Authors Note: Okay guys, I know I've been gone for a really long time. A lot of stuff has been happening this summer, so my time has kept running out. I've been applying for new jobs, suffering through the one I have, going on vacation, and having writers block. Things haven't been going very well at my job, but I managed to keep it together. Never get into a yelling match with a coworker, it doesn't help. I thank my characters for stepping in for me last time I updated. I really wasn't in the mood to speak for myself.
Ella: You're welcome!
Anyway, I think this might be the longest chapter yet. Believe me, my aft hurts from sitting here so long. I just couldn't stop once my concentration was on. I don't know how well I kept Optimus in character because I concentrate on Ratchet so much. I tried to keep him the stoic, strong, noble character I like, while having him try to talk to a 13 year old. I like to think I pulled it off. This is the last leg of the journey before the surgery chapter. I have no idea how I'm going to write that one without grossing you guys or myself out. That's going to be a tough one. It's almost been a year since I started working on this, and I'm very proud that I stuck with it for so long. You guys are the biggest reason! Reviews keep me going, so write them if you can. Love you guys!
Title: The Journey: Optimus Prime.
"Ellie? Hey, Ella!" Mikaela waved her hand in front of the girls face, snapping her out of the zone she had gone into. The two friends sat beside one another on a work bench while Sam sat on the two steps leading into the garage area.
"What? I was thinking." Ella looked to her older friend. She wasn't lying, but she didn't want to go into detail. She hadn't even realized that Mikaela was sitting beside her until she came out of her own world. To their left, Sam let out a low moan sound. After being delivered the knock out blow, Ella had to go inside and retrieve an icepack for him.
"Well, you need to stop for a second and fix that hole you just chewed into your lip." Mikaela turned Ellas head toward her by pushing on the young teenagers cheek.
Ella reached up and ran her hand over her lip. On it, a streak of blood was left behind. "Son of a buck." She tried to wipe the blood off her hand onto her thigh, but it didn't work so well. She couldn't stand the taste that now flooded her mouth. It was like sucking on a salty nail mixed with glitter glue.
"Were you having a snack?" Bee chuckled. He had long deserted his holoform and now spoke from his radio. Ella knew that using his holoform drained him of his energy, and she didn't want him to go into stasis lock before she left. She couldn't imagine how Ratchet managed to keep his on much longer. Could have been age, but she wasn't sure.
"Stop being so nervous." Mikaela handed her another clean rag, as well as her dried off eye patch. Ella had been so out of it, she hadn't noticed her friend had left her side to grab both items.
I'm noth nervth!" Ella exclaimed with the rag in her mouth as she put her patch back into its place.
"Run that by me again?"
Ella plucked the rag out and pressed it to her bottom lip, "I'm not nervous!"
"Optimus is a really nice 'bot when he's not in a hurry." Sams higher than normal voice almost made Ella crack up, but she held it in.
"I know he is, but I've never been stuck alone with him. He's probably going to think I'm some little ditz or something because he's smarter than I could ever be." She wiped her lip again to try and stop her chew-hole lip from bleeding again. If lips could scar easily, hers would be full of holes by now. "I wouldn't want to talk to a thirteen year old kid if I was some leader of a race of giant robots."
"That would be interesting if you were." Bee said. "I can only guess as to what you'd do as the leader of the Autobots."
"Make pink paint mandatory." She sneered evilly as the yellow Camero. "You'd look really nice like that.
"Okay, never mind." Bee almost sounded a bit scared at the thought of his precious black and yellow paintjob being turned into the color of bubble gum.
"You'll be fine. If you don't want to talk, I'm sure he'll let you be quiet." Sam dropped the icepack to the side, but didn't get up from the steps into the garage. "You brought that backpack full of stuff you can entertain yourself the rest of the way there."
Ella bit her lip one more time, but winced away when it hurt. "Well…that's the problem. My backpack isn't full of books or videogames."
"Really?" Mikaela looked a bit confused. "I figured you'd keep that kind of stuff with you. I've seen you bored and that's not a pretty picture."
"I'm not that bad."
Sam shook his head. "Three Novembers ago, you nearly trashed our old apartment bathroom trying to cover your sister in flour."
"I wasn't bored," Ella crossed her arms and shook the blood streaked rag at the two, "it's called 'antiquing', and I was just trying to get her back for stealing my squishy ammo that morning." She wanted the attention off her right away. "By the way, Bee was a girl yesterday."
Sam and Mikaela rolled their eyes in unison. "Whatever it was, you were a terror." Sam picked the icepack back up, but only to play with it between his hands. He then looked to his car. "Wait, you were a girl? What the heck were you doing?"
"I'm not in this conversation."
"Why would you turn into a girl?"
"Please drop it."
"So, what do you have in the bag?" Mikaela asked.
"It's nothing, just some stuff I'll need for the next month." Ella watched the Mikaela as she walked over to the backpack and picked it up.
"It's pretty heavy." She pretended to lift it like a dumbbell.
"Please, just give it back." Ella reached out to grab it away, but it was too far. She grabbed her crutches and carefully hopped down from her seat.
"Okay." Mikaela handed the bag to the young teenager. Leaning on one crutch at a time, Ella managed to get the bag onto her back. It was indeed heavy, as Ella had to lean forward a bit in order to keep from tipping backward. She had forgotten that it really was heavy.
"Does anyone else hear that?" Sam suddenly spoke up, looking toward the entrance to the garage. The two females looked, but didn't see anything. It was their ears that allowed them to see.
"It sounds like a Mack truck." Ella said. In an instant, her eyebrows popped up and she started to rush into the open air.
"Better make that a Peterbilt." Sam smiled as he stood up…slowly.
"It's Optimus!"
Sure enough, the blue and red flamed truck was coming down the street, mindful of the other cars parked in on the sides of the road. Ella hobbled down the driveway, stopping at the end to wave to the on coming visitor.
"She doesn't look that nervous anymore." Bee called from the garage. He activated his holoform once more and followed the three out.
The decaled truck hissed to a stop before Sam and Mikaelas home, the air compressors whooshing as the brakes ceased all movement. Even if Ella had met him once before, she felt she would never get used to how big Optimus was in either form. "Morning."
There was a slight flicker as Optimus activated his holoform right in front of the girl. It was far different from the form she had met before. Instead of the clean-cut doctor type man he had presented himself to her aunt, he was now a gruff looking and bearded trucker wearing a blue flannel shirt and jeans. She didn't know why, but he reminded her of a person in a slasher movie. She let out a startled noise and moved back slightly.
"I did not mean to frighten you." He said with a warm look in his eyes.
"No problem. I just didn't think you were going to do that." She smiled, slightly embarrassed over her reaction.
"Sir," Bumblebee stood before his leader, "Ella has gathered her belongings and is ready to disembark." It was odd to see him so serious. Hanging with Sam usually made him into a bit of a joker and caused him to act like a typical college aged person.
"Very good, Bumblebee. Consider your part of the mission complete." He then looked to the two adults. "You all did a good job caring for Eleanor."
"With all due respect, it really wasn't that hard." Mikaela wrapped an arm around Ella's shoulders. "She's a fun guest, and is always welcomed in our house."
"Just as long as she doesn't get her foot stuck in Bees bumper again." Sam almost shuddered at the thought of the pain.
Optimus looked confused as he looked back to his scout. Bumblebee just shook his head, but didn't laugh like he wanted to. "I will relay that information in the report, Sir."
"I will be looking forward to it." Optimus raised a brow and motioned to Ella. "Come, Eleanor. We have many miles to go, and a schedule to follow." The holoform disappeared as the passenger side door swung open.
"Just a second." Ella turned back to her friends. "Thanks for letting me stay here." She wrapped both of them in a big hug.
"Not a problem. We love seeing you." Mikaela hugged her tightly before allowing Sam to pick the girl up and swing her around.
"We'll be visiting in a few days, so you better get well fast." He set her back on the ground, making sure her feet were in the right position. Couldn't have the charge of a medical expert getting hurt before she saw him again. He would come after them.
"Hey Bee, air five." She held her right hand in the air as Bee let his hand fall through hers.
"Don't torture Ratchet too much. Remember what I told you about him throwing wrenches when he gets mad."
"I won't." She hiked her backpack up a bit and started for the passenger door. In the drives seat, Optimus had his holoform back on and ready to go. She got as far as the step before she realized she needed some help.
"Need a lift?" Sam asked as if he could read her thoughts. She nodded and allowed him to come over and pick her up. She tossed her crutches and backpack inside and grabbed hold of the door to help her up. With a final yank, she fell onto the passenger seat.
"That was graceful." She said as she shifted herself into a sitting position. The door closed automatically and the seatbelt crossed over her, holding her to the seat lightly.
"Are you ready?" Optimus asked.
Ella looked out the window and waved to her friends. Her heart had started to beat faster at the thought that she was leaving them behind. It was just going to be her and Prime for a length of time that she had no idea about. The same nervousness she had denied earlier had returned.
Still…"Yeah, let's roll."
X
She didn't know why, but she didn't feel very comfortable as she sat beside the holoform driver. She had just met Optimus the day before, so she wasn't too sure about spending a lot of time with him. The only thing she had to go by was the late night stories Ratchet would tell.
"Nice day." She said, tapping her fingers on the door handle.
"Indeed, a very good day for travel." He answered kindly. Talking about the weather was always a good way to start a conversation.
"I thought it was supposed to rain, but I guess I was wrong." She shrugged.
"Humans tend to be naïve when it comes to fully predicting the weather." He didn't sound annoyed, but he didn't sound that interested either.
The girl played with the hem of her shirt. "Do you guys have tongues?" She then put her mouth into the crook of her elbow and bent down into her lap. "Don't answer that, please don't answer that."
"If you don't want me to, I won't." Optimus only shrugged at her. He seemed quite unaffected by the girls sudden question.
"Good. That was really dumb." She clicked her fingernails on the door handle again. She suddenly took her hand away from the handle, thinking that her tapping might be annoying him. He didn't give that indication, but she knew how Ratchet got when she did that to him. He had told her it was like when a human gets an ice cube dropped down their back.
"Eleanor." He said out of the blue.
Ella jumped a bit, drawing her hand in closer to her body. "Sorry, I won't do that again."
"Eleanor, is there something the matter?" Optimus asked, sensing the girls discomfort. His senses may not have been as strong as Ratchets, but he could tell when something was amiss.
"No, not at all." Ella shook her head, returning her gaze out of the window.
"My appearance bothers you." He said.
She looked over at him in surprise. He had practically read her mind about that part. In fact, he was a little on the creepy side. "Would you be mad if I said yes?"
"Of course not. Tell me what bothers you and I can accommodate."
"Well…" she bit down on her lip, but stopped when she felt the pain of her chew hole from earlier, "the beard is a little too scary movie for me. I don't know why, but it reminds me of that."
Before Ella could think about what she said, the beard vanished. "Better?" He smiled at her with his now very much visible mouth.
Ella shook her head quickly. "Oh yeah, that is a huge improvement."
"Now, what is really troubling you?" He asked, looking at her out of the corners of his eyes. Ella didn't know it, bit she was still giving off a nervous energy. It's nearly impossible for humans to control some of their body reactions, so even Ellas lie could stop this.
"You're not going to give up until I stop lying, are you?" She asked, wrinkling her forehead. He was clearly no different than Ratchet in that sense. It seemed she couldn't hide anything from a Cybertronian.
"Are you going to be mad at Ratchet if I'm in pain after this?" This time, her question wasn't a mistake. She just didn't want to have to come up with another lie under such tired conditions. She needed a nap before she could accomplish that.
Optimus looked perplexed by the females question. "Why would I be angry? He is doing exactly what he was programmed and trained to do. I think I would have had to tell with him if he hadn't come up with a plan to help you."
Ella sucked her teeth loudly. "I know you guys aren't supposed to hurt humans. Wouldn't this technically be hurting a human?"
"Our laws are not always, as you humans say, black and white. There are many circumstances where causing pain is required. It is not, however, harming you in any way. You may feel discomfort, but you certainly won't be dying."
"So…" Ella started slowly, "killing humans is bad, but cutting them up is good?"
"In certain circumstances, that is correct."
"Wow, you guys are no different than the doctors at the real hospital. They'll slice and dice you up good, but make sure there is plenty left to send you home to your family." She snorted at the last part.
Optimus had to quickly look up the definition of the word hospital to make sure he didn't miss this meaning. "Where in the name of Primus did you hear that?"
"A kid in the burn unit named Charlie. Last time I heard, he was still stuck there." She tugged on her shirt again. "Called me before my birthday. He's doing pretty good. I hope he gets to go home soon."
"You were surrounded by such morbid concepts and people." He commented. "I do not think it is healthy to have such thoughts when you are that young."
"I don't exactly think it's healthy to get blown up in a house and pieces of it fall on you, but stuff happens in weird ways." She turned her eyes downward. "It's just a few days from the anniversary."
"It makes your heart rhyme change when you talk about it." The girls heart rate increased slightly, but just enough for Optimus to sense it.
"If anyone would have told me a year ago that the next time I saw this date I'd be missing a few body parts, best friends with alien robots, and an orphan, I would have called them crazy and turned them into a crazy house. Yet, here we are." She motioned her arms around the cab. "It's just weird to think how different things could have been."
"What do you think might have happened?" He was now very curious as to what was going through the young girls mind, and Ella could tell.
"Are you sure you aren't bored by this?" She said, shifting an eyebrow up. "Usually I try saying stuff like this to Celine and she falls asleep."
"I have been through a full recharge cycle, so that is impossible. My attention is yours." The leader 'bot looked at her when a kind smile reserved for a favorite uncle or a grandfather figure. Ella liked it.
"Okay," she said as she adjusted herself in the seat. "I think we would have moved into the new house, and my room would be perfect. I'd have all of my books in their places and a place for my stuffed toy collection. Most of those are gone now." She paused.
"Please, continue."
"Ollie probably would have graduated high school a few months ago, but I don't think he'd be even close to the top of the class. He was lucky he only had to retake English twice. Gracie would have saved enough money for a car, and sometimes would let me ride in it. Mom and Dad liked it better when I rode the bus though so my siblings didn't have to make two stops."
"And them, your parents?"
"I guess they'd keep doing what they were doing. Mom would be in the kitchen baking cookies and making those weird tablecloths when we were at school. Dad would work all the time with Ratchet on rescue missions…." She stopped for a second. "I guess I wouldn't know Ratchet was there at all."
"No, that information was not to be given to you until your eighteenth birthday. That is the age it was decided that you three would be ready to know about our race."
Ella shook her head. "I was starting to figure things out anyway. I saw Ratchet in holoform when we visited the new house and knew it was weird."
"We'll never know what could have been, only what has happened and how we are going to deal with it." Optimus took a turn a bit quick, forcing Ella against the door a bit.
"You know he doesn't come to the gravesite with me." She said as she leaned back into her spot.
"Oh?" This came as a surprise to the Cybertronian leader. It was odd to think that Ratchet would willingly leave his charges side for nothing. It was common that business could call them away, or Ellas human activities, but nothing like this.
"He doesn't want to go after the last time I went." She started to explain. "He doesn't like what I told him. I think it freaks him out.
"May I hear the story?" Optimus asked.
"Only if you promise you won't talk to Ratchet about it. I think it bothers him."
"I promise I will not trouble him." It wasn't like Ratchet to be so shaken by something that it required that it not be spoken of in front of him. He was a tough 'bot that could usually take even the most gruesome stories.
"All right, here goes."
X
"Celine, what the heck are we doing here? I thought we were going to the mall." Ella asked, her voice rising with a bit of anger as she saw the destination.
Celine ignored the girl as they pulled through the iron gate. Across the front, Ella could read the words Tranquility Christian Cemetery" in shiny gold letters lined with black. Past the fence lay hundreds of grave markers like short, grey men ready to pounce on anyone that walked by. It was easy to tell which ones were newer and the ones that had been there since the place began, but all others blended together. There were a few people scattered about, many with large wreaths with the word Mother across them.
"Oh no…no, no, no. Celine, I don't want to be here." Ella shook her head rapidly. It might have been a beautiful area, but it was till unsettling to the young girl. She didn't like this place. She could feel the pain of the death in her bones.
"Eet ieez your Moms special day. You are going to give 'er flowers." Celine proceeded to open the glove box and pull out a brightly colored bouquet of flowers. Ella didn't even know they were there.
"I don't like places like this. I know too many people out here." It was true. She had been in the hospital long enough to lose some new friends. Most of them had been buried at this very place. Near the vehicle, she knew one of the names on a headstone as a little girl that had been in a car accident.
"You want to see your family, do you not Ma Cheri?" She seemed sincere. Maybe, for once, Celine really was trying to act motherly. It wasn't like she was trying to poison the girl, just get her to visit her family.
"I do, but I'd rather see them at the dinner table arguing about what Mom made." Ella crossed her arms, surveying another group that entered. They were much older than she was. In fact, she couldn't really see anyone else that was her age or younger around the area.
"I do too." Celine squeezed the girls hand.
"Come on, lets just go. I bet if we get to the mall early, we can get a discount on something."
Celine just tugged on the Ellas arm. "'Ow about you zink of ieet zis way; you are 'ere to visit yourself."
Ella scrunched her chin inward. "What?"
"Zose pieces you lost, zay are 'ere as well. Your family iees 'olding a box with zee ashes."
"What!? Whose idea was that?" Her look was that of sheer horror. She had been told that her missing parts had been buried along side her family, just not the fact they were actually in the caskets with them.
"I 'ad them do it. Each one of zem 'as a little piece of you in zeir 'ands." She explained, practically pulling the girl out of the car.
"Are you crazy? I didn't need to know that!" She almost yelled. Celine put a hand over the girls mouth. Around them, people were starting to stare. The ones that recognized Ella as the house explosion survivor from the papers whispered to one another.
"Quiet down." She spoke in a hushed voice to her niece. "Zis iees a place of respect."
"Respect? What about my family? I don't think they really want to hold onto my eyeball for the rest of eternity." Ellas face was turning red.
"Only Oliver 'as zat." Celine answered uncomfortably. Ella could tell she was having a hard time explaining this matter, but it didn't really matter to the girl at the moment.
"Celine!" By now, Ella had admitted defeat and was leaning against the outside of the car. Her aunt reached back into the vehicle and pulled out the girls crutches.
"Please, Ma Cheri. I know ma soeur would love to 'ave you 'ere. Ieet doesn't matter what is buried with 'er, she loved 'er baby daughter She iees waiting for you to come to 'er." The older woman stroked the girls hair.
Ella looked like she was going to cry, but held it in. "Fine, I'll go for Mom." She looked up at her relative. "But you still shouldn't have told me about the ash thing."
"I'm so sorry about zat." She helped steady the girl. "I zought ieet would 'elp."
The preteen looked into her aunts eyes. She could see the sincerity and how much this really meant to her. Ella cracked a small smile. "Not so much, but better luck next time." Celine pulled the girl into a hug and began to help her down the path.
"Your mom would be so proud."
"I know."
X
"So, Ratchet doesn't want to go there with me. It kind of creeps him out that the rest of me is being held in my families hands."
Optimus didn't look at Ella. In truth, he didn't really see the reason of Ratchets reluctance in the story. He knew that Ratchet has experienced more death than most of the other bots in him troupe. Many of them had been sent off together, whether they were in one piece or not. No, this couldn't be why the CMO refused to visit the cemetery.
"Optimus?" Ella tilted her head.
"That was very interesting." He finally looked at her. "You have a talent for storytelling."
Ella brightened up a bit. "Thanks. I like to talk."
"And I like to listen." He didn't have the heart to tell her that he figured out the truth that it was really Ella who didn't want to return to the cemetery. Ratchet only went along with it because he didn't want the girl to become angry with him, nor be upset. He respected her boundaries too much.
"Sir, can I ask you a question?" She asked.
"Yes."
"Why don't you have someone to live with? I mean, the rest of you guys have a home." She had been waiting to ask this until she was more comfortable around him. As they drove on, she began to feel more at ease.
"It's simple…I cannot be tied down to one location. I need to be able to move about freely while my comrades can remain here awaiting orders. The only reason for your family and the others knowing of our existence is to ensure that they could leave without issue at short notice." He explained.
"But don't you want a human?"
Optimus paused for a second. "It would be nice to have a human to accompany me, but it would be far too dangerous."
"Dangerous? You're freaking huge! You'd scare off any person that tried to go after you." Ella made a wide motion with her hands, almost swiping her left one through the holoform.
"I wish it was that simple." He shook his head.
"Who else would there be? It's not like there's bad aliens out there that want to blow up Earth." She scoffed. "If there were, they'd be here by now."
The two sat in silence for a good moment. There was no real way to answer that without giving away the fact that there were bad aliens out there, and they were from the same planet as her best friend. No, it wasn't time for the girl to find out about the war in Cybertron.
"You look unrested, Eleanor." He spoke up. He scanned the road ahead as he talked. It looked clear enough without too many bumps. "You should recharge before we arrive."
Ella wanted to roll her eyes, but she didn't want to do it to the leader of a very powerful race. "I'm not that tired. I got about two hours last night." Her sentence was ended up a very big yawn.
"Two hours is far too few hours for a human to rest." He chuckled. This little human sure had a sense of humor, but he had to be strict with her. He didn't want her to be in less than perfect heath when they arrived at the base. "Just close your eyelid and rest for a little while. We still have a long trip ahead."
Ella knew she wasn't going to win this, even if she were to try and argue. This wasn't Ratchet she was with, she couldn't just talk her way out of something. "All right, but just for a little bit." She propped her arm up against the window and placed her head in her hand.
"If you sleep too long, I will alert you when we arrive." He said as her eyes closed.
"That's not going to be a problem. I'm really not that tired." She said through a smile. She must have been very wrong, because a moment later she was out like a light.
X
"Ella, you need to awaken." Optimus's voice was very fuzzy, but it broke through. At first, she had no idea who was talking to her. It could have been a dream, but she wasn't sure if she was even awake yet.
"Not yet, Ratch. I'm still sleepy." She groaned, shifting her weight. As she did so, her arm slipped off the window. Before she could catch herself, her head collided with the glass and the bottom of the window. As a bit of pain shot through her, she was instantly up.
"Are you all right?" He asked with much concern.
"I'm okay, it's not the first time." She rubbed the spot. It wasn't even enough to make a bruise. "Wow that was really dumb."
"Not tired?" He smiled, looking at the building that was just up ahead. "You slept the rest of the way here."
Ella looked out the windshield at an enormous building spanning in front of them. To her surprise there were many other buildings surrounding it, making the grey one in the middle seem much bigger than it truly was. Each had a dark brown roof and she spotted a few windows in the distance. It looked a little rundown, but each building looked big enough to accommodate such large beings. She could see why they picked this area. She had seen places like this before, but that was when she was on vacation.
"Whoa, this place is cool." She said as they got closer. She leaned forward to get a better look. "So everything is happening here?"
"Yes. You will not be leaving here until you are completely healed." Optimus pulled through a heavy gate that had opened at their arrival. As he got past the gate, it closed automatically behind them.
"It's big." She commented as they came to a stop. The passenger side door opened up as the holoform in the drivers seat disappeared. Around her, the seatbelt slid away into it's stored position.
"I'll help you out." His voice came out of nowhere.
"Okay, just don't drop me." She laughed and picked up her crutches from the floor. With one motion, she tossed them down onto the road. She then reached down with her good hand and picked up her backpack. This time, she strapped it on. "Okay, ready."
"Grab hold of the door." He instructed. Without questioning him, she latched her right hand onto the door handle and held on for dear life. Optimus was much taller than Ratchet even in vehicular mode. She had no clue how she was going to get down in one piece.
"Ready!" She called out.
"Hang on tight." He said as everything started to tip. She was grateful he had told her to hang on, because she would have been tossed out. Her butt slipped off the seat, and she was left almost dangling from the trucks door. She was so glad her arm was pretty strong.
"Holy crap, what are you doing?" She yelled out. Just as she thought she was going to fall, she felt pressure where each of her prosthetics connected to her. Immediately she let go, allowing herself to stand on the ground. She didn't dare move for fear she would lose her balance. She only turned her head and let out a gasp at what she saw. Optimus was tipped onto only two wheels.
"Oh my god." She whispered as the leader of the Autobots suddenly tilted the other direction and crashed back to the ground. Ella shielded her eyes against the dust that flung up. As she pulled her arm away, she saw him shifted to his normal mode. She felt the ground rumble a bit as he stepped from side to side, pieces clicking into place. She tried to turn around to get a better look, but she was knocked off balance. She moved her arms in wide circles, but still landed on her butt.
"You certainly are accident prone." Optimus said, finally reaching a hand down. He picked up her crutches before helping her to her feet.
"Oh yeah. I should be covered in bubble wrap." She said, steadying herself. She could see him looking at her blankly. "Never mind." On the ground, there were different tire tracks around. It seemed that Ironhide and Will had come and gone without the girl seeing them on the road. She had no clue where her belongings were.
"Here, this is a better view." He carefully picked her up and placed her on his shoulder. It was a little different than what she was used to. There weren't huge lights by her side that boxed her in like usual.
"Aren't we going in?" She asked as she clung to him.
"I thought you might prefer to wait for Ratchet." He said, turning away from the building. Off in the distance, they both could see a bunch of dust flying up from the road. "What in the name of Primus…"
"How the crap did he get here so fast?" Even Ella knew that he had a bit farther to driver since he was starting from her home. Still, here he was speeding straight for them.
"Ratchet, come in." Optimus spoke into his communication lines.
"This is Ratchet." The Autobot leader turn on his communicator so Ella could listen in.
"We have arrived at the base, but we can see you from our current position. You were not expected for another Earth hour or so." He said sternly.
"You are totally speeding out there." Ella called out, not really sure where the communicator was.
"Is he there?" Ratchet wasn't even listening to them.
"Who?" He looked to Ella, who shrugged.
"I have received a relay from Bumblebee that an incident happened while Ella was in route with Captain Lennox and Ironhide." Ratchet sounded mad as he came closer. Ella could even make out his red markings along his sides. She knew exactly what he was talking about.
"Oh crap." She froze. Before Optimus could ask anything else, Ratchet came barreling through the gate. He transformed as he kept moving, only coming to a stop nearby. This was the first time Ella had seen him with his hand in the form of a very large gun. He had shown her how he could use the buzz saws in his left arm, but never anything in his right. She had asked to see it before, but with no luck. Now, she was downright afraid.
"Where is he?" He growled.
"Where is who?" Optimus said, bringing a hand up closer to Ella as if to protect her. "Stand down, that's an order!"
Ratchet stared at his leader in anger for a moment before his weapon turned back into his hand. He approached Optimus, but didn't seem to settle down. "Ironhide is never to be alone with Ella again. He caused a problem in his part of the mission."
"If you would care to share it with me, I will take care of the matter."
Ella watched the two in silence. She didn't want to get in the middle of this, even if she was the subject.
"I am copying the conversion Bumblebee and I had and am relaying them to you now." His optics then came to rest on Ella, who held fast to her position with her good hand. With the other, she waved.
"Hi." She said, trying not to look guilty. It was her fault Optimus hadn't been notified earlier.
He held out his hand to her. "Come here." He said. Ella didn't want to make him even madder, so she followed his order. He brought her up to his shoulder where she came to rest in her usual spot.
Optimus appeared to straighten up as his completed listening to the conversation. He looked annoyed. "I will deal with Ironhide accordingly. What he said was wrong, but your actions following were not just. You broke many of the laws in this area, as well as could have injured a human."
"I understand that, Sir. It will never happen again." Ratchet nodded. Optimus looked at Ella.
"Next time, Eleanor, I need to know if any of my comrades are causing you problems. Hiding it will not do you any good." His faceplates had shifted to give him a softer look.
"Sorry. I just didn't want it to be a big deal." She tapped her best friend on the head. "Also, I didn't want him to beat someone up, even if it is Ironhide."
"Given the circumstances, Ratchet, you will not be disciplined at this time. When the time comes, you will have to answer up for the laws you broke." Optimus shifted his optics from the human to the Cybertronian. "For now, you both have a task to finish."
"Yes Sir." The two said in unison.
"That was creepy. Jinx!" Ella laughed. This broke the tension.
"I will be patrolling nearby through the duration of the procedure. If anything happens, you can contact me." He explained.
Ratchet nodded again. "I understand. I will call for you if anything goes wrong."
Ellas hair flung against the wind as she whipped her head around. "I don't like how you just said that."
"Good luck." Optimus said. The two bots saluted each other. "Ella, I will be visiting you in a couple days when you are well enough."
"Cool." She exclaimed.
"Goodbye, both of you." Optimus said, hints of a smile coming to his face. With that he started to walk away. Ella watched as her tall friend turned back into a Peterbilt truck and drove out of the base.
"Lets go inside. It is time we begin." Ratchet said as his leader left his sight.
"I'm scared." Ella answered. In the moments after Optimus left, it hit her that her journey had finally ended. It was time for her life to change again, but this time for the better.
"I know," He said, putting his hand up by her. "I will do my greatest work with you. Trust me."
"I do." She leaned her head against his. "Hey, were you really going to hurt Ironhide if he was here?"
"I would have made sure he could not take a step without feeling pain for at least one Earth month."
"Awesome."