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There were very few instances in which Sideswipe was right. He had always been the type to leap in head first before thinking, which normally led to him making some errors—thankfully ones he could overcome and Ratchet could fix later. However, in that moment in which he comforted his bond mate, he was right. Things did manage to get better.
It started barely a few hours after she'd finally calmed down enough to smile a little and for Sideswipe to crack a joke. Her father had come knocking then—Anthony hadn't hesitated to inform their Commander his daughter was distraught—and she managed to make herself presentable. He knew something was wrong with her, of course. He'd been her adoptive father too long to not know, but he also knew she was a young adult and didn't have to tell him. This time, however, she did speak to him, although not about everything. It wasn't really easy for her to explain the whole situation from two years ago to anyone besides her bond mate or best friend, so she simply relayed events that had happened. She also told him she wanted to take a break. A good, long break. Preferably back home. He agreed and noted it was time they all headed to the ranch for a while, anyways. He let her go then, but she didn't settle down right away—there was one more person she needed to talk to.
That person was Optimus. Despite her crazed demeanor earlier, she had not been blind to the fact the Autobot Commander had been concerned about her state of being. There had also been the subtle hints from both her father and Sideswipe that the Prime wanted to see her. So she went, and he was happy to finally speak with her. He was careful, at first, but soon slipped into a relaxed manner, and she told him everything—her reasons; what happened two years ago; everything. While Optimus had not endured what she had, he knew the same intensity of pain and understood. He also immediately agreed to her request for time off, and, surprisingly, suggested Sunstreaker go as well. Although Catherine thought it wasn't the best idea, she agreed to it. The fact Ironhide and Chromia would be joining them for the first week helped. Her children, however, would only be able to come later—after they'd helped on one last mission. It was after that she left, but not before he told her he was happy she finally spoke to him, and that he would be here to talk to if she needed him—they all would.
Catherine left his office feeling infinitely better, and she was able to go with her father and Sideswipe to join her teammates where she managed to find some peace of mind. When that ended, sorrow did attempt to return and some of it was able to take hold, but her bond mate was there and she was able to sleep soundly that night and the four other nights she spent at both Diego Garcia and Washington D.C. before she and the others could leave for home.
When Catherine first stepped out of Sideswipe's interior onto the dirt-surface of the ranch's drive way, it was like a weight had been lifted and she happily swung Annabelle around while Sarah embraced her husband. The little imp she called a sister was handed over to their father next while the redhead took her turn wrapping her arms around the blonde-haired woman, and was even happier to have her adoptive mother tug her inside for lunch. Their Autobot companions on the other hand, took to exploring the land and keeping themselves busy.
Most of the time at the farm was spent that way; Catherine interacting with her family more than she had in years, and also time with her bond mate, their Weapons Specialist and his bond mate, too. She hadn't realized it, but it had been a very long time since she'd really talked with the two Autobots, and she missed it. Ironhide was still terrible at hiding his soft-sparked interior beneath his hard armor when Annabelle or Chromia were involved, and the turquoise-armored femme was always happy to coddle the little girl, spoiling her senseless. Even more than that, though, they served as a source of reassurance for Catherine and Sideswipe, whose bond was akin to the one the two warriors shared. It was comforting and eased the pain—even if only a little— and they found solace with their companionship.
Sunstreaker was another story, and that was a pain that was starting to feel like it could not be healed. The golden-armored mech had made an obvious effort to avoid as much, if not all, human contact while on the ranch. If there ever was any, it was only with Catherine, and only because she was with Sideswipe or the other two. And then he would never speak aloud; only through the Twin-bond or comm. link, and nothing could be done to sway him otherwise—not even threats from Ironhide. If he did ever make eye contact with Catherine, it was only to glare or sneer before turning away. The redhead, while saddened by it at first, eventually grew to merely snort and shrug it off, deciding it was better to treat him as he had her rather than be upset by it. Unfortunately, regardless of what was done, Sideswipe would always carry a pained look in his optics, and that worried Catherine.
Some of that worried was relieved, however, by a wonderful surprise. Technically, it wasn't really a surprise—calls had been made beforehand, but the redhead and her family still pretended that Sam, his parents, Carly, and Bumblebee had popped in without their knowing to have a big family picnic. It was a grand event, in which both Autobot and human were included. Ronald and Sam finally learned how to shoot—prompted by Carly showing she had a hidden knack built up over a few years of doing so—and Catherine's mother and Mrs. Witwicky had a grand time comparing recipes and coddling Annabelle whenever the young girl was away from Uncle Ironhide and Aunt Chromia. 'Bee was all too happy to wrangle with Sideswipe, and even Sunstreaker had a round with the young 'bot, and it was the happiest the redhead had ever seen the mech besides when he'd reunited with his brother. Of course, it only lasted a while and then he was on the side lines, grumbling about.
When things calmed down, much talking was done, too. One hot topic was the Witwicky's "family decision" to go on an RV road trip. Sam, of course, wasn't invited, but he was going to be busy at college so it was “okay”. Luckily for Sam, Carly was alright with him staying at their apartment during the summer, which he was more than happy about accepting. 'Bee was invited too, seeing as he came with the Samuel Witwicky package, and, in the event he got bored of his charge, Catherine made sure the yellow Autobot knew he was welcome at the base anytime. By then, the conversation was starting to get dangerous on the parental side of the table—poor Sam's reputation was soon to be at stake thanks to his mother's obsession with his baby days—and intervention was required to stop the madness. Such intervention came in the form of dinner where, thankfully, the discussion of baby days was dropped in favor of other topics that lasted late until it was time to leave.
With more than two weeks still left on their break, there was good chance the Witwicky family and Carly would return with Bumblebee, and, sure enough, they did more than a few times, and each time was wonderful for Catherine. She couldn't recall being so happy for such a long period of time. The others looked to be genuinely happy as well—except for Sunstreaker, that is, but his dourness has settled into the background where it was seldom noticed. She was almost deterred when she was given a surprise call from one Seymour Simmons, whom she had forgotten Leo had told to call her. She had expected their conversation to go poorly and to want to smash the "end call" button at some point, but she was pleasantly surprised to find she actually enjoyed her talk with Simmons. Of course, he was still an arrogant man—he applauded his own book, assured her that NEST and their "secrets" would be perfectly kept with that “tone” of his, and that he'd already sent a signed copy for her to read. She doubted she would, although she told him otherwise, and managed to talk about a few simpler things before he was the one to finally have to leave for an interview. Needless to say, she was amused by it all, and her happiness manage to remain intact.
However, some of it did falter slightly when Chromia and Ironhide were finally called back to the base while another week still remained for them. Even so, they all made the best of it. Catherine, especially, was glad to have personal time with her bond mate, and—to her delightful surprise—her children, whom had finally finished their mission. While Sarah was not quite as pleased as her daughter, the Seekers did behave for once, and so the redhead was able to be even happier on her time off. It made it a great shame that, too soon, there were only a few days left and she would have to go back. Still, she was determined to have fun, and she did. However, by the last day she was almost ready to go back.
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-O-
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"'Bee! Sammy-kins!" Catherine cooed happily as she hugged her dark-haired friend, whom happily embraced her back. The yellow-armored Autobot chirped and waved at the redhead—too big for a hug himself—and made his way past them to join his fellow 'bots in the back. Sam pulled away then to give the redhead a weird look at his new nickname. She scoffed at him, "I've been with my babies, okay? I'm still in mamma mode."
"Holy hell, I never thought I'd hear you say something like that," he laughed, and she shrugged.
"Eh, you might be the same way when you get your own kid one day, and don't say you won't because Carly intends to have a little junior running around the house at some point," she replied, twirling away from him as he stared, mouth agape.
He hurried after her a few second later, "Wait—what?"
"Just kidding, Sam. Figured I'd have a little fun since we're leaving tomorrow," the redhead cackled as she sauntered around the side of the house. "So. What should we do? Mom and Dad took Annie with them to go shopping, so it's just me and you babysitting everyone else right now."
"Babysitting? Aww, man. C'mon! Can't Sideswipe or his bro do it?"
She laughed again, "Don't worry, I was just kidding again. Sideswipe is teaching them all moves, and Sunstreaker is out there to be out there. We're good to do whatever. So, what's it gonna be? Shooting? TV? Adventure time? Lounging?"
"Man, you're hyped today. So eager to leave home?" Sam snickered, wrapping an arm across her shoulders as they came around the back.
Sure enough, off on the nearest hill, both mechs and all four Seekers were standing around each other. Skydive was fussing with Sideswipe over Silverbolt, no doubt discussing how the rather large Seeker could use his bulk to fight. The others were listening in, although they might not have shown it. Sunstreaker, on the other hand, was sincere in his lack of caring, though sometimes Catherine thought he was interested every so often—if only for the fighting part. Bumblebee was with them, too, and he was probably the most eager to help and join in, his door wings twitching up and down excitedly.
"Nah. I think it's just these past three weeks have been so great I'm still running on the hype of it all," she grinned, leaning into him a bit. "So, I'm guessing you wanna just chill then?"
"Sounds good to me. It'll give 'Bee time to hang with the guys, too. He's starting to really miss them," he mused as they headed to the back door.
Catherine frowned, "Did he say that? I mean, 'Bee's not the type to say that aloud. He doesn't like people worrying about him."
"No, he didn't say it, but I can tell. Figured it out for sure when we came here and he was kind of reluctant to go back home. I mean, I tell him he can go with you guys during the week when I'm busy, but he's the best guardian and one of the best friends I could ever have, so he won't leave me even when I try to force him to."
She paused to open the door, "Well, once you move in with Carly he can visit all the time. It's not that far away from the base."
"Yeah, I guess. I just hate seeing him down. I know he gets lonely when I'm in class, and I can barely spend time with him outside 'cause I have to study," Sam sighed as he moseyed in and made his way to the living room where he flopped onto the couch. Catherine joined him, placing herself on the opposite end, propping her legs up onto his lap. With a frown, he let his head fall back. "If R2 was there, he might be okay, but… the little guy… 'Bee was pretty upset when I told him that crazy robot chick got him."
The redhead looked down and away when the little mech's name was spoken, but then met her friend's gaze again, "They, um… they may not be R2, but what about Wheelie and Brains?"
"Those two? They'd drive him insane," he chuckled, but then sighed again. "I guess we'll just have to wait it out. I only have about a year or so until I'm done and I can move in for real. There's a graduate school not too far from the place if I decide to go, too."
"That's good to hear. I can probably help get a good word in if you'd like."
"Y'know, if I could just tell them about how I saved the world, all the graduate schools in the world would be at my feet," he mused, raising a brow at her, but she simply gave him a look in return.
"You know we can't do that, Sam. No one can know about the role you and I played. The people aren't ready for that. I doubt they'd believe it, anyways, but… Still. It's for your safety, too, Sam. The way things are, you staying out of the public spotlight—and trust me on this— is a good thing."
"But... but we saved the world 'Cat. Us, NEST, the Autobots—without all of us they wouldn't be here now. And after everything... I mean, hell—I actually died and you lost almost everything, and then all those other people who died and lost friends and family... No one knows what they did. It's not fair!"
Catherine was the one to sigh this time, and she moved her feet from his lap so that she could lay herself against him. His head automatically settled against hers, and she could feel the agitation as he shifted slightly to a more comfortable position.
"It's just how it has to be, Sammy," she replied as she found his hand and grasped two fingers. "Besides... isn't it enough just knowing and having all of us—your friends and family—knowing?"
"...Yeah," he murmured after a few months, and then grinned slightly. "Although, it would probably make getting into graduate school and snagging a job a lot easier. Who wouldn't want to hire the kid who helped save the world, am I right?"
"At least until I told them about your work ethic," the redhead purred.
"Geez, can't have one moment of glory can I? Well, I guess I can always join the army still. Speaking of which, has NEST gotten back to you on my application? It's been a while..."
Catherine stiffened a little, "Um... about... that..."
Sam pulled away, "What about it?"
"Well," she began, rubbing the back of her head uneasily as she faced him. "The, um... the higher ups... they... They're not, um... they… they rejected the application."
The young man frowned and leaned his head back, eyes closed. Catherine sighed again as she watched him, waiting to see what he would do. She'd had a feeling he would be upset by the news. While he hadn't talked about it recently or showed too much vehemence for it, she knew it had been of importance to him. While she disagreed with his reasons—he didn't need to be a soldier to be a hero—she had tried to help him get accepted. However, he'd had no proper military training or even any physical training for that matter, and NEST was really only looking for men and women from the army or those training to be in it. Her friend hadn't had much of a chance.
"I guess... I guess that's not the life for me, huh?" he spoke up at last, but his words were both bitter and sad.
She grasped his hand, "You don't need to be a soldier, Sammy. And, hey—Carly will be happy to hear the news. Now she can cuddle with you all the time."
"Yeah. Guess I don't need to tell her after all," he mused, and Catherine dropped his hand, which brought his confused eyes to hers.
"You didn't tell her?!" the redhead shouted, but before her friend could answer she smacked him on the shoulder hard. "Sam! I can't believe you! I told you to tell her! Her brother was killed in the army! That's in part why I didn't want to agree to it in the first place, and you didn't tell her!? What's wrong with you?!"
"Wait—I... I... I was gonna, but," he started, his eyes falling. "I couldn't. I just... It never came up, and when I thought about it I couldn't do it. I'm sorry, 'Cat. Really, I am. I just... I'm an idiot, okay? But it doesn't matter—she doesn't have to know anymore."
"Sam, that's not the point," Catherine sighed with exasperation. "Look, Sam. If you're serious about Carly—and I mean serious; like, you plan to really spend the rest of your life with this girl serious— then you can't keep secrets like this. She has the right to know you want to get involved. You can't lie to her like this, and I'm not going to help you on that anymore. You got that?"
The young man, his mouth sealed tight, nodded.
"And just... I just don't want you to have your heart broken again, Sam. I know you tried to hide it before, but Mikaela leaving really beat you up, and Carly's one of the best things to happen to you. I don't want to see you lose that."
"...I know... I'm sorry," he murmured, his gaze lowering again.
"I'm not the one you should be apologizing to," she spoke, shaking her head. "Look, I won't tell her, but you should. I won't force you to do that, but you should. If not now, then at some point. Alright?"
"Okay."
Catherine stared at him for some time, trying to make sure he was sincere. By the way he sat himself, meek and filled with guilt before her, she knew she had gotten through. She had a feeling he definitely wouldn't tell the woman he loved right away what he had done, but one day, when he was ready, he would. He still had a bit of growing up to do before then, but it would happen. And, ensured it would, she leaned back against him, glanced down to the indent between cushions, snagged the remote, and turned on the television.
"So. What do you want to watch?"
He looked down at her, brow raised, "You're letting it go that quick?"
"You'll get it done. I trust you. Now, what to watch? Looks like Airbender is on Nicktoons. Oh, we have the sci-fi channel and they've been playing Star Trek like crazy."
"Star Trek sounds good," he replied, letting his arm hand around her shoulder in an oh-so-subtle thank-you hug.
"Aye, aye, Captain," she hummed, leaning her head back a little into him, announcing her accepting of his thanks. They became quiet after that, letting the sound of Captain Kirk and his fellow space travelers drown out the rest of the world and push their conversation behind them. Occasionally outside, the machinations of their Cybertronian companions could be heard, but they weren't worried. If anything did need their attention, they would be told, so the two relaxed, enjoying the old school show.
However, not too long into said show, the redheaded young woman noticed something. It had nothing to do with either of them, but rather a certain line spoken by a certain character that reminded her of a certain someone else of the same profession. It had almost blown over her head, but some part of her mind had noticed the similarity, latched onto it, and caused her lips to spread into a very, very wide grin. When asked what could cause her such amusement, she told Sam she would tell him later—she had planning to do.
Now, more than ever, she was eager to get back to base—especially when that certain someone she'd thought of was in D.C.
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-O-
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Thanks to Wheeljack's arrival to Earth, much of Ratchet's plans for both medical and defensive equipment had increased tenfold, whereas the time to make them had decreased by the same amount. Already they had an efficient metal converter that had given the medic a plentiful amount of repair material, and the engineer had created many tools for the medical team to use said materials. It hadn't been just Cybertronian equipment worked on and added to, though; Wheeljack had done NEST a favor and improved the human armor to better suit their needs. He'd wanted to work on weapons, but he was constantly reminded that weaponry was not to be shared with humans. He was disappointed, but understood, and kept his work on defensive armor.
His latest work had recently been finished, and both he and Ratchet had arrived at the Washington D.C. base only days ago to show it off to the General, the Commander, Prime, and Catherine. Now that all people in question were present, it was time to reveal the latest tech, and it was in the D.C. Medbay that everyone—including a decent audience—had arrived. There was still some time before they really showed the armor’s capabilities, as Wheeljack was making a few last checks and adjustments, and it was in this pause that Catherine had gotten her teammates to crowd around her while she held up her phone as it played a video of a certain famous character from a famous series saying a certain famous line.
"Just wait," she told them, using her head to gesture towards the medic while he spoke with his engineer companion and fussed over the poor man and woman who were to be the models of the new suits. Her companions, while unsure of her claims, kept still as they looked between the video, which was on repeat, and the medic, whom was beginning to frown with a bit of frustration.
"I dunno, 'Cat," Anthony rumbled, having been waiting for longer than expected.
"Just wait," she repeated. Again, they complied, and they watched as Wheeljack asked him a question and Ratchet sighed with exasperation, pinching the bridge of his nose. Catherine had to hold back her laughter as the similarity she had caught on to only yesterday came to pass.
"Slaggit all, Wheeljack. I'm a medic, not an engineer!"
"Oh my God. She's right!" Jackson breathed and then had to work hard to stifle his laughter, as did the others, whom covered their mouths. Catherine, having had her laugh a while ago, beamed proudly as her comparison proved true. As she had thought from the beginning—their Chief Medical Officer Ratchet was the non-fiction, Cybertronian equivalent of one Bones McCoy from Star Trek. Needless to say, the amusement derived from it was endless.
"Hey, cut it out you guys!" Lennox hissed as he nudged the nearest, whom happened to be Fig. The Mexican man shrugged off the Commander's order, but they became quiet. The medic and engineer were about to start, anyways. Their "victims", as some were musing humorously, had been set down on the ground and were heading their way. Right behind them were Wheeljack and Ratchet, both with datapads in hand.
"Well, now that we've got all the last touches figured out, we're ready," the medic announced happily as he activated his datapad and set it down between their two models. At once a hologram popped up showing statistics and even three-dimensional diagrams. "As we said we would weeks before, we have been working on improving the suit's defensive capabilities, and, with Wheeljack's help, we've succeeded."
"Indeed we have! It was tricky—Earth metals aren't quite up to par with Cybertronian, but we did it! We also applied your 'bullet-proof' material and that proved to be a great help. As they are now, they'll be able to survive a direct hit from an Energon blast; the material will prevent the heat from burning through, and the Kevlar will disperse the force of the blow. That's not to say it will last forever or take a point-blank shot, but it will lessen a large amount of casualties. Besides Energon, the suits also resist bullets and fire, so that's a plus. They're form fitting and light weight as well, so soldiers won't be restricted in movement," the engineer spoke quickly and proudly, his door wings twitched as such while his "fins" glowed brightly.
Beneath him, their models showed off said movement. The suits were indeed form fitting, and were both a bluish-black color. The material at the joints was less thick than the rest, which helped make the movement easier. The suits covered most of the body as well, leaving only really the head, hands, and feet exposed, but they, too, would be covered by other clothing. Not to mention all NEST soldiers were fitted with another layer of protection—Energon-resistant armor. That wasn't shown today, but their armor was already fairly strong as it was. Wheeljack and Ratchet were still working to improve it, though.
"And you've tested the material?" General Morshower inquired, his eyes soaking up the information on the datapad. Both medic and engineer nodded, and Wheeljack lowered his own datapad to the ground. When it came to life, it showed a three-dimensional video of the very suits in question being shot by none-other-than Ironhide. His aim was perfect, but when the smoke cleared the suit still looked to be fairly intact. There were only small tears in the front where the brunt of the hit had gone.
"As you can see, even Ironhide's artillery couldn't burn through with one go. And that was a direct hit with some of the strongest weapons we have. It won't last another direct assault like that, but surviving that first hit could allow you to get to safety. Furthermore, you'll have armor plating, so your chances of survival are increased even further," the engineer spoke even more cheerfully than before, and the General hummed and nodded with approval. Prime was much the same as he looked on silently and proudly at his two Autobots. The other human NEST soldiers were in awe and looked very eager to get their hands on the suits. There also murmurs of one day getting weapons, but Catherine knew that argument was going to be shot down very quickly. Humans weren't ready for that.
"With your permission, General, we would like to begin producing more suits for your people to wear," Ratchet spoke, and, again, the General nodded.
"Make it so, and make it as fast as you can."
"Of course," both engineer and medic nodded.
Things diffused rather quickly after that. With approval granted, Wheeljack and Ratchet took off to begin work right away—back to Diego Garcia where their main workshop was. Their models left to return to their normal attire, the General left to return to his administrative duties, and the rest of the crowd left to get back to what they were doing. Prime, too, headed off to get back to work. Catherine would have done the same, but the arm of a familiar comrade draped itself across her shoulders and she looked up to find the grizzled chin of one Richard Wilkins, the base's head sniper and good friend to Bluestreak.
"Well, hello," she mused, placing her free hand on her hip, the other squeezed to her side thanks to the other man's weight.
"And hello to you, too, little 'Cat," he purred in return, a wide, mischievous grin on his face.
She groaned, "Oh, no. What do you want?"
"Come now, my wonderful, friend. Why must you assume I bring terrible news? Because it's most certainly not. In fact, it's wonderful news!" he replied, emphasizing his words with a hand gesture.
"You mean for you."
His grin widened and his eyes sparkled, "You know us so well, but not quite! If we get what we demand, you will enjoy it, too!"
"…You want to have the party," she spoke after a long pause, and he pulled away to clap his hand together.
"Bingo! I knew you were a smart kid. So. We already have everything ready for tonight—no beer, I promise—and we just need you to let Commander Daddy-dearest know we're going to be rocking it up tonight. Autobots are invited, too, by the way."
"I hate you. So much," Catherine sighed. "But what if Commander 'Daddy-dearest' says no, hmm? Planned for that?"
He wrapped an arm around her again, "Now, now. No need to be testy. We have no doubts you'll make do on your end. You owe us, remember?"
"Yes. I remember," she huffed and shoved him off again. "Alright, I'll do it. Better be some good music then or I'm kicking your ass. Actually, I'm going to kick it regardless."
He ruffled her hair before racing off, "We knew we could count on you!"
In Catherine's head, she imagined her shoe flying off her foot and conking the sly devil across the head, however it was but a fleeting thought, and it was set aside when another arm wrapped around her shoulders. This time is was not Richard, but the welcoming face of Commander "Daddy-dearest", whom looked at the former man's back just as it turned out the corner, curiosity etched into his features. He did not voice his question, but his hand did make a gesture of his inner emotions, and, with a sigh, the redhead looked to her father.
"Hey, Daaaaad. Your bestest, favoritest daughter in the whole wide world needs a favor…"
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-O-
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"…I can't believe this actually worked," Catherine spoke from her spot at the makeshift "bar" that had been scrounged together barely thirty minutes ago as a final touch to the party.
Everything else had long since been set up in one of the medium-sized hangars of the base. Shipment containers and creates had been turned into tables with the help of tarps and cloth; stereo systems had been set up with the help of their DJ Blaster hacking into the announcement speaker, allowing for a loud beat to reverberate throughout the room; the lights had been dimmed as well, and, with more Autobot help, special colored lights had been set up in appropriate spots. Some food venues had been made, but most people were either dancing it up on the floor or chilling as Catherine was with her team, Sideswipe, and Sunstreaker—although he was off to the side. Other Autobots were there, too; Ironhide, Chromia, Bluestreak, Knock Out, and Nightbeat. If her Aerialbots had been there, Catherine had no doubt they'd be having a blast, but they were back at Diego Garcia at the moment. Prime was not there, either, but it was somewhat expected. Lennox was missing as well, but told them to have fun. They deserved it, after all—even if was only for a night.
Of course, that meant the "kids" got to have fun all night long, and they were going at it hard. Catherine was actually one of the few people that had yet to get on the dance floor within the small time frame it had started, and she honestly had no inclination to do so. She was content with resting against Sideswipe's wheel, and having Jackson and Fig sitting next to her, all three with soda in hand. Their missing companion, Anthony, was out on the dance floor with his lovely woman, burning it up in the wake of everyone else. It wasn't just humans out there dancing, though; no, the Autobots had taken quite the fancy to trying this "dancing" the humans were doing. So far, only Chromia and Ironhide had gotten the hang of it, but Bluestreak and Knock Out were on their way. Nightbeat, unfortunately, was being too self-conscious, although hidden by a wall of pretending to not care. Sideswipe wasn't big on dancing, either, so he was content with just being with his bond mate and brother.
Fig shrugged, "Eh. It's about time we all got a break. And since the General is staying off base for work, we won't get caught."
"Can't say it's the same without some Bud Light, but Diet Coke works, too," Jackson hummed, sipping his drink.
"Well, I have to admit it: I don't think I'm kicking Ricky-boy's ass anymore. This is pretty awesome," the redhead mused happily, and then leaned her head back to look up at the silver mech. "You're not too bored are you?"
"Naw, I'm good. It's fun watching the others try to do that 'dance' thing," he snickered, his optics lifting up to spy on Bluestreak, whom was trying his best to learn how to “walk like an Egyptian”.
She nudged him playfully, "I'd like to see you try dancing anything with these feet."
"Why don't you dance, too, niña?" her Mexican companion snickered, and she snorted in kind.
"Puh-lease. I do not dance."
"Have you even tried?" Jackson pressed.
"It didn't end very well. Besides, parties aren't really my thing. I prefer just chilling with mis amigos."
"Fair enough, buuuut, I see myself a señora in need of a dance partner," Fig purred and, wiggling his brow, he set his drink down and took off to go after said woman. Both Catherine and Jackson laughed and shook their heads. The redhead took another go at her drink before looking to her Asian companion, who looked a little too down for their surroundings.
She nudged him gently, "What's going on, man? You're all frowning n' stuff."
"Aw, it's nothin' to worry 'bout," he smiled, shrugging her elbow away. "Just wish I could bring Connie in here on base sometimes. I can't really talk about what I do, you know. It's hard on her, sometimes, never knowing if I'm coming back for dinner. The kids are okay, thankfully, but they're going to figure it out soon, too. I mean, they're about four now, and I've barely played enough catch with them."
He leaned back then, staring out into the crowd, his eyes glossing over. Catherine silently wondered if he was seeing his wife and kids now—imagining their smiling faces as they played in the yard. In a way, she could understand that feeling—she essentially had a husband and kids of her own, but they were always with her.
"Do you… want to… leave?" she inquired gently, breaking his stupor.
He looked at her, smiling softly, "No. Not yet. I can't leave now without knowing my kids and Connie will be safe. But, maybe… Maybe when all this 'Con business is over we'll all go on a trip to China to visit our ancestral culture and some family, and then we'll settle somewhere in the suburbs here in the U.S. We'll have the white-picket fence and everything and I'll be able to get my boys a dog and watch them grow and teach them how to be men. Not yet, though. Not yet."
Catherine waited a while, watching him smile sadly and drink from his can before saying softly, "That sounds… nice. I, uh… I hope you get that one day."
"Thanks," was all he replied, exchanging a brief glance with her before leaning back. The redhead watched him stay like that for a good while, his eyes glazing over again. He was very quiet, the only real sounds able to be heard coming from the music and the whirring of gears in Sideswipe's wheel. Eventually, though, he sighed, set his can down, and stood up to give her a weak grin.
"I'm, uh… I'm heading off. I'm actually pretty tired. I think I trained too hard or something. Try and have some fun, kiddo," he spoke, touching her shoulder gently, and walked off. Catherine watched, a sad look upon her face, and she, too, set her can down. Instead of walking off, though, she pulled herself further onto Sideswipe's wheel, tugging one knee closer. Her bond mate looked down at her, concerned, and had to nudge her off to lower himself down to her level.
His hand brushed against her gently, "What's wrong?"
"I just… It's all just crazy, 'Sides. All of it. I'm just hoping it's going to be done with soon," she sighed, closing her eyes.
"You shouldn't be worrying about stuff like that right now. Why don't you go dance?"
"I told you and the others—I don't dance. Even if I did, I'd only want to dance with you," she grinned, tapping at his cheek plate. Behind him she could hear Sunstreaker snort, and she had to roll her eyes while the silver mech looked back with a frown.
"Whaat? Only him?" the familiar voice of one Jorge Figueroa rang out, and Catherine found herself dragged away from Sideswipe. She was spun in place in the next moment and held at arm's length in some silly dance the Mexican man had thought up. She gave him a look, though there was laughter on her face.
"Well, he is my bond mate, Figerino. And, no, your 'charms' will not persuade me. Anthony has more than you, and he can't even get a blush from me," she countered, allowing her companion to pull her into a half-baked slow dance.
"Ouch. That hurts, niña! Why must you be so cruel to me?"
"Well, I am your superior officer. It's kind of part of my job," she hummed back and slipped from his grasp into Sideswipe's waiting wheel. "Besides, what happened to your señorita?"
"Eh, it wasn't getting anywhere. But, c'mon—come have some fun with me n' Anthony n' Ricky's gang. We're all going to have a dance off with Bluestreak!"
She laughed loud, "I told you I don't dance! But, hey, Sideswipe—why don't you try it out, yeah? Let's see what you can do."
"Please, I already know I'm awesome. No need to make anyone jealous," he purred.
"Bastardo presumido, si?"
"Yes, yes he is. But he's my bastardo presumido," Catherine chuckled, flashing a grin up at her bond mate, whom grinned back. Shaking her head, she turned back to Fig, "I'm probably just going to stay here and chill while watching 'Blue cream all of you."
"Aww, c'mon, niña. Don't be a downer!" he grinned, but she shook her head with a laugh while leaning into the wheel behind her. He shrugged, "Alright, alright. I should have known I wouldn't be able to separate the two love birds. You two are as bad as the Don Juan and his señorita!"
"What can I say? We're madly in love," she sighed, grasping at Sideswipe's leg dramatically while the silver mech laughed.
"Yeah, yeah. Well, just be ready to watch us win, and try to have a good time, yeah?" Fig mused, ruffling her hair affectionately before heading off.
"I will!" she shouted back before nestling comfortably into the silver metal behind her. Her eyes followed Fig, watching as he joined up with the others and things got started. Bluestreak, while still a newbie at the art, had a face of confidence as he went up against what looked to be Saachi. She looked away, though, when she felt Sideswipe lean down close to her.
"Are you sure you don't want to dance? Don't think you don't have to because of me. I want you to have fun."
She smiled softly as she touched his nose, "I told you—even if I wanted to dance, I would only dance with you."
"Which means you do," he snickered. "I can get my holoform out—"
"I told you I don't want you to use that holoform with me ever," she spoke quickly, jabbing a finger at him. "I don't want some fake you."
"Sorry, I know. I know. But how am I supposed to dance with you then? I'm a little big."
"Hmm… Um… Well, how about… Here, take my hand," she began, slipping off his armor to hold her hand up for him. Gingerly, he used two fingers to grasp it. "Okay, now just spin me like Fig did."
Unsure, but willingly to comply, Sideswipe gently rolled his wrist, slowly spinning Catherine. It was a little sloppy, but it worked, and he spun her a good three times before he paused. The redhead was laughing, and so he grinned, pleased.
"Not bad for a beginner," she teased. The silver mech would have made a smart retort, but both he and Catherine stopped grinning when a loud half-growl, half-snarl came from behind them. Both turned in time to see Sunstreaker storm off, no doubt shouting silent profanities to describe his displeasure through the bond. It must have been bad, for the silver mech released her hand and rose up, optics staring after the golden armored mech, both worried and angered. Sunstreaker did not turn back, though; he simply continued on quickly, fuming all the while until he was out of sight. Sideswipe moved to go after, but stopped to look back down at the redhead. She frowned at first, but came over to touch his armor and look up with a weak smile.
"Go after him. It's okay."
The silver mech's optics dimmed as he struggled inwardly, but she nodded with encouragement, and, sighing softly, he took off. Catherine sighed as well as she watched him go, and then sat down on a nearby chair. A part of her wanted to damn Sunstreaker, but another part couldn't bring the herself to do it. He was justified in his hate of her, but, at the same time, why couldn't he just accept them? They were bonded. He was her brother-in-law, and Sideswipe was okay. They both were. And yet… And yet!
What's it going to take to get through to him? She frowned, setting her hand into her palm miserably.
Catherine tried to distract herself from thinking about the golden-armored jerk; sipping her drink; tapping her fingers; watching everyone else dance. She even considered being a hypocrite and going out to join them on the floor, but she knew that wouldn't fulfill her needs. She would rather just not be there at all, and that's what she decided on.
Just as she'd hoped, when the music and shouts and dancing were muted by the hallway walls, she felt a bit more at peace. It wasn't enough, though, and so she kept walking, hoping if she got far enough she might find what she needed. She considered her room, but she had a feeling Sideswipe and Sunstreaker might be there, and she knew she shouldn't intrude on that. Not that she wanted to see the golden-armored mech anyways.
She stopped to run a hand through her hair, and also to see where she had gone. She hadn't been paying much attention and was surprised to find she had made her way over to the Autobot side. It was the wrong hall to try and get to her room, so she thankfully hadn't unconsciously gone that way. Still, where to go? She supposed she could go talk with someone, but then she remembered most anyone she wanted to talk to was at the party. Or, well—not everyone.
Optimus' office wasn't far from where she was, and he would have some sagely advice that would comfort her. He always did, so she walked through the halls, the drone of the music long past her, and did her best to push away the worries. It worked well, and by the time she approached the slightly-opened door, it was a good distance toward the back of her mind.
She looked in first, just to be safe, but Optimus was leaning over his desk, his optics gazing and mulling over some object in his hands. The room was dimmed, but the bright, blue light of what he held made it almost seem like there was a light on. There were only a few things that could make that color seem so bright, and it wasn't a datapad. The realization made her pause, a flash of painful memories coming back to her, but she pushed it aside to knock. The Autobot Commander perked up, surprised, but relaxed as his optics and scanners caught sight of her and he set the object down, which had, coincidentally, lost some of its shine.
"Catherine, welcome. I admit, I am surprised to see you here," he spoke kindly, lowering his hand for her to step on.
"Parties aren't my thing," she replied as he set her onto the table. She had to pause, though, when the Matrix presented itself before her, its blue glow diminished down to a small, pulsating flame. She swallowed slowly, but kept the memories at bay to turn and face him.
"And Sideswipe?" he inquired, though his tone suggested he already knew the answer.
"He's talking with Sunstreaker."
"I see. The break did not help, I assume?"
She smiled wryly, "Not really. He was grumpy the whole time. He's such… ugh… He's such an asshole!"
"Sunstreaker has always been the most stubborn of us—perhaps even more so than Ironhide. You knew it would not be easy to get along with him, did you not?"
"Yes, I knew it would be hard, but he loathes me, Optimus!" she cried out, throwing her hands up, but then stopped as her arms and expression dropped. "And he's right to. That's the worst part of it all—he's right to."
Prime frowned, "Come now, Catherine—."
"Isn't he, though? I'm hurting Sideswipe because my end of the bond isn't working. My kids might be hurting, too, but I can't bring myself to ask and they won't say it. And you know the reason why I don't have the bond? Because of what I did. I don't see it as well as I used to—I don't even feel what I did to them anymore, but I know what I did. I killed so many of them."
"You know that wasn't your fault," Optimus spoke softly, reaching out to touch her gently. "You were not of sound mind when that happened. You know we do not blame you, nor would we ever, and you should not blame yourself."
Catherine met his optics for only a moment before sighing and turning to the Matrix. It had been a long time since she'd last seen it and longer still since that time when the Autobot Commander had asked to see if it would react for her. Back then it had been cold and distant. She did not expect it to be any different, but she still moved forward. Prime did not stop her as she reached out her hand and touched the metal, running her fingers along it delicately—as if she might break it. Like before, the glow seemed to lessen at her presence and she did not even feel the slightest bit of warmth. The Primes' word echoed in her ears, and she could not help but believe them.
"They do, though," she spoke softly, her eyes lingering on the dimmed glow. How she wished she could feel the warmth of the energy flowing into her like it once had before—to feel the flux of life in her veins. How she wished she could have it back and feel Sideswipe as if they were one. With a sad smile she pulled her hand away, looked up at Optimus briefly, and then turned her gaze back to the Matrix again. "Do you… do you think they can hear us? They're in the Matrix, aren't they?"
Prime nodded, and she placed her hand on the Matrix again.
"Well, then I hope they're listening. Even if they're not, I want to let them know… I'm sorry. For everything. I never wanted to do all that. I only wanted to help you all and keep your race alive, but instead I killed so many of them. And I want them to know that even if it takes me a life time, I'll find a way to pay back for all I've done."
As the final words left her lips, she thought, if only for a moment, she felt a flicker of warmth, but it was gone as quickly as it had come, and she pulled away.
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