"Prime, it looked as if Bumblebee had been…. Raped, most likely worse than his beatings, and it looked as if it happened more than once."
The world seemed to freeze around him when Ratchet spoke those words; Optimus couldn't find his vocal processor anywhere at all, and his spark seemed to stop beating as he stared past the space behind the medic, and even through the wall. He didn't hear Ratchet still speaking to him, a lump building in his throat. Bumblebee had been…. Raped? By who? Why? Was this some sick joke that Megatron was playing, maybe something that he did to try and get him back for all these years of battle? If he did, it seemed to be working well on the Prime; Optimus trying not to think of ways of killing his arch nemesis in ways no one could ever imagine. Finally, slowly come back to the world of reality, jumping slightly when Ratchet seemed to have suddenly appeared at his left side, a gentle servo touching his shoulder plating and shaking him slightly, trying to get him back.
"Ratchet," Optimus spoke hoarsely as he looked down to the medic, lucky that no one else was around to hear him speak like this, "w-what… How did this -"
"Happen?"
That last word was spoken in unison with someone else, and Optimus knew that it wasn't Ratchet; his lips hadn't moved, and he looked just as confused that the word had been spoken with another just as Optimus had spoken it. Instantly Optimus spun on his heels, at first worried that Bumblebee had woken up and found his way to where the two were talking; but that was no such luck. Instead, Ironhide stood in the doorway to Ratchet's office, looking confused and at the same time pissed about obviously not hearing about this sooner. His jaw was partly dropped as he stood there, having to lean on the door frame itself to keep from falling over as he looked over the Prime's and his bonded's faces, as if trying to search for an answer that he already received. Optimus carefully looked over his weapons speaclist, knowing that he would most likely start going off about all this.
"Ironhide, I -" started the medic as he took a step forward, past the Prime, however was instantly cut off before he could say anymore.
"Why didn't you tell me about this sooner, Ratch'?" Ironhide practically roared, straightening up and pushing off of the door frame, hurt displaying in his optics. "Why the slag did you tell him first and not me? I'm his guardian, for Primus' sake!" Ironhide was breathing hard now, looking as if he was trying to contemplate weather to go and start blowing up slag around base, or to hunt down the Decepticons himself and start beating the slag out of them.
"Because I knew you'd act like this!" retorted Ratchet, giving his bonded a grim and yet serious look. "I was going to wait until I thought you could handle it, but obviously even then, I could see you unable to do so."
"But Ratchet, I -!" started Ironhide, however now it was his turn to be cut off; however not by his bonded, or Optimus. There was a sound back in the med bay, and Ratchet instantly gave Ironhide a look that if they could kill, the mech would drop dead there, regardless if they were bonded or not.
Quickly the medic pushed past Prime and Ironhide, Optimus still in shock and 'Hide baffled and pissed off at the same time, however both seeming unable to move at the moment, their bodies paralyzed as if the thought of what the medic had just told him had revolted them into an unforgivable paralysis. There was quiet clicking and twittering from the med bay, and it didn't take Ironhide a click for him to regain control of his frame and dash out of the office, Optimus slowly following behind. Instantly, however, the Prime stopped at the doorway, watching the scene before him play out, gulping as if he were afraid to actually confront the waking mech after what Ratchet had just told him.
Bumblebee was shifting out of recharge, Ratchet scanning the groggy mech as 'Bee seemed to be trying to figure out where he was while he tried to wake up. Ironhide instantly placed himself in the chair Ratchet had said he was sitting in earlier, scooting himself to where his legs were bumping up against the berth side as he quickly tried to get his charge's attention. Optimus smiled at the sight of the usually quick tempered and aft kicking weapons speaclist before him; that right there was probably the reason he trusted Ironhide so much with the yellow mech in the first place. No one, not even Ironhide himself, had expected the aft kicking weapons speaclist to get so attached to the little sparkling that they found of the streets of Praxus. It just happened, it seemed, and Optimus knew that Ironhide would take back nothing that the previous years he had with the yellow mech.
Finally, Optimus got the urge to silently stride up to the berth, just as Ratchet finished his scans and Ironhide got his waking charge's attention. Bumblebee seemed to have realize who was murmuring to him, and leaned towards where the voice was coming from, a servo freeing itself from his covers and trying to find it's way to his guardian. Optimus stopped at the end of the berth, still not making a sound as Ratchet sighed and placed one of his scanners on a nearby work bench.
"Everything looks fine, Bumblebee," he said, however all three mechs, Bumblebee not included, seemed to think otherwise about those words that the medic had just spoke. "You just need some rest, and in a about a week or so, you'll be able to start moving around again. Just don't over do it, alright? We don't need to be fixing you up again."
There was a slightly audible "okay" from the young mech as he turned his helm to get a better look at the medic talking to him, however the movement stopped halfway to it's designation; optics widening as they landed on the Prime who stood at the edge of the berth. There was some sort of happy sound that came from the yellow mech's vocalizors, obviously greeting the Prime.
"Ironhide?" came the voice of the medic, tearing the lovebird's gazes apart for a split second to look at him as he spoke, even though it was not them being spoken to. "May I speak with you in my office, please? I wish to continue the conversation that we were having earlier. Prime, you can stay out here if you wish."
Optimus nodded and Ratchet turned, heading back towards his office without a second glance. Ironhide gave a grumble, however stood up, giving his charge a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder before turning to follow his bonded. As he passed Optimus, he gave his leader a very serious look; as stated before, Ironhide could be very protective of his charge, and him being with Optimus did not seem to change anything about that personality trait. When Ironhide finally slipped into the medic's office, the door closing behind him, Optimus sighed tiredly and strided over to the chair Ironhide had been using, taking a seat in it and scooting up to the berth as the yellow mech's guardian had.
When Optimus sat down, Bumblebee instantly reached out a servo to him, and, without words, Optimus slid both of his onto the berth. Bumblebee instantly then took one in his servo, taking out the other to clasp the servo in his. There was a moment of peace and stillness, before Bumblebee brought the Prime's servo up to his cheek plate, leaning into the touch as both of his servos engulfed his leader's and lover's. Optimus smiled and relax a little as the yellow mech held tight onto his servo, as if afraid that it was going to go somewhere if he did indeed let go.
"Missed you," Bumblebee finally croaked in his normal voice, however Optimus could tell that it hurt him to talk with it, even now. Optimus smiled, his mask retracting as he looked over the injured bot; the words Ratchet had spoken to him still ringing in his processor, and he looked gravely back into his lover's optics, who gave him a concerned look in response. "Optimus? Is everything okay?" he asked, shifting his helm slightly to one side, leaning into the servo that still was placed on his cheek.
Sighing and placing his other servo gently on the younger mech's chassis in comfort, he spoke softly, "Ratchet, h-he told me and Ironhide one of the things that the Decepticons had done to you when you were captured." When Bumblebee looked at him in slight confusion, Optimus looked to the medic's office door - which was still closed, and no loud noises or shouting were coming from it - he looked back to his smaller lover and said, "I-I…. He said that you were…. Sexually assaulted and -"
Suddenly Bumblebee gave a small whine, his optics seeming to mist up as he suddenly jerked his helm, looking away from Optimus instantly, as if he had just seen something horrific that he never wanted to see again; Optimus's servo still placed firmly on the yellow mech's cheek, even though Bumblebee had move his arms and had wrapped them just below the servo he had on his chassis. The Prime's intakes instantly hitched when the young bot did that, now knowing that Ratchet had been telling less than what he actually didn't know. Bumblebee seemed to shutter at the thoughts that had been brought into his processor form what Optimus had simply said, and instantly the larger mech moved the servo that was one Bumblebee's chassis to his far cheek, slowly having the young bot look him back in the optics like he had been. Yellow cheeks were slowly starting to stain with tears as he searched his lover's face for what Optimus guessed might be denial or refusal or even anger, however the Prime tried to stay calm as he tried to calm the yellow mech down.
"Hey, you're alright," Optimus spoke in a soft and endearing tone, wiping away the tears that quickly were running from 'Bee's baby blue optics. "Everything gonna be alright, you hear me? As long as I live, I promise nothing like this will happen to you again, okay? I know that I failed you and I'm -"
"You didn't fail me," sniffled the young bot, a servo reaching up to cover up one of the Prime's own large servos, causing it to stop moving. "You just…. Didn't get there in time. I-I know you went to the Pit and back trying to find me and all. Ratchet told me about it a little while back. Y-You tried, but -"
"But not hard enough," Optimus stated, seeing as how it was fit for him to butt in this time, optics showing all the seriousness that he had. "I could have gotten there sooner. I could have done so much more than I already had been doing, but I didn't. I failed, and you were hurt. Badly. And all because of me, I just know it."
There was a moment of silence between the two, Bumblebee finally finding the strength to will himself to stop crying, and finally, after searching the Prime's facial features, lifted his free servo to the Prime's helm, and gently - slowly - he brought their forehelms together, Optimus having to move up and lean against the side of the berth slightly as he tried to comfort the yellow mech more. Bumblebee nuzzled into the comfort, glad that he was home, and glad that Optimus was hovering above him, talking to him like this would be the last time they would ever be spending together. And, from what Bumblebee had learned just from recent experience, it easily could have been.
I feel like having Ironhide going out and kicking someone's aft, really I do. I just haven't chosen the right victim yet. Also, there shall be more entertaining news on the way, something that you'll find out in later chapters. What is it? Well, you'll just have to keep reading.