As Moonracer entered the room where the two young humans could eat, she was assailed by the smells of various types of food being cooked. A short second later, Rachel's stomach began to rumble loudly.

"Wow! You just ate a big breakfast when you were a werewolf. Now your stomach's growling?" Annabelle exclaimed in surprise.

"She just ate triple portions in the medbay a short while ago as well." Moonracer supplied.

"If I really ate all that, then why am I so hungry right now?" Rachel asked in confusion.

"The reason you're so hungry is because your metabolism and rate of digestion is very high right now. Ratchet suspects that once you have reached your proper weight, that both will go back to normal, since that is exactly what happened while you were a werewolf." Moonracer answered.

"Are you saying I'm one of those weird people who can eat a ton of food and still stay skinny?" Rachel asked in surprise.

"Yeah! That's exactly what she's saying." Annabelle said with a snicker.

"I… I never used to be like that." Rachel protested.

"Well you are now… besides… you're a werewolf too!" Annabelle replied happily.

"Werewolves aren't supposed to be real." Rachel lamented softly.

"Yeah? Well what about robots from outer space? Is she supposed to be real?" Annabelle shot back while pointing her thumb over her shoulder at Moonracer.

Rachel looked over her left shoulder at the bot who was looking down at her with an almost gentle expression. She really didn't know what to say without being insulting. Werewolves, robots from space… what was next? Suddenly Rachel shuddered.

"I just hope vampires aren't real too." Rachel said nervously.

"Well why not? I mean, they got it wrong with the robots from outer space, they got it wrong with werewolves, so maybe they got it wrong with vampires too?" Annabelle suggested brightly.

"Oh man…" Rachel wanted to cry. All she'd wanted to do was go to her aunt's house so her step-father wouldn't hit her any more. Now she was sitting in the hand of a giant robot after changing from being a werewolf. Could her life possibly get any worse?

"Annabelle… stop teasing Rachel. You and I saw what she's like as a werewolf, but she doesn't have any type of proof that she isn't a bloodthirsty beast of wanton carnage. We've known about her being a werewolf for a while now, but Rachel is just now finding out about it. That information has her shook up and she needs time to adjust to it." Moonracer said firmly.

"Yes Ma'am." Annabelle replied glumly.

"Good, now, let's get you two something to eat." Moonracer said in a much more cheerful tone.

BREAK

"Hey Mom!" Annabelle called out upon seeing her mother enter the rec room. "Check out who Wolfie turned into."

Sarah stopped in her tracks to glare at her daughter scathingly. "That's not funny Annabelle!"

"It wasn't meant to be… because it's true! It's not my fault she turns all warm, fuzzy and licky." Annabelle declared in a bright tone.

"Rachel, just ignore Annabelle right now. I think Ironhide has just proven to be a very bad influence on her." Moonracer said airily.

Sarah walked up to the table and offered her right hand to shake. "I'm Sarah Lennox, Annabelle's mother, though she may soon wish I wasn't!" She finished coldly with a look as hard as stone sent in her daughter's direction.

"Rachel Williams… uh… I guess… I'm… I'm the werewolf, because that's what everyone has been telling me." She replied as she shook the proffered hand.

"Rachel, I'm sorry about my daughter. I thought that she had been raised better than that." Sarah said sincerely. "On the other hand… I'd like to thank you for helping her yesterday. Even a mild concussion can be a very serious injury and you got her to Ratchet right away… so thank you."

"I'm sorry… but… I don't remember doing that." Rachel replied hesitantly.

"Well… whether you remember it or not, you still helped my daughter, and I truly appreciate that." Sarah returned after letting go of the girl's hand.

Rachel nodded her head as the woman sat down. She really had no idea what to say about any of this. All these people seemed to know her, but they all knew her when she was… was… a werewolf! She had been different and yet as many nightmares as she'd had about being different, she hadn't hurt anyone!

"Hey Momma, we gotta do something about getting Rachel some more clothes to wear. I gave her the shirt and shorts, but even those shorts that are too big in the waist for me to wear are pretty tight on her." Annabelle said seriously. "My underwear don't fit her at all so she doesn't have any on right now." She added very softly.

Sarah frowned as she studied the girl sitting across from her. Now that she knew what to look for, she quickly recognized the T-shirt that Rachel was wearing. That was when she realized that as a werewolf, Rachel hadn't been wearing any clothes at all. That would definitely need to be corrected.

"Annabelle!" Rachel hissed in soft dismay.

"Rachel… it's okay." Sarah told the girl with a soft smile.

"She was just letting me know about a problem so I can do something about it. Now, I don't care if you remember doing it or not… the fact is, you got Annabelle to medical treatment immediately. You helped her, so now I'm going to return the favor. A little later, we'll go to Wal-Mart and get you some clothes. Since you'll need everything… that's going to be our best bet. Sound like a plan?" Sarah suggested reasonably.

"That'll cost a ton." Rachel protested softly.

"It might, but considering your… unusual situation… I think we can use an expense account for this. Besides, you'll need something to wear for tomorrow and you definitely need something to sleep in tonight… now don't you?" Sarah said in a firm but kind manner.

"Yeah… I really don't wanna wear any more of those paper gowns." Rachel answered ruefully.

"Good. Because I don't think we even have a paper gown on this base. I know we have some cotton gowns. I also know that Ratchet redesigned them so they cover a lot more than a regular hospital gown does. It's still easy to get off an immobile patient though, because there's a lot of snaps to it." Sarah said informatively.

Rachel nodded her head before turning her attention back to the glass of milk in front of her. She was now convinced that this wasn't the lab, because she'd never been treated this nicely.

BREAK

Rachel was sitting in the back seat with Annabelle, while Sarah sat behind the wheel of the pink and white Dodge Challenger that Moonracer had changed into. She still couldn't believe that all of the robots were able to change into something else like a car or truck. It was a pretty weird feeling to know that the car she was riding in, was actually Moonracer.

Rachel was glad to be sitting in air conditioning because it was really hot outside. The Military base was just outside of Las Vegas in Nevada. It was in a dessert and that proved that she was a long way from the state of Washington, with forests, mountains, and that stupid lab!

She would be happy to admit that Moonracer had been really nice so far. She had a bed, dresser, and even a footlocker in Moonracer's room right under her bed. Rachel just could not believe how big the robots needed things to be. She could put a whole bedroom under Moonracer's bed. There was still room for another dresser with a T.V. plus some kind of cabinet that she could use for a closet. Not that she had any of those things, but there sure was room for them.

Rachel looked down at the folded T-shirt, shorts, and flip-flops that were sitting in a bag on the seat next to her. Mrs. Lennox had gotten her everything! Clothes, shoes, underwear, socks, shorts, shirts, shampoo, soap, body wash, toothpaste, toothbrush, mouthwash, floss, and hairbrush… Mrs. Lennox had gotten it all!

A glance at the cup in her hand made Rachel smile guiltily. Mrs. Lennox had stopped at McDonald's and even though she just wanted a chicken nugget kid's meal, Mrs. Lennox had gotten her two twenty piece chicken nuggets, two large fries, and a large root beer. Rachel had been sure that she wouldn't be able to eat all of that, but the only thing she had left was part of the root beer.

Annabelle had thought it was funny. She'd even made the comment that Rachel could eat more than her and her mom put together! Rachel hadn't been very happy when she thought about that. She felt like she was being a pig, but Mrs. Lennox had told her not to worry about it, that she had a high metabolism and that was a valid medical reason to be eating so much.

She and Annabelle were quietly playing 'I Spy' when they pulled up to the gate of the Base. Both girls immediately went silent so the grown ups could talk.

Moonracer quickly sent her identification to the datapad in the Guard's possession. The guard gave her a hard glare before nodding to the occupants of the car.

"Care to tell me where that vicious beast is?" He asked in a snarling tone.

"Excuse me?" Sarah demanded in disbelief. "What did you say?"

"I want to know if that damned thing is in a cage yet!"

"Uh oh." Annabelle said softly.

"Hush Annabelle. I've got this." Sarah said firmly.

"Yeah Kid… shut up and let the adults talk!" The man snapped while glaring into the back seat.

"You are the one who needs to shut up and leave my daughter alone! She didn't say anything to you so don't ever tell my daughter to shut up again!" Rachel said angrily.

"Rachel… I need you and Annabelle to both be quiet while I handle this." Sarah said in a calm tone that belied the angry expression as she glared at the man.

"And just how do you plan to 'handle' this?" The man demanded with a sneer.

"That's actually very simple Lieutenant Sanders." Sarah replied with a smirk after a glance at his collar and name tag. "I'm going to show you my ID, and then I'm going to have my husband deal with you for the way you've addressed his wife, daughter, and the werewolf who risked her life getting Annabelle medical treatment."

"I haven't said a damned thing to that beast, and don't plan to either! I'll let my plasma rifle say all that needs to be said!" Lt. Sanders shot back smugly.

Just then, everyone's attention was drawn to the noise that was made by a large black GMC Topkick sliding to a halt. General William Lennox got out of the large truck and slammed the door. The only clue to the man's rage was the eyes which flashed with anger.

"Lieutenant!" The General snapped tightly.

"General… is there a problem?"

"You bet there is!" Lennox answered angrily. "That's my daughter you just told to shut up!"

"Sir! I didn't…"

"Save it!" Lennox interrupted angrily. "Moonracer sent Ironhide the entire conversation. So I've heard all of it!"

Lieutenant Sanders stayed silent but his expression showed that he wasn't at all happy with how things were turning out.

"Now I'll grant that neither my wife, my daughter, or Rachel are your superior Officers, so I can't really do anything on that score… but… the fact that you just spoke to civilians in a manner that is completely unbecoming of an Officer, and issued a serious threat to a minor civilian is going to get you some brig time if I have anything to say about it." General Lennox continued.

"I never threatened any kids!"

"You 'Communicated a threat' against Rachel. The girl sitting in that backseat next to my daughter is the werewolf!" Lennox shot back without hesitation. "You issued a threat against a minor, in the presence of that minor!"

"You're telling me that girl is a stinking animal?" Lt. Sanders demanded while pointing at Rachel.

As the adults continued to argue, Rachel sat there quietly even though tears had begun to flow down her cheeks. She hadn't asked for anything like this to happen. She never wanted anything like this to happen; the only she wanted to do was to get away from her step father who kept hitting her all the time. Now she was causing a lot of problems for people she didn't even know.

Moonracer was not in a pleasant state of mind right then. As soon as she had seen who was attending the gate, she had sent a communication to Ironhide. She knew that mech would know exactly where his human friend was, and he had. The instant the man at the gate had spoken those first few words, Ironhide had informed her that he was on his way accompanied by General William Lennox. That didn't help Rachel though. The poor girl was crying if the tears running down her face were any indication. In just a few short hours of observation, she had seen that Rachel was very obedient and willing to comply with any request made of her. The simple fact was that Rachel simply would not cause any type of problems. The girl actually sought to avoid any type of conflict by repeatedly asking for confirmation on something that was being done for her.

As soon as a pair of hand-cuffs were placed on Lt. Sanders, Moonracer noticed that Rachel's silent tears escalated to quiet sobs and ragged breathing.

"Rachel… I want you to relax. You didn't cause this… he did! My guess is that the General is simply using his threat towards you as a way to get back at him for telling Annabelle to shut up. He didn't like that at all!" Moonracer said gently.

"Are… are you… are you sure?" Rachel asked through her sobs.

"Yeah! Dad's torqued as the bots would say! He's madder than a hornet with a squished nest. That guy really ticked him off because I don't think I ever saw him that mad before." Annabelle said softly.

"Annabelle… you should hush now. Your father is handling this… and yes he is very mad right now. So am I! He should never have said what he did." Sarah said in a quiet hiss of anger.

"Okay. You two can be as mad as you want. Me and Rachel will sit back here and not bother anyone." Annabelle replied.

"Neither one of you has caused any problems at all. From what I've heard from your father, this isn't the first… or even the fifth time he's gotten out of hand like this. He's had plenty of warnings about his attitude, and this was just the last straw; so the only person he can blame for this is himself." Sarah told Annabelle softly.

Sarah would have said more since she could hear Rachel crying, but they were waved through to proceed. Moonracer was doing the driving, so she didn't need to do anything. She waited a few minutes until they were away from the gate before she turned around to face the two girls.

"Rachel… I want you to listen to me. You didn't cause this! He's the type that likes to sound off on almost everything, and it's gotten him in trouble before. You were just an excuse for him to say something. It wouldn't have mattered if you weren't with us, he probably would have still said something to Moonracer, or to me, or probably to Annabelle since she's young enough not to have an ID." Sarah said seriously.

"Are… are you sure?" Rachel asked in a soft, uncertain tone.

"I'm positive! This didn't have anything to do with you. You've done everything that I've asked you to do, so don't think you've done something wrong, because you haven't." Sarah stated firmly.

Rachel nodded her head and tried to stop crying. She knew that was what Sarah wanted from her. She sat there in the back seat and stayed quiet so she wouldn't cause any trouble. She declined to say anything because she could tell that Mrs. Lennox was mad.

When they arrived at the hangar that led them underground, Moonracer reduced her speed to ten miles per hour. She wasn't taking the chance of putting a human at risk. The corridors were more than wide enough to accommodate a pair of bots in their alternate modes, along with various troops on foot. She drove to her quarters and let the three humans out.

Sarah began pulling the numerous plastic bags out of the trunk. She placed them on the bed, and Annabelle started pulling the items out of the bags and removing the tags, so the Rachel could put them up. Once all the bags were unloaded, Moonracer transformed and knelt down so that she could watch what was going on.

"Thank you again for letting me stay here with you. I'll do my best to stay out of your way and not bother you." Rachel told Moonracer sincerely.

"Rachel, I have been tasked with being your Guardian. Most likely for the duration of your stay on this base. That means that I will need to have you close enough to me to keep a watch over you. It's not because you are in trouble either! I will be watching over you to make certain that you are not injured, keep you out of trouble, and protect you. You are not in my way, and you are not a bother or source of annoyance. Your furniture has been placed under my berth so it will be out of my way and I won't accidentally damage anything by stepping on it." Moonracer explained.

"You mean you have to do this?" Rachel asked.

"No, not really." Moonracer replied. "I can avoid this assignment if I choose, but I don't see any reason to do that. You are very cooperative, and polite. You also try to avoid causing any problems, so sharing my quarters with you will be no bother at all. I'll admit that we don't know each other that well yet, but that will change in time."

"Do you really think we'll get along okay?" Rachel asked uncertainly.

"Yes, Rachel, I do. I didn't have any problems out of you when you were a werewolf, so I don't see how I can expect very many now." Moonracer answered evenly.

Rachel was focusing on her conversation with Moonracer, so she didn't notice it when Sarah and Annabelle slipped silently out of the room so the two could talk.