A/N: I know this chapter took a while, but I wrote almost 65,000 words in the interim somehow. If you like House M.D, please check out my new fic, Molasses~ I feel like I learned a lot from writing it and I hope y'all like the chapter!
Even with the extreme temps, his optics never went offline. The frigid air was only cold enough to keep his gears from rotating at speed. His joints were locked up, but his systems remained on. With the pain in his frozen wires, he almost didn't hear the screaming voices.
"No, no! Stop, stop!"
"Stop! You've got to stop!"
There was so much noise all of a sudden that he could barely parse it. The redheaded angel that looked about ready to hit the men who kept him there was all he could focus on.
"Put down the freeze ray, asshole!"
His human, his little smidgen of joy, had come for him. His optics followed her zigzagging between silhouettes much bigger than her. She was a firecracker, alright, pushing her way through the crowd. Bumblebee was glad to see his Sam and Mikaela safe behind her, though he still worried about the Autobots.
"Let him go! Let him go!" Sam's voice rang out. Once the sprays of white, freezing smoke had halted, Bumblebee raised up on his servos, looking back to find some of the most amazing humans he'd ever met staring in his direction. "Are you okay?"
"Bee, say something. Please." Midge is the only one that dared getting closer to him, one of her minuscule hands reaching out for the plate on his pede. Her eyes are glazed and red, like tears might well up at any second. "You're not hurt, are you?" she asked, hand skimming the edges.
The frigid feeling started fading. Bumblebee was warming up and so was his memory.
The last time he saw her face replayed in his CPU.
The crushing guilt returned with vengeance, the memory flickering behind his shuttered optics. A fierce-looking Midge crashing to the pavement face-first. Her flaming red hair darkened by the water on the ground. She was reddened with anger and injury, blood streaming from her lips and chin. There was so much red, and he was powerless to stop it.
That ugly, carmine liquid coming out of her was akin to his energon spilling out of his fuel lines. It pained him to see her hurt. In any case she seemed better now and he intended to keep it that way. He grabbed her, lifting her out of the enemy's line of sight. He holds her close to his chest where his armor would protect her most vulnerable parts. His other servo reformed into a high-energy blaster, the weapon whining with a charge.
He flipped down a solid yellow mask to cover his faceplate, analyzing the large number of humans around him. They presented a not-so-insignificant threat. Thankfully, Bumblebee's plating was made of tough enough stuff to keep his companions protected. It wasn't ideal, but transforming and driving them out was an option.
Some of the uniformed humans wore white under their black coveralls, some of them all black, and some of them dressed in shades of green and brown. He had no idea which ones had guns and which didn't, so they were all potential threats. Midge shifted against his palm as he waved his gun around. Nobody moved a muscle.
"Listen to me," her brother demanded. "The Cube is here and the Decepticons are coming." The words from Sam snapped him out of it, if only because the Cube was the answer to saving the universe. He fully sat up, his stature looming dauntingly over the many humans that had just threatened his life by the river. That felt to him like it was only moments ago.
"No, no, don't worry about them. They're okay. Right? They're not gonna hurt you or Midge." Sam held a hand out, gesturing for the men to stand down. They didn't, so he turned his head to face the men. "Just back up a little bit, he would never hurt her. He's friendly. He's fine."
"It's okay, Bee," his human whispered into his mandible, making him lower his blaster. Her gentle, confident tone soothed his nerves. "We talked to Simmons. They're gonna take you to the All Spark. Just follow Sam."
The redhead's calm demeanor helped sooth his frayed nerves. Folding back his mask and putting away the blaster, he acquiesced and followed the teenagers. He never put Midge down, though, preferring to soak in the sensation of her heated skin on his still-cool frame. It felt as though she was marking him with burning, tingling hand prints against his frosty plate and he kind of liked the feeling..
The All Spark, the key to keeping his species alive, was immense and beautiful with toy-like staircases built all around it.
He stopped under one corner of the Cube, letting out an inquisitive whir and placing his servos on either side of it. It was Bumblebee's first time seeing the massive hexahedron with his own two optics. Cyan sparks of energy alighted on his fingertips, sending waves of it along the Cube. He should be able to miniaturize it this way, or so the legends claimed.
In a few seconds, the structure was folding in on itself in the shape of a grid. Each piece slotted into the larger whole, until all that remained was a Cube small enough to be held by a human. He felt a few lingering jolts of energy while it sealed off the edges.
"Holy crap, Bee." Midge's breathy, awed reaction made his chassis swell. He turned to the others, switching on his radio.
"Message from Starfleet, Captain."
"Let's get to it."
"He's right," a man in olive drab agreed, dropping down off a raised platform. The letters on his chest spell L-E-N-N-O-X, presumably his name. His hair was messy and brown, but lighter than Sam's, and he was taller than the teenage boy. Lennox met the eyes of the men in nearly identical uniform as he spoke. "We stay here, we're screwed with Megatron in the other hangar. Mission City is 22 miles away. We're gonna sneak that Cube out of here and we're gonna hide it somewhere in the city."
Bumblebee couldn't help but notice and appreciate Lennox treating him like the sentient being he was, rather than calling him an it. The man had already made a better impression on him than the others in him company. Most of them, he didn't recall, except for one agent Simmons. He was the man at fault for his forced cryogenic stasis and the abduction of his protectees.
"Good! Right," said another man he couldn't recognize, pointing a finger and turning on his heel. His hair was almost entirely white, but strands of coppery-brown shimmered on top of his head, and his black suit stood out from the bunch with it's quality and sparkling lapel pin.
"But we cannot make a stand without the Air Force," Lennox pressed, his eyebrows rising.
The white-haired man whipped around, finding Simmons. "This place must have some kind of radio link! Shortwave, CB."
"Right, yes." The agent nodded along, curls stuffed under his black beret.
"Sir, you've gotta figure out some way to get word to them. Let's move!" Lennox ordered his own group and Bumblebee followed, stabilizing the unusually quiet young lady on his shoulder. His alloyed fingers were stiff with the lingering chill and her warmth felt pleasant on his extremities.
"-Cat got your tongue?" he asked, the recording of the woman's voice cheeky and playful. Though it didn't quite fit the current mood, his options were limited. She tended to have a lot to say, but not since he rebooted in this underground cavern.
"No, just... I'm glad you're okay. I thought you..." She trailed off, then shook her head as if to shake off the thoughts. "It doesn't matter now. I'm fine." She smiled, her eyes closing and he swore he saw the glisten of tears in her lashes, but they were gone as quick as they came.
He wanted to crumple.
"I will always-"
"-come back to you."
He wished he could say it with his own voice. He wanted to properly reassure her, but this was the best he could do. Before he put her down, he held her close to his face, nuzzling into her in as much of an embrace as he could offer. At his size, he's surprised she lets him touch her at all. Optics shutting for just a moment, he tried to draw in as much of her affection as he could in that fleeting moment, knowing it needed to be enough for him.
He let her go, setting her in front of her brother and his classmate, both of them respectfully — or awkwardly — looking away from the odd couple.
Transforming to his vehicle mode, his doors popped open for the young trio.
"You three, get in the car!" Lennox commanded. They obeyed, Midge sliding into his driver seat with Sam in the passenger. Mikaela fitted the Cube into a mostly secure spot in his backseat before sitting herself next to it. "Mr. Secretary! Get our birds in the air. When we get to the city, we're gonna find a radio and I'll have Epps vector them in, okay?"
She didn't stick around for the response. Buckling herself into the soft leather seat, she instinctively rested her hands on the steering wheel, keeping her arms loose and her grip fleeting, allowing him to turn the wheel while her palms skimmed over the leather finish. Bumblebee turned over his engine, rolling along while the men in army camo ran in multiple directions all around him.
"One of these days, we're going out for a joyride. What do you say, Bee? Me, you, and the open road." Midge smiled, imagining the picturesque scene that awaited them in her fantasy.
His engine revved three times in rapid succession, indicating his interest and eagerness. Sam groaned, doing a perfect performance of the annoying little brother routine and crossing his arms.. "You guys are gross. If I wanted to hear a couple of old farts flirt with each other, I'd have stayed home with mom and dad."
"Old?" the redhead scoffed, affronted. "I'm only 25, you turd!" She was considered quite young by almost every standard, not including her brother's. Then again, she was halfway to being 30. She couldn't help ruminating on the topic.
I mean, we were definitely flirting so that's on me, but calling me old? I'm not old... Oh, God. Am I old?
"You shouldn't be so hard on them," Mikaela shrugged, a slight smile dancing on her lips as she fidgeted with one of her bracelets. "It's sweet. You want her to be happy, right?"
"Yeah," he admitted, crossing his arms over his chest. He wouldn't meet Midge's gaze, shifting uncomfortably. "That's what I always wanted."
Midge watched Lennox and the others drive up next to them in ATVs outfitted with all sorts of weapons. She tried not to think about what lay ahead of them. Their path wouldn't be an easy one, of that she was certain. They fall into place behind Bumblebee, following him through the exit tunnel, finding the sky hitting he horizon on the other side.
Mountainous terrain encased them on all sides, but the road they were on passed through the range. Once they were out of the casing of rock, the road fed into a highway with proper lines painted in white and yellow.
"Cube's okay?" Sam asked, twisting his torso to look at the teen in the backseat. Midge knew he was desperately trying to think of anything besides her and Bee's small touches of reassurance. The seatbelt across her chest almost hurts with how tightly it holds her. She grips it back, squeezing to let him know she's here.
"Yeah, it's fine," Mikaela responded, though she also checked on the All Spark to make sure it was unharmed.
"Put the seatbelt on it."
Midge rolls her eyes gently. Her brother was one of the weirdest people she knew, and it shone through even here. Why would it need a seatbelt when its in one of the safest places it could be? It was safe as houses.
But things would be boring without that silliness.
As he drives, the 'bot very liberally keeps with the lines. He drifts into the middle of the black top, but only because there was no traffic for miles. The road was creepily empty until it opened up into a four-lane highway and traffic started to crop up here and there.
Sam placed his hand on Midge's shoulder and pointed. She followed his line of sight and found their allies on the road about to blow past them in the other direction. "There's Optimus."
"Thank you, Captain Obvious," she muttered, leaning her upper body out the window to scream at the group. "We have the Cube!"
Jerked back inside by her seat belt, she let out a disgruntled 'hey!' and fell into the cushion. Optimus' tires squealed while he drifted into a moving u-turn. He and the other 'bots wind up trailing behind Lennox's crew. Bumblebee's tuner buzzed to life once more.
"Please keep your hands and feet inside the ride at all times."
She raised a brow and crossed her arms. "I notice you didn't mention heads." Blowing a strand of red from her face, she relented.
As the lanes increased, so did the risk of collateral damage. More passenger cars lined the road with every passing second, it seemed.
"No, no, no!" Sam seethed, eyeing a cop car racing up the lanes. It traveled with a rectangular truck even taller than Optimus in his alt mode. It was some odd mix of military and construction, a crane on it's top, but with small windows designed for war time. "It's the same cop."
The Decepticon Cop's sirens were on and people were getting out of his way. Still, the vehicles in his group cared not and proceeded to smash their way through the traffic. Sedans flipped and vans flew.
"Yeah, and he's got backup this time." Midge watched the other Autobots, who noticed the 'con's presence. They swerved in order to clog the lanes, forcing the 'cons to slow up.
As they drive by an overpass, the construction vehicle begins to transform. It's so far back she can barely make it out. She thinks it's some kind of crane or digger, but she can't say she's read up on her contractor's handbook recently.
The thing became a metal monstrosity, all pointed ends and jagged edges, and skated through the civilian vehicles. He has no qualms about crushing them underfoot or slicing them in half, his optics set on the group that carries the All Spark.
The blue-and-red 18-wheeler transforms as well. Their statures seemed evenly matched. His wheels remain on his heels, allowing him to skate the same way the Decepticon does. It viciously speeds up, cutting through the middle of a passenger bus without a care.
"Oh my God," Mikaela mutters, her hair dancing with the force of her breath. She and the Witwickys watched, horrified, as metal crashed into metal.
"Holy fuck," Midge intoned, looking on in horror at the destruction behind the yellow Camaro. Flames erupted, framing the soiled yellow 'con in orange and red as he dove for Optimus, tackling him over the railing at the edge of the road.
They go sailing off a steep drop, smashing through a highway sign on the way down.
"Oh my God!" Midge cries, covering her mouth with a hand. She wasn't sure how long the drop was, but she hoped Optimus could withstand the fall. "Is he okay, Bee?"
"He acts tough, but—"
"He can back it up. Don't worry."
The bot's illuminated radio buzzed with noises, the dial flicking around in circles. He was trying to reassure her that the Prime would be okay. He was powerful in his own right. There's no way he'd go down like that, or so Bumblebee seems to imply.
"I gotta have faith-a, faith-a, faith-a!"
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They arrived in Mission City posthaste, the buildings speeding by as the Camaro followed his military entourage. The ATVs pulled to a stop and so did Bumblebee, parking between a Broadway theater and a pawn shop.
The door opened before she could touch the handle, so Midge stood, keeping one leg propped up on his frame. Her brother huddled with Mikaela on the opposite side. Lennox and his men flooded out of their vehicles, too.
"Air force has arrived. Pop smoke!" He called out for everyone to hear. Green smoke swarmed the air and everyone waited with bated breath. Midge's grip on Bumblebee's door tightened, eyes tracking the F-22 in the air as it sailed over their heads.
"Good news, right?" she mumbled to the car, a soft laugh leaving her. But the jet sailed toward them like a bullet and her smile faded as quickly as it came.
"It's Starscream!" Ironhide shouted, transforming before her eyes from a large pickup truck into a mech. Bumblebee copied him, standing to his full height ready to defend.
"Please tell me you copy," Epps murmured into the radio, staring hopelessly at the approaching jet.
"Back up! Take cover!" Ironhide roared, moving for a white semi-truck. "Bumblebee!"
Midge reached out, wishing he didn't have to put himself in the line of fire. The yellow 'bot waved her back, sidestepping over to where the gunmetal mech awaited him. At her side, Mikaela grabbed hold of her free hand. Sam neared her other side, touching her shoulder to pull her back to the sidewalk.
"No, no, no, no, no. Move!" Lennox's voice cut through the noise and clamor. Midge spun around, steering the younger couple closer to the curb as she sensed the impending danger in the command.
Bumblebee and Ironhide squat in front of the 18-wheeler, their servos catching it under the carriage to lift it up at an angle. The rapidly returning jet in the sky opened up it's underbelly, readying it's weapons to fire.
"Back up," cried the larger of the two. He waved the humans away, civilian and military alike. "Back up. Incoming!"
The 'con fired more than once. The first shot missed completely, but the next sunk into the top of the semi's load. The resulting explosion threw both Autobots into the air, not to mention all the humans that were nearby. That included Midge, Sam, and Mikaela, who were thrown to the asphalt by the missile's impact, all the members of Lennox's squad, and the civilians that didn't get away in time.
They'd be lucky if there were only injuries.
Dust clouded the air, obscuring the view of all in the vicinity. Midge's vision was cast in warm shades of amber from the lingering flames. She heard shouted words launched through the fog but couldn't make them out, her ears still ringing from the blast.
Face-down on the concrete, Sam reached out for Mikaela's hand. He meets her eyes as they rise together from the rubble.
Midge knew the teens would be fine with one another to count on, moving on to checking herself for injury. She only felt a bone-deep soreness, an ache that somehow reached muscles that she didn't know existed. She ignored the tightness in her calf.
Brushing the dirt off her features and trying to ignore the ringing in her ears, she picked herself up as the others do the same. Pulling herself out of the crumbling facade of the corner store, she stumbled over the curb. She steadied herself before she fell.
She looked down at her feet, making sure she stood on solid ground before she walked this time. Flecks of yellow caught her eye, though. A bright cadmium shade of yellow that she recognized was sprinkled over the damaged road. Searching frantically for his signature yellow shade and expressive antennae, she finally found him not ten feet away. He landed on a toppled van, crushing the car's frame.
He was in even worse shape than the rest of them. He was scratched up and dirty, but it was more than that. She could only hope Cybertronians didn't feel pain the same way humans did, because it looked excruciatingly painful.
"Bumblebee," Sam huffed. "Your legs..."
They weren't there.
Gone. No more. Absent, but not disappeared without a trace. His metal was mangled, his cables were frayed, and his yellow plates were snapped. His fluids leaked onto the heated pavement, sizzling away. The yellow sparkles she'd seen on the asphalt made sense now.
Bumblebee moved his servos to the road, hauling himself off the armored truck that softened his landing. He dropped onto his front and did his best to crawl forward. Sam circled around to his front.
Midge was on the 'bot in moments, hurrying to him and ignoring the pain blooming in her right calf.
"Bee!" she breathed, relieved to see his illuminated optics. Her body moved on autopilot, taking her to his side. "It's gonna be okay, we'll find Ratchet. We'll get you fixed up."
Bumblebee gave her a look that spoke volumes. He looked so human in that moment. His eyes seemed to scream at her, 'I need you to be safe.' His lowered wings said 'I don't know if I can keep you out of danger.' His lowered brows and flattened antennae told her that he wanted things to be different.
"You gotta get up." Sam told the 'bot, as though will could rebuild servos.
"He doesn't need a cheerleader, he needs a medic." Midge seethed, feeling frustrated and at her breaking point, not just from her brother, but the explosion. She scowled at her behavior. Taking offense on Bumblebee's behalf wouldn't help him either, though, she supposed.
Sam's head whipped around but he couldn't locate the fluorescent medic. "Ratchet!" As the younger Witwicky screamed, the veins on his neck tensed and his face reddened. He walked backwards in front of Bumblebee as the bot dragged himself forward, his chassis scraping against the road. "You gotta get up. You're okay."
But Bee couldn't get up. He wasn't okay. When human lost legs, they got a wheelchair or crutches to get around, not words of affirmation and good vibes.
Her brother went quiet. Midge felt partly at fault for the shift in his attitude.
Her brother was needy, and nosy, and irritating at the best of times, but he was also giving. He gave his all up until now, for his planet and for the Autobots. He'd been there for Midge as much as she had been there for him, these last few days. She realized that she might have been a little harsh on him during that time.
The way he empathized with the yellow mech, the way he cared for the 'bots and was trying to help them, not only to save his planet, but also countless others... It reminded her that the Witwicky siblings weren't so different. As much as he got on her nerves, she'd do anything for her brother and she knew he'd do the same.
He used to be a selfish brat, but he was changing. He was growing up, like she had after her accident. He was doing something he believed in, standing and fighting for what was right. He was trying and that was better than most of the world could say.
Her little brother was becoming a man. She was proud.
He'd need a helping hand, though. He was still just a kid, no matter how much he'd grown.
"Come on, don't give up," she gently encouraged both males. "There's got to be something we can do. We can—"
THOOM! KABOOM!
THOOM! KABOOM!
The sound of tank shells displacing air as they leave the barrel and colliding with random debris shattered the tentative air around them. Another Decepticon was attacking. This one was land-bound, taking the form of a massive military tank. It was outfitted for modern warfare, but it rolled back and away, as though retreating.
The impacts threw more dust and dirt into the breeze, but not as much as the stampede of everyday people rushing to get out of dodge. Lennox and his men took a different approach, giving chase after the 'con that rolled its treads over parked cars and parking meters. Altogether, the street cleared out quickly, the people scrambling away like bugs when their rock is turned over.
Midge's worries and emotions would have to take a back seat, she decided, at least until they'd gotten out of this mess.
They were on their own, currently. Even with the trio of them, they couldn't just lift a 16-foot robot. She needed to find some kind of tool or leverage. A set of wheels would do nicely, as would a hydraulic lift.
"Stay here. Neither of you move." Her blue irises were wide, her intense stare piercing Sam's. She walked over to him, pressing a kiss to his temple. "Be safe." She did the same to Bumblebee, but her lips are too small to give him any idea how much she cared for the giant mech. She didn't mind that her face was smeared with grease when she pulled away from his helm, she barely noticed it.
Her adrenaline had spiked, making her leg feel gummy even as blood started to stain her socks. Stalking off, pain forgotten, Midge spotted an answer to her prayers. Thank God that someone had called Mike's Towing because the white truck would be their saving grace. She checked for threats left and right as she crossed the street, her feet carrying her as fast as they were able.
She got to the driver's side of the pick-up, trying the door but finding it locked. All the doors were, as she found out. Midge started looking on the ground for a piece of rebar or rubble to smash in a window. She saw another pair of feet instead, and followed two legs up to the person's face. The teen held up a small hatchet in both hands.
"Thought I'd axe... Need some help?" Mikaela said when their light eyes met.
"I think you mixed that up," The redhead replied, a smile growing on her lips as she took the proffered handle.
Smashing the window was easy. Reaching it wasn't. Her eyes didn't even make it past the door handle.
Midge climbed on the helpful rail below the carriage, holding onto the door as she swung the hammer. She reached inside, letting the door swing open and stealing her from her improvised step stool. She dropped to the ground, then hunched over Mikaela who poked her head under the dashboard, ripping out a handful of wires.
The redhead stared, dumbly agape, amazed as the younger girl struck them together relentlessly. Then the engine turns over and they're in business.
"Nice trick," she complimented, nodding appreciatively down at the girl. "I bet you're a blast at parties." They shared a smile before piling into the front bench seat together. Midge took the wheel, parking haphazardly next to their boys.
"Sam, help us out with this," Mikaela called, gesturing at the truck.
Working diligently, they wound the cable into an intricate harness around Bumblebee's form. While Sam barked orders from a vantage point on the back of the truck, the sounds of combat seemed to creep closer. The rest of the Autobots pounded the street behind them, notably still lacking their leader.
"Sam! Midge!" Lennox's dirt-covered hands and face broke out of the dust, nearing the trio rapidly with his men. An explosion at their heels barely fazed them. "Where's the Cube?" He yells over the sounds of warfare, running up to the truck but not stopping.
"It's right there." Sam gestured behind him to the base of the tow truck. Midge stepped back, letting him direct Mikaela how to wrap the cable and wiping her hands on her shorts.
She filled the space Lennox left next to her brother, sending him a curious look.
The captain returned, jogging over and pushing his rifle into Midge's hands. It was so heavy she almost dropped it. Turning back to her brother, he fished something out of his flak jacket.
"Okay. All right, I can't leave my guys back there so here. Take this flare." Placing the flare into Sam's hand, the captain pointed off into the distance. Sam followed the line of his finger. Coming back to the boy, the older male met his eyes, piercing him with a deadly serious look. "Okay, there's a tall, white building with statues on top. Go to the roof. Set the flare."
Sam shook his head, eyes wide. "No."
"Signal the chopper and set the flare so—"
"No, I can't do this."
Lennox shouted over him, a commanding edge in his voice. Reaching up to Sam's collar, Lennox pulled him down to eye-level. "Listen to me! You're a soldier now, all right? I need you to take this Cube." He grabbed the All Spark, foisting it into Sam's arms. "Get it into military hands while we hold them off or a lot of people are gonna die. You want to protect your family, don't you? Your sister? Your girlfriend?"
Sam's distraught expression faced the ground, but it was obvious he accepted the weight of the obligation. He held the flare and cube as though they weighed a ton, looking down on them with reverence.
Mikaela stood behind Midge, peeking over the top of the woman's head. Lennox turned on the two of them, his tone stern as he shooed them off. "You two got to go. You got to go."
"No, I-" the teen girl began, her black ponytail whipping as she shook her head.
"Go finish hooking him up." Midge said to the girl away, nudging her in the direction of their precious cargo. She rounded a withering glare on Lennox. "You got another thing coming if you think I'm leaving Bumblebee here."
Lennox was about the only authority figure she met today that had gained any semblance of her respect. She owed him a reason, at least.
"You both need to go."
"I'm not leaving him here to get killed by 'cons. You can take it up with my supervisor," she scowled, walking around to the driver side door. She stopped, pretending to realize something. "Oh right. You can't." It left a sour look on Lennox's face, just as sour as the taste in her mouth.
"Sam, we will protect you," Ironhide promised, leaning his massive face in close.
Midge stared the gunmetal mech in the optics. "You better." She kissed Sam on the cheek before he could run past her, pulling him into a short embrace. "I love you, Sammy. Get back to us safe."
"I love you, Smidge." He hugged her back before running off in the direction Lennox had pointed him. Her little brother was not so little anymore. This was proven doubly by the fact that Mikaela pulled him aside to share a tender moment. She wouldn't begrudge them that.
Midge tried the wires under the steering wheel the way Mikaela had earlier and the engine started after several tries.
"Girl, get that tow truck out of here, now!"
"I'm going, I'm going!" Mikaela yelled back to the man in fatigues from the back of the truck bed. The younger girl hopped in the passenger seat, turning to the other. "Drive."
A/N: What media brought you into the Transformers fandom? Were you originally a fan of the Bay movies, or did you get introduced to some other version first that got you interested? Were you pulled in recently by the new animated movie, TF One? Maybe Robots in Disguise? I personally watched Transformers Animated as a kid but I was also watching the Bayverse movies in theaters around the same time, so who knows which one really did the job, haha. I'm just curious, but I'd love to know your thoughts in the comments! 3