~*-*~`Epilogue´~*-*~

It took Katja two more days to recover somewhat. Mirage had been over here as a mother hen, not letting her out of his sight and hovering around her. It was kind of cute. The young girl looked up at her guardian as she remembers how he had brought out his sword and threatening her so-called father into silence and he does remember that he told him some well-spoken ( but threatening) words to not even lay a finger on Katja's hair or he would find himself feeding the fishes.

It had been glorious! John had backed away and only glaring at them at a distance, even if she was in the house, he was not in the same room as her and she was positive that he would stay that way even after Mirage would leave.

And that way was now. Katja laid a hand over the red mark and held back a winch. She hated that they had to be separated, but it was for the best in this situation. But what if he could not make it? What if he didn't find them. Or worse, they didn't listen to him?. The fear of being left there all alone swooped over her, and she quickly turned her attention to the large transformer that was eyeing their old rusty car.

"This is so not going to be fun," he said as he used one of his pedes and pushed the old car that gave out a complaining sound. "Not fn at all."

"Don't complain, we don't have anything ells" Katja said as he looked uncomfortable at the thought of scanning it, but the sooner he got this out of his system and went away, the sooner he could get back.

"Yeah, yeah," he activated his scanner, and a blue light swooped over it. As soon as he had all the data, his frame started to shift and folder down. Soon there stood two identical cars parked in front of her.

"wow," she e circulated him and touched the hood of the car, it was solid "This is so cool."

Mirage laughed low, "What don't I do for a lovely lady as yourself," he joked " It is not what I would have chosen for myself, but it is enough right now."

Katja eyed his new care body with interest "If you had to choose what would you be?" she asked him as she felt how small vibration was caressing through his frame

"Something slimmer and faster," he hummed as he tried the brakes, rusty, but then again, the car model was old.

"Why am I not surprised?" she grinned and suddenly felt that someone was looking at her, and she glances up at the house where one of the curtains softly moved.

"I will come back as soon as I can, and I promise you I will take you here from next time," he told her as he scanned the house, the creator was on the top floor.

Tears glittered in her eyes but did not fall as she leaned forward and gave the hot metal a light kiss and rested her head at it "My knight in shining armor" she smiled sadly and then took a deep breath and straightened up "I will wait for your return."

"Katya ..."

She shook her head, "It's okay. You will soon be back, and my dad is just too scared of you to even dare to do something right now. "That was true. Katja put on the bravest and confident smile she could muster at the moment, "So drive like the devil is on your tailpipe, alright?"

Despite the situation, he gave away a rattling laugh, and Katja must have imagined it, but the car bowed down a bit and then back up almost like a nod. She backed away as Mirage seemed to hesitate for a moment before she tried to wave him away, and he mentally slapped himself before he backed off.

"Next time we see you, I will take you from here, and that is a promise," he said loudly to her before he put in another gear and drove out from the start. When his tires got better ground, he increased his speed. Ignored all speed laws. he had a mission, and not even human enforcement could stop him

"And an Autobot always keep what he promises," She said as she watched her guardian drive away from her with a sinking heart.

~*-*~`A few days later´~*-*~

Mirage was driving as fast as he could on the old and dirty road. The nervousness crept throughout his body as he steered himself into the driveway of the farm. It felt like an eternity since he left it, but it had been slightly over five days. They had been right that the Autobots had an active base in Washington and that they were working with a lot of humans. Some were kind...others not so much.

He had told them everything that had happened, and Optimus and the others had wanted to go and pick up the girl right away, but the humans didn't allow it. At that time, it had taken both Sideswipe and Ironhide to keep him in place as his rage had blinded him for a second. This new and raw guardian bond had both its right sides but also an unfortunate side effect. And he was anxious for his small charge. After Optimus talked to the humans in charge and Ratchet had put him together, he and Ironhide had left with a legal document to take temporary custody of Katja and put her into the protection program.

He felt the pulse of energy travel through his sleek red frame; he was no longer the rusty scrap heap of car that he had scanned. No, he had fined a Ferrari 458 Italia. Not only that, Ratchet had updated him with a new program that, in a situation like this, would make talking to humans so much easier. An Holloform, where they could separate a piece of their being to a substantial and working human form.

Mirage sat in the driveway for a second. He had been sure that someone would come out and great him. But when no one came out, he scanned the whole house for a life form; the rusty old car was still on the driveway, so the bastard was still there. And it was also the only life form that was inside the house. He could feel how a cold feeling started to spread inside of him like a virus; he scanned the barn and came up with nothing there either.

Where was she?

Ironhide and his charge were on their way with three other people, but they had been to slow for his liking.

:: Hide, something is not right, she isn't here:: he said over the come-link, and he activated his holloform and got out of the car.

:: Dino stay where you are, do not do anything:: Ironhide's human charge said, it was funny that the massive war hared weapon specialist would find his charge here too, perhaps was not humans and cybetronian so different after all?

Mirage didn't even care to replay because he would not sit there and wait; he had to find Katja as fast as he could. He could see the temporary repairs on the wall where he had broken through to rescue her from the abuse.

:: Dino, don't do anything stupid:: Ironhide said, and the spy completely ignored him. He took the stairs in a step and knocked hard on the door. He tried to scan the house again, but the only thing that came back was her father's signature.

The door was suddenly opened by the very man he had come to hate, and his blue eyes fixed on the larger male. "Where is Katja?" he asked, no need to beat around the bushes here.

"Who are you?" John asked as he glared at the intruder and then looked out to the expensive care that he had been driving, eying it with some kind of suspicion. But then a light of recognition was lit in his dark brown eyes. "It's you" he hissed and opened up the door completely

"It's me, where is she?" Mirage asked as he fisted his hands together; the drive to kill was still there, and it would be so easy. A hit in his throat and split that fraggers' main artery in the blink of the eye.

"So you haven't heard?" the father suddenly asked, leaning against the door frame and looked at him with a suddenly smug expression. "She's gone"

" know where I can find her?" Mirage asked, his patient wearing ever thinner as the seconds passed.

The father gave out a hazy, toneless laugh, "Are you kidding me?" He asked, straightening up now as he finds new courage as his eyes fixed on the young Italian man before him as he spoke:

"She is gone, kicked the bucked, thrown in the blanket, is six feet under."

The sound of Ironhide driving up behind him and several doors opening and closes were ignored as Mirage stared at the horrible human in chock. And for a second, his holloform flicked out.

He growled as he lost control over his emotion; his hand shot forward and gripped the human's thick throat.

"Mirage! stand down!" Ironhide shouted, but the spy saw literary red, and he heard the humans run up on the porch and felt their hands on him. But all of that was ignored

"You're lying," he hissed, had to be, she could not be dead! He was here to take her with him. To rescue her so that she could live on with her life with him.

"Let go of him, Mirage!" Ironhide demanded right beside him as the larger man gripped his hand and bent it up from the horrible man's neck

John coughed while rubbing his throat, "I am not lying, she jumped in the river two days ago and haven't been found after that, she left a note," he growled "This is fucking abuse! I'm going to report this."

"Don't take to me about Abuse you miserable piece of human," Mirage growled as he lunched again at the human that wise enough stepped back. And as Ironhide took hold of his holloform, he disconnected it and instead transformed up into his rot mode. But even then Ironhide was there to stop him

"Let me go of me. I'm going to kill him," Mirage hollowed as the knowledge blinded him, he let his charge down.

"Calm down, Mirage, "Ironhide ordered as he forced the red spy down in the ground and held him there. Frag, he didn't know what to do. He had feared that this would happen sooner or later. That was why he had come along. But now, when he was here, Ironhide had no idea what to do or even knew if the human spoke the truth, but either way, he reported it in.

:: Ironhide to Optimus::

:: I'm here::

:: We were too late, the femme is gone::

:: Gone? where?:: Optimus asked

Ironhide debated what to say as he looked down at the now still form of Mirage

:: The creator says that she committed suicide and left a note::

The line was silent a minute, and Ironhide loosened his grip on the youngling that was beneath him

:: Come back to base::

:: But Optimus...::

:: No, we have a situation at our hand, and I can't let Mirage out alone; it may have been a new guardian bond, but even that will hurt when it's broken:: his voice was tired and low, this was not what they had planned for.

:: Will do, Ironhide out::

"Come on, youngling," he said low to Mirage and helped him up, but the red spy snatched his arm away with a low growl. Without any more words, he had transformed down and took off with a huge dust cloud behind him.

Will came up beside his partner but said nothing as Ironhide also transformed down and let the humans inside. There was nothing more to do. The human could deny everything that they accused him of, and with the girl gone, there was nothing more to do.

Unfortunately, this is the end of the story for this time.

I can keep writing if there is interest in extra chapters or even a sequel to this one. But let me know what exactly you want and I can see what can be arranged.