Sorry for a late release.


"Welp, I fucked up," Ben announced as he entered the dorm, as Ruby looked up from her frustrating math homework (Mr. Debbaudt was a good guy but the man really enjoyed torturing students).

"I'm not shocked," Ruby said, smirking. "But how so?"

"Well," Ben drawled. "Remember how you asked me to attend that 'lesson' with you today? With your teacher?"

"Yeah, why?"

"...I may have made other plans and I'm too scared to cancel any of them," Ben admitted, his eyes darting away from Ruby.

"You idiot," Ruby said fondly.

"I know, I know," Ben sighed. "It just slipped my mind."

"Dare I ask what these other plans were?" Ruby wondered.

"One was a 'group therapy' thing Kylie wanted to do. I wasn't interested until she mentioned the possibility of pizza," Ben said.

"That sneaky bitch," Ruby cursed under her breath. "Alright, and the other?"

"Your sister wanted me to go clubbing with her, Ceres and Kevin. I wanted to seem cool, so..."

"You blindly accepted."

"Ahaha, yeah."

Ruby rolled her eyes. "Too bad there's only one of you. You gotta cancel two of the-"

Ben slapped his forehead. "Oh! Rightt!" He set down his bag and scrolled through the Omnitrix. Ruby perked up as she noticed Ben had a mischievous look in his eyes.

In a bright green flash, Ben was suddenly replaced by Echo Echo. He quickly split into three copies. All three aliens twisted the Omnitrix symbols on their backs 45 degrees. "Alright," one of them said. "Here goes. You two ready?" The other clones nodded. "3, 2, 1!"

They all slapped their Omnitrix symbols down. An especially bright green flash blinded Ruby, and she shook her head to get rid of the spots in her eyes. "Jeez, what was that all… about..." Ruby trailed off, rubbing her eyes.

"Hey, Ben?"

"Yeah?" three voices asked back.

"...why?"

Ben looked at his two identical copies and shrugged. "Cause why not?"

Ruby walked on over and carefully studied the two extra Bens. They both looked at her strangely as Ruby, without another word, slapped one of them.

"Ow!" The slapped Ben whined.

"Sorry, I had to make sure you were real," Ruby said, not at all sorry. "You have, like, 10 seconds to explain what's going on."

"Right, right," Ben said, nodding. "I used Echo Echo to clone myself."

"Yes, I get that part," Ruby said slowly. "That doesn't explain the clones."

"The Omnitrix has this exploitable glitch where I can make multiple clones of my human self," Ben explained.

"How exploitable?" Ruby asked.

"Well, I used this hack to cosplay the Hitachiin twins at the Bellwood Comic-Con..."

Suddenly, Kylie entered the dorm, more focused on something on her scroll. "Hey, did you guys know that Disney killed 5 dogs while filming Snow Bu-" She looked up to see the three Ben's and blinked. "Oh, you're doing this again?"

Ruby's eyes went wide. "Again?"

"Oh, yeah," one of the Bens said sheepishly, scratching the back of his head. "This isn't the first time we've done this."

"Yeah!" Kylie waltzed on over, pulling up a video on her scroll. "We've done this thing a bunch of times, mainly to fool people into thinking they'd captured Ben, getting him on missions when he's supposed to be studying for a test or whatever...or sometimes, this."

Ruby's eyes turned towards the screen. The video was of Kylie walking through her house. Given the motion of her phone, she seemed scared. She walked through a door, and suddenly, Ben popped out from the side.

He offered the camera a soda. "Want a Sprite Cranberry?" Kylie screamed as she started to run. A Ben that was buried underneath some pillows on a couch popped up and asked the same question. She ran down a hall, and more and more Ben's started popping up, asking her the same question, before it somehow ended with Kylie running down the street, with an army of Ben's calling out the same question over and over again.

Ruby was gobsmacked. "I-what- oh my God."

"So, you guys know what to do, right?" the main Ben asked.

"I'm gonna go hang out with Yang and the others tonight!" the more aggressive Ben declared, grinning.

"I'm gonna go with Kylie to that group therapy thing," the more sensitive Ben said.

"And I'm gonna go help Ruby train!" the main Ben announced.

"Well, I technically get the best deal because I get free pizza," the sensitive Ben responded, smiling lightly.

"Fuck, he's right," the aggressive Ben huffed.

"Lucky son of a bitch," the main Ben grumbled.

"Yeah, yeah, quit rubbing your ego. Come on." Kylie grabbed the arm of the sensitive Ben. "I wanna be the first one there so I can eat some breadsticks."

Ruby blinked, looking back to the main Ben. "I am still so lost."

"I know," Ben said, before he and Ruby departed for training.

The more aggressive Ben stood around awkwardly, before looking down at his phone. "Guess I can wait for the others to get here." He plopped himself down on the couch...and noticed Cardin, who was just sitting there, eyes wide and even more confused.

"What, you wanna fucking go?" the aggressive Ben hissed.

In her life, Kylie had so far been a part of two therapy groups. One was a community about collaborative authors, telling written stories of their lives. (Kylie had some trouble making hers sound believable; no one would believe a girl who fought monsters and aliens, after all.) It was great to meet all the various people who were so passionate about their craft. Their stories were important, and to this day Kylie was still thinking of them.

The other therapy group was a process group. They weren't just talking about their life and challenges, they were talking about each other's perspectives. Kylie got a glimpse of her impact on people and how they affected each other. Watching and engaging in it had genuinely impressed her.

However, Kylie never saw those people again, and it made her sad that they weren't in contact anymore. However, ever since then, she had built up quite a large friend group with the Plumbers and Huntresses, so she thought it'd be a good idea to just have a good group of friends to help talk about their issues.

...and mainly to help Weiss open up. She wasn't sure if this was a red flag or just normal behavior. Weiss had been on a depressive slump these past few days, ever since that dinner with her dad. She lost a few battles on the training field, was less responsive than usual, and got a B on an assignment...and didn't even bat an eye. Kylie automatically knew something was up.

She tried everything; talking casually to her, being friendly, smiling. Anything positive for pulling Weiss' out of her shell. When all that failed, she decided to do the group therapy thing. She got a few people involved; Blake, Ben, Rook, herself...people that Weiss could trust.

Kylie kept telling Weiss that they all felt the same about the group as she did, but she still couldn't shake the feeling that she was about to throw up everywhere.

So, Kylie decided to save Weiss for nearly last. It only made sense.

"I'd like to thank all of you for attending today," Kylie announced, looking around the room. Everyone was seated in a circle, relaxing in comfortable chairs. Weiss, however, looked tense, as if readying herself for an attack. "Don't worry; anything said in this room doesn't leave it. Nondisclosure agreement."

"Is that not typically for TV shows?" Rook asked sincerely.

"Yes, but in this case, I want everyone to feel safe. We won't discuss this with anyone else...therapists are not included, because, well, they're therapists," Kylie added.

"Understandable," Blake said, shrugging.

"So, Rook, care to start us off?"

He took a deep breath. "I fear my father has no respect for me or my ambitions."

Kylie expected Rook to say many things. That was not one of them. "What exactly makes you say that?"

"I suppose I should start with some background," Rook said. "Revonnah is a beautiful planet with multiple suns and colorful desert landscapes...but we have not come far with technology. We are in what humans called 'the Iron Age.' My hometown is especially struck with poverty, and I grew up rather poor. Ever since I was young, I could tell my father had an...issue with me. I was far more proactive and positive than he was. He would frown whenever I would voice a thought, and I know this because he did it constantly while I was growing up. When making a decision together, my father always went behind my back and ignored my opinions, which was not only infuriating, but hurtful as well. He especially disdained the idea of me joining the Plumbers. He does not realize I did it for my family; the Plumbers give a large award for any first member of a species that joins, and I wanted to support them more than anything.

"My time here has even inspired my other siblings to go to the Plumbers as well, but my father forbids them; he...considers me a bad influence, a horrible older child. How am I supposed to make him realize how painful this is? I am just trying to give hope to my siblings, to my people."

"...wow."

"I...also find myself overwhelmed sometimes. Occasionally, I find the basic requirements of Plumbers very daunting. I do not seem to have the time or physical or mental energy to keep up with and do all the things that are needed. I live my life thinking that I am a few seconds away from disaster because I have missed something important. Even when I break things up into small steps, I am easily overwhelmed by it. I feel awful about myself, and I am making myself miserable. I am trying to have a happy, healthy life."

"Well, about your father," Sensitive Ben proposed, "it feels like he's in this mindset where he's restricting things from you because he thinks 'it's for the best' or, more precisely, 'it's in your best interest.' For the sake of perspective, though, while you may feel that your dad doesn't treat you like an adult, you need to remember that he and your mom have been adults themselves for a long time. As much as you expect them to respect your opinions and feelings, you'll have to respect the decisions they make. I'd show your dad that you're an adult. Sit down and talk with him about this."

Everyone gave the sensitive Ben a bewildered look. When did he become so...eloquent, so caring, so-

"Who are you and what have you done with Ben?" Rook demanded. He reached for his weapon. "Where is my dumbass friend?!"

"Uh, let's just...change topics real quick," Kylie called out, trying to regain focus. She took a deep breath as Rook put down the Proto-Tool, eyeing Ben suspiciously. "If you haven't been given the right direction, and now you don't have confidence in your ability to deal with what you do? You still need to pursue something; your lack of confidence in yourself could impede your ability to solve this on your own. It's a big first step to embrace yourself as you are. You are someone who has been thrown into life with no preparation in some way, and you want to find a way to enjoy life and find fulfillment. You can be all right with that and you can take the pressure off with the help of friends. We're all here for you, Rook. You're like the smart stepbrother of my family."

"And you are a brother in mine," Ben said.

Rook gave them both a beatific smile.

"Mine is really, really personal. You guys promise not to talk about this, right?" Blake asked tentatively.

Everyone nodded.

"...when I was younger, I was in an abusive relationship. I wish I had been afraid when I met him. If only I ran when I first saw the real...him," Blake began. "It was back in Kuo Kuana. I was forced to attend some status report with my parents about the recent White Fang raid to the Schnee Dust Mines, in the center of town. This was a shock, according to my dad; no one had dared to go back to Atlas following Sienna Khan stepping down."

Weiss felt queasy hearing 'White Fang' and 'Schnee Dust Mines', but she didn't react.

"Wait, why would you have to go to a meeting like that?" Ben asked.

"My father was one of the founding figures of the White Fang," Blake explained. "And...for a while, I was involved."

"And so was my mom," Kylie added.

For a moment, Ben felt like he was having an out of body experience. "That's...wow."

"We...found out a year ago," Weiss sighed. "I overreacted about it, and...a lot just happened. Thankfully, we're all better now."

"It was...just a lot to deal with...and then he took the stage. He spoke for a while about the mission; three of their leaders were kidnapped by ruthless human soldiers, all for trying to help the Faunus who were exploited and mistreated in the Dust mines. My first impression of him was that he was a good, capable leader."

Blake's face seemed to drop a bit.

"I was a stupid, stupid kid back then. When I first joined, I didn't see the problem. He was happy to see me at my first meeting. We fought together, mission after mission. We saved and liberated Faunus from behind enemy lines. Being with him was like being in a storm, a riptide... I didn't see him transform into a hurricane. Maybe it was because... His words entered my mind and made me fall in love with him. From the very first day, he was manipulative. He arranged every word, every gesture, everything to make sure I was his little pet...And now ... I wish I was afraid."

"What...happened with this guy?"

Blake closed her eyes for a second. She remembered hearing the train whistle, and then a loud crunch-

"He and I are...no longer in contact, thankfully."

"I...I sometimes feel stressed, but not?" Ben wondered, brow furrowed. "I just feel like Atlas, but with the universe on my shoulders, not just Earth, and it makes me so tired but I can't get rid of it. And- And I feel like I have to be perfect almost all the time because I have the Omnitrix on my wrist and the whole universe seems to be watching my every move. I feel like I'm still a kid, that I shouldn't have this kind of stress, but it's still there and I feel like I have to grow up. I'm so stressed that I loop back into this weird calm state because I can't do anything about what causes me stress, at least not without losing myself in the process. And instead of finding a solution, I just mess around on YouTube because I don't know what else to do."

"I see."

"I...also just have this really big fear that sounded stupid at first, but it's been on my mind a lot," Ben went on. "When Ruby and I were kids, we went to this alternate future."

"...ok?" Kylie said, already confused about the direction this was going in.

"The timeline's version of Kevin willingly helped with this alien invasion of Earth instead of fighting against it. My future self told me you can't save everyone. For us, it was a big wake up call that...we just needed to save Kevin, no matter what. And we did, kinda. So, I put that thought to rest...but after Grandpa Max died..."

"His words are ringing more true than ever," Rook said quietly.

Ben nodded sadly.

Weiss took a deep breath, looking around the room. "You guys promise you won't let any of this out, right?"

"Of course." Kylie smiled softly. "We're all friends here. Friends who respect other's wishes."

"...well, I've been tense ever since this meeting I had with my sister a few days ago..." Weiss began.

"You're leaving?"

In an elegant twilit pavilion area of ivy-covered pillars, rounded archways, and lion-decorated fountains, Weiss and her elder sister Winter were sitting at a small table with a plate full of croissants and strawberries. Needless to say, such a sweet moment was interrupted by bad news.

"Yes. I was merely needed to oversee the transport of additional units to Vale. Our last shipment was lost to an ambush from Torchwick," Winter explained.

Weiss sighed and looked down dejectedly. Winter grabbed her sister's hand reassuringly. "Weiss, you've done... well, out here, on your own. You should be proud."

"Thank you, Winter." Weiss smiled. "I think my skills have improved throughout this past year."

"Oh? Then what do you think you've learned?"

"What do you mean? I'm getting better and better with my glyphs! I've even started Time Dilation." Weiss beamed.

Winter stared intently at Weiss. "And what of your Summoning?"

"...You know I can't do that yet." Weiss avoided eye contact.

"Don't be ridiculous. Every Schnee can Summon. We have for generations. It's hereditary."

"t's just... it's the one thing I've been having trouble with." Weiss frowned. "That's it."

Winter shook her head. "If you fail to test the limits of what you think is possible, then you'll never truly grow."

"That doesn't sound too bad," Ben said. "Your sister seems nice."

"I haven't gotten to the 'training'," Weiss said dejectedly.

Weiss pointed her Myrtenaster at the ground, creating a rotating glyph made of blade symbols. Winter hovered behind her.

"Excellent form! Now think of your fallen foes! The ones who forced you to push past where you were, and become who you are now," Winter appraised her. "Think of them, and watch as they come to your side."

Weiss was trying her hardest to make the wobbling circle follow her will, but eventually dismissed it and stomped on the ground angrily. "I can't."

Winter grabbed her shoulder. "Stop doubting yourself!"

Weiss turned to face her sister. "Do you think I haven't been trying?"

Winter frowned. "If this is what you call trying, then you have no hope of winning the tournament, let alone succeeding as a Huntress."

Weiss broke eye contact with her sister, as Winter sighed. "I have to go soon. Six prefers me to be punctual."

"As usual," Weiss sighed. Weiss attempted once more to create a summoning glyph, gritting her teeth until Winter placed a consoling hand on her shoulder. The glyph flickered and faded once more.

"I'll leave you with some words of wisdom I learned early on," Winter said softly. "Emotions can grant you strength. But you must never let them overpower you."

Winter allowed her little sister a moment to absorb this information, before pulling her into a hug. "It was good to see you again, Weiss."

Weiss didn't want to let go, and yet the professional half of her brain told her to do so. "It was good to see you as well."

"Until next time." Winter smiled sadly as she walked out of the pavilion, leaving Weiss alone.

"...I can see where all that self-doubt came from," Ben sighed.

"...my last name used to mean genuine greatness, not the corrupted version my sperm donor turned it into," Weiss said caustically. "I won't change my name because I want it to mean something great again like it did when my grandfather was still alive. But my stepfather is a respected military man, and my older sister is rising in the ranks as well. I want to achieve status and illustriousness my way, but... I just feel like I don't live up to my potential. That I'll never live up to it, and that everything I do to improve myself means nothing. And my thoughts just keep spiraling downward until the only thing I can think to do is watch dumb cat videos on YouTube."

"Mood," Ben agreed.

"I...feel kinda...ergh, you know? I can't quite vocalize it well enough. It's this weird mix of 'I need to improve' and 'I need to just cry'," Weiss went on.

Kylie lightly chuckled. "I've been there. It's just the worst, isn't it?"

"I'm very much new to it," Weiss said, cheeks pink.

"And that's why I formed this group in the first place," Kylie told her. "I want you all to feel comfortable sharing your feelings. It helps release any anxiety you may be having. It can also help improve communication between people. Keeping things bottled can be unhealthy and could lead to depression if you don't talk to someone; not everyone understands what you are going through, but opening up to others just to let your feelings out and vent about a problem that has been building is a great way to release all that tension that has been building up for so long."

Much later on, when the group had dismissed, Weiss decided to ask something that was on her mind.

"Kylie," Weiss said later on. "If you don't mind me asking...why did you form this group?"

Kylie's smile faded as she looked out the window. "It's...a story."

"We've got time to listen," Ben said reassuringly.

"...When I was five, I learned how unfair the world could be. I was the last child born into a family of overachievers. All of them thrived off of positive press and praises for their works. They all had high hopes for me," Kylie began.

"That doesn't sound like Anna at all," Ben said, brow furrowed.

Kylie gave Ben a look. "I'm adopted. I'm half-Filipino, while my moms are white and Bengali. I thought you knew this."

Ben blinked. "It honestly never came up."

Kylie sighed, but continued with her story. "I faked it. I pretended to be perfect. I developed this autopilot for myself, someone who could do things for me unconsciously; they studied words I didn't know, did things I hated, and because they did so, I got attention. My 'family' loved the perfect, false me for those qualities and not their personality. I hated them for that for the longest time."

"So, what happened? Did you run away?" Blake asked.

"I wanted to. I did. Then, when I was seven, I saw monsters up close. It started with death; a dog getting snatched up by a Nevermore, along with his owner. Later, a man was found dead in his home, large teeth marks lodged in his chest and his back shattered by something strong. Fear spread around town quickly, and that is NOT the thing to spread when the threat of Grimm hangs over your head like a dagger on a loose string. More and more cases of Beowulf murders occurred, some in daylight, and much more in the nighttime." Kylie paused, looking haunted.

"...and then...I saw it."

Weiss held her arm. "Saw what?"

"...are you guys familiar with the Seamstress Grimm?" Kylie asked. "A monster that sucks the energy from their prey, draining them until they're just nothing?"

"...yes," Weiss lied. She wanted to make Kylie feel better.

"The fear was strong enough to warrant a visit from one of those. It slaughtered my perfect family, and...I just ran. I ran and ran and ran...until I hid in a library. I'm not religious or anything, but I prayed for someone to help me. And while Heaven was busy with other prayers, Hell sent its fallen angels to take care of the issue."

"Anna?" Rook piped up.

"And Sienna," Kylie added. "I suppressed most of the event, but she mentioned she was there. When the noise died down, I was still a sobbing mess, scared out of my mind, and shivering like a hypothermic victim. The Huntresses that saved me took me in and...I was basically "Kevin" for a year or so. The two of them provided me with therapy and books and food to keep me busy and distracted while she and Sienna handled the fallout of my town in private."

"...I had no idea that you went through this," Ben said, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Even though I recovered, I was still terrified that I'd encounter a Seamstress again," Kylie said. "You just aren't the same after seeing that... thing."

"So...you quit being a Huntress because you didn't want to face something like that?" Weiss asked.

"I never said I quit," Kylie said, shaking her head. "I just needed more experience. That's why I joined the Plumbers."

"Think you'll ever get back into the field?" Ben asked.

Kylie paused, as she looked up at the ceiling. "Listen- no one knows their direction in life. I'm not even sure our parents know what life will be like in a few years. It'll change, just like that. I dunno how things will change for me, or for everyone else living on this fucked up planet, but...everything right now just seems like it's in a constant state of maybe."

Kylie then looked at the concerned faces in front of her. "So, enough Dumbing of Age tier drama. Wanna watch some memes?"

Everyone nodded in agreement.

From the aggressive Ben's point of view, the nightclub was loud. From the outside it looked uncomfortable, unenjoyable and unfriendly. It was hard to see through the large, stained glass windows, but the music and screams from within could be felt outside and around the corner. Stepping inside nearly gave Ben a migraine; it was bright and flashy and obnoxious. The place was large and open though, with a bunch of other people already partying like crazy. The walls were decorated with pictures of people having fun and other memorabilia.

Ben honestly had no idea why Yang would drag him, Ceres, and Kevin to this place. Yang was a fun party girl, not the type to take you somewhere where you'd get shanked in the back.

"Well? What are we waiting for?" Yang grinned as she stepped onto the floor. Ben blinked and looked at the others.

"...fuck it, I'm joining in." Kevin shrugged and joined Yang on the dance floor.

"Eh, might as well," Ceres said, walking over to the bar.

Ben thought for a moment, and then said, "Well, might as well get smashed." After all, he had two left feet, and he still had PTSD from Camille and Joel's wedding. "Give me a gin and tonic, on the rocks," he ordered once he was at the bar.

The bartender gave him a look.

Ben frowned. "What? I have taste. Get to it."

"No, you absolutely do not." Ceres sighed. "Get him a Malibu Sunset," she told the bartender. "I'll take a Blue Island Splash cocktail." The bartender nodded and got straight to making it.

"Wait, how will you know I'll like a Malibu Sunset?" Ben asked.

"I don't know, it looked tasty and pretty to look at." Ceres shrugged.

That was when Lev scooted over, wearing tight, ripped up white pants and a dark blue V-neck. His hair was expertly tousled and his eyes gleamed behind his stylish rimmed glasses. He sipped at his lemon drop martini and gave his stupefied friends a shit-eating grin. "And don't worry if the drink sounds girly. Girly drinks taste the best."

"When the fuck did you get here?" Ben demanded to know.

"Oh honey," Lev condescended. "You should know by now that when chaos is afoot, I magically appear. And you, dear Benji, are a magnet for it."

"He's got you there," Ceres pointed out, taking her drink from the bartender. Ben grumbled insults under his breath and took a sip of his Malibu Sunset- which was, in all honesty, very tasty.

What Ceres and Lev neglected to mention was that those so-called 'girly' drinks have more alcohol in them than, say, a gin and tonic. It was more delicious and efficient to get wasted off of those drinks, and it was Ceres' goal to get Ben drunk as humanly possible.

Why?

Lev offered to take all her graveyard shifts for a month if she got Ben seriously drunk.

A perfectly reasonable explanation, many of their friends would think. And it was a fantastic incentive too; by the time Ben finished his drink, he was already pretty tipsy. The boy did not hold his liquor well enough. The drunk Ben had attached himself to Yang, hugging her tightly and absolutely loving the scent of whatever she put in her hair.

"You smell like sunshine," Ben slurred, nuzzling Yang's luscious locks.

"Jeez," Yang giggled, sipping her strawberry sunrise. "Looks like Ben's having fun."

"I'm shocked all it took was one drink," Lev declared, taking a swig of his recently made pina colada. "Kinda hoped there'd be more fanfare, you know?"

"Whatever. This is absolutely being saved for tomorrow," Kevin said, already recording.

"Thank you, Kaehvin," Ben slurred again. "You have… a Superman chin."

Kevin raised an eyebrow. "Thanks, I'll keep that in mind the next time we go to a convention. Now, what do I smell like?"

"100% American beef."

Kevin let out an involuntary chuckle, while Lev laughed uproariously and slapped the older boy on the back. "Ahhh, I love One Drink Ben," Lev said, wiping an eye.

"Lev has pretty Zuko eyes," Ben mumbled. "Ceres...musclesssssss..."

Ceres chuckled. "This was worth every penny."

"Absolutely," Yang agreed. She and Ceres tipped glasses.

"So, why take us here, exactly?" Ceres asked curiously. "I kinda expected somewhere that wasn't infested with..." She motioned over to what looked like two underage girls dancing on stage.

"Oh, no, don't get me wrong," Yang explained, "I hate this place too. I just wanted you guys here for, well, support."

Ceres raised an eyebrow. "Support for what?"

Yang's demeanor turned serious as she pulled out her scroll. "I've been doing some investigating into Roman's affairs. Blake overdid herself the last time, so I'm doing it so I don't have to physically lead her to bed."

"I know the feeling," Ceres said, side eyeing Lev.

"You hadn't slept for like 80 hours, Ceres. I did what I had to do," Lev defended himself.

"Hush," Ceres said, turning her attention back to Yang. "So, what did you find?"

"Well, I got info on the club owner," Yang revealed, pulling up his photo. The man had gray eyes, short black hair, and a thick goatee. "This is Junior."

"Hahah," Ben chuckled. "He's...got the name of a really bad...Schewansntzaneger movie."

Yang paused. "What?"

"You knooow!" Ben laughed. "Arnie! Arnie Schitzophernic!"

"...I think he's trying to say Arnold Schwarzenegger," Lev said, grimacing. "And referring to the movie where he and Danny Devito have a kid."

Yang turned to look at him. "What?"

"Ben and I watched it together one night. We couldn't look at each other for a full week afterwards," Lev said, taking a sip of his drink. "Movie nights haven't been the same since then, either."

Yang rolled her eyes. "As I was saying- he's got history as an information broker, keeping tabs on the various goings-on of Remnant. He's also said to have a reputation for knowing everything and has business connections with underworld figures like Roman."

"Typical," Kevin groaned. "Dance floor must be a distraction for his real business. Where can we find the guy?"

Yang pointed over towards the wall. "Right there." Everyone glanced over at Junior, who was watching the dance floor carefully. "I got this," she said, as she walked over...with Ben still piggy backing off her.

The second Junior saw Yang, he could tell something was off. "Aren't you a little young to be in this club, Blondie?" he joked.

"Aren't you a little old to have a name like Junior?" Yang shot back.

He furrowed his brow. "So you know who I am. You got a name, sweetheart?"

"Dooon't talk to her like that!" Ben garbled. Junior gave the boy a concerned look.

"Ignore him," Yang sighed. "But yes, Junior, I've got several. Also...instead of sweetheart, you can just call me sir. People say you know everything."

"Maybe so." Junior frowned. "Why?"

Yang brought her scroll up to his face, showing him a picture of Roman. "Tell me where I can find him and I'll let you go."

Junior raised his eyebrow. "Let me g-" And in an instant, Yang was holding him in a chokehold. The others watched in amusement.

"This is getting interesting," Lev said appraisingly, draining his drink.

"Well?" Yang asked. "I'm waiting~"

Junior began to sweat. "I've never seen him before, I swear!" She shot him a look. "I swear, sir!"

"Liar...liar," Ben murmured. "Plants for hireeee..."

Now the scene was starting to get some attention. Junior's employees began to gather around, waiting for Yang to make a move. She looked around and smirked.

"Looks like we have an audience. This must be embarrassing for you, huh?" Yang joked.

"Awkward..." Ben drawled.

"Fine, fine! Torchwick hired me for some goons, but that's all!" Junior exclaimed. "They were just his backup on a few missions. I don't know anything else."

"Alright, alright," Yang said, releasing Junior from her iron grip. "That's all I needed to hear."

Junior rubbed his neck. "Good."

Yang then brought up another picture on her scroll. "Now, topic two; know anything about her?"

Junior gave her another look. "Listen, blondie sir. If you want to make it out of this club alive, I suggest you leave. I don't know anything about this masked freak."

Yang glared at him before turning around. "Alright. I got what we needed."

Ceres raised an eyebrow. "That's it? That was just an interrogation. Why bring us?"

Yang shrugged. "I thought a fight was gonna break out. That was settled in a much more restrained way, so I can't com-"

"WHAT DID YOU CALL HER?" Ben suddenly yelled. The others turned to see their friend, red faced and angry, glaring at Junior.

"N-nothing! I swear-" Junior backpedaled.

"NONONONONO! YOU CALLED HER THE C-WORD! YOU CAN'T SAY THAT!" Ben screeched.

"Oh, and what are you gonna do about it, kid?" Junior taunted, looming over him.

"I'll fuckin' show ya!" Ben clumsily activated his watch and slapped down the faceplate. As the green light faded away, Yang could tell...this wasn't gonna end well.

Ben's alien was pathetically small, maybe up her knee. The alien had green skin, six sprout-like growths on the back of his head, swampy-green skin, tanned stomach and muzzles, black digits and black-green spots on his tail, with a crooked overbite. He had whisker-like lines on his face, a green tail, and the Omnitrix dial on his right hand.

Junior took one look at the alien...and burst out laughing. "Nice trick, kid! Hey, boys! Hold him down! I wanna see how far I can punt him!"

One of Junior's henchmen stepped forward and cracked his hands, right before Ben opened his mouth. Three tongues shot out of his maw and wrapped around the man's body. Ben began to swing the guy around like an amusement park ride, before eventually letting go of him; the man smashed against a wall across the dance floor.

Junior looked back at Ben, took a deep breath-

"A RAISE FOR WHOEVER KILLS THAT FUCKING FROG!" he shouted.

"Welp, we're fighting," Yang sighed, loading her gauntlets.

Lev grinned. "Fucking finally, this place was getting boring."

"Couldn't agree more." Kevin grinned as he slapped down the AntiTrix, turning into Brainsick. He dug his pincers into the ground and unleashed blasts of electricity from his cranium, tearing up the dance floor. Junior's henchmen flew across the room.

Yang ran across the ruined dance floor, already bloodthirsty. A henchman ran at her with a knife; she blocked the blade with her gauntlets before crushing it in her robotic hand. The man gave her a wide eyed look. Yang juwt grinned before she decked him in the face.

More men ran at Yang, carrying an array of weapons. Yang unfurled the "skin" around her robotic arm and dangled it in front of her. One of the men, who was wielding a bat, took a swing at her; however, Yang immediately caught the weapon in her string and sucker punched him in the gut.

The other men tried striking her as well, but Yang simply jumped back and cocked her gauntlets. She unleashed a flurry of punches that released dozens of shotgun shells. The shells weren't precise, but Yang didn't need them to be. The idiots were ducking for cover, which is exactly what her partner needed...

Lev, the tricky bastard that he was, had blended in amongst the henchmen. "Man, she's tough," he commented to a 'fellow' goon.

"Yeah, I know, it's like she's some kind of- Hey, wait a minute, who the fuck are you?" the henchman demanded.

Lev grinned as his leg struck the man's face at point blank range. The man fell back as Yang paused her attack; she had never seen Lev fight before, and she was admittedly interested in seeing how he did in battle.

Lev cracked his neck just as more men came at him. Yang took note of something interesting: Lev was moving his feet in a strange, triangular pattern. It was like he was subtly dancing to the beat of the music.

One of the men swung at Lev with his brass knuckles; Lev ducked under the fist before flipping off the ground; he kept his right arm close to his chest to create enough torque for the rotation, and landed a perfect axe kick to the man's head. The man fell to the ground, knocked out. Lev smiled, kicking the unconscious goon directly at the other men that were going to attack him.

Yang smirked. Lev's fighting style was just as crafty as he was.

Ceres slammed her kneecap into a man's face, knocking him out upon impact. Another idiot tried to attack her from behind, but she delivered a quick, flaming uppercut that sent the goon flying into the ceiling. Ceres then blindly landed a back fist on some idiot trying to get another sneak attack on her.

She didn't know if he was there, to be honest. She just expected it.

Suddenly, Ceres heard the sound of a magazine being loaded into a gun. She turned around to see the DJ wielding an AK-47. The man started to fire at her from his stand, but Ceres rapidly evaded the gun fire. She propelled herself upwards with a fiery blast from her hands, delivering a spear kick into his chest upon impact. The man stumbled back as she landed inside the booth. Ceres grabbed the man's head and slammed it into his turntables.

Ceres then ripped the bear helmet off of his head and held it in the air.

"YEEEEEAAAAAHHHH!" She bashed it over her knee, smashing the helmet into pieces.

"Hey, come on! I bought that with my own money!" the DJ whined.

"They didn't supply you with it? That's fucked up, actually." Ceres frowned as she picked him up by his shirt collar. "Well, still. You shot at me. So..." She threw his ass to the bar table, the wood smashing to bits.

Ceres hopped over the booth and walked on over to the broken bar. She grabbed her (somehow still intact) drink and smirked.

"Are you seriously drinking at a time like this?" Yang asked her.

Ceres raised an eyebrow. "Yes. Power move."

"...excellent point," Yang said, downing the rest of her strawberry sunrise.

At the same time, Kevin was still firing strong electrical blasts at the henchmen. Ben would occasionally swallow some people so he could...throw them back up, heaving them against the wall and leaving them broken and traumatized. Ben regurgitated a giant acid ball, throwing it directly at Junior. He ducked underneath it, letting it hit one of the doormen; the acid burnt right through his clothes. Junior growled before he charged at the alien. He punted the thing across the room, having it crash into the speakers by the DJ table.

"Ben!" Kevin yelled, trying to scuttle over. Suddenly, he felt someone strike his leg. He peered down to see some idiot with an axe-gun attempting to cut his leg down like a tree. Kevin rolled his eyes as Doppler started to create a small 'cut' in the leg. Black and blue fluid leaked out of the 'cut' and onto the idiot's weapon.

"Oh. No," Kevin said, his voice a monotone. "I'm bleeding...my alien blood is really getting everywhere. Damn, you got me."

The idiot started to celebrate, stepping back to whack the leg again-

And then the blue liquid activated. The alien 'blood' was just some of Daft Punk's techno-organic form. And what happens when it touches something like, oh, I don't know, technology?

The weapon suddenly formed a fist and uppercut the idiot's jaw. The idiot stumbled back, slipped on the puddle, and knocked himself out.

"That was just sad, actually," Doppler sighed. "I can't even laugh at that."

Kevin gave him a look.

"...oh what the hell, that's hilarious," Doppler chuckled.

Yang and Ceres poured themselves another shot just as two other girls walked over to them. The two appeared to be twins; they had long black hair and pale green eyes. The one on the right had heavy cyan makeup and wore a white, strapless dress with cyan lining. The one on the left had heavy scarlet makeup and a red strapless dress with black lining.

"Can we help you?" Ceres asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Looking for a good time?" Yang joked.

"We don't really know who you guys are, but..." the cyan girl huffed.

"The boss wants you dead," the scarlet one said.

"Oooh, sassy," Yang teased, finishing her shot. She quickly reloaded her gauntlet as Ceres cracked her knuckles.

The two sides charged towards each other, their respective weapons clashing brilliantly. The scarlet twin dodged to the side to avoid one of Yang's punches, her claws cutting upwards and slicing against the blonde's chest. Yang hissed as she deployed the string around her robotic arm. The girl swung at her again, but Yang quickly caught her blades.

"Gotcha," she taunted, cocking her weapon. Yang punched the air, releasing her fiery shells and sending the girl flying into the bar. She hit the wall...and was promptly crushed by the beer display falling on top of her.

The cyan twin dodged Ceres' shotgun shells, delivering a kick to her arm. Ceres simply blocked the blow. She spun around with a backhanded punch, knocking aside her opponent's heel blades, before following up with a barrage of strikes. Ceres quickly uppercut her opponent in the chest whilst firing off a long ranged blast, sending her flying into the air before the twin fell back to earth.

"That was overkill," Yang commented.

Ceres shrugged. "In my defense, her fashion sense fucking sucked."

Ben shook his semi drunk head just as Junior pointed a rocket launcher at his face.

"Dodge this, you little shit." Junior grinned, his finger near the trigger.

Ben grinned. "Don't really need to, asshole." His three tongues shot out and ate the entire rocket launcher. Junior stared incredulously at the alien, who simply swallowed the last of it.

"D-did you just eat my fucking weapon?" Junior stammered.

"How the turntables," Ben slurred. "You want it back? Here!" And then Ben regurgitated the weapon as a slimey projectile that hit the older man square in the chest, and sent him flying through the ceiling.

Ceres blinked as Ben laughed hysterically. "...I think it's best we leave."

Yang nodded. "I agree."

Later on, as they walked home (with Kevin giving Ben a piggy back ride), Lev grabbed Ceres by the elbow and slowed their pace, making sure the others were ahead of them.

"What's up?" Ceres asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I wanna know how you are," Lev said seriously. To anyone else, it would take them by surprise- Chaos Incarnate Lev, being serious? Impossible. But Ceres had known him since their academy days, and he had stuck by her after the last Incursian-Archimedean War, even joining the Plumbers with her and Ari. Lev could always be serious, but he had his own demons to worry about.

Ceres sighed; now it was about her demons. "Same as usual. Just waiting for the other shoe to drop."

"Is Vivian not available?"

"No, she still does our weekly meetings, just through the computer now," Ceres told him. "Therapy always helps, but…"

"But?" Lev prompted.

Ceres sighed. "Not only do I have to worry about leading my team and my own studies, but after Max's death and Servantis' betrayal… It makes attending class at Beacon feel surreal. Absurdist. Wrong. It feels like bugs crawling under my skin, and I'm worried about the day where I just can't pretend anymore."

"Is there anything I can do?" Lev asked worriedly. "Is there anything anyone can do?"

Ceres smiled ruefully. "No. You know you can't always prevent a breakdown."

For a second, it looked like Lev was trying not to cry. And then he gave a bitter smile of his own. "You're right. I really do know."

Ben never expected the trip to Ruby's mentor to be so long. The bus driver didn't even drop them off at their stop, just in front of a forest path.

"Maria used to be a part of the Beacon staff," Ruby explained. "She was there when my mom was my age, but I don't think she taught her."

"Alright, then," Ben said. "Why did she leave?"

"Field incident," Ruby went on. "Her eyes were damaged pretty badly. She can't see without a special 'seeing aid'."

Ben winced, touching the area around his eye in sympathy. "Ouch."

"She's a nice woman. Harsh, but nice." Ruby smiled. "Just don't get on her bad side."

"What do you mean by that?" And then Ben was hit in the face by a flying staff.

The staff could only come from Maria Calavera. The woman was small, but that came with age, she was certainly a lot more spry than many would believe on first sight.

"She means don't start mouthing off about people who are listening," she chided whilst bonking him again with the staff and looking over to Ruby, a slight sigh releasing from her lips.

"Honestly, child, you bringing boys over here is going to do nothing but cause trouble."

"He's a friend, Maria," Ruby huffed. "You don't need to beat him up for me."

Ben rubbed his head. "Wait, repeat that again?"

"Like I said, I needed...a partner. A sparring partner." Ruby nervously grinned.

"Ruby Rose, you have sparred with me for the many times that you have been here. Why is now any different?" Maria exclaimed before starting to point her staff up at the red hooded Huntress...and then suddenly clutching at her side as she pulled something. A scowl formed as she looked back up "Ok, point taken. But if he gets killed during training, I'm not burying the body."

"I mean, doubtful." Ben grinned as he stood up. "I have a few tricks up my sleeve." He activated the Omnitrix, Maria's ears perking up at the sound.

"What the hell was that?" she asked. Ben turned the faceplate a few times, searching for a good alien to use...and he smiled, slapping down the Omnitrix. Tendrils ran up his arm, his legs, and his face...

Ruby stared up at the familiar form; it resembled Vilgax, however he wore black armor that has a white stripe on the chest. He had spikes on his knees and shoulder pads and six green tentacles dangling in the front of his face. His tentacles and arms faded into brown, and he wore black, fingerless gloves. He had green sacs on the side of his head and green eyes.

Maria simply looked at the large, hulking beast in front of her. Now, a normal old woman would've probably either suffered a heart attack or fainted at the sight of this kid transforming into a monster right in front of her. And a normal old woman most likely would've also gone screaming to the hills upon seeing such a thing-

But Maria was no ordinary old woman.

She slammed her staff into Ben's face a third time. "I've seen better tricks from Ozpin. Now stop fooling around and let's keep moving, if you want to show my student a fun battle, then perhaps showing off isn't going to be your best bet!"

"Wow, I expected nothing, and I'm still let down." Ben pouted. "10 feet apart from one and other work for you?"

"Ten feet apart, first one to bring the other down to low aura or knock them down and pin the opponent, wins," Maria explained the rules whilst looking to Ruby. "Now Ruby, don't be afraid to go all out. Partner or not, you must remember that in the battles to come you might need to push yourself harder than you have previously, alright?"

"Right." Ruby nodded, and the two started to walk ten feet away from one another.

"...I should have made popcorn," Maria murmured to herself. "This is going to be good."

As the two faced each other, Ruby took a deep breath and quickly spread her legs apart, taking a powerful stance before spinning Crescent Rose into action, her eyes focused solely on Ben.

Ben slowly unfurled his tentacles and gave Ruby a smirk. Sea Strike was not an alien Ruby should've taken lightly. Especially since Vilgax gave Ruby a lot of trouble back when they were younger with his stupid regeneration feature...

But that was then, and this was now. Ruby took another breath before hearing Maria raise her staff and slam the end into the dirt.

"Begin!"

Ben didn't waste a second; he immediately shot up in the air and shot his tendrils out into the ground repeatedly in a blurry, rapid barrage of strong strikes.

Ruby watched Ben shoot up and immediately started to spin Crescent Rose like a whirling fan, the strikes against her being parried or repelled as her scythe kept her safe.

Ben frowned as he landed, before dashing right towards her. He dug his tendrils into the earth to grab some massive chunks of rock to throw at her.

Big mistake. Ruby was taking a page out of her sister's book, quickly launching herself at the large chunks of earth and running across them. She fired a few more times before launching herself right at Ben, ready to strike.

Ben quickly dodged the first few attacks, striking back with a nasty sucker punch to Ruby's abdomen. Ruby let out a grunt as she skidded back, spinning her scythe again and firing off a few Dust rounds. Specifically some earth and ice rounds, as she planned to keep Ben literally rooted to the ground.

Ben struggled to free himself from the mix of Dust as Ruby sped towards him. He shot his tendrils out at her again, but in a quick flash of rose petals, Ruby spun herself into multiple red cape-like tendrils of her own, before remerging and slamming her foot into Ben's face, firing off a couple more rounds in the process. Ben stumbled back, shaking off the pain and taking a few bullets to the chest.

"Alright, so, this plan isn't working out as well as I hoped it would," Ben contemplated. "Let's try something new." He slapped down the Omnitrix on his chest, shifting to a different alien; purplish green energy consumed his entire body, shrinking his form as mossy rocks formed armor around his chest, head and legs. Shock Rock slammed his hands together, forming a baseball bat to fight Ruby with.

"Seriously?" Ruby scoffed, raising an eyebrow.

"YES. SERIOUSLY," Ben exclaimed as he ran at her.

Ruby decided that if this alien was more focused on fighting up close, then she was going to play keepaway. With a few well timed shots, she flung herself around the trees, and each time giving a taunting gesture to Ben, like a stuck out tongue here and a wink there. Ben grinned as he picked up a rock and threw it high into the air.

"BATTER UP!" Ben then proceeded to whiff the rock a few times, quietly swearing to himself...and THEN finally hitting it at Ruby.

She smirked before breathing once more and quickly doing something that made even Maria laugh a little at how unexpected it was; she used Crescent Rose as a bat to fire the rock BACK at Ben.

"OH FUCK OFF!" Ben yelled as the thing dinked him the head. Ben focused his energy into the bat, transforming it into a spear. Ben hurled the thing through the air.

Ruby gasped before quickly dodging and returning fire. "What? You think I'm just gonna let you get a good hit in on me like that?"

"Oh, no, I expected that." Ben grinned as he formed a massive ball of energy in his hands. "But did you expect this?" He threw the ball of energy up into the air and slapped down his Omnitrix symbol, transforming into Feedback. The ball of lightning plummeted back to the ground, just as Ben's 'plug' tendrils quickly absorbed the thing to charge up.

Ruby simply readied herself, giving him a grin. "I mean, you could've gone with something a little less obvious~" she teased, trying to rile him up more.

"Hey, thanks for the Feedback." Ben grinned. "Get it? Feedback? Cause I'm...Feedback..." The smile slowly faded.

"GET BETTER MATERIAL!" Maria yelled from the sideline.

"What she said~" Ruby smirked before rapidly firing off some more Dust rounds, moving from tree to tree before launching herself down and getting ready to attack up close. Ben quickly zipped past the bullets and bolted over to fight Ruby in hand to hand combat. He threw a powerful left hook, enhanced by the Fulmini energy he'd absorbed. The punch was enough to quickly knock Ruby aside, but she retaliated with a series of kicks and swipes of her own, moving much quicker than someone should normally be able to when fighting.

Ben was especially quick to dodge, again thanks to the energy he absorbed. But still, Ruby was so fast! He quickly wrapped his antennae around her hands, giving her a cocky look with his one eye. Ruby simply gave a similar look back before using her Semblance once more, this time actively charging into Ben to knock him backwards.

"Okay, that did not work the way I hoped it would," Ben muttered, shaking his head in confusion.

Ruby let loose more swipes and slashes before going for a double footed drop kick of all things. "YAH!"

Ben was not fast enough to dodge it, and was hit dead in the chest. He stumbled back and gave her an incredulous look. "Seriously, where did you learn to fight like this!?"

Ruby simply motioned to Maria, who was busy snacking on popcorn and enjoying every minute of this; "I've had more than a few trainers~"

Ben furrowed his brow. "Alright...time to get serious." He struck a pose, charging up a ball of energy in his hand. "Ka...me..."

Ruby just looked at Ben, confused, before realising what the hell he was doing. She quickly leaped back and got ready.

"-HA...ME...HA!" A straight, large beam of purple and green energy shot out of his plugs, destroying a few trees in the beam's wake.

The red hooded Huntress yelped before diving out of the way. "YOU DON'T JUST GET TO RIP OFF OTHER ATTACKS LIKE THAT!" Ruby yelled whilst waving a fist at Ben.

"Listen! Kylie thinks I can beat Goku! Might as well pay homage to him." Ben grimaced as he looked around, noticing all the destruction the two had caused. "Welp, better fix this before the EPA gets on our ass." He slapped down the Omnitrix, turning into Swampfire. "Alright, battle of the plants! Swamp vs Rose!" Ben grinned, as the trees nearby grew back to normal health.

"One thing about roses that you need to remember-" And just like that Ruby was behind Swampfire, scythe at the ready as she started to swing. "We have thorns!" She was tiring, her swinging becoming less precise but no less deadly-

And then Ruby slashed through Ben's arm and completely severed it. He stumbled back and looked at his stump. "Ow," he said, almost offended.

"Oh shit-! Uh...You OK?" Ruby stopped for a moment, clearly worried. Maria was actually surprised, unsure if this was genuine or if Ben had some kind of regenerative ability in that form. Either way, there was a mess already forming.

"Uh...no," Ben lied, like a liar. It was a well-known fact amongst the Plumbers that Swampfire could regenerate himself pretty easily. But if Ruby didn't know that...

Ruby took a quick glance at the arm, not seeing it twitch. She gave Ben a contemplative look. "Uhhh...Well, I mean I still technically haven't won soooo-BANZAI!" And just like that Ruby pounced on her opponent, hoping to pin him down quickly. Ben quickly melded with the ground, leaving Ruby to land flat on the grass. Ben popped back up a few feet away, still missing his arm.

"Hold still!" Ruby quickly jumped from place to place trying to pin Ben down, having a...less than successful time.

"This is just embarrassing," Maria sighed. At least Ben was regrowing the trees and garden. Ben popped up one last time, hearing Ruby pant. "Alright," he said, picking up his arm. "Looks like that strategy worked...somehow. XLR8 should finish you off!" Ben slapped down the Omnitrix-

And looked up at Ruby. As Grey Matter.

"...shit."

Ruby's eyes widened as she quickly started to grin. "Oh, Lady Luck and RNGesus, thank you so much!" And with that, Ruby charged forward and yelled as she pinned Ben down one last time.

"I'M BEING SUFFOCATED!" Ben yelled, as Ruby squished him with her superior size.

"SAY UNCLE! SAY UNCLE!" she yelled.

"UNCLE! UNCLE!" Ben screamed.

And with that Ruby finally got up, victorious and out of breath. "H-How was that Maria?" she asked.

"I am so lost," Maria told her. "But hey, it was a good show."

"Oh yeah, Ben has these weird alien powers and he's got waaaay more than ten but I've kinda just...done my research on them?" Ruby was lying through her teeth; she bluffed her way through most of that fight.

"Mmph..." The stuck Grey Matter struggled to get free of the earth.

"But uhh...while we're here, you mind if we stick around for a bit?" Ruby asked, rubbing the back of her head.

"I'm fine with it. Though, is your friend ok?" Maria asked, concerned.

"Ah, he'll be fine! You'll be OK, right Ben?" Ruby asked, glancing over.

"I can't feel my legs," Ben mumbled.

Ruby rushed over before pulling on Grey Matter to try and get him out from the dirt. "I was probably a bit too hard...Hehe, sorry!"

"You owe me so many smoothies." Ben huffed as Ruby put him on her shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah," Ruby said, rolling her eyes.

"Alright, come on inside, you two. I'm sure you two have a lot to tell me," Maria chuckled whilst turning and walking toward her hut.

"And that's the whole story," Ben said, setting down his tea cup.

Maria paused, taking a deep breath. "Quite a tale, child. A bit strange at some parts, but I'd believe it. BUT! I must criticize you on something."

Ruby raised an eyebrow. "What's that?"

"Not having an aura, damnit!" Maria's cane whacked Ben on the head. "Are you an absolute idiot?"

"I-I mean, I was able to take Cardin down without too much trouble, right?!" Ben exclaimed, rubbing his aching head. "That counts for something!"

"Counts for how dangerously stupid you are!" Maria yelled at him.

"So, what? Do we have to unlock Ben's aura or something?" Ruby asked.

"Unlock?" Ben asked, tilting his head towards her.

"Yeah! Aura can be manually unlocked," Ruby explained. "Lots of kids do it at Signal."

Ben furrowed his brow, contemplating that. "I never got an aura. You never properly explained it to me when we were kids."

Ruby blinked. "Really? Thought I did."

"...maybe you did. I have a terrible memory," Ben admitted.

"It's like having glass around your body," Maria explained. "It's strong, but you can only have a few things strike it before it shatters. There's an old saying: Those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones. You are on the receding end of that statement." Maria paused, giving Ben a smirk. "And also the stones are real and not some idiom."

Her smile faded away, her expression becoming pensive. "Aura can be used for two things- defensive maneuvering and offensive presence. Ruby is quite skilled at the latter."

Ruby puffed out her chest. "I can easily ignore my decreased defense with my Semblance. Allz good."

Maria gave her a disgusted look. "...what the fuck did you just say, what is 'allz'?"

"...can I get my aura now, please?" Ben asked sheepishly.

"I will personally take care of it for you," Maria declared, thrusting her hand at Ben's chest. Ben gasped in shock as Maria focused. The two of them glowed as Maria's voice deepened. "For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all, infinite in distance and unbound by death. I release your soul and, by my shoulder, protect thee."

The shimmering glow flickered and faded away, yet Ben could still feel it thrumming underneath his skin. "There," Maria said, out of breath. "That should do it. It's a weaker form, but it should protect you from, well, the basic stuff."

"Essentially, you have something like Kylie's aura," Ruby told him.

"What do you mean by that?" Ben asked curiously.

"Well, humans with genetic differences have a tamer form of the barrier," Maria explained. "And, Osmosians...well..."

"Very true." Ben nodded. "Well...thank you."

"We should probably get going," Ruby said, noticing the time. "It's getting late, and I'm starting to get hungry."

"You're not going to stay for dinner?" Maria said, a little disappointed. "I could make you two something."

"Unless you know how to cook a greasy burger from an in-town restaurant, I'm not interested," Ruby replied, grinning.

"It was nice meeting you, Miss Calavera," Ben said, extending his hand.

"...it's still pretty funny you got your ass kicked." Maria grinned, giving Ben an iron grip handshake. Ben was caught off guard by the sheer strength of it, quickly retracting his hurting hand.

"What was that for?!" he gasped, cradling it.

Maria grinned shamelessly. "Just testing to see if your aura was working."

"You suck, you know that right?"

"Says the all powerful boy defeated by my pupil."

The sensitive Ben sighed, flopping on a comfortable couch in the dorm. "I enjoyed that heart to heart with everyone. I feel better connected to them."

Ben smiled happily. "I feel like I understand Ruby a lot better now. I knew she was working hard and stuff, but she's REALLY dedicated."

"Awwww, you got a crush on her," The arrogant Ben laughed, still drunk.

"...what happened to you?" the sensitive Ben asked hesitantly.

"Alky haul..." Arrogant Ben hiccuped. "Shhhh...Ceres told me to sit here..."

"...ok, I think it's time we rejoined," Ben said tiredly.

"Smashing!"

"You stop that!"

"Maybe we should get him some water first," the sensitive Ben whispered.