It had been a normal day for the Burns family and the Rescue Bots. There'd been the normal tech malfunctions, some fires, car crashes, and a cat stuck in a tree. Now both 'bots and humans were relaxing in the fire house, waiting for the next emergency.

The 'bots were lounging around in their bunker. Heatwave sparring, Blades watching movies, Boulder asking Cody questions about Earth, and Chase... Being Chase.

Cody glanced over at Blades again, absently answering Boulder's question as he observed the 'copter-bot. Earlier that day, Dani and Blades, being the only ones free, had been called to help a stray cat out of a tree. After getting it down, they'd flown to the vet, which was on the other side of town, and Blades had panicked multiple times at the feline scurrying around inside him.

"Cody?"

The boy started, blinking and looking up at Boulder.

"Huh? Oh, sorry Boulder. What was that?"

The green 'bot looked down at Cody, then at Blades, then back at Cody. "You seem distracted."

"Oh, it's nothing..." He chuckled nervously.

Boulder shuttered his optics in a disbelieving blink and continued to look down at the youngest human.

Cody kept his gaze averted and stayed silent for a few moments before sighing in defeat. "Okay, so I'm a bit distracted by something."

"What is it?"

"Well..." He lowered his gaze and fiddled with his shirt a few moments. "Was... Was Blades always so timid?"

Boulder 'blinked' again, this time in surprise. "No... No he wasn't."

The youngest Burns family member looked up. "Really?"

"Yeah, he wasn't always timid and jumpy. He was actually sort of like Heatwave." Boulder replied. "He was very confident in his abilities and liked to get into fights, verbal or otherwise."

Cody's eyes widened, focused completely on Boulder.

"You see, Blades was created in a group of other 'bots, he was the youngest. He and the others were created as a gestalt, a group of mechs who can combine to form a bigger 'bot, Blades was one of the arms I believe." He explained. "Gestalts are normally very close, and have a brother-bond that lets them feel each others emotions, thoughts, and lets them find each other. This was before we all met, but during an attack on the base they were stationed at, the Protectobots, Blades' gestalt, were separated. Blades was found in the rubble and brought to another base for repairs. None of the others had been found, and when Blades had woken up, the bond he shared with them wasn't there, or at least it was closed off. Blades had almost gone insane and attacked everyone who tried to help him, he was moved to solitary for his and everyone else's safety. When he'd finally calmed down and everything sank in he'd been frantic, he... He broke down, started banging on the walls and door, yelling for his brothers, for someone to find them, and then he'd curled up and started crying."

He paused. "After everyone was sure he wouldn't attack, he was let out and sent back to the med-bay. He was apparently very quiet, wouldn't talk to anyone or anything. After he was checked out, he was evaluated and deemed unfit to fight anymore, so he was assigned to our team. For a while he was quiet, but then he started opening up, he was very kind and timid and jumped at everything. After a couple almost failed missions, he'd demanded to be reformatted into a grounder -yes he was originally a flier- because he couldn't stand being in the same form he'd woken with his brothers in, the one he helped form Defensor with. He started developing a fear of heights, could barely lift off the ground without panicking." The Construction-bot sighed. "Because of the shock of having the bond to his brothers cut off, he became attached to anyone he got close to, he couldn't stand being alone or left behind. Sometimes a part of his old self comes out, like when he succeeds in something by himself or gets praised by doing something good."

Cody stared at the Rescue Bot for a few long moments before looking down. "Wow..." He muttered. "That's... I feel bad for him..."

Boulder smiled sadly. "Yeah, but he's okay now. Sure he misses them, that's for certain, but he has us. He's said it before, his gestalt can never be replaced, but as long as he has us then he'll be okay."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

It was late in the afternoon in Griffin Rock, and Blades, Dani, and Cody, after much begging, were flying to the main land. The boat meant to deliver supplies to the island was in need of repair and the islanders were in need of some of the supplies, so Dani and Blades had been sent to fly over to collect them.

"Alright Blades." Dani said after they'd landed. "We'll be right back with those supplies, you'll be okay here?"

"Sure Dani." The 'copter chirped. "I'll be fine. Go on ahead, I think I'll catch a bit of recharge while you're out."

"Alright." She smiled and patted the 'bot's side. "See you in a bit, Blades." With that she left with Cody following close behind.

-o-o-o-

The sun was almost fully behind the horizon when Dani and Cody made their way back, a box situated under Dani's arm.

The two siblings were chatting casually when a pair of arms appeared out of the shadows of a building, pulling the two into the shade. They were roughly pinned to the wall, Dani's head smacking against the brick and dazing her.

"We saw ya passin' by an' thought we'd give ya a hand with tha' box." The man pinning Dani said. "Wouldn' wanna pretty lady like ya to strain herself with carryin' such a heavy thin'." He was just beginning to reach for the box when suddenly...

The ground shook.

The thugs startled, letting their hostages fall to the ground, backing up and frantically looking around for the source.

A low, rumbling growl sounded behind them.

The two men tensed and slowly, very slowly, turned around. Their eyes widened and they gaped at the large, metal goliath crouched in front of them, just barely able to fit in the alley.

Normally kind, smiling white faceplates were pulled into a frightening scowl. Orange optics glowing so brightly they almost overtook the top half of the 'bot's faceplate. Black servos were clenched tight, his rotors quivering and motors rumbling lowly like they were about to start spinning.

The orange and white 'bot leaned close to the thugs. "You picked the wrong humans to steal from." He growled.

He braced his servos on either side of the humans, loomed over them, and snarled.

"Run."

The two petrified men eagerly obeyed, hightailing it past the helicopter and running down the street, mysterious dark spots appearing on their pants.

The three left in the alley were silent. The two humans were staring up at Blades in shock as he glared after the thugs, his rotors still quivering and his motors still rumbling, but he was not as tense as before.

"B-Blades...?" Dani said hesitantly, suppressing a flinch when bright optics snapped towards her. Blades stared at her and Cody for a few moments, before his optics slowly lost their blaring light and he relaxed his tense frame, no longer scowling, but frowning.

"Are you two okay?" He asked quietly, not moving an inch.

The young woman took a shaky breath and slowly let it out. "Y-yeah, we're okay, just a few bumps..."

The corner of Blades' lip-plates twitched up slightly, but it didn't reach his optics. "That's good..." He hesitantly moved forward and, when they didn't cringe away, scooped the humans into his servos, briefly hugging them to his chest plates, before moving out of the alley and carefully transforming around them, letting them land safely in his seats as he settled into his alt. Mode.

The humans were quiet as he lifted into the air. Cody leaned against his sister and she wrapped an arm around his shoulders.

"Blades... How did you know we were in trouble?" Cody asked quietly, finally breaking the silence.

The small screen on his console slowly lit, showing his normally smiling, now somber face.

"When that... That man, grabbed Cody, he accidentally pressed your comm." He answered softly.

"Oh..."

Dani finally spoke up. "Blades... Thanks, for saving us..."

He smiled slightly, more real then the last one. "Anytime Dani." He watched the humans settle in his seats, the scare having tired them.

When he'd gotten the comm. from Cody, hearing that man's words, he'd felt his frame go cold and stiff. Memories of when he'd lost his brothers assaulting his mind like a tsunami, then he'd felt everything heat up, his frame burning and he finally understood the human phrase 'seeing red'. The old, more violent part of him pushed to the front of his mind and everything blurred until he was suddenly looming over two human males, his rotors quivering with the need to slice something, it had taken all his will power to not pick the humans up and shake them, maybe throw them, threaten them until they were trembling piles of flesh on the ground. But even with his more violent self, he couldn't do it, not after spending so much time with the Burns family and the other humans of Griffin Rock, he couldn't harm the thugs, especially in front of Dani and Cody, so he'd simply scared them away. He couldn't lose anymore family, not again.

A soft touch to his console brought him out of his thoughts. Dani had fallen into a doze, but Cody was still awake, if just barely. The boy was leaning against his sister, her arm wrapped around his shoulder. He was gently petting Blades' console and smiling softly.

"Thanks, Blades..."

The 'copter smiled softly. "No problem, Cody." He watched the youngest Burns family member drift off before muttering something quietly in Cybertronian.

No problem, little brother.