AN: I have intentionally ruffed up the OC Kami, just a little bit. There by to show the varying degrees of an Autobots nature as compassionate protectors, guardians, they are after all more than just warriors.

I am sure I am being completely abusive of Sideswipe and his nature, but from the research I have managed I think he is a hellion, probably much like Ironhide in his younger days. So I decided to have Sideswipe waging a personal inward war as well as the one they are all waging. He is still here undecided if he can stand the human femme as of yet. I think they will create a tolerable bond, but that has of yet to be sorted.

I will be using the American Sign Language -ASL- signs here in this fic when I do write the motions and signs between the characters.

And because this is a Halloween fic, even if I am writing slower than dirt. The other OC's are not only deaf, they are dead. Yeah kind of weird the 'Bots not figured that one out. -maniacal laugh here.- So hopefully you'll figure it out or well you will know by the end of the fic why. Which I am hoping will fit neatly into one more possible two chapters. After all I haven't written in the dreads of Cybertrons gene pool twins yet.

** Finally I would like to say thank you to the favorite /follower. carscarsfanatic. Thank you.

There was only the briefest discussion of which Autobot was going out after the trapped humans. There were really only two built for the sort of rough conditions, so either Ratchet would go out, or it would be Ironhide.

Bumblebee and Jazz both let it be well known they weren't happy about having to stay behind. Sideswipe wasn't happy about it either, but neither was he too happy with the human femme at the moment either. Frag it, she still had his sensors tore up, if she didn't calm down.. He'd- yeah he'd what? He already taken to snarling his disapproval. Not that it was doing anything for the feeling in his spark. It still felt like the ebbing and flooding. Much like the waters that lapped at his lean frame when he'd retrieved the human femme earlier.

What did he care what she thought? He for sure as slag did not care what she felt. It was nothing to him. Which brought him right back around to the same problem why did her leaking lubricant problem from her optics make his spark go berserk. Frag humans all of them and especially the one with whom he was being forced to reside with right now.

There was a thump at Sideswipe's helm, and then Jazz faceplates come into view. "Cool it, the little femme is stressed enough without your snarling."

"She is stressed? Is that what the frag it is called?" Sideswipe let his private comm buzz Jazz.

"Please by all means settle her down."

There was another thump followed by Ratchet's voice over a private comm. "Stop snarling then."

Twice, really? Sideswipe didn't think he was that bad. Ironhide did it all the time, no one ever told him to calm down. And speaking of which the afore named Topkick shot him a systems chilling glare. Well hell make that three warnings.

Jazz still wanted to argue the point that as Optimus Prime's second in command he should be going out there not Ratchet or Ironhide. And above all the little femme definitely had no business out there she couldn't even clean out a drain without nearly drowning. He didn't bother mentioning this but it was well hinted at.

"There are 6 occupants." Ratchet pointed out coolly.

Jazz's slash of blue optics went line thin. He did not like where this comment was going. But as long as it didn't turn into a short comment everything would be just so so.

"The water levels rising swiftly and the condition of the roads are deteriorating." Brain reminded them.

Bumblebee acquiesced that even though he was a little heavier built than the two low slung sports cars he would still be of little use with road conditions not to mention all the rain.

A private comm buzzed Bumblebee. "Bumblebee you know as a scout your talent will better be served here with the humans once we have safely retrieved them."

That made the yellow bots spark soar, this meant new exploration with humans like the femme they were currently with, only according to her these humans only spoke with their hands? He wanted to ask her about that, but it would have to wait until later.

It should have been quick little drive to the retrieve the trapped family. It would have taken less than 5 minutes in good weather, but with the heavy rains, thunder and lightning it hadn't taken almost two and a half hours. That was round trip.

The trip was a tedious one. There was the road to negotiate or what was left of it. Multiple times his wheels fell into unseen ravines, covered by water unable to run off. There was also the debris to circumnavigate. Large twisted pieces of tin, sludge, and fully mature trees kept hindering travel.

Thus far though the most dangerous situation had involved a large log slammingslammed into his side, pushing him sideways, and terrifying at least ten years off the human femme's life. At least that was something along the lines that she had said after they'd gotten out of that little log jam. A funny from that little smart stern Jazz. At least Kami, had the good sense to be more concerned about him, than the possibly that they were about to be pushed into a swelling rapids. She just really had no idea what sort of danger they had just skirted.

Almost there he muttered over an open channel to the other Autobots and as a reassurance to his human companion as well.

"So?" The human responded.

He held his respond one beat, two beat. He just kept inching the large all terrain tires forward, his wipers slapped from one side of the windshield to the other and then right back to where they started and proceed to repeat the process of rubbing the rain away.

"So?" The human femme repeated as she shifted in her seat looking from one window to the other trying to get her bearings.

She let out a little gasp. He was slipping into a dark vortex of water.

He snapped at her, not a growl, not a snarl, not even a warning grumble. He actually snapped at her.

"Get still, NOW!" She let out another little gasp as his harness restraint encircled her, pulling her up snug against the seat. She went dead still against the five point harness restraint, there after all was no point fighting it. Unlike normal seatbelts his harness restraint closely reflected those used in NASCAR harness systems. Two belts one over each shoulder blade, another two one coming from each side to encircle her hips, with a final belt and the locking mechanism coming up from the crotch. Each piece clicking and locking in to keep the human femme from being banged around.

His tires were falling into the black nothingness of the whirlpool. No the very earth had vanished from his front tires. He would have went nose first into the water. He was confident his form would hold. But if his human femme was not restrained she could be tossed around, injured, or worse. That would not happen on his watch.

"Ironhide, report." The second in command bot rasp out.

There was merely ten feet between the bumper of the van and Ironhide's bumper. But the earth was still melting from under his wheels. So responding wasn't high on his list. He rocked backward letting his back wheels dig into purchase. There would be huge ruts in the road, not that there would be a road if this rain didn't stop. Suddenly his back wheels caught, water churned and spewed mud but they were inching backward onto terra firma.

"Ironhide?" Jazz spoke with a revving angry force. He was about to come out looking for the two of them.

"Jazz, cool your engine and stop yelling. We are almost to the van."

"There you are?" Jazz's rumble back was still tinged with concern.

Ironhide still didn't get that human phrase, but apparently Bumblebee had used it enough that now Jazz was using it. He had come real close to asking him where the slag else he might be, but thought better of it, he would just add that to the long list of annoyances Jazz had managed to inflict upon him in the last day or so.

"So, what's our plan?" It was Kami speaking but she seemed suddenly timid.

Jazz was already rattling off a plan, but Ironhide tuned him out so he could focus on and completely listen to his current charge.

Her heart rate was elevated. She was extremely tense. She had not said anything for a little bit. Her breathing was shallow. He was working on a conclusion, just as Ratchet chimed in with his own reading on the femme.

He tighten the belts then loosen them to break her from her thoughts. "Are you alright?"

She jerked. "What if we-" He didn't let her complete her sentence. Tightening the belts back around in what he hoped she would accept as a reassuring move, he rumbled in as soothing tone as he had that they had made it this far so everything was going to be alright. He was not by nature or design a nurturer sort but, he'd discovered sometimes it just helped in a bad situation, if he spoke calmly to this femme.

She run her fingers across the belts. Already feeling better, because Ironhide said it was going to be okay it was going to okay.

"Okay, big guy. What's the plan?"

There was no way to turn back, there hadn't been for over twenty years. They had been on their way to a Halloween Masquerade ball. It had been for the children. They had never experienced Halloween trick or treating. Unlike normal families they were deaf. Naturally because they were different well they were treated differently. But on this wonderful trip they were going to go and be with others much like themselves deaf, they were going to go to a Halloween Ball, and trick or treat all with other deaf children.

The trip had been an uneventful until the storms started rolling in. They family had stopped several times questioning whether they should press forward or turn back. Because they were deaf interacting with the hearing or even getting news, or weather was as good as impossible.

In the end the parents or at least the father chose to press forward. Hence they were now trapped here on some desolate highway in the middle of a violent storm.

Fast forward some twenty years later and two more travelers are edging further on to the desolate highway in an equally violent storm with the hopes of recusing what they believe to be some lost travelers. They just have no idea exactly how lost the travelers truly are.

She slid down a little in her seat as somehow the large Topkick pick up, every bit as big at the old 80's model GMC Van managed to turn around and creep up to the side doors of the van.

" 'Kay Ironhide, first hard parts over, now my parts easy. I just convince them to join us. And you get the other hard part, getting us all safely back. Though it'll be a piece of cake for you, big guy."

Ratchet mumbled his displeasure at the girls sudden burst of assurance. Had she already forgotten they'd almost been sweep away? He shook his head. Humans never ceased to surprise him, especially the one off with one of his brethren right now.

"Alright this is it, we cut open communications you both know the procedures." Jazz reminded both Ironhide and the human. He paused a beat and added. "But Kamila' sing out least little thing goes wrong, understand me?"

She slide across the console to the other seat to the window closest to the family van. She bite at her lip it had been so long since she had used sign language. But she wasn't going to start with that now, she was going to see if any of them could hear her.

Ironhide had to maintain cover, he didn't dare speak to the human femme as she spoke to the family. She thought they were reading her lips so she did a couple of little moves to keep them from seeing what she was saying.

They responded by signing. She was almost certain they were deaf but she had be sure. So this was it. She responded back in starts and stops. Her signing was rusty. They on the other hand were in full form. She wanted to help, but they were talking faster than she could translate. She held her hands up to slow down.

They swung their side door open. "Prefect." She sighed as she let Ironhide's door swing open. It would create a barrier. That was the great thing about older vans with double doors. She slipped out her seat down onto Ironhides chrome step rails. She looped her right hand into the seatbelt and grasp the frame. She stole a glance down at the road or rather where the road should be. There must be at least a foot of water swirling below and from above she was getting drenched as the rain continued hammering down.

She gasp. It was so auditable even the Autobots back at her shop heard it over the swelling storm. "A baby, they appear to have a baby with them."

Ironhide felt her heart rate pick up, until it was visibly hammering against her ribcage. She was trying to sign and talk at the same time. It was hard because the storm was so close on them every rumble of thunder shook everyone present to their very core and the lightning popping all around.

She motioned for the first child to come to her. He leaned toward her, but the father pulled him back. Kami looked pleadingly at him and then to the mother. She wanted desperately to help them. But he had just appeared to have rejected her offer.

She crushed her eyes closed as a large bolt of lightning hit entirely too close to the vehicles. She was scared.

"Please." She had unloosed her hold on Ironhides seatbelt and door frame. Freeing both hands to sign. She made a fist placing it against her chest, and making a circular motion. Realizing she'd just done sorry she mentally cursed herself. She tried again pleading both verbally and via sign. "Please let me help you."

Tears were forming in the corners of her eyes. She suddenly felt helpless in the uncontrollable downpour.

She leaned toward the other vehicle, but the distance was too great for her bridge the gap. She would probably end up in the water below. She hoped Ironhide wouldn't be too pissed at her, when she got back in dripping filthy water on his floorboard and mats. She didn't know where that odd random thought come from but so be it, she'd thought it.

The father stopped her he was signing something, then the mother was pushing past him she slowed down her signing a little more so Kami could follow it. She apologized they were fearful lost travelers, who were deaf. So to find someone like her that could sign was a bit of a shock, but they would accept her help.

She nodded her understanding and ask could they hear at all. She followed up with her own apology for being so rude. But she went on to explain she could do the basics. No they did not hear at all but were fluent at reading lips.

Kami give them an okay sign and offered Ironhides interior as shelter and way to safety. Finally the father accepted.

Just as Kami teetering on the chrome step railing reached out to either step on over and bridge to the van or take a child a large blast of lightning came crashing down splitting a near tree into a multitude of pieces but the lightning didn't stop its running course, there it continued running the water touching both Ironhide and the van.

Kami let out a little squeal as she felt the father grasp her hand. She felt suddenly woozy. Something had just happened but she did not know what. The man slumped. Had they been tingled by lightning? Was he struck?

She wanted desperately to turn and talk to Ironhide. She did turn and almost spoke, but then she stopped and bite her lip. She would not blow their cover for some silly little whim on her part.

Ironhide had felt the jolt too. It was messing with his intergraded circuits. He'd had contact with Jazz and the others. Good clear contact up until now. Suddenly he was getting a lot of static.

"Ironhide?" Jazz growled into his comm. Nothing but static. He couldn't hear anything anymore. Not the little femme not her heartbeat, absolutely nothing.

"Brain get a visual, now." Ratchet had become demanding. "I need to know if that lightning hit them."

Bumblebee and Sideswipe were intensely aware that something serious had happened. They looked on unable currently to do anything but to try and reestablish contact with Ironhide, via their comm.

Brains imaging showed a grainy view of Ironhide, the van, the other people, and finally Kami. There was an audible sigh at the sight all still appeared to be going well. Kami reached out taking the first of the children and swinging them into Ironhides spacious back cab. She'd just helped the fourth one in. She paused asking something with her fingers. Fascinating Ratchet thought. The other female apparently the mother shook her head no to something.

The man helped the woman over to Ironhide where both she and Kami almost slipped and fell. A quick grab of Ironhides door frame kept both from falling. Then it happened. Ratchet was certain the girl had a good hold of Ironhides frame, but when she reached out to take the man's hand, he made it over but Kami seemed momentarily stunned. He watched in grainy slow motion and horror as the gentle natured femme seemed to slip falling into swelling run off of rain water on the road.

She'd grabbed the round chrome step rail and as a reward she'd received a good jerk as it stopped her. But what the others hadn't seen was the large black tire that seamless slipped over to help block her from being swept on away.

Oh yeah she was going to sore, she thought as she managed to sheepishly regain her footing. She whispered a soft thank you to her rescuer. She knew full well if he hadn't shifted a tire over, she would have been a goner. She just hoped again he wasn't going to be too pissed at her for being not only wet but soaking in mud.

Silently as she made her way into the interior of the truck she wondered why she kept going woozy. That had been the second time, in less than five minutes. She just hoped it didn't happen again at least until they were in the safety of her shop. She knew Ironhide was doing the real driving but well it would make it kind of hard to explain, if it happened again, with her behind the wheel. She needed desperately to run that by Ratchet.

She shoved a lock of sodden hair behind her left ear, and let a small smile break across her face. "Almost there." She'd meant to speak aloud hoping the other Autobots if they weren't in place they would be by the time they come rolling in.

The sight of Ironhides high beams dancing across her shop, give her pause and a little burst of excitement. Something she had been running short on the last hour or so.

Coming to a stop, she left the seeming innocuous truck running and got out going to push open the bay doors. She gave the doors a shove and nothing happened. She did it a second time and then finally a third time it began moving upward. There was just a little flash of a silver bots tail lights as the final Autobot hid in plain sight.

Kami, come trooping down the steps from her upstairs living quarters. She'd gotten the family of six settled in for the rest of the night. She had a sleeping bag and yet another set of clean clothes to change into. She thought her wardrobe was taking a serious hit with all the terrible weather. Somehow though she had managed to find enough clothing for the family and herself. But before she put on anything clean, warm, and dry she was going to have to get a shower. With bleach she thought darkly as she pulled another leech from the top of her shirt.

"It would be better to let it fall off, or simply remove it with your fingernail."

"Seriously Ratchet?" She eyed the bright hummer sitting on the other side of Ironhide.

"Shh, femme go take care of your problem."

She actually had turned to go but stopped, was he actually chuckling.

I have leech on my—he thinks its freaking funny..

She was still annoyed as she made her way out of the small downstairs washroom. At least she was clean again, getting dry, warming up, and officially leech free. She was also tired.

She'd gotten a remodel when her shop was rebuilt after being destroyed so lucky for her she had more comfortable options to sleep on. One being the sofa. She tossed the sleeping bag across it and lay down.

She groaned as all the days soreness made itself aware. She was trying to listen to all the shops sounds. The family she thought for certain was asleep, and the Autobots she was certain were communicating among themselves. She pushed her sleeve up to see what new bruises were forming.

"I only detect slight bruising on your arm as with your knee. You will definitely be sore. I feel the abrasions down your back will be alright, but if they continue to be bothersome, turning red or angry- we will address that. I am a little concerned with the abrasion down your other arm. If you do not stop splashing around in the dirty water, you are going to get it infected. By the way, Kami, you will need to keep the bandage changed. Leeches inject an anticoagulant that will prevent blood from clotting for at least a little while. But it should not present any problems."

"Seriously Ratchet? Eeew, I now hate snails. I look like I have a hickey on my b-" He cut her off unwilling to let her finish her rant. "They are actually of the subclass Hirudinea family. They are not even related."

She mumbled a complaint and just rolled over dropping off almost immediately to sleep.

Ironhide buzzed Ratchets private comm. "Is she alright? I lost her status a couple of times."

Before he could respond the rest of the present Autobots were all on channel and chattering their own concerns for the femme and the family that had come back with them.

Ratchet reassured the other Autobots, he had held nothing back from the femme, but the family was a different story. By all appearances they seemed alright. But until the bots systems were back in full form. He could only assume. He was fairly certain the last couple of heavy lightning strikes had thrown something off in their systems. It was only temporary but it would take readjusting they couldn't do with the other humans present without blowing their cover. So for the time being they would all just have to maintain the cover they had.

A gentle brush across the femmes back pulled her from an hour or so fitful sleep. She rolled over sitting up, her pale grey blue eyes meeting the large passionately blue optics of the Autobot Scout in his bi-ped form. She knew he wanted to ask her something, but he didn't want to offend her. She had always appreciated the Autobots gentle nature, even when they were curious about something they were never intrusive.

"What is it Bumblebee?" She pushed a lock of hair behind her ear.

"Why did you say they only speak with their hands?" He tilted his head, his optics still intensely focused on the human before him.

He touched his vocal processor. "Are they damaged too?"

She had to bite her tongue to keep from tearing up for the yellow Autobot.

She could hear Jazz and Sideswipe were both grumbling for Bumblebee to get back in his place before one of the other humans spotted him.

She offered him a smile as she grabbed her sleeping bag and slid off the comfortable sofa. He wanted to know something so she would oblige him. He'd transformed back into car form, settled just like before as she tossed the sleeping bag down on the floor. Bumblebee sat nose facing the direction of the shops bay doors a skylight before him to the left of the skylight sat Ironhide to the right Ratchet.

She moved her sleeping bag under the skylight and directly in front of Bumblebee. She hadn't noticed the normal hum was no longer present. The Autobots had gotten still and quiet no longer conversing via private comm amongst themselves, they were now more interested in what the human female was about to say to Bumblebee.

"Ah Bumblebee you are not damaged." She smiled. "And neither are they. No different things happen that render them unable to hear, and so that effects their ability to speak. Extremely high fevers, damage to the auditory nerve, and sometimes they are just born deaf. See the younger they are harder it is to get vocalization right, doesn't help if others are cruel about their speech." She paused bunching her sleeping bag up. Resting her cheek into it she fought back a yawn before continuing.

"You see humans unfortunately can be extremely cruel, bullying in nature. So there you have it, they give up, or never bother trying to learn to speak. But sign language…" She paused a moment, as she tried to make her sleeping bag into a more comfortable pillow.

"It is like a silent dance.. It is beautiful fluid motion.. It tells others, what the signer wishes to say."

Neither the thunder that kept rumbling nor the lightning that kept illuminating the sky light seemed to be able to keep her from dozing. She yawned again, nestling her cheek a little deeper into the outer shell of the sleeping bag. She was just so exhausted.

"Like I said. Humans can be so very cruel. Bullying, harassing, targeting, others that are outside of their social status, or different. Unfortunately we humans tend to lose sight of compassion, becoming cruel, not like ya'. You never lose sight of compassion and you are definitely not cruel."

She was dropping off again and that meant she was unfiltered honest. So now if she was thinking it she was saying it instead of keeping it to herself.

"No, ya' guys are really are nice, even if couple of you act like sticks in the mud."

The morning arrived without the fanfare of a gloriously beautiful sunrise. Instead it was just more rain, thunder, and lightning.

Kami awoke with a start. She was lying flat on her stomach, her right arm under her head as a pillow, and zipped up in her sleeping bag. Her left hand stretched out clinging to the Black Topkick's front rim. Her fingers had turned white from the grip. She pulled her hand away, feeling sheepish. She sighed not able to remember crawling in her sleeping bag, little lone zipping it up, but then the little dark haired four year old girl come into view and last night's events flooded back to her, except for how she got in the sleeping bag or what last nights nightmare had been about.

The little girl gave her a warm smile and signed breakfast. Kami give her a nod and pushed up, new day new adventure. She just really had no idea, how true that was.