Finding Home

Chapter 24

By Voodoo Queen

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Author's Note: Hello, Dear Readers! You're all looking lovely, as usual. I hope you're having a great day. I'm not extremely thrilled with this one but it's getting us where we need to go. That, my friends, is what's important. Thank you so much to all of you who've added this story to your alerts and favorites. To my awesome reviewers: YaoiPrincess12, HenriettaDarlington, Malkah5967, Stranno Roza, KittyKatt25, Autobot-Bre-Lightblast, sakurawriter, Tonythecool, ElleGirl19, MysticFire101, TheGreenWallFlower, KayleeChiara, iGleep, Guest, Annie, adelphe24, jojoniles, Pixiekatt...you guys are phenomenal and I love you!

Disclaimer: I don't own Transformers, just my own original characters and plot.

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Amy was tired, which seemed to be her normal state these days. However, it hadn't been strange dreams wrecking her sleep this time, it was her own tangled mind keeping her from rest. Yesterday had played heavily on her emotions and she was still feeling off kilter. Though Sideswipe had assured her that she was perfectly fine and not to worry, his seeming caring concern had suddenly opened up a whole new Pandora's box and she wasn't sure if the thoughts and feelings that came tumbling out could be stuffed back inside again. It was like, once she'd seen him...really seen him, she couldn't unsee him and that single moment kept playing in her head over and over again.

She was at a complete loss as to what to do.

She wasn't so naive that she believed anything could ever come from these strange flights of fancy. She was hesitant to admit it but after a restless night of stewing in her own embarrassment and doubt she believed it was safe to say that she could possibly be developing the slightest bit of a crush on the twins. The fact that they were giant metal creatures from another planet seemed irrelevant. That they seemed genuinely interested in her, even if it was being dictated by some weird alien social paradigm that she didn't understand, was what really caught her attention. That certainly wasn't something she was used to and she didn't understand their fascination with her but...she was beginning to enjoy it despite herself.

Sighing, she stepped into the freight elevator and pressed the button to take it down so that she could start her work day. As the car descended, she leaned against the wall and closed her eyes, trying to center herself for the long day ahead. When the elevator finally dinged and the doors rolled open she was only feeling marginally better. Still, she plastered a friendly smile on her face, as she'd learned to do so long ago to hide how she really felt, and stepped out of the elevator displaying an air of professional ease and confidence that she really wasn't feeling today.

"Good morning," She greeted as she passed by a couple contractors who were running fiber optic cables to a server room. The bunker was near completion but there were a few projects still being wrapped up. The men greeted her with a nod and a hello and she continued on her way.

She made her way on autopilot through the main security door which led to the hall where the office was. She went straight there, slapping her hand down on the console so that it could scan her palm. When the indicator flashed green and the sound of the door lock disengaging reached her ears she immediately pushed her way inside. A quick glance around the main space told her Jazz was still in the med bay with Ratchet that morning. At least, she told herself, she'd have some time alone to try to compose her thoughts before the mech came in and started grilling her about what was on her mind. She appreciated his concern but for someone not used to the almost paternal tone he'd take with her on occasion, it could be a little overwhelming.

Turning away from the mech's desk, she trudged up the stairs to her own work space. When her own desk finally came into view, she froze, mouth hanging open in shock. When enough sense finally came back to her to remember how to use her tongue she muttered, "What in the world?"

Her eyes roved over her desk and bookshelves. A sound of disbelief escaped from between her lips. Every available surface had been literally covered with picture frames. Not just picture frames, she realized...actual photos. Framed photos. Framed photos of people she didn't know and had never seen before in her entire life.

"Oh, my God." She marched over to her desk, snatching up the closest one. It was a picture of a woman beaming at the camera with what looked like a newborn baby bundled in her arms. She had a picture of someone's baby's mama...on her desk. She snatched another one up. A high school graduation pic. Another...a child's sixth birthday party, complete with cake, candles, and balloons. Everywhere she looked the faces of complete strangers stared back at her in all their glossy-finished, framed glory. "Oh, my God!"

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It was early morning but already Sunstreaker was on a bit of a rampage and he was completely unapologetic for it. If there was one thing that he absolutely hated, it was having others all up in his business. That was especially true when said business involved a decidedly delicate matter. It was true that gossip traveled fast. That was especially true when said gossip was seen as the sordid variety. Autobots, unfortunately, weren't immune to the rumor mill. He'd spent most of the previous day on monitor duty for that very reason. Some mechs needed to learn to keep their mouth shut.

At least he'd gotten off easy. He'd fully expected to be sent to the brig as punishment after he'd gotten into a scuffle with Mirage over some snide comment the mech had made about what a pity it was that such a lovely human was stuck with a couple of boorish miscreants. He'd taken the swing without really thinking twice about it but the satisfying crunch he heard as his fist met the infiltrator's nasal plates had been extremely satisfying as was the startled surprise on the other mech's face. He had no regrets.

When Prowl had finally seen fit and released him in the late evening he'd headed straight back to the quarters he and Sides shared. Sideswipe was already there waiting on him, eager to fill him in on everything he'd missed while he was detained. To say he'd been pissed off, and also slightly intrigued, when his brother had relayed the conversation he'd had with Amy had been an understatement. He'd wanted to leave that very moment and handle the situation but Sideswipe had eventually been able to convince him to wait till the morning. They wouldn't be of any use at all if they wound back up in the brig again.

The others could say what they wanted about him. He didn't really give a flying frag. What he did care about, however, was his and Sides' wellbeing which was intrinsically wrapped up in the safety, security, and happiness of the small, organic femme who'd been dropped into their lives. Though his initial response to her had been disgust, he'd begrudgingly come to terms with the inevitability of the situation. The femme wasn't nearly as aggravating as he'd thought. In fact, she was kind of endearing in her own squishy, human way. Had she been Cybertronian, there wouldn't really be a doubt in his mind, if he were honest. That being said, they had an obligation, not just to each other anymore, but to her as well. It wasn't as strange as he thought it would be, looking after someone else besides Sideswipe for once. The two of them were discovering protective instincts they hadn't even known they'd had. Recharging on it had done nothing to sway him. He didn't even have to think or debate his course of action.

Her worries were their worries and Sunstreaker didn't like to worry.

He waited till his brother left on patrol and he'd already paid both Prowl and Ironhide a visit. Prowl, surprisingly, had been apologetic for his part in Amy's unease. Praxian manners, he supposed. It was slightly disappointing as he'd been hoping for a reason to pop the stoic SIC in his pompous face, as well. Ironhide had been smug, however, insisting that the predicament he and Sides were entangled in was some sort of karmic retribution for being pains in the aft all these vorns. He also hadn't been shy with his opinion on how 'unnatural' and 'revolting' he found the idea of intimate interspecies liaisons...especially with an organic. They'd very nearly come to blows and, had Optimus not been there to break things up and smooth things over, it's very possible one or both of them would have wound up in the med bay severely hurt.

Not to say he had any intention of staying away from the med bay. That was his next planned stop on his "Frag Anyone Who Mistreats My Squishie Tour".

His tires screeched as he came to a skidding stop outside of the hangar that housed the medical facilities. Humans outside scattered, making room for the mech as he transformed. By the time his last cog had snapped into place, he was already half-way across the hangar with one thing and one thing only on his processor. Without any preamble, the mech violently threw open the med bay doors, causing them to slam into walls with a loud crash. It had the desired effect, startling both Ratchet and Jazz who'd been conversing quietly inside.

"Perfect," Sunstreaker angrily snarled, "I can shoot two drones with one round."

"What is the meaning of this?" Ratchet demanded, "You'd better have a slagging good reason for bursting in here like that!"

Sunny scoffed, "And you'd better have a slagging good reason for scaring the spark out of the Squishie yesterday, Hatchet."

Ratchet sputtered, "I have no idea what you're talking about, Sunstreaker."

"Oh, no?" Sunstreaker leveled the mech with an intimidating stare, "So I guess you weren't the one following her all over base yesterday asking her a bunch of ridiculous medical questions and scaring her half to death?"

"Oh, please," Ratchet vented in irritation, "I was performing my due diligence as a medical professional! This is an extremely precarious situation which, I should remind you, Miss Doe wouldn't be in if it weren't for you and your half-clocked brother! You two should be grateful that I'm even allowing this travesty to continue!"

Sunstreaker growled and his optics narrowed as his hands clenched into fists at his sides and he advanced on the medic, "Travesty?"

Ratchet's optics widened, realizing his folly. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe weren't spark bound to the human, not really, but they were all loosely tied to one another by their energy exchange. A mech in that sort of uncertain state would naturally be protective of what could potentially be a spark mate. As would any mech with a femme they felt particularly close to and cared about. It was instinct. Petty Officer Doe may have been a human but their sparks weren't recognizing that fact and referring to their relationship with the woman as a mockery was as good of a way as any to get an up close and personal look at what made Sunstreaker so lethal in the gladiator pits and out on the field.

Ratchet didn't feel like hammering dents out of his armor today.

"Sunstreaker," he quickly corrected in a more subdued tone, raising his hands in surrender. "You know as well as I do that the effect of spark energy on humans is an unknown. What I meant to say, is that I need to be able examine her as this...relationship...progresses in order to ensure she isn't being harmed. This has never happened before. We still don't know how this exposure may affect her in the long term. She may be alright now but she will need to be monitored. I was doing it for her own good. I'm sure the last thing you and Sideswipe would want is for Miss Doe to be hurt."

"I'm sure the last thing you want," Sunstreaker grit out, "Is a wrench shoved sideways up your aft port. This is your one and only warning, Hatchet. Stop following her around. You need to examine her? Fine. We're okay with that, but it happens on her terms. She isn't your fragging science experiment."

Sunstreaker," Ratchet reasoned, "I never said that she was. I'm just concerned for her health and safety. I'm sure if you just take a moment you'll understand-"

"I understand perfectly, Hatchet." Sunny stonily informed. "And if I hear of you jumping her with that medical slag again, I'll be back. The question is, do you understand?"

"Fine, fine..." Ratchet finally agreed with an exasperated sigh. It paid to pick your battles wisely.

"Good." Sunstreaker turned on Jazz then, jabbing a finger into the mech's face. "And you..." He demanded, "What is your malfunction?"

"You better watch your tone with me, Sunny." Jazz, who up until that point had been sitting quietly taking it all in, did his best to look unfazed. He crossed his arms over his chest plates. "I care about that scraplet like she was my own creation. I just want whatever's best for her."

"And Sides and I don't?" He challenged, "We're sharing fragging spark energy with her, Jazz! Or are we so glitched up now that that doesn't mean anything to anyone anymore?"

"It means somethin' when you actually care about the person you're sharin' it with." Jazz challenged right back, "Sunny, you don't even like humans."

"I like this one!" The mech blurted out, seemingly surprising even himself. He recovered quickly, though."There's not one slagging thing wrong with her. Stop treating her like there is. Sides and I are taking care of her."

Jazz vented and shook his head. "Your behavior so far has me less than convinced."

Sunstreaker snarled, "Maybe if you'd all back off and stay out of our fragging way we'd actually be able to do our job!"

"You can't expect me to just stand by and let you two just run all over her." Jazz argued, "She's human and she's fragile!"

"Believe me, Jazz, no one is more aware that she's a fleshy than I am." Sunstreaker vented in frustration. "Sides and I came here to this back water, mud ball of a planet to help slag Decepticons. I honestly couldn't have cared less about the humans but now I'm stuck sharing my slagging spark with one and you know what? She's actually kind of alright and maybe if you lubricant leaking fraggers would leave us all the Pit alone for longer than a nanoklik we might be able to work things out between the three of us."

A tense silence fell over the med bay. Neither Jazz nor Ratchet knew how to respond to Sunstreaker's rather candid admission about the situation. It was out of character for the mech who, for all intents and purposes, seemed to care about no one besides himself and his brother. That he seemed to be considering other options that didn't involve Amy meeting with a tragic end simply due to her species, was both a relief and curiosity. Ratchet almost offered to scan the mech just to make sure he wasn't glitched. A tentative knocking on the door a moment later drew the CMO's attention instead.

"Now what?" Ratchet cursed as he stomped over to the door and wrenched it back on its hinges. "This better be important."

"Hi, Ratchet. Uh, sorry..." Amy looked up at the irritated-looking mech with uncertainty, a couple picture frames tucked under her arm. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything. I have a slight, uh, situation. I'm trying to track down either Sideswipe or Sunstreaker. Have you seen either of them?"

Ratchet, realizing too late that the visitor at the door was none other than the woman they'd just been arguing about, immediately backtracked his misplaced hostility. "Miss Doe, I do apologize. I didn't mean to snap at you. We were in the middle of a very...heated discussion and I'm afraid I let my temper get away from me. At any rate," the mech vented, "you came to the right place. Sunstreaker is right over there. Come on in, I'm sure he'd be more than happy to assist you."

Honestly, Amy was still a bit weirded out from the day before and so she eyed the mech wearily, "Thank-thank you."

She stepped around the CMO and into the med bay. She easily spotted Jazz in his usual spot on the medical berth. She flashed him a warm smile and waved in greeting, "Morning, boss."

"Hey, D!" Jazz grinned and offered her a lazy salute in return. "Everything alright?"

"Yeah, I think so. Mostly..." She added. Her eyes wandered over to where Sunstreaker still stood. The mech looked tense but seemed to relax ever so slightly. After her epiphany of sorts with Sideswipe the previous afternoon, she couldn't help but stare at him and wonder again where these strange thoughts were coming from all of a sudden. "I was actually looking for Sunstreaker..."

The corner of Sunny's mouth quirked up in a subtle smile, "Well, you found me, Squishie. What do you need?"

Amy blinked, shaking herself out of her daze. "Oh, um..." she approached the mech on slightly shaking legs to show him the photos. "Do...do you know anything about these?"

"Hmm..." the mech knelt down beside the woman to get a better look, one hand going to her back to urge her closer. He eyed the pictures for a moment before shaking his head and looking at her. "No, can't say I do. Who are these people?"

Amy sighed. She was trying really hard to ignore the slight pressure from his fingertips pressing along her spine and fact that the mech's face was only inches from her own. "I have no idea who they are but I probably have about fifty more pictures of complete strangers all over my desk and shelves. I'm pretty sure Sideswipe put them there since he came by yesterday, scoped the place out, and asked me why I didn't have any decorations."

"Yeah," Sunny snorted, "That sounds like something he would do."

"I can't give them back," Amy shook her head. "I don't even know where they came from. Everyone is going to think I'm some weirdo creep that hangs out in a bunker all day and steals pictures of their kids. Oh, God..." Amy paled, her eyes widening. "I didn't even think of that..."

"No they're not," Sunstreaker chuckled. "Give me those, Squishie." He carefully took the photos from her hands and tucked them away. "Sides is out on patrol but I'm not doing anything. I'll help you pack them all up. I'll make that bit-brain put them all back where he got them from later."

"Really?" Amy breathed a sigh of relief, "Thank you."

Sunstreaker nodded in response and stood back up to his full height. He gazed down at the woman, "You go on ahead and I'll be right behind you. Wait for me outside."

"Oh..okay." Amy smiled. She turned bid Ratchet and Jazz farewell. "Have a good day, Ratchet. I'll see you later, Jazz."

"And you," Ratchet replied with a curious look on his face.

"Yeah, D." Jazz nodded. He also looked like he didn't understand the exchange that had just taken place. "Later..."

The woman waved and left the way she'd come in.

Sunstreaker stalked after her, pausing at the door and clearing his vocal processor. He immediately drew the attention of the other two mechs who looked like they'd both just witnessed some sort of inexplicable mystery. He eyed them, his expression hard and emotionless once again. "Have I made myself clear enough?"

Ratchet and Jazz both nodded in tandem.

Sunstreaker grunted, "Good. I'd hate to have to repeat myself with my fists."

As soon as the door shut behind the yellow front liner, Jazz turned to Ratchet. "Hey, doc..."

"I know what you're going to ask, Jazz." The medic shook his head. "I was here and I saw it, too. All I can say is that the spark is a strange and mysterious thing. I don't understand it, either."

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"This one is kind of nice, Squishie," Sunstreaker commented. "Sure you don't want to keep it?"

"What is it?" Curious, Amy looked up from where she was finishing packing up some of the items that had been relocated to her bookshelf. Unfortunately, framed pictures had just been the tip of the iceberg in the Sideswipe's decorating frenzy. They'd also found four potted plants, a Slinky, a Newton's cradle, two Rubik's Cubes, a 'Hang In There Baby' kitten poster, a zen sand box, a ship in a bottle, and a stress ball. She actually was considering keeping the stress ball.

Sunstreaker flipped around the frame he'd been looking at so that Amy could see it, as well. "What do you think?"

Amy dropped the last photo she had into the box. She stood and dusted her hands off on her uniform pants, moving closer to get a better look. "Sunstreaker," she sighed, an amused smile making her lips twitch. "That's somebody's wedding picture. They're probably going to want that one back."

Sunny turned it back around to give it one final look before sighing and admitting defeat. "Fine," he dropped in into the box he'd been packing. "I think that's it, then."

"Gosh, I hope so." Amy spun around and planted her hands on her hips, giving the space another once over. "I still can't believe he did this."

Sunny chuckled, "I can."

"Ugh," Amy shook her head. "Why? He couldn't have possibly thought this was a good idea. I mean, seriously? Taking all the stuff from everyone else's desk? I don't understand."

"Well," Sunny shrugged. "I can kind of see where he was coming from. You have to admit, it's pretty monochromatic in here."

Amy looked at the mech with a raised brow. "Monochromatic?"

"Yes," Sunstreaker nodded. "You know...colorless, bland, drab, uninteresting. Fragging boring as the Pit."

"Well," Amy rolled her eyes, "Its a bunker, so..."

"A bunker with a whole lot of negative space." Sunny smirked, "A little color down here wouldn't kill you, you know."

"If you say so." Amy smiled, "Colorless, or no, I guess I can't complain too much. Despite this little incident, I'm having a much better morning than I did yesterday. Yesterday was...it was really weird. Weirder, I should say."

"Yeah, I heard about that..." Sunstreaker looked slightly uncomfortable. There was a long pause before he started speaking again. "Listen, Squishie, there's something that we should really sit down and talk about...the three of us. "

"I, uh, okay..." Amy's smile fell and she looked up at him, swallowing hard. The mech looked serious and that made her nervous. Just his tone of voice had set butterflies fluttering around in her stomach, a far cry from the jovial banter they'd been exchanging just a couple brief moments ago. She was curious but also wary. The look on his face told her something heavy was definitely on his mind. "About what?"

"Has anyone said anything to you?" The mech asked, "About Sides and me? About the three of us...together?"

"No," Amy shook her head, a bit confused by his line of questioning. "Nothing like that. Why?"

"Sideswipe really needs to be here with us for this." Sunstreaker cursed eloquently and drew air deep into his intakes and cycled it back out slowly. "What are you doing after you get off duty tonight?"

"N-nothing," Amy stuttered. "Why? Is-is everything okay? Is something wrong?"

"No, nothing's wrong," he assured. "There's something that we need to clear up about this connection we have to one another. Its a little more complicated than we may have originally led you to believe. It's better you get the truth from us before you start hearing all the gossip from the rest of these glitches."

Amy chewed her lip and quietly asked, "Complicated how?"

"Just," Sunny vented, "Complicated. By the time Jazz cuts you loose this evening Sides will be back and we can talk about it then, alright?"

"Sure," Amy agreed. She tried to sound cool and collected but already she had a nervous churning in her gut and heat buzzing in her chest like a molten swarm of bees. "That'll be fine."

"We'll meet you right outside at 1600. We know a place that's quiet and private where no one will disturb us. We can go there and sort it out." Sunstreaker could tell he'd made her uneasy and tried to reassure her, "Don't worry too much about it, Squishie. It's not the end of the world."

"Right, yeah. I'll try not to," Amy promised him. That was easier said than done. Who was she kidding? She was going to worry about it all day long until she saw him and Sideswipe again. She really should have kept that stress ball.

End of Chapter 24