#“I see why Megatron called you a pussy” (seething)

[steelthroat]

I think that if Terminus and Optimus ever met, they would cause each other an aneurysm.

I want them to meet, obviously.

[technohumanlation]

Bedtime Story

So. Y’all made me do this @fangurldayandnight and crew. Enjoy

Izabella believed Cade when he said his goodbye. She believed him when he said that she was family and they would take care of her. While Cade left for England with Bumblebee and Cogman, she was taken back to their junk yard sanctuary.

She also believed the neon green Autobot, Crosshairs, when he told her there would be no bedtime stories. He seemed to be the rough kind. That was fine with her. She was fourteen. She was well past the bedtime story age anyhow...

She wrapped her white and striped blanket around her as she settled into the cushions of a scrap car she called her bed. It was hot during the day but at night it could get chilly. The baby Dinobots were already sleeping soundlessly around her, a little chip or trill escaping them as they slept. Squeaks was around, maybe exploring the junkyard or simply sleeping outside. He could handle himself. He was a brave 'bot.

Izabella smiled, petting baby Slug around his horns. He trilled once before stretching out on the blanket she had provided for him.

"Hey, little J-lo!" There was a sudden loud bag on the car door, startling her from her thoughts. She groaned. She...just wanted to be left alone.

"My name is Izabella!" She seethed hanging her head outside where the back seat window would be. The little once Decepticon now Autobot was standing outside with a mini pizza box in hand.

"Ey, easy little girl. I just thought you were hungry, is all." He presented the box to her. "It's ah, meat lovers. Not too sure what ya like so-."

Izabella's anger dissipated a bit. "Oh." That was nice of him. She took her blanket off and opened the car door, standing outside awkwardly. She took the box, still warm from the microwave.

"Yeah, noticed you hadn't eaten anythin' in a day so..."

"Gracias." She smiled a bit. "Wheelie, was it?"

"Yeah." He was awkward as well. "Look ah, we have a fire going on over by the shop if ya wanna join. We try ta relax, ignoring the fact that the world may end as we know it. We thought it would lighten you up."

Izabella knew they were trying. Cade said they would take care of her. A bunch of war torn misfit Autobots. She took in a deep breath and sighed long and slow. She had to let them try. After all, they were her new family.

"Sure." She nodded.

"Cool, kid. Bring ya Pizza and blanket." He seemed happy in the fact he successfully got her to come out of her shell. The shell being the car.

She wrapped the blanket around her and carried the pizza, awkwardly following him. The darkness of the night gave way to a soft glow of a bon fire. Surprisingly it wasn't a wild fire as she imagined it to be, but calm and gentle. Strangely it was soothing her already.

She saw Drift, Hound, and Crosshairs sitting nearby. She smiled upon seeing Squeaks being poked by Hound in good nature. "-looks kinda badass to me." Squeaks chattered in appreciation.

"He's decrepit. Gotta wipe that 'con insignia off his arm." Crosshairs huffed, arms crossed over his chest as he casually sat atop a gutless truck. Hound was comfortable enough siting on the ground. Drift was as well, sitting cross-legged. He had his chin cupped by a bored hand. Occasionally poking the fire with one of his swords.

"You're decrepit Hound, can't even stand up straight without a grenade popping out of your-"

That's when Wheelie announced his presence. "Hey, hey! Be decent now, there's virgin audios around." He shouted up to him going back to his original spot next to Squeaks. "No matter what they says Squeaks, ya alright ta me." He chirped once in thanks.

Izabella stepped forward. At that moment everyone looked over to her. She wrapped the blanket tighter around her shoulders. She smacked her lips that suddenly seemed dry and swallowed.

Hound smiled. "Ah, don't worry about him, lil' lady. He's always like that. All bark no bite."

Crosshairs sighed. She could tell he was fighting to say a snide remark.

She offered a halfhearted smile. Quick and awkward. Drift was kind enough to push up a petrified log for her to sit on.

She said a quiet "thank you" before sitting and opening her box of pizza that was now cold. Food was food she supposed, and she hadn't eaten in a long while. Her growling stomach said so.

The little girl was going to take a bite of her pizza but she still felt optics on her. All of them as a matter of fact.

She looked up and they darted their optics this way and that avoiding anything but her. She sighed finally taking a bite.

Drift was the first to speak. "Grimlock ate another cruiser." He said offhandedly.

"I swear he's worse than a dog." Hound grumbled.

"A giant, terrifyin', fire breathing dog. Look, I wasn't there but from what I 'eard from you guys? Prime rode in on that big guy like a fraggin' boss." Wheelie nodded to Squeaks. He chirped in return.

Crosshairs smiled. "Believed in him from the start."

Drift whacked him on the shoulder. "My aft you did."

Crosshairs bobbed his helm this way and that. "I had doubts..." He gave in a little.

Hound took his cy-gar out of his mouth and laughed. "We were fighting by the skin of our teeth!" He pointed at Wheelie. "It was epic."

"Ya don't have skin and yes, I know. You told me the story." He mumbled something about robot dementia.

Izabella went to take another bite of her pizza but paused. She looked up to the conversation that was without her input. "You didn't tell me."

Crosshairs narrowed his optics. "No. no, I know what this is. I told you. No bedtime stories." He grouched.

Izabella rolled her eyes and groaned within her throat. "It's not a bedtime story if it actually happened. Then it's just a story."

Crosshairs cocked his jaw to the side.

"She got you there." Drift offhandedly commented, poking the fire, chin still in hand.

From where he sat, the green paratrooper kicked his arm out from under his chin and growled.

Drift shot him a look, readying his blade against his neck in a blink of an eye. Crosshairs knocked it aside, launched himself at the samurai, and grabbed the mech by the crest of his helm. A few series of unmechly "ow's" left him.

Izabella wrapped her blanket tighter around herself. "Um..?"

Before things could escalate, and they would, Hound stepped in. "Aw, cut it out you two. The girl just wants a distraction. Isn't that why you invited 'er?"

The green mech froze mid punch when Hound said that. He backed away from Drift crossing his arms again, chewing on his dentapick in embarrassing defeat.

"Yeah, he was too pussy to get cha himself." Wheelie smiled.

"No! I thought Wheelie would, ya know, be less, threatenin'."

"Yeah, mhmm, sure." Hound placed the cy-gar back into his mouth, glowing bright like an ember.

Izabella found herself smiling. They were like children. Exactly like them. It was...nice. Crosshairs was nice. Surprisingly. Maybe he was all bark no bite as Hound had said.

"Tell me about Optimus. He sounds cool." She placed aside her half eaten pizza, wrapping the blanket tighter around herself.

"Cool doesn't even describe him." Drift said returning to his relaxed cross legged state. He poked the fire again, sparks flying into the air.

Izabella watched them fly into the dark sky blending into the stars up above.

"Imagine it." Drift started his voice almost a whisper. "The battle was lost, one of many that the Autobots suffered. We were losing the war. Mechs and femmes alike dying, blood, and tears of those-"

Izabella looked away from the sparks, the sight in her mind being ripped away. "No, no, no, cut that crap out. You'll give her nightmares." Hound grumbled.

"Fine, what is it you have in mind?" Drift said in annoyance. He was a rather good story teller. He liked...details in his stories. Details that made the others question his sanity at times.

"Unicorns, fairies, and princesses in a far off kingdom." Crosshairs twiddled his fingers in mock happiness. "Where the prince-."

"Like hell!" There was a wet slap against his leg.

He looked down seeing the half eaten pizza slowly sliding down his calf.

Izabella was still poised from chucking the piece of pizza at him. And she realized two things. One she was dead and two she was very dead.

Crosshairs tilted his helm, optics dangerous. The air was tense. He looked back at her, mouth pressing into a thin line. The others did not dare to move.

"Now, Crosshairs, find you inner peace..." Drift instructed carefully.

He wasn't going to listen to such advice. No one did. Not until finally he sighed and backed away, suddenly thinking otherwise. "Good one, kid." He mumbled flicking it off like it was a dead bug. "Nasty though..."

Izabella sighed in relief with a giggle, as the others laughed. She tried again. "Seriously though. Optimus. From what I heard you guys love him. A hero!"

"I love him." Wheelie commented too seriously. Drift slowly leaned over to look at him, raising an optic brow. "I mean who doesn't c'mon..no homo." Drifted rolled his optics with a groaned sigh.

"We were in Tokyo right? Surrounded by Baldy's wannabe transformers-"

"I heard about that. Saw it on the news. It was loco." She curled her legs up closer to her body. "Something about wanting to excel-."

"Yeah, it was nasty and we rather not get into the details, girl." Crosshairs fixed his cloak before pacing his hands behind his helm, optics offlining. The fire flickered over the inside of his cloak where she saw outlines of weapons and other gadgets she had never seen. And she had seen a few. Hounds voice brought her back from her thoughts. She hadn't realized when he felt her eyes on him, Crosshairs was watching her silently as well. He hummed closing his optics again. She was a curious little thing.

"-He got so upset when Cade, Tessa, and Shane took cover in a cafe made of glass. So pissed. Anyway, Megatron took over his goons and it was a mess. Comin' left and right. We got separated from Prime and these two and all we had was a sharpshootin' Cade and our asses. When one got shot down two more came. It was an ugly 'con shit fest and we had front row seats." He bit on his Cy-gar for a bit.

Izabella blinked. "Megatron was that asshole that tried killing Squeaks right?"

"Oh yeah, can't miss him."

Izabella looked over to Squeaks who shivered at the thought of him. She knew the little 'bot wasn't the bravest but she knew he could be. One day he would have his moment. She knew it.

"Well, anyhow I was runnin' low on ammo and didn't have much to work with. Bee' was pinned down. It wasn't looking good."

"Our ship, stolen from a bounty hunter-"

"Long story." Crosshairs snipped in.

"-Held a few Cybertronian knights; the Dinobots over there."

"The Dinobots? They were Knights?" The teen was doubtful.

"Are." Drift corrected. "Explores and such sent to find new worlds."

Crosshairs sat up using Drifts arm as leverage, optics sparkling. The samurai didn't mind. "Optimus, bein' the crazy bot he is, goes in, frees them, and challenges Grimlock!"

Drift smirks. "He was scared, like a little baby."

"Was not. I wasn't getting killed because Optimus was doing one of those now or never miracles."

"Did he not pull it off?"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever he did. Doing his heroic brainwashing stuff." He was no longer laying down but sitting with his legs spread and hands hanging between them as he sat on the hood of the truck/seat. He twiddled his toothpick in thought. "It was pretty awesome."

Drift smiled throwing another log onto the fire.

Crosshairs took over the story, denta pick thrown into the fire. "We were chargin' back to Tokyo, Drift ridin' slug, I was ridin' good ol' Spike over there and Optimus was being Optimus hitching a ride with Grimlock. We charged the city and Decepticons are just run over, I swear." He hit Drift's shoulder.

"Indeed."

Hound took over. The bots were clearly becoming excited and Izabella lightly smiled. This was actually really...awesome.

"Boss 'bot gives the rallying cry and we're all saved. Grimlock melting 'con asses left and right. Optimus choppin' them up. Get him angry enough and he turns vicious. Aw, man you had ta be there. It was epic."

Somewhere along the story telling, Wheelie and Squeaks looked like they had fallen into recharge. However Izabella hadn't.

She smiled to hound. "That's so cool..." She whispered loudly.

Hound still had the twinkle in his optic. "Oh yeah, should tell her about delta con-Z."

Crosshairs perked up. "Oh Hell yes, that one is always a good one ta tell. You weren't there Drift. You were still a stupid 'con."

"Was." He reminded with a flat tone. He looked down to Izabella who was confused and suddenly uneasy.

He could tell she was going to ask the obvious question. To ease her, he lightly smirked and told her it was a tale for another time. And it seemed to be a promise. She nodded. She was unsure but excited. There were so many tales to be heard.

"No, no, no, you blew our cover!"

"No. Bullcrap. I was the cover, skinny." Hound poked his stomach plating.

Drift rolled his optics. "They do this every night. Like to talk bravado." He chuckled poking the fire.

"Oh, and you don't?" She tilted her head.

He shrugged. "Bumblebee is not here."

"Oh." She didn't know what that meant but didn't pry.

The night was stretching on and on and she enjoyed listening to the good natured bickerings of her Autobot family. Drift noticed she liked to stay nearby him watching her friend quietly squeak to himself as he slept. She smiled seemingly to come to peace with herself. She leaned to the side and draped herself across the large log covering her shoulders. She stared into the fire until her lids grew heavy.

Drift tapped Crosshairs on his shoulder to make him aware of her attempting rest. Hound nodded.

Soon the loud bickerings turned to soft gentle snide remarks. And when they knew she finally had slipped into a much needed rest that is when they sighed in relief. Drift poked the fire again.

Crosshairs continued to look at her. "Kid's tough."

"Heard she lost her family to a Deception attack. Came home to no parents." Hound whispered.

Crosshairs remained silent.

"She will be alright. Her spirit is strong." Drift assured.

The conversation died out then. A blanket of silence fell over them. "Where do you think Prime is now?" Hound was the first to break it. He leaned back until he was laying on the ground looking up to the sky.

Drift returned to cupping his chin in his hand.

Crosshairs finally looked away from the little human. "Where ever he is, hope he's still kickin'."