CHAPTER 35
Defending The Innocent

Bumblebee hated being away from Trevor for any amount of time. So having been away from him for a week made his spark ache. Optimus related he'd always felt the same way when he left him for any amount of time. But even so, he didn't let that comfort him, it just made him feel a bit worse. And so, on his break from their mission that afternoon, he used his holoform to go for a walk in the town. The town was a small one in Washington, which he hadn't learned the name of in their time there, but was still quaint. As usual, he looked for a little souvenir to bring Trevor back, but thus far, not much other than a few handmade dreamcatchers created by a nearby Native American tribe, which he eventually settled on.

He was coming out of the little shop when the rather slow day finally took a turn. His holoform barely noticed the tug on it's (imaginary) jeans as he stared down at the small form of a boy. Of course, it had to be a small child, a boy, someone's son. Just another reminder that he wasn't with his own "little boy" right now. Yet still, the always friendly Autobot only smiled warmly and stared down at the young human calmly. "Hello there," He greeted him. "Is there something I could do for you?" He asked.

"Can you help me?" The boy commented. "I'm lost, I think my daddy lost track of me."

Bumblebee frowned a bit, not liking the sound of that. The boy was lucky he had come to someone friendly, as he'd heard many horror stories of children talking to "strangers". He imagined if it were Trevor, or a small version of the boy at least. Of course, he'd missed those years with Trevor, but he still had a clear picture in his head of what he might have been like. "Pretty dangerous thing to do, y'know," Bumblebee commented. "Talking to strangers," The boy frowned, and looked unsure. "Lucky for you, I'm a good guy. With a son myself," He added with a smile.

"Like me?"

Bumblebee chuckled. "Quite a few years older," Bumblebee noted. "But he was once," He then added. "You got a name, small fry?"

"Kenny."

"Alright, Kenny," Bumblebee crouched low enough that he was at his level. "Can you tell me what your daddy looks like?"

It turned out that Kenny, being only about five, didn't give the best description. But Bumblebee didn't give up, even though he was starting to get a little frustrated. Mainly because he hoped that something hadn't happened to the man, and that he wasn't too worried. Now that he was a parent, he thoroughly understood how worrisome it was when you had no idea where your children were. "Okay, Kenny," Bumblebee offered again. "You said your father was tall with brown hair, and blue eyes, right?" The boy nodded warily. "And you also said he said never to tell your last name to strangers." Another nod, great that left searching for a phone number out of the question.

At this point, he figured he would HAVE to turn him into the human authorities, and he didn't want that. Not only did he still have to continue to hunt down the Decepticon incursion they'd come here for very soon, but more importantly... It would mean he might be handing a child over to social services, to foster care where Trevor might have been if he hadn't stepped in. And that inevitably and completely bothered him. "Mr. Prime?" Bumblebee looked down at the name he had given him. "Maybe I can-."

"Kenny!"

And there was the relief that Bumblebee felt, taking a deep breath. The man, who he guessed to be Kenny's father, was bolting down the sidewalk in a frenzy. "Daddy!" Bumblebee sighed at the reaction, watching as the boy ran into his father's arms. "I'm sorry daddy, I won't ever walk away again! It was so scary!" He whimpered.

The man gave Bumblebee a look, to which the Autobot threw his arms up. "I was just trying to help the small fry find you," He told him politely. "He was pretty scared when he couldn't find you. And, well... I have a son of my own, and all I could think is of it was him," He then added. "Especially because I've been away on business for a while."

The man looked at Bumblebee, still seemingly suspicious. But Kenny tugged on his sleeve carefully, grabbing his attention. "Mr. Prime was really nice, daddy," Kenny told him reassuringly in a way only a small child could. "He didn't hurt me, promise," A point at which the man seemed to finally calm down.

The man looked at Bumblebee with a small, thankful smile. One which made him smile back at him, nodding a little bit. "Thank you so much then, I appreciate it," He replied, an exhausted look in his eyes. "I just got so side-tracked in a phone call, I must have just... Lost him," He lowered Kenny to the ground, and took his hand. "You know how kids can be."

Bumblebee chuckled, nodding his head. "My kid was fifteen when I adopted him. And he's already a bit of a handful," He explained. "I can't honestly imagine what a small child would be like," The man laughed at that. "Anyways, I'd better be on my way. I still have to return to my... Employers, and get back to work," He then looked down at Kenny. "You stick close to your daddy, okay? No more scaring him or you."

"I will!" Kenny waved as Bumblebee turned. "Bye, Mr. Prime!"

Bumblebee had made it half-way to his alt mode when his comm opened. :Bumblebee, I need you on high alert,: Optimus spoke loud and clear. :There appears to be a high fluctuation of Decepticons near you. They're closing in quickly, and though we are on our way...:

Bumblebee's eyes widened, his holoform staring around. The streets were mostly empty at the moment, with the exception of Kenny and his father. He silently panicked, flashes of Trevor and Joseph on that faithful day coming into his processor. :Prime, there's a civilian father and son right in my line of vision,: Bumblebee replied. :How close are we talking?:

:Four meters from your present location.:

Bumblebee inwardly cursed to himself, that was hardly enough time for the small family to get away. But he wasn't supposed to reveal himself, that was breaking a lot of laws. And yet he knew what would happen if he didn't, the second the Decepticons saw his signature, they'd be shooting at him, and Primus forbid Kenny or his father get caught in the crossfire. :They won't get out of here in time,: Bumblebee shot back. :I don't have a choice but to expose myself if I'm going to get them out of harms way!:

:Bumblebee-:

:It's a slagging four year old and his father, Prime,: Bumblebee replied. :I'll be careful but I'm getting them-!:

Gunfire cut him off as he turned his head towards the sight of three incoming Decepticons. The scout wasted no time finishing his communication, quickly transforming his real form up, and rolling forward, charging towards the small family. Not again, this was not happening again. "Kenny! Kenny's sire! DUCK!" He shouted, grabbing their attention as he threw himself over their forms, taking a barrage of bullets in response.

Bellow him, both humans looked beyond bewildered, no doubt at the fact "Mr. Prime" was now a giant robot. He shot his head back, unable to make out quite yet who the Decepticons were. "What the hell? What are you? Why are you-?" The man began to sputter.

"The person who's getting you out of here," Bumblebee told him bluntly, picking them up, and transforming around both of them. "Don't scream, don't scream, don't fragging scream," He stated as the two humans clearly became fearful. "The two of you were in the line of fire, I need to get you out of here. Now, what's the easiest way to lose..." He could see the mechs had transformed into a trio of muscle cars now. "A trio of muscle cars."

Kenny's father leaned back, unable to answer the mech for several moments. "T-There's an alley down the road they probably couldn't fit into," The man breathed. "What are you? Who are you? You looked human a minute ago, but-."

"I'll let my superiors explain it to you when this mess is over."

Bumblebee slid seatbelts over both of them before flooring the gas and high tailing it for the nearest alleyway on his radar. Of course, he noted there were several, which was not helpful when you had a terrified four year old in you, and three angry Decepticons on your tail. "Alright, when I get to the alley, you two are going to get out and hide in there, anywhere in there," He explained. "I'll draw them away, but considering what you've just seen, I need you to stay put." He explained.

He didn't pay attention to any response the man may have given. Simply to a sharp stop in front of the smallest spaced alleyway he could find. He threw his doors open, allowing the man and Kenny to scramble out and into the alleyway before transforming again. "Come on Decepticreeps," He beckoned them. "No bystanders to shoot at now. So let's dance."

The first of the cars transformed, revealing a blue armored and yellow opticed mech before him. Bumblebee immediately recognized Breakdown on sight, along with the fact it was not the muscle car he had hoped it would be. Rather, it had been an armored jeep, of all things."Well if it isn't the Bumblebrat," Breakdown chided as he approached, grinning wickedly. "You got some real guts ruining our fun. Lord Starscream isn't going to like that, and your old pal Barricade won't either."

"Three attacks in two weeks and you thought we wouldn't come?" Bumblebee asked as the two other cars turned into a pair of drones. "You people clearly want our attention," He moved in a way that took their attention off the alleyway - and the family. "Well you have it Breakdown, so what the frag do you think you're doing?"

Breakdown smirked, an amused look in his optics. "To be perfectly honest, the last two weeks have been boredom," Breakdown shook his head. "With the new guy in command, we hardly do anything anymore. I missed causing a little chaos, so I came to Earth for a little more action," He added. "It's fun watching the humans as I crush them under my feet."

"The new guy?" Bumblebee questioned. "Starscream isn't in charge?"

Breakdown's face contorted a bit, as if to signal he'd said too much. He clenched his fists slightly, and looked to him with a gleam in his optics. "Heh, wouldn't you love to know?" Bumblebee's optics narrowed. "Yeah, someone else is running the show. And they're telling us to cause as much chaos as possible," He sneered. "To show you little Autobrats that a storm is coming. Not today, not tomorrow, but soon."

"Yeah, well allow me to send a message of my own," Bumblebee pointed at Breakdown. "When I send you back to your master in pieces, be sure to tell him to leave Earth alone," He told him bluntly. "Because its people have done nothing to you."

"Except helped kill Lord Megatron," Breakdown made a "tsk. tsk" sound. "Wasn't it your youngling that did that?"

At that point, Bumblebee lunged before the threats could even escape him. Both drones charged at him quickly, firing a volley of shots as he slammed a fist into their chests, and threw one against the other. "Oh, and don't expect the back-up we know you ordered," Breakdown teased. "Hook, and Knock Out are going to keep them busy for a while."

"Fine by me," Bumblebee ripped off the head of one drone, and cut the other in half. "Still won't be a fair fight for you, Breakdown."

"Big words from a pathetic scout Barricade nearly killed."

Bumblebee struck at the Decepticon violently, pushing him back to the best of his ability. The mech was definitely physically stronger than him by a wide margin, but Bumblebee didn't care. The bigger they were, the harder they fell, and the better the challenge for that matter. He swung his leg around, tripping the massive Decepticon before driving one of his blasters into his side, taking a chunk of armor with it. "Barricade got lucky," Bumblebee noted. "You? Probably won't."

The kick Breakdown landed on him was hard enough to send him flying a few feet. But Bumblebee quickly regained his balance, firing off another volley of shots in his direction. Breakdown waited for him with another blow, this time, a sharp punch to the face which only made him stagger. "You're still weak. I can hit you with four times the velocity," He told him sharply. "And all you can do is be a minor annoyance."

The next time, Bumblebee's fist collided with Breakdown's own face. In fact, it collided with him several times, sending him staggering back until he gave a high jump kick to his face. Breakdown fell back with a growl, wiping some Energon from his lips. "Yeah, I'm a real annoyance," Bumblebee spat. "Are you forgetting who I was trained by?"

A shriek grabbed his attention, as he saw where Breakdown had landed. His optics traveled to Kenny and his father, who were in the alley, at the end to be exact, and right by Breakdown's helm. "I do wonder," Breakdown noted. "If you're only fighting this hard because it reminds you of what ole Barricade did to that boy's father," He began to inch his hand close to Kenny's own father. "Mind if I borrow you for a minute, sir?"

At that point, Bumblebee completely lost it, leaping for the mech until he had leapt on top of him, pinning him. "GO!" Bumblebee shouted, as the man nodded, grabbing his son and running. "Don't you dare, TOUCH THEM."

"You feel guilty," Breakdown snorted. "How touching."

"He had a sparkling with him!"

"So did the other one."

Bumblebee gawked as a blast hit his side, causing him to cry out and stagger back. Breakdown got to his feet, and swung the fist. But this time, Bumblebee was ready to catch it, clenching his fist, and punching his head so hard that Breakdown's head almost spun off his neck. "I will never let a Decepticon orphan another child on my watch," He snapped. "So you can get the frag away from them," He pointed his cannon for the mech. "And pick on me INSTEAD."

Before Breakdown knew how to react, his left leg had been blasted. He himself was surprised by the scout's own anger, but could do little more than drag himself back without his leg. "You wouldn't hurt me more," Breakdown noted. "I'm a crippled mech, I have no leg now," He shouted as Bumblebee approached. "You don't have the reproductive spark."

"You're right, because you're gonna tell us what's going on," Bumblebee told him bluntly, approaching his helm. "So for now, all I can do is make sure you have one pit of a helm ache when you wake up."

Breakdown didn't have time to reply to the sharp kick to the head that put him in stasis lock. Bumblebee groaned out in pain, rubbing his side, which luckily was only grazed as he approached the alleyway. Once again, both Kenny and his father poked their heads out. "Are you two alright? Uninjured?" He questioned, looking over at Kenny as he continued to cling to his father's leg. "It's okay, Kenny, the one you had to be afraid of is gone now."

"Is it dead?" Kenny's father asked.

"No, but he won't wake up for at least another ten hours with his wounds," Bumblebee turned as a procession of more vehicles headed their way. "Listen, once you see my supervisor, Major William Lennox, he'll explain everything. And since I know it's probably what you want, you won't have to see me again," He explained. "It looks like we have at least someone to give us the answers we came for."

But after a moment, Kenny's father looked up at him, smiling. "Thank you," He managed. "I don't get what just happened... But you saved our lives."

Bumblebee looked surprised, having not expected a response like that. But slowly, he gave a small smile, and nodded his head. "My son lost his human parents to a monster like that," He explained. "I wasn't able to save him, and I blame myself every day for it," He then added. "I would never be able to live with myself if the same happened to Kenny." He then added. "So, in short. No thanks necessary. But you're welcome."

He only hoped to himself that Optimus wouldn't yell at him too much for this.

...

That night, Bumblebee was able to come home, even if he arrived long before Trevor was awake. Optimus had given him a bit of a lecture, but to his relief, it was only very brief. It had been Ratchet who had been the most angry of the two of them, especially when he had to patch up what Ironhide couldn't with his very minor experience. To his dismay, despite the fact he had brought the only captured Decepticon: Breakdown to the base, he was put on berthrest given he had lost a little more Energon than he first thought.

His first stop before he went to the berth though was to stop in Trevor's bedroom. To his relief, the boy was sound asleep, rather than waiting up like he had said he would earlier that day over the bond. His blankets covered him tightly as the mech hovered over him, optics warming at the ability to see his own young son again. Especially after the day he had had. Without a doubt, he was going to need a great deal of father-son time if he was going to work past this whole ordeal.

Bumblebee slowly lowered his fingers down to adjust Trevor's blankets as the boy shifted carefully. With a single finger, he began to stroke his back as well, in order to show Trevor he was there. And though the boy never woke, he knew by the smile on his face that he knew, if not from that, then from the love he sent through the bond. "I missed you buddy," Bumblebee whispered as quietly as he could. "Can't wait to see you later today."

He sat there for several minutes afterward, simply watching as he slept. Perhaps because he honestly felt he needed the assurance that he was still okay. Even though the events of that day hadn't changed what had happened to him, he was still happy. And the more he watched hims sleep soundly, the more assured he became. He stood to his feet after several minutes, turning to find Optimus standing in the doorway silently, he took a look back before carefully exiting the room.

"I just had to see him, y'know?" Bumblebee explained. "After that near-repeat today, I felt like-."

"You needn't explain yourself to me," Optimus chuckled quietly. "I'd come to see how he fared as well. But did not wish to interrupt your moment together," He then added. "I remembered that feeling well. The feeling of missing that which my spark held the most dear," Bumblebee rumbled his engine, knowing that he meant him and Elita. "Especially after a day like today."

"At least I prevented it this time," Bumblebee replied, putting his hands on his hips. "If Breakdown had gotten Kenny's father too, I definitely couldn't live with myself. He was even younger than Trevor is," He then corrected himself. "Slag, he was a toddler. And I don't know if I could handle a toddler, Prime-."

"You cannot take in every orphan in this war anyway, Bumblebee," Optimus told him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Nor do you have to, as you prevented someone from being orphaned today," The scout nodded his head one more time, understanding completely. "Don't let the past eat at you so muchm, Bumblebee. As I know it has been..."

"It's weird," Bumblebee replied. "But ever since I saved Kenny's sire," He paused. "I feel like I brought some peace to myself. Maybe I proved to myself I'm not totally inept in protecting people," He muttered. "Or something..."

"You never were, my son," Optimus placed a hand upon his shoulder. "You simply needed the confidence boost," Bumblebee's doorwings perked up as his optics lit up. "Now, as your own sire, I must ask that you go rest now. You heard Ratchet's orders," Bumblebee groaned. "You did well today, son, I'm proud of you."

"Thanks, Prime," Bumblebee nodded. "But-."

"Berth, now." Optimus ordered gently.

And if there was one thing Bumblebee knew, it was not to try a second time. After all, Trevor, and Breakdown, would be there in the morning.

...

A/N: Woo, that was a hard action chapter to write! I hope I tied the action and the ROTF set-up in well (with the mention of a "New Leader" of course). :)