Vacation - Day 1

Short side information/disclaimer:

The story will probably have around 4 parts. It was supposed to be a longer one at first, but I noticed while writing how much it would be. So to make it easier to read:

here is part 1 :D

And for your information: In part 1 is a (very) small Ben 10 reference. I found the series fascinating as a child and when I watched it again a few weeks ago I noticed a lot of parallels to Eddie and Venom. So I couldn't resist to write it in my story ;).

In short: If you don't know the series, it's best to google it quickly and read the short description of it. You don't need any more background knowledge.

And please take the time and write a little review :)

Do we have everything?«, Eddie asked for the second time that morning. He definitely didn't want to forget anything. Even if they wouldn't be far from home, there would be no way to get a replacement for anything.

Especially not in the middle of the woods.

»We have everything and now go! I don't want to wait any longer. I want to go to the beach and see the sea and the forest!«

»Yeah, all right. But we can't check in before 2 p.m. anyway.«

»But we can still be there before then.«

Eddie sighed. It was really hard to teach Venom patience. Little Blue also sensed that they were leaving and danced excitedly around his feet.

Luckily, Eddie had already stowed everything he needed in the rental car. Originally his idea had been to take his motorbike, but then there was Blue.

He could only hope that Blue was used to driving...

»Okay, you nuisance. Let's get go then…«, Eddie finally gave in and looked around his apartment on last time.

The first time in years that he was going away for a longer period of time. And then for a vacation, too!

He put his backpack over his shoulder and then Blue in his arms. He closed the door behind him with his other hand.

When he got to the car, he opened the back passenger door and opened the box. Following Venom's advice, he had lined it with a soft blanket.

Blue crawled in and gave Eddie the typical sad puppy look.

»Oh come on. Don't look at me like that. It won't be for long«, Eddie tried to cheer him up.

But as expected, Blue didn't understand a word and continued to look at him with his big brown eyes.

Eddie closed the door with a guilty conscience. What if Blue hated driving?

»He'll be fine«, Venom assured him.

Meanwhile, Eddie walked around the car and got in. He put his backpack on the passenger seat.

But before he set off, he had to enter the address into the satnav. Otherwise they would get hopelessly lost!

And even as he typed in, he felt impatience rising within him, which definitely wasn't his.

»You're worse than any child…«, Eddie muttered to himself.

»This is all taking so long... I'll drive myself if you don't speed up!«

Eddie opened his eyes wide and stopped moving.

»WOW! No, stop. Before we set off, a new rule: while I'm driving or just sitting in the car, you will NOT take control, do you understand? This is not a joke. Apart from the fact that I haven't driven a car in ages and that's already stressing me out, I can't afford another accident because everything is going too slowly for you!«

»Yeah okay, got it. I was just kidding…«, Venom admitted sheepishly.

»I hope so«, he emphasized.

Eddie tapped start and the navigation system gave him the route. He looked back at Blue, who had already fallen asleep and was snoring quietly.

He turned around again, took a deep breath and started the engine.

After a few minutes of driving, they were already on the Golden Gate Bridge heading north. They would drive for about an hour and a half. Eddie had of course also planned a break during which he could let Blue out and they could have lunch. He had made sandwiches for them in the morning.

He drove with great concentration, but still enjoyed the view from the bridge with brief sideways glances. The sun was shining, the sky was blue and covered with a few clouds. It was perfect weather, which even made him smile briefly.

And the initial tension slowly faded. He had been worried that he would have problems driving because he hadn't driven for so long, but to his surprise he quickly got used to it again.

»Isn't there a lookout point nearby?«, Venom asked curiously.

»Yes, several, actually, but we've already passed them…«

»But if you want, we can stop when we get back«, Eddie offered.

»That would be nice.«

»Okay, let's do that then«, he nodded.

They drove a little further along Highway 101 until they switched to California State Route 1, which ran further north but closer to the coast.

»Say, could you check on Blue for a minute? I can't hear his snoring anymore...«

Venom manifested his snake form, but a little more inconspicuously than usual. He made sure to stay below the windows so that no one could see him.

He turned to little Blue, who was still lying in the box and watching Venom with his eyes.

Interested, he stretched his head and sniffed the tentacle that Venom stuck through the barred door. Blue then turned on his side and showed his tummy, gesturing for him to pet it.

»Say, could you check on Blue for a minute? I can't hear his snoring anymore...«

Venom manifested his snake form, but a little more inconspicuously than usual. He made sure to stay below the windows so that no one could see him.

He turned to little Blue, who was still lying in the box and watching Venom with his eyes.

Interested, he stretched his head and sniffed the tentacle that Venom stuck through the barred door. Blue then turned on his side and showed his tummy, gesturing for him to pet it.

Venom slowly began to stroke his belly, to which Blue responded with a contented sigh.

»So?« Eddie asked.

»Relaxed, as always«, reported Venom.

»Oh good, I was worried he might puke in the car.«

After another 15 minutes' drive, they arrived at Muir Beach. Eddie had chosen a parking lot with benches and a view of the beach for their break. He turned into the almost empty parking lot and parked the car right next to a nice picnic bench.

Venom retreated back into Eddie's body, which Blue commented on with a disappointed sigh.

Eddie grabbed his backpack and got out. Immediately afterwards he took Blue out of his box and put him on a leash. And before Eddie could close the car door, Blue pulled him towards the beach.

»Blue, no wait. This way«, he explained to him and pointed to the bench.

Blue didn't seem to care much, because his eyes were locked on the shore.

»We can go to the beach first. Lunch can wait.«

»Are you sure? You're usually the first to complain if we eat too late.«

As if Blue had understood that, he pulled on the leash even harder and Eddie gave in. He let himself be pulled along the sandy path until they were right in front of the sea. The waves were roaring gently and a few seagulls could be heard in the distance.

»It's beautiful.«

Eddie nodded silently and enjoyed the moment.

Despite the fact that it was December, it was a pleasant 16 degrees with sunshine and a light breeze.

He enjoyed the peace and the warm rays of sunshine. There was no noise from cars or the typing of his laptop keys to remind him of work.

Just the wind...

And suddenly he felt deeply relaxed. Only his feeling of hunger increased.

»Lunch can wait«, he laughed.

»Not anymore«, Venom admitted with joy in his voice.

As planned, they then sat on the picnic bench and Eddie took the sandwiches out of his backpack.

Blue, meanwhile, only got a few treats because he wouldn't get his dinner until later.

Despite the fact that the parking lot was almost empty, there were still people in the immediate vicinity who made it impossible for Venom to show himself. And so Eddie was forced to eat for both of them.

»Cheer up, you can have your chocolate bar in the car.«

»You're giving your dog chocolate?!«, asked a woman behind him indignantly.

Eddie hadn't noticed her until now and flinched in shock.

»What? No, that's...not real chocolate, of course. It's specially for dogs«, he lied brazenly.

He could hardly tell her that he had spoken to the alien that lived in his body and not to his dog.

The woman eyed him and Blue suspiciously, then just nodded briefly and walked on. Once she was out of earshot, Eddie let out an audible sigh of relief.

»God, she scared me...«

»Does such a thing even exist?«

»What chocolate for dogs? I have no idea. What else should I have told her?«

»That you're talking to E.T. in your head. Then she would have definitely run away quicker«, laughed Venom.

»Haha, yes, thank you very much«, Eddie muttered sarcastically.

He took a bite of his sandwich and made sure with a discreet glance to the side that the woman was really moving away from them and that no one else was coming up behind him.

After their lunch break they set off again. Venom was of course given his promised chocolate, which he devoured almost immediately. Blue whined at the smell and begged Venom, who of course did not respond, after all it was poisonous to him.

They slowly left the coast and passed more and more greenery, which Venom secretly looked at. It was the first time he had really been outside of San Francisco, if you didn't count the landing in Malaysia and the transport with the Life Foundation.

He had therefore mostly only seen skyscrapers and asphalt roads. The only green things were the few trees on some sidewalks and Eddie's half-dead apartment plants. He had never been to Golden Gate Park, he only knew it from Eddie's memories.

»Just wait until we get to the forest«, Eddie laughed amusedly as he looked at his friend, lost in thought.

»I can hardly wait.«

»It won't be long now«, Eddie promised.

Patient and fascinated at the same time, Venom watched the forests passing by, spellbound.

Their hut would be somewhere in the middle of the forest. No one else would come by, which also meant that he didn't have to hide. That was one of the things he was most looking forward to.

Half an hour later they turned onto an unpaved forest path in a place called Five Brooks and Eddie decided to check again to make sure they were actually on the right track.

»That actually seems to be the right address…«, he muttered, more to himself.

As he accelerated again and slowly drove up the slight hill, he felt the excitement inside him. Not just Venom's this time, but his own too.

The path led them quite a way through the forest, with rays of sunlight shining through the treetops here and there, lighting up the forest floor brightly. Venom could see out of the window properly for the first time and was as if hypnotized, something Eddie only noticed in passing. He had to be extremely careful not to stray from the path and scratch the car.

A little later, a clearing appeared in front of them, where their hut stood, which practically glowed because of the sunlight. It was almost like a fairy tale.

The excitement took it up a notch and even put a smile on Eddie's face.

»Wow.«

He quickly parked the car on the gravel area next to it and turned off the engine. Venom immediately made eye contact with Eddie.

»Let's go!«, he called with wide eyes.

Venom practically made Eddie jump out of the car and run straight to the house.

»Wait, my cell phone! The code for the key box is on it«, he called without being able to stop.

»2596«, Venom replied with a grin.

He had remembered it yesterday from one of the emails Eddie had received with other information for the journey.

And before he even got to the door, Venom took the keys out of the box with a tentacle and held them right in front of Eddie's nose.

Eddie took them awkwardly when Venom suddenly released him, allowing him to regain control of his body.

»I hate it when you do that…«, he said resignedly.

»I know«, he grinned. Eddie unlocked the door and pushed it to the side with one hand.

Inside there was a hallway, which was connected to the bathroom, the kitchen with an open area to the living room, the bedroom and a small storage room. The furnishings were simple and very natural.

While he was peeking into the rooms, Blue started barking in the car.

Eddie quickly ran back outside and opened the side door and the box to get him out.

He put him down on the floor, whereupon he stretched briefly and wagged his tail happily.

»Okay, now it's time to unpack.«

But when he opened the trunk, he realized that the leash was bothering him while he was unloading it.

»Take him off the leash«, suggested Venom.

»I don't think that's a good idea... He's still so small, what if he runs away?«

»He's already following you everywhere you go.«

»Hmm, if you say so…«, Eddie gave in and unclipped Blue, who didn't seem to care much.

Concerned and always looking at Blue, Eddie began to clear the bags out of the car. In fact, because they had rented a car, they had already been able to take all the necessary things with them, like Blue's dog food or Venom's chocolate. This saved them the additional stress of shopping. There was no supermarket nearby anyway.

Otherwise, only Eddie had luggage with him, since neither Venom nor Blue were wearing clothes or needed any toiletries.

After he had unpacked everything with Venom's help and was also amazed to see that Blue never let him out of his sight, he planned an exploration tour in the forest for the afternoon. It wouldn't be long before it would be dark, so there was no time for a longer excursion. And besides, Eddie didn't really want to be out in the forest at night.

He packed a water bottle in his backpack and something small to eat just in case. Because if they were unlucky and got lost, he would rather not be left without food.

»You don't have to worry about us getting lost. My memory is excellent!«, Venom beamed.

»Well then you'll have the honour of being our tour guide!«, Eddie grinned maliciously and held a hiking map in front of his face.

Venom took it with two tentacles and unfolded it.

»Why don't we use your cell phone? This map is huge and impractical. And it doesn't show me where we are«, he complained after a quick look at it.

»I don't have any reception out here in the forest, only the hut has WiFi.«

»And if you're looking for us, we're here«, Eddie said, pointing to a small spot in the middle of the map. Surrounded by greenery for miles, apart from the...

»Beach! We're not far from the beach! Can we go there?«, he asked excitedly.

»You're the tour guide, you decide«, Eddie nodded.

And so it was decided, the three of them set off for the beach.

Eddie let Blue run free again this time, while Venom still stuck out of Eddie's shoulder and held the map.

»Cheers to the invention of your weird phones...« he muttered, staring at the map.

«Weird phones,« Eddie repeated, amused.

Venom looked up from his map to Eddie, who returned his gaze.

»They're weird! They magically attract your attention, you basically spend half your life on them.«

»Says the guy who secretly watches TV every night«, laughed Eddie.

»It's for research purposes!« he argued, grinning.

»Yeah, sure... Tell me, what were you watching recently? Was it Ben 10 or am I mistaken?«, he teased playfully.

»I've already finished the documentaries!«, Venom defended himself.

»But the series was very informative…«, he added.

»How so?«

»That reminded me a lot of us, Eddie. That I came from space, like the Omnitrix, for example.«

»Is it also because you attached yourself to me without asking?«

»And that we fight evil!«, he exclaimed enthusiastically.

»Hmm«, Eddie agreed, lost in thought.

»You can't turn into 10 aliens, but you can turn into one, so to speak«, he grinned at him.

»Then all I need is a suitable bracelet«, Eddie said distractedly, while dodging a few stones.

He immediately felt a movement on his left wrist and started to smile as he looked at it. Venom had formed a kind of bracelet out of his black mass that looked as inconspicuous as a sweatband.

»Are you really going to go through with this?« Eddie asked, pointing to the bracelet.

»The idea was far too good to reject! Imagine, Eddie: We're chasing bad guys, five, no, TEN against us! You stand firm in front of them and want to give me a sign to intervene. You heroically touch the bracelet and then I'll come and eat every single one of them.« He emphasized the last words particularly deeply.

»Well I still think 'Mask' and 'Copy' is better.«

»Yes, we can still do that«, Venom replied resignedly. Eddie just had no sense of how to make a good entrance.

So engrossed in conversation, they walked a little further through the forest.

It was a nice walk to the beach, and even though there were hardly any hiking trails, the forest floor was mostly flat and pleasant to walk on. They passed a small stream, in which Blue insisted on bathing.

Eventually, Venom led them out of the forest, which ended at a cliff. Below them stretched the beach, with not a single person on it. And fittingly, the sun was just setting.

»It looks exactly like the postcard you gave me, Eddie!«

»Yeah, that's right,« he nodded.

»It looks even more beautiful in real life«, he remarked dreamily.

Eddie sat down on the edge of the cliff and, just to be on the safe side, put Blue back on the leash. But he had no intention of going any closer to the edge of the cliff, he preferred to sit on Eddie's lap and be petted. Venom's head was floating next to Eddie's.

They stayed like that until the sun was finally swallowed up by the sea on the horizon.

On the way back, dusk slowly began to fall, something Eddie had actually wanted to avoid. Being out in the woods at night could only go wrong.

They still had a long way to go and it was getting darker and darker faster and faster. And of course he hadn't thought of a flashlight; he would have no choice but to use the puny one on his cell phone. Eddie therefore preferred to run a little faster.

Blue seemed to notice that he was going back. While he had run relatively slowly and mostly behind them on the way there, he now ran quickly several meters ahead of them and sniffed the ground excitedly. Eddie could hardly see him with his grey fur and was already thinking about calling him back and putting him on a leash as a precaution, when something rustled in the bushes next to Blue and he stopped abruptly.

And the next moment everything happened much too quickly.

Something came out of the bushes and raced back again the same moment it noticed Blue, who immediately ran after it like a madman.

Venom retreated and Eddie immediately ran after him. He called after Blue, but he didn't care.

Blue was hooked on his prey and wanted to have it at all costs. He raced through the undergrowth at lightning speed and Eddie could only keep up with Venom's support. The only problem was that Eddie couldn't see much anymore, it was almost night.

It was only a matter of time before he missed a stone and fell.

»Venom, you can see much better in the dark than I can-«, Eddie began.

»Got it.«

As usual, he was enveloped by the black mass that made Venom appear, who skillfully used his arms as tentacles to lift himself off the ground and swing from tree to tree. He gained a lot of speed and at the same time had a much better view of the forest floor.

But the movement he had just noticed stopped abruptly and Venom dropped to the ground.

He looked around but couldn't see Blue anywhere. Where he had last seen the movement there was a hole in the ground under a tree root. Big enough for a rabbit, too small for a French bulldog.

»Where did he go?«, Eddie asked nervously.

»Bluuueee!«, Venom called out loudly in his deep voice.

He turned his head in all directions and listened.

Silence.

Until he heard a quiet bark and looked back in the direction they had come from. Blue had apparently slowed down and instead of running after him they had accidentally left him behind.

Eddie sighed with relief.

But the joy didn't last long when Blue suddenly yelped and they heard a zipping and crashing sound. Venom didn't hesitate for a second and jumped towards him.

Blue had gotten caught in a net that had lifted him up from the ground into the air. He twisted wildly to free himself, but in vain.

»What the hell?!«

Venom approached, stunned, and began to growl. Blue stopped abruptly and looked at him in fear.

»Oh no, no. Don't be afraid, Blue«, he said as reassuringly as possible.

He held him up with one hand and cut the rope with his claws on the other. He carefully took him out of the net and held him in front of him so he could examine him. Outwardly he seemed okay, but he was shaking violently and squeaking with fear. He tried vehemently to free himself from Venom's grip.

»Doesn't he recognize me?…«, he asked, dismayed. »He had never seen you like this before.«

»I didn't want him to get scared«, he said quietly.

It was difficult to hold on to Blue any longer, but if he let him down he would definitely run away.

»But he knows you!«, Venom suddenly exclaimed enthusiastically.

Almost immediately Venom pulled back on the right side of his face so that Eddie appeared. When Blue saw this he paused and tilted his head to the side in confusion.

»It's all good, Blue«, Eddie reassured him.

And it actually helped! Blue's tail started to wag excitedly back and forth when he recognized Eddie.

»Good boy.« And as if to confirm this he barked happily once, which made Venom grin broadly.

He let Eddie disappear again and pressed Blue protectively to him, who had now become much calmer and was looking curiously at Venom with wide eyes.

Venom, in turn, looked up at the rest of the rope and bared his teeth angrily.

»Bad guys, Eddie«, he growled.

»I know, but setting traps in the forest isn't a crime.«

»I'll still bite their heads off!«, he growled.

»Let's go back to our hut first«, Eddie soothed him.

Venom withdrew for now, so that Eddie now had Blue in his arms.

For the way back, he decided to carry him. Blue had been through enough for today.

Since it was already night, Eddie used his cell phone to light the way. Luckily, it didn't take long until they arrived at their hut.

Eddie put Blue down in the hallway, who couldn't wait to rush in and greedily look into his food bowl.

»Oh crap. I forgot.«

Eddie quickly took off his shoes before rushing to the cupboard, taking out the dog food and pouring it into Blue's bowl, who devoured it greedily.

»I'm pretty hungry too«, admitted Venom.

»Yes, I know, I'll cook us something right away.«

»I can do that!«

»Um... Are you sure that's a good idea?«

Without answering, a few tentacles appeared from Eddie's back and ripped open cupboards and drawers.

»What do you want to cook?«

»I don't know yet.«

»Oh okay, um... well, this isn't our kitchen, so please try not to break anything«, asked Eddie.

Half an hour later, the food was ready. For a change, Venom had cooked pasta with tomato sauce, which Eddie thought was actually really tasty. He almost thought that Venom's cooking skills must have improved, until he remembered that they hadn't brought any tomato sauce with them...

And then he noticed the old ready-made cans on the countertop. How old they probably were...

And despite the little effort, the kitchen looked like someone had thrown food around. But Eddie would take care of that tomorrow.

They had decided to watch a film afterwards. Their hut had a small DVD selection of classics. And despite the fact that Christmas was over, they watched "Home Alone 2".

After the film, Venom looked a little lost in thought.

»You already lived there«, he said.

»Yes«, Eddie nodded in agreement.

»And then you went back to San Francisco.«

»Yep«, he agreed again.

»Where you met Anne.«

Eddie sighed.

»What are you getting at?«

»What if you had stayed in New York, Eddie?«

»I couldn't have stayed there, you know that.«

»But if that hadn't happened, you wouldn't have gone back to San Francisco.«

Eddie paused and thought for a moment.

»No, probably not.«

»Then we would never have met.«

»We would never have met if I hadn't called Dora Skirth. Or if I hadn't broken the window...«

Or wait, maybe we would have met, but then a few months later during an alien invasion, where you would have bitten my head off...«

»Eddie!«

»What? Is it true or not?«, Eddie laughed.

»Hmm, probably«, grinned Venom.

»Anyway, different topic: what are we doing tomorrow?«

»Back to the beach? This time for real?«

»We could combine that with a hike to the waterfall I read about«, suggested Eddie.

»Yes!« Venom exclaimed enthusiastically.

»Good, then let's go to bed now. When I'm on vacation, I want to be able to sleep in.«

He stood up and Venom followed his movement. Blue, who had been sleeping next to him on the couch until now, also trotted into the bedroom.

Eddie collapsed face down onto the soft double bed and breathed out in relaxation. He was dead tired after today and desperately needed his sleep. And even though he still had his clothes on and the light on the ceiling was shining brightly, he was already slowly drifting off.