A/N: This is about when Lori starts to get in other trouble...

She sat bolt upright, gasping and clutching her chest in terror. It took her moment, but she realized she was awake and slipped back onto the pillows. She tried to relax and go back to sleep, but she was too shaken and morning light was flooding into medbay anyway.

"Are you all right?" Jazz asked, having witnessed the whole, if brief, event.

"Yeah," Lori answered tiredly. "It was just a nightmare. Ugh… that felt too real, and I knew I was dreaming the whole damn time!"

"Wanna talk about it?"

"I guess I should…" Lori muttered. She then recounted to Jazz all she'd experienced, adding how she blamed the painkillers for keeping her asleep.

"Some dream," Jazz remarked. "Maybe it's a sign or something. You should look into it."

"Well to be honest, it's not the first time," Lori growled. "I tend to have nightmares after I get into fights. It's probably my conscience telling me to stop fighting, but people just piss me off so easily! Honestly, Barricade is the only one who's never triggered my anger. Hell, he's calmed me down when I've been on the verge of strangling someone."

"Well it's a good thing he's on our side then," Jazz. "But now that you're awake, do you want to do anything?"

"That depends on Ratchet letting me," Lori muttered.

"Oh, who cares what he thinks?" Jazz joked. "Besides, it's fun to mess with him."

"That's twisted, but I like twisted," Lori said. She got up and wrapped her blanket around her like a cape. Jazz took her to the mess hall to get her some coffee.

In Ironhide's hangar, Shadow slowly awoke with a leisurely stretch. He'd spent the night with Ironhide since he was Lori's father and didn't want to sleep in medbay. Yawning, he shook off drowsiness and prepared to find his Master.

"You're up early," Ironhide muttered tiredly.

"I just wanted to see if Lori was awake," Shadow admitted.

"I doubt it," Ironhide said. "We might as well keep working on your training."

"Alright," Shadow replied. "Can I use one of the runways? I want to show you my top running speed."

"Let's do that," Ironhide agreed. "We can use the runways." Ironhide escorted Shadow to the flight line, where various humans were milling about doing their jobs. Shadow did his best not to look intimidating as he walked onto the end of a nearby runway. With the Raptor equivalent of a smirk, Shadow crouched low and took off running, rapidly reaching a speed of 80 miles per hour as he bolted down the runway. Optimus and a group of Generals were walking on the tarmac when Shadow zoomed by them, and Shadow let himself glance back to see the impressed expressions on all of them, but Optimus was keeping them from asking questions.

"Go Shadow!" Lori yelled in the distance. She was walking out with Jazz at that moment, and looked delighted at her "pet's" display of speed.

"Thatta boy, Shadow!" Ironhide called. The momentary distraction kept Shadow from seeing a fighter jet taxiing down an intersecting runway, but before they collided, Shadow leapt over the aircraft with several feet to spare and continued to run. He stopped at the end of the runway and gave Optimus a sheepish look, but to his relief, Optimus gave him a thumbs-up in approval of his ability. Shadow happily ran back to his starting point, but at half the speed.

"Wow that was way faster than his extinct counterparts!" Lori remarked.

"That's because Cybertronians are awesome," Jazz teased. Lori laughed in agreement. Ironhide gave Shadow encouraging praise as he petted and gently scratched the Raptor. Shadow happily accepted the praise, another purr-like growl escaping him. Deciding to turn training into playing, Ironhide grabbed a discarded piece of metal piping and initiated a game of fetch with Shadow. Lori giggled as Shadow chased after the thrown pipe, always catching it midair and returning it enthusiastically to Ironhide, his tail lashing in excitement. Ironhide added some challenge by throwing multiple pieces of pipe, but Shadow still managed to catch them all.

"Good boy, Shadow!" Lori praised.

"Wanna try, Lori?" Ironhide offered. Lori nodded and Ironhide passed her the piece of pipe they'd been using, now riddled with teeth marks. Lori threw it with all her might, but Shadow needed to only take a step to catch it since she was smaller than Ironhide.

"Nailed it!" Lori teased. Shadow stood proudly with the piece of pipe in his jaws.

"This has become a weird family," Jazz muttered. "We've the father, the daughter, the pet, the crazy uncles, and the weird boyfriend… but we still need more girls."

"We can include Josie," Lori joked.

"Yeah, but I barely know her," Jazz said. "We need a family bonding session with all the family there. Though having more femmes would be nice too."

"That's our term for girl," Ironhide quickly explained.

"That would be cool," Lori agreed. "You know, Josie could very well be out here, seeing that her aunt works here and all. Josie can be a total girly-girl, but she's a drumming master."

"Well you're perfect just the way you are," Ironhide said as he lifted Lori up into a hug.

"Thanks, dad," Lori said happily.

"So how are you feeling?" Ironhide asked. "You had us all worried, even Optimus, although he'll never admit it."

"I'm definitely feeling better," Lori answered, "but I'm still pretty shaken. When you said I'd never get another quiet day again, I wasn't expecting getting kidnapped."

"Sorry, Lori, but I attract trouble like a magnet," Ironhide teased. "I guess you got that from me too."

"Considering all the fights I've gotten into?" Lori giggled. "I'm hardly surprised."

"We're fighters," Ironhide said. "It's in our blood… slash energon." He chuckled at his little joke as Jazz rolled his optics.

"Well, thankfully it hasn't gotten me into trouble," Lori said.

"Yet," Jazz teased.

"Ha, funny," Lori replied. "… though, why do I get the feeling I'm going to get in trouble really soon?"

"It can't be avoided," Jazz said. "You're on our base where a bunch of different bots or people could get you into trouble."

"True enough," Lori muttered.

Elsewhere…

Barricade sat in the busy mess hall, nursing a cup of coffee. In the brief time he'd been human, he'd grown to need the warm beverage. He looked up to see Sam Witwicky and Bumblebee's holoform walking in and getting some food. Bumblebee spotted him and he and Sam came to sit with him.

"Hey," Barricade greeted, looking sheepish.

"Friend of yours?" Sam asked Bumblebee. Barricade felt glad Sam didn't recognize him like this.

"Yeah, I'd consider him a friend," Bumblebee answered. "Wanna introduce yourself?"

"Yeah," Barricade muttered. "I'm Cade."

"Just Cade?" Bumblebee asked. Barricade gave him the 'I-don't-want-to-freak-him-out' look.

"Well, how are ya, Cade?" Sam greeted. "What are you here for? You don't have that military haircut, so…"

"I'm Lori's boyfriend," Barricade answered. "It's a long story, but it started off with her nearly running me over."

"That's a great way to start a relationship," Sam joked. "I started mine by finding out about Bee and the others."

"I kinda got Lori into this craziness," Cade said, "but she's handling it pretty well… considering Ironhide is her father."

"Yea, Bee mentioned that," Sam replied. "I didn't know our species could, ya know, mix…" he blushed awkwardly.

"She surprised us all," Bumblebee said with a chuckle.

"I don't know how that worked either," Barricade said, "but Lori is definitely more like her father. She's has changed me for the better, though."

"Hey, that's women for you," Sam said with a chuckle.

"Lori's pretty nice for the most part, but when she's not…" Barricade trailed off for effect, "It's smart to avoid her until she loses steam."

"That's how my girlfriend can be," Sam mused with a laugh. "Bee said I could meet this Lori after I ate something."

"Yeah, so eat up," Bumblebee said.

"Chill, Bee," Sam chided. "I know you're my guardian, but calm down."

"That's how Ironhide is wit Lori," Barricade said with a laugh. "Also how Ratchet will be when he finds out she's not asleep like she's supposed to be…" He'd seen her sneak out of medbay, but didn't want to turn on her for such a little, trivial thing.

"Damn, she is like her dad if she'd dare face that medic's wrath!" Sam remarked.

"If we hurry, we'll get to how that plays out," Bumblebee said.

"She's definitely stubborn," Barricade muttered.

"Let's go before we miss it," Sam said, rapidly finishing his food.

Barricade, Sam, and Bumblebee were walking out to the flight line to join the others when Ratchet walked outside at the same time, looking less than pleased.

"Lori, I never said you were cleared to get up," the medic snapped, crossing his arms. Lori was at a loss for words when the trio walked up.

"Can I vouch for Lori?" Barricade asked.

"Go ahead," Ratchet growled, glaring at Lori.

"She was unconscious for who knows how many hours yesterday," Barricade said. "I imagine the last thing she wants to do is sleep. Plus if she's up and walking on her own she's probably recovering just fine."

"Fine," Ratchet muttered sourly. "Barricade, do me a favor and wear her out so she won't protest this evening."

"What do you have in mind?" Ironhide asked, looking like he didn't approve of the idea of Barricade wearing his daughter out.

"Don't be a third wheel, daddio," Jazz teased with a laugh.

"I was hoping Lori could teach me to fight… like a human," Barricade admitted. He had no 'muscle memory' for fighting moves in his new body.

"As skinny as you are right now?" Lori asked. "I don't know what I could teach that wouldn't kill you by exhaustion."

"Ugh, this is so awkward," Barricade complained. "I didn't mean to make it awkward…"

"I doubt you had any bad thoughts," Lori teased.

"Never," Barricade answered quickly.

"I guess you don't mean any harm," Ironhide said as he set Lori down. "Run along you two, and be careful."

"We will!" Lori assured with a giggle.

"Could we invite Bumblebee?" Barricade asked. "I need to make friends somehow."

"Sure," Lori agreed, "but he might kick your ass."

"Yeah, but you'll teach me to defend myself right?" Barricade asked.

"Of course," Lori assured. "Let's get to the training room!"

"As tempting as it is to see Barricade get his aft whooped, I think I'll go take a nap," Ironhide muttered as he watched Lori and Barricade leave. "I don't even remember the last time I logged some recharge."

"That sounds like a good idea," Jazz replied as he stretched. "Sadly, I still gotta run through a training simulator with some of the new guys. I love seeing their faces when they discover they have us living here and that they work with us."

An hour later, Lori had taught Barricade a great deal of self-defense, but he was already wearing down.

"Where do you get your energy, Lori?" Barricade asked breathlessly.

"Probably from my dad," Lori answered. "What's wrong, you tired already?"

"No…" Barricade tried to lie.

"Liar," Bumblebee said as he tossed the ex-'Con a bottle of PowerAde.

"Thank Primus," Barricade said as he caught the bottle. He opened it and chugged half the contents in seconds.

"Wanna help him review what he just learned, Bee?" Lori asked. "Just go gentle on him."

"If you say so," Bumblebee teased. Sam cheered Bumblebee on from the bleachers.

"Kill me now," Barricade muttered in embarrassment. "I'm gonna make myself look like an idiot."

"You can do it, you big chicken," Lori teased. "Here, let me pluck your feathers." She grabbed Barricade's sides and tickled him.

"And I thought I used to be evil!" Barricade yelped as he squirmed out of her grip. He froze when he realized his tongue had slipped. Luckily, Sam didn't seem to notice since he didn't know the Autobots extremely well.

"If I'm too much to handle, I've been teaching Sam to fight as well," Bumblebee said. "Wanna have a go at him instead?"

"Nah, I'd rather have my af- err… ass kicked by you," Barricade replied, shaking his head.

"Fine," Bumblebee said. "But even if you were your old self, I'd just whoop your aft again because I already could."

"Yeah, yeah," Barricade muttered, "Now let's throw down." He and Bumblebee widened their stances and smirked at each other. Bumblebee made the first move and moved in, to which Barricade reacted with sidestep and attempted to throw a punch.

"You're too slow, and that's predictable," Bumblebee commented as he ducked and spun a leg out. Barricade was hit in the leg and sent to the floor, yelping in surprise.

"That was sloppy, love," Lori chided.

"Yeah, well, I got startled," Barricade defended as he got up. Not a second later, Bumblebee was on top of him. Barricade yelped and scrambled to get away, looking afraid.

"That was mean, Bee," Lori teased.

"I'm an Autobot, but I don't have to be nice," Bumblebee said. He toyed with Barricade and made sure he didn't get too far away.

"Lori, help!" Barricade cried.

"I would if I wasn't so entertained," Lori teased. Helplessly, Barricade spun around with a defensive stance, but he still looked afraid.

"Grow a pair and fight me!" Bumblebee demanded as he charged again. "At least make this interesting. Pretend your old buddies are watching." Bumblebee then lifted Barricade up by the collar of his shirt.

"Put me down!" Barricade begged, blushing. He thrashed and tried to kick Bumblebee.

"Oh my, I'm a terrible teacher," Lori muttered. "Be nice, Bee!"

"But I am," Ironhide said. "Great job, Bee! Show no mercy!"

"No, please go easy on the twig!" Lori countered with a laugh. "He's barely picked up on basic evasive and fighting moves."

"The twig should know how to fight," Ironhide said. "He's been fighting for millennia." Bumblebee gave a merciless grin and body slammed the poor ex-'Con. Just then, Optimus and Jazz walked in.

"Here I was thinking I was the only bi mech around here," Jazz teased while Optimus smirked. Barricade cursed and scrambled out from under Bumblebee.

"Stop running and fight!" Bumblebee snapped. Sam walked down from his perch and greeted Optimus. Jazz activated his holoform and pulled Sam into a noogie.

"What do think of Lori?" Jazz asked. "A real spitfire isn't she?"

"Yeah," Sam replied quickly. "Bee, help!" Lori had fallen off her seat, laughing.

"Ah Primus, I'm such a fragging goober," Barricade complained. "I even suck at fighting now…" He was so disappointed with himself that he didn't notice Bumblebee was distracted by Sam.

"This has taken an odd turn," Lori commented as she calmed down.

"Typical day here," Ironhide replied.

"Man, why did my house have to be dangerous?" Lori asked

"My fault, sorry," Barricade muttered.

"It's not entirely your fault," Lori replied.

"You're welcome to stay on base," Optimus offered.

"I would love to, but I have so much gear at home," Lori replied. "I have my knife collection, band gear, and also my mom's car, which is completely immobile under its own power. My house is also where my band practices because the living room is huge. Is it possible to have a few soldiers move into other houses in the subdivision? I know of at least two or three for sale around me."

"I'll see what I can do," Optimus said after an aggressive nudge from Ironhide. He dipped his head in good-bye and left.

"Man, Lori, you're more of a Decepticon magnet than me," Sam remarked.

"Tell me about it," Lori said in agreement.

"Ouch," Barricade muttered.

"I wasn't talking about you, silly," Lori assured. "Besides, you're not technically one anymore anyway."

"What?" Sam asked.

"It's just an inside joke," Lori said, realizing that Sam didn't know that her love interest was a reformed Decepticon.

"Yeah, just an inside joke," Barricade agreed.

"Okay ,then," Sam muttered. "Anyways, I'm heading to a party where I'm meeting up with my girlfriend. Do you guys want to come?"

"Can I dad?" Lori asked. It felt funny to her, asking her father permission to attend a party when she was a grown woman.

"I don't think it's a good idea, Lori," Ironhide answered, "You're recovering from breaking your shoulder and getting kidnapped. Plus the Decepticons are after you."

"Come on, Papa Hide, let Lori enjoy herself," Bumblebee said. "You know I'll be there because I'm the ride, plus it'll be really crowded and it's public. The Cons won't know she's at a random party."

"Please let me have some fun before I go on the road?" Lori asked.

"Ratchet is going to kill me…" Barricade mumbled under his breath.

"I'll deal with the Hatchet," Ironhide said to Barricade.

"I'll keep Optimus busy," Jazz said. "I know he won't want you off base."

"You guys are the best!" Lori declared.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Barricade asked.

"Absolutely," Lori answered.

"Don't be a party crasher, Cade," Sam said.

"Well you should do something about your hair, and do you have a dress?" Barricade asked.

"I'll just ask Jazz," Lori said.

"I'm happy to help," Jazz replied.

"I am so gonna die today," Barricade muttered.

"Stop being a big baby and take Lori out," Jazz chastised.

"How do I expect to earn trust if I go behind Optimus's back?"

"Just say Lori made you do it," Ironhide said. "I'm sure he'd believe you."

"That's crazy!" Barricade complained. "Why would that even work?"

"Quit whining, Cade," Lori teased. "Anyway, how should I dress for a party, Jazz?"

"It's not a fancy party, more like a bonfire in the woods," Sam explained.

"Well then, I'd say dress comfy, but stylish," Jazz said.

"Ha, that's kinda hard considering none of my clothes fit me right," Lori joked. "I can definitely pull off a badass look, though."

"Right, right, my bad, you're 'Hide's kid not mine," Jazz said. "Badass works too."

"Now the other problem," Lori said. "All my clean clothes are either at the house or in medbay."

"Do you want to chance the house or medbay?" Ironhide asked.

"I'd rather chance the house," Lori said. "Distracting Ratchet will be too risky."

"Alright," Ironhide said. "Bee, get going. Jazz and I will start distracting."

"Thanks dad!" Lori replied happily as Bumblebee transformed and she got in. "Cade, are you coming?"

"Fine…" Barricade agreed reluctantly.

"Let's go!" Bumblebee said as Barricade got in. He closed his doors and the party of four took off. They successfully got off base without Ratchet or Optimus noticing.

At the house, Lori got out of Bumblebee feeling victorious. She was glad that they'd made it there without the unwanted parties knowing.

"This is a really nice place you have, Lori," Sam commented. But as he looked at all the damage the Decepticons had caused recently, he muttered, "Oh… yikes."

"They killed off the weeds all over the yard at least," Lori joked as she fished her keys out of her pocket. "Cade, while I freshen up, could you pack up the lights?"

"Of course," Barricade answered. Lori unlocked her door an opened it, revealing the untouched light setup.

"Wow, this stuff looks awesome!" Sam said. Bumblebee activated his holoform and settled on the couch to wait for Lori to freshen up.

"Thank you," Lori replied. "I was teaching Cade here how to program and control all this. My band is reuniting and we need a dedicated techie."

"It's pretty easy once you get the hang of it," Barricade said as he got started taking the setup down.

"Cool," Sam replied. "Will I get a discount on tickets?" He chuckled at his small joke.

"I'll consider it," Lori said as she headed to her bathroom. She closed the door and the sounds of running water followed shortly after. Barricade was very delicate in putting away each individual piece of equipment. He also made sure to carefully wrap up the sensitive DMX cables and put cases back in the same order as he and Lori had taken them out of the room where they were being stored.

In the bathroom, Lori was happily washing her face and doing what she called a "quickie wash" on her hair. She inhaled the scent of her coconut soaps and she massaged her scalp and face with them. She even indulged a little and went so far as to wash her neck and arms. It had been so long since she'd attended a party that she wasn't hosting. Even if it wasn't an indoor party and she'd probably just get dirty again, she still did a thorough job of washing up so she'd make a good impression on all the new people she would meet. Besides, her hair had been starting to feel a little greasy and she just hadn't had the time to tidy it up since the whole kidnapping fiasco. She deserved a little personal time after that.

"So are you looking forward to the tour?" Sam asked Barricade.

"Oh, definitely," Barricade answered. "It'll be my first tech job."

"What kind of music does Lori's band play?"

"She's told me that they're a rock band," Barricade replied.

"So I'm guessing you know who plays what?" Bumblebee asked.

"I don't know everyone's names yet," Barricade admitted, "but I do Lori does guitars and vocals, then she's got two guys who do guitars and vocals with her, she's get a drummer, and she someone who plays piano, electric keyboard, and synthesizer."

"That's awesome," Sam said.

"She's showed me home-made recordings of stuff they've done, and they sounded pretty great back then," Barricade said. "They'll probably work hard to sound even better."

"Wow, it's getting close to party time," Bumblebee muttered. He spotted Lori exiting her bathroom and asked her, "Could you hurry a bit? We still need to pick up Mikaela."

"Can do," Lori said as she shut her door.