It just shouldn't have played out that way.
No, after the fire that rose from the building, Ben should have landed proud and mighty soon after, not a scratch while he glared down upon his enemies and finished this battle.
But Hope realized it hadn't happened that way. While she had knocked the vile beast away from her, no one came from the explosion. Her heart skipped a beat, and she roared in anger. Taking off to the skies, she shot fire at the To'kustar, which it quite easily deflected, but it was just a distraction. Hope lunged with her claws at the thing, managing to pierce one of its eyes. It bellowed in agony, and she took the opportunity to scratch its throat as well.
The beast stumbled and fell, and Hope only saw red, clawing and maiming the fallen To'kustar. When her rage ended, the thing was at least still alive, but still passed out and even bleeding. Weirdly, these beings had blood.
But Hope didn't have the time for the trivialities of alien species. She muttered the incantation to go back to human, which she did. And she ran. She hadn't gone far from the outpost, and so in two minutes she had arrived, noticing that the fight on the streets was coming to a close. Levin had subdued one of the Rooters, while the tetramand and a blonde – Lucy, Ben's cousin if she remembered it right – were practically bullying one of those techadon bots. Good.
They didn't notice as she sped to the ruins.
Where was he?
She muttered a tracking spell under her breath.
There was one person.
Alive?
She couldn't tell.
Using mana, she levitated many of the ruins away.
She found him.
A gasp exited her mouth.
A part of his face was burned. Not too much, she couldn't see his flesh, but it was very much injured. His mouth was open, but a wave of relief flooded her as she saw a faint movement of his chest.
Alive.
He was still alive.
Her brain scrambled on what to do. There were healing spells... but... Hope had never cast them on someone who wasn't herself. He also wasn't Michael; he wouldn't get better by flooding him with mana.
"Charmcaster?!" A voice asked from behind her. In normal circumstances, she would jump into action, but not right now. She turned to face Kevin Levin, staring dumbfounded.
"Please, he needs medical attention..." Her voice was weak, faint, and low. "Don't look at me like that, Levin! I was not with whoever did this to him!"
Some realization seemed to spark in Kevin's eyes. Why, she couldn't tell, but right now, she didn't care. He pressed the earpiece attached to him.
"Anyone who isn't too busy, please come quick. Ben's injured... and... we might have a situation..."
She had turned back to Ben, but her eyes still flashed with fury at those words. She had better things to do than to fight these idiots! Here Ben was, taking an explosion to the face that blew up the entire block, only for them to be worried about her.
Hope hated them all.
And she knew who she would be hating more than anyone.
"Charmcaster..." Her voice. "Please get away from him."
"I am not doing that, Gwen." Hope raised her voice. Behind her, the redhead was tense, fists clenched, ready to engage. "Where is your goddamn ship to take him to a hospital?"
"He isn't going to a hospital," Gwendolyn stated. "We'll be taking him to the HQ. It's better for situations like these."
Hope glared at Gwen, her eyes flashing purple. "No. He will stay here, where I can know what's going on."
The half-anodite only stared. "You can't be serious."
"This is notnegotiable!" Hope yelled. "We're wasting time."
"Gwen," Kevin interjected. "She's right about that." The way the long-haired man evaded the redhead's death stares was beyond Hope. "Let's take him to a hospital. If he gets worse, we can transfer him."
For a moment, Gwen looked like she would object it. But then, she simply sighed. "Fine. But she can't stay near him! We don't k-"
"I wasn't with them!" She screamed. "I returned to Earth to see this... situation. And I tried to help. I took care of that damned Way Bad outside."
"Sure was brutal." Gwen replied coldly.
"At least I dealt with it." Hope chuckled humorlessly. She extended her hand, levitating Ben's unmoving form with her mana. She heard a sound behind her, undoubtedly Gwen's hands glowing with power. "Settle down, you adolescent pest! I am only trying to help!"
"I will be the judge of that." Gwen didn't seem like she would back down. "One funny move... I swear to God..."
"Please." Hope scoffed, walking past the redhead, who followed her with a heavy glare while she carried Ben to the nearest pod.
She just hoped he wasn't dying.
Surely not.
...
Her existence was lonely, even with Benjamin by her side. He was awfully quiet, seemingly pondering. Hope was aware he had seen the Validus girl before he sat by his side, thus why he looked so miserable.
"How long do you think he's staying here?" Benjamin asked. Hope shrugged.
"It seemed bad. But he is built differently. Where were you?"
Benjamin grimaced. "Servantis got to me first. He kept me around and didn't see me as a threat. Then they let me go afterward. It was weird. But I understand it."
"I don't." She had untied her ponytail, letting her long marble-white hair fall onto her shoulders. "I am just so worried."
"I can relate, to a certain degree." As always, Benjamin never let much emotion trespass through his mask of a face, but some concern was visible.
In the distance, a door was shut close, and voices could be heard. Hope recognized them immediately. Not long after, Max Tennyson, Levin, and Gwen were walking down the hallway, the grandfather and granddaughter in heavy discussion.
"Gwen, while I agree she is dangerous, we are battered, and the Plumbers are focusing on the reconstruction and reallocation of citizens. We can't start another battle-"
"We have Vilgax on our side!" Gwen answered. "And a Way Bad. And we don't even need them."
"If you're thinking of confronting me, Gwen, know full well you should expect all the help you can get," Hope said. All eyes turned towards her, and the redhead glared furiously.
"Really? I remember Ben beating you with a magic trick the last time we saw you. You're burnt out."
"I can show you proper fire if that's what you want to see-"
"You two, please, cease this!" Max pleaded; his voice authoritative. Hope wasn't scared of an old man, but she respected him a lot more than her rival. "Gwen, we will not make use of Vilgax's assistance any longer. His presence alone is discomforting, and we need to put up with it until Ben wakes up. And the Way Bad... she is being interrogated so we may know her intentions. And as for you, Charmcaster," Max turned his dark eyes towards her. "We would like to ask you a couple of questions. We don't think you are a threat, but you're still a wanted criminal. We're willing to negotiate a truce if you do have Ben's best interests in mind like you claim to."
"I won't be taken for interrogation." Hope stubbornly answered. "If you need to ask me something, here is the place."
Max sighed, exasperated. "Fine. First, why were you in Bellwood at the time?"
"I came back from Legerdomain, only to find out about this chaos."
"And why did you engage with the Way Bad?"
"I simply saw that... thing... fighting Ben. And I went to help him." Lying would be no good at this moment. Hope was a good liar, of course, but now the truth mattered most to show her good intentions.
"Why would you do that?" Max arched an eyebrow.
"I could have simply decided to not prolong the city's suffering for any longer, but fine," She conceded. "I wished to help him specifically."
"Why?" Gwen was the one to ask. Hope rolled her eyes. "Why would you possibly seek to help Ben if not to trick him like you have done in the past?"
"I was under the impression, Mr. Tennyson, that you were the one making the questions."
"I am." Max shot Gwen a brief glare, which was answered with a defiant look, but the redhead backed down. "But that is a valid point. Why would you want to help him?"
"He helped me with... a favor." Hope didn't want to go into much detail about what happened in Legerdomain. She put her cards in the idea Gwen hadn't known about Addwaitya's takeover, and imagined it was still her who had been the ruler for all this time. Then she wouldn't have to mention her role in the killing of her ultimate enemy. "What it consists of, is between me and him. Of course, it couldn't even be anything illegal, the boy scout wouldn't conceive of that." Was her victory against Addwaitya a coup? She couldn't tell. "But I simply wanted to repay my debt. Which I wasn't completely successful in doing."
Max seemed to get a little less suspicious with his stare, perhaps buying the amount of detail in her story. It was easier to confess about something when it was true. The elderly Plumber turned to Benjamin. "How much of that is true?"
"All of it, as far as I can tell." Benjamin turned his eyes towards Gwen. "I told her in the call. Ben was with someone who had once been an enemy..."
"But not so much anymore." The redhead finished. "I am still..." Gwen sighed. "How long have you been in touch with him?"
"I think... less than two weeks." It was a bit longer than that in reality, considering the time they passed in Legerdomain. "He was also very skeptical at first. But he's come around to realize I'm not inherently evil.
"Honestly, I think that makes sense." Kevin, who had been unusually quiet, spoke. "Then again, what else can we believe in?"
"Indeed." Max nodded. "For now, you're clear. I ask you to behave, Charmcaster. As much as you can."
"I will." While her look was defiant, her words were sincere. Both Max and Kevin walked away, but Gwen remained for a moment longer.
"I swear if a single word he says differs from what you told us..." She then left as well, leaving Hope no room to answer that threat. The sorceress was left with the option to glare at her rival's back, trying not to cast a spell from behind.
"Don't," Benjamin advised. "You don't want to blow up the hospital Ben's in."
"You mean the hospital Elena is in." Hope answered reading quite through him. Although he tried to maintain the emotionless mask, a flicker of surprise and anger passed through his eyes.
"Yes."
...
Relief washed through her like warm water when his eyelids slowly opened up. She had been with him all night for the last few days, not bothering to sleep after Sandra Tennyson had left. The two exchanged a brief conversation, which was civil enough for Hope to realize she didn't really hate all Tennysons. And considering Ben... well, she... could she even say hate?
Maybe it wasn't hatred.
There were just times she couldn't stand Gwen Tennyson.
"Hope...?" Ben groaned. He looked around, realizing where he was. "What happened...? I remember fire-"
"There was an explosion." She tried to explain it as shortly as she could. "I don't know the specifics, but Servantis blew himself trying to kill you. You got pretty battered... It's been six days since the battle."
Ben widened his eyes. "What happened with the battle? I imagine it went well if I'm here-"
"Most of them escaped," Hope told her. "Leander, I think that's his name, was captured. They're waiting for you to wake up to rewrite his brain or whatever gibberish I heard. As for Servantis..."
Ben seemed confused at her pause. "What happened?"
"It seems like all that could be found were pieces of his armor. Considering that the others were seen stealing a ship in Australia two days ago... He's been declared dead."
The green-eyed boy grimaced. "Good riddance. I mean, I don't feel exactly good about it, but..."
"It's hard to feel bad for someone who only wished the worst for you." Hope knew the feeling very well. "And it's one less problem. But don't linger on these thoughts. It's over. The Alien Force is helping with reconstruction. Things are... as normal as they can be."
"I guess." Ben seemed to remember something. "Where's Benjamin?"
"He's fine, don't worry," Hope reassured him, bringing her hand to his arm. "He's back at the hotel. I've been there too."
"Good... I... I almost thought something happened when I didn't find him..."
"See? You don't have to be worried anymore." Hope's tone was soothing. "It's all fine."
"You promise?" Hearing him ask that with such uncertainty was... uncomfortable. For all the time knowing her, he had always been a stubborn, if brave boy. But for him to be so vulnerable to her... It warmed and broke her heart at the same time.
Was she deserving of this?
She had opened her heart to him before, of course, but to receive that now was mind-boggling. Something she barely knew how to deal with it.
"I do." Her finger enlaced his's, and she squeezed his hand, in the hope of comforting him. He seemed to indeed relax.
"How did they react to you?" Ben asked. "I mean, if you're here, I imagine-'
"Gwen wasn't happy. Of course." Hope chuckled humorlessly. "But your grandfather was more understanding after I answered his questions. I told them nothing but the truth. Though... I omitted some details of what you helped me with."
Ben nodded. "It's okay. It was difficult for you." He finished his sentence with a yawn.
"Would you want to go back to sleep? I promised your mother I would warn her when you woke up anyway..."
He seemed a bit dazed at the fact Hope had spoken to Sandra but nodded. "Yes... I mean, we can't talk more tomorrow, can't we?"
"Indeed." She closed the distance between the two and gave him a brief peck on his cheek. She sensed him tensing, and Hope herself felt her heart beating faster when her lips touched his skin, but he didn't push her away or anything. It was indeed brief, but it felt long. Importantly, it felt intimate.
She had missed him.
"Good night, Ben." She said, pulling away.
"Good night, Hope."
...
Ben hated being awakened by others.
And more so when he felt like crap, being told that he spent the last week in a coma. He had been monumentally angry at himself for being so sloppy, letting Servantis almost kill him.
But Hope had smoothed things for him. And she was doing it now as well when he realized the white-haired witch was the one shaking him carefully.
"Ben." She spoke. "I'm sorry I had to wake you up... it's just that... there's a visitor."
"Tell them to go away." Ben covered his face with the pillow. "Please close the curtains."
Hope obliged, willing the curtains to close themselves with magic, bringing some darkness into the room. "I did that but... they can't wait... I'm sorry, you'll have to speak to them."
Ben groaned loudly. "Fine. Who could it possibly-"
And then his heart stopped. Coming from the doorframe, comically crouched in a way that would make Ben burst out laughing if the situation wasn't so absurd, stood Vilgax.
His archrival was followed closely by Gwen, who seemed uncertain of who she wanted to glare more at between Hope and Vilgax. The squid-like alien took a good look at the bedridden Ben.
"It seems you survive anything, Tennyson." Vilgax's voice reverberated through the room. "I admire your perseverance, or perhaps I should call it stubbornness."
Ben chuckled. "It's a bit of both. You know, I never imagined the person that would most want to see me after an accident would be you."
The hero was amused by how Vilgax just couldn't help but smirk. "The things we do to settle our disputes, isn't that correct?"
"Yeah." Ben agreed. "Honestly, you're much better when you're not trying to conquer the universe."
"Don't test me, Ben Tennyson," Vilgax warned. "I can be fierce even when I am standing with no armada to back me up."
"I know that." He answered. "It's just... I won't dispute your planet anymore. So, try a truce. Maybe five years without trying to make me kick your ass? How does that sound?"
The chimera sui generis narrowed his eyes. "I will graciously give you some time to heal from your wounds, though certainly not that much. I do not wish to beat an adversary who cannot fight."
"Well, you will have to go through my bodyguards first." Ben signaled towards the two women, who had different responses. Hope smirked, amused, while Gwen glared. Vilgax seemed to be somewhere in between.
"I will leave you now. Remember that it was Vilgax who came to help save your planet, Ben Tennyson, before you dare to oppose me again."
"If it makes you sleep at night, I'll let you think that." With a last glare, the massive squid-like alien left the room, and Gwen was quick to follow, only stopping at the doorframe to give him a weird look.
"At times you seem suicidal, Ben." She spoke. "Do you want me to bring you breakfast after I..." His cousin nodded towards the hallway outside.
"Nah, I'm not too hungry," Ben answered. "But maybe a Mr. Smoothy...?"
Gwen rolled her eyes, but a smirk took over her face. "I'm glad you're back. If Sandra lets me, I'll do it, I will bring one for you."
"The lamb and sardine one!" Ben told her as she began walking again. He caught the glimpses of Gwen shaking her head, and her smirk growing before she disappeared from his sight.
"So..." Hope mused. "Did you sleep well?"
"I would love to sleep more," Ben commented.
The witch laughed, a sound that made his insides swirl. "It's one in the afternoon. Are you sure?"
"Never been surer." Ben joked, and he saw that Hope too smiled.
"I guess I'll just stay with you a bit longer then." She said, casting a spell into the air. Her hand shone with purple lights, only for the room to darken even further like it wasn't the middle of the day.
"Please do."