Author's notes: This one has been bugging me for a while so...here it is! :) Reviews appreciated. Flames will be laughed at. I do not own Transformers unfortunately, pretty sure they belong to Hasbro. However Shay is mine. In the adventure/friendship category because it is NOT A ROMANCE. No romance people, I can't write that kind of thing.

Warnings for language, some blood and stuff and people trying to kill each other. But that is what you expect from these kinds of stories, isn't it? I mean, giant robot aliens in a millenia old civil war and all...

Shall we start in the medbay? Interesting things happen there. Yes, we'll start in the medbay...)

Part 1. The Lives of Friends

The first thing the medic thought was that someone had spiked his energon. But the most likely people to have done that would be the Twins and it was impossible that they could have done it right now. The second was a cruel prank was being played.

An irritated female stood before him, arms crossed and pale eyes narrowed. A thin layer of sweat and dirt covered her along with a torn denim jacket and stained jeans. Her stance was set to defensive with feet firmly planted in thick leather boots and face turned upward. Tanned skin spoke of many hours spent outdoors as did callused hands. Mouse brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail, but that didn't take away from the fact that she looked like she would take on anybody coming her way, and wouldn't hesitate to go against metal giants. A scratch on her hand was freshly scabbed over and looked about half an hour old by the medic's guess. The human stood next to a container that came up to her thighs.

Cybertronian in make with metal paneling on the top and bottom, and thick glass at the sides; it was placed on the floor with care. The cylinder was taller than it was wide, making it thin enough for the human to wrap her arms around it and carry it somewhat comfortably if need be. A few scratches marred the glass, but that was irrelevant. What was important was the two sparks floating around inside.

"What..." Ratchet started with a harsh whisper, "is this?" Blue optics paled and a gray chevron tilted down as he stared. The white and red Autobot wanted to move forward; to scan the sparks for damage and bandage the human's hand, as was his habit as a medic; but couldn't move for the feeling of tension rolling through the air. He'd dealt with a lot of things in his life, but right now he didn't want to deal with anything and wasn't quite sure if he really wanted to deal with this. Faintly, at the back of his helm, alarm bells started going off and sending little shoots of hope that he quickly pushed aside. Do the job first, find out what's going on, and then hope.

"You are an Autobot?" Asked the woman bluntly, eyes daring him to say no. That broke whatever held the medic back momentarily.

He sputtered, causing Mirage and Windcharger to shift uneasily behind the human. You didn't ask Ratchet stupid things. Or there would be a risk of injury to the helm. With servos on his hips the medic bent down to return the human's glare.

"Yes. I am an Autobot. Would I be in the Autobot base or the Autobot medbay if I weren't?" He questioned with sarcasm dripping from his vocals.

She snorted, "Just checking. Had to be sure." The voice was slightly ruff and a bit low to be coming from such a thin person. One would expect a slightly higher pitch or maybe softer tone. Someone either didn't get the memo or ignored it. The ambulance would have bet on the latter.

"Mirage?" He asked. The mech shifted again before starting. Few were ever comfortable with having to explain to the Hatchet how they had ended up in ridiculous situations. The noble kept it under his normally haughty face though.

"Decepticons were sighted up by the city. Rumble and Frenzy were after this one." He gestured down that the small glaring human.

The medic sighed, pinching the bridge of his olfactory sensor and sent a quick comm link to Optimus. Undoubtedly Red Alert had already informed him about the human in the base, but he wanted to make sure the Prime would get his tailpipe down here.

Crouching down, he reached for the spark container but was waylaid by the woman. With a low growl and her lip curling, she placed herself in front of the sparks. The two glowing orbs twirled around faster, bumping gently against the walls of their confinement.

Ratchet's optics narrowed. Obviously this one didn't trust them. And it wasn't surprising if she'd been chased by those cassettes. But that didn't mean she could do whatever she wanted in his medbay!

"May I," he said through gritted denta, tones strained to keep from shouting, "see them? I could just grab them if I wanted, so quite wasting my slaggin' time!" There were two sparks in one jar. That shouldn't be, he thought.

Cool eyes regarded him and promised murder or worse if they were harmed. With another rumble she moved slightly out of the way. The medic carefully picked up the container with gentle servos. The glowing blue lights still bounced around, more active then they should be. But the coloring was still bright and there was no sign of dimming. Scans would be needed to be certain.

However the girl was still agitated. Maybe girl isn't the right word. She was young, but clearly an adult. It was obvious in the way she stood and looked them all in the optic. This one didn't consider herself a child. If he had to guess, based on human anatomy, then he would have said very late teens or early twenties.

Now that he knew no one was in immediate danger, he needed to get everything straight so he could figure out what needed fixing. Tools were moved and the sparks were set on the counter away from the edge. Below the human gave a low rumble.

"What is your name?" He glanced down and then over at the scanners on the other side of the room. If he could get her up here and the needed medical equipment he could start getting all the data he needed, not to mention a bandage. It would be easier to run tests from higher up compared to the floor.

A stony face, then, "Shay."

Ratchet made a hmph noise, "And how old are you?"

Now her pale blue eyes narrowed slightly, "Twenty-two."

Well then, not too young, at least for human age standards. He crouched once more and reached a servo out, holding it flat before the woman. She leaned away, openly glaring.

"It would be easier for everyone if you weren't down there. So either let me help or climb up yourself." he grouched at Shay. She looked at the open palm and then at the sparks before giving a low growl and carefully climbing into his hand. He stood slowly as the presence on his servo steadied herself and then held it close to the table so she could get off, which she promptly did with a little jump. Immediately she settled herself by the container.

Turning to the forgotten bots who had been quietly standing by the wall he ordered, "Stay in the Ark. I may call you back." He knew full well that Prowl would have them going to explain things at his office soon enough. With that dismissal he moved to grab a few items from the drawers and send another comm link, this one to his assistant, First Aid. The protectobot was heading this way anyways. Mirage and Windcharger slipped out with the latter giving a cheery wave to the human (it wasn't returned but she did tip her head in thanks for the ride).

Finished getting everything together, the medic received a call that Prime and a few others were heading toward the medbay. He pulled a crate out from under a bench and set it nearby before turning to the woman. She stood watching his every movement with her face closed off, giving away nothing. Behind her the spinning orbits of the sparks had slowed to what was slightly more normal.

"Are you injured?" He questioned taking the scanner over her and the sparks. A frown as the medic glanced over the data and concluded there were no broken bones or ruptured organs. Not that he thought there would be. However, a skeletal scan showed a couple of fractured ribs that had starting healing at least a day or so ago, to judge by the healing growth. There was nothing to do about those except prescribe bed rest. Once again Ratchet wished the humans had easier ways to heal themselves. They couldn't just open up their chests to replace or fix the broken parts. The screen lit up red in some areas, mostly around what looked like a pulled and slightly inflamed muscle near her right ankle. Funny how you couldn't see her limp when she moved.

Shay shook her head to the earlier question, "Dunno." With a serious face she rolled up the sleeves of her jacket and noted a few small cuts and bruises before checking under her shirt. It was apparently sufficient as she poked both her legs in several areas before standing upright again, "I would prefer three small bandages and some antiseptic if you have some." The woman pronounced calmly. The medic grunted an affirmative before reaching into the crate he'd pulled out. It had all their human medical supplies in it. After handing Shay what she required he watched with a critical optic to make sure they were applied right. One went to the scratch across her hand and the other to the shoulder of her right arm. The last was placed on a long shallow mark across her abdomen.

"You didn't place it right. Foreign components can still get in that wound." with a growl and careful servos Ratchet pulled the bandage off and poked it into it's right place, a scowl set into his face the entire time. Shay twitched back a little but beyond that didn't react. He was not happy. All in all, there were a number of mottled areas all over, a split lip that was barely noticeable, and an older bandage on her neck.

"Do you know you have two fractured ribs?" He questioned grumpily, "And put a new bandage on your neck!" he snapped, handing another one to her. Behind him First Aid arrived. He paused to look at the sparks, Ratchet, and then the human before settling himself on the corner chair to wait till he was needed.

The young woman gave him a flat look although she did replace the covering on her neck, "They'll heal," a blunt statement.

Barely half a minute behind the medic's assistant came Red Alert with Prowl and Optimus last. The female eyed each critically, studying them up and down before moving on to the next. Her stance shifted until she was leaning against the container slightly and crossed her arms. While the other bots came into the room the medic looked at the scans of the sparks.

He had been right. They were stable, the energy levels acceptable, and nothing stood out as odd. Ratchet did, however, purposely ignore the frequency scans. Those would tell him if these sparks were who he thought they were. But he wouldn't -couldn't- get his hopes up. The professional side of him warned him not to jump ahead.

'No one is about to offline. Hear what she has to say, then hope.' he thought, staying in his medic state and not allowing himself to think about anything else. Get the job done, deal with all the emotions later.

"Ratchet?" Questioned Optimus Prime. All optics were on the two sparks in the container and the glowering human in front of them. The medic sighed and pulled up a chair.

"Neither the sparks nor the human are in critical condition. Everything appears stable."

The Prime walked toward the human as Prowl set himself against the wall. Red Alert scowled and plopped himself onto an empty table, all the while giving the woman a suspicious look. When he was only a couple of feet away, Optimus tilted his head to get a better look before speaking in a calm deep rumble.

"Hello."