Queen's Notes: Hey, guess who popped up in a big way! Or at least trying to, hope this gives you some feels and cute in this complicated times.

Just A Stray, Just A Cover

Chapter 17

Coming Back up

There was a soft giggle that drew the attention of the mech to his right, Crosshairs felt a smile form as he shifted slightly on the lift. In the space between his smaller left shoulder guard and collar ridge where Amy was perched, small hands clutched the ridge as she held her balance fairly well.

She was doing much better with her balance the mech noted. Granted, Crosshairs was not moving very much as the lift rose back to the surface, though he was still keeping ready to reach up and catch the girl. Thankfully if she did fall it would be forward down his chest rather than down his back.

That seemed like a horrible thought but it was true.

"Well... guess we're saving the world eh?"

Crosshairs glanced to the other side, and down where Bumblebee was sitting down on the lift, keeping an optic on the brake system. Yet the scout frame gave his jittery version of a laugh as Jolt chuckled. "At least some mechs."

"...can we still get a popsicle?" Amy asked hesitantly, looking at the side of Crosshairs' head with a sort of pitiful hopefulness. Normally it only showed when she heard the mechs mentioned something she had seen in her small movie stash before. In this case it was all Bumblebee's fault as the mech had used some advertisement clip to make a point that if Amy was coming then Crosshairs should get some fresh food supplies… and he had inadvertently mentioned popsicles.

Amy never had the treat and wondered about it.

"Yeah June-Bug, we'll see about getting yea at least one." Saving the world and getting a popsicle, some check list so far. Crosshairs looked at his shoulder rider then at the electric mech, eyeing Jolt as he chuckled. But no one thankfully called it outloud that he was getting soft.

Likely just because Hound was not coming with them.

The thought of that old fragger's reaction to finding out he, Bumblebee, Drift and Jolt left just before Hound got out of his session in a CR chamber and recharge... It made Crosshairs smirk and shifted on the lift, brushing against Drift. The shorter swordsmech adjusted and leaned back to keep from getting too much of Crosshairs' weight shifted onto him instead.

"I'm sure something can be found for you little one," Drift said as he looked up the green mech's back, smiling a little as Amy peered back down from her perch at his voice..

"I hope so," The girl said in a little voice, peeking around again, watching the walls with fascination. That not so slight glitter from the crystal lined walls, it reflected the bio lights from the mechs and the gravity lift reflecting off it.

It really looked like things were moving, like a shimmer of water. Amy wondered, is this what waterfalls looked like from the inside? Maybe at night, as the pictures were not the same? ...then again it was not like the rare few scenes from the few movies she had seen back before.

"Crosshairs?" Amy asked once the mechs seemed to have a lull in their conversation of what town they were going to and how to go about it, splitting up into twos.

"Aye Bug?" Crosshairs glanced at his charge again.

"Did you have waterfalls on cybertron?" Amy said, and the random out of nowhere question was so... honest that if he had not been focusing on the girl it might have seemed too innocent.

To say the green and black mech was taken off guard was an understatement. Crosshairs' optics flickered in a blink as he looked at Bumblebee, and then back. "Uh, not exactly June-Bug. There were some flow-ways of energon that were like a waterfall. Or smaller oil streams, I didn't see much more myself."

"Oh." Amy blinked, looking puzzled as Jolt started chuckling and looked over at him. "Wait... there's streams that are oil?"

"Some of them can be yes." Jolt agreed, shifting on the lift and feeling it slow down as it neared the top. He was rather bemused at the human sparkling. "I like the water streams here on your planet though."

"More so when there's a Decepticon standing in it?" Drift asked, and got a grin from Jolt and a visible charge of energy that crawled over his chest and shoulder.

"Well, yes, more so when they don't seem to notice that this planet has so much water outside of the oceans." Jolt agreed with a laugh, and then Crosshairs suddenly understood and chuckled.

"Can see that." the green mech nodded, glancing at Bumblebee to see if he needed help. The scout was handling the brakes well though, making sure the lift did not jerk to a stop or get stuck again. Crosshairs reflexively lifted his left hand to hover over Amy, his other ready to reach up to approach the lift hatch...

It thankfully slid soundlessly open before they came too close. The gravity lift rised a bit and then settled into locking brackets. Crosshairs was the first off, followed by Jolt and Bumblebee. Drift lingering to start the lift back down and hopping up over the hatch, pinging down to Leadfoot a quick message.

The scout looked up and started after the other two down the entry passage. Jolt letting his scanners extend and feel for any possible threat before the outer hatch was opened. He vented deeply, almost a sigh as the warm-cool night air rolled in. There was that faint humid smell that it rained not long ago in the woods outside, or going to again.

Bumblebee gave a snort, venting in a more scenting way as he paused just inside the opening. He blinked, optics shuttering but other than that did not react as Crosshairs shifted. The trooper pressed his right arm against Bumblebee's shoulder.

For a moment it was like before, before the attacks and being on the run. When Crosshairs was relaxed and even seeking attention from others once finding he liked that.

Not unlike some strange giant feline… beast former?

Bumblebee tilted his head at the thought even as he leaned into the touch. Grateful for the peace offering, as that was what the motion was he knew. Bumblebee missed being able to trust mechs around him, and though he wanted to with his whole spark the scout side of him would not let himself more than bits at a time. Bumblebee could not give full trust to a mech that had been leaving for stretches at a time.

He still hoped though.

"What path do you think we should take?" Jolt asked.

It took Bumblebee a moment that he was being given the chance to lead, and he glanced at Crosshairs out of the corner of a wide optic. The green mech was tilting his head, his expression not annoyed but relaxed if expecting to hear where and how they were going. Even Drift as he came up last seemed to be waiting.

Maybe Ratchet was onto them about recharge and refueling in a normal pattern for even more valid reasons than Bumblebee had ever given it credit for.

Dear Primus Bumblebee was 29 million years old and he was just learning the real values of rest, recharge and refueling... no wonder even Sam poked at him to just rest and 'veg' with him.

Bumblebee straightened out of his hunch and shook himself before pinging out a path to a nearby road, but not the nearest. "Off into the great blue yonder!"

::We'll go this way, around and through the park. Split up after just before coming out of it. This might be slower…::

Jolt nodded, "Yey it will keep our direct tracts to the bolt hole limited."

There was a giggle from Crosshairs' shoulder, "You all have really big feet. And foot prints!"

The paratrooper arched an optic ridge as he tilted his head at Amy. "Oh really bug?"

Amy nodded as she pointed down in general, aware the mechs were listening, "I can fit in most of them. You guys are...big? I fell in Jolt's footprint in the garden, before the flowers."

Jolt blinked, optics shuttering and flashing as he took a half step back to look down at his left pede as he lifted it up. Drift reflexively glanced at it as well as down to his own… paused and then laughed softly.

"The little one is right..." Drift realized looking back up at Crosshairs and his tiny. Amy at all the attention looked down and resorted to leaving ofer to pull the lower most of her Guardian's over-lense and then hid against his neck to peek out from there. "We've learned how to walk on pavement without cracking it, it's not the same with loose earth."

He was one of the smallest of their group and still sunk a bit off and on.

Crosshairs huffed, using the edge of his jaw to press down over Amy in a light tease. Not unlike how a parent would ruffle their kid's hair. Amy's hair was in interesting angles afterwards. "We all need ta be lighter on our feet."

Bumblebee trilled and gave that one hitching sound that was his laughter as he nodded and walked out. He knew how to step and was both thankful for the rain and a little leary or too much wet earth. ::Once we're back I'll find the safest routes to and from, just be careful right now.::

The other mechs nodded, taking the chance to do quick pings of where to start looking once in that town. Bumblebee put a search pattern that was effective but also not too noticeable as it was not too big of a human village. It was something he was used to doing with Jazz so as not to draw attention. Once at the road Bumblebee glanced back, noticing bio-likes were dimmed in the others.

Drift's were completely hidden as he folded into his helicopter form, blades spinning up as he rose in the clear space from the road. Able to hide from most human radars as well as staying low he started ahead. Scouting the routes carefully for any hostile humans, but Bumblebee was fairly sure there would be very few being this dark.

Crosshairs was reaching up to poke and get ahold of Amy as Jolt moved ahead to transform and take off on the road. A neat tuck and roll into his alternate. Bumblebee watched him leave before stepping over and transforming as well, although he did not leave. As much to give some space for jolt as to wait for Crosshairs.

The green mech tilted his head at the black camaro, before stooping with cupped hands to set his charge down and then rolled forwards himself. Armor flaring and rearranging as Crosshairs settled onto his own tires, he paused to shrug open his passenger door and let the girl bound over and inside.

"Well… let's go save the world then, or at least a spark." Crosshairs said, rolling forward as Bumblebee gave a return chirp, and then a light buzz as Amy peeked up and out the window to wave.

"Are you really going to save the world again Crosshairs?" Amy asked as they started moving, this time not jumping as his holo-form came to life.

Crosshairs arched an eyebrow in it, he reached out to ruffle the girl's hair. "Maybe, sometimes it's hard to tell, but maybe we can at least save a friend."

"Saving a friend is good." Amy considered, making a small face at the ruffle but happy to lean into the holo-form as Crosshairs pulled her into a sideways hug against his side. "So...we're not going to do the big thing? Like when you saved us from the sun eater?"

There was a pause, Crosshairs had almost forgotten about the harvester. Again. "Yeah... no big things like that as far as I know."

Also thank Primus that place was so well locked down, only Optimus as a Prime could get in. The human formed mech finally let Amy go and pointed backwards into his back seat, where there were some slightly squished bags, "Go get one of them longer sleeve shirts on June-bug. And I'll see about the hero work, yea might have to stay in my armor pocket if there's trouble."

"I don't mind, it feels safe in there" Amy said as she climbed into the smaller space. Fumbling around until she found the pretty shirt that was dark blue, with purple tulip like flowers on the sleeve ends and the bottom hem. She carefully pulled the sticker off the front and wiggled into it with a happy squeak.

It was relatively warm in the bolt-hole, being a stable temperature with no wind, and it was warm being on Crosshairs as he always seemed to be venting warmer air when on his shoulder or against the living metal. The night outside was just cold to her now.

Not that Amy had not been used to being cold all the time before. Yet that was before, and seemed so far away as she climbed back into the front passenger seat. After the first confusing week of being with the mechs she had started to try and not think of the basement, of Him and the sad, cold quiet.

Amy was happy to flop into Crosshairs' passenger seat, squeaking as the holo-form reached back to pull over a small polishing cloth. Happy to snuggle into her spot and watch out the window. Wide awake for now despite the darkness.

"Bird!" Amy chirped, having picked up this would be another longer drive for sometime and pointed, not touching the glass of the window though. Not much.

Crosshairs glanced over, but had that look where he was mostly using his scanners. "Almost bug, that's a bat."

"What's a bat?" Amy glanced back to the holo-form man and then peering back out and up through the window.

"Err... It's a flying mammal I think." Crosshairs paused to think and then reached for the glove box after shifting things in subspace. He pulled out the sparkling data pad he had been working on, linked to his systems partly to keep an optic on it. "How about yea look up one of those documentaries and we can watch it on the drive north."

Distracted, Amy reached out to take the pad, looking it over. It was kinda like the one Jolt had... and after carefully turning it around and inspecting she found a button on the side to press. She smiled as it lit up and looked for reassurance.

"There you go luv," Crosshairs ruffled Amy's hair, "You can't lose that data pad. But inside my shell or the bolt hole should be safe enough for yea to use. See that icon that's blue?"

"...There's two blue things." Amy tilted her head, looking thoughtfully at the softly glowing screen.

"The darker blue." Crosshairs said as he slowed to take a few curves, Bumblebee driving along behind and pacing him. Both had their lights off. "I guess we're gonna work on some of your letters here too...remember what 'b' is?"

"...?" Amy made a soft confused sound staring at all the letters and search bar. She frowned thoughtfully at the display, but the mech let her think.

Crosshairs was lucky with his data packs when he landed, having the help to translate spoken and written human languages. He was only really good with about four though.

The trooper honestly had no idea how to teach Amy how to read and write her own native language. That was sort of why he made the data pad, though he had not yet asked Bumblebee to help put things on it that would help… so he let Amy slowly find and try to remember what she did know. Touching each letter after a long moment to think, as she had not done much for a while with letters.

Yet the child was thinking, so Crosshairs let her. Only talking her through to navigating to a movie, show, thing about bats.

Reviews!

Sarah:
No problem sweetie! I'm slow and get distracted on the ranch but have no intentions of running off. Also I'm hoping to have Amy interact now as she's been getting a bit more confident with the mechs as they are getting along again. Oh! Sarah I noticed your review on Tiny Potato, you might want to see my story The Box if you haven't if you like that the cute stories. [It is tooth rioting cute and from an rp with MunMags]

Challishanlon99:
Heyo, it's okay! There's several more chapters I have planned, and This is tied to Wreck an' Rule, I'm working on that story as well if you'd like more to read in the mean time.

Mystery:
Yes it has and again another long time. I know I keep saying I'm trying to get better but the lack of writing may have helped as I want to write again. Hopefully you still enjoy the story!

Mkae:
Glad you made it! And there will be more bots soon!

Yoshito22:
Thank you!

Regan:
LOL Be careful there Regan! I know I promised next chapter and I may again but there is new mechs coming

MissBMischeif:
Thank you! hopefully you enjoyed this

Autobot2001:
I'm slower than rocks at time, but I'm still here! I love the seeing, reading or writing the interactions with mechs and humans. There's a lot of fun and feels.. and yes, Decepticon, or cons. mwahahaha but feels first!

Added note: Please be safe people, I know I'm high risk and many others are too out that. I love you all, and want you take care of yourselves.