This was meant to be up weeks ago – however I didn't like the ending of the chapter, and when Epona agreed, it took a while for me to come up with a better alternative. Trust me – the new version was worth the wait. Enjoy.

Chapter 2 - Annabelle

It was nearing midnight when Bumblebee and Jazz returned to the base. However, instead of being greeted at the door as expected, Optimus paged them to meet in his quarters. The reason quickly became obvious when they walked in - a small red and white youngling recharging by his side.

"No sign of Decepticons?"

Jazz shook his head, while Bumblebee drooped.

"One has definitely made planetfall, but I can't say who. By the time I arrived, there were only traces left."

Optimus sighed. "At least its only one. Any sign of Starscream?"

The scout shook his head. "No sign of any jets. If they are meeting, he's being very careful about it."

Which made their job even more difficult. Slag.

Jazz grinned, though the expression didn't reach his optics. "Hey, it's Starscream. He's gonna screw up eventually right?"

Optimus nodded. "We can hope."

He then turned to Bumblebee and gestured to Deuce's still form.

"I need to speak with Jazz. Can you take Deuce to your quarters for the night?"

He'd barely finished before Bumblebee nodded, carefully lifting the youngling away from Optimus. Deuce quickly broke from his recharge at the motion but, when he recognised the hands lifting him, fell back into it as they walked out the door.

"Night, lil'buddy," Jazz murmured as the two walked out the door and focused on his Prime.

"Though Ratchet was acting as substitute big bro when we weren't around."

"Deuce 'isn't speaking' to Ratchet right now," Optimus replied with some amusement. "Ratchet forced him to meet with Miss Madsen today."

Jazz 'ahhed' in understanding. "Kid didn't take it well?"

"His first reaction was to run – and then to avoid visual contact as much as possible before hiding in the most out-of-the-way corner he could find until she left. I don't know how he will take to her coming back tomorrow."

"Ah, slaggit," Jazz muttered, crossing his arms. "And I'll be around her the next few months – that's gonna go down real well with him."

"Are you having second thoughts?" Optimus asked. "This was mostly your idea."

The Pontiac smiled. "Don't worry about it, Optimus. Human relations need some working and our lil'buddy needs more interaction. I'm kinda looking forward to it."

"And if Deuce is upset?"

"He's a lot stronger than we like to think, Optimus," Jazz warned, grin on his face. "This is just gonna take some time."

Optimus returned the smile.

"Well then, do you want to see the security tapes during Miss Madsen's visit?"

When Deuce had still been a sparkling, having him recharge with someone was a necessity. Sparklings would often wake up disoriented and panicked, and having the stability of an older mech would calm them. Since Deuce had become a youngling, he'd been nagging for his own quarters, a request they had been ready to consider, until Simmon's abduction. Since then, Deuce hadn't brought the subject up and refused to recharge alone. And they didn't dare leave him by himself - he'd brought more than one of them out of recharge with a shriek when he woke up without someone by his side.

The youngling moaned in protest when the arm cradle suddenly shifted, but crawled down onto the berth when Bumblebee sat down, optics brightening to stave off recharge for a few minutes.

"Did you find Starscream?" he asked, laying his head and chest on Bumblebee's leg. Bumblebee shook his head, and Deuce averted his optics, idly scratching the paint on his guardian's leg. His expression was somewhat torn, which Bumblebee wasn't too sure about. Deuce still refused to speak about what had happened when Starscream had found him, no matter what tactic they used.

"How was your day?" he asked, quickly jerking the youngling out of his thoughts. It seemed a poor question though, as Deuce groaned and flipped onto his torso, moaning at the roof.

"A new human was here, and stupid Ratchet said I had to meet her."

Ah. How could he have forgotten? Deuce had been aware that plans had been in place for a new human ambassador, but hadn't know who or when they would arrive to keep him from bolting. And neither Jazz or himself had been around to aid him. Slag Starscream to the pits.

"Was it really that bad?" Bumblebee asked, brushing a finger over the youngling's helm. Said youngling merely sighed again, and refused to meet Bee's optics.

"Hax thinks I'm being stupid." Deuce muttered. "He doesn't get it."

And with that, his optics dimmed, and the youngling fell back into recharge.

Even after seeing how fluidly Optimus could move, Maggie was still taken aback by the sight of Jazz leaning back on the chair as far as it could go, arm slung over the back with only his feet gripping the console for balance.

"What's crackin', Miss Madsen?" he greeted. "Or do you mind Maggie?"

Recovering with the grace of one used to eccentric behaviour, Maggie smiled back. "Maggie is fine."

As she walked in, the mech pulled the chair back into its upright position.

"Sorry there's no official seat for you," he apologised. "I wanted to get a swivel chair, but we kinda gave up looking when we realised none would reach without having a height risk. Ratchet put his foot down on that."

"Probably for the best," Maggie replied, already warming to the mech. "If you'd installed a swivel chair I'd probably never get any work done."

Jazz laughed. "Oh yeah, still trying to convince Optimus to let me jerryrig this one for that. Seems to think I'll spin it right off its hinges."

'That would be something to see' Maggie mused. The tapping of keys brought her back, and focused on reality.

"Okay then, Maggie, what do you want to see first?"

Before she could reply, thunder echoed outside the room, and the door opened to reveal a nervous, yellow mech that was frighteningly familiar.

"Jazz, have you seen-"

The Pontiac was already shaking his head. "Sorry, Bee, I've been expecting 'company' and he knew it. Haven't seen him."

Jazz had gestured in Maggie's direction at 'company' and Bumblebee's optics swung onto her.

"Oh, sorry," Bumblebee apologised. "I didn't know you had already arrived. I am Bumblebee – I believe we crossed paths at Hoover Dam?"

Maggie nodded and smiled in recognition. "Only briefly"

"I'll give you a call if I spot him," Jazz promised, and when the yellow bot left, Maggie threw him a questioning look, and the Pontiac began fiddling with the control panels again.

"He's looking for Deuce," he explained. "He must have slipped out before Bumblebee woke up. Our lil' buddy's good at that."

"Hiding from me?"

Jazz nodded. "Trying to avoid a repeat of yesterday. If I'm lucky, I can catch him on one of the monitors, but he's annoyingly good at avoiding them."

In response, one of the screens flickered into life, showing various areas of the base.

"In a perfect world, we'd have a Security Director to handle all this," Jazz explained. "I've some experience, but nothing like what we'd prefer."

"Any chance one might show up?" Maggie asked.

"We can hope. For now, just keep an optic on the monitors for any movement. And if we don't catch him, there's always plan B."

Maggie frowned. "What's plan B?"

Jazz snickered. "Plan B is currently in Ironhide's backseat. Deuce won't be expecting that."

A few hours later, Maggie was knee deep in formulaic equations – god bless numbers for being a language without borders, with Jazz explaining the methodology, when he suddenly cut off, head to one side. It only lasted a moment before he recovered, grinning at the analyst.

"And Ironhide is back. Think you're up for a break?"

When it came to staying out of sight, Deuce had one golden rule. Up. The Autobots were so used to looking down at him it rarely occurred to them to check over their heads.

Right now he was huddled in one of his favourite spots. A corner of the base's main room, huddled behind a support beam which was in the nearby camera's blind spot. It was a pretty vicious climb, only possible due to some loose panelling and using the wall wiring as support. Ironhide would probably short circuit if he knew about such an obvious flaw in the building, but since it was only accessible by those already in the base, Deuce was keeping quiet.

-So- Hax began, -are we just going to spend the next six months up here? -

Deuce shrugged, shrinking back as he watched Bumblebee enter the room and head for the exit. –Maybe. –

-Well, if you're planning that, do you think you could grab an iPod and let me drain your spark dry? Cause this is gonna get boring pretty fast. –

-Don't tempt me – Deuce warned. –I might just send you off for good. –

-Aww don't be like that. You know you'd miss me. –

The Ducati sighed in annoyance. As much as he hated to admit it, Hax was the only thing making this entire situation bearable. Maggie would occupy jazz, and Bumblebee, whom it was normally possible to sweet talk into bending to Deuce's will, would no doubt be as firm on making him interact as much as possible. Hax, while maybe not understanding Deuce's phobia, at least seemed to appreciate the complexity of the situation. It was something Deuce had to deal with at his own pace.

There was a commotion on the ground, and Deuce pulled his concentration back. He tensed as Jazz and Maggie walked in, while Ironhide-the-truck rolled into the base, followed by Bumblebee.

-Deuce- Hax piped up, breaking Deuce away from the scene. –Do you wish I wasn't around? –

The Ducati's optics flickered. –Huh? –

-Seriously – Hax pressed. –Would you rather be alone? The whole how-I-came-into-existence part ignored. –

-…I don't know- Deuce finally replied. –Would I rather have not been kidnapped, yes. Would I rather not have you around, I don't know. You're just…there. I don't think I remember what its like for you not to be there anymore. –

Hax didn't answer, and so Deuce pressed on.

-Why are you asking? –

It was frightening how well a program could emulate a sigh without any actual voice or components capable of the action. –Ever get the feeling that something is gonna happen, but have no clue what it is or what it'll do? –

-Not really. –

-It bites, big time. And it's making me nervous. –

Deuce quickly filed this conversation under 'topics that must not be discussed in front of Ratchet.'

-Hey, is that who I think it is? –

The Ducati looked down again, and optics widened as a childish giggle echoed in the base.

Will grinned, repositioning the squirming bundle in his hands as the only other human darted towards them. "You must be Maggie."

The woman barely gave him a look before leaning down and cooing. "She is adorable! I just wanna take her home!"

Annabelle smiled up at her, clearly at ease despite the giant robots surrounding her, flattered by the attention.

"That seems to be a general desire," Will replied.

Quickly realising her rudeness, Maggie straightened and gave a sheepish smile. "Sorry, I think it's a genetic obligation for women to coo at babies."

Will laughed. "Oh its not the first time. I'm Will."

"Right. The chief military liason."

"Got it in one."

He glanced around as Ironhide transformed, while Optimus strolled in with Ratchet, nodding to them in greeting before returning to Maggie.

"And this here is Annabelle. My angel, the apple of my eye and Autobot charm."

Looking over Will's shoulder, Annabelle smiled at the word, and held up her hands at Ironhide.

"Audobods."

And wasn't that just the cutest thing Maggie had ever seen?

"Deuce is somewhat, infatuated, with Annabelle," Ironhide explained. "Every time they've come in contact with each other he refuses to leave without her. He once smuggled her into the base without my knowledge."

Jazz chuckled. "That was rather sweet."

"No. That was terrifying," Will muttered, glaring at Ironhide. "Sarah and I didn't know where she was, and you weren't helpful."

"Your sparkling was returned within the hour Will Lennox, none the worse for wear."

"But I was missing at least ten years of my life."

Maggie stared at them all incredulously, putting two and two together and not liking what she found.

"So you're using your daughter as…bait?"

"He'd never hurt her," Will defended. "And they're never unsupervised if we can help it."

"But do you really think that-"

Maggie broke off, as she caught movement by Optimus Prime's foot, and the mech looked down at the small Ducati currently peering round it. The other Autobots grinned at the appearance, except for Ratchet who was scanning the area in irritation.

"Now just where were you hiding to get here that fast?"

Deuce just winked with an optic, and then started staring at Annabelle and Maggie. Optimus was the furthest away from the woman, but Will was standing almost right next to her. Maggie, seeing the tenseness in the youngling's frame, quickly stepped back, walking closer to Jazz.

With Maggie no longer in Annabelle's direct radius, Deuce slipped out from Optimus's shadow and darted up to Will, holding out his hands with a hopeful smile. Annabelle was already ahead of him, hands outstretched. Once he had the toddler, he ran back to Optimus, sitting down behind the bot's leg. The mech frowned as he looked over his shoulder.

"Deuce…"

The youngling just glanced up at him, expression challenging. When Optimus moved, forcing Deuce to be visible, the mech leapt to his feet, skidding on the ground and flying for the door to the rest of the base.

"Deuce!" Ratchet screeched, while Bumblebee flew after him.

"I'm on it!"

Knowing whoever followed him would check quarters and the medibay first; Deuce picked the most unlikely place to hide. Maggie and Jazz's current play area. The Control Room.

He couldn't help but giggle as he watched Bumblebee run past on the monitors, but quickly stopped when Annabelle joined in.

"Ah, shhh, shhh," he whispered, digit on the toddlers lips. When he was certain Bumblebee wasn't heading back, he dropped to the ground and set Annabelle down. She immediately struggled to her feet and took a few shaky steps forward, heading for the control panel. She seemed transfixed by the lights.

Deuce smiled, leaning down on the ground, head propped on his arms, content to watch the little human waddle around.

"You're getting better at it, Annabelle."

As if tempting fate, the girl immediately fell down, making irritated noises since she was too small to reach the controls. To grab her attention, Deuce flashed his own headlights, and flickered through radio waves for quick, distracting sound bytes. Sure enough, the toddler quickly crawled back to the easier-to-access shinyflashymusttouchness, laughing when Deuce rolled onto his back so she could paw his front properly.

"You're not scared of anything are you?" Deuce murmured, staring at the infant. "Not really. Not when you should be."

He sighed. "Me and Ironhide, we could crush you, and you don't even realise it. You're in so much danger when you're with us, and you don't know it. When you get bigger, you wont even think to be afraid."

His optics dimmed. "Then one day, you will realise it. You'll get hurt or maybe your mother or your father will. And you'll be scared. Scared of everything you thought you knew. It'll choke you."

Lifting himself up, Annabelle slipped away from his plating, falling down again. Deuce cocked his head and gave a sad smile as he watched her.

"When that day comes, will you get through it all? Can you make things the way they were before? Or will you be like me and Mikky?"

Annabelle's arms lifted up in a wordless demand to be picked up, and Deuce complied, holding the toddler close.

"Lost. Stuck. Unable to process."

"Doos," Annabelle murmured.

"I don't know what to do, Annabelle," Deuce whispered. "And nobody can help me figure it out."

Outside, Bumblebee stood frozen, unable to move into the room after over-hearing the conversation. His hand curled in anger, and for the seemingly endless time, cursed the world for this situation.

Forcing his hands to relax, he stood straight, and walked back towards Optimus and the others.

This time around, it might be best to leave Deuce alone. Just for a while.

To be continued…

So we've had Maggie, and then Annabelle...can you guess whose next?