Disclaimer: I don't own Transformers or any of the characters, Hasbro & Paramount Pictures does.

This is simply going to be a story of fluffy thoughts that pop into my head, so it probably won't be as structured as my other stories. And I would like to give an extra-big thanks to MoonstarWorld and Litahatchee for giving me a number of great suggestions for this story. I will be referencing Litahatchee's wonderful idea of carrying from her story Nightfire, which I truly hope I do justice in this story. Thank you.

Now remember, Bumblebee may seem OOC here because he is very young, practically a baby-bot. This is how some of my very little cousins and much younger brother would probably act in a situation like this, so be open-minded and nice, please. Bumblebee would want that.

Sparkling - Newborn

Youngling - Child

Italics - Thoughts

Breem - 8.3 Earth minutes

Joor - About 6.5 Earth hours

Orn - About 13 Earth days

Vorn - About 83 Earth years

Sparkling - Chapter I - Optimus Prime

The sleek silver hallways of the titanic Autobot battleship, Artemis I, shone faintly beneath the glowing lights of the ceilings and the faint humming of various machines and equipment could be heard through the doorways. A peaceful silence hung in the warm air, the towering walls of Optimus Prime's office glinting in the pale light that was given off by his large computer terminal. However, the mesmerizing Commander of the Autobots had more important things to attend to than data chips at the moment…

"No fit," squeaked a tiny voice. "Need 'nother piece."

Optimus gazed down at the bright yellow minibot who sat amongst his feet, dark blue optics watching as the small sparkling toddled across the room to find another piece of the puzzle. The large Autobot had given up trying to keep his office floor organized since no sooner did he clear the pristine surface before it was covered in toys and game-chips yet again.

It was a never-ending battle that Optimus Prime could never hope to win.

The powerful Autobot leader kept his sharp optics fixed on the tiny form that was running across his office, his large hand immediately catching the little bot before he could take a tumble over one of his own toy models. Bumblebee clicked and twittered at his big caretaker, not pleased that the older mech had disturbed his dash to finish the puzzle that Perceptor had made specially for him.

"No!" hissed the sparkling, hitting the older mech's arm with his little fists and kicking at his kneecaps. "Down! Now! Down!"

Optimus simply placed the tiny mech in front of the elusive puzzle, content to let the sparkling entertain himself. Bumblebee was a rather demanding sparkling, and made his displeasure well known if he was not given the proper amount of attention that he felt he deserved. Thankfully, the little yellow sparkling was thoroughly absorbed with the new toys and games that Wheeljack and Perceptor had designed for him.

Then again, puzzles could only occupy a sparkling for so long.

"Perhaps it would be wise to take a break and get a bit of energon, little one," proposed Optimus, his hands easily scooping up the tiny bot as he attempted to climb into one of the large cabinets that lined the room.

"No!!"

Optimus easily held the wriggling bot in his left hand, the tiny bundle of yellow wires contrasting with the dark blue of his thick arms. Not quite sure how to deal with such a fit, Optimus looked around the room in hopes of finding a means to appease the pouting sparkling. And then he saw it on the far side of the office…

"But what about Rufus?" asked Optimus, picking up the small stuffed animal that appeared to be a cross between a large bear and himself. Well, he had to give Wheeljack credit, he did have quite the imagination when it came to anything involving lil' sparklings.

Bumblebee immediately perked up at the sight of his beloved stuffed toy.

"I'm sure he's hungry too."

"Rufus!"

The Autobot Commander handed the stuffed animal to the tiny sparkling, using the temporary distraction to his advantage as he slipped out of the room. Bumblebee twittered at the toy, his vocal processor releasing a jumble of sounds that the larger mech could not hope to understand without consulting Bluestreak or Wheeljack. Both mechs were fluent in the gibberish language that Bumblebee frequently used despite Ratchet's intense efforts to get the sparkling to 'speak like a big bot'.

Well, that was easy, thought Optimus, Now I just have to get him to drink some energon.

Just as Optimus thought this, the door directly to his right hissed open and a pair of familiar mechs exited the biochem laboratories. Both stared at their commander with amused optics, their focus on the tiny bot that was happily clicking and twittering away in his arms.

"That's quite the armful you have there, my friend," said Ratchet, his gruff voice laced with sarcasm and amusement at the sight.

Bumblebee perked up at the sound of the medic's voice, immediately reaching out to the two mechs when they stepped into his optical view. Wheeljack eagerly snatched the little bot from Optimus's arms, his fins glowing brightly when the sparkling began to giggle as he playfully tickled Bumblebee's sensitive wiring. The tiny bot ran his small fingers over Wheeljack's masked faceplate in a vain attempt to protect himself from the older mech's soft blows of air.

"Stop!! Tickles!!" giggled Bumblebee, his tiny frame struggling to escape the large inventor's fingers and air vents. "No!!"

"Did you two hear something?" asked Wheeljack, innocently glancing around the hall as his fingers continued to lightly skim over Bumblebee's sensitive side. "I could've sworn that I heard a little voice."

"Me, 'Jack!" squeaked Bumblebee, his internal cooling fans clicking on as his small frame started to heat up. "Me!!"

"Who?" continued the inventor playfully.

"Bee!"

"Bee? I don't know who this Bee is," stated Wheeljack, his mask protecting him from the little fingers that were ghosting over his faceplates. "Perhaps he's a new recruit that Magnus sent from Iacon."

"Me Bee!" squeaked the sparkling, his tiny frame sagging in the inventor's large hand and relaxing as the tickle torture came to an end. "Me!"

"Of course, you're our lil' Bee," said Wheeljack, leaning over to playfully rub his noseplate over the sparkling's small chassis. He could feel the rapid pulse of the minibot's tiny spark, momentarily amazed by the strength of the small creature's life force. "Only our Bee could be this impossibly cute and adorable."

The sparkling continued to click and squeak as they entered the rec room, his tiny frame curled into a tight little ball in Wheeljack's left hand whilst his right one gently massaged Bumblebee's sensitive receptors.

"Who's a cute lil' mech?" cooed Wheeljack whilst sitting down between Nightbeat and Blades on the main couch in front of the holovid. "Who's the cutest lil' mech in the whole, wide universe?"

"Bee!"

"And who's the smartest lil' mech in the entire galaxy?"

"Bee!"

"That's right!" cooed Wheeljack, gently tossing Bumblebee into the air.

"Primus," groaned Blades, more than a little annoyed by the inventor's child-like coos and gibberish clicks, "'Jack obviously fried more than a few circuits when tha' experiment blew up in his face."

Click. Buzz. Twitter. Click. Chirp. Click. Click. Chirrup. Buzz. Click.

"'Jack!!" snarled Ratchet's irritated voice, "What have I told about talking to him like that? Bumblebee needs to start phasing out of the clicking stage."

"But he's still so little," whined Wheeljack whilst holding Bumblebee up for every mech in the room to see, "Don't you think it's too early, Ratch?"

"Bumblebee may be the tiniest sparkling I have ever seen, but he is also one of the cleverest," stated Ratchet. "He knows exactly how to get around every mech on this glitchin' battleship. And that includes you, 'Jack."

The inventor gazed down at the tiny creature that sat in his lap, bright baby blue optics staring up at him with an innocence that he could never hope to deny in this lifetime. Bumblebee released another quiet click, his tiny fingers reaching up to the older mech in an adorably beseeching manner. Wheeljack immediately responded, hefting the tiny bot into his arms without a second thought.

It was official: Bumblebee had the infamous Autobot inventor wrapped around his little finger.

"But he's too cute to deny," cried Wheeljack, softly responding to the clicks and chirps that Bumblebee was making in his arms. "Just look at this lil' face."

"And you're certainly not helping matters by speaking to him like that!"

"Calm down, Ratchet," said Optimus Prime's regal baritone as he finished readying the sparkling's bottle of warmed low-grade energon, "Bumblebee is not even six vorns old yet." In other words, the tiny sparkling was not even the Cybertronian equivalent of a three-month-old Earth infant. "He has plenty of time to learn how to speak like a big bot."

Bumblebee squealed eagerly when he saw Optimus approach with the bright blue bottle of coronite-flavored low-grade, his tiny frame crawling off of Wheeljack and onto Nightbeat in his haste to get to the tasty substance. The detective chuckled at the bubbly sparkling, easily picking him up by his scruff-bar and then handing him to his approaching commander.

"Here you go, little one," cooed Optimus, cradling the sparkling in the crook of his left arm as he gently shook the bottle with his right hand, placing the tube at the top of the bottle into Bumblebee's eager mouth. The tiny minibot immediately latched onto the bottle, his small fingers curling around Optimus's thick digits as the sweet-flavored energon flowed into his fuel tanks.

"Ain't dis an endearin' sight," chuckled Jazz as he walked into the rec room with Mirage and Blaster at his side. "The great Prime himself feedin' a lil' sparklin'."

Optimus simply gave the saboteur a pointed glare, the familiar feel of Bumblebee's warm little spark and the quiet sound of his suckling relaxing the Autobot commander. He enjoyed spending time with Bumblebee. And in Optimus's opinion, feeding the tiny sparkling was one of the most fulfilling aspects of caring for him. Optimus loved feeling the small minibot cradled in his arms, his tiny fingers wrapped around his own thick ones whilst Bumblebee's little feet gently pattered against his battle-worn chassis.

Optimus loved everything that was Bumblebee.

"Slowly, little one," whispered Optimus, removing the tube from the sparkling's mouth and gently rubbing his throat in order to coax the fluid down into his tanks. The tiny bot squeaked quietly, licking around his mouth plates before releasing a small burp that Optimus found incredibly endearing and adorable. "Finish swallowing."

Bumblebee squeaked and reached for the half-empty bottle, his tiny fingers making grasping motions that alerted the older Autobot to his readiness for more of the sweet and brightly colored fluid. Optimus placed the small tube back into Bumblebee's eager mouth, watching as the sparkling's systems revved in contentment and his tiny mouth suckled on the soft tube.

"Did you add the minerals that I gave you earlier?" asked Ratchet.

"Of course," said Optimus whilst removing the bottle and repeating the previous process of rubbing the sparkling's throat. He accepted a second bottle from the medic and placed it in Bumblebee's waiting mouth, sitting down at one of the smaller couches on the far side of the rec room. Optimus tenderly massaged around the sparkling's mouth plates with his thumb, wiping up the small amount of energon that somehow managed to escape the tiny bot's keen mouth. "I think I'm going to need another bottle, Ratchet."

"Are you sure?" questioned the medic, surprised that Bumblebee was drinking this much energon. The sparkling was not known for drinking more than one or two bottles at a time. Most sparklings drank twice the amount that Bumblebee did, but the minibot was simply so tiny that most of the Autobots did not question his appetite. "He usually does not drink this much. But he doesn't appear to be full."

Wheeljack had even designed the sparkling bottles to be extra-small so that they would fit into Bumblebee's tiny mouth.

"Well, he definitely wants more," stated Optimus after the medic ran a scan on the minibot's tanks. Bumblebee continued to suckle greedily at the empty bottle, little fingers grasping at Optimus's thumb in a silent plea for more of the tasty fluid. The towering commander gladly took the third bottle from the medic's hand, gently shaking it while baby blue optics followed his every movement. "Here you go."

Bumblebee happily suckled on the soft tube, the burning warmth and closeness of Optimus' spark causing the sparkling to react with a healthy fervor that was rarely seen in such a tiny creature. The sparkling subconsciously nestled into the Autobot commander's thick chassis, eagerly seeking the familiar warmth of his brilliant spark.

"Primus, Bee's really puttin' it away," commented Jazz, his optics watching as the tiny bot continued to guzzle down the fluid. "He never drinks tha' much when I feed 'im."

"Well, I guess Optimus is special," said Ratchet.

You have no idea, thought Optimus sarcastically.

The sparkling squeaked when the tube was removed from his mouth halfway through the bottle, his optics fixated on the delicious fluid as powerful fingers gently massaged his sensitive throat. He was beginning to feel full at last, but the sight of the remaining fluid was simply too tempting for him to pass up.

Bumblebee reached for the bottle yet again.

"Where's he puttin' it all?" asked Jazz.

Ratchet simply shrugged and replied, "I guess his appetite is increasing. He never filled his tanks to full capacity before, so this really isn't that surprising."

"I pity whoever 'as to flush his tanks tonight," said Jazz with a grimace.

Bumblebee finished off the last droplets of energon, his tiny mouth puckering as he attempted to lick up the remnants that had escaped him. Optimus ran his thick thumb over the sparkling's mouthplates and allowed him to lick the digit clean before a series of quiet burps escaped Bumblebee's vocal processor.

The Autobot commander hefted Bumblebee up against his shoulder and lightly rubbed his back panels right below his fuel tanks. Bumblebee clicked in discomfort, his tanks churning for a few moments before he burped up a small amount of excess fluid.

"There we go," cooed Optimus, "All better."

Bumblebee yawned and curled into a tight little ball in Optimus's arms, his full fuel tanks making him drowsy as the warm liquid flowed through his tiny frame. Optimus gladly cradled the little sparkling close to him, gently rubbing Bumblebee's sensitive receptors until he had fallen into a deep recharge.

Several joors later…

The Autobot Supreme Commander watched as the little sparkling played on his office floor, puzzle pieces and game chips strewn all around his small frame. Rufus lay not too far to the side, the stuffed animal covered in piles of puzzle pieces that Bumblebee had yet to sort out.

"Too big," chirped the minibot, discarding another puzzle piece and moving on to the next one without a moments thought. "Need blue one."

Optimus smiled down at the tiny mech, complete adoration and love shining in his dark blue optics. Bumblebee was such a beautiful sparkling. Everything about the tiny bot enamored the powerful Autobot commander: his little grasping digits, imploring baby blue optics, squeaky voice that still had a hard time pronouncing words, or the tiny plates atop his head that flitted into the air when he was excited or happy. He was simply so—

"Slag!!"

The Autobot Commander was barely able to duck before a particularly large blue puzzle piece zoomed right by his head. Optimus was stunned into silence by the obscene words that were spewing from Bumblebee's squeaky vocal processor.

"Bumblebee!!" snapped Optimus, his hand immediately attempting to grab the sparkling by his sensitive scruff-bar. "What have I told you about using such vulgar language?"

"Frag! Frag! Frag! Frag! Frag!!"

The sound of footsteps and hissing of the office door caused Optimus to squawk in embarrassment as he made a wild dive for the happily cursing sparkling. Bumblebee sat on his little skidplate in the middle of the room, his hand repeatedly smacking another puzzle piece against the board with reckless abandon. The tiny bot had no idea what such vulgar words meant to the older mechs around him.

"I leave for three orns and this is what I return to?" boomed the deep baritone of the Autobot's resident weapons specialist. "A sparkling that cusses more than a group of 'Cons on cheap high-grade."

"'Hide!!!"

The titanic weapons specialist was immediately tackled by his tiny charge, his huge arms enveloping the sparkling and hiding him from further view. Bumblebee clicked loudly when his guardian picked him up, his small frame practically buzzing with energy when he realized that Ironhide was finally home. When Ironhide was not on the ship it was cold and lonely, a feeling that Bumblebee did not enjoy in the least.

"Missed you lots," squeaked Bumblebee, his small arms wrapping around the black mech's thick neck. "Why gone so long?"

Ironhide chuckled, his large arms hefting Bumblebee high enough for him to kiss the sparkling atop his tiny head. "I had an important mission, little one." He cast Optimus a meaningful glance that clearly alluded to the success of the mission. Ironhide was without a doubt one of Optimus' most ruthless soldiers. And Ironhide was only this mellow after a group of 'Cons came into contact with the business end of his plasma cannons.

Obviously, a highly successful mission.

Bumblebee clicked in response, his small frame nestling into Ironhide's pitch black chassis whilst his bright blue optics gazed up at his guardian with a fearfulness that neither mech were comfortable witnessing from such a young sparkling.

"What if don't come back?"

Ironhide frowned, his burly arms instinctively tightening around the sparkling when he felt the small spark pulsing not too far from his own ancient core. He hated leaving this precious creature, but he was still a soldier and had to fight in order to protect everything that he held dear to him.

And Bumblebee was definitely his most treasured gift.

"I'll always come back, little one," rumbled Ironhide, his head dipping low in order to gaze into the sparkling's optics, "As long as you need me, I'll always return."

Bumblebee seemed to contemplate this multi-layered response, his systems revving as he attempted to burrow even deeper into his guardian's warmth. "Okay." The sparkling suddenly giggled and indicated that he wanted to be placed back on the ground. "Look what Bee made!"

The two older mechs sighed in relief, glad that the tiny bot had forgotten all about his hard-hitting questions within a few short astroseconds. There were just some questions that were better left unasked, Optimus concluded.

"I hope you behaved yourself," said Ironhide. Bumblebee eagerly pointed to a small fortress that he had made out of cubes, attempting to hide inside of it before his guardian snatched him up and started to blow air out of his vents and onto the bot's sensitive frame. "Or else I'll have to lock you in the brig!"

The feel of the deep rumbling voice against his chassis caused the tiny bot to giggle madly, his little hands reaching out to Optimus whilst pleading, "Save Bee! Opt! Save Bee!"

Optimus smiled and concluded that it would be wise to save the little sparkling from his tickle torturer. After all, what kind of big brother would he be if he were to deny such an earnest plea.

I'll never know, thought Optimus. I could never abandon him. Never.

Well, I hope this was not too fluffy or overdone. This was just a random idea that popped into my head, so it's not really structured like my other stories. But I hope that you all enjoyed it. And as I said, this is mostly a fluff-based story, so if there's a particular bot that you would like to see with Bumblebee, just say so in your review. I hope this story lived up to your expectations and thank you for reading!!