Hello everyone! Hope you're all well :) it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas (sorry for quoting Michael Buble). We finally get started with Transformers 1 here! Exciting times indeed!

Millie

Four and a half months. That's how long it had been since Millie and Bumblebee had parted ways. Having traveled through eleven different states and stayed in twenty three different towns, Millie was finally glad to be putting her feet up at the latest motel in Tranquility, California.

Well.

Putting her feet up wasn't really the most accurate of terms.

Hacking, more like; her favourite past-time.

Each town would be the same: she would find the cheapest motel and a flexible job - most often in waitressing - to earn money. The four grand Bumblebee had given her had gradually been reduced to two grand through times when she couldn't get a job to pay for food and housing. She'd sold the bike as soon as she could and replaced it with a second so not to be recognised following the incident with Sector Seven. She had, however, kept the black backpack; all her possessions were held within the bag. From her savings and clothes to her brand new laptop, Millie had everything in there.

Millie had purchased the laptop that afternoon after finally earning the money she needed for it. She wanted to save the last two thousand of Bee's money for any desperate situations she found herself in, so she'd worked double shifts to earn as much as she could.

Sitting cross legged on the hard mattress of the creaking wooden bed, Millie balanced her newly purchased laptop on her knees as her fingers flew furiously over the key. Her mind was set on her task at hand: hacking into Sector Seven.

Whoever Sector Seven were, they knew of Bumblebee and his species. Any information she could glean from them before her mole was discovered would be valuable to Bee when she found him again.

Firewalls began to crumbling at her fingertips as security was disabled while Millie simultaneously covered the trace of her hack. She had managed to link her Internet connection through hundreds of thousands of servers across the world, making her signal practically untraceable.

Simple.

Before her very eyes, the information gathered by Sector Seven slowly began to filter onto her screen. With wide eyes, Millie read through the information and digested it as quickly as her eyes would allow her. Project Iceman. Non-Biological Extraterrestrials. Reverse engineering.

"Jesus Christ..." She whispered harshly as data logs and photographs of NBE One popped up for her to see. The experiments that had been conducted on the frozen bot were horrifically cruel; such intrusion into its systems was disgraceful. Did they not realise that 'NBE One' was a highly intelligent sentient creature possibly thousands of years older than themselves?

"Oh Bee..." Millie whispered, her voice pained as further tests and experimental results continued to pop up onto the screen. Who knew that even the laptop she was using right at that moment had been reversed engineered from him.

"Thank god they didn't get their hands on you, Bee..." Millie murmured as the information continued to filter onto her screen. She didn't dare to think what would happen to the dear Autobot if he had been captured by those people.

After half an hour of downloading and reading, a small alarm began to sound from Millie's watch. Glancing down, she saw the time and quickly cut all the links she had made into the Sector Seven network. Quarter to six in the afternoon: time to get to work. Her shift was six til midnight, but she'd do all she could to leave work as soon as possible to get back to all the new information she had found. Anything she could learn before she found Bee once again would be an asset to them both.

Slipping a 'Hal's Diner' shirt over her black skinny jeans, Millie stuffed her laptop and possessions into her backpack and threw on a black leather jacket. She pulled the rucksack on tightly before leaving the room and locking it behind her.

Ten forty three. One hour and thirteen minutes until her shift was up and the diner was empty. Nada. Nothing. There wasn't even a single straggler left in any of the booths. Sighing, Millie glanced around herself again to make sure the diner was most definitely empty, before she turned and made her way to the back with the mop and bucket in hand.

Slipping the mop and bucket into the store room, Millie wiped her brow quickly as she switched the light off and locked the door behind her.

"Alice!" A voice called from the office down the short, bright hallway.

"Yeah?" Millie replied, a small twinge of sadness gripping her heart as she was forced to lie to her perfectly charming boss. She'd worked for some real horrors in the last few months, but Hal was a saint.

"How're you doin' out there darlin'?" Hal asked as her head appeared around the corner of his office. His thick southern accent failing to dampen the kindness and honestly that was ever present in his voice.

"Surfaces disinfected and wiped, floors moped, trash out the back, dishwasher running..." Millie replied as she counted the list off her fingers. "Joan's finishing up in the kitchen and it's like a ghost town in front of house... I just don't know where anyone is tonight, Boss."

"No it's alright Alice..." Hal said, putting the paperwork down on the small mahogany desk and running his fingers through his slowly greying hair.

He sighed heavily and glanced up through his lashes at Millie as she waited patiently in the doorway.

"Anything left for you to do?"

"Not that I can th-"

A familiar, thundering boom filled the room suddenly as the whole building began to shake furiously.

"What the-?" Hal shouted in surprise as he stood from his desk just as the piece of furniture began to topple over. A second deafening crash echoed from outside a moment before a fire seemed to erupt on the street and the windows of the office imploded. Millie and Hal dropped to the ground covering their heads as shattered splinters of glass rained down around them. The sounds of scream came from outside as the street quickly filled with flames.

"Shit!" Hal shouted out as he crawled across the floor of his destroyed office. Millie reached a hand out to him from her place on the ground near the doorway, pulling him towards her. That sound. That ear-splitting boom was one that Millie had scarcely been able to forget. Something had entered thief atmosphere.

She needed to content Bumblebee as soon as possible.

Once Hal was clear of the office, Millie clambered quickly to her feet and pulled him up alongside her. She glanced down the corridor to her right where the lockers were, knowing that her laptop and Bee's envelope were inside. She then looked left and down toward the kitchen door. Joan hadn't emerged from the kitchen yet. They couldn't even hear her usually singing voice. She was in trouble.

Millie didn't even need to think a moment for her decision to be made: Joan first, then Bumblebee.

"Hal, come on." Millie instructed as she began to jog down the corridor, pulling the man behind her. The lights flickered uselessly for a moment before they shorted out completely, their electricity supply clearly compromised. "We need to find Joan and we need to find out what the hell's going on."

Millie didn't see, but Hal nodded sharply behind her, forcing his rising hysteria back down and focusing on making sure Joan was safe.

The two reached the end of the corridor and quickly pushed through the heavy fire door into the kitchen. Pots, pans, food and utensils had been sent flying across the room in all directions. Millie made her way quickly over to the hob where she hastily shut off the gas, praying that the line from the barrels hadn't ruptured.

"Joan?" Hal shouted worriedly as he scrambled through the sea of debris that had filled the kitchen floor. "Joan, you in here?"

"I'm over here..." A small muffled voice called out from the back right corner of the room. "I'm stuck... I can't get out!"

Hal glanced at Millie to see that she too had heard Joan's voice. Simultaneously, the two began to hurry over to the corner, clambering over the fallen freezer and smashed plates.

"Where are you Joan?" Millie shouted gently as she reached the corner. "Keep talking to us so we can find you."

"I heard the sound and jumped underneath the prep board as soon as I could." Joan replied, her muffled voice coming from behind the fridge. "Good thing too. The fridge damn near fell on me the next moment."

"Hal, help me with this." Millie said as she reached the fridge, which as Joan said had toppled on its side. Milks, eggs and many other ingredients had spilled out from its broken door and covered the floor in a horrible slippery mess. Hal was next the Millie not a moment later as the two began to try and push the fridge out of the way. Their feet slipped on the milk beneath them as the fridge slowly began to move, the corner of Joan's prep table showing from behind it.

"Nearly there." The woman's voice said from behind it. "You're nearly there, just a little further..."

After a final push from Millie and Hal, Joan managed to find enough space between the table and the fridge to squeeze through the small gap and get herself free. She jumped to her feet quickly, slipping slightly on the wet mess underfoot. Hal caught her arm to stabilise her as a relieved smile plastered itself on her face. Joan grasped Hal's arm that was stabilising her and pulled him into a tight, grateful hug. Her hand snaked out a grabbed Millie's, pulling to girl closer as well.

"Thanks so much..." She sighed happily as Millie and Hal returned the hug, the three of breathing heavily for a moment as they glanced around the destroyed kitchen.

"What the hell caused this?" Hal whispered finally, his relief slowly dissipating as he looked upon his ruined diner.

"I have no idea..." Millie replied quietly, even though she had a damn good idea. She pulled herself from Joan's grip to wander over to the window. "One thing I do know though, is that your insurance company is going to love you."

Hal snorted softly before he rubbed his temples tiredly.

"However true, your sarcasm really isn't coming at the best time Alice."

"Sorry, Boss." Millie replied with a small shrug as she pulled up the blind of the window to look outside. "Just trying to lighten the mood."

She sucked in a harsh breath when she saw the scene that greeted her.

A long, deep trench had been carved into the road outside, defining the path of something - or someone - that had fallen from the sky and crashed into the electronics store opposite.

"Well shit."

"What's gone on out there Ali?" Joan asked, coming to stand at the window beside Millie before covering her mouth in shock.

"I'm gonna have to rephrase, Hal." Millie said, turning from the widow to allow Joan a better view of the carnage outside. "You insurance company is gonna like you more than it likes old Jerry and his electronics store."

"What...?" Hal questioned as he stumbled through the mess of the kitchen and over to the window. Millie stepped aside to allow his passage just as another three flashes of fire rippled across the sky again.

"Oh my god!" Joan scream, jumping back from the window and promptly falling to the floor as she slipped on the spilt milk. It barely phased her however as she continued to stare out of the window, her finger pointing to the sky. "Three more just went over head going towards the suburbs!"

Hal rushed to the window, Millie close behind, and stared out of the window, craning his neck to stare out at the sky.

"You sure Joan?" He asked, turning and offering a hand to the woman on the floor.

"Positive." Joan replied, accepting the hand and pulling herself back to her feet.

Millie stared out of the window for a moment, watching as civilians and the emergency services quickly swarmed the destroyed shop opposite. She watched curiously as a Hummer H2 search and rescue vehicle appeared from the side of the building and began to drive away.

Strange.

A rescue vehicle driving away from the emergency.

Turning on her heel, Millie began to pick her way back across the kitchen as quickly as she could. She looked back over her shoulder at Hal and Joan as the two watched her hasty departure curiously.

"I'm going to scour the blogs," she lied quickly, pulling the door open as she did so, "see if there's any news rolling in so we can shed some light on what's going on."

Hal nodded in agreement as Millie's head disappeared behind the door. She heard a quiet "I'll come check on you in a moment" as she took off down the corridor. Shit. If Hal was going to check what she was doing then she needed to be quick.

Sliding to a halt beside her locker, Millie quickly undid the bolt and pulled open the door. She pulled her back from the locker and slammed it shut, rushing into the office and perching on the corner of the desk. She pulled the zip of her bag open as she hastily grabbed her laptop and the envelope from within. She snapped the laptop open and turned it on. While the machine was booting up she tore open the envelope and found Bumblebee's frequency and the identification code.

When her laptop was completely online, Millie quickly hacked into the local telecommunications tower and began to broadcast from Bumblebee's frequency modulation.

:.:Identification code: 2106.:.:

Millie paused for a moment, her fingers hovering over the keyboard as she hoped and preyed she'd sent the message to Bee's correctly.

:.:What was the first sandwich I gave you?:.:

Millie couldn't hold back the snort of amusement at Bee's swift reply. She paused for a moment as she recalled the sandwich before she quickly sent it back, a smirk on her face.

:.:Coronation chicken:.:

:.:MILLIE! Primus it is you!:.:

Millie stifled a second laugh as Bee's message came through.

:.:Jesus Bee, did you really think I couldn't follow your instructions?:.:

:.:I had complete faith in you:.:

:.:Glad to hear it:.:

Millie couldn't help the grin that was plastered on her face as she sent the messages back and forth between herself and Bumblebee.

:.:I gotta cut to the chase, Bee. These four asteroid that have landed in Tranquility - are they Autobots? The diner where I work nearly got crushed by one.:.:

:.:You're in Tranquility?!:.:

:.:Yes?:.:

There was another - albeit longer - pause as Millie waited for a reply from Bee. She ran her fingers through her hair nervously as her screen remained blank, her ears straining to make sure Hal wasn't coming.

:.:I think it was Ratchet who landed opposite you.:.:

:.:Did he transform into a search and rescue Hummer H2?:.:

Another pause.

:.:Yes he did:.:

:.:Then yes, it was Ratchet.:.:

Millie waited again as Bumblebee fell silent. Her fingers rapped quietly on the desk as the seconds ticked by.

:.:Ironhide is closer to you now than Ratchet. Go to the carpark of the McDonalds half a mile west of Ratchet's landing site. Ironhide'll pick you up from there and bring you to us.:.:

:.:Will do. See you in a bit Bee.:.:

:.:See you soon Millie.:.:

With that, Millie severed her connection to Bee and shut her laptop down quickly, returning it hastily to her backpack. She shouldered the bag quickly before jogging back to her locker and removing the motorcycle helmet from with. She hesitated as she turned to the back door, guilt filling her as she realised she'd just be leaving Hal and Joan with no explanation.

Turning around again and returning to the office, Millie snatched a loose bit of paper and a discarded pen from the floor and hastily scribbled a note down.

Message from brother - have had to go. Sorry. Alice x

It was a twisted play on the truth, definitely, but it was the closest Millie could get to not lying to Hal and Joan. She really liked the pair of them and had truly enjoyed her time working at the diner. It was a goodbye she actually regretted, knowing full well that 'Alice' would never see them again.

Using a ball of blue tack, Millie stuck the note to the door of the office and pulled it shut before heading down the corridor and out the back. She pushed open the door and squeezed around the dumpsters to the place where she had left her small motorbike resting against the wall.

She slipped her helmet on and clipped the strap into place before she climbed onto the motor bike and put the key in the ignition. The bike roared to life beneath her as Millie kicked it into first and took off down the road, swerving around a few civilians and pieces of rubble that were scattered across the street.

She couldn't help the feeling of excitement that began to grow within her; she had a purpose again! One where she'd actually be able to help someone for a change.

I'm on my way, Bee.

Firstly, I must apologise if any of my language sounds particularly British. It's because... Well... I am British, so I can't help the way I talk :)

Anyway, that's the chapter! Next time Millie meets Optimis and the other Autobots :) I'm still kind of unsure what Millie's reaction should be when she meets him... Any ideas or preferences? This is obviously an Optimus/OC story but it's meant to be a slow one compared to the speed I've seen a fics take.

Reviews keep me writing!

By the way... Has anyone seen the new Star Wars trailer?! I swear the voiceover sounds just like Benedict Cumberbatch...

Til all are one!

-Shakalakaboomboom x