She sat quietly, eyes glazed with fear and sorrow. Her knees were drawn up to her chest, her arms wrapped tightly around them. Her chin rested on her knees, adding to the look of hopelessness her face carried. The only thing that held Scavenger back from running into the med bay and holding her in his arms was Optimus Prime's strong grip on his shoulder. The Autobot leader felt the mercenary tense beneath his hand and granted the Mech a slight reassuring squeeze.

"I know you want to see her, but you heard what Red Alert said. One more surprise and she could go into shock." He said softly, his optics trained on the girl. Scavenger only gave a half-nod, his entire focus on Raven. Optimus gave his shoulder armor one more squeeze before turning and leaving to attend to the damage Cyclonus and the other Decepticons had done to the entrance of the base.

As soon as Optimus had disappeared around the corner a quarter of a mile down the hall, Scavenger slammed his fist into the wall beside the one way mirror. Ravens head shot up and she looked around frantically, fear breaking through the other emotions in her eyes. Scavenger quietly cursed Primus above as he withdrew his hand and massaged his knuckles. Red Alert, who was in the med bay with Raven, shot an angry look at the one-way mirror. Scavenger met his gaze, although the medic had no way of knowing it. Raven turned her head to the medic and timidly asked a question. He shook his head with a sigh and went back to his work bench, upon which sat several different vials of liquid. Scavenger scowled; Red Alert had insisted that they used a harmless, non-addicting drug to keep the girl from going into shock until she came to terms with where she was and understood that none of them were going to hurt her. Scavenger had insisted the he could calm her down, but Optimus wasn't one to take chances when a life was involved.

Raven had gone back to sitting with her knees to her chest and gazing blankly at the wall. When she had asked what Red Alert was making, he had explained that it was something to stop the pain her bruises were constantly causing her. Scavenger scoffed; it would stop the pain, along with her rational thoughts. Optimus trusted the plan, however, and Scavenger trusted him.

Red Alert finished the concoction he had been working on for the past half-hour. Long Arm, his minicon partner, poured part of it into a small cup and handed it to Red Alert. The medic walked over to Raven and crouched down, holding the cup out between his thumb and forefinger. She gave him a weak smile and took it, causing Scavenger to chuckle. It was still rather big and she had to hold it with both hands to keep from spilling it all over herself. He watched intently as she brought the cup up to her lips and took a small sip. Red Alert watched as she took a second draft, a small smile crossing her lips. Apparently she was enjoying the drink, especially since she thought it was supposed to dull the pain in her aching body.

This thought only arose more questions in his mind; who had hurt her? Cyclonus had contributed to a small part of the injury, but not all of it. The bruises were new, but not that new, and the cut on her head had already sealed over by the time she fell down into the base. Someone else had hurt her within the last few weeks, and he wanted to know who! Hadn't she already suffered enough at the hand of Megatron and his cronies?

A shout interrupted his train of thought. The mercenary looked back to the window and at once regretted looking away. Red Alerts face was dripping with the light blue potion he had made. Raven was on her feet, shouting at him, waving the empty cup around. Long Arm was looking bewildered on the workbench; he had obviously contributed to this sudden explosion. Curious as to what they were saying, Scavenger hit the intercom button by the window.

"—drug me?"

"Please, Miss Raven, calm down!"

"No! You were trying to drug me!"

"We were trying to calm you down!"

"Well it obviously worked!"

"Will you please listen to me?"

"Why should I?"

"We were only trying to help! Your stress level is through the roof; you needed rest?

"So you fed me a knock-out drug? Why not just send me back to my dad and let him knock me unconscious?"

Scavenger felt his spark constrict as she said that. Out of the corner of his optic he saw Red Alert's expression loosen considerably in shock. The cup in Ravens hand fell to the recharge berth and shattered. The girl's eyes were wide and frightened even more so than when Scavenger had hit the wall. Her hands flew to her mouth, which was opened wide.

She was an abused child. It all made sense; her bruises and cuts that came from nowhere. Her fear of people that were larger and stronger than her. Her constant need to shelter herself and hide away from the world. It all made a terrible sense.

I had told them. Not even thinking, I had revealed one of the largest secrets of my life: I was an abused child. I slid down to my knees among the shattered remains of the bottle, my hands still over my mouth. I looked to the mirror; it was one way. Long Arm had been talking to Red Alert about it. They still didn't know that I could understand the Minicons. He had said that Prime, their leader, and Scavenger were on the other side watching.

Scavenger; I could feel him. Standing there watching. I could only imagine what he was thinking now. He probably no longer wanted anything to do with me. After all, who would want to hang around with an abused brat, as May called me.

Red Alert followed my gaze to the mirror, then looked back down at me. The potion was still dripping off his face, making him look like a wanna-be smurf. He stood very carefully and wiped his face with the back of his hand. "I'll be right back." He reported in a calm, even voice, though I could hear confusion and anger beneath it. He turned and left the med bay slowly, leaving me alone with Long Arm, who was still staring at me. I watched as the door shut tightly, sealing me in the room. I looked back to the mirror and finally noticed the little intercom beside it. Strangely, the light beside the speaker was green.

"Scavenger, where did Optimus go?" Red Alerts voice came over the speaker.

"He left to take care of stuff. He is the leader, after all."

"So he didn't just hear what she said?" The medic now sounded exasperated.

"No." I could imagine Scavenger with his arms crossed over his chest, leaning against the mirror, looking challengingly at Red Alert.

"I'm going to go speak with him. Keep an eye on her until we get back." The medic left without waiting for an answer. I heard Scavenger mutter and move around. I looked down at my hands, which had dropped into my lap, and blinked back the tears that were threatening to spill down my face. So he didn't care about me anymore.

"It's not illegal to cry."

My head jerked up and I gave a small gasp of shock. Scavenger was standing in the door of the med bay, gazing down at me with something close to anger in his eyes. I winced and looked back down at my lap; was he angry with me because I was so weak?

"Long Arm, please go get the blanket off of my desk in my room. Our guest is looking a little cold." Scavenger gave the minicon a pointed look.

"Uh, sure thing, Scavenger." Long Arm jumped off of the workbench and quickly left he room. I heard the Mech give a weary sigh and felt his heavy metal footsteps shake the table beneath me as he came closer. Half a second later he stood right in front of the recharge berth. I could feel his gold optics examining me and my heart twisted into a knot; was I no longer worthy of being his friend?

"You're scared." Scavenger said plainly, catching me off guard.

"Wha…what?" I asked, lifting my head and looking him in the face. Big mistake; his optics caught my eyes and held them there. As much as I wanted to look away, I couldn't bring myself to break my gaze. "You're scared." He said again, and I saw the anger leave. It wasn't me he was mad at.

A sudden darkness spanned my vision and a bone-weary exhaustion tugged at my limbs. I muttered Scavengers name weakly as I felt myself fall forward. Instead of hitting the hard table of the recharge berth, I landed in a soft pair of familiar hands. Through the darkness clouding my view, I heard shouting. And then…nothing.

"So, any guys you like?"

"Mom!" I playfully swatted her on the arm. "Cut it out, will ya?" She laughed and I felt all frostiness towards her melt away; her laugh had that effect on people.

"Honey, the walking light is red?" We had come to a crosswalk two blocks from the park. I sighed in exasperation and rolled my eyes.

"Oh, c'mon mom! Nobodies coming!" I pointed down the third adjacent street that the light was installed for.

"If you start disobeying the laws now, what's going to happen when you're older and driving? 'C'mon mom! There aren't any cars coming!' Next thing ya know, Bing, Bang, Boom! You're in the hospital in a coma because a Mac truck side blinded you!"

"Chill mom! We live in a safe little town where the most dangerous thing that happens is a skunk getting hit on the highway!" I shook my head and stepped onto the road.

"Raven!" My mom grabbed my shoulder. I pointed to the little walking man.

"It's white now; that means we can go." I explained in a mocking tone. My mom shook her head and gently whacked me on the head.

"I swear, your mouth is as big as Josephs." She sighed and stepped down onto the street beside me.

Bing!

Bang!

Boom!

I could see him this time. The windshield had stayed in tact, and I could see him, smiling triumphantly behind the steering wheel. My stomach flip flopped as he turned to look at me over the blood splattered hood.

The engine roared and the car lurched forward. I lurched back, trying to get out of the way. Strong arms grabbed me and pulled me from the street, out of the way of the van, which promptly sped off past the coming ambulances, which screeched to a stop a few feet away. Panting, I looked up at the face of my rescuer. Even upside down, I could identify it as Scavenger, only...human sized.

"You saved me again!" I exclaimed, feeling gratitude warm up my face. Turning, I threw my arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. I felt his own arms awkwardly wrap around my back, holding me close. "Thank you."

"No problem, sweetie."

I froze. "Scavenger, why do you sound like Cyclonus?" I asked, slowly raising my head. Instead of meeting Scavengers kind, caring optics, I found myself peering into Cyclonus's demented, lustful ones. I opened my mouth to scream, but found that I couldn't make a sound. The insane Decepticon smirked.

"What's wrong squishy? Don't like being my pet?" He gave one of his insane laughs that sent chills down my spine. "Aw, is the little pet cold?" Out of nowhere, my mothers blue afghan wrapped around my shoulders. Only the corners were stained red...

Cyclonus began to give me a hug, only the longer it went, the tighter it became. I gagged as his grip became too tight and cut off my air. I struggled to look into his face, but instead of seeing Cyclonus, I was once more staring down Megatron. Then, slowly, as I watched, his face began to shift. His armor fell away, revealing flesh. His optics melted into eyes and his nose dissolved into skin. A swab of black hair covered his head. I was now staring at my father.

"Raven! Raven, quiet! You're going to wake the whole base up!" Something was lying on my lips, quieting my scream. My eyes snapped open and I found myself staring straight up at the tip of a large, purple finger, and beyond that, Scavenger's worried face. He gently removed his finger when he saw that I had woken up and was in control again. "Are you alright?"

I gave a small half-nod. "Yeah...I...I'm fine." I stuttered, biting back the tears that were threatening to spill down my face. Scavenger gave a small 'phew' and sat back in his chair, which hadn't been there before. I gave a quick glance around the room; it looked like we were back in his room at the moon base, minus the rust and dust. "Where are we?"

"My room. Optimus thought it would be better if you woke up with someone you knew this time." Scavenger explained. "Now, care to explain what all that screaming was about?"

"Will I be in trouble if I say no?" I asked cautiously.

"No, but I won't stop asking until you tell me." Scavenger gave me a childish grin. I sighed, shoulders slumping.

"It was just a nightmare."

"About what?"

"Something."

"Ah. Such a vivid description." He rolled his optics heavenwards, if that's possible. "So what is this something that you speak of?"

"It's," I fell silent for a moment, "none of your business."

Scavenger's gaze hardened ever so slightly. "I'm afraid it is. You're in our base, and in my room. I am responsible for you and your safety right now."

"And that's my fault?" I stood up and glared at him. All of the feelings I had felt for the past few weeks; hurt, sorrow, depression; all of them channeled themselves into anger. "I never asked for you to look out for me! You were assigned to by Megatron! Newsflash! You're not a Decepticon anymore! So unless the mighty Prime leader assigned you to be my babysitter once more, you have no right to stick your big nose into my business!"

Scavenger stared down at me in shock as I panted, trying to regain my breath. After a moment, what I had said finally registered in my mind. My head snapped up and I looked at him with regret. "I'm sorry Scavenger! I'm so sorry! I don't know where that came from!" I said in between breaths, feeling tears well up in my eyes once more; what had made me snap at him?

Scavenger shook his head. "And I thought Pyrite had bad mood swings." He sighed. A sudden look of sadness passed over his face for only a moment, but it was quickly replaced by his normal stern look. "What was your dream about?" It was an order this time. I looked down at my lap; how could I refuse an order?

"I was walking with my mom. We were crossing the street. A big white van," I stopped for a moment then swallowed hard, "It came at us when we were crossing, and it hit," I stopped once more. Scavenger was watching me patiently, already knowing what I was going to say. "It hit my mom." The dam behind my eyes began to crack.

"Raven…" Scavenger said slowly, but I didn't heed him.

"And my dad was behind the wheel, and he tried to hit me, but someone pulled me out of the way." I continued, talking rapidly now, wanting him to know everything. "It was you, who saved me, and we hugged, and then you laughed, but it wasn't you, it was Cyclonus, and he was mocking me, and then it was Megatron, and he was hurting me, and then it was my dad that was holding me and he wouldn't let me go and my moms blanket was red and-"

"Take a breath," Scavenger ordered, running all of this information through his processor. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath that got stuck halfway down my throat. It wiggled around until it came out as a sob. The dams cracked, and tears began to stream unchecked down my face. I dropped my head into my hands and tried to stop the salty droplets from falling down my cheeks. "Raven…" He said again.

Metal fingers engulfed me on both sides as the mercenary gently picked me up off of the table. He set me in the palm of his other hand and gently stroked my back with his forefinger, like the way he had when I had first fallen asleep up at the moon base.

"It's okay; you're safe now. None of them can hurt you anymore." He said softly. I half listened, still trying to stifle my sobs. "Like I said, it's not illegal to cry." He continued to rub my back; for someone who seemed so tough, he was very good at comforting people.

We stayed like that for a few more minutes; me sobbing, him doing his best to comfort me. Finally, he broke the heavy silence that had settled over us. "I've got something for you." He said, setting her down beside the keyboard. I wiped my eyes with the back of my hands and gave a small sniff.

"Yeah?"

"Yes." Scavenger pulled open the top drawer and pulled out something I never thought I would see again; my mothers cross. The four pieces had been welded back together. To cover the welding marks, there was a red satin ribbon tied around the center, creating a red square around the intersection. It was set on a silver chain that glinted with something unearthly when held up in the light; energon to strengthen it, I guessed.

"Scavenger…" I said quietly as he handed me the cross. I wrapped my hand around the long bottom section and held it up against my heart. "Thank you." He merely shrugged, but I could see just a hint of a blush on his face.

"I'm sorry I broke it in the first place." He said as I looped the chain around my head.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you for breaking it."

"I'm sorry I tried to punish you for yelling at me."

"I'm sorry I didn't listen to you and tried to run away."

"I'm sorry I let Cyclonus get a hold of you."

"I'm sorry that I have to listen to this." Hot Shot commented from the door leading into the room. I jumped and Scavenger growled.

"What do you want?" He asked, turning. I gave the bot a small wave from behind Scavenger's back. The yellow bot smiled and nodded in return, then looked to Scavenger.

"Optimus wants Miss—" He looked at me.

"Raven, I supplied.

"Miss Raven to meet the rest of the team. That is, if she's ready." He had taken notice of the tear streaks running down my face. I quickly scrubbed them away as Scavenger turned to look at me.

"Do you want to go meet everybody else?" He asked, his tone clearly saying that he didn't think it was a good idea. I pondered for a second; I needed to ask Scavenger something, and it might as well be now while we were mostly alone.

"I…I think I'd like to wait a while." I said, nodding, "Just a little longer." Scavenger and Hot Shot both nodded.

"Alright, I'll go tell Optimus." The younger bot disappeared. Scavenger turned back to me and sat down in his desk chair, watching me over his folded fingers.

"You want to ask me something?" He said, and I blinked; how had he known that?

"Uh, yeah, well…" I shook my head, still shocked.

"I won't get angry." He promised.

"I know." I took a deep breath. "Um, earlier, after I yelled at you," we both frowned, "you mentioned someone. I think you said her name was Pyrite." He gave a small nod. "Uh, who is she?"

Scavenger sat back with a heavy sigh, and for a moment I thought I had crossed over a boundary we had set up earlier.

"Pyrite…" He stopped for a moment and took a deep breath, "was my life mate."

Oh gosh! Scavenger was married! The horror! Hehe! Cliffy once more! Yes, I know I'm evil! This story's almost over; only two or three more chapters! Depending on how many reviews I get, I might actually pull of a sequel. But that's only if I get reviews! (Evil laugh)

Okay! Preview for the next chapter!

"Joseph!" I shouted, running through the trees and straight into his arms, winding him slightly. Back where I had left Scavenger I heard a chuckle.

"Hey Raven, where've ya been?" He asked, stroking my hair; so he hadn't been that worried about me; probably because I knew this forest like the back of my hand.

"Graveyard," I answered, snuggling my head against his chest. He was about to say something, probably along the lines of 'The Graveyard? How could you have spent the past two days there?' Unfortunately, he was cut off by a loud, scarily familiar roar of helicopter blades.

"Aw, if it isn't my favorite squishy!" Cyclonus shouted as he transformed and landed a few yards away from us. I heard Joseph gasp as I just let forth a sigh.

"Not again." I moaned.

There ya guys go! Until my next chapter!