Disclaimer: I own my stuff and a few freshmen in my lunch but nothing else

Chapter 4

"UGH" Optimus grunted as he left a good-sized dent in the wall. "We were after the wrong human Damnit!"

"Not entirely. Mrs. Saka knew what was going on and didn't try to stop it. She was aiding and abetting. She just as guilty as her husband" Prowl said.

"Yes but if Koji hadn't finally told us we would have never suspected Mr. Saka. If we'd some how managed to get Mrs. Saka arrested what do you think he would have done if he'd ever managed to get his hands on Koji?" Optimus asked.

Nobody answered. They all knew that the injuries that Magnus had described would seem like nothing compared to what Mr. Saka would have done if that had happened. In fact there would probably have been third grave with the name Onishi on it in that miserable cemetery.

"Well now that we have proof why don't we get them arrested?" Sideburn asked.

"The word of a grief-stricken runaway doesn't count as proof. I doubt it would even be considered admissible in court. Plus Mr. and Mrs. Saka are well-respected members of society. It would be their word against Koji's. Everyone knows that Koji doesn't like his stepmother. Most people will probably just think he's lying-" Prowl's long winded explanation of the legal system was cut off by his little brother.

"Koji wouldn't lie!" the young Autobot yelled jumping to his friend's defense automatically.

"We know that but if this goes to court Koji's mental and emotional stability could be called into question," Optimus said before a fight could start in earnest.

"Koji's not insane" Sideburn said. "Anybody can see that."

"Yea but he jus' lost his dad. That's enough ta make a person wonder about his state of mind" X-brawn said.

"What about his back? How can they explain that away?" Sideburn was starting to get frustrated. They were all acting like they'd already lost.

"We can't prove that either of them had any thing to do with that" Optimus said.

"Then what the hell was the point of spending the last week trying to get Koji to admit that he was abused!" Sideburn asked.

"That was so that when I have my meeting with the world leaders in a few days I can honestly say that my main reason for wanting to adopt Koji is to remove him from a dangerous living situation" Optimus said.

Magnus watched the sleeping boy toss and turn as much as his injuries would let him. The rogue Autobot recognized a flash back when he saw one. The boy was most likely reliving his most recent beating.

Now that he had a chance to think about it, Magnus wondered why Koji had gotten that beating. The kid had said the beatings were a warning to keep quiet and not tell Dr. Onishi about the affair. From the look of the cuts the beating had taken place after Onishi's death. What did the kid know that they wanted to keep quiet?

"Ahh" Koji cried out in his sleep. He'd talked a little in his sleep but nothing that made any sense to Magnus. "Leave me alone!" Koji screamed still sleeping. That Magnus understood. Another even loud scream made him decide that he should probably put a stop to this. He was about to wake the boy up when the kid said something that made him stop dead.

"Don't let Scourge near me again please I'll be quiet. I won't tell, I promise."

"What do you mean?"

"Sideburn, no human would give us custody of Koji for the simple fact that we aren't his species" Optimus said.

"The world leaders are really interested in making an alliance with us. In the old days on earth if someone wanted to make a strong alliance they would arrange a marriage between two people, one from each side. This is similar except they would be giving me a child to raise instead. If everything goes according to plan we will establish a permanent outpost here and Koji will be safe with us", Optimus said.

"But you said that nobody would give you custody" Sideburn said.

"I wouldn't legally. That doesn't mean that the governments won't lean on social services to allow Koji to 'fall through the cracks' so to speak."

"So Koji will still be safe?" Sideburn asked. He knew whatever deal Optimus was going to make with the humans was neither legal nor ethical but as long as the boy he'd come to think of as family was safe he didn't care.

"Yes"

Sideburn just nodded.

Then the alarm at the bases main entrance went off.

Magnus couldn't believe what he'd just heard. What did that Prime wannabe Deceptacon have to do with the kid? Damnit there was something the kid wasn't telling him. What else had happened to him?

Those humans who'd hurt the kid were really starting to make their way onto his 'Who I Want to See Die' list, right up there with Megatron and Optimus. Well maybe not Optimus. His brother hadn't been as much of an overbearing jackass since the whole thing with Onishi getting killed and taking care of the kid seemed to bring his high and mighty brother down to the level of mortals.

"Magnus, Are you there?" his brother's voice came over his communicator.

"Yeah." He replied.

"I need you to bring Koji and come back to the base immediately."

" Why?"

"You'll need to see this to believe it" Optimus said.

"Damnit what's taking them so long to find him?" a black haired, black-eyed woman asked pacing.

"Don't worry Misa. As soon as they find him they'll call us and we can go and get him. Then all we have to do is make a little call and be done with him" a man with similar coloring said.

"Hao, what if he's told those damn robots?" Misa asked.

"He wouldn't have. He's afraid we'll make good on our little promise" Hao said with an evil smirk.