All right. So there's a new picture on my deviantart with Rika AND Ben. I do warn you, however. Half of the artist's comment shouldn't be read until after this chapter (Or the next, I'm not sure) You'll know when the action depicted happens.

ooo

The darkness in the room was surprising. I was used to the faint yet annoying glow of a barrier, and the blinking lights of cameras. The darkness was calming. I rolled out of bed, rubbing my eyes before standing. I'd fallen asleep without a change of clothes, as that wasn't an option.

A faint green glow came from my pocket, and the closer the Omnitrix got to it, the more power I felt surge through it. That only happened when I was in danger… I never liked that feeling. I pulled Rika's badge out of my pocket, using it as a dim flashlight to guide myself around the room to the bathroom.

My eyes burned from the bright lights once they were on, though it would only be a moment before I could see again. I pressed my palms against the mock marble counter, my head hanging low toward the sink. I quickly turned on the water, twisting the lever to the hot setting.

"…Ben? Why are you awake…?" Rika walked in, a bitten apple in her hand.

"Why are you?" I asked groggily.

Rika hummed, taking another bite. "I'm finishing the fruit in the bowl they left us. After that first one, I couldn't stop. The fruit here is so much better than the stuff we've got."

"Have you slept… at all?" I asked, rubbing my eyes.

Rika shook her head. "It's too early to sleep."

"What do you think you're supposed to do when the sun goes down?!"

She looked down at the fruit, then back at me. "Want some?" she asked quietly, laughing a bit.

"Can I wake up, please?" I asked, watching the sink's water level rise quickly.

Rika nodded. "I'm bored, though, so hurry up. There's not much to do in such an empty house." She turned around and left the room, taking another bite of her apple.

I sighed, putting my hands under the running water. It was calming, though I was pretty calm as it was. Without the guards breathing down my neck, I was almost stress-free.

I laughed at the reflection in the mirror. My hair was a mess and my face had a few indentations from the wrinkled fabrics I was lying on. I ran my fingers through my hair a few times and splashed some water on my face. The rough feeling on my cheeks reminded me that I needed to buy shaving supplies before too long.

I ignored the minor beard growing on my face and turned the light out, searching for Rika. The kitchen light was on, but the rest of the house was dark and quiet. "Rika? Where are you?"

"Down here!" She reached up a blue hand, waving from behind the kitchen counter.

I walked into the kitchen, looking down toward Rika. "What are you doing down there?"

"Grapes. Want one?" She pulled one off the stem, holding it up for me.

Even though I wasn't hungry, I took it anyway. I needed to eat, having not eaten anything the day before. I was too preoccupied with what needed to be done, rather than eating or much of anything else.

"I have to leave soon," I told her, tossing the small grape into my mouth.

"Where are you going? The sun's barely out yet."

Kevin was either awake by now, or still awake from the night before. If he was still awake, chances are he was working on his car. If he'd just woken up, then only God knows what he's doing. One way or another, I'd find him.

"I have to ask Kevin a favor. I also have to go run a few errands." I held out my hand for another grape. They were actually quite good…

She handed me another. "Can I come?"

I shook my head. "It all depends."

Rika set the empty bowl aside before standing up, then set it back on the composite counter. "I don't like being alone…," she mumbled quietly. "You're coming back soon, right?"

I nodded. "I'll be back after I go see Kevin. If not, It'll only be an hour or so to get whatever else I need." I yawned. "Any more questions or can I go?"

"You can go," she smiled, walking into the living room.

She seemed so calm compared to normal. No arguments… I wasn't used to that.

"…Bye, Rika…" I grabbed the keys off the counter, reaching for the door.

"Bye, Ben!"

I almost felt like I was missing something once I'd left. She was so sedate, I almost felt like I wasn't supposed to leave until I caused an argument. It may stress me out or piss me off, but she's just not Rika unless she argues about something.

Hm.

My bike was still parked neatly in front of the apartment, my helmet still sitting on the porch, surprisingly. I didn't expect it to be there after the night (thinking someone may have stolen it) but I guess I got lucky there.

I pulled the full-face helmet off of the drink table on the porch and walked down the steps to my bike. I was thankful for having a first-floor apartment. All those stairs would've bugged me half way to hell.

I jammed the key into the ignition before pulling the helmet on, shutting the shield over my eyes. In only a moment, after letting the bike warm up, I was gone. "Kevin, you better be awake or I'm breaking into your car and taking what I need."

That… he would kill me for.

Passing the AT&T store, which was closed, I was reminded of the cell phone I desperately needed. "Damn," I grumbled, speeding up. "Now… Let's hope I remember how to get to Kevin's place. Otherwise, I'll have to wake Gwen up, and she won't be too happy about that."

I zoned out the rest of the trip over. I didn't want to bring back old memories, nor did I want to worry too much about the future. However, it wasn't too hard to spot Kevin's house once I was in the neighborhood. It was the only one with the garage door open, a green and black car pulled in, and a strange young man lying under the car.

I pulled up in the driveway, kicking the stand down. Still no reaction from Kevin. "Hey! You're not dead, are you?"

"Go away, Ben."

"I need to ask you a favor," I told him, dismounting the bike.

He held the front bumper of his car, rolling out from under to look at me. He soon pushed himself back under the car, ignoring my request.

"Look, it's about Rika." I took off my helmet, hanging it on the handle bars before approaching the car.

"If she punches me again, you're both dead, got it?"

I laughed. "Why?"

"…Cause that actually hurt…"

I laughed even harder. "She's stronger than she looks. I've learned that the hard way."

"Yeah. Now, go away. I'm busy."

I looked at the car, then the lack of tools surrounding him. "With what?! You aren't even fixing the car."

He rolled out from under the car, getting to his feet. "Am too."

I also noted the lack of grease on his shirt.

"All right, fine, so I was just making sure everything worked. Get over it." He brushed his hands together, taking a step forward. Unfortunately he missed the ground and stepped down on the skateboard he was using to roll under the car, tripping.

I couldn't stop laughing now. This was payback for all the cracks he'd taken at me over the years. Not all of the payback, but enough for the moment.

When Kevin was back on his feet, I could see the murder in his eyes and I quickly cut the laughing. "Okay, look. Just give me what I came here for and I'm gone."

"What do you want, Tennyson?" He rested his hand on his car, threatening to use a solid-steel hand to punch me out if need be.

I swallowed the lump in my throat. "I want that souvenir you kept from the DNAlien attack."

"The ID mask?" he laughed at me.

"I'm not kidding."

Kevin's expression fell flat.

"You owe me, Kevin. I never told Gwen about that little thing on Valentine's day where you were so nervous you absorbed all the chocolate you were trying to give her!"

"Hey, you promised you would never speak of that incident again!" He poked a finger at my chest.

I smiled. "Give me the mask and I won't."

He growled quietly to himself. "Fine." Walking around the car, he popped the trunk open and pulled out a strange mask. "Here." He tossed it to me. I caught it at the last second, fumbling around before I steadied it in my hands.

"Thanks."

"Now stop bothering me." He pushed his way past me back toward the skateboard, readjusting it under the car. Back to ignoring me. Just how it should be.

I rolled my eyes, making my way back to the bike. I stuffed the mask in a saddle bag and quickly left. Kevin's house always had a sense of danger around it, and it wasn't the kind of danger I liked.

I shuddered, speeding off down the road. I quietly wondered what Rika would look like with the mask. If it made the DNAliens look like their human selves, what would Rika look like? Would it even change her, since she wasn't human to begin with?

I sighed. The mask was my last resort. I'd gone through every other option. Makeup would rub off and be very expensive to cover all visible skin. Hair dye is only temporary. Contact lenses would be a bitch to put in every day and Rika probably wouldn't agree to any of it!

The mask was simple. The only drawback would be storms. Lightning disrupts the mask's function. Otherwise, she'll look completely human, if it works.

ooo

"What the hell are you doing?"

"Looking at the stars."

I looked up toward the ceiling. "That's the ceiling."

"Come here!" She grabbed my hand, pulling me down to the floor. "Look!"

I raised a brow questionably, laying down next to Rika on the carpet. I glanced at her before looking at the ceiling. "Oh wow. You're right!" I could see the stars and several other galaxies. The question was, how?

"I got bored so I projected the stars I could see from my home planet onto your ceiling."

Shooting star. "Make a wish."

"Why?"

"It's a tradition here. You see a shooting star, you make a wish. Just don't tell anyone or it won't come true."

She smiled, looking back up. "I hope my wish comes true."

Now I was curious. "What was it?"

"You just told me not to tell you!"

I sighed. "Fine. Just tell me when it comes true."

She laughed. "Okay."

"Hey, I got a surprise for you." I sat up, getting to my feet.

"Oohhh! What is it!?" She grabbed my arm, using it as support to stand up. She clung to my arm as I walked toward the counter.

"It's a miracle," I grumbled. "Here, watch." I picked up the mask, handing it to Rika. "Put it on."

She looked at the inside of the mask. "It looks weird."

"Just do it. Trust me."

She furrowed her brow, looking at the mask before placing it over her face. I felt like I was watching The Mask. So strange…

Preoccupied with the stars glowing from the ceiling, I wasn't exactly focused on Rika, but once my eyes caught her new appearance, I soon regretted it. If I thought she looked good before…

"Rika…?"

"Oh, stop drooling," she growled. "If I knew this would catch your attention before I should've asked you to get this sooner."

I laughed nervously. "Yeah… Well…" I forced myself to look away. This was Rika I was looking at. And Rika gets on my nerves. Right. That's what I would make myself believe.

Golden blond hair, crystal blue eyes, light pale skin… I sighed. "Rika, we have to go shopping."

"For what?" she asked, walking into the kitchen.

"Clothes. That, uh… outfit is uh… Too revealing…?"

"Hey, if it hasn't persuaded you, it isn't revealing enough," she laughed.

I sighed again. "The mall should be open by now. We can head out soon."

Rika grumbled to herself, neck-deep in the fridge. "Oh, sorry. Were you saying something?" she asked, looking out of the fridge.

I laughed nervously. "C-can we go?"

"As long as I get out of the house!" she smiled, shutting the fridge.

It was probably just the fact that she looked human, but I was strangely… attracted to her… I was prior to this, when we were back in the prison, but her annoying personality tore those notions down. This almost changed my view on her.

Almost…

ooo

Okay, people you can read the rest of the comment now! Though I just explained it all so yeah :]