Can You Stand The Rain

Author's Note: First of all, thank you guys for all the support on the first chapter! I'm sorry it took a minute to get this one out, but instead of me apologizing, let's get right into it!

Intro Music: Ben 10 Original Theme

Chapter 2: An Old Flame

It's been five years since Ben, Gwen, and Max Tennyson went on the greatest summer vacation ever. A lot has changed in that time, but you could also say a lot of things have stayed the same. There was a point in Ben's life where he did stop wearing the iconic Omnitrix, a period where 'Hero Time' was no more.

Well, maybe not exactly no more. You could say that Hero Time was only temporarily retired.

But, you know, being a hero was Ben's thing. It was only a matter of time until he wielded the Omnitrix again.

Ever since then, a new team has been protecting Earth from various alien threats. Though, the team itself only has one real change. Ben and Gwen are still here, while Max is usually busy with Plumber HQ things. The person that replaced Max in the line of action is Kevin 11, one of Ben's greatest foes when he was 10 years old, but has now turned over a new leaf.

It was safe to say the two started out a bit rocky, even when Kevin tried to prove he was on the good side now, but they eventually ended up becoming best friends. Heck, you could say they were brothers at this point.

Throughout their adventures, Kevin and Gwen showed to have a spark between each other. With a little help from Ben being the wingman, Kevin and Gwen soon started dating. Ben had a relationship of his own too. He was dating the star tennis player at his school, Julie Yamamoto. She was also extremely sweet and cute to boot, making Ben feel like the luckiest guy in the world.

For a while, it almost seemed like nothing could go wrong for him.

However… that wouldn't always remain the case. As missions got more and more dangerous, it resulted in Ben returning to Julie in… Well, less than ideal conditions. This would cause Julie to routinely get worried for her boyfriend's life, as it seemed like Ben got more beat up every single time he came back from a mission. Before they officially got together, Ben and Julie had a discussion that him being a hero was going to be a common thing.

At the time, Julie didn't mind. She felt like she could deal with Ben doing the whole hero thing. Her thought process was, 'as long as you like somebody a whole bunch, heck, maybe even love that somebody, there shouldn't be any problems.'

Unfortunately, that same mindset and those same feelings would be the cause of their downfall.

It only got worse as time passed. Julie's mental state was constantly getting worse due to always worrying about Ben. Then, on one faithful mission where his archnemesis Vilgax returned, Ben almost died. That's not an exaggeration either. You wanna talk about a bloody sight? That was Ben. If it wasn't for Gwen and Kevin rushing to get help, he would've died, no doubt about it.

Sometime Ago…

"You've interfered with my plans for the last time, Tennyson!" Vilgax yelled, now charging full speed right towards Ben, pulling his fist back for a majorly powerful punch.

Ben, who was currently Humungousaur, bloody and all, was charging right towards Vilgax as well. "You're the one that forces me to interfere!" he shouted back, and once they were centimeters away from each other, their fists collided, creating multiple upon multiple shockwaves that were sent all over Bellwood along with making a massive crater. The pure strength of the two titans caused the Earth to shake, showing that it was a clash for the ages.

After the clash ended, Vilgax could be seen laying on his back, barely being able to stay conscious.

However, he wasn't in the condition that Ben was in. The impact of the attack caused Ben to transform to normal, and he was losing blood just about everywhere. He was unconscious, and if he didn't get help soon, then the absolute worst could happen.

Vilgax slowly got up, seeing Ben's depleted state. Holding his side, he was getting closer to Ben so he could finish him off, but then that got interrupted.

Kevin and Gwen jumped into action, making it just in time before Vilgax could take another step. "GET AWAY FROM HIM!" they both yelled in unison. If Vilgax was in better shape, he would be able to take both of them on with no problem. But… seeing as one wrong move could result in him giving up the ghost, Vilgax went with the smarter option.

"Next time, you all won't be so lucky." Vilgax said, shooting laser beams out his eyes which caused a big enough explosion to give him enough time to get away. A cloud of smoke blocked Kevin and Gwen's vision, so when they were able to finally see what was going on, Vilgax was already gone.

Him not being there would be the least of their concerns, though.

They turned around, immediately running to Ben's side. "BEN!" Gwen yelled, kneeling down and started freaking out at how badly her cousin was injured.

"We have to get him to the hospital! Come on!" shouted Kevin.

Long story short, Kevin and Gwen took Ben to the hospital. Max would soon show up as well, and the last person to show up would be Julie. She got a preview of Ben's state, putting her hands over her mouth as she began to cry. "Oh my God…" She could feel her heart drop as she watched the doctors do everything they could to keep Ben alive. Max couldn't bare to watch anymore. Gwen was crying into Kevin's shoulder, not wanting to look at this horrible sight either.

End of Flashback

He lived, obviously, but there's a small part of him that wishes he would've just died instead.

The reason he felt, and still feels that way is because of what happened afterwards, the pain feeling worse than the near-death experience Vilgax gave him.

After seeing Ben barely escape with his life, Julie decided that she couldn't take it anymore.

New Flashback

Ben rang the doorbell to Julie's house, waiting for his girlfriend to show up as he had a bouquet of roses in his left hand. He had gotten a text message from her wanting to talk about something important. The door soon opened, and Ben had a smile on his face as he saw Julie. "Hey, I got your message and I came as fast as I could. What's up?" he said, sensing the situation was serious but he tried to be cheerful about it to lighten up the mood.

Julie remained silent, not being sure on how to put it into words. Before she could even say anything, she started crying. Ben's eyes widened, making his way to comfort her until she stopped him.

"I can't do this anymore, Ben…"

Ben stopped, the world for him pausing in this moment.

"What do you mean?"

Julie wiped some of the tears from her eyes as she tried to speak more. "I can't keep worrying about you. I thought I could handle you being a hero, but now I realize I can't."

At first, Ben didn't know what to say. But all he could do was reply with a question. "You realize you can't?"

"Yes, Ben! I can't!" Julie shouted. "Every time you go on some mission now, you come back in worse conditions! I'm routinely left worrying and wondering whether or not you'll die! I tried to hold on, I tried so hard, but your last battle where you literally almost died…" Julie stopped herself, feeling like she was getting choked up. "I can't have this on my conscience anymore." She paused again, the pain she was feeling being out of this world. "It's over."

Ben was now fighting back tears, struggling with what he wanted to say. "No, Julie… Please. I mean, we-we can talk this out! When couples have problems, they talk it out! They do their best to work through those problems!"

"It's not that simple!" Julie yelled back. "Maybe if you didn't have the watch, maybe we could have a chance at working things out. But you have it, and I know you're not giving up on protecting people, nor do I want you to give up. The fate of so many people rest in your hands, and like I said already, I thought I could handle it. I later found out that I was wrong, and it would be best for us to go our separate ways." The door started to close, Julie not wanting this conversation to go on any longer.

"I'm sorry, Ben…"

She closed the door, leaving Ben alone as he felt his heart shatter into a million pieces.

This was the hardest, most painful thing Julie's ever done, because her and Ben were extremely close.

Though, seeing the person she loved almost die, was the last straw.

Ben hasn't been the same since.

End of Flashback

The once happy Ben soon became distant to almost everyone he knew. His performance in Plumber missions got a whole lot worse, resembling a once superstar athlete who was nowhere near his prime anymore. To be clear, he was just fine physically, but that wasn't the issue.

His mental state was an entirely different story.

Present Day

Gwen and Kevin knocked on the door to Ben's house. The person who would open it up would be Sandra Tennyson, Ben's mother. "Oh, hi Gwen. Hello, Kevin." she said, smiling.

"Hi, Miss Tennyson." Kevin replied respectfully.

"Hi, Auntie Sandra," Gwen began. "Is Ben home? We want to take him out to Mr. Smoothy's since we think it'll make him feel better."

Sandra's smile became brighter. "Yes dear, he's home. Let me call him down for you." She told them, turning around and called Ben. "Ben sweetie! Gwen and Kevin want to take you to Mr. Smoothy! Remember how much you like smoothies?!"

There would be no response, making Sandra sigh.

Gwen would have a sigh of her own, as Kevin would ask a question. "So… How's he holding up since the… you know…"

"Not great. Julie really broke Ben's heart." she bluntly said. "Though, as long as you guys are here, I'm sure he'll get back to his old self soon."

Ending on that note, coincidentally, that's when Ben came downstairs, not saying a single word to his mother, Gwen, or Kevin. He just walked to Kevin's car and got in the backseat.

The trio could only look at each other in concern. Yep, Ben still wasn't doing too well.

Mr. Smoothy

Kevin and Gwen thought it would be a good idea to take Ben to Mr. Smoothy. While they were drinking their smoothies, Ben didn't even bother to look at his, not wanting to take a single sip.

Yep, this dude was messed up in the head if he wasn't drinking a smoothie. The old Ben would've never let such a thing happen.

Kevin and Gwen turned to each other, showing looks of concern because of Ben still not being himself. They both soon turned to Ben, while Gwen was the one who would break the ice.

"Ben, you haven't touched your grape smoothie yet." she told him, making sure her tone was cheerful and showed a smile.

Ben's eyes turned to Gwen, then back at the grape smoothie. "Oh, I guess you're right." he replied, but even after saying that, he still didn't drink any of it. He had his hand on his chin, his thoughts making him be in his own world.

Gwen sighed at this sight, while Kevin tried to think of what to say.

"Come on, man. Forget about Julie. There's plenty of other girls out there you could-" Before he could finish, Gwen gave Kevin an especially hard nudge, basically telling him to shut up.

"Out of all the things to say, this is what you come up with?!" Gwen shouted in a whisper.

Kevin whispered back, saying, "I'm only trying to help! I'm not good at these things, you know!"

Gwen's palm met with her face, sighing even louder than she did last time. She tried to calm herself down, as she began to speak to her boyfriend. "Just… try not to bring up Julie again, okay? Ben really, really liked her. It's the absolute last name he needs to hear right now."

"You know you guys are terrible at whispering, right?" Ben pointed out, surprising Gwen and Kevin, the two looking like deer caught in headlights. "I'm fine, guys. I'm over Julie and I've never felt better."

Now that was a complete lie.

"Riiiiiiight…" Kevin trailed off, the conversation now becoming even more awkward than before.

"Well, I'm glad you're feeling better." Gwen told him, still trying to bring some light to this whole thing. Over the years, Ben and Gwen's relationship has changed compared to when they were kids who always insulted each other. Now they're each other's favorite cousin.

That was probably always the case, but now they're open about it. Maturity and time can change people, it seems.

"Yeah, me too," Ben dryly replied, wanting to believe himself, but by his voice, he clearly didn't. Because of this reaction, Gwen and Kevin went back to whispering to each other, this time making sure Ben wouldn't be able to hear them.

"Okay, this is getting nowhere. It's only getting more awkward with each passing second." Kevin told Gwen.

"Isn't there something we can do to cheer him up?" Gwen whispered back.

Kevin nodded. "With him not even drinking a little bit of his smoothie, I'm not sure if there's anything else we can do. He never turns down a smoothie."

Gwen tried to think about something else. It took a minute, but she came up with an idea. "What about getting him some chili fries? That would make him happier, right?"

Kevin could only shrug. "At this point, I don't know."

With the two trying to find ways to cheer Ben up, the Omnitrix started to beep, signaling that he was getting a message. This caught the trio's attention, as Ben would let the message go through. The messenger was revealed to be Grandpa Max.

"Ben." Max began, his voice being serious which caught Ben's attention.

"Hey, Grandpa." he replied. "What's up?"

"Are Gwen and Kevin with you right now?" Max asked.

Ben gave a nod. "Yeah, why? You got another mission for us?"

"I wouldn't exactly call it a mission… At least, not the usual one, anyway." confirmed Max. "All I have to say right now is come to HQ. You, Kevin, and Gwen need to be here for you all to understand what's going on."

That's when the message would end, the trio now looking at each other as they wondered what Max was talking about.

Plumber Headquarters

Ben, Gwen, and Kevin were now at the Plumber Headquarters, meeting up with Max. "There you guys are." Max said, seeing them show up. "You guys got here quick."

"Well, by the way you were talking, it sounded really urgent." Gwen spoke, showing curiosity.

Kevin agreed with Gwen. "Yep, so we came here as fast as we could."

Max nodded, remaining silent. They were here now, that's one step done. Now… for the other step, which might cause things to get hectic.

Behind Max was a long silver haired girl, the hair extending to her thighs. She wore a magenta coat with purple at the ends, along with long purple boots that had black straps around them. She had light purple and pinkish eyes to go with her purple lipstick. Finally, she had a Magical Charm Bag wrapped around her waist. She walked closer to the group, standing beside Max so they could know why they were called in the first place. (A/N: Basically, this is her Original Series design with her Alien Force hair.)

Overall, this girl was flat out gorgeous.

She slightly waved her hand in the air, having a small, awkward smile.

"Hello, Charmcaster here."

One of the greatest introductions of the century.

"CHARMCASTER?!" The group yelled in unison, as Kevin got into a fighting stance while Gwen's mana instantly came around her.

Oddly enough, the only person that didn't get into a fighting stance of any kind was Ben, and it wasn't because of his messed up mental state either.

"Why is she here?!" Gwen shouted, getting ready to attack her rival until Max stepped in.

"Hold on there! I can explain some things, but it'll be up to Charmcaster to explain the rest!" Max said, extending his arms as a way to shield Charmcaster. It's safe to say that everyone was shocked at this, but they would at least listen to Max.

"Charmcaster is here because she sought us out. Not only that… but she tells me that she wants to start over." Max explained. Kevin and Gwen couldn't believe what they were hearing. They were reacting the way everyone in the universe would expect them to react.

Although, for Ben, he was surprised as well, but you couldn't tell because his face was blank.

"I think it's best if she takes it from here-" Max began, but Gwen cut him off.

"Hold on, Grandpa! You honestly can't believe that Charmcaster is serious when she says she wants to so called 'start over!'" Gwen put visible finger quotations around the start over part. "Don't you remember all the times she tried to kill us?!"

Max took a deep breath, already knowing that Gwen would be the toughest to convince given her and Charmcaster's long rivalry. His granddaughter's reaction to the whole thing only confirmed it even more for him.

"Didn't Kevin try to kill us all the time, too?" Max spoke up, Gwen becoming even more shocked.

"You honestly can't be defending her! Those two situations are not the same!"

Kevin put a hand on Gwen's shoulder, getting her attention. "As much as it hurts to say it, your Grandpa does have a point." he said calmly. "That doesn't mean I trust Charmcaster, but you can at least make the comparison with us."

Yeah, this was going downhill fast. Gwen might've been in her worst nightmare at this point. Charmcaster had to say something. "Listen, Gwen. I know we've had our… differences in the past, but you have to believe me when I say I want to change. I want to join your group and make a real impact on the world."

"Oh, spare me the righteous mumbo jumbo!" Gwen still didn't believe Charmcaster one bit. "How stupid do you think we are?! You've tried to kill Grandpa, you've tried to kill me, you've tried to kill Kevin, and you've tried to kill Ben on numerous occasions! And for what?! So you could gain power? So you could rule the world or some other typical evil thing?!"

Charmcaster sighed loudly, gritting her teeth. It was hard for her to keep her temper in check at this moment, because usually, she and Gwen would be fighting right now. Though, she was determined to prove that she's changed. "I know I've done a lot of awful things to you guys throughout the years. I look at my old self and get disgusted when I think about who I once was. It eats me up everyday when I realize all of the stupid things I've done in my life, which is why I now want to turn my life around and help you guys."

Kevin nodded. "You can talk a big game, that's for sure, but how do we know you're not lying?" he said. Even if he and Charmcaster have had similar situations, that doesn't mean he's going to immediately trust her. "For all we know, your Uncle Hex could be somewhere getting ready to make a sneak attack on us."

That's when the whole world stopped for Charmcaster, hearing the mention of her Uncle Hex. You could hear a pencil drop by how quiet it became in the Plumber HQ. The weird part is that it happened so suddenly, Charmcaster now feeling a bevy of emotions come to her all at once.

She clenched her fists, closing her eyes as she tried to stop her tears.

"My Uncle… is dead."

Ben, Gwen, and Kevin's eyes all went wide at this news. They certainly weren't expecting that. The only one who knew was Max, and that was because Charmcaster had told him ahead of time.

"Hex is… dead?" Gwen repeated, not fully believing it. But seeing Charmcaster's reaction to the whole thing… Maybe she was telling the truth after all?

"It's one of the main reasons why I'm here right now," confirmed Charmcaster, looking at the group. "A long time ago, the life I once knew was taken away by the most ruthless sorcerer in the universe. My home, Ledgerdomain, was taken over by Addwaitya. He took my childhood away from me, he murdered my mother, he murdered my father, he took away my home… and now, he's taken away my uncle."

She gritted her teeth, finding this excruciatingly hard to talk about.

"My Uncle and I tried to come up with a plan to take him down, so we can finally have our planet back. But in the end, my Uncle ended up sacrificing himself so I could live, just like my own father did for me years ago."

This is when her tears started dropping to the floor, her frustration in her voice growing. "I don't want to live this life anymore! Ever since I've lost my home, my life has been nothing but pain and suffering! Imagine losing everyone and everything you knew, everything you loved in the blink of an eye! My Uncle was the only family I had left, and now he's gone forever!"

Her pure rage, her sorrow, everything was coming out.

"And once again, all I could do was watch like some helpless child as the two people I was the closest to died right in front of my eyes!" Charmcaster did represent a lost child that needed help. Even if Hex wasn't the 'greatest' influence in the world, it was clear that he loved her niece, and Charmcaster loved her uncle. He was the only family she had left.

And now he was gone.

Kevin and Gwen didn't know what to say at this, pretty much being speechless. They've never seen this kind of emotion from Charmcaster before.

Although, you can't say the same for Ben Tennyson.

He thought back to the day where he and Charmcaster were trapped in her heart, specifically a version of Ledgerdomain. It's been five years since then, but a 10 year old Ben got a preview at who Charmcaster really was. He tried to help her then, but she was on a different path compared to his.

Now, she actually wants help.

"Guys, we need to help her." Ben told his group, now looking directly at Kevin and Gwen. "Charmcaster isn't a bad person. She saved me a long time ago, and if it wasn't for her, I probably would've died."

Max figured out what Ben was talking about. "You're talking about that trip down in Miami, right?"

Ben gave a confirming nod. "Yeah. She was confused back then, but now it looks like she wants to be helped. Being Plumbers or heroes isn't just about fighting aliens all the time. It's about helping people through their struggles so they can become a better person than what they were before. Sometimes as heroes, we forget who we really are, but in reality, we're no different from the people we save."

Max, Gwen, Kevin, and Charmcaster looked on to see Ben speak. It was clear that Ben's emotional words had their undivided attention.

"All of us have problems we're dealing with. Ignoring them will only make things worse. Learning how to hold on, for maybe even just a second longer, maybe that can change a person's life forever. Heck, I've learned that while you're trying to help someone, sometimes they end up helping you as well. I can honestly say that you all have helped me in more ways than you can imagine. All of you have kept me honest, gave me strength, and made me noble. If I can give the same thing to somebody else, then maybe their second chance in life will turn out to be the best thing that's ever happened to them."

While Ben was speaking in general terms, the person he was specifically talking about was Charmcaster. Everybody went silent at Ben's touching speech, and the person besides Charmcaster who related most to it was Kevin. Kevin got a second chance in his life, and now he was making the most of it.

Hearing his grandson's speech, Max slightly smirked at this. It was amazing how much his grandson had matured over the years. Before he spoke, he had to clear his throat, knowing that his voice would be shaky if he didn't.

"Well then… Ahem. That was… some speech, Ben."

Ben smiled. "I learned from the best." He said, complimenting his Grandpa.

Charmcaster was at a loss for words. For Ben to defend her like this, to actually wanting to help her, this was really amazing in her eyes.

Ben looked to Kevin and Gwen. "So? What do you think about her joining the group?"

Kevin would be the first to speak up on it. "I know what you mean when you talk about second chances. If you think this is the best way to go, then I'll follow your lead. Plus, I'd feel like a douche anyway if I said no after that speech you gave us." he slightly joked, earning a smile from Ben.

But now, here's the real challenge.

Ben looked over to his cousin, having no idea what her response will be.

"Gwen?" he asked, his eyes showing concern.

It took a long time for Gwen to answer. She looked at Charmcaster, then back at Ben.

Then back at Charmcaster.

Then back at Ben.

Gwen would be lying if she said she didn't feel anything as Charmcaster explained her past, along with hearing Ben's speech about second chances in life. A war was going on within her mind right now, and it related to two sides. She disliked Charmcaster, but now there was this other side, this 'good' part of her that was telling her to help.

She tried to fight it as much as she could, but her good side eventually came out victorious.

"I'll accept it." she said, reluctance almost being in her voice. The deciding factor was trusting Ben's judgement of character.

Charmcaster smiled widely, genuinely being extremely happy. She hasn't felt like this in a long time.

"You… You guys will actually accept me?!" She said, being absolutely shocked. "I won't let you all down, I promise!"

Gwen sighed loudly, while Ben, Kevin, and Max could only smile. Though, Max had to set some things straight first, more specifically with his grandson.

"Ben, mind coming with me for a minute?" he asked, Ben shrugging.

"Uh, sure." he replied, the two walking away from the group. "What's up?"

"I want you to be Charmcaster's guide." Max bluntly said.

At this moment, Ben thought he knew what Max meant. "Oh yeah, I'll definitely help her. You don't have to worry about that."

Max laughed. "I know that part, but what I mean is you'll be keeping a close eye on her at all times." He knew Ben probably still wouldn't fully get what he was trying to say, so he decided to explain further. "Ben, I don't think you know what you did today. I haven't seen that kind of determination and fire in you in a long time. I don't have to say how you've been doing on your missions lately, you know the rest."

Ben sighed loudly, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I know, I know. I've been sucking for way longer than I should have. That's going to change."

"That's the thing, Ben. It did change." he told him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "When Charmcaster was crying for help, you're the one who took the initiative. You're the one who truly wanted to help her. You're the one who defended her. Originally, I was going to give Charmcaster some kind of apartment, but now, I see that she'd be best if she were with you."

Ben was listening to Max, taking in everything he was saying. He didn't realize what Max meant on the last part, until he connected the dots for himself.

"Wait a minute, you don't mean…"

Max stopped Ben before he could finish. "Ben, Charmcaster will be living with you."

"HUH?!"

Ben fell down in classical anime fashion, before quickly getting up. "WAIT A MINUTE, YOU'RE SAYING THAT CHARMCASTER WILL BE LIVING WITH ME?!"

Ben's loud declaration caught the attention of Gwen, Kevin, and Charmcaster, hearing every word the boy yelled. Max looked over at them, then back at Ben. He shook his head and sighed deeply.

"So much for being private." Max muttered. His grandson could still bring out that old 10 year old loudmouth version of himself when he wanted to.

"This is not only for Charmcaster's sake, but for your sake as well. The type of Ben that I saw today, is the type of Ben I want to see routinely. If Charmcaster's presence is able to get you back to that point, then this whole thing will be beneficial for me, Kevin, Gwen, you, and her."

Dang it, Max did have a point.

"Oh man…" Ben said, slouching as he wasn't sure what to think.

Let's check in with the rest of the group.

"Did I… hear that correctly? Did he just say I was going to be living with him?" Charmcaster repeated, as she looked shocked.

"Yep, there's no mistaking it. That's what my ears heard too." Kevin confirmed.

"The universe does not like me today," Gwen thought, not liking the idea of Charmcaster living with Ben one bit.

Ben's Home

Whether it was luck or not, Ben's parents Carl and Sandra Tennyson weren't home right now. Ben thought he had to do a long line of explaining to his parents, but luckily, that could come at a later time.

"Don't worry, Ben. I'll contact your parents and let them know about the situation." Max assured him.

"You go ahead and do that, Grandpa, because I sure as heck don't want to deal with that." If Max wanted to explain, Ben would let him explain. "Anyways, Charmcaster… Welcome home, I guess?" he said, showing her around the house. Kevin, Gwen, and Max were walking with them.

"You have a nice place," Charmcaster complimented.

"What, this?" Ben said, referring to his house. "This is just your average house."

"Average for you, maybe." Charmcaster retorted, her voice having a slight hint of anger. That's when Ben realized he made a mistake. Due to Charmcaster never having a stable life after Ledgerdomain got taken over, this went into her living situation as well.

"Oh… Oh God, I'm so stupid." Ben said, now panicking. "Charmcaster, I didn't mean-"

Charmcaster put a finger on Ben's lips, basically telling him to shush. "You're fine." While she still was slightly angered, she calmed down when Ben knew what he said wasn't the best thing to say. She smiled at him because of his honest nature, taking her finger off his lips.

Whether or not she noticed, Ben was slightly blushing. He quickly turned around, leading Charmcaster to another room upstairs. "Ahem, uh, anyway!" Ben began, calming himself down. "This is the room you'll be in. Kinda bland right now, but decorating it is always an option."

Charmcaster entered her new room and walked around. It was a nice space. Ben was right on the bland part, and this made Charmcaster already start coming up with ideas to make her room 'her' room, if you catch my drift.

There was a silence between the two, Ben mainly being the one not sure what to say. "So uh, you hungry or anything? I probably have something in the fridge."

Charmcaster turned around to face Ben, showing a small smile. "I could eat something." she told him.

"Okay, I'll find something for you." Ben said, leaving the room as he got closer to Gwen, Kevin, and Max. "This is really, really weird." he told them all.

"You'll get used to it." Max replied, as he and Kevin left with Ben to the fridge. Apparently, they were hungry too.

The only one that didn't go down to the kitchen was Gwen. Charmcaster was too busy looking at her new room for her to notice that Gwen was still there. Once she heard footsteps, she turned around to see Gwen with her arms folded, while also not having the most pleasant of looks.

Oh, Gwen was going to give Charmcaster a piece of her mind. "You might have everyone else believing your act, or your sudden transformation, but you and I both know you've struggled with doing the right thing in the past." Gwen was speaking from anger, her steps being commanding as she got closer to Charmcaster, eventually getting right up in her face.

Charmcaster and Gwen have faced off plenty of times, but this… This was the first time that Charmcaster truly feared Gwen.

"So let me tell you something right now. If you make one step backward, one slip up, if you even have the thought of harming Kevin, Grandpa, or Ben, I will be there to make sure that any of these things will result in your permanent end." Gwen's voice was cold and menacing as she spoke to Charmcaster. She meant every word she said. If Charmcaster made one mistake, that would be it for her.

Gwen turned her back to Charmcaster, leaving the room and walked down the steps to the kitchen. All Charmcaster could do in response was close her eyes, covering her face as she sighed heavily.

This was more than just some regular rivalry for Gwen at this point.

It wouldn't be far fetched to think that she straight up hates Charmcaster.

But why?

END OF CHAPTER 2: AN OLD FLAME

BGM: Ben 10 Credits 2005

Charmcaster: Hi everyone, Charmcaster here. Somehow, joining the group was a lot easier, yet somehow still a lot harder than I expected.

Ben: Why do you say that?

Kevin: Is it because of Gwen?

Gwen: Why are you guys blaming me?!

Next time on Can You Stand The Rain!

The Process

Ben: Dang it, who ate my chili fries again?!

Author's Note: And there you have it guys, the second chapter is in the books! Like I said at the start, sorry for the longer than expected update, but I hope this chapter was able to satisfy you guys. As always, if you like what you read, leave a follow and a favorite. Don't forget to READ AND REVIEW! See ya guys next chapter!