NOTES
I'm trying something different, not sure how well it will work. Towards the end of this chapter there's some references to Ben playing his guitar, like I've done before. I'm embedding some links to YouTube and Spotify for a couple pieces to illustrate what I'm describing. Replace standard period in the URL if you want to hear it.
Update: I see the Spotify references don't work unless you have an account The YouTube ones seem to work.
It can't be just like the story, of course, but it gets my idea across, I hope. The YouTube links start with their advertising; I have a Spotify account so those links go straight to the tunes, YMMV. I'm really interested in what you all think of this approach, please leave a comment.
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Ben's House
May 6, 2000
8:30 AM
Ben groaned while he slapped his right hand at the clock to silence the alarm, and opened an eyelid to look at it. 8:30. 8:30? What was I thinking? he thought briefly, then his brain kicked into gear. He grinned Right, today's the day! He jumped out of bed and put on his pants, T-shirt and sneakers, breathing in the aromas of bacon and cinnamon rolls coming from the kitchen. He doubted his Mom had made the rolls from scratch today, but the ones from store-bought tubes were almost as good. Besides, everything tastes great with bacon! He stumbled down the stairs to the kitchen, still not entirely awake.
His Dad was standing near the coffee maker and made a show of looking at his watch when Ben shuffled in, then looked at him with a smirk. "You're up earlier than usual! I usually have to pry you out of bed with a crowbar. What got you going?". He took a drink of coffee out of the mug in his other hand.
"Cinnamon rolls and bacon, duh! Always best when they're hot!" he countered. He overdid the eye roll, though, so he didn't see the bar stool and crashed into it. "Snrk!" His Dad gagged on his coffee, swallowed it with a cough, and said "Real smooth, there, Sport! Too early for you to walk and talk at the same time?" followed by a smirk.
"I hate you" he grumbled and scowled, playing the game.
He saw his Mom smile at them as she pulled the bacon from the stove and put it next to the pan of cooked rolls. "Give it a rest, you two. Breakfast is ready."
"At least Mom loves me" he made the next play, grabbing a plate and filling it with strips of bacon and two rolls. His Dad laughed and said "Suck up! ... Leave some for us!", as his Mom added her giggles to the mix.
- X -
His parents left a little after 11, shortly after Uncle Frank and Aunt Lili called to say they were on their way. The two women may be getting friendlier, but they were going to be around each other for several hours at the festival, and decided through mutual silence that the hour drive to Eureka might be better in separate cars. No point in pushing their luck, Ben heard his Dad mutter under his breath earlier that week.
He moved his amp and both guitars to the family room. He needed more space than his room would afford for what he had in mind, especially the higher ceiling. He had played Detroit Rock City the way he always did using Paul's guitar last night after he got home from Gwen's, just to get the feel for it, and he thought it sounded pretty good. But it was the recent jam session at his friend's house and hearing two guitars playing the songs, along with a dream of a rogue weather robot, that had him grinning to himself. He had big expectations for today!
After getting everything plugged in and powered up, he strapped on the borrowed guitar and started playing the songs he knew, beginning with the ones Paul had suggested. The combination of different tone, quicker action on the strings, and the whammy bar made a big difference on a lot of them. He recorded the ones that sounded better, he would send them to her later; doing it now would ruin the hoped-for surprise. After about 45 minutes he took a break, shaking out his hands and arms to relieve the cramps.
Returning to his rig, he took a deep breath. I really hope this works, he thought, as he dialed up Fourarms and brought his right hand down on the watch. The familiar green light filled the room, and he stretched four arms out as far as he could, then brought them together for a thoroughly satisfying cracking of knuckles. He smiled, reveling in the red form. "It's guitarhero time!" he said to the room.
He picked up his guitar in his top two hands and started tentatively playing the same vocal line for Follow You Down that he did with Paul last week, wondering if what he could do as himself would work as the big red guy. After playing a third of the way through, not missing a note, it was clear the Tetramand could do way more than strum power chords. The melody he expected came screaming out of the amp clear as day, and he even threw in a couple short trills at the end!
So far so good, he thought, picking up Paul's guitar and running his lower set of fingers over the strings. He started doing only the rhythm line and played through the solo, grinning more and more as Fourarms' fingers picked out the notes that were familiar to his human self. He noticed a taste of cinnamon rolls while he was playing, finishing a lingering bit left over in one of his teeth from breakfast. Who actually brushed their teeth right after eating, anyway?
He was as ready as he was going to get. "Here goes nothing" he rumbled to himself, counted the tempo, and launched into the song with both guitars at once. It took a little concentration at first as he tried to keep track of all four hands doing separate things, making him feel dizzy. He closed his eyes to fight off a wave of nausea, to find it was easier to play that way. He kept going, eyes closed, gaining confidence with each measure. All four sets of fingers were flashing over the strings, making the instruments howl through the amp the way he had imagined they should, and he couldn't have wiped away the smile that took over his face if he wanted to! He opened his eyes and focused on the clock on the far wall, knowing he didn't need to watch the guitars at all. His hands and fingers naturally made the sounds he heard in his mind, and watching just tangled him up. This was the closest thing to how Gwen did her magic he could think of, and it was AWESOME! He ripped through the rest of the song, and laughed with amazement that his idea actually worked! If only his Dweeb had been there for it! Doesn't matter, he thought, she'll be here soon enough, and boy will I have something to show her!
He had to do Detroit Rock City next, even though he hadn't worked out separating the vocal and lead guitar lines. Ben just jumped in, hoping for the best, to find that Fourarms almost instinctively figured out how to play it on the fly. It sounded almost as good as hearing it live at that Kiss concert all those years ago! Drums and bass would be great to add, but there was only so much you could do with two guitars. With one hero playing them! he shouted in his mind.
Two more songs went by with the same results, along with a more distinct cinnamon taste, which was a little odd but easy to dismiss. He was having the time of his life doing this, and wished he could show Paul, too! He'd appreciate it as much as he knew Gwen would. He stopped for a rest and shook out his hands again, just as the watch started beeping and flashing red. Ben grinned at how the thing seemed to know when he had to take a break.
While he was resting, he thought about Paul teaching him to play Cliffs of Dover. He didn't get to the intricacies of the intro and solo that day. How would Fourarms do with listening to the original tune, and then try playing what he heard? That would be wicked cool if it worked! While the Omnitrix recharged he pulled his phone from his pocket, and connected it to the amplifier, setting it up to play the tune. He sat on the edge of the couch to wait for the green light that showed the watch was ready for him.
And waited. The anticipation was killing him! Come on, hurry up already!, he thought, willing the watch to finish whatever magic it did to make his transformations happen. Ben flopped back into the cushions with an impatient grunt and stared at the phone in his hands, and decided listening to the tune as himself was the best way to pass the time while the flipping watch got itself ready. Pressing the 'Play' button, he closed his eyes as the tune started, this time making an effort to really listen and pick out the notes and patterns. Even with that concentration, the bouncy, fun nature of it made him relax, so that by the end he was bobbing his head and shoulders along with the beat and grinning again.
He opened his eyes to see the watch was finally cooperating, showing the green light he needed. "It's about time!" he shouted and slammed his right hand on the dial. When the transformation to Fourarms was complete, the phone was ridiculously small in his upper left hand, but he was able to push the 'Play' button anyway, and listened to the song again. The music may have been familiar to Ben, but it was new to Fourarms and he listened intently, distinctly hearing the notes and patterns that his human ears had trouble separating from the blended sound.
He stood up and started playing Cliffs on his guitar, skipping the intro and planning to stop at the hard part of the bridge. He expected to play the parts Paul taught him, but not as well as he was. His fingers were dancing surely over the strings, as if he knew the song from long experience. He decided not to stop in the bridge, and was happily shocked to find what initially sounded really hard was, in practice, just another natural sequence of notes. This was freaking fantastic!
At the end of the tune Ben did it again immediately to make sure Fourarms really had it. This time he started with the intro on Paul's guitar, then added the rhythm line with his. To his utter amazement and delight he nailed it! He was laughing as he extended his experiment to more songs, playing each one with both guitars almost as naturally as talking. He knew he made some mistakes, especially for songs he hadn't played recently, but nothing that was glaringly obvious. On the plus side, he started to improvise some of the solos, adding runs of notes up and down the fretboard, matching the style and intent of the songs if not perfectly reproducing the original. This is gonna make the Dweeb totally freak out, he thought with a huge grin.
His hands and fingers were getting stiff again when he heard the beeps of the watch start, and he reverted back to himself. He untangled the straps of the guitars and took them off, went to the kitchen and got some lemonade from the fridge while the watch forced a break. Ben's hands were shaking from their vigorous workout, as well as at this discovery of Fourarms musical ability. His excitement was hard to contain, especially by himself, and he nearly spilled the lemonade carton as he poured a glassful.
When he returned to the family room, he saw the message light on his phone blinking. Gwen had texted ten minutes ago that she was on the way there. He smiled again, he could finallyshow off his new abilities and knowledge of Fourarms with her!
-G
Gwen was annoyed that Ben hadn't replied to her by the time Michelle's mom dropped her off at his house. Probably lost in his latest Sumo game, like usual, she thought. He really needs to get another hobby.
She knocked on the door, and turned to wave goodbye to her friend as it opened. When she turned back, Ben was grinning like a moron and almost bouncing, excited at something. "You finally got here!" he shouted, and practically pushed her into the family room after closing the door.
"Ben! Watch it, you almost knocked me over! What's got into ... you?" she complained, then sort of stammered, taking in the guitars and amplifier in the front of the TV. "What are you up to?" she murmured.
He ignored her questions, and ran past her to pick up his phone. "Remember what my recording of Detroit Rock City sounds like?" She nodded, a bit speechless at his over the top excitement. She should, she played it often enough!
"Check this out!" he said and started the familiar tune, playing it through the amplifier.
Familiar, but... better? Gwen felt that it was different, even though she knew it was him playing, but couldn't place why. Ben looked kind of nervous even with a grin, and his right hand was fidgeting with the watch, but he didn't say anything. What the...? She focused on the amp and frowned with concentration as she listened to the music.
And then it hit her, the music had a fuller sound, more complex... She heard two guitars, playing separate melody and backing rhythm parts! She sucked in a breath, then stood there staring at him. "Two?! Those are both you?" Ben nodded, looking just like she imagined the Cheshire Cat. "How...?"
He stopped the song - about twenty seconds after the solo started where the second guitar joined in, and damn if that didn't sound amazing! - and his hand jammed down the watch dial, coloring the room green. After the flash, Gwen blinked and took in a sharp breath again, putting both hands to her mouth at the sight of Fourarms standing there, ducking his head a little to keep from banging it in the ceiling. "No way!" she shouted.
Fourarms grinned, popping his knuckles, and said "Get ready, Dweeb, this is gonna blow your socks off!" as he slung both guitars. He strummed across both sets of strings, tapped out the beat with his left foot and ... She heard the opening chords of Detroit Rock City scream out of the amp, and she couldn't stop a barked laugh! The smile on his face was brighter than the watch flash ever was, as his fingers hammered away at the strings, filling the room with sound. Gwen flashed back to the night she first heard him play their song and smiled back at him, knowing this was another one of those moments she'd remember. The rhythm got to her and she started to dance, twirling into the room - smart boy, moving the furniture out of the way! - knowing he was watching her and loving every second of it! He ripped through the solo, and nailed the song to the end. If he could smile any bigger, she didn't know how!
"Guess that was OK, huh?" he deadpanned as the last notes faded out. "Think I should keep going?" The deep voice rumbled through the room.
"Oh, yeah! Don't stop now, Mr Gui-tar Man!" she said with an equally big smile.
Gwen kept dancing as he played through a set of five more songs. They were all favorites of hers, all up beat, and if there were any subtle meanings in the lyrics they were completely lost in the happy waves of sound washing through the room. Only the music and the beat mattered; that, and the way he smiled as he shredded the songs.
And then that damn watch started beeping, counting down to stop his one man, er, being, concert. Gwen was almost angry at the interruption, but sighed in exasperation that Ben would have to stop when he reverted to himself. She stopped dancing as the notes faded out, breathing deeply to recover. She had forgotten how dancing could be a serious workout!
She figured he would be disappointed, too, but no. Instead, he had managed to put Paul's guitar down just before the flash, and was holding his, ready to keep going. He grinned at her saying "Don't look so bummed! I gotcha covered, I'm not done yet!" He drew his fingers across the strings again "I think you'll like this one..."
Ben started picking an intricate run of notes that sounded familiar, but she couldn't quite place it. He started with his fingers on the neck near the middle, and they danced down and back up the fretboard, alternating between fast, short notes and a run of longer ones, finally ending in a complicated run of higher patched notes near the body. Somewhere along the way Gwen realized the intro was for a tune he played off her computer almost a month ago, something he said would be difficult to learn. She hadn't really expected to see him play it all, really, and here he was doing it with practiced confidence! Even if he was staring intently at his fingers. And then he got to the chorus of the tune, playing the fast, up beat - Gwen had called it 'happy' that Friday night - Cliffs of Dover. As he got into the music he closed his eyes and smiled, then opened them again and aimed his grin at her, swept up again in the experience of playing. And swept her right along with him! She could feel her smile was every bit as big as his, as she swayed along with the rhythm.
( /wpAC1vr_pcg)
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He finished with an impressive display of fast picking, running his fingers up and down the neck of the guitar before ending on a dramatic power chord!
Ben let the guitar hang from the strap and shook his hands, breaking the quiet saying "Whew! My fingers are all cramped up! Time for a break." still with that smile stuck on his face. "So, what do you think? Pretty cool what Fourarms can do, huh?!"
"And you too! Cool doesn't even come close!" she gushed. So not her! Usually. But what he just did was too much to pretend indifference to. "You couldn't have had time to learn all those songs since we talked about it! It's only been a few weeks. You said it would be really hard! When did you learn it?"
"Paul and I played the first few songs two weeks ago, and he started teaching me Cliffs then, too. But I only tried with Fourarms this morning! I had to learn the different parts for those songs when I first learned to play them on just my guitar, so doing them with two was pretty easy. For the last one, I listened to the recording and then tried playing it this morning as Fourarms and it just fell in place! Even the intro and bridge. And when I tried after the watch timed out I could still do it!"
Gwen nodded but frowned anyway. "I still don't get it. It makes sense that Fourarms could play parts you know. But you didn't know Cliffs, though, not the whole thing, right?"
"Yeah. I guess stuff I listen to and learn as him stays with me when I'm me, like the other way around." Ben shrugged, looking a little surprised himself at the revelation..Then he stared at the kitchen with a funny look. "Do you smell cinnamon rolls?"
That came out of the blue, she thought. "Uh, no. Why?"
"I don't know. Mom baked some this morning, but that was hours ago. When I was playing, I kept thinking I tasted them." He shrugged again.
"I keep telling you to brush your teeth after eating. Maybe if you did you wouldn't be tasting leftovers that get stuck in them. Gross!"
Ben just laughed. "Speaking of food... I need some time for my hands and fingers to stop feeling numb. Want to get something to drink? Dad didn't believe we'd actually walk to Mr Smoothie, so..."
"You want to make him eat his words?" Gwen finished for him with a smirk. "That's a great idea! Let's go." They walked out the front door, and Ben turned to make sure it was shut. Gwen was halfway to the sidewalk when he called after her "What are you doing?"
"Walking to... Oh, for..." Gwen stopped and smacked her forehead with the palm of her right hand.
"I know it's been a while, Dweeb, but I can get us there way faster than that!" Ben laughed as he swatted the Omnitrix, switching to XLR8. He scooped her up and raced off, the face shield sliding in place. She slapped his chest and said. "Give me a chance to hold on, knucklehead!" He just laughed some more.
They got there in no time. Which was a problem, since they got there way sooner than the watch was ready to time out, and it was Ben's turn to realize his mistake. "Good going, Mr Hero, what do we do now?" Gwen teased without any heat. The answer was obvious, and she missed running for its own sake as much as he did.
"I think a tour of the docks and warehouses will use up enough time" Ben said, and raced off. After a few loops around the industrial part of Bellwood, mostly empty on a Saturday afternoon, XLR8 was already on the way back to the smoothie shack when the watch started its countdown.
"Don't try and tell me you planned that" Gwen smirked, as Ben sheepishly let go so they could walk the last thirty yards around the corner and into the shop.
They bought some drinks and went outside and sat at their usual table. After taking a deep pull at his straw, Ben looked at Gwen and asked hesitantly "Sooo, what did you and Army Girl do this morning?"
The question was unexpected, but he looked interested. If he wasn't he at least faked it well. She knew he still didn't like her friend much, but he had been nicer than Gwen thought he would the last time they saw each other. She looked up at him with an appreciative smile (that made him light up, too, and how long had he been looking at her like that?), and said "Remember last summer after..., when we went shopping and you made me wear those awful outfits?"
Ben looked in the direction of the mall and snorted, "Yeah, those were really butt ugly! I was surprised you actually put that crap on!"
Gwen laughed. "Uh huh. Well, I taught Michelle how to play that game, and we were at this vintage clothes store today. You should have seen the hideous stuff I picked out for her, you'd be proud!" She described a few outfits she inflicted on Michelle, and what she retaliated back with, between drinking up their smoothies. Ben even laughed at the pictures on her phone. They both took a last sip from their straws, and got up to go home.
Ben was looking for a good place to turn back into XLR8, but Gwen didn't feel like rushing back. As much as she liked the feeling when one of his aliens carried her, she interrupted him and put her hand on his left arm, sliding it down to cover the watch and said "It's a nice day and we're not on our parents' leash for a few more hours. Let's walk back." She smiled, and hoped he saw the "please" there that for some reason she couldn't say out loud.
She was a little surprised when he shrugged and said "Sure. ... Dad figured it'd take 45 minutes for us to walk each way, but I bet it won't take more than half an hour. One more thing to prove him wrong about!" He grinned as they started off.
"Did you hear those guys talking Spanish to their buddy making the drinks?" Ben asked as they walked along.
"Yeah. So?"
"I've been wondering, what did you taste when they were talking?"
"Um, spicy chocolate. What about you?" Gwen said.
"Avocados."
"You did not! How cliche can you get, guacamole for Spanish!"
"I said avocados, dork! Totally different! I taste guacamole when I use German."
"No way! Das macht keinen Sinn!"
"Stop it! You know I hate that snotty looking stuff! Moshi nihongo o hanashitara dōdesu ka?"
"Ben! Eww! That's nasty! If Sensei tasted what I do when he speaks Japanese he'd stop doing it!"
"Why? What do you get?"
"Raw eel!" Gwen spat out at the memory of that piece of sushi her Daddy made her try. "I thought that's what you got, too."
Ben barked a short laugh. "Nah. I get Grandpa's squid! Yuk!" and made a sour face. Gwen mirrored it, and they both laughed.
"Didn't you say you tasted cinnamon rolls when Fourarms was playing those songs?" she said.
"The new ones, yeah. Why?"
"It just occurred to me, I tasted marshmallows!" Gwen felt like she just discovered something important.
"So?"
"Don't you get it? The brain bugs are treating music like a language! I've read articles that compared them together, but this means they're the same! At least sometimes, for Tetramands and humans, anyway. Did you think anything, ... I don't know, different when he was playing?"
"Oh wow! ... Yeah, not words so much, but a feeling like 'I'm happy, I want to play'. Not play music, play like we did when we were little kids." Ben grinned. "That is so cool!"
"That's what I felt, too!" She grinned back. Then she got serious again. "That sort of explains how Fourarms interprets music and helps him play stuff you've only heard a few times. But how can he play different parts on two guitars? And how do you know how to play what hefigures out?"
Ben got what Gwen called his thinking face. "I've been wondering about that, too. It makes sense that Fourarms' brain has to be able to control four arms and hands to do different things, just like we can with two. And because I have musical talent - and you can stuff that eye roll, Dweeb! - I still do when I become Fourarms. And songs and things Fourarms knows transfers to me when I go back to normal."
Gwen considered his explanation. "You know, that makes a lot of sense... Wow, Doofus, that's really insightful! You're not as dumb as people say after all!" she teased with a laugh.
Ben was beaming at the compliment. "Yeah, I'm aweso ... Hey! Who says I'm dumb!?" he complained in mock outrage.
- B
When they got back to his house, Ben was still feeling the effects of his earlier performance, and wasn't ready to end his mini concert. From the way their conversation on the way home went, it seemed Gwen was up for more, too, so he went straight to the guitars and turned the power back on the amp. Gwen took the cue and sat on one of the chairs he had pushed to the wall opposite him, with a look of anticipation. "What else do you have for me?"
He grinned and said "I've got a couple new ones for one guitar", figuring that would be a good way to get back into the groove. With Fourarms help he had learned some songs that Paul suggested, Pacifica and Sultans of Swing. Both were good warm ups, loosening up his hands and fingers for more complicated picking. He was encouraged by Gwen's reaction, as she smiled and swayed on the couch to the first, and got up and danced at the second, as he hoped she would. Then he used Paul's trick for playing the solo to My Sharona, only he started with the solo and finished with the end of the song. Her reaction was priceless, as she stopped dancing to listen to the solo part and concentrated on placing it, just like he did -
I know this, but what's the name of the song? he could almost hear her thinking. When he got to the chorus, she got a pained grin as she finally figured it out, and did a great over the top face palm as he hit the last notes.
Gwen laughed as he stopped. "I didn't think you'd play songs that different than your usual head banging style, Ben! And what got into you with the last one? My Sharona?! Seriously?!"
"Paul got me into those. Said I should try different styles for some variety!" grinning back. "Here's something else I learned as Fourarms, something you should recognize."
He started a sedate version of Moonlight Sonata, but couldn't even force himself half way through. "Ugh, how do you stay awake for this snoozer?" he muttered, looking up at her.
Gwen frowned, "Why'd you quit? I really like that. It helps me focus when I'm studying."
"Ya, I know, Dweeb Queen! I heard you play it enough." He dialed in Fourarms and slammed in the watch. "But I spiced it up, just for you!" He picked up Paul's guitar, hammered a chord on both, and launched an electrified attack at double the original tempo. He shredded it, and he laughed as her frown turned into a giggle, then a happy smile as she bounced along.
( /pl6-b_8L99o)
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When he finished, there was just the hum of the amp, and before he could start something new they heard an angry shout from Mr Baumann next door. "Hey you punk! I've put up with that crap all day! Stop ruining the music! Here's how classical music is supposed to sound!" And then they heard a symphony start playing, with a guitar taking the melody of a fast-paced piece that Ben didn't recognize. But Gwen did, saying "That's the William Tell Overture. ... You know, the theme for the Lone Ranger?", rolling her eyes at his clueless look.
"Of course you know that" He mumbled, about to start something else to overpower the irritating noise from next door. Something about it got to him, though, making him listen to the piece play out. He started picking out some of the repeating riffs on one guitar, then both, and after a minute grinned like a maniac and said "I love these bugs! I got this!"
When the recording stopped they heard another muffled shout through the window "That's the right way! You hear that, you little shit?"
Fourarms cracked all four sets of knuckles, growling "Oh, it's on old man!", as he turned the amp volume up.
Gwen put her hands to her mouth. He heard her snicker and say "Ben, be nice!", but he was concentrating on his retaliation. He had been raised to be respectful to adults, but what Mr Baumann did deserved what he was about to do.
"I'm not gonna break anything. ... Some things we do just for fun!" he said with a wicked grin as he strummed both guitars. Then he winked his right set of eyes at her and let loose, shredding the Overture in a way that could never be heard in a symphony hall.
( /djcYXanoSVg)
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From the first chord he knew he would nail it, sound exploding out of the amp as four sets of fingers flew across the strings to make the guitars howl together! This wasn't some gentle classical go-to-sleep tune like eight minutes ago; no, this was pure 'in your face, bite me' attitude! The cinnamon roll taste was so strong it almost made him gag, emphasizing the message his brain was sending to his fingers. Too bad he wasn't facing off against the rogue weather bot, this time he would have made it explode in mid air! The look on his Dweeb's face was worth whatever hell he would pay after his neighbor bitched him out to his parents!
He finished with dual, harmonized power chords, destroying two strings on his guitar just before he held up both axes by the neck on both sides of his body and shouting "Oh yeah! Who's your hero?!"
This time he had an audience, and even if it was only his Dweeb, that was all he needed. And she reacted the way he always hoped an audience would, she clapped and cheered as he put the guitars down with a huge smile! Even Fourarms was almost bowled over by the force of the glomp she hit him with, both of them laughing hard, and he grabbed her with all four arms and spun her around in a circle.
- G
Gwen knew the doofus was going to do something outrageous the moment Fourarms cracked his knuckles and growled. The usual snarl that went with that action right before they tore into bad guys wasn't there, though, replaced by a devious smirk and an excited gleam in the four eyes. Eyes that told her her Ben was still in control, and nothing really destructive was about to happen. Still, she tensed up in anticipation; even when he wasn't keyed up Fourarms was like a bull in a china shop.
When he launched his electric reply to old man Baumann's musical challenge, she was caught up in his excitement, and she let out her breath and grinned at the power in the chords and the determined, technically demanding way two sets of hands and fingers danced and flew over the guitars, playing related yet distinct parts of the piece back and forth between each other. He looked up at her and saw her smiling, and returned it with a face splitting grin of his own, the master of the sarcastic musical mayhem blaring from the amplifier. She couldn't help bobbing her head and swaying with the music, but she couldn't really call it dancing, it was too fast for that. But it was wonderful!
When he got to the end, he crushed the final power chords in a crescendo and threw his arms wide, holding one guitar on either side and bellowed "Who's your hero?", and she couldn't help cheering! And before she realized it, she knocked Fourarms back a step as she connected a flying hug at him, jumping into his arms with a giddy shout of her own. She even squealed as he grabbed her and spun around!
The watch timed out even before they stopped twirling, catching them in the hug, still laughing so hard they both had tears coming out! Neither one made a move to break apart at first, instead resting their chins on each other's shoulders (a bit of a conscious effort on her part, Gwen had to stoop a little to make that work - totally worth it!) while their laughter died out.
As they separated Gwen exclaimed "That was totally awesome, Doofus! I don't think he'll ever play that piece again!" and she bent over, gasping for breath. She looked up at him with a smirk, "How are you going to outdo that, hero?"
- B
Ben was breathing hard, too, and said "Yep, I am that awesome!" He reached down and picked up his guitar, losing the smile at the sight of the two broken strings. "Looks like I won't, not today, anyway. I don't have any more strings. And I think I should take it easy on Paul's guitar, I can't give it back to him with a busted string, either." He shook his hands one more time, eyeing his abused fingers. "Just as well, if I do too much more my fingertips are gonna look like they've been in a garbage disposal!"
Gwen said "Oh, Ben! That's disgusting!" then paused to catch her breath. "So what should we do next? ... What's this homework you have to do?"
"Ugh! Linear equations..." he said with a scowl. "Way to be a buzzkill."
She snorted. "Back to being a regular doofus." she said with a teasing grin. "Get your book, this isn't as hard as teachers always make it sound." Gwen took 30 minutes to explain the parts of an equation for a straight line, and by the end he did the homework problems on his own. Why can't his teacher stop making simple things hard?
"Well, that's over with" he crowed, giving Gwen an appreciative look even if he didn't actually say thank you. "Looks like we have time for pizza and a movie before our parents get back. Sound OK?"
She grinned back at him. "You're welcome! ... Yeah, pizza's good. But pepperoni and mushrooms this time, none of your ham and pineapple junk!"
"Hey! You're the one who says I should eat more fruit!"
"Not on junk food, dork! Go on and order it." She started rummaging through the drawer of DVDs in the TV cabinet mumbling "what haven't we seen lately?", to herself. "Yes! This will do!"
When Ben got off the phone with the pizza place, she held out the disk. "Breakfast Club?! No way! Too much of a chick flick!"
"It is not! Besides, I get to pick since I had to force that simple math into your thick skull!" she smiled triumphantly.
"Give it a rest, nerd! You love that stuff!" He scowled at her, then rolled his eyes and took the disk. "All right!" he huffed, and got the TV ready to play.
By the time they had the room back in TV watching condition, the pizza arrived. While he hauled the guitars and amp up to his room, Gwen was busy bringing food and sodas and plates and stuff into the family room. Ben got the TV remote and sat on the couch, watching her. It was hard to believe this was the same girl that almost punched his lights out a few weeks ago, who was so distracted by nightmares and whatever else that she almost forgot how to smile or laugh or have fun. Today had been a blast, though, and there was no trace of any of that now! He knew Gwen had as much fun as he did; watching her dance and hearing her laugh were the best!
She saw him looking at her as she brought the pizza box into the family room and gave him a shy smile. He answered the "what's that for?" question on her face the only way that made sense right then. He gave her his best smile back.
- G
Gwen was thinking as they settled on the couch that being with her Doofus today because he asked her to come over, to see him so excited to be learning something new, to hearing his amazing music - all of it made her happy. She felt better today than she had for weeks! Because she was enjoying this time being with Ben, as he was with her. And the words of her future self - "... enjoy him while you can." - that were so cryptic back then, were making a whole lot more sense. Even though Michelle wanted her to stay for a sleepover, she was glad she came here instead.
Gwen sat next to him and leaned against his left side and tucked her feet up under her legs, as Ben slumped down to rest his head against her right shoulder. She wrapped her right arm behind his neck, resting her elbow on his shoulder, letting her hand fall and tangled her fingers in his hair.
"Thank you, Ben" she said.
"Huh? For what?" he said, twisting around to look at her.
She looked down at him and smiled. "For hanging out today. And showing me what you could do with those guitars! I had a really good time."
"Yeah! I'm just awesome like that!" He smiled back up at her.
She snorted and swatted his chest with her free hand. "You really are annoying!"
Ben started the movie and pulled a throw blanket on the couch over their legs, and then relaxed back into her with a contented sigh, as they watched The Breakfast Club for the second or third time - hard to keep track, and it didn't really matter what they were watching - and waited for their parents to get back.
/
Omnitrix Log
The logs report the language translation microbes were activated in the Tetramand template in response to a complex but not unpleasing set of audible atmospheric pressure waves - what the humans refer to as 'music'. Very good! The child has finally started to realize the creative potential for that species in addition to its combat capabilities.
The logs also indicate a massive release of endorphins shortly afterwards. What in the galaxy was that boy doing?
/
NOTE
To the One Who Reads about the brain bugs bit. Great suggestion!