"Sometimes friends
are the only escape we have from ourselves."

~Atticus

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"It's been a while since you've left this room. Shouldn't you go talk to the others or something?"

Wheejack stood at the end of my bed, arms crossed. He was wearing the same thing as he was that first day he had helped me get away from Vince. He probably hadn't changed clothes at all. Maybe holoforms didn't' need to change clothes.

"No thank you," I replied softly.

He frowned. "Rafael has been asking about you nonstop."

I looked away from him and glanced towards the door. In all honesty, I missed Rafael. He was kind and thoughtful. Miko was just the same, but had the absolute opposite personality. And Jack was a mystery since I'd barely talked to him. But there was no point talking to them now.

"He shouldn't w-worry. I'm fine."

"You've been locked inside of this room for days. Don't you want to go outside? Get a little fresh air under those wings?" Wheeljack questioned purposefully while pointing at my wings which were folded at my sides.

While the thought did excite me, I knew it wasn't possible. The Decepticons and scar-face were after me. I couldn't leave the base. Optimus and Agent Fowler had told me to stay here, away from any danger.

"I'm fine," I said. My eyes met his, and I flinched at what I saw in them. Determination. Honestly, I wasn't sure if I was very fond of that one yet. It could be used in either a positive or negative way. And while I knew Wheeljack was just trying to help, I wanted nothing more than to be left alone for a little bit. Between Nurse Darby and Ratchet coming to check up on me and examine me, Wheeljack was just topping everything off.

I felt claustrophobic and exposed. Sure, I understood why I had to be here. But there were so many people. And, for some strange reason, they all wanted to talk to me. That made me uncomfortable beyond measure.

"You're not fine." I jumped at his close proximity. I hadn't even noticed him move. My fingers began to pull at the ends of my hair as I scooted to the other side of the bed slowly. "I know what it's like to be locked up in a confined space for millennia. You may like it at first, but it can drive your processors into a rut."

"P-processors?" I asked dumbly.

Wheeljack chuckled at my confused expression. "You may know about us now, kid, but there is still so much to learn. Don't worry- I'll teach you. That is, if you can leave this primus forsaken room."

"There's no point." I stared down at my lap to avoid his stare. "I'm not sure what to do with myself anymore. I feel helpless."

My face suddenly turned hot at the sudden realization that I openly expressed my feelings to a stranger. Well, not any stranger. My guardian. The one who was supposed to protect me from the Decepticons if need be.

Basically a bodyguard. I wonder if alien robots get paid. Is he doing this because it's his job? The others had looked so happy with their guardians. I probably won't ever get to be like that.

"So instead of fighting it head-on, you're going to hide in your room," Wheelajck said bluntly.

"W-what?"

He chuckled. "Kid, you can't just run away from your problems. You'll have to face them eventually. Do you plan on hiding away forever?"

I remained silent, and he sighed softly. His figure leaned back until his back hit the soft mattress I sat upon. He stretched before placing his arms behind his back and staring at the ceiling.

"I'm not saying it's not normal to be scared of things. There have been times when I'm faced with problems and I'm scared out of my processors." He glanced at me, and I pretend like I haven't been staring at him this whole time. Instead, I pick at my feathers.

"So what d-do you do to stop being scared?"

Wheeljack grinned. "Absolutely nothing. You can't help being scared, kid. It's only natural. Even for robots." His hand moved between us for emphasis. "What determines your strength is how you handle that fear. Do you fight it, or do you run away?"

The ceiling fan slowly turned over and over. I hadn't noticed it much before. As I pondered Wheelajck's thoughts, I stared at that fan and watched it spin around for what felt like hours. In reality, it was more like a minute or two.

Then without warning, Wheeljack sat up and turned towards me. He reached out with his right hand and I flinched. That grim look from before returned.

"I've noticed your flinching. And Nurse Darby let me in on your little- car accident."

I stiffened at his words. His eyes wouldn't look away. I swallowed and closed my own eyes, feeling unable to do anything else.

"Just know that nothing is going to happen to you with me around. Whoever did this to you- I'll kick their aft to Cybertron and back before they touch you again."

And that was it. No questions or prodding for answers. No judgment. Just that simple statement. I pulled my knees close to my chest and wrapped my arms around them before taking a deep breath and opening my eyes and looking at him.

"I-I don't want your protection."

I don't want anyone getting hurt.

Wheeljack shrugged. "There's a big difference between what you want and what you need." He stood up and stood still for a short moment before twisting around with a big grin on his face. "What you need right now is a little tour."

"A-A tour?" I frowned.

Instead of answering me, Wheeljack nodded his head as if he just made the world's greatest decision. "It's settled. We'll be taking a tour of the Jackhammer."

The Jack whos-a-whats-it now?

"I-I really don't-"

His hand came out again and grabbed my hand before I realized what was happening. Wheeljack gently pulled my arm, forcing me to stand. "If you don't come with me, I'll drag you there. Which won't be very hard, given I'm twice your size in holoform and twenty times your size in my regular form."

He pulled me towards the door and then through the hallway until we reached the large area I had spoken to the others in before. The giant monitors beeped and blinked from across the room, along with a television on the second level, but no robot or human was in sight.

My heart was pounding- it felt as if it was leaping into my throat as Wheeljack's holoform disappeared. I watched as his robot form suddenly moved into my view. After transforming into a car, he opened his passenger door.

"Hop on in, kid."

I glanced around nervously. "Where are we going?"

"Didn't I say before? I have to patch up the Jackhammer, and you're coming with me."

"But isn't it dangerous for me to be outside the base?" I asked cautiously as I stood next to his vehicle form.

There was a loud sigh, and I could practically feel the eye roll he'd just given me. "I won't let anything happen to ya. We need some time to bond- guardian and charge. Plus, I think it's time you learn some basic Cybertronian anatomy."

I bit my lip before letting out a shaky breath and slowly getting into the car. My body was trembling, which he seemed to notice because the next thing I know the holoform is next to me.

"I'll drive like this so you'll feel better. Now let's go. Jackhammer is waiting for us."

We pulled away, and I pushed myself into the car door before suddenly wondering what body part I was touching. Where did his head go? And his arms and legs? The kind of contortion a Cybertronian's body had to go through must be painful.

He's a machine, Hope. A robot. They can be put together in different ways, I reminded myself.

"What is the Jackhammer?" I asked curiously. More importantly, when will we get there? It was hard to fold in my wings inside the car, and I didn't want to tuck them so close to my body as usual. It felt nice, just being able to walk around freely without hiding them underneath clothing.

"The Jackhammer and I have traveled all across the galaxy together," Wheeljack smiled. I noticed right away how his eyes shined when he talked about the Jackhammer. With tired eyes, I stared out the window and waited. Wheeljack turned silent as well as we traveled.

There was nothing but dust and sand as long as the eye could see. About twenty minutes into the drive, I spotted something shiny far away. The sun hit it, causing it to shine into my eyes. I winced and shielded my face with my arm. Wheeljack chuckled in amusement.

"She's a beauty, isn't she?" he asked dreamily.

"I-I can't really see it- her," I stumbled on my words. Wheeljack smiled at me as the vehicle finally skidded to a stop. The door flew open, making me jump, and Wheeljack's holoform fizzled away.

"Hop on out."

A small gasp escaped my lips as I stared at the giant spaceship before me. It was so big. So much bigger than Wheeljack, and so bright. Luckily for me, it looked like the sun was about to set. Wheeljack transformed after I climbed out and stalked over to the side of the Jackhammer, letting one hand slide along the metal.

"What have they done to you? Don't worry- I'll have you fixed up in no time." He patted the exterior before pressing a button. A large door slowly lowered into a ramp. Wheeljack turned towards me and motioned me forward before disappearing into the spaceship.

"Here we go I guess," I mumbled. My heart was pounding- from fear or excitement, I wasn't really sure. I was standing inside of a spaceship. One that had traveled far more places than I could ever travel. In fact, this had been the farthest I'd ever been out of Jasper- an entire thirty minutes.

Wheeljack opened a container and began to dig through some supplies. I pressed myself against the wall, admiring every little detail. Two giant seats sat at the very front of the aircraft. They were so gigantic. I tilted my head, deep in thought.

My entire house could fit in here.

"Kid?" Wheeljack's voice brought me from my thoughts. I turned, jumping slightly at how close he actually was. He chuckled, "I asked if you wanted to help?"

I looked at him, utterly dumbfounded. "How could I possibly begin to help you?" I asked. The tools he held in one hand were bigger than me. Wheeljack lowered his hand to the floor. I stared at it with uncertainty.

"I normally don't like talking to any bot while I'm spending time with the Jackhammer, but I guess you're an exception," he teased. "Talk to me. Tell me about yourself, kid."

When I didn't respond, he shrugged. "Well, I was planning on telling you about my adventures in space. Old Jackie here didn't get all of these dents in her metal plating for nothing. But I guess that can wait for another time, if you're not up for it." He stood to his full height and walked back out the way he came in, tools in hand.

Adventures in space? I slowly followed behind him, hands twisted behind my back to keep from fiddling with my hair. "What kind of space adventures?" I asked.

Wheeljack shrugged as he began to work. "Lots of stuff. Ever since Megatron destroyed Cybertron, I've been on a mission to find the other wreckers. Found some Decepticons along the way- but you wouldn't want to know about that-"

I don't know what got a hold of me. Without thinking it through, I walked over to him and stood next to his leg. My palm was on the metal, and I shivered at how cold it was.

"C-can you tell me please?"

He smirked. "Sure, kid. I can tell ya. But you'll have to do something for me first. I'm guessing you aren't scared of heights?"

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Hope you guys loved this chapter! Sorry for the one update thing- I find it easier and I feel like I write better when I focus on one chapter instead of rushing two. And I realized that I would be publishing four chapters a week, not including Never Again, which is a lot. Sorry if that disappoints some of you- I'll make sure to make the one chapter count.

Feel free to vote and comment!  <3