As expected, grandma and grandpa were thrilled at the news of another baby on the way. Annabelle was a little uncertain at first at the idea of another sibling, but quickly warmed up to the idea of no longer being the youngest.

The topic came up again at breakfast the next day as Annabelle asked question after question. Jaime didn't know a lot about babies so the conversation was helpful in filling in some gaps. It also made it more and more obvious just how many gaps there were in her knowledge. The orphanage hadn't really received too many of them while she'd been there. And the few that had arrived never stayed for long – always being the very first to be adopted.

"So is it going to be a baby brother?" was the latest in Annabelle's string of questions.

"We don't know yet, honey," said Sarah as she placed her empty plate in the dishwasher.

"I want a baby brother," the little girl bounced in her seat.

"We'll see," Sarah demurred, leaning against the kitchen counter.

"But I already have a sister," Annabelle pouted.

"That's not how it works, sweetheart," a laugh escaped Will as he reached across the table to rub the top of her head.

"Then how does it work?" she blinked up at him. The man stilled, expression frozen. Jaime tilted her head curiously. Lennox was one of the bravest people she'd ever met. He'd have to be, facing off against giant robot aliens that towered above him. And yet – if she didn't know any better – that almost looked like fear that flickered across his face.

"Walked right into that one," Sarah muttered under her breath, but Jaime's sharp ears still caught it. A small smile remained on the woman's face, but there was a tenseness to her shoulders that wasn't there before. Jaime made an executive decision.

"I'm gonna go color," she announced, chair scraping the floor as she stood up. Annabelle's eyes brightened.

"Me too!" she chimed in, never one to turn down said activity. It was one of her favorite things to do. She jumped out of her chair and raced out of the kitchen, completely forgetting the previous conversation. Will exhaled softly and his shoulders slumped in relief. Sarah rolled her eyes at her husband's dramatics and snagged her nearby coffee cup to take a sip.

"Bested by a four year old," Jaime shook her head at him and left to join her little sister. Sarah's laughter followed her departure.

Prowl's POV

He wasn't sure what he expected when the Autobots returned to base. He'd certainly hoped for something like this but seeing it with his own optics was still somewhat alarming.

"So yea," Jaime was saying as she stood in Sunstreaker's hand so she needn't crane her neck to look them all in the optic. "Sunstreaker and I are good now. Buried the hatchet and all that." He could feel his processor fritzing at the surreal situation. The golden frontliner was good at holding grudges. He should know, he'd experienced it firsthand. Ratchet didn't seem to be fairing much better next to him. Ironhide was regarding the pair with heavy suspicion, although most of it was directed at Sunstreaker. Even the normally unflappable Optimus Prime was unusually quiet. This seemingly quick turnaround didn't make any sense. The SIC gave his helm a tiny shake and rebooted his optics. But the imagery in front of him didn't change. On top of that, Sunstreaker was beginning to look amused of all things. What was happening?

Clang!

It took him a nanosecond to realize Ratchet had given him a slap upside the helm. He gave the CMO a look of severe disapproval at the lack of tact but didn't comment since the action seemed to help his processors stabilize.

"I am pleased to hear that," Optimus managed to take the news in stride with his usual grace. "Mirage is available to relieve you of interim guardianship duties, Sunstreaker."

"Actually," Jaime piped up. "Can he stay on a little longer?" She received many perplexed blinks at the unexpected request. "Please?" The Autobot leader shifted his attention to the golden twin who – strangely – hadn't protested the idea.

:: Sunstreaker? :: Optimus prompted over comms. The mech in question had spared the girl a sharp look at her petition but merely gave the Prime an indifferent shrug. :: Ratchet? What is Sideswipe's condition? :: The red mech had received the most damage during the mission, fully leaning into his role as a frontline warrior.

:: He's not cleared to leave base yet. :: the CMO crossed his arms.

:: Very well. :: the Autobot leader nodded. :: I believe Ironhide and Sunstreaker should suffice for now. That will not be an issue, will it? :: This earned him two helm shakes, although the golden twin was a few nanoseconds slower to comply. Technically Mirage could still be added to the protective detail, but the Prime's hesitance to add yet another uncertain factor was understandable.

:: Should any accidents occur, I expect you both to act with the utmost professionalism. :: Prowl added. Sunstreaker's expression soured but he correctly assumed the instruction was more directed towards Ironhide. The weapons specialist's engine revved but he did not object.

"Uh, guys?" Jaime chose this moment to speak up. "Still here."

"Apologies," Optimus vented. "Sunstreaker will remain as part of your protection detail." The girl gave a satisfied hum. Prowl narrowed his optics as he studied the youngling's mannerisms and analyzed the faint sentiments trickling across their bond. She was planning something, he concluded.

A week later, Jaime was in the local library researching. It had taken Will and Sarah some convincing to let her go alone with only Sunstreaker along to supervise – Ironhide even more so – but she'd managed. There may or may not have been a tiny amount of guilt-tripping involved. She'd never done that before – and she felt a little bad for doing it – but it had been worth it. She was here now gathering resources in peace without any judgmental looks, or worse.

Despite multiple reassurances, she was still apprehensive about the news of the coming baby and wanted to learn more about what to expect without the platitudes. She knew Will and Sarah would never agree to let here come here without any type of supervision, so Sunstreaker had been the next best thing. He didn't care what she got up to as long as she didn't get injured on his watch. The Autobot had been skeptical at first, but when she'd pointed out it meant time outside Ironhide's close proximity – and that he could claim to be doing his own reconnaissance on humans to earn extra brownie points with Optimus – the mech had grudgingly agreed.

She spent the next hour perusing through the stack of books she'd found. She was in the middle of a text detailing the stages of psychological development a baby went through in the first year when the hairs on the back of her neck prickled. Someone was watching her. Casually flipping a page, Jaime lifted her gaze and scanned the room. There – a woman half-hidden by a bookcase in the public records section was staring at her. Jaime's mouth turned downwards. Weird, the stranger bore an unnerving resemblance to Miss Narcissa. The woman's dark eyes flashed with contempt and slowly began to make her way towards the girl with a sneer. A chill went through her. No, it couldn't be. She was in prison. She was supposed to be in prison.

But somehow it was. She'd never forget that face. Stack of books forgotten, Jaime scrambled to her feet. Help. She needed help. The young girl ducked behind the nearby shelf of books, temporarily breaking line of sight. She just needed to get to Sunstreaker. Easy peasy.

She hoped he was still outside.

Sunstreaker's POV

The golden Autobot grumbled to himself. How long was the girl going to be in there? He should have pushed for a more concrete deadline. Before heading inside Jaime had mentioned exploring the area if he got bored as long as he remained nearby. Like pit he was going to do that, the others would interpret that as him abandoning his post, no doubt. For the first half hour, he'd split his attention between the humans going about their lives and surfing the web.

Then one of the organics had dared to lean against his hood with one of their cellular devices – to take a selfie he would later learn – causing him to rev his engine angrily. The human jumped and dropped their device. They quickly bent down to pick up the electronic off the cement. He took advantage of their distraction by activating his holoform in the driver's seat and angrily swung the door open so it could step out. The pitiful human flinched at his glower, stuttering out a fearful "Sorry!" before fleeing. He left the holoform engaged after that. He received a few stares, but it seemed to act as enough of a deterrent that no other human was bold enough to pull a similar stunt.

A flash of movement alerted him of Jaime exiting the building she'd spent the last hour in. Finally! He directed the holoform to return to the driver's seat, noting the speed that she was moving to his alt. mode but didn't think much of it. She skidded to a stop next to him and deftly avoided the swinging passenger door — which swung out quite aggressively — and slipped inside. She didn't even give him a chance to shut the door. She slammed the passenger door shut and hurriedly snapped her seat belt on. That was his first clue something was amiss. He took a couple nanoseconds to take in her appearance. There was some perspiration on her forehead — gross — and her stress levels seemed far above normal. Granted, his scanners weren't as sensitive to that kind of information like Ratchet's, but…still. Also her expression seemed panicked.

"What are you waiting for?" she turned to him. "Go!" Something was definitely wrong here.

"What are you scared of?" slipped out. Jaime's face twitched, as if to cover a wince.

"Nothing, I just want to get to base," she answered hurriedly, trying to casually glance over her shoulder through the window. Sunstreaker frowned at her. She gasped.

"Go, go, go!" her voice rose. The mech started his engine.

"Jaime — " he was cut off. She was so focused on whatever had spooked her, that she didn't even notice the use of her name.

"Now! Before she sees me!" Sunstreaker peeled out of his parking spot and seamlessly pulled into traffic. He may not have known the girl for a long time — well, if you disregarded their connection before he arrived on Earth — but he did know one thing. Never, in all the time that he had known her, had he seen her terrified of anything. He avoided opening up the bond he shared with her as much as possible. But even as muted as it was, he could feel the terror coursing through her. Okay, there was one other time she'd displayed such fear, and that had been the time that she had appeared to be drowning. He had later found out that her 'drowning' was a result of Optimus' death and the closeness they had shared.

She had her legs on the seat and pulled to her chest. He grumbled under his breath at the sight of her shoes on his leather interior. Last time, he had been unable to watch her suffer without doing something. It would seem, unfortunately for his pride, that this time was no different. The seat molded to her, vibrating ever so slightly, and his spark thrummed louder from underneath. He opened the bond a little and let calm feelings and his confidence in his ability to protect flow to her. Her shaking decreased slightly, but still annoyingly persisted. Her forehead was pressed to her knees and he could hear her racing heartbeat. A whimper passed through his lips. Sunstreaker snarled silently. What was he doing wrong? He impatiently yanked the bond even wider, forcing the girl to be surrounded by his steady presence. The shaking finally stopped.

:: What the frag did you do, Sunstreaker?! :: Ironhide roared over his comm. Sunstreaker nearly fishtailed off the road.

:: Slaggit Ironhide! You fragging rust bucket! :: Okay, normally he wouldn't call the weapons expert such names to his face. But this was an extraordinary circumstance. He was trying to calm Jaime down from whatever terror-inducing thing she had seen — and by Primus he would rip it to shreds — and driving as fast he could back to the base without causing an accident. Humans were terrible drivers, he thought as he weaved between traffic. He didn't need the fossil roaring over his comm. Unfortunately for him, Ironhide did not take name calling well going off the string of curses that came through. Also, this apparently wasn't a private comm.

:: Sunstreaker. :: Pit spawn of a glitch. It was Optimus. :: I thought I was clear on acceptable and unacceptable behavior regarding humans. :: What? Why was he bringing that up now? He turned off the highway and merged onto a rural road that would take him all the way to base.

:: You're supposed to be guarding her you half-bit slagger :: Ratchet growled. :: Not terrorizing her! :: Sunstreaker slammed on his brakes, his patience close to snapping.

:: YOU THINK I'M THE REASON SHE'S TERRIFIED RIGHT NOW?! :: he exploded at them. His question was met with silence.

:: Well…Why else would she be so frightened? :: was Ironhide's retort, though his tone wasn't as malicious as before. Too bad Sunstreaker didn't notice.

:: I DIDN'T SLAGGING — :: Sunstreaker cut himself off. Jaime had curled into herself and the shaking had resumed. The mech swore under his breath. Frag, he still had the bond open. He ignored his comrades, and focused on calming Jaime down again. He gunned his engine and sped down the rural road as fast as possible without wiping out. The sooner they got to base the better.

:: Sunstreaker! Report! :: The Prime's booming voice broke through his concentration, as well as the other Autobots' shouts and questions. If he had been in bi-pedal mode his face would have been twitching like mad.

:: Would you all shut up? I'm trying to concentrate! :: Great, now he was going to get thrown into the brig when he got back to base for telling a — no, more than one — superior officer to shut up.

:: Are you under attack? :: Prowl's professional tone broke the silence.

:: No. :: he growled, swerving to avoid a smattering of potholes. Why did the base have to be in the middle of nowhere?

:: Sunstreaker. :: How the Prime always seemed calm and collected, Sunstreaker didn't know. :: Why do you need to concentrate? ::

:: I'm trying to calm her down, and get her back to base so Ratchet can look at her. ::

:: Is she injured? :: The CMO was quick to ask.

:: No…I don't think so. But I don't know what scared her. She wouldn't say. She just keeps shaking and whimpering…and her shoes are on my seat :: Sunstreaker mumbled that last bit.

:: Of all times to be worried about your appearance. :: Ironhide groused.

:: Ironhide. :: The mech ignored Optimus.

:: You're probably doing more harm than good. As if you know anything about calming down a youngling. :: Sunstreaker ground his dentas together. Keep a lid on it, if you lose it you'll just scare Jaime again, he told himself vehemently.

:: Stop fragging accusing me and ask her yourself! :: he growled instead. They all fell silent.

:: We…cannot. :: Prowl admitted.

:: What? :: The disappointment in the SIC's voice caught him by surprise, causing a good chunk of his anger to evaporate.

:: We…we can't reach her. She's closed off all her bonds. :: the Prime's normally steady baritone sounded tired.

:: How did you know she was frightened? ::

:: We received a spike of terror from her before she completely closed off all her bonds. :: Ratchet seemed anxious, which was absurd.

:: Why are you surprised by this? :: Prowl suddenly asked. :: Did the same not happen to you? ::

:: Uh…not…exactly… :: Sunstreaker confessed with great reluctance.

:: You opened your bond to her? :: Ugh, the Autobot leader sounded insultingly incredulous and so Primus damned proud of him right now.

:: It's kind of hard to ignore when she's inside my alt-form :: he complained.

:: I can feel her too. :: said Sideswipe, finally joining the conversation. :: It's definitely muted…but I can still feel it ::

:: Slagging glitch spawn. :: Ironhide cursed. :: Why didn't you say anything before?::

:: Because if Sideswipe still shares a connection with her when we do not, it's because he has something none of us do. :: Ratchet explained with a sigh.

:: Sunstreaker. :: Prowl again.

:: Yea? ::

:: What is your ETA? :: Sunstreaker did some quick calculations.

:: 10 Earth minutes. :: he replied. :: See you then. :: Before they could say anything else, he ended the call.

Optimus' POV

He met the pair in a hangar near the entrance big enough to accommodate them but small enough to offer a semblance of privacy – along with Sideswipe, Ratchet, and Ironhide. Jaime did not get out after Sunstreaker screeched to a halt, choosing to stay curled up in the passenger seat. The golden twin didn't comment on it, instead briefing them on the situation along with a data packet on his observations.

:: I don't know what set her off. :: Sunstreaker growled. :: But I swear I didn't do anything. ::

:: Prime. :: Prowl was still as a statue.

:: I see her. :: his engine revved as he focused on a familiar face in the data the golden Autobot had sent them.

:: Who? :: Ratchet asked from his crouched position near Sunstreaker's alt-form. He'd been primarily focused on scanning the girl to determine what was wrong with her.

:: No fragging way. :: Sideswipe jerked back before whirling on the SIC. :: You said – ::

:: Sideswipe. :: Optimus warned before the red frontliner could say anything inflammatory. The mech's servos were clenched into tight shaking fists. Before anyone could say anything else, the Autobot leader noted Prowl's door wings flick upwards and his armor flare. He blinked at the unusual show of irritation from the stoic Autobot.

:: Prowl? :: he inquired.

:: A prisoner transport received damage en route to a more secure facility. :: the Praxian reported. :: Three prisoners escaped and two have since been apprehended. The third was not prioritized due to their nonviolent offense and remains at large. ::

:: Nonviolent my aft. :: Ratchet muttered lowly, having moved on to fully reviewing the data packet. Optimus let out a long vent.

:: My apologies, Prime. I did not anticipate such a situation occurring or we would have been alerted sooner. :: Prowl looked miserable. :: I will rectify the matter immediately. ::

:: Coordinate with local law enforcement. :: the Autobot leader gave a nod of dismissal. The SIC transformed and peeled out of the hangar. Sideswipe appeared seconds away from doing the same.

:: Sideswipe. :: Optimus didn't give him the chance. :: You will join Sunstreaker as part of Jaime's protection detail. Neither of you are to let her out of sensor range for a single nanosecond. Do you understand? :: The red Autobot crossed his arms but didn't argue.

:: Who is this prisoner and what do they have to do with Jaime? :: the golden twin demanded. Optimus compiled all the relevant data he had and sent the file to the confused frontliner. He received an angry engine rev in response.

"Sunny?" a quiet voice pierced the air. Apparently the sound had captured Jaime's attention. "What is it?"

"Nothing, it's being handled," Sunstreaker answered just as quietly. Optimus blinked at the exchange. He'd never heard the frontliner speak so softly before.

"Jaime," Ratchet was quick to take advantage of her awareness. "How do you feel now?" She blinked up at him owlishly.

"…Okay I guess," she muttered.

"My scans tell me your vitals have returned to normal ranges."

"Returned?" the girl's brow furrowed and Optimus could feel her confusion. Her iron grip on their bond must have loosened.

"Yes," the CMO paused for a moment before continuing with a small degree of hesitation. "I believe you recently suffered from what's commonly referred to as a panic attack." The youngling blinked again she slowly digested the news.

"Oh," she finally said.

"Jaime, why did you close off your bonds?" He didn't wish to further stress the girl but the sudden lack of awareness through the bond and knowledge of her status had been highly distressing. The girl shrank under their combined attention.

"…I panicked." He raised an optic ridge at the answer. Jaime bit her lip. "I've never had so many active at the same time before." They must have overwhelmed her, he concluded. Now was not the time, but that would need to be addressed sooner rather than later – especially with the expected arrival of more Autobots.

"I see." The young girl hugged herself.

"…Miss Narcissa – "

"Cannot reach you here," Optimus assured. He could feel her doubt and fear wrestle with the desire to believe him.

:: Sideswipe, you have permission to use whatever means necessary to distract Jaime. :: Ratchet's helm snapped to him.

:: Parameters? :: the red twin's optics brightened.

:: No bubble wrap. :: the Prime immediately tacked on. :: Or undue stress. :: he added after noting the CMO's unwavering glare.

:: …I can work with that. ::

Arcee's POV

It happened when they reached the edge of the galaxy.

Jazz stilled next to her. They hadn't really been moving in the first place but now the mech was like a statue, even his intakes were quiet. Had they been spotted? She eyed the two Decepticons in the distance. They didn't seem to be aware of the nearby Autobots.

"What is it?" she eventually whispered lowly when she failed to detect the reason for the sudden shift. It felt a little strange to use English when they weren't even on Earth. But Jazz had pointed out any Cons they ran into out here were unlikely to be familiar with the language, providing an advantage in their communications.

"Ah'm gonna kill 'im," the Saboteur answered lightly, like he was commenting on the weather, completely at odds with the dark promise the words held. Arcee glanced back at the pair of Decepticons.

"I thought we were trying to avoid notice," the femme responded, calculating their odds. The two of them probably could take the two lookouts, they didn't seem particularly aware of their surroundings. But the other Decepticons in the area would notice if their lookouts didn't check in, hence why they were trying to stay under the radar.

"Nah, leave 'em," Jazz shook his helm. Arcee shuttered her optics. Before she could ask for clarification, the saboteur slinked away to the left and she followed just as quietly. They avoided the pair of Cons with little trouble and were soon reunited with the others. The Autobots used the intel Jazz and Arcee had gathered on their scouting mission to sneak past the rest of the Cons in that quadrant.

She didn't think about the odd interaction until much later during an unavoidable encounter with a party of roaming Decepticons. This time they had the advantage in numbers. But even if they hadn't, the fight was surprisingly one-sided thanks to Jazz ripping through the enemies like they were made of paper. It was startling to see the usually easygoing mech so vicious. Even more unnerving was the humorless smile he wore.

"You okay?" Arcee asked him after the last Con was dead.

"Ah will be once Ah get mah servos on 'im," the Saboteur replied with a frigid smile.

Author's Note: So I always planned to have Jaime run to Sunny because of Miss Narcissa. But don't worry, she won't be out for long with Prowl on her case. Also somebody's not happy ~