Author's Note: Hello everybody! Yes, Big Red is Optimus Prime, I can tell most of you weren't too surprised by that ;) But your guesses, (Ironhide was my favorite) were awesome. I would love to read a story like that, as I sorta missed my opportunity on that.

Anyway, I love all of your reviews, it's really helpful to have another pair of eyes reading my stories and pointing some things out for me. Like Raf's computer running low on battery, Jack's lack of interaction with the Cybertronians, etc...It's all very helpful to me. Thank you.

Happy Birthday to BIackrose13, hope you have a great day. This little gift is for you.

BTW, a Guest review had commented on a cybertronian electromagnetic fields. What does that mean? I would really like to know and see if I could fit that into my stories.

Jack watched anxiously as Optimus and Rosy stared at the screen, the simple message glaring at them. He swallowed nervously. What was going to happen now?

Optimus turned to face them, rapidly speaking to the children, his expression excited. However, he stopped when Rosy placed a servo on his shoulder, speaking softly to him. A look of disappointment then crossed his features, and it was then Jack understood that he had thought they could now talk to them.

"Do you have anything else?" he asked Raf.

Raf frowned. "I know 'hello, understood, and father.' That's about it." He looked up at Jack. "Sorry, besides their names, that's all."

Jack placed a hand on the younger boy's shoulder. "That's alright, at least we got a message through."

Rosy kneeled in front of them, her optics scanning them with understanding. Clicked chirps escaped her vocalizer, to which the children only stared at her in confusion. Optimus was typing rapidly on his computer, his optics flickering over to the children every once in awhile.

Rosy spoke to them in a low, almost rough tone, before switching to what sounded like a purr. Miko frowned. "What is she doing?"

"I think…" Raf started slowly. "She's trying to communicate with us with different languages."

"Can you understand her?" Jack asked.

Raf shook his head. "No, I can't."

Rosy paused, staring at them, her optics downcast. Jack came forward, gently touching the side of her pink helm. Rosy smiled at him, leaning into his touch. Jack grinned. "It's alright," he said. "We'll figure this out, somehow."

That night, all three children slept with Big Red...no, wait…Optimus. Jack looked up into the future Prime's blue optics. His servo covered the children protectively, his warm spark offering a comforting warmth.

"Do you think he and Rosy are married?" Miko whispered suddenly.

Jack turned his head so he could face Miko. Both his friends were on either side of him, as was their new routine. "I don't know. I mean, they don't live together, so I guess not."

He could see, thanks to the soft glow from Optimus's spark, Miko nodding her head. "I wonder if they have any kids later on in the future."

Jack smiled, the thought Optimus being a father seemed...right. He was always caring and protecting them. He was the leader of the Autobots, the provider and the warrior.

"But he's not Optimus at this moment," Raf pointed out. "He's Orion Pax."

Jack didn't see Miko frown, but he knew it was there. "I pretty much know him as Optimus Prime," she said.

Jack would have shrugged, if he wouldn't have disturbed his friends with such a movement. "So? My full name is Jackson Darby, yet I'm called Jack, or Jack-Rabbit. Here, I'm called Lechnie, whatever that means. But the different names I have don't change who I am as a person."

"But this is before the war," Raf said. "Optimus was living in a peaceful era. He was normal, he wasn't burdened by the responsibilities that come with being a leader. He's not even a Prime yet."

Jack frowned thoughtfully, his eyes flickering up to where Optimus was still awake. Now that he thought of it, Optimus was always awake when they went to bed. Did he stay up to make sure they would fall asleep?

"I guess," he started. "We will have to get to know Orion Pax here."

"And Megatron," Miko added.

Jack fought back a shiver. "Yes, and Megatron." Megatron was different too, he reminded himself. This was before the war, they were in a peaceful era. But when did Megatron start to change? Jack found it hard to believe that a friendship as strong as Megatron's and Optimus's could be destroyed within a matter of days.

A troubled thought occurred to him. What if Megatron was just deceiving Optimus? It was what 'Decepticon' meant. Deception.

With those thoughts in mind, Jack fell into a restless slumber, feeling the warmth of Optimus's spark lull him to sleep.

Rosy wasn't at work that day, which Jack found odd. But Optimus didn't seem too concerned as he strolled down the many shelves. Inside the box, Miko and Raf were napping, which Jack thought was strange. His friends seemed to be growing more tired with each day. Not to mention they had grown unusually pale, the dark circles under their eyes began to stand out on such a complexion. Glancing at himself through his dim reflection, he could see that he fared no better.

Optimus entered through the large doors, the guards saying nothing to him, though he did nod to them politely. Jack glanced back, watching as the large doors closed without a sound.

Optimus approached a simple desk, setting the box down. He looked in with a frown, watching the sleeping Miko and Raf. This morning, only Jack had awoken to Optimus morning routine. Miko had just grumbled, clutching her stomach as if in pain, while Raf didn't stir from his slumber. Jack could tell it concerned Optimus as much as it concerned him, he could feel the worry coming from Optimus. He didn't know how, but he made plans to ask Raf and Miko if they were experiencing the same experience of shared feelings.

Jack walked over to his sleeping friends, gently touching Miko's shoulder. "Hey," he said softly, kneeling down. "You alright?"

Miko's eyes fluttered open, before closing again. "I'm fine," she mumbled, her words slurred.

Jack felt his worry grow, and he could sense Optimus's concern wash over him. "Stop it," Miko muttered suddenly.

Jack blinked. "Stop what?"

"I can feel your concern," she groaned. "I'm fine."

Jack frowned. Miko could feel his concern? Just like he was sure he was feeling Optimus's. He glanced at Raf, wondering if the younger boy could feel the same thing. Closing his eyes, he tried to send positive feelings to his friends, but concern and worry was mixed in there as well. Raf blinked, opening his eyes with a smile before closing them again.

Jack stood up, thoughts running through his head. He glanced over at Optimus who hadn't moved, his blue optics aglow with helplessness. Jack just shook his head in defeat, not knowing what to do. Optimus's shoulders slumped before he sat down, the box next to his computer.

Jack walked forward, leaning against the box so he could see Optimus clearly. A small smile tugged his lips. "So this is what you do?" he found himself asking. "I've always wondered what you guys did before the war." He stopped, unsure why he was talking. But he could tell Optimus was listening to whatever he had to say.

"How did you do it?" he asked suddenly. "How did you lead your troops into an unknown world with your people so vastly outnumbered? I know I would have cracked under the pressure, but you never seemed uncertain in what you did. You always had the answers, and you never seemed to lose a battle." He let out a shuddering breath. "How did you lead them to safety? How did you...protect them?" Hopelessness washed over him as he glanced at his friends. Were they being affected by the time travel? Was it...killing them? The thought was horrifying to him.

A wave of comfort wrapped around him, and Jack found himself being picked up and held by Optimus. Jack snuggled right next to the warm spark. "I'm scared, T'o't," he choked out. "I'm scared." He wanted to scold himself for being so weak. He was the oldest in the group for Primus sake! He wasn't supposed to be in doubt or be uncertain. He wasn't supposed to be scared, doing so would never solve his problems. But at the same time, he couldn't help it. He couldn't stop the feeling of loneliness and helplessness.

Optimus cradled him close, speaking to him softly in Cybertronian. Another worried thought came to Jack. What if they died before getting a clear message across? What would happen to them, since they were stuck in the past? He looked up, his expression determined. He pointed to the box, indicating that he wanted to be put down. Optimus quickly obliged, watching as Jack sprinted over to Raf's backpack. Pulling out the notebook and flipping through Miko's pictures, he showed the one of 'Dead Cybertron.'

"Look," he said, pointing to the picture. "You need to understand this. You need to save your world."

Optimus quickly stood up, nodding his head, and Jack felt hope swell in his chest. Typing in a few things, Optimus quickly picked up Jack. He pointed at the screen, which displayed a large picture of Cybertron; alive.

Jack nodded. "Yes, that's your home." He looked at him. "But you need to save it." He stressed the word out, hoping the red bot would understand the important information.

Optimus gestured to the notebook, to which Jack started showing him the pictures, before being stopped by the future Prime. Optimus pointed at the Cybertron on the screen, then pointed at Jack, and shook his helm. He then pointed to the picture of Earth, then back at Jack and nodding his helm.

Jack frowned, confused. Did Optimus understand that they were from Earth? If so, then he didn't see how helpful that would be. Even if they could travel back to Earth, it still wouldn't be their right timeline. Still, at least it was something.

He sighed tiredly, rubbing his forehead. He wished Raf would wake up, at least he would know what to do.

Jack drifted in and out of sleep. During the times when he was awake, he could see Optimus and Gandalf speaking to one another, both their tones hushed. Gandalf shot the children a concerned look, his optics intense with worry. Jack found himself being pulled back into sleep, unable to stay awake.

He woke up again, feeling a dull pain in his side. He opened his eyes to see Miko stretching in her sleep, her foot digging into his side. Jack sighed, moving over to avoid her kicking feet.

Someone was in pain. That woke Jack up.

He scrambled to his feet, his eyes wide as he tried to find the source of that pain. It wasn't his own, but it was someone close to him. His eyes fell on Raf, who was still. Jack felt his heart stop in fear. No, not again.

He gathered his little friend in his arms, holding him close. "It's alright Raf, I got you," he said, rocking Raf back and forth. Optimus came forward immediately, picking them all up and holding them near his spark. Jack didn't know how, but he could tell that Raf's pain had stopped just by Optimus's presence.

Optimus didn't leave them alone after that. He carried them around when he sorted through the datapads and typed on his computer. Jack had to admit, Optimus was very fast when typing with just one servo.

Optimus received many odd stares from some of his co-workers, though he ignored them. That, or he just didn't care.

Miko had at last, woken up. She looked around tiredly before groaning. "Wow, I really needed that nap."

Jack smiled. "You okay?"

Miko looked at him with bright eyes. "Yep, I feel great!"

Jack chuckled. "Good," he said. He glanced over at Raf who was slowly waking up. "Hey buddy," Jack commented.

"Hey," Raf said, adjusting his glasses. He looked around, surprised that Optimus was carrying them around. "What happened?"

Jack shrugged. "I guess you guys just needed a nap." He tried to hide the worry and suspicion he was feeling, keeping his face expressionless. It didn't work.

Miko glared at him sharply. "What's wrong, Jack?"

He sighed. Apparently his friends could feel what he was feeling too, or he was a terrible actor. "I think...we are in more danger than we thought," he started.

Raf frowned, though Jack could feel that he was starting to understand what he was getting at. "You think we're dying," he said simply.

Jack winced. "Something like that," he said slowly.

Miko huffed. "We just took a little nap!" she protested.

"No, it was more then that," he said. "I could feel the pain you guys were in. It was like you were being pulled under while being attacked by...something!" He took in a deep breath. "It was like, you were going to sleep, only to never wake up."

Miko frowned. "So which is it? Are we going to get sucked into a bunch of nothing the longer we stay here? Or are we going to just fall into an eternal sleep?"

Jack felt his frustration grow at Miko's lack of concern. Why did she have to take everything so lightly?

"I'm not taking everything lightly," Miko snapped. "But freaking out is not going to help us in this situation."

Jack blinked, stunned. "Did you...did you just read my thoughts?" As crazy as it sounded, well, let's face it, they've been in crazier situations before.

Miko stared at him, a blank look on her face. Both teens turned to look at Raf, as if he had all the answers. The younger boy shifted uncomfortably. "I have a theory about it, but it's just a theory," he said quickly.

Miko frowned. "Okay, so what's the theory?"

Raf swallowed, and Jack could feel how nervous and uncertain he was. "I think we are all...connected in some way. Like we share a bond now."

Jack sucked in a breath. "Bonded how?"

"Have you ever noticed that all this started to happen when Optimus and Rosy started holding us close to their sparks?" Raf asked. "I'm not sure if that's the reason for it, but I think we are all bonded...like Cybertronians."

Miko frowned. "Like Cybertronians?"

Jack could feel Raf's worry fade away. He blinked. Woah, this was weird. How could he feel what his friends were feeling?

"There are many forms of bonding," Raf explained. "You can have a spark-bond, which is a bond between a mech and a femme when they become mates. They can feel each other's presence and hear each other's thoughts and feelings. Than you have a bond between two femmes, two mechs, or a mech and a femme that brings them together as siblings. It's pretty much the same thing, they can feel each other's thoughts and pain, though it's not as strong as a spark-mate's bond. Then you have the bond between twins, when two Cybertronians share a split spark. There's also a bond between siblings who are related by blood."

Raf paused, gathering his thoughts. "I think what's going on between us, is that we are developing a bond not only with each other, but also with Optimus and Rosy."

"Wow," Miko breathed after a moment of stunned silence. Jack nodded, he had known about the spark-bond, but everything else was new to him. He frowned. Why hadn't they asked the Autobot's more about their culture and language when they had the chance?

Guilt wormed it's way in, and Jack let out a shaky breath. Why hadn't he asked? When was the last time he had sat down to actually talk with Arcee and the others?

He felt Miko's hand on his shoulder, and he looked to see her eyes aglow with concern. He smiled, and she nodded, not needing to hear him say anything.

"So now we just got to get used to feeling each other's thoughts and feelings," he said, looking at Raf.

Raf shrugged. "Pretty much, I guess."

Jack let out a sigh. Well, this was going to be weird. He glanced at Miko, "Was that my feelings, or yours?"

Miko shrugged. "I think they were yours." She then looked at Raf. "How long have you known about the bond?"

Raf shrugged. "Ratchet explained it to me a few month's ago-"

"I meant about our bond," she interrupted.

Raf blinked. "Oh." He let out a breath. "I...kinda suspected it three days ago."

"And you didn't think to tell us?" Miko asked.

"I didn't know how you would all react," Raf said defensively. "And like I said, I wasn't too sure if my theory was right."

"Well, it seems to make sense," Jack said. "And the fact that our pain goes away whenever we are around the bot's shows that we are connected in some way."

At that moment, Optimus got up from his seat when Gandalf approached, holding a device in his servos. Optimus observed the strange object with a raised optic ridge. Gandalf just shrugged, before launching into a lengthy explanation.

"What is that?" Miko asked, wrinkling her nose as she examined the strange looking box.

Raf beamed excitedly. "It looks like some sort of machine. I wonder if we'll see it activated." The thought of witnessing new Cybertronian technology filled him with giddy excitement.

Jack frowned. "Why do I get the feeling that it involves us?"

Raf shrugged. "Maybe it does, or maybe it doesn't."

Gandalf started flipping on the small switch at the center of the machine. It almost looked close to resembling a typewriter. At least, that's what Jack thought it looked like. Gandalf pointed at the children, before back to the machine.

"Yep," Miko muttered. "It involves us."

They watched as Optimus started pushing a series of buttons, glancing at the children as he did so. Clicked noises came from the machine, before a familiar beeping buzzing sound came from the machine. Jack frowned, wondering why the buzzing and beeping sounded so familiar. Than it hit him. It sounded like Bumblebee!

Raf let out a gasp, and Jack could feel his astonishment. "What did it say?" Miko demanded, as she also recognized the sound but could not understand its meaning.

Raf couldn't answer, as he was at a loss for words. But the sounds came back to him as a simple, "Hello?"