A/N: Ben 10 does not belong to me in any way, shape, or form.

"A-are you sure?" Meena looked at herself in the mirror, her cheeks glowing pink. "Miss Rachel, I don't think—"

"Hush up, its fine." Meena ducked her head, pulling at the hem of the too-short-too-tight-dress. But that didn't help anything. "Now, hold still. I don't wanna impale you." Meena held still, staring straight ahead, not moving. Rachel stood before her, lips pursed, with a pencil in her hand.

"Miss Rachel… what is that for?" Rachel raised a brow and Meena clicked her mouth shut.

"For your eyes, Kid." Meena blinked.

"M-my eyes?" Rachel motioned to her own dark rimmed lids. "But… how…?"

"You've never put on make-up before… Of-course. That makes sense. Never dated, never kissed, never worn make-up… God, what's the world comin' to?" She shook her head, humming to herself. Meena lowered her eyes once again, biting at her lip. "Head up." She straightened and Rachel lifted up the pencil. "I won't poke out your eyes, just close them." Meena did as her friend bade. "This should be a fun night."

Connor opened one eye when he heard footsteps approaching him. Pierce brushed at the sleeve of his jacket, adjusting the tie. Connor yawned, pushing off from the wall of Meena's apartment building and appraising the teen his sister was so fond of. "Eh." Not too formal, but not too casual. A black button down, plain black tie, loosened. Dark jeans.

"What do you mean 'eh'?" Pierce frowned at him, fed up with the jacket and pushing up the sleeves, annoyed at the red head smirking at him. "You can stop the act. I know you're using an ID mask."

"It's not for you. But I can say the same of you. Or do you think she won't accept you because of how you look?" Pierce looked away and down the street. "She's just not use to your own face. I don't think she's even realized Rachel's… accessories aren't just for show." Pierce looked at him sharply, noting how Connor was grinning like an idiot. "Suor tun, freia!(Why hello, sister!)" He turned, taking in the two girls coming towards them.

Rachel fully embraced the looks she was receiving. She swayed in her heels, her dark dress ending halfway down her thigh. Her hair was bound up in a messy bun, curls escaping and framing her face. Meena avoided eye contact, staring down at the sidewalk, red on her cheeks. Her dress was a little longer, but not by much, and was a golden color.

"C-covron, be polite!" Connor shrugged, the smile still there, but his eyes on Rachel. Meena gave a small smile towards Pierce, pulling the jacket around her a little tighter. "Hello, Mr. Pierce. I'm glad you're feeling better." Covron shot him a triumphant look.

"You look nice." She looked away, pulling at the hem of her dress. She wore long boots, covering the gauze around her leg, but he had seen her limping. "Shouldn't you be using your crutches?" Rachel wrapped an arm around the younger girl, grinning mischievously.

"I figured you'd be more than willing to help her if she got tired." She wiggled her brows and Pierce snorted. She pulled away from Meena, linking arms with Connor. "I fully expect you to show me a good time, Whitaker."

"You're in luck, Calico." His smile wasn't a smirk and it wasn't as smug anymore. "I hope you like Italian." Rachel raised a brow at him, the corner of her lip twitching up in a smile.

"You're taking me to a nice restaurant? Wow. Totally tweeting this."

"You're going to use me to show up your on-again-off-again boyfriend?" Her grin widened.

"Of-course." He leaned in close.

"You should take pictures too." Meena restrained herself from screaming, opting for covering her eyes, being careful of the make-up Rachel had so carefully applied. Pierce shook his head at them, wondering how he was talked into this. "Hey, Wheels, keep up."

"Shut up." Rachel giggled, waving back at them. Pierce looked to Meena. "You wanna ditch?" She gave a strained smile.

"I… I don't think… it'll be that bad…" He let out a breath, running a hand through his hair.

"No. You're right. It'll be much worse." She blinked, then looked ahead at her brother and her friend. She straightened, setting her face into a calm mask. "Alright then." They followed after the two, Rachel waving them on and calling out for them to hurry up.

Meena watched her brother curiously from across the table. He was smiling, talking quietly with Rachel, holding her hand. If she didn't know any better, she might think Covron actually liked her.

But that was impossible. Covron was too guarded to rely on anyone else for his own happiness. He might play that part, but that wasn't him.

"Mirna, har baata(Meena, stop staring)." She blinked, starting at his voice. A moment, and she spoke, eyes concerned.

"Covron…Sif fa yuall sil lar dor vant?(What do you want with my friend?)" Her brother smiled, raising Rachel's hand to his lips. Rachel, for her part, giggled, her face gaining a blush while Pierce rolled his eyes.

"Forma kaller sif yuall pell(Not for what you think)." Meena blinked, then her eyes narrowed.

"Asi sif ta et?(And what is that?)" Rachel poked him. His smile was still there.

"Meena, don't be rude." She leaned back in her seat, her nails digging into her palms. Pierce looked from the two of them, raising a brow at Rachel. Rachel promptly poked harder at Conner. "Yes, Rachel?"

"Don't be mean to the kid, Whitaker." She dropped her hand, frowning at him. She then shifted gears, looking at her younger friend. "So what're you guys talking in? It kinda sounds French, but then I think Italian." Meena looked up and Rachel saw fear, oddly enough.

"It's called Matarian." Conner answered her calmly while Meena looked at him in something akin to horror. "Oh, check, please." The waiter nodded, retreating to retrieve their check.

"Matarian, huh? Doesn't sound familiar. European?"

"A small nation." Rachel gave a nod.

"That's pretty cool. You guys Matarian-American?"

"No, we aren't. But our English is good, is it not?" Rachel let out a soft whistle, raising a brow and smirking at the man beside her.

"Color me impressed." Meena narrowed her eyes once more on her brother. Pierce cleared his throat, giving a nod to the waiter and taking the little book from him. "Oh, here," Rachel opened her little clutch, pulling out a change purse. "Here's—" Conner nudged her hand down, sliding a card over to Pierce. "Hey, I know you're—"

"I invited you out. I'll pay. For everyone." He locked eyes with Pierce and the Plumber silently let him win, not even bothering to try and argue. The waiter took the little book and Conner wrapped an arm around Rachel's shoulders.

"What a gentleman," She batted her eyes at him and Pierce wondered(again) why he even agreed to come. Of-course, he knew Rachel wanted them together and she fancied that brother of Meena's, but… It's not like she would be here in six months. More like she'd be gone in three. "So, could you teach me?"

"Matarian?" Rachel nodded and Conner shrugged lightly. "I'm afraid it wouldn't do you much good. I'll be leaving in a few days," Rachel pouted, resting her hand on his arm—which was still around her shoulders—"And I'm afraid Meena's time will be up and she'll have to come home. So what little I could teach you, you would never use." Rachel's face lost all emotion as she gazed at Conner. And then, her eyes dropped and she looked at Meena. Meena looked down at her hands.

"Is it that bad?" They had never discussed her sickness, but, they needed to know the truth eventually.

"It's quite common where we're from." Rachel looked at him in surprise. Meena raised her head, dark eyes angry. "But, there's no going around it. Three months." Tears appeared in Rachel's eyes.

"Covron, fol zed jain estranvant(Covron, don't say such lies)." Meena glowered at her brother over the flowers and the waiter cautiously slid the little book back towards Pierce before retreating.

"Sata forma estranvant eau sata ilt(It's not a lie if it's true)." She turned her face away, lips pulled together tightly as her eyes closed. "Yuall neft ji rusalivat nor(You need to understand this)."

"A rusalivat. A fol qwen sa(I understand. I don't accept it)." He let out a soft breath, removing his arm from Rachel's shoulders. She looked questioningly to Pierce.

"And I think it's about time I get you home, Meena." Rachel rolled her eyes, but accepted this diversion.

"I'll see you tomorrow then, Honey, alright?" She rose and Meena gave a short nod.

"Of-course, Miss Rachel." She collected her things, taking hold of Conner's arm and leading him towards the door. Pierce handed Meena her own jacket and she gave a soft smile. "Thank you, Mr. Pierce." She followed after her friend and brother. Pierce reminded himself this wasn't near as bad as it could have been. It could have been much worse.

Rachel smacked him when they got outside. He said nothing. "Look, I don't care if she's your sister or not. You do not make her upset or unhappy when she only has three months left, you idiot!"

"It won't make a difference if she's happy or not. It'll happen regardless." Rachel's lip twitched upward in a snarl. "I'm sorry if you're unhappy, but, whether or not you're pleased with the situation makes little difference." Rachel took a moment to collect herself before she attacked him. He sounded tired, as if he was just done with it all. But, what he said was true. What did it matter if she was happy with the situation? It's not like she could do anything.

"You said it's common where you're from. Is it fatal?" He ran a hand through his hair.

"Most definitely." Rachel was quiet, holding back her tears.

"And… there's no cure?"

"No. For both moral and political reasons."

"What?"

"It would be against everything we stand for and the government benefits from it." Rachel stared at him. "So Meena came here, to escape from it for as long as she could. She can't run forever and she has to come home eventually."

"To…" Rachel paused, taking a breath. "To see your mother and father again?"

"Yes."

"I'm sorry…" Meena walked along beside him, her head down.

"It's not your fault."

"No, for my brother… He's… Too much like Rasavas. He doesn't always think before he speaks." Pierce agreed with that statement. "Mr. Pierce… I…" He looked over at her from the corner of his eye. She smiled up at him. "I'm glad I met you." He raised a brow. "Even if I never see you again, I'm glad that I can call two people my friends, you and Miss Rachel."

"Sure, Meena." She stopped and he wondered if her leg was hurting her. "Hey, you alright?" She looked up at him and beneath his mask, he knew his face was getting red. Not that he was blushing. It was just really hot under ID masks. "Meena?" She swallowed, looking down. "Something wrong?" She looked up from under her lashes at him.

"Do you… mind?"

"Mind what?" She raised a hand, tapping her own cheek. "Oh." He closed his eyes briefly, taking a breath, before pulling his mask off. She smiled lightly at him. "You were afraid of me the first time." He just hoped anyone passing on the other side of the street paid his striped hair and quills no mind, chalking it up to rebellious youth nowadays.

"Second time." His brows furrowed. "The first time… in the woods…" She looked away again. "I… put it back on you. Since you hid yourself, I thought… I didn't recognize you the second time, it had been so long and my fever…" She took a deep breath.

"You knew the entire time?" She nodded slowly. "That I'm not… entirely human?"

"Just as you know my brother is not… entirely human." She gave a small smile. "Your concussion… He helped, didn't he?"

"Your siblings have powers that you don't. I've seen it before." She looked away from him again, taking in another breath. "Hey, what's this about?" He had an idea and he blamed it all on her brother, for getting her in a bad mood and in this mindset, thinking about how little time she had left and worrying about what would happen to her.

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Pierce, but I—I've been lying to you all this time… I thought… if I just kept out of trouble and didn't draw attention to myself…"

This was an interesting change of events.

"It's not only… my brothers and sister who have power. And we're not just… we're not human. At all." She dropped her face, burying her head in her hands, no longer caring about her make-up. "I'm so sorry!"

He waited for her to continue. It couldn't be all that bad. He himself wasn't entirely human, nor were his friends. What did it matter if she wasn't any?

"I n-never knew how to—to bring it up! I didn't want to l-lie but I f-f-figured if you just never—if it was never brought up—!" And here she dropped to the sidewalk, crying into her hands. He blinked down at her. "I-I-I-I'm sorry!" He crouched down, putting his hands on her shoulders.

"Meena, it's alright. I never outright told you either. It's fine. I'm not mad, if that's what you're worried about." In truth, he was curious about what she had lied about. And, having never been in a situation like this, he wasn't entirely sure how to continue to keep it under control. The last thing he wanted was her crying on the sidewalk though.

She raised her head, her eyes watery as she gazed at him. "R-really? You a-a-aren't?" He gave a smile. If she was getting this emotional about it, maybe he should be a little upset. She wiped at her eyes with her thumbs. "I'm s-sorry…"

"Would you like to talk about it?" She gave a slow nod and he helped her up. "Let's get you into your own house, alright?" He could see her apartment building from where they stood. It was only a few buildings down. "And then we can talk."

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Pierce…" He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and she pressed into his side, clasping her hands to her chest, trying to vain to hold back her tears. He had a feeling he was in for a long night.

They wouldn't know, but Fitori watched them from across the street, his eyes closed as he realized the magnitude of the situation. A small device in his hand was recording the entire thing and sending it directly to her brother, who was seething as he continued to watch them make their way towards her home.

Ahhh chapter twelve~

I'm so sorry about this hiatus! it's over now, I promise! All that time gave me time to think and write, which means I have about three chapters already done up and ready! So this is a rather big update!

other than that, I'd say this is coming along swimmingly~!

But, I shall end here, kk?

Until the next time!