A/N: Yay, bonus chapter! Since I'm a bit jazzed that I managed to eliminate a few plot elements I was really unhappy with and that really didn't work, I'm posting an extra chapter this week :D

It's a liiiittle bit of a filler, but it introduces some lines that will be important later on and some characters that will become regular side characters.

This one and the next is fairly short, but I couldn't really post them as one chapter, it didn't really work. So instead, I may post the other one before my scheduled posting on Wednesday, or post it on Wednesday and give you an extra chapter next weekend as well. I'll let that be up to you, so let me know what you'd like :)

Disclaimer: I own the guys you haven't seen onscreen.

The three giant cargo planes completely dwarfed the buildings next to the runway. Mattie stared at them in surprise. "How many of us did he think there were?"

Izabella giggled.

"One is for hauling the dead," Viviane said. "One is for us. The last, I guess, is because Lennox is playing it safe. Or he's bringing more equipment out of here."

A soldier walked out of the nearest plane and came towards them. He stopped in front of Mattie and saluted. "Lieutenant Hadley, ma'am. We need all civilians, plus Bumblebee, Cogman and Sqweeks, in the plane to the left ASAP. These your bags?"

Mattie nodded, and the lieutenant waved at two other soldiers to come take their luggage.

"What about Scattorshot and the others from the mansion?" Izabella asked.

"Already onboard, miss," Hadley replied. "They were taken straight in early this morning. We just need you, and we're ready to go."

Mattie turned to Jacques. "Please go back to France," she said. "This isn't your fight. You can just walk away."

He stared at her incredulously. "And leave my sister in the claws of these sinister aliens? No way." His face split in a familiar grin. "Besides, my maths course doesn't start for another three weeks. And there's so much I can learn here."

"Oh, let him stay," Izabella said, shouldering her backpack. "Who knows, maybe we'll even be able to teach him something useful."

Jacques grimaced. "Knowing physics and math is useful."

Izzy grinned at him. "You know what I mean. Something practical. Oh, come on, don't look at me like that."

Mattie threw her hands up. "Oh, okay. It's not like I've ever been able to talk you out of anything."

Jacques grinned and walked past her, heading for the plane. Viviane and Sqweeks followed him.

Mattie grabbed Izabella's sleeve, holding her back. "Don't think I don't know that you have ulterior motives here." She grinned at the younger girl.

"What, me? I have no motives whatsoever." Izabella gave her such a look of wide-eyed innocence that Mattie almost believed her. Then she grinned mischievously. "Or maybe I do. I did tell you I thought he was really cute."

Mattie grinned and shouldered her own backpack. "Oh, shut up. Let's get on that plane."

She followed the others towards the closest cargo plane, where the soldiers already were bringing Johnnie and her suitcase onboard. The plane was a whopper of a machine, easily the largest plane she'd ever ridden in. Bumblebee, walking in on his own, was dwarfed by the large cargo bay.

She tried to follow Bee over to one of the compartments with wheel anchors, but one of the soldiers took her arm.

"The civilians go up front, ma'am. Colonel Lennox' orders."

Mattie frowned at him. "I can't ride with Bee?"

Bumblebee heard her and turned back.

"Don't worry/angel," he said through the radio. His voice box was still gritty. "I'll just get some/recharge." He went down on his knee and kissed her head. She could hear some of the soldiers muttering behind her.

"Soldier, is this a long trip or a short one?" Mattie asked the man still holding her arm.

"A fairly long one, ma'am."

"Then I'll make Lennox pay for keeping me away from you," Mattie mumbled, walking up to Bee and pressing her lips against his chest armor.

He chuckled hoarsely. "Poor colonel Lennox."

"Don't speak, you idiot." She frowned at him. "I'll see you wherever, okay?"

He touched her cheek briefly with one digit, then turned and entered a compartment with wheel anchors on the floor.

Mattie let the soldier escort her to the front end of the plane where the others were waiting. Some of the soldiers they passed were staring at her openly, and she felt like snarling at them.

"What are you staring at?" she said instead, as they passed one group that just really couldn't keep their eyes to themselves.

"Nothing, ma'am," one said, blushing slightly.

"Damn right," Mattie grunted. "None of your business anyway." This is so annoying. Damn Lennox, he'd better have a good reason for this.

Soon, she was settled in a seat along one long wall, Izabella on one side and Jacques on the other. She leaned back against the seatback disgruntledly.

One of the soldiers across from her leaned forward and stretched out his hand. "Hi. I'm Quinn."

Mattie leaned forward and took the proffered hand. "Mattie Eden. Nice to meet you. This is Viviane, Izabella, my brother Jacques."

"Hi." He indicated the soldiers around him. "Michaels, Peregrine, Wolfe, Ryan, Johnson." Then he leaned forward again, smiling at her. "You any good with that guitar?"

"Johnnie? Sure," Mattie replied, grinning. "Why else would I drag him around everywhere?"

"I don't know," Quinn replied, smirking at her. "Maybe it's really just a case full of makeup or something."

Mattie snorted. "Like I would get that through security."

Quinn grinned at her. He was around her age, she noticed, with bright blue eyes and the short soldier buzz covering his scalp. He looked like he smiled a lot.

"Hey, you're not afraid to fly, are you?" he said suddenly. Then he smirked at her. "You know, you can sit in my lap if you get scared."

"Gee, thanks," Mattie said. That's… the cheesiest pick-up line I think I've ever heard. "Good thing I'm not afraid of flying." Izabella began laughing so hard she doubled over.

Quinn just shot her a crooked grin. "Just wait until we hit turbulence, it will look way safer over here. You'll change your mind yet." He winked.

"Quinn, stop hitting on the girl," Johnson said tiredly. He had his cap pulled down over his eyes. "She's taken."

"Oh?" Quinn shot him a sideways look. "I don't see a sign on her or anything."

"Miss Eden's datin' an Autobot," Ryan said, eyeing his fellow soldier smugly.

Quinn stared at her. "Really?" He grinned. "Which one?"

"Bumblebee," Jacques replied for her. "The yellow Camaro."

"Huh." Quinn looked interested, then he narrowed his eyes. "How do you manage?"

"What?" Mattie said curtly. This guy's really starting to piss me off.

"You know," he leered. "How do you do… it?"

Mattie stared at him. "Often, and with great enthusiasm," she sneered.

Ryan grinned and shook his head.

Quinn just eyed her slowly, from her knees to her shoulders and back. "Wow. You must be really…"

"Really…?" Mattie asked, frowning at him. She felt like she should cover herself from that stare, he was really stripping her naked with his eyes.

"Flexible," he smirked.

Mattie flinched.

"Quinn!"

The soldier looked up at lieutenant Hadley. "Sir?"

"Armory. Now." He pointed back towards the back end of the plane. "You will spend the trip cleaning up every single weapon in there, until I'm satisfied. Don't ever let me her you talk to a woman that way again."

Quinn glared at her, then stomped off. "Yes, sir."

Hadley walked past them into the cockpit. "We'll be off in a minute, lads. Ladies."

Mattie looked at her hands. I really, really wish I was back with Bumblebee right now. Izzy took one of her hands in her own.

"Ma'am?" It was Ryan, he was leaning forward and looking at her. "Miss Eden? Ah'm sorry about him. Quinn can be a real dick."

"It's okay," Mattie mumbled. "I guess I should get used to that kind of reaction."

He shook his head. "No, you shouldn't," he said. "What people think inside their own minds is one thing. That don't give 'em the right to talk to anybody like that. Don't let that moron bother you."

"Thanks," Mattie murmured. "I'll try."

"No problem." He shot her a wide grin. "Say, once we get airborne, you up for a duel?"

Mattie frowned at him. "A duel?" Is he hitting on me, too? God, I wish I was back with Bee.

"Sure," he said. Then he pointed underneath his seat. "Ah hear your Johnnie's got a real wicked sound, but Ah'd like to see him beat my Grace."

Mattie leaned forward. There was a guitar case under Ryan's seat, too.

She grinned, relieved. "You're on." Thank God. Maybe this flight will be bearable, after all.

"Wake up, Mattie." Someone shook her by the shoulder.

"All right, boys and girls! We'll be landing in ten minutes!" The voice was gruff and unfamiliar. Mattie opened her eyes slowly.

She was still in her seat in the plane, with her head resting against her brother's shoulder. She looked up, a bit groggy. Lieutenant Hadley was standing outside the cockpit door, looking around at them.

She looked at her friends, then across at the soldiers. Most of them were still sleeping – Izabella was watching her, but the others had barely moved.

She saw the lieutenant draw a deep breath, and straightened in her seat. Izabella started frantically trying to shake Viviane awake.

"All right, UP!" the lieutenant roared. Jacques jumped in his seat and looked around with wide eyes.

Hadley waited until everyone was looking at him, then nodded. "We'll be landing in ten minutes," he repeated. "Get ready." Then he turned and disappeared back into the cockpit, leaving the door open behind him.

Mattie looked at Viviane. "Get ready how?"

"The usual," Ryan said from his seat opposite her. "Please put your seat in an upright position, put down the armrest, stow your luggage under the seat in front of you or in the overhead compartment. Since we don't have either of those, jus' slide 'em under your seat." He grinned and nudged his guitar case with his foot.

The night before had actually been fun. Ryan's Grace had turned out to be a steel-stringed bluegrass guitar, and he was quite good at it. They'd been trading songs back and forth for over an hour.

The plane began descending.

"I can't wait to be back on the ground," Viviane groaned. "I was never meant to sleep sitting upright in an airplane seat for six hours. Where are we, anyway?" She stretched and tried to look out the cockpit window.

"We'll find out when we land," Wolfe said. "Nobody but the pilots and the lieutenant have been told."

"Huh," Izzy said. "Lennox must be still worried about the leak."

"Based on what he said, I think he has a theory now," Viviane nodded. "But he really doesn't trust the phone lines enough to tell us."

They landed with a gentle thump. Mattie and the others followed Hadley down to the base of the boarding ramp, where there was another soldier waiting for them. "Welcome to Diego Garcia naval base!" he cried. "Pay attention, please! All military personnel will go to hangar one! All Cybertronians will go to hangar three! All civilians will go to the administrations building!"

Mattie raised her eyebrows. "Diego Garcia?"

"There's Cade," Izzy grinned, pointing at a figure in front of a building next to the runway. Viviane sped up slightly.

"Hey!" Cade called, jogging towards them. "I've missed you guys!"

He caught up Viviane in a big hug, lifting her off the ground. "Hi, darlin'!"

"Cade, what is going on?" Izabella said. "Why did the Autobots have to go to another hangar, why couldn't we go with them?"

"They all need to be scanned," Cade said. "It's no biggie. Lennox is checking for listening devices. He's called a meeting tonight to tell us what's going on."

Jacques cleared his throat.

"Oh! Cade, there's someone you have to meet." Mattie pulled her brother forward. "This is my brother Jacques Marcel. Jacques, this is Cade Yeager."

"Hey, kid, nice to meet you," Cade said. "Listen, I hear you're good at physics. I need you and Izzy to come help me figure something out." He dragged the pair of them into the building behind him.

Mattie turned and looked back towards the plane. Bumblebee was driving slowly away from it, away from her. One of the soldiers walking the other way shot her an angry look.

That's Quinn, she realized. He blames me for embarrassing him in front of the others.

Viviane walked up next to her. "That one holds a grudge against you," she said, noticing Quinn's glare. "Let's hope no one tells Bee. Bee would flatten him."

Mattie grinned. "Wouldn't that be a sight to see."

Viviane smiled and took her hand. "Come on. Let's get some food into you."