Le Legal Stuff: Transformers is not mine, just my OCs and this story not intended for sale or to infringe. Update: 4/14 article 'Jagex Transformers Universe Character' has a Decepticon femme, Duststorm. Any similarity is purely accidental and not intended to infringe on any legal rights.
A/N: Thank you Bee4ever and Galem for reviewing! Seeing your posts is amazing and I can't begin to tell you how much it really encourages me to continue! Thank you!
A/N: Thank you Bluestar2011 and Melody Prime for adding this story to your favorites, I know I keep saying this, but it's true, it really lifts my spirits! Thanks!
A/N: Author's Liberties: There is an Air National Guard facility next to the Chicago Midway International Airport but it does not appear to have an active air unit. The 170th Fighter Squadron was located in Springfield and decommissioned in 2008, the last aircraft flown was the F16 Fighting Falcon. (Not appearing in this chapter, but just a 411 for later)
Yep, STILL in Chicago, argh! Chuckle, so here we go!
Cybertronian/Earth Time Reference:
Astrosecond/about .273 seconds
Breem / about 8 minutes
Groon/about 1 Earth hour
Orn/about 1 Earth day
Quartex/1 Earth month
Orbital Cycle/about 1 Earth year
Vorn/about 83 Earth years
Chapter 3 – Earth Campaign (Part 24)
— Chicago, Illinois – Autobot Temporary Encampment/Day 3 10:00 p.m. —
After the movie, Bee was feeling tired and looking forward to a light recharge. Since the Xanthium had been shot down, all of them had been taking light recharges to maintain their basic functionality. It was too risky to go into a full recharge in an unsecured location even though there was a guard complement, NEST, and a shelter. What it boiled down to was numbers and so each mech chose to abstain so he could be ready at a moment's notice.
The difference between a light and full recharge was the level of system shutdown a mech went into for systems to repair and update. Taking a full recharge was a normal procedure Cybertronians did to insure their systems were functioning within parameters or note if anything was corrupted or damaged. These lists were sorted so a bot would know whether their body could repair or if they required a physician. The downside for soldiers was that it also made a bot vulnerable and easy to attack because it took longer for his systems to reboot or become fully operational.
That didn't mean to suggest the Autobot encampment was compromised or that these few tired mechs were incapable of fighting, not at all. Again, it boiled down to numbers. With Optimus down for repairs, Ratchet and FirstAid focused on making said repairs, and Bee stuck guarding a human, that left four mechs to protect the camp 24 hours a day. Not an ideal situation but a sad reality the Autobots had to face regularly. That being said, the only concern a mech faced when avoiding full recharges was the eventual shut down, a forced medical stasis and that only happened under extremely prolonged periods of time not fully recharging.
Gratefully, Bee and the Autobots present were nowhere close to that. Bee had done without for far longer but that didn't mean he didn't feel tired. He did and he was. He was simply too proud to say anything for fear of looking weak in front of the others. Not that any of the mechs he was serving with would begrudge him the rest. Tease him? Most definitely, but they wouldn't belittle him for being tired. His worry stemmed from old memories when he served with bots who believed mini-bots were considered nothing more than sub-classed, weaker models.
Bee shifted on his axels, he knew he really should have gotten over that chip on his shoulder ages ago but it still rankled. His only consolation, if you could call it that, was that those bots who had tormented him had long since off-lined and joined the Well. There was a certain satisfaction knowing that despite their insults, he proved them wrong and survived but he wasn't a sparkless mech. He grieved over each and every loss. He had hoped, given time, they would've learned better and dismissed the old stereotype as nonsense. Others had. Bee also knew their losses meant even more to their race and that bothered Optimus. Bee would never willingly add to the weight already on Prime's spark.
Ellie, unaware of Bee's drifting thoughts, crawled into her sleeping bag ready for sleep as Bee initiated a light recharge sequence. While Ellie lay there listening to his systems slow, she closed her eyes hoping to join him. But, instead of feeling tired, she felt energized and groaned softly in annoyance.
Every now and then she experienced bouts of insomnia and it looked like this was going to be one of those nights. When sleeplessness hit, she would run through a series of strategies to help her sleep and every once in a while they would work. Most of the time, they did not. Long after Bee's systems settled down into a very faint and delicate hum, she'd completed her repertoire only to end up staring at the roof of the Camaro.
Not that she could really see the roof as it was more of a darker shade than where she thought the windows were. As she absently stroked the soft fabric, a part of her mind wondered how a being made entirely of metal could replicate the feel of fabric, while another part of her hoped the touch would wake him. No such luck, Bee was definitely in recharge. She sighed softly and then sighed a little louder hoping that might wake him. Finally she called out in a slightly apologetic voice, "Bee?"
That worked. The tired mech simply hummed questioningly as his systems begin to spool quickly into full operation.
"I can't sleep," she told him as she rolled onto her stomach and looked where she assumed his rearview would be. Her expression flitted from pathetic to apologetic and then defeat as she stared at the windshield. Then she wondered if he could see her. She made another mental note to ask how he 'saw' things inside of himself later, preferring to focus on sleep.
Bee's voice teased her tiredly, "Why not try closing your eyes? That works every time I hear."
"Funny. Tried that," she countered dryly, not rising to the bait.
"Count sheep," he offered questioningly.
"I tried that too and I counted birds, trees, clouds, Autobots, nothing worked and I'm still wide awake!"
She traced her fingers along the seatback, the sensation made Bumblebee twitch. He wondered if the feeling was what humans meant when they said they had butterflies in their stomach. It was not quite irritating… just odd and it sort of tickled. He wished she would stop.
Instead of voicing his request he focused on her complaint instead and quipped, "Obviously, because if you were asleep we wouldn't be having this conversation. So, I guess this means you want to keep talking to me until you fall sleep?"
"Well… yeah, I was kinda hoping for the company, I'm sorry," she said sadly as she sat up as best she could inside the cabin of a Camaro, which was more like a squished crouch.
"Did you try breathing," he offered.
She blinked and wondered if he was messing with her, "Really? Is that the best your supercomputer brain could come up with?"
Bee preened slightly because for a Cybertronian that was a compliment, like being called a super genius. However, he knew that wasn't what she meant and countered sarcastically, "Aww, how sweet! And yes it's the best I could come up with. It's what Sam does. Past that, I have no idea how to help. My race doesn't have problems recharging. All we do is initiate the recharge sequence and poof, sleep. The only time there's a failure is when there's a problem with the code and that's an easy fix. So, why don't you try that?" With a mental nod Bee thought that was a logical solution as he lowered back onto his axels ready to reactivate his light recharge sequence.
Ellie bumped her head against the roof by accident, "Try what?! You're joking right? Human sleep isn't some kind of code or program you run. You just… well, you just… I don't know… you close your eyes and then you fall asleep. I did that and it's not working, simple as that." Tired of the cramped space, she slid off the cargo bench and into the passenger seat as she pulled the sleeping back over her like a blanket.
"I wish it did," he groaned, "then I could get some rest."
"Thanks for the sympathy," she responded dryly.
"You're welcome," he answered as if he missed the obvious sarcasm.
Then Ellie's eyes narrowed, maybe he was being sarcastic? She puffed out a gust of air in annoyance as she put her feet up onto the dash to stretch out. Bee let out an indignant yelp and shouted, "HEY! No boots on my dash!"
"Oh, sorry!" She exclaimed as she quickly removed her feet and then swallowed as she tried a new tact, "Bee… I know me and when I get insomnia there's pretty much nothing I can do except do something until I'm too tired to stay awake. So, I was thinking…."
Bee's fatigue fled immediately when he realized where she was going, "No."
"Hey, you didn't even give me a chance to ask," she complained. "Look, I know you're tired so you don't have to do anything. Just transform and sleep in your bot mode. I know you can because I've watched the others do it. So, while you're sleeping I'll do a little work on your system until I'm tired and then I'll be able to sleep. It takes care of two problems at the same time, easy peasy."
"No."
She sighed, "Bee, please, won't you even take a moment to consider…."
"No."
"Fine, be that way," she rolled up her sleeping bag and exited his cabin clearly frustrated. When she pushed his door closed, she leaned against his frame as she tried to calm down.
When she had, she suggested kindly, "Look, there's no sense in the both of us not getting any sleep. Why don't you transform and recharge, it's gotta be more comfortable than sleeping as a car. Man that sounds weird."
Bee thought that was a good idea and started his transformation sequence as she stepped back. Once he was in full bot mode he knelt and bent over to whisper, "Alright, I will, but you will not do any work on me. You can do anything else except that and leave this section. Look, if you need to do something, why not try exercising? Running in circles, standing on your hands, I don't care what you try as long as it's not working on me or leaving this area, are we clear?"
"In the dark?!" She glared at him fighting the desire to kick him. The only reason she didn't was she realized it would be a pointless gesture and she'd be the one ending up hurt.
"Fine," she said as she tried to storm over to her cot. It ended up being more of an angry shuffle given the darkness which didn't help her temper either.
The only illumination that kept her from falling flat on her face, and total humiliation, was the faint blue glow of his eyes. She found her cot by barking her shins on the frame and rubbed them slightly to ease pain. Then used her hands to settle the sleeping bag into position and sat down on top of it. With her arms crossed over her chest she glared up at him. He simply stared back. Her eyes narrowed in challenge. He just stared back.
Time passed slowly for Ellie as she continued her glare-war with Bee believing that if she could out-stare a cat she could out-stare him. She knew she was being ridiculous but that didn't stop her from trying, it wasn't like she had anything else to do.
It was a good thing Ellie couldn't see Bee's expression. If she had, she would've lost it, because he was smirking behind his mask finding the whole situation entirely too funny for words. For once, he appreciated his mask.
Finally Ellie blinked. Upset she'd lost a battle she knew she was going to lose anyway, she barked at him, "What?!"
Bee couldn't prevent a slight chuckle from escaping as he answered, "So… are you just going to sit there and stare at me?"
Her jaw dropped open and then she closed it, her mind running through various ideas before she settled on one she hoped would score a hit, "What? The thought of a woman staring at you making you feel uncomfortable? No wonder you never got past the 'crush' stage with those femmes!"
She tossed her hair and pointedly turned her back on him not seeing that her statement had actually scored a hit as his optics narrowed slightly. How did she know femmes never stared at him, ever? Or that if they did look at him, it was never with any interest. Most of the time femmes simply ignored him. Had he mentioned something to her? He must have and for her to use that against him like that was low. The femme was driving him crazy! He wanted to say something but he didn't want to give her the satisfaction of knowing she succeeded in hurting him.
Ellie continued to ignore him, oblivious to his turmoil, as the shelter grew quiet. Ellie continued to sit facing away from him as she listened carefully to Bee's systems wondering when he'd finally go into a recharge.
Time ticked by slowly. Ellie continued to listen while fighting the urge to turn and see what he was doing.
As she sat there, it occurred to her that what she'd said may have been a little too harsh and she felt guilty. Regardless of whether he was mad at her or not, she was determined to finish her work on him to apologize. She drummed her fingers on the cot, how could he manage to be both likeable and infuriating at the same time? It would've been much easier if he'd just been a total jerk.
Bee was still awake and instead of apologizing, Ellie pulled up her HUD instead to check her chronometer, it was 10:30 p.m. When her clock ticked 10:40 p.m., he was still awake. She waited some more. By 10:50 she finally sucked in a deep breath and sighed in defeat. Obviously the annoying little yellow muscle car was on to her, damn him.
Then she shivered and realized she was still wearing lighter clothing. It was cold and since sleep wasn't going to happen anytime soon she impatiently fished around underneath her cot. She drug out the bag that contained clothing and felt around inside that until she pulled out a heavy shirt and pulled it on. Feeling warmer she tried to look casually over her shoulder, to see what Bee was doing. She twitched when she realized he was staring at her. Had he been staring at her the whole time?
Unable to hide her frustration she asked suspiciously, "What?"
"I don't trust you. You're up to something," he said as he copied her by crossing his arms over his torso.
Her mouth fell open, feeling offended and busted at the same time.
She knew he was smirking, which irritated her even more and retorted sarcastically, "Oh yes, I'm definitely up to something. See, me sitting on my cot, ooooooh, dangerous! Do you want to take away my cot to keep me safe? No? Oh, Bee? I was watching my eyeball clock, is that too risky? Do you wanna take that away too to keep me safe?"
She shook her head at him, "Darn it Bee! The only thing that's up, is me, because… I… CAN'T… SLEEP! Trust me, there is not a single darned thing I could possibly do right now that would be considered 'up to something!"
The only thing Bee would've done to enrage her further was to laugh and that's exactly what he did, "Nice try but it's not gonna work. I'm not an idiot."
She snapped, "I never said you were! Frustrating, maybe. Stubborn, definitely, but not an idiot."
With a huff and because she was tired of sitting, she rose to her feet and scuffed carefully over towards the entrance. She wasn't scuffing because she hadn't gotten her way or venting annoyance, or even acting childishly, it was more for survival. She simply couldn't remember where the massive pile of metal scrap was and didn't want to face-plant into something that might slice her to bits.
Bumblebee watched the young woman move slowly toward the entrance with a tolerant smile. Her raised body temperature clearly showed she was upset and he thought with relief that if this was the worst of her temper, he was one lucky temporary guardian indeed.
The thought of tempers had him accessing a memory montage, one of his favorites called 'The best of Judy Witwicky' which also included tirades from Mikaela and Sam. To the scout, it was comedy gold. He knew some thought it odd to save memories of people (and bots) losing their tempers, but for some reason Bee thought it was hysterical. It also revealed a hidden side they wouldn't normally show.
So he compiled his 'home movies' and played them during the quiet times. He'd accumulated quite a variety that he would play depending on his mood. Perhaps when she calmed down, he'd share a few with her. When she was less annoyed with him. Yep, he was grateful she wasn't Judy.
When Ellie reached the edge of the enclosure, Bee started to feel concern and quickly closed the movie. Silently he rose to a crouch ready to move should she make a break for it.
To his relief all she did was kneel and peek around the edge without moving further. Bee angled his helm thoughtfully and then switched scans to read her body temperature and watched it slowly drop. If she planned on bolting her body readings would've reflected that.
After a time, her systems settled down to normal and he relaxed back onto the pavement to continue observing her silently.
Ellie watched the other bots move about in the compound. She was temporarily lost in awe as she stared at each one, so unique, graceful, and very deadly. She heard noises coming from outside of the perimeter and wanted to creep further out to see what was going on but knew it wasn't wise. All she could tell was that it sounded loud, like a protest, and it didn't sound like a friendly one.
As much as she didn't like being here, she didn't want to risk being forced back to being a guinea pig for people like Gurmit. Thinking of the scientist hit her hard. A surprising wave of depression made her scoot back inside the shelter to sit down against the wall, unconsciously mirroring Bee's position as she stared at her trembling hands.
As she tried to rein in her emotions a faint shine glinted from the pile of metal distracting her. The particular piece of metal that caught her attention was smooth and reflected the faint light. With no particular reason she reached out and removed it from the pile to look at it more closely. It was just a simple piece of metal, with no particular value other than offering her a temporary distraction from her thoughts as she turned it this way and that to watch the light dance across its surface. She carefully ran her fingers around the edge and wished she could smooth it so she could keep this piece without cutting herself.
She angled her head and concentrated on her HUD as she set the metal against her skin and issued a command and waited. The metal rested quietly on her arm. Nothing happened. She tried different queries and commands and still nothing happened. She sighed heavily and rose to her feet realizing it probably had to do with the lack of a spark to connect with and that made her think of Bee. With resignation she rose to her feet and carefully walked over toward him. He was sitting against the wall watching her.
The scout's antenna rose slightly, curious and suspicious as the young woman approached. He was relatively certain what her request was going to be, since she was holding a large piece of metal. Then she asked, "Bee, about what I said. I was out of line and I'm sorry. You've been nothing but kind to me and you didn't deserve that. I hope you can forgive me."
Bee continued to stare at her, optics slightly narrowed, as he considered her apology and wondered if was a diversion before she admitted to her real request. Still, he gave her the benefit of a doubt and accepted her apology, "I appreciate it, and I do. Given what you're going through, it's kinda easy to get upset. Just be patient, we're not going to be stuck here much longer."
She nodded contritely, "Thank you."
Bee angled his helm as he thought, 'Wait for it….'
Ellie stared at the simple piece of metal scrap and then up at him, "Uhm, Bee?"
Bee's brows quirked upwards as he smiled, 'Here it comes!'
"Do you have anything I can use to smooth out the edges of this piece of metal? It's kinda pretty and I wanted to hang onto it but it's too sharp." She held out the piece to show him her find.
Bee blinked at her in surprise as his processor tried to make sense of her request. He was still expecting her to try to coerce him into doing more repairs and simply said, "Uh…"
She smiled up at him and gently teased, "I know you can do better than 'uh'."
Bee snorted at her as he leaned over to pick up the piece of metal. Ellie climbed up onto his leg, curious to see what he was going to do with the metal, and then sat down to watch him examine it. He turned it over as he carefully scanned. Then he transformed his arm into his weapon and grinned when he felt her jump at the unexpected transformation. He chose not to say anything and curbed the urge to tease her, not wanting to break the temporary peace between them.
With careful, yet precise moves he pushed the softer metal gently against the side of his cannon using the weapon's harder surface to roll the edges and blunt the corners. When he was done he handed it back to her as he transformed his cannon back into his arm, unconsciously wiggling his fingers before he lowered his arm along with his other to rest on his lap.
"Thank you," she said happily as she turned the metal in her hand. She leaned back against his torso with her legs stretched out over his as she ran her fingers over the smooth edges. Neither spoke for some time as she as slowly turned the metal over and over on her lap, her fingers absently stroking the smooth surface.
Not used to Ellie being so quiet for such a long Bee asked, "Are you alright?"
"Hmm," she answered questioningly as she looked up then she shook her head, "Yeah, just thinking."
Bee wanted to ask about what but decided against prying. Instead he shifted against the wall into a more relaxed position and then he adjusted his arms so she would be safe should she fall asleep.
Ellie turned sideways so she could rest against his abdomen and soak up more of the warmth his body produced. She sighed peacefully as her head rolled onto his chassis and closed her eyes as she listened to the sounds his body made. The piece of metal was quickly forgotten her lap as the gentle hum of his mechanics and spark soothed away thoughts including that of Gurmit and his organization. She was not embarrassed to admit it, she liked the feeling of safety being with him gave her.
They sat there quietly for some time when she felt his arms draw closer. Then his systems started to slow down. As she listened to his body fall into recharge, she absently stroked the smooth yellow plating of his abdomen. It was not a sensual touch, more one of passive curiosity as she explored the metal on his abdomen and considered how different it was compared to the metal on his face.
His body armor was harder but still just as smooth, except it was pitted and dotted with tiny imperfections. Her hand stopped on a particularly deep indentation and wondered how many battles he'd been in and the pain he must have experienced. She sighed in pity that such an amazing race would have to suffer so much.
And then there was Bumblebee himself. There was something so unique about him, she thought, as she relaxed. Everything about him was a dichotomy. Everything. Gentle but powerful enough to take on an enemy twice his size. Old yet acting so close in age to her. Fierce but compassionate. 'Damn,' she thought with a wistful smile, 'I wish he were human, but he's not, so that's that.'
When they left Chicago, maybe within the next day two, the chances of spending time with him like this again were unlikely. She'd grown so used to his company, even his teasing and knew she'd miss him a lot. But, she knew, nothing lasted forever and it wasn't reasonable to expect him to continue being a nursemaid to her. He was a soldier and had duties, responsibilities and more importantly, another human to protect. She was grateful she had been given the time to spend time with him and get to know him.
As her palm rested on his torso as she thought about how much she'd miss these quiet moments together. She felt a warm trickle on her cheek and quickly wiped the tear away with her hand and stared at it annoyed. She reminded herself that she wasn't losing a thing because she'd gained a friend. Whether he felt the same didn't matter.
She lowered the hand onto her lap and as it fell against cold metal, she blinked. A small smile started to form on her lips. She knew he'd be angry with her, at first, but she was pretty sure he'd forgive her.
He'd already agreed for her to complete the repairs, so it wasn't like she was going against his will. She was helping him, isn't that what friends should do for each other? And if it helped those robot girls he liked notice him, all the better. It's what friends did for one another, helped eliminate a roadblocks.
Resolved on her course, she adjusted the metal to rest on the section of skin on her arm FirstAid designated for access. Then she closed her eyes as she placed her hand on his torso and activated her HUD to set up the first repair process and initiated it. She waited wondering if he was feigning sleep. He was a smart mech but she'd also learned over the short time she'd spent with him what his systems sounded like in rest and if she was right, he was.
She watched her HUD, taking care to monitor her system as she watched the progress of the repair. When it completed she was filled with a sense of satisfaction, accomplishment, and affection knowing she was doing something good for a friend who deserved it.
Time ticked by unnoticed and just like she'd told Bee, doing something would eventually make her tired enough to sleep. She realized she didn't want to during the process and rationalized that since the list wasn't very large she could try something new. She set the repairs on automatic with an emergency stop. That way, if the metal was gone, or the repair list was complete, or if her energy level on the status bar moved, even the slightest bit, the process would automatically stop. Keeping her safe and meeting Bee's guidelines. Well, except the one where he said not to do anything while he was in recharge. She'll just have to apologize for that and profusely.
Reassured she'd covered all the bases, especially their joint worry about her body's energy levels. She continued to watch the repairs progress contentedly and like little digital sheep, as each repair disappeared she grew sleepier. Soon, without realizing it, she had fallen asleep.
— Washington, D.C., Department of HHS, 0700/Day Four —
As Charlotte strode into her office, her assistant was waiting prompt, as always, with her hands full. In one hand she held a list of prioritized messages, in the other a steaming cup of coffee.
Charlotte dropped her coat and briefcase on the ground, barely missing the assistant's toes, as she snatched the notes and coffee and then stormed into her office. Francine frowned at Charlotte's back as she bent to pick up the rumpled coat. As she hung it up she mouthed silently, "Good morning Francine. Thank you for the coffee, Francine. Would you mind hanging up my coat, Francine?"
Once the coat was hung up she went back to her desk to grab her electronic pad. Charlotte's shout forced the nervous assistant to bolt quickly into her office only making a brief detour to snatch up the briefcase as she went, "Where are the reports from Senator Johnston's committee?"
With a calm expression as she set the briefcase down and answered, "I already contacted his office. They're having difficulty obtaining several of the documents you requested. They're now forced to file subpoenas, that's the best they can do right now."
"Yeah right," Charlotte muttered sarcastically tossed the note to the side of her desk and then flipped through the pile. Francine moved to stand in front of Charlotte's desk expectantly, electronic datapad at the ready.
"Not now," Charlotte muttered, not even looking up, as she waived her hand dismissively. When Francine hadn't moved fast enough, the Director looked up at her and glared, "What are you still standing there for? Don't you have work to do? Go!"
Francine spun about and bolted from the office needing no further encouragement. Unfortunately she left the door open. This, in and of itself, was not a critical mistake because Charlotte sometimes preferred the door open to shout her requests rather than pick up a phone.
This however, wasn't one of those days, as the Director glared at the open portal as if it offended her and shouted, "SHUT THE DOOR!"
Francine quickly complied. Once the door was shut the tiny Asian assistant sagged against surface and wondered, again, why she was working for such a woman. She stepped away from the support and muttered argumentatively to herself as to why. Then she briskly walked out of the office towards the break room. If past experience was accurate, Francine believed she'd have enough time to get some coffee before she was needed.
As Francine walked down the hallway she continued to mutter to herself softly, "Yes ma'am, whatever you say ma'am. Can I get you anything else ma'am?"
—◊◊—◊◊—◊◊—
Once the door was closed, Charlotte quickly touched the icon for the Autobot Embassy on her phone and waited impatiently for Sam to answer. The young man barely had a chance to say hello before Charlotte barked, "Optimus is up. They're leaving Chicago around 0400 and should be at HHS about 0900, depending on traffic."
"Oh, thank…." Sam started to answer.
"Galloway is breathing down my neck so be ready. And Optimus wants renovations. Renovations, what do robots need renovations for? Especially when I'm getting push-back from the White House about the cost! Galloway told me they're going to try to kill the appropriations bill we submitted for additional funds for NEST and the bots."
Charlotte continued, "Get over to Capitol Hill, schmooze every congressman you can corner and get them to pass that bill. If they don't you and your robot buddies are gonna have to figure out where their next meal is coming from, their supplies, munitions, your embassy, everything. Got it?"
"Yes but…."
With a swipe of a digit she disconnected the line. Then she swiped a digit across her phone again and waited.
A deep bass voice rumbled over the line, "Good morning Charlotte."
"I'm glad you're better but I've got all kinds of trouble coming from every official with a sense of self-importance, mostly about when you bots are leaving Chicago. It better be at 0400, if not, I need a really good reason so I can stall them. Now, what's this about wanting to remodeling? Really?!"
Optimus chuckled, "0400 is our goal. Should things change, I will contact you. As to our request for remodeling, it's to repair the damage done by Sentinel and to include a small human habitation section. The HHS facility has quarters for soldiers but not diplomats or politicians. In my experience, diplomats and politicians expect better accommodations than what we provide for our military. I realize your country has already given us so much, including an embassy…."
Charlotte interrupted him impatiently, "Optimus, the budget is not intended for redecorating a military base."
"Normally, I would agree with you, if this were purely a military matter. This is no longer the case. We are managing the perceptions of politicians, ambassadors, and national leaders and that requires a different tact. We know they already see us as overtly militaristic and will expect our base to reflect that. So we must change their perception, change what they see, and that includes our facility. Make it more welcoming, home-like, or even alien, as long as it doesn't appear too much like a military base. Also, these men and women expect and sometimes demand the 'finer things in life.' We must cater to that as best as possible given our budge and in doing so that might help them see us as more human and perhaps further increase trust."
Charlotte frowned as she leaned back in her seat and sucked in a frustrated breath of air, "As much as I want to say no, I agree with you. Everything you, we, do is under a microscope and reacted immediately with suspicion…."
"Exactly and if meetings run long, dignitaries would not have to sleep with NEST soldiers. It is a simple solution."
Charlotte's tone grew threatening, "Simple, yes, but expensive, very expensive. What exactly were you thinking?"
Optimus smiled as he offered calmly, "I will send you a design for our section. The only thing you would need to provide would be living quarters for the Witwicky's, quarters for a dignitary and the dignitary's aid, a conference room. Does that sound reasonable?"
Charlotte's eyes narrowed as she retorted, "Why not add a hot tub, sauna, and a gym while you're at it?"
Optimus ignored the obvious sarcasm for what it was but used his 'alienness' to feign ignorance, "If you believe it is appropriate and will help them see us differently."
Charlotte snorted, "We have some funds, I'll see what I can do. Is that it?"
Optimus paused, "Yes. I also wanted to remind you our incoming complement will be 13."
Charlotte shouted, "13?! I thought there were only 9 of you!"
Optimus's voice had a tinge of sadness as he informed her, "It includes the addition of two new bots that were rescued in Chicago. Technically, our numbers haven't changed, despite the loss of Ironhide and Que."
Charlotte's tone dropped in anger, "You know very well that only 9 bots boarded the Xanthium. With the loss of Que in Chicago and including the two new bots, that puts your numbers at 10, not 13. So be ready to explain why 3 never made it aboard Xanthium and don't ever pull a fast one like that on me again Prime, I don't appreciate it. If you want me to trust you, you need to be up front with me. Lie and lose my support. Period." Without waiting for the Prime to acknowledge or to advise her of their new charge, she disconnected the line.
Charlotte dropped the phone on her desk to begin quickly pawing through the list of messages and sorted them based on priority. Then she jerked open the top drawer of her desk and pulled out a hair band. Without a mirror she roughly pulled her hair into a ponytail. Once her hair was out of the way she leaped out of her seat and stormed over to the door yanking it open as she shouted, "Francine!"
Unfortunately for the assistant, she hadn't expected Charlotte to be done so quickly. The shout startled her and she knocked her coffee cup off the desk. Charlotte scowled at the mess and waste of her time, "Get Facilities on the line. I need blueprints for the Autobot area and an architect here pronto. Contact Finance and I need the Autobot/NEST budget and a list of what we've already spent. What are you waiting for? NOW!"
"Yes ma….," Francine froze as Charlotte's blue eyes narrowed threateningly and quickly added, "Right away."
Charlotte turned around and walked back into her office and slammed the door making Francine jump again. She cringed when she realized she'd almost said 'ma'am' and that time Charlotte had caught the mistake.
She never understood why the comment bothered her boss so much. But, it was enough to know she shouldn't say the word. Then she was off her seat to quickly mop up the mess and pick up her broken mug and dump the lot into the trash. Then she was back in her seat and on the phone quickly making the appropriate calls. She yanked a tissue from a box on her desk to blot the perspiration off her upper lip as she waited for the next call to go through.
— Chicago, Illinois – Temporary Autobot Encampment —
Optimus turned to FirstAid, "I've broached the topic and I believe we were given tentative approval for a human section within our area."
FirstAid nodded, "Thank you, sir."
Optimus nodded and stretched with a smile as he preempted Ratchet by holding out his arm, "Would you like to run another diagnostic?"
Ratchet's only response was a narrowing of optics as he roughly grabbed the Prime's arm belatedly realizing it was the injured one and snorted his apology as he ported in.
—◊◊—◊◊—◊◊—
Bumblebee's systems engaged quickly when he felt movement against his chassis and looked down and chuckled. The young woman yawned widely and stretched against him. He gently poked her with a digit, "So, you finally got some sleep?"
"Yep, I did," she said with a huge grin, "and I feel great."
He was unable to hide the feeling of suspicion, "You do?"
"Hmm hmmm," she said with a happy hum.
Then she looked up, "You know, when we're alone like this, it's okay to take off your mask. It's easier to hear you."
A chill surged through his systems, "Oh no, you didn't."
She looked at him calmly, "It was the only way I could sleep."
His optics widened in anger, "You PROMISED me you wouldn't do anything stupid!"
"But I didn't do anything st…." Her words were cut off as he quickly grabbed her and spun her around so he could extract his lead. She yelped, slightly frightened and indignant at the speed he moved and then complained at the rough treatment.
Bee ignored her as he thrust the lead at her and barked, "Link up now!"
"Bee, I'm telling you, I'm fine," she argued calmly as she ported in. Within seconds he was in and her HUD was apparently taken over and no longer under her control as he quickly flashed through data.
"Woah! Easy there big guy! All you need to do is look at is my energy status and it's well within safe parameters, see?"
She could feel his engine rumble angrily as the energy bar stayed static in the center of her vision. She added in a softer and reassuring voice, "I kept my promise, I'm fine. No change, everything is good and within safe parameters."
"How much work did you do?"
She swallowed a little with guilt because she didn't know. Instead she queried his system and asked for the repair list, it was very small, maybe 10 repairs left at the most. She looked up at him with a slightly worried expression, expecting anger, not distress.
"Why," his asked distraught. "Why do you risk yourself like that?"
"I didn't. Everything I did has been validated by you. We checked and double-checked. Just look at my status and its right within safe parameters."
"Is that the truth?"
Since she'd placed her system on 'auto-pilot' with fail-safes she could answer him honestly as she unplugged his lead and wriggled herself off his lap, "Yes. All you have to do is look at my status bar to know that. And look, I feel fine, okay? Everything is good."
She saw his optics narrow as he glared at her and she asked confused at his expression, "What now?"
"I'm scanning you, hush," he grumbled and then shook his helm from side to side in frustration. "Just like you said, everything appears fine. I just wish you wouldn't do things without my knowledge."
She rubbed his thigh, "I like how you worry about me, I appreciate that a lot, thanks."
Then she leaned her forehead against the warm metal of his leg and then stood up to smile at him, "I'm hungry, I'm going to go get something to eat and then wash up."
She turned to her cot and walked over to start her morning ritual. As she sat on the cot opening an MRE packet she looked up at him thoughtfully.
Noticing her stare he angled his helm at her with suspicion, "What?"
"Well, since most of the work had to do with your surface scarring and I'm wondering how much was repaired. Would you mind taking off your mask so I can see?"
His optics narrowed, "Who cares what I look like when my aft is gonna be toast if you hurt yourself doing this?"
She took in a deep breath both frustrated and touched at his concern, "All you and I can go by is the status bar. If it says everything is good, then we need to trust that. FirstAid did a brilliant job and I trust him. Don't you agree he's an excellent doctor?" Bumblebee nodded slowly not wanting to agree with her.
She looked up at him hopefully, "So are you going to show me or keep me in suspense?"
He continued to stare at her thoughtfully and then reached a decision. He reached up and disengaged his mask and asked with a tinge of nervousness, "Well? How do I look?"
Once the mask was removed he looked at her. Her heart thumped for a beat and then she briskly ignored it, "Wow! I think you're gonna knock the socks off of Moonracer and Arcee!"
Bumblebee chuckled at the thought, "They don't wear socks, but thanks kid."
"Kid?" She groused playing along with the teasing, "I'm an adult and you know it."
He grinned and challenged saucily, "Well, if you're somewhere around 4 million and change, I'll agree with ya."
She knew he was older, but that old?! Her jaw dropped open in shock which made him laugh. She should've been offended by his amusement but she was too busy feeling overwhelmed. Finally she managed to choke out, "You're seriously that old?! Really?!"
His smooth skin and cheery expression defied logic. There was no way a face like that could be that old! Her nerveless fingers dropped the food packet onto her lap as she asked, "Are you really that old or are you messing with me again?"
"I'm not messing with ya. I don't look it do I? I guess I'm just too cute to be old." He reached over and picked up his mask and winked at her playfully as he snapped it back into place, "So, adult or not, you're still a kid to me. So finish eating and if you feel tired, rest. I'm going to go check in on the others and see how Optimus is doing."
She picked up her food packet still having trouble wrapping her mind around any being living that long. Gratefully her natural sense of humor kicked in as an image of him seated in meditation like a wizened martial arts master popped into her mind. She quirked a smile as she bowed, "I see and obey, oh very conceited and ancient master of Camaros."
"Ancient? Hah, no way! Ratchet's ancient, I'm just right!"
Then he grew serious as he warned her with a shaking finger, "No more crazy stuff while I'm gone. Are we clear? No more!"
She feigned innocence as she placed a hand to her chest, "Me? Never! Trust me, I'm done with crazy!" He frowned in disbelief, shrugged and waved his arm as he strode away.
She sighed as she muttered to herself, "Unless you call liking a 4 million year old bot is crazy." Then she banged her palm against her forehead punctuating each blow, "Crazy, crazy, crazy!"
—◊◊—◊◊—◊◊—
Bumblebee exited the shelter as Sideswipe strode up and stopped him with a servo to the smaller bot's chassis, "So, Bee, what's going on with you and that femme? I mean… she's sleeping on you now? That's disgusting! What's up with that?"
Bumblebee's optics widened in surprise only because he'd almost spoke aloud and quickly switched to private comms. Then he shrugged, 'It's been cold at night.'
"So what," Sideswipe argued thinking that wasn't enough of a reason and shuddered. "How can you do that?"
Bumblebee rolled his optics and commed back, 'Really Sideswipe, if you think about it, she's nothing more than a sparkling. Would you toss a sparkling out in the cold to avoid a little drool on your armor? I doubt it. I've seen the disgusting slag you've fought in and as I recall you weren't bothered much about it then. So why be so now over a little bit of organic fluid?'
Sideswipe stared at him, "I was disgusted by that stuff too, trust me. I didn't bother complaining because there was nothing we could do about it at the time. You didn't see me and Streaker fighting over who was getting to the racks first."
Bumblebee shook his head and pushed the larger bot's hand off his chassis and walked away. Then Bee stopped and turned, his grin hidden by the mask as he pointed to his chassis, 'By the way, that's where she drooled.'
There was a loud growl as Sideswipe looked from where Bee pointed to his own servo. With irritation he pulled out cleaning supplies to remove any possible residue. Bumblebee turned to muffle his laughter as his door-wings quaked with restrained humor and walked away.
Bumblebee reached the medical enclosure and paused outside to listen in before he entered. His optics widened when he heard Optimus's familiar bass rumble and entered. The Prime looked up and smiled at Bee who started to stutter in shock, "You….." and quickly covered his mistake by switching to comms, 'You're on line! How are you? Are you feeling alright? Do you still hurt?'
Optimus's optics narrowed slightly noting the slip but decided to let it go for now to chuckle at the barrage of youngling-like questions, "I'm feeling good and I should since I've had two of Cybertron's finest medics working on me."
Ratchet looked up, "I don't care how much you try buttering me up, you're still getting another diagnostic."
FirstAid ignored the two and asked Bumblebee, "How is she?"
Bee carefully hid his concern and commed all three mechs to avoid repeating, 'Ellie's doing fine. Her systems are functioning within safe parameters. But… there's something you all should know. We… did tests to see if she could damage one of my systems without activating my firewalls. She did. You'll need to figure out how she by-passed my countermeasures and create modifications to correct that especially if she's not the only one out there who can do this.'
As Ratchet and FirstAid began to discuss what type of firewalls would be needed, Bee tried to decide if he should interrupt and tell them about the changes she'd made to him as well.
Optimus noticing Bee's discomfort waived Bumblebee over to him and asked softly, "How are you doing?"
Bumblebee smiled at the larger mech, even though most of his face was covered by the speaker and commed, 'I'm doing great. Thanks for assigning Ellie to me, it's kept my mind off of Sam. I've also gotten to know the little femme. She's… she's very kind. I'm worried though. How are we going to keep her hidden when we get back to base? Our section of the hangar doesn't have a place for her and it'll raise suspicions if we ask for one.'
"I'm already working on that. I'm glad you are getting along well with her. As to base, that's something we'll be dealing with shortly. We're leaving at 0400, so be ready to move. Make sure there's nothing left in our area that will attract attention or curiosity. Also Bee, would you bring Colonel Lennox over I'd like to talk with him."
Bumblebee nodded and then placed a hand on Optimus' vambrace, 'I'm really glad you're okay. Going forward? Promise me no more heroics? I don't think my spark can handle any more of you off-lining or getting close to like that again.'
Optimus placed his large servo over his friend's and squeezed, 'I didn't particularly like doing that either. You know that as long as I possess the Matrix and am Prime, I must do everything in my power to keep my people safe. I just wish I could've done more for you.' Optimus raised his servo and placed it on Bumblebee's face, raising the younger mech's gaze up.
Bumblebee canted his helm away causing Optimus' optics to narrow thoughtfully. The Prime knew it as one of Bee's tells, a sign that he was keeping something from him. Optimus lowered his servo as he looked back over at his shoulder to see if the two medics were still deep in discussion. When he was sure they were, he turned back to Bumblebee and stood so the smaller mech was hidden by his larger frame and commed, 'What aren't you telling me?'
Bumblebee's optics widened, confirming Optimus's suspicions. Hee laughed softly, 'You always forget I helped raise you. You still have a few tells that give your thoughts away.'
'No wonder you're good at poker…'
'It certainly helps. Now, what is going on?'
'Uh, the femme's technology is… amazing,' Bumblebee looked around the big bot to make sure the medics weren't paying attention and then reached up to remove his speaker interface. Optimus's face went from amusement to shock as he stared at the change in amazement. He gently touched the younger mech's face in awe.
'It's like Tyger Pax never happened! She did this? I'm truly amazed…' Optimus drifted off as he gently pressed a digit into Bee's cheek testing its elasticity, knowing from experience that scarred tissue behaved differently whether organic or metallic.
Bumblebee leaned closer to whisper, "That's not all she did." Bumblebee said and watched as Optimus froze, his optics widening as he held up a hand to stop the youth from speaking. Then he motioned for Bee to place the face guard back into place.
Optimus placed a hand on the youth's shoulder and switched to comms, 'You were right to keep this a secret. Don't say anything or remove your mask, it will raise too many questions we can't afford to deal with right now. I will suggest to Ratchet, when we're back at base, to place you on medical leave to 'finish' his work on you. He's wanted to do that anyway so it will not appear unusual. That way no one will notice or ascribe the changes to our charge.'
Optimus straightened and sighed thoughtfully, 'Our larger problem will be keeping her hidden without raising questions. Until I resolve that issue, make sure she stays in the shelter until we move out. I'll send FirstAid in when we're ready to leave. Return guardianship to him then, he hasn't recovered from his capture and if we need to defend ourselves, I'd rather you were free to do so.'
Optimus vented heavily and rubbed his forehead as he reverted to vocal mode, "Even after days of stasis, I'm still tired. Would you get Colonel Lennox for me, I'd like to speak with him before I recharge."
Bumblebee nodded, did a human salute and quickly left the medical shelter. Optimus turned around and regarded the two medics. They were still animatedly discussing coding firewall options and distracted. With an amused expression Optimus slipped out of the covered area without either noticing.
Roadbuster had been standing guard in the middle of the area when he noted movement behind him and turned. His normally stern expression bloomed into a wide grin, "Well now guvnah it's good to see ya standin' tall!"
"Well, standing at least."
Optimus grinned and then switched to Cybertronian dropping his volume, "We're tentatively scheduled to leave at 0400. I want the Wreckers to take point, my CMO has not given me approval to take over combat command. Also let's make sure the camp is cleared of everything, leave nothing behind. There's already enough of our technology littering the city to make me concerned."
The other two Wreckers joined Roadbuster as Optimus nodded, "Thank you, each of you, for all that you've done. The next phase is getting to the cargo planes without incident and then perhaps we'll get a chance to really rest and recover at base."
The Wreckers punched and chatted with the Prime amiably until Ratchet noticed the Prime was missing. He barreled out of the medical enclosure in a fine fettle as he shouted at the Prime for leaving. The Autobots in the enclosure laughed in humor and relief as the medic man-handled Optimus back into the shelter. They knew the medic's treatment meant the Prime was out of danger and recovering well.
—◊◊—◊◊—◊◊—
Bumblebee, still laughing at Ratchet's mother-hen scolding of the Prime, turned to lean over the barricade. He gently tapped on the wall to get the guard's attention. Normally the guards were observant but an altercation had recently occurred near the entrance of the human military encampment and it had distracted them.
Bumblebee looked up and noticed the crowd of humanity had grown even larger. Now police were added to the mix as they tried to push the living mass back from the military barricade. He noticed more signs and heard the shouts as many expressed their views of the alien presence, some good, some not.
Camera crews valiantly pushed their way around as they tried to outdo one another in finding the most dynamic shot, anything that would put their media outlet on top. Sadly some of the protesters had become violent as an ambulance was on site taking care of the injured.
Bumblebee's door-kibble dropped low and shook his helm sadly as the crowd continued to pelt the police and the military with objects. Gratefully the police and guards had clear shields to protect themselves. Bee was both sad and angry as he watched the violence. He was sad because all they had to do was look at Chicago and realize that if it hadn't been for the handful of humans and bots in these enclosures, they'd be living and dying under Decepticon rule. He was also angry because he had orders not to help. It went against his very nature to stand back and watch friends get hit with missiles and not do something to stop it. But he wasn't a diplomat, he was a soldier and orders were orders.
One human managed to lob a rock far enough that it was about to strike the guard standing below him. With a quick move on his part Bee blocked the stone and it pinged harmlessly off his hand. Orders didn't specify he couldn't defend, just that he couldn't leave the area.
The guard looked up and shook his head sadly and muttered his thanks. Bee nodded and then played the recording of Optimus requesting Colonel Lennox. The guard nodded and dashed from Bee's protective servo into the main body of the camp. Bumblebee stood up and placed his servos on his hips and stared down the humans.
He wanted his body posture to clearly indicate a parentally disappointed attitude as he made a point of staring down each protestor without making any aggressive gestures. He was supposed to appear non-threatening and technically that's what he was doing. Unfortunately he wasn't able to hide all of his emotions as his door-wings would occasionally flick or droop as he watched his human allies continue to be bombarded by random items. Gratefully most humans didn't understand Cybertronian body language, or maybe, he thought it might've helped if they did.
Colonel Lennox ran up to the barricade. Bumblebee, impatient to leave leaned over and put his hand down for Lennox to climb onto. Bill looked at the hand questioningly, as Bee hadn't explained why. With nimble feet Bill jumped onto the palm without question, using Bee's thumb for balance. The scout stood and walked away from the human chaos.
Colonel Lennox looked up, "So I guess you guys wanna talk to me in private, huh? Oh, uhm, I'm really sorry about what's going on out there. It makes me embarrassed to be human. Unfortunately, you can't make everybody happy."
Bumblebee nodded as he quickly strode through camp and into the enclosure. When Bill saw Optimus awake and seated on the ground. Bill shouted in happiness which made Optimus chuckle and his spark felt lighter, "It is good to see you too Bill. I hope you and your men are doing well?"
Bumblebee set the Colonel down and then politely stepped out of the enclosure. He waited on the outside until he was summoned to take the human officer back.
Optimus lowered his servo allowing the colonel to step up and raised him so that he could stand on Optimus' leg, so it would be easier for the human to speak with him, "Well, we lost some good men but I know each and every one of them would tell you freeing Chicago from the Decepticons was worth it."
Bill paused as he gathered his thoughts, "Right now we're having a civilian problem. It seems that even though we just saved their collective asses, they're unhappy about it. Ungrateful…. Anyway, we have the locals dealing with the public, higher-ups felt military involvement would create more problems. I'm glad to see you're up and I hope that means we're ready to get out of here? Cause leaving would be great. My boys could certainly use the rest, no doubt yours too."
Optimus nodded, "Given the sounds of public demonstrations, it would be better to leave as soon as possible, earlier the better I believe, would 0400 work?" Bill nodded prompting Optimus to continue, "I've also been informed we've been given permission to use the D.C. base again?"
Bill nodded, "Yes, that's what I've heard too. We're reactivated but I think we're still stuck with Galloway as our Presidential liaison. Although Mearing, despite being a pain in the butt, has been running interference so we don't have to deal with Galloway directly, for now."
"0400 is good, that'll give me time to move and coordinate transport. There's no local air base, sadly, so we're going to have to use a public airport. It's not too far so we'll be in and out before anybody knows it and complains."
Optimus nodded again in agreement, "Good. However, there is one more bit of business I need to discuss, it has to do with our charge."
"Ah, the one nobody's supposed to know about right?"
"Yes. That still hasn't changed. We need to protect our charge but our section at HHS isn't designed to house humans. Is there a way we can do this without raising any undue curiosity until facilities can be added?"
"Huh. That's a good question," Bill sat down on Optimus' thigh as he ran a hand through his hair mussing it up again, making a part of it stand up on end.
Bill looked up with cautionary look on his face, "Mearing's got the nose of a blood hound, so I don't recommend hiding anything from her because she'll figure it out really quick. As much as I don't want to suggest it, we should pull her in on this right away. My concern is that she's a 'by-the-book' and 'follow orders to the letter' type. What do we do if she receives orders to hand over your charge? Because I'm certain if she does, she will."
Optimus sighed heavily, "Agreed and she likes subterfuge even less as I've recently learned. It's better if we are honest with her and then ascertain what she'll do at that time. Will she be on site today?"
"No, she's still in Washington but I can contact her by phone and let her know you need to speak with her about something important and highly classified. That'll at least get her curiosity and she can either join us here or meet us when we arrive at the D.C. base. As to your 'charge' I'd suggest dressing him in military clothing but if he's discovered there are severe penalties for masquerading as military personnel and that would complicate things way too much."
Bill regarded the Prime with a sardonic expression, "Why is it nothing is ever simple with you guys?"
"Trust me," Optimus smiled, "I ask that question all the time."
The two officers chuckled as they continued to talk and commiserate while they considered various options. When most of the finer points of evacuating the site were complete, Bill prepared to leave and then stopped.
"Oh, before I forget," Bill added, "have your bots move the portable toilet over the wall before we move out. We'll position it back into the queue where hopefully no one will have noticed it was missing. Just make sure all the gear I sent over is packed up and gone with you guys. As to trash, I'll have one of my guys send over a trash bag. Just place it in our area before we go and we'll lob that into the dumpster with the rest. Hopefully between now and when we arrive in D.C. we'll have a plan for your guest. Okay, better let me down, I got lots of work to do."
"Thank you, Colonel, for everything," Optimus said as he complied.
Bill turned and waved, "Same to you Optimus!" The officer ran out of the enclosure past Bumblebee who beeped at the officer to stop him and offer him a lift. Bill smiled and quickly mounted the bot's servo as he was carried to the entrance.
"Bee, wait here," Bill's voice dropped to a whisper, "I need to give you a garbage bag. Have your friend load up everything trash-wise and drop it off with the porta-potti when we're ready to leave. Got it?"
Bumblebee nodded and then lowered the officer down into the military section. The officer dashed off as Bumblebee waited still watching the crowds. Several groups had separated and appeared that pro-alien and anti-aliens were about to clash. Bumblebee shook his head sadly wondering if they would ever find a world where they could experience peace.
Colonel Lennox arrived and shouted to get the yellow bot's attention and quickly deposited a small bag into Bee's large hand. Soon the two parted, each off to complete tasks in preparation to leaving Chicago.
—◊◊—◊◊—◊◊—
After Bill dropped the garbage bag into Bumblebee's servo he retrieved his cellular phone from his pocket. He looked carefully for a position that was less noisy and easy for him to spot someone trying to listen in. He quickly touched the icon for Director Mearing and waited.
"Mearing," Charlotte barked into the phone.
"This is Colonel Lennox with an update, is this a good time and a secured line?"
"It's never a good time Colonel. Give me a moment." Bill listened as he heard various voices in the background and the sound of movement. Clearly Charlotte was leaving whatever location she was in, which meant that whatever meeting she was in, had less importance. Bill blinked thinking this could be a good thing, or not, as he waited patiently.
"Go ahead the line is secure," Charlotte advised as soon as she was ready to listen.
"The big guy is ready. We're moving out at 0400. The public situation is getting pretty ugly. Could you talk to Sam and Carly about drumming up more positive PR? And… one last thing. I know you hate complications… but we've got one. One that's beyond Top Secret and requires a face-to-face. Do you want to meet us here or at base?"
"So Top Secret you can't say over a secured line? I see," Charlotte's tone dropped even lower making her sound more menacing. Bill scanned the area around him reminding himself that he faced down Decepticons that were scarier than his director. Somehow even that reminder didn't ease the chill that woman managed to create in him.
"I can't get away. I'll meet you at HHS when you arrive and you'd better explain why I'm finding out now about something beyond Top Secret. I've got enough trouble here in Washington, I do not need more, are we clear Colonel?"
"Yes m….," the colonel had to pause a moment. All branches of the military were trained to automatically respond with ma'am. However, he'd learned after his first encounter and quickly switched to, "Mearing, Director Mearing. We'll be prepared."
"Good," she snapped and the line disconnected. Bill pulled the device away from his face and made sure it was locked before he thrust it into his pocket.
"Things just keep getting better and better," he commented sarcastically as he made his way back to the command tent to supervise the evacuation.
—◊◊—◊◊—◊◊—
Bumblebee walked into the relative quiet of the lean-to and looked over to see if Ellie was sleeping and he was grateful she was. He was concerned about the amount of work she'd been doing on his system and wondered how much of it was affecting her. Unfortunately she was right, all they had to go by was her status bar and he had to trust FirstAid knew what he was doing.
He quietly walked over and placed the garbage bag near her small refuse pile and then went back to the pile of metal scrap the unit had been assembling. He quietly added as much to his subspace as he could. Soon the others came in and took similar shares of the pile until it was gone then each mech roved the compound, several times, to insure nothing was left behind.
Once those tasks were complete, Bumblebee returned to the shelter and took his usual place, seated against the wall and initiated a light recharge. He set his chronometer to wake him later that evening.
— Washington, D.C., Capitol Hill—
Sam regarded the Senator's closed door with indignation having, yet again, run across another unwilling politician. He stormed off down the hallway and met Carly coming from the opposite direction and asked, "Any luck?"
"No," her voice answered calmly but Sam noticed a faint dip to the corner of her mouth. He knew that meant the meeting did not go well at all, in fact, she was rather angry and that wasn't encouraging.
He smiled comfortingly, "How could anyone refuse you?"
Carly merely arched an elegant eyebrow, "Easily, apparently. The senator I spoke with ranted endlessly about safety. Everything about the Autobots, she believed, was dangerous. She even went so far as to suggest their 'emissions' were dangerous and would add to global warming. Perhaps we should've traded senators. You always manage to handle those situations far better than I."
"Emissions? You don't mean…., like cow farts?" Sam trailed off, his eyes widening with juvenile glee as he pictured the movie Cars and the tractor tipping scene.
Carly sighed having a pretty good idea where Sam's mind went, "It was a nightmare. Now you see why you would've been perfect? At least you would've been able to laugh it off and make her see how truly silly she was behaving. Emissions, really."
Sam snorted loudly with laughter which earned him a lesser glare than the one she'd recently given the senator. When he was able to breathe, he weezed out a few words between more snorts of laughter, "I think I'll take that as a complement? And suggest we see senators together in the future alright?"
When Sam finally controlled himself he looked down at his datapad and marked off two more as 'no' and regarded the list despondently. Things were not looking good for the Autobots and they had to figure out a way to change that and soon.
Carly leaned next to him to look over his shoulder, completely unaware that she'd attracted quite a bit of attention from some of the staffers wandering the hallways. That is until one made the mistake of whistling softly at her. Carly, despite stereotypes of British stoicism, was very emotional and that was the final straw.
First she looked up at the staffer and glared at him. Then she changed her mind and smiled, pointedly looking him over, starting with his feet and then slowly working her way up. She knew when she reached his face where his thoughts would be and she allowed him that, for a moment. Then her expression turned cold her blue eyes icy as if she'd just examined a cockroach. When she turned to Sam, she wasn't finished with her silent rebuke.
Sam noticed the staffer immediately and had been thinking about walking over and punching him in the face until he realized what Carly was up to. Instead of following his instincts, he lifted the datapad to hide his laughter. He kept his eyes locked on the tablet as he felt Carly slide up against his body. Then he felt a hand gently reach up and stroke his jaw in an attempt to get his attention.
It didn't take much for Sam's temperature to rise, Carly had that effect on him. To be honest, he was thoroughly enjoying her option to his. Knowing that she was also torturing the staffer was icing on the cake as he looked up to see if the staffer was still there. Sadly he was.
Sam pointedly placed his hand on her hip and pulled her close to breathe gently into her ear, "Enough?"
When she noticed the staffer was still ogling her, she whispered back, "Apparently not."
Sam breathed back softly, gently tickling the hair on the back of her neck. She shuddered involuntarily when he asked, "Oh poor me. So, what would you like to do to me now?"
"I was actually thinking we should let him go for a ride with Dino," she said surprising Sam with the unexpected comment.
Sam pulled back and barked out laughing completely blowing the moment she'd carefully orchestrated, "Good one, Car!"
A soft voice emitted from the datapad in a very mildly indignant Italian, "You insult me! I am a fabulous driver! Unless you wish me to do this for insulting Carly, in which case no problemo. But if I do, I don't think it'll improve relations with the humans the way you want it to."
Sam muttered, "Killjoy."
"Only when necessary," the mech countered dryly.
Carly rolled her eyes at the quiet interchange and then pointedly turned her back on the staffer not caring whether he got the message anymore. She looped her arm through Sam's and gently led him away.
Said staffer was still there, staring at the couple only now with concern. He was considered quite the catch in Washington circles and wondered what had made them laugh. Then it hit him as he dashed to the restroom. He must've spilled coffee on his crotch. Or left his fly open? Maybe he had an ink stain on his pocket? Food stuck in his teeth. Hair mussed? Mismatched shoes? If Sam and Carly had known how truly insecure the man was, they probably would've left him alone. Probably.
Since they did not, they walked down the corridor in happy ignorance as they argued with Dino as to which Autobot would be the scariest to ride with. In the end, Ratchet won, hand's down.
Said medic was blissfully unaware of the vote. Nor was he aware that Sam had managed, yet again, to mention Ratchet and the fact that he would have fun tormenting a human who 'obviously wanted to mate with the female'. Unfortunately for Ratchet, whether present or not, Sam would not let that comment go.
To Sam, it wasn't possible for Ratchet to have said anything more humiliating about him while he was trying to impress Mikaela. If perseverance was a Witwicky trait then he was living up to his family name in that he never intended to let the medic forget that. Ever. In fact, Sam insisted on reminding the medic whenever the opportunity presented itself, which was quite often.
Unfortunately for Sam, Ratchet wasn't the bot to mess with, primarily because he wasn't bothered by Sam's attempts at retaliation. He was a medic and had simply been stating facts. However, enough was enough and Ratchet was tired of the endless harassment.
Retaliation had long been in the works and Ratchet was prepared with something even more embarrassing. It wasn't that Ratchet was a cruel mech, he wasn't. He just had to draw the line, establish boundaries and respect. Now all he was waiting for was the right moment. Specifically? When Carly conceived.
And yes, mess with a medic and be rewarded with all of the details of organic creation and delivery in the form of a very informative and graphic video. In 3D. Just for Sam. Purely for educational purposes. He couldn't wait.
Had Sam known, he would've started making reparations immediately.
A/N: I hope this chapter makes sense, I edited it several times and as always, I know I missed things. Sorry!
I'm trying to get the bots out of Chicago… really! Maybe the next chapter! Hang in there and thank you so much for reading.
Please review and tell me what you think!