21. Over the Edge
Several days had passed since Allison left the Ark, but her harrowing introduction with the new Autobot arrivals meant it was time to return. Only this time it was under the escort of Optimus Prime and Prowl. Allison spent the entire trip side-eying the two as they flanked Wheeljack, feeling like she was in some sort of show car parade. But as her gaze looked up at the giant red and blue truck, its wheels churning the gravel beneath it, she couldn't have been in safer company. Surely nobody would ever dare take on Optimus Prime.
Allison was cautiously optimistic about returning to the Ark, especially with the presumption of getting to know her new friends better, but there was additional context of her return that made her stomach churn. Knowing that the alien science and experimentation she was about to undergo was in aid of curing her felt no different to going under the microscope for a terminal illness. She understood Wheeljack was smart. He was a scientist that more than likely outpaced the highest of IQs on Earth all put together. But becoming acquainted with the full extent of his technical prowess in the pursuit of solutioning how to remove the energon from her body was not a settling thought. This was also going to be a very personal process, for both him and herself, and that alone weighed on her tremendously.
There was no experience to know what a reunion for their kind might look like, so Allison lagged a little bit behind not wanting to be in the way. Wheeljack let her out and transformed as soon as they reached the hologram entrance, but when he noticed her hanging back he dropped from the Autobot procession. For a moment it looked as if he was deciding if he should offer her a ride, until the commotion from the interior cargo room distracted him. It seemed their return was interrupting a very intense game of catch Ratchet's very important piece of medical equipment between the twins.
The first thing Allison heard was the bleated, falsely excited exclamation of "Prowl! " that could have only come from Sideswipe. She could not see the look on Prowl's face, but the way he made a beeline for the red Autobot spoke volumes. A quick, panicked "Catch!" happened right before Prowl's hand shot out and he snatched whatever Sideswipe was holding before he could throw it.
"Does Ratchet know you two are in here destroying his property?" Prowl intoned dully, sounding very much like a parent that had been through this kind of thing before.
Sunstreaker was on the other side of the room, arms planted impatiently on his hips, as one would if they were bored. He clearly wasn't flustered by Prowl, as if they'd already gone through this sort of dress-down very recently. "Ratchet is recharging." If Sunstreaker's answer was supposed to placate the Autobot officer, then it didn't work. If anything, it only seemed to incense Prowl further, as he pointed at Sunstreaker tersely and growled.
"You two, in my office, now. We have multiple items to discuss." Sideswipe wilted, his expression turning pathetic, while Sunstreaker straightened once his eyes finally set on Optimus Prime. The Autobot leader heaved a massive sigh, continuing his path up the ramp to the ship proper as if this was a sight he saw often. Optimus didn't seem keen on punishing his crew, instead he gave Allison the impression of someone who just wanted people to grow up and move on. Prowl on the other hand did not appear to share such sympathies.
Hovering around the entrance trying to look at anything but the collection of Autobots shuffling out of the room, Allison's eyes finally caught Sideswipe's. One would have thought he was seeing her for the first time again.
"You're back!" He straightened from his pathetic slump, fears of Prowl's wrath forgotten. "I wanted to—"
"—Office," Prowl repeated, this time more forcefully as he landed a heavy hand on Sideswipe's shoulder. Sideswipe reluctantly allowed himself to be led out of the room, but not without throwing a curious glance over his shoulder at Allison.
Sunstreaker must have followed his brother's eyeline, because he looked over at her as well. His expression was… puzzling. A worried frown colored his features while Allison tried to offer him back a sympathetic smile, hoping to appear friendly. Sunstreaker's brow tightened in distress, as if he wasn't expecting it, but once he realized he was being left behind he turned and quickly followed his brother out of the room. He wasn't outright hostile so that was progress.
Once they left, Allison looked up at Wheeljack. "Are you joining them?"
"Nah, I was already yelled at," he said, without a care in the world. "Prowl's bite isn't as tough as his bark." His head tilted forward in a clear indication for her to follow him further into the Ark. It was time to get to work and peel away some of the final layers of the mystery that was Wheeljack.
For the next few days, Allison spent most of her time with him when she was at the Ark. They fell into a bit of a routine: Wheeljack would claim her from the motel in the morning and ferry her back and forth, returning in the early evening. The first mystery she got to unravel was where he spent most of his time when he was alone.
Past Ratchet's medbay, through the same backdoor she remembered watching Wheeljack disappear through during her very first hours in their care, was the space that he used as a laboratory. He called it a workshop but she wasn't sure why the distinction was important to him. Allison noticed the passageway was more solid in this part of the Ark, and the very large blast doors marking the entrance could not have been any more foreboding.
This was Wheeljack's space. His private corner of the ship, and Allison could not help but feel a special kinship at being invited into this room without a second thought. You could learn a lot from someone by the state of their personal haven, and in this case, what Allison learned was that Wheeljack was a bit of a slob. She couldn't be too critical, because it wasn't like her own apartment was much tidier.
The massive room itself was a disaster, but Allison didn't come in with expectations. There were multiple long slabs along the perimeter of the room that were obvious work tables, trashed with unidentifiable machinery and various mechanical odds and ends. Cabinetry and shelving was stuffed to the brims with more supplies. Cables dangling from the ceiling that looked like connectors of some kind, and the room had an ethereal glow to it courtesy of a dozen or so monitors suspended over the tables from the ceiling. Even some wall panels had not been spared, torn out to expose the internals of the ship, cabling from within snaking along the skeletal structure and into various data terminals. Electrical hums and beeps surrounded her, making the room seem almost alive. It was chaos, and it suited him perfectly.
The most surprising observation was the fact that the floor was clear. That was at least one safety hazard Wheeljack was not willing to risk. The space was otherwise fascinating, and also kind of adorable, in that chaotic, mad genius sort of way. There was likely an order to it that only he understood.
Allison would become very acquainted with this room, repeating the same pattern with Wheeljack everyday. He would run various alien scanners over her, input the results into one of his terminals, scan some more, ask her questions about her physical state, and test samples of the energon he would siphon from her using the same equipment Ratchet did. Occasionally he would wobble a different piece of equipment around her, or attempt to attach something to either of her arms while asking her if she felt anything. More scans and readings later it became obvious that he was looking for something to either hide the energon signature or remove it entirely; permanently. The remainder of the time was spent watching him run back and forth between different unfamiliar pieces of equipment and monitors, sometimes balancing one or more smaller energon cubes in his hands. Ratchet interrupted them a few times, sometimes to offer insight where he could, but other times it was to complain about the need to finish draining the rest of the foreign energy from her body.
The temporary siphoning Allison was already used to would delay testing, Wheeljack would remind him. It would all be for naught however, as it seemed he was getting no closer to figuring out what was wrong with her. Allison could read it in his body language and the way his mood would change as the days progressed. He became a bit more frantic. More scattered. More determined.
There was nothing Allison could say or do, because this was so beyond her understanding. This wasn't about fixing a computer, or re-wiring a speaker. This was genetics, and biology, and alien energy theory thrown together in a way they should have never mixed. She suggested at one point Wheeljack take a blood sample, but he refused, stating there was nothing they would glean from that that they couldn't already detect with their scanners. Mildly unnerving, but also defeating.
When she wasn't napping or watching any of the selection of movies downloaded on her laptop while Wheeljack scurried around his lab, there were frequent moments of downtime. This allowed Allison a chance to mingle with the others, usually when Wheeljack understood there was a need to give her a break. It was nice to have something else to think about other than the constant worrying over test results.
Prowl wasn't wholly interested in her, at least not outwardly, but something told her he was watching her very closely without her noticing. It wouldn't have been out of character for him to be taking notes and putting together a file behind closed doors. He was at least polite, and would go so far as to nod at her when they crossed paths. To his credit, he seemed to be giving her the benefit of the doubt. She assumed that had more to do with him trusting in Optimus Prime rather than her but that was something she could accept. It was clear that despite the stern, ornery nature of him, he was still an Autobot with an unyielding sense of duty and care for the others.
Optimus Prime himself was a whole separate enigma. Whatever ideas Allison had built in her head about him—from what little she'd observed from Teletraan-1—were only confirmed upon seeing how he handled both his crew and her. He was attentive, but never pushy, and he was genuinely interested in listening to her recount her experiences since coming to know the Autobots. He made a point to check on her and ask her how she was feeling. Allison was suspicious that he knew a lot more about her than he revealed, but he was careful about the questions he asked her. She supposed it was only a matter of time before he asked her the question, and that was essentially a series of inquiries about her first encounter with Wheeljack. He wanted it from her perspective. It was really hard to tell if he was asking with ulterior motives, but her impression of him was that everything he did was sincere. That made it easy to believe he earnestly wanted to know how she felt; how it had affected her life. His questions were led by concern for her physical and mental wellbeing. Very quickly it became obvious that Optimus Prime was very much dad. He was fatherly, and always alert to everything going on around him.
The other Autobots seemed to have fallen in line a little more since Optimus Prime and Prowl returned. Ratchet was the same as ever, and the one she probably saw the most outside of Wheeljack. He had this weird habit of acting like he would rather be doing anything else other than checking on the state of her collective injuries, yet he couldn't stay away. It didn't matter if Allison told him nothing had changed in the span of a day, but she grew a fondness for needling him every chance that she could. Ratchet liked to pretend he didn't enjoy the attention, but his eyes were surprisingly emotive and betrayed him.
Sideswipe's pranks were on hiatus, as his new favorite hobby was seeing what Allison was up to when she wasn't cloistered in Wheeljack's laboratory. She took up a new experiment of her own, and that was to find a new outlet for the Autobot that didn't involve dangerous stunts or destroying the property of others. Her intention was initially curiosity, because she sincerely wanted to know what exposure he— or they—had with human entertainment. Teletraan-1 had a sizable storage archive of Cybertronian media but Sideswipe complained that partaking in the same stuff year after year without anything new grew boring very quickly. So she set to work by starting with something simple at first: short-form Internet videos and memes, and when that was a success she moved on to making a list of popular television and movies to try. Sideswipe was enthralled, and while easily entertained sounded mildly insulting, that really was the truth. Allison likened it to genuine curiosity rather than a less charitable commentary about his intelligence. After all, his introduction to Teletraan-1 suggested that there was someone quite clever and analytical underneath the boisterous behavior.
Using this as an olive branch of sorts, Allison would invite Sunstreaker whenever she saw him. This was often, because he always managed to be lurking around when Sideswipe was occupied. She took this as a sign that he was unsure, still mistrusting, but interested in the same way a wild animal might be cautious when being offered enrichment. At first, Sunstreaker would give her short answers and disappear, bashful when caught, but overtime he slowly integrated himself. This was probably easy with the buffer of his brother, but he wasn't very involved in their lengthy, exuberant discussions about human culture and interests. Sunstreaker was infuriatingly hard to read because he would never wipe the narrow-eyed scowl off his face. The indifference was frustrating but she also knew she couldn't be friends with everyone. Maybe in time he'd come around, but all she could do was offer.
The one Autobot she didn't see was Bumblebee, until one early afternoon she was surprised to find him outside her door instead of Wheeljack. Allison was so lost in thought about him and wondering why he hadn't contacted her yet when she walked out the door, that when she looked up to see Bumblebee there instead, she nearly fled back inside in surprise.
"Sorry," he said, both anticipating her question and offering sympathy for being unannounced. "Wheeljack said he was busy and told me to bring you..."
Looking around, the coast was still clear. There would be no prying eyes or ears to witness her conversing with a sports car. "Oh… it's okay." Allison was wrestling with the need to say something about the last time they'd seen each other. The circumstances had been… traumatic, but she wasn't sure if dredging that night back up again was worth it. She was so relieved to see him alive, and in one piece and was feeling an overwhelming need to express that. Maybe that was too much. "I didn't hear from him so I was starting to worry. He seemed… off yesterday." It was obvious that the mounting lack of progress and growing urgency was starting to pick at Wheeljack's temper, and the prior night was the worst she'd seen him. He didn't make it obvious, or tried not to at least, but he wasn't as subtle as he thought. She had attempted light conversation, going as far as to ask what was on his mind, but it had been clear he wasn't going to reciprocate. That was the last time they'd spoken.
"He can be tunnel-visioned when he's busy in his lab with something. I've seen him forget to replenish his energon for days. You practically have to bust his door down and drag him out." Bumblebee offered as a means of encouragement once she sat down in the front seat. Allison didn't think it sounded encouraging at all. It sounded pretty unhealthy if she was honest.
"I think maybe I should leave him alone today. Just tell him I'm sick or something."
Bumblebee had only just started to move, but he stopped abruptly. "A-are you sick?"
"No—" She wondered why he sounded so upset now. Was he afraid of catching something from her? That felt implausible. "It's just an excuse. We humans do it all the time." Allison said with a shrug. She was worried about Wheeljack, but if he was busy she didn't want to distract him from some other important Autobot business.
"Oh, I get it. We do that too sometimes!" The enthusiasm in his voice made it sound so much worse. Allison felt a compelling need to shrink into the seat and disappear, but that wasn't an option. Bumblebee remained quiet for a beat as if to let that sink in, or to prepare her for what came next. "He uh… was pretty insistent though. I think you should talk to him." The fact that he started moving again seemed to imply that this really wasn't a choice. She settled back with a sigh, aspirations of melting away into the seams disintegrating away into smoke.
"Yeah, I guess." She watched as the world trotted by her window, her chin in her hand, not at all looking forward to what she would walk into today. Bumblebee too fell into silence, so this was the perfect time to express some complicated feelings. "Hey, um, I'm glad you're here. I was worried about you." She frowned, wondering if such an admission was weird, even if it was the truth. It was hard to express why she felt so strongly about his well-being in particular, but it was probably born from the experience of actually watching him try and fight off Soundwave. Terrifying didn't even begin to cover it.
"Yeah?" There was the weirdest sensation around her, almost as if Bumblebee was expanding, just slightly, like the frame of the car was stretching at the seams in one quick little snap. Allison had no idea what that was about, but she was immediately struck that his tone of voice sounded teasing. She'd expressed the biggest flattery one could accept under the circumstances. How funny she thought, just as he was about to add to that single word. "...Well I was worried about you too." This statement was more subdued; an honest admission of care that immediately made Allison feel more comfortable. The first time she'd experienced a very real threat, he had been there, and with that came a lot of emotional weight.
The drive was comfortable and it was easy to fall into casual conversation with Bumblebee. Communicating with Wheeljack had certainly gotten easier too. He was more open now that he wasn't making every effort imaginable to never be in the same room as her. Despite that progress there was a feeling within their most recent interactions that he was still a little bit guarded. Something was on his mind he wasn't sure how to express. It was hard to pinpoint why, or what, because truthfully Allison would never fully comprehend what was in Wheeljack's head and there was simply nothing to compare this strange, alien companionship to. He wasn't dishonest, or avoiding conversation with her, but now that the circumstances between them were so different and… harrowing, he acted like he was afraid of something in the distance that could not yet be seen.
One could make an educated guess about what might be just over the horizon. Decepticons, and Wheeljack's advantage of experience meant that he knew much better than she did as to what was coming. This undercurrent of tension meant that Allison should be very, very afraid. She was vulnerable, and completely exposed every waking moment that she was alone, and it was a feeling she hated greatly. The apprehension in all his mannerisms was tangible, and growing more and more turbulent as the days progressed with nothing but failure.
This meant that Allison really wasn't sure what she was about to be exposed to when they arrived at the Ark. Bumblebee escorted her to the back sanctum where Wheeljack dwelled, and she was surprised to find that he was not at the door when they arrived. It opened on its own accord, through some remote control from Wheeljack himself presumably. Bumblebee seemed reluctant to leave, maybe sensing something from within the room that she couldn't. She assured him she would be fine.
Allison had gotten used to navigating Wheeljack's lab by now, though it always seemed like something got moved around every day. She could imagine him digging through junk and tossing it aside without care for where it was placed. Today, she had to squeeze between a few busted devices by the door that smelled burnt, causing her to wrinkle her nose as she passed them. She could swear she could taste copper in her mouth.
Wheeljack was at the back, in his usual place at the main terminal facing away from her. She could hear him muttering to himself, his taps on the haptic keypad somewhat heavier than normal, like he was jabbing the keys. Several moments were needed for Allison to compose herself. Watching Wheeljack carry on with a solo dialogue with himself was awkward. She couldn't tell what he was saying, but his body language was very loud. He was usually alert to her presence, but this time he was too distracted to acknowledge her. The vibes were way off.
"Hey," she said, meekly.
Wheeljack's fingers hesitated in the air momentarily before resuming their sparring with the terminal. "You're here." There was an exasperated color to just those two simple words that gave Allison the impression that she was late, somehow, and that irritated him.
"Bumblebee came to get me," Allison knew she was stating the obvious but she was hoping small talk might allow her to ease straight through this conversation.
"Yeah, that makes sense, considering I asked him to," Wheeljack replied. The sarcasm this time felt more hostile than usual. He didn't elaborate or provide any further context, clearly absorbed in whatever it was he was doing.
Allison quickly realized she should have stayed in bed today. "So, what's the plan? You seem busy and that's okay. I can go…" Another pause.
"Nothing has changed." The tapping at the keyboard resumed. Allison was just supposed to know what this meant and what was expected of her, and it was stressing her out.
"This can wait a day if you need—"
A quick, sudden motion that Allison didn't have time to process, proceeded the tremendous SLAM as Wheeljack's fist connected with the terminal desk. Allison jumped from where she stood, swallowing her own breath as the crash rang hollow in her ears. It was loud, painfully so, and had more than likely left a dent on the surface. "Primus! " He snarled, before quickly spinning around. This sudden, alert focus directed down on her made Allison freeze like a cornered prey animal. She'd said something wrong, and he had never looked so big…
After seconds that felt like painfully silent years, Wheeljack finally blinked, becoming aware of himself. "Sorry, that wasn't you." He shook his head, jostling something within that was clouding him. "It's this blasted sampling. It's not working."
"It's fine. What is it you're doing, exactly?" Was it… fine? That was the first time she'd seen anything coming close to resembling aggression from him.
"I'm trying to separate the core compounds in the energon that's in your body from the—from you, to put it simply. But every time I think I've got it, your DNA samples, they... don't make it." He was starting to gesticulate with his hands, the signal that he was going to start barreling forward into string-of-consciousness rant. "I'm not a doctor and this is beyond even Ratchet's capabilities. I thought maybe I could approach this problem mechanically but that was stupid and only made the samples degrade faster. If Perceptor were here, I could…" Wheeljack stopped himself just long enough so that he could redirect his brain power to pacing. Energetic was a word that could describe what Allison was seeing, but in a bad way.
"Wheeljack…"
Without even really hearing her, he started talking again. "He's not here, because he's still stuck up on that slag heap of a planet, when he should be down here helping me. He's probably a gray husk in some burned out trench at this point anyway—"
Okay, Allison thought, something pretty serious was happening mentally and emotionally that was completely beyond her abilities as a mere human. She didn't know how to help him. How to comfort him, if that's even what he needed. She didn't know what to say. Wheeljack had lost far more than she would ever come close to understanding. It felt like sorry would only make things worse.
"Primus, I should be there helping him instead of—"
"—Instead of helping me." Allison didn't know where it came from, but her voice came out before she could stop it. Maybe it was the general mood of the room; the knowledge that Wheeljack's escalating temper was related to his inability to do something about the problem he caused. It wasn't about where his priorities should have been, and had nothing to do with Cybertron at all. Of course that's where he belonged. She didn't blame him for thinking about what, and who he lost. It was this sobering thought that made Allison realize immediately with a flare of panic—and regret—that what she said was very cruel. Watching Wheeljack lament and lash out with all this anger was making everything more painful. He was, objectively, partially (mostly) responsible for her condition in the first place, and it hurt to think maybe he harbored some unspoken resentment. She was a mistake he had to fix.
Wheeljack seemed to realize what he was saying because he finally stopped pacing to look down at her again. His eyes narrowed, the glare behind their surfaces shrinking to pinpoints of meager light and Allison wondered, for just a moment, if the implication that helping her was an obligation made him angry.
"Are you okay?" Without giving him a chance to react, or breathe, or say anything at all, Allison continued without stopping long enough to consider if it was wise. He obviously wasn't okay, and as a hand went to press flat against his chest she saw the brightest flash of anger pass over Wheeljack's face.
"Are you tryin' to piss me off?" Ouch. That hurt, the specific way Wheeljack growled those words throttled deeply, because he'd never sounded so angry speaking to her before. Not even when he caught her trying to run off with photo evidence of his presence, which was a time that felt like years ago now. This was different. She was a pest. A source of annoyance and frustration right now when he had better things to do with his time, and that really fucking hurt to think about.
"No." Allison said, her voice clipped and devoid of anything resembling emotion purely as a means of defense. She wasn't going to pretend she wasn't scared of him, at this exact moment in time, because she'd never seen him quite like this. Wheeljack wasn't allowed the privilege of knowing that though. "I'm trying to figure out what you're feeling."
The hand that was flat on Wheeljack's chest reached forward, in her direction, just as his expression sobered. She was far enough away that he wouldn't reach her, but she chose not to bridge the distance between them for whatever he was seeking. He didn't yell again. His eyes paled to a somber blue and Allison could see they were filled with pain. "You wouldn't be able to understand what I'm feeling."
Pulling his hand back, Wheeljack hesitated for a beat before turning to leave. He disappeared somewhere further back in the laboratory that was opposite the entrance she'd come in. He fled from her, out of fear, regret, or some kind of fucked up anger, and Allison stood there for a moment wondering how the hell the last several minutes had just happened.
With nothing left to do other than stand alone amongst Wheeljack's mess, Allison did the same: she fled, returning back through the passageway Bumblebee had escorted her down not even minutes earlier. Her mouth was set in a grim line of disquiet. Her breathing was even and calm, but she didn't know how to interpret the emotional storm that was swirling around in her chest. She wasn't angry at Wheeljack, because he was right. She couldn't understand how he felt, and maybe it was foolish to think she could identify with what he was going through. That didn't stop her from feeling upset and hurt over how he'd spoken to her, and in turn how she'd responded. Just being in the Ark was making her feel sour and nauseous so leaving was the top priority on her mind. She wasn't aware of where she was walking or what was around her until she ended up at the feet of Ratchet and Bumblebee in the infirmary.
They both turned immediately and looked down at her before she even realized they were there. "Hey Allison," Bumblebee said, his face lighting up, and boy did it feel painful. "Did you talk to Wheeljack?"
"Can we go? I'd like to go home, please."
"Oh… uh, okay?" She did not miss the way Bumblebee glanced up at Ratchet, whose blazing eyes were boring holes into her like a drill. An x-ray drill that could see everything. Nothing escaped Ratchet, so of course he would pick up on her vibrating aura immediately.
"I'll be back," Ratchet growled, before heavily stepping past her and back through the way she'd come. Allison turned and was about to open her mouth to stop him, but lost her nerve. None of this was going to solve anything and she couldn't help but feel like she kept making things worse. He was going to talk to Wheeljack, who was very clearly not in the mood to talk to anyone.
With a sigh, Allison watched Ratchet's retreating back before turning back to Bumblebee. "And I mean home. Back in the city. If that's okay?"
"I'm not sure…" That it's safe, Allison could finish his sentence for him without speaking another word, but right then she honestly didn't care. She just wanted to be home: the place she was probably going to lose soon with no means of paying for it. That thought simmered in her chest uncomfortably and left a bitter taste in her mouth.
"Please," she emphasized. Bumblebee looked around as if there was someone else in the room that would give him advice on how to approach this situation, before crouching down in front of her. He was frowning, a normally youthful face knitted tight with concern, and dammit that pissed her off. God, she didn't want to do this right now.
"Everything okay?"
"I don't know," Allison admitted, honestly. At first she thought it would be easy to keep her anger in check, but once Bumblebee asked the question she felt the gnarled plug that was keeping the torrent of her real feelings at bay break loose. "I don't know what happened, but I think I screwed up." Something tightened into a knot in her stomach and she felt a swelling of something rise up through her chest and up her neck. Her eyes burned, and she blinked rapidly to try and make it stop. She was not going to cry like a child.
"I don't think you did…" Bumblebee offered. Whether he noticed just how much she was battling with her own emotions was not obvious, because he was always so frustratingly positive. Allison could see his hand hovering near her out of the corner of her eye, like he wanted to place it on her somewhere for support. She became so laser-focused on it, mentally daring him to, she almost didn't hear the next thing he said. "I have a better idea."
"What?"
"Why don't we get out of here for a little while, and if you still want to go home, I'll take you home. Okay?"
"Okay…" She wasn't stupid. She knew what Bumblebee was doing. He had no intention of taking her home, so he was lying; trying to distract her and keep her from making a decision that would likely be deadly. The most annoying thing about that was, Allison already knew it was going to work. She wasn't intentionally trying to fish for attention, and that was part of why she was so frustrated. Looking like a total brat wasn't exactly the endgame in all of this. She was far too old for that.
"Fine." She wasn't going to let him win that easily though. "What did you have in mind?"
Watching Sideswipe stretch after a long patrol was an exercise in itself; one of patience. Standing in the midst of a crowd of very large, and very sticky trees, Sunstreaker watched his brother rotate both of his shoulders dramatically. He was running out of that patience, the pine needles from the trees above littering his frame and getting into places they shouldn't. It was going to be the pit digging them out from underneath his seams, and even more irritating scrubbing the disgusting sap off of his plating.
"We didn't do that much work," Sunstreaker grumbled, venting a heavy burst of heated air as Sideswipe moved on to a series of repetitive half lunges to stretch his legs. Water still dripped from his frame after an impromptu dip underneath the waterfall nearby. His brother was intractable when it came to silly little indulgences, and he was insistent that he needed that little bit of relaxation before returning home.
"You know after spending so much time in alt-mode I like to loosen up." Sideswipe had to be wasting his time on purpose. He was already primed to tease him after Sunstreaker staunchly refused to even touch the microbial infested run-off from the filthy mountain that was currently their home. He never shied away from polishing up his appearance, but the point of that was to feel clean.
"We barely went anywhere."
"I like to stay nimble."
"Ugh," Sunstreaker grunted, before the faint sound of voices caught his attention from the direction he desperately wanted to travel in; home. Both him and Sideswipe were partially obscured by the trees, but that didn't obstruct his own view of the voice's source. Or voices. Bumblebee was walking away from the hole that served as the Ark's entrance before collapsing into his alt-mode, followed closely by the human…
Curiosity compelled Sunstreaker to stare, and he folded his arms in observant silence as Allison climbed awkwardly into Bumblebee's primary side. He would never get over how stupid and uncoordinated it looked. He noticed her hesitation before sitting down, attentive to her facial expression before his view of her disappeared once Bumblebee's door snapped shut. His optics followed them as the scout traveled out of sight. "Where are those two going?" He hadn't meant to say it out loud and he knew what was coming.
Sideswipe's head appeared in his field of view, sizing him up with his usual flare for disruptive vigilance. "Why are you suddenly so curious?" It was obvious he was trying to bait him into admitting something but Sunstreaker didn't have the faintest clue as to what.
"Stow it. I'm merely wondering why they're leaving so soon. Wheeljack usually has her locked away for much longer than this."
"You make it sound like she's his prisoner." Sideswipe scratched idly at his helm, clearly having been an observer to the same behavior Sunstreaker had. "I don't know, maybe there's a change of plans today?"
"She looked unhappy." Sunstreaker blurted, without realizing it or giving much thought to the implications behind such an observation.
"Why are you paying that much attention to Allison?" The mockery in Sideswipe's voice sent a shudder of annoyance through Sunstreaker. He knew he should have just stayed away while his brother wasted time watching tv with the human like a couple of sparklings needing to be distracted. "Are you…" But… he couldn't.
"No."
"...worried about her?"
"NO. "
"You feeling okay? Do I need to call Ratchet?"
"Absolutely not. But if something is wrong with her, it could be…a security issue." That sounded reasonable, right?
Sideswipe scoffed, the underlying disbelief buried underneath the joy on his face. Sunstreaker knew he was being teased, and he didn't like it. "Security issue? How?"
"If she's upset at Wheeljack, which let's be honest, isn't that hard, what's going to stop her from going back to that… other human that keeps sniffing around?"
"Allison wouldn't do that…"
Sideswipe was cut off mid-sentence as Sunstreaker finally turned and jabbed a finger into his brother's chest, making sure to be real firm just for the extra emphasis. "You don't actually know anything about this human. She could betray Wheeljack—us—at any moment. It's not like there's any reason for her to stick around. She's already left once—" He paused, wondering himself where he was even going with this. The human leaving had been a good thing, because he didn't trust her. Not really. Right?
Despite Allison's constant coming and going, she remained persistent in her attempts to force some kind of friendship between them. Every time she invited Sunstreaker to join their bitlet enrichment time, a little part of that defiance inside him chipped away. He didn't want to admit it, but his general attitude towards her insufferable species—all the disdainful behavior and antagonistic evasion aimed at Allison—was really a coping mechanism for something he didn't want to address. Allison was an easy target for his lingering prejudice against her kind because of the circumstances Sunstreaker had no control of. He didn't like not being in control. The problem was, it wasn't easy anymore, because now this human had a name. She had become familiar.
For reasons he would never fathom, Sideswipe adored her. This made things even harder. Try as he might, he refused to be a stubborn nail that would never comply. Sunstreaker was admittedly curious about what they were doing, but he also wasn't stupid. Or blind. He knew what Allison was up to whenever she would catch him hovering around Sideswipe when they were together. He wasn't trying to sneak around, or linger in the shadows like some kind of freak. But the logic behind his resentment was starting to crumble, and he found himself doubting himself.
No…The human was… a nuisance. A liability. She was constantly in danger around them and sooner or later someone was going to step on her, and Sunstreaker just knew it was not going to be him. So why the Pit did it matter to him what happened to her? Why did he give in and join them every time she asked?
Primus, he was tired of this planet and all the conflicting feelings he was being forced to confront. Wheeljack should have never brought that stupid human home—
"BRO. " Sunstreaker didn't even realize he'd completely zoned out until the heavy clamp of his brother's hand on his shoulder shook him loose. Sideswipe's dimmed optics were swimming with earnest concern. No more teasing or mockery. This would have been the perfect time to actually talk to his brother, but Sunstreaker had no interest in therapeutic blathering.
"We have to follow them."
"Why?" Sideswipe shrugged. "Whatever is out there Bumblebee can handle."
"Like he handled Soundwave? What happens when he gets surrounded by more than just that oversized audio system? If they came after the human once, they'll do it again."
"...Okay, I see your point."
"We need to make sure the human doesn't do anything weird."
Sideswipe audibly gasped, making Sunstreaker flinch. "You are worried about her!"
The growl that escaped him was involuntary. "I'm not, but we need to be alert for any and all potential problems. I refuse to be the one responsible for pissing off Wheeljack. Especially if he already is. You know how volatile he gets."
"You think the two of them got into a fight?"
"I'm not sure, maybe. Given their weird co-dependency I wouldn't be surprised. Which means the human is probably highly unstable."
"I doubt that, but sure." Sideswipe didn't believe that Sunstreaker wasn't harboring ulterior motives, but he didn't care. "I don't know what's wrong with you, but I'm into it."
"Should be enough time for them to have gotten some distance." Sunstreaker left the shelter of the trees and transformed. Sideswipe was right on his heels, but he hesitated for a click before following suit.
"Roll out!"
"Shut up."
It didn't take long for Allison to notice that Bumblebee was driving in a direction unfamiliar to her. She'd expected it, based on their conversation before leaving, and she knew he had no intention of taking her home like she'd asked. Surprisingly she was… fine with that. It was a hollow declaration at best; something she didn't fully believe in. She'd been trying to make a point, that she didn't need them—need Wheeljack.
Trying to get over her own hurt feelings, Allison finally mustered the will to speak up. Bumblebee had been driving for a while in silence, maybe understanding that being trapped like she was was not the time to engage in conversations about the heart and soul. "So where are you kidnapping me?"
"I'm not kidnapping you." This time Bumblebee took her inability to refrain from dark implications in stride. His voice was careful and light. "But I'm not taking you home. I know you're upset right now, and it isn't the time to make rash decisions."
"I figured you wouldn't." Allison didn't have the energy to be annoyed. She supposed it was to her benefit that he cared enough to not let her do something so stupid. Death would be knocking at her door within the week if she went home.
There was a fleeting moment where Allison considered telling Bumblebee about her last conversation with Wheeljack, but she wasn't sure if she was even ready to think about it herself. She remained quiet until Bumblebee pulled to a stop in a wooded parking lot at the top of a hill. Looking around, Allison noticed she could see the hydroelectric dam set within the canyon of what had once been a raging river. Why they were here, she had no idea. Allison was chewing on yet another dark joke that had something to do with him hurling her over the side into the river below, but Bumblebee finally spoke before she could say something regrettable.
"So, you wanna talk about it?"
Allison leaned her elbow against the door. She wondered if that bothered Bumblebee, but he didn't comment on it. "No. I don't know. Maybe."
"Gotta pick one." She knew he wasn't doing it on purpose but he was grating on her nerves a little bit. He was being kind, so she had to bite down on that acid pill and keep it to herself.
"I'm realizing that…" Without even formulating what she wanted to say, Allison was talking mostly just to fill the silence; placate Bumblebee a little bit because she knew they weren't leaving until she poured out all her feelings.
"Wheeljack is infuriatingly stubborn and easily given to tempestuous mood swings?"
Choking back a laugh, Allison was honestly surprised Bumblebee went there. She didn't expect that kind of introspection about one of his family members from him especially. "I wasn't going to say it, but yeah. He has a reason though. This is my fault, and he's struggling to find a cure that might not actually exist."
"First of all, it's not your fault, Allison. Maybe just give him some space, whether he likes it or not. He's going to be persistent until he figures it out." A ripple of calm passed through the interior, like the Autobot was sighing. It was weird and a little spooky how it helped to ease her nerves.
"That's the plan."
"Your condition is unprecedented. What you're dealing with is some fusion of biotic and organic. From what Ratchet's told me, there's nothing in the rule book about how to deal with this. Wheeljack just wants to protect you."
It was not the first time they'd used that kind of language around her, and it was hard to navigate her feelings around what that meant. Allison reasoned that it probably came naturally to them, to see her that way. She was something that needed to be protected, because she was small. There were people that would find that patronizing, but Allison was learning that she wasn't one of them. At least when it came to large alien creatures armed to the teeth, because if it were another human she would prefer to throw herself over the dam than allow herself to be regarded in such a way. There was a conflicting pull in her heart that yearned for that particular kind of safety in ways she'd never thought about. She'd been struggling to care for herself for so long since leaving her dad, it was nice to feel looked after for a change.
Allison learned quickly that she really didn't mind the idea of having a guardian who was there to watch over her—a guardian angel. It was dramatic and childish. Wasn't that all she'd ever wanted growing up? There was a reason she was thrown in the principal's office at school every week, and it wasn't just because she'd punched a kid for making fun of her. She'd wanted Wheeljack back without having the brain development to understand what that meant.
It felt nice. It really wasn't more complicated than that.
"I know," Allison finally admitted, folding her arms as she leaned into the seat. The words sounded foreign on her tongue and like they were voiced by someone else. She listened to the roar of the water from the dam for a moment, the sound muffled through Bumblebee's windows. It filled the gaps between their conversation with something familiar to Allison; something real, and she wondered if it bothered him, not having that barrier. "I won't ever be able to relate to what he's been through, and I think that's something that he needs right now. Something is bothering Wheeljack that I'm completely incapable of helping him with." Looking out the window, the sun was filtering through the gaps in the pine trees, and it was so peaceful. She almost wished she could bottle this moment forever, because despite the circumstances of them being here, it felt tranquil. How much longer these types of moments would last was probably shrinking by the second. "All of your problems make mine feel small and…intrusive."
"That's not what Wheeljack thinks about you." Bumblebee was quick to nullify Allison's reasoning, and she cautiously believed what he was saying. "If Wheeljack dislikes something he'll discard it pretty quick."
"Yeah, I've seen his lab." This made her smile a little bit, but he didn't mean it as a joke.
"And you might be able to help more than you think." The statement hung in the air, which was enough of a suggestion that Bumblebee was holding back with something. He did not elaborate. "He cares about you."
Genuinely, Allison didn't know how to respond to that observation. Sidestepping it entirely so she could sort through those feelings later felt like the best course of action. "You're very perceptive." An embarrassed flush raced up her neck and spread across her cheeks.
"When you're as small as I am, you tend to be able to walk around without attracting much attention." The sobering mood receded just enough to allow Bumblebee the opportunity to be a little bit boastful. That's at least how Allison heard it. "You notice a lot of things. Sometimes things that bots don't even notice about themselves."
The opportunity presented itself to tease him a little bit, and Allison was finally feeling a little more receptive to light-hearted banter. "Oh, so you like to spy on people huh?"
"Wow, you make it sound so sinister." Everything around her rattled, a playful affectation. He was too sweet, but Allison was grateful for this mission to change her mind about going home. She was seconds away from thanking him before there was a shift in his demeanor. The pressure changed when Bumblebee completely stilled, the air around her tightening like a rubber band constricting all of the molecules into a denser space. He noticed something. "Uh, speaking of sinister, isn't that your human stalker over there?" A very unwelcome something.
No way. Allison sat bolt upright in the seat, her hand pressing flat against the dashboard so that she could get a clearer 360 degree view of their surroundings. She spotted him immediately: Agent Fowler stepping out of his own drab, blue sedan parked inside the secure pavement of the dam's power facility. He was far enough away that he'd need to look up to really notice the parking lot they were occupying, but still far too close for Allison to feel comfortable.
There didn't appear to be any other employees around to stop Agent Fowler, or maybe he had clearance to be there. Allison watched as he stepped towards a secure railing that overlooked the edge of the dam to the foaming river below. Presumably Bumblebee was watching him as well. A thrumming tension was under her palm, like a trained guard dog waiting for a sudden command.
"We need to go." Allison tried to place as much emphasis on that statement as she could, but she kept her voice low. There was no telling how easy it would be to startle him, and if doing so would be a huge mistake. She had no idea why Bumblebee wasn't speeding away already. A mild panic set in once Agent Fowler's careful attention carved a path upwards across the canyon and up the slope. It landed directly on the bright, very obvious yellow and black sports car parked conspicuously in an empty parking lot above a very secure location.
"Hold on, maybe we can do some reconnaissance."
That was the last thing Allison expected Bumblebee to say. "Is that a joke?"
"He doesn't know you're up here, and…" Fowler turned from the railing and walked towards the largest of the buildings that made up the facility's cluster of structures. He disappeared behind a wall and out of their line of sight. "...now he's leaving." Bumblebee almost sounded disappointed.
The rate at which her heart was hammering at her rib cage was incredibly uncomfortable, and most definitely audible somehow to the Autobot she was a passenger to. "He definitely saw you." Looking down at the dashboard where the radio would normally be, Allison didn't really know what she was looking at or talking to. It felt necessary to emphasize her point directly to him to look at some kind of fixed point. "I'm not comfortable being alone out here with him."
"We're not alone," Bumblebee said abruptly, and he sounded distracted—but not alarmed.
"What do you mean?" She wanted Bumblebee to clarify what he meant, but a sudden, loud rapping against glass sounded off right next to Allison's ear. She jumped with a muffled yell, whipping her head around to see one very suspicious federal agent standing right outside Bumblebee's door.
Agent Fowler gave her a weird look, before motioning downward with a finger; the universal signal for roll down the window I want to talk to you.
Allison had a microsecond to try and regain her composure before she fully panicked, instinct piloting her hands to slap at the door looking for controls to the window. It did escape her critical thinking that a federal agent asking you to roll your window down was typically a very bad thing… but this was no ordinary federal agent. The man had a sixth sense for knowing where she was, and it was starting to feel beyond coincidence. She'd had inklings of it being too convenient already, but she didn't put much stock in it outside of general suspicion. Now, it was too hard to ignore. Agent Fowler was watching her for a reason.
By some miracle Allison was able to transform her horrified shock into calm, genuine surprise fast enough that she hoped he didn't notice. She was making no progress on figuring out how to get Bumblebee to open the window, and he wasn't moved to help her. Without being too obvious, she nudged him with her arm hoping that he would get the message. He was either being stubborn, protective, or a little bit of both. Allison was just reckless enough to know that despite everything she didn't think Fowler meant to harm her.
It was agonizing, but the window finally rolled down, and Allison feared Bumblebee was intentionally making it slow on purpose. Fowler leaned down so that he could see her, and carefully, and as casually as possible Allison tried to angle forward to block his view of the very empty dashboard. He was focused only on her, his brow raised with a perplexed frown.
Allison was about to open her mouth to say something, but Fowler beat her to it. "Sorry to startle you, but I'm wondering if you know you're hanging around a secure location?"
"Oh, is it?" Whether Fowler bought her feigned surprise was not immediately obvious, despite the fact that she knew she was a terrible liar. "The view is nice." This was almost becoming routine.
Fowler stepped back, folding his arms as he was apparently satisfied with his appraisal of Allison's state. Her nerves were frantic as his eyes traveled over Bumblebee, but he looked confused.
"Seriously, are you following me?" Allison blurted without thinking. She was already beyond irritated and wanted to get it over with. There was a click somewhere around her, and it felt like it came from Bumblebee.
"We do seem to keep running into each other," Fowler said, his eyes returning to Allison's. He sounded bored. The line of his mouth relaxed, meaning he wasn't on the alert. At least that's what she hoped. He was very clearly evading the question, before pointing back at Bumblebee. "This your car?"
"Yes."
"I don't remember seeing it the other day."
There was a slight tremble beneath Allison, like Bumblebee was warning her about something; her response, it better be good. "My dad collects cars." What the fu–
The explanation, all of this, was terrible, but something caught Allison's attention beyond Fowler's side and back over towards the dam. She risked a glance across the empty distance, and what she originally saw as vague movement in the trees beyond the security gate turned into a flash of yellow. Then, it was a yellow shape, and oh fucking hell it's Sunstreaker.
The life drained straight through her body into the floor of Bumblebee's interior. On the opposite side of the canyon, right in the middle of the concrete lot that belonged to the hydroelectric facility, Sunstreaker stalked out of the brush like a giant, bright yellow cryptid. His eyes were trained directly on her, Fowler and Bumblebee across the way, but Allison couldn't risk staring too long. She forced her gaze back on the man in front of her, trying not to let anything slip on her face that would prompt him to turn around. Impossibly, he didn't notice what was going on right behind his back.
On the periphery of her vision, Allison watched the massive blob of yellow that was Sunstreaker crouched low stalk towards the blue sedan Fowler arrived in. Just as he reached it, an accompanying bright red shape came bounding out of the trees with considerably less caution. Sideswipe. There was no mistaking it this time, but Bumblebee tensed around her just as she felt her extremities go numb. The sound of rushing water off the dam masked the twins' activities despite it being broad daylight. It was hard to make it out in the blurry recesses of her line of sight, but it looked like they were ducking around Fowler's car, almost like they were—
They wouldn't.
They weren't that stupid right?
Allison desperately hoped that she wasn't seeing what it looked like was happening. The truth was undeniable. Sideswipe and Sunstreaker were pushing the compact, government-issued human vehicle towards the secure railing on the edge of the dam.
"CAR," Allison blurted. Fowler was taken aback, his eyes narrowing at her before almost turning around. "Cars. My dad really likes cars is what I was saying." Somehow she needed to keep Fowler focused on her. The second he turned around he would see two very large Autobots about to throw his car down a ravine.
This man was either not aware of what was going on, and not as perceptive as she'd thought, or he was playing along. "Might I ask what you're doing out here this late?" It was genuinely hard to tell.
"I didn't know there was a curfew." The undefined shapes of Sideswipe and Sunstreaker were currently positioning Fowler's car against the railing. Nausea pooled in Allison's stomach as the hood of the car was lifted over the barrier in a very unnatural position. It was a little unnerving to see how little effort it took for them to lift an entire vehicle, and there was no way to explain away the car's positioning with no evidence of a major impact. That didn't matter if the intent wasn't to keep it there, which is exactly what she feared.
"I'm just asking. No need to get defensive." The words were clipped and slightly suspicious. Allison felt like her prior assessment was wrong. Agent Fowler wasn't stupid, and she wasn't sure she was going to be able to pull this off. This was all going to come back and bite her in the ass, because she was going to be a person of interest in the case of the sunken government car.
It happened so quickly there was no way Allison could have prepared for it. The act was completely devoid of noise… at first. There was a shimmer of blue behind Fowler's back as his car teetered precariously over the railing. It wobbled several times, before its center-of-gravity shifted. It was almost graceful how it slowly pitched forward, nose-first straight down the dam's spillway. It rolled gently, before inertia played its part and the wheels picked up an astonishing amount of speed to vault the car over a sheer vertical edge into the water and waiting boulders below. Allison's eyes were yanked towards the mania playing out in the distance and she was unable to look away. The two Autobots, now in full, clear view, were exposed at the scene of the crime. Allison waited for the fireball from the gasoline ignition but the burst of an explosion once it crushed into the rocks never came. Only a tremendous crash, barely audible over the pressurized rush of water, echoed up through the terrain where it fell on the ears of Agent Fowler.
With her mouth now completely dry, the smallest of noises escaped Allison's throat as she held her breath. She resisted the urge to pinch herself, or bash her head against the steering wheel, because surely this was a bad dream. The twins shared a crisp high five before their sense of self-preservation finally kicked in. It was just in time too, because the second they transformed and peeled out of the field of view, Fowler suddenly became aware that something was going on. That something was slowly floating away, submerged beneath the current with only the hood cresting the surface.
"What the—" It was either the sound of his car being crushed by the rushing river below, or the noise of the twin sports cars tearing asphalt that finally got his attention. Fowler whirled around, while some deeply-ingrained instinct made him place a hand on his holstered gun. Like a bubble finally bursting, Allison could fully react, gasping as she clamped a trembling hand over her mouth to mask the noise. She was in shock; in disbelief of what she'd just seen, and was now a culprit to—she was going to find some way to ring the necks of those high-fiving bastards if it was the last thing she did.
Bumblebee still hadn't moved, though she could only imagine the myriad of things he was experiencing after what just played out in front of them. He felt like a spring ready to snap, but just waiting for the right moment to. Agent Fowler finally spun back around, looking Allison dead in the eyes when he pointed. "Do not go anywhere." The blood froze in her veins and she finally started to sweat. Prison was in sight for sure.
The expression on Fowler's face was terrifyingly hard to read as he turned and disappeared down a brushy pathway; presumably the very same path he'd used to sneak up on the two of them earlier. The moment he was out of sight, Bumblebee finally spoke. His voice was low in a way Allison wouldn't have thought possible. "We might want to talk to Optimus about this."
"Yeah…" was all Allison could say, realizing that she needed to brace herself as the swelling sensation of energy spooling up warned her of sudden movement. Bumblebee floored it in reverse through whatever mechanisms afforded to him, and raced back onto the road.
/