A/N: And the moment some fans of the twins have waited for... :P

...

CHAPTER 7
Butting Heads

"So you're his foster dad?"

"No, I just feed, clothe, and take care of him."

"So you're his foster dad?"

Sideswipe sighed as he looked toward his twin brother, Sunstreaker with a tiny grunt. In a way this made him wish that his brother had been at the same base he was, so that he might understand the situation better. "Sunny, let me get this through your skull." He pointed towards Jeff in the next room "That kid is an orphan. I'm his appointed Autobot guardian, since I can't live with his "family", he has to live with mine." He then added "It is not that hard to figure out."

Sunstreaker merely blinked a bit, seating himself back on the stool in the energon bar. It was one of the greater additions since the Autobot's secret had been exposed, additions to accommodate them, such as Cybertronian-based establishments. It also made it that much easier to meet without any threat looming over their head. "All I'm saying is that it sounds like fostering to me." Sunstreaker shrugged "Primus give more power to you though, bro. I'd never have the patience." He muttered.

"I hardly have it." Sideswipe shrugged "The kid can be a pain in the aft, and we don't always get along. He tests my patience." He shook his head slowly "Seriously, he's like you and I molded into one little human." He shook his head "It's weird." He added, then shook his head "Poor kid has been through so much though, I won't go over it..." He paused "But let's just say he claims to have been living on other people's table scraps." He added.

"Eh, we went through the same practically." Sunstreaker shrugged "Don't worry too much, if we ended up okay, so will he."

Sideswipe nodded slightly, though he knew Jeff had one thing missing that they did, Ironhide and Chromia. Or for that matter, any semblance of a permanent role model/placement with someone who genuinely cared. "He needs a real family before that happens, like we had Ironhide and Chromia." He stated calmly, turning his head towards Sunstreaker a bit "He's actually not a bad kid when he stops being a smart-aft. I don't know why no one ever snatched him up." He added.

"They never want the younglings. It's always the sparklings." Sunstreaker snorted "You know that." He then added rather plainly "You're probably doing him enough of a favor by just trying to be kind to him." He patted his twin brother on the back gently "I mean I know he's not your kid. But from what you've said, you've treated that kid better than most of his foster families did and you know it." He added.

Moving into the energon bar carefully, Jeff leaned against the wall to listen to the twin's conversation. Sideswipe nodded his head a little, optics on the counter, he took a deep breath. "Yeah, you're right. I guess that is the best I can do." He placed some credits on the table, turning to see Jeff "Hey kid, we were just about to getcha. You ready to head out to the other base?" Jeff frowned a bit "What?" He asked.

"Off one base and into another." Jeff scoffed.

Sunstreaker smirked, crossing his arms. "Oh trust me, kid, you'll like this one." Sunstreaker snorted "We do things a little different here on the east side." He added.

Jeff couldn't help but absent-mindedly roll his eyes at the poor attempt at humor. "If that was an attempt to be "gangsta", do yourself a favor, Sunshine." Jeff patted Sunstreaker's leg plate as the mech's mouth gaped "Never try that again, it's bad enough when older people try to talk that way. But a giant robot?" He started to head back out the door "Just no." He added.

Out of the corner of his optics, Sideswipe watched with sheer amusement as Sunstreaker's optic twitched. Silently he counted down the seconds in his head as Sunstreaker stormed for the door. "Listen here you little twerp! The name is SUNSTREAKER, not Sunshine!" Sunstreaker barked, his voice loud and obviously angry "And secondly, if you ever talk to me like that again, I'll have you dangling over a trash compactor faster than you can say "sorry"!" He added.

"Sorry, Sunny, don't have a temper tantrum over it." Jeff turned with a cocky wink "I thought I was supposed to be the child here."

Sideswipe grabbed Sunstreaker by the scruff bar before he could lunge for Jeff. The sheer amount of Cybertronian curses flying out of his mouth caused a few pedestrian bots to turn their heads in concern. "Well, you two got along longer than I expected you to." Sideswipe smirked "I had my credits placed on four seconds, you lasted a total of seven." Sideswipe chuckled rolling past his twin.

He was fairly certain that people in the next county could hear the shouting Sunstreaker continued after that sentiment.

...

Jeff was not the best in big crowds, and to say the least, the base that they were visiting was filled with Autobots. Most of them had not been around during the battle of Chicago, having come along much later. To say the least, the fact that so many different Autobots had gathered in one city astounded him, but then again, they were refugees as he reminded himself, it did make sense in its own way. Sideswipe mingled among a few friends, who he seemed to call the "Wreckers", while he simply relaxed in a chair, watching silently.

"So you're the new human?"

Jeff jumped out of his skin, standing to his feet and turning around. The mech before him was a tall and bright green mech, his optics soft, yet weathered, and a certain grandfatherly air to him. "Who's asking?" Jeff questioned.

"I'll take that as an impolite way of saying yes." The older mech spoke, a grunt to his voice "Figured I might be sociable and introduce myself. I'm Kup, and I run the base here." Kup replied with an almost-forced smile "So if you have any questions and Sideswipe is not around. You need only come to me." He then added "I'm fairly certain your foster father and his brother-"

"He's just my guardian."

Kup gave Jeff a hard look, more than enough to get him to listen. "-Have informed you our base is quite different for yours. We have a couple of younglings among our ranks here. And thus we have an "entertainment" level where you may enjoy time to yourself." Kup finished "A few humans work here and bring their own children as well, so you may find some of your kind to spend time with." He explained.

"Any of them in my shoes?" Jeff questioned.

Kup smirked a bit, crossing his arms. "No, you're the only kid in the whole fragging planet that needs our protection." Kup snorted, sarcasm laden in the statement "We have one or two orphans currently under the care of Autobot caretakers." He explained "I believe one of them is adopted, however, by his caretakers." He nodded "Let Sideswipe know where you are going first however. He's had his sensors on you since you entered, he will worry." He noted.

Jeff turned towards Sideswipe, wondering exactly where those sensors could have been hidden. He slowly made his way towards Sideswipe, only to be stopped by Sunstreaker. "Ugh, come on man, I just want to get up there and play some video games." Jeff groaned "I know you're one of those big egotistics, but swallow your pride while I go talk to my guardian, will you? We can have it out later on." He added.

Sunstreaker stared down at Jeff, and smirked slightly, a chuckle forming. "You got, how would you squishy's say it? "Balls", kid." Sunstreaker told him, his hands rested on his hip plates "I commend that. But if my brother weren't here and wouldn't blow a gasket." he pointed "I'd punt your puny little aft through that window." He added.

"You're all bark and no bite. You'd do that whether he was here or not if you really meant it." Jeff replied "I know people like you, you talk a big game, and you may be that way when someone really antagonizes you." He then added "But I don't think you could ever actually just punt an innocent kid like me." He then grinned cheekily "Now excuse me, I have a guardian to talk to." He added.

Jeff made his way around Sunstreaker's leg, leaving the twin with a look that seemed somewhere between angry and impressed. To say the least, Jeff had a feeling that he and Sunstreaker would be butting heads for the next several days. Jeff took a step up beside Sideswipe, coming to a stop there, and staring between the green, red, and blue mechs with Nascar logos adorning them. "NASCARs? Nice." Jeff crossed his arms "I'm heading to the Entertainment Floor, Sides. Don't wait up?" He commented.

"So this is yer pet, eh?" The tall, green one, Roadbuster spoke.

"A little short fer a human, ain't he?" The red one, Leadfoot piped in.

Jeff frowned at the use of the word "pet", grimacing a bit. "Not a pet." He then turned to Leadfoot "And aren't you a little fat for an Autobot?"

Sideswipe quickly maneuvered around him to make certain the easily offended trio didn't take the opportunity to "accidentally" step on him. "Alright, Jeff, why don't you head up to the Entertainment Floor." He chuckled a bit "I think it might be best for the two of us if we do our own thing, y'know?" He asked, continuing the nervous chuckle.

"Fine by me, have fun. Nice to meet y'all."

Jeff walked off as Sunstreaker turned to Sideswipe, patting him on the back. A smirk widened over his face, and he shook his head a little bit. "You know, Sides. Don't worry about this kid's future." He commented rather bluntly "The way he makes "friends" I don't think he'll last more than a few months anyway." He snickered.

Sideswipe merely smacked his twin upside the head in response.

...

A/N: And there's Sunstreaker for those hoping to see him. This chapter went in a different direction than I had planned. But meh. Anyways, reviews make my day. :)