Author's Notes: Special thanks to my lovely proofreader, as always, who had her work cut out for her with these two parts. I wrote them while sick and under medicinal influence. Thanks for the help!

The Autobot Files

By: Ghost of the Dawn aka Ty-Chou

File #004 Change

"Hey, Chief," Jazz said as he knocked on the wall beside Optimus Prime's open doorway. "Guess who finally decided to come back to us?"

Optimus looked up. He was studying the most recent reports sent from Cybertron, a responsibility usually assumed by Prowl. In the absence of his second-in-command, Optimus didn't mind taking over the task.

"Where is he now?" Optimus asked, looking back down at the screen that dominated most of his small work surface. His office quarters were small and cramped, as space was a rare commodity in the Ark. It had not been designed for a luxury voyage when it was built, but for short-term use in drastic circumstances. As a makeshift military base it left a lot to be desired. Still, after the years the Autobots spent adapting the Ark to its new use, it felt like a second home to most of them.

"Off in recharge. But boy Prime, he's going to drop something heavy in our laps when he gets out. I can feel it."

Optimus leaned back in his chair. "Indeed," he agreed. "Radio me when Prowl is done and have him come to my office. I'm sure he's planning to talk with us anyway."

"You got it, Chief." Jazz threw him a thumbs-up and sauntered down the hall.

Knowing his missing second-in-command was back made it hard for Optimus to concentrate on his work. Prowl had not told him where he was going, nor why. He did not know whether Prowl had left merely to lick his wounds or if he actually had been working on something like he'd told anyone who radioed. Knowing Prowl, Optimus suspected the latter, and if Prowl had been up to something for the past several days, Optimus wanted to find out what. Unable to pay attention to his reports, Optimus got up to walk around the base. Something was building up to happen, he could feel it. As such, he thought it would prudent to drop in on the biggest wildcard loose on the base.

As Optimus neared Wheeljack's lab, he heard a high pitched scream coming from that direction. However, it did not sound like it came from the only female resident of the Ark. Optimus peeked into the lab in time to see Wheeljack grabbing his head and screaming "What did you DO?!"

The target of his ire, Crystal, had her hands clasped behind her back and looked as proud as could be. She was about to explain when she noticed Optimus standing there and waved to him with a cheerful "Hi!"

Optimus walked inside and took inWheeljack's distressed body language and Crystal's smiling face. "What happened here?"

"Look, Optimus Prime, I'm being domestic!" she announced proudly.

"She cleaned my lab!" Wheeljack shrieked. "I'm gone for only half a day and THIS is what I come back to?"

Optimus looked around and saw the laboratory was indeed cleaner than it had been in a very long time.

"Well ain't that purdy as a picture," Ironhide chuckled as he walked in and leaned against the door frame. Wheeljack's squawking had piqued his curiosity.

"No it's not!" Wheeljack cried. "How am I supposed to find anything now?!"

"But Wheeljack, I organized it," Crystal insisted. "Everything is sorted by size and type and then alphabetized in its section."

"How do you even know what they are?" Wheeljack demanded.

"With this!" She held up the handheld device Wheeljack had shown her how to use the day before.

"That doesn't mean I know where to find anything!" the inventor barked.

"Do you know the alphabet?" Crystal shot back in a flat voice. She was obviously a bit put out that her hard work wasn't being appreciated.

Wheeljack didn't say anything, but he looked as though he might blow something.

"Ya know what?" Ironhide announced, getting in between the two. "Ah think I'm gonna show the kid around a bit while you get acquainted with yer new lab. How about that?"

Crystal's optics went wide. She worried that no one had told Ironhide that she didn't like to be outside the lab or the med bay. In truth, Ironhide knew all about her reluctance to explore the base, but he and a few other Autobots had noticed that for whatever reason, Crystal really wanted Ironhide to like her. Since Jazz had no luck coercing her out, he decided he would have to be the one to try.

"Um..." Crystal said quietly. "I don't think I--"

"What?" Ironhide demanded before she could finish. "Ya don't want to go with me? Is that it?"

"No! No! I would love to go with you, it's just that..."

"Well come on then! Don't make me waste the time I took ta come done here."

It could have the words or the tone or a combination of both, but for whatever reason, Crystal responded with a "Yes, sir! Coming!" and then trailed obediently after him out of the room.

Wheeljack and Optimus looked at each other. "How does he do that?" the inventor asked.


Crystal only made it about halfway down the hall before latching self-consciously onto Ironhide's arm. He immediately looked down in disapproval. "Oh come on, what's this?" he ordered.

Crystal let go of him and slunk back like a puppy that had just been reprimanded.

Ironhide stopped and put his hands on his hips, looking back at her. "What is the problem here?"

Crystal looked down, scuffing her toe on the floor. "Well, you know, this is your home. I feel like I'm invading someone else's space. It feels kind of rude just to walk around like I'm free to go wherever I want."

"Don't be ridiculous! This is a BASE. It's not someone's house. Those rooms and these halls are built for every crew member here. That includes yourself."

"I'm a crew member?" Crystal asked with wide optics.

"Not yet yer're not! Not 'til ya start doin' somethin' ta pull yer own weight. And the first thing is ta know yer way around the base. Otherwise, we gotta keep babysittin' ya and that takes precious time away from other important things we could be doin'."

Perhaps certain Autobots would have chastised Ironhide for not being more delicate, but they weren't there and Crystal didn't really seem to mind. Stark realization spread over her face, telling him that that was exactly what she needed to hear. "I understand," she nodded, a new determination in her stance. "Show me."

Ironhide did. He showed her the main control room and introduced her to Teletraan I. He showed her where the ammunition and energy storage rooms were, the bunkers and the recharge room. He explained how the recharge berths worked and how you could tell when one was occupied. The Ark currently had five berths at their disposal. They almost looked like coffins, complete with lids. The crew took turns using them on an assigned schedule. Currently two were in use.

Lastly, Ironhide showed her the recreation room. Crystal had seen it once before, though only for a brief second. It looked much like one would expect it to, with a few tables and places to sit here and there. One table was already occupied and Ironhide steered them to go sit over there. Crystal was a bit hesitant, but she didn't have a choice as the larger, heavier Autobot took her with him by the arm.

"Have a seat," he said, motioning to a large chair at the table where two other Autobots were sitting. Crystal shyly sat down, feeling quite like a little kid due to Ironhide's direction and her size relative to the large chair.

"This is Hound," Ironhide said, motioning to the green Autobot and then to the blue and white one next to him. "And this is Mirage." Crystal nodded politely as Ironhide walked off, saying he would be right back.

The blue one smiled at her. "It's nice to see you again."

Crystal gave him a confused look for a moment and then realization hit her. "Oh Mirage! Yes! I didn't recognize you being now I can see you and all."

Mirage chuckled. "That's completely understandable. How are you doing so far?"

At that point Sideswipe sauntered in, paused when he saw who was in there, and immediately turned on his heel and left as quickly as he could. Mirage and Hound noticed his strange behavior and looked at each other, but Crystal had her back to the door and didn't see.

"I'm doing okay," Crystal assured them. "I think every day it's a little better. I'm still just trying to adjust to everything I guess."

Ironhide sat down with two glowing pink cubes in his hand. He gave her the smaller one. "What's this?" she wondered.

"It's energon," the one called Hound said. "You drink it."

Crystal decided she liked his voice. It wasn't as deep as Mirage's but it had a similar mellowness to it. She inspected the glowing cube, about the size of a coffee mug to her new body. "Do I need it?"

"Ya mean you've been here how long and you've never had any?" Ironhide demanded. "What have those two been doing to you? It's a wonder ya haven't just fallen down from lack of energy."

"She probably doesn't need it as often," Hound offered pragmatically. "With her size and not having an alt mode, she probably doesn't use anywhere near the energy as we do."

"Gas guzzler," Crystal tried to joke as she ribbed Ironhide in the side.

"But for Ironhide, most of the energy goes to running his vocal processor," Mirage added to the teasing.

"Hey now," Ironhide tried to defend himself.

"Oh I don't mind. He can talk all he wants. I like listening to him," Crystal smiled. She leaned on her elbow and watched Ironhide with a certain admiration as he took a long drink of his energon cube. "He kind of reminds me of my dad."

Ironhide instantly spat out all that he had just consumed. He stared at Crystal with optics wider than they had ever been. Hound and Mirage sat across from them, dripping in energon.

"Hey guys!" Jazz called pleasantly as he came in. "Just thought I'd stop by and--" He paused, noticing Hound and Mirage's situation. "What happened to you guys?"

Both of them gave their superior a very unamused look. "I have to go," Hound said flatly as he got up.

Mirage muttered something under his breath before disappearing. Phantom sticky footprints made their way across the floor as he left. Jazz eyed the now-empty seats before going to finding himself a chair that wasn't so sticky.

"So you guys just having a drink?" he asked as he slid his chair up next to Crystal's.

"Ironhide got this cube for me. I never tried this before."

Jazz looked excited for her. "Oh! First time! Let's see how you like it."

Crystal turned her attention to the cube on the table in front of it and picked it up using both hands and looked it over from several angles. "It looks neat, but how do I drink it?"

"Just drink from the corner, the cube does the rest," Jazz urged.

Crystal brought the glowing object to her lips and took a cautionary sip. She wasn't in the habit of consuming day-glo liquids, but if the Autobots insisted it was okay, she would give it a try. The energon, as they had called it, went down surprisingly easily. It was thick, but fluid, like hot watered-down honey. It had a taste, but she wasn't sure how to describe it. Taste seemed like a completely different sense than it did when she was human. She didn't have a tongue, but her body told her that the energon was good for her. She felt kind of warm and happy like drinking hot chocolate on a winter morning as she drank more of it.

"That's not bad at all," Crystal reported. "Ironhide showed me where the recharge berths are. Do I have to use those, too, or...?"

"Yup," Jazz nodded. "Just like when you were human you had to eat and sleep. The energon gives our bodies energy, but the recharge berths keep power in our inner core. Kind of like... how you have to put fuel in a car but it has a battery, too. Consuming a daily ration of energon is a good idea, but you can go without for a couple days if you have to. The energon berths are more like once a week unless something happens to drain your energy."

Crystal nodded in understanding. Jazz stiffened as an internal alarm beeped at him. "And speaking of which, there's.... someone getting out that I need to talk to. See you later, Crys."

"Bye, Jazz," she called.

Jazz slapped the still-stunned Ironhide on the back with a "Relax, man." before heading out the door.


As soon as Prowl had finished his recharge, he, Jazz and Optimus gathered in the leader's small office to discuss what the black and white Autobot had been doing during his unofficial leave. What he had to say was something neither of the other two had expected.

"I've been investigating the murder," Prowl announced. "I want to find the person who did this."

Optimus just looked at him as he thought over this new information.

"Isn't it attempted murder?" Jazz asked. "I mean, she's still alive. In a manner of speaking." Prowl shot him a sharp look.

"Is this really the course of action you want to take, Prowl?" Optimus finally said.

"Someone has to," Prowl replied gravely. "A serious crime has been committed and no one knows about it. I've been listening to the police channels and the news. Crystal was only officially registered as a missing person three days ago. The police are just barely finding blood at the murder scene. That is all they have to go on."

Optimus regarded him levelly, not betraying an inch of what he was thinking. "And what more do you have to go on?"

"There are only a few suspects it could be." Prowl counted off on his fingers. "It wasn't Decepticons. The second shot fired went right through my windshield on the driver's side. The gunman didn't know I was an Autobot. Plus the bullet came from a human weapon.

"The second set of suspects would be the group that captured Cybertronians and reprogrammed them. They were organized by one Dr. Kraus who has also gone missing. They had the weaponry, but it's unlikely they could find out where Crystal lived in one night and set up a sniper before we got to her apartment.

"That leaves only Tony Russo. He sent armed thugs after her before, as we all witnessed. I looked up his background. He has ties to the Italian mafia and people who have gone up against him or have owed him money have mysteriously disappeared. I've been researching his operation and I have gathered data on--"

"You've been in New York all this time?" Jazz demanded. "You really think this guy had nothing better to do but send one of his goons across the country to off some girl for beating one of his fighters?"

"He's the prime suspect," Prowl shot back.

"That isn't your job, Prowl. If these guys did do it, and we don't know that they did, then they're subject to human law. Human authorities have to bring them in. You can't."

"I can still see justice served," Prowl insisted as he motioned to the data pads he brought in that were sitting on Optimus' desk. "I can tell them what I know and give them the information I have. It will at least put them on the right trail. They will be able to find out who did it, I'm sure of it."

Optimus had remained quiet, watching his two seconds bicker until then.

"Are you sure you believe this is a good idea, Prowl? Not only will you have to tell the authorities everything you know, but you will also have to tell them what we have done with the missing girl."

Prowl pressed his lips together. Obviously he had thought long and hard about this. "Truth is always the right answer. I will face up to my actions if that is what it takes."

Jazz stared at him. "Prime, I don't know if--"

Optimus raised a hand to silence him. "Very well, I agree that what you propose is a logical course of action. But before any action is taken, I want us all to discuss this with Crystal. There will be no more decisions made for her without her consent. I want to make that clear to both of you."

Jazz saluted while Prowl gripped the armrest of his chair tightly and nodded.


They found Crystal in the main control room, playing Spider Solitaire (medium difficulty) on Teletraan I. Jazz had to pause to look at the odd scene.

"Really? You're doing THAT with the most sophisticated computer we have on board?"

Crystal slumped in her seat. "Blaster said I could."

Jazz walked up, folding his arms and leaning his hip casually on the console. "I'm not surprised. Blaster is supposed to be watching this room right now. I bet he thought you could handle it." He paused to watch her move cards around on the screen. "Ah... so that's how you play that."

Crystal glanced quickly at the Autobot standing in the doorway before going back to her game. "I see you brought someone with you. It's nice to see you back, Prowl." Her voice stayed painfully neutral.

"I came back because there is something very important we need to discuss with you," Prowl replied in the same tone, not moving any closer.

Crystal set her jaw, taking a moment before responding. "You're just lucky I love you or we wouldn't even be having this conversation."

She slapped Jazz's hand away when he tried to make a move on her virtual card game.

"Crystal," Optimus Prime said with authority as he walked in. "I would very much appreciate your time for a moment, if you would come with me?"

She stood up, game forgotten. "Yes, Optimus Prime."

Jazz opened a radio channel to Blaster as they began walking out. "Hey man, you got caught. Get back here and finish your shift in the control room."

"Uuuuugh!" came the moan of complaint. "Okay, fine. Blaster out."


"YOU'RE GOING TO DO WHAT?!" Crystal screeched. Her voice was so high-pitched and loud it could probably be heard all the way down the hall even though the door to Optimus' office was closed.

All three Autobots flinched.

"It will be okay," Jazz tried to calm her. "We'll keep it small, you won't even have to do anything except maybe answer a few questions."

"No!" Crystal insisted sharply. "I don't know what you're trying to do, but you are not thinking things through!"

"Maybe we should give you some time to think it over," Prowl suggested from the far corner of the office. "Then you will see that this is the most logical solution."

"Logical? This is ridiculous! If you tell the authorities you know the details of a murder they're going to ask you where my body is. They're going to ask you what you did with it and they're going to want to see it. Not to mention that you tampered with a murder scene and that's against the law!"

The three Autobots were silent as Crystal continued, "As lovely as it would be for me to go through that, when you tell them what you DID to me, you're going to have a three ring circus on your hands."

Optimus steepled his fingers in thought. "You don't believe your fellow humans will accept you any longer? You're afraid of what they will say?"

"Oh no," Crystal vowed, optics wide. "That's going to be the least of our problems." She walked over to his desk, pressing both her palms upon it to further press her point. "You have the ability to put the life of a human being into a robot body. You can make people effectively immortal, stronger than they have ever been. Politicians, millionaires, celebrities, military personnel: anyone with money and power is going to be banging down the door and harassing every Autobot for just a hint of that kind of technology. The entire world will go nuts." She looked right into the Autobot leader's optics with fiery conviction. "No matter what happens, humanity cannot know that you can do this."

Optimus Prime made no response, but Prowl wasn't about to sit quietly. "But what about your murderer? Don't you want to see justice done for what he did to you?"

Crystal just gave him a sad look which seemed to agitate Prowl further.

"He's still out there! What if he hurts other people? Do you want to be responsible for that if you can stop it?"

Crystal opened her mouth and then closed it with a helpless shrug. "I don't have an answer for that, Prowl. But if you're looking for my consent on this, I'm not going to give it and I'm not going to help you."

Prowl pressed his mouth into a thin line, clenching his fists at his sides. For a moment it appeared he had something to say, but then he turned on his heels and left the office with the door sliding shut behind him.

Jazz sat up from where he was slouched in a chair, wondering if he was expected to leave as well.

"I suppose this meeting is over," Optimus Prime announced.

"Alright, I'm going to go check on Prowl, then." Jazz said. "Just gonna make sure he doesn't pop a gasket or, you know, leave the state again."

When Jazz had gone, an uncomfortable silence fell over the room between the two individuals who had absolutely nothing in common.

"I, uh, have something I believe is yours," Optimus said, standing up and walking to a small apparatus that had been hanging on his wall.

"Hey, I know this," Crystal said as she looked it over. "This couldn't be that tiny wind chime that was hanging in my car, could it?"

"I'm afraid it is," Optimus admitted. "I took it when we fled the car and I forgot to give it back."

Crystal turned the now very large wind chime over in her hands and read the inscription on it.

" 'Light shines brightest in the dark.' My mother's way of saying people have their chance to really show what they're made of when life is at its worst. 'No experience is wasted if you know what to do with it' she used to tell me." She made a noise similar to a sigh as she fingered the inscription. "I suppose I could have shone a bit more brightly myself these past few days." She smiled up at the Autobot leader. "Thank you for keeping it for me. Would you like to help me hang it up?"

Optimus Prime seemed to smile. Crystal wasn't sure if it was in his optics or his voice, but she could tell. "I would love to."

"Great! I know just where to hang it."

A few minutes later, Optimus Prime was on his tiptoes, fixing the chime to the lip of the Ark's entrance. When he was done, the large hollow chimes hung over the entrance as a brisk November breeze blew in, causing the chimes to hit the ball in the middle. Unlike their previous light, tinkling sound, they now made a low, calming bellow in the breeze.

"So that is what that does," Optimus said thoughtfully.

Crystal just nodded, hands behind her back as she watched the setting sun reflect off the metal and listened to the melody of the chimes.

Optimus did the same for a while, enjoying the new sound and the serenity of the moment.

"Optimus Prime," Crystal asked. "I know you will give me an honest answer. Where is my body now?"

He turned his head to look at her. "Do you really want to know?"

"I just want to know if it still exists somewhere."

"No, it is gone. Completely. If that bothers you, I apologize."

She shook her head. "No, it's actually a relief, really. I've been struggling with the mental image of my ruined bits of flesh haunting some lower level of your base, to be honest. I'm glad you don't still have it. I feel sorry for whoever had to deal with it."

Optimus nodded. "The sentiment is appreciated. If you don't mind me saying so, I sometimes forget how messy organic life can be."

Crystal chuckled. "All life is messy. That's what makes it life."

Optimus turned thoughtful as he looked at the sky. "I would like to say," he said after a while, "that I commend you on the decision you made earlier. You are indeed correct in putting humanity before your own agenda."

Crystal watched him. He had spoken with such a note of passion that she had a feeling he knew all too well what that was like, far more deeply than she could understand.

"This world," Optimus continued as he gazed over the landscape, painted brilliant colors by the setting sun. "We sometimes forget how different it is from our own. It is shocking, sometimes even terrifying, when it comes back to remind us.

"You live in a world of changes. Day and night, seasons, age... everything around you is constantly beginning and ending. Every day life is born, it grows, then it dies. You have no idea how frightening that is for us. Our world never changes- we never change. One day we will see everything we have come to know here, the people we have met, the friends we have made, all come to an end. We know it is your way, but we may never come to understand it fully.

"And now we have forced you into this life. Against all that you were born to do, you will cease to change. You will never grow old, you will never become all that you were meant to be. You will live to see many mortal lifetimes, maybe even the end of your own planet." He paused with a profound sorrow in his voice. "And every day I pray you will forgive us for what we have done to you."

Crystal watched the Autobot leader with a quiet reverence as he spoke to her. His words brought to light a part of him she had not been aware of before. She caught a glimpse of what she was sure was only a fraction of how old the robot really was. In that moment she felt a timelessness flow between them. She saw time in a straight line shoot deeply in the distance of the past, Optimus Prime's past, and farther still into the future. Further than could be seen, always straight, never changing, never deviating no matter how far it went. Faced with the possibility of endless ages to come, Crystal did feel afraid.


It was night. The base was quiet and Prowl was alone in front of Teletraan's systems. With not much else to occupy his attention, he was using the computer's systems to go over all the evidence he had collected over the past week. Despite his shock at the shooting, he'd had the piece of mind to take pictures of the blood splattered on his hood before washing it off. It was a picture he didn't like to look at, but he'd saved it in the hope it would lead him to an answer. He had amassed a large collection of pictures from the entire scene as well as charts of estimated bullet trajectories and other related information, all in the hopes that he could get justice for his friend. The project had occupied the whole of his thoughts for some time now. While it had been decided there would be no formal action taken, he was having a hard time accepting that there was nothing he could do. There had to be a way to use his information to find Crystal's shooter.

Consumed in his planning, Prowl didn't notice there was someone standing behind him. She watched quietly as he rifled through his collection of research and pictures. Prowl froze when he finally realized someone had been watching him.

"That's quite a collection there," Crystal commented in the starkly silent room. "I'm sorry you were not able to use it."

"Give me some time," Prowl said. "I will figure something out."

"It's okay, Prowl, really. You don't have to."

"I do," he insisted, his fist clenched on the keyboard. "I was right there and I should have protected you. I should have done something for you. All I did was act for myself. I--" He paused when he felt her slim arms wrap around his neck from behind.

Her face pressed into the side of his helmet. "Let it go, please," she whispered. "Do that for me. Let it go."

He sat there for several minutes. Crystal could feel the muscle cables in his body tighten with the stress of his decision. "May I ask you something?" he then said.

"What?"

Prowl fiddled with a knob on the control panel. "Did you... wish to die? Really, did you think you would be better off?"

Crystal let go of him and sat down in the chair next to his. The chair was massive compared to her frame and she easily pulled up her feet and curled up in it. She watched the black and white Autobot, wary of what secrets he had discovered.

"You knew this might happen," Prowl continued as he watched her as well. "I think you were fully aware that you were dealing with dangerous men in New York. You didn't care if they came after you. You wanted them to, didn't you?"

She didn't respond, just sat there looking at him with those green optics in the pale light.

"Why?" Prowl asked.

There was a pregnant pause. "Because I didn't have anything worth staying for. All the people I loved were gone and it was just me." She shifted in her chair. "I didn't mind living, but I didn't mind letting go, either. I had no one worth staying for." She leaned forward, resting her elbows on the armrest. "But then you came, didn't you? And what was I supposed to do with you?"

Prowl's baby blue optics flickered. "I messed up your plans, did I?"

"You made me reconsider them. I had you, but I wasn't sure what was to be done with you."

Prowl turned back to the controls, closing his research files and going back to basic monitor duty. "Well you still have me, whatever that's worth to you."

Crystal rested her head on her arms, smiling at him affectionately, but not saying a word. The two lapsed into companionable silence. Hours passed as Prowl gave his attention to his sentry duty and lost track of the time.

As morning neared, Ratchet walked in with a quiet "A-ha" and stood over the chair Crystal still occupied.

Prowl glanced over as Ratchet scanned her motionless body with a small device.

"I finally caught her doing it," Ratchet whispered.

"Doing what?" Prowl asked in the same hushed tone, though he wasn't sure why either one of them were speaking that way.

"She's sleeping," Ratchet announced, putting his hands on his hips. "Her body systems are running normally, but mentally she's out like a light. I have no idea if it's even healthy for her, much less how she's doing it."

He looked over at Prowl. "If you really want to help her, you'll get on Prime's back about transferring Perceptor down here. There's too much guesswork going on. We need an expert."

"I can suggest it, but I can't make Prime agree," Prowl said, turning back to his screens.

"You aren't fooling me," Ratchet insisted. "If you want something bad enough, you'll find a way to get it."

Prowl paused. "I'll see what I can do."

Ratchet grinned. "That's all I can ask."

Close File #004 Change- Optimus Prime


File #005 - Family

It was the day after Thanksgiving, Black Friday. The first storm of the winter season had arrived, Oregon's infamous freezing rain leaving a dangerous layer of ice all over the roads. The Witwicky family wouldn't let ice stop them from enjoying the craziest shopping day of the year. They knew an expert driver they could rely on to transport them safely in any kind of weather.

"Why do they even have open-air malls out here?" Daniel complained, slouching into his black trench coat. "Who wants to be outside in this weather? It's freezing."

"Oh come on, it's fun!" Clarissa insisted. She slid on the ice with her large boots with a certain talent that came from years of practice. "Besides, if we went somewhere else, Bumblebee wouldn't have been able to come with us."

Daniel kept his thoughts about that to himself. He'd always considered Bumblebee his father's friend. The yellow Autobot just had a personality that rubbed him the wrong way: too happy to be considered cool. But for whatever reason, Clarissa had adored Bumblebee since meeting him that Halloween night. She eagerly went wherever Daniel invited her so long as Bumblebee was driving. Daniel really liked Clarissa, so Bumblebee drove.

His parents were also there with them, strolling arm-in-arm several paces behind them and trying to be sneaky about buying presents as though Daniel still believed in Santa Claus and didn't know exactly what he was getting for Christmas.

"Hey!" Clarissa called as she caught a glimpse of the frozen rink in the market square. "We should all go skating!"

Daniel frowned at the idea. Skating sounded so lame. "I don't think Daniel and I have ever done it. But I'll give it a try," Bumblebee said.

"You might break the ice," Daniel warned him.

Clarissa just laughed. "He can't break it, it's frozen solid." She walked right up to Daniel, her face in his. "Is that true you've never skated?"

Daniel's cheeks grew warm and he ducked his head away. "It's not my thing," he said lamely.

"Well that's okay, I can teach you," Clarissa grinned.

"Well I don't know if-"

"Hey!" Clarissa called to Daniel's parents. "Do you mind if we go skating for a while?"

Carly tried hard to not chuckle as she noticed her son's horrified expression. "That's fine, we might join you later."

Clarissa grabbed Daniel's arm and dragged him down to the skating rink with Bumblebee in tow.

"Boy, when that girl knows what she wants, she sure goes for it," Carly commented to her husband as the teens left.

"Sounds like someone else I know," Spike ribbed her.

"Don't pretend you don't like it," she teased him back.

"Yup, I guess we Witwicky men just like strong women."

"But can't admit when they don't know how to ice skate," Carly grinned knowingly. "Are you going to let me teach you this year?"

Spike cleared his throat uncomfortably. "I can admit it. I've just never had the time to learn."

"Great!" Carly said, tugging his arm. "We have time now, let's go!"

Spike's expression mirrored his son's perfectly as the teen was forced to rent skates and lace them up.

"You coming?" Clarissa called, already on the rink.

Daniel muttered that he was.

"Alright," she grinned. "I'm going to take a quick warm up lap around the rink. I'll be back for you, okay?"

Daniel allowed himself a deep frown when she finally left. He didn't get much of a chance to brood before Bumblebee approached him, looking a little conspicuous.

"Hey Daniel," the yellow Autobot said in a hushed tone. "Do you know what you're getting Clarissa for Christmas?"

A bit of teenage moodiness caused Daniel to frown at the insinuation that Bumblebee knew well him enough to think he was going to get a present for her. But, as he had been considering doing just that, he let it go. "Why?" he challenged.

"I keep seeing her look at this piece of jewelry. I took a picture of it for you." On a small screen on his wrist, Bumblebee showed him the picture he'd taken.

Daniel scrunched up his nose at it. "A butterfly pendant?" Daniel demanded. "She's not into that kind of thing! Look at her. She must have been looking at something else."

"I don't know," Bumblebee replied. "She went back to it at least twice and I could see her line of vision went right to this."

Daniel shook his head and awkwardly made his way toward the rink on his rental skates. Clarissa gracefully skated up to him, her breath clouding in the cool air. "Ready?"

Daniel looked like he would rather be anywhere else, but Bumblebee happily picked him up by the collar and stepped into the rink. The Autobot had wide feet with tire treads that gave him perfect traction on the ice. Daniel, however, had to cling to Bumblebee's arm or risk falling right on his backside. He couldn't decide which would be more embarrassing.

"Come on, take my hands," Clarissa urged.

Daniel looked at her with wide eyes, still clinging to Bumblebee's arm.

"Come on, it's easier when you start moving, I promise."

Daniel finally relented and held out both his hands to her. She took them and began to skate backward easily, pulling her with him a bit as he tried to stay up. "I feel so stupid doing this," he admitted after a while.

"Don't be, you're doing great!" Clarissa insisted. "A lot better than my first time. I totally thought I was all that when I was learning and skidded right onto my face!"

Daniel managed to chuckle but immediately lost his balance and slipped, pulling Clarissa down with him. He was immediately mortified, but Clarissa started laughing as she sat on the ice. "See? This is fun!"

Daniel actually managed a smile. "Yeah, maybe."

Clarissa shook her head at him. "You just can't stand to admit when you're having fun, can you?"

Daniel slumped guiltily.

"It's okay," Clarissa hit him lightly with her shoulder. "I can tell without you saying anything. Though I have to say," she continued as she got back on her feet. "Bumblebee is probably having a lot more fun than we are."

As Daniel let her help him to his feet, he managed to glance over to see that several pretty young woman had gathered around the Autobot and were all flirting with him.

"I'd be jealous if I didn't have you," Clarissa grinned, hugging his arm.

Daniel felt his cheeks grow warm again, and this time he didn't fall down.


Bumblebee approached the two teens as they turned in their skates and prepared to leave. "Here, Clarissa, I got something for you," said the yellow Autobot as he handed her a small bag. "Think of it as an early Christmas present."

The teen looked delighted. "For me? Thank you, Bee!" As she looked into the bag, Daniel gave him a very fierce 'no you didn't' look. Bumblebee just smiled and shrugged.

"It's that butterfly pendant I wanted!" Clarissa exclaimed with glee. "It reminded me of my mother. She had one just like this. Thank you Bumblebee!"

"Actually, it was Daniel's idea," Bumblebee insisted. "He was just too shy to give it to you."

"Really?" she turned and squealed at Daniel. Before he could respond, she had already jumped on him and hugged him around the neck.

From a safe distance away, Spike and Carly watched the scene with much amusement. "Look at Bumblebee, playing matchmaker," Spike chuckled. "He thinks he's so smooth."

"Well, he's had a bit of practice," Carly said. "He's the reason I started dating you."

Spike's jaw fell open. "Now, wait a minute! Are you saying you wouldn't have been interested in me if I hadn't been friends with an Autobot?"

"Yeah, that's pretty much it," Carly nodded unapologetically. "Face it, Spike, you were a bit awkward then and I was definitely out of your league."

"So what, then? You married me for my Autobot?" Spike demanded.

"No," his wife insisted as she snuggled up to his arm. "I married you for you. The Autobot just brought you to my attention." She laughed at the look on Spike's face as he tried to decide whether that was a compliment.

"Spike, Carly," Bumblebee greeted them. "We can go ahead, Daniel says he'll catch up."

Carly shook he head at him. "Don't think I don't know what you're trying to do. That trick isn't going to work on every girl you use it on."

Bumblebee grinned. "It worked on you, didn't it?"

"Now, wait just a minute!" It was Carly's turn to look offended as her husband laughed.

As the two broke into good-natured banter, Bumblebee followed behind them with a smile on his face. A vague concept of family existed among his kind on Cybertron, but it was nothing like what he experienced on Earth. Human family members were bonded more deeply than any Cybertronian could comprehend: by blood, by genes, by the soul, and by love. Bumblebee may not have had many of those things in common with the Witwickys, but the bond was still there. All of them together were family and without any one member, the family felt incomplete.

Optimus Prime had told him many years ago on Cybertron that if you fight to protect cities or even planets you are bound to lose. But if you were fighting to protect life, those that you loved, nothing would be able to stop you. And maybe, Bumblebee realized, the lives on his home planet were not the lives he was meant to fight for. These lives were, these people he had met who loved him and invited him into their lives. These people were his family and they would always have him as a protector for their children and the children of their children. Until time rendered them obsolete, until bloodlines faded and metal rusted and Earth and Cybertron were mere whispers in the universe, Bumblebee would stay and never look to the stars to wish for home again. His home and his family were here.

Close File #005 - Family Bumblebee