3

Chapter 3: There is Beauty in the RainSummary:

Ben and the merchantman he's traveling with pass through a town experiencing a flood issue. There, he meets and makes friendly conversation with a certain Rain Woman.

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Ben let out a deep yawn as he stretched his arms and legs out, getting the kinks out of his body. He sat up from where he took his nap, his eyes fluttering open. He was inside the merchant's wagon, lying across several sacks of Cait Shelter's clothing and textiles.

Glancing to the front of the wagon, he could see sunlight seeping through the curtain–confirming that it was still daytime.

Ben let out a heavy sigh. 'It's only been a day, but I'm so bored. I also haven't remembered anything new either…' He then wiped some sweat forming on his brow. "Doesn't help that it's so damn hot either…"

He shifted his attention to the Ultimatrix and began to fiddle around with the dial in boredom. 'Got nothing else to do. Maybe I can remember more if I mess around with it a bit…'

After several moments of tinkering, the device began to beep and whirl. The hourglass symbol and tubing began to flash green. "DNA Scan Program parameters reconfigured. Accounting for a Mana-enriched environment." The Ultimatrix said before the device returned to normal.

"Uh…okay?" Ben cocked a brow, confused. "Mana-enriched environment…?"

His eyes widened as he recalled the redheaded girl, only she had pink energy glowing off her hands?

'Weird… That pink energy that girl was using… Is that Mana? Or maybe it was her magic?' Ben rubbed his chin contemplatively. 'Well, Wendy's magic wasn't pink. Maybe it's just that girl's magic who's pink. Strange…who is she?' He didn't get a chance to ponder the thought though.

"Everything okay back there, sonny?" The merchant peaked his head into the wagon through the front window's curtain. "What was that sound?"

"Oh… It's just my watch, Mr. Kale. Nothing to worry about." Ben assured him.

"I see. Strange watch you got there, son. Haven't seen anything like it before." Mr. Kale commented.

"Yeah, it's… foreign." Ben replied. 'I mean… It's true.'

"So, how far are we to the next town?"

"We should reach the village of Gardenia in roughly an hour." Mr. Kale answered. "Feel free to relax till we get there. I'll need to stop there for a couple of hours to feed the boar and let her rest."

Ben nodded in understanding. "Alright, thanks." With that, the teen lazed back on the makeshift bed. He lifted his left arm over his face to look at the Ultimatrix. 'There's still so much I don't understand about you.'

…

Eventually bored of fiddling with the Ultimatrix, Ben climbed out of the wagon and took a seat on the chaise by Mr. Kale. The pair made occasional small talk and the amnesiac teen learned a fair amount of knowledge on the towns and general geography of Fiore.

He also learned a bit of general knowledge on Mr. Kale himself. Long story short, he was a married family man with a wife named Vanessa and two little boys and lived in a town called Magnolia. He made a fair living transporting goods across the kingdom. By his admission, they certainly weren't particularly wealthy or anything…but they were content and that's all that mattered.

Along the way, the forest started to thin out and give way to sparse grasslands full of flowers. It was certainly beautiful scenery.

Later, the village of Gardenia came into view down the road…and dark clouds were looming above it. Strangely, the rainclouds were only gathering above Gardenia while everywhere else was sunny.

Ben cocked a brow at the oddity and turned to the merchant. "Uh… Is that normal?"

"No. Never seen a virga like that." Mr. Kale replied, stroking his beard in confusion. "Reach back there and get us a couple ponchos, yeah?"

He complied and pulled out a yellow and green poncho for Mr. Kale and himself respectively. As they approached the village, the blue sky above gave way to gray, gloomy clouds. It initially drizzled lightly before turning into a steady downpour as they pulled up into the village.

'Well, at least it's getting cooler now.' Ben inwardly noted.

Gardenia was slightly bigger than Cait Shelter, but the architecture was more European-esque in design. The buildings were no larger than two-story and had thatched roofing. Most of the streets were laid with red and brown bricks. Various canals snaked through the town with arched stone bridges connecting everything. There were also raised stone gardening beds placed in front of houses and establishments and on every corner full of various flowers that haven't bloomed yet.

'Guess they're into growing stuff around here.' Ben inwardly mused.

Ben tightened the drawstrings for his poncho's hood, internally relieved by the rain's coolness on a hot summer day. He watched several townspeople passed by on the sidewalks, all carrying umbrellas.

'Wonder if I can ask around if they've heard of Bellwood…' Ben's thoughts were interrupted by the shaking ground.

The wagon came to a stop while the townspeople paused and looked around in confusion.

"Earthquake?" Ben asked.

"Not in this part of the world…" Mr. Kale sounded nervous.

Everyone looked down the street to see an enormous surge of water suddenly racing toward them.

"Flash flood!" Someone exclaimed.

Villagers cried out and tossed their umbrellas aside to run away. Ben, on the other hand, jumped off the wagon and swiftly activated the Ultimatrix, slamming down the core without looking. A brilliant emerald flashed briefly illuminated the street.

When the light faded, standing in Ben's place was a tall, one-eyed humanoid plant with green skin. It had flytrap-esque flaps with teeth arching on his shoulders, black seed-like pods lining his back, long tendrils for fingers, and five vine-like legs. The Ultimatrix dial was positioned on his chest.

"Wildvine." He shouted in a raspy tone.

"W-what the?! AHH!" was all that Mr. Kale could exclaim as Wildvine wrapped his tendril fingers around him and jumped up onto a building's roof to sit him down. Wildvine looked down to witness Mr. Kale's wagon get swooped up in the wave… and several townspeople too.

"Stay here!" He ordered the merchant, who swiftly nodded.

Wildvine stretched out his arm to a building on the opposite end of the street and pulled himself across. While in mid-swing, the Florauna extended his tendril-like fingers to wrap around over half-a-dozen townspeople and pulled them out of the water, gently laying them on the roofs.

Wildvine continued this process for several minutes until he rescued as many bystanders as he could see. He thought he had rescued everyone, until…

"HELP! Someone help me!"

The humanoid plant searched for the cry and spotted a young girl being swept away by the strong water current.

"HELP!" She cried, trying to stay above the waves.

"Hang on! I'm coming!" Wildvine jumped from the rooftops to catch up and then swung down. Stretching out his vine-like fingers, he wrapped them around the girl's waist and pulled her out of the water; moments before she would've slammed into a stone wall.

Swinging onto a thatched roof, Wildvine carefully sat the young girl down. As she coughed up some water, Wildvine got a better look at her. She appeared to be close to Wendy's age and had shoulder-length green hair tied into a side ponytail, matching emerald eyes, and creamy white skin. She wore a green poncho over a fancy pink and white dress that went past her knees.

Her family seemed to be well-off based on her attire alone, he mused.

"T-Thank you. Thank you so mu–UH!" Her eyes widened in shock when she finally looked upon her savior.

"Don't mention it." Wildvine looked at her, concerned. "But are you alright?"

The girl didn't respond immediately. "Y-yes…" She stammered. "F-Forgive me if I sound crude, but… W-What are you?"

"Wildvine."

"Wild Vine?" She tilted her head curiously. "Are…you some sort of monster? Or a demon?"

"Uh, I'm not sure what this guy is exactly." Wildvine admitted sheepishly, scratching his head. "But I'm actually a Take-Over wizard."

"Really?!" She became gleeful. "Oh wow! I've never seen Take-Over magic in person before!"

"Well…Glad I could check the box off for yah." Wildvine jokingly remarked.

Suddenly, his singular eye widened as random visions came to mind.

A surge of water running through an adobe village.

Jumping onto a floating barrel in the flood.

Rescuing a dark-haired girl from the floodwaters in the nick of time.

The warm feeling he felt when he touched her hand.

Wildvine blinked twice. 'It's the same girl from before… I must've saved her.' He looked down at the green-haired girl. 'Just like I did her. Guess that's why I suddenly remembered it. But…who is she?'

"Um… Are you okay, Sir Wild Vine?" The young girl inquired concernedly.

'Sir…?'

"OH! Um, yeah. Sorry! I was just…reminded of something." He sputtered out.

Wanting to move on from that awkward moment, he turned his attention to the raging waters filling the street. "So, does this place get flooded often or what?"

"I-I'm not sure. I don't live here. I was passing through with my esc–uh, my family after an important trip." He noticed how she corrected herself, but simply shrugged it off.

The greenette looked down at the flooding town with concern. "Something must be done about this…" She murmured to herself. "These poor citizens and their homes..." A sad frown crossed her face.

Wildvine hummed contemplatively. 'Let's see… What do I have that can stop this flood? I dunno if Water Hazard can control this much water or not. Big Chill could freeze it…but that may cause more damage than the flood itself. So what?'

Before he could ponder further, he noticed that the floodwater was suddenly beginning to recede. Within mere moments, the water was rushing back down the streets where it had come from.

Wildvine blinked twice, confused. 'What the…?'

The greenette gasped. "M-my word! What's happening?" She then looked at him curiously. "Is this your doing?"

"No. Can't take credit for this as much as I'd like to." With the flood receding, Wildvine carefully lowered himself and the greenette girl back onto the street. "I'm gonna check it out. You should go find your parents, little girl."

With that, Wildvine stretched out his arm to grab onto a roof and pulled himself up.

"W-wait! Sir Wild Vine!" She tried to stop him, but Wildvine was already swinging down the street. "I…wanted to thank you again."

"Princess!" A familiar masculine voice shouted.

She turned around to see three men rushing down the street. One of them was a tall, muscular man adorning a full-body suit of armor. He had dark and wavy hair, prominent sideburns and a pointed beard, thick eyebrows, and high cheekbones. The two men following behind him were adorning yellow-and-blue striped gear akin to a medieval knight and were armed with lances.

"Arcadios!" The revealed princess exclaimed.

The knight, Arcadios, knelt in front of the princess with the two Royal Knights guarding them on both sides. "Why did you run off, Princess Hisui?!"

Princess Hisui averted her gaze. "I…I'm sorry, Sir Arcadios. I just…wanted to see life from our citizens' perspective." As a sheltered child who was essentially confined to the palace, any chance to explore the outside world would be something she'd take. Besides, she was getting bored just waiting around in the stupid carriage.

Arcadios shook his head. "That was a foolish decision, princess. I cautioned you about possible flash floods on our way here." His tone was stern.

The eleven-year-old girl dropped her head in shame. "Yes… I know it was foolish of me. I did get swept up in the flood and…I would've drowned. It's only thanks to a kind wizard that I'm still here."

Arcadios arched an eyebrow. "A wizard saved you, princess?"

"Mhmm." She nodded happily. "It was a Take-Over wizard named Sir Wild Vine."

"Wild Vine?" Arcadios looked up at his subordinates for any clarity, and they merely shrugged in response. No one had heard of this wizard. "Well," he turned back to his charge, "we can discuss it more on the way back to the capital. Come." He stood up and offered his hand to her. "Let's get you back to the carriage and into some warm, dry clothes."

"Yes, Sir Arcadios."

As the party began to walk away, Hisui glanced back down the street in the direction that her savior had gone off in, smiling. 'Thank you, Sir Wild Vine. I hope to repay your kindness one day.'

…

Wildvine used his arms to pull and swing himself through the village (akin to a certain web-slinger in another universe) following the retreating floodwaters.

'There's no way the water could be retreating this fast naturally, right?' Wildvine rationalized. 'So something has to be pulling it back.'

He got his answer as he spotted a strange phenomenon up ahead. Approaching the main canal that cut through the town, Wildvine saw that all of the floodwater was swirling together to form a large watery sphere that levitated in the air.

"Whoa…" His single eye widened in shock.

"Drip, drip, drop," a monotonous feminine voice called.

Wildvine looked down from his place on a rooftop to see a young woman standing on the ledge of the canal. She was a Caucasian pale beauty with a curvaceous figure, blue hair that was curled at the base, dark blue eyes, and pale skin. She wore a navy-blue coat, a fur shawl, and a hat that was similar to that of a Russian Cossack. She was holding a pink umbrella with a white frilly trim at the base over her head.

'Is she doing this?' He looked at her closely.

"Now… Ascend!" The bluenette pushed her right hand up and, as a result, the massive water bubble slowly ascended into the dark cloudy sky.

"Scatter!" She then swiped her arm in an arc motion.

Wildvine watched in awe as the watery sphere suddenly broke apart and scattered in all directions far outside the boundaries of Gardenia and fell down as rain.

And just like that, the flood disaster was resolved.

"Whoa… She's awesome." Wildvine marveled.

"Hmm?" Overhearing Wildvine, the blue-haired woman glanced over her shoulder and spotted the Florauna on the roof.

'Whoops. I should've kept my mouth shut.' Wildvine internally berated.

With quick reflexes, she turned around and summoned watery spears from the canal behind her, pointing them in his direction.

"HALT!" She shouted out.

"Uh…?" Wildvine held out his hands placatingly. "I…come in peace?"

The bluenette was not amused. "The request did not state anything about monsters in this village. Well… no matter."

"Wait, wait! I'm not a monster!" Wildvine carefully descended from the rooftop to the brick-laid street below; the wizard's eyes never left him. Given how tense she was, he made sure there was several meters of distance between them. He didn't want to accidentally provoke her.

"Seriously! It's alright, I'm friendly. I'm a wizard too!" He exclaimed.

She cocked a brow. "Are you? What Guild are you affiliated with?"

"I–uh," Wildvine rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. "I'm not with a guild…at this time."

"Hmm…" She narrowed her gaze. "Who are you?"

"Well… That depends. This is Wildvine." He gestured to himself. He then tapped the Ultimatrix dial on his chest.

The resulting green flash forced the bluenette to shield her eyes, and when she uncovered them her stoic expression turned to surprise from what she saw. Standing before her was a young man wearing a green poncho, knee-length tan pants, and brown sandals.

"But my name is Ben. Ben Tennyson." He smiled.

The blue-haired woman stared at Ben in shock before quickly settling down. "Juvia sees…" She dispelled the water spears, letting them splash harmlessly to the ground. "So, you're a Take-Over wizard."

"Something like that." Ben replied.

"Forgive Juvia's previous hostility. But you must understand it is not uncommon for little towns like this to be attacked by monsters. When Juvia saw you in your Take-Over form, she assumed you were one of them." She said in a monotone voice.

'Is she speaking in third person? Weird…' Ben inwardly remarked. He shrugged. "I get it, no offense taken. Some of my forms are pretty scary. Tell ya what, let's start over." He approached her and extended his hand, smiling politely. "You know my name. I assume your name is Juvia, yeah?"

The woman seemed taken aback by Ben's politeness as she stared at his offered hand. Ben was beginning to worry he may have offended her until she finally returned the handshake.

"Yes. My name is Juvia Lockser, the Rain Woman of Phantom Lord's Element Four." She introduced herself. "Drip, drip, drop."

"Uh… Phantom Lord? Element Four?" He repeated, bemused.

Juvia tilted her head curiously. "You've never heard of Phantom?"

"I'm…new to this country." He wasn't lying.

"Ah, a foreigner. Well…Phantom Lord is the most powerful wizard guild in the kingdom." Juvia explained plainly. "And the Element Four are the strongest members in our guild, outside of our Master of course."

"Oh, I get it." Ben's attention shifted to the canal. "Makes sense given how easily you took care of that flood."

Juvia nodded. "As a Rain Woman, Juvia and water are in perfect symmetry. Hence why she took this job as she was best suited for the task. Drip, drip, drop."

"Job?"

"Mhmm. The mountains that feed water into these canals have received more rainfall than normal." Juvia elaborated. "The mayor of this village submitted a request for someone to protect the town from the floods."

Ben nodded in understanding. "Ah." A thought then occurred to him. "What about that surge of water just then?"

Juvia suddenly looked embarrassed. "Well… Juvia…" She shifted nervously, confusing the brunet. "...Juvia sadly wasn't paying attention." Her pretty blue eyes then widened. "Oh! Juvia should check to make sure no one was hurt!"

Before she could walk away, Ben reached out to grab her right hand–eliciting a light gasp from her. "You don't need to do that. I already saved the people who got caught up in the flood."

"You did?"

"Yeah." He suddenly became sheepish when something else occurred to him. "Actually…I should probably go help them off the rooftops now that I think about it. If you're not busy, you wanna join me?"

Juvia looked at Ben with moderate surprise. "You…want to be around Juvia?"

"Sure, you seem nice." Ben nodded, smiling. "And I'd like to talk to you for a while longer if it's no trouble."

'I could ask her more about wizard guilds, and if she's ever heard of America.' Ben was thinking.

Juvia was momentarily stunned by Ben's request before a sad frown crossed her face. "But the rain… Is it not…gloomy to be around Juvia?"

'The rain? Why is she concerned about that?' Ben glanced at the gray clouds looming above, which were still releasing a steady downpour on the town, and then looked back at her. "No. I don't mind the rain all that much."

He wasn't lying. With his poncho on, the rain wasn't that big of a deal to him.

This response elicited a small gasp from the Rain Woman. Juvia's eyes widened and could've sworn she felt her heart skip a couple of beats. No one had ever said that to her before, not even her guildmates.

Ben tilted his head in bemusement. Why did she seem so astounded? "Uh, Juvia? You okay?" He asked, sounding concerned.

A short moment later, Juvia blinked and shook her head. "Oh…uh, y-yes." She averted her gaze and a tinge of pink appeared on her cheeks. "If you're not opposed, Juvia will accompany you." She said shyly.

Ben smiled kindly. "Cool. Well, let's head back this way." He jerked his thumb behind him. "I left the townspeople back there."

"Very well. Drip, drip, drop."

'Is that her catchphrase or something?' Ben wondered.

…

Ben and Juvia helped the citizens the former had rescued down from the rooftops–which they were grateful for as it was still pouring rain. The merchantman, Mr. Kale, had informed Ben he'd need an hour or so to restock on supplies before resuming their journey.

With that, the pair walked down the brick-laid streets together making small talk. Ben inquired for further details on the Phantom Lord Guild. What their members were like, where they were located, and other basic things. Juvia answered all of that, and even opened up a bit–retelling some of her past missions which seemingly captivated the brunet's attention.

A small smile formed on Juvia's face. It was…nice to have a genuine friendly discussion with someone outside of her guild, she thought. Actually, now that she thought about it more, she couldn't remember ever having a conversation this long with anyone from Phantom Lord either.

Her guildmates were strictly professional and didn't devote much time to talking with one another.

The pair soon found themselves walking to a park. Off the main sidewalk was a small path that led to a gazebo nestled around raised flower beds.

"Why don't we take a break there?" Ben suggested. "The rain's nice and all, but we don't wanna get too wet."

Juvia, wanting to be accommodating to her new companion, nodded in agreement.

Stepping into the gazebo, Ben pulled back the hood on his green poncho. Juvia momentarily stared at his wet brown locks sticking to his forehead. She had to admit… He looked quite handsome.

Shaking her head of those thoughts, Juvia folded her umbrella and took a seat on one of the benches inside.

Ben plopped down right by her. "Man… It was so hot today before we arrived in town. Really thankful for the rain helping to cool things down a bit." He said absentmindedly.

"Oh…? Um, yes." Juvia nodded. 'He's…not vexed by Juvia's rain?'

This was new.

"So Juvia, I have a question." He turned toward her.

"Yes?" She looked at him, curious.

"You say you're a Rain Woman. Does that mean you can fully control the rain at whim?"

"Well…" She looked away, becoming embarrassed. "...no, not fully."

"Hmm?" Ben tilted his head, bemused.

Juvia sighed deeply, resting her hands on her lap. "The rain follows Juvia wherever she goes. She cannot make it stop. Drip, drip, drop."

"Really?" Ben then recalled when he and Mr. Kale rode into town and noticed how the storm clouds seemingly hovered only Gardenia. "So, all this rain…is from you?"

Juvia hesitated before answering with a slow nod. 'Will he reject Juvia like everyone else?'

"Huh. You must be banking in the summertime then." Ben casually commented.

That wasn't the response she was expecting. "Pardon…?" The bluenette looked back at him, surprised.

"I mean, if a town is having a water shortage or a farmer's crops need water, all they have to do is submit a request for you specifically." Ben explained. "You can just show up and BAM! Problem solved, right?"

Well…he wasn't entirely wrong. Still, did he not see the downsides of her magic? Instead, he looked past the cons and only noticed the pros.

"Yes…but…" She trailed off, her gaze falling to the concrete floor.

"But?" He gently pressed.

The bluenette didn't respond immediately as an unpleasant scene played through her head.

"Can't you do something about the rain? We can't ever do anything outdoors!" The words of her ex-boyfriend Bora echoed through her mind.

"I'm sorry. But I have no control over it." She teared up.

"Well, I can't handle all this gloom. I think we should see other people…" He said callously while walking away.

Juvia frowned sadly. "...Juvia's rain…Juvia herself…makes everyone gloomy." She covered her face and began to sob; as a result, the rain began to pour harder while thunder rumbled across the land…something Ben had taken notice of.

"Juvia…?" Ben became concerned.

The brunet was about to place a hand on her shoulder but pulled back at the last moment. He stayed close but maintained a respectful distance with the crying woman. 'Best to let her get this out of her system first. But what does she mean by gloomy?' He had been talking to her for up to an hour now, and he didn't think she was gloomy; monotone and reserved, yeah… but not gloomy.

Considering the Rain Woman's words further, it didn't take him long to decipher their meaning. 'Right… If it's always raining wherever she goes, I can see why she'd think that way. I know I'd get tired of the rain after a while too if I were in her shoes.'

"Juvia is…SOB…sorry. It's just…SOB…she had a break-up with her boyfriend a while back. She still hasn't gotten over it yet…"

Ben's eyes widened slightly as a memory returned.

"The thing is, Ben, you seem like a nice guy, but you're just not my type." A black-haired, copper-skinned girl said coldly.

"Huh? I-I thought you really liked me." Young Ben said with a disappointed tone.

"Well, that was before you turned back into, well, you." She said matter-of-factly.

"What's wrong with me?"

"Nothing, and the alien stuff's cool, just not as cool as when you were a Yenaldooshi. I figured I could train you, tame you, you know?"

Then, another girl with bright red hair and green eyes stepped forward, looking incredulous. "Train him? Tame him? He's a person, not a pet. You can't talk to my cousin like that! Only I can talk to my cousin like that. You just blew it big time."

"Oh well, whatever." The other girl shrugged off as she strolled away uncaringly.

Ben stared at his crush's retreating form with a disheartened frown.

His redheaded cousin walked up to him, laying a comforting hand on his shoulder.

Ben frowned as the memory ended. He honestly felt kind of disheartened after recalling that scene. Maybe the current despondent scene was responsible for him remembering it?

"The thing about a crush is…sometimes you get crushed." He repeated to himself.

"Eh?" Juvia paused from her crying, turning to Ben curiously. "W-what was that?"

"Oh!" Remembering that Juvia was present, he snapped out of his lamentations. He then gave her an empathetic expression. "Um, sorry. Was just repeating something my cousin told me a long time ago. I'm paraphrasing, but she told me that sometimes we get our hearts broken; it's part of life. But there's always plenty of fish out there in the sea."

"I see…" Juvia's gaze drifted to the floor. "...well, Juvia is not ready to go searching. She…may never be ready." She said despondently.

…

The rain continued to pour.

…

"Did you love him?" He finally asked.

Juvia hesitated, sniffling. "I…wouldn't go that far. But he was the first man to show interest in Juvia… but Bora of Prominence thought Juvia was too gloomy…just like everyone else."

"Pft!" Ben chortled, earning a confused look from Juvia. "Seriously? Bora of Prominence? Was he trying to sound cool or something?"

Juvia blinked twice. "I… Are you mocking Juvia?" There was hurt in her tone.

Ben waved a hand and reassured her. "Oh, no! It's not that. It's just hard to believe the guy who dumped a beautiful woman like you was named Bora of Prominence or whatever." He shook his head, smiling. "Sounds like a lame dude."

Juvia gasped and became flustered. "W-what…what did you say?!"

"Hmm, what? About Bora? Yeah, I think he sounds lame." He said nonchalantly. "Sorry if that offends you, but that's how I feel."

"N-not that…you," Juvia shyly averted her gaze, tapping her index fingers together cutely, "you think Juvia is…beautiful?"

"Oh…well…" Realizing what he had blurted out, Ben could lie and walk back on what he said…but he knew that wouldn't be the right thing to do here.

He looked back at her with a confident smirk. "Yeah, I do."

"Eep!" Juvia squeaked; her heart leaping out of her chest. "You…you're not lying to Juvia… A-Are you?"

Ben rubbed his shoulder, feeling embarrassed. "No. I meant it."

Juvia turned away and covered her face to hide her growing blush. 'Why is my heart beating so fast?!' A warm feeling began to wash over her.

"Hey, Juvia."

Juvia didn't respond, lost in her own musings. Why did she feel so warm inside? Why was her heart beating a million miles an hour? What was happening to her?!

"Um, Juvia?"

A little gasp escaped her mouth as it finally occurred to her. 'Wait! Could this…could this be…'

"Juvia!"

"Eep!" The bluenette squeaked as Ben's voice snapped her out of her musings. "Y-yes?"

"You know if there's a cafe around here?" He asked casually.

Juvia cocked a brow at the random question. "Yes. Why do you ask? Are you getting thirsty?" She then blushed madly, realizing how her question could be taken.

Ben though seemed ignorant to the unintentional innuendo. "That, and I am getting a little hungry too." He stood up. "Why don't I treat you to something? You did save the town after all."

"You…wish to spend more time with Juvia? Even though she's gloomy?" She asked, sounding surprised.

"You're not gloomy, Juvia." He sternly countered. "I don't care what Bora whatever-his-name-is or what anyone else says." He offered an encouraging smile. "You've been kind and helpful to me so far, and you also saved this village from that flood earlier. I don't care if you can't make the rain stop or not. All I know is you're a good person, and that's all I care about honestly."

Juvia silently gasped as she stared up at him with wide eyes.

"So…What do you say?" Ben grinned, offering her a hand. "Wanna get lunch with me?"

The bluenette looked between him and the outstretched hand momentarily before a small, warm smile crossed her pale face. "Okay." She took the offered hand, and had to suppress an 'eep' from the contact as a jolt coursed through her body.

Ben pulled Juvia to her feet off the bench and released her hand; much to the Rain Woman's inner disappointment.

"Cool. I dunno about you, but I'm starving." Ben said while putting his poncho's hood back up. "Hope they have some good food around here."

"Yes…" Juvia's attention was focused on Ben's face, seeing a pink background with bubbles surrounding him. 'He's…so kind… No one's ever been this kind to me before…'

She was so enamored by the Ultimatrix bearer that she didn't even notice the rain had downgraded to a light drizzle.

…

Later on, Ben and Juvia did find a cafe walking through the small town. It was a little, quaint establishment and the service and food served were good. He and Juvia had a little disagreement over who should pay, but Ben eventually won out, citing that he was the one who suggested they go. The brunet was grateful for the money Roubaul had gifted him so he could treat them.

After having a nice lunch, the pair were strolling down the street together with Juvia holding her pink frilly umbrella over them. It was then that Juvia decided to bring up something that had been bothering her.

"Ben…Juvia knows you are not in a guild and are a Take-Over wizard, but she doesn't know much aside from that. Can you tell Juvia more about yourself?" The bluenette requested.

"Uh, well…" Ben smiled awkwardly. "I'm still figuring things out myself, actually."

"Hmm?" She became confused.

"You see, I lost my memories." He revealed.

Juvia's eyes widened in surprise. She was not expecting that.

Ben momentarily mulled over his next response. "It started when I woke up in the Worth Woodsea."

The Ultimatrix bearer spent over fifteen minutes summing up everything that had happened to him in the last two weeks. From unexpectedly waking up in the woods, his run-ins with the forest Vulcan, and his time at Cait Shelter.

"I see…" Juvia took everything he had said in stride. "I'm truly sorry for your amnesia. It…must have been frightening. To wake up in an unfamiliar place, not knowing who you are." She stated sympathetically.

Ben hummed in acknowledgment; hands stuffed in his poncho's pockets. He completely missed the fact that Juvia briefly slipped into first-person.

Juvia went on. "So, this merchant you're traveling with… Do you have a destination in mind? Drip, drip, drop."

"I do." He paused to reach into his pants pocket and pulled out his wallet. Opening it, he showed Juvia his driver's license. The water mage looked at the plastic card in bemusement. "This was in my jacket I woke up in. It was how I was able to remember my home: Bellwood."

"...Bellwood?" Juvia repeated.

He nodded. "It's a town in a country called the United States of America."

Juvia blinked twice in confusion. "Juvia has never heard of such a place."

"You haven't?" Ben's gaze fell to the wet brick street. "No one at Cait Shelter had heard of it either." He took the license and placed it back in his wallet, stuffing it in his pocket.

"Perhaps it is a small nation? Or it could be on another continent?" Juvia suggested. 'Although…that doesn't answer how exactly he arrived in Fiore…'

"Maybe…" No other possibilities came to mind at the moment. He looked back at his blue-haired companion. "Well, our final stop is in the portown Hargeon. Maybe some of the sailors there will know?"

Juvia nodded in understanding. "You could always check the library for answers too. They usually have the most recent maps."

Ben's eyes widened in surprise. He didn't even consider that!

"Yeah. I'll do that! Thanks for the suggestion, Juvia." He smiled brightly. "You're a genius!"

"O-oh! I'm…" She immediately turned away, her cheeks turning bright pink. "Y-You're welcome!"

'He praised me!' She internally squealed in excitement. 'He praised me! He thinks Juvia was helpful to him! EEEEHHH!'

Ben blinked in bemusement at her reaction before shrugging it off as one of Juvia's quirks.

As the pair continued to walk down the street in silence, Mr. Kale's wagon finally came into view. It was then Ben remembered he'd need to resume his journey with the merchantman soon.

"Ben." Juvia's monotone voice broke the silence.

He looked at the bluenette quizzically. "Yeah?"

Juvia didn't respond immediately, seemingly working up the courage to continue. "Juvia wonders…" She fidgeted, becoming mildly flustered. "...if you'd be interested in coming back with her? To…to join Phantom Lord?"

Ben was a bit taken aback by her sudden request.

Juvia continued. "Phantom is the strongest guild in the kingdom. You could find work and earn a good wage. You could…build a home there." The water mage's imagination went wild as she fantasized about her and Ben becoming a powerful wizard couple, settling down in Oak Town, getting married, and having over seven babies.

A hearty blush grew on Juvia's face.

It took Ben a moment to consider the offer before he could formulate a response. "I appreciate the offer, but I'm afraid I have to decline." He said respectfully. "My family and friends are still out there somewhere. I have to find them. I have to remember who I am."

"I…Juvia understands." She slumped her shoulders, visibility disappointed.

"Hey, don't be down." Ben placed a hand on her shoulder, unintentionally making her blush further. "Listen, I promised a little girl back at Cait Shelter I'd return to Fiore one day. When I do, I can stop by Phantom Lord to see you too. How does that sound?"

"You…you would do that?" She questioned with a hopeful expression.

Ben smiled and nodded. "Yeah. Of course."

'EEEEEHHHHHHHH!' Juvia mentally squealed, becoming starry-eyed. 'He's such a nice guy!'

"Hey, Ben!" The pair's moment was promptly interrupted; much to Juvia's chagrin.

They turned to see the merchantman Mr. Kale waving over to them from his wagon. "Ben, we're all stocked up. It's time to go!"

Ben nodded. "Got it! Give me a minute here!"

Mr. Kale looked between Ben and Juvia curiously before a knowing grin appeared under his bushy beard. He gave an affirmative thumbs-up before stepping back into his wagon.

Ben turned back to Juvia. "Well, I guess this is where we part ways."

"Yes…" Juvia lowered her head with a somber expression.

The rain then began to fall harder. This was something Ben took note of. 'I wonder… Is the rain tied to her emotions?'

Looking back at the despondent bluenette, Ben internally debated what he could do to cheer her up. Wait! Maybe he could do more than just temporarily cheer her up. Maybe...he could help her, or at least put her on the path for her helping herself.

"Hey… Juvia." He spoke gently, regaining her attention. "Random question, but how long have you had those curls in your hair?"

"Since she was a little girl…" She replied.

"Are you fond of them?" He asked.

Juvia paused to consider the question. "Juvia has never done her hair in another style. So…" Her gaze dropped to the wet ground in contemplation. "She is unsure of how else to do it."

Ben nodded in understanding. "Well, could I make a suggestion?" With her interest piqued, she nodded. "You should totally lose the curls."

"Pardon?" That was unexpected.

"Lose the curls. And grow your hair out some more too." His lips curled into a smirk. "Rain or no rain, people will have no choice but to acknowledge your beauty."

Juvia's blue eyes slowly widened as her face lit up. "You…you really think that?"

"Yep." Ben nodded, unashamed. "They'll be hard pressed to call you gloomy anymore. Not that it should matter what others think, but who knows? A make-over could help your own self-confidence too."

'If the rain is tied to her emotions, then maybe boosting her self-esteem a bit will help her to control the rain better.' He internally rationalized.

'He's…he's so kind!' The bluenette felt moved to the point that she thought she may tear up.

"I'm sure you won't have any issue finding a new boyfriend by then too." Ben went on. "Just make sure he's not a loser like that Bora dude, okay?"

A warm smile graced Juvia's face. "Ju…I don't think that will be an issue anymore."

"Good." Ben then glanced back at the merchant wagon. "I should get going. I'd feel bad if I made Mr. Kale late."

"Yes… Then, this is farewell." She said sadly.

He smiled and nodded. "It's less of a goodbye and more of a 'see yah later'. Take care of yourself, Juvia. It was great meeting you."

"The feeling is mutual." Juvia said sincerely. "S-safe travels…"

With that, Ben turned and started walking to the wagon.

Juvia's eyes were focused on his retreating form. Her hand clutched her jacket as she felt an unpleasant twinge in her chest. Seeing Ben walk away from her, going to places unknown for an indeterminate amount of time…she didn't like it…no, she hated it!

Juvia decided that she couldn't bear to see him go! 'I have this strong urge to make him mine! I can't help myself!' She held out her right hand and prepared a spell. "Water L–"

She suddenly stopped herself.

"My family and friends are still out there somewhere. I have to find them. I have to remember who I am."

After recalling Ben's words, the Rain Woman slowly lowered her arm back to her side. 'No… I… I have to let him go. It would be selfish to keep him with me…when he still has a home he needs to find.'

Juvia looked back to watch Ben climb onto the wagon's chaise by the merchant. 'I pray for safe travels in your journey…my handsome prince.'

"Hi-yah!" The elderly merchant exclaimed, cracking his buggy whip by the purple-like boar creature. The wagon lurched forward and started rolling down the street.

Juvia's bottom lip began to quiver as she watched it leave. 'Please…keep your promise and return to me one day. I…' She stopped to wipe her teary eyes. '...I will wait for you, Ben Tennyson.'

Meanwhile, on the merchant wagon, Mr. Kale shot Ben a sly smile. "Did you enjoy your date with that young lady?"

"It wasn't a date." Ben calmly countered. "I was thanking Juvia for saving the town…and I wanted to ask her more about wizard guilds and stuff."

"Is that the only reason?" Mr. Kale narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

"Well…no." Ben admitted.

However, just as the merchantman was about to start a round of teasing, Ben went on. "Juvia seemed so down about something. I thought…maybe if I spent more time with her, I could help her feel better, ya know?" He frowned. "Though I dunno if I really helped all that much."

"Hmm…" Mr. Kale stroked his grayish-black beard thoughtfully. "Results in these matters are not always instant. Like sowing a seed, it takes time for your efforts to bear fruit."

Ben turned to him, dumbstruck. "Wow… That was…actually pretty sage sounding."

Mr. Kale chuckled to himself. "Thank you! I read it off a fortune cookie."

Ben deflated slightly. "On second thought… I rescind my statement."

"Heh-heh-heh…" The merchant chortled slyly as he cracked the whip, forcing the boar to pull faster.

Ben glanced up at the grey rainclouds, his thoughts drifting back to the Rain Woman he had interacted with the whole afternoon. 'Maybe one day you can see the sun, Juvia. I'll show you myself if I have to.'

Notes:

Ah, another installment!

I understand the action was lacking in this chapter, and I apologize if you disliked that. But I had planned on the bulk of this chapter being between Ben and Juvia talking with each other to give realistic (for Juvia, at least) reasons for Phantom Lord's Rain Woman falling for our Lost Hero.

Princess Hisui makes her debut (as short as it may have been) with Ben saving her. Keep in mind, Hisui is eleven years old at this time since I remember her canonically being 19 in X792. I don't know if that's canon or not, but for the purpose of this story…she's 11 in X784.

So our second alien who makes his on-screen debut is Wildvine! FYI, I am using the original series design and voice for this story. To me, that is the best version of Wildvine. Nuff said.

Expect more alien appearances in the coming chapters.

Thank you for the support and feedback I've received so far!

Please leave any comments, critique, and suggestions in the review box. Until next time!