*Warning* Violence and abuse. I'm not getting into much details to spare you. Just because.

~~~~

The new addition to the team looked around the area as he went to the living quarters. He raised an eyebrow as he looked to the other three men following him. Kaon kept a hand on the giant wolf as they walked. The beast growled threateningly at the stranger. Thinking he was too close to his master for his comfort.

"Tell me Kaon, are you blind?" The man asked bluntly and raised an eyebrow. The team stopped suddenly and looked at the newcomer, each with a dangerous expression.

They may have been ruthless, but they were protective over each other. Kaon stiffened and stopped walking, while the wolf growled and seemed to grow tense as well.

"Yes. Does that bother you?" He asked with venom as he turned to his voice. "My seeing wolf will rip you to shreds if I so choose." He said coldly. The group was silent and the man smirked cockily before laughing a little.

"I wouldn't want to offend you." He said and walked further into the living area. Kaon narrowed his eyes and Tarn gripped his shoulder.

"Patience. If we need to take him out we will. And it won't be pleasant for him." He whispered. The man nodded slowly and Vos glanced at the two before following.

As they opened the door, they heard Nickel yelling at Tesarus for something he did, or didn't do. She then stormed off towards the kitchen, but stopped when she saw them.

"Oh well look who decided to show up." She scoffed and rolled her eyes. "You're lucky I didn't decide to skip dinner altogether. It's on the table but probably stone cold at this point. Because somebody!" She said and glared at Hexes. "Decided we had to have dinner now and not wait for anyone." She said in exasperation. "Honestly I don't know why I bother!" She shouted as she threw her hands in the air.

"My my my. Isn't she a handful. Tell me Tarn, why do you keep the little brat? Surely-" He stopped since he could no longer breathe. Tarn had grabbed him by the neck and slammed him into the wall.

"We don't need to tell you about our backgrounds nor anything else. Just get the job done." He spat and shoved him to the ground. The man coughed and looked at him with excitement. Almost a crazed expression.

"This will be fun." He said as he got up and watched the leader. Tarn didn't respond and introduced everyone to the man.

Nickel fell silent and stared at the newcomer. She didn't say anything and almost seemed, uncomfortable. The young woman watched as he shook their hands. He came to her and she tensed as she kept her hands close to her.

"What's the matter little imp?" He asked as he smiled a little, though it seemed more like a predators smile.

"I'm germaphobic to anyone not on the team." She hissed trying to hide how she really felt. The man stared at her then laughed as he gently smacked her shoulder. She winced and wanted to curl up somewhere. She hated feeling vulnerable.

"I see why you keep her around. Such a firecracker." He laughed. "I bet you're a good maid as well. I'd love t-" Nickel slapped him hard across the face as she glared darkly. Partially to feel less weak and because she wanted to.

The others blinked in surprise and looked at their leader. She stood taller and huffed angrily before storming off to the kitchen. Tarn watched her with a ghost of a smile on his face.

"Careful what you say around her. She bites more than Pet." He said seriously and motioned for his men to follow. They left to get ready for their mission with the man.

Nickel was finishing with dinner and mumbling about a few things. She was irritated that the boys didn't get hardly anything done. She had to do everything. She heard footsteps and sighed in exasperation.

"I won't let you sneak some food again Tess. Last time you ate way too much and I had nothing for the meal." She ranted.

The person didn't respond and walked over then set a hand on either side of her on the counter. She stopped suddenly and paled as the person buried their face in her hair and inhaled. A shiver ran down her spine and she froze.

"What's a young woman like you doing in a life if crime?" The newcomer purred and she whipped around.

"Leave me alone or I'll stab you." She threatened and glared darkly. He chuckled and fingered her hair.

"If you wanted to do that, you would have already." He said as he took some scissors and cut a lock of her hair. She felt her breathing quicken as she felt fear building in her heart.

"Such a beautiful little girl." He purred as he stroked her hair and fingered another lock. "Such a waste, stuck here-"

"Pharma." Someone said in a warning tone. The man looked to the doorway and saw Tarn. The leader narrowed his eyes and walked towards him.

"Let the child go or lose your life." He said threateningly. Pharma stared at him then stepped away from Nickel. He didn't say anything and walked towards the doorway.

Tarn slammed him into the wall then punched him hard in the midsection. He hit him a few times in the face then threw him into the other room.

"Touch her again and I will kill you without hesitation." He said darkly. Pharma smirked then stood before bowing a little.

"Of course." He said and left to finish his preparations for their mission. Tarn glared after him then looked at Nickel with the same expression.

"I told you to watch out for yourself." He said coldly. She hugged herself and nodded as she looked at the floor. He glared more than walked out of the room.

"Thank you..." she whispered quietly but didn't look up. She frowned and went back to work on making dinner. She shuddered at what had happened and narrowed her eyes. She didn't like that man.

~

Piper giggled as she covered her father's eyes. He chuckled softly while he stayed seated on the couch. He could hear his daughter talking to someone else in the home. He furrowed his brow feeling slightly suspicious of what she was up to.

"Piper." He said as he tried to see what she was doing. She giggled and kept her hands over his eyes as she stood behind him.

"Shh shh shh not yet Papa." She smiled and looked at Grimlock. He grinned as he brought a box over and set it in his dad's lap.

"Okay now open." She beamed and let go of him. He blinked a couple times and stared at the box.

"What's this for?" He asked as he looked at his son. Piper sat on the other side of her dad and smiled more.

"It's a just because present." She grinned excitedly. He seemed confused and looked at the other child.

"What's a just because present?" He asked the young man. Grimlock laughed quietly and beamed.

"It's when we feel like giving you a present for the heck of it." He said and chuckled softly. Ratchet still seemed unsure about this.

"Are either of you wanting something?" He asked as he looked at them suspiciously.

"No dad. We just love you and want you to know that." She said as she rolled her eyes and hugged him tightly. "Why is that so hard to believe?" She asked. He didn't respond and just stared at the box.

He didn't know why it was so hard and yet he did. He slowly opened the box and found a new stethoscope. One he wanted since his old one was falling apart. He just stared at it blankly as both his children hugged him tightly. His children. He had missed so much of their lives.

"I... uh... thank you." He whispered quietly and Piper kissed his cheek.

"We love you Papa... we always will." She said and rested her head against his shoulder.

"I'm not smart... but I do know that you struggle to believe we actually like you. We do..." Grimlock said, though for some reason couldn't call him anything but Ratchet. Nor had he actually said he loved the man as Piper constantly said. Almost as if she was making up for her brother.

"Grimlock... I-" Ratchet stopped as someone knocked on his apartment door.

"I'll get it." Piper said quickly and got up then went to the door. Ratchet watched her go then sighed as he looked at the young man.

"I don't expect you to accept me..." he trailed off as the words hurt to even say. He was the boys father and it hurt that the young man didn't see it that way. His son stared at him blankly wondering why he was struggling to speak his mind. 

"Aw isn't that sweet. Little Ratchet has a family again." A voice said. The two men looked up then quickly stood. A man had his arm around Piper as his other hand held a knife to her throat. He was followed by a group of five men, one of who closed the apartment door and locked it.

"Pharma." Ratchet spat as he glared at the man who had his little girl. Grimlock growled threateningly as he recognized the Decepticon Justice Division. Vos sneered as he looked at the young man and chuckled darkly.

"D-Dad... I-I-I'm s-sorry." His daughter gasped with fear as she looked at her family. Her arms were tied behind her and rope bound her arms tightly to her body. How they had managed to tie her so quickly was beyond him.

"It's not your fault Piper." Ratchet said gently as he tried to calm her down. "It'll be alright." He whispered.

"You disgust me at times Ratchet." Pharma rolled his eyes and pressed the blade into the girls neck. She stiffened and hissed in pain as the man moved forward. "Set up boys." The captor said and the team glanced at him with slight annoyance.

One grabbed a chair and placed it in the middle of the room as the two bigger men approached. Tesarus grabbed Ratchet by the arm only to get punched by Grimlock.

"Hands off him! And let my sister go!" He demanded and ran at Pharma. Helex and Tesarus tackled the young man and worked on containing him. Ratchet yelled angrily and tried to help his son. Vos easily tackled the old man and smacked his head into the floor.

"Dad!" Piper screamed as she watched in horror. Tarn yanked the good doctor up and shoved him into the chair as Vos tied him up.

Ratchet struggled against the bonds but was soon tied down, including his legs. Grimlock was tied as well and they sat the two children on the couch. Piper moved closer to her brother as she glanced at the men. The two bigger ones stayed near Grimlock to keep him from fighting.

"What do you want?" The doctor spat, trying to get free. Pharma chuckled darkly as he looked at the helpless man.

"I want to ruin you, my friend." He sneered and leaned closer. "By taking away what's important to you. Because you took everything away from me." He growled lowly.

"What are you talking about you maniac?" The father asked. "I haven't taken anything from you." He said seriously.

"Shut up!" Pharma shouted and smacked him hard across the face. "We went to the same high school in senior year, do you remember? We went to college together and you succeeded in everything while I failed. You got the dream job while I always fell short. I was always second in everything. Do you remember?" He asked. Ratchet raised an eyebrow as he watched the man.

"It's not my fault you're a failure. If you want revenge for getting beat up or teased, you're talking to the wrong person. I wasn't a bully in school." He scoffed finding this ridiculous.

"Oh that's right. You were the victim. Always the victim. Your life was so horrible and no one else could possibly be having a harder time." He mocked. "Is that what your daddy taught you?" He sneered, the doctor glared and clenched his bound hands tightly.

"Mommy left poor Ratchet when he was little." He said in a voice you would use for a puppy. "Daddy was so upset and got drunk a lot, then blamed wittle Ratch for what happened." He mocked as he watched the doctors anger rise. "Then he lashed out and gave you that nasty scar." He said normally and looked at the man's arm.

"How did it feel Rat? To realize no one loved you, nor ever will? Your own wife left you, what makes you think your kids will stay?" He asked darkly. Ratchet stared at him for a moment then raised an eyebrow.

"Hmm. That's pretty pathetic. Picking on an old man because you want to hide your own failures." Ratchet muttered and looked at him. Pharma blinked in surprise and Vos snickered but quickly covered his mouth.

"My fiancé left me at the altar. I never had a family nor did I ever succeed in becoming-"

"Me?" Ratchet asked as he cut him off. He stared at him blankly for a few minutes then started laughing. Pharma blinked a couple times then glared at him.

This time Vos and Kaon snickered a little at the turn of events. Pharma felt humiliated in front of his new friends. He growled angrily and punched the doctor hard in the midsection.

"Don't mock me, or I'll make you watch as I harm your children." He spat as he leaned closer to him. Ratchet looked up at him then glared again. "Oh don't worry about them too much. Besides I-" the good doctor head butted him hard. The other man cried out in pain and fell to the ground.

Ratchet smirked and ignored the headache that was forming, it wasn't important now. Grimlock bit his lip to keep from laughing. Pharma heard more of his comrades snicker, but they quickly stopped. He became more angry and humiliated.

"Stop it." He spat as he got up again and glared at the others. "We're running out of time and I haven't even started." He said seriously.

The team fell silent and nodded once as they became serious again. Vos grabbed the table and brought it next to Ratchet. He then untied one of the doctors hands and forced it on the flat surface.

"What is this nonsense?" The doctor asked as he tried to pull away. Vos had to practically lay on his arm to keep it down. The villain then flattened his hand down with his own.

"I'm ruining you my friend." Pharma said coldly as he pulled out a hammer. "Taking everything away from you." He sneered as he brought the tool down on Ratchet's finger. There was a snap as the bones in his thumb shattered.

"No!" Grimlock boomed as his eyes widened. His ears were filled with his father's cries of pain. Piper stared in absolute shock as she watched them. Why would anyone want to hurt her father?