Chapter 2
Gracee and her father were sitting at the edge of the forest, talking, when I found them. I got my holoform to go out to them.
"Hi Clara." Gracee said gloomily as I approached.
Her father got to his feet and came over to me.
"Just what is going on?" He demanded of me angrily. "Would you kindly explain to me why a car just ... just ... transformed and try to kill us?"
I blinked. So that was the problem Optimus had been talking about.
"We'll explain everything." I assured him. "I just need you to come with me now."
"No! We won't come with you until you've explained to us exactly what's going on!"
Suddenly my exhaustion and what was left of my fear gave way to anger, and I glared at him.
"You listen here." I ordered him, jabbing him in the chest. "One of my best friends in the universe died this morning. We couldn't even bury her. About an hour ago I was told that one of my other friends has gone missing. I am cold I am wet, I just had the fright of my life and I am in a very bad mood. If you want answers, you'll come with me now."
He blinked at me, and nodded quickly. He and Gracee followed the holoform back to where I was waiting in the car park.
As soon as I got in the driver's side, I shut down the holoform.
"Clara, what are you doing?" Gracee hissed at me as she climbed in.
"I'm too tired to keep up a holoform." I admitted, "We're gonna explain everything to him anyway."
Gracee's father climbed in behind her, and I shut the door and started driving before he could say anything. He hadn't even noticed that there wasn't a driver.
We were about half way back when Ironhide got through to me on the radio.
"Clara!"
I jumped in surprise.
"Ironhide! Please, don't do that. I'm jumpy."
"Sorry."
"Forget it. What's wrong?"
"Hm? Oh, we've gone over the tape from that camera you had, and Roxy and Sideswipe are starting to wonder if you're starting to go crazy."
"Why?"
"There's nothing in the mirror. Just your reflection."
I cursed.
"Dammit."
"I know."
"So now everyone thinks I'm crazy?"
"Not everyone. Roxy and Sideswipe are the only ones being obvious about it."
"What about -?"
"Optimus doesn't think you're crazy, or making it all up. He wants to go and check it out for himself."
"WHAT? No! Don't let him go alone!"
I sped up. We were only five minutes away. Surely Optimus could wait for that long...
We got into the caves and to the ship. I let Gracee and her father out impatiently and transformed, not thinking or caring about how Gracee's father might react to that.
Optimus wasn't in the Control Room.
I left Gracee and her father with Ironhide and ran upstairs. The teleport was open. Optimus had just gone through. I darted through it just before it shut, making him jump, suddenly grateful that teleporting wore him out enough that he always had to wait a moment to catch his breath before shutting it off.
"What are you doing here?" He asked me.
"You shouldn't have come here alone." I told him, panting.
"I had to. No one else would come."
I went over to him, snuggling up to him, kissing his neck gently. I'd already started shaking again, just from being so close to the house.
Optimus wrapped a strong arm around my waist and held me close as he led me inside.
I stuck close to him, shaking uncontrollably as he opened the door to the bathroom and ... and nothing. It was just a bathroom. No flooding, no steam, no monster. The floor was perfectly dry, everything covered in cobwebs and dust, as if it hadn't been touched in years.