Welcome to another, long overdue installment of It's Got To Start. Enjoy. :D

Rain pouring down his alt frame and lights growing steadily clearer in the night and Bumblebee felt something tear through his systems suddenly. His wheels locked up and he skidded off the road into mud. He couldn't process anything straight it all just became a jumbled blur, his joints wanted to rip out of place and turn him to his bi-pedal form-he wanted to run, to turn, to destroy something. He was holding precious cargo and he needed to protect it. Ratchet wasn't good for the cargo at all

::Must Stay Away From Ratchet:: His processor practically yelled at him. He was facing away from the base and it just began to cross his processor to just speed off. Then it halted.

He stopped.

He scanned his cabin.

No cargo.

He relaxed and waited a moment for his wheels to depressurize and turned back around towards the base. Covered in mud he knew someone would berate him for getting dirty. Mirage maybe. He drove off towards the base again and didn't stop.

He didn't remember the names of the human's that guarded the base entrance but he did remember the mech that took the night shift to guard the gate. Black and hulking, Ironhide waited for him on the other side.

"Hello Bumblebee, how was the sunset?" Ironhide asked. Bumblebee transformed into his bi-pedal form, standing just a little taller than Ironhide, and stared at him for a moment with cold optics.

"It was wonderful as usual Ironhide." Bumblebee answered dryly and started walking. There wasn't much to say these days between the two.

"As long as it makes you happy Bee then I don't mind letting you go out there without anyone." Ironhide replied almost absently as he followed. They were moving towards the Medical Bay.

"I can protect myself just fine Hide. You don't need to worry about me as much." Anger laced his vocals as he grabbed hold of the med bay doors and swung them open.

"Oh right like you could-" Bumblebee glared at Ironhide, "Sorry, that was out of line…" Ironhide fell back and waited by the door. "I'll see you in a bit then." The conversation ended and Bee disappeared through the doors without another word.

Mech sized medbay to the right and human sized medbay for Ratchet to look at the humans to the left. Ratchet was located in M12. He walked through the white halls, occasionally staring at the white ceiling and walls-

Audio/Visual Files 1e005

Sam File 997

:: "Rah-tchet?" Sam whispered, staring up at the Medic and curled farther back into his corner. Ratchet was staring back at him just as frightened. Sam curled in upon himself and his inner monologue started up.

"OhpleasenoOhpleaseno-don't don't find out-" ::

Bumblebee stopped and rested a servo over his spark as he settled. It was bad enough with problems of his own these days so why didn't he just-

"Bumblebee?" Ratchet was halfway out of the med bay door and cleaning his built in saw. "Is it that time again already?" He nodded and walked in.

"Not so afraid of check-ups anymore?" Ratchet inquired. Bumblebee didn't say or do anything other than walk over to the berth and sit down, waiting patiently for Ratchet to begin. All the while his inner monologue was screaming at Ratchet that no he wasn't unafraid-in fact he was terrified and that he would do best to stay the pit away from him if he wanted to use his servos ever again.

"Well this time around I need to check and see how your spark chamber is holding up with the change so I'm going to put you into stasis okay?" Ratchet guided Bumblebee on the recline and opened a port in his arm to set off the stasis.

"I'll see you in a few joors Bumblebee." He jacked into Bee and shot through the firewalls and Bee's optics offlined, his body completely relaxed. Bumblebee's processor didn't shut down though.

Audio/Visual Files 1e005

Sam File 997

"Oh Sam…"

-x-

Sam didn't remember falling asleep but he sure as hell remembered what woke him up. Someone was rapping on Bumblebee's window and was very persistent. Sweat glued skin tore gingerly from the leather of the seat and confused fingers searched for the window button-Bee was ahead of him though. Will poked his head through the window with a smile.

"Hey Sam how's it going?" And then the smell hit him, "Dang kid what did you eat and chuck up?" Wafting the air around the cabin in a horrible attempt to circulate fresher air made Sam want to gag. His mouth was dry as cotton yet he could taste the residue of bile and whatever he had eaten the night before. Licking his lips he tried to speak.

"Will. May we pass?" Bumblebee asked.

"Bee-" Sam started but the croak of his voice stopped him.

"Oh geez Sam you are as bad as Bumblebee said you were. Yeah Bee get him to Ratchet soon –And Sam I'll come see you soon as Ratchet clears ya, okay?" He clapped Sam on the shoulder and stepped away letting Bumblebee through the gate.

Sam sunk deep into Bumblebee's bucket seat as some of the soldiers stared. Some waved and he meekly waved back. Then-oh then- did Sam wish Bumblebee's seat would just swallow him whole and never spit him back out. Ironhide was driving up alongside Bee giving a welcoming honk then transformed. Wordlessly Bumblebee stopped and opened the passenger door allowing Sam to step out only to allow himself enough time to transform and quickly pick Sam up and cup him in his large servos protectively. Sam didn't object and curled up, grateful to avoid having to converse directly with the weapons master.

"Sam?" Ironhide asked and leaned over to get a glimpse of the reclusive human, "Will he be alright Bumblebee?"

"M'fine 'Hide!" Sam croaked angrily and flailed an arm weakly to wave him off. It was bad enough for Will to see him so weak and disheveled, let alone Ratchet looking at him soon.

"He's - what does Will say about Sarah?- moody like a femme." Ironhide commented. Sam flailed some more to right himself into a sitting position in Bee's hand and glared at Ironhide.

"Did you just call me a girl?" He growled and even though the metal of Ironhide's face didn't provide him the same ability of human facial expressions Sam was damn sure he was smirking.

"I believe I did youngling." And the idea of flipping Hide the bird suddenly flitted across Sam's mind.

"Don't let the rust bucket get to you Sam, he's just trying to make sure you are - to some degree- still okay." Bumblebee interjected coolly and it was Ironhide's turn to glare.

"And this rust bucket can get you to have a check up today if you aren't careful Bumblebee…" Ironhide growled. Bumblebee cupped Sam closer to his chest and stepped away muttering, "Duly noted." Before turning on his heel with Sam chuckling to himself.

-x-

Sam walked into Ratchet's perfectly pristine medbay with a towel over his head and dressed in a clean white shirt and pants after thoroughly scrubbing himself of sweat and grime. From what Sam could feel, from walking on the ground to sitting on a mech sized examination table, there was no dust, no hint of any bacteria even. He almost thought it was his personal Twilight Zone/Asylum room if it weren't for Bumblebee and Ratchet standing right in front of him. Actually it looked even more like the Twilight Zone with them there.

Ratchet leaned down close to Sam and stared at him for the longest time until Sam deemed the proximity and intensity too much.

"Um… Ratchet… what are you doing?" Sam inquired gingerly.

"Examining you" He answered bluntly, continuing to stare. Sam made to squirm a little on the spot. "Do. Not. Move." Moments later Sam was allowed to twitch as much as he liked and Ratchet turned to Bumblebee. "Let's take this outside," He turned back to Sam with a piercing glare, "You will not leave that spot are we clear?" Sam nodded quickly while doing his best to keep eye contact with the wrench-flinging-medic. Ratchet nodded and stepped out, leaving Sam to his Twilight Zone.

For the longest time nothing happened as Sam's mind wandered with his eyes about the room. There was nothing to catch his attention so he reclined onto the berth and closed his eyes and began to think of Mikaela and his parents, of life outside the walls and the dorm of his college. Of the sky and rivers and metallic roads. Of citadels and people and bots of all kinds walking about. And- it was all wrong.

"Wha-?" He shot up and curled in upon himself with hands barely covering his eyes as he stared at white walls. At least he knew they were once white. It was a little confusing to see a metallic road opening up before him, and extending out to a horizon dotted with mechs that looked like the rest of the transformers. Not to mention that there were buildings reaching up to a dark sky with lights blazing out from every crevice making it seem like the entire citadel was decorated for some holy holiday. Sam couldn't tear his eyes away from what he was seeing.

"I'm dreaming again-I fell asleep and I'm dreaming and this isn't real and I'm not freakingout-" Sam thought to himself as he suddenly heard and watched someone fly past him in alt. mode. He watched the mech, no femme to be correct, turn to bi-pedal mode and turn around to him. Then the horror unfolded.

He blinked and everything was shattered like a broken mirror. He noticed the femme first and looked anywhere but where she was after a glimpse of her broken body. It was too twisted-too similar to what could have been his mom-too like his own dreams of Bee and Mikaela.

Sam was drowning in the vision now. The building had collapsed and few if any stood merely more than spires waiting to impale the body of another. Soot red ash rose from the smoke that plumed from the buildings and the ground and colored the sky a destructively beautiful red.

Sam didn't want to focus on any of the carnage though he couldn't escape any of it. It was there before him and around him and taking him in, suffocating him. And then for a brief moment he thought darkness had overtaken him and let him wake from the nightmare. Though not before filling his vision with that of a purple insignia and glowing red optics.

The next moment Sam felt anything was when he recognized a terrible pain up and down his spine. His lungs screamed for air and when he opened his mouth his eyes followed suit. He never thought that white was so beautiful before he opened his eyes. Sam's chest heaved as he laid there collecting himself from his horrible nightmare and glimpsed the area around him. He had fallen off the berth that much was for sure.

He forced his body to set him up right so he could move, begin to forget the tragedy he witnessed in his own mind. No sooner was he able to sit did he see Ratchet's feet enter his sight.

"Rah-tchet?" Sam whispered, staring up at the Medic and curled farther back into his corner. Ratchet was staring back at him just as frightened. Sam curled in upon himself and his inner monologue started up.

"OhpleasenoOhpleaseno-don't don't find out-"

"Sam what happened?"

-x-

It wasn't like waking up from recharge. He simply just stopped processing bodily functions and after what seemed to be a short period of time his body started up again as if he was only blinking. Ratchet closed up his chest then motioned for him to sit up.

After running a systems check he found nothing wrong with his personal state and slid off the berth. He got as far as the door before Ratchet spoke.

"Your systems are adjusting well to the upgrade just so you know. I believe that you will only need to be in here a few more times before you are cleaned up nicely and adjusted." With that Ratchet gathered up his tools and either put them away or set them close to the sink to be sanitized.

As Bumblebee stood halfway out the door he turned around, words forming in his processor, he tried to speak. Ratchet turned to him quickly even if he tried to feign indifference Bumblebee could see him hoping that he would say something.

And the words died in his vocalizer and he stalked out of the med bay. He wanted to leave before he could hurt Ratchet. All that wanted to come out now was something he knew he would regret saying.

:: I hate you ::

After all he was supposed to protect him.

Even from himself.

I am evil I know :3 First I make you all wait months for this and then I just leave you confused. I will be nice though and update sooner because I should and I really want to get this out here. Also I want it noted that anything that doesn't make sense, like height issues and the like, are there for a reason and you are allowed to ponder why and even guess