The Halfa Who Rocks the Cradle
All Transformer characters belong to Hasbro. The halfa, Clockwork, and Ghost Zone idea belong to Butch Hartman. Any real life songs, food brands, etc. do NOT belong to me. I only own this fanfic ideas and my OCs. Don't like, don't read. Everyone else, enjoy.
Chapter 1: Sweet Clover
At the KO Burger; Third Person Perspective
"Welcome to KO Burger. What can I get you?" Jack said dutifully in a polite tone into his headset.
"Yeah I'd like to know how I can get employed at a cool place like this and where will I be in ten years," a snobby male's voice snickered, the sound of a giggling female voice in the background. "And I'd like a side of fries with that."
Sighing in aggravation, Jack retorted, "Please drive up to the window."
Grabbing some paper bags with the restaurant logo, Jack threw in the order that he had familiarized these two so-called customers with. He placed them on the ledge of the drive thru window. No sooner had he done it did a dark colored muscle car drive up and the driver's hand dart out and grab the two paper bags in one snatch before flooring the gas pedal and speeding away, laughing alongside his chick of the week.
"Hey!" Jack shouted in an indignant tone but he knew his anger was futile.
Until…
The onyx-haired boy nearly jumped out of his skin as he heard loud revving, the harsh clank of metal, and shouts of surprise, fear, and rage. He nearly fell onto his rear in surprise as the muscle car was being forcefully pushed back into place by a familiar looking hybrid car.
"Where do you two think you're going?" a low growl came from the ruby and sapphire vehicle, only loud enough for the junior to hear.
Once the vehicle of the two food thieves was right back where they had been in front of the window, Zettabyte stopped pushing but remained in place. A teenage boy got out of the driver's side, slammed the door, and walked over to the passenger side window. The Cybretronian's holoform, Jack knew. The mechling didn't know whether to laugh or groan in disgust.
The passenger was around sixteen or seventeen. Her hair was dirty blonde and had fuchsia highlights. She wore a ridiculously short, shocking pink and electric yellow tank top and he didn't even wanna know what lower body clothing she was wearing, if any at all. She had heavy lipstick, eye shadow, blush, and eyeliner. The jewelry she wore looked too ritzy for someone on a mere drive. And her breath smelled foul of something he knew she shouldn't have drank.
Her friend, the driver, looked just as terrible.
He looked a bit too older than his passenger and even less civil looking. His hair was dark and greasy and his skin was pale but he looked quite menacing and somewhat strong. He wore a worn looking asphalt black sweater and smelled of something that seemed to be equally illegal. In the middle of the two sat the stolen fast food. As quick as lightning, the halfa reached in and retrieved the bags.
"Hey jerk, those are ours!" the driver snapped in aggravation.
"Oh really? I don't see your names on them. And I'm certain that you didn't pay for them. What's wrong? Did your parents realize what leeches they bore and decided to cut you two off before you sucked them dry of their money?" Zetta taunted with venom in his voice. "You should both do yourselves and everyone in this town a favor; get yourselves arrested and thrown in jail permanently. At least you'll get free meals."
Turning away, he walked to the window and handed Jack back the food.
"You're gonna be sorry!" the girl shrieked.
"Gretchen Brent!" a new voice came in.
All eyes fell on a woman stomping towards the dark vehicle. She was mid to late thirties and had short brown hair. She wore a jade green turtleneck and black slacks with black sandals. Her hazel eyes narrowed dangerously at the young girl.
"Oh, hi Mrs. Walter. Funny meeting you here," the girl smiled nervously.
"Don't give me that young lady! What are you doing riding around and snatching things without paying for them? And what are you doing hanging out with that trash?" the woman, Mrs. Walters asked in disgust, gesturing to the driver who looked offended and uneasy at the same time. "You know what? Don't bother explaining. I'm calling your father right now and you can explain it to him while your friend can explain himself to the police. In the mean time, you can think up an apology speech to these two young gentlemen."
No one saw Jack and Zetta trade smiles.
Two hours later at the Autobot base: Autobots' Perspective
"And then what happened?" Raf asked as the older boy retold what happened earlier that day.
"Then the guy lets the cops throw him into the back of the squad car. But only because he wanted to escape the dad's wrath," Jack snorted. "It's strange. Zetta's timing with the thieves was coincidental with the neighbor's arrival. Almost like he knew that she was going to be there."
Arcee smiled as she heard her partner's story. It had been two weeks since the incident on Nemesis. While Zetta was still trying to keep his distance from the Autobots, he had been quite friendly with the humans. The neutral youth had become a watcher of sorts for the trio when the Bots themselves couldn't be there.
Just this past Tuesday, Bumblebee had gotten a minor injury during a training session and couldn't pick up Raf from the library. The ruby and sapphire mechling had found the boy waiting alone for his guardian and took it upon himself to give the pre-teen a ride home. The Cybertronian teen had even bought the computer prodigy some ice cream. Although it was uncomfortable for the two of them when the server girl flirted with Zetta for a bit before her manager yelled at her to "stop harassing customers and give them their cones already." Nonetheless, the gesture was thoughtful and friendly.
Last weekend, June had car trouble and Zetta had politely offered her a ride, playing her favorite music and helping her with her errands as well. The Thursday earlier, Miko had forgotten her lunch and all the pizza slices that had been served that day were gone. Fifteen or so minutes before lunch was over, she was called to the office. As it turned out, Sasha, having gotten over some of her resentment towards her temporary neighbor, had called and told Zetta the situation. He grabbed some snacks from a nearby convenience store and Sasha's house before dropping it off at the office. Suffice to say, Miko's goal to associate herself with the mechling had intensified. Even Fowler seemed a little fond of the Cybertronian teen. All the while, Sasha had no qualms with this as far as the bots knew.
Yet, there was discontent among the Autobots. The peacefulness that the young Cybertronian displayed towards the planet's inhabitants was a clear sign that the mechling didn't belong with their enemy. In spite of his pity for the Cons, he had the qualities of a respectable would-be Autobot. Compassion, intelligence, and determination. Surely if they could convince him and even gain some of his forgiveness, the Cybertronian teen would gladly step into their team in a sparkbeat. But that was easier said than done. The Raf, Jack, Miko, June, and Fowler were the only ones with civil ties to Zettabyte and it would be too soon and abrupt to ask them to persuade the young bot to talk with them. Especially after Bulkhead's behavior. The only one who was even close to forgiving the moss-colored mech was the Asian girl and that only was because he was her friend and guardian.
Speaking of the Wrecker, things had changed since the fight. He rarely spoke ill of the younger Cybertronian when his name was brought up. In fact, he didn't utter a word when the kid was mentioned at all. Whether it was because he didn't want to get blown up at by his team mates and leader or he truly felt remorseful of what he had done and couldn't bring himself to speak up when the conversation went to the neutral youth. However, his behavior didn't fit either of the two of options. He was edgy. It was as if he expected to get jump by a Decepticon in the safety of their own base.
Bulkhead didn't tell them why when they asked. When he did, they could tell he was lying. It was as if there was a hidden camera in the base that he only knew about and was forbidden to reveal. He was still his stubborn, headstrong, cocky self when they fought Decepticons and still tried to pretend nothing was wrong when he hung out with his team. But there was a hint of apprehension, as though he was doing all of this without the consent of a person who could take his life in a flash.
Then there was the mystery bot issue.
It was a few days after their encounter with the newcomer that they saw him again. They had found an Energon vein that the Cons had missed in the caverns. It wasn't impressive but it was better than nothing. Not a moment after they started work to get the Energon did they all see him.
The unknown Cybertronian sat just a few feet away, sitting on a medium-sized boulder, arms crossed, and mouth set in a firm line. He didn't seem too hostile, so they had immediately eliminated the idea that he wanted to fight. When Optimus had attempted to speak to him, the porcelain white and ebony youth had lowered his visor low enough and long enough for the Prime to catch bright apple green slits narrowing dangerously at him, causing the larger mech to back away. Obviously he wasn't interested in a friendly conversation.
After a moment, the young stranger said in an low tone, "Get your Energon and get out."
Not wanting to provoke physical aggression from their unofficial overseer, Team Prime got their Energon in less than two hours. Once they were finished, the Autobot leader tried to approach the newcomer again, only to discover he had vanished. Suffice to say, the Bots were left very shocked and unnerved. And that was not the last time they saw him.
Everytime they went out to search for Energon or track Decepticons, and it was near a human populated area, he was there. They could feel his hidden optics fixed on them, daring them to do anything that would cause harm to the non-Cybertronian lives or area around them. It was odd and frightening at the same time. Not once did they speak to him or vice versa, either because they were too busy or they suspected he would give them a nasty reply. They didn't even ask him his name. The children, including Miko, wanted to go with their guardians on missions, if only to get a peek at the newcomer. However, with Miko being grounded, June just barely getting over her anger at the large mechanical beings, and the Bots too worried about how their watcher would react to seeing that they had human youths in their custody prevented this.
All optics and eyes fell on the semi truck entering the base. Transforming into his bipedal mode, Optimus looked at his team coolly.
"How was the meeting with Fowler?" Ratchet asked, turning away from the console.
"It was uneventful as always, old friend," the former archivist reported calmly.
[Optimus! Guess what Zetta did today!] the young scout beeped excitedly.
"Does it have anything to do with the humans who constantly steal from Jack's work?" the Prime asked knowingly.
"How did you know?" Raf asked.
"The man who was arrested turned out to be wanted for many crimes, including what the humans call "identity fraud" and "tax evasion." He's been wanted for half an Earth decade now. Once again, Zettabyte has done our human allies a great civil service," the large mech proclaimed, his voice giving a hint of pride.
"He could do us a greater civil service by joining our team. I need another pair of servos around this base and that mechling's more than qualified," the Autobot CMO spoke up. "And someone to keep the children occupied and out of trouble if need be wouldn't hurt."
"While that is wishful thinking, we must also remind ourselves that we are still in the midst of trying to earn his trust and forgiveness. And we are still trying to identify our unusual arrival," the Prime reminded gently but with authority. "All we currently know is that this arrival aims to preserve human life."
"Yeah, by knocking out any bot who destroys human structure," Jack said, recalling what he had been told occurred between the mystery bot and Bulkhead the first time they encountered the stranger.
"In spite of his aggression, we have to agree that his actions are in the humans' best interest," Optimus spoke sternly, reminding them all of the unknown Cybertronian youth's selfless act weeks back. "What we must do is prove to him that we too care for the lives of Earth's inhabitants and we do not want him as our opponent but as our comrade."
"That is if we get the chance to talk to him," Arcee spoke up, mindful of how randomly the white and ebony mechling popped up.
"I have a feeling we'll get our chance to interact with him sooner than we think," the Autobot leader rumbled, his optics holding something akin to expectation.
At the greenhouse; Sasha's Perspective
"That's enough for tonight, Sasha. Time to head home," Joanne Pryce, manager of the Willowfern Greenhouse said, tapping the Goth on the shoulder to get her attention.
The raven-haired girl, who was dressed in tight-fitting khaki shorts, hair pulled into a loose bun, beige tennis shoes slightly dirty, and a olive green shirt with Willowfern in tan colored words on the front, turned from where she was grinding dead leaves, sticks, and other decomposing items into mulch. The nature-lover dusted her hands off on her shorts as she smiled at her employer.
Jodie Pryce, with her silky graying chestnut brown hair and soft gray-green eyes, was a true environmentalist and humanitarian. Along with willing and diligently running the greenhouse, Ms. Pryce often volunteered at a soup kitchen a few miles away, donated canned goods, old clothes, and freshly knitted blankets to children in need, and was a frequent visitor at the animal shelter and retirement home. She was also big on not letting anything go to waste. She made compost out of any rotten or expired food, kept old rags for anything that needed patch work, crafted things like glass bottles and milk gallons into things like birdfeeders or cases to hold keepsakes. She had even helped with deciding what plants should be included in the greenhouse.
In the building were rows of flowers, from pansies to lilies to even sweet clover. There were even exotic flowers like Amazon lilies and Birds of Paradise. Next to them grew herbs like parsley, witch hazel, mint, basil, and many others. Trees of citrus fruit, peaches, and apples grew in abundance alongside grapes, strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries. Cucumbers, tomatoes, squashes, peppers, chilis, potatoes, cauliflower, beets, peas, and others grew in neat lines as well. All fresh and ready for picking if chosen. It wasn't as beautiful as Terrana's garden but it was lovely in the simple sense.
"Alright Ms. Pryce. Thank you for telling me," the Goth said as she finished cleaning up and putting everything in its proper place. "See you tomorrow."
"You too dear! Be safe."
The moment Sasha stepped out of the warm, lush building and into the coolness of the outside world, a familiar vehicle pulled up in front of her. From the backseat, she saw a small pair of mismatched eyes staring at her.
"Hey Zee, how are you? And how was Midnight?" the nature-lover asked as she got into the passenger side and buckled herself in.
"She was as good as gold," Zettabyte responded cheerfully.
"Mew," the feline mewled sweetly as if to confirm what the mechanical alien being said.
The raven-haired girl laughed as she gently scooped the cat into her arms. When Sasha started her volunteer work at the greenhouse, Zetta started taking care of Midnight to protect her from prying eyes. And took keep her from any catnip growing in the greenhouse. While Terrana may not have minded the small mammal diving into the wild herb in her gardens, the Goth and her guardian didn't want to take chances with Ms. Pryce getting mad if the cat tore up some the Midnight's species' namesake.
"So, what do you guys wanna do now?" Sasha questioned.
"Well, I was thinking we go see Karmaro and Jadeluck," the mechling responded. "During training today, Nephilus told me that they would love if we came by to see their baby girl."
"That sounds like a plan. We haven't seen them in a couple of days," the nature-lover agreed.
It was true. Both male Cybertronian youth and female human teen had seldom seen the spirit of fortune and the spirit of justice since their first meeting. When they did, it was quick glimpses and short greetings as they passed each other. Every time this happened, both could notice that the parents looked to be extremely busy and tired. The strong hint of exhaustion in their optics was very noticeable.
Sasha, having as many younger cousins as she had older ones, wasn't surprised. New babies always brought about lots of work and required more attention than any job in life. And while some people became more pro and skilled with each new child, others still found it to be a tiring instance, no matter how many children they had. It was especially difficult if you had two older children who were the same gender and the newborn was the opposite. No doubt, Karmaro and Jadeluck were trying to make sure that their sons got equal attention and were not falling victim to sibling rivalry. On top of that, they were most likely catering the new addition's every whim to assure that her first month outside her mother's womb would give her a good impression of the world around her.
For Zetta, however, it was a curious display. Having grown up around nobles who would just leave their children with nannies, servants, and caretakers of sorts, he was new to seeing such elegant and proud bots seem so stressed and sleep-deprived. Yet, it warmed the halfa to know that his two older allies were being very loving and doting of their children.
Zettabyte proceeded to turn the gauntlet on his wrist but this time, he pressed on a few glyphs. Nephilus had taught him how to hack his bracelet in a certain way so he could arrive at a certain destination in the Ghost Zone. A moment later, a Ghost Zone portal opened. Picking up his charge and their unofficial pet, the halfa stepped through the portal.
Not a minute passed before the three of them came face to face with a glorious building. It was almost as tall as some of the buildings that existed on Cybertron. But rather than silver, it was bronze and black. There were numerous windows and few had balconies. Some even had small window boxes with exotic flowers and plants. The door was made of strong looking cut-glass with gems around the door frame.
Zettabyte approached the door, setting down Sasha and Midnight to allow them to walk alongside him, intending to knock politely. But before his servo could even touch the doors, they flew open and out bolted two red blurs. Zetta shouted in shock before he laughed.
Vendett and Jinx grinned as they remained sitting on top of the mechling. Both younglings had warmed up to Zettabyte intensely. Their more playful natures had come out and the halfa was now their secondary choice of playmate, right behind their own father. Not that the Cybertronian teen could complain.
"Hi Zee! Hi Sasha! Hi Midnight!" both male children chorused in unison.
"Hello Vendett. Hello Jinx," the neutral youth greeted with a friendly smile.
"Hi guys," Sasha said with a smile of her own.
"Rowwr!" the feline meowed as if to say "hello."
At that moment, the patriarch of the home stepped out. In spite of the tiredness in his optics, Karmaro carried himself with his usual proud and firm posture. A kind, fatherly smile graced his faceplates.
"Hello Zettabyte, Sasha, Midnight. Sorry about the unannounced greeting ambush. The kids got into the treat jar," the spirit of justice apologized with a short laugh.
"It's alright. I don't mind," the mechling said, smiling as he patted the younger males' helms.
"Trust me, I'm use to it. Over fifteen younger cousins, remember? This is a basic ritual at family get-togethers," the Goth chuckled, recalling all the rowdiness she and her older family members endured when the younger members of the Morgan clan and the Cummings clan, her mothers' family, came together.
Midnight mewled as she trotted up to the two young spirits. Vendett carefully picked her up and held her out towards his younger brother. Jinx happily but gently petted the small mammal's head, eliciting a purr from the feline.
"Alright boys, off of Zetta," Karmaro spoke in a gentle but firm tone as he scooped his sons off of the halfa. "Let's go inside so you all can see the baby."
Picking himself off the ground, Zettabyte followed the older mech's example and scooped up Sasha and Midnight before entering the building. The inside of the home had white and soft green walls. Small pieces of furniture and pottery were scattered about. Mainly tables, vases, sofas, and figurines. One figurine that caught the neutral youth's optic was one that looked Cybertronian but had feathery wings sprouting from its back and had its servos pressed together in a prayer fashion. The figurine was white and the eyes were closed. Before the Cybertronian teen could get a closer look, he saw Karmaro already ascending the large stairs. Quickly catching up, Zettabyte began walking alongside the older mech.
Having been training with Nephilus and being no stranger to climbing large regal stair cases, Zettabyte had no trouble keeping up with the spirit of justice and his children. Surprisingly, they stopped on the third floor. Karmaro showed his guests to a specific closed room. The door was a pale baby pink with a white and silver fleur-de-lis motif with golden doorknobs. Very quietly, the crimson mech opened the door.
Inside the room was a combination of cream and lilac with a night sky mural decorating the ceiling. There was a pile of stuffed animals in the corner and the carpet was a warm yellow. The crib was an ebony color with a powder blue mobile consisting of animals and celestial objects carved from gem. And in a mahogany rocking chair sat Jadeluck, holding a rose pink wrapped bundle in her arms.
Sensing the new presences in the room, the femme looked up and whispered with a smile, "Well hello Zettabyte, Sasha, Midnight."
"Hello Jadeluck," Zettabyte whispered back, his voice a bit lower.
"Hello," the raven-haired girl whispered as well as Midnight just gave a quiet mew.
The neutral youth felt a gentle push on his back. Courtesy of Karmaro, urging him and his companions to get closer to his mate. Tentatively, the halfa walked to the spirit of fortune's side. Once he was beside her, the three guests slowly peered closer at the bundle. A set of soft aqua optics stared back sleepily. The infant's helm was similar to her mother and was a soft pale emerald color with hints of black and gold. She was almost an exact copy of her mother.
"This is Clovercharm," the femme said with a smile as she kissed her daughter's helm.
"She's so sweet," the nature-lover said with a soft smile.
"And adorable," the Cybertronian teen couldn't help saying. Midnight purred and stared calmly at the child.
Clovercharm stared at the newcomers for a moment before cooing at them. And for a moment, just a moment, the neutral youth could have sworn that the little one smiled at him. Zettabyte peered behind him and saw that Karmaro was still holding Jinx and Vendett with a smile. For a moment, the mechling forgot the world around them. He forgot the war. He forgot his troubles. He forgot his doubts.
Because being in the Ghost Zone, among friends, he felt at peace.
Well here it is. The first short story in my WDU series. As I said, there will be a long line of stories that build up to a sequel or the equivalent of a sequel. I'm sorry it took so long to post this one. This is a multi-chapter story. So hang in there. Once again, haters will be ignored and flamers will be flamed.
Everyone else, Happy Reading!