Chapter Text
Jaqueline slammed the hood down, and stepped back to survey her work. Roughly eight months had lead up to this- a dirt cheap, totaled, scratched and mangled Stingray Corvette turned into a thing of beauty. Painted golden yellow, with black accents, Jaqueline Parquor was proud to see all her hard work had paid off.
She set the wrench down in the toolbox, before slamming the metal lid shut and then pushing the box up against the wall of the storage unit she had rented out. She exhaled, smiling as she realized that maybe, after today, this would be the last day she’d have to come here.
“Alright Sunshine,” Jaqueline murmured, as she slid a brown leather jacket on over her white tank top. She pulled her hair back into a ponytail as she pulled a set of keys from her jacket pocket, “Let’s see what you can do.”
Jaqueline opened the driver’s door and slid into the driver’s seat. The black leather was warm in the midday sun of Miami, Florida, the interior made hotter thanks to the tinted windows. Jaqueline put the key in the ignition, smiling as the engine rumbled to life. She pressed the accelerator a few times, the engine roaring to life, before she flicked on the radio.
“Get your motor runnin’… head out on the highway…”
Jaqueline grinned. She pulled the driver’s door shut, let the window down, slipped on her shades, and dropped the Corvette into gear.
It was time to burn some rubber.
Jaqueline hit the accelerator once on pavement, the engine of her ride roaring and the wind causing her hair to fly out behind her. For the first time in a long time, she smiled, and felt herself relax-
Her phone began to ring. Jaqueline felt her eyebrow twitch as she came to a stop at a red light. She glanced down at her phone, which was playing the chorus of In This Moment’s Half God, Half Devil. Normally, a song Jaqueline would find herself jamming out to, but with the Caller ID on her phone’s screen…
She let it go to voicemail, pulling away from the intersection when the light turned green.
Her phone began to ring again. Gritting her teeth, Jaqueline turned the radio up louder. In response, it seemed her phone’s own ringtone got louder, if possible. With an angry huff, Jaqueline turned the radio down and snatched her phone up, answering with a snappy, “What the hell do you want?”
“Ah, come on, sis, don’t be like that, can’t I just call in to check in on you?”
There was a beat of silence as Jaqueline practically heard her older brother’s brain to mouth filter shut down.
“… Wrong choice of words,” Dallas sighed.
“You think?” Jaqueline deadpanned, putting her phone on speaker and dropping it back into the console. Her good mood was quickly going up in smoke, “Again, what’s with you calling me out of the blue, Dallas?”
There was a huff, “I wanted it to be a surprise, but I figured you’d punch me if I didn’t tell you, but I’m making a visit back to the states for a while. It’s for work, but I thought I could come and visit you for a few days in Florida.”
Jaqueline hesitated at that. On one hand, her annoyance towards her brother was still rearing it’s ugly head, the very thought of spending a few moments, let alone a few days, with their strained relationship, with her brother was enough to make her anxiety flare. On the other hand, it had been over a year since she’d seen him, just before she started getting her life together. He’d taken a full month’s worth of leave from active duty to help her get settled into her apartment and go job hunting…
“It depends on what days,” Jaqueline said, slowly. “What with my school and work schedule, I don’t know how much we’d actually see each other…”
“… You’re in school?” Dallas asked, sounding shocked, “When did that happen?”
“I’m in my second semester,” Jaqueline admitted. “Most of them are online, but I still have to go on campus for a couple of classes.”
“Where you going?” Dallas’ voice was softer, proud, even.
“University of Miami,” Jaqueline replied, trying to ignore the burst of pride that bloomed in her chest at her brother’s voice. “I’m thinking about being a psychiatrist.”
“You’d be good at that,” Dallas sounded… nostalgic, at that. Even quieter, he said, “Mom and dad would be proud of you, sis.”
Jaqueline’s grip on the steering wheel tightened. Dallas was… treading on dangerous waters, and Jaqueline had no doubt he knew it, but the comment… it was something Jaqueline needed to hear.
“You think so?” Jaqueline asked.
“I know so, Jackie,” Dallas answered.
Jaqueline forced herself to breathe and not break down into sobs.
“Jackie? You there?” Dallas questioned.
“Yeah, yeah I’m here,” Jaqueline replied. “Just… thinking. I… I needed to hear that.”
“Well, for what it’s worth, I’m proud of you too. You’ve come a long way, kid,” Dallas chuckled. “Now, about my visit… I should be in town next week, sometime.”
Jaqueline nodded, even if Dallas couldn’t see it, “I can have the guest room set up by then. How long will you be staying?”
“Few days? Not for sure yet,” Dallas mumbled. “Fraggin’ ‘Cons don’t make anything easy...”
“What?”
“What?”
There was a beat of silence, before Dallas laughed, “Anyways, Jackie girl-“
“Don’t call me that,”
“I’ll call you when I land next week, if that’s good for you? If you’re in class, I’ll just let myself in your place and make my myself home!”
“As you are wont to do,” Jaqueline muttered. “Alright, hotshot. I’ll see you next week sometime.”
“Talk to you later,” And with that, the line went dead.
With a heavy sigh, Jaqueline sighed and sat back against the black leather seat. The phone conversation with her brother had been enough to leave her unsettled.
She couldn’t imagine what a few days with him face to face would do for her.
On the island of Diego Garcia, a man in his thirties, let out a loud half groan, half sigh, as he sat down in a chair just behind him. Someone patted a hand on his shoulder, and he looked up to meet his commanding officer’s eyes.
“Well done, Captain,” Colonel William Lennox praised. “Was it as hard as you thought it would be?”
“Worse,” Dallas Parquor groaned. “Her saying yes means I’m going to have play nice and actually spend a few days with her. If I say something wrong, she’ll kick me out, and then this whole mission will be a bust.”
Will clicked his tongue, “Family can be a fickle thing, can’t it?”
“My sister certainly can be,” Dallas sighed. “I wish I knew when I overstep a line, but I haven’t been able to pick up those cues in years. Some days, she’s fine about talking about our parents- like today! But then there are other days where she’ll try to bite my head off my shoulders. She can be worse than a ‘Con!”
“Let’s hope she doesn’t run into any between now and when we arrive in Miami,” Nearby, Robert Epps made the dry comment. “Sure, she’s got back up, but how capable is one ‘Bot against… how many ‘Cons were we talking about again?”
“At least three, according to Sunstreaker,” A deep, baritone voice rumbled overhead. Two of the three soldiers looked up to see glowing blue optics staring down at them, the face of Optimus Prime, “Perhaps more, but he hasn’t been able to get a solid reading. Despite all the repairs your sister has done, Captain Parquor, there are bound to still be a few glitches she can’t fix herself.”
“And though he won’t say it out loud,” A silver mech standing nearby spoke up. There was an air of anticipation and excitement surrounding him, “Sunny is really grateful for all that she’s done for him. I’ll definitely be owing her for saving his life.”
“I still gotta figure out a way to bring up the subject about you guys,” Dallas sighed, talking about the Autobots at large. “Sure, Egypt and Chicago made you guys known to the world, but if she knows about you, she’s never said or implied anything.”
“The fact that she hasn’t made contact with Sunstreaker is also an indication that she doesn’t know about us,” A lime green ‘Bot spoke up. Ratchet frowned, thoughtful, “Perhaps Sunstreaker should-“
“No!” Dallas yelped, shooting to his feet, waving his arms. He nearly clocked Will in the face, but the other man simply ducked out of the way, “No, no, no! Bad idea! She needs to hear it from someone she trusts!”
“No offense, Dal, but that’s not you,” Sideswipe deadpanned.
“Shut it!” Dallas pointed at his guardian, glaring, “I’m the person she at least has the most faith in! Do you have any idea how she’ll react if her car suddenly starts talking to her?”
“I expect, like most everyone else here has?” Sideswipe tilted his helm.
“She’ll torch Sunstreaker and then check herself into the nearest mental hospital and then she’ll go on a downward spiral and she’s just starting to get her feet back under her and like hell am I going to let her fall back on her old ways! She’s come too far to have a relapse!” Dallas’ voice was rising as he kept speaking, eyes growing wider and wilder as he began to go on a downward spiral.
“Dallas,” Will tried to interrupt.
“Not to mention, her knowing about you guys and being personally involved will paint a target on her back for ‘Cons and humans alike! She’ll potentially have to move here just to keep her safe and that will be stressful on her psyche-“
“Dallas,”
“It was different for Sam, Mikeala, and Trent! Even for Leo!” Dallas continued, “My sister is- is- a special case! Oh, God, this was a bad idea, I should probably call her back and tell her to forget this-“
“Captain Parquor!” Will finally barked.
“Sir!” Dallas snapped to attention. It was comical, really, how we went from a panicked mess to a solider ready to heed his officer’s orders in just a few seconds.
“Take a breath, Captain,” Will said. “You have logical worries, but we’re all going to work together to make sure this mission goes as smooth as possible. You’re right, Jaqueline will have to be relocated here, for safety and security reasons, but she won’t be the first to have done so.”
Dallas groaned, “I know, sir, but it’s just…” He hesitated, “With her medical history…”
And here, he caught Ratchet’s attention, “Medical history?”
Dallas hesitated even more. He glanced at Will, who shrugged, “You can tell them if you want. Barring Sideswipe, none of them know.”
That… was true. Sideswipe, as Dallas’ guardian, had had front row seats to Dallas’ personal issues for the last seven, almost eight, years. The captain had sworn the ‘Bot to secrecy, and Sideswipe had kept his promise, save for the few times he discussed it with Dallas himself. Oh, and Will, but those were for other reasons entirely.
“You guys didn’t meet me until a few months after the whole Mission City incident,” Dallas sighed, turning to the ‘Bots present. “I was a soldier there, fought with you guys and everything, but… I didn’t immediately come to NEST because of… personal issues.”
“What kind o’ issues?” Here, it was Jazz that spoke up, curious.
“… My parents were victims of Mission City,” Dallas answered, after a beat. At that, the hangar fell silent, the Autobots sharing sad looks, “She… wasn’t with them, thankfully, wasn’t even in the city, thanks to a school trip at the time, but… I still had to make that call. Had to make the funeral arrangements, had to make financial arrangements for Jackie as well, and- She… she took their deaths hard.”
It was clear Dallas was becoming uncomfortable, shifting from foot to foot, scratching at his short cropped hair. He glanced up at Sideswipe, silently begging him to take over.
“She tried to offline herself,” Sideswipe said, quietly, and the ‘Bots jolted in surprise.
“She what?” Jazz asked, wide opticed, “Why would she do tha’?”
“Grief and mourning for her creators,” Sideswipe answered. “I was with Dallas every time he visited her, after he joined NEST. She was checked into a…” He paused, and looked at Dallas, “What was it you called it again?”
“Mental facility, rehab center… depends on the patient,” Dallas crossed his arms, and grimaced. “I spent the next two years, every time I could on vacation or holidays, with her. She… got better, and the doctors deemed her stable to release by her eighteenth birthday, but… I wasn’t there when that happened.”
“… Two years after Mission City was when we all ended up in Egypt and fought The Fallen,” Ironhide voiced.
“Yep,” Dallas said, popping the last syllable of the word. “And… she was not happy about that.”
“She broke my windshield the next time she saw you,” Sideswipe muttered. “I thought she was the Hatchet in femme form.”
Will snorted. Ratchet sent the young mech a glare. Epps snickered a little.
“She told me to leave her the hell alone and that she didn’t need my help,” Dallas sighed, sounding tired. “She called me quite a few names and eventually she-“ Dallas cut himself off, eyes glazing over.
All heads turned to Sideswipe.
“The youngling blamed Dallas for their creators’ deaths,” Sideswipe vented. “She knew he was in Mission City, and she knew he knew they were there too.”
“Guilty by association,” Optimus Prime rumbled. He looked sad, “Captain Parquor… I am sorry for the trials you and your sister have faced in recent times.”
“Don’t worry about it too much, big guy,” Dallas sighed. “I was surprised she didn’t start screaming at me before then, if I’m honest. It hurt when she started blaming me for mom and dad’s deaths, but… I understood. She dropped all contact with me, until she had to be called as a family member after my injuries from Chicago.”
Two bullet wounds, a broken leg, and a concussion. By most standards, Dallas had been lucky to walk away from Chicago with only that.
“That was a phone call I won’t be forgetting any time soon,” Will muttered. “I barely said my rank and asked if it was her before she started chewing me out. It was only when I managed to tell her you were in the hospital that she went from screaming banshee to concerned family member.”
“Yeah,” Dallas smiled a little. “When she visited, she and I… talked about some stuff. She told me she still blamed me for our parents’ death, at least because I didn’t try and tell them to get out of the city, but she also said she said a lot of stuff out of anger and pain. She’d been going to therapy for about a year and was considering moving from Seattle to Miami. So… that’s where Sides and I were when I was on medical leave, after I got released from the hospital. Helping her get settled in Florida.”
“She was a lot calmer than the last time we’d seen her,” Sideswipe commented. “Didn’t throw any wrenches.”
Epps let out another laugh, shaking his head, “She sounds like quite the character.”
“She is,” Will, Sideswipe, and Dallas all chorused.
“Dallas is right then. So much change over the last few years has probably left her mental and emotional health fragile,” Ratchet mused. “It may do more harm than good to bring her here.”
Silence fell over the hangar for a few moments, everyone lost in thought.
“At any rate,” Optimus finally rumbled. “We’re only journeying to Miami for simple recon, unless something happens that makes us move to do otherwise. Sunstreaker, for now, is in good hands, and Jaqueline Parquor is as well. He will keep us updated on his situation, and if there is any cause for concern before our scheduled departure, we will leave. In the meantime, let us prepare ourselves for the mission ahead.”
A round of affirmatives filled the air, though some were noticeably more eager than others.