Secrets

Secrets
By Invader-Hime




It had been a little over a year since Ben's secret had been revealed to the public.  Their lives had been invaded, thrown into upheaval, and now there were paychecks and signings and appearances.

Everything had changed for all of them.  Well, everything and nothing had changed for all of them.  The three of them still had Hero Time, just...now they were famous.  The three of them did everything they always did except now there seemed to always be a film crew or fan club around.  

The fan clubs were the weirdest.  He was still getting used to the fact that he even has one.  Or seven.  On several continents.  He was really not sure how to feel about it.  It made his quills raise and his tail straighten out.  He had never considered himself attractive.  

They always had somewhere to be.  An interview here.  A trading card signing there.  Save the world again and again and again.

The best thing was that he didn't need to slink around or obsess about not being seen at risk of sending people into a mad state of panic.  He was famous.  Everyone knew he was a good guy, well, everyone who wasn't some avid fan of Will Harangue.  Fortunately, those people were few and far between; unfortunately, they were very loud and confrontational.  They always made a scene and talked loudly so he'd be sure to hear them.  They didn't know his quills could pick up a whisper from across the room...and frequently did.  

He's learned a lot over the years.  One of the most important things is to ignore things he wasn't supposed to hear.  Most people really didn't mean for him to hear the things they said, it was just a side effect of being Kevin.  He would just his secondary forearms with each other and hold the quills down.  It didn't silence words, but it dampened them and made them easier to tolerate.  The words weren't meant for him to hear, so he let their owners have them.  It was not always easy.

Like now.

They were preparing for some kind of promotional movie.  Production blips.  Cutaway footage.  B roll.  That kind of thing.  Up until a year ago, Kevin would have had no idea what any of that meant.  

Everyone was scampering around like ants and it made him nervous.  

It wasn't their fault.  They didn't mean it...it was just something they did.

Like...

"Do I have to stand next to it?  It weirds me out.  How am I supposed to make eye contact with three eyes?  It just-"

Kevin's larger hands clamped down on his Vulpimancer arms.  His gills flared as his Pyronite hand seared hotter than he anticipated.  He hoped no one noticed.  

She noticed.

Gwen looked up at him.

"Hey, you okay?"

He huffed out of his gills and tossed his lure out of his face.  

"Yeah, same old same old."

No need to drag her into it.

But...still.

"Gwen?"

"Yes?"

She always talked to him like it wasn't a big deal, like he was anyone else.  Unlike
some people.

"For this interview thing.  Can I stand between you and Ben this time?  I always feel like a lump on the end."

Gwen smiled.

"Sure, go right ahead."

She stepped aside, making room for him.  It was a lot of room.

Kevin nestled in between them and when the journalist came around and asked them a
series of stupid questions, he pretended he never heard her...and that he didn't see the look of relief when she stood next to Gwen for the closing shot.


Everyone had their secrets.