The overjoyed laughter of Bumblebee running around the Autobot base echoed through the halls. Despite what Ultra Magnus claimed the yellow little mech had bought up moral in the Autobots forces greatly,
Optimus felt relieved a little with Bee's excitement about how big and cool their new 'home' was, He knew his sparkling didn't fully understand yet why they couldn't go back to the nice small living unit they lived in, There's nothing left there,
"He's adjusting well" Elita One observed nudging him softly and breaking his long focus on Bumblebee. Optimus nodded "Indeed. He seems overjoyed at all the new faces" he said looking back over to his sparkling following around two of the bigger Autobot's with enthusiasm,
He's happy. He's healthy, and most of all he's alive,
"I was worried" he admitted. "He already lost one home to lose another is…",
Bumblebee is so young and yet he's already been through the many traumas of war and the destruction it brings,
Elita gently rubbed his shoulder with her servo. "It's not you're fault Optimus" she assured with her soft but rough comforting tone,
He truly couldn't agree with the statement. But held back his doubtful retort knowing Elita wouldn't stand one bit of his self loathing, in her optics only one was to blame for the destruction of his and bee's home,
Optimus has found himself thinking back to when he first found the little yellow sparkling. The memories of the ruined city which was once Bumblebee's home, the injured being treated by medical crews and the offlined bodies in the rubble, back then he was not a prime nor an Autobot, back then he had newly left Megatron's side prepared to search for Primus after realizing his friend was losing himself,
It was a mere chance. A mere little chance, When had he found himself overwhelmed at what pain and sorrow he was apart of causing,
The faint little buzzes and clicks of a young spark caught his audio receptors. He dug through the rubble of a destroyed living unit scratching his servos raw till round blue optics stared at him with a fearfully but curious click noise,
He fell at the sight. Scooping the way too small sparkling up from his destroyed home and held him close to his spark sobbing openly to the surviving young spark,
"Bee is my son" he whispered the sentence out so quietly Elita One barely caught it,
Optimus has never admitted such to another before. It was a word he said to Bumblebee and Bumblebee alone, a promise of his love in the late of night as his sparkling fell into recharge beside him in the berth,
"I love him with all my spark. Primus the thought alone of anything-if I were to lose him….I'd break Elita",
It still haunts him. What happened to their home, what could've happened to Bumblebee that day if he hadn't…,
Elita One sharpened beside Optimus tugging on his arm pulling him closer. Forcing him to look directly at her, "It's okay Orion, He's okay…You're Okay" she told strongly a gentle sharpness in her optics,
He couldn't help the small chuckle that escaped. Elita was in a lot of way different now but in a weird way the same confident bot he met one cycle while working the loading docks, one with a head strong personality and caring spark who held herself strongly taking no scrap from anyone,
"Raising your own right now is not easy but you're doing so well with Bumblebee remember that" she smiled fondly reaching out and petting his cheek. And Optimus leaned into the touch closing his optics,
"I suppose I am allowing my fears to get the best of me"
"There is no fault in that Optimus. You are allowed to have fear, you are allowed to grieve what was lost, being a leader doesn't mean you cannot feel these emotions"
His spark felt an overwhelming tightness by the words. While the Matrix pulsed in disagreement, Optimus has…He's been trying to keep many feelings inside since becoming leader of the Autobots,
It wasn't healthy. But he had to be strong he felt like he needed to be,
He had to the calm of a raging storm,