(Here's your bonus chapter! Enjoy!)
Small Problems
Day Seven: Recovery
Crystal awoke to a heavy pressure in her sinuses and a horrible dryness in her throat. In her groggy, medication-induced stupor, it took a while to put the pieces together of the last few days: the fighting match, the Decepticons, the altercation at her apartment and the frantic evacuation thereof. Everything was fuzzy after that. She still couldn't recall the car accident. Or, Autobot accident, since she supposedly wasn't the one driving when it happened. Snippets of running through the forest and being afraid still teased her recollection, but the rest was a blank.
The end result of their adventure left her in the hospital, being treated for a concussion, among other things. Crystal wasn't allowed to sleep more than a few hours at a time- proper protocol for a concussed patient. Prowl didn't like it. Every time the nurse came in to rouse her she looked startled and confused. He was glad he had agreed to sit with her. Leaving the human here alone didn't seem right at all.
She was released from the hospital the next morning and Sparkplug returned to pick her up. Crystal vaguely remembered him from the night before when he helped her fill out paperwork. Prowl was there to confirm that this man was a friend of the Autobots and she could trust him.
Crystal zoned in and out on the drive back to Sparkplug's place, barely managing to stay on her feet as she was led into the house. She was guided to a bedroom. Sparkplug pulled back the covers for her and Crystal's mind oddly latched onto the rocket bed sheets. Somewhere in her consciousness she acknowledged this man had a son before flopping face first onto the bed. Before the covers were even put over her, she was out.
This time, Crystal was allowed to sleep undisturbed.
When consciousness found her again, it was still light outside. She slowly tested her muscles to see how much they hurt today. Her head ached and felt heavy, the cold that had been brewing was now solidly moved in.
"Mornin' Sunshine, it's about time you woke up."
Her vision was blurry at first, but she was finally able to focus on the bright blue optic band.
"Jazz?" she croaked, her throat parched. It hurt to talk.
"You've been asleep for a while." Jazz looked happy as a clam to be next to her, arms folded behind his head. He was clean, but still banged up from their adventure. Crystal recalled hearing their full repairs wouldn't take place until they were brought back to their original size. Currently, they were too tiny for their medic to work on them.
She tried to balance on her elbow, but she was wobbly at best.
"How long was I asleep?" The last word almost cut off completely. Her mouth was so dry it felt like the walls of her throat were sticking together.
"About twenty-four hours."
"What?" A surge of energy shot through her in surprise. She slept through an entire day? She had never done such a thing in her life. If she missed a day, that meant today was... was... Crystal sighed as she slumped back down. She didn't have a freaking clue what day it was any more.
"You looked like you needed the sleep," Jazz said as he felt her forehead. It was quite a human gesture, but far more practical for a Cybertronian. His sensors told him exactly what temperature she was.
"You're still a few degrees warmer than you should be. How do you feel?"
"Ugh, like crap." She paused. "What are you doing here anyway? Shouldn't you be back at your own home?"
"They're still working on bringing us back to proper size. Our medical officer banished us here after almost stepping on Grimlock for the third time. So we're sticking around to take care of you this time. Can I get you anything?"
Crystal gave a shallow cough and then a sniff. "I need water."
"No prob, I'll radio Prowl to bring you some. You can stay put."
Crystal flopped down on her pillow with another congested sniff. "Thanks, Jazz."
A minute later, Prowl came into the room, a glass of water in his hands. He handed it up to Jazz before climbing up on the bed himself. Crystal attempted to sit up against the headboard so she could properly drink while Prowl sat himself on the other side of her.
"I trust Jazz did not disturb you while you were sleeping?"
Crystal shook her head, swallowing so she could talk. "I was so dead to the world, I didn't even notice he was here."
"That's because I don't have any pointy bits like Prowl does," Jazz said as he motioned to the small scratch running down her cheek.
It was from when Prowl spent the night with her in the hospital. Crystal slept too close and moved just right, giving herself a shallow cut from the red crest on his helmet. It hardly broke the skin at all, but Prowl still felt guilty about it. He also didn't appreciate Jazz bringing it up.
Jazz waited until Crystal was situated before handing the glass of water to her. Eagerly, she drank it down, her throat badly in need of liquid. A split second later she was coughing it back up, trying to get most of it in the glass instead of on the blanket. Jazz and Prowl were both on the alert, hoping her reaction wasn't serious.
"It's hot!" Crystal gagged.
"Of course," Prowl insisted. "My research indicated that warm beverages were beneficial to humans in your condition."
"Yeah, like tea or something. Not plain hot water. That's disgusting! Water should be cold."
Prowl looked extremely perplexed by this. "I fail to see how the temperature of a liquid affects its appeal. No matter how hot or cold it is, water still tastes like water, does it not?"
"I'll get it myself."
Crystal grabbed the blanket decorating the bed and hauled it with her as she got up, not caring about the two Autobots scrambling to avoid being pulled off with it. She shivered despite it being the middle of summer. The fact that all she wore was a large T-shirt, socks and a pair of cheap, white panties didn't help to keep her warm.
Slowly, Crystal shuffled into the bathroom and looked herself in the mirror. When she couldn't see much, she suffered herself to go back and turn on the light and then addressed the mirror again. It was still hard to see without her contacts or glasses, but was too sick to care at the moment. More important was the cold water she could get from the sink and Crystal bent over to have her fill.
When her burning throat was properly irrigated,she straightened, now feeling light-headed from bending over. Instead of going back to bed, she let herself sit right on the bathroom floor, back against the tub and blanket around her.
Prowl and Jazz watched from the doorway when Sparkplug poked his head in.
"Boy, you look like hell warmed over."
"Yup," Crystal confirmed. "I'm sick as a dog."
"Well, I stocked up good for you: orange juice, lozenges, the works. You should be set."
"Thanks. I'm sure I'll be using all that today."
"You're welcome to it." Sparkplug paused, hands in his pockets as Crystal sniffed a bit more. "Uh, listen, I have this thing I do every Tuesday. I go down to a buddy's house and we restore a few cars in his garage and have some beers. But if you need me to stay here-"
Crystal was already shaking her head, cutting him off. "No, I'm totally fine. It's just a cold. Keep yourself as far away from me as you can, I don't want to give it to you."
"You sure?"
"Yeah, please go. I'll be just fine."
"Plus you have several helpers if you need anything." Sparkplug placed a heavy hand on top of the two Autobots' heads.
Crystal looked like she wasn't sure how helpful they would be. The look wasn't lost on Jazz or Prowl.
"Okay, well help yourself to anything you find in the kitchen and my number is on the fridge if you need me," Sparkplug continued. "Also, my daughter-in-law Carly will be dropping by in a while with some clothes for you."
"Thank goodness," Crystal sighed, relieved. "I miss having clothes. I really appreciate it. I can totally pay you guys back when-"
It was Sparkplug's turn to wave her off. "Don't even worry about it, it's all on the Autobots' tab, believe me."
Crystal was too sick to even ask about what that meant.
After making sure she wanted to keep sitting on the bathroom floor (and Crystal assured him she did) Sparkplug grabbed his keys and was out the door.
After a while, Crystal got up the energy to get back to her feet and face the sink again. She made a half-hearted attempt to gather her wild hair before addressing the bandage on her forehead. The cuts hadn't been cleaned and dressed since she left the hospital. She started picking at the bandage, trying to find the best way to go about removing it.
"Oh, you're going to tend your wound?" Wheeljack was suddenly standing on the toilet seat, face right in hers. "I want to see it. Perhaps I can be of assistance?"
"You just want to satisfy your morbid curiosity."
Crystal hissed as she managed to get the top layer off. There was still a more delicate gauze underneath to protect the raw wound. The windshield glass had not been kind to her face. There were no clean cuts to stitch back together. Just skin scooped out, leaving exposed flesh and embedded glass shards behind.
"Yes, but I can still be helpful while I'm at it," Wheeljack insisted.
"I'll see. Give me a second."
Crystal attempted to peel off the final layer, but it was stuck quite good into the open wound.
"Great. It's all soaked up in my... skin goopy," she moaned. "Ugh, this is gross." She swayed a bit, feeling light-headed again.
Wheeljack grabbed her shoulder to steady her. "Go sit down, let me take a look at it."
Miserable and tired, Crystal did what she was told. She sat herself back down on the bathroom floor and pulled the blanket around her. "Soak a cloth in hot water. That should help."
Wheeljack did as he was told and, by the time he had the bandage thoroughly soaked, they had an audience. Every Autobot occupying the house was now sitting in the bathroom, completely entranced with the sight of human flesh wounds so close. Grimlock sat in her lap so he could watch from below. Optimus Prime stayed near the door while Ironhide, surprisingly, was right behind Wheeljack, full of morbid curiosity himself. Crystal tried hard not to squirm as she left her well-being in Wheeljack's metal hands.
"I'm going to attempt to remove it now," Wheeljack said in the tone of a well-practiced surgeon.
"Go slow," Crystal begged. "If the skin sticks to it, don't pull any more."
Wheeljack took his time, slowly coaxing the material from the torn skin. The hot water loosened its hold and it finally peeled off, the damage now in full view. The Autobots crowded closer, each taking their turn to get a good look at the gore.
"I'm going to take some digital stills," Wheeljack announced. "I want our medical officer to see this."
"Sure, why not?" Crystal sighed, feeling like a freak sideshow anyway.
"My sensors indicate there are foreign elements in the skin," Prowl informed her. "We should remove them."
"Yeah, the doctor said there was still glass in there," Crystal said. "I'm going to give it a few more days then I'll start picking it out. It will be fine until then. I just want to give it time to heal."
"Amazin' how human skin can just pull itself together after something like that," Ironhide marveled as he got closer. "If I came to Ratchet looking like that he'd get me a new face plate."
"Lucky you," Crystal muttered, huddling further into her blanket.
She suddenly stiffened as a strange look came over her face. Ironhide leaned closer, trying to figure out what was going on. Crystal lurched with her whole body, startling all the Autobots.
"Achoo!"
Ironhide looked more disgusted than he had ever been in his life as he was sprayed with wet, organic matter.
"Sorry," Crystal sniffed.
"Fascinating," said Wheeljack.
About an hour later, Crystal's forehead was newly bandaged and she had stationed herself on the couch. She was now accumulating an impressive pile of used tissues.
Ironhide frowned as she blew her nose into another one and dropped it on the pile. "That's the most disgusting thing I have ever seen."
Crystal sniffed again and the color continued to slowly drain from her face. She lay curled up on the couch, squinting at Judge Judy on the television. She wished she had her contacts or even a pair of glasses. Life just really sucked right now.
"Hello?" a female voice called as the front door opened.
Crystal opened her mouth to call, but nothing came out. It felt like she had swallowed sandpaper. After a second failed attempt at making noise, she gave up and decided to let the Autobots handle it.
Carly Witwicky walked in, shouldering two grocery bags. She had been informed beforehand of the Autobots' current size situation and was secretly eager to see it for herself. But she still wasn't prepared enough to find a nearly toddler-sized Ironhide with a full-sized frown on his face.
"Ironhide," she greeted with an ear to ear grin.
"Carly," he returned curtly.
"I hear you guys have had an interesting time this past week."
Her bright-eyed, glee-filled expression only made Ironhide's frown etch itself deeper as his engine growled. He followed her without another word into the kitchen where she was finally able to unload her arms onto the counter.
"So everybody's been staying here I assume?" she then asked.
"Yup," Ironhide confirmed. "No place for us at the Ark, Ratchet said. He kicked us out."
Carly looked down at him, hands on her hips. "Well I can understand that. I'm sure he didn't want anything else to happen to you guys until he and Perceptor can get you the right size again. You might as well enjoy the vacation while you can."
"Hi, Carly," Wheeljack said as he walked in, cutting off any grouching Ironhide had planned.
The woman's face became even more delighted. She couldn't help but squeak out a small sound of adoration.
Ironhide huffed, shoulders slumped. "Really Carly, haven't we been through enough?"
"I'm sorry," she gushed, "but you're just so adorable! I'm going to hug you and you can't stop me."
Ironhide actually tried to scramble away, but the human woman was too fast and he found himself dangling from her arms as she cuddled him. The red Autobot suddenly felt grateful Crystal hadn't been so inclined to constantly pick him up like this.
"I'm so glad you guys are okay. When I heard you all disappeared we were worried," Carly said as she hugged him, making Ironhide's irritation deflate a little. He always had a soft spot for Carly. Then she kissed the side of his head and he made a great show of disliking it, even if a part of him appreciated the affection and concern.
"Okay," she finally relented as she put him down, "I'm done. I'm sorry." She was still grinning, not sounding apologetic in the least. "So where is your new friend?"
"We're all in here watching TV," Wheeljack offered, pointing toward the living room. His fin lights were so much cuter when he was pint-sized.
Carly followed both Autobots into the other room to find a young woman slouched on the couch. She had long limbs, pale skin and hair of a coppery shade Carly had never seen before. The girl looked up with baggy, gray eyes, the area around her nose red and raw.
"Hello, I'm Carly, Sparkplug's daughter-in-law. You must be Crystal."
Crystal squinted at the woman, blinking to try to get a better picture. She looked to be late 30s, blonde hair lightening a bit from age.
"Hi," she ground out as best she could.
"You poor thing, you look awful."
"I feel awful."
"Sparkplug said he left you here while he went off to drink and play around with his buddies. He probably didn't even see to you being fed before he left."
Something next to Crystal moved its head and Carly almost jumped in surprise. "Oh! Optimus! I didn't even notice you there!"
Optimus Prime had been sitting next to Crystal on the couch. For some reason the blanket was covering his legs as if he had the chills himself. His size, coupled with the fact that Autobots could sit as still as an inanimate object when they wanted to, made Carly's brain merely assume he were some sort of teddy bear-sized object. She didn't expect it to come alive until she realized who it was.
"Hello Carly, it's been a while," the Autobot commander responded politely. "How have you and your family been?"
"Oh everyone's fine. Spike keeps himself busy at work and Daniel... well, he's being Daniel. You know how he is." She returned her attention to the other human in the room. "Anyway, I brought you some food since I know how well my dad stocks his cupboards. I've got some soup and some fruit and a few other things. Have you eaten today?"
Crystal shook her head and suddenly she was starving at the thought of food.
"Of course you haven't," Carly grumbled. "That's so my father. You wait here and I'll fix you something." She turned and almost tripped over the robot grabbing her leg.
"Carly," Grimlock said as he tugged on her pant leg in robot form. "Me Grimlock go cross country. See so much!"
"Did you?" the blonde gushed with glee as she picked him up.
Grimlock seemed to mind the handling far less than Ironhide had. They were just so cute at this size. Carly was a little jealous. She wanted to take them all home.
"Oh, I almost forgot. I was going to buy you some clothes, Crystal, but the Autobots managed to bring all your things from your car. Everything has been towed out front, waiting for you."
"Really?" Crystal squeaked with her scratchy voice. "I didn't think I'd see them so fast."
"Yes well, the Autobots have all sorts of resources at their disposal." Carly winked at her.
Crystal made a weak effort to get up to help retrieve her things, but was immediately blocked by a black and white Autobot with a red chevron.
"Crystal, you will stay here and rest," Prowl told her with the most authority in his voice she had ever heard. "The rest of us will bring everything in."
The girl sat back with a tired sigh.
"Hey Carly," Jazz said as he appeared from the kitchen. She jumped at his sudden appearance. "Got your keys. We'll just go help ourselves."
Carly mentally counted them all. It looked like all were present. "Okay you guys do that and I'll start cooking." She smiled once more at Crystal. "We'll get you feeling better in no time."
While Carly went to the kitchen, the miniature Autobots set to work dragging in the several bags stuffed with Crystal's life possessions. As they piled up around her feet, she found the strength to crawl among them. It was so good to see all her belongings again, to touch something familiar after all she had been through in the past few days. Unfortunately, everything had been packed so quickly, it was difficult to locate anything specific.
Crystal only owned two travel bags. Everything else had been shoved haphazardly into trash bags. The going was slow as she tried to process what was packed where.
"What are you looking for? Can I help?" Prowl asked as he moved to her side.
"Some clean clothes would be good. Also trying to see if I packed my old pair of glasses. I think I did." Crystal shoved her hand deeper into the nearest bag. "Oh man, I hope I did. I don't want to spend the next few weeks like this."
She made a pleasantly surprised sound as she found a pair of pajama pants and eagerly shimmied into them.
"Me Grimlock find your panties," the metal T-Rex exclaimed as he spat out part of a shredded trash bag. "So many colors."
Crystal sighed and covered her face with one hand. "Thank you, Grimlock."
Carly called that food was ready and Crystal gave up her search in exchange for sustenance. Waiting for her on the table was a bowl of steaming tomato soup, toast and sliced melon. Crystal had never seen anything so beautiful and her stomach ached at the sight. She thanked Carly before slowly savoring her meal.
The older woman disappeared into the living room where she let out a surprised noise. Crystal felt a bit guilty. She was sure the place was a mess now with everything scattered all over. Hopefully, after she was done eating, she would have the strength to get it in order before the house's owner returned home.
Crystal had almost finished eating when Wheeljack came in and placed a small case on the table. She made a happy noise despite the toast in her mouth and pulled out a pair of glasses. They were an older prescription, but improved her sight greatly. It was a small comfort as she finished the last bite of her meal and returned to sort through her things.
Carly met her in the threshold. "I got you a towel so you can go enjoy a nice hot bath."
A bath. Crystal couldn't even remember the last time she had cleaned herself. So much was missing from her memory in the past few days. Judging from her hair, it had been a while.
"I really appreciate all this," she rasped. "I didn't mean to arrive on the west coast in such pathetic condition."
"Oh, you're fine, hon. Don't worry about it," Carly waved her off as Crystal knelt to find some suitable clothes. "And don't worry, I'll keep an eye on these guys to make sure they don't nose around too much into your personal items."
After finding a clean shirt and some underwear, Crystal stood and looked over the group of robots rifling through her bags with a certain fatigue. "I don't even care anymore," she muttered as she dragged herself to the bathroom.
Once in a tub with hot water, Crystal stretched out with a heavy sigh. The tub was too short for her long-limbed body, as most of them were. Her knees were high in the air as she carefully dunked her hair, keeping the bandage on her face dry. Everything was sore and bruised and dirty. Her knuckles, now purple, were aching. The doctor had braced her two fingers together to help the chipped knuckle heal.
The water felt so good to her battered body. She lay back in the heat, eyes closed with a pleasant sigh.
Her eyes popped open as she thought she heard the door open. There was a small shadow on the other side of the shower curtain. Crystal winced as she forced her limbs to sit up. She leaned over the edge of the tub, only her head visible as she peered out.
Wheeljack stood pragmatically on the bathmat, an electronic pad in his hand.
Crystal winced at the bright lights of the bathroom. A few days ago, she probably would have had a fit at any Autobot who dared enter while she was naked. At this point, she was so passed caring.
"What?" she asked flatly.
"Prowl decided I was the most qualified to put together a full report of all your physical injuries. Now seems to be the best time to assess the damage since you're not wearing-"
"Go away."
"I'm sorry?" Wheeljack asked.
"Turn around and walk out. Tell Prowl if he sends anyone else in here I'm going to punt him and you across the room."
The Autobot's optics widened for a moment. "Uh, understood." He turned and opened the door.
Carly's startled cry of "Wheeljack! What were you doing in there?" was followed by the blonde poking her head into the bathroom. "Sorry, I forgot to warn you the lock is broken. I'll make sure no one else comes in."
Wheeljack's volunteer of "I'll fix the lock!" was immediately vetoed as Carly shut the door. Crystal was not bothered again.
After a thorough soak, she let the water drain and turned on the shower to properly wash her impressive length of hair. After such a chore, she found herself physically exhausted as she turned off the faucet. With the little strength she had left, Crystal stumbled into her own pajamas and trundled back to bed, hair wrapped in a towel.
Most of her bags had been transferred to the room by then. Crystal climbed over them all and flopped on the bed, back to the door.
Carly poked her head into the room to check on the young woman. As she did, Prowl walked in below her. Carly almost warned him not to make any noise, but then felt silly for even thinking of lecturing Prowl, of all bots, to be quiet.
The white Autobot navigated soundlessly through the refuse of what remained of Crystal's life and Carly let him be.
As careful as he could, Prowl managed to pull himself onto the bed and tug a blanket over the inert human form. Crystal stirred momentarily to snuggle more into the blanket and then stilled. Once satisfied with his task, he sat himself on the opposite bottom corner of the bed, facing the door as if making himself the guardian of the room.
Jazz walked in a moment later. Prowl silently offered a hand and pulled his fellow second onto the bedside with him. The two sat in silence for a moment, legs dangling off the side.
"Crazy-" Jazz started to say and was immediately shushed by Prowl. He switched to internal radio contact so the two of them could converse without sound.
Crazy week, huh Prowl?
Crazy week, he responded.
Not that we haven't already been a part of some heavy slag in our lives, but this kinda feels like one of those times where we're just not going to look at the world the same after this. Sort of that same feeling when we woke up here on Earth. Jazz glanced back to the body behind him.
Prowl did the same. Agreed.
I'm glad it's pretty much over, Jazz continued. It's been such a rat race, I just want to follow her lead and curl up into a coma. He started to crawl over to Crystal, but Prowl grabbed him by the ankle, tugging Jazz back.
Jazz turned with a frown while Prowl frowned right back, shaking his head. Jazz sat back on the foot of the bed, pouting with arms crossed.
Grimlock came in a few seconds later. In robot mode, he climbed none too quietly over the different plastic bags.
"Grimlock," Prowl hissed at him.
The Dinobot ignored him and continued until he was next to Crystal's side of the bed. He reached up and tugged Crystal's hand. Prowl was nearly at his feet, ready to order Grimlock out of the room. But Crystal was already stirring. She opened her eyes to see Grimlock change expectantly into his dinosaur mode. Without hesitation, she pulled him up with her and snuggled the metal reptile against her chest, promptly going back to sleep. Grimlock's muzzle rested at the crook of her neck and he emitted a soft rumble, like a cat purr.
Prowl vented air and decided to let it go.
In the doorway, Ironhide shook his head in derision. Ever since the human had gotten sick, he treated it as if he were in danger of catching the virus himself. Humans were disgusting with all their different fluids and body functions. They were even worse when they were sick. It was curiosity at first, but Ironhide decided he was going to stay away from the mucus factory for a while.
A glance down the hall, the red Autobot noticed something dark and suspicious slink into the back bedroom. For a moment, Ironhide thought his optics were glitching. What sort of creature was that supposed to be? And what was it doing skulking around in Sparkplug's bedroom? Maybe this human dwelling had some sort of unwanted intruder.
Ironhide carefully made his way down the hall. It was darker down there than in the main room. Poking his head into Sparkplug's bedroom, it was just as gloomy. The shades were drawn to block out the summer sun, all lights turned off. Ironhide wandered around the area. He had known the old man for years and years, but never once gave a thought to what his personal quarters might look like.
The carpet was littered with old jeans and oil-stained shirts. The large bed was unmade and the bathroom looked like it could use a good cleaning. While the place was untidy, Ironhide didn't see anything out of the ordinary. Maybe he had just noticed a trick of the light. But to make sure, he did one last sweep of the room with his scanners on for any type of life form. Something with a rapid heart beat triggered his sensors. So there was something in here after all. It was coming from the walk-in closet.
Ironhide peered inside, illuminating collections of tools and old, dusty suit coats with a gentle blue light. From deep in the back, two round eyes glittered. Ironhide zoomed in on it, trying to figure out what it was. The creature seemed to blend in with the pile of shoes and tattered boxes. A very unfriendly growl resounded back at him and Ironhide frowned. He didn't like the sound of that at all. Maybe it was something dangerous and shouldn't be in his human friend's home.
Unwilling to go in there himself until he could at least see how big the creature was, Ironhide retracted his hand, replacing it with the spout for his liquid nitrogen. It was a substance that could be deadly to organic creatures. Instead of spraying the actual chemical at the growling eyes, Ironhide shot a blast of cold air at it.
Carly was in the kitchen, making popcorn while Wheeljack plastered his face to the microwave window, watching with fascination as the bag filled with freshly popped kernels. Optimus wandered around her, covertly trying to sneak curious peeks into the cupboards near the floor. Carly pretended not to notice, but secretly she was amused.
These giant robotic life forms had always seemed so much more venerable than she. But now they seemed like little kids. Not merely because of their size, but for that childlike curiosity they extruded when wandering around the house. Wheeljack, of course, was the worst. He was open and animatedly curious about everything, no matter his size. But it was amusing to see Optimus or Prowl look up to her for answers to their questions or assistance. She was loving this.
The microwave dinged and Carly carefully removed the scalding package while Wheeljack waited eagerly to see what was inside. There was a thump from the back of the house that caught their attention.
"What on Earth?" Carly wondered as they heard it again.
Then Ironhide came stumbling out of the back bedroom, wrestling with something big and dark, something that hissed and spat at him as the red Autobot tried to tackle it to the floor. The creature seemed to have eyes like fire and it growled and screamed, slashing at him with claws. Ironhide knew he couldn't let such a monster near his human friends with their delicate skin. It would rip them to shreds.
The creature tried to bite him, and when that didn't work, it tore out of Ironhide's grasp and down the hall. Ironhide instantly chased after it. In a blur of fur and wild eyes, the thing bounded around the living room, knocking over a lamp as the Autobot pursued it.
Carly came out of the kitchen, eyes wide at the chaos before her. "Fraggit!" she barked.
Wheeljack stared at her. Even Ironhide stumbled at the profanity coming out of her mouth. They never thought they'd hear such back-alley filth from her.
There was another furious sound of growls and scrambling as Optimus appeared from behind the couch, the angry creature in his clutches.
"Fraggit, you stupid cat," Carly huffed at the spitting, biting ball of brown and black fur.
The cat clawed and bit ineffectually at Prime's metal hands, but the Autobot leader would not let go. "What should I do with this?" he asked calmly.
Even Prowl and Jazz had now poked their heads out of the other bedroom to see what was going on.
Carly opened the sliding glass door to the backyard. "Put him outside where he can't do any more damage."
Optimus walked out onto the back port, keeping the angry cat at arms length. It scrambled out of his hold and skittered a few steps before turning to hiss at the Autobot leader with ears pinned back. Then it skulked off into the bushes.
"I'm sorry if we put any undue stress on Sparkplug's... pet?"
Carly shook her head as she closed the door. "No, that's how he is. That cat is the devil incarnate. Fraggit hates every other person on the planet but my father-in-law."
"That's what you named it?" Ironhide complained. "Carly, that's awful."
She grinned. "Daniel named it actually, when he was little. He said Ratchet kept saying it all the time. He thought it was a good name for a cat that people always yell at."
Wheeljack was laughing while Optimus said, "I'm going to have to have a talk with him about his language."
"Oh don't do that, it's funny," Carly insisted. "I don't know why you think it's so bad. It hardly means anything in our language."
Ironhide just looked at all the new scratches on his arm and the bits of fur now sticking out of his finger joints. He was so ready to be his normal size again.
Ratchet dug into the back of Sideswipe's processor while the red Autobot sat there like a chastised dog receiving an unwanted bath.
"Almost done," the CMO told him.
"Why are you doing this to me?" Sideswipe whined. "I feel like only half a mech now."
"You abuse your language adapter, you get it taken away," came the terse response. "It's there for a purpose and that purpose isn't to annoy your fellow Autobots into thoughts of murder. You work hard to make up for the whole New York catastrophe and show you can be more responsible, then we'll see about reinstalling it." Primus, Ratchet thought he sounded like Spike when Daniel was younger.
"Okay," Sideswipe said softly, properly chastised.
Ratchet closed up the back of his helmet. "Done. Now, you're on full Dinobot duty until Grimlock is returned to his normal size. Keep them, and yourself, out of trouble. I mean it. If the lot of you so much as stir up a cloud of dust I don't like, not only will you never see your adapter again, but I'll have your empty frame to hang on my wall. You understand me?"
Sideswipe gave a heavy vent of air. He knew he was being justly punished and he should play the part of contrition. "Yes, sir. May I go visit Sunstreaker before reporting for Dinobot duty?"
"If you can stand him," Ratchet huffed. Sunstreaker had been far more unpleasant than usual in his current state. Not that the CMO could blame him. Being totaled and stuck in vehicle mode was not fun for anyone.
"Thanks, Doc," Sideswipe said brightly as he hopped off the table. "I'll try to cheer him up for you."
Ratchet nodded as he left, but then caught himself when he realized that Sideswipe's visit would most likely just rile the yellow twin up more.
"Don't do me any favors!" the medic called down the hall. But Sideswipe was already gone.
Later that afternoon, Crystal stumbled out the backdoor. Carly announced she would start dinner soon while the redhead trundled onto the patio, a comb in her hand. Her hair was still damp from being trapped in a towel all day, plus it was so long. She needed to cut it. The warm summer sun felt good as she eased herself into a lawn chair.
When Optimus stepped out into the yard, he found Jazz had taken over brushing duty. The second was standing behind the lawn chair, running a comb meticulously through the rust-colored locks. The hair was so long, some if it was dragging on the cement, but Crystal seemed still too fatigued to care. She slumped in her chair, eyes closed toward the sunshine, the very picture of someone who didn't have anything else left to give.
Fraggit skulked in the yard. He took one look at Optimus and hurried off, growling in his throat. Sparkplug should have named the thing Ravage for how much he liked Autobots.
"Are you feeling better?" Optimus asked as he stood next to the human.
Crystal turned her head slightly, squinting in the setting sunlight. She made an ungainly attempt to land her palm on the leader's head. It took her three tries and Optimus moving a step closer before she succeeded.
"About the same, but I'll be fine in a day or two, don't worry." She sloppily patted his head.
"What will you do now?"
She closed her eyes as if feeling a headache coming on. Her body was still too sick and sore, her mind too exhausted to think about such things. "I don't think I'm going back to New York. But I... I don't know, ask me tomorrow."
"I probably won't be able to," Optimus answered. "I received a call. We're returning to our base tonight."
Crystal sat up a bit, blinking in surprise and looking more awake.
"Oh yeah?" Jazz asked with a grin. "They got it figured out?"
"Ratchet says he's got something put together based on Perceptor's specs. He wants Wheeljack to look it over first, but he believes it should work."
"Right on, Ratchet! Can't wait to get back to my own size again," Jazz cheered.
Crystal leaned forward, pulling her hair out of his hand. "What... what time are you leaving?"
"One of the Autobots is coming to pick us up. We will go when he arrives," Optimus said.
"Oh..." Crystal got a far away look in her eyes. She suddenly stood and seemed almost blind to Optimus' presence. She nearly ran into him as she stumbled back into the house.
Jazz and Optimus looked at each other.
"Was that an odd reaction to you?" Jazz asked.
"Perhaps she still isn't feeling well."
Without any other reason to remain in the yard, the two bots went back inside.
Crystal was in the bathroom, twisting up her hair into a bun. As she walked out, she found Prowl standing in the hall and sank down on her knees to be at his level. This was not something she usually did. Most of the time she would just look down at them, smiling like their very existence amused her.
"I hear you guys are leaving in a while," she said softly.
"Affirmative," Prowl confirmed in a professional tone. "We should be gone before dark."
Crystal smiled at him, but it wasn't genuine. There was a melancholy to her expression.
"You gonna miss us, Crys?" Jazz asked as he approached.
She leaned against the wall, knees pulled up. She wanted to hug them, hug all of them; gather up the whole brood like a mother hen and just keep them in her arms. Instead, she did not touch them at all.
"Not the craziness, but perhaps the company," she admitted.
Jazz leaned against her calf. "I'll come visit you when you're feeling better, how's that sound?"
Crystal had the urge to say that it wouldn't be the same anymore, but she kept silent and just smiled.
For the next forty-five minutes, she spent her time searching out the various Autobots and interacting with them. Carly noticed this and realized this was Crystal's way of saying good-bye to a certain point in her life that would never happen again. The girl was cheerful and optimistic about it, even encouraging about the bots going home and getting back to their own lives. But it was all a facade.
Crystal was playing with Grimlock when a car horn beeped from outside. She immediately clutched the Dinobot to her like a mother unwilling to get her child go to summer camp for the first time. She stared at the door with wide-eyed trepidation.
"Your ride's here," Carly called. "I see Bumblebee out front."
"That's our cue to skadoo," Jazz sang, eagerness in his voice.
They all seemed eager, wasting no time moving to the front door. Carly tried to open it for them, but Ironhide swatted her away. He could open his own door just fine, thank you very much.
Crystal lingered behind, looking unsure what to do. Her mouth opened now and again to say something, but nothing would come out. Carly was already herding them out the door, happy for them that they would be normal again soon. Crystal lurched forward as if to join her, but held back again. She didn't know what else to say to them and they didn't seem too interested in spending further time on her. She didn't blame them, considering their circumstances. They were probably dying for home and she could relate. She didn't know why she was expecting something more.
"Good luck, guys," Carly called, waving after them as the group of Autobots climbed into Bumblebee's interior.
Prowl was the last one up. He glanced back to see only Carly at the door. He supposed Crystal still wasn't feeling well and sat himself down. Bumblebee pulled out, aiming for the freeway without further ceremony.
Carly closed the door and saw Crystal standing in the hall. "Dinner should be ready in maybe twenty minutes. Sparkplug says he'll be home to join us by then."
"I... I'm not hungry," Crystal said in a small voice.
"Oh, yes you are," Carly insisted in a motherly tone. "You've had, what, two meals in the past three days? You will be hungry by the time you sit at the table."
"Yes ma'am," she conceded. "I'm going to go lay down until it's ready."
She padded off to her room, closing the door behind her. Crystal waded through the piles of bags and crawled onto the bed. The emotions swimming in her chest confused her. This is what she wanted, wasn't it? She set out on this journey to get them home and then they would return to their normal lives. This had always been the plan. So why did it hurt?
Crystal didn't expect this reaction at all. She thought she would feel a sense of accomplishment for doing the right thing. Instead, she felt empty and at a loss. She caped the blanket around her, knees pressed to her chest. Why did she feel this way? What was wrong with her? This was good. Her friends received the help they needed, it was all thanks to her. Yet, her chest hurt and she couldn't hold back any more. Silently, she cried.