Upon his return from his typical mid-afternoon rounds around Autobot Outpost Omega One to ensure that all was well, Optimus found that Bumblebee, Bulkhead, and their human charges were already back at the base—right on schedule, as usual.

Arcee and Jack would still be a while, as Jack had two-hour shifts at work right after school on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.

That morning, Optimus had been called in to Unit E for all of five minutes in order to update General Bryce as to the state of his health. The entire time, Optimus had been more than a little confused, but (apparently) he would no longer be shot at by the military.

He supposed he should be thankful for the little victories, even if they were a bit perplexing—but it was not as though Agent Fowler ever made anything simple to comprehend. Better to just nod and mobilize.

"Hey, Optimus!" A voice shouted, and the Prime looked down to see Miko running up to the yellow railing.

So, it was starting again.

"Yes, Miko?" He replied, internally bracing himself. "What is it?"

"I realized I forgot something the other day!" Miko told him, then she drew a notebook and opened it to reveal that she had scrawled out a set of numbers in a size which was probably inconvenient for her but was quite easy for him to read. "It's El's number. I figured you might want to patch it into the comms, just in case."

"Oh." Optimus blinked, then he nodded and scanned the number into his database. "Thank you, Miko."

"No problem." Miko lowered the notebook and closed it, glancing down. "Um…" She looked up at Optimus. "You're going on patrol soon, right?" The Prime nodded. "If you drive past her house, do you think you'll be able to see her through one of her windows? She's been answering all of my texts, but… I'm worried about her." Miko kicked the air, a little uncomfortable. "She's all alone, out there. I know that she's been alone before, but… I don't think she should have to be. I mean, it's El."

"Hm." Optimus frowned at Miko, then he looked back at the exit to the base.

He agreed completely.

/\

When Optimus arrived at Eleanor's house after completing his patrol, he remained in his vehicle mode and summoned his holoform to approach the residence.

Once he arrived at the door, he knocked a few times and waited before mentally cringing, recalling how difficult it would be for Eleanor to get to the door—let alone open it. He glanced once at the road before willing the compromise of the projection's semi-solid structure and passing through the barrier and into the house.

Once inside, he looked around curiously before starting to walk around, being careful not to make any noise that could startle his injured charge. He eventually arrived in a room that he decided reminded him of the human lounge space back at the base, and he saw a small figure curled up on a chair underneath some blankets.

"Eleanor?" Optimus asked quietly, and when she did not respond, he realized that she must have been asleep and drew a little closer, getting down on one knee beside the chair. There were shadows around her eyes, which were reddened—reminding the Prime of that day in the driveway, of Rafael's leg, of Miko's confession. "Eleanor?"

"Hm?" The young codebreaker shifted a bit as she was stirred towards consciousness, wincing as she instinctually moved a hand towards her ribs, then her eyes fluttered open and she looked up at him. She blinked, then she gasped and she sat up with a start before yelping and hugging herself, gritting her teeth in pain. "Agh!"

"Eleanor." Optimus was immediately on his feet, gazing at her worriedly, and Eleanor opened her eyes and blinked several times as she let out another gasp of pain. "I apologize, I did not mean to startle you. I-"

"O… Optimus?" Eleanor managed, then she sighed and raised an arm to her face to wipe her eyes, keeping her teeth gritted the whole time. "Ah…" When she lowered her arm, she managed to look up at him with a light smile. "Optimus. Hey!" She gave a weak shrug. "Sorry, I wasn't expecting to have any visitors besides -well- June, and she's -well- June… H-How did you get in here?" Optimus held up a hand and willed his holoform's palm to go transparent. "Right. Holoform. You're lucky I've got broken ribs, or there might've been a fight-sequence just now."

Optimus fixed his holoform's hand and lowered it, frowning at his injured charge. "How are you feeling?"

"Could be worse," Eleanor told him. "I'm just tired, and I hate this wheelchair." She gestured to a wheeled, metal and canvas chair positioned by the chair she was seated on, then she snorted quietly. "But at least I get to make references. I should start a school for gifted youngsters." She blinked, then she sighed. "Right, that's another one that you won't get. Looks like I'll have to put X-Men on the list."

"Hm." Optimus was able to take some small comfort in her ability to make jokes, but that comfort did not last. As Eleanor tried to lay down again, he could see the pain that the slightest movement caused as every motion seemed to result in a flinch. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah." Eleanor nodded shakily, laying back in a more-flat position and looking up at her ceiling with a sigh. "Like I said, just tired."

Optimus hesitated before nodding, then he noticed a peculiar glow coming from a table nearby and picked up what looked to be Eleanor's cellphone. "You have some missed calls."

"I do?" She asked, and he passed the phone to her. "... Oh." The young codebreaker gave a light deadpan. "It's Maggie."

Optimus blinked. "Your sister."

"Yep," Eleanor agreed, raising an eyebrow as she gazed at her phone. "Hm. Big risk, making all these calls."

"You have not answered?"

"I don't-" Eleanor blinked as Optimus snatched the phone, waited for Margaret to call again, answered, and passed the phone back to his charge. "Hey!"

"Talk to her," Optimus insisted. "She is your sister, and she saved your life. If she is calling like this, she must have a reason."

Eleanor blinked again, then she frowned and set the phone to 'speaker'. "Uh… Hey, Mags."

:Eleanor? Thank God, you're alive!:

"Yep." The young codebreaker nodded, a little stiff. "You know me, just… continuing those metabolic functions."

:What the fuck happened, El? Where were you? Are you okay?!:

"Yeah, I-..." Eleanor seemed taken aback for a moment, then she took a deep breath. "I'm okay." She glanced up at Optimus. "A good friend of mine from work managed to get me out."

:You don't sound okay. You're breathing weird.:

"Mags-"

:Spill, now,: the voice on the other end of the line demanded. :I deserve this much, El. I got your message, I called for help. I'm the only reason why your buddy was able to save your ass, so give me a status update.:

Eleanor just looked at the phone for a moment, then her eyes narrowed. "... You first."

:I'm in L.A. I'm okay,: the voice said, suddenly just as stiff as Eleanor had started out. :I've got a pretty sweet opportunity coming up.:

"Oh?"

:Yeah.:

"Drugs?" Eleanor raised an eyebrow, and when there was no response, the young woman sighed and closed her eyes. "Damn it, Maggie…"

:Status update. Now.:

"... Ten broken ribs, three cracked," Eleanor said softly, opening her eyes. "The, um... The guy who had me got a bit rough, when my friend showed up. Nothing to be done."

:For fuck's sake… El, what the Hell have you gotten yourself into?: Margaret demanded. :These people that you had me contact, they wouldn't tell me shit.:

"I can't tell you anything either."

:Why not?:

"It's not safe."

:Are you safe?:

"Do you care?"

:Of course, I care!: Margaret suddenly snapped. :I'm your sister!:

"... Then, why aren't you here?" Eleanor asked, tossing her phone into her lap and looking away from it. "For me, for Mom and Dad, for Uncle Roger and Sophie, for Eugene and Gabby… Why aren't you here?"

:You know why.:

Eleanor's eyes narrowed. "You're selfish."

:Yes, I am.:

"... Maggie?" The young codebreaker looked back at the phone, surprised. "What-..? What the Hell am I supposed to do with-?"

:It'll be a while before I can call again, El,: Margaret stated. :This guy who came and got you out, is he gonna keep looking out for you?:

Eleanor's eyes narrowed again, this time out of frustration rather than anger. "Hey!"

"Yes, I will," Optimus cut in, hoping to stop another altercation from starting between the two Martin sisters.

:Whoa. Deep voice,: Margaret commented. :What's up with Eeyore, El?:

Eleanor rolled her eyes. "Maggie!"

By the way Eleanor reacted, Optimus could tell that this 'Eeyore' was not a severe insult; that meant that, whatever it was, her sister meant it to stand as a nickname or term of endearment. He decided not to point out how odd it was that she, who constantly handed out nicknames, was the first to protest her sister handing one out.

:Heh.: The older sister sounded amused, but very tired. :Always so easy to rile up.: Eleanor huffed. :... It's a government job, right?: The young codebreaker's body went tense. :Are you helping people, El?:

"Uh… Yeah," Eleanor said, a little stiff again. "Why?"

:Heh. Wherever you were, whatever risk you took—I figured you'd have only done it if you were helping someone else,: Margaret explained. :You're crazy, El, but you're no thrill-seeker. That's what folks say is the difference between you and me. My high comes from the thrills… and the -well- highs.: She hummed softly. :Your high come from making a difference, solving the impossible problems, helping people.:

"... I answered my phone, and you heard my voice, and you heard me say that I was okay," Eleanor noted, suspicion in her tone as her eyes narrowed again. "Our longest phone-call in the last few years which hasn't involved a gun to my head was about forty seconds." She forced herself to sit up again, wincing, then she took a deep breath. "... What's going on, Maggie?"

:You'll see, someday,: Margaret assured her. :Keep fighting the good fight, El. And don't die while doing it, dummy.:

"Hm." Eleanor seemed to realize that she would not be getting anything more from her sister. "Will try. No promises." The woman on the other end of the line snorted, and Eleanor sighed softly. "... Love you, Mags."

:Love ya, El,: the other Martin sister insisted. :Oh, and about David? Fuck that guy.:

"Pfft-..!" Eleanor raised a hand to her mouth to stifle a laugh, then she lowered her hand and grinned as she shook her head. "I would seriously advise against it."

:He's a dick.:

"I think that's a bit of an understatement."

:Yeah, I know,: Margaret said simply. :That's why it made you smile.: Optimus blinked, looking down at the phone in surprise. :Bye, El.:

"... Bye, Maggie," Eleanor whispered, and the call ended. After a few moments, the young codebreaker sighed as she rested her elbow on her knee and looked at Optimus, resting her chin on her fist. "You are just bound and determined to get me out of my comfort zone, huh?" Optimus raised an eyebrow, and she snorted. "Touché."

"I do apologize if I was out of line," Optimus told her. "It just seemed as though I owed you." The young woman blinked. "You have helped me on several occasions, when I have been uncertain of what the right path was... I hoped to give you a simple nudge in the right direction, and start repaying my debts."

"Oh, that was just a bit more than a nudge," Eleanor remarked, then she sighed and laid down, hissing in pain before closing her eyes. "But thanks, Optimus... You were right."

"Hm." Optimus found himself shaking his head. "You must truly be feeling terrible."

The codebreaker gave a weak chuckle. "Oh, yeah."

"Well…" Optimus stood up and walked over to where her wheelchair was waiting, sitting down and folding his hands as he looked at her. "I hope you will not mind some company for the day, terribleness aside."

Eleanor opened her eyes and looked at him, her eyes widening as her face fell into something like astonishment, then she gave a light grin. "You kidding me? Messing with you's the best painkiller a girl could have." Optimus reached over and took her hand, and she blinked again before sighing and gripping him back. "It's good to see you, Optimus."

"It is good to see you, too."

/\

Some time later, Eleanor had to get up to accomplish a few tasks around her house.

Optimus told her he would try and do some things for her and that she should keep resting, but she insisted that she had to get up.

Stubborn as ever.

But June had said that someone should push the wheelchair for Eleanor, so he allowed no protests there. His holoform could easily accomplish that much.

"Thanks for the ride," Eleanor spoke in a joking tone as they finally arrived back at her chair, her voice a little hoarse. "Though, I think I prefer the usual ones better."

"Those will come again in time."

"Yeah, I know." The young codebreaker sighed, then she braced herself before attempting to stand up so that she could move from her wheelchair to her chair, only to cringe as she had to sit down again, raising a hand to her chest. "D... Damn it."

"Here." Optimus stepped to the side and placed his hands on Eleanor's arms, being cautious not to hurt her as he provided support as she tried to stand up again. "Be careful, Eleanor." The Prime's injured charge nodded shakily, and Optimus helped her ease herself down into her chair. "There."

"Hm." Eleanor looked up at him, giving a small smile, then she sighed again and closed her eyes as she grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around her shoulders overtop her coat. "Thanks."

Optimus nodded, then he blinked as he noticed something peculiar about his charge. It was as though the color was draining from her face... and he was suddenly reminded of the day Rafael was infected with Dark Energon, how the young boy had almost perished.

"There is something wrong," the Prime realized, and Eleanor blinked as he raised the back of his holoform's hand to her forehead as he had oftentimes seen June do with the children. He had never really known what the nurse was looking for, but now that he had interacted with humans a bit more, he knew that they definitely did not run at temperatures that high normally. "You appear to be overheating." He had also seen June grab the children's arms, so he did that next and realized that—even though she was now back in her proper place and sitting down—Eleanor was trembling. "And shaking."

"Sorry," Eleanor murmured, tucking her blanket around herself a bit more with her free hand. "It's just cold..."

"It is actually quite warm for this time of year," Optimus noted, glancing at the nearest window. "And you have been living in-" He blinked, then he looked back at Eleanor as his worry grew. "Oh, no."

The young codebreaker blinked, then her face fell. "... I'm sick, aren't I?"

"I am calling Nurse Darby," Optimus informed his charge, then he grabbed the blanket and helped Eleanor wrap herself a bit better. He was not sure if this was the right thing to do since the human's skin was so warm, but she felt cold and she was already in so much pain, so he hoped she would be alright. He would just have to keep watch. "Stay warm."

"Okay."

Eleanor was still shivering when June arrived, a short time later.

The nurse seemed surprised upon meeting Optimus's holoform on the front porch of the house, then she shook her head and entered the building.

"You did the right thing, calling me," June noted as Optimus led her towards the room where Eleanor was, the nurse placing a sort of mask on to cover her mouth and nose. "Agent Fowler was able to get me some antibiotics and penicillin. If it's pneumonia, we're ready for it."

"Very well, Nurse Darby."

They arrived at the room, and June immediately made her way over to where Eleanor was and started her examination. "... We caught it early." The nurse stood up straight and looked at Optimus. "And she doesn't seem so bad, so she should be alright. She's a young, healthy girl. We just need to monitor her breathing and make sure she keeps drinking water."

"Hey, June," Eleanor greeted quietly, sounding a bit out of sorts as she wrapped her blanket around her battered body again.

"Hello, Eleanor." June glanced down at the young woman with a sad look in her eyes. "How are you feeling?"

Eleanor went to reply only to suddenly start coughing, and it was a few moments before she could catch her breath and respond. "C-Cold, and tired."

"I can tell," June said softly, then she took one of Eleanor's hands and held it in both of hers. "Oh, dear. You're all clammy... We need to get some water in you."

"Mm." Eleanor nodded, then the codebreaker grabbed a bottle from her little table and opened it, taking a sip. She cringed, but she still took a few more sips before she replaced the lid.

"There you go, sweetheart." June nodded in encouragement, then the nurse sighed. "Now, is there anyone I can call? I know you're from New York, but do you have any friends or family nearby?"

Eleanor shook her head. "No one you don't know about."

"Damn it." June raised a hand to her own forehead, sighing again and closing her eyes. "I've already used all of my vacation days, this year. I'll see if I can ask some of my friends from work to come and keep an eye on you until your fever breaks. Or I can call Fowler, maybe he has someone who can-"

"If you leave me with instructions, Nurse Darby, I am certain that I can look after Eleanor," Optimus offered, and June opened her eyes and looked at him in surprise. "At least, until her fever breaks."

"Really?" June asked, then she looked down with a skeptical expression, crossing her arms. "I don't know…" The nurse glanced at Eleanor. "Hm." She looked at Optimus and nodded. "Alright. Let me get a piece of paper. I'll have to write a few things down."

/\

June left Optimus with instructions about how to handle certain circumstances and a schedule for medication, but while he followed it to the letter, he saw little improvement in his ill and injured charge.

When one of Eleanor's coughing fits lasted for nearly a minute, Optimus thought that the human would lose consciousness from either the pain or the lack of oxygen.

Instead, the young woman just curled up in her chair, whimpering and forcing those pained breaths even as tears ran down her face, and Optimus carefully reached over and moved her hair aside.

Every time he thought he had seen the limit of human capabilities, they came back and surprised him.

"It-... It hurts…" Eleanor managed, sniffling before letting out another cough and whining at the agonizing sensation. "I-I can barely-..."

"Eleanor." Optimus rested his holoform's hand on her shoulder. "If you frighten yourself, breathing will only become more-difficult... You need to calm down and rest."

She nodded shakily. "Mmhm."

"... I am so sorry, Eleanor," the Prime whispered, closing his eyes and bowing his head. "I should have done a better job of protecting you from my enemies... If I had been a better-"

"Stop beating yourself up, dork," the young codebreaker said hoarsely, and Optimus opened his eyes and looked up to see her gazing at him through tears, a weak grin on her face. "Thanks for sticking around."

"Hm." Optimus produced a smile for her. "I believe you have used the phrase 'I am with you to the end of the line'?"

"Yeah." She nodded. "That's the one... It's a good line."

"It is."

Eleanor hummed softly, then she raised an eyebrow. "... Wanna see the movie?"

Optimus had already seen parts of this film with the children, so he had gone into it with doubts that it could surprise him.

Those doubts were quickly put to rest.

Human storytelling worked in such a way that having just one part could cause a great response, but having a larger part would be all the more impactful.

Optimus thought that one scene was enough to make his spark ache? Having the entire film to build up to it made it much, much worse. And to make matters even worse than that, after the credits, the Winter Solider—Bucky Barnes—was shown visiting his own memorial at a museum with a confused and scared expression on his face.

Did human filmmakers have no mercy?

"Are you alright, over there?" Eleanor asked from her chair, raising an eyebrow. "You look like you're about to start crying." The Prime blinked, looking up from his place on the couch, then he looked away awkwardly. "Hm." Eleanor gave a small smile, turning the television off. "Hey, come on. It's okay."

"... Those were the words he said, after the funeral," Optimus noted. "Back when his friend was smaller and weaker, and alone... It was part of a promise he made to always look after him, and now he realizes that he nearly killed this person he once cared for so much."

"Yeah." Eleanor nodded, then she sighed and closed her eyes. "And hey, really: don't beat yourself up. I cried the first time. It's a really good movie, and that's a really good line."

...

Eleanor looked back, her expression filled with surprise, and she glanced down at a large metal index-finger and thumb gently gripping her arm to hold her back. She looked up, her blue eyes shining as something just beyond glowed green, white, blue, and purple—bright and ever-shifting, ever-changing.

...

Optimus blinked, then he looked at Eleanor with a frown.

"... You used that line, that night," he noted. "The night the Matrix was restored to me."

"Hm?" Eleanor opened her eyes and blinked, then she looked down. "Oh, yeah… I guess I did."

"Why?"

"You were… worried," Eleanor explained, folding her hands over her stomach as she glanced at the Prime's holoform. "You weren't sure if you were worthy of being a Prime, and… you weren't sure who you would be when you were. I guess you thought it would change you more than it did, you big dork." She gave a weak smirk. "All you got out of the deal was barely enough common sense to make up for the shenanigans of one of us losers. Both of us together? Matrix doesn't stand a chance."

"Hm." Optimus found himself shaking his head and smiling at her, then he sighed quietly. "... Tell me something about growing up on Earth."

Eleanor raised an eyebrow. "Like what?"

"Anything," Optimus told her. "Consider it one of the lessons."

"... When I was little, my uncle would sometimes drive Maggie and I outside of town on the weekends," Eleanor began after a moment, keeping her voice quiet to conserve its strength. "He had a friend who owned a barn with horses, and if we brought our uncle three assignments from our worst subjects that we got full points on, he would talk to his friend and we would get to go out there and take care of the horses and ride them all day."

Optimus raised an eyebrow. "What was your worst subject?"

"Music," Eleanor admitted. "I was only ever good with the ukulele, and I hated the recorder with a burning passion and I never liked going along with what everyone else was doing. I thought the songs were all boring, and..." She noticed Optimus's expression and grinned. "I've always been a troublemaker, which should come as no surprise."

The Prime hummed quietly, his smile returning. "I see."

"So, given that Maggie's a decade older, she ended up doing a brunt of the heavy lifting when it came to the work part—but she never minded much. She wanted to be able to lift weights like the guys in her high-school gym class," Eleanor went on. "It was a dominance thing. She was funny, like that... When it was lifting time, she had me sit down and draw the horses, and she'd hang the pictures on my bedroom wall when we got home.

But before we'd leave—at least, when I was small enough for it—Maggie would lift me onto a horse and climb on behind me, and we'd go on a ride through the orchards and grapevines that lasted at least a half-hour." Eleanor closed her eyes. "As I got older, we each took a horse and rode side-by side. Sometimes, we made a race of it—but we mostly just spent time together, side-by-side... When we were out there together for the last time, it was when she asked me to be her maid-of-honor at her wedding and told me she was pregnant—double-hitter, that little speech."

Optimus blinked. "Maid-of-honor?"

"It's someone who helps the bride not have a mental breakdown while planning and preparing." Eleanor opened her eyes and snorted. "We had two weeks. They wanted it done ASAP, 'cause Maggie was always rushing in those days... I got to give a speech. There were at least forty references." The young codebreaker gave another weak grin. "Maggie got them all."

"Hm." It was strange to Optimus, how easily one could fondly remember one who had hurt them so much—but clearly, it was not entirely unheard of.

"... You ever think about the fact that we just let Wheeljack loose on the world with only two rules: don't let humans see you and blasters and fuel pumps don't mix?" Eleanor asked, raising an eyebrow. "He doesn't know what traffic lights are."

Optimus nearly chuckled, but he cleared his throat and contained himself. "Eleanor."

"He'll probably look at a 'road work ahead' sign, scoff, and say 'yeah, I sure hope it does'," Eleanor remarked, briefly pausing to laugh at some joke she had made for herself, then she blinked. "What if he runs into a toll booth? What if he speeds? Is he gonna illegally cross borders? What's he gonna think when he sees snow?"

Optimus blinked. "... We really should have thought that through."

"You really should have thought that through." Eleanor chuckled, then she sighed. "You looked pretty funny getting out of that little ship, though. You were too tall for it." She raised an eyebrow. "Was that a common problem, big guy?"

"Perhaps."

"Do you have to look down sometimes and check for Arcee?" Eleanor wondered. "She's tiny and quiet. I'm sure that's caused some anxiety."

Now, that made Optimus chuckle. "Yes, but do not tell Arcee."

"Hm." The codebreaker grinned, then she relaxed and closed her eyes. "Seriously: thanks for sticking around, big guy... When are you gonna head back to base?"

"Once I am certain about your fever."

"Okay."

"... What is a ukulele?" Optimus asked, raising an eyebrow.

Eleanor snorted, then she opened her eyes. "You know Miko's electric guitar? It's kinda like that—a stringed instrument—but it's smaller, it's made of wood, and it only has four strings. It doesn't have cables or speakers or anything, and you don't scream your lyrics with it. It's meant to be… quieter, softer."

"I see." Optimus nodded in understanding.

"I started playing it again, after I moved to Alaska and started teaching for a little while," Eleanor explained. Optimus decided that he did not need to ask her why she stopped. "The school had this little choir that sang at certain functions, and they sometimes asked me to play accompaniment. It was nice."

"Miko sometimes talks of putting a band together. It is shaping up to be… quite something."

"Hm," Eleanor hummed, smiling. "Tell her to let me know if she ever needs a ukulele player. I play a mean 'Wake Me Up'."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. If my lungs weren't garbage right now, I'd prove it." The codebreaker raised an index finger. "First thing, when I'm all healed-up and we've got some down-time."

"First thing?"

"First thing."

"... Get some rest," the Prime advised his charge. "You are very tired, Eleanor, and you need to recover your strength."

"Okay." Eleanor nodded, closing her eyes again. "... Hey, Optimus? There's something bugging you." She raised an eyebrow, keeping her eyes closed. "Promise we'll talk about that when I wake up?"

Optimus blinked, surprised. "Eleanor." His expression softened. "Hm... I promise."

"I'll hold you to it," the young codebreaker assured him, then she sighed. "By the way... we are indoors and in the middle of nowhere, y'know? Your holoform can just look like a little you, and no one'll see."

"I know."

Eleanor nodded, then she gradually relaxed until she was asleep.

Optimus just gazed down at her, then he gave a small smile as his holoform shifted.

/\

It was a few hours later when Optimus received a call, and he blinked before opening his commlink.

It was Ratchet's voice on the line. :Optimus, where are you?:

"Eleanor's injury has led to pneumonia, as Nurse Darby feared," Optimus replied, frowning. "She has a fever, so I have been watching over her."

:I see. Couldn't Nurse Darby have watched over Miss Martin?:

"She has a job, old friend."

:Hm.: Ratchet paused for a moment, then he sighed. :Next time, at least tell me where you are. I was about to send the others to search for you.:

"No need to worry," Optimus assured his medic. "Eleanor's fever will likely break soon." He glanced down at the young woman. "She has been doing better."

:That's good to hear.: Ratchet actually chuckled. :I swear, her recklessness makes Miko seem tame.:

"This was not recklessness, old friend." Optimus shook his holoform's helm, his expression falling. "This was our inability to shield one of our charges from our enemies."

:She did choose to anger them.:

Optimus let his fist clench, as it was not like anyone was around to see it. "To help us, and ensure that her family would be protected after MECH threatened them. We cannot fault her for such a selfless act of courage, Ratchet."

:... She is rather brave, for a human,: Ratchet noted softly.

Optimus blinked, then he gave a small smile and nodded. "More than meets the eye, one could say."

:Hm. She reminds me of someone I used to know,: Ratchet agreed, then he sighed. :Or rather, someone I still know... It is no wonder Orion Pax grew fond of her on the Nemesis, or that you have either retained or rediscovered that fondness.:

"I could honestly not say which it would be, old friend."

:I know... When will you be returning to base?: Ratchet asked, and Optimus looked down at Eleanor again. :You can't stay out there forever.:

The Prime placed a servo on Eleanor's forehead, frowning as he felt the warm temperature. "I am hesitant to leave her alone."

:I'm not asking you to.:

Optimus blinked, then he placed his servo on Eleanor's shoulder and gently squeezed. "Eleanor?"

"Mm?" Her eyes fluttered open and she looked up at him, raising an eyebrow. "Optimus?"

"I have to return to the base."

Eleanor nodded, closing her eyes. "Okay..."

"I believe it would be wise if you accompanied me," Optimus explained. "That way, I will still be able to watch over you."

"Uh-huh." The young codebreaker was nodding off. "Whatever you... say..."

Optimus blinked as the woman's head tipped to the side and she fell asleep again, then he addressed Ratchet once more. "I am uncertain as to whether or not she properly registered that, old friend."

:Between Megatron and MECH, it's not as though she will be a stranger to kidnappings at this point. She'll be fine,: Ratchet insisted, and Optimus's optics widened. :... By the Allspark, that was a joke! Optimus, that was a JOKE!:

/\/\/\/\

Ratchet was not accustomed to the presence of Eleanor Marie Martin being associated with quiet, but there it was.

The young woman had been asleep when Optimus brought her through the ground-bridge, and she had slept through the night and slept all morning without much movement. The only real exception was when Optimus roused her briefly so that she could drink some water, but she seemed incoherent the whole time and fell asleep again rather quickly after a coughing fit that Ratchet clocked in at lasting for well over a minute.

Optimus had looked worried, and the Prime had repeatedly told Ratchet to call him if anything happened before he left with the others for morning patrols.

Ratchet, keeping watch over the monitor as always, glanced up at the landing by the elevator. That was where Eleanor's cot had been placed, as it was the space least-used by the other humans and a place where Optimus would easily be able to check in on the young codebreaker.

"... Optimus," Ratchet spoke into the commlinks. "The problem is that Miss Martin does not have any family on this side of the continent?"

:None reliable enough to come to her aid, old friend.:

"Well, perhaps I could use the ground-bridge to take her to her family on the east coast," Ratchet suggested. "They could care for her until she is well again, and that would be a much more practical solution."

:Eleanor would never agree to that.:

"Why not?" Ratchet asked, then he blinked as the signal cut. "Optimus?" The medic's optics narrowed in suspicion. "Hm. Perhaps he's scouting another mine..." He glanced over at where Eleanor was sleeping, then he sighed. "Alright, then. That's another 'no' for human disposal via ground-bridge."

Some time later, Ratchet became vaguely aware of a quiet stirring sound, and he looked up at where Eleanor was laying again.

"Hm?" The young codebreaker's eyes fluttered open. "Wha-..?" Her eyes widened, panic flashing through her expression as she began struggling to try and sit up, pain hampering her movements. "Mmph... Where-...?"

"Because there is no one to care for you at your home during the day, Miss Martin, the base will have to suffice for a time," Ratchet explained, and she looked up at him in surprise. "We can't have Optimus vanishing on us at random, so you will remain here—quarantined from the children, but where we can keep an eye on you—until you can take care of yourself."

"Y-You don't have to do that," Eleanor insisted, reaching up and straightening her glasses, then she winced and rested a hand on her chest. "Agh." She gritted her teeth, then she opened her eyes and looked at Ratchet with a frown. "I've dealt with worse. You can tell Optimus-"

"I insisted," Ratchet said, and she blinked. "Lay down, consume your fluids. Medic's orders."

"Oh." Eleanor blinked again. "Okay... Thanks, Ratchet." Slowly, she eased herself down until she was laying on the cot again, and she reached out and grabbed one of the wheelchair handles and pulled it close so that it was within reach. "I'll... try not to annoy you too much."

"Hm." Ratchet glanced back at his monitor. "Your commentary can prove to be a bit much at times."

"... You didn't seem to mind it too much when Wheeljack showed up," Eleanor noted, and the medic blinked before cringing.

...

Eleanor raised an eyebrow, folding her arms and leaning against the yellow railing.

"Okay, so who's this dipshit?"

"Tch." Wheeljack looked up at her from his place on the medical berth, where Ratchet was tending to his arm. "Wanna repeat that, pipsqueak?"

"Sure," the codebreaker agreed even as Bulkhead frantically shook his helm. "I'll even say it slower."

Ratchet paused his work, his optics widening. By the Allspark, that little human was brutal...

Wheeljack blinked, then he smirked. "Oh, a challenger approaches."

"Hardly," Eleanor disagreed, then she smiled deviously. "I refuse to enter a battle of wits with an unarmed opponent."

Optimus had to cover his mouth with a servo, something Ratchet did not fail to notice, as the Prime's optics widened and he had to rest a servo on a wall to brace himself.

Ratchet was not fond of that sort of reaction, but even he had to admit—to himself at least—that the quip had been rather good.

Wheeljack, however, was less than amused. "Why, you little-!"

"Easy, 'Jackie." Bulkhead quickly stepped in. "Y'know how Miko's with me? She's sorta hanging with Prime, these days." Wheeljack blinked, and Bulkhead smiled awkwardly. "You insulted him earlier, so-"

"What? She's defending his honor?" Wheeljack asked, raising an optic-brow, then he looked at Eleanor again as she crossed her arms and tilted her stance, her smile falling into a light glare as she raised an eyebrow in a way that asked 'problem?'. "Tch. Are you actively competing to be the universe's most adorable, little, pathetic excuse for a real threat?"

Eleanor's eyes glinted. "As reigning champion, are you nervous?"

Ratchet raised a servo to his mouth, his optics wide. No, no. This could not be happening. She could not be doing to him what she did to Optimus. No.

"Grr…" Wheeljack looked beyond frustrated, then he calmed himself and scoffed before raising an optic-brow again. "Hm. You're fast, I'll give you that... What's your name?"

"Eleanor Marie Martin."

"Martin, huh? What're the goggles for?"

"They're called 'glasses', and I need them to see," Eleanor said, then she squinted as she looked Wheeljack up and down before removing her glasses and sticking them in her coat pocket. "Hm. That's better."

Ratchet braced himself on one of the yellow railings, placing his free servo on one of his knees and shaking his helm as he tried to do ANYTHING but laugh.

"... That was good," Wheeljack admitted, barely restraining a grin as he pointed at her, and she snorted. "That was very good." He noticed Ratchet's condition. "Whoa. I think Doc's dying."

"Me, too," Eleanor agreed, putting her glasses on as her eyes widened. "Ratchet, buddy?!"

...

Eleanor chuckled softly, closing her eyes.

"Good times," she mused, then she winced. "Mmph…"

"... Miss Martin?" Ratchet asked, and she opened her eyes and glanced at him. "You stepped in that day because Wheeljack was behaving antagonistically towards Optimus."

"Mmhm."

Ratchet hesitated, then he sighed. "Are there… other instances when you have noticed that someone has treated him poorly?"

"Before or after you all aimed weapons at him and accused him of being an evil, team-attacking maniac?" Eleanor asked, raising an eyebrow, and Ratchet winced. "Hm... You guys could include the big guy a bit more."

"I know," the medic assured her, calming himself. "I am making an effort, and I am doing my best to encourage the others to do the same."

"That's good, but... what sucks is that it shouldn't have to be an effort," Eleanor tried to explain. "It should just be how it is." She paused for a moment, coughing into her fist a few times to clear her throat, then she sighed. "Priorities have to change when you're fighting a war. There will be days when 'making an effort to treat Optimus like a person' will be at the bottom of the list if it's something you have to focus on." She shook her head. "You can't make an effort to include him more, Ratchet. You just have to be better friends, family—including him has to be natural, no questions asked or thought put in. That's the only way that this is gonna work... Otherwise, he's gonna end up thinking it's all just an act."

Ratchet raised an optic-brow. "You speak like you have experience."

"... If it's an act, Ratchet, it's called 'abuse'," Eleanor said, and she looked away. "Any freshman idiot who got dropped into a first-term psych elective could tell you that."

"What?"

"Cycle of abuse," Eleanor stated, holding her left hand up, then she raised a finger. " One, tension." She raised a second finger. "Two, incident." She raised a third finger. "Three, reconciliation." She raised a fourth finger, and an odd expression crossed her face as she gazed at it. "Four, calm." She clenched her hand into a fist. "Repeat."

Ratchet blinked, then his optics narrowed. "Miss Martin, I don't think-"

"Let me just put a hypothetical on the table, just to give you an example," Eleanor began, her tone strangely severe, then she held one finger up. "One, tension: you guys start treating Optimus less and less like a person and put more and more pressure on him to be perfect and composed all the time. That's abuse, psychological and emotional." She held a second finger up. "Two, incident: the big guy moves one little ped out of line and the weapons are coming out and accusations are flying and the poor dude nearly cracks." A third finger was raised. "Three, reconciliation: you guys start trying to be nicer to him and get him involved to try and make up for being jerks." A fourth finger was raised. "Four: calm...

Everything goes back to normal after a little while, 'cause you assume you did enough to keep Optimus chugging along at full speed for the rest of the war." Eleanor dropped all of her fingers, then she raised one. "The pressure starts building again. The loneliness and the isolation, he can only take so much and now he doesn't really know what to think because everyone was being so nice to him and now it's all just more of the same. He doesn't know what he did wrong to make you start acting like that again, so he tries to do better to fix things... until he either leaves or breaks." Eleanor raised a second finger. "And he's the most-loyal guy I know."

"... Oh, no," Ratchet whispered, just staring at her.

Up until that moment, as he was making these efforts and encouraging the others to do the same, he had not truly realized how fragile it all was—how careful they would have to be from they on, how committed they would have to be, how much more effort they would have to put in to try and make this right.

He needed to talk to the others as soon as possible.

"Yeah." Eleanor lowered her hand and raised an eyebrow. "I assume we've reached a better understanding?" Ratchet nodded shakily, and she closed her eyes. "Good... Fix this, Doc."

/\

Some time later, June arrived at the base to check on Eleanor.

Ratchet just assumed that Optimus contacted her.

"Just dropping in to make sure she's keeping up with everything," the nurse explained, putting a mask on as she approached Eleanor, and she arrived at the younger human's cot as she drew a pre-prepped bag from within her jacket. "Eleanor." The codebreaker opened her eyes and looked up tiredly, and June grabbed a water-bottle and offered it and the bag. "Your medicine."

"Oh." Eleanor blinked, then she nodded. "Right."

June watched as Eleanor seemed to retrieve her medication and take it with a sip of water, then she crossed her arms as she watched the codebreaker place the plastic bag in her pocket. "Those ones, too."

"Oh, uh..." Eleanor blinked, then she looked away awkwardly. "Um..."

June raised an eyebrow, her eyes narrowing. "Eleanor."

"I, uh..." The codebreaker hesitated, then she looked up at June with a frown. "I would rather not, if it's all the same to you."

"It isn't," June told her. "Take your medicine."

"... No," the young woman said softly, closing her eyes as her shoulders raised somewhat.

Ratchet knew a defensive stance when he saw one.

"What?" June asked, surprised, then her eyes narrowed again. "Eleanor, don't be ridiculous. They're your pain meds."

Eleanor bit her lower lip, then she took a deep breath. "No, thanks."

"Have you not been taking them?"

"What's it matter? I'm fine."

"... What happened to 'government-sponsored happy-pills'?" June tried a different approach, tilting her head. "I thought you-"

"That was a joke." Eleanor was so, so quiet. "I'm not taking them, June."

June sighed. "Eleanor-"

"Silas told me that my cousin just got charged with a DUI." Eleanor opened her eyes. "Pain medications." June blinked, and the younger woman's eyes narrowed. "My older sister is God-knows-where and high on god-knows-what, it started with adderall in college. My ex was an alcoholic." She took the bag from her pocket and held it out. "Keep that stuff away from me."

June just looked at the pills, then she looked at the codebreaker in shock. "... Eleanor-"

"Please." Eleanor closed her eyes again as her hand started shaking. "And… don't tell Optimus. He worries."

"Eleanor." June took Eleanor's hand in both of hers and laid it down overtop of the blankets. "I'm leaving this here. You need to take this medicine, sweetheart." The nurse released the codebreaker and raised a hand to the side of the younger woman's face, giving a grim smile. "It's going to be a long couple of weeks. I think you've been through enough."

Eleanor just looked at June as she turned and started walking away, down the stairs and towards her car.

As soon as the nurse had gotten into her vehicle, Ratchet watched as the codebreaker lifted the bag up and dropped it onto the floor, her blue eyes lacking their usual glint.

"Whoops."

It was about half an hour before Ratchet could no longer keep himself convinced that he need not get involved.

He was a medic for Autobots, not humans... but he felt obligated, somehow.

Ratchet told himself that it was because the obnoxious woman was the only thing that seemed to have a genuinely positive impact on Optimus that lasted long-term and that she had managed to draw a few critical details to his attention.

That was all.

It was not as though he liked the loud, annoying, reckless little pest.

There were just some things he understood.

"... Miss Martin?" Ratchet asked quietly, glancing up from his monitor and over at where Eleanor was laying. "Can I... share something with you?"

"Hm?" Eleanor opened her eyes and blinked, then she glanced over at Ratchet as he opened the dual panels in his right arm and showed her a set of signals. "What's that?"

"That is Optimus," Ratchet told her, pointing to one of the signals, then he gestured to a mostly-full bar beneath it which glowed a familiar Energon-blue. "Out of the Autobots who leave the base consistently, he consumes the least amount of Energon because of his relatively fuel-efficient extracurricular behaviors. This has not changed even with his 'extra patrols', which really just goes to show just how much trouble the others can be. Still, given that he is most-likely to recieve an injury which requires Energon transfusion in the field, he's still a bit of a stressor on resources." The medic gestured to a different signal and bar. "That is Bulkhead. He consumes the second-most due to his size and rambunctious nature.

That is Arcee." A different signal, with a bar which seemed to drop just a bit for a second before stabilizing again, causing Ratchet to sigh and shake his helm. "While small, she consumes the third-most because of how often she involved herself in high-speed chases and her itchy trigger-finger." He gestured to another signal-bar pair, one in which the bar seemed to slowly but surely be dropping coonstantly if one watched closely enough. "That is Bumblebee. He consumes the most as our fastest Autobot, and our youngest; while he would be the first to admit it, he is still growing." Ratchet pointed to the final signal and bar; the bar being the shortest out of all of them, and a golden yellow color. "And this-..."

"That's you," Eleanor realized, then she glanced up at Ratchet's face. "It's in the yellow, Doc."

"... I rarely leave the base, and you never know when there will be a shortage," Ratchet explained. "A full tank would be wasted upon an old medic."

Eleanor blinked again, then her brow furrowed. "You're starving yourself."

"I'm taking precautions."

"It's unhealthy."

"It's what I feel is right."

"But it isn't right," Eleanor protested, closing her eyes and starting to gesture with her hands, which meant that she failed to notice Ratchet reaching over and picking something up. "We need you, Ratchet, and-"

Eleanor opened her eyes as something fell into her lap, a shadow over her receding as Ratchet moved his servo away, and she glanced down to find the bag with her pain medication.

"I have been doing this for a long time," Ratchet told her, and she looked up at him with a frown. "You are young, Miss Martin, and likely still growing." He raised an optic-brow. "Am I wrong?"

"... I haven't gained an inch since I was thirteen, Doc." Eleanor gave a small grin, then she sighed. "But... studies show that the human brain is still developing until the age of twenty-five. I've got two years to go."

"You're not even at full capacity, and you are considered one of Earth's brightest minds because of something you did years ago," he noted, and she nodded. "Remarkable." If that was the case, Ratchet could only imagine what Rafael would be like in the future. "... Heal yourself, Miss Martin."

Eleanor looked at him, then she looked away and bit her lower lip before sighing again and glancing down at the bag. "But..."

"... You fear addiction," Ratchet noted.

"Huh?" Eleanor looked up at Ratchet, surprised. "I didn't-... You guys know what that is?"

"I have personal experience," the medic informed her, then he brought up a formula on his monitor and showed it to her.

"What's that?"

"Synthetic Energon." Ratchet's optics narrowed. "It makes one stronger, faster, and more agile... but it also shortens the temper, heightens aggression, and hampers judgement." He closed his optics. "When I first synthesized it, I was so desperate to do more for the team that I tested it on myself.

The results seemed promising to my hampered processor, so I... kept using it." The medic's fists clenched. "I didn't realize what I was becoming, how arrogant and... not myself. I terrified Rafael, I threw Bulkhead through a wall, I threatened Bumblebee, I flirted with Arcee-" He opened his optics and glanced at Eleanor. "Stop."

The codebreaker blinked. "I didn't do anything."

"You didn't?" Ratchet raised an optic-brow. "Really?"

"No, I didn't." Eleanor's eyes narrowed. "This is serious—believe me, I know." She took a deep breath, then she raised an eyebrow. "Though, considering Arcee's 'itchy trigger finger', I am wondering how you're still alive."

"Hm." Ratchet glanced down, then he managed a light smile as he glanced at the young codebreaker. "Don't worry, the part where I nearly get myself killed is coming up." His face fell. "Right after the part where I screamed at and demeaned my oldest and dearest friend. I still haven't apologized because... I'm not sure how, because he just forgave me on the spot and said my judgement had been hampered."

"That's the dork, for you," Eleanor noted, frowning. "Seriously, guy's too good for the universe."

"In that, we are in complete agreement," Ratchet said, then he sighed. "After that, I... ran off, and I nearly got myself killed. The others showed up and saved me just in time."

"... I'm so sorry, Ratchet," Eleanor told him softly, and he closed his optics. "But... don't you see why I can't take the risk?" He opened his optics as she picked up the bag and gazed at the pills within. "I've seen what these things can do to people."

"You understand them."

"I understand the sun, too. That doesn't mean I should be naïve enough to think I'm stronger than it," the young woman remarked, closing her eyes. "Think of what happened to Icarus." She opened her eyes and blinked, then she glanced at Ratchet. "Oh, um... It's a story, like a myth or a legend."

"A legend?"

"You guys got those?"

"We have history, Miss Martin," Ratchet told her. "Since downloading Earth's languages, we have used the word 'legend' many times, but I do not believe that our ideas of what is 'legendary' are equivalent. On Cybertron, 'legendary' is what is associated with Primus, the Primes, and their relics and achievements—beyond ordinary beings, but still very much factual and historically documented."

"Huh." Eleanor blinked. "On Earth, we have these stories called 'legends' that -well- aren't necessarily historical or factual, though everything has to come from somewhere and have some sort of inspiration. Sometimes, the legends are meant to be entertaining, but a lot of times they carry some sort of explanation or lesson."

"And the tale of this Icarus is a 'legend'?"

"Yeah." Eleanor nodded. "It is. See... an inventor named Daedalus and his young son Icarus were kept prisoner at the center of a maze by the wicked King Minos. Daedalus, desperate to be free, constructed wings for himself and his son and bound them together with wax.

When he gave Icarus his wings, he warned him: Do not fly too low or too high. If you fly too low, your feathers will be made wet by the sea. If you fly too high, the sun will melt the wax and the feathers will come off. Either way, you will be unable to fly and you will fall.

Icarus told his father that he understood, so Daedalus and Icarus used natural vents to launch themselves into the air and start flying away. Icarus, as young as he was, quickly grew excited at being free and flying and forgot his father's words—he flew higher, and higher, and higher..." Eleanor closed her eyes. "The sun melted the wax, and Icarus fell and drowned in the sea."

"Hm." Ratchet blinked, unsure whether he should be more skeptical of the idea of the wings or surprised by the gruesome end. "I see."

"There's a phrase on Earth." Eleanor opened her eyes. "It comes from that story... When you 'fly too close to the sun', it means you got cocky and didn't take something as seriously as you knew you should have." She glanced at the bag of pills. "I can take the pain, Ratchet—believe me, 'cause I've had worse... but I can't take the risk."

After just a moment's hesitation, Ratchet nodded. "I understand completely."

"Thanks." Eleanor gave a small smile, then she snorted. "Seriously, though: my pain-tolerance is pretty stellar. I'll be fine."

The medic shook his helm. "You do seem rather resilient."

"For a human."

"For many things."

"Wow." The codebreaker blinked. "Was that almost a complement?"

Ratchet gave a faint grin. "Almost."

/\

When the other four Autobots returned from their patrol—Bulkhead, Bumblebee, and Arcee having picked up Miko, Jack, and Raf—later that afternoon, they found Ratchet and Eleanor surprisingly engaged in conversation.

"So, the chromosomes-" Eleanor blinked as she heard the sounds of the Autobots transforming, then she looked up and waved, giving a tired grin. "Hey, guys! What's up?" She gestured between herself and Ratchet. "We're buddies, now."

"We most certainly are not," the medic protested, rolling his optics.

Eleanor snorted. "You know you love me."

"What have you been up to?" Arcee asked, raising an optic-brow.

"I'm explaining fourth grade biology," Eleanor replied, then she glanced at Ratchet. "Now, let's repeat: the mitochondria is what?"

"The powerhouse of the cell," Ratchet replied automatically, and Miko wheezed as Raf had to cover his mouth with both hands and Jack started grinning.

"Congratulations." Eleanor nodded in approval. "That's all that most human beings remember about biology. You're already average."

Ratchet failed to hold back a smile. "Heh."

"She can make Ratchet laugh, too?!" Miko asked, her eyes wide, then she ran up the stairs and faced the young codebreaker. "You're not human."

"Come back with proof." Eleanor smirked, then she raised a sleeve to cover her mouth and nose. "And you might not wanna get too close, kiddo."

"I know, but..." Miko looked at the others, then she looked back at Eleanor with a frown. "There's something I need to talk to you about. I know you must feel terrible-"

"Wow, do I look that rough?"

"El." Miko sighed, reaching over with one hand to rub the opposite arm. "Can I ask you about something? Alone?"

"... If you don't mind pushing the chair," Eleanor decided, then she took a deep breath before biting her sleeve and carefully climbing up and off of her cot. Miko went to help, but Eleanor shook her head and actually managed to get herself into her wheelchair with a soft grunt of pain, then she released her bite on her sleeve and wheezed. "Whew... Oh, geez—I should've done a whole lot more than just kick Silas in his stupid potato-head. Next time I see him, he's getting kicked in the balls."

"Heh." Miko walked over and started pushing Eleanor towards the elevator, an eyebrow raised and a smirk on her face. "I thought you were supposed to be a genius."

"Yeah, and?"

"Aren't you supposed to come up with some weird, smarty, creative sort of revenge?"

"Miko? Let me let you in on a little secret that my uncle told me," Eleanor said. "You wanna know why things like 'the oldest trick in the book' tend to hover around?" The codebreaker gave a small smirk. "It's 'cause they fucking work. Ergo, ball-kick."

Miko snorted, pausing just inside the elevator. "You're so weird."

"Part of my charm," Eleanor insisted, watching the doors close with her sleeve still over her mouth and nose. Miko did not select a floor, so they stayed in place. "Now, what's up?"

"Um..." Miko walked around to face Eleanor. "See, the thing is..." I helped Jack's mom check your injuries out, 'cause... girl... and I saw-... Um..."

Eleanor blinked. "Oh."

"I'm not gonna make you talk about it." Miko held her hands up, her eyes wide, then she lowered them. "I just-... I didn't think it was right if you didn't know I knew about it, and... I wanted to ask if you were okay."

"... Yeah," Eleanor said softly, nodding. "I'm okay."

"Okay." Miko nodded, then she took a deep breath. "You're on pain meds, right?"

"June's given me plenty. Why?" Eleanor replied, then she winced as Miko stepped forward and hugged her. "Mmph... Heh." Eleanor wrapped the arm which was not covering her mouth around the younger girl, shrugging her shoulders. "It's okay. It happened years ago, Miko."

"M-Ms. Darby said it probably meant-..."

"She is way too good at her job to be dealing with me," the codebreaker commented, impressed, then she sighed and closed her eyes. "It's okay. I'm okay." She snorted. "I've got enough little knuckleheads to worry about already, don't I? And a pretty big dork."

"Hm." Miko pulled away and looked down at Eleanor, her eyes shining. "Y'know, I never really thought of most other girls I met as cool—let alone adult and smarty-pants folks... but you're really cool, El."

"I completely disagree."

"Maybe Bulkhead's right about college."

"... You should absolutely attend college if you believe it will direct you down the best possible path for your future, though you shouldn't be forced into a box where you're left thinking it has to be your only path," Eleanor said, and Miko blinked. The codebreaker wondered if anyone had ever told her that before. "... And, while I am incredibly honored that you would consider me as a role-model, I would strongly advise you to reconsider."

"Heh." Miko gave a small smile. "With that last bit, you kinda sound like Bulkhead, but... smartier."

"Hm. Hey, Miko?" Eleanor raised an eyebrow as Miko opened the elevator door and started wheeling her out. "Do me a favor, and remember something."

"What?"

"There's a difference between intelligence and wisdom," Eleanor said, and Miko blinked. "I might have a degree from Columbia—but at the end of the day, that's your role model." She pointed over to where Bulkhead was talking to Arcee and Bumblebee. "He's probably got a lot more common sense than I do, and that's what you need to get by in this world."

Miko raised an eyebrow. "Common sense and wisdom, huh?"

"Yep. Hoard that shit like it's gold, 'cause it is," Eleanor said, and the teenager snorted. "Knowing that the mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell might help out in a game of Jeopardy, but it won't do you any good when you have to change a tire or decide whether or not it's time for a fresh start."

"... Is that something you had to do?"

"Oh, yeah." Eleanor glanced up at Miko as they arrived at her cot. "The roads by my house up in Alaska were terrible."

"Hm!" Miko raised a hand to her mouth, then she blinked as Eleanor let out a small hiss of pain while trying to get back onto her cot. "El?"

"Sorry," Eleanor murmured, laying down and closing her eyes. "Just tired."

"... Looks like the big guy wants to talk to you," Miko noted, and the codebreaker opened her eyes as heavy ped-steps rang out.

"Looks like it," the young woman mused, then she looked up with a weak smile. "Hey, Optimus."

The Prime managed to smile back. "Hello, Eleanor."

"... Huh." Miko squinted. "I just realized..." She looked up at Optimus. "Since when did you start calling her Eleanor? What happened to 'Miss Martin'?"

Eleanor glanced up at Optimus, grinning. "We figured it out."

"Hm." Optimus shook his helm at her, then he glanced at Miko. "I can watch over her, for now."

"You sure?" Miko asked, and the Prime nodded. "Okay." The girl walked over to the stairs, then she paused and looked back at Eleanor one more time. "Rest up, El."

"Hm." Eleanor smiled after the teen, then she looked up at Optimus. "I think we had a deal."

"I believe we had two," the Prime corrected her. "But given that your lungs are still in poor condition and there is not a 'ukulele' in sight..." Eleanor rolled her eyes, looking amused. "... Why do you treat me as you do?"

"Why?" The codebreaker blinked, then she tried to sit up a little bit to look at him. "Is something wrong? I-I didn't mean-"

"No!" Optimus raised his servos, his optics widening, then he blinked before quickly recomposing himself. "No... It has just been a long time, since-..."

"... Since someone treated you like an equal, sentient, living being without having to put in a conscious effort," Eleanor decided, and he looked away. She blinked, then she took a deep breath. "Well, Optimus, as far as how I act... I suppose you can chalk that up to me having absolutely no sense of propriety or self-preservation... while giving a bigger damn about you than I've given about anything that's come into my life in -well- a long time." He looked at her, surprised, and she gave a small grin. "Besides... I know what it's like to only be seen for one thing, and how lonely that can be, and that there's a lot more to Optimus Prime than the Prime. And… personally… I think that the dorky, Paxy parts are the best parts."

Optimus blinked again, then his small smile returned. "Oh?"

"Oh, yeah." Eleanor nodded, then she chuckled. "Just look at that smile; it's terrible, but my niece is no longer the cutest thing I've ever seen. Wowza."

"Hm." The Prime rolled his optics, then he looked down at the codebreaker with something that looked like fondness.

"... Thanks for looking after me, big guy," Eleanor said quietly, then she raised an eyebrow. "Now, tell me what's up."

"So you can look after me?"

Eleanor tilted her chin, looking at the Prime pointedly. "That's how this works."

Optimus blinked, then he raised a servo to his helm. "How this works?"

"... Yeah," the codebreaker agreed. "Everything goes both ways, big guy."

"... A few days ago, Ratchet began some sort of experiment," Optimus began, glancing around to ensure no one was listening in. "I am not allowed to know any of the details, but from what I have seen, everyone has begun to-..."

"To?"

Optimus looked down at Eleanor, seeming uneasy. "Hm."

"Hey, come on," she tried. "You know you can talk to me." The young codebreaker gave another weak grin. "You can trust this face, can't you?"

"... They have begun to interact with me more than they ever have," Optimus admitted. "Like they are trying to force themselves to-..." He closed his optics, then he opened them again and looked at Eleanor with a frown. "I know they must mean well, but it-... It has been a bit much."

Eleanor blinked. "Much as in… 'more than me at my worst' much?"

"Do you truly think you are so terrible?"

"I'm pretty bad," the codebreaker joked lightly, then she grew serious. "What do you wanna do?"

Optimus had not been expecting that. "Hm?"

"What do you wanna do?" Eleanor repeated the question. "Just because they mean well doesn't mean they're in the right. You can tell them to stop if you want them to."

The Prime looked as though that idea had not occurred to him, and that he did not know what to do with it. "I..."

Maybe he wasn't sure if he wanted it to stop, even if he did think it seemed a bit forced.

Maybe he wasn't sure what option was worse.

"Optimus." Eleanor was being oddly gentle. "Do you think it's real?"

That was the question.

"... I am not sure," Optimus confessed. "In some cases? Yes. In others? I believe an attempt is being made, but... I am not sure."

"I know." Eleanor nodded, and he looked away. "Hey." He looked back at her, and she put on another smile for him. "We're gonna figure it out, alright? It's gonna be okay."

Optimus just looked at her, then he sighed. "... Are you in any pain?"

"Who, me?" Eleanor raised an eyebrow, then she shook her head. "Nah. Just tired." She then pointed to her head. "And admittedly frustrated, 'cause I can't move my arms well enough to do the usual stuff. Hair doesn't braid itself."

Optimus raised an optic-brow. "Braid?"

"It's the weird loopy thing I do," Eleanor explained. "Humans do stuff with their hair to show individuality, or just to be practical. Mine does both."

Now, Optimus looked curious. "Is this a lesson?"

"If you want it to be? Sure," the codebreaker offered, and Optimus nodded. He seemed relieved at a subject change. "Miko dyes her hair a bit pink at the ends; that's not natural coloring, it's an individuality move."

"I believe she mentioned dyeing it, once," Optimus said, but he did not go into detail.

Eleanor nodded. "Yeah, lots of folks do it. Younger kids tend to go with wild colors, adults sometimes change their hair between natural colors, and older folks use dye to hide when their hair starts turning gray."

"Gray?"

"It's a sign that a human is aging," Eleanor informed Optimus. "It can speed up a bit depending on genetics, health, stress, and other factors. Your hair is constantly growing, and it just starts growing-out gray one day. Happens to everyone."

"I see." Optimus nodded in understanding. "General Bryce, Agent Fowler's superior officer, has gray hair."

"That means he's older and he went with the aesthetic. Mad respect." Eleanor nodded, smiling, then she pointed to the hair at the front of her head. "These bits in the front are called 'bangs'. I grew mine out, but some folks keep them shorter than the rest of their hair to keep them distinguished." She lowered her hand. "They get pushed to the side. That's practicality, to keep it out of the face so folks can see."

Optimus raised an optic-brow. "Why not just cut them off?"

"Hm!" Eleanor raised a hand to her mouth, shaking her head. "No, you can't do that. It'd look goofy."

"It would?"

"Oh, yeah." Eleanor lowered her hand. "Like, um..." She pointed to her forehead. "What's that for, on your helmet? The pointy bit." Optimus blinked, then he shrugged. "What if I asked you, 'Why not cut off the horn-thing on your helmet so it doesn't scrape on low ceilings?'?"

"Heh." Optimus was instantly grinning, raising a servo to his helmet. "That would look rather odd."

"There we go!"

The other members of Team Prime had taken notice of the conversation.

"Look at that," Bulkhead noted, shaking his helm. "Just like that, he's smiling."

Ratchet walked over and crossed his arms. "Miss Martin certainly seems to have developed a unique sense of camaraderie with Optimus, one which we have failed to foster."

"She can make him smile even with how guilty he must still be feeling about her injury," Arcee said, then she gave a nod of approval. "She's good, very good."

"That's just it." Bumblebee shook his helm. "She's not trying to be."

Optimus doubted he would ever cease to be surprised by how easily the tiny snippets of memory were returning to him.

…

"Don't you need rest?"

"I can keep working."

"... Nope. I'm not resting if you're not resting. That's not how this works."

"This?"

"We're partners in this, aren't we?"

…

It was only words that time, no images—but Optimus could imagine the little codebreaker's movements and expressions well enough, just with the words and tone of voice ringing in his audial-processors.

Stubborn as ever.

"Hey, Optimus?" Eleanor asked, and he blinked before glancing down at her. "Remind me to beat the snot out of Megatron the next time I see him."

"Why?"

"'Cause the shady bitch took advantage of an amnesiac, and I wanna throw some real hands," the young woman stated, and Optimus could not tell for the life of him if she was joking. "No one gets to mess with my dork except for me, 'cause at least I do it to make him smile."

Optimus blinked again, then he did just that: he smiled. "Hm."

"Gotta defend your honor, so the 'Cons and the 'Bots each have to toss their most-annoying member in," Eleanor stated, losing her semi-straight attitude and starting to grin. "Given that Starscream's rogue, it's me versus Megs."

"What about Knockout?"

Eleanor looked up thoughtfully. "Hm. Didn't really see enough of him to form an opinion." She glanced at Optimus. "But since we already know that Megatron has -shall we say?- inconvenienced folks on more than a few occasions, I think I'm just gonna hand him the crown." Eleanor snorted. "So, Megs and I throw hands. Weapon of choice? Witty remarks."

Optimus shook his helm, sighing. "He will not stand a chance."

"No, he won't." Eleanor chuckled, then she raised a hand to her throat.

"Hm." Optimus noticed her closing her eyes. "Eleanor?"

"Just resting my eyes. I'm okay." She opened her eyes and looked up at him, grinning and shaking her head. "If you're always gonna worry like this, this is gonna be a really stressful relationship for you."

"Only if you intend to keep finding yourself in trouble," Optimus reminded her, frowning as she coughed into one of her sleeves.

"Trouble usually finds me," Eleanor told him as she looked up, then she raised an eyebrow as she managed to smile again. "Scared off, yet?"

"Hm. Not just yet," Optimus replied, smiling back. "You are certainly an odd little thing, Miss Martin."

"I take that as a compliment."

"Of course, you do."

"Now, you're catching on," she joked, and he just shook his helm before glancing back. "Optimus?"

Optimus did not turn his gaze away from where his teammates appeared to be conversing. "Yes?"

"... Don't worry," Eleanor said, noticing what he was looking at and frowning. "I've got your back. I put the fear of God in Ratchet while you were gone."

Optimus blinked, then he looked down at the codebreaker again with a raised optic-brow. "Oh?"

"Mmhm." Eleanor nodded, then she smirked. "Watch, but don't watch. Use a holoform or whatever, but don't let him see you watching."

Optimus blinked again, then he closed his optics and focused, creating a holoform and having it crouch behind Eleanor's cot to stay out of sight. It was difficult to maintain the image while his true form was standing, but he managed, and he was able to watch everything while making it appear as though he had his back turned.

Ratchet spoke to the others with wide optics and occasionally gestured in Optimus's general direction, and they seemed to be taking whatever it was that he was saying very seriously. Bulkhead looked almost as distressed as Ratchet did, Arcee looked frustrated and guilty for some reason, and Bumblebee seemed upset.

Even the children, who had gathered at their guardians' peds, wore grave expressions.

Optimus dissolved his holoform and opened his optics to look down at Eleanor questioningly. "What did you do?"

"Had a nice chat, set the record straight," Eleanor replied, frowning. "My father, my sister, and my ex are trained lawyers, my brother-in-law has a degree in psych, my mother stares into your soul, and I'm a hot mess." She shrugged her shoulders. "I can hold my own in a discussion and provide some pretty damn good facts and evidence while doing so—and as dysfunctional as I am, I know how normal folks are supposed to handle some of this weird psych-relationship stuff." She gave a small smile. "And I'm not just gonna sit back and watch my friend go through Hell—at least, not without backup. End of the line, right?"

"I..." Optimus was at a loss yet again, but not for the same reason he had been for many times as of late.

With Eleanor, it was different.

"Hey, what's the face?" Eleanor asked, raising an eyebrow. "I shot Megatron. You think I won't sass Doc? He doesn't even have a gun."

Optimus blinked, then he gave a small smile before he closed his optics and huffed out a quiet chuckle. "No, I suppose he does not."

The tired Prime and the ill codebreaker went on in quiet, idle conversation, failing to notice how the others had turned wide eyes and optics upon them.

/\/\/\/\

Within a few days, Eleanor was well-enough to go home.

For the next four weeks after that, Optimus would stop in after each of his patrols to check on the young codebreaker and just get a break from what was going on at the base.

As Eleanor recovered, she gradually regained her energy even while her mobility remained limited, so she was more than willing to offer some form of discussion or distraction.

Whenever she was feeling a bit on the worse side, she would select a film—not a Marvel film like those The Winter Soldier or the others she enjoyed so much, but landmark films that had impacted or well-depicted Earth's history and culture—for them to view and talk about. The young codebreaker seemed to contemplate everything she chose with extreme care, looking back and forth between her phone and Optimus as she assessed certain titles before bringing them up on her television, then she would make her choice.

Eleanor laughed as he criticized the logistics of the space travel shown in the Star Wars films, though he did have to admire the characters and storytelling.

...

"Why are we only watching four, five, and six?"

"Because if I show you the prequels, I have to show you Clone Wars. If I show you Clone Wars, I have to show you Rebels. Rogue One is good, though—we can watch Rogue One. And The Mandalorian."

"Alright... And what about those four films?"

"What four films?"

"Those ones, right there."

"I see no films."

"They are right there. Seven, eight, nine, and... Solo?"

"It's like you're trying to speak to me, but none of the words you're saying are making any sense."

"... This is the same thing you did when I asked about Crystal Skull."

"Crystal what-now?"

...

She was less-vocal when they watched Dead Poets Society. Optimus got worried when he saw the tears in her eyes, but Eleanor just said "Tolkien said, 'I will not say do not weep, for not all tears are an evil'." When he asked about that, Eleanor explained that crying is not always for grief or pain, but sometimes just a sign of another strong feeling.

Humans were very complicated, indeed.

Whenever she was feeling average, the young codebreaker would pick a book for them to read and discuss—again focusing on history and culture. Optimus had been a bit skeptical at first when she started off by recommending a few fictional texts to him, but then he binge-read all of Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories in four days and decided that it would be best to trust the young codebreaker's judgement.

...

"Optimus? What are you doing?"

"I am reading, Ratchet."

"Ah. May I ask what you are reading? Some historical text, or a strategic theory?"

"Shh. Detective Holmes is revealing how he survived his encounter with Professor Moriarty."

"... Excuse me?"

"You are excused."

"I-! What-? Op-! Ugh..."

...

Eleanor picked books from around the world and diverse backgrounds for Optimus to read, some fiction and others nonfiction, some from the past and some much-more recent. The fictional books created whole new worlds, but the nonfiction books explored the entirely different worlds that existed inside each person's mind. Everything Optimus read was so unlike what he had known from the Iacon Hall of Records, it was incredible—and again, Eleanor would answer every question.

When she was at her best, Eleanor was able to participate in long-term and rapid-fire discussion complete with stories and examples, her eyes shining as she would answer a question Optimus had posed or explain a concept he had placed forth.

"So really, there is some scientific evidence that suggests that we might've domesticated canines before we had learned how to produce fire," she told him, grinning as she sat next to his holoform on her couch. Her hands could not seem to hold still as she spoke, wildly gesturing with her emotions. "I always thought that was remarkable, and an excellent show of how human sociability will almost always come before human practicality."

"Hm." Optimus shook his holoform's helm, smiling at her. "So... that was what that creature was."

Eleanor blinked, then her face flushed and she smiled bashfully. "Sorry."

"Do not be," Optimus insisted. "I have learned so much from you in such a short time, Eleanor. You are an excellent teacher."

"I do my best," Eleanor said, shrugging. "And I guess I'm probably going a little batty." She shook her head. "It's different, being alone in a house when there's a real reason for you to be outside." She looked up at him, frowning. "Everything alright, back at base?"

"We are all fine," he assured her, and she nodded. "It certainly seems... quieter, without you there."

Eleanor snorted. "Ratchet must be relieved."

"Perhaps he is," Optimus joked, then he sighed. "Alright, I have... one more question, before I must head back for now."

"Shoot."

"... Sometimes, the way you speak changes," Optimus noted, and she blinked. "I do not mean to draw attention to it if it is something that makes you uncomfortable, but I was wondering if there was a reason for it?"

"The way I-?" Eleanor blinked, then she laughed. "Oh, geez! Yeah, um..." Eleanor calmed and looked at Optimus. "I mentioned that my great-nana was a codebreaker in World War II, yeah? Well, she was a British codebreaker. My mother is actually a first-generation immigrant from England, so—growing up—I had my dad's Manhattan accent and my mom's Estuary English kinda mashed together a bit. Of course, going to school, the Manhattan accent took dominance because it was what I was surrounded by for a good chunk of the day—but sometimes, certain things still just come out... Mom."

"I see." Optimus nodded in understanding. "These accents are based upon region of origin. Your parents have different origins, so-"

"Yet another reason why I'm wild, Prime," the young woman joked. "I can try and go full Estuary with a few things my mom says often, like... um..." She took a deep breath, then she began speaking in a different accent. "For God's sake, George, can you please speak English for five minutes? You are giving me a migraine!"

"I see." Optimus nodded, then he raised an optic-brow. "So, the accent only comes out in things your mother said often?"

"Humans are natural mimics," Eleanor said. "It's how we learn. We mimic what we see and hear, and it shapes our knowledge and behaviors. So, if my mom used a word more often than my dad or the school did, it'll probably come out Estuary unless I purposefully make it sound otherwise." She gave a small smile. "For example, whenever I say diner. My mom runs a diner, talks about it at home, so-"

"You always say that word with her accent," Optimus decided, and Eleanor nodded. "My Autobots seem to have taken up different accents based upon where they first touched down when they reached Earth or what cultural products they first observed when they connected to the internet of your planet to begin researching its people."

"That explains the Hell out of our favorite dipshit." The young codebreaker snorted. "I wonder which western Clint Eastwood went and downloaded into his brain before he dropped in. Tombstone wouldn't be a bad idea..." She noticed Optimus's expression. "I'll put it on the list."

/\

Optimus had been back at base for a few hours when he received a call from Eleanor.

:Hey, Optimus? We might have a problem.:

"What is it, Eleanor?" Optimus asked, stepping into the hallway. He failed to notice how his Autobots glanced at him.

:Maggie's been busy. Apparently, she told my parents where to find me—and they told my brother-in-law,: Eleanor admitted, and Optimus raised an optic-brow. :He came to town and found my address somehow, and he saw me on crutches. Now, he's gone all mother-hen because I couldn't think of something to tell him!:

"And... that is a problem?"

:Yes!: Eleanor insisted. :Optimus, you have never met Eugene Thomas. He's not gonna leave until he figures out what happened—and the man's a psychologist who has dinner with my parents every other night and is currently in the process of raising a six year-old. He's gonna be on me like a bloodhound, trying to sniff out what's going on, so-:

A man's voice spoke from a distance, muffled by what might have been a door. :El?:

:Coming!: Eleanor replied, then she sighed. :It might not be wise for you to drop by this afternoon, big guy. Lord knows you can't lie to save a life, and I can't bring them into this. I'm gonna try and figure this out on my own.:

"Perhaps I could help."

:I can't ask you to do that, Optimus,: the codebreaker told him gently. :But just a heads-up: if I can't convince Eugene of whatever I come up with, it's gonna get ugly.:

Eleanor hung up, and Optimus lowered his finger from his commlink and frowned.

It seemed to the Prime that his charge was in trouble, and that she could use some backup.

Being eager to go on patrol was not something Optimus was accustomed to, but every hour seemed to last ten as he waited.

He knew he could probably go on an extra patrol, but after Ratchet drew attention to the development of extra patrols as a habit and targeted Eleanor as a bad influence (which Optimus thought was ridiculous), he did not feel comfortable leaving the base if checking on her was the only honest excuse he could offer.

...

"We were just… wondering where you've been."

...

It would be really nice if those wounds—and Optimus shuddered to call them that—would just heal up already.

He wanted to stop thinking about it.

"Almost got you, that time!" Jack insisted, flustered. "Really!"

"Oh?" Optimus raised an eyebrow from within his holoform, still holding Jack in the air by the back collar of his shirt. "Did you, now?"

"Yeah, Jack!" Miko, who had come into the training room with Bulkhead to watch this little session, grinned as she held up her phone and took a picture. "You totally almost had him! Why don't you try best eleven out of twenty-one?!"

"Hey!" Jack deadpanned as Bulkhead and Miko started laughing, even Arcee snorting in amusement, then he sighed as Optimus set him down. "It's only my second day, it's only my second day-"

"It is only your second day, Jack," Optimus agreed, then he glanced up with a light grin. "And I can say with complete honesty that you are doing much, much better than I did on my second day of combat training."

"Really?" Jack asked, surprised, and Optimus glanced at him with something almost like alarm—but was not, Optimus assured himself, as he had certainly regained enough of his composure to avoid that—before his holoform dissolved. Optimus transformed and stood up, and Jack looked up at the leader of the Autobots with a frown. "Y'know, you don't have to be afraid to talk to us about it."

"Yeah!" Miko ran up to stand beside Jack, smiling as she rested a hand on her hip. "Come on, details! All we've got are Ratchet's stories, and he can be even more melodramatic during 'story time' than you are!"

Jack looked at her, annoyed. "Not helping." He looked back at the Prime, frowning. "... What was it like, Optimus? I mean, we got Ratchet's brief description, but..." The boy shrugged his shoulders. "I dunno. Got any weird stories about pre-evil Megatron?"

"I…" Optimus froze, his optics widening. That was certainly an unexpected question. "You would… want to hear one?"

"Megatron blackmail?" Arcee asked, crossing her arms. "Why not?"

"I can't believe we never thought of this before!" Bulkhead smacked himself in the forehead, chuckling. "This oughta be good."

Optimus believed humans had a phrase for how he was feeling in that moment: deer in headlights.

When he visited Eleanor later, he would try and ask for clarification.

It got worse.

Optimus found himself standing in the main room of the base with his entire team looking at him expectantly, waiting for him to say something.

He credited them for their patience, not egging him on or pushing him to begin, but this was all just a bit too far outside of his comfort-zone for his liking.

About fifty-thousand lightyears outside of his comfort zone, give or take—if one was trying to be precise.

"I must confess that I do not see myself as much of a storyteller," the Prime finally decided, which caused several of his allies to snort. "I... hardly know where to begin."

"What's the least-evil thing you ever saw King 'Con do?" Miko decided, giving an encouraging smile as she crossed her arms, then she smirked. "I wanna yell something about it at him and embarrass him in front of his troops."

Bulkhead sighed, glancing down at his charge. "Miko."

"What?" She shrugged her shoulders. "It's a legitimate strategy."

Perhaps Eleanor was an influence, after all.

"Hm." Optimus glanced down, frowning. "Least-evil. That is… rather difficult."

"Hmph." Ratchet crossed his arms, his optics narrowed. "That's because he was always a little off."

"No," Optimus disagreed, then he sighed. "And yes…" He closed his optics, then he opened them again. "Hm." The Prime looked at the other members of his team. "What do you know of Megatron before he was a gladiator?" They blinked, and Optimus sighed. "You would not know much, if anything. As far as I am aware, very few would know the tale and he has only told the whole story himself to two individuals—one of which is now one with the Allspark and one of which is myself…

Megatron was born into one of the lowest classes on Cybertron; he was a laborer in one of the Energon mining districts, and he watched as many around him—including his family—were broken in the spirit and worked to death." Optimus rested his servos on the railing behind him and gripped it. "He maintained the strength of will, but I believe in my spark that it came at the cost of some of his mental faculties. He grew stronger physically and eventually gained the attention of his superiors when he began showing signs of disobedience, and they sold him to the gladiatorial arenas after he… stepped in to defend some younger miners from a beating and proved too strong for their usual torture tactics."

"Whoa," Bulkhead managed, he and the others gazing at Optimus in a bit of shock.

None of them had expected this.

"Megatron was thrown into the arena with a broken sword to serve as a fodder opponent in an opening fight," the Prime went on. "He managed to survive long enough for it to be brought to a draw, and his career as a gladiator began. His one goal was survival, to make it for as long as possible before Cybertron's higher-up's would get the satisfaction of watching him die for their amusement, so he kept fighting and bringing matches to draws.

Every night, he would be thrown into a cage and locked in, given only what medical care he needed to be able to fight the next day. This went on for centuries." Optimus closed his optics and sighed. "The first time an opponent—long since driven mad in the cruelty of the pits—forced him to fight to the kill, Megatron cried and screamed all night and nearly lost his match the next day. He soon learned that not every match could end with both opponents alive, not if he wanted to live.

He became numb to it overtime, and his skill and ferocity earned him the favor of the elite. Soon, he was the greatest gladiator they had…" His grip on the railing tightened. "Until, one day, he found himself standing a defeated opponent and the numbness just… left. He heard the cheers, the demands that he finish it, and he stopped. He threw his weapons down, and he helped his opponent to his peds, and he helped him to a medic. Then, he returned to the center of the arena alone and said two words that changed Cybertron… No more."

"Wow," Jack said, his eyes wide as he gazed at Optimus. "So… everything started because Megatron wouldn't take a life."

"Yes." Optimus opened his optics. "And that other gladiator, he was new… and his name was Soundwave." He looked up at his allies. "And Soundwave, grateful that his life had been spared and inspired by the strength and courage of the great gladiator who had granted him mercy, pledged eternal loyalty." He released his grip on the railing and crossed his arms. "The medic was also new, an orphan barely older than a sparkling who was also raised and trained in the dark and filth of the mines, and his name was Knockout."

Bumblebee actually stepped back. "That's-..."

"No is born evil. Anger is oftentimes a reaction to grief and pain which is left unaided," Optimus attempted to offer an explanation, then he sighed. "Megatron began using his position as a gladiator to spread a message; he insisted that the current system was corrupt and that a new one had to take its place, one that would bring about equality amongst the masses and the demolition of the repressive caste system.

His fame granted him a great deal of support from the lower classes, and that support allowed him to leave the arena with a certain amount of freedom in order to hold his meetings and gain stronger support." The Prime looked down. "I eventually heard of him and reached out, and we corresponded digitally for a time before meeting in person. We started out as acquaintances, simply conversing and debating with one another, but over time… we seemed to genuinely grow to care for each other."

There it was, that familiar shame.

"Seemed?" Arcee asked him, raising an optic-brow. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Optimus looked up at his teammate, frowning. "Megatron, while always a great orator, never mastered the art of articulating more personal feelings and displayed affection through deed rather than word."

"What do you mean?" Raf questioned him, and Optimus shifted uncomfortably in place as he tried to decide how to proceed.

"... The self-defense lessons," Jack decided, and Optimus looked at him. "He was protective of his friends."

"Extremely," Optimus agreed, relieved. "You could always tell if you had gained Megatron's care if he prioritized your safety. In those days, he never wished for anyone to be harmed on his behalf after seeing so much Energon spilled in the arena, but hearing your name spoken meant that he would have his optics on you constantly as he spoke to make certain that—when the axe fell—he would move to make certain it did not fall on you."

Arcee gave a small smirk. "He picked favorites."

"Absolutely," Optimus said, shaking his helm. "And he was devious."

"The leader of the Decepticons, devious?" Ratchet mused with no small amount of snark. "You're kidding."

"Not like that." Optimus raised a servo. "His time in the arena taught him some rather unsavory forms of trickery, yes. But… he liked to make his friends laugh." The Prime lowered his servo, glancing down at the floor. "He would tell jokes and play harmless pranks just to see how everyone would react, and he would always apologize and help us all clean up afterwards—even if he laughed his way through it.

Hm." Optimus found himself smiling. "And do not get me started on how he would tease. If you were smaller than him, he used to pick you up if you were ever cross with him and just grin until you were both laughing because you could not stay mad at him while you were dangling in the air like that and he was making such a ridiculous expression.

But there were also times where, if you were sad for some reason, he would pick you up and set you on his rotator-cups like you were a sparkling and just start running until you started smiling and laughing." His expression fell. "He… never wanted people to be upset or sad. Moved to make a change, yes—but not crushed, not in pain."

"He sounds like… a really good guy," Jack realized, his face filling with conflicted emotions as he gazed at the Prime.

Raf adjusted his glasses, his expression saddened. "Your brother."

"So, what changed?" Miko asked, perplexed. "Ratchet said he went crazy when he went to the council, demanded to be made a Prime so that he could lead an army to rise up and overthrow the government with violence! Where was Mr. Piggyback Rides during all of that?"

"... As our protests went on, our movement remained peaceful with only a small self-defense force led by Megatron himself ever engaging in counteractive measures to protect retreating protestors from violent mobs and paid-off authorities," Optimus stated, looking up at his teammates. "Still, many got hurt.

Much weighed down on Megatron's mind, an already plagued and damaged mind which had suffered so much—and in spending so much time with me, Megatron also spent time with my teacher: Alpha Trion. Alpha Trion would sometimes speak of ages past and the old wisdoms. He spoke of Primes, the leaders of times past whom everyone rallied behind in dark times.

Megatron had learned in the arena that, sometimes, fighting was the only way to end the fighting—and somehow, as the pressure grew, I believe that everything he had endured and learned just… twisted, inside his head." Optimus shook his helm. "He became convinced that, to bring about change, a new Prime had to rise and lead the masses in a battle for their equality.

Peaceful action had only led to more pain for those who deserved it least. It was time to take more-drastic action, and he wanted the strength and power to stand at the head of the charge and force his would-be oppressors into submission."

"So, what happened in that council room wasn't the result of evil scheming, but… trauma," Jack deduced, his eyes wide. "He wasn't right in the head."

"I do not mean to try and justify it," Optimus said quickly. "He was completely-"

"We know that's not what you're trying to do," Arcee assured her leader. "And he's not justified. Just-..."

"Human," Raf said softly. "He's a lot more human."

"... I did not know what had come over my friend, why he would say such things, and… I was afraid," Optimus confessed, looking down again. "I was afraid that he would upset them, that he would be taken away and killed, so… I stepped in and just started speaking, trying to clarify.

In truth, I do not remember the exact words I said—only the message I was trying to convey, the feeling of all of those optics on me, the terror of the thought that both Megatron and I's lives were suddenly in my hands, and this prayer to Primus that went over and over again in my processor: 'even if we die here, let the cause live on—let our sacrifice make a difference'.

And then, it was over and Megatron was walking away, and the members of the council were telling me that… if there was anyone on the face of Cybertron born within the Golden Age who was truly worthy of being a Prime, he stood before them in that moment. And I froze."

"You?" Bulkhead sounded like he thought it was a joke. "Freeze?"

"I had never spoken before a group like that before, let alone council," Optimus reminded his team. "I was an archivist, a researcher—not a leader, not a Prime."

Bumblebee stepped forward. "Yeah, but-"

"And do you honestly believe that, if I had been capable of moving in that moment, I would not have chased after my best friend when he left that room instead of being forever left wondering how things could have been different if I had gone after him?" Optimus asked, then his optics widened. "I apologize, I-"

"Optimus," Ratchet tried, being strangely gentle. "It's alright."

Optimus looked at him, then he looked away. "I apologize all the same. Megatron is not the same as he was then… I know that any discussion of him must be cause for discomfort."

"Optimus?" Ratchet asked, and everyone noticed that the Prime had closed up a bit and that he seemed to be avoiding looking at any of them. "Are you alright?"

Optimus blinked, then he almost-cringed before recomposing himself and looking at his medic, nodding. "Yes. Apologies, old friend." The Prime looked away again. "Some things are just… difficult to remember."

"Optimus-"

"I believe it is time for patrols," the Prime said a bit too quickly, stepping past his teammates and making his way over to the exit.

"Hey, Optimus?" Miko spoke quietly.

Optimus looked back, frowning. "Yes?"

"Just…" Miko hesitated, then she gave a small smile. "Say 'hi' for me, okay?"

Optimus blinked, then he gave a small smile and nodded before transforming and driving out of the base.

"... Great," Bulkhead commented once he was sure Optimus was gone. "We took our Prime with anxiety and gave him depression, too."

Jack sighed, gazing after the Prime sadly. "But all the same... All we had to do was ask, and look how open he was with us."

"It was easy, once he got going," Arcee agreed. "But I think we all know why he hesitated. All of us only have bad memories when it comes to Megatron, so... he's worried that opening up about his life before the war will just end up making him even more alienated from the rest of the team than he already is."

"Now, you're using your heads," Ratchet informed his allies, then he sighed. "Though I wish I had been using mine. Allowing you to place him on the spot like that with such a personal matter was not the wisest choice I could have made, nor was allowing my bitterness to control me." He closed his optics, then he opened them again. "Of course, it would be difficult for Optimus to speak of his time before in any case.

Beneath the Matrix of Leadership and the burdens of war may be what is left of Orion Pax, but that young mech was a young and relatively innocent individual surrounded by individuals who have now either gone mad or become one with the Allspark." He looked down, sighing. "I wish it were not the case, that we had someone left from that time before who could help bridge the divide and aid us in understanding, but Orion Pax kept his circle small—a teacher and two friends, and that was all he needed."

"To be fair, it sounds like Elita-1 was a bit more than Optimus's friend from how he talks about her," Jack joked lightly, and Ratchet looked at him with a raised optic-brow. "What? Come on, someone had to say it."

"Oh… PRIME HAD A GIRLFRIEND?!" Miko shrieked, reaching up and gripping her pigtails as her eyes widened. "Yeah, Pax definitely wasn't a Jack prototype!"

Jack looked over at her, annoyed. "Hey!"

"Hmph." Ratchet rolled his optics. "Don't be absurd. Optimus and Elita-1 were very dear friends, but they were never anything more than that. If they had been, her demise would have-..." His optics widened. "Oh, no."

"... Oh." Arcee's face fell as her, Bulkhead, and Bumblebee's optics widened as well. "This is suddenly… a whole lot worse than we thought, isn't it?"

"You're talking like you're planning the guy's funeral," Jack said, his eyes narrowed. "Is there something you're not telling us?"

Ratchet looked down, then he sighed. "It is not my place."

"You told us about Optimus and Megatron, but you can't tell us about this?" Raf asked, growing confused. "What is it?"

"It's... time for patrols," Bumblebee said, then he transformed and drove off. Bulkhead and Arcee quickly followed him.

"Okay, this is weird," Miko decided, then she looked up at Ratchet as he went to work at his monitor again. "What do you mean, it's not your place?"

"It's not my place," Ratchet repeated. "I misunderstood the situation." He glanced at the children. "... Here on Earth, humans sometimes engage in a practice called 'marriage'—yes? It is a legally binding agreement?" The children nodded. "On Cybertron, there is no equivalent of that nature.

Ties between individuals are strictly ones of the spark, whether they be friendships and mentorships or tighter bonds that would be best equated to your family units." The medic looked back at the computer. "In the Golden Age, Cybertronian culture had developed in such a way that these units oftentimes involved two individuals at the head of their household who took in younger Cybertronian sparks that had been recently protoformed and oversaw their upbringing.

These heads of household were referred to as caregivers, and the younger Cybertronians were referred to as sparklings until they came of age—a feat marked by the completion of mandatory education according to caste, the acquisition of the adult component parts to complete the protoform's frame which occurred at various rites of passage according to caste and occupation, and the arrival at a certain chronological age."

"So… 'caregivers' and 'sparklings' were kinda like parents and children," Raf put it together, and Ratchet nodded.

Miko rolled her eyes. "Great. This just means that Jack's mom can keep pairing Arcee with everyone 'cause she's the only girl."

"While I believe that Nurse Darby's behavior is highly inappropriate, I must ask... What does Arcee being a femme have to do with anything?" Ratchet asked, confused. "The coming together of caregiver pairings never depended upon the individuals' frame design."

"Frame des-?" Miko blinked, then she grinned. "Have I mentioned lately how much I love Cybertron?"

Jack smiled at Miko, shaking his head, then he looked up at Ratchet. "So, the parents were all adoptive—like volunteers?"

"Not always. Lower caste individuals were expected to pair up and raise a certain number of sparklings," Ratchet replied. "Higher caste individuals had more freedom, even the right to go without; some would not pair up, not raise any sparklings, or not do either. Meanwhile, lower castes contributed to the workforce." The medic closed his optics. "More tended to reject the pairing than the idea of raising sparklings. There were many single caregivers, mentors raising apprentices. That, or they would raise sparklings together as friends or as unbonded couples."

"Why?" Jack raised an eyebrow. "What was so bad about bonded pairings?"

"... The Bonding, as it was called, was seen as the ultimate sign of trust and commitment between two individuals on Cybertron," Ratchet said. "It was only done if two individuals decided that they accepted everything about each other, that they would accept everything, that they were willing to accept and understand forever...

It involved becoming bonded at the spark; in the act of becoming sparkmates, each member of the pair would carry a piece of the other within them forever." He raised a servo and rested it upon his chest. "It forged a deep connection, one that transcended any other form of understanding... The practice died out completely at the start of the war due to the consequences."

Raf gulped. "Consequences?"

"Yes." Ratchet looked away. "Even before the war, it was feared by many. One of the gravest crimes one could commit was the killing of one who was bonded to another, because… it was seen as killing two." The medic glanced at the children, frowning. "When one who is bonded to another dies, the piece of them which resides in their sparkmate perishes as well—as does the piece of their sparkmate which resides in them. In that way, a permanent hole is left behind with the death—a permanent loss."

"... So, it's not your place," Jack said softly. "It's not your place to talk about Elita if there's even the slightest chance that Optimus has one of these bonds with her, 'cause-..."

"She died," Miko finished quietly. "So, if she and Optimus were… together-together… he's been missing a chunk out of him for fifty million years and no one knew, 'cause it really got that bad with him… going Prime."

"It's not my place to say," Ratchet repeated, sounding a little numb. Raf moved across the platform and sat down just behind the monitor so that he could reach through and rest his hand on one of Ratchet's shaking servos, steadying it. "... He's my oldest friend. How could I have been so blind to his struggles?"

"Maybe because you had your own," Jack reminded the medic. "And you needed something stable in your life, the whole team did. When a Prime showed up, stepping right out of legend, you assumed it could be him… and he didn't want to let you down."

Ratchet closed his optics. "We don't deserve him, do we? All of the sacrifices he makes, all that he endures for our sakes… We do not deserve to have Optimus Prime as our leader, as our guardian, as our-..."

"... It's not about 'deserve'," Raf said, and Ratchet opened his eyes and blinked. "Family-... Family's not supposed to work like that. You love them, even when they hurt you and disappoint you." He looked down at the floor. "I mean, I love my family, even though they-..." He blinked, then he looked up at Jack and Miko. "If I hadn't met you and the Autobots… I think I might've turned out like Optimus."

"What?" Jack asked, sitting down next to the younger boy. "What do you mean?"

Miko sat down at Raf's other side, and the youngest human looked down. "... My family ignores me." Raf took a deep breath. "It's how I can spend so much time here. It's like they don't even know I'm gone." He bit his lower lip. "I don't blame them, y'know? I have such a big family and everyone's always so busy, but... I actually tried screaming the other day, and no one heard me. I was able to say so much, and no one heard a word." He shook his head. "I even said 'hey, I got blasted with space-radiation and almost died a few months back', and no one heard me."

"Rafael?" Ratchet managed, stunned.

"Sometimes, when I was little, I would get a bad grade on purpose just so that someone would yell at me and sit me down to try and show me how to do something the right way—but once I got older, they yelling would only last a few minutes and I'd just get sent to my room to study by myself, so… it didn't really matter." Raf opened his eyes and looked down. "I know I got quiet over time, and I would read all day and go off and play by myself. My best friends were my teachers, 'cause I was just used to being ignored and I just stopped trying with everyone else…

Then, I came here and I suddenly wasn't ignored." Raf gave a small smile, not seeming to notice the wide eyes and optics on him. "I was able to help people, and they talked to me and paid attention to me and played with me… It was like I had a family like one you saw on TV, where everyone was close and cares about your problems." He closed his eyes and sniffled. "And I didn't do anything to deserve any of that, so…

I don't think family's about 'deserve', Ratchet. I think it's just supposed to be about that stuff: being close, caring about each other, and seeing past the stuff that hurts 'cause otherwise you'll miss all the good stuff." He opened his eyes and looked up at Ratchet through fogged-up glasses. "I know 'family' on Cybertron isn't the same as it is here, but… you are here now, and you're family now. And I really think that Optimus would agree with me."

"... Rafael," Ratchel spoke quietly. "Family may not be about 'deserve', but… you absolutely deserve the best this universe can offer."

Raf blinked, then he shrunk in on himself a bit as both Miko and Jack hugged him before closing his eyes and smiling.

Ratchet carefully wrapped a servo around the three children, sighing quietly and closing his optics.

It would take a lot of effort, but that did not matter.

He needed to find a way to fix this family.

His family.

/\

After he finished his patrol, Optimus arrived at Eleanor's house. Her truck was the only vehicle in the driveway, so—to Optimus—it stood to reason that Eugene had temporarily vacated the premises for some reason.

He intended to park in the driveway, summon his holoform, walk up to the front door, and knock. From there, he was hoping Eleanor would accept his help and let him play off of whatever she had come up with to explain her injuries so that they could convince Eugene that the codebreaker was safe... even though Optimus still had his doubts...

That plan went out the window.

As Optimus approached the door in his holoform, he heard crashing noises from within the house.

Then, a child's voice. "No, no, no, no!"

"Gabby!"

That was Eleanor.

MECH knew where she lived. Optimus had been a fool to believe that this place could be safe, even temporarily.

The Prime's holoform dissolved and he transformed, running around to the back of the house and activating one of his cannons as he kneeled before the back door, his battle-mask sliding into place as he glared into the building and waited for any sign of the assailant. He would not fail again.

However, rather than Silas or one of his masked accomplices, what came darting into Optimus's view was something much, much... smaller.

"No, no, no!" The little girl laughed, looking back with a pair of bright blue eyes as she ran around the kitchen table with a bag clutched in her hands. "You can't make me, Aunt Ellie!"

Eleanor limped into view with the help of a crutch, smirking and raising an eyebrow. "Oh, can't I? And what would your father say to that, young lady?"

"Doesn't matta! He's not he'e!" The girl insisted, hiding behind a chair. "And I'm NOT eatin' b'occoli!"

"Well, your dad wants you to eat that broccoli at dinner, tonight," Eleanor noted, approaching slowly. "So, what's he gonna say when he hears it's gone bad because you wouldn't put it back into the freezer, huh?"

"... Ugh!" The girl threw the bag, and Eleanor caught it. "You ah a lot moa fun ova Skype!"

Optimus squinted, trying to understand what the girl had said, then he blinked.

You are a lot more fun over Skype.

The little girl could not pronounce the letter 'R'.

"Yeah, yeah—I know." Eleanor chuckled, then she sighed and closed her eyes. "Now, please... go sit down, sweetheart."

The girl shook her head. "I wanna play!"

"I know, but I'm really tired." The codebreaker looked up, giving a weak smile. "Go sit down, and I'll turn on a movie."

"Hm." The little girl huffed as Eleanor limped away, then she sighed and adjusted one of the plastic clips in her hair as she walked around the kitchen table. "Don't wanna..."

Too late, Optimus realized that the girl was waling towards the back door and sliding it open, and he just barely had the sense to deactivate his mask and cannon before the child looked up at him.

"Huh?" The girl blinked, surprised. ".. 'Obot?"

Optimus just blinked back, otherwise completely frozen due to not knowing what to do—and suddenly Eleanor was at the door, her blue eyes wide.

"Oh, no." She set her crutch aside so that she could limp over and pick the child up, wincing as she looked at the girl. "You... don't see anything, Gabby."

So, this was Eleanor's niece?

Aside from the color of the child's eyes, Optimus could not see any resemblance between the two.

Eleanor had fair skin which greatly contrasted with her brown hair, but Gabby's skin was dark and her hair was even darker. Eleanor's hair (aside from her newly-restored braids) was long and free-flowing, but Gabby's hair was thick and held in dozens of braid-like arrangements which Optimus did not know the proper name for.

Optimus had seen the Darby family together, which led him to believe that there were similarities between members of family; he had assumed that Eleanor and her sister would look similar, that Eleanor and her niece would look similar. Clearly, he still had much to learn about human families and how traits related—if they related, or if they were just coincidental.

Gabby's eyes were shining as she looked up at the Prime. "It's a 'obot, Aunt Ellie!"

"Uh-oh." Eleanor cringed, then she looked back at Optimus. "Optimus, you dork: what the Hell are you doing here?!"

"I was just-"

"Op… Oppy!" The little girl giggled, and Eleanor's jaw dropped before she looked up at Optimus.

The Prime looked completely and utterly mortified, and Eleanor slowly began to grin.

"... Don't-"

Eleanor raised an eyebrow. "So, Oppy-"

"Why?" Optimus sighed, closing his optics.

"Punishment," the codebreaker replied, smirking, then she looked at Gabby with a frown. "Okay, I'm gonna have to try and figure out how to deal with this. I think she's just a little too young for intergalactic warfare."

"Agreed." Optimus nodded, then he noticed how Eleanor staggered when she tried to turn around and head back towards her door, the codebreaker gritting her teeth in pain.

Without really thinking about it, he transformed—"T'uck 'obot?!"/"You didn't see that!"—and summoned his human holoform, quickly walking over to the house to come to Eleanor's aid.

"Optimus?" Eleanor questioned him as he took Gabby from her and tucked the child under his own arm, then she winced again as she tried to move. "I'm sorry, I-"

"Here." Optimus wrapped an arm around Eleanor to keep her upright, gazing down at the young woman worriedly as he held Gabby closer with his other arm. The color had rapidly drained from Eleanor's face, and he could clearly see her pain and exhaustion in her expression. "I need to get you two indoors."

"Okay, big guy," Eleanor mumbled, and Optimus quickly helped her inside.

Once he had Eleanor sitting down on her living room couch, Gabby sitting next to her unwell aunt and looking at her with a child's innocent confusion, Optimus returned to the door and closed it before going back to Eleanor with her crutch in hand.

"Aunt Ellie's sick," Gabby said quietly, looking up at Optimus with a frown. "Daddy said 'call if you hu't', Oppy. Are you gonna call Daddy?"

"Daddy can't know about Optimus, sweetheart," Eleanor tried to explain, sighing as she sat up a bit straighter to look at her niece. "No one can. It would be really bad."

"Why?" Gabby tilted her head, confused. "Is Oppy bad?" Eleanor quickly shook her head. "Then, why can no one know?"

"Because Optimus is good, and if he's going to keep doing good things, no one can know about him." Eleanor wrapped an arm around her chest, wincing. "It's complicated…" The young woman forced a deep breath. "But we can… talk about this later, cutie." The young woman forced a weak grin. "Now, let's see. What would you like to watch?"

The child's eyes lit up, as if all talk of secrets and robots was forgotten. "Big He'o 6!"

"Hm." Eleanor raised an eyebrow at her niece, her grin becoming amused as she grabbed a remote for the television. "Again?"

"Again!" Gabby cheered in excitement, holding her hands up in the air.

Eleanor huffed, feigning annoyance as she rewound a movie that was apparently only just finished sometime before, but Optimus could see the fondness in her eyes as she looked at her young niece. "Alright…" She looked at Optimus, smiling tiredly. "Thanks for the help, big guy, but I think you've got better things to do than help me babysit."

"It seems like a two-codebreaker mission," the Prime disagreed, giving a small smile. Eleanor hummed softly as the holoform sat down on the couch with her, and Optimus raised an eyebrow as Gabby clambered into his lap and looked up at him. "... Hello, there."

"Genera can-o-beans."

"How young is she?" Optimus asked Eleanor, confused, and he noticed how she had a hand on her forehead and she seemed to be desperately restraining laughter.

"She's six. Her father is just a prequel nerd," Eleanor explained, lowering her hand and grinning. "When prequel nerds hear 'hello, there', they always say-... She's trying to say 'General Kenobi'. It's a joke, but you only get it if you've seen Revenge of the Sith."

"Ah." Optimus did what he sometimes did with Fowler and simply nodded.

Eleanor smiled and nudged him, then she played the movie.

Human animated features were quite something to behold.

Mankind's ability to create new worlds and fill them with life in stories would never cease to amaze Optimus.

Eleanor quietly told him that the city the movie was set in was a futuristic hybridization of Japan and America, and he paid close attention. He had always been interested in how humans lived and portrayed their cultures.

The film seemed to tell the story of a boy just a few years older than Rafael and just as brilliant, but lacking the right motivation—Hiro was his name, and he had a brother named Tadashi who was a committed inventor interested in advancing human healthcare. He created and programmed a robotic nurse to serve this task.

"Hello," the oddly-puffy mech on the screen waved to greet Hiro while Tadashi watched his creation proudly. "I am Baymax, your personal healthcare companion."

Tadashi was showing Hiro around his school's well-equipped laboratory in order to motivate him to try for a higher education so that he could use his intelligence to better the world.

Some of the technology his many classmates were developing reminded Optimus of things that could once be found on Cybertron.

Mankind was starting to poke at advanced technological concepts, even if only for film purposes.

"Honey-Lem is the bestest," Gabby insisted, pointing at the screen. "Wanna be like her, and Aunt Ellie. They so cool…"

"Your aunt certainly is very 'cool', little one," Optimus agreed, looking at Eleanor with a smile. She smiled back at him.

Hiro entered a competition to earn a place at Tadashi's school with a swarm of multi-purpose "microbots" which he invented. After winning the competition, celebration seemed to be in order, but then the screams began.

"Professor Callaghan's still in there!" A woman cried, fleeing from a fire.

Tadashi started moving towards the blaze, but Hiro quickly held his heroic brother back. "Tadashi, no!"

"Callaghan's in there." Tadashi looked back at Hiro, his eyes wide. "Someone has to help."

The elder brother pulled away from the younger and ran towards the fire, his hat flying off. Hiro retrieved the forgotten cap and looked up just in time to watch the building before him explode, the force knocking him to the ground.

When Hiro looked up, all he could see was a hellish inferno blazing before him. "TADASHI!"

The screen faded to darkness with the older brother's cap in sight.

The next few scenes showed memorials and funerals, and Optimus realized that the young man must have died in the firestorm.

"No, 'Dashi." Gabby frowned at the screen. "No. Shoulda stayed wit Hi'o."

"He was trying to do the right thing, sweetheart," Eleanor told the child. "He didn't think about the danger, he just wanted to help someone." The young woman gave a soft smile. "But how about you call me if this ever comes up, okay? You're a bit too young to run into fire."

"How old do I gotta be?"

"Eighty."

"You not eighty!"

"How do you know?" Eleanor raised an eyebrow, grinning. "I could have had plastic surgery, or I could moisturize, or I could have eaten all my broccoli when my daddy told me to."

"Not funny, Aunt Ellie!"

Hiro went into a deep grief, shutting out his friends and family and refusing to eat as he mourned his brother.

Optimus had seen a similar process more times than he could count, and experienced it himself.

One day, Hiro found that Tadashi had moved Baymax into their room. The robot insisted upon helping Hiro recover, accidentally beginning an investigation which led the boy to discovering that the fire which led to his brother's death was no accident and was instead a cover for a masked figure's theft of his invention.

Determined to apprehend the masked figure, Hiro downloaded combat techniques into Baymax so that he would be able to fight. They then went out to find the figure, but Baymax had contacted Hiro's friends and they ended up getting caught in a chase when the masked figure tried to kill them to stop their interference.

After a near-escape where they could have drowned, the children went to hide out at the home of a… peculiar boy named Fred. Fred did not have the same education as his peers, but he was wealthy and kind and offered all that he had to them. He used his knowledge of comic books to help the others analyze the villain that they had become entangled with, and they eventually decided that they would work together to create gear that they could use to battle and apprehend the masked menace.

"Do the thing, Aunt Ellie!" Gabby requested excitedly as some music began playing, signaling some sort of building and training montage. "Do the thing!"

"Okay, okay." Eleanor chuckled, gazing at her niece fondly. "You start."

"They say we ah what we ah,

But we don't have to be..!" Gabby began singing along to the music, her childish words clumsy but full of enthusiasm.

"I'm bad behavior,

But I do it in the best way!" Eleanor went on, singing the next two lines for her niece. She glanced at Optimus and shrugged, and he just shook his helm and smiled.

"I'll be the wacha-wacha

Of the ete'nal flame!"

"I'll be the guard dog

Of all your fever dreams!"

"Oh..!" Eleanor and her niece sang together, both of them ending up breaking off into giggles before the note finished.

"I am the sand at the bottom

Of the hou'glass-glass-glass!"

"Oh..!"

"I try to picture me without you

But I can't!" Eleanor poked her niece's nose, beaming at her. "

'Cause we could be immortals, immortals—

Just not for long, for long..!" Gabby cheered, and Eleanor hummed softly before looking at Optimus. "Sorry. We're nerds."

"You are a very good aunt, Eleanor," he told her, being completely genuine. "You are excellent with your niece."

"I helped raise her, those first two years," the young codebreaker reminded him. "At least… when I could get out." Optimus blinked, then he nodded in understanding. If he ever met David Blake, they would… have words. "We video-called at least once a week after I left New York. I always looked forward to it more than anything else." Eleanor looked at her niece, who was still curled up in Optimus's lap and watching the movie in awe. "I would do anything for this little girl, Optimus."

"I can tell," the Prime said, and the young woman looked up at him. "Gabby is very fortunate to have you, Eleanor."

The team of youths tracked the masked figure to an island and uncovered a project that had gone wrong. Mankind appeared to have attempted to replicate space-bridge technology, and it went wrong and a woman was killed. The masked man appeared to be trying to salvage the project's remains, leading the youths to believe that the culprit was a man who appeared to be leading the project and had at one point offered to buy Hiro's microbots from him.

The masked man then attacked, and a battle began. The mask that the man used to control the microbots was knocked away, and Hiro ended up facing the man responsible for his brother's death… The very man that Tadashi had run into the flames to try and save, the supposedly-dead Professor Callahan.

"But Tadashi…" Hiro stared at the teacher in dismay. "He went in there to save you."

"That was his mistake!"

Those four words were all it took to make Hiro snap. He removed the chip with Tadashi's care programming from Baymax, causing the robot to be only programmed with violence, and he sent the red-opticed robot after Callaghan.

Such a sight was painfully familiar to Optimus, but what was completely unfamiliar to him was Honey-Lemon—Gabby's admittedly favorite character—desperately trying to return Baymax to the light and the complete understanding all of the youths showed towards the robot while they showed Hiro frustration.

"Not Baymax's fault," Gabby made sure to tell Optimus. "He's not mean. He's good, like you and Aunt Ellie."

Hiro, livid with Callaghan's escape, flew off with Baymax and tried to forcefully remove the care chip again to send the robot after Callaghan. The mech prevented this from happening while calmly trying to question the angry and screaming boy about his feelings and what Tadashi would think.

"TADASHI'S GONE!" Hiro shouted, slamming his fists into Baymax's chest, then he closed his eyes and rested his head on the mech. "Tadashi's gone…"

"... Tadashi is here," Baymax said softly. He had said that once before—but this time, the robot's chest lit up and suddenly started displaying videos of the older brother's repeated trials to try and make the mech work.

"I'm not giving up on you," Tadashi said after a particularly bad failure, frowning. "You don't understand this yet, but people need you. So, let's get back to work." Finally, Baymax was working, and Tadashi celebrated before sighing and giving a warm smile. "Wait until my brother sees this…"

It occurred to Optimus that Tadashi's treatment of Baymax mirrored a sort of practice for how he treated his brother.

Hiro had thanked his brother for not giving up on him after he had won the competition. Tadashi had pushed Hiro into that competition to motivate his brother to use his mind for good.

'You don't understand this yet, but people need you'—those were Tadashi's thoughts for his brother, which was why he worked so hard to unlock the younger boy's potential.

"You're going to help so many people, so many… That's all, for now. I am satisfied with my care," Tadashi told Baymax, smiling, and the video paused there. Hiro just gazed at his older brother, smiling as tears raced down his face.

"... Are you crying?" Eleanor asked quietly, looking at Optimus with a raised eyebrow and a soft smile.

Accursed holoforms, never hiding anything! "No."

"No shame in it, Optimus," the codebreaker told him, nudging him with her arm. "It got me the first seventeen times."

"You are crying," the Prime noted pointedly, noticing her glassy eyes.

Eleanor huffed. "Shut up, dork. I have an older sister who… isn't around anymore."

Maybe there was more than one way to 'die', at least to those you love.

Thinking of those he had lost and the ways in which he had lost them, Optimus could understand that.

Hiro and Baymax reunited with the others, Hiro reconciling with them, and they revealed what they had uncovered in his absence: the woman killed by the space-bridge was Callaghan's daughter. The accident occurred due to the other man—Krei—acting negligibly despite concerns, so Callaghan was after revenge.

The team arrived at Krei's lab just in time to find Callaghan destroying it with the unstable portal. They tried reason first, but the grieving father was beyond reason and he lashed out and trapped each of the heroes. They ended up taking words of Hiro's to heart—words that Hiro had learned from his brother—and escaping by the use of unconventional tactics.

"Listen up! Use those big brains of yours to think your way around the problem! Look for a new angle!"

They managed to unmask and defeat Callaghan again, but Baymax picked up a human life-sign from within the portal. Callaghan's daughter was still alive in there, but the unstable portal was about to collapse again.

"Someone has to help," Hiro said, then he and Baymax went into the portal-world. They found Callaghan's daughter, but on the way out, Baymax's flight gear was damaged.

"There is still a way I can get you both to safety," the mech decided, placing his one remaining rocket-propelled armor-fist onto the pod holding Callaghan's daughter. "I cannot deactivate until you say you are satisfied with your care."

Hiro began frantically protesting the plan, but Baymax remained perfectly calm as he insisted that his only priority was Hiro.

Optimus wondered if, somehow, Tadashi's real care for Hiro had been imprinted upon his creation. Baymax may have been built and programmed instead of sparked, but he seemed so… alive, and he had clearly developed a personality of his own.

"No!" Hiro cried, near tears. "There's gotta be another way! I'm not gonna leave you here, I'll think of something!"

"There is no time," Baymax said softly, still perfectly calm in spite of all of this. "Are you satisfied with your care?"

...

"If humankind is to be saved, I have no choice but to proceed."

...

Optimus went tense, then he sighed and shook his holoform's head.

A children's film should not remind him of that.

"Please, no!" Hiro begged the mech. "I can't lose you, too."

...

"If you don't survive, Optimus, I fear neither will this planet!"

...

Optimus shook his head again.

'No,' he chided himself. 'Stop that.'

He tried to go back to looking at the move at a distance, to disconnect.

Perhaps Hiro had noticed Baymax's behavior, as well—so like Tadashi's, just as his own behavior had become. They had each become what they had lost, for themselves and for each other.

"Hiro, I will always be with you," Baymax assured the boy, and he accepted and returned a hug.

...

"Jack, will you keep something for me?"

...

Optimus would have never handed that key to a human child if he expected his team to send the boy to Cybertron.

He truly had not expected to come back, to survive.

He just wanted them to be ready to be without him. How greatly he had failed as a leader, if those he led truly felt as though they could not stand losing him.

Hiro pulled away. "... I'm satisfied with my care."

The words shook Optimus from his thoughts, and he closed his eyes briefly before opening them again.

Baymax fired the rocket-fist, sending Hiro and Callaghan's daughter to safety while he drifted away into an oblivion. Callaghan was arrested while his daughter was taken to a hospital, and the team of young heroes mourned the loss of their friend.

"Don't do that to Aunt Ellie, Oppy," Gabby told Optimus pointedly, puffing out her little cheeks and gazing at him with a cute little glare. "If you make her sad, I'll get mad at you."

"Aw, sweetheart." Eleanor gently pinched the girl's cheek, grinning strangely. "He wouldn't stand a chance against you. Try and save some guilt-trip butt-kicking for me."

"Hm." Optimus shook his head at the two, giving a small smile, and Eleanor looked up at him. "With such fearsome opponents in mind, I shall conduct myself accordingly."

"You better," Eleanor told him, and Gabby made a clumsy attempt at an 'I'm watching you gesture'

Optimus had not expected many things.

A stare-down from a human child aiding in his escape from a near mental crisis was entirely unexpected, as were many of the circumstances that led up to that moment.

Optimus had not expected to return to his base after defeating Unicron, especially to learn that he had spent an extended period aboard the Nemesis and been tricked into believing that he was a Decepticon—complete with the necessary emblems.

He had not expected to see Jack standing there in a suit custom-designed for survival in the vacuum of space, a smile on the boy's face as his fellow humans welcomed him home and congratulated him on a job well done in restoring Optimus to sound mind.

He had most certainly not expected to hear a voice he did not recognize and look down to see a human woman looking up at him with the only frown in the room as she asked him if he remembered her, to watch her face fall as he admitted that he did not only to watch her force a smile seconds later for Rafael's sake because he was just so excited and she did not have the heart to disappoint him, to be in complete awe within two minutes of the woman speaking up as she revealed the coordinates she had scrawled onto her arm.

He had not expected the words that flew out of his mouth in her defense, or how quick he was to offer her help or even suggest that she defy Agent Fowler when he saw how distressed and unhappy she was—like something deep in his spark was already trying to remember the Nemesis, trying to help his friend.

He had not expected the bluntness and the dry, witty sense of humor that came spilling out of the clever young codebreaker's mouth due to an apparent lack of a filter or how endearing he would find it, and he had not expected to find himself paying close attention to the new arrival whenever she was at base and wondering when—if ever—she would stop looking so upset whenever she was paying attention to him.

He had not expected her to be able to make him smile or laugh as easily as she could, let alone make it some sort of personal mission, and he had not expected her to make an effort to get to know him as Optimus Prime because of what she knew of Orion Pax, to go out of her way to be considerate towards his thoughts and feelings, to make an effort to help him.

Optimus had not expected to make such a dear friend, not after all he had endured and what he had become, and certainly not so quickly—but that was just how Eleanor was, oddly enough, in spite of all she had endured. She moved quickly in everything, especially in choosing to be kind.

"Do not worry," Optimus said softly. "You have my word."

Eleanor blinked, then she grew concerned. "Hey, you okay?"

"Yes." Optimus gave a small smile, nodding. "Just... lost in thought, I suppose."

The young codebreaker raised an eyebrow, giving a small grin. "Well, nothing wrong with that—but try not to get lost in anything that'll make you sad, okay? Out of obligation, I might have to find some crazy way to fish you out—and Lord knows how annoying I can be whenever I have to get myself involved."

"Oh?" Optimus raised an eyebrow, trying to cover for the fact that he was still reeling. "Is that so?"

"Damn straight." Eleanor crossed her arms. "I'm self-aware."

"And what 'obligation' do you speak of?"

"The one to my friend: the dorky, codebreaking kamikaze archivist who runs with big knives like he's trying to make it an Olympic sport," Eleanor remarked, and Optimus's jaw dropped. Then, he just started laughing.

All he could picture was the scandalized look on Ratchet's face if the medic had been there to hear that.

Hiro moved into his brother's old lab, and as he set Baymax's rocket-fist onto a shelf and tapped it, something slipped free: Tadashi's chip. Hiro then proceeded to rebuild his clever friend, and the mech activated…

"Hello. I am Baymax, your personal healthcare companion," Baymax began, then he looked down at the boy. "Hello, Hiro." Hiro immediately hugged his friend, and the mech hugged back and closed his optics.

"We didn't set out to be superheroes," Hiro's voice spoke over a montage of the team of young heroes moving through the streets of their futuristic hybrid city. "But sometimes, life doesn't go the way you planned. The good thing is, my brother wanted to help a lot of people—and that's what we're gonna do." The screen froze, showing all of them together. "Who are we?"

BIG

HERO

6

"... I quite liked that movie," Optimus decided, giving a small smile.

Humans and their stories truly would never cease to amaze.

"Baymax is a 'eally nice 'obot," Gabby noted, then she smiled at Optimus. "You like Baymax, Oppy!"

"Am I?"

"Mmhm." Gabby nodded, adamant. "You even 'ed and blue!" The girl cuddled closer to the holoform's chest, yawing. "And soft."

"Gabby, sweetheart?" Eleanor tried, and Gabby looked at her. "You know how Hiro has to keep Baymax a secret from Aunt Cass?"

"Uh-huh."

"Aunt Ellie has to keep Optimus a secret from Daddy," Eleanor told her, and Gabby blinked as understanding flashed in her eyes. "Can you keep it a secret?"

"Ah you a supah-he'o, like Hi'o?" Gabby questioned her aunt, her eyes shining.

Eleanor blinked, then she looked away from her niece awkwardly. "Well, not-"

"Absolutely," Optimus cut in, and Eleanor looked at him in surprise. "Your aunt is quite the hero, Gabby, and you can be a hero too. You can protect her by keeping this secret."

"Oh." Gabby blinked, then she looked down thoughtfully. "Hm." After a moment, the girl looked up at Optimus and nodded in a show of agreement. "Okay, Oppy!"

"Thank you," Eleanor whispered, smiling fondly at the Prime.

Optimus nodded, smiling back. "Of course."

/\

Eleanor gazed down at her book, giving a small smile.

"The Tookishness was wearing off, and he was not now quite so sure that he was going on any journey in the morning."

"But he's gotta go!" Gabby insisted from Optimus's holoform's lap, her blue eyes narrowed.

Optimus, who had his chin resting on top of the girl's head, raised his head to nod in agreement. "I agree. It would hardly be a story otherwise."

"Hm." Eleanor shook her head, then she took a deep breath. "But... As he lay in bed he could hear Thorin still humming to himself in the best bedroom next to him:

Far over the misty mountains cold

To dungeons deep and caverns old

We must away, ere break of day,

To find our long-forgotten gold..."

Gabby's eyes lit up. "I would go."

"Oh?" Eleanor raised an eyebrow. "What about that dragon, young lady?"

"I could take 'im."

"Hm." Optimus glanced down at the girl, shaking his head and smiling. "Without a doubt."

When Cybertron erupted into war, the protoforming of sparklings had all but ceased and had become impossible entirely once Optimus had sent the Allspark away from Cybertron. Those who had been protoformed in the time before had either been killed, sent away in the Ark or other refugee ships, or forced to grow up much, much too fast.

When his team had taken the human children into their care, their relative innocence had reminded Optimus of the sparklings of Cybertron with a pang and it killed him to think that he had been a part of destroying that innocence.

Gabby was half of Rafael's age, and—for now, at least—her innocence was preserved.

The Prime was reminded of Eleanor's words on the island, those words from that 'field trip' that seemed so long ago.

This is what he was here to protect.

A four-beat knock rang out through the house, and the three looked up.

Gabby wriggled out of Optimus's arms and ran through the house, and Eleanor grabbed her crutch and stood, gesturing for the Prime to stay put before following her niece.

Optimus did not stay put. He followed Eleanor out towards her entry hallway, but he stayed in the kitchen and kept watch.

The front door opened, and a man stepped through and set down a bag of groceries on a table.

This man was dressed in a blue dress-shirt with the sleeves rolled-up to expose his forearms, navy dress-pants, a brown belt, and brown shoes. His hair was dark and styled much like Gabby's but without the clips, and all of the scattered braid-like groupings were pulled up into one group at the back of the man's skull and allowed to hang.

A pair of glasses were perched on his nose—the frames much thinner than Eleanor's, and silver. He wore a silver watch with a black bat-shaped symbol on his right wrist, and a silver band on the fourth finger of his left hand.

"Daddy, Daddy!" Gabby beamed, running over to the man. Optimus realized that he must have been Eugene and lowered his guard, and he found that he could see the similarities between parent and child. "Aunt Ellie and Oppy watched Big He'o 6 with me!"

"Ah, taking one for the team!" The man laughed, scooping his daughter up and looking at Eleanor with a grin. "Thanks again, El, for-" Eugene blinked, then he raised an eyebrow. "Wait a second... Who's Oppy?"

"Uh…" Eleanor smiled awkwardly at her brother-in-law. "Well-"

"Uh-uh, Daddy." Gabby shook her head. "Aunt Ellie said not to tell you 'bout him."

Eugene looked over at Eleanor again in confusion, and the young codebreaker looked up at him warily. "Eugene, I can explain."

"Allow me." Optimus sighed as he willed his holoform to step out into the open, and he frowned as he walked over and extended a hand to Eugene. "Apologies. My name is Optimus Orion Pax. I am a software designer for a robotics company, and a friend of Eleanor's."

Optimus was not fond of lying for any reason, but that did not mean that he would not try for Eleanor's sake given the circumstances. It was the least he could do, after what had happened—though part of him doubted that Eugene would even believe the half-hearted lie.

However, Eleanor's "mother hen" of a brother-in-law simply looked him up and down in a quick examination before looking up at meeting the blue eyes of Optimus's holoform with his own brown eyes.

"... Oppy, eh?" Eugene raised an eyebrow, smirking as he reached out and shook Optimus's hand. Optimus deadpanned, looking over at Eleanor as she let out a snort of laughter. "So… what brings you here?"

"Optimus has been dropping in since my accident," Eleanor continued the white lie, which Optimus was secretly thankful for. "Getting groceries, checking up on me. He's my closest friend in Jasper, and he tends to worry."

"I would not have to worry if you were not so prone to trouble," Optimus told her pointedly.

Eleanor rolled her eyes. "Well, ain't that the pot calling the kettle black? Last I checked, there's a picture of you in the dictionary over the word kamikaze."

"Now, that is being-" Optimus blinked before looking over to see Eugene grinning as he held his phone up. "What are you doing?"

"Oh, don't mind me," Eugene mused, tucking his daughter a little closer to his chest with the arm that still held her. "Just texting." He looked up at Optimus. "So, you've been looking out for El while she's been out here? What's the story?"

"We were assigned to the same project and just sorta fell in together," Eleanor explained, and Optimus was relieved for an end to the falsehoods. "I got a pretty good job opportunity, which is why I moved out here." She looked at Optimus, giving a small smile. "It's been a wild ride, but I really wouldn't have missed any of it for the world."

"... I'm... really happy for you, El," Eugene said, smiling at his former sister-in-law. "It's been a while since I've seen you so-..." He paused, then he took a deep breath. "Still, you haven't explained the busted ribs." He gestured to Eleanor's face. "Or that."

Optimus blinked, then he glanced at Eleanor's face and looked closely. He blinked again, then his face fell.

There was a scar on her face, one which had not been there when they met.

Her ribs would heal, but Silas had left his mark.

"It was... my fault," Optimus murmured, his expression forlorn.

Eleanor looked at him, her eyes wide, then her eyes narrowed. "No, it wasn't. I thought we went over this." She looked at Eugene, frowning. "Full disclosure? This group of guys rolled into town a few months ago and started targeting Optimus and his family after he stood up against them for some of his friends. They learned that we were friends, and they targeted me. Optimus got me out, and the authorities were finally able to nail the guys after, so it's done now. Okay?"

"... Whoa." Eugene blinked, surprised. "That's-... Whoa. That's heavy." He frowned. "You're sure it's done?"

"Oh, yeah." Eleanor gave a small smile, then she nudged Optimus with her elbow. "Forgive my melodramatic dork. Sometimes, he simply cannot contain the angst."

"Angst?" Optimus looked at her, an eyebrow raised, and she just snorted. "Eleanor, please: you were very hurt."

"I've had worse."

"That is not the point. You have been scarred."

"'Tis but a scratch."

"A scar."

"Alright. Let's call it a draw."

"I could watch this all day," Eugene decided, shaking his head and grinning "Alright, Team 'Ride or Die'. Break it up." They looked at him, and Eugene blinked before sighing and smiling. "So, I guess that—once I'm sure I can trust this Pax guy with my favorite Martin sister—I better get Gabby back East. She's got school, and I've got work."

"Oh." Eleanor blinked, surprised. "I'm... sorry to hear that, Eugene. It's been nice, having the two of you here."

"It's been nice being here," Eugene assured her, his expression fond. "But... you're gonna be okay, El." His eyes shone. "And I'll always be just a phone-call away, if you ever need me for anything."

"... I know," Eleanor assured him. "My sister might have dropped the ball a bit, but… I've got a pretty awesome brother."

Eugene put his phone away and walked over, tousling Eleanor's hair and smiling. "Damn straight, kiddo."

"You are getting pale," Optimus noted, glancing at Eleanor's face, then he took her arm and wrapped it around his shoulders so that he could help her back towards the living room.

She glanced up at him, giving a small smile. "Thanks, big guy."

"Of course." Optimus nodded, then he raised an eyebrow. "Team 'Ride or Die'?"

Eleanor snorted. "Come on, that's absolutely what we are. Embrace it."

Eugene watched the two go as he picked up the grocery bag, an eyebrow raised an a perplexed grin on his face. "Huh."

Optimus did not expect Gabby to be dropped back into his lap.

Had he failed to notice the blur of movement, it might have been enough to dissolve his holoform.

"So." Eugene sat down in Eleanor's chair and folded his hands. "Optimus, Latin for 'the best'. Orion, Greek for 'dweller on the mountain'. Pax, Latin for 'peace'." He squinted. "The best dweller on the mountain of peace? The peaceful dweller on the best mountain?"

"Sorry." Eleanor rolled her eyes as she looked over at Optimus. "It's sort of this ritual he does. He likes over-analyzing these things, seeing if there's anything to a name that defines a person."

Optimus raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Watch," she advised, then she looked at her brother-in-law. "Eugene, name analysis: Eleanor Marie Martin."

"Eleanor, Hebrew for 'God is my light'. Marie, Czech and French, assorted meanings: 'beloved', 'rebelliousness', 'sea of bitterness', 'wished-for child'. Martin, Latin for 'of war'," Eugene replied automatically. Optimus wondered how many names the man had memorized for these occasions. "Ooh, that's a toughie..."

"I've done this sixteen times," Eleanor whispered, glancing at Optimus and smirking. "He will now be busy for the next hour."

"... Wished-for child of war with God for light?" Eugene offered, then he scoffed. "No, that's stupid."

"Hm." Optimus could not help the amusement he felt as he gazed at the man. "Did you attend Columbia University as well, Eugene?"

"Nope. I'm a Stanford boy myself," Eugene replied, looking at him with a smile. "Went for a double-major and got my psychology and English degrees, then I came to New York and got my masters in secondary education." He crossed his arms. "But... I didn't exactly end up where I thought I would.

As I worked in the public school system back in Queens, I got really interested in the impact of modern-world stressors like technology, social media, and old-school educators, parental strategies, and ideals on the newest generations' mental health, social life, and academics.

I started talking to the kids, getting their side of things and learning their stories, and I realized that they need some serious help and that we as adults have a responsibility. I started doing some serious research, conducted formal interviews, looked into historical accounts to try and find some similar phenomena to compare it to so that I could try and reach older generations.

See, some adults are just too damn quick to dismiss the problems of these kids; they call them 'lazy' or 'unmotivated', like everything that's going wrong is there their fault." Eugene shook his head. "Don't get me wrong, some kids are entitled little punks—but at the end of the day, that's still on the parents who coddled them. It is the adults' responsibility to raise these children right, and to keep them safe until they are prepared to take care of their own safety. That includes their mental health.

I wrote a book, did some lectures and a TED talk, and all around just started trying to spread the word on my findings." He folded his hands and leaned back in his seat. "Now, I hold a small position at NYU while I'm working for my doctorate in psych—and once I'm done, you'll be looking at 'Dr. Eugene Thomas'."

"That is... incredible," Optimus said, genuinely impressed.

"Thanks." Eugene nodded. "I used some of my old connections at Stanford and managed to get a similar deal arranged for Eleanor, a while back—after she cracked those codes. They offered her a full ride for her master's and doctorate in cryptography—even offered online courses for her so she wouldn't have to leave home—but she turned them down." He shrugged his shoulders. "Still don't know why."

Eleanor blinked, then she looked away with a frown. "I had other things on my mind, that's all."

"You could do it, easy," Eugene encouraged her. "Master's in one, doctorate in four." He drew a card from his pocket, like he already had it prepared. "Just take the contact information, El. You deserve this."

"I'll... think about it," Eleanor said quietly, then she grabbed her book and looked at Gabby with a smile. "Now, I think we had a story to finish."

Eleanor started reading again, Gabby listening attentively, but Optimus found he could not focus on the tale.

Instead, his holoform's eyes were on Eugene as the man's expression dropped into a forlorn expression and he lowered the card in his hand.

Optimus thought he might be in trouble again when Eugene insisted that he stay for dinner, but Eleanor told him what to say.

Apparently, saying that one was on a "cleanse" would get them out of a meal, though it did get him a bug-eyed look from Eugene and a question of "Fuck, why?!" as the man examined his holoform. Eleanor just laughed and Eugene eventually dropped it, so Optimus just decided to go by what he was internally deeming the Fowler-Martin Rule.

He just went with it.

It was peculiar, getting to sit in on the human custom of sharing a meal, as only a very small part of the ritual seemed to be eating.

"So, this kid's having a freakin' anxiety attack in my office," Eugene was saying. "Because he had four different projects to get done and he needed to go home for this appointment for his leg, and that was why he didn't get his essay done, and he was begging for extra credit. So, I say to him: 'Sam, please: calm down. I'll accept your essay as soon as you can get it to me, no penalty'. And he just looks at me like I grew a second head!" Eugene sat back and shook his head. "El, I'm telling you: the system's broken. We can't be doing this to these kids."

Eleanor nodded, folding her hands and resting her chin on them. "Students should be motivated by due-dates, not sent into panics over them. And they should never have to be afraid to ask a teacher for help when they are in trouble."

"Yeah. I mean, you'd think more teachers would remember what it was like on the other side of things," Eugene went on, shaking his head. "So, I take this poor kid and I sit him down, and I get him one of my Gatorades and let him mooch off of my gummy worm stash—and then he and I get down to business and talk everything out." He gave a small smile. "The essay was great, El. Best in the class, full marks. You should've seen the smile on his face."

"Hm." Eleanor's eyes shone. "Atta'boy, making the world a better place—one student at a time." Her expression softened. "How are things, back east? My parents, Uncle Roger, Sophie?"

"Sophie's... Sophie." Eugene cringed, and Eleanor sighed. "She got into some trouble recently, but your dad and Ol' Rog are working it out. They want her helped, and they're trying to see this as an opportunity to reel her in." He gave a small smile. "Your mom had an attempted burglary, two weeks back. Customer called the cops, but they showed up and found the guy crying into a coffee while your mom made him re-evaluate his life choices. She didn't press charges, and even got a new busboy out of the deal."

"That sounds like my mother, alright." Eleanor chuckled, oblivious to the wide eyes of Optimus Prime's holoform. "Like a younger, female Uncle Iroh—but add motherly instincts (especially protective rage) and make her British."

"Very important distinctions." Eugene waved a finger. "Very important."

Gabby tugged on Optimus's sleeve, and he looked down at her. "Yes?"

"They get like this," the six year-old informed him quietly. "Aunt Soph says that they're 'eally sma't alone, but togetha? They sweet, but kinda wei'd."

"Hm." Optimus raised an eyebrow. "You spend time with your 'Aunt Soph', then?"

"Yep." Gabby nodded. "Daddy says that just because someone makes mistakes doesn't mean you stop ca'ing 'bout them. She's family, and she still loves us." The girl paused, then she frowned. "She makes mistakes, but she stayed."

Optimus blinked, then his expression softened. "My... older brother made many mistakes, and he left." Gabby reached over and rested a hand on Optimus's, and he looked at her in surprise before his face fell again. "You are wise and strong beyond your years."

It was not a question. He could tell.

"That's why I named her Gabriella," Eugene said, and Optimus looked up to see Eleanor and Eugene both looking at him. The Prime expected Eugene to look upset, but he was smiling. "It means 'God is my strength'. Gabriella Farona Thomas... 'God is my strength', 'journey' or 'lighthouse', 'twin' or 'leader'."

"... God is my strength, and I am the leader of my journey," Optimus decided. "Is that a possible meaning?"

Eugene's eyes shone. "Yeah, buddy. There you go."

"My God, there are two of them." Eleanor groaned as Gabby giggled. "What am I gonna do with you boys?"

"Love you too, El!" Eugene teased, looking back at the codebreaker with a smile, then he deadpanned. "Now, what the heck were you doing freezing your ass off in Alaska?"

Eleanor snorted, rolling her eyes. "Y'know, there's no point in saying 'heck' if you're just gonna say 'ass' right after."

"Yes, there is," Eugene insisted, then he looked at Gabby. "Ears." The girl dutifully covered her ears, and Eugene looked at Eleanor. "Hell plus fuck equals heck. So, what the Hell-fuck were you doing freezing your ass off in Alaska?" He looked at Gabby and nodded. "You're good."

"One, I got a good job opportunity and I actually like the snow," Eleanor insisted as Gabby lowered her hands, and Eugene stuck his tongue out. "Two, she lives in Queens and makes regular commutes to Manhattan and Brooklyn. I guarantee she's been well-educated in swearing by now."

Eugene pointed at Eleanor. "Let me live on in denial."

"She makes regular visits to my uncle." Eleanor deadpanned. "What denial is there to be had? He's like Brooklyn's Gordon Ramsay if Gordon Ramsay's profession was kicking the snot out of you."

At that, Eugene had to snort. "El."

"He's like Captain America after he finally cracks and decides to let loose all of the 1940s military-speak," Eleanor decided, then she squinted. "No. He's Bucky Barnes after three months of therapy, channeling all of his pent-up emotions into colorful language and physical activity that could kill someone if not for the added release of the aforementioned colorful language."

"All very accurate descriptions." Eugene chuckled, shaking his head. "Wow, it's like two years haven't gone by at all." Eleanor blinked, then she looked down with a frown, and Eugene blinked before sighing. "Look, El... You've kept in contact, but it's not the same as having you home. And when you left, you... didn't exactly give us a lot to go on."

She closed her eyes. "Eugene."

"We all got the same message on our answering machines," Eugene said, frowning. "You called when you knew we wouldn't be home, and you told us that you had gotten a divorce, David was in prison, and you needed time to think. Then, you were in the wind—and next we knew, you were in Alaska." He took a deep breath. "Look, we all knew the guy was a piece of garbage—we all thought it, we all talked about it, we all wanted him gone—but we wanted to help you, El, not watch you r-"

"Eugene." Eleanor opened her eyes and looked up with a light glare. "I don't want to talk about this."

"... I'm just saying that you shouldn't have had to do it all by yourself," Eugene told her gently. "You know I would have dropped everything, El."

"Hm." The codebreaker picked up her glass. "It's over. I took care of it. Now, can we drop it?"

"El." Eugene took a deep breath. "It's been two years."

Eleanor raised an eyebrow. "So?"

"... Nothing, kiddo." The man sighed, sitting back. "Y'know, you've got to be the most-stubborn person I've ever met."

"I probably am." The codebreaker shrugged her shoulders. "But what are you gonna do?"

"For the sake of my sanity?" Eugene asked as Eleanor took a sip of her drink. "Hope it's not genetic." He glanced at Gabby, his eyes wide. "Or at least, that it'll hold out until after the teen years."

Eleanor nearly choked on her drink, then she started laughing even as she raised a hand to her healing chest. "O-o-oh, my God!"

"Aunt Ellie's sick!" Gabby shouted, and while Eugene chuckled and pat the codebreaker's back, Optimus watched the girl grab some of the green plant he had come to understand was called broccoli off of her plate and stuff it into her pocket. She noticed the Prime looking at her with a raised eyebrow, and she smiled sweetly. "I'll eat it lata!"

Somehow, Optimus sincerely doubted that.

After the meal, Eleanor insisted that Eugene stay the night, but he said that he needed to get to the airport and get on a plane if he was going to be back to work and Gabby was going to be back to school with as little time missed as possible.

As Eleanor hugged Gabby 'goodbye', Optimus pulled Eugene aside, and—once he was sure Eleanor was not watching—he looked at the man with a frown.

"The card," he said quietly, holding a hand out. "I will make certain that Eleanor takes it."

Eugene blinked, then his eyes lit up as he drew the card. "Pax, buddy." He placed the card in Optimus's hand, then he clasped Optimus's hand with both of his own and shook it. "You just made my book."

"Hm." Optimus smiled, nodding. "I have grown fond of you, as well."

Eugene grinned, pulling his hands back. "Take care of her, alright? She's tough as nails, sure—but she only thinks she's bulletproof." He pointed to his head. "And as big as this is..." He reached over and rested a hand on Optimus's chest. "This is always gonna be bigger."

"Then, I believe we should count ourselves as quite fortunate," Optimus said as Eugene dropped his hand.

The man nodded, beaming. "Every day, Pax. Every day."

Eleanor and Optimus sat on her porch, watching Eugene's rental car drive away. Gabby had been waving from the back seat for as long as they had been able to see her, so they had waved back.

"... Thank you, Optimus," Eleanor said softly, lowering her hand.

Optimus glanced at her, shifting his holoform so that he looked like himself and raising an optic-brow. "For what?"

"Helping me through the day," she told him. "And being so good with my niece." She gave a warm smile. "You're good with kids."

"Hm." Optimus found himself smiling back. "You are very welcome, Eleanor." He drew the card and offered it. "Now, take this."

"What?" Her eyes widened and she raised her hands. "No, no-"

Optimus held it closer to her. "Take it."

"I can't," Eleanor protested. He poked her hand with it. "You know I can't! I'm in the middle of an alien war!"

"You only live once, Miss Martin," Optimus insisted, and she looked away. "... Dr. Martin."

"... Don't." Eleanor looked back at him. "Don't do that."

"Dr. Martin," Optimus repeated. "Master of cryptography. Columbia and Stanford University educated." Eleanor blinked, and Optimus shrugged. "We did have prestigious universities on Cybertron."

"Hm." Eleanor gave a small smile, then she frowned as she reached out and took the card, taking it into two hands and gazing down at it. "I don't know, Optimus. I've been out of school almost four years, a-and I-..." She closed her eyes. "Do you think I should?"

"Do you?"

It had to be her decision, whether or not she was ready to keep moving forward.

Optimus knew she could do it, but he also knew he could not tell her so until she knew it as well.

This had to be her step to take.

He could help—but in the end, the deepest wounds only began to heal if one was ready to let them.

"... Dr. Martin does have a nice ring to it," Eleanor murmured, opening her eyes. "I could teach at a college level, someday—after high-schoolers have gone and driven me off the deep end. And I could be taken seriously in academia, be more than just an amateur with too much time on her hands..." She bit her lower lip, glancing up at Optimus, then she looked down at the card. Her hands shook, then they steadied as she took a deep breath... and she smiled. "I'll schedule all of my courses carefully, I-I'll do school-work while I'm at the base so I don't miss anything-"

"And so that you can still work," Optimus reminded her, and she looked up at him. "You will have an interview, eventually."

Eleanor blinked, then she huffed out a weak laugh and shook her head. "You are just... bound and determined to make me get my shit together, aren't you?"

"Perhaps." Optimus chuckled, then it was his turn to blink as she set the card down on the porch. "You need that to-"

Eleanor wrapped her arms around his neck-cables and hugged him, closing her eyes. "Thank you."

Optimus froze, his holoform's optics widening, and he briefly considered dissolving it. Then, he glanced down at Eleanor, and he found his smile returning as he rested his servos on her back and closed his optics, letting himself relax.

It had been eons since he had done anything like this, since he had a day even remotely comparable to this one... and he did not wish to miss a second of it. There was no telling what his return to base would bring, let alone the next day.

"... That hurt, did it not?" Optimus asked her once they pulled away, giving an amused smile as he shook his helm at the codebreaker.

"Oh, yeah." She laughed, raising a hand to her chest, then she blinked as he took her free hand and helped her to her feet. "Whoa."

"You should get some rest," Optimus advised her, briefly releasing her to retrieve her card and crutch, and he offered both to her. "Tomorrow is going to be rather busy."

"Yeah. I guess it is," Eleanor agreed, tucking her crutch under her arm and placing the card into her pocket, then she looked up at him with another smile. "But thank you, Optimus."

The Prime nodded, placing a servo on her shoulder. "I am simply doing what I feel is best for you."

"I know." She nodded, then she shrugged. "It's just... been a while since I've let anyone get close enough to do that, I guess."

Optimus squeezed her shoulder, then he dissolved his holoform and let his consciousness return to his true form. He drove around the house and parked in front of the porch, and he found that the codebreaker was still standing there.

"Eleanor?"

She just looked at him, then she took a deep breath. "Hey, Optimus?"

"Yes?"

"We are both… ridiculously stubborn losers when it comes to self-care and our determination to go without it, but we apparently have a pretty good read on each other when it comes to these things," Eleanor noted. "So... why don't we both just agree that it's alright that we look out for each other, yeah?" Her small smile returned. "I know you're a thirty-foot, three-hundred million year-old leader of half a planet fighting in a civil war which could determine the fate of two worlds right now and that the idea of needing someone like me to look out for you is kinda dumb, but... humor me, okay?" Her expression softened into something somber. "You always look so surprised, when I'm just plain decent. Breaks my heart, big guy."

To say that Optimus was stunned would have been an understatement. "... Eleanor-"

"I know what you think you've got to be for your team." Eleanor held her hands up, frowning. "I know, and I'm not gonna interfere there more than I feel I have to. That has to be between you and them." She slowly lowered her hands. "But Optimus, really... when it's just me... what does it matter, huh?" She shrugged her shoulders. "I'm not friends with the Matrix, I'm friends with the dork who earned it—so... let me look after him, alright?" She gave a small smile. "I know he can take care of himself just fine, but... he doesn't always have to. That's what friends are for."

"... Good night, Eleanor," Optimus said softly. "I will stop by after patrols tomorrow, if that is alright."

Eleanor blinked, then she just sighed and shook her head, still smiling. "Of course, it is. I'll even tell you how registration goes... Good night, big guy."

/\

When Optimus arrived back at the base, he transformed and sighed, stretching a bit before starting to walk towards the hallway—intending to make his usual rounds and ensure all was well.

However... there now always seemed to be a 'however', whenever Optimus had a plan.

"Someone seems to be in a cheery mood," Arcee noted, giving a small smirk and crossing her arms. She and all of the others seemed to be there, something which had become common as of late. "What's the occasion?"

Optimus blinked, then he glanced away. "Well... I might have encountered Eleanor's niece."

"In your holoform?" Jack asked, walking up to the yellow railing.

Optimus looked at the boy. "While we watched the film that Eleanor used to convince her not to tell her father about the giant 'truck robot' that she witnessed transforming in her aunt's backyard? Yes." The base went silent as everyone just looked at the Prime, and Optimus sighed. "I heard a commotion. How was I supposed to know that it was merely due to Gabby's seething hatred for broccoli?"

"... Damn it, Prime." Bulkhead started chuckling. "That's-... That's fraggin' hilarious..."

"How old is she?" Arcee asked, starting to smile. "Raf's age?"

"Half," Optimus replied, and Miko covered her mouth with her hands as her eyes lit up. "She completely lacks the ability to use the letter 'R' while speaking."

"That's adorable!" Bumblebee insisted, his door-wings twitching. "How come you got to see the baby human?! I wanna see the baby human! Did you get to hold the baby human?!"

"She climbed on top of me, so I would not say I had a choice in the matter," Optimus noted, starting to relax a bit. They were taking this much better than expected. "Eugene also handed her to me, while he was speaking with Eleanor."

"Eugene?" Raf blinked, then he nodded. "Oh, right. He used to be with Maggie." He raised an eyebrow. "How did that go?"

"He likes analyzing names for their meanings," Optimus noted. "Apparently, on Earth, 'Optimus' means 'the best'."

"... You're the best Prime," Ratchet realized, then he leaned forward and rested his helm on his monitor. "By the Allspark."

Optimus blinked, then he was genuinely taken aback. "I had not drawn that connection, but... 'Orion Pax' evidently means 'peaceful dweller upon the mountain'. I found that translation much more interesting."

"Hm." Jack gave a small smile. "It sounds like you had a really good day, Optimus."

The Prime hesitated, then he gave a small smile. "Eugene and I managed to convince Eleanor to continue her education. She is going to get her master's degree in cryptography, from... Stanford University, I believe it was."

"Whoa!" Raf's eyes widened, then he grinned. "That's awesome!"

"Hm." Optimus looked down, crossing his arms. "I am inclined to agree with you."

"... Optimus?" Bumblebee asked, and Optimus looked up at him. "For the last few weeks, we-... We've been trying to figure out how to fix things between us." Optimus blinked, surprised. "But the more we did, the more we realized how much we messed-up."

"Bumblebee-"

"We tried bringin' you into everything, and you were all suspicious and nervous and you passed out in the middle of a full-blown party," Bulkhead explained. "We tried gettin' you to open up a bit about some stuff we knew you'd be nervous about talkin' about us with, and you were just scared of makin' us mad the whole time and we ended up realizin' that..." He placed a servo on his chest, frowning. "We might've missed a lot more than we thought."

Optimus blinked again, then his optics widened as he briefly glanced down at his chest before he looked up again, his expression grim.

"The truth is... we want to do better, Optimus," Arcee said, stepping forward. "Because, even though we are absolutely awful at showing it, we care about you—a lot." She raised a servo to her spark, her expression pleading. "You are not just our leader, you never have been. When we thought we were going to lose you to the Cybonic Plague, to Unicron, to Megatron, we-..." She closed her optics, then she opened them and looked up at him again with a forlorn expression. "It's terrible, but... we never realized how good we had it until it was gone. We were completely lost without you, Optimus, but... it's true.

We haven't forged the strongest ties in the way of approachability, we haven't ever made a habit of leaving ourselves open to talk about these things—we haven't come and spoken to you as often as we could have, and we haven't given you any reason to believe it would be safe for you to come and talk to us." She shook her helm. "And that's not right, Optimus. I know that, if any of us came to talk to you, you wouldn't think anything of it—that's just who you are, who you've always been. But if you needed someone to talk to?" Arcee looked down, then she looked up at Optimus again. "Optimus... I am so, so sorry."

"We all are," Ratchet agreed, and Bumblebee, Bulkhead, and the children nodded. "But Optimus, in all honesty... We do not know how to proceed. Every choice we make to try and fix things seems to only make things worse." The medic looked away. "Even now, talking like this, I feel as though we are placing you on the spot and making things worse... but I don't know what else to do, old friend. I truly don't." Ratchet looked back at Optimus, seeming close to tears. "If I could take away all of the pain and pressure that has been inflicted upon you all of these years, I would pay any price. I know I have no right to ask this or anything of you, Optimus, but... for once in your life... think of yourself, please.

Think of yourself, and do not forgive us until when and if we earn that forgiveness." The medic righted his posture. "I also ask that you... tell us what to do, Optimus. Please, tell us what to do and how we should go about fixing things." He shook his helm. "I am not a trained psychiatrist. I have read texts regarding psychology, but I am no expert. I am at a loss, old friend, so please... I need to know how it is to proceed, for I am in the dark." His fists clenched, then they fell open. "Tell us how to make amends. I know we should be able to figure it out on our own, that this is just another sign of our failure, but... please." The medic closed his optics. "I do not wish to be allowed the opportunity to repeat my mistakes, for the... cycle... to repeat itself."

"You're family, Optimus," Miko said, and Optimus managed to tear his gaze away from Ratchet to look at her. Jack stood between Raf and Miko, his hands on each of their shoulders, and Raf was crying. "Our family..." She gave a small smile. "Y'know, the three of us kinda realized something funny... On Earth, kids are supposed to have these figures they look up to called 'dads'. Some folks have some they're related to, others are adopted by 'em, and others just... find 'em on their own. You even can have more than one, it... kinda depends." Miko shrugged. "And the three of us realized... none of us really get along with the ones we're related to, so we ended up having to pick new ones.

I'm kinda gatherin' them like a band shirt collection at this point, with the Wreckers on the table, but..." The teenager looked down, then she glanced up at Optimus. "We all realized that, all three of us, we-... We picked you." She shrugged her shoulder again. "It just sorta happened, just... felt right, y'know? You're always there, always lookin' out for us..." She gave a small smile. "Dads are family, so... we're with the 'Bots. You're always there when we need you, so..."

Raf wiped his glasses clean before putting them back on his face. "H-How do we help?"

"It's our turn, Optimus," Jack insisted, frowning. "I know you're probably trying to think up a way to start arguing right now, but don't." His expression softened. "Please."

Optimus just looked at all of them at a genuine loss, then he raised a servo to his mouth. There were so many thoughts swirling about inside of his mind that it all just seemed to go blank, then he closed his optics.

"... Heh." The laugh just slipped out, and it was followed by another and another until Optimus was just quietly chuckling, the overwhelming absurdity of all of this finally overwhelming him.

"Scrap, we screwed-up again!" Bulkhead shouted, and Optimus started laughing harder. "Prime, we're sorry! W-We didn't mean to upset you or anything!"

Ratchet blinked. "I... don't think we did."

"Hm." Optimus calmed himself down, then he regarded his teammates and shook his helm, his optics shining. "I apologize, it is just..." He raised an optic-brow. "I was considering how difficult it was to believe that you would have gone through all of that rather than simply speaking to me like this weeks ago."

"... We didn't upset him. He's just finally cracked enough to recognize what massive idiots we all are," Arcee decided, then she huffed out a laugh of her own and smiled. "To be fair, I did try talking."

"Yes, I suppose you did try," Optimus teased lightly, then he frowned as he saw their shocked expressions, wondering if he had gone too far, before Miko started laughing.

"Haha, very funny." Arcee rolled her optics, but she was grinning and the atmosphere seemed to relax.

Bumblebee looked at Optimus, his door-wings twitching. "So... you're not upset?" Optimus shook his helm. "Even though we couldn't figure out what to do?"

"No, Bumblebee. I am not upset," Optimus told his scout gently. "I was never upset with any of you."

"That's... kinda the worst part," Bulkhead admitted.

Jack winced. "Humans kinda live in fear of the whole 'I'm not mad, just disappointed' bit."

"Oh, geez. 'You're not being the person Optimus Prime believes you can be' will one day be the most-devastating thing a person can hear," Miko predicted. "It'll be like disappointing Mr. Rogers and Bob Ross."

All three children shuddered.

Optimus decided that he would have to look into these two powerful beings of Earthen authority and their apparent rules for behavioral conduct.

"Okay, so: you're not upset," Arcee said, and the Prime nodded. "But it's clear to all of us that you've been hurting, so... what can we do to make it better, Optimus? We tried it our way, but... that wasn't the right way to handle it." She shook her helm. "No. We need to know how to help you, so... can you teach us how to be better friends to you?"

"Like... what do you do when you're really stressed?" Jack tried. "What's something we can do to help you calm down?"

Optimus blinked, then he looked down. After a moment of thought, he looked up with a frown.

"... Talking," he said quietly. "Speaking with just one other person someplace where there are no distractions or loud noises, it-... It can help, sometimes." He glanced around the base. "And... getting outside." He glanced at his teammates, and he gave a small smile. "And perhaps... not always either being the center of attention or completely invisible when I am in a room. I would appreciate a happy medium."

"Understood, boss-'bot." Bulkhead chuckled, nudging Optimus's rotator-cup with his servo. "And I'll try not to throw lob-balls at your head anymore, but don't think you'll always be getting out of games. You're too good for all that talent to go to waste, and someone's gotta help me knock 'Bee down a peg."

"Hey!" The scout complained, but Miko and Raf were laughing, so he calmed down quickly enough.

Miko held her hands up. "Okay, okay. Is there anything that you just can't stand? Anything that any of us does that you've been too polite to comment on up until now? Let's get it all out."

"... Miko, Rafael, Jack, Bulkhead: I know I have this same problem, but none of you can lie to save a life," Optimus said. "So, please: stop trying. The incident with the illegal racing-"

"Oh, yeah." Raf cringed. "That was... embarrassing."

Miko snorted. "We got the dad-brow of disappointment." She looked at Optimus as he raised an optic-brow. "Oh, look. There it is."

"Arcee." Optimus looked at her. "Are you aware of the incidents in which I tell you not to do something which I deem to be extremely dangerous because you will be left isolated from your team, you allow your anger or stubbornness to get the better of you, and then you are oftentimes nearly killed?"

"Yeah?" Arcee raised an optic-brow. Optimus just looked at her. "... Ah. Okay. I'll... see what I can do."

"Thank you." Optimus looked at Ratchet. "Old friend?"

"Here it comes." Ratchet sighed. "Alright, I'll be careful with the wrench-throwing, mind my volume, attempt some patience-"

"I have been politely trying to place the correct amount of Energon with your rations and hoping that you would get the point without a public address, and I would have thought that the incident with the Synthetic Energon after which I physically bolted you to a medical berth and placed an IV in you would have been enough to deliver the message, but as there still seems to be some breach in communication..." Optimus folded his servos and pointed at Ratchet with both of them. "Stop cutting your Energon intake. This is not a request."

Ratchet's jaw dropped. "I..." Everyone else looked at Ratchet in alarm. "I was just-..."

"Ratchet." Optimus's optics narrowed. "I will not press the subject. But it will not continue."

"... Understood, Optimus," the medic said quietly. "I was... wondering who had figured it out." He gave a small smile. "I should have known. You always were so observant."

Optimus managed a smile in return. "I learned to maintain a certain awareness of my surroundings." He huffed out a short laugh. "I think I mentioned before that, even before the war, the company I kept made it a sensible practice."

"... You never said," Jack spoke up, and Optimus looked at him. "Least-evil Megatron story."

"Well..." Optimus looked down, thinking, then he sighed. "Hm. There were many instances in which Megatron behaved nobly, even heroically..." He glanced at the others in the room, then he gave a small smirk before recomposing himself. "I believe I might know a story which should prove... the most entertaining, out of those I witnessed first-hand."

Ratchet raised an optic-brow. "Entertaining? What's that supposed to-?"

"There was a certain lounge Megatron used to frequent in Kaon in order to ease his stress," Optimus began. "I admittedly went with him a few times—against my better judgement, mind you, and to serve as a chaperone more than anything else—and there was one instance when he had a bit too much high-grade and he happened to notice that an equally if not more intoxicated mech was making a pair of patrons at the bar rather uncomfortable. I noticed as well and went to get up and go over to say something, but Megatron pushed me back down into my seat, took more high-grade, and walked over.

I grew worried, thinking that he was about to start a brawl and that the authorities would be called, but then he suddenly leaned on the counter between the mech and the other patrons and began aggressively flirting with the mech." Jaws dropped as Optimus hummed in amusement, raising a servo to his mouth. "The second the other mech showed discomfort, Megatron stood up straight and screamed 'How does it feel?' in the offender's face before glaring at him until he left the bar, then he promptly passed-out on the spot and Soundwave and I had to drag him back to his residence as everyone else simply applauded."

"By the Allspark," Ratchet managed, his optics wide.

"... And that was how we met Starscream," Optimus concluded, lowering his servo to reveal a sly grin as he watched eyes and optics widen. "Neither of them remember."

"HA!" Miko let out a loud laugh and nearly doubled-over as she lost all self-control and burst into manic giggles.

Jack covered his mouth with both hands, astonished. "Oh, my God!"

"Soundwave could use that footage at any time," Optimus mused, raising his servo to his chin. "He has simply chosen not to."

"He keeps making it better." Miko wheezed, then she looked up at Optimus with a grin. "You think you're not a storyteller!"

"This beats the usual gloomy exposition," Bulkhead admitted, smiling, then he got a devious glint in his optics. "The next time I run into Megatron or Starscream, I'm gonna shout 'How does it feel?' to see if that triggers anything."

"PLEASE!" Bumblebee pleaded, folding his servos. "Oh, and get it on camera!"

"Miko, camera," Raf translated, glancing at the girl.

Miko held a thumb up. "Gotcha, Bee!"

"... We're laughing at a Megatron story," Jack realized, and everyone seemed to have that sudden realization.

Ratchet blinked, then he sighed. "I suppose we are." He glanced at Optimus, then he gave a light grin. "No one is born evil."

"Megatron is the worst, now," Arcee said. "Optimus knows that more than any of us." She glanced at the Prime. "But everyone has a right to their good memories." She gave a small smile, then she snorted. "And it's pretty fraggin' hilarious, the more I try to picture what you just described."

"... I have more stories, if you are interested," Optimus offered. "If not now, then... whenever it suits you."

"Anything off-limits?" Miko asked, crossing her arms.

Optimus raised an optic-brow. "Just what do you believe I had allowed myself to get involved in?"

"Um..." Raf shifted awkwardly. "I think she means... is there anything you wouldn't want to talk about?"

"Would not-?" Optimus blinked, then he glanced down at his chest and hummed quietly. "Ah." The Prime looked up at the children, then he sighed. "... I believe I know a good story." He hesitated for just a moment, wondering if he should turn back, then he gave the smallest smirk. "Megatron had fallen into stasis while we were showing him our favorite documentary series, so we decided that we knew how we could finally get even with him." He paused, glancing up briefly. "Well, it was technically Ariel's plan. But I was holding the remote."

The other Autobots' optics widened as the children's expressions lit up, and Miko leaned forward. "What did you do?"

"We skipped from the first season to the seventieth, then we closed the shades and turned on the lights outside of our office to create the illusion that it was daytime," Optimus said. "We began gradually increasing the volume of the sound coming from the speakers, but when we could not get him to wake up without reaching an unbelievable sound-level, Ariel got up, grabbed some Energon to make the situation believable, and sat down again.

The motion was enough to stir Megatron but not wake him, so she looked at me." Optimus shook his helm. "I expected her to hand me the Energon and ask me to try, but that would have required Ariel to be the sort of individual who would ever even considered not doing everything herself. So, she did 'what anyone would do' and got up on the table and jumped down backwards to land seated beside Megatron again, and THAT was enough to wake him."

"Hm!" Raf covered his mouth with both hands, his eyes shining.

"Megatron, obviously disoriented, asked us to pause the documentary. When he saw the episode number, he looked out the interior office windows and saw the light," Optimus said. "We expected shouting, maybe a bit of panic—but what we got was a pair of wide optics and a quiet 'How long have I been here?'." The Prime hummed. "Never before nor since have I seen such a look of terror, and then... Ariel, keeping a perfectly straight face, said 'About two stellar-cycles. Why?'."

"That is pure evil." Bulkhead chuckled, and he hesitated before continuing. "But that... definitely sounds like her."

"A younger her, at least," Arcee agreed, smiling. "But... that was Elita."

"... Megatron never forgave her for setting the resulting scream as her commlink tone," Optimus concluded, and the children started laughing. "I can practically guarantee it was half of the grudge he harbored against her."

Bumblebee wheezed, resting a servo on his knee. "That's too good." He sighed, standing up straight and smiling. "I miss her." His optics widened. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"

"As do I," Optimus told his scout, his smile not faltering. "I think that Elita-1 would have grown to love Earth..." He glanced at the children. "And the family we have made here..." He looked back at the youngest Autobot. "Just as the rest of us have... But I also know that, on the day she became one with the Allspark, she did so because she made a series of choices." Optimus shook his helm, closing his optics. "And she would not have regretted a single one of them, Bumblebee."

Bumblebee just looked at Optimus, then he shifted in place before running over and hugging the Prime.

Optimus froze, his optics opening and widening as he glanced down at the scout, then he frowned and hugged back before closing his optics again.

"... We're allowed to do that?" Bulkhead asked Arcee, his optics wide. The femme just shrugged, her optics just as wide.

"Miko, you've taken -like- forty pictures," Jack commented, glancing at the girl with a deadpan.

Miko kept her phone raised, her eyes wide. "Dude, this is like a solar eclipse, a double-rainbow, and a meteor shower happening at 4:20 on Friday the 13th at the center of the Bermuda Triangle, okay? It might be a sign of the apocalypse, but I'm not missing a second of it."

Optimus and Bumblebee separated, and Optimus looked down at his scout questioningly. "Are you alright?"

"... You're always gonna be the first to ask that, aren't you?" Bumblebee asked. "Always gonna put everyone first, even when they really don't deserve it? Looking out for us, putting up with all of the noise and nonsense, smiling when you have every reason to be sad and pressing on when you have ever reason to give up?" The scout raised an optic-brow. "That's just you, huh?"

Optimus sighed. "You give me too much credit."

"No." Ratchet shook his helm. "We gave the Matrix too much credit... and we gave too little credit to the one who has done nothing less than prove time and time again how much he deserves it."

"... I am still not always sure that I do," Optimus admitted. "Sometimes, I even find myself wondering if... I was just the one who was there."

"Don't make us tell Bumblebee to hug you again, because we will." Miko pointed at Optimus, her eyes narrowed. "You accepted the hug. It is now at our disposal. We can deploy it at any time."

Optimus blinked. "Are you actually..." Do not smile. Do not smile. "Attempting to weaponize physical affection?"

"Is it working?" Arcee asked plainly.

"... You wish to know how to help me?" Optimus let his smile return as he gazed around the room. "Very well. I believe I know what to say, now... Promise to always look after yourselves and each other no matter what comes our way, allow me the greatest honor by letting me continue to fight alongside and defend you, and..." He raised a servo to his chest. "I have been having such a hard time focusing on what is good in recent months, so please... never allow me to forget this."

"We won't, Optimus," Bulkhead told him as everyone nodded. "... Screw it."

Optimus grunted as the Wrecker hugged him, cringing a bit, then he huffed and smiled as Bumblebee joined in. Arcee walked over and rested an arm on Optimus's leg, leaning against him and shaking her helm as she smiled, and Ratchet walked over and placed a servo on Optimus's rotator-cup.

"Here's to self-care with Team Prime!" Miko shouted, raising her phone and taking another picture. "Good talk, people! Same time, next Wednesday?!"

"Hm." Optimus glanced over at Miko, shaking his helm. "Do not ever change."

The teenager blinked, then she smiled. "Same to you, Prime."

So...

Was anyone gonna tell me I accidentally skipped "Loose Cannons", or I was I just supposed to figure that one out myself? XD

Sorry, sorry. Couldn't resist. You would not believe the amount of self-disgust I felt, people. It was horrible.

*points to "The Artist"* Wheeljack's one of my favorites, damn it!

Though, I do admit, I would not have been able to do much with Eleanor in that episode unless I implied that she was somehow able to sneak along with Optimus without him noticing.

So, I tried to rectify a bit of that here... in the longest fucking chapter I've written for anything ever.

I mean, HOLY SHIT. 33.5k?! What was I thinking?!

But hey: next time, we're back in the episodes. It's time to get this show on the road.

...

I hope you liked how I handled things here, given that it'll be my last filler chapter for a while and there was a lot I wanted to accomplish.

We got some more on Eleanor's family: a follow-up with Maggie, the introduction of Eugene and Gabby, and some talk about the other members.

We finished Eleanor's recovery, and I used it as a catalyst to develop the relationship she's been building with Optimus as well as strengthen her ties to June and Miko as well as start the development of a relationship with Ratchet, and she also got to begin teaching Optimus about Earth's culture through the use of various works and her own knowledge.

I also did a lot with Optimus in this chapter, and I experimented a bit with developing his past experiences and relationships and why he might distance himself from them. I also did a bit more with his relationship with the rest of Team Prime, giving them a push (thank you, Eleanor (and Eugene)) in the right direction so that they can start working towards a stronger and healthier dynamic.

I also had some fun times exploring the relationship between Ratchet and the kids in this chapter, 'cause the med-bot's a softy for them and I love that wholesome shit. He acts like he could take them or leave them, but he's really like "if anything ever happened to them, I would kill every Decepticon on this planet and then myself". Really, that's the whole Team Prime vibe.

And I dropped a six year-old on Optimus, so that made me extremely happy 'cause reasons. Her speech patterns were based off of some of my younger cousins', which sparked great joy.

...

I only own my OCs. Please read, review, check out my other stories, etc. Thanks! :)