OUT OF THIS WORLD .. ben tennyson x reader

viii. old friend

Having sent Max and Gwen off to who knows where the track led while Ben (transformed as Diamondhead) fights off the two hunters who'd chased them into the mine gives [name] the opportunity to branch off the beaten path and meet the shadows that wouldn't stop moving in the corners of her eyes.

Tetrax still has his helmet on but she can tell he's looking pensively between her and the fight by the way his neck twitches.

"I didn't think you'd still be hanging around Tennyson," he admits in a low voice, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder to turn her around so her back faced him. He removes it when he's done checking her over, folding his arms over each other when she thins her lips. "What?"

Mimicking his pose, [name] steps beside him and watches Diamondhead give his all. "You said not even six hours ago." She wasn't pouting, or, at least she thinks that's what it's called. That's what Gwen had been saying she did when her bottom lip puckered out. "Besides, he convinced me. Said it would be a great learning experience."

"Tennyson or your brother."

"For my sanity, I'll say Grandaddy."

Even if he didn't have lungs, she could still tell he sighed from the way a hollow whistle reverberated through his helmet. "You're attached."

"So what?" [name] averts her eyes to one of the many bugs that littered and roamed the walls when she bites back a comment.

Tetrax notices and appreciates the sentiment to an extent, unlocking his jaw and placing a hand along her shoulders. "Well, do the kids know about—"

"The who?"

His helmet moves when he looks at her this time and all she can respond with is a tilt of her head that screams for him to try something.

Letting out a scoff, Tetrax shakes his head. "Do his grandchildren know about you, then?"

"You're not even a year older than me," [name] airily laughs, shrugging off the fluttery feeling she gets when he tries to discreetly stroke one of her braids. "And no. They don't entirely."

"What do you mean?"

"Gwen has been willingly ignoring some things, but Ben has been trying to.."

When she falls silent, both she and Tetrax turn their attention to the fight at hand. Diamondhead was handling himself well considering the robots had slowly begun turning on themselves. The one that spoke in dots and dashes had thrown the other into the wall but was promptly kicked up by a tower of crystal.

Diamondhead lets out a hearty laugh and drops some seafood-related quip while turning his hand into a blade and charging at the crab.

".. Subtly trying to reveal that he knows I'm not human."

That gets Tetrax to laugh in his own weird way. It's quiet, but [name] knows him well enough to know what it is.

"Not as good at acting as you thought you were, huh?" He unravels the loc of hair from around his finger (when had that happened?) and returns his arm to his chest. "When are you going to out yourself fully?"

Shrugging and a non-committed noise, [name] sucks the teeth in the front of her mouth. "I haven't exactly been trying to hide anything. I only am because Grandaddy doesn't want them to find out he was a Plumber."

"Is everything some sort of game to you and your brother?"

She doesn't respond, instead only turning her head so she can look him in the eye (as best she can).