A couple weeks later Mirage was still timid around the everyone, he barely even spoke a word to the twins and the rest of the gang. Optimus was continuosly trying to spend time and get a chance to speak with the youngling. But everytime he got a moment to he always got called causing to many interruptions

Waking up every morning Mirage stared at the ceiling wondering how he was going to handle the new day in his refreshed Autobot life. Sitting up, his gaze turned to the door. Taking a deep breath he exited his room into the bright busy hallways.

"Good morning Mirage!" Mirage imediately had a huge servo with a cannon wrap around him.

Mirage gave a depressed sighed. "Hi Ironhide." bearly gazing at the weapon specialist.

Ironhide caught the depressed younglings gaze. "Cheer up youngling this is going to work out for you." Ironhide exhaled. "I will be the one they will have to be exiling if anything happens to you."

"Thanks Hide." Mirage gave a small smile before parting with the large mech.

Mirage walked down the halls getting glares from most of the Autobots he passed, eventually walking into Elita.

"Oh... I... I'm sorry." Mirage drooped his doorwings barely meeting the femmes optics.

"Optimus wants to speak with you Mirage, I believe he's in his office with Bumblebee." Elita attempted her gentle voice with the youngling.

Mirage looked even more nervouse now, he was wondering if this was a test Elita was giving him. "Sure... If you see him, tell him to call me when he's not occupied with Bumblebee."

"I wont be seeing him today I am out on patrol today. Go see him he wont mind youngling." Elita gave a small smile before continuing on.

Mirage walked to the Prime's office, knocking before entering Mirage saw Bumblebee toddling around the office as he entered.

"Mirage good morning." Optimus smiled at the youngling, as Bumblebeee toddled over to the youngling.

"Ra ra!" Bumblebee cooed as he grabbed onto the younglings leg with a chirp and smile.

Mirage imediately tensed freezing any movement, wondering why the sparkling still liked him. "Optimus..." Mirage nervously called wanting the sparkling to go far away from him uninjured.

"Mirage you are ok, Bumblebee knows you wont hurt him on purpose." Optimus reassured the red youngling.

Mirage nodded unsure of the himself around the sparkling. "Um, Elita said you wanted to speak to me?"

"Yes I suppose this would be a good enough time to speak to you about this. Before I get interrupted." Optimus exhaled walking over to his sparkling and Mirage.

"Opt!" Bumblebee squealed with joy as Optimus picked him up from Mirage's ped. "Mirage I know you have been feeling a little out of place, and lost since coming back. I have noticed you have had quite a depressed spell since the news of Hound hit you."

Mirage's sad cyan optics met Optimus's royal blue sympathetic stare. "I'm fine Optimus...I don't need...Hound... I can take care... of..."

Optimus sighedd. "How would you like if I took over as your caretaker." Optimus interrupted the younglings mumbling.

The youngling tried his best to hide the excitment in his voice being chosen by the bot he looked up to was most exciting. "I do not need one, I am fine on my own." Mirage huffed noting to himself that he may loose what he gains as he has been lately.

Optimus could not hold back his guilty frown. "Mirage, I apologize for throwing you into the streets to fend for yourself. It was a regreted mistake that will not happen again." Prime sighed his apology.

Mirage wasn't really angry at the Prime, he knew Optimus was just adjusting to his new position as a Prime. And was confused and flustered by an unheard of dangerous situation Mirage caused. "I am not angry, Optimus."

"Ra ra ra ra!" Bumblebee excitedly squealed flailing his servos.

The sparkling brought Mirage's attention to the flaws that could be the outcome of this endeavour. "What about Elita and Bee?" Mirage quickly brought his hopes down by making a new excuss.

"Elita agreed and I am positive Bumblebee does as well." Optimus reassured the red youngling as Bumblebee continued to chant his version of Mirage's name.

"I will be back." Mirage quickly hightailed it out of the Primes office and into Arcee's room.

"You ever heard of knocking Mirage?" Arcee looked up from her data pads.

Mirage cycled his vents heavily as he looked at the femme with wide optics, trying to muster up the correct words to tell the femme his news.

Seeing the younglings frantic behaviour Arcee placed her data pad down giving Mirage her full attention. "What's wrong sweetheart, are those fragging Arielbots bullying you again?"

"Yes but that's not what I am here for." Mirage replied walking towards Arcee.

Arcee left her desk and sat on her berth beckoning the youngling to sit next to her. "What is it then Mirage?"

Sitting next to the navy blue femme Mirage exhaled. "Optimus want's to adopt me."

"What that's great Mirage!" Arcee was thrilled to hear of the news.

"Is it?" Mirage wanted the femmes honest opinion. "He has his own sparkling now."

"Yes I think it's best for you! Optimus is a strong leader. And you need special guidance, that Optimus will be able to provide for you. And trust me Bee is more dependant on my sister at this stage in his life. And don't get me wrong I love her, but she is being a little over protective over Bumblebee even with Optimus. And I apologize for her being such a bitchy mother the other day. Trust me you and Optimus will benifit from this."

Mirage didn't reply as he thought deeply about it all.

Arcee placed a gentle servo on the confused younglings back. "Mirage, this it not a test, nor is it an experiment. It is life finally going good for you, except the offer. You may have a choice now, but Optimus will soon choose what's best for you."

The youngling exhaled Mirage having a bigger grin then Megatron during a winning streak. "Ok I will try."

"Good now go!" Arcee shoed her adopted brother out of her room.

Mirage popped back into the Primes office and gave him the ok for the adoption.

Optimus was overjoyed to have the youngling added to his young family. But in the back of his mind he worried about his sparkmate. He knew Elita had excepted Optimus's idea for the younglings adoption unwillingly, and since Optimus grew up with Mirage as a sparkling, he knew some of what to expect from the youngling. Mirage needed special attention and care to be safe around others and Optimus was prepared for that. But Elita looked at everything the youngling did as a negative and potential danger to them all.

"Opt down!" Bumblebee chirped smacking Optimus's arm.

"Ok get to know your new brother." Optimus chuckled and promtly placed the sparkling next to the youngling as he went back to reviewing reports.

After an hour of Bumblebee playing around and on the youngling, Mirage was still hesitant and wary to move while the sparkling examined him and played with his peds.

Optimus finally looked uo from his data pads to see Mirage standing still like a statue while Bumblebee tortured him. "Mirage you can move you are not restriced to movement because the sparkling is near you."

*I will be when Elita arrives.* Mirage thought to himself as he stepped back away from the curious sparkling. "Oof!" Stepping right into the thought of femme.

Elita couldn't help but glare at how close Mirage came to stepping on her sparkling, even though the youngling made sure he was keeping a safe enough distance.

"I...I'm sorry..." Jumping back beside the sparkling on the floor Mirage quickly apologized and snuck past the overprotective femme.

"Lita!" Bumblebee gurgled reaching for his mother.

"So is it done?" Elita plucked her sparkling from the ground before resting against her sparkmates desk.

Optimus exhaled as Mirage quickly made his exit. "The adoption? I am just finishing signing the official file now. All you have to do is sign it as well then Mirage will be our youngling." Optimus showed Elita the document on his data pad.

"I am not signing it."

"What?" Optimus gave a confused glare at the femme.

"I am not going to sign the adoption." Elita repeated herself more clearly as hefted her now slumbering sparkling onto her shoulder plate.

"Why, you sounded all for it?" Optimus was baffled and confused at the femmes change of spark.

"I gave a couple compliments, and reluctantly gave, you! The go ahead." Elita replied pushing off the desk. "If you want the little Unicron spawn fly at it, and keep me out of it. But remember your real son still needs you to!" she waved a fingure at her sparkmate before storming out past the CMO in the doorway.

Optimus sat back down and stared at the data pad with the empty final adoption signature.

"You change your mind about it?" Ratchet exhaled approaching his friend.

"I don't know." Optimus sighed deeply not breaking his stare.

"Look Optimus I knew from day one, when we got that sparkling, that he was trouble. And yet you bonded quickly to him, and wanted to do nothing more but help that sparkling. Even if it meant covering up the fact that the youngling was mingling with his very wanted Decepticon brother." Ratchet leaned in the chair he took a seat in.

Optimus exhaled closing his optics. "I made a promise to him and I am keeping it. Elita doesn't have to agree or like it I am still doing it. My care for my own sparkling will not change as she thinks." Optimus quickly signed the last part of the adoption finalizing it.

"Congrats on your new youngling Optimus, I know you will make him feel worth it in this life time." Ratchet cuffed a servo on the Primes shoulder, before taking the adoption data back to his office.

"Way to go buddy, you got the allspark of caretakers little bro!" The twins were overjoyed with Mirage's news.

"You think so?" Mirage kept his smile from earlier, it seemed like the longest he had ever smiled in his life.

"Ya dude it's not like a crazy old medic and weapon specialist." the twins scoffed about their caretakers.

"Or a crazy rules officer." Jazz added.

"Though we are very greatful for them taking us in our time of need." the boys made sure to be greatful for their caretakers sacrifices.

"But it's Optimus, not Ratchet, Ironhide, and Prowl. He has his own sparkling to worry about why would he want to add me to his stress level?" Mirage's smile finally faded.

"He care's about you enough to put it into wrighting." Jazz humoured.

"This isn't a pitty thing then?" Mirage questioned.

Jazz shook his helm and corrected his approach. "No lil Mirage, Prime honestly really cares about you, enough to add you to his own spark and call you his own."

That being said Mirage had a fuse of curiosity hit him, who was his real creator? "Who did spark me?" Mirage murmured.

"What?" the boys looked at eachother with confused looks.

"Who is my creator?"

"Um I don't know that would probably be a question for Ratchet to track down. We knew our original creators before we came here." Sunstreaker sighed.

I would give old Hatchet a shot and see what he can find." Sideswipe shrugged his shoulders.

Mirage nodded walking towards the exit, halting right before the door remebering he wasn't to fond of the med bay, he looked over his shoulder to his three older brothers.

They all chuckled and followed the youngling to the med bay for comfort and support.

"Where are you four off to?" Arcee jogged up to the four in the hallway.

"Off to the med bay." Sideswipe replied to the femmes question.

"Really what for, did Mirage beat the scrap out of one of you motor mouths again?" Arcee gave a pointed glare at Sunstreaker.

"No! We are going to ask Ratchet a question." Sunstreaker growled at the femme.

"Oh this should be golden, you two asking Ratchet a question ha!" Arcee snickered as they entered the med bay.

"Actually we are not asking any questions thank you very much." Sideswipe scoffed to the snickering femme bot.

"Who's asking questions?" a gruff voice followed by a large shadow questioned.

Mirage looked up at the giant weapon specialist and gave his reply. "I am, I want to know who my original creator was."

"Oh does that really matter youngling, you have Prime now." Ironhide had an almost nervous tone to his gruff voice.

"I am just curious it won't change me and Optimus."

"Alright then, Ratch Mirage has a question I am not going to answer!" Ironhide called over his shoulder to the CMO.

"Primus Ironhide I am not deaf I can bloody well hear you from across a battlefield." Ratchet grumbled his way over to the gang of young Autobots. "What is this fuss all about?" Ratchet motioned to the group.

"I want to know who my original creator is?" Mirage was done playing games and just wanted an answer.

"What kind of question is that you ave Optimus." Ratchet snorted trying to avoid answering the question.

"Ratchet please" Mirage begged.

The CMO soffed and returned to his work. "Mirage I really think this should be an avoided question." Ratchet shook his helm.

"Ratchet." Mirage followed and continued to beg.

Taking a deep breath Ratchet sighed deeply. "It's a high possibility it is Megatron..." Ratchet exchanged worried optics with Ironhide, while the others jaws dropped.

"What!?" Mirage was taken aback by the horrifying answer. "That tyrant!"

"Well it kinda makes sense how you made it through alive as a puny sparkling in that sick super soldier experiment. Considering how much Megatron hates puny weaklings." Sunstreaker thought outloud.

"He wanted to kill me off the moment he saw me! He has no sympathy or spark! Shockwave and his sick experimental mind is the only reason I am alive!" Mirage spat at the golden twin before running out of the med bay.

"That's disturbing." Sideswipe cringed.

"I shouldn't have told him." Ratchet mentally beat himself.

"He would have found out eventually anyway." Arcee sighed.

"True just as long as nobody else besides us does."

"Could you imagine how chaotic it would be if the Arielbots found out." the twins shook their helms.

Optimus rounded the corner of the corridor only to have his now adopted youngling run into his leg. "Mirage?" Optimus steadied the younglings off balance.

"Optimus is it true that Megatron is possibley my creator!?" Mirage was practically in tears.

Optimus quickly hushed the youngling, and led him into his office, away from big audio sensors.