Chapter Text
Bumblebee has been gone for three days.
Twitch sat on a hay bale, her siblings around her sitting on their own as they all looked out towards the road, listening for any oncoming cars that could be Bumblebee.
Twitch idly kicked her feet.
Not only was Bumblebee gone, but Breakdown hadn’t showed up when he had said he was going to, which was two days ago.
Twitch sighed, leaning back in her hay bale as she turned her attention to the field, watching Fluffy Ears run around happily as though nothing were wrong. But Fluffy Ears wouldn’t know if there was anything wrong, she was just a baby after all.
Bumblebee said he was just going out for a ride, and they had expected him to come back as quickly as he always did, but he hadn’t come back, only empty air came back. Even as the kids alternated sleeping to wait for him, Bumblebee didn’t show his face. Not even the smallest trace of him came through.
Breakdown hadn’t showed up, Bumblebee was missing, and all of them could tell that their parents were growing increasingly restless.
They all had the names of those responsible at the end of their tongues, but none of them were brave enough to say it. They simply sat in their hay bales and didn’t say a word as they waited, waited for something to come, waited for Bumblebee or Breakdown to come home.
Twitch lowered her head, rubbing her eyes with her arm as she looked around at her siblings. Mo and Robby were cuddled up to Hashtag’s sides, Jawbreaker was curled into a ball and occasionally glancing around at the others, Thrash was the only one standing, standing on a hay bale to have a better vantage point, and Nightshade had a book in their hands, but Twitch knew that they weren’t reading, the pages turned too quickly.
Nightshade lived to gather every small detail from the books that they read, never letting anything go unturned before they read through it again.
Twitch sighed as she placed a hand over her head, looking down at the green grass below her. The same grass as the last few times she had looked down, the same placement, the same small budding weeds, and even the same bugs as always. Always the same, unchanging beneath her feet.
Twitch was pulled from her stupor as an alarm, a much to familiar alarm began blaring through her head. The others seemed just as rattled, but as an instinct, they all bolted towards the barn.
G.H.O.S.T vehicle approaching. Mo and Robby were a bit behind, not having the alarm directly implanted into their audible after all can have delayed reactions.
Twitch transformed and began speeding ahead of her siblings to open up the door for them when they got there so that they wouldn’t have to pry it open. They had about forty seconds to get down before they were locked out, because it took a minute from when the alarms began sounding for the vehicles to arrive.
Nightshade swore that they would extend the reach, but they hadn’t yet.
As Twitch flew forward, she heard the shouts of her siblings milliseconds before something rammed into her, sending her crashing into the ground and returning to her root mode as a blaring pain bolted up her side and tingled her pain receptors.
”Careful, we want them alive.” Twitch stared up, expecting to see G.H.O.S.T agents standing before her, but her spark sunk when she saw yellow plating instead of the dark colours of G.H.O.S.T vehicles and uniforms.
A bright yellow that Twitch could never forget, and her mouth dried as she looked up at Bumblebee, his eyes empty as he stared straight back down at her.
”Take them in, the Malto’s will be taken in for interrogation.” One soldier led the ones that followed Bumblebee.
Thrash had his shield out, a snarl on his features as she saw her other siblings also preparing for a fight. Twitch looked back up at Bumblebee, seeing dried energon staining his yellow plating, and weld marks all over his plating and exposed protoform. Twitch reached back and pulled her swords, not striking as she leapt between Bumblebee’s legs to get to the other side.
Bumblebee didn’t even move when she did, simply staying stock still.
Twitch looked back as she backed into her siblings, weapons at the ready as she looked at the soldiers surrounding them. Mom and Dad had come out from the house to get a look at the sound, and soldiers had them surrounded in seconds.
Mom looked at the kids, then at the soldiers surrounding them, pursing her lips as a soldier approached her with handcuffs, “Kids! Run!” She shouted, her voice echoing over the yard as her kids processed her words.
You don’t simply disobey mom. So Twitch, as well as Nightshade, Hashtag, and Thrash transformed. Mo jumped onto Thrash and Robby into Hashtag as Nightshade picked up Jawbreaker and they began booking it.
First into the trees surrounding the house, the sounds of chase behind them.
Twitch snuck a look behind them, seeing Bumblebee tearing through the trees after them. But he was slow, something Twitch wasn’t quite expecting. Even as Hashtag had to carefully maneuver around trees, she was faster than Bumblebee was as he fumbled through the trees.
Almost as though it wasn’t Bumblebee. Which makes sense, logically, he’d never attack any of the Terrans, even if he was forced to, so the only explanation was that someone else was in control.
Yeah, that had to be right, nothing else made sense.
Either way, Twitch didn’t have time to think about it, and even as she looked back to her parents with an aching heart, seeing as they were carted away by G.H.O.S.T agents, she knew that things would be worse if she let her siblings be captured by the organization.
So her concern was getting them out of harms way.
Twitch flew higher, looking around as she tried to find somewhere her family could disappear into. Forests and rocky ridges seemed enticing, as well as the distant water, but she couldn’t find anywhere that could keep them from view.
But, as she looked towards a road, she saw someone that could be their hero. Twitch swooped down towards her siblings again.
”Follow me!” She called to them as she sped ahead, and she watched behind her as her siblings changed course and began chasing after her, keeping out of reach of their pursuers. The trees were their greatest obstacle, but even the most glaring of obstacles became an ally in a time of need.
The road was growing nearer, Twitch could see it through the foliage, the dust peaking just above the leaves from whom she was chasing. Twitch pushed herself to move faster until she was finally above the road and in front of the car. She quickly returned to her root mode as she landed on the ground with a stumbling posture.
Before her, the car came to a skidding stop, and through the motion transformed until Breakdown stood before her.
”Twitch? Shouldn’t you be back at the farm?” He had a smirk on his face, but she saw it falter when he saw her expression, which probably looked frantic and panicked.
”They got Bee!” She exclaimed as she pointed back in the general direction of the farm, her siblings coming from the trees and stopping before Breakdown with similar expression and uncertain feelings surrounding them. Mo had tears running down her face, and Robby had wide eyes that stared off into nothing.
Breakdown reacted with a shocked, almost scared expression before looking out in the direction of the farm, “Well, can’t let them get away, can we?” And before Twitch could warn him, as he was mid-transformation, Bumblebee tore through the trees and took down the closest target.
That being Hashtag.
Hashtag shouted in surprise as Bumblebee pushed her head into the asphalt as he looked up at Breakdown. Breakdown was up in his root form again, eyes wide as he took in the scene, Bumblebee perfectly still as he stared up at Breakdown. It were as though what was happening wasn’t actually happening.
Like Bumblebee didn’t have Hashtag, a kid which he deeply cared about, pinned and hurt beneath him.
”Bee?” Breakdown’s voice, perhaps for the first time in millennia, was small, uncertain as he said the name of the bot that he loved. Bumblebee didn’t so much as make a move, not even the flash of his optics as he continued to stare up at Breakdown.
”They’re coming.” Nightshade whispered in a small and horrified voice, looking down the road. Breakdown pulled his blaster form his sub-space, ready for a fight if it came to it.
A G.H.O.S.T vehicle turned the corner, and a door opened. A general stepped out, a scowl pressed onto her face.
”Of course, a road block.” She muttered, looking down at the road behind her before letting out a deep sigh and looking at Breakdown, “Look, you can come peacefully, and these…” She gestured towards the Terrans, “Terrans, will be treated with upmost respect.” She promised through what Breakdown could tell were honeyed lies.
Twitch twitched her wings next to him, ready to reach back and pull at her blades.
”Why should he trust you?” She spat, anger boiling on her face as her hands trembled with fear, her eyes darting around to try and seek an ambush.
”Well, B-127 here—“ The general was gesturing towards Bumblebee, and Breakdown took that as a good reason to take the shot, shooting the engine of the vehicle and making the General duck away from the blast.
”His name is Bumblebee!” Breakdown shouted, his blaster trained on the General as the General stared back at him and scoffed, “Look, I wanted this as much as the next guy, but it’s barely anything anymore!” Breakdown forced his servo to the left as he took another shot.
Bumblebee wouldn’t want him to hurt any humans, and he almost laughed at that sentiment that Bumblebee always spouted out. What would he think of that now, after what has happened.
This time, the General didn’t flinch away from it, “I always wanted to be the one to take in the ‘Last Stunticon’.” She hissed, and Breakdown took another shot at the engine, watching as flames started building up in it.
Then, he looked to Bumblebee as the General was distracted, “Bee? Bee! Please tell me you’re in there!” He shouted, but Bumeblbee didn’t so much as acknowledge him, as though waited for something other than Breakdown’s desperate tone. Hashtag stuggled beneath him, her helm still pressed into the asphalt.
Breakdown kneeled down and grabbed Bumblebee’s servo, pulling it up. As Hashtag scrambled out from the servo, Bumblebee finally acknowledge Breakdown, bursting up to hit him in the Chest. Breakdown felt it rattle through his frame.
He was down in seconds, staring up as empty optics stared down. The kids shouted around him, each with their fists at the ready, but all looking hesitant to even out a scratch in Bumblebee’s paint. Breakdown scratched as Bumblebee’s arm. He’d hit Bee enough times to not feel as guilty for what he was about to do.
Breakdown reeled back a fist and lobbed Bumblebee in the jaw, then kicked him straight in the abdomen, sending the yellow boy flying and sprawling out in the road.
Breakdown looked back to the billowing fire behind him, and then to the kids, “Let’s get you out of here.” He told them, and the kids all looked up at him with sad eyes that made his spark flicker as they all transformed. Breakdown took another second to look at Bumblebee before transforming as well.
Jawbreaker had crawled onto Hashtag, Mo on Thrash, and Robby in Hashtag as they began speeding away. Breakdown pulled ahead of the kids, making sure they could keep up with him as he kept checking his rear.
Bumblebee was in pursuit, but not in his alt mode, simply running after them. Which was much slower. Breakdown averaged his attention away from that to focus on the kids and making sure that they were following him.
He knew just the place to go.
It had taken three hours to get G.H.O.S.T off their heels, and another two to make sure they weren’t being followed. But finally, Breakdown had pulled up into the old mill he had stashed himself away in a few months back.
As far as he was aware, no one else had made their home there aside from a few stray raccoons. He ushered the kids inside before doing a double check outside, then ducked inside.
”Welcome to…someone’s humble abode.” Breakdown introduced, looking out at the kids as they sat in varying places, all with dejected looks on their faces.
Yeah, now wasn’t the time to try and lighten to room.
Breakdown took a spot in the old mill, looking above at the feral raccoons above and sighing. This was something he couldn’t quite keep to himself.
G.H.O.S.T having Bumblebee as some kind of unwilling agent was something others needed to know about. And he’d also need to find somewhere better for the Kids than an old and…quite possibly collapsible mill that seemed very on the edge of collapse.
This…
Breakdown returned to the conversation he and Bumblebee had months before.
’You were right, Bee.’ Breakdown thought with a cringe, ‘G.H.O.S.T was planning something.’