Nightbird

Author's Note: *sighs* ...enjoy.

Disclaimer: Transformers belongs to Hasbro. Nightbird is mine.

(Thoughts)

=Speaking Cybertronian=

The next day, Emma is brought to her high school by her mother. She goes to Jordan High in Long Beach, California. The drive to the school was quiet. Emma didn't like talking to her mother much and preferred looking out the car window. Soon they were at the school and she got out, but not before her mother says something that upsets her.

"Emma, remember what I said this morning. Focus on your schoolwork and not friends, because in this world, so called "friends" don't exist. Understand?"

She resisted the urge to yell and scream at her for that ridiculous comment. Instead she just nodded and spoke quietly. "...Yes mom..."

"Good, now go on. You'll be late. Man if I had the time I'd homeschool you. That way you won't be exposed to all the crap these stupid kids do."

Emma nodded and shut the car door. She watched her mother drive off and sighed. She hated living at home with her but at least she had some sanctuary at her school. She walked inside and took out her cellphone. She had time before the bell rang so she played Cookie Jam. Emma loved games and puzzle games was her favorite. As she played though, she didn't notice two boys walk over to her. She was so engrossed in her game that she didn't see them until one of them snatched the phone out of her hands. Looking up, she saw that it was the two boys that bullied her a lot. One of them wearing a red shirt looked at her phone.

"Ugh, Cookie Jam? That game is so retarded. But you would know eh Retard?"

The other boy laughed as he took the phone and played with it, he did something that caused the app on her phone to crash and for the phone to reboot itself. Emma frowned and quickly took back her phone.

"...leave me alone...I don't want to be bothered..."

"Nah nah nah! Nah nah!" Both boys teased her and laughed when they saw the angry look on her face. Tim and Bryan were their names, local boys that teased and made fun of people who were different. Most of the students either laughed at their antics or ignored them. But to Emma, they were tormentors. They teased and bullied her ever since she started school there, often making fun of her mental disability. Emma couldn't tell her mother about it or anyone else so she just (or tried to) ignore them. But today she was frustrated and wanted to be left alone.

"...leave me alone...I won't ask again."

She got up and left for the School Library but one of them pushed her from behind and she ended up falling, unfortunally in a puddle of mud on the grass. The boys laughed even harder when she got up and tried to get the muddy gunk off of her. She noticed other students looking and either laughed or shook their heads at the two idiots.

"Look at the retarded piggy!" said Tim.

"Ya gonna roll around in the mud little piggy? Oink! Oink!" laughed Bryan.

In her mind, even though she only imagined it, she could hear everyone laughing and poking fun at her. She could see everyone pointing and laughing tauntily at her. Then, something in her snapped. She dropped her backpack and glared at the two that kept laughing at her. Then, in a split second she screamed so loudly it startled everyone around her including the bullies. Emma ran up to them and delivered a sharp uppercut at both boys. It was so strong that they both flew backwards and hit the ground hard. Blinded by rage, she began beating up Tim and Bryan so bad that blood ran down their noses and the blows left purplish bruises on their arms and other parts of their bodies. One of the students watching ran up and grabbed her off of them. His name was Felix and he was the only one that was Emma's friend. Well tried to be. Emma started screaming and kicking the air as she tried to free herself from his grip.

"Emma! Calm down, they're not going to hurt you!"

"LET ME GO! LET ME THE FUCK GO!"

Soon the School's Principal and Vice Principal arrived and they weren't happy with what they saw. Principal Martin looked around and saw the two boys barely getting up. He clapped his hands and yelled at everyone there.

"Alright everyone get to class! Now or detention for all of you!"

The students groaned and left for class, wanting to say to see the fight. Vice Principal Helen rushed over to the boys and helped them up. "You see what happens when you act like idiots? Come on, I'll take you to the Nurse."

As she and the boys left for the Nurse's Office, Emma was still screaming and trying to kick Felix in the face. But only when she heard the Principal's voice did she calm down.

"That's enough Emma Bowman."

She looked at him then at Felix. Looking down at herself she saw the mud drying on her clothes plus a little blood on her knuckles. Tears ran down her face as she tried not to cry. Principal Martin sighed and looked at Felix, who was rubbing Emma's back trying to calm her down. "Emma, go get cleaned up in the Girl's Restroom and meet me in my office. Mr. Ramsey? Can I speak with you for a moment?"

Both of them nodded as Felix went with Principal Martin while Emma went to the restroom to clean up. As she washed the mud and blood off of her she thought about what will happen to her. If her mother found out she beat up two boys at school she'll go ballistic on her. Her mother didn't tolerate bullies but since Emma landed the first punch she'll be the one to get in trouble instead of Tim and Bryan, who bullied her and pushed her in the mud in the first place.

Emma wanted to cry but she didn't. She hated the fact that everywhere she went she'd always get bullied or picked on. And her mother didn't make it any better for her. Emma looked in the mirror and wiped her eyes.

(Why does bad things happen to me all the time? I try to do everything right and I still get punished for it... What's the purpose of me being born if I screw up everything I touch? Life would be better for me if I was just dead...)

She didn't want to go to the Principal's Office, but she had too. Exiting the restroom she made her way towards what she called "Her Death Sentence".

Inside the office, Felix explained what happened between Emma, Tim and Bryan. Even showing video footage one of his friends shot on his cellphone of them taunting her and pushing her in the mud. Mr. Martin shook his head at what he saw. Jordan High School had a No Tolerance for Bullies policy and anyone caught doing it got suspended or expelled.

"And that's all what happened? How long has this been going on?" Mr. Martin asked.

"I think two months sir." said Felix. "It's not Emma's fault, she can't handle people bullying her and when those two assholes did that it just set her off. Thanks to her disability she can't handle all of that nonsense. It's bad enough her mother puts her down all the time, she doesn't need to go through that here."

Soon Emma entered the room and shut the door behind her. She looked at them meekly as she sat in the chair next to Felix. She didn't look at them and stared at the floor, waiting for those words to be said. ("Emma I'm going to call your mother and tell her everything that's happened." If he does... Well... I'm dead anyways...)

Mr. Martin cleared his throat and spoke quietly to Emma, knowing that she didn't like people shouting or yelling at her. "Miss Bowman? Mr. Ramsey told me everything that happened including showing me some video footage on his cellphone. Since those boys started this mess they'll be the ones to be punished, not you."

She looked up at him and spoke in a quiet voice. "...R-really?"

The principal smiled and nodded. "Of course, you have enough going on and I know you don't need your mother to get involved. Hell she even scares me a little..."

"S-so... I'm not in trouble?"

"Nope. You can go to class now, and don't worry about Tim and Bryan. I'll deal with them."

Emma didn't smile but her eyes told him that she was happy she wasn't in trouble. She got up and left the room. Mr. Martin sighed and rubbed his head. "This is going to be a problem..."

"What sir?" asked Felix.

"Tim and Bryan are cousins and they live with Brandon Warshaw. Who just so happens to the School's Superintendent... Shit. If they tell him what happened..."

"Then call him and explain to him what happened! Knowing those two they'll lie and say Emma's been bullying them!" Felix didn't like where this was going. He was the only person in School that cared about Emma and hated the fact those two were gonna try to pull something.

"Don't worry I'll call him. I just hope he listens to reason... Your class doesn't start until 3 period so you wouldn't mind staying here to validate this?" Mr. Martin asked as he got the phone and called the Superintendent.

Felix shook his head and smiled. "No sir. I don't mind."

Mr. Martin heard the other line pick up as a gruff voice spoke on the other end. "Hello? Ah yes Mr. Warshaw? Listen I have something to tell you..."

...

~5 hours later, after school~

Emma was outside of school waiting on her mother to pick her up when Felix walked up to her. She knew that he was there but didn't even give him a glance. Thanks to her Autism she doesn't like looking at people in the eye, or them staring at her.

"Hey Emma. You alright?" he asked.

"….no. And why do you care?"

"Well, I'm your friend aren't I?"

She stared at him for a few seconds before looking away. "…..my mother says I'm not allowed to have friends…."

Felix looked taken aback by that. "What? Why did she say that?"

"….She says having friends is useless and not to trust anyone on this earth…." She sighed and rubbed her arm. "And…. If she drives up now and sees you standing next to me she'll flip and try to either hurt you, or me. Please leave…"

Felix frowned. He didn't like the fact Emma's mother was so controlling over her. Not having friends or the chance to experience the world is like someone being locked in a cellar 24/7. But there was nothing he could do about it. As he got ready to leave he heard her say something that made him smile.

"…..Thank you….for being a friend to me…."

He turned around and gave her a big grin. "Anytime Emma. See ya later!"

Felix walked off, leaving Emma standing at the curb waiting for her mother to arrive. She had a small smile on her face though. (Well… at least I have one person to call a friend…)

…..

~2 hours later, at home~

Emma was in her room doing her homework when her mother walked in. Glancing up, she noticed an angry expression on her face. She continued doing her homework like she didn't notice her until she spoke.

"Emma, I just got a call from your Principal's boss. Why the hell didn't you tell me these two little bastards were bullying you?"

Looking up, she spoke quietly and adverted her eyes. "Well…. You said to ignore people who bully you so I've been trying. But those idiots kept bothering me…" She put her homework to the side and stood up, curious about something. "Mr. Martin said I'm not in trouble for defending myself though…. S-so why did his boss call you?"

Emma's mother sighed heavily and crossed her arms. "The reason he called was to put you on a three-day suspension but I explained how your disability makes you act. So he dropped it. Those little bastard boys of his well… that's another story."

Emma was kinda shocked to say the least, but she was glad she wasn't in trouble. She sat back down to finish her homework until her mother spoke up. "By the way, if anyone tries to bully you again tell me instead of keeping it to yourself. Alright? I have enough to deal with and I don't need to deal with some prick bullying you."

"Okay…" She watched her mother leave the room and shut the door behind her. Emma thought she was going to get in trouble for fighting those bullies but she thanked God that didn't happen. Still, it was rare for her mother to do something like that for her. Emma sighed and kept on with her work, hoping that tomorrow will be a better day for her.

~The next day~

Her mother went to work early so Emma was allowed to take the bus. But she didn't like the school bus too much, there were other people on here that would snicker and talk about how retarded she is. Making up her mind, she decided to walk to school. She rarely got to walk to school so this was a nice change of pace for her. She has an excellent memory when it comes to where places are so she remembered the route to her school. Looking around she saw various cars pass her by, she liked not only animals but all kinds of vehicles. Sports cars were her favorite kinds. As she walked she saw one that was one of her favorites. A Saleen Mustang sitting in a parking lot of a 99c Store. It was the newer model and looked sleek and powerful. One thing that stood out about it was the color: it was black all over except for the doors which were white. Emma walked over to the Mustang and gasped, it was a Police Cruiser.

"Amazing…. I didn't know the police were using Saleen's now…."

She put her hand on the hood and felt it shudder at her touch. Not thinking much about that, she grinned at how beautiful the car shone under the sunlight. "….So beautiful…. I wish I had a Mustang like this…." Emma walked around the car and saw something unusual written on it, along with a logo that looked like an evil cat. She leaned in to get a closer look.

" 'To Punish And Enslave?' That's odd for a Police car to have…."

"What of it girlie?"

Spinning around she saw a man much taller than her, about 6'8 with a strong build. He wore a cop uniform and had the same cat-like logo on his arm. His eyes were strange though, they were a dark reddish color. Emma stared at his eyes; they looked ready to pierce any soul that looked into them. She didn't know why, but she didn't mind staring into those eyes. The cop noticed she was looking at him funny and frowned.

"What? What are you looking at?" he said in a gruff voice.

Emma quickly looked away and stared back at the car. When she didn't say anything, the cop got irritated and walked in front of her, making her jump and stutter.

"I-I-I'm s-sorry…. I was j-j-just adm-admiring your c-car…. I'll go now…"

She turned to leave but felt the officer grab her arm. She looked back at him and wondered what he was going to do. (Oh no…. I hope he's not upset at me for putting my hand on his car…)

"You were admiring it? That's strange for a huma-I mean someone to do."

"Huh?" The officer let go of her arm as she turned to face him. "W-why is it strange?"

The man scoffed and crossed his arms. "Cops aren't exactly liked around here. You watch the news so you should know."

"Oh…" Emma shuffled her feet and kept staring at the car, wondering what else to say when she noticed three men run past on their bikes and throw mud-filled balloons on the Mustang's hood. She jumped backwards, not wanting to get covered in mud again as the men laughed and sped off yelling words she didn't want to hear repeated.

"Son of a bitch!" The cop growled and started chasing them on foot. Emma was shocked to see him run that fast. She looked back at the Mustang and shook her head, the right side of it was covered in mud.

"…..poor Mustang….I'll clean it up for him…."

She got out her water bottle and some paper towels she kept with her. She poured the water on the side and got to work wiping off the mud. After a few minutes all the mud was gone and she smiled, glad to see it shine again. The cop came back, a satisfied look on his face. Emma thought that maybe he taught those guys a lesson. When he walked up he saw that the mud was gone. He looked at Emma who was fiddling with her fingers and shyly looking at him.

"Did you clean all this up?"

"Y-yes sir… What t-those guys did w-was mean… I-I hope you don't mind…"

The cop saw that no speck of mud was left on it. He looked back at her and smirked a little, putting his hand on her shoulder. "Heh, thanks girlie. It's rare I'd be shown some compassion around these parts." Emma smiled and shook her head. "You're welcome sir… I like Mustangs so, seeing those bullies do that was upsetting…"

"You like Mustangs?"

She nodded. "Yeah. Out of all the sports cars I like, Mustangs are my no. 1 favorite."

"I see… Hey, I don't usually do this but wanna ride to school? If you kept walking at this pace you'd be late."

Emma looked at her cellphone and gasped, school starts within 5 minutes! She'll never make it there on foot. But she remembered her mother saying not to talk to strangers or get inside of one's car. She looked at him and saw his reddish eyes staring back at her. He's an officer so technically he's not a stranger, and for some reason she felt like she could trust him. Shrugging her shoulders she agreed to take him up on his offer.

"Okay… I'll be late if I kept on walking…"

The cop grinned. "Great. Hop in."

Emma saw that the car door opened by itself and gasped. "Wow! An automatic door!? That's so cool!"

The cop chuckled a bit as he got in. "Yeah, automatic all right…"

They drove off towards the school, expertly weaving in and out of traffic. Emma was looking around the inside of the vehicle, it was amazing… She thought she'd never be inside one of her favorite cars and here she is inside of one! It was a dream come true for her. The cop watched her actions towards the car and inwardly smirked.

(Maybe she's the one suitable for that experiment… Considering how much she's so trusting of people…)

"Um, excuse me but… I didn't get your name?"

"Oh? Hm, it's Barry Cade."

Emma giggled at how his name sounded, which made him frown. "What's so funny?"

"It's your name Mr. Cade. It sounds like the word 'Barricade'. Don't you think so?"

(Hehe… You have no idea…) "It does doesn't it?"

Emma nodded and looked out the window, rubbing her hand on the seat. The seat felt soft to the touch and comfy as well. She was so lucky to have gotten a ride in this Mustang. She didn't know that every time she rubbed the seat, the car would shudder a little along with the officer, as his form would seem to fizzle out a bit.

(Damn… she has no idea what she's doing to me…)

Soon they arrived at Jordan High School as the rest of the students entered the main door. Barry parked out front as the car door opened by itself again. He seemed to notice that the girl was hesitant on exiting. So he questioned her about it.

"What is wrong now? This is the right place isn't it?"

"….yes…. I just wish I didn't have to go to this school… some of the people there make fun of me…."

(So that's the reason?) He thought. Barry poked her arm to get her attention. When Emma looked at him she saw him frowning. "Listen, I had to deal with people's shit before. So don't let them get to you. And if they do," He made a fist in his hand and lightly punched her arm with it. "Just knock the fucking shit out of them." He saw the girl in his seat smile a little and make a fist with her hand.

"Okay… Thank you for the ride Mr. Cade. And I won't let them get to me either…"

Barry grinned. "Good. Oh, what's your name anyway?"

"It's Emma. Emma Bowman." She smiled and got out of the car, closing it behind her. She waved at him and ran inside before the bell rang. Barry decided to do some research on his computer about this girl. What he found was disturbing.

"Well no wonder she's so damn timid… Not even my Creator was this harsh towards me…"

He heard the sounds of something changing shape in the backseat, then felt his form being poked by a skinny metal-like finger.

=Harsh about what Barri?=

Barry glanced back at the metal being looking over his shoulder at the computer. It made lots of twittering and grinding like sounds as it hacked in and downloaded what was on the monitor. When it was done it stared at him, tilting its head.

=Barri barri? You're searching up on that human femme? Why?=

"Because Frenzy, I believe she's perfect for Shockwave's experiment. Don't you?"

The robotic being called Frenzy looked at the computer again. On the screen was Emma's profile and everything else about her that was listed. When he read about her past history is when he shook his helm.

=Wow… You right Barri. Soundwave doesn't treat us like how her creator does… Sad part is no one believes her.=

"I know… Humans can be so disgusting…." Barry started the car and drove off the school grounds, heading outside the city. "I think Shockwave will be happy to know that we found a test subject for him."

=B-but Barricade?= He poked his arm again. =What if s-she doesn't cooperate with us?=

The cop or rather, his holoform smiled. Which scared Frenzy since his friend never smiles. =Cade?=

"Trust me Frenzy… She'll be willing to join us soon enough…"

=….I hope you're right Barri.=