Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers, They are owned by Hasbro. I am merely having fun. Optimus is being a bit of a prick to his mate and his mate runs off. This contains slash and mpreg. No like, no read. No Harsh comments or flames. Constructive criticism welcome. Enjoy!

It had been an exceptionally terrible day for poor Mirage. His aft of a mate had left him hung out to dry and had thrown him in the brig for something that wasn't his fault. Well, not entirely, as Mirage wasn't in full control of his systems right now. He had just learned he was sparked with twins and he was scared. Nothing helped calm him down or make him feel like he was still in full control of his systems. Trying to talk to his adoptive mother Jazz had been a complete bust as Prowl, also angry at the illusionist, had kicked the bot out of the room before Mirage cold talk to Jazz, though Jazz had no idea.

And so resigned to the perception that no one wanted him around anymore, Mirage fled the base. He knew he was vulnerable but that didn't matter any more. It seemed to him that no one cared of he was around much less online. And so with a heavy spark and tears in his optics, Mirage packed the few things he treasured into a subspace and left quietly and under the cover of his illusions. Red Alert didn't even catch the bot sneaking out.

Meanwhile, in the medical bay. Ratchet had been concerned about Mirage and rightly so. Mirage had just bonded to Optimus and was extremely sensitive about things since Mirage had just become an adult a few days ago. In fact, Mirage had tried to comm his mate about what had been discovered during this exam only to be told not to bug the leader. Ratchet could even hear the annoyed tone in Optimus' voice over the comm. Ratchet tried reassuring Mirage, but it had little effect. Mirage merely left, helm hung down, optics facing the floor.

Ratchet had tried to comm Mirage to make sure that he had gotten home safely, but Mirage didn't answer any comms. And now that Ratchet was unable to reach Mirage at all, Ratchet decided it was time to go figure out what was up with Optimus. Ratchet left First aid in charge of the med bay before heading to the Prime's office. Ratchet had his trusty throwing wrenches with him, as one bonded bot hurting his or her mate was one thing that made Ratchet's energon blood boil and rightly so. Mates were connected in every sense of the word, and when suffered, the other usually did as well.

Optimus was sitting alone in his office, stacks upon stacks of reports littered his desk to the point only the top of Optimus' helm could be seen over the stacks. Many of the reports were conspiracy theory mumbo-jumbo from the paranoid security director, but Optimus still had to read them. And if it wasn't one of those, the reports spoke of con movements which were a direct threat to the Autobots and the humans that they had befriended when the Transformers woke up on the strange organic planet called Earth, a planet light years from Cybertron, which had been a casualty to this insane civil war.

Ratchet didn't bother knocking and went straight in to the office. He and Optimus were old friends, and so Ratchet often got away with this. Optimus didn't look up but growled when he heard the door open, fearing more reports and such. Soon a flying wrench hit Optimus squarely on a sensitive antenna. Optimus rose out of his seat in pure anger and glared at the bot that dare do such a thing while swearing. Ratchet held another wrench in his hand just in case he needed to throw it as well.

"You fragging son of a glitch…" growled Optimus, obviously in need of a break but refusing to take one. He was angry about this interruption, as he had been when Mirage had tried to interrupt a meeting.

"Takes one to know one, Optimus" Ratchet said, not backing down. He knew how to read Optimus, and while Optimus was pissed, Ratchet was the level-headed one trying to get through to his thick helmed friend.

"And just what in the name of Primus do you mean by that, you rust bucket?" Optimus asked angrily.

"You heard me, you pompous jerk" Ratchet retorted. Optimus ran over and tried to pin Ratchet to the wall for daring to defy him. Ratchet dodged and Optimus ended up sprawled on the floor. Ratchet pinned the leader there. "Well, this explains a lot…" Ratchet said an eerily calm tone.

Optimus tried to turn over but found he was pinned down under Ratchet's foot. "What the hell are you talking about" Optimus asked angrily.

"I saw Mirage this morning…" Ratchet began.

"So? What does that have to do with you interrupting me?"

"I can't find him or get a hold of him now. He had turned off all forms of communication. Seems a certain bot has been nothing but angry and cruel toward him…" Ratchet said, seeing if Optimus would hang himself with the rope offered.

"Frag it all, what the hell does Mirage have to do with anything?" Optimus snarled. This was worse than Ratchet thought. "Besides, him comming me in the middle of a session planning an attack on the Cons which is completely and utterly inappropriate."

"Did it ever occur to you that Mirage may have had something important to say? That he wanted to talk to his sparkmate and not just the leader of the Autobots?" Optimus growled again. His tanks were running on empty as he hadn't refueled after he had Mirage had faced the night before. "Open your spark bond you arrogant aft."

Optimus timidly did so and was soon overwhelmed with intense pain and excruciating hurt. It hurt so severely, as if a feeling of being rejected came through, that and worry and fear. Optimus was confused by what he was feeling over the bond.

"What's wrong, old friend?" ratchet asked, sensing a change.

"I…I feel fear, worry…and being rejected…" Optimus said, scaring Ratchet.

"Optimus, I know you may have not discussed this yet, but Mirage is sparked…"

"Sp…SPARKED?" Optimus asked. Optimus now felt even worse. Sparked bots were rare. Not every bot was strong enough to carry sparklings to term and now Mirage was scared and vulnerable, which was not a good combination. "We..we never discussed having a family due to the war. Is he really sparked?"

"Yes, it was why he commed you in the middle of your oh-so-important planning session. I had asked him to, as his systems are extremely sensitive and are not always going to be under control as he gets bigger. It is also possible that if he gets over stressed, he could lose them…"

"No…" OPtimus whispered, about ready to cry.

"Do you have any idea where he might go?"

"Well, I know he is pretty close to jazz.."

"Optimus, that is because Jazz is Mirage's adoptive mother…" Ratchet said much to Optimus' shock. Ratchet commed Jazz, but Jazz said he hadn't seen Mirage since yesterday. Ratchet then commed Prowl, Jazz's mate who had become Mirage's adoptive father but didn't necessarily like Mirage or that Mirage had bonded to the leader. Prowl told how he had kicked Mirage out of their quarters and had no idea where the bot had gone. Ratchet was pissed and laid into Prowl with Optimus listening. Prowl felt bad once Ratchet had read Prowl the riot act.

It was only once Optimus settled down that Ratchet dare let the leader up. "I don't envy your position, because remember this, if he dies, you will as well…" Ratchet left with that.

Optimus realized the damage he had done, and tried to pulse love through the bond, but got almost no response. It was only then Optimus realized he had to find Mirage before they both ran out of time. The question was….where would mirage go and would he be found in time?