SZ: Welp..time to focus on the Chrono Riders once more…only when they're not on the job because…again, they're still technically kids(young adults at best) so like any other kid…they have to deal with the one thing we all had to deal with growing up…school.
Z0: Ah Future School…what horrors await~?
GT: The bane of many a child in their youth.
Z0: But now we explore it in the future…of this world…with the kids of the World's biggest Hero.
GT: *laughs* Oh they are in for it~! As usual, we don't own anything in this except for what is our OCs and our ideas for this story!
Z0: *tosses grenade into the room* BEGIN! *Explosion goes off making the screen go black*
Morning, the time of day where the day truly begins. For some, it's a wonderful time to rise with the sun and get a start to the day. But for others it's a dreaded time that ruins one's pleasant and much desired sleep.
"GAH!"
"Snkrr! Huh? Wh…" Kokoro snorted as she shot up, her hair a mess as she wore a baggy shirt for a teen with a squirrel on the front, "What happuh…I was dreaming of ice cream and chestnuts…"
"We're about to be late!" Ken's voice exclaimed from his room, "Oh, thanks, Maurice!"
"Huh? La…?" Kokoro mumbled before looking at her alarm clock…and saw the time and date, "?! OH ROTTEN CHESTNUTS!"
Meanwhile, down in the kitchen, the parents of both young Tennyson twins sat at the table to enjoy a relaxing breakfast and the show to follow. Husband and Wife smiled as their children stumbled down the stairs, or in Kokoro's case leapt over and down them, while Ken tumbled down the last few. Sister complained and dragged her twin brother to his feet before slapping his face to fully wake him up. Ken smiled before he was slapped again, and this time glowering at Kokoro, making her chuckle as they rushed to grab their backpacks before pausing and looking to see their night clothes. Both yelped and rushed back up before running down in their school uniforms.
"...Hmm…not bad. They remembered their uniforms today," Ben Tennyson smirked as he took a sip of his morning juice.
"Still not sure what I think about them having to wear mandatory uniforms," Makoto muttered as she was putting down a plate of cinnamon toast on the table.
"Hey, the school board all voted for it to see how things work out," Ben noted, "Mind you, I don't like it either since we just finished shopping for new clothes for the school year the day before the announcement came." he sighed, "Seriously, how bad did someone screw up to make this happen?"
"My money is a certain mom complained to the school board and demanded it," Makoto huffed.
"...This isn't still about Vicky, is it?"
"Oh you mean Mrs. 'Oh my child is so much better than yours since they weren't raised by a thug and a bad influence'?" Makoto retorted with an annoyed frown.
"Babe, you accordion-ed her car," Ben reminded, "It was the greatest thing I've ever seen you do, but you kinda sealed this intense hateful rivalry with it."
"Oh not like you didn't totally flex on her husband with the six pack abs and gun show~" Makoto argued.
"Hey, it was more subtle…but dangerously more effective," Ben smirked as he flexed his arms.
"Not that I was complaining…" Makoto whispered as her tail wagged a bit, "Mmm…Mama liked what she saw~"
"Mom!" the twins complained upon seeing that.
"Come on, we're already late! Can you not…do all that?" Ken complained.
"If not for all this you wouldn't exist, kiddo," Makoto argued.
"Hrrk…" Ken gagged, "I don't need this mental picture at breakfast…"
"Alright, if you kids need an XLR8 lift, stuff some food in your mouths and let's go." Ben sighed as he held up his arm and tapped it to form a holographic screen with a timer, "You got 30 seconds, and go!"
"AHH!" the two panicked before they began to stuff their mouths with cinnamon toast while chugging down on their drinks.
"Lunches are on the counter with your name on them. Ken, no inventions in the classroom. Kokoro, no throwing tables with all the students on the attached seats of the table at people," Makoto spoke, "And neither of you go anywhere near Jameson! I don't want another phone call from Karen about some made up stink."
"Mostly 'cause it will be my turn to go to school this time," Ben spoke, "And your mother and I are needed in the Indian Ocean. Zak said something about a giant sea serpent a couple dozen miles off the coast…" he sighed, "He'd rather it not come to needing a Way Big intervention. But you never know. Don't make me have to miss fighting a giant sea monster, okay?"
"You fought a giant tentacle Kaiju last week," Makoto argued.
"That was different…it was a failed clone of Vilgax…doesn't count," Ben argued.
"Wait…so the Takoyaki we made was…?" Ken muttered.
"Awesome!" Kokoro laughed.
"And time!" Ben smirked as the timer rang, "Okay time for school, everyone ready, any and all school supplies, projects, homework…self defense tools for Dad's dumber possibly suicidal enemies?"
"Check, Check, Check, and…" Ken sighed.
"Check!" Kokoro held up her hand as her bracelet expanded into a gauntlet with spikes over her knuckles.
"That's my kids," Makoto smiled before pecking them on the cheek, "Love ya."
"Aww mom…" Ken groaned a bit as Kokoro hugged the older Beastkin.
"Alright," XLR8 spoke as a green flash faded, "Hold onto your butts and tails!" he picked both kids under his arms, "Tower, open doors to the garage!" he called out as a door opened leading to the stairs hidden within the tower that no one knew about. And, in a blur, XLR8 vanished through the door.
Makoto smiled as she looked at a clock before counting down with the fingers of one hand before a small sonic boom signaled her Husband in Alien form returned. XLR8 held his arms up in victory.
"WHOO! Record time…and me and the kids stopped a bank robbery at the same time~" XLR8 cheered as he did a small victory dance.
"That's my man and kids!" Makoto beamed.
A green flash reverted him to normal, "You know…Zak's not expecting us for at least another 45 minutes~"
"Oh?" Makoto blinked as her ears perked up in interest, "...What do you have in mind, oh husband of mine~?"
"Well no kids, no pets, the floors are sound proofed, I locked the doors to the penthouse…" Ben wagged his eyebrows, "So no nosy beloved family members barging in…"
"...I'll go get the special outfit for you then~" Makoto smiled playfully before she began to saunter off, shooting him a wink while moving her hips with each step she took.
"...Yes…" Ben whispered in victory, "This is gonna be a great day~"
"This is gonna be…a day…" Ken sighed as he and Kokoro stood before their school.
"Joy…school…" Kokoro whispered.
"So…what are the chances Jameson didn't spread rumors this is our fault when really it was his mom?" Ken asked.
"Most likely…90-10," Kokoro sighed.
"To be fair, you two…you chose to confront Jameson after he picked on that one student one too many times."
"Ahh! Set-chan!" Kokoro smiled a bit as she and Ken turned, seeing a girl with her long blonde hair with rose-red highlights done in a ponytail approach them, wearing the same uniform as Kokoro as she had a pair of glasses on over her face as she had a covered up bokken hanging on her back, "...wait…but he had that coming!"
"Yes….but as the student council president, I can't let stuff like that slide...no matter how unjustifiable it is," she sighed before looking at Ken, "Morning, Kenshiro."
"Ah! ...M…Morning, Setsuna," Ken whispered as he looked away a bit, lightly blushing a little, "Sorry we're late…"
"It's fine. I managed to talk to the principal that you were most likely helping your father out with something," Setsuna assured.
"I did drop kicked a bankrobber at mach speeds!" Kokoro smiled, "We also stopped for a selfie with the local news!"
"Dad always finds something on the way to school," Ken sighed.
"Oh come on. It's always cool when daddy takes us," Kokoro argued, "...Not that mom's not cool. She always finds the best sweet spots to eat at on the way."
"Which is why we agreed your father should be the one to take you more often. Your mother's vehicle doesn't move at sub-light speeds." Setsuna argued.
"...It could…" Kokoro muttered, "We still don't know what all the things hidden under the passenger seat do to the engine. Why do you think we nicknamed it the 'Mach 6' after that American-made sequel series of that Japanese-made anime?"
"Because Mom and Dad love anime and cartoons despite being adults?" Ken smiled.
"And that is exactly why they are the best parents," Kokoro smiled back.
"Hmm…Agree to disagree," Setsuna smiled teasingly.
"Oho! Someone's sassy today. I love it~" Kokoro smiled as she swung her arm around Setsuna, "Come, Best Friend! We must survive the trials and tribulations of the hellish prison known as…School!"
"Yes, of course, of course," Setsuna giggled a bit as the three began to walk off, "Besides…I don't think we can keep Mimikaka waiting any longer."
"Yeah, I'm still annoyed you gave her a copy of our house key," Ken deadpanned to his sister.
"It was an impossible to say 'no' to situation!" Kokoro argued, "She gave me the kitten eyes…and she went 'Nya~!' How can a girl say no to that? Besides, Drei found her and proceeded to lick her into submission."
"The family corgi does it again, I see," Setsuna noted.
"Best non-female babysitter!" Kokoro grinned, "Best female babysitter will always be Auntie Noellie!"
"Don't change the subject, you let someone totally crazy have a spare key to the Tower!" Ken complained, "She could have spooked Great Grandpa!"
"Impossible! He's the one who made Daddy awesome…and he captured her, too," Kokoro smiled.
"Net Gun or Bolas?" Setsuna asked.
"Net Gun," Kokoro smiled.
"Well, what about one of our set of Grandparents?" Ken argued.
"Also impossible! Our Grandmas both just sat her down and fed her 'till she became obedient and harmless," Kokoro smirked, "And before you say anything about Daddy, he found her first and just politely warned her not to go into his lab…"
"Oh, that's…"
"…By turning into BlitzMutt."
"...exactly what I thought he'd do…" Ken groaned, facepalming.
"Plus the keys don't work unless the person using it has their biodata registered in the Omni Tower's giant computer thingamabob," Kokoro smirked before pausing, "Bob the Building Computer…hmmm…yeah, not bad…" she mused.
"No, we are not…"
"Hah!" Devlin shouted, jumping out behind Ken, making him yelp and jump into Kokoro's arms, "Pfft…hahaha!"
"Calm down, bro. It's not an attack, it's just our goofus Cousin," Kokoro rolled her eyes.
"Hey, Dweebette," Devlin replied between chuckles.
"Devlin," Setsuna sighed.
"Sup Tsuna~" he smiled, "What happened this time dude? Sleep in?" he asked Ken, his cousin and best friend.
"...Yes…" Ken replied.
"Ha! And this is why I used my phone for my alarm!" Devlin grinned.
"Mmm hmm…and how many times did you put it on silent, goofus?" Kokoro retorted.
"..."
"Point for Koko," she smirked.
"Agreed, point for Koko," Setsuna smiled as the two shared a quick high five.
"...Let's just get to stupid class…"
Suffice to say that like most youths, class was utterly boring and uneventful. Kokoro and Devilin groaned as they chose to pay no attention at all. While Ken and Setsuna actually took notes and the like.
"Now that we are done with the review…let us see if you kids can answer this question…" the teacher muttered as he motioned to the chalkboard…showing a very intricate equation, "What is the square root of 142?"
"11.9163752878," Setsuna replied, "But it depends on if the number is rational or irrational, which leads to the square root of 142 having an infinite amount of decimals."
"Very good, Ms. Kisaragi."
"Way to go, Set-chan!" Kokoro cheered.
"Ah good, Ms. Tennyson, would you like…and she vanished in a puff of smoke again…" the Teacher groaned.
"Lucky ninja squirrel girl…" Devlin muttered.
"Oh Mr. Levin, thank you for volunteering in your cousin's place."
"Gh?!"
"Answer this for me…there's an 8 inch farming field before you, each with exactly four square centimeters of land…and you have a large bag of 250 seeds of corn. How many will you need to fill the entire field without emptying the entire bag?"
'What kind of math problem is that?!' Devlin mentally exclaimed before the bell rang.
"Ah…Lunch time," the teacher muttered as he looked at his wrist watch, "You're dismissed, class."
"OH THANK YOU, SPACE GODS!" Devlin exclaimed.
"That was lucky…" Ken muttered.
"Yes…very well timed…" Setsuna whispered in agreement as some of their classmates began to walk out of the room.
"Phew!" Kokoro sighed as she poofed back into the room, now sitting on Ken's desk, "I could not hold up that trick for long. Thank you, doofus Cousin!"
"Of course it was her," Ken and Setsuna whispered in a deadpanned tone.
"Wasn't just me~"
"Eh? Wh-" Ken began before he was tackled over, "GAH!"
"Howdy, Kenya!" a Kaka Clan girl in her teens mewled as she rubbed against him, her coat a mix of grassy-green and forest green with a pair of chocolate-brown bangs hanging out from inside her hood.
"Ah…Hello, Mimi…" Ken groaned.
"She was outside the hall the moment I snuck out," Kokoro whispered to her twin, "The moment I saw her, the ol' gears in my head started to turn."
"You know one of these days you're going to be found out," Setsuna sighed as she pulled Mimi off Ken by her hoodie.
"Aww~ But Mimi was bored, Setsunya~" the catgirl whined a bit, "Ah had to listen on th' history of…ew~ Buttons…"
"Besides, why should I answer these annoying book questions?" Kokoro pouted, "I learned more about this stuff from Daddy and Aunt Kajun. At least Daddy explains it in a way I get…"
"So you can do the work, but choose not to as a protest against the education system?" Setsuna asked.
"Exactly!" Kokoro cheered.
"Not all of us are lucky like that, Cuz," Devlin rolled his eyes.
"Doesn't Aunt Gwen like Demon Tutor you?" Kokoro asked.
"...I've been able to get away from it due to her being busy with work!" he laughed, "And I showed Dad a modern math book and his brain fried. He was stuck with a dumb face for like thirty minutes."
"Oh my," Setsuna noted, blinking a few times, "Honestly…I showed Father mine once and he was much the same way."
"Dad just tossed it away the moment he saw it," Ken chuckled, "Though the irony is I think he could understand it. He just claims to have an allergy to all things arithmetic."
"Mmm…Mimi doesn't get it. It all makes sense to meow," Mimi tilted her head.
"Well you're secretly a smarty pants." Kokoro argued.
"Hm? Pants?" Mimi looked down at her uniform's skirt.
"Don't lift your skirt up, Mimi," Setsuna warned, slapping a paper folding fan onto Mimi's head.
"ITAI!" she cried, holding her hands over her head, "Why does that hurt so much, nya~?"
"Her mom's the head of the Plumbers Earth branch...who do you think she learned it from?" Kokoro stated.
"You should really learn something by now…even animals like mice learn faster from cause and effect then you…" Ken sighed, earning a light rap from Setsuna, "Gah!"
"No need to be rude," Setsuna smiled.
"You know it's a good thing you are nothing like your dad, Set-chan," Kokoro giggled.
"Ah…Father is indeed a handful," she sighed, her demeanor ever so slightly shifting to more of an annoyed teenager, but only just a second, not long enough for anyone who didn't know her to notice, "I'm really grateful Pekoyama-sensei lets me relax after we finish with training…"
"How is she, by the way?" Kokoro asked, "Haven't seen her lately."
"Kuzuryu-san has been feeling sick lately, so she's been trying to help him feel better," Setsuna replied.
"When does Uncle Rook's bet on them finally admitting they like each other expire again?" Kokoro asked.
"Six months from now," Devlin replied, looking at his phone for the ledger, "Aunt Mai's expires next Tuesday."
"Auntie Noel bet on who'd confess first and not the time," Kokoro grinned.
"I think Mom's bet that someone will just blurt it out for them is the most likely," Ken chimed in, "No offense, but most of them are weird like that."
"Oh come on, they can't be even more thick headed then our parents said they used to be…right?" Kokoro asked.
"The fact we exist and they are not even dating…is proof otherwise," Ken countered.
"Well that's not fair, your mother and father are a walking example of true love," Setsuna smiled, "Not everyone is as fast to see what they have."
"Y-Yeah…yeah…" Ken nodded a few times as he thought of that.
"Ken…Ken!?" Devilin waved his hand in front of his face, "Ah man, Tsuna, you broke his brain again!"
"It's called 'using your brain,' Dweebus," Kokoro deadpanned.
"Silence from the horrid demon woman," Devilin waved her off, "Welp…we have Gym next, so I'm dragging him to the locker room. Later, ladies~...and Kokoro…" he stated as he tossed his best friend/cousin over his shoulder and carried him out the room.
"Ooh…He's gettin' it if we have Dodgeball," Kokoro growled in annoyance.
"Alright, kiddos! Line up!" the Gym Teacher called out as the students began to line up in a row, "Today, we'll be doing special routines for some of you more super-powered or alien students!"
"Hah? Why start with them?" a male student with messy orange-red hair asked with a grin, "You choosing to forgo the normal kids, coach?"
"No! I…"
"Is it because the Lamesons are here?" he grinned as Ken and Kokoro shot him an annoyed stare, "You only give them special privilege is because they're the kids of a superhero meant for babies."
"No, it can't possibly be that!" Devlin laughed, "Because they are not half as cool as me." he stated, "Ah…so why don't you just relax and enjoy the juice break, okay, champ?" he gently slapped the boy's face a few times, "Also mess with my cousins…and you deal with the Devlin." he whispered before jumping back before he could swing at him, "Haha! I got the string from his gym shorts!" he cheered, holding up a length of string used in the shorts to keep them tight.
"Wh-?" the teen began before yelling as he pulled his fallen pants up, "You're gonna pay for this, Levin!"
"Ah…If that isn't the family Motto, I don't know what is," Devlin smiled as many laughed at the event, "Thank you, thank you, I'm here after school for detention, folks!" he turned to the coach, "So what did that earn me this time, warden? Three days in the hole? Or an insane amount of push ups?"
"No…instead I'll let one of the special guest coaches handle it."
"Eh?" Special guest coaches?" Devlin blinked at that.
"Yes….from Japan."
"Bring it." Devlin replied rebelliously.
"He's gonna die," Ken stated.
"Well…at least he proved he's a Doofus with a heart of gold," Kokoro sighed, "We will miss you, dear cousin." she saluted.
"Oh come on. I'm even stronger than my dad was at my age! This will be cake!" Devlin laughed.
"Now what did his wife say to say for this? Oh right. Oh Kuon~!" the coach called, making Devlin freeze mid-laugh.
'...Crap baskets…' Devlin thought before a figure landed before him, making him slowly look up to see Kuon looking down at him, '...Double crap baskets…'
"So…you're Levin's boy," Kuon smirked as he tossed away his black duster jacket, "You might want to go absorb the metal from the walls. I hear it's titanium."
"GH!" Devlin tensed as he ran for it.
"...Wait…if Uncle K is here, then…" Kokoro began before she and Ken were suddenly picked up into a tight hug, "Ahh!"
"Hey~! How're my favorite niece and nephew?!" Akane grinned as she hugged the two.
"Aunty Akane!" Kokoro cheered, returning the hug.
"Oh, this is happening…" Ken grunted.
"AH!" Devilin, covered in titanium armor, cried as he was flung over their heads.
"Come on, kid! That was just an over the shoulder throw!" Kuon laughed before slightly flinching as Devilin slammed into the ground, "You got a heart of gold, kid, but a glass jaw." he grunted as he stretched his arms, "Okay, anyone and everyone with powers? Today's lesson: You ain't anything special, 'cause I am 100 percent bonafide a normal human." he cracked his knuckles, "So…who's ready to learn the importance of how to not get cocky?" he paused, "Oh…and how to defend yourself in the event of a supervillain or generic street thug!"
"And have the stamina and skills to back it up," Akane grinned as she let go of Ken and Kokoro, "Just because you have powers doesn't mean you should shirk your other skills…hell, even throwing a punch can help out those who focus too much on far-range powers."
"Just don't try and get the students to parkour up the school roof," the normal teaching coach sighed to Akane, "I've heard about your parkour classes…"
"Hey. When you train a bunch of Ultimate Students with a few having powers, you gotta make sure you're not lenient with 'em. Otherwise, they're just gonna get cocky," Akane stated, "Trust me…my husband would agree with that."
"We have high standards," Kuon agreed, "But we'll try not to break them too badly. Last thing I need is to call Ben while he's busy fighting a giant kaiju snake thing in the Indian ocean."
"Probably kicking its ass as we speak, too," Akane grinned.
"Alright…I'll trust you two…" the normal coach sighed as he walked off, "I need a break anyways…"
"Ah come on…that's so not fair," the red haired kid groaned, "Why do the nerds and Lamesons get to go first?"
"...This that Jameson kid you told us about?" Akane whispered to the Tennyson twins, her tail twitching in annoyance.
"Eeyup/Totally."
"He's the…problematic captain of the football team…and unfortunately the son of the head of the PTA," Setsuna sighed.
"Well I don't live here. Also, I can pretend I don't speak English," Kuon smirked, "Akane-chan, this might be our last time doing this substitute bit…but it has to be done."
"I'm good with that," Akane nodded.
"Wait, what?" Jameson blinked.
"They're gonna make your life a living hell, nya~" Mimi and Kokoro whispered to him from both sides.
"...what?"
"Think we should try that one routine Nekomaru showed us that one time?" Akane pondered with Kuon, "You know the one specifically made for football players?"
"I don't know…that was sort of hardcore even for the person he made it for. But I'm sure this kid can handle it! He looks like a strong boy!" Kuon smiled.
"Wait…I don't want to…" Jameson began as he was pushed forward by the others in his class, "Hey, what's the…" he grunted as he walked into Kuon's chest, "Are you made of iron?" he couldn't help but ask.
"Right!?" Devilin shouted, "He can't be human!"
"Wrong! I've taken multiple DNA tests just to prove people wrong, literally the only pure human guy at my monthly poker game with Ben and Kevin." Kuon smirked proudly.
"Don't worry, it's all for charity!" Zaruba laughed out loud as he was now grafted into a glove on Kuon's hand in the same place he rested on Garo's gauntlet.
"?! Did his hand just talk?" one of the female students asked.
"No…the glove grafted to his hand did!" Zaruba chuckled.
"Oh, this is my magical buddy," Kuon explained.
"Hah! You're magic!" Devilin smirked.
"And we have another volunteer!" Kuon declared.
"Damn it!"
"Oh don't worry! We're just gonna play some dodgeball," Akane assured.
"Oh phew…th-" Devlin began before he narrowly avoided a frozen dodgeball, "...WHAT?!"
"What? Normal Dodgeball can get repetitive," Akane quipped as Kuon bounced another ball in his hand, "Plus it gets the reflexes going…it's like that one movie; You can dodge a wrench...you can dodge a ball."
"Only replace the wrench with ice balls from the freezer," Kuon added.
"YOU CRAZY?!" Devlin exclaimed before yelping as he quickly formed titanium armor to block an incoming one.
"Yes…which is exactly why this is for alien and super-powered kids only," Akane stated, "...Oh and Jameson, too."
"Wh-!? Why me specifically?!" Jameson gawked.
"'Cause those two you pick on are our honorary niece and nephew due to being one big family of weirdly powered guys who save the world and/or universe on a daily basis," Kuon explained, "But I'm not one to show favoritism…K and K…you two gotta survive, too!"
"Yipe!" both of them yelped as they ducked out of the way of a dodgeball.
"I thought this was dodgeball?!" A young Keniticelerian gawked.
"Oh it's Dodgeball…just the emphasis on dodge!" Kuon laughed, "First and important lesson of learning to defend yourself: dodge!" He held up two balls in each hand before tossing them.
"AHH!" the students yelped as they began to dodge.
Setsuna, however, remained calm as she began to dodge the incoming dodgeballs, ducking and weaving out of the way each time before doing a quick flip into the air to dodge an incoming pair. A glare appeared on her glasses for a moment as she landed, unwrapping her bokken as she did a quick strike to an incoming dodgeball, making it smack into the ground before it was sent flying high into the air.
"...Yup. She's definitely Jin and Tsubaki's kid," Akane noted, "Also, huh…guess Peko took up a student."
"I thought I recognized that style," Kuon added, "But the kids should be learning from her. No wasted movements, small strides, a perfect dodge."
"Cousin Shield!" Kokoro shouted, picking up Devilin in his metallic form to use him as a riot shield to block several dodgeballs.
"Ow-Ow! Okay, how do these somehow sting!?" Devlin demanded.
"You do realize our aunt is Half Appoplexian, right goofus?"
"I think in the panic for my life, I forgot…"
"I've done that a lot, too," Kokoro agreed.
"I'm sure dad…" Ken paused as he leaned back to let a dodgeball fly over him, "Isn't having a good time either right now…"
"Okay! I think it's tired!" Ben called out as he was standing atop the head of a massive sea serpent, which was partially beached on a deserted island, "Also I think it's secreting some kind of weird goop…might wanna hurry, Zak! If it moves, I'm punching it again!"
"I'm trying, okay?" an older Zake Saturday sighed, hsi hair a bit longer with a light scar over one of his cheeks, "These types of creatures aren't exactly easy to handle, you know."
"Hey, you asked me to help keep it down…so I went with a Way Big and Humungousaur fusion to punch it 'till it stopped moving." Ben replied, "I'm not the monster whisperer, buddy."
"Yeah, I know," Zak rolled his eyes before gently putting a hand on the creature's face, his eyes glowing softly as the creature began to calm down, "Yeah…ah, I see…don't worry. We'll get it back for you…" his eyes changed back to normal as he looked up at him, "Turns out it was looking for its baby…which was captured by a group of poachers."
"Ugh…poachers. You'd think they learned by now," Ben muttered..
"I know, right?" Zak sighed, shaking his head, "But stupid is as stupid does."
"Alright, let it know that I'm sorry for that sucker punch and I'll get the baby back," Ben smiled, "You should stay here to keep it calm. I think I can find Baby with the scent from Big Mama here."
"It might be pretty big, don't go spooking it," Zak chuckled.
"I'll be back in two shakes of a kaiju's tail!" Ben saluted before holding up the Biomnitrix, "Wildmutt sniffer…and some speed…XLR8!" He mused with a smirk, crossing his arms and replacing himself by a large form resembling Wildmutt…but colored in blue with a black and green suit like XLR8, with three clawed hands, balls on his feet, and a long striped tail tipped with spines. With a series of snorts, XLRMutt nodded a few times before vanishing in a blur of speed taking off across the ocean.
"...Man, he must be having a good day," Zak muttered to himself.
"Ugh…" Ken and Devilin groaned.
"You okay?" Kokoro asked.
"How are you not in pain?" Ken asked.
"Not getting hit…" Kokoro explained, "I used Jameson as a bat to knock a ball back at our Aunt and Uncle from Japan."
"And you broke his nose and knocked loose several teeth," Setsuna replied with a smile.
"Oh you loved it. His mom is a megabitch to both our moms." Kokoro huffed.
"...Okay, fair point," Setsuna admitted.
"Okay, that…that was kinda fun!" Devlin laughed.
"And you also were rather valiant today, Devilin," Setsuna smiled.
"Hey-hey-hey! Only I can pick on that weird creature called my cousin and my best friend…it's a family thing."
"Too right!" Kokoro agreed, "Only we get to be the tormentors of the goober that is our cousin when his sibs ain't here to embarrass him!" Kokoro declared.
"It's a family thing. When we do it, it's love. When he does it…I wanna break his kneecaps," Devlin added.
"I can never tell if you get along or not," Setsuna laughed at their antics.
"Oh no, we do get along," Ken admitted, "...We just riff on each other a lot…mostly my sister and cousin/best friend."
"It's the family tradition!" Kokoro smiled, "Daddy and Aunt Gwen never got along as kids."
"Really?" Setsuna blinked.
"Nope. They bickered…a lot," Ken answered.
"Great Grandpa Max often said it was really bad," Kokoro added.
"...That…that sounds crazy with how they act," Setsuna admitted, "Especially when it comes to DnD…"
"We're still on for that this Saturday on the VR Goggles, right?" Kokoro asked.
"So long as you don't lose that privilege with your grounding again."
"How long is that again?" Devilin asked.
"Mom and Dad still won't answer that question," Ken sighed.
"Like when the DM gives the players a coy look because they don't gotta answer a question like when ya use an Augury spell," Kokoro grumbled, "I both love giving and hate receiving the coy look!"
"Still regret thinking your dad would go easy on us…" Devlin sighed.
"You taunted him with combat being easy…we were level 1!" Kokoro snapped.
"Uncontrollable dancing and a tentacle summon…" Ken shuddered, "And Drei played a retro song from the later 1800s, early 1900s, each time it was recast…"
"That dog taunts me…" Devlin muttered.
"You shouldn't have talked smack about his momo…" Kokoro shook her head.
"Maybe I'm starting to understand this Tennyson Clan nonsense more and more." Setsuna mused.
"Half-Tennyson Clan, thank you~" Devlin smirked.
"Of course," Setsuna playfully rolled her eyes.
"Least the day is almost over," Ken sighed as he looked at his phone, "Next class is Mr. Simons."
"Aw nertz," Kokoro groaned, "Your favorite class, Doofus…"
"Can you blame me? I like science."
"Well one of you had to inherit your Dad's brains, cause one of you already called dibs on all the useful physical genes from both." Devlin chuckled.
"You calling me dumb?" Kokoro asked.
"...That's a loaded question."
"Koko…you realize that by asking it…you are also implying it?" Setsuna whispered.
"What? No I…" Kokoro began before blinking, "...ahh chestnuts I did!"
"HA! I got a win on ya, Dweebet!"
"Grr…" Kokoro growled, "..." she grinned deviously, "Good thing it's my turn to be the DM in our next session."
"Don't pull an Ima," Setsuna warned.
"I won't~" Kokoro replied as she walked away.
"...I better check where I hid my Traitor Dice after school," Devlin noted.
"I'll make sure the dice with the Polterdice in it is still locked up before we play," Ken assured.
"Thanks man…"
"Now then, class...I want you all to focus on today's assignment," Simon stated to the class, the hyper evolved Arachnochimp adjusting his glasses while using his other set of spider legs to fix his lab coat, "We are going to delve into some complex physics here, and it will do you good to watch how I work it out. It will be much easier than that book."
"I knew it was evil!" Kokoro shouted.
"Now, Kokoro, don't burn it," Simon smiled.
"Boo~!"
"That doubles for you, Devlin. I've heard complaints about how your books suddenly 'vanish.'"
"Drat…" Devlin muttered.
"Now please take notes. This is a much simpler method I found for doing this. It should help you with the test next Friday. Which by the way…will account for a good bit of the trimesters grade," Simon advised, readjusting his glasses.
"Of course, professor," Setsuna nodded.
"Thanks," Ken smiled.
"And don't worry, I won't use too many big words," Simon smirked.
"Woohoo!" Kokoro cheered, "Man…I bet Daddy is having a much better time than us…"
"Zak help…it likes me…" Ben spoke as a rather long, but comparably small, sea serpent was coiled around him.
"How did you…it's been like 20 minutes?!" Zak couldn't help but ask, "And I mean that in response to how did you find it, beat the people who took it…and bond with it?"
"I'm very good at finding monsters, I'm really good at hurting people, and I'm actually rather fond of, and used to, giant monsters that love cuddles. Have you seen my Dog?" Ben asked.
"I have…Fisk is still scared to dog sit," Zak sighed.
"We told him that he needs to respect the Alpha…" Makoto muttered, "Zon and Komodo do."
"I told them not to underestimate Ben Tennyson's dog…but no~! Don't listen to your brother who knows what he's talking about…" Zak sighed as he tapped his staff as the claw at the end began glowing and the serpent released Ben and slithered into the water with its giant parent, "Now don't go wandering off too far from your mom until you're older, got it? She has a lot to teach you, so make sure to listen."
"Don't make me have to teach you a lesson again! Stick to the bottom of the ocean, folks up here aren't ready for the stuff down there!"
"Babe, they're already back in the ocean," Makoto pointed out to her husband.
"What…I wanted to be part of this." Ben smiled.
"Dude, you save the world three times a day." Zak laughed, "Just chill."
"Well saving the world is the easy job man." Ben laughed, "Ah…kids…no…that is the stressful one." he shook his head, "And mine are so dumb sometimes."
"Dude hindsight sucks," Zak laughed, "I'm acting like my dad with mine."
"Aw~ I bet your parents must feel so proud of that." Makoto smiled.
"Don't get me started~" Zak laughed, "You should hear the stories Danny has told me about his kids with Ghost powers!"
"Yeah…Sam is a strong lady to deal with that level of nonsense." Makoto chuckled.
"At least our kids just have enhanced biology." Ben laughed.
"Eeyup," Makoto nodded in agreement, "And I'm sure they're doing good in school right now...ooh! How's about we treat them to something special once they get out?"
"I like the way you think," Ben smiled, "Lets go pick something up, they've been good for a while now." he tapped one of his Biomnitrix braces and formed a Groundbridge for them.
"Sounds like a plan," Makoto smiled before looking at Zak, "We'll catch ya later...oh! And say hi to the misses for me!"
"Will do, guys," Zak smiled as his ride descended down for him, "Oh something tells me they taunted the universe and the kids did something."
"...I swear I didn't know what was gonna happen," Devlin muttered…the group of friends and Mimi covered in a slimy foam-like substance…and were practically stuck together.
"Okay…maybe we don't let you touch chemicals again, Devilin," Simon chuckled as he mixed something, "Though if you ever want to be Spider-Man with realistic web shooters…keep working on that compound."
"Oh, this is so gross…" Kokoro groaned, "It's in my tail…this is gonna take forever to clean…"
"This…was unexpected…" Setsuna whispered, currently stuck together with Ken.
"Um…r-right…" Ken agreed.
"Mew~" Mimi whined as she tried to get her hoodie open, "My hood is stuck, nya…"
"It'll be alright. Just need to add a bit of magnesium to this and…" Simon extended one of his spider limbs out, picking up the container for magnesium and added a teaspoon of it into the mixture he was working on, causing it to let out a small puff of smoke as it turned neon blue, "There we go. Dissolvant for this interesting chemical mixture you've fabricated, Devilin." another spider limb grabbed a spray bottle and poured it in before twirling it on his hand-foot and spritzed Mimi, causing her to hiss and scurry away…into a wall, "Oop. Sorry, Mimi."
"Nya~" Mimi groaned as the substance hissed and evaporated, letting her hoodie pop open to show her dazed mouth and swirls replacing her eyes, "Stinky~"
"Of course it smells. There's a tablespoon of sulfur in this," Simon replied.
"But, I imagine it's the key to dissolving the compound?" Ken asked.
"Indeed, so I'm sorry; but, please, deal with the smell. It will free you and dissolve the bonds of the sticky compound, meaning it will be all but gone, meaning less fuss to clean up," Simon explained, "But thankfully it's just the right amount, and I lowballed it, too. Last thing I need it to do is burn through more than this…proto-web fluid." he held up a sample of it, "I think I can use this for those sticky grenades Ben's been asking for." he frowned, "And none of you tell my brother Reverb about these unbuilt grenades, understand?"
"I think he's still on that DJ tour across Europe, Uncle Simon," Kokoro noted.
"Aw what? Why not?" Devilin complained.
"Anyone who does I am convincing their parents to have you spend a week as Rotwood's personal farmhands."
"Yay!" Kokoro cheered as the other blanched in fear, "I love Uncle Rotwood's funny talk!"
"Well effective on everyone but Kokoro who loves all of us," Simon sighed.
"Well of course I do. You're all part of the family, Uncle Simon," Kokoro smiled.
"Still on duty, Kokoro."
"Sorry, Dr. Tennyson," Kokoro corrected herself.
"Thank you," Simon nodded as he spritzed the substance on her, letting it dissolve and evaporate.
"Freedom!" she jumped up in joy, "I still need like five showers and a bubble bath…"
"So the usual amount at night," Ken noted.
"Well excuse me if I need to keep this thing nice and clean," she huffed, hugging her tail, "Shh…don't listen to him, Taily…he doesn't know what it means to have a tail."
"...I swear that thing is gonna come alive one day," Devlin muttered.
"When it does, she'll have the right to give ya a boot to the head," Kokoro countered, making Simon flinch and cover his head as if reliving a memory.
"...Is everything alright, Dr. Tennyson?" Setsuna asked.
"Just…peachy…" Simon assured, quickly spritzing her and Ken next.
"Th…Thanks," Ken whispered as he quickly stepped back from Setsuna…while trying to fight off the heavy blush on his face.
"Bet you wanted to be last~" Kokoro whispered into his ear with a teasing, squirrely smile.
"I haven't a clue what you mean, weirdo…" Ken muttered.
"Mmm hmm~ Of course you don't, bro~"
"Mmm…" Ken frowned before the bell rang.
"And with that, the day is over," Simon noted, "Make sure to read the next chapter and do the odd number problems for it in your textbooks!"
"Why the odd numbers?" Kokoro asked.
"The Even numbers all suck and use that unreliable method the book wants you to use," Simon stated, "And Koko, don't just make your answers look different from Ken's."
"One time!" she called out.
"Six!" Simon replied happily.
"D'oh!"
"Mew…" Mimi pouted as her ears drooped, "Mimi was hoping to go train with Tao later, nya…"
"I'm sure you'll have the time," Setsuna assured her with a smile.
"What about you, Set-chan? Oh wait, let me guess…Study, training, more studying…doing Next Week's Homework?" Kokoro joked.
"I don't do that," Setsuna argued.
"Ya sure~?" Kokoro asked.
"I have never done next week's homework," Setsuna defended herself, blushing.
"Mmhmm?" Kokoro leaned in even closer., "I'm pretty sure there was an Open House night in Elementary School and the teach told your mom and dad that…"
"Nothing. There was nothing."
"Hehehe~" Kokoro giggled at the response, "You're so wound tight, Set-Chan, you need a day off from your dad's stupid strict schedule, which we all know he made just to keep you away from boys."
"Yeah no offense, Tsuna, but your dad is a major fruitcake…" Devlin muttered, "Mom and Dad still speak of the so-called Operation: Let It Snow."
"He did an Elsa~!" Kokoro laughed.
"Oh come on…" Setsuna groaned, covering her embarrassed face.
"I'm sure it wasn't as bad as our parents say," Ken offered, "You know how Uncle Kevin makes things sound crazier then they were."
"My Dad does do that," Devilin shrugged.
"Nope, totally happened," Kokoro smiled, "Mom said so. Even that Daddy was the one who went in to stop the nonsense and return Set-chan to her mom…and then she proceeded to beat her husband for doing all of it!"
'Father, why~?!' Setsuna mentally whined.
"I feel like a Tennyson has brought shame to me before my daughter," Jin spoke suddenly as he looked up from his desk at Plumber HQ.
"Who says that as someone enters a room?" Rook asked, raising a brow.
"They probably brought up Jinny going Elsa again," Alf chuckled as he walked by with a mug of coffee and a box of donuts under his arm.
"Why do you all say that?!" Jin demanded.
"You made a giant Marshmallow from the first movie. You tell us, your highness," Alf replied.
"It was a lapse in judgment due to the stress of my wife's difficulty with the process and the overwhelming joy of meeting my daughter for the first time." Jin argued, "You act like Ben hasn't acted worse over the twins."
"Hmm…yes, kidnapping all the doctors in a metropolitan area for a sneeze from a baby was overreacting…but he also never caused a localized blizzard and crafted a Sengoku Era Fortress out of ice…" Rook added.
"And again…the Marshmallow…which ate Kevin!" Alf laughed.
"Bah, Levin was fine," Jin waved that off, "...still…if it was one of Tennyson's spawns talking to my daughter…"
"Okay seriously though, you need to give that girl a bit of freedom," Alf stated.
"She has freedom…I just don't want her going near men." Jin stated.
"...So you…don't want her to date?" Alf muttered, "Oh my god…you see the thing she and Ken have."
"There is no thing!" Jin snapped.
"No…there is a thing." Alf and Rook replied.
"Stop messing with me…" Jin growled.
"..." Rook held up a phone, "Tsubaki, settle something for us please?"
=Rook, I'm down the hall…= she spoke up.
"I know, but we need to help Jin deal with a truth."
=Hah…what did he do this time?=
"Is there…or is there not a thing between your precious daughter Setsuna…and Ben's goofy but kind boy Ken?" Alf asked.
=Hmm? Oh well…honestly yes= Tsubaki admitted.
"HAH?!" Jin gawked at that.
=They're both amongst the smartest kids in school, they do well together in training, Ken even helps Setsuna find time to relax and take her to places she likes=
"Wh….but…"
=Also Setsuna has been friends with Ken and Kokoro since they were children=
"I never okayed that…" Jin replied.
=Well I did, and my choices outweigh yours ten fold=
"...Yes dear," he replied calmly.
"Thank you Tsubaki," Rook smiled.
=Honestly, we all agreed not to interfere with the kids' love lives. It ruins the point of the betting pool= Tsubaki sighed.
"There's a what?!" Jin snapped.
=Oh dear…should not have said that…=
"Tsubaki…."
=...oh look at the time! I just remembered I was going to go buy something for Setsuna's birthday! Rook I'll let you handle things-from-here-bye!= Tsubaki quickly exclaimed as she hung up.
"For you," Alf handed Rook a wool hat.
"Why are you giving me this?"
"For the Hyper Blizzard," Alf replied, putting his own on.
"I don't know how…but I blame you…TENNYSON CLAN!"
"Brrr…" Ken shivered suddenly as they waited outside the school, "Did anyone else feel that?"
"Feel what?" Devlin raised a brow.
"That…sudden chill…"
"...Father…" Setsuna whispered in an annoyed tone as a tick mark appeared on her forehead.
"Hahahaha…ah…He's mad at Ken," Kokoro laughed, "Or Daddy…or both."
"Why does he never aim at you?" Ken complained.
"Because I am loveable. Also I know how to hurt him worse than any villain or punch from Daddy." Kokoro smiled, "I just say this: 'Setsuna hates you.' With those magic words, he loses all power, all will to fight, and maybe even will to live."
"I never said it. He's annoying, yes, but I could never hate my father," Setsuna defended, "Well…most of the time…" she whispered to herself.
"But why me?! There's no reason to be mad at me. I mean…what…what could I p-possibly have done…t-to…upset…" Ken stuttered the faintest of blush forming on his face.
"Well if you two…" Kokoro began before a Ground Bridge opened behind them, "Huh?"
"Hey kids!" Ben cheered, poking his head through, "Oh good. School's over, now I don't have to suggest playing hooky!" he laughed, "Anyway, who wants to get out of here and eat pizza?"
"PIZZA!" Kokoro beamed excitedly.
"Any excuse to get away from my psycho big sister," Devlin admitted before his phone rang, "...I'm not answering that."
"PICK UP THE PHONE DEVLIN, YOU TWERP!" Luna's voice shouted loudly.
"WILL YOU SHUT UP?! I'M TRYING TO TAKE A NAP BEFORE TRACK!" Dani's voice snapped.
"Oh that was from the college…" Setsuna whispered with wide eyes.
"Wow…the lung strength on those girls…" Ben awed, "No wonder they joined track together…"
"Let's go-go-go!" Devlin armored up with concrete as he picked up his friends/family and ran into the Groundbridge.
"Must have been a long day…" Ben muttered.
"Hi, Ben! Bye, Ben!" Kuon and Akane cheered as they ran out of the school.
"Oh…Now it makes sense…" Ben nodded.
"Ah! Mr. Tennyson!" a faculty member called out, "Please, we need to have a talk about…wait, don't go into the portal! We-aaaaand he went into the portal…"
"Sorry! The Universe needs me, so don't try calling! I'll be in Andromeda!" Ben shouted as the Groundbridge closed.
"...He says that every time…"
"Eh. Seems about right for Ben," Akane shrugged.
"Oh don't you two start! You're part of the problem too!"
"Oh would you look at that, I'm…due to solve a problem in the Underworld," Kuon looked at his arm which didn't have Zaruba, "And she is due home to deal with the kids before they get back from their Uncle's place…so Demon Motorcycle goodbye!" he shouted, mounting a giant golden demon motorcycle.
"Later!" Akane laughed as she hopped on behind him, letting him rev up as the two took off.
"Wait! You can't just…aaaand they are gone, too…" the faculty member groaned, "...I don't wanna deal with Karen alone~!"
"THEN RUN FOR IT!" the couple shouted.
"I just can't…I mean…well I'm an adult, it doesn't mean anything if I follow bad examples." the faculty member spoke as they…booked it for the parking lot.
"Some humans be so crazy…" Zaruba muttered.
"Ben…honey…did you kidnap extra children?" Makoto blinked, "Cause most of these aren't ours."
"What…I didn't kidnap. That would imply I wanted them," Ben joked.
"Hello, Mrs. Tennyson," Setsuna greeted with a light curtsy.
"Ah, Setsuna-chan~" Makoto smiled, bringing her in for a gentle hug, "You just keep growing into such a polite lady," she cheered, nuzzling her happily, "Thank you for looking out for my kids so much."
"Hey~!" Kokoro complained at that.
"Aw, you know we love you for the little chaos bringer you are," Ben smiled while patting Kokoro on the head, "You get that from both of us~"
"Hee hee~" Kokoro giggled as her tail wagged a bit.
"We still on for pizza?" Devlin asked, "I can go all carnivore on a meat lovers right now."
"Just wait a minute," Makoto smiled, "We'll get it picked up once we're told it's all ready. Thankfully, we ordered extra for lunch tomorrow. There should be enough for kids who don't eat as much as mine."
"We are admittedly big eaters," Ken muttered, "...Especially Kokoro…"
"Gah! Psh! Lies and slander!"
"Didn't you say you want to carbo load so you can ride the tallest hill o-" Setsuna began before Kokoro quickly covered her mouth.
"Eh heh heh…I have no idea what she means…" Kokoro nervously laughed.
"She wants to ride her bike down El Diablo pass," Devlin bluntly stated.
Makoto laughed, "Oh~? Taking on that place, eh?"
"Wait, what?" Ben asked in surprise, "Isn't that a little dangerous for her?"
"Ben, you were two years younger than her when you did it. Gwendolyn has pictures she shared with me."
"She saved those?!"
"Your dad lost the last of his baby teeth to it," Makoto grinned, her tail wagging, "Not that he was bothered. Used the gaps to drink through straws while he had his mouth shut and teeth clenched from what photos Gwendolyn shared with me."
"Oh~! I loved doing that!" Kokoro beamed, her tail wagging, as father and son facepalmed.
"Dang cousin…" Ben grumbled, "Moving on…how was your kids' day at school?"
"It was fine," Ken replied...before shooting a stink eye at his sister, "Kokoro and Mimi messed with the school clock to trick the math teacher into thinking it was lunch time…"
"Today was sloppy joes!" Kokoro argued.
"Seriously?" Ben asked in disbelief.
"Yeah…That…That's something I did in my academy days. Your aunt Tsubaki did not take it kindly when she realized what I did," Makoto winced.
"At least PE was…interesting," Setsuna muttered.
"Uncle Kuon and Aunt Akane acted as our special coaches for today," Ken explained.
"...Oh god who did you all cause bodily damage to?" Ben asked instantly.
"What?/How dare!/No one~/Maybe someone…" they all spoke instantly.
"Setsuna…you can't lie to save your life. What happened?" Ben sighed.
"We love you, but yeah…your parents kinda made you the worst liar on Earth," Makoto chuckled.
"...Jameson," Setsuna replied, "It was mostly Jameson after he made some…'colorful' comments about those with powers…He mostly targeted Ken and Kokoro."
"Gee…I wonder who influenced him to do that?" Makoto muttered with an eye twitch before Ben scratched behind her ear, "?! ...Mmm~"
"Easy now, Honey," Ben spoke, "Yeah, that was a horrible idea to say 'colorful' comments around Akane and Kuon. How bad was it?"
"Oh, we played dodgeball!" Kokoro beamed.
"That's…oddly safe."
"They were made of ice and they threw them at the students to dodge," Ken sighed.
"That's…oddly not safe."
"It was mostly for those who had powers," Setsuna reassured.
"Says the girl who carries a kendo stick and swiped them away no problem," Devlin countered.
"Counters the Osmosian boy who coated himself just to avoid internal damage," Setsuna quipped.
"Well what do you expect? We got two coaches that were the definition of Black Airforce Activity," Devlin argued.
"Oh, I feel so sorry if they can't come back to the school," Ben noted.
"This does explain why they always have, quote: Tooth Fairy Money," Makoto muttered, "This has to be a game they play with the kids…"
"Yeah, but their kids have Apoplexian DNA…and…Kuon's superhuman genes…" Ben muttered.
"...Kinda sounds fun, now that I think about it," Makoto noted, rubbing the underside of her chin.
"Okay moving on before Mrs. Tennyson gets any ideas involving Jameson's mother," Setsuna spoke to quickly change the subject, "After that…we did science class with Mr. Simon."
"Who caused the science explosion this time?" Ben chuckled, "Devlin?" he teased.
"You don't know it was me, Uncle Ben!" Devlin argued.
"It was him," his fellow youths all replied.
"Traitors!"
"You got us caught in a slimy-foam like substance that was akin to Spiderman's webs," Ken deadpanned.
"Didn't complain when you were stuck to Tsuna."
"L-LIES AND SLANDER!" Ken exclaimed with a heavy blush.
"Wait, it was like the webbing from the comics?" Ben asked.
"Uncle Simon was impressed," Kokoro admitted.
"Huh….neat," Ben noted, "Gonna have to check with him on that later."
"I guess even a dumb tool can be helpful once in a while," Kokoro smirked.
"I'm right here," Devlin muttered in annoyance.
"Hmm…so you are."
"...Just so you know, I'm remembering that at DnD night."
"Can't wait~"
"D'oh…!"
"Now now. D-" Ben began before his phone rang, "..."
"...Father…" Setsuna whispered as her eye twitched.
"Hellooo~" Ben answered, "Wait…how did you know she was at my place?" he asked, earning silence, "Jin…did you chip your daughter?" he waited as the eye twitching increased on Setsuna's face, "Oh…you just have a hidden tracking program in her phone she doesn't know about." he nodded, "Oh, by the way, Setsuna is sitting right in front of me and I've been speaking loudly." a loud shriek of panic could be heard on the other side, "Nope, too late. It's out there and she knows." he looked to Setsuna, "Oh…she inherited that look from her Mother. You know the look."
"...How fast can Uncle Benjamin remove the tracking program and put it on a USB that I can give to mother, Aunt Makoto?" Setsuna whispered.
"Ooh…Uh, probably a minute, maybe less if he uses XLR8 with Upgrade," Makoto replied.
"Understandable," Setsuna nodded, "I'll need to call mother after the tracking program is removed. I do not wish to be around father tonight in fear of saying something I'll regret."
"Yep…You have a lot more of your mom than your dad in ya," Makoto nodded, "If you were more like your dad…more stabby and less smarts when angered."
"Ask your Uncle Ragna about that joke," Ben chuckled as he crossed his Biomnitrix and turned into Upgrade in the shape of XLR8, but the green lines and front now blue, and the Omnitrix on his chest. He held his hand out as Setsuna handed over the phone, temporarily sucking it into his hand as his eye began glowing and, after a moment, the phone was produced, actually a bit cleaner than when it was handed over in the first place, "I might have gotten bored while working and updated it. It's probably like ten generations ahead of whatever the maker puts out." he chuckled, as he grabbed at his arm and pulled out a black and blue USB, "It might also now have the power to turn into a literal stun blaster…like I said, got a little bored."
"Hmm…good to know," Setsuna noted as she put her phone away, "Thank you, Uncle Benjamin."
"No problem, kiddo," he chuckled, "Besides anything to get a little rise out of your dad. It always brings a smile to my face, well not like XLRade has a face~"
"You're more than welcome to stay the night. I'll just call your mom and tell her that Jinny done goofed," Makoto offered.
"Oh thank you…" Setsuna sighed at that, "It's father's turn to make dinner tonight…tofu…."
"Ech. You eat that stuff?" Devlin gagged.
"It's healthy, but after the first dozen times since father put me on my schedule...I've grown tired of it."
"Eating healthy is important and all, but you're kids. You know, the point in life where you can eat anything you want?" XLRade muttered as he went about updating his kids' phones while he was at it.
"That's what I and the others in our galpal group say!" Kokoro exclaimed, "We try to invite her now and again for cake and stuff, but…"
"...Father put me on a no sugar diet…" Stesuna sighed, "Ice cream is okay…as long as it's sugar free and lactose free…"
"...l-lactose free?" Makoto blinked.
"Father fears I'd have an allergic reaction."
"...uhm…he knows you only develop lactose intolerance…from not eating it regularly, right?" XLRade asked.
"Honey, this is Jin we're talking about. Remember when he actually believed the 'Earth is Flat' theorists?" Makoto asked.
"I figured I hit him too hard on the head after we spared that one time." the Fused Alien muttered, "Though according to Ragna he had a childhood fear of the moon falling…maybe we should get his brain checked again…"
"...Okay, Setsuna…tonight is a cheat day for you," Makoto spoke once she calmed herself, "After pizza…waffle ice cream sandwiches for dessert!"
"I'll get extra ice cream! At least a few pints of the good flavors. Even with the bulk bins we get…we only get our favorite flavors," XLRade chuckled.
"...May I get mint chocolate chip?" Setsuna asked hopefully.
"Oh! You're in luck. That's Ken's favorite!" XLRade laughed.
"D-DAD!" Ken exclaimed as his blush grew...all while Devlin laughed at his heavily blushing face.
"What? It is. We always buy it in bulk," he laughed, "This is perfect! You should be happy your love for the stuff can help Setsuna finally have a taste of the good food."
"No offense, Setsuna-chan…but why mint chocolate chip?" Kokoro asked.
"Well…the color for one. But it's more of how the mint really brings out the richness of the chocolate pieces in it," Setsuna replied, "Uncle Ragna was the one who introduced the flavor to me when he was the only who was available to watch me when I was five."
"...Uncle Ragna was your babysitter once? …How are you still sane enough to not punch people being daft morons?" Kokoro asked.
"I found a good meditating spot near the Kaka/Koko Clan Hot springs," Setsuna replied, "It's calming, quiet, and no noise from the two tribes due to the soothing waters in it."
"Oh I remember when me and Ben were invited to go there," Makoto recalled.
"Ah~, fond memories." a green flash returned Ben to normal, "I hear it's become something of a legend as a place for couples to visit these days. Something about couples who go there being together forever."
"Well it worked for us." Makoto smiled, "Now we have two little goobers,"
"We're not little…" the goobers complained.
"You are compared to your dad." Makoto joked as she motioned to his muscular frame, "He shot up like 2 feet by the time he reached 20."
"Wait…so one of us is gonna get suddenly tall?" Kokoro asked.
"Very likely." both Tennyson parents smiled.
"Wait that totally would be me, if it happened to Dad it'll happen to me." Ken stated.
"Silence scrawny one, I am the alpha twin, I got all the best genes." Kokoro smirked, "I got Mom's beastkin traits and their athletic stuff, you just got Daddy's smarts."
"Yes..and I happen to come up with good strategies, know some kung fu, and can whip up any new invention on the fly," Ken retorted.
"I'm surprised that level of IQ was in there, you once tried to slurp a smoothie off the ground." Makoto giggled, tapping Ben on the noggin.
"It was a greater sin to waste it…" Ben muttered, "Even I didn't know my brain was so good for stuff. Shocked Ken learned how to use it so well, I expected both of them to come out as dumb as I used to be."
"Hah?!" Ken and Kokoro gawked at that...all while Devlin laughed at their expressions.
"What, I used to be a really dumb kid." Ben smiled, "I mean not as dumb as Kevin."
"No yeah dad's kinda dumb." Devlin chuckled.
"Daddy, how could you think we'd be dumb?" Kokoro asked.
"Well to be fair, kiddo, when you were babies and toddlers, you did some honestly funny stuff. It once took you three hours to learn how to turn on the faucet. And the time Ken believed me about the fairies that cause chaos…or the time you guys dropped Devlin off the roof."
"Wait…they what?" Devlin blinked as he stopped laughing as he began touching his head, "I knew I felt a weird thing…it was you!?"
"How did we even do that?" Kokoro asked.
"It was back when we lived in a normal suburban house and thought it would be safe," Makoto explained, "We somehow didn't notice you kids made your way up to the attic, and well…thankfully Devlin already knew how to use his powers and was made of metal."
"Easy for you to say…even with powers I have to deal with my crazy adopted sister and my meek adopted brother," Devlin argued before his phone rang, "Gh?!"
"I swear it's like Luna-san knows when you speak ill of her," Setsuna muttered.
"That one might just be magic, still never bothered learning much about that." Ben joked.
"Nope," Makoto shook her head before she checked the time, "?! Ahh! The Pizza!"
"Wh-OH GEEZ!" Ben panicked once he realized the time, quickly activating his Biomnitrix as he transformed into XLR8, "BRB!" he shouted as he ran off in a blur.
"Oh god I can't believe we got caught into our own nonsense again," Makoto groaned a bit
"So that's where you guys get it from." Devlin noted.
"It helps you forget your troubles." Setsuna smiled, "But I suppose this explains why our legendary Uncle Ben 10K always settles his battles so quickly."
"Oh, Ben only started doing that when the twins were babies so he could rush home to look after them." Makoto smiled, "For the first few months he had them strapped to his torso via babybjorn's."
"Wh-?! MOM~!" Ken exclaimed.
"Why are you complaining? It was awesome!" Kokoro beamed.
"Look," Makoto pulled a scrap book from her tail and turned it to the first few pages showing a Ben without facial hair walking around with two Babybjorns, one on the front the other on the back with both babies strapped in, even one of him and both twins with sunglasses on facing the camera and striking a pose before a beaten and chained up Animo, who was dangled like the catch of the day at the fish market, "I loved this one, you both looked so cute with those little baby sunglasses. I still have no idea where Ben got them." she flipped the page, "He had those things so often we let him carry other babies around in them." she giggles, "Look, Devlin, here's one of you and Ben bungee jumping."
"Wait what?" Devlin blinked.
"Your mom almost passed out," Makoto giggled, "Then she tried killing your dad for letting it happen." she laughed, turning the page again, "Oh look Setsuna, here's one where he carried you and Ken around while baby Kokoro painted on a chained up Jin's face."
"Pfft! Oh that's right!" Kokoro laughed, "I drew so many animals on his face…"
"Can we please stop?" Ken whispered as he blushed.
"This was actually rather normal whenever your Mom wanted to reprimand your father," Makoto went on showing Setsuna more pictures, "Believe it or not, you used to get so happy when you could ride around with Kokoro and Ken," she smiled, "I think that's why you three got so close."
"Especially Ken a-" Devlin began before a couch cushion was thrown right into his face, "Pffft!"
"Hey~ You kids know the rules of pillow fighting in this house." Makoto sternly stated.
"Sorry mom…/Please not again!" Ken sighed as Devlin panicked at the memories.
"Good," Makoto nodded before turning the page, "Oh! Here's when Noellie babysit you kids…ahh Kokoro would not leave her side when she played those romance movies."
"Best babysitter ever!" Kokoro cheered, her tail wagging…causing a notebook to fall out, "Ah…"
"Hmm…maybe you took too much after her…" Makoto muttered.
"You'll never see it!" Kokoro yelped, picking it up and running off.
"...wait…" Ken began before he ran off after her, "THERE BETTER NOT BE ANYTHING ABOUT ME AND SETSUNA IN THERE!"
"YOU'LL NEVER KNOW!" Kokoro laughed.
"Noel, you poisoned my daughter with your nonsense..." Makoto sighed.
"Ah! Kokoro, come back here!" Setsuna called as she followed.
"They do know she probably has more, right?" Devlin asked his aunt.
"Eeyup," Makoto agreed.
"Okay, last signature and…" Tsubaki muttered as she signed her signature on a piece of paper before putting it at the top of a stack in a box labeled 'OUT,' "There we go. At least this is something that's only done twice a month." she rubbed her aching wrist, "Still going to need to put the brace on this tonight." a flute tune went off from her desk before she pulled the drawer open and pulled her phone out and answered it, "Hello, Setsuna dear. What's…? …Huh, well of course you can spend the night with them. You don't need to ask every time; just tell me. …Your father did what? …He hid what in your phone? …Setsuna, dear, you can use a Groundbridge to get a change of clothes and what you'll need for school tomorrow. …Yes, it's better you stay with your aunt and uncle for tonight. …Alright, I love you as well, Setsuna." she hung up before taking in a deep breath and exhaled slowly, her eye twitching madly, "Calm yourself, Tsubaki…Don't pull out Excalibur on your husband…Don't pull your sword out on the man who doesn't know what privacy for a teenage girl is important…Don't…D-Don't…"
"JIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNN!-!-!-!"
"Oooh…The long shout," Alf winced, looking up from his slice of pizza in the break room, "She's as good if not better than Willie."
"..." Jin blinked as he slowly pulled out his badge, "Tucker, I n-"
=No way, dude. You're on your own=
"Damn it…" Jin cursed.
"What did you do to earn that scream?" Kagura asked.
"Well, given my years of experience, he either goofed and destroyed the house, caused mayhem, caused a neighbor to faint from a heart attack, got the SWAT team to swarm the neighbor's house, stole a tiger from the zoo in a car, bought his friend's daughter a car with the gold that made up most of his spaceship, or a few other hijinks," Alf supplied, "But given the tone and fierceness…that sounded like scream number 62 AKA 'Wiretapped a Phone.'"
"...I…may have hid a chip in my daughter's phone," Jin whispered as he looked away.
"...What flavor?" Alf asked.
"Not that type of chip, buddy," Kagura muttered, stifling a laugh before the two jumped as Excalibur poked out of the wall before slowly making a circle in it, causing the cutout part to fall forward to reveal an enraged Tsubaki.
"..." Alf looked at Kagura, "Shall we act like rational men and flee for another planet?"
"I heard the resort of Venus got a new lasagna," Kagura replied before both nodded.
"You're on your own!" both declared to Jin before running off.
"Traitors!" Jin shouted.
"Traitors who're gonna live!" Alf replied quickly as they went through a Spacebridge that closed immediately behind them.
"Damn it!"
"Jin Kisaragi…" Tsubaki's voice made him tense up in pure fear.
"Y-yes, dear?" he choked out.
"You put…a tracking program…in our daughter's phone?" Tsubaki questioned, her tone hiding the fury in her voice as she began to approach him, "Without permission or telling me?"
"...I assure you, it was on good intention," Jin quickly defended as he got up.
"Our daughter is perfectly capable of defending herself," Tsubaki replied, "I just got a call from her about it thanks to Ben finding it by complete accident! Do you have any idea how she must be feeling right now due to your actions?!"
"She's with the Tennysons?!"
"Sit," Tsubaki hissed, pointing at a chair with Excalibur.
"Yes, ma'am," Jin whispered as he sat down.
"...You knew, didn't you?"
"..."
"..." Tsubaki took a deep breath through her nose as she let out a long sigh, "Jin…please let our daughter enjoy her own life…She doesn't need you overlooking her every time she goes out with friends…especially Ken and Kokoro."
"I have no issues with the second generation squirrel girl…" Jin muttered.
"Oh my god…you are really trying this hard to keep the kids apart…I'd be even angrier if this wasn't so stupid," Tsubaki chuckled incredulously.
"I just don't like him…" Jin grumbled, "Besides, you act like Ben never overreacted…"
"When they were babies," Tsubaki argued, "And he never had to chip the twins. He trusts them to take care of themselves by now. They have Makoto's strength; and, if they are ever in over their heads, they have the option to call Ben for help. Which to add to our argument, Setsuna has never lost to either of them."
"...Really?" Jin blinked.
"Yes. Have you not seen them doing practice spars? Not once has she lost to either of them, even when Ken had the Omnitrix," Tsubaki replied.
"I knew she was skilled, but…" Jin muttered.
"Oh you can't take the credit for that," Tsubaki stopped him, "The reason she beat him is because she was coached by Ben and Makoto to humble Ken, and I was surprised by how well she did. She actually is our daughter, but it seems you forget that."
"..."
"Look…our daughter will be home tomorrow after school, so tonight she'll be relaxing at Ben and Makoto's place," Tsubaki stated, "Just…next time you decide to put a hidden tracking program on one of our daughter's belongings…don't."
"Understood…" Jin nodded simply.
"So help me if there are more? I'm going to force you to spend all day with Alf," Tsubaki sighed.
"...if you'll excuse me, I need to run home," Jin replied as he got up and slowly backed his way towards the door.
"Guest bedroom couch tonight," Tsubaki stated.
"Yes, dear."
"Hah…" Ken groaned, sitting out on the large open area of the penthouse of Omni Tower; technically, it was a landing pad, but the Tennyson family instead treated it like a backyard to have outdoor activities. He looked down at his wrist where the Omnitrix used to be, "...Still feels weird not having it on there…"
"Still miss it?" he looked to see Kokoro walking over, "Set-chan went to pick up her stuff, and Devlin got yanked home via a magic portal."
"Well…yeah," Ken nodded, "Dad trusted me with it, I had fun…but I messed up a lot, too." he paused, "Why didn't you ever try and get it?" he asked simply.
"I didn't want it," Kokoro replied simply, "It was cool and all, but Daddy is the real Alien Changing Hero. He's Number 1!" she smiled, "I just didn't feel like copying him. I'm happy just using the strength I got from Mom. Plus, whenever Daddy talked about giving it to one of us, you always had these big stars in your eyes. It seemed like you needed it more than I did." she mused, "Also…I don't want to turn into the gross aliens." she giggled.
"Of course…" Ken rolled his eyes, "...I mean…not that you need it. You inherited mom's strength after all…and her crazy spy/ninja skills."
"You act like you're not already showing you're crazy smart and skilled?" Kokoro argued, "Gadgets, tools, inventions, and you're strong too, ya doofus," she lightly punched his shoulder, "But…it only showed after you lost it. Even when you had it, you were never as good at being an Alien as Daddy is." she pointed out, "Seriously, why would Upchuck be useful for fighting Animo's slime-making monsters? All it did was make you sick."
"I thought I could eat the slime to get the opening needed for him to be taken down. How was I supposed to know that the slime had chemicals that were a natural allergen to a Gourmand?"
"And what about you being so insufferable about wanting to be his partner? You realize you had the thing for a week, and he's had it more than half his life." Kokoro went on, "I've been saving this for a long time!" she grunted, "But you used to be a real pain with the Omnitrix!"
"Okay, okay…" Ken groaned, "It's not like you haven't told me before…everyone has…" he sighed.
"Everyone but our Dad, you doofus. He never complained when you acted like a brat." Kokoro argued, "Now you don't have it and you're actually doing good work. Because you're taking your time to learn, instead of trying to copy Daddy's One shot finish style."
"I guess…I figured since we see him fight all the time, I could copy his moves," Ken admitted, "He…he's just so fast. Before I can even finish adjusting to an alien, he's already transformed like three times and taken out the bad guy in a crazy combo."
"Spitter, then into Frankenstrike, and finally into Big Chill. The three piece combo. The strong slime leaves enemies grossed out and unable to move due to being slippery, then an electric super ground pound knocks them over onto their butts or face and zaps them, then an ice cold blast sticks them to the ground and they can't do anything to get up," Kokoro smiled, "That's just for when he's not even looking to have fun and use a Fusion to kick butt in a weird way."
"Dad knows what all his Aliens do, mixing their powers just makes him even stronger, faster…" Ken sighed, "I…I just wanted to be like him. I wanted people to see me as his…son."
"Well that's stupid…" Kokoro muttered, "Why does it matter what other people think? Daddy loves you as you are, he's proud of how smart you are, and he never lets us forget how much he loves us." she pointed out, "You just wanted to feel like the Hero, didn't ya?"
"...Well…yeah," Ken sighed.
"No wonder Daddy never got upset when you acted so annoying; he must have understood how you felt," Kokoro sighed, "We saw him as a teenager with Mom, and we saw him as a little boy. But even his little version still had the heart of a Hero. I could see how he became our Dad."
"Yeah," Ken nodded, "He's just so…awesome! I mean, I heard some stories from Grandma on Dad's side about how before he had the Omnitrix how he'd try to stand up for others and try to help them."
"Maybe if he lets you have it back, actually try learning from him. As a Sidekick." Kokoro smiled, smacking his shoulder again, "It was kind of bratty of you to think you could go and become his partner. That's Mom's role. Know your place. You're Robin; he's Batman."
"You really enjoy that joke," Ken muttered, rolling his eyes.
"What? It's pretty cool you sound like a voice from those old comic-based cartoons from when Dad was a kid," Kokoro replied.
"Can't I be Nightwing…?" Ken complained.
"...Nope…your butt's too flat," Kokoro replied.
"Oh come on…" Ken groaned.
"What? It's in the comics!" Kokoro laughed, "Oh, I gotta look up the newest issue of Booster Gold. He's a laugh riot!"
"Right…" Ken rolled his eyes before frowning, "Speaking of…" he brought up a digital screen with a list on it, "What's next on the list Professor Paradox handed us?"
"Hmm…Well, let's see. We handled a lot already, maybe too fast…" Kokoro noted the number of checked items, "Let's see, our last checkpoint in the past was before our parents and Uncle Danny took a trip to space, then came back home to…that surprise…" she pouted.
"Yeah, that…that was not a good event…or the next big big one…" Ken grimaced, "...Maybe this event?" he pointed at one.
"Oh, Aunt Lambda told me about that one," Kokoro grimaced, "She still can't go near things that look like circus tents which sucks since Circ de Solei do their stuff in buildings that look like it and she loves those performances."
"Oh…right. Dad told us when he was young, he used to have a bad case of Coulrophobia," Ken muttered.
"I thought he hated Peacocks?" Kokoro asked.
"No…he just finds them annoying…" Ken explained, "He told me as a kid and teenager he was ashamed to admit he was scared of them. But they really freaked him out after Great Grandpa Max spooked him as a toddler."
"Oh Great Grandpa Max…" Kokoro groaned at that, "So chances are if we ask Teenage Daddy, he'd deny it."
"Like crazy," Ken confirmed, "He says he never had issues with Zombozo 'cause of the first time when he got so angry he scared him to near…uh…well he scared him so bad he popped into a pile of confetti as Ghostfreak." he muttered, "Can a Zombie clown die twice?"
"No idea," Kokoro replied with a shrug, "So when do you wanna get the bikes and go?"
"As soon as we have an afternoon without distraction…and…Drei gives it back to us…" Ken muttered, "He keeps hiding them in his little corgi tunnels. But this weekend, Mom and Dad are expected to go to this fancy summit to talk about Geopolitical issues and supervillain nonsense. That means we got pretty much the whole weekend. We could probably tackle a few extra list items."
"Sweet!" Kokoro beamed, "Can't wait for the weekend!" she paused along with her wagging tail, "...We'll still be here in time for the DnD game, right?"
"Like we'd miss that," Ken snorted.
"Yatta!" the twins laughed happily into the night.
Z0: Well that was nice…I'll admit I want to do MORE chapters in the future now. If just to abuse the Biomntrix gimmick
GT: Ditto. *tucking in SZ into bed* Well, folks. Let's see how you think we did. Until next time, please Read and Review~!