A/N: Thanks for the reviews!

Chapter 9

As 'Bee dropped him off at school, Raf hoisted his bag onto his back and entered the large building. He never missed the looks he got from the other students due to his appearance; being a child prodigy had its faults. Thanks to being moved up several grades, he had little interaction with children his own age, but that was fine. He had Jack and Miko, not to mention 'Bee and the Autobots as his friends, so it evened itself out. Did he ever wonder what kids his own age did?

Yes, but kids his own age never go to hang out with alien robots every other day and have access to advanced tech. The only real drawback about attending a high school at his age was his size. Even if he wasn't the smallest member of his family, he was still pretty small; an easy target for anyone who wanted to push him around. And, sadly, the list was pretty long. Since his family never paid much attention to him (through no fault of their own), he had no one to confide in except 'Bee.

He'd thought about telling the other 'Bots, but decided against it; 'Bee knew there wasn't much he could do, but that wouldn't stop the others. Arcee would no doubt try something and since she was seen around town as Jack's "bike", he'd most likely get in trouble. Bulkhead and Miko would try and scare the bullies off with their usual antics, but that would only earn the Wrecker Optimus' disapproving gaze. The Prime would respect it as an issue Raf wanted to handle on his own, but Ratchet; not so much. He was glad he could count the medic as a friend, but something like this would only worsen his opinion of most humans.

As he went about his classes with Miko, he thought about what 'Bee had told him about Jack. During lunch yesterday, he'd nearly been kidnapped by that mysterious Decepticon. Thankfully, Ratchet managed to stop the act in progress, but they knew it wouldn't deter the 'Con. Optimus had decided that Jack would remain at base with the other 'Bots while Miko and Raf went to school. He had the "pleasure" of listening to Miko groan about how unfair it was on the way here thanks to the commlink system.

She'd almost made a scene at base, but one quick glare from Arcee silenced her. The femme was pretty scary when it came to Jack's safety. Raf couldn't help buy worry for his friend and what that 'Con wanted with him. He remembered Optimus tell Ratchet about how restoring his memory had made him an enemy of Megatron (something already in the works if what the Decepticon Lord mentioned during his brief stay at the base had any fact to it). So maybe this new 'Con was after him on Megatron's orders or something.

Whatever the reason, Jack was safe as long as he stayed in the Autobot base, protected by its shielding. The bell rang to dismiss them for the day; Raf emptied out his locker when it was slammed abruptly by Vince. The red-head's forehead had bandage on it from the table Jack slammed him into yesterday. From the look on Vince's face, the memory was still fresh in his mind. He smirked, "How's it going, half-pint?"

"Fine," he replied gathering his things and trying to leave, but Vince wouldn't let him. The boy grimaced, "Is there something you need help with, other than your math homework?" He couldn't help but smile as Vince growled.

"As a matter of fact," his smirk returned full force. "I need you to deliver a message to Darby for me." He picked up Raf by his collar, his smirk turning in to a devilish grin. Sometimes Raf really hated being so short.

FlameWar

As Jack sat on the couch, waiting for Miko and Raf to join him, he mulled over the last few days; among the most stressful of his life. On three counts, he'd nearly been kidnapped by an unknown Decepticon. She'd turned what was a relaxing day with Arcee into yet another "partner in peril situation" with Arcee. The femme had scarcely let him out his site during her time at base, but he endured. He knew this would only last as long as the Decepticon was out there and Arcee was currently out searching for her on patrol.

He hoped she didn't try and take this 'Con by herself, but he also hoped this would be settled and they could go back to how they were before this began. He hated when Arcee became so paranoid about his safety, but it was part of her he'd come to accept. He knew it wasn't easy for her to open up to others, especially him; it was a privilege he never abused. His thought were interrupted as the honk of horns filled the base, earning a groan from Ratchet. He always hated when Miko and Bulkhead showed up after school; it usually resulted in some form of trouble.

Jack walked down to meet them as Raf stepped out, earning a gasp from Jack and Ratchet. The boy's face was covered in bruises, his cheeks swollen and skin a sickly purple, blue, and yellow. His glasses were broken, revealing puffy red eyes. Ratchet immediately ran a scanner over the twelve-year-old, "Rafael, what happened?"

"Nothing," he sniffed, clearly upset by the attention he was receiving. "I'm fine."

"Fine?" Ratchet shot him an incredulous look. "Look at yourself! I'll admit my knowledge of human biology is far from that of scholar, but I'm certain your skin doesn't change color unless brute force has been inflict-"

"I said I'm fine!" the boy shouted, running off in another direction. Ratchet was taken aback by the outburst, but chose not to follow the boy. He knew that if Rafael wanted to talk about, he would only do so when ready. But this did not deter him as he shifted his gaze to Miko.

"What happened?" he asked in a softer tone.

"I don't know," she answered. "But I'll be you my entire Slash Monkey album collection it was that jerk, Vince. I saw him and his cronies laughing it up when Raf came out of school." The girl was too busy stewing in her own anger to notice Jack's face had darkened. He should have known Vince would not be above going after Miko or Raf if he couldn't find him. This was no doubt a message to him for a rematch; Vince had reputation to uphold, after all. Well, if he wanted a fight, he'd get it.

FlameWar

He waited patiently for Ratchet to head to the back of base, with the promise that Jack wouldn't touch anything, and for Miko and Bulkhead to depart for their usual dune-bashing. Once they were gone, Jack immediately activated the ground-bridge. Stepping through into a narrow alley, he turned back to make sure it had closed. He knew this was risky, stupid even, but the thought of what Vince had done to Raf made his blood boil. It was one thing to attack him, but it was something totally different.

Exiting the alley, Jack walked down the sidewalk, the sky turning its beautiful orange, purple, and yellow. It was a shame that he couldn't enjoy the sight like he usually did, but his was too angry. It didn't take long for him to find Vince and his friends. The red-head caught sight of the raven-haired teen and smirked, "Wondering when you'd get my invite, Darby! How's the runt?"

"If you wanted a fight, Vince, you should have just called," he growled, eyes narrowing. "But what you did to Raf…"

"I just roughed him up a bit," the teen shrugged. "Not my fault he's a crybaby." Before Jack could retort, a motorcycle engine echoed. All of Jack's anger disappeared as his blood ran cold; he knew that sound all too well. Vince was about to make another remark, before the flamed motorcycle sped out nowhere, stood on its front wheel and slammed him into a wall. His cronies immediately scattered as the bike snarled its engine.

"Hello, Jack," she spoke. "I missed you."

"Leave me alone!" he backed at away as it neared him. "What do you want!"

"You, of course," she replied. "All this has been about you and Arcee." She spat Arcee's name like it was poison. Before Jack could react, the bike shot a small device at his chest. He didn't have time to examine it before electricity ran through his body, knocking him out cold.

'Arcee…' he thought. 'Forgive me…'

FlameWar

A/N: I hope you enjoyed. At midnight, we Rise.