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A Charmed Life	By : GrayNeko Category: +1 through F > Ben 10 Views: 75607 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 4
Disclaimer: I do not own Ben 10, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

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Charmcaster stared at this new arrival as she clutched Ben to her chest, her ice cream forgotten in her hand. She took in this Native American girl with her coco skin and chestnut eyes, thinking that she could be pretty, if one went for that type. She seemed overly dressed for being at the beach, wearing olive green khaki shorts and a red button up shirt, though she did have the ends of the shirt tied up to expose her midriff.
"Kai Green?" Gwen said, drawing Charmcaster's gaze as it sounded less like a question and more an expression of her confusion. Either way, the Native American girl ignored her as she continued to practically smother Ben into her chest, much to the ire of Gwen and Charmcaster.
"I'm so glad I found you. When your grandfather said you went to get ice cream I came looking for you but I didn't see you anywhere. I thought I might have missed you somehow. You look really good, have you been working out?"
As she chattered away Charmcaster could see the struggle on Ben's face as he fought to react from having his face pressed against Kai's breast. While not as developed as her own bust it was clear Ben was all too aware of the fleshy mound he was being squeezed against.
"What are you doing here Kai?" Ben managed to get out as he struggled to put some space between them without outright pushing her way.
Kai seemed completely oblivious to Ben's escape attempts as she answered, "After our encounter with the Yenaldooshi my grandpa thought I could benefit from learning about other tribes across the country so we've been traveling. There's some natural hot springs that belong to a local tribe not too far from here and when grandpa found out you were in the area I asked if we could stop by to see you."
"That's nice Kai, now could you let go of Ben, I think he's starting to turn blue," Gwen said, unable to hide her annoyance any longer, not that Charmcaster blamed her.
Kai seemed almost reluctant to let go of Ben as she finally released him, pouting her lips slightly. Her eyes played over Ben as he stepped back to stand beside Gwen and Charmcaster and she started at the sight of Charmcaster, as if that was the first time she had truly noticed her.
"Who's your friend?"
"Oh, uh, this is Charmcaster... my girlfriend."
Charmcaster watched Kai closely for some kind of response to this revelation but the girl might as well have been carved from stone for all it seemed to affect her. Finally a small smile cracked her lips as she tilted her head slightly.
"Oh, that's nice."
Charmcaster may have thought that reaction a little odd, perhaps just a tad underwhelming, but it was Gwen who seemed perturbed by it as she narrowed her eyes and her lips thinned. Charmcaster idly licked at her melting ice cream as she watched Gwen study Kai, something about the girl was clearly bothering her.
Before she could come to a conclusion Kai's eyes lit upon Ben's ice cream painting the boardwalk at their feet, "Did I do that? Why don't you let me buy you another one?"
She grabbed Ben's hand before he could protest and began dragging him back towards the ice cream stand.
"No need to wait for us, we'll meet you back at your spot on the beach," Kai called over her shoulder, a flustered Ben in tow.
Gwen made to go after them but Charmcaster stopped her with a hand on her shoulder. Her fingers slid down Gwen's arm until they entwined themselves with Gwen's fingers, giving Gwen a reassuring squeeze.
"So who is she exactly?" Charmcaster asked as she guided them towards Max's general vicinity.
"The granddaughter of one of Grandpa's old Plumber friends, and Ben's first major crush."
Charmcaster paused to let that information sink in, it certainly explained some of the things she had noticed during their little exchange.
"Well no wonder she was all over him," Charmcaster said with a dismissive laugh.
"That's just it, Kai never acted like that the first time we met her. In fact she was too cool for Ben, she only was interested when she thought she could keep him like a pet."
"And here I thought I was the one who liked to be in control," Charmcaster snorted derisively, winning a chuckle and a smile from Gwen. Her good mood didn't last though as an air of unease quickly surrounded her once more.
"You don't trust Ben?" Charmcaster asked.
"It's not that I don't trust Ben," Gwen said hesitantly, her eyes downcast as she frowned at her ice cream. "It's just sometimes his eyes are bigger than his stomach."
For a moment Charmcaster shared in Gwen's doubt but she banished it as quickly as it came. Though their relationship might not have the strength of years behind it she and Ben had been through too much for her to call into question his devotion to her.
"That's not all is it?" Charmcaster asked, realizing there had to be more to Gwen's sudden downturn than she was letting on.
Gwen let out a great sigh as she deflated, her whole body slumping, "He called you his girlfriend and it made me realize that I can never be that to him, not openly and maybe never. I never thought about how complicated it would be with you and me and him."
The hug that suddenly enveloped Gwen caught her off guard and she stiffened involuntarily before allowing herself to relax into it as Charmcaster continued to hold her. Gwen wanted to lose herself in Charmcaster, to never let go even as she knew must, if not for the appearances' sake then for the sake of her melting ice cream as she felt it start to run down her fingers.
"Thanks for that," Gwen said, trying to hide her blush as she licked at her ice cream.
"There's more to us than just the sex, but that does make it more fun," Charmcaster whispered as she leaned in close, making Gwen turn as red as her hair. "Though, all of this does remind me of an idea I had earlier. How would you like the chance to be his girlfriend without having to worry about what anyone thought?"
Gwen gave her a perplexed look as Charmcaster went into greater detail while they made their way back to Max's spot on the beach. Despite herself Gwen couldn't help one last glance over her shoulder in the direction Ben and Kai had gone.

***
It could be said that Ben wasn't always the brightest kid around but even he recognized that there was something different about Kai. Though her chatter was completely benign she kept smiling at him and her hand was softly flitting between his shoulder, wrist, and chest. That wouldn't be so bad if not for the fact that every time she touched him his heart tried to punch through his chest. He thought he had sorted out how he felt about her after she had given said heart a swift kick in the neither region but this change in her attitude had him reeling emotionally, not something he was accustomed to dealing with.
He had to admit she was still one of the prettiest girls he had ever laid eyes on as he kept sneaking looks at Kai as she stood beside him in line. That didn't mean he hoped she had suddenly fallen in love with him or anything, Charmcaster and Gwen were just as pretty and his relationship with them was more than enough for him already. At the same time he liked the attention she was paying him, it faintly reminded him of an idle daydream he'd had before. In the end though, he couldn't just ignore how different she was acting no matter how nice it was to have another pretty girl on his shoulder.
There was just one problem though, as Ben turned towards Kai his eyes met hers and he found the words wouldn't come. He felt ridiculous as he fidgeted nervously, his mouth hanging open while trying to work up the nerve to broach the subject. Why was it suddenly so hard to talk to her?
"So how did you and Charmcaster meet?"
The question caught Ben off guard and for a moment he stared straight ahead dumbly before his brain and tongue reconnected.
"Uh, that's kind of a long story. Are you sure you want to hear it?"
"Why not? She seems like an interesting person and I admit I'm curious to know how she caught your eye. Plus, knowing the stuff you get up to I bet it's a good story."
"Really? I thought you weren't into the alien and hero stuff," Ben said, unable to keep the skepticism from his voice.
Kai turned away and if Ben didn't know any better he would have said she looked embarrassed as she brushed stray strands of hair from her face.
"To tell the truth I've become more interested in what you do. Grandpa has been telling me about his adventures as a Plumber and it's really made me appreciate that there's a whole universe out there and I want to see what it has to offer me."
She hesitated suddenly, glancing back at Ben with apprehension knitting her brow and biting her lip in a way that had Ben revisiting that old daydream, "Realizing that also made me see that the way I acted when we first met was wrong. I've been hoping to run into you again so I could..."
"Yeah?" Ben pressed, unsure of what exactly he hoped to hear her say.
"So I could apologize, I'm really glad I've had the chance to do that. So is the story about you and Charmcaster a good one or not?"
Ben tried not to be so obvious as he searched Kai's face for any hint of what she had been going to say but there was nothing there except her expectant smile. He sighed in defeat, dismissing the daydream as nothing more than that before managing a smirk.
"Well it all started when Charmcaster stole the Amulet of Anubis from a touring Egyptian exhibit so she could summon armies of the undead," Ben paused at the bewildered expression blooming on Kai's face. "Did I forget to mention she used to be a sorceress bent on world domination who'd been known to try to kill us? Anyway..."
She listened with rapt attention as Ben spun the tale he had told Max and then went on to give a carefully edited rendition of their encounter with Hex. The way she seemed to hang on his every word should have been off-putting but Ben was too caught up in telling the story to notice. By the time he was done they had their ice cream and were on their way back to the others.
"I wish my summer had been half as eventful as yours; that fight with the Yenaldooshi was the highpoint so far. It'd be great if we could spend what's left of the summer together. Oh! You should come with us to the hot springs, the tribe has turned the area into a spa resort, it'd be a lot of fun, for everybody."
Even though she tacked on the last part Ben couldn't help but smile, "You know, that sounds..." Ben trailed off as he cocked his head to the side, his ears pricking at the sound of some strange whining noise that was growing louder. At first he thought it was a jet engine but that didn't make any sense there at the beach. Ben's eyes went wide with the sudden realization that it was a weapon charge powering up.
"Get down!" Ben yelled as he shoved Kai away and dove in the opposite direction. A split second later the spot where they'd been standing erupted in a burst of energy, leaving a smoking crater in the sand.
"Oh come on!" Ben yelled as his eyes fell upon his second ruined ice cream cone even as his hand worked at the Omnitrix. He pounded down the plunger and green light enveloped him as he began to change. There was no dizzying sense of growth this time as Ben's eyes disappeared but he didn't fall on all fours to signify his transformation into Wildmutt. Instead he remained on two legs as two massive ears sprouted from his receding hair to become the dominating features of his face. His body stretched and grew, packing on muscles until he had a physique that resembled a body builder's. As the transformation neared completion his skin rippled strangely before a series of eyes suddenly appeared all over his body. They were bright green and a variety of sizes, scattered seemingly randomly as they swiveled in every direction before several melded together to form larger eyes, while one massive eye formed in the center of his chest.
Ben leapt again as soon he finished changing into Eye Guy, avoiding another blast. Several eyes on his back fired beams of energy in the direction of the attack and a shadow detached itself from a nearby rooftop, nimbly dodging his scattershot attack. Ben spun to face the figure and the eyes all over his body blinked in confusion. The person was dressed in armor that easily marked them as a member of the Forever Knights, but the familiarity of the design was what surprised Ben.
"Didn't I kick your butt once already this summer?" Ben growled at the knight that resembled the Forever Ninja. "Did your boss finally crawl out from under whatever rock he slinked away to or is this just some old fashioned revenge?"
Rather than answer the ninja raised his arms, training the blasters affixed to his armor on Ben. Ben tensed as eyes all over his body gathered energy to return fire when a voice called out to Ben.
"Ben? What's going on?!"
"Kai, get out of here! Find the others!" Ben yelled, turning his head in the direction of her voice.
The ninja attacked in that moment, thinking Ben distracted by his concern for Kai. A smile flashed across Ben's face as his eyes lit up and returned fire shot for shot. An explosion roared in the space between them as their attacks collided midair, kicking up a cloud of smoke and dust. Ben stood on guard for another attack, the massive eye in the center of his chest pulsing with energy incase the ninja tried to get in close.
A shrill cry caused Ben to spin in the direction Kai had gone, his many eyes searching for her. He flashed his teeth in a snarl at the sight of ninja holding Kai with one arm, using her like a shield. Ben started forward but stopped just as suddenly as the ninja placed the barrel of a blaster to her temple.
"Wrong move pal. Let her go right now!"
The ninja was silent as he began to back away, clearly intent on using Kai as a hostage until she surprised them both. She grabbed the forearm that held her with both hands, bracing herself on it as she kicked off the ground with both legs. Using his arm like a gymnastic bar she spun on it, her legs flying up to pin the ninja's helmeted head between her calves as she locked her ankles behind his head. With a mighty yell she heaved with her legs and flipped the ninja, slamming him onto his back.
Even though it happened in an instant it felt like the moment lasted an eternity as Ben looked on with slack jawed amazement. He finally gave himself a shake and rushed forward as Kai rolled away from the ninja. Unfortunately for them the ninja wasn't going to simply lie there and take his beating, much as that would have pleased Ben. He leapt to his feet from being prone only to have to back flip away from Ben as he charged at him.
Ben skidded to a halt as the ninja went airborne and stuck out his chest, the large eye centered there glowing as he fired a powerful blast of energy. It struck the ninja midair and sent him crashing into a wall with a thunderous 'crack'. Even with the protection of the armor it was clear he was stunned as he fell from the impact creator to the ground in a crumpled heap, but that didn't reassure Ben any as he approached.
Sure enough, as he took a couple steps towards his prone form the ninja tried to whip a handful of shuriken at him. Tried being the operative word, because as soon as he started to move several of Ben's eyes merged to together and fired a blue beam of energy that froze the shuriken to his hand, encasing his limb to the shoulder.
The ninja tried to push himself up but Ben closed the distance between them quickly and grabbed a hold of him, hoisting him up with one hand.
"Time to start talking or I'll finish making a ninja-cicle out of you. What are you after?"
Even though the helmet made his face impossible to read it felt like there was a ominous gleam to his visor as he looked down at Ben. Ben bared his teeth in a menacing snarl as he reared his other arm back, intending to beat some answers out of his silent foe. He was so focused on getting those answers he never saw the smoke bombs until they were striking the ground. The smoke engulfed him and left him gasping for air as it burned his throat.
"Tear gas! Now that's... playing... dirty..." Ben wheezed as every eye on his body closed to avoid the stinging gas. Blinded and choking Ben wasn't able to put up much of a fight when the ninja broke free of his grasp. He swung wildly in a duel attempt to land a punch and ward off the series of punishing blows he was expecting (after all, a ninja with one arm was still a ninja).
He caught nothing but air as he stumbled about, finally getting his breath back as the gas dissipated. Eyes sprang open all over his body in an attempt to locate his foe but he found himself alone. He turned slowly in a circle, unnecessary as it was with eyes looking in every direction, to make sure the Forever Knight lackey wasn't trying to take him unaware.
"Ben!" a chorus of voices cried out as Kai returned with the others in tow. Max was scanning the area with one of his collapsible blasters at the ready while Gwen and Charmcaster seemed to only have eyes for Ben.
"Where did he go?" Charmcasted asked, her eyes flashing with violent intent as Gwen examined Ben with concern.
"Are you okay?" she asked.
"I'm fine, I just wish I knew what that was all about."
"What do you mean Ben?" Max asked, his gray brow knitting as Ben's comment drew his attention.
"I don't know, I guess it's just that every time we go up against the bad guys they always go on and on about how they can't be stopped or something; he just attacked."
"Maybe he was just after the Omnitrix?" Charmcaster suggested.
"Then why send just one guy, the Forever Knights always come after us in groups. Besides I'm not even sure it's the same guy who worked for the Forever King."
"How many techno-ninjas with a grudge do you know?" Gwen asked with a hint of her old sarcasm.
"I know, I know, but he didn't seem the same somehow."
"I think it's time we found someplace else to be," Max said as he motioned for the others to start moving.
"Speaking of someplace else, where's Mr. Green?" Ben asked as he realized Kai's grandfather wasn't with them.
"He went to get something from his truck before Kai came running to get us," Max answered. "I'm sure we'll run into him on our way to the Rustbucket."
Sure enough, as the parking lot came into view Wes Green could be seen approaching them with a rather large plasma rifle in hand.
"What happened? I saw smoke and thought I heard an explosion. Is Kai-"
He cut off as Kai stepped into view from behind Ben's bulky alien form, the relief on his face visible.
"I'm okay Grandpa, Ben saved me from a ninja."
"Hey, give yourself some credit, I wouldn't have been able to kick his butt if you hadn't used that kung-fu move to get free. Where'd you learn to do that by the way?"
"Grandpa's been me teaching some of his old plumber moves," Kai said, trying not to act too pleased with herself as Ben was unable to hide how impressed he was.
"All right gang, listen up," Max said as he and Wes finished speaking quietly to each other. "Wes and I have talked it over and we're going to go to a spot in the woods on a nearby reservation. Wes knows the area plenty well and it should give us some time if someone comes looking for Ben."
"So you think they'll try again?" Ben asked, lacking his usual annoyance at the prospect of having to hide out.
"Seems likely and this way we won't be endangering innocent people. While we're there we put in a call to some old friends to see if they can find out what the Knights are up to."
"Alright Grandpa, if you think that's best," Ben said, drawing surprised glances from Gwen and Charmcaster. They were clearly expecting him to argue or resist but Eye Guy's face revealed little of whatever was bothering him.
"Geeze Ben, are you sure that ninja didn't hit you harder than you thought?" Gwen teased.
Before Ben could respond the Omnitrix began to beep and after a flash of light he was back to normal and wearing an expression that dimmed her playful smirk. Ben was known for looking bored, it was often difficult to keep his attention focused, but he rarely made the transition from bored to glum. That's what his face was conveying as the corners of his mouth were pulled down in a frown and it seemed as if there was a weight upon his brow the way his eyes were almost closed.
"I'm fine Gwen, just... got some thinking to do," Ben said quietly before continuing on to the Rustbucket, leaving Gwen and Charmcaster to flash concerned looks to each other.

***
Charmcaster eyed Ben in the passenger seat of the cockpit where he sat silently with his arms crossed and his gaze unfocused. It was unsettling to see him so quiet and somber and the worst part was that he was clearly avoiding her by sitting up there. She tried to tell herself that it was a good thing that he wasn't turning to Gwen for comfort either, though it was only a small consolation.
In the back of her mind a nagging voice reminiscent of Gwen's was singing "Ben and Kai, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G" and no matter how much she tried she couldn't completely silence it. Was he sitting up there because he was wracked with guilt and didn't know what to do next or had he already decided and was just trying to figure out how to go about it?
Charmcaster gave herself a shake and nearly let out an audible growl as she fought down those creeping thoughts that weren't helping. Instead she searched the interior of the Rustbucket for something to draw her attention and her eyes landed on Gwen busily typing away at her computer, her eyes narrowed slightly as she scanned page after page of information. She didn't even look up when Charmcaster slid into the seat opposite her.
"What are you doing?" Charmcaster asked quietly, not wanting to disturb the almost silent atmosphere within the Rustbucket.
"Seeing if there's anything I can find about the Forever Knights beyond what we already know."
"And?"
"And it's a lot of conspiracy mumbo jumbo, nothing but rumors and theories that don't add up to much," Gwen said exasperatedly as she rubbed at her eyes before stretching out her limbs. She rested her head atop her arms as she folded them on the table, her gaze slowly rising to meet Charmcaster's.
"What about you? You worked with the Forever King, did you learn anything about the Knights during all that?"
Charmcaster tried to keep her face from souring, her past misdeeds were not something she cared to spend time thinking about. Still, if it helped figure what the Knights intentions were then it was worth some discomfort.
"That loser held us at arms length as much as possible. Jumping at his beck and call didn't sit well with a few of the others so he kept some of them in line by upgrading their tech and those who complained about not getting their carrot got a swift kick to the head. Other than that he kept us away from whatever his minions were doing.
"But enough of that, have you given any more thought to my idea?"
Gwen's eyes shot to Max and Ben in the front seats as a blush crept over her face. She leaned forward and spoke in a barely audible whisper.
"I don't think now is the right time to try something like that, maybe once we've figured out this Forever Knight business..."
"Why? It's not like either of us would be in a position where we'd be... vulnerable," Charmcaster emphasized the last word by sliding her foot over Gwen's and slowly inching it up Gwen's bare leg.
Gwen's blush would have put a rose to shame as Charmcaster's foot continued its slow pace up Gwen's leg until it reached her inner thigh.
"Charmcaster..." Gwen said as she tried to maintain a tone of warning and failed, leaving her sounding breathlessly flustered.
"I think," Charmcaster said, drawing the words out as she ran her foot back and forth against Gwen's thigh, gradually moving it further towards the peak of her legs. "You need to do this. You tend to worry too much about the future."
"And you don't?" Gwen squeaked softly, her eyes shifting from Charmcaster to Max in the driver's seat as Charmcaster's foot finally came to rest against her mound despite her attempts to shift away.
"I did for a little while, thinking about what I'd do with myself, and Ben, and you. After a time I realized that trying to plan it all out was too much so I learned to just enjoy myself. So do this with me, tonight."
"Tonight? But, but-"
"And you can't tell Ben about this at all. I want to see if he notices, and maybe reward him if he does."
Gwen tried to protest but Charmcaster's toes were more nimble than she would have given them credit for. She was able to pinch the upper folds of Gwen's sex between them, forcing Gwen to bite her lip or else cry out at the sudden stimulation.
"Not. A. Word." Charmcaster punctuated each word with a squeeze before pulling her foot back and assuming a casual air.

***
Notes
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A Charmed Life