Adrien nodded a bit. "If it's the same to you all, I'm really in no rush to seperate today." He smiled a bit, glancing at his parents then his sister. Hunter nodded in agreement, crossing his arms, frowning. The troubles of finding each other couldn't be tossed aside just yet.

Raf smiled slightly and looked at his own family then nodded in understanding. He went to the other room to make a few calls as they stayed together. Hunter looked at Riley and winked as he smirked. Skye caught it and smacked his arm as she gasped. Riley watched him go then glanced around, blinking in surprise at Hunter, blushing. She turned and walked to the kitchen to grab a drink, letting the rose tint leave her face slowly. Adrien looked at his brother with an amused look, shaking his head.

Hunter glanced at his twin and shrugged as he smiled slightly. He then went to help where he could. Jack watched them as he sat on the couch and smiled a little. He closed his eyes as his wife rested her head against his shoulder. He was so happy they were together now. Adrien snorted and crossed his arms over his chest. 

Sari began packing up dinner, Riley helping her quietly, fiddling with her necklace. "What's our next move?" Wheeljack whispered to Bulkhead, leaning over to him.

He furrowed his brow and looked at his wrecker friend as he rubbed his stump. "Honestly? I don't know.... our goal has been to get together for.... forever... now we're here and... I don't know. When Optimus isn't around... Ratchet is normally in charge." he said.

Wheeljack nodded a little but snorted. "Ratchet is no state to be in charge. He can't remember anything. One of us should be in charge." He said seriously, frowning deeply. Smokescreen stepped forward as if he was going to nominate himself but shook his head.

"I think Arcee should be in charge until we find Optimus." Smokescreen muttered, almost as if he was upset with his own idea.

They all looked at him and then at each other for a moment as they thought. "Smokescreen.... where did you end up when you left the base... and why did it take you so long to get back with us?" Bulkhead asked.

"Ya. What happened, Smokes?" Miko said as she frowned and all eyes went to him.

The rookie watched them, his eyes darting back and forth between them. He shrugged a little at their questions, shifting a bit from all the attention. "I... well when the bridge closed I immediately regretted it so I drove back to base as fast I could. Everything was on fire and the base was completely destroyed," he explained and paused, frowning as he remembered the state it was all in. "I found Optimus and managed to drag him into a cave, his injuries terrible. We..." he paused, his eyebrows twitching. "We talked and well I went back to get the hammer and... it didn't have a lot of juice in it. I managed to get him to a stable condition. We hid there for years and years..." he trailed off, sighing softly. "We never left the cave." He then glanced at Arcee. "He then ordered me to go find you guys and that he would meet up with me. That's the last I saw of the big guy."

They stared at him then looked at each other again. It worried them that Optimus had disappeared. "How long were.... you in the cave?" Arcee asked.

"About... five years... we spent one year exploring undercover... but that was after three years in hiding. I went back to the cave after he sent me off... and... he was gone." He explained and their eyes widened in surprise.

"You haven't seen Optimus in... twenty years?" Bulkhead gasped and shakily stood. "Why did you leave him behind?" He said.

"You don't think I ask myself that everyday?!" He shouted suddenly. "I don't know why..." he trailed off and stared at the floor. 

Wheeljack shook his head. "Did Optimus say anything about where he could be going?" He asked and the speedster began thinking, frowning deeply.

"He didn't really mention anything that would hint where he would go." Smokescreen admitted, sighing.

"That's weird. Optimus wouldn't just go on his own, right?" Sari asked quietly as she walked over after she finished putting dinner away.

"He might... if he felt the fate of the world was at stake. Or if he wanted to keep people from being harmed. Most likely he saw what happened to the humans, and decided that he wanted to end their suffering. But in the process... had to do something about it..." Arcee trailed off and looked at the kids.

"When... did you end up in Darkmount?" Smokescreen asked hesitantly. Jack looked at Miko and Raf then to the speedster again.

"About that time..." he whispered quietly hating the memories. "Miko and I had gotten married then left on a mission with Raf... but then we were ambushed and.... taken to that place where..." he trailed off as he stared blankly then shook his head. "We somehow escaped from there... I don't remember... I was..." he trailed off again and Miko gripped his hand as she looked at her.

"We were there for ten months... they... did..." she shook her head as tears filled her eyes. "Not the point... we had been captured with our guardians and I don't know who else." She said as she looked to their Autobot guardians.

"I remember... that..." Bumblebee rasped and looked at them. Raf nodded slowly as his fingers twitched and he set a hand to his side.

"Ten months too long... but we somehow got out..." Raf whispered quietly and rocked a little, memories threatening to throw him into an attack. 

Riley frowned deeply as she looked to her father, trembling a little. She walked over as she bit her lip and hugged him, trying to calm him down. Sari frowned deeply and rubbed her husband's back. "Point is," Sari began, looking at them. "We're here now. No need to stick to the past." She murmured as she ran her fingers through Rafs messy brown hair.

"Well, how did you two meet?" Smokescreen asked, curious as he looked at them. Riley glanced at them then down at the ground.

"We met through Darkmount. We escaped together with Bumblebee not long after we were separated from Miko and the others." Sari explained quietly.

"S-S-Should we really be talking about this with Quinn in the room? She can probably hear all this." Riley spoke quietly, her voice shaking as she stared at their feet and shoes. "It's in the past anyway." She murmured, looking away to the door.

They all stopped their conversation and looked at Riley. The room was silent as they stared at her and the parents tried to shrug off the memories of Darkmount. "Uh... who's Quinn?" Smokescreen asked as he furrowed his brow.

"Um, me of course." The child huffed and looked at him from the table. She had been drawing again as she listened to them. 

Riley froze, letting go of her father. "Quinn!" She blinked, her eyes widening a bit. She went to her little sister nervously, shaking. "Uh... what are you drawing?" She asked quietly, fiddling with her necklace as she tried to divert the attention from the child's doodles. She feared her sister was drawing what they were talking about.

Quinn jumped and looked at her as she furrowed her brow. "I'm just drawing our family." She said slightly offended that her sister thought she was drawing bad things.

"Th-That's cool." Riley stuttered, looking to her sister quietly. "S-Sorry I jumped at you like that. You know I get curious when you draw." She smiled faintly.

The smaller girl looked at her and furrowed her brow as she set her things down. "Why are you so scared?" She asked quietly and looked at her with concern.

The young woman gripped her heart locket tightly. "I'm not scared." She mumbled, shifting in the seat, staring down at the girl as she tried to give out a calm aura even if she couldn't. "I have nothing to be scared of." She barely whispered, her words trembling.

Adrien chuckled while talking to the other, then it faded as he looked over to Riley. He slipped away and walked over then sat by her as he gently gripped her shoulder. "Hey... you alright?" He asked quietly with concern.

Riley stared at her little sister then jumped out of her skin when he sat next to her, surprise filling her eyes. She began calming down very slowly, her breaths quickening. "I'm fine, d-don't worry." She whispered, tugging at the necklace chain anxiously. "Just anxiety." She murmured and looked down to the table.

"That's okay..." he whispered quietly as he looked at her. "I had anxiety as well... I kind of still do." He admitted quietly and glanced at his twin then at her. "You'll be okay..." he whispered quietly and glanced to Quinn's drawing.

The young woman nodded a little as she listened to him. She looked down at the table, forcing herself to move her hand off her necklace. She clasped her hands together, messing with one of Quinn's crayons. "I-I know... just... yeah." she murmured, not believing him much. Her anxiety felt like it was getting worse whenever she had an attack.

He watched her and furrowed his brow then stood. Figuring that nothing he'd say would help her. He glanced at his sister and furrowed his brow. Riley glanced at him then looked down quietly. She bit her lip and grabbed a piece of paper, drawing with Quinn as her leg bounced up and down.

Her little sister stared at her then gently gripped her arm. "It's okay...." she whispered quietly. "Breathe in and out." She said quietly.

Rileys eyes looked up at her sister. She smiled faintly, her hand taking her little sisters. "Thank you Quinn." She said gently, slowly calming down as she focused on her breaths and the drawing and nothing else.

The child smiled as she helped her sister and colored with her. She kept breathing with her and grinned up at her to help her be happy. She gripped her hand and kept coloring as she distracted herself. Riley smiled sadly at her as she began calming down, ashamed that her six year old sister had to watch her like this. She looked down at the paper and continued coloring after a moment.

~

Wheeljack frowned as he watched them then looked to Jack who stared at the kid. "I remember when Skye was that age." He smiled fondly, trying to change the subject as well.

The father nodded slowly and smiled a little then looked to Skye. She blushed deeply and covered her face with her hands. "No Uncle Jackie, don't bring anything up." She muttered.

The said wrecker laughed and grinned, looking at Skye. "Hey kid, that's all I remember you as for a very long time until you decided to grow up on me. Since when did you start going on missions?" He grinned at her.

"She's in the wrecker family, you expect her not to act like one too?" Miko grinned, looking to her daughter in amusement and with pride. 

Skye groaned and covered her face again as she rubbed it. She looked at her family and smiled anyway. "Honestly... I was looking for my family." She said as she watched them.

Wheeljack chuckled and looked at Skye, grinning as he teased her. He found it funny. "Well you got us, kiddo." He said gently, smirking. "You're as determined as your Mom."

Skye smiled and was about to say something when her phone beeped. Her smile faded instantly and she looked at it. She stared blankly as she read the message. They were calling her away again. 

The wreckers laugh suddenly faded and he frowned as he looked at her phone. "Where are they sending you?" He asked quietly, worried for her safety. He suddenly felt the urge to go with, wanting to protect her and give her a hand.

Bulkhead looked at her as well then at his friend and his leg. He glanced to his missing ear then over to the others as they looked at Skye. She stared at the phone and her hands shook a little as she paled. "N... nowhere." She whispered. "I-I-I-I need to go..." she said as she shakily stood and put it away.

Wheeljack glanced at Bulkhead and gave him a look, seeing he was looking over him. "I can still do it." He grunted to him and looked at the now pale young woman. "Skye, please, we're here to help you. What's going on?" He pressed a bit, leaning forward and taking her hand. "Relax."

Skye looked at him then at the others as she tensed. "It's okay... I... I need to talk to Grandad for a moment." She whispered and smiled reassuringly. "I'll explain soon." She said and walked off to the other room. The wrecker frowned deeply and nodded a bit, letting go of her hand. The hallway was fairly dim and silent. Soft snores filled the hall that came from the room where Ratchet was resting with June.

The young woman smiled sadly and rested her forehead against the door. She bit her lip and slowly opened it then slipped inside. June jumped a little and opened her eyes as she was startled. "Who's... who's there?" She gasped in fear as she glanced around and tried to get up, waking the doctor as she winced.

"Grandma... it's okay." Skye whispered quietly as she rushed over and gently took her hand in hers. "It's just Skye..." she whispered. 

Ratchet jolted awake once June had, blinking his eyes several times as he looked around the room. He pushed June back down, wanting to protect her from the intruder. The doctor relaxed though once he heard the familiar sound of his granddaughter's soft voice. His chest relaxed and he laid back down, rubbing the top of June's hand with a thumb. "Easy June... it's alright." He murmured, his voice deep with tiredness. "What do you need Skye?" He asked gently as he turned his head to Skye, softening his voice as he spoke to her.

"Sorry..." Skye whispered quietly and wondered if this was a good idea. "I... I'm being called away..." she choked a little as her hands shook. She was never scared when they called her away. "I... I wanted to... say goodbye before I left..." she rasped and June looked at her with concern. The child gently hugged her grandmother then walked over and hugged the old doctor. He could feel her shaking. 

Ratchet frowned and began sitting up. "What? Where?' He whispered and hugged her tightly. "Why... Skye you're coming back. Why are you acting as if you aren't? What's going on?" Ratchet asked worriedly as he pet her hair gently, his eyebrows furrowing.

Skye shook her head and hugged him tighter, she was sworn to secrecy and could never say where she was going. She sighed shakily as she shook in his arms and June gently gripped her arm as she looked at her with concern. "I can't say..." the frightened child whispered. "it'll be okay... don't w-worry about me..." she choked as she buried her face in him and he could feel her tears soaking his shirt. "J-just don't leave again... please..." she rasped. "Everyone is here... everyone is safe..." she whispered.

The doctor shook his head. "Talk to me, Skye." He frowned as he rubbed her cheek, brushing off her tears. "I'm not going to leave. I'm staying here, just talk to me. What's wrong?" He frowned deeply, kissing her forehead. "Relax, nothing wrong is happening right now." 

"I... I can't..." she whispered as her tears fell faster and she gripped his arms. "Grandad.... I have to go to the surface... I'm scared though... I've never been scared... but... this assignment... it's different..." she trailed off and squeezed her eyes shut as she sighed shakily. "I'll be okay... I'll come back..." she said as she shook and June frowned as she looked to the doctor. Their granddaughter was sworn to secrecy but was it worth it? They'd have to talk to the headquarters.

The doctor frowned deeply and sighed, rubbing her back, not letting her go. He hugged her tightly, kissing her head again. "I'm scared for you too. I don't want you to go... but... I know you want to and must," Ratchet murmured. "Don't be scared. Deep breathes and try to clear your mind so you can think straight." He advised calmly, worried for her but knew he couldn't stop her. He couldn't stop her last few times.

She nodded quickly and sobbed silently into his shoulder as she gripped his back. She stayed that way for a few minutes then slowly calmed down and let go. She wiped her tears away and smiled faintly. "Thank you... I'll be back..." she whispered quietly. 

Ratchet began letting go slowly and frowned. "Alright... we will be waiting." He said quietly. "I love you Skye. Be safe, please." He told her calmly.

She nodded as she smiled weakly and sniffed as she wiped her tears away. She kissed his cheek and then kissed her grandmothers cheek before she walked out of the room. She locked her fears and emotions of dread away as she walked to her family. She smiled and hugged them as she bid them farewell. Promising to be back soon.