Chapter Four: Stuck on You

Steven always enjoyed it when the Autobots' business took them to the Beach City History Museum. Not only because such missions didn't involve large monsters or other such dangers, but also because he was able to look at the exhibits for free while they went about their business, which usually involved some manner of negotiations.

"Yes, I understand that," said Ultra Magnus, standing with the other three in the museum's large main room. "But it doesn't matter where it was found, or in what condition, the fact of the matter is that it's an ancient Cybertronian relic. This means that, technically, it belongs to the Autobots."

The museum's curator, Mr. Smiley, lived up to his name. He was extremely kind and sunny, and it was in fact because of him that Steven technically got free admission in cases like this. However, the Beach City History Museum was not the most popular tourist location, so he was rarely willing to give up any potential exhibits. "Hey, if it's so important, what was it doing buried in the middle of a desert somewhere?" he asked. "Besides, do you know how much money I paid for this thing? Even more than the animatronic dinosaur in the other room! And that thing wasn't cheap either!"

The object they were fighting over was on display near the front entrance, proudly placed on a pedestal. A placard sat beneath it, describing how it was a Cybertronian object of unknown function. Magnus, however, explained that its function was indeed known: "However much it cost, the Polarity Gauntlet is far too dangerous to leave this close to innocent humans. If it were to go off unexpectedly, any two objects it affects could be magnetized!"

"All the more reason to leave it alone and not touch it!" said Mr. Smiley. "Besides, I put it behind glass, so it's not like anyone's gonna try and take it!"

Steven didn't want to get in the way, so he figured he would go and look at the other new exhibits before either of them started yelling. The Beach City History Museum's exhibits rarely stayed for long, and they very rarely had anything to do with Beach City specifically, but he was always eager to learn about whatever Mr. Smiley could find. Last week there was a geology exhibit, and the week before that he had learned more than he ever thought he would about the history of the telephone.

"Named for his distinctive oversized jawbone, the tyrannosaurus nicknamed 'Grimlock' is one of the most complete t-rex skeletons ever uncovered! Look to your left to see what Grimlock may have looked like!"

The pre-recorded message played out from a panel next to the animatronic dinosaur Smiley had mentioned. Although it was certainly big, it wasn't very impressive: Its range of movement was simited to pivoting side to side and opening its mouth, while the cloth covering it looked extremely faded and fake. It didn't even make any noise, save for the squeaking of its rusty joints. Nevertheless, Steven was taken by the wonky-looking dinosaur.

However, something nearby caught his eye, causing him to gasp and hide behind a display case containing one of Grimlock's fossilized footprints. Of all the things he had been expecting to see here, she had been very low on that list. What should he do? Should he go and talk to her? It couldn't hurt…but what if she didn't want to talk to him? What if she was content minding her own business and he bothered her and that made her want nothing to do with him anymore and–

Realizing he was making something out of nothing, he remembered the wise words Sideswipe had once told him: 'Why bother worrying about something, when you can just as easily not?' Emboldened by his advice, he decided there was nothing wrong with just going over to say hello. That didn't mean he was any less nervous walking over, though.

The girl was reading a plaque nearby the animatronic, quietly jotting down facts in a notebook. She seemed really engrossed in it. "Hhhhhi…" Steven said softly, not wanting to startle her.

"Hmm?" She looked up, adjusting her glasses. "Oh. Hi." She looked at the floor shyly; Steven was similarly reluctant to meet her eyes. "Are you enjoying the museum too?"

"Yup," replied Steven. "Learning all about…Grimlock." He looked up at the animatronic. As charming as it was, he couldn't deny that there was something creepy about the way it moved. "You, um…you enjoying it too?"

"I am," she said. "I'm actually doing some research for a report I'm writing for school. I actually haven't seen you around there…Steven, right?"

He nodded. "Mhm." The two had met before, but only on fleeting occasions. Plus, she was fairly new in town. "Probably because I don't go to school. Dad and the Autobots teach me most of what I need to know. I've always wanted to go."

"Eh, you're not missing much. I'm Connie, by the way. If you didn't already know," said Connie. She held out a hand, and, after hesitating a moment, Steven shook it. "Actually…I've always wanted to meet the Autobots, or at least see them up close. I hate to ask, but if it's not too much trouble…?"

"Sure!" said Steven. "They're here right now, actually. I could take you to go meet them!" Excited to have a chance to introduce his new friend to his family and vice versa, he eagerly led her into the next room. "I think they've probably seen you around at some point, too, so they might recognize you. But I don't know how long they'll be willing to talk, 'cause they're on a mission."

"Ooh, a mission exciting!" Connie said, clutching her notebook. "Let me guess: a Predacon has somehow infiltrated the museum, and they have to find it before it comes to life!"

Steven chuckled nervously. "Uh, nothing that dangerous. Just a Transformer artifact that Mr. Smiley picked up. With any luck, they'll have convinced him they'll trade with him for something better by now."

"I hope so," Connie said. "Don't get me wrong, dinosaurs are cool, but it would be even cooler to do my report on an ancient Cybertronian artifact!" With the way her eyes glistened, Steven could tell she was really passionate about Transformers.

Sure enough, it seemed that the Autobots had finished up when they reached the main room. Sideswipe wore the gauntlet on his hand, posing with it. "Sideswipe, that isn't a toy!" chided Ultra Magnus. "If you aren't careful, we could all get stuck together!"

"Relax, Mags!" said Sideswipe. "What's the use of havin' a dangerous doohickey like this if you don't live dangerously? Hey, Elita thinks I look cool, right Elita?"

Elita wasn't really paying attention, instead focusing on her holographic display. "Something's been bothering me since we got here," she said. "My radar keeps picking up some sort of energy disruption. It could just be a glitch, but…"

"I suppose the Polarity Gauntlet may be interfering with your readings," Magnus said. "Ah, Steven, I was just about to go looking for you. We've obtained the Gauntlet and are ready to head out. Who's your friend?"

"Magnus, this is Connie," said Steven. "Connie, Ultra Magnus."

"Leader of the Autobots, former second-in-command to Optimus Prime himself, and all-around beast!" Connie said. "Armed with state-of-the-art Hex-Missile Pods, and transforms into a Moro-works armored transport van!" She certainly seemed to know quite a bit about him. Even Steven didn't know some of that!

Ultra Magnus couldn't help grinning, and leaned down to their level. "You really know your stuff, Connie! I take it you must be the Maheswaren's daughter?"

"Yes sir, that I am!" she said, beaming up at him.

"Well, it's very nice to meet you. Tell Doug and Priyanka hello when you see them."

"Absolutely!" She looked over at Steven, grinning. "I can't believe I got to meet Ultra Magnus! Thank you so much for this, Steven!"

"Y-yeah, of course!" he said, blushing slightly. "Hey, so, I probably have to go now, but would you want to, um, hang out sometime? I don't know if you're busy, but maybe if you aren't sometime we could go and, uh, get ice cream or something?"

Connie blinked. "Yeah, sure, I like ice cream." She looked around awkwardly. "I've, uh, still got a few hours before Mom picks me up, we could hang out now if you want. Unless you really have to go."

Steven looked up at Magnus. "I suppose it couldn't hurt," he said. "We did just procure the artifact, after all, so the mission is complete. It's a good thing, too: who knows what might have happened if the Polarity Gauntlet fell into the wrong–"

Still posing with the gauntlet, Sideswipe caught his foot against a bit of rope. "Oop!" He stumbled, this having the effect of accidentally squeezing the gauntlet's trigger. A beam of energy shot off from the device, bouncing off of a large chunk of quartz, careening off of a seventeenth-century mirror, ricocheting around in a crystal chandelier for a while, before finally shooting out right into Steven and Connie.

"...hands." Magnus slowly turned to glare at Sideswipe, who sheepishly hid the gauntlet behind his back.

Neither of them were too bothered by the gauntlet's beam. "Huh, tingly," Connie said. "So, does that mean we attract metal now?"

"Not exactly," Magnus explained. "The two of you are magnetic, but instead of metal, well…" As he trailed off, both Connie and Steven realized they were sliding across the floor. Moments later, they were suddenly thrown at one another, back to back, stuck to one another. "...that happens."

This made Elita finally look up from her screen, racing over to them. "Sideswipe!" she admonished. She snatched the gauntlet away from him, with minimal resistance. "We told you not to play with that! Does everything we say go in one audio processor and out the other!?" She knelt down beside the two. "Are you alright? You aren't in any pain?"

They both shook their heads. "No. Feels kinda sticky, though," said Steven. He and Connie tried to pull themselves apart, but they only got a foot from each other before being yanked back together.

"At least we know the Polarity Gauntlet works on humans now, right?" Connie offered helpfully. She didn't seem too concerned about their predicament, or was at least able to hide it well.

"Unfortunately, that knowledge doesn't do us much good at the moment," said Ultra Magnus. He took the Polarity Gauntlet to examine it. "We aren't entirely sure how the Gauntlet works, unfortunately. It's an old relic, from long ago in our history. Apart from its basic function, nobody is really sure how it works…including how to reverse its effects."

Sideswipe raised his hand. "Maybe it's one of those things where one shot magnetizes things, another shot un-magnetizes 'em. Worth a shot, right?"

"No, it is absolutely not worth a shot," chided Elita. "It's bad enough you shot them once, there's no telling what a second shot could do. For all we know, they could become even more magnetized! Until we run more tests, we are not using this thing on anyone again."

"Sorry about all of this, Connie," Steven said. "It'll probably be a lot harder to do your research with somebody stuck to your back…"

"That's okay, Steven, accidents happen," she replied. "Besides, this isn't so bad. Maybe it wears off after a few minutes!"

Two Hours Later…

"Okay, so we can rule out it wearing off," said Connie. She and Steven were sitting on a boardwalk bench, literally joined at the hip. Elita had initially wanted them to stay at the Ark until testing was complete, but with how complex the Polarity Gauntlet had proven to be, she eventually let them take a walk. Though she had told them not to wander off too far, as she was still worried about the signal interference she had gotten earlier. "Hopefully they can figure out how to work that thing before Mom gets here."

"Yeah, that would be pretty awkward," said Steven. "It'd be all like, 'Hi Mom, I have a conjoined twin now! Can he stay for dinner for the rest of our lives?'"

Connie laughed. "Yeah, I don't think she'd be too happy about this. Actually…maybe she could help. She does deal with stuff like this a lot. Well, not exactly like this, but still." She reached into her pocket for her phone. "I'll text her to see if she has any advice."

Unfortunately, using her phone was a bit more complicated than was anticipated. No sooner had she produced it that it seemed to stick screen-first to her hand. She tried to pry it off, but once she did, it ended up stuck to her arm. From there, attempts to turn it on resulted in her finger getting stuck to the screen. "Huh. So, no texting?" said Steven.

"No texting," replied Connie. "But, we can handle this on our own, right? Magnets are just science! Maybe if we can get far enough away from each other, we won't be attracted to each other anymore!"

Even though they'd still probably be magnetized, it was worth a shot. "Let's try it out!" said Steven. "But the bots already tried pulling us apart. What else could we do?"

"Hmm…" Connie gave their surroundings a glance, settling upon something in the distance. "Aha! Over there: let's let the force of gravity do the work!" She tried to get up, pulling Steven along with her. He stumbled, but caught himself before they could fall over. The pair shared an awkward laugh as they clumsily staggered over to potential salvation.

Working in tandem just to walk, they made their way to the location of Connie's plan: a small playground not far from the boardwalk. It had all the usual equipment: swings, a seesaw, a slide. But what Connie was focusing on were the monkey bars. "Are you sure this'll work?" Steven asked.

Connie reached for the bars. "No, but what's the worst that could happen? Could you give me a boost?" He did, and she pulled her legs up and hooked them around the bars. "Now dangle!"

Steven did so, letting himself fall to the ground. But rather than land in the sand, he found himself hovering between it and her. "Uh, I don't think it's working!" he said.

"Just a bit longer!" Connie said, struggling to hold on. "Let the force of nature do its work!" But magnetism seemed to be beating out gravity, as Steven got no further from Connie. He did get closer to the ground, but that was only because she was beginning to lose her grip. "We've almost got it! Just a…little…more…!"

But it was not meant to be; Connie lost her grip, falling down on top of Steven, who had just fallen to the ground. Getting up wasn't easy with the two back to back-to-back, but they managed. "Guess gravity isn't as strong as we thought," said Steven.

"No, I guess not," Connie replied. "But we're definitely onto something here. Maybe if we wedged something in between us, we could pry ourselves apart somehow…?"

After a moment, Steven had an idea, but not one he seemed to like. "I know someone who might be able to help us," he said. "But it could be pretty costly…"

"So, any luck?" Sideswipe had been observing their progress on studying the gauntlet from the other side of the room, as he had been forbidden from coming within twenty feet of it.

"Nothing so far," said Ultra Magnus. A pair of empty energon cubes sat on the table before them, having been magnetized together. "This thing doesn't exactly come with an off switch…or a manual."

"Maybe we should have asked Mr. Smiley where it was found," Elita suggested. "There might be some clues there."

For the past few hours or so, Magnus had been fiddling with the gauntlet to no avail. But just now, something finally came up: what they had all assumed to be a stabilizer on its back turned out to be a dial when he tried rotating it. "Hold on, I think I have something!" The other two peered over his shoulder as he spun it around, turning it from red to blue.

"All right! Shoot it shoot it shoot it!" shouted Sideswipe. Elita escorted him to a safe distance as Magnus aimed at the cubes. With another blast from the gauntlet, it at first seemed like nothing had changed. That is, until the cubes slowly slid away from each other.

"We've done it!" Magnus declared, excitedly slamming his fist down onto the table. However, in the proximity of metal, the cube slid away. And as it slid closer to the other one, that slid away from it in turn. "Oh…"

Elita picked the cubes up. Any attempt to bring them together resulted in them pushing away. "Hmm. It could very well be a temporary solution…"

"You kidding?" said Sideswipe. "Steven would hate that! How'd he be able to hug his friend again?"

Ultra Magnus considered this, looking down at the cubes. "You have a point…Steven does enjoy hugs." He picked up the gauntlet again. "Very well. We will try and find a more optimal solution, but if nothing presents itself, we'll have to repel them."

"It will appease Dr. Maheswaren, in any case," said Elita. "Alright, let's keep looking."

"And that's basically how we ended up like this," Steven finished his story. "I figured if anyone here had any ideas, it would be you. So, can you help us?"

The small pale child appraised the situation, scanning the attached pair from all sides. After a while, he wordlessly went into his garage to rustle through the tools available to him.

"Oh, and the 'bots already tried pulling us apart," said Steven. "No offense, Onion, but if they couldn't do it, I'm not sure you could.

As though disappointed, Onion set down the crowbar he had been brandishing. Instead, he looked around the garage, before beckoning for them to come closer. He guided them into place, stopping them when they were right under it.

Connie didn't seem to trust him. "Are you sure this is safe?" she asked. "I'm not sure your friend really knows what he's doing."

"Who, Onion? He's the smartest guy I know!" said Steven, as Onion prepared a saw. "If he can't fix us, I'm not sure anyone can!" He then pressed the button to lower the garage door.

"If you say so…" The door lowered down towards them, and Onion directed them to lean in opposite directions. They did, and the door slowly but surely closed in-between them; Steven on the outside, Connie on the inside. "Did it work?"

"I don't know," Steven answered. "I think so. Try walking away!" They did, each going in the opposite direction. Having a door between them meant they weren't touching, but the power of magnetism was still too strong. They struggled to move after just getting a few feet apart, eventually being pulled back into the door. Onion flashed a thumbs-up.

Rubbing her head, Connie pried herself off of the door, or at least as best she could. "No luck," she said. "We gave it our best shot, Steven, but maybe we should just let the Autobots handle this."

"No way, we're so close!" he said from the other side. "We just need to use our brains more–science got us into this mess, science can get us out! And what better place to learn about science than the place this all started?"

"The museum?" asked Connie. "I guess Mr. Smiley might know something. Like you said, we can't give up now!"

"Yeah! Let's go!" For a brief moment, neither of them moved, mostly due to not being able to. Steven knocked on the door–"Uh, Onion, could you…?"

Onion nodded, pressing the button to open the garage. The door slid up, only for it to begin dragging Steven and Connie up with it. "Woah! Help!"

"Onion, quick, quick!" Brandishing a crowbar, he ran to the pair's aid.

By the time Steven and Connie made their way to the museum, night had fallen. "Oh… Probably closed, huh?" observed Steven, noticing the lack of lights inside.

"Maybe not." Connie, and by extension Steven, approached the front doors, finding them unlocked. "Still open. Maybe that means Mr. Smiley's not done closing up for the night?" They headed inside.

Steven looked around anxiously at the unlit exhibits. "Isn't this breaking and entering?" he said. "Plus, we're not paying an entry fee. The 'bots won't be happy with me if this ends up being a felony!"

"Don't worry, it's fine!" Connie reassured him. "It's not like we're sneaking in here to see the exhibits, we just want to ask Mr. Smiley some questions about our situation. Besides, if he really wanted to keep people out, he should probably start locking the doors…"

"Good point, I guess," said Steven, though he was far from assured. Not helping was the eerie atmosphere: the museum was a fun place during the day, but after hours it was an entirely different story. The low light combined with the eerie silence made it easy to believe that threats of all sorts were lurking just around the corner. For instance, although the animatronic 'Grimlock' from earlier was now completely still, the way its teeth glinted threateningly in the moonlight made Steven want to get out of here as soon as possible.

There was nobody in the lobby, nor were there any workers in either the gift shop or the security booth. "Wow, this place really is abandoned," Connie said. "But, there's no way Mr. Smiley could have left without locking up first, right?" Steven shrugged. "Let's see–Hey, Mr. Smiley! Are you still here!? We need your help!"

Connie's shout echoed through the halls of the museum, but nobody answered. Half-expecting something to growl in response, the two couldn't help but inch closer than they already were. After glancing at each other, and realizing what they were afraid of, the duo shared a small laugh, partially of relief.

"He's probably at home by now," Steven said. "I guess we'll just have to get this figured out ourselves…"

The two headed back for the exit, finding no help in the museum. "I'm sure the Autobots can think of something," Connie added. "Although…I have to say, as far as someone to be stuck to…you're a pretty good choice."

Steven smiled. "Aw, thanks. Despite everything, I-I enjoyed hanging out with you today. Maybe once we're back to normal, we can do this again sometime? The hanging out, not the being stuck together part!" he quickly clarified. Once again, the two shared a laugh.

"I think I'd like that," said Connie. "You're fun to be with, Steven."

After a day of being too close, it seemed the pair had grown closer. They walked back the way they had come, thoughts of how to remedy their current problem now gone from their heads. Instead, they wondered what they would do next time they hung out. Unfortunately, these thoughts were interrupted by a chance glance from Steven, revealing something rather strange. Or rather, it was the lack of something that was strange.

He blinked, as though unsure of his own vision, before looking all around. "Uh, Connie?" he asked, somewhat nervous. "Wasn't Grimlock right there?"

"Who, the dinosaur?" She looked over into the room, but there was a noticeable lack of dinosaurs in it. "No, it had to be somewhere else, right? I mean, a giant t-rex animatronic doesn't just get up and walk away, right?"

The pair stepped in to investigate. Sure enough, there was the pedestal it was stood atop, but no sign of it. "It does if it isn't an animatronic…" Steven said cryptically.

"Huh? You mean you think it's…" Before Connie could finish her thought, a shadow fell over them. Something very large put its head down close to them, and let out a low growl. "...real?"

As slow as they could, the duo turned around to face it. And sure enough, there it was: Grimlock, in all his glory, staring down at them. A relic from a lost age, in the flesh, no doubt moments away from a late-night snack.

"Be very, very still," Connie whispered. "Their vision is based on movement–"

Grimlock opened his mouth to let out a mighty roar, shattering the silence of the night.

"Nevermind! Run!" Steven and Connie took flight as fast as their conjoined legs could carry them, with Grimlock right behind. The t-rex ran rampant through the museum, smashing through anything in his way, be it exhibits or walls, to reach his prey. Though attached at the hip, the pair were faster, though only slightly.

Steven noticed the gift shop. "Quick, in here!" They rounded the corner and headed inside, taking refuge behind the shelves of merchandise. Each of them held their breath as Grimlock eyed the place through the door, trying to sniff them out.

Eventually, he seemed ready to give up. He walked away to search elsewhere, which is when Steven and Connie tried to sneak away. But just then, the silence was once again shattered. "Steven! Steven, what happened here!?" They duo flinched as Elita called out, gaining Grimlock's attention. He turned around, noticed the duo, and the chase resumed.

As they ran for their lives, at least this time they knew they had some form of solace. "Elita! Over here, help us!" cried Steven. They rounded the corner to find her amid the wreckage, holding the Polarity Gauntlet. If she was surprised to see them, then the sight of Grimlock was something else entirely.

Elita-1 wordlessly leapt into action, drawing her blaster and opening fire on the rampaging dinosaur as it rounded the corner. The shots did little to deter it, though they did set its outer covering on fire. Connie and Steven took cover as the battle between Elita and the dinosaur heated up–literally, as it was now burning.

Although there wasn't much room, Elita had just enough space to transform, opening fire on Grimlock. Her guns in helicopter form were slightly more effective, at least enough to drive him back somewhat. He crashed through a wall to retreat, and she transformed back. "Are you two alright?" she asked.

"We are now!" said Steven. "Good thing you showed up when you did! How'd you know where to find us?"

"I've been looking all over town for you!" she said. "Your little onion friend was able to point out where you were. We have a solution with the gauntlet, but it might not be ideal: you see, it can also work in reverse, causing two objects to–"

But her explanation was interrupted, as a massive chunk of dinosaur bone was hurled her way. The impact caused her to fall, dropping the gauntlet in the process. She picked herself up just in time to see her enemy emerging.

By now, the fire had spread to the rest of the museum. Grimlock's eyes appeared first, glowing red through the flames. He stepped out, revealing his full mechanical glory: a machine that looked very familiar. "Steven, you were right–that thing's a Predacon!" said Connie.

"He is?" Steven replied. "I thought he was a real t-rex!"

Grimlock roared as he charged, his jaws nearly gnashing down on Elita. The Autobot rolled to the side at the last moment, retaliating with a burst of gunfire into his side. She ducked under a tail swing before going into melee range. A few kicks proved fruitless, even with her ankle blades, and Grimlock moved in for a bite. "Elita!" Steven shouted. "We have to help her!"

Elita held open Grimlock's maw, which was moments away from chomping down on her. "No! Don't worry about me, just get to safety!" she said. But it was clear she was straining, and she couldn't hold him back for long. Grimlock pushed her back against a wall, trying to further jam her into his mouth.

"Come on, Connie, think, think!" She looked around the room for something that could help, her eyes soon settling on the fallen gauntlet. "Steven, over there!"

They ran over. "But how is getting them stuck together going to help?" he asked. Nevertheless, he worked with her to point it in their direction.

"It won't, but reversing their polarity might!" Once the gauntlet was facing the right way, Connie slid down its sleeve, with Steven squeezing in behind her. At their size, the triggering mechanism took the form of a long bar. "Push down!" The two pressed on the trigger, their combined strength just able to turn it.

A beam fired from the gauntlet, striking both Elita-1 and Grimlock. Confused by the unfamiliar light, the t-rex retracted to observe its source, giving Elita a moment of respite. When he went back for another bite, he struggled, as though an invisible force was holding him back–which is exactly what was happening.

Elita was being pushed back as well, though thankfully out of danger. "Using the gauntlet–good thinking, Steven!"

"Thanks, but it was Connie's idea!" Steven said.

"Get him, Elita!" said Connie. Now that Grimlock pushed Elita back with every attempt at attack, she was at a safe distance by default. She opened fire, whittling him down gradually. But as the battle went on, the museum began to face its share of collateral damage.

Steven peered out from behind a shattered glass pedestal. "Mr. Smiley's livelihood is in danger!" he said. "We've gotta do something!"

Connie knew what they had to do: "How do we switch it from repel to attract?" she shouted.

"The dial on top!" Elita shouted. She was pinned against the wall, Grimlock struggling to get closer. While she kept him busy, the two pushed the gauntlet once more.

"Okay, be careful not to hit Elita!" said Connie, turning the dial on top from blue to red. They returned back inside the glove, taking aim at both Grimlock and a fixture on the ceiling. "Ready?"

"Ready!"

"Fire!"

The Polarity Gauntlet let loose once again, striking Grimlock and the chandelier. This time, the t-rex knew exactly what had happened, turning and roaring at the occupied gauntlet.

"Hurry, go!" Steven and Connie tried to run to safety, only for Steven to get snagged on something around the gauntlet's outer ring. "Ah, I'm stuck!" Connie tried to pull him free as the massive Predacon was feet away from them…

And his jaws snapped shut mere inches away. The chandelier was being pulled down towards him, also pulling him back like a dog on a leash. He continued pulling and pulling, eventually succeeding in yanking it free of the ceiling. It crashed into him, knocking him to the floor.

With one final heave, Connie pulled Steven free from the gauntlet. In the process, a tiny (by Transformer standards) lever was pulled, turning the dial on top from red to yellow. "Is…is it dead?" Connie asked, not noticing this.

Grimlock staggered to his feet, definitely not dead. The shattered remains of the crystal chandelier coated his body, the fragments of metal and glass piercing though his body, forced in further due to the magnetism. Despite his mangled body, he roared, preparing to finish off the humans once and for all…only for Elita to slide past, firing a well-timed blast into his side. The t-rex's side exploded, and he fell to the ground, dissolving until only a spark remained.

Steven opened his shut-tight eyes. "You did it!" he exclaimed excitedly. "Elita, you defeated Grimlock!"

Elita got to her feet, heading over to the fallen spark. "It was thanks to your help," she said. "The two of you make a good team!" She knelt down to pick up the spark, only for it to slide away as her hand got closer. Reaching for it again yielded the same result. Groaning in exasperation, she began trying to chase it down.

"You know…we do make a good team," Connie said, smiling at Steven.

Steven smiled right back. "Yeah! I never would've thought to use the gauntlet like that! We should team up more often! 'Steven and Connie: Predacon Hunters!' It has a nice ring to it."

Connie laughed. "Maaaybe we'll stick to hanging out at your place for now," she said. "I always said I wanted to meet a Transformer up close, but this isn't what I had in mind!"

The nearby wall exploded, nearly sending them both back inside the gauntlet. But it was only Magnus and Sideswipe, both ready for action. "Where is it!? Where's that thing, lemme at it!" shouted the latter.

The two newcomers looked around. Much of the museum was in shambles, on fire to boot. As Elita continued chasing the spark, Connie and Steven stood near the gauntlet. "Hey guys!" said the former, waving. "Fashionably late, huh?"

"So, let me see if I have this correct," said Ultra Magnus. "The Polarity Gauntlet's reverse mode is activated by this switch, and not only is it almost impossible to see normally, but is hidden by the user's arm while it's being worn?"

"Yup, that about sums it up," Connie said. She and Steven, now un-magnified, stood outside the museum with him as the fire brigade put out the flames. "Doesn't seem very intuitive, does it?"

He set the gauntlet aside. "Ah, these ancient Cybertronian relics rarely are," he said. "But, this should hopefully be the last time Mr. Smiley tried to add one as an exhibit."

"Or that SIdeswipe tries to handle one!" joked Connie.

"Mmm, that's a good point. Maybe this would be safer in a museum…"

Speaking of, Sideswipe and Elita stepped out of the nearly flame-free museum. "Well, now we know what my scanners were picking up," she said. "At least this all happened when nobody was here."

"What I don't get is how nobody noticed their animatronic dinosaur was actually a Predacon!" he said. "I mean, there weren't any signs!?"

"That one's actually easy to explain." she answered. "It looks to me like 'Grimlock' here has what's known as a parasitic spark. The animatronic likely existed separately until he found and inhabited it. We're lucky we were able to deal with him before he could possess something more dangerous." She opened up a small groundbridge, placing the spark in storage.

"Wait, what's more dangerous than a dinosaur!?" Steven wondered. Everyone laughed…but they were interrupted by the sound of helicopter blades.

The official-looking vehicle descended from above, touching down on the street nearby. It was mostly white, with the word 'NEST' emblazoned on the side. Several official-looking people stepped out, flanking one in the middle. "Connie!" said a woman who looked a lot like her daughter. "What happened!? I've been trying to call you all day, but you never answered, and now you were in a burning building!?"

"Mom!" Connie exclaimed. "I didn't get any…" She looked at her phone, seeing a whole bunch of unanswered calls and texts. "Oh. I-I can explain…"

"I don't think you're the one who needs to explain," said Connie's mom, glaring accusingly at the Autobots. Sideswipe looked away while whistling, while Magnus awkwardly averted eye contact. "But not right now. I'm just glad you're safe." She embraced your daughter. "Besides, it's past your bedtime."

"Sorry about all this, Priyanka," said Magnus. "There was an incident with a magnetic gauntlet. And a Predacon. Nothing like this will happen again."

"I should hope not," said Priyanka. She and Connie returned to the helicopter. "We'll discuss this during our next meeting. Goodnight to you all–including you, Steven. Hopefully we can meet again under better circumstances."

"Uh, okay!" Steven said, surprised she knew him. "Bye Connie, bye Connie's mom! See you later!"

Connie waved as the helicopter took off. "Bye, Steven! I'll text–oh, but I don't know your number. I'll email you–oh, no. I'll write you a letter!" The copter carried them away, hoping to see each other another day.

Sideswipe noticed how Steven watched their receding form. "Uh-oh! I think Stevens got a girlfriend!" he teased, tousled his hair. "Our little boy's becoming a man!"

"No I'm not!" he said, laughing. The others joined in…until they were again interrupted.

"MY MUSEUM!" came a shout from behind them. A distraught Mr. Smiley had only just arrived, taking in the sight of the smoldering building. "What happened!?"

"Uh…okay, I know this looks bad," said Sideswipe. "Because it is. It is bad. But, it's not all bad! We can pay for the damages!" Magnus shook his head. "We can't? We can't pay you."