Ruby - Transformers: The Last Knight

Losing It

"Hi-dee-ho,"

 Simmons' dad greeted them in front of his English manor, which was lined with neatly trimmed hedges and smelt of fresh roses and water lilies. The afternoon sun smiled down on them all while Ruby glared daggers and gunfire.

She would quite happily sacrifice the whole world to Cybertron if it meant she didn't have to hear that ridiculous voice or his creepy humanoid butler speak ever again. She still felt cold in her damp tunic, her hair hung in scraggly waves, and it felt like the bracelet was attempting to burn through her arm.

She ground her teeth at the lot of them, But before she could declare she was leaving, she honed in on the two autobots parked in the drive way, one either side of the fancy fountain.

She stormed past the rambling old man. 

"Hound. Crosshairs." She planted herself between the fat army truck and candy green corvette, hands on her hips;

"What. Are. You. Doing. Here."

Hound backed up until his trunk hit the garage. Crosshairs lowered his sports car form until it scraped against the ground. 

"They arrived yesterday," said Simmons' dad proudly, like he'd built them himself.

"Yesterday!?"

Crosshairs transformed, his long green cloak swishing around his ankles. He held up his hands in surrender, shrinking under her fiery glare;

"Well Tom said he was going to stay with his father in the city," he stepped backwards and fell over the wheelie bin, "a-and Tessa was already safely away with friends so-"

"SO. WHAT. You were supposed to be protecting them from kidnap!" Ruby advanced, "I doubt very much that the 'city' and 'friends' are going to stop decepticons. WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU TWO!?"

"Ruby, darling," said Simmons in a high voice, only his eyes visible from his hiding place behind Hot Rod, "Sweetheart, take a breath, come back down,"

Because Ruby hovered off the ground like she was impervious to gravity. She was level with Crosshairs' worried blue eyes. Fire encompassed both of her hands. 

She looked from one hand to the other, then to the ground ten feet below her feet. And dropped like a stone. She landed with a splash in the water fountain. The water hissed and turned to steam where it touched her legs.

"Oh."

Hound transformed, his gear bouncing along with his belly; "That was new,"

"You!" Ruby pointed a finger at him. 

"Whoa! I'm sorry I'm sorry!" he cried, "Don't incinerate me! "

She rolled her eyes and jumped out of the fountain. And she'd been that close to being dry again after being rained on. 

Ruby stalked towards Hound, jabbing her finger at him;

"I am going to take a shower and get out of this dam tunic," She whirled round at Crosshairs, "Then I am going to call Tom, and he'd better be a hundred and one percent safe, and completely unharmed," she spun back to face Hound, "Or. Else."

And without waiting to be invited in and shown around, Ruby turned her back on the lot of them and marched into the house.

*

Clean, warm and dry, Ruby wrapped a thick white dressing gown around herself and plopped onto the bed with her phone. Tom's voicemail told her to leave a message. She threw it at a pillow and got dressed. Navy jeans and a sky blue vest. She dialed again. Tom's voicemail. Again. And again. She twisted her engagement ring round and around her finger. She dried her hair and brushed it until it hung perfectly straight and shimmered. She dialed. Voicemail. 

*

"And where do you think you are going young lady?"

Ruby blasted Cogman down the stairs without lifting a finger. He landed with a twang of metal and a tinkering of glass as the photos on the wall fell on his ugly head.

"Well I never!" he exclaimed as she hurried past him.

"Hey!" Great, now Cade was here.

"Where are you going?!"

Ruby stopped next to the fountain. Bee, Hound and Crosshairs gathered behind her; Cade looked down at her from the porch, the light forming a halo around his head. He'd showered too, his hair was slicked back and someone had got him a khaki shirt that actually fit. Then there was the look he wore, an ever-deepening frown and something unusual: fear. He blinked too often, he held his arms in a defensive stance and Ruby could see it in his face, he was thinking about it now, thinking about what she had asked him: thinking how he could kill her. 

"Home." she said.

"You can't leave now! This is our last night, our only chance to do something!"

"Tom isn't answering his phone," said Ruby calmly, like she was removed from the situation, reading lines for a character on stage, "I called his father,"

"But you hate that man!" Hound roared; "He locked you in the company basement!"

"I was desperate," snapped Ruby, "And he said that Tom never made it to KSI. He hasn't seen him. So he isn't at home, he isn't in the city, and he isn't answering his phone," Ruby's eyelids fluttered, "Where do you think he is, Hound? Hmm? I'm going to find him. Now."

"Wait, wait, what about Optimus?" said Cade, "He's still out there."

"He's not himself, he won't help us," said Ruby, feeling a ripple sadness go through her.

"I know," Cade slowly made his way to Ruby until she was in touching distance, "I know," he said gently, "But what if he has Tom? What if he's using him to draw you out? Please don't go by yourself Ruby," he put his hands together at his chest, "Please, let us help you,"

Ruby chewed her tongue. He was right, of course he was. Someone had taken Tom purely to get to her. Running off to meet them would be playing right into the enemy's hands.

Bee whined and knelt down next to Ruby, his blue eyes glowing. He patted her on the back as to comfort her, but it was more like he tried to stop her from choking.

"I can't just leave him," Ruby whispered.

"We'll find him, I promise," said Cade.  

"While I still have light in my spark, I'll help you look," said Crosshairs.

Hound thumped him on the shoulder, "Psst, it's our fault in the first place, you moron!"

"ENOUGH!" Simmons hobbled out of the door, struggling with briefcases and duffel bags, "We go to Stone Hench, right now, in the cars, let's go, transform, roll out, all that,"

Cade put his hands on Ruby's shoulders and searched her eyes, "Drift will tap into those super radars of his right now, we'll go figure out what's at Stone Hench, stop the world from ending, and go find our families, okay?"

Ruby took a deep breath, "Okay."