Back again with another update for my delightful readers! Things are heating up, feelings are flying, evil is brewing, and the surprises just keep on coming. Thank you as always, for being my awesome dudes who keep me regularly inspired to update with your reviews; jgoss, BIackrose13, zudebaby, E-man-dy-S, Bee4ever, The Silvernote, Alice Gone Madd, Wicken25 (lol yeah that would be), SapphireSpark, sakurawriter, Tonythecool, Mystergirl27, 0Colossal Cupcake0, NovaShifter15, Sydney, MysticFire101, Guest, 99luftballonsx.o.x, and LaurenA007!

Btw: The one-shot is up for the anniversary, which was last week! I had fun writing it, and gives you kind of an insight in their relationship in the future :)


Chapter Thirty-Eight: Conscience

I didn't think it seemed possible, but all of the Autobot holoform's gaze widened even bigger at the utter of his name. Jolt went so far as to reel back in surprise, nearly tumbling into Optimus. But I couldn't blame them for their reactions, once I heard Optimus' grave description, I had put two and two together. Those sinister purple eyes that's been haunting my dreams for the past month...it was him. I felt a violent shiver run down my spine and shake me to my core, and was startled by the sudden squeeze of warmth through my hand. I looked up, remembering that Sideswipe was still holding my hand, and the look of absolute horror on his face made my heart sink all over again.

"How...how did you know his name?" Ratchet said, his voice still recovering from his shock.

"I um," I looked down, staring at the blanket, "I had dreams about him."

"What?!"

Quickshift's eyes widened, "Those were the dreams ya been havin?!"

I swallowed hard, "Yeah."

"Why didn't you tell anyone?" Sunstreaker snapped, his gaze narrowing.

"Because I didn't know how to! For a while I didn't even know if they were real or if I was just being paranoid!" I blurted out, "Those dreams scared me so much, I thought I was going insane. And I didn't want to tell you because I didn't think it was real, I just thought it was my imagination. And besides, you'd think I was a freak or something!"

"They're not a figment Charlie, they were real."

"I know!" I cried out, taking a deep breath to slow my escalating heart rate, I hung my head low, "I'm so sorry. I just thought that..."

"You could handle it?" Sideswipe intoned softly.

I bit my lip, "I didn't know what to do."

"It's okay Charlie," He murmured, his thumb grazing against my knuckles, "You had dreams that were beyond your comprehension, and they terrified you. We understand, and we don't blame you."

"I blame myself." I muttered darkly, letting go of his hand. Sideswipe frowned at the loss of contact, and I heaved a frustrated sigh as I rubbed my temples, "I just...I don't know what's wrong with me! Ever since I got back here, I've just been a mess. I can't even think straight because of those dreams."

"What did Unicron say to you in those dreams?" Optimus inquired.

"Um," I mumbled, thinking back to when they had started, "Well, at first it was just a lot of darkness and shadows. Then there was this chaotic laughter, and his eyes." My heart dropped at the thought, "He had four eyes. All purple. I would first be in strange places, until eventually I'd find my way to him. He...he kept telling me that he needed me for something, that I was the key to his awakening, but I had no idea what he meant by that. Although most of the dreams were at night, sometimes...I felt something stir in my stomach, like I could feel his presence radiating from there-" My eyes widened, "He marked me!"

"He what?" Quickshift explained.

"Yes," I nodded, catching everyone by surprise by kicking the covers off of me frantically. I pulled up my shirt, my eyes automatically trained on the spot where the pain would come from. They widened in consternation when there was no dark, twisted horns. There was nothing, not even any scratches or marks of its existence. It was...gone.

"I don't see any marks." Ratchet said warily.

"Charlie-" Sideswipe tried, but I cut him off with a rapt shake of my head.

"No, no. I know they're there, I saw them. I felt them." I looked up desperately, "H-He burned them into my skin. They were there!"

Ratchet glanced at Optimus again, and the high-pitched buzz flood the room. I winced, before looking back down at my torso again. There was nothing but smooth, pale skin. Not even any telltale signs of marks. I would've passed it off that maybe it only happened in my dreams, and felt real, but I remembered waking up the next morning, and finding the scar. I remember asking Jenna for a large bandage to cover it up. And I remembered the searing pain that flooded every time I thought about Unicron.

"Regardless of marks," Ratchet continued, "The dark energon present in your systems is enough evidence."

"So what are you trying to say?" Sideswipe challenged, "Is Unicron trying to posses her or something? What does he mean by awakening?"

"If I fraggin' knew, we wouldn't be sitting here staring at each other." Ratchet snapped back.

"There is an old legend about Unicron, told in my sparkling hood," Optimus rumbled, his neon blue eyes glazed over with concentration, "According to the legend, Unicron and Primus were the first Cybertronians, and the creators of our race. They were twins, and had power beyond comprehension, and ruled over Cybertron. But overtime, Unicron had become corrupted, and no longer wanted to share his power with his brother. He knew the only way he could best his brother, was to become stronger, and so he created dark energon. Both of the brothers had the power to give life; The thirteen Primes, the Allspark, the energon that runs through our veins. But Unicron had messed with a darkness that was unnatural, and created a sort of demonized version of the thirteen Primes. Minions, that would follow him and defeat Primus. Primus was angered, and hurt by his own brother's betrayal, but knew what was best for Cybertron. The only way to defeat Unicron's dark power, was to take his spark where the dark energy had ensued, and so he did. He casted him out of Cybertron, and banished him somewhere far away." Optimus glanced down at me for a moment, before continuing, "But there was a foretelling, that Unicron could arise again. And when he did, he would take his revenge on Primus."

"But how? Primus isn't even alive!" Sideswipe said.

Optimus shook his head with a heavy sigh, "I am not sure. I had only considered the tale folklore."

"So, are you guys saying that this um...folklore, could be real?" Jenna asked.

"I don't know," Ratchet said, "This is out of my area of expertise. I deal with medicine and science, not ancient myths. I have no idea if this cold be real or not, all I can do is hope to Primus that it's not."

"What am I going to do?" I murmured softly, staring somberly down at the floor. I had thought that my abilities made me special, and gave me a better connection between the twins. But now, I realized they didn't come from anything good, they were evil, and this dark energy was slowly taking over my body, feeding off of my life, like a parasite. It wasn't a blessing, it was a curse. I'm a curse; a mutant, a freak of nature.

"Well, for starters, this stays classified to the only people in this room," Ratchet replied, "It is best that it doesn't get out to the public, or any other Autobots that a human could be harboring potentially dangerous energy. Not only could this be threat to the treaty between humans and Cybertronians, but I wouldn't put it past your government to try to dissect, and reverse-engineer the energy to fit their needs."

Dissect?!

My head snapped up in panic ask I glanced at Ratchet. Jenna's face morphed into a look of absolute horror, and Sideswipe and Sunstreaker had emitted a low, guttural growl.

"We would never let them hurt her!" Sideswipe snapped.

"Sideswipe, as much as I understand, you do have to realize that we are living here on special privileges. The human's government is already vexed that I refuse to share any Cybertronian technology with them. But if they try to take Charlie, we cannot do much about it." Optimus said gravely, before meeting everyone's gaze in the room, "That is why we must never discuss this, anywhere, but inside of this room. Charlie could be at severe risk if the wrong person finds out."

Slowly, everyone nodded, following after each other. Sunstreaker let out a low grunt, and Sideswipe glared down at the floor harshly. My heart sank again at the distraught looks on their faces, and it pained me even more to know that I was the cause of those looks. I wish they would talk to me. As much as I didn't want to use my newfound abilities, I had tried to comm them, several times, but neither of them answered me. They were hiding their true feelings for me, and it only made this disheartened feeling in my chest grow until it felt like a heavy weight was pressing down on my skin.

Sideswipe, I tried again, despite myself, Sunstreaker. Come on guys, talk to me. I know why you're upset, I know why you're angry. But this situation is out of our control. There's not much more we can do but communicate.

There was no reply.

I bit my lip to keep the whine from bubbling up in my throat. I didn't want to cry, I was tired of crying every time something went wrong. It wasn't worth it, but I couldn't deny the pang of hurt that surged through my chest at their silence. Why were they ignoring me...especially when I needed them the most?

Guys, I could practically hear the begging in my own voice, Please, talk to me. I...I'm scared. And I don't know what else to do! I just need to hear your voices, please, say something! Anything!

I'm sorry, Charlie. I had been so startled to hear Sideswipe's voice, and reveled in the sound of it for a moment, before processing what he said.

Sorry for what? I said, looking up at him.

For bringing you here in the first place.


(Sideswipe's POV)

It hurt.

It hurt like fragging pit to say that to her. To lie in her face, and watch that spark of hope that filled in her pretty brown eyes when I answered her commlink crash. It made my spark burn to look at her like that, and it killed me even more that I was the one who made her look like that. I didn't want to lie to her, I didn't want to say something so harsh and cryptic and then shut her out again. I wanted to hold her in my arms, and never let her go. I wanted to feel her soft skin again, and promise that I would never let anything come between us. I wanted to make her happy, so that her beautiful smile could stretch onto her lips.

Primus, I would do anything just to make her smile again. I wanted to kiss her, hold her, and show her how much I loved her. That just her presence sent my spark thrumming a mile a minute, and the sound of her laugh made it fill with elation. I wanted to tell her all these things, but I knew that it would be selfish. Charlie was going through a lot right now, and the last thing she needed was a confession of an undying love from an alien robot.

I grimaced at the guilt that filled in my chest. Charlie has been through so much...pain and agony, and it was because of me. I was the one who decided to show myself to her, I was the one who put her at risk, and that risk nearly killed her on several occasions. If it wasn't for me, she'd be normal. She would be with her family, and her regular friends from before. She would've been safe, out of danger from the Decepticons, and definitely away from this fragging dark energy.

None of this would've happened to her.

I couldn't keep her, I couldn't try and get her to love us if it was going to eventually kill her. Now, she's in more danger than ever. And it's all my fault. I thought that maybe bringing her here would keep her safe, but instead it did the opposite.

I growled, turning to send my fist smashing through the wall. There was only a little bit of satisfaction gained from the large, gaping hole created, and the dents on my knuckles. It was enough to draw energon, which seeped slowly from the open wounds. I growled again, turning around to lean against that same wall. Sunny and I had the rest of the day off, and after we left Charlie's room, we came here, to our own, to relieve our stress.

Sunny was usually the one doing all the violet wall-punching, but instead, he had settled himself on our berth, and was drawing. What is was, I didn't know, or cared about. Instead, I let out a ragged breath from my systems, pushing myself off the wall to pace the room, my processors running wild.

"What are we gonna do, Sunny?" I exclaimed, "Things are so fragging screwed up!"

"I don't know Sides," He said, his gaze not leaving his notepad, "There's not much we can do."

"Well, we can't leave Charlie the way we did!" I argued, "She's probably gonna blame herself. And the last thing she needs is more guilt, I can't...I can't stop thinking about her!"

"Sideswipe, you said you wanted to stay away. You were the one who said that we're not good for her, we'll only kill her in the end." Sunstreaker pointed out, finally taking his gaze off of the notepad.

"I know," I groaned miserably, "But I can't! As much as I want to, as much as I should, I can't! My spark won't let me Sunny, it yearns for her!"

"So does mine, glitch. We're split sparks."

"So then why are you sitting there? Acting so calm when everything's falling apart around us?" I said, pointing an accusing finger at him.

"I'm not calm," He said, "I'm just as fragged off as you. But instead of trying to break my digits, I'm translating my emotions through sketching."

I snorted at that, "You not wanting a fight? Well, that's a first."

Sunny glared at me, he looked like he was about to snarl out something, but whatever it was had been cut off by the sound of knocking on the door. Both of our gazes had snapped to the door.

"It's not an Autobot," Sunstreaker said quietly, "The knock was too soft."

I nodded, walking over to the door, "Who is it?"

"Um, it's me. Jenna."

My optics widened briefly in surprise, before I unlocked the door. It slid open, and down was the small, human girl. She looked...disturbed. Her eyes were sunken in, and dark circles were beginning to form. I understood from Ratchet's many lectures about information on humans that it was a sign she wasn't sleeping correctly. I could hear Sunny getting up from the berth at the sound of her name, and I lent down to look at her better.

"What are you doing here?" I asked softly.

"Is this a bad time?" Jenna asked, seeming nervous. I glanced up and realized it was because Sunny was looming over the both of us, staring down at her. I elbowed him in the thigh plating, which he growled in response, but lowered himself as well.

"No, now's fine." I replied, giving her a small smile.

"Um okay," She paused for a moment, getting her thoughts together before taking a deep breath, "Okay, look. I don't know what's going on between you guys and Charlie...but, she's not acting normal."

My spark jumped in my throat and I leaned forward, "What? What's wrong with Charlie?"

"I mean physically-wise she's okay," Jenna quick corrected, before frowning, "I caught her mumbling in her sleep about something being 'all her fault'. She said your names." Jenna sighed, "Look, I don't know what you guys said to her, but she hasn't been the same since that day she um...found out. She's been cleared from the hospital, but she won't come out."

I sighed, shaking my helm, "I-"

"I didn't come to hear your excuses," Jenna interrupted quickly, "But whatever's going on with you guys, needs to stop. Charlie is in a bad place right now, and she needs you guys."

"We can't." I muttered, "It's my fault that she's already in so much slag."

Jenna raised an eyebrow, "How?"

"Because I took her here in the first place," I said, "She wouldn't be in any of this mess if it wasn't for me. I was being selfish Jenna, I wanted Charlie to leave her family and everything she's ever known, not just for her safety, but because I didn't want to leave her," I admitted, "And I can't be selfish anymore. Not when it's hurting her. I can't hurt her anymore."

Jenna sighed, "Sideswipe, do you really think Charlie blames you for any of this?" She looked at Sunny, "You think she blames either of you?"

I sheepishly scratched the back of my helm, "Well..."

"No, she doesn't." Jenna said, "She's not even thinking about something like that. I know Charlie, and she's not the one to pass blame on others, she takes it out on herself. She absorbs all of this guilt and pain as if she deserves it, and you know she does that. So avoiding her, won't do her any good. If anything, it's only hurting her more. She needs you guys so much right now, she's hurting and she doesn't want to show it. But she needs you. So please...go talk to her."

"Okay," Sunny said, surprising both Jenna and I. We glanced at him, but he kept his facial features neutral, "We'll talk to her."

My spark fluttered just at the thought of seeing her again, and I smiled at Sunstreaker.

"Thank you." Jenna said, giving a small smile on her own, before turning to walk away.


(Charlie's POV)

"Got any fours?" Quickshift asked, his wide, silver eyes glanced up at me over his cards.

I sighed, dropping all of my own cards on the table. "Nope."

Quickshift shot me a look, "Ya supposed ta say 'go fish'."

I leaned back against the pillow on the bed, "Sorry Quickshift, I just really don't feel like playing anything right now."

"Ya never want ta play cards." He whined, his lips pulling into a frown. He dropped his cards onto the mini fold-out table as well.

I shrugged, "It's not really my thing."

"Nowadays it don't seem like anythings ya thing." He muttered.

I pursed my lips, "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Oh c'mon, ya don't see it?" Quickshift said, "Ya never leave this room, even though Ratchet cleared ya like two days ago. He only lets ya stay here because of your situation, but he won't let you stay foreva. And besides ya barely talk to anyone 'cept for Ratchet, and me sometimes, when I have to drag a conversation out of ya."

I sighed, "I'm sorry. I'm just not feeling that well."

"Is it cuz of those twins?" The red mini-bit inquired. I froze for a second, "Aha! I knew it had somethin' to do wit those slaggers!"

"There's...nothing going on." I mumbled, sinking further into the covers.

"Liar."

"I am not." He gave me another look. "Okay, so maybe I am lying. But it's not like it matters, they're not talking to me either way."

"What?!" The mini-bot physically recoiled with shock, before his silver optics bled with anger, "Why not?"

"I don't know." I admitted, throwing my hands up in frustration, "I've tried every comm frequency I could think of. They've just been...distant."

"What the pit?! And ya tell me now?" Quickshift argued, activating a subspace to pull out a mini-blaster.

"Probably because I knew you'd do something like that." I half-teased, but he didn't seem to appreciate my failed attempt at humor.

"I'm gonna kick their afts to tha moon and back!" He ranted, "I swear ta Primus, if I see their faces again I'm gonna-"

"You're going to what?" Both of us glanced up to see Sunstreaker and Sideswipe's holoforms standing at the threshold.

The twins! My eyes widened, and I felt myself sit higher in the hospital bed, excitement and happiness flooding into me just at the sight of them. But then, I remembered that they weren't talking to me, and my happiness deflated a little. Quickshift, on the other hand, turned his blaster to aim in their direction.

"Oh, I'll show ya what I'm going to do!"

"Quickshift," I groaned softly, "Please, stop."

"But they-"

"For me." I added.

He sighed, reluctant to subspace his weapon. Sideswipe and Sunstreaker was completely unphased by him, yet they still hung around the threshold, as if they were too nervous to walk any further.

"You guys can come in." I said softly.

Sideswipe was the first to move, but Sunstreaker smoothly followed. they both separated so that they were on either side of my bed, ignoring Quickshift's growled protest as they went. There was a long moment of silence as we all just looked at each other, before Sideswipe finally sighed, his hands resting on the ledge of my bed.

"We're sorry."

"Sorry for what?" I wondered.

"Sorry for avoiding you. For not being here when you needed us." Sunstreaker answered.

"Oh," I mumbled, feeling myself heat up with embarrassment, "Well, um it's okay."

"No, it's not," Sideswipe said, "After we learned about what was going on and what was making you feel bad, I lost it. I blamed myself for everything. Because if it wasn't for me bringing you here, than none of this would've happened. You'd be content, back in your life at Washington, with your family, and friends. You would've been able to graduate highschool and go to college. You would've been able to find someone...someone who's good to you, and good for you, and you wouldn't have to be dealing with all of this craziness that-"

"Wait, wait, hold on." I said, as Sideswipe trailed off his ramble. "What do you mean 'I would've found someone good for me'?"

"Uh..." Sideswipe looked like a deer caught in headlights.

"Companions, other people to be around who won't put you at risk." Sunstreaker explained, giving his brother a side look.

"Y-Yeah, that's what I meant."

Something was up. "No it's not."

"The point is, Sides and I felt guilty. You're young, and you had a good future for yourself back in Washington. You've been through a great deal of tragedy and pain, things you shouldn't have had to go through."

My throat burned for a moment at the mention of pain and tragedy. I knew Sunstreaker was talking about my dad, and I tentatively reached up to squeeze the cross necklace on my chest.

"Charlie, you get hurt. You get hurt a lot, just for the people you care about. And we...we can't take the guilt, of you getting hurt or worse for us anymore." Sideswipe said.

"Sorry, but no." I said, shaking my head. "I can't accept that."

Sideswipe's eyes widened, "But, Char-"

"No," I said firmly, "Because I'm not going to make a promise I can't keep. You know how I am, and you know that I'd do anything for the people I care about, even if that meant sacrificing myself in the end. And you know that I care about you both deeply. It's too late to try and alienate yourselves from me. I will always care about you and nothing you two can do will make me stop caring about you," I said firmly, "So no, I'm not going to promise that I won't do anything. Because I'd rather sit here, and go through all this miserable pain a thousand times, than lose either of you."

I saw the stunned look in their eyes at my words, and it made me lose a fraction of my confidence. But I took a deep breath, and looked both of them straight in their captivating eyes, "So you can just accept this or not. But either way, you're stuck with me."

"Charlie," Sunstreaker murmured softly.

"I'm serious," I said firmly, pinning them with my sternest stare, "I'm not leaving you two. No matter what, you can't discourage me-"

"-Sweetspark-"

"And you can't-wait what?" I paused for a second, blinking up at Sideswipe's holoform. His eyes were on me, an emotion filling in them that made my heart roll in my chest. I blinked again, realizing that Quickshift wasn't in the room, and the twins were closer than I last remembered. Both of their uniquely blue eyes filled with that gaze. When were they holding my hands? I blinked again. Holy crap, they're holding my hands.

"We will never leave you," Sideswipe said, his voice in a slightly deeper pitch.

"We will always be here for you," Sunstreaker rumbled.

"Forever." They both said at the same time.

I took in their words, and their warm hands intertwined with my own, before nodding and looking up at them with my own warm gaze. I grinned;

"Me too."


Fluff fluff fluff fluff fluff. Lol, thank you guys so much for reading! Sorry it's out so late, I wrote half-of it this morning and then didn't come back to around four-thirty so. I was going to put in another plot conflict at the end, but then I was like "nah, I'll wait for the next chapter and let them have this moment of peace."

Anyway, don't forget to review because I love reading them! Until next chapter, my dudes.