyes out comically as he signed away multiple checks in his office later that day.

Many things had transpired over the course of the last few days in Fairy Tail. A couple days after the Fantasia Parade, members had started to notice that Laxus was nowhere to be seen or heard from. It was then that Makarov had formally announced that he had expelled Laxus for his actions.

Everyone had reacted in their own way. Natsu, of course, was less than pleased to hear the news.

In fact, the entire scene had played out like this...

2 Days after the Fantasia Parade...

"Why'd you kick him out, gramps!? Couldn't you have just sent him to his room or somethin'!?" Natsu demanded indignantly.

The Dragon Slayer was standing in front of the master, who was sitting on the edge of the bar countertop with his head lowered and eyes shut.

Makarov remained silent.

"I thought he was part of our family!" The veins on Natsu's forehead throbbed madly. "We all know he's a jerk, but c'mon!"

Ben, at the moment, was sitting a couple barstools away to Makarov's right.

He held up his right hand in a placating gesture, and said, "Natsu, I know you're upset but you need to chill."

"How can I possibly chill?! I'm a FIRE wizard!" Natsu retorted angrily, misunderstanding Ben's words. "Besides, now that Laxus's gone, I'll never get the chance to fight him again!"

"You already beat Laxus. Why do you want to fight him again?" Ben asked, confused.

"'Cause he was already banged up after fighting you AND I had to eat your weird-fire to do it!" Natsu replied. "I just know if I had the chance, I could beat him with my OWN strength!"

'Geez...this guy is prideful...' Ben sweat-dropped.

"That's enough!" Erza ordered sternly, stepping up and grabbing Natsu by his left shoulder. "Imagine how the master must be feeling right now! You think he expelled Laxus just because he wanted to?"

"No, but..." Natsu trailed off softly.

Ben looked at the pink-haired pyromaniac empathetically. The Omnitrix bearer knew that Natsu didn't want Laxus to be expelled just for the sake of settling a fight. He valued Laxus as an important member of the Fairy Tail guild, despite his obvious flaws and the despicable actions he had committed.

"I still can't believe he ended up being a Dragon Slayer just like you." Happy commented, popping up behind Natsu's right shoulder.

"No," Makarov finally spoke up, "Laxus was never a real Dragon Slayer."

Everyone, including Ben, turned to the elderly man in bewilderment.

From there, Makarov gave his 'children' the full story. Apparently, when Laxus was young, he had been a frail and sickly boy – which had surprised many. To resolve this, his father, Ivan – who was also expelled from the guild for reasons unknown – implanted a lacrima into his son's body that gave Laxus the ability to use Dragon Slayer Magic.

"I'm sorry that I never told any of you this before..." Makarov apologized sincerely.

The majority of the guild was left dumbfounded and surprised from this revelation.

"Wow! I didn't even know something like that existed." Happy admitted. "Dragon Slayer lacrima?"

Natsu lowered his head with a thoughtful visage.

"So, I guess you don't have to be trained by a dragon in order to become a Dragon Slayer then, huh," Ben noted.

'I wonder though, did Ivan really give Laxus that lacrima just to improve his health, or was there more to it than that?' the brunet wondered.

Makarov then continued by stating that he would relinquish his position as the master in order to atone for his grandson causing the guild so much trouble. Needless to say, everyone in the guild had tried to convince him otherwise.

It seemed hopeless until Freed had stepped in. Shockingly, the swordsman had cut his long green hair to a buzzcut style. He had given a compelling argument, stating that retiring on account of his actions would only break Laxus's heart further if he were to find out.

With that reasoning and the fact that he had cut his hair to show his repentance, Makarov had thankfully changed his mind and decided to stay on as the master of his beloved guild.

Present Day...

The members of the Thunder Legion were beginning to open up more to the rest of the guild for the first time. It seemed that Laxus's expulsion had really had given the trio a new perspective of the guild and how to act around everyone.

Evergreen, for example, allowed Reedus to paint portraits of her in various poses. Bickslow, who had fully recovered from his injuries, comically teased Lucy about whether she and Loke were a 'thing' or not. This, of course, embarrassed the blonde as she vehemently denied the accusation. Freed casually talked with Mira and other guildmates at the bar, wearing a small smile on his face all the while.

Meanwhile, Ben and Erza were currently sitting alone at a table on the second floor, away from any potential eavesdroppers. With the Harvest Festival concluded and repair efforts nearly finished around town, the couple finally found time to discuss the main topic that had been on their minds for the last few days: Mystogan.

"Mystogan was always a mysterious, reclusive individual. Even the master didn't know much about him when I asked earlier." Erza said. "Do you think he could really be Jellal?"

Ben's eyes were shut while he hummed in contemplation. He opened his eyes, and replied, "He definitely looks like him, but..."

"I'm not your friend Jellal. I do know of him, but…I'm not him."

"I don't think he was lying when he said wasn't Jellal." The green-eyed teen continued. "Looking back with a cool head, I'm convinced he was telling the truth. Besides, it doesn't really make much sense when you think about it. I mean, why would Jellal infiltrate Fairy Tail and never try anything while he was here? Or at the very least brag about it while we were fighting in the Tower?"

Erza nodded in agreement and lowered her head. "That's true. If that's the case, then... who is he?"

"He said that me and him 'share similar circumstances.'" Ben pointed out. "I didn't know what that meant at first, but now... I think I might."

Erza looked up at Ben expectedly. "Go on."

"I think Mystogan might be from another universe too." The teen hero stated.

Erza gaped lightly. She certainly hadn't been expecting that response. "Are you serious? What would bring you to that conclusion?"

"Hear me out," he started to explain, "you remember when I told you about Professor Paradox, right?"

Erza nodded, recalling Ben's explanation of Professor Paradox being a man capable of traveling across time and universes. Of course, it sounded unbelievable. But she had no reason to suspect Ben of lying – not after seeing the memories of his past adventures.

"Well, a couple of years ago, a being with similar abilities to him, named Eon, came to my world. He was traveling across multiple realities and capturing alternate versions of myself, feeding off their power and forcing them to do his bidding."

Surprise crossed Erza's expression from this reveal. "Alternate versions of yourself?"

"Right. Like I said a while back, there are tons of universes in existence... and though many of them are very different from each other, there are many that are pretty identical to one another too. Does that make sense?"

Erza lowered her head and ruminated on Ben's explanation for a moment. "So, you're saying that since there are alternate versions of yourself and your world, there may be different versions of Earthland and the people here as well?"

Ben smiled and nodded. He was relieved that he didn't need to go too in-depth on the whole alternate universes, dimensions, and timelines subject. It really made his head hurt the more he thought about it!

"And you think that Mystogan is a Jellal from one of these alternate worlds," Erza concluded.

"I don't have any proof to back that claim up, but yeah it's the best explanation I got."

"I don't doubt it. I'll take that possibility over Mystogan being Jellal's twin brother any day." Erza remarked. "But the question remains... if he's from another world, how did he get here? The only known way to travel between realities is with one of the Forbidden Spells, Sanguis Porta. You don't think that Mystogan would..."

Ben shook his head at that suggestion. "Nah. Even though I don't know the guy, I don't get a murderous vibe from him. I'm pretty sure he came here another way. Sanguis Porta is the only known way to travel across realities in this world. That doesn't mean it's the only way. After all, the reason I got here was because of some scientist's defective machine."

Erza hummed in agreement. "That does make sense. Still, this does leave more questions than answers. If he truly is not of this world, how and why did he come here?"

"That... I can't answer." Ben responded, shrugging. "We'll just have to wait and see until he tells us himself... if he ever does."

He was right. Mystogan hardly ever came to the guild hall and after having his identity revealed, it was doubtful he'd return any time soon. In addition, they didn't really possess a means of finding the reclusive wizard either. Ben couldn't use Wildmutt or Blitzwolfer's sense of smell to track Mystogan down due to him constantly teleporting to-and-from Magnolia, so he'd be unable to find a scent trail.

Unfortunately, these questions concerning Mystogan would have to remain unanswered for now.

It was then that another subject entered Erza's mind. One that she had been thinking about for the last couple of weeks.

"Speaking of sharing information with guildmates, when are you going to tell the others about...well... Julie." Erza requested in a soft tone.

Ben lowered his head with a look of melancholy.

"I'm not trying to pressure you." Erza quickly affirmed. "I was just curious..."

"No, it's fine," Ben reassured. "I'm not procrastinating or anything like that. I just... haven't really had the opportunity to talk about it with the Harvest Festival and the whole 'Battle of Fairy Tail' nonsense happening."

He wasn't lying; however, he wasn't necessarily looking forward to telling others about the incident with Julie and Ship either. Not because he didn't want to share his past with his new teammates and guild members... it was just hard talking about what had happened. Even though he had finally made peace with the past, that didn't mean it failed to hurt when he thought about it.

He let out a deep sigh, coming to a decision. "I'll tell them tomorrow evening. That way I can prepare myself for it."

"Are you sure? I don't want to feel like I'm forcing you to-" Erza stopped when the Omnitrix bearer held up a hand and looked at her seriously.

"It's my decision. After everything this guild has done for a complete stranger like me, it's the least I can do." Ben stated firmly.

Erza smiled softly and nodded. "Very well."

Ben stood up with a grin. "Well, now that that's out of the way, I think I could go for a smoothie. Want one?"

The redheaded knight immediately stood up with stars in her eyes. "Do you even have to ask?!"

Ben chuckled as he and the re-quipping wizard walked together down the stairway to the main floor.

The couple took their place at the bar and Mirajane happily took their respective orders. Both requested a smoothie while Erza had a strawberry cake added to her order. Nothing out of the ordinary there.

Then, a sudden commotion at the Request Board caught Ben's attention.

"What's going on over there?" Ben asked out loud, placing his glass back on the counter.

Mira walked over and happily answered, "The results to the Miss Fairy Tail Contest were just posted."

"Oh yeah, I forget about that," Ben said. "Who was the winner?"

"AHHH! THERE GOES MY RENT MONEY!" Lucy screamed, grabbing both sides of her head in despair. She sat at a table and buried her face in her arms while bawling her eyes out. "What am I gonna do now?"

'Guess we know who didn't win.' Ben inwardly noted.

The shape-shifter couldn't help but sympathize for the Celestial Spirit wizard though. "Poor Lucy..."

Mira hummed in agreement. "It was close, but she came in at second place... right in front of Juvia."

"Man, that's tough." He commented. "Who came in first?"

Mirajane snickered, placing her hand in front of her mouth. "Do you really have to ask?" She pointed at Erza, who had just finished the last of her cake.

"It was a tough battle, but I prevailed in the end." Erza smiled proudly.

A glint shined in her brown eyes as she inwardly chuckled, 'Now that I have secured the prize money, I can push forward with my little project.'

Ben felt a shiver go down his spine from the look in his girlfriend's eyes. What was going through her head right now?

He shook his head from his musings and grinned, "I'm proud of yah." A concerned frown crossed his face as he looked at Lucy's sobbing form. "I do feel bad for Lucy though. I know she needs to pay her rent soon."

Erza nodded her head and crossed her arms over her chest. "No worries. We agreed that we'd all go on a job together to help pay her rent in case she didn't win the pageant, remember?"

"That's right," Ben recalled. "You think she may have forgotten about that?"

"No worries, Luce," Natsu walked up to the blonde with a bright smile, catching the couple's attention, "we'll just take a job!"

"Aye!" Happy added. "We promised you would in case you lost."

"But winning the pageant would've been so much easier!" Lucy complained sadly.

Cana walked over and took a seat to the right of the blonde, resting a hand on her shoulder to cheer her up while also taking a swig from her drink.

"We'll start looking for a job tomorrow," Erza said, "after all the interviews are complete, that is."

"Wait... interviews?" Ben questioned, bewildered. "What interviews?"

"I guess we forgot to tell you," Mirajane said. "A reporter from Sorcerer Weekly magazine is coming tomorrow. Fairy Tail is going to be featured as their next cover story."

"Sorcerer Weekly...?" Ben said. "I think I've heard that name mentioned before."

"It's a magazine that gets published every Wednesday." Mira happily explained. "It includes the latest news, guild gossip, and photo-spreads. It's really popular throughout Fiore."

'I see. So, it's like the news, tabloids, and modeling magazines all-in-one.' Ben realized.

"Mirajane has been featured as one of their models several times now," Erza added.

"That's not surprising." Ben unknowingly complimented, making Mirajane blush lightly and giggle.

Erza, however, inwardly growled and shot Ben a deadpanned look.

The brunet didn't take notice of this though as he looked back to Erza, and asked, "What about you? Have you ever been featured in it?"

The Fairy Queen shook her head. "No. Tomorrow will be my first time interviewing with them." She smiled brightly. "I will need to bring my A-game!"

"You sure seem excited about it," Ben smirked.

"Well, of course," Mira said brightly. "Sorcerer Weekly is widely-read and a great way to promote a guild and its wizards to the public."

"So, it's also a form of advertisement for guilds and the wizards in them?"

"M-hmm!" Mira confirmed. "That's a good way to summarize it."

"Who all do you think this reporter will interview?" Ben asked.

"I imagine he'll interview the master and all the popular members of the guild." The white-haired barmaid answered. "Which includes you, of course."

"Me?" Ben said incredulously.

"Why you're so surprised?" Gray overheard the conversation and took a seat to Ben's left. A knowing smile on his face. "You've become a rising star here ever since you showed off your giant form and blew up that volcano. Of course people wanna know more about you!"

"Yeah," Ben sighed, "that makes sense..."

"What's wrong, man?" Gray asked. "Don't like the attention?"

"Well, not exactly. I appreciate that people are noticing what I'm doing and all. I'm... just not a big fan of the press." The brunet replied. "Back in my world, there was this jerk of a reporter who didn't like me at all. He was twisting the facts and tried to turn everyone against me. Cared more about his ratings than reporting the actual truth. Really made life tough for a while..."

Gray snorted. "Dang... that sucks."

"Reporters are jerks!" Natsu exclaimed, overhearing the conversation with his sensitive hearing. "All they do is write those stupid articles on how I burn and destroy stuff!"

"Maybe if you weren't so reckless all the time, moron, you wouldn't have that problem!" Gray shouted.

"You're one to talk, Gray," Erza remarked dryly, taking a sip of her smoothie. "Now put some clothes on."

"DAMMIT!" the ice-wizard yelled in frustration, seeing that he had stripped into his boxers yet again.

'This is starting to become a real common scene here...' Ben deadpanned.

"No need to worry, Ben," Mirajane spoke up. "You won't have to worry about any of that with this reporter."

"Why do you say that?"

The She-Devil giggled and replied, "I'll let you find out for yourself tomorrow."

'Why am I getting an uneasy feeling all of a sudden?'

...

The next day, Ben and Erza were walking together down Strawberry Street. The former was wearing his usual hero attire while the latter was adorned in a fancy purple dress with red roses and had her long scarlet tied up into a bun – the same look she had in the Akane Resort casino before her friends kidnapped her.

"You sure did dress up for today. You look really nice." Ben complimented.

"Thank you," Erza smiled before looking at her boyfriend in confusion. "How come you didn't want to dress for the occasion?"

Ben shrugged. "Like I said, I'm not really a fan of the press. Besides, if I'm gonna do an interview, I might as well just wear my usual outfit."

"If you say so," Erza replied. She smiled gleefully as stars appeared in her eyes. "Ooh! I'm so excited!"

'I would've thought someone like Erza would already have been interviewed by Sorcerer Weekly by now...' Ben inwardly commented. 'Still she sure looks cute when she's excited.'

After walking through the courtyard and into the guild hall, the couple headed towards their team's usual spot at a bench near the bar. Ben noticed Lucy there chuckling mischievously, placing her right hand over her mouth. Cana and Mira, meanwhile, looked at her in confusion. Something was definitely going through the blonde's head at the moment.

"This is my break. My BIG break! Ha-ha-ha!" Lucy laughed in a creepy manner.

Ben blinked dumbly. 'What's up with her?'

Right as Ben and Erza approached the group, Lucy didn't seem to notice the couple, exclaiming, "I'm wasting precious time!"

Suddenly, the Celestial Spirit wizard stormed towards the exit and out of the guild hall, a trail of dust in her wake.

"Huh... okay," Ben cocked a brow, "what was that about?"

Mira, who was carrying a tray of beers, sighed. "Well, we forgot to tell Lucy that the reporter was coming today, and her reaction was quite interesting to say the least."

"Interesting, how?" he asked.

"She started muttering about captivating the reporter with her good looks and getting a modeling gig or something along those lines." Cana finished, taking a swig of booze from her seat at the bench.

"Hmm," Erza held her chin in a contemplative manner, "from what I can gather, it sounds like she's intent on dazzling the reporter with her feminine charms in order to secure a modeling gig with Sorcerer. I assume she'll then use the money she earns from that to pay her rent."

"More power to her, I guess." Ben said. "So, I'm guessing she's heading back to her place to get all dressed up?"

Cana shrugged, replying, "Most likely. But who knows what all goes on in that girl's head?"

"Mira, when you're finished, do you mind preparing the usual for me?" Erza requested. The usual being a strawberry smoothie and cake.

"Of course," the white-haired barmaid smiled, "just give me a moment."

Erza nodded and headed over to the bar.

Ben was about to follow her until he noticed, out of the corner of his eye, Gajeel sitting alone at a table near the stage. He was dressed in a white tuxedo outfit, white fedora, and a pair of onyx shades. He had a heavy metal guitar in his hands and seemed to be practicing.

He was confused as to why he was dressed up before deducing it must be for the press.

'Don't tell me he's planning to sing again...' Ben internally groaned, remembering the last time the Iron Dragon Slayer sang to the guild.

At that moment, the memory of Gajeel using himself as a lightning rod played through Ben's head. The only reason he was even alive right now was because of the ex-Phantom Lord member's actions. He needed to thank him. It's been long overdue, after all.

He looked to Erza at the bar. "Hey, I'm gonna go talk to Gajeel for a bit."

"Okay... may I ask why?" she said suspiciously.

"I just need to tell him something. I'll be right back." With that, Ben started ambling towards the iron mage's spot.

Erza cocked a brow in confusion. Why would Ben want to speak with Gajeel of all people? What could Ben have to say to him?

Gajeel looked up from his guitar practice when he noticed Ben walking towards his table.

"Hey, Gajeel, you got a sec?"

"Can't you see I'm busy?" Gajeel said in annoyance while returning his attention to the elaborate-designed guitar.

"Yeah, sorry about that. I just wanted to say thanks for saving me from Laxus's lightning. I really owe yah one." He said sincerely.

Gajeel scoffed. "Don't get all sappy on me, Tennyson. The last thing I want is the guild gettin' all teary eyed 'cause you got fried."

'He even calls me by my last name like Kevin.' Ben thought in amusement.

Ben smirked. "Right."

He gazed at Gajeel's guitar for a second, remarking, "Gotta say, I never would have pegged you for the musical type."

"Never would have pegged you from being from another world."

Ben blinked in confusion. He didn't recall ever telling the ex-Phantom Lord member about his true origins.

"How did you know about that?"

"Don't act surprised. I heard about it from everyone else." Gajeel turned to him, smirking slyly. "Unlike Phantom Lord, this guild actually talks a lot."

The superhero chuckled. "That's true."

"Heh? Someone from another universe? Guess there still are some surprises out there..." Gajeel said offhandedly.

"You don't seem surprised by the fact that I'm not from Earthland," Ben pointed out.

Gajeel shrugged. "Don't get me wrong, I'm a bit skeptical about it. But if you're telling the truth, then fine. Doesn't affect me either way."

"Fair enough." Ben shrugged.

An idea then entered Ben's head. He figured it'd be a great way of paying Gajeel back as well as showing a sign of goodwill. "You know if you really like music, I know a few songs that are out of this world."

Gajeel looked at him, confused.

"Yah know, 'cause they're from my world." He clarified.

Gajeel was silent and continued to stare at him, unamused. Though his eyes were covered by sunshades, Ben could tell he was giving him a deadpanned look.

'Oh well... can't win them all.'

"Never mind." He reached into his pocket and took out his green smartphone.

"The hell kind of instrument is that?" Gajeel asked, dumbfounded.

"It's not an instrument, it's a smartphone."

Gajeel raised an eyebrow, having no clue what Ben was saying.

It was then Ben realized he had never shown any of the others his smartphone. He supposed it was because the idea never occurred to him to do so. With no cell towers or internet available, his phone was pretty much only good for playing songs and games he already had downloaded.

"Long story short, it's basically like a communication-lacrima but it can do a lot more...well...when it's got service, at least. Anyways, one of those things is playing music."

"That so, huh?" Gajeel eyed the device curiously.

He looked through his playlist and found what his culture calls an 'oldie'. He remembered when Grandpa Max introduced him to the song and couldn't help but appreciate it, despite its age.

He smirked as he tapped on the song, playing it for Gajeel to hear. "I think you'll like this one."

As the song started to play, Gajeel's eyes widened in astonishment from the quality of the sound. He had heard music that was sort of similar to this, but this was definitely new to him! He'd admit that even his own music couldn't compare to this. This song...this sound... was indeed out of this world!

Ben grinned, seeing that the Iron Dragon Slayer was captivated by the song. He then remembered another feature he had downloaded a while back. "Oh... there's something else." While the song was still playing, Ben navigated to a certain app. Gajeel looked on in amazement. "This displays the music sheets for particular songs. The sheet for the one you're listening to is right here."

Gajeel looked at the screen for a short moment before turning back to Ben curiously. "Why do you have something like this on here?"

Ben sheepishly rubbed his neck and chuckled. "Heh. Truth is, I've been interested in playing music for a while; guitar, specifically. But with all the 'Hero Time' stuff going on in my life, I guess I've never really had the opportunity to learn."

That was partially true; however, there was another more reason Ben had never learned guitar to this point. A more personal one.

Gajeel looked at Ben for a moment and hummed, studying the brunet's expression.

He then returned his attention back to the phone. "Excuse me," With that, Gajeel quickly stood up and ran off somewhere in the back of the guild hall with his guitar and Ben's phone in hand.

"I have a feeling I'm not getting that back." Ben commented, a sweat-drop falling down his face. "At least in one piece that is..."

"Whoa! Is that Titania?!" a loud voice shouted.

Ben turned around to see Erza standing at the main entrance with Lucy. The source of the shout had come from a young man with blonde hair with a huge cowlick on the back of his head. He wore brown shoes, blue jeans, a bright pink shirt and had a pair of sunshades in his hair. Dangling from his neck was an expensive-looking camera, and hanging from his right shoulder was a white duffle bag.

"I can't believe it's really you! THIS IS SO COOL! I am such a fan!" He jumped through the air and slid on his knees across the floor, looking ecstatic. "Wow! COOOL!"

Ben blinked twice to ensure what he was seeing was real. "No way...don't tell me that's the guy..."

At that moment, any thought of heading in that direction was quickly doused. Ben glanced over to the bar and, more specifically, the Magic Smoothie-Maker resting on the counter behind it.

'Come to think of it, I hadn't had breakfast yet. I think I'll let Erza handle this one...' Not eager to confront the overhyped magazine reporter, Ben sauntered over to the bar area.

Back with Erza and Lucy, Jason continuing chanting 'cool' to himself with his arms raised, his eyes shut, and a massive grin across his face.

"Uh, so who's the weirdo with the camera?" Lucy asked, pointing at the man.

Mirajane walked over and giggled. "Girls, meet Jason from Sorcerer Weekly."

A few minutes later, Erza was now clad in her Heart Kreuz armor while Jason took many snapshots of her.

"But this armor isn't anything special." Erza pouted. "The dress I had on was cuter... even Ben said so."

Jason lowered the camera, and beamed, "No, you're perfect! I was hoping to capture you in your natural element." He continued to gush as he resumed taking pictures from various angels. "Man, this is so cool!"

"Well, he's a quirky one. Definitely not the one for me... I hope." Lucy remarked.

She clenched her fist tightly with a determined gaze. 'But he is the one who can get me a modeling gig at Sorcerer Weekly!'

"Very cute!" Jason carried on snapping more pictures of Erza.

Lucy walked up behind the reporter and squeezed her together, pushing her breasts out to make them seem larger in her red top.

"Hello there, Mister Reporter Man!" Lucy winked, speaking in a cute voice. "I'm Erza's teammate, Lucy."

Ben, who had glanced over to the scene from the bar, nearly coughed up his blueberry-banana smoothie. 'Guess she was actually serious about seducing the reporter.' He blushed lightly.

However, Jason didn't notice the buxom beauty as he was waving at Erza eagerly. "Ooh! Ooh! Do you have time for a quick interview?"

"I suppose so," Erza said nonchalantly.

"DISSED!" Lucy exclaimed in dismay.

Ben shook his head and smirked in amusement. 'Too bad for her. The guy's completely oblivious.'

Jason pulled out his pencil and notepad from his duffel bag, making their way over to the bar on the opposite end from the shape-shifting hero – who was looking away in an attempt to avoid the reporter's attention.

"Our readers would love to know how many different re-quips you can do?" Jason asked excitedly.

"Well, over one-hundred," Erza answered.

"Whoa!" He nearly dropped his notepad in shock over her reply. "And which one is your favorite?"

"I'm quite fond of the Bunny Girl." Erza said coyly.

"Bunny?!" Jason's eyes went wide as his face turned red.

"The ears are simply adorable." She added.

'Adorable' was not the word Jason was thinking at the moment.

"YEEAAAHH!" He screamed in perverted glee.

Erza blinked confusedly. "Odd. I don't recall Ben having this sort of reaction when I showed it to him."

"Ben? You mean the new Take-Over wizard everyone's talking about, right? You've shown it to him?! COOL!" Jason exclaimed. "And what's your favorite food?"

"I'd say it's a tossup between cheesecake and soufflé?" Erza admitted. "But recently I've become quite fond of a beverage called 'smoothies.'"

Lucy was at the bench, pouting, "What gives? The ONE TIME Fairy Tail gets good coverage and I might as well be invisible."

Happy, who was near her, covered his mouth with his paws while stifling his laughter.

"AND YOU'RE IN THE SAME BOAT AS ME, CAT!" Lucy snapped.

Without warning, Jason was by their side leaning over to stare at Happy joyfully.

"So, Happy, why exactly, are you 'blue'?" Jason asked, grinning with his eyes shut from excitement.

"Because I'm a cat." Happy said.

"Ah! This sucks!" Lucy whined, hitting her head on the table.

Jason turned and started at Lucy intently, humming.

'Geez! This guy is definitely not my type!' Lucy thought to herself.

Her musing was interrupted as Jason shoved past Lucy, charging towards a certain ice-wizard and rain woman sitting together at a table.

"Holy cow! It's the ice wizard, Gray!" Jason hollered.

"What the heck!?" Lucy yelled, dumbfounded.

Ben shook his head in sympathy for the blonde. "Tough break for her..."

Gray looked up from his spot at the table, frowning at Jason. "Yeah, what do you want?"

"Is he... from Sorcerer Weekly?" Juvia asked curiously.

The reporter slid to a crouching position at the table, and cheered, "And I'm in luck, he's with Juvia! COOL!"

"So, Gray, why do you take your clothes off all the time?"

"THAT'S NOT TRUE! I NEVER DO THAT!" Grey snapped, wearing only a pair of black briefs.

Jason chuckled at the sight and Juvia's eyes bugged out.

"YOU'RE IN YOUR UNDERWEAR RIGHT NOOOOOOW!" Juvia cried, shutting her eyes and waving her index finger at Gray.

The Ice-Make wizard stared down at himself in mortification. "Waah!" he shrieked.

Lucy picked herself up and was determined not to let a chance to become a model and make tons of money slip through her fingers.

'The things I do to make rent money.' Lucy sighed, slipping her tank top strap down her arm.

"Wow, it's so hot. Maybe I should start stripping down too?" Lucy asked, fanning herself and speaking in what she hoped was a seductive manner.

It was to no avail as Jason continued asking questions to the other guildmembers.

"So, Elfman, I asked you what made a real man, and you said 'A real man'" Jason laughed after his impression of Elfman. "COOOL!"

He then went on to Jet, Droy and Levy. "So, Team Shadow Gear, is it true you three are in a love triangle?"

Jason's question earned flabbergasted expressions from the trio.

"No comment?" Jason asked with a blushing grin. "What a scoop! THIS IS AMAZING!"

He then flew on over to Cana, who was finishing a drink from her mug at a table. "Hey, Cana, how come you haven't posed for our mag yet?" Jason asked.

"Why don't you sit down and grab yourself a drink?" Cana asked, dodging the question.

'Okay, I'm lonely but I never said I was 'desperate' she thought to herself.

Jason slid over to Makarov on his knees. "Master, your plans for the guild?"

This caused Makarov to shake in nervousness, and stammered, "Uh...well...hmmm...we will continue to spread justice and goodwill throughout the world."

"That's so fake!" Lucy snapped, pointing at him angrily.

Jason then approached Freed, Evergreen and Bickslow. "Has the Thunder Legion disbanded?"

"No." Freed answered, arms crossed.

"Not on your life, buddy!" Bickslow said, sticking his tongue out while his 'babies' floated behind him.

Evergreen struck a sultry pose, adding, "In fact, we're stronger than ever."

With that, Jason was now taking a photo of Laki's short hair. "I love the new look, Laki."

"I'm aiming to win the Miss Fairy Tail next year." She said with a wink.

Even Wakaba and Macao were getting pictures taken, This, of course, really flared Lucy's temper.

Speaking of hot tempers, a certain angry pyromaniac had appeared and tossed over two tables out of rage – sending Lucy flying, as a result.

"So, you're the reporter, huh!?" Natsu shouted.

Jason wasn't distressed at all by the angry display; in fact, he was overjoyed. "YEAH! THIS IS UNBELIEVABLE! NATSU THE SALAMANDER IS ONE OF THE WIZARDS I WANTED TO MEET MOST OF ALL!"

Natsu wasn't happy as he continued to glare at the reporter.

"YOU JERK! YOU'RE THE ONE ALWAYS WRITING THAT BAD STUFF ABOUT ME!" Natsu yelled.

Jason didn't even lower a decibel of his glee. "OH YEAH?!"

"ALL YOU EVER WRITE ABOUT IS HOW I BLEW UP 'THIS THING' OR DEMOLISHED 'THAT THING!'" Natsu raged on.

"THIS IS SO COOL!" Jason carried on. "NATSU! IN THE FLESH! THE SALAMANDER!"

Natsu's rage gave way to blank confusion as Jason held out a shaking hand toward the Fire Dragon Slayer.

"Can I shake your hand, sir?" he asked, eyes shut and mouth open with glee.

Natsu, however, was not pleased. "GRRRAAAH! NO WAY!" He belted Jason across the face with a punch that sent him spinning like a top.

He rolled across the floor with a yell – not of pain, but of fanboy excitement. He finally stopped rolling and started to write in his notepad with a bruise on his cheek.

"OH MAN! That's so awesome! Natsu is such a hero!" Jason gushed. "And he even showed me his secret handshake."

Ben glanced over and blinked in disbelief. 'This guy takes blissful ignorance to Cloud 10!'

"What a pro." Happy said with a shrug.

Jason looked up and spotted the one man he was hoping to see most of all sitting at the bar.

Ben groaned when he noticed Jason was looking at him. "Dang it. Why did I even come in today?" he murmured.

"No way! The green jacket, the brown hair, the laid-back confidence. It's really you! The amazing new Take-Over wizard of Fairy Tail!" Jason cried out. He instantly got up and invaded Ben's space, making him lean back. "YOU'RE THE ONE I WAS HOPING TO MEET MOST OF ALL!"

Lucy groaned and slouched her shoulders in disappointment. "Guess I shouldn't be surprised that Ben's getting coverage... even though he's a newer member than me!" she griped.

Ben blinked, unnerved by the reporter's close proximity and extreme enthusiasm. 'Don't remember ever coming across a reporter like this. He's certainly one of a kind.'

Jason stretched out his hand shakily with his eyes shut and a big stupid smile on his face. "May I... please shake your hand, sir?"

'I'm probably gonna regret this, but...' Ben stretched out his right hand and shook Jason's with a nice, firm grip.

"SOOO COOOOL!" Jason screamed, exhilarated.

"And cue the regret..." Ben remarked.

"Oh! Forgive me, I never got your full name, sir. You see, the public doesn't really know anything about you." Jason smiled.

"It's Ben. Ben Tennyson." Ben replied. "Oh, and drop the 'sir'. Please just me call me Ben."

"COOL! YES SIR!" Jason yelled.

Ben groaned. 'Well, at least he's not bashing me like Harangue...'

"Would you please let me do an interview with you, Mr. Tennyson? Our readers are dying to know more about you! It would be so cool!"

'What isn't 'cool' to this guy? And why isn't he letting go of my hand?!'

"Fine." Ben replied, finally pulling his hand out of Jason's grip. "I'm sure everyone else is waiting for their interview anyways."

"Not to worry! I already interviewed everyone else! So, we can take as much time as possible." Jason said cheerfully.

"Great..." Ben said, sounding less than enthused.

"So," he got his pen and notepad out and took a seat by Ben, "since you're such an enigma, how about we start off with some pretty basic questions. Like, where are you from?"

'Didn't know he was gonna ask questions like that. Can't tell him the whole truth obviously. Hmm... guess I can just tell him what I told those Rune Knights several months back.'

He remembered the story he gave to the Knights after the Phantom battle. "I'm from a village called Bellwood. It's a small and pretty bland town. In fact, you can't really find it on any maps."

"Ooh!" Jason wrote quickly. "Is it far away from here?"

"Y-Yeah... you could say that." Ben said.

"Cool! So, what brought you all the way here to Magnolia then?" he asked curiously.

"Well, it was an accident believe it or not. But when I got here, I met my new friends and my future team." Ben answered. "I saw I could do a lot of good here, so I decided to stay."

"COOL!" Jason gushed.

Ben sweat-dropped from Jason's nonstop jubilance.

The magazine reporter continued his questioning. "When did you get your magic?"

'The Knights didn't ask me this kind of question. Gotta answer it carefully,' Ben thought.

"Huh... I got my magic when I was ten-years-old on a summer trip exploring the countryside with my grandfather and cousin. Throughout that summer, I learned how to use my abilities while stopping thieves and the occasional monsters here and there."

"Sounds like an awesome summer!" Jason replied.

"Yeah... it was." Ben smiled fondly of the memories he made on that trip.

"Why did you decide to leave your hometown?"

"Well... I wasn't really needed in my town anymore. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy that people aren't being threatened like they used to be. But... I felt like I was really wasting my abilities away doing nothing. So, I decided to go somewhere else where I can really do good. If the people of Ear – uh, I mean, Bellwood didn't need me anymore, then I'd go somewhere where people did."

'I mean, it's not entirely a lie. Still though...' Ben frowned, mulling over his family and friends back home and how worried sick they must be for him.

He sighed inwardly. If only he could contact them.

"This is fantastic!" Jason commented as he wrote down Ben's words. "So, wait, you didn't come for the money and fame? If Bellwood is such a small town, I'm sure you didn't make a lot of money there, right?"

"Yeah, you'd be right." Ben rubbed his neck awkwardly. "I'll admit... when I was younger, I definitely wanted to be famous. But over time, I realized that's not what being a hero is all about. It's about using your power responsibly to help those in need. It's about making a difference in any way you can."

Ben blinked, realizing he may have gone too deep with that response, even though it was the truth.

"SO COOOOL!" Jason cried, literal tears of joy falling from his eyes. "Your words are so inspiring! I'm moved to tears!"

"Um... thanks, I guess."

"Wow! This is better than I could've expected! A tale of a small-town man leaving his home to venture out and help people in need. COOL!" Jason exclaimed ecstatically.

'Every reporter has to have their narrative, I suppose,' thought Ben.

After jotting down more notes, he looked back up. "So, our readers want to know a few other things. Like, how many Take-Overs can you change into?"

"Around seventy," he answered. "At least for now..."

"Seventy!? Wait, did you say 'for now'?" the reporter said, confused.

"Well, let's just say in the future, I'll definitely have more."

"Oh wow! That's awesome! I've never heard of any Take-Over wizard having over seventy forms. Not even the great Mirajane! SO COOL!"

'If I had a nickel for every time he said 'cool'... I'd be able to BUY all the Mr. Smoothy's stores back home.' Ben inwardly commented.

"Are the rumors of you turning into a giant a few months ago true?"

"Yeah. I call him Way Big, by the way."

"Awesome name! Does that mean the story of you and Titania destroying a volcano up in northern Fiore is true then too?" Jason continued.

"Heh, yeah," Ben said sheepishly, "but that was an accident. We were fighting a guy who created an army of lava-demons... and he eventually turned himself into a giant lava-monster. When Erza and I unleashed our final attack, the volcano suffered a lot of damage and collapsed in on itself."

"Lava-monsters!? Mountains crumbling?! COOL!" He turned to another paper slip on his pad, writing down all the cool information he had gained.

"What's your favorite food?"

"Chili fries and smoothies."

"Oh, Titania mentioned something about smoothies. What are those?" Jason asked eagerly.

Ben pointed at the Magic Smoothie-Maker machine in front of him. Jason looked at the device in intrigue. "It's the best drink in all of existence. It's basically a cold, blended beverage with milk and different fruits mixed in. You can pretty much mix up any type of flavor you want with it."

"That sounds so delicious!" the ecstatic man commented. "Ooh! Do you think I can try one?"

Ben smirked. Jason was definitely loud and obnoxious, but that didn't mean he would deny the reporter the experience of drinking the most heavenly beverage ever created. "Sure. Why not."

He slid over his glass of blueberry-banana smoothie, which was half-full. Jason observed the slushy content for a short moment before taking a sip. Suddenly, his eyes lit up brighter than they normally were – if that was possible.

"SO DELICIOUSLY COOL!" Jason shouted in glee.

Ben smirked, satisfied that he had won over a new convert to loving smoothies. "Yeah... it is 'deliciously cool', isn't it?"

"Ooh! It'd be so cool if these could be sold everywhere." Jason noted offhandedly. "The people would love it!"

"Huh..." Ben held his chin in contemplation. He had only invented the Magic Smoothie-Maker to satisfy his own taste for smoothies. Of course, he wouldn't deny his guildmates the pleasure of having a smoothie if they wanted one. The idea of bringing the Drink of the Gods to the public didn't even occur to him. But now that it was on his mind, he couldn't get it out.

"Yah know, that's actually not a bad idea." Ben replied.

'I could build my own Mr. Smoothy's...' the teen hero felt butterflies in his stomach from that thought. 'Definitely need to give this some more thought.'

Jason giggled as he proceeded to gather up his notes.

He looked up with the cowlick sticking up at its zenith. "How about this, what's your favorite Take-Over?"

"Hmm... if I had to pick one, it'd definitely be Feedback."

"Ooh! Cool name! Can I see it?!" Jason requested, putting down his notes for a second to bring up his camera.

Ben shrugged, not seeing the harm in showing him. "Sure. Gives me an excuse to change into him, I guess."

He activated the Omnitrix and scrolled until he found Feedback's head icon, confusing the reporter. After slamming down the core, in a flash of emerald, standing in Ben's place was his Conductoid form.

"This is Feedback."

"WOOOW!" Jason exclaimed as he quickly began taking multiple snapshots of Feedback from various angles. "This Take-Over looks so COOL!"

"Yeah, I think so too." Feedback grinned, brushed his knuckles against his chest confidently.

Although Ben didn't brag much anymore, he couldn't help but boast a little when showing off Feedback.

As per request, Ben changed into a few other aliens as well; such as, Four Arms, Diamondhead, Heatblast, and Swampfire. Jason explained this was to show the readers a sample of his various transformations.

A few minutes later, Ben changed back to human form and returned to his seat.

'He must have a lot of memory on that thing to take so many pictures.' He noted.

"Okay. One last question, there was a recent rumor that you and Titania were seen together in Onibus almost a couple weeks back. So... do you and Titania have a thing going on?" Jason asked with an eager grin.

"Huh..." Ben could feel a little sweat forming on his brow. He wasn't sure if it was wise to tell people outside the guild of his and Erza's relationship; plus, he didn't know if Erza even wanted the public to know.

Just as he was about to reply, a voice spoke up before him. "Yes. We are dating."

Ben nearly jumped out of his seat when Erza appeared out of nowhere, standing beside him. "E-Erza?"

"SOOO COOOOL!" Jason cried, jumping out of his seat and falling to his knees. "THIS IS INCREDIBLE! Titania has found her Fairy King! This edition will be the best ever!"

As the overhyped reporter continued, Ben leaned closer to the redhead and whispered, "Why would you tell him that?"

Erza looked at him calmly. "I want everyone to know you're officially off the market. Any potential fangirls or women who wish to have you... will have to go through my blades first."

Ben sweat-dropped. "Fangirls in danger of swords. Great..."

Jason calmed himself down a little, and asked, "So, what's the next step for you both?"

"Oh, yah know, drinking smoothies, beating up the bad guys... the usual." Ben answered nonchalantly.

Jason finished writing his notes and admired the content with starry eyes.

"This is all SO COOL! Ooh! Do yah think you can change into one more Take-Over for me? Please!" Jason begged, putting his palms together above his head.

Erza looked at her boyfriend and smiled. "I don't see the harm. Why don't you change into Upgrade?" She glanced back at the reporter. "That's my favorite Take-Over, for the record."

"COOL!" Jason grinned as he got his camera out again.

"Heh. Why not?" Ben activated the Omnitrix once more, selected Upgrade's head icon, and slapped the core down.

After the bright emerald light of Ben's transformation died down, standing in his place was definitely not Upgrade.

"Rath!" the Appoplexian glanced down at the Omnitrix dial in annoyance. "Let me tell yah something new Omnitrix, even Rath knows that Rath isn't even close to Upgrade!"

"OH WOW!" Jason exclaimed in elation, circling around Rath to take multiple snapshots. "THIS IS SO COOL! A giant tiger-man!"

"Let me tell yah something, Jason, reporter of Sorcerer Weekly magazine, Rath ain't no tiger-man! Rath is the toughest, meanest, most head-smashing fighter in this side of the galaxy!"

"That's right!" Happy hovered around Rath excitedly. "Nobody messes with Rath!"

"Oh, for Heaven's sake..." Erza closed her eyes and sighed, exasperated. "Of all forms, why this one?"

Lucy watched the scene, grinding her teeth out of frustration. Ben didn't even want the attention from that quirky reporter, yet he had spent more time around Ben than anyone else in the guild!

"AW MAN! What do I have to do to get noticed by this loser!?" she cried out.

An idea then popped up in the blonde's head. She knew it was desperate, but she was left with no alternative. She needed that modeling gig, dang it! "I've got no other choice." A look of determination crossed her face. "I'll just have to swallow my pride and whip out the big guns!"

With that, Lucy ran for a backdoor that led to the area behind the guild hall's stage.

Meanwhile, Jason continued taking multiple pictures of Rath. "Oh man! This is great! This photo-spread for next week's edition is going to be so cool!"

Suddenly, a spotlight came on and standing in it was Lucy. She was wearing a bunny suit that consisted of a tight, red one-piece – which showed off her voluptuous body and an impressive amount of cleavage – black stockings, red heel shoes, and a pair of long, red bunny ears attached to her head. To complete the outfit, around her neck was a cute red bowtie.

"Listen up everybody!" Lucy yelled with a cutesy voice.

Nearly everyone looked to the stage with expressions of shock and confusion.

Erza smiled, and complimented, "Her bunny girl outfit is very cute... almost as cute as mine."

"She must be really desperate to resort to this." Happy commented.

Rath and Jason had no comment as they stared at the stage, bewildered.

"I've got a song I'd like to sing for you! WHOA!" Lucy was then unceremoniously pushed to the side as Gajeel took centerstage.

"Not today, blonde! I got this one!" Gajeel announced excitedly, his guitar in hand. "Shoo-bee-do-ba!"

"GAJEEL!?" Bickslow and Evergreen shouted, dumbfounded.

"AW, NOT AGAIN!" Jet and Droy cried.

The majority of the guild shared similar reactions. Last time Gajeel sang on stage, most of the guild was less than impressed with his singing – with the exceptions of a few wizards.

"YEAH! Awesome!" Jason cheered. "That's Black Steel Gajeel! COOL!"

Gajeel smirked. 'I think I got most of the song down. I'll just improvise the parts I forget.'

"Prepare yourselves," Gajeel spoke into the microphone-bird thingy, "this little ditty is something out of this world."

"Huh...?" Rath uttered, cocking a brow.

When Gajeel's fingers hit the guitar strings, the sounds of an old rock-and-roll song from Ben's world resounded across the building. Everyone turned and looked to the stage in shock. The tune Gajeel was playing was unfamiliar and... actually sounded good.

"Way down in Louisiana down in New Orleans... Way back in the woods among the evergreens... There stood a log cabin made of earth and wood... Where lived a country boy named Johnny B. Goode...

"Never learned to read or write so well... He could play a guitar just like ringin' a bell! Go, go! Go Johnny go, go! Go Johnny go, go, go! Go Johnny go, go! Go Johnny go, go! Go... Johnny B. Goode!"

As he continued with the rock-and-roll melody, everyone looked on in amazed disbelief at the iron-mage guitar player.

"Whoa! He actually sounds pretty good!" Bickslow exclaimed, impressed.

"No kidding!" Max said excitedly.

"I don't know what a Louisiana or New Orleans or whatever are... but this song is manly!" Elfman exclaimed.

"You go, Gajeel!" Levy and Juvia cheered in excitement.

"ROCK ON!" the crowd burst out in exhilaration.

Jason reached into his duffle bag and pulled out a communication-lacrima. After successfully getting through to whoever he was contacting, he yelled, "HEY! This is Jason! From Sorcerer Weekly? Remember? Yah know that new sound you said you were looking for? Well listen to this... SO COOOOOL!"

Meanwhile, on far side of the stage, Lucy looked on at Gajeel playing in dumbfounded shock; her face drained of all colors. She slammed her head on the hardwood and started crying. "I GIVE UP! Goodbye modeling gig money... it's over!" she sobbed.

"I can't believe this..." Erza murmured in disbelief. "I never knew Gajeel had this kind of talent."

"GRR!" Rath growled, his left eye twitching in annoyed ire. "Let me tall yah something Black Steel Gajeel Redfox, former member of Phantom Lord! You think you can start playing a song from Rath's phone and take credit for it? Think again! 'Cause Rath is gonna-"

"Wait! You gave him that song?" Erza questioned. "Is that why you went to speak to Gajeel earlier?"

"Let me tell yah something Erza Scarlet, strongest woman in Fairy Tail and MY beautiful girlfriend, Rath can only do one thing at a time! Except when fighting's involved... then Rath can do lots of things!"

"Go, go! Go Johnny, go, go! Go! Johnny B. Goode!"

"WOULD YOU SHUT UP!" Suddenly, Natsu flew out of nowhere and decked Gajeel in the face – sending him flying back until he crashed by the main entrance.

"HEY! What the hell did you do that for, Natsu!" Macao shouted in anger.

"Yeah! Gajeel actually sounded good there!" Wakaba added, equally upset.

"That's not manly at all!" Elfman yelled.

"You little..." Gajeel snarled, pushing his big guitar off of himself. His black shades had been broken and fallen off.

"I was already mad enough at that creep there!" Natsu pointed at Jason. "But your Johnny-whatsit song really hurt my ears and set me over the edge!"

Without warning, an iron-club slammed into Natsu's abdomen and sent him crashing back into the stage.

"It's Johnny B. Goode, yah moron!" Gajeel retorted, reverting his left arm back to normal. "And you're gonna pay for ruining my groove, Salamander!"

"OH YEAH?!" Natsu challenged.

Natsu and Gajeel charged at one another and met in midair, attacking each other with fast-paced kicks and punches. The shockwaves from the blows shattered the benches and flooring nearby, causing a real mess in the guild hall. Nothing out of the ordinary for Fairy Tail.

"Cut it out, you guys!" Mira cried. "The press is still here!"

"WOO-HOO-HOO!" Jason cheered, waving his right arm around. "Fairy Tail's two Dragon Slayers are brutally slugging it out before my very eyes! With Ben's interview and his photo-spread added to this, this'll be the most awesome edition in Sorcerer Weekly history!"

The reporter got his camera out and started taking multiple snapshots of the fight, capturing pictures of Natsu's flaming fist hitting Gajeel and Gajeel's iron-club slamming into Natsu's face and etcetera.

Rath growled at the sight of the battle. "Let me tell yah something-"

"AHHH!" Erza shrieked uncharacteristically. "The Magic Smoothie-Maker!"

"Huh...?" Rath looked back and was shocked to see that the smoothie-maker had been broken. More specifically, a piece of broken wood from the fighting had slammed into the glass casing and shattered it.

Rath slowly turned back to the two fighting Dragon Slayers, growling while the claws on his hands extended instinctively. Without saying a word, Rath crouched down and leapt at the two Dragon Slayers – the floor beneath him caved in.

Natsu and Gajeel were unprepared when two large, furry orange arms collided with their necks. "COSMIC CLOTHESLINE!" Rath shouted.

The Dragon Slayer duo crashed into the other side of the guild hall painfully, breaking the flooring in their landings. Before they could process what had happened, they felt an intimidating presence towering over them. They looked up to see a very pissed off Rath glowering down at them – bringing a nervous sweat to their faces.

"Let me tell yah something Natsu Dragneel and Gajeel Redfox, Dragon Slayers of Fairy Tail! You wanna crack each other's heads? Fine! You wanna tear the guild hall apart? Fine, whatever! But when you break the Magic Smoothie-Maker... RATH BREAKS YOUR SKULLS!"

Rath grabbed Natsu and Gajeel by their heads and slammed them together. While they were dazed, the Appoplexian threw them across the guild – breaking more tables in the process.

"OH YEAH!" Jason applauded, snapping pictures. "Ben Tennyson has joined the fight too! What a show! This'll be the best photo-spread in all the history of Earthland!"

As Natsu and Gajeel finally recovered from Rath's blow, they charged at him simultaneously with their own battle cries. Rath wasn't fazed as he ducked underneath their punches, causing the duo to strike each other instead. The Appoplexian knocked Gajeel to the side while lifting up his leg and kicking Natsu aside, sending him hurtling right into Jason.

The force behind the impact made Jason roll across the floor and slam into the bar in a disheveled heap. "Oh man! It's hard-hitting. The power... so cool..."

Finally, the Sorcerer Weekly reporter passed out cold.

"Big-time pro," Happy remarked.

...

Later that evening, after Jason had left, the majority of the guild had headed home or were out on jobs. The damage from Natsu, Gajeel, and Rath's fight had been repaired – thanks to Clockwork's handiwork.

What could be considered the main members of Fairy Tail were still present though. This group included Makarov, Mirajane and Elfman, Cana, Team Shadow Gear, Alzack and Bisca, Juvia, Macao and Wakaba, and the Ultimate Team. Gajeel was sitting at a table in the back, tuning his electric-guitar.

After the reporter had left, Ben had announced to the group that he had something important to tell them and requested if they could stay a little later than usual. Curious to hear what Ben had to say, the whole group stayed. Most of the present wizards took seats at benches and stools while Makarov sat on the bar counter and Cana at one of the barstools. Ben was currently standing in front of the bar counter, everyone's attention focused on him.

"So, what'd ya need to tell us, Ben?" Natsu asked curiously.

"Don't tell me you and Erza are tying the knot already." Wakaba joked. "Kids these days...they move so fast."

Lucy, Levy, and Juvia all blushed at that suggestion – letting their wild imaginations get the better of them.

Erza 'eeped', feeling her face heat up like a stove. She turned towards the smoking wizard in embarrassed anger. "S-shut it! We're not moving that fast!"

Mirajane and Cana snickered at the expense of the redhead's embarrassment.

"Uh, I can assure that's not what this is about." Ben asserted, trying to keep his composure after that thought was placed in his male brain. He shook his head. "Actually, this has been on my mind ever since the Entrapment Spell was broken."

Makarov looked at the brunet hero keenly. 'Is he finally opening up about what happened to him?'

Suddenly, Ben slid out of his green jacket and placed it on the bar behind him. "For the record, I'd prefer that what I share with you guys doesn't leave the guild hall. Is that fair?"

The tone of Ben's voice and his visage was enough to convince the wizards that what he was about to share was serious. The group all nodded, with the exception of Gajeel who kept his eyes focused squarely on Ben.

Lucy, Cana, and Mirajane already had an idea as to what Ben was about to announce, thanks to their talk with Erza a while back. The trio made sure to feign ignorance if that was the case.

Ben let out a deep sigh, preparing to show his friends something he normally kept hidden.

"Okay," Ben pulled up his black shirt to reveal his chest.

Everyone had mixed reactions to the purple scar stretching across Ben's right chest and torso. Natsu, Gray, and Elfman slightly flinched at the sight. The three were no strangers to scars, but knew whatever it was that could leave a permeant mark such as that must've been brutal.

Makarov closed his eyes and sighed in sympathy for the otherworldly man.

Erza remained silent with a saddened expression. The rest of the girls lightly gasped and covered their mouths with their hands, shocked by the sight of the injury.

Macao and Wakaba, Jet and Droy, and Alzack grimaced slightly at the gross mark. Happy's eyes had widened in shock and, like everyone else, was speechless.

'So that's why Ben never took his shirt off at the beach...' Happy realized. 'I thought he was just self-conscious, but... this makes more sense.'

"Pretty gross, right?" Ben said with a solemn look. "I got this in a big fight a couple of years back. Nothing internal was damaged, but this scar is permanent. It can't be fixed."

A short moment of silence passed before Levy softly spoke out, "Wait... I'm confused. You have aliens that can regenerate, right? Can't you just heal it?"

Ben shook his head while pulling his shirt back down. "I got this injury when I was human. Scars don't carry over to my alien forms. Not sure why. Might be a bug in the Omnitrix or something..." he glanced down at said device.

"From the looks of it, it seems like that injury of yours was cauterized," Makarov observed.

"Good observation," Ben said.

"So... you just wanted to show us your scar?" Natsu asked, confused.

"No. I wanted to tell you the story behind it. The one that kept playing back over-and-over in my mind when the Entrapment had its hold on me." Ben responded. "I feel it's time I should tell you guys about it."

The group became silent and gazed at Ben attentively. They recalled how the Entrapment Spell worked by placing its victim under a traumatizing nightmare of sorts. Did this mean that whatever Ben experienced in his head wasn't all just an illusion? It actually happened in his past? They were eager to know.

Ben took a deep, calming breath before finally starting his story. He began by explaining who Julie and Ship were. Some of the wizards were at first confused as to what Ship was, but Ben commented he was just a smaller dog-like version of Upgrade. Happy shook in fear, remarking that he didn't like dogs.

Everyone ignored the blue cat as the Omnitrix bearer continued. He gave an abridged description of his and Julie's date being interrupted, Vilgax invading Galvan Prime, and the fearsome battle that transpired between them. He had to give clarifications of who and what Vilgax and Galvan Prime were, respectively.

Most of the wizards felt uneasy that a powerful creature such as Vilgax existed and was actually Ben's arch-nemesis! The Ultimate Team had experienced the warlord's power for themselves while in Ben's mind. It had taken everything the group had to defeat the squid-faced tyrant, yet Ben was able to defeat him several times singlehandedly!

Ben moved on to reveal the events leading to him getting the scar. Ben commented that the injury definitely hurt at the time, but admitted it could've been much worse. Try having his right arm get cut off – which would have sealed his demise that day.

He then stopped for a moment. It was noticeable to the group that a lump was building in Ben's throat. He gritted his teeth, trying to control his emotions; however, it didn't stop his eyes from misting up a bit. This shocked the wizards as they had never seen Ben in such a state. Erza was saddened by this and was tempted to comfort him, but knew that he needed to get this off his chest and stayed firmly in her spot.

Ben let out a deep breath, finally revealing the heart of the conversation. He went on about how the Omnitrix was drained and Vilgax took his opportunity by firing his death ray at him. At the last second, Julie and Ship appeared in front of him and shielded him from the blast, but sacrificed themselves in the process.

At that moment, it got very quiet in the guild hall. There was a mix of reactions between everyone present.

Natsu, Gray, and Elfman were stunned as the three men couldn't help but be reminded by their own pasts. For Natsu and Elfman, it was Lisanna and the events that had led to her death. With Gray, it was Deliora and Ur's sacrifice to save him.

Macao and Wakaba, Jet and Droy, and Alzack and Bisca sported surprised looks – not expecting something so horrible to happen to someone like Ben. Wakaba, at the moment, was starting to feel guilty for making his joke earlier.

Juvia looked away with a tear sliding down her face – hearing how Ben's first love had sacrificed herself for him truly broke her heart. As someone who was in love, she couldn't imagine the pain she would feel if Gray did something similar for her.

In the back, Gajeel looked away from the scene with an impassive look. He was unreadable, at the moment.

Lucy, Cana, and Mira had lowered their heads in sadness. Hearing the tale again didn't lessen the impact; in fact, coming from Ben's own mouth made it even more melancholic. Erza shared a similar expression.

Makarov had lowered his head, feeling sincere sorrow for the young hero.

"After that," Ben continued sadly, "I lost it. When the Omnitrix recharged, I went all-out on Vilgax. I won't go into all the details, but in the end... I took him down for good."

He lifted his head and looked at everyone, expecting them to be shocked that he had killed his former archenemy. Instead, they were showing looks of understanding – knowing they most likely would've done the same had the shoe been on the other foot.

"So... there you have it." Ben concluded. "That's how the Entrapment Spell got to me. It used the guilt I had been bottling up ever since that day and used it against me."

Elfman and Gray had a good understanding of the guilt eating away at Ben. After all, they had both blamed themselves for Lisanna and Ur's deaths respectively. Natsu could understand the pain the shape-shifting hero felt, having experienced it twice in his life already with Igneel and Lisanna. It never got easy losing those important to you.

Makarov spoke up, "I must say... it's dreadful something so horrible could happen to someone as good as you, Ben. I know it may not mean much, but I commend you for your courage in speaking to us about this when you didn't have to. I know it couldn't have been easy."

Ben nodded, appreciative of the old man's words.

'Fairy Tail always seems to attract those with so much potential, yet have undergone so much hardship.' Makarov inwardly commented.

A short moment passed before Mirajane stood up and approached Ben, a teary yet serious look on her face. "Mira..." he said, confused.

"Losing someone you love is never easy. Most of us know that feeling all too well..." Mira trailed off; the sorrow of her little sister's death crashing over her like a wave. The white-haired beauty shook her head as she regained her composure. "But that's part of what brings us all together here. We can feel and sympathize with each other's pain... and even if we don't understand, we can still support one another."

"Mira..." Erza said softly, surprised.

She hadn't expected her former rival to comfort Ben like this. The redheaded knight almost expected someone like Natsu to speak up to Ben in a time like this. However, the pink-haired pyromaniac was currently in his seat staring at the floor wistfully. Gray and Elfman, who were close to him, were both in similar states; the pain in their eyes clearly evident.

The Fairy Queen frowned sadly, suspecting that Ben's story had unintentionally reopened old wounds for the trio.

"You're not alone in this. Even though you're from another world and have family and friends back there, we still see you as part of our guild...our family. And we'll be here to support you when you need it." Mirajane said in determination.

Erza and a few others smiled at Mira's statement and nodded in agreement with her words. Natsu, Gray, and Elfman would've agreed, but were currently lost in their own musings.

Gajeel remained silent as he processed everything Ben had said. He, of course, had been skeptical upon hearing that Ben was from another universe. But after everything else today, Gajeel found it pretty hard to deny the claim. He definitely had some questions for the otherworldly man, but they could wait. Black Steel knew that right now wasn't the right time.

"I couldn't have said it better myself, Mirajane." Makarov responded, smiling proudly.

Ben was speechless. It was still hard for him to grasp a group outside of his family and friends back home could be so supportive; especially to a stranger like him. He smiled in gratitude from the wizards' kindness.

"Thanks." Ben said sincerely. "That... really does mean a lot."

At that moment, Ben began to really understand the family dynamic of Fairy Tail that separated it from other guilds. It wasn't just a place for wizards to find work, socialize, and drink or eat. It was a tightly knit group of people brought together by shared hardships and true compassion for one another.

'This place never ceases to surprise me...' the otherworldly superhero admitted.

...

It was closing time at the Fairy Tail guild hall. Everyone - minus Gajeel – had said their goodbyes, especially to Ben, before going their separate ways. Just as Ben and Erza stepped out of the main entrance together, Elfman walked up behind the couple.

He placed his huge hand on Ben's left shoulder. The teen hero had to fight off his stumble due to Elfman's heavy hand being placed on him without warning. The dude was as big as Rath, after all!

"Elfman?" Ben looked back.

"Hey, Ben. Do you mind if we talk?" the spiky, white-haired man asked.

"Oh, sure. Whatcha got?"

Elfman shook his head. "No. I mean, in private." He looked to Erza. "No offense, Erza. But this is something Ben and I need to talk about alone."

Ben blinked in slight surprise. The tone of Elfman's voice was subdued rather than his usual gruff tone.

"Okay..." Erza said, confused. Why would Elfman want to speak to Ben alone all of a sudden?

"You go on ahead, Erza. I'll see yah tomorrow." He leaned over and kissed her on the cheek.

Erza blushed lightly before nodding. As the duo walked away, Erza looked on in confusion. 'Strange. I wonder why Elfman wishes to speak to Ben? Could it have to do with them sharing similar tragedies in Lisanna and Julie?'

She was tempted to spy on them, but the redheaded knight shook that thought from her mind. It wasn't her place to spy on their private conversation. Ben would tell her later if Elfman didn't want to keep their talk a secret. With that, Erza proceeded down the street in the direction of Fairy Hills.

Meanwhile, Ben followed Elfman around the guild hall to the back. They walked out closer to the cliff that overlooked the lake. The imprint that Way Big's foot left when he climbed over the cliff had just recently been filled in.

Elfman stopped and gazed on at the lake, his arms crossed over his chest. The sun setting over the horizon cast a yellow glow on the sparkling waters.

"So, what'd you need to talk with me about, Elfman?" He asked.

Elfman took in a long, deep breath and exhaled out of his nostrils. "First off, I wanted to give you my condolences for Julie. Believe it or not, I understand the pain you're going through. It never goes away."

At that moment, Ben was reminded about his adventure into Natsu's dream as Pesky Dust a while back. He had seen clips of the Dragon Slayer's memories with Mirajane and Elfman's little sister, Lisanna, and had come to learn of her death at Elfman's hands. Ben frowned sadly for the larger man.

"Thank you," Ben said, "and yeah, I believe you."

"With that said, I called you out here to ask for your help, Ben." Elfman turned to look at Ben seriously. "I need your help to train to become a better man. A REAL man!"

Ben blinked in confusion. "What're you talking about?"

"Your transformations are incredible, Ben." Elfman stated, holding up his clenched fist. "I want to fight them. Just like when you dueled Natsu and Erza."

Elfman closed his eyes. "I want to test my Take-Over magic against your aliens. I have to strengthen my powers, and fighting those suckers will really help me man up!"

"Elfman, you're already a man. You don't need to 'man up'." Ben replied. "I've seen your magic and it's pretty good."

"But not good enough!" Elfman snapped, making Ben step back in surprise.

Elfman shut his eyes with a depressed visage. "I couldn't save Mira from Freed. She had to do it herself while I was lying helpless on the ground. Before that, I lost to Evergreen!" He ground his teeth in vexation. "I'm not the kind of man who looks down on women or anything like that. Hell, I don't even think of those types as 'men', but still... I lost to her and then to Freed! The two times I was supposed to protect Mirajane and I failed!"

Elfman turned his back to Ben, staring out at the lake.

"I'm her brother. I'm supposed to protect her... like how I failed when..." Elfman cut himself off with a stifled sob.

Ben frowned and stared at the spiky-haired Take-Over wizard in understanding. He knew the memories of Lisanna were running through his companion's head at the moment. He had a better understanding of why Elfman was acting this way.

"Yeah... I know. I know what happened to Lisanna." Ben said somberly.

"Huh...?" the big-man glanced back in bewilderment. "How?"

"Long story short, at Akane Resort, I sneaked into Natsu's dreams as one of my aliens. I saw some of his memories with Lisanna. Erza told me later how she died and all." The Omnitrix bearer explained.

Elfman blinked before shaking his head. "Yeah... I shouldn't be surprised by that. You're nothing short of amazing, Ben."

"Elfman... what is this really about?" he requested.

He had a feeling this wasn't the true reason Elfman had called him out here.

"I'm sorry." Elfman sighed, rubbing the tears out of his eyes. "It's not manly to show this kind of weakness to another man."

"There's nothing unmanly about crying or feeling sorrow, Elfman. I know that more than anyone." Ben comforted. "Please, I'm your friend. You can talk to me."

Elfman sighed heavily, and confessed, "Okay. The truth is... I don't wanna train against your aliens. I... want to try and use my Take-Over magic on them... to BECOME them in a sense."

Ben's eyes widened. "Whoa! Wait. Time-out! Explain that to me..."

Elfman looked back to Ben, surprised by his confusion.

"Oh, right..." Elfman inwardly slapped himself for forgetting Ben's actual power. "You're not really a Take-Over wizard, so of course you wouldn't know. Well, Take-Over magic lets its wielder assume the power and abilities from another entity. Normally, I use animals like bears or whatnot. But other magical beings can be used too like Mira does with demons. And I think... I can do the same with your aliens."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah," Elfman nodded.

Ben glanced at his Omnitrix for a moment before looking back up to Elfman. "I dunno, Elfman. It's a big responsibility using my alien's powers, and some of them can be super dangerous if not used correctly."

"I know that, Ben!" Elfman said intensely. "But the more you 'know' the being, the easier it is to use Take-Over magic on them. If I could train with you and your forms, I know I could do it. With your power, I could easily take on other wizards and not get trounced."

Elfman made some good points, but Ben was still unsure. Using Take-Over magic on animals and magical-beings was one thing, but these were aliens from another universe! There's no telling what could happen if Elfman tried to copy their abilities.

"I've had these forms for a long time now, and it's going to take a while for you to get used to just ONE... let alone various aliens, Elfman." Ben pointed out.

"I know, but I don't want to experience what happened to Lisanna again... not ever!" He said darkly. "I need your alien forms to help me get stronger, learn better control, and have Take-Overs that can give me an edge over any enemies."

"I'm not asking this because I crave power, or anything selfish like that." Elfman declared. "I want to do what I can to protect my guildmates... and my last remaining sister."

He clenched his fists tightly with a determined expression.

"That's why I want to train with you. You know your transformations better than anyone. And the better I can know them too, the better I can keep control over my mind."

Ben nodded in understanding. He looked up and felt deep respect for the spiky, white-haired man.

"I get it. Alright... since this is to protect everyone you love, I can hardly say 'no'." Ben admitted. He stretched out his hand and smirked. "I'll train you hard, but you gotta prove you're ready before I even let you attempt to use your Take-Over magic on one of my aliens."

Elfman smiled in relief and unexpectedly pulled Ben into a big hug, causing the hero to cry out in surprise and pain. "You're a REAL MAN, Ben Tennyson! Thank you!" he sobbed into Ben's shoulder.

"Huh... n-no problem. But... could you please let me go? I need to pop my shoulder back in place..." Ben choked out.

Elfman, however, continued to hug Ben and cried into his shoulder. The brunet sighed deeply and allowed the big guy to let it all out. "This is what being friends is all about..."

...

A/N: Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Virtual cookies to those who can point out the old 80s movie reference in this chapter, LOL! Too bad Gajeel couldn't have a whole band up there with him. Maybe someday.

I would like to thank Star Saber21, Vanessa Masters, and Jumpin' Jack Flash 7 for their contributions to this chapter! Thanks a bunch! You guys were very helpful.

Now, I have a couple things I'd like to announce to you fine readers.

One, there is some new fan-art for Natsu's NRG powerup, Erza's Upgraded Armadura Fairy Armor, and a comic panel on DeviantArt if you're interested in seeing them. The link to the DeviantArt page they're on is on my profile. Check them out!

Two, some readers have been asking if I will be bringing in Ben 10 Reboot aliens. I MAY do it. There are a couple of aliens that have piqued my interest: Shock Rock and Gax. Of course, I would have to change Gax's name considering Ben's history with Vilgax. There's no way Ben would name a form after him.

Keep in mind, I do not follow the Reboot. If new cool transformations or plot points are introduced, let me know and I'll think about it. I tried watching a few episodes of the Reboot and I just couldn't continue. It's clear that its primary audience is for kids, not me.

I want to apologize for the long wait. Like I said in my last update, my family and I moved across the country and I had to find a new job. Finally found one though, and it's with a good company! I'm working 40 hours a week, so don't expect me to be churning out updates every week.

I've got lots of good things planned for this story, so please be patient with me and I will work hard to bring out good quality chapters for you. I'll try not to make you guys and gals wait for months like I've been doing.

The next couple of chapters...

Chapter 40: A Very Worm Welcome – Ben and Natsu are exclusively selected by a client to retrieve a rare, expensive magical herb. There are two problems though: one, they have to go to the harshest desert in Earthland; two, the herb only grows inside the throat of a desert-worm monster. Should be a piece of cake, right?

Chapter 41: Oracion Seis, Part I – The beginning of one of the better arcs in Fairy Tail with Ben Tennyson added in. Things should turn out the same as canon, right? Not quite...

Please leave any critique, comments, or suggestions in the review box below. That would be SO COOL! Until next time... Ultimate out.