Time skip 3 years brought to you by *BOOM* Michael Bay

"Autobots, today we face a great enemy and an even greater threat to humanity. Today, we win or we keep going until we do," my sparkmate said over the com.

"I'm with you 200%, Optimus," my brother replied.
"I've got your back, babe," I said.

We were on our way to face a new threat called Galvatron and his new army of Decepticons. The battlefield was to be as far from humanity as possible.

"As much as I hate fighting, I will stand with you till the end of the line brother," Star said.

Optimus had told us this Galvatron was just Megatron reincarnated, which meant he was probably more powerful. I kept the dream I had in mind, but I also kept reminding myself of my sparkmate's words: "True strength isn't our physical ability; it is how we handle the ups and downs of the war and make them our own." Over the past three years, I have learned to not push myself too hard and to not see getting hurt as a failure.

Orion, Cascade, and Remix are now five years old. They've become pains in the bumper, but I still love them all so much.

As soon as we got to the battlefield, the fighting began. Bee and I fought side by side, just like the final days of Cybertron. Star only fought when she needed to, but she kept watching us in case anyone got hurt.

As I was fighting, a Con stabbed me through the shoulder. I fell to the ground, but Star was at my side in no time. She quickly fixed me up, then I was back in the fight. I saw my brother go down twice, Star there both times to help him. However, the second time, she collapsed next to him. I managed to make my way over to them and saw Bee sitting up.

"Guys, Star is out and Bee is injured," I said over the com as I protected them.

"On it!" Ratchet replied.
"Clank, ground bridge now!" he said.

He came over and picked up Star while helping Bee through the portal. When they had disappeared, Optimus made he way over to me.

"Where are Bee and Star?" he asked.

He was probably too focused on the fight to hear what I said.

"Back at base. Bee is injured and Star is out cold," I replied.

I looked at him and saw that he was injured too.
"You should be back at base, too," I added.

"I'm fine, just a scratch. Besides I can't leave you to deal with these lunkheads," Optimus replied.

Ratchet came back but then left again and the Cons retreated before I could say anything.

"Today we win," my sparkmate said as he wrapped an arm around me.

"You were really strong today, beautiful," he added with a small smile, making me blush slightly.

"Ratchet ground bridge," Optimus said over the com, but it took a minute for the portal to appear.

When we went through, all that could be heard above the kids was Ratchet yelling multiple times. I ran into the lab and sighed when I saw Bee was okay. I instantly became worried again when I noticed Star was still out and Bee looked like he was about to cry. My sparkmate silently slipped me his hand, which I took gratefully. I took my brother's hand in my other one. After a few more minutes, Ratchet gave up.

"Shut it down, Clank," he said quietly.

He set his tools on the table behind him and hung his head with a sigh.

He looked at us and said painfully, "She is...with the stars."

No, no this can't be happening. This is just another nightmare, I thought as tears started to run down my face.

I looked at Bee and saw how much he was struggling. I let go of Optimus' hand and wrapped my brother in a hug. It was then that he broke down crying. Cascade came in and hugged her father.

"Why are you crying daddy? Why is mommy napping on the table? Daddy don't cry," she said.

Bee broke away from the hug to pick her up. Optimus left the room, probably to check on the boys.

"Mommy passed on and won't be with us anymore," Bee said as he held Cascade.

"But, she is right there. Daddy, mommy will be okay right? Mommy will be okay," my niece said as she started to cry.

"Yes, my little angel, she's okay. She's happy and will never feel pain again," my brother replied.

Optimus came back with Remix and Orion. He picked them up and held them near Star.

"Bye bye," Remix said, waving goodbye.

I'm glad they don't understand yet. I just hope Cascade doesn't quite understand either, for her own sake.

Orion was next.

"Bye, Aunt Star," he said kindly after he gave her a kiss on the cheek, like he always did.

The tears that I had been trying to hold back now ran down my face. Optimus carried them back out, giving me a sad look as he left. I gently took my brother's hand and led him out of the room. I wrapped him and Cascade in a hug.

"If there's anything you need, let me know, okay?" I whispered.

He nodded silently. I gave him a small smile before walking to Orion's room. After a minute, Optimus came in.

"Mommy!" Orion said happily, jumping out of his father's arms.

He ran to me and I picked him up.
"Hey, my little Prime," I said, holding him close.

He giggled, then looked up at me as I sat him on my knee.

"When's Aunt Star coming back?" he asked.

I looked over at my sparkmate, who was now sitting on the floor, leaning on his back.

"I don't know," I replied.
"Why did she leave?" Orion asked.
"Um, she...had to...for a mission," I answered.

"We should have a welcome back party for her when she comes back," he suggested.

I smiled as I tried to hold back tears.
"Of course we will," I told him.

He smiled happily and gave me a big hug. I hugged him back and closed my optics.

Someday, he'll understand, I thought.

Optimus stood up and came over to us after a bit. He smiled at Orion and took my free hand in his. I rested my head on his arm as I looked up at him. He smiled at me, then looked at our son.

"Time for bed little man," he said as he squeezed my hand tighter.

"But I'm not tired," Orion complained as he yawned.
I took him in my arms as I stood up.

"Do you want to run 100 laps around the mountain?" I asked.

"No, I'm tired," Orion replied.
I tucked him in bed and kissed his forehead.
"Sleep well, my little Prime," I said quietly.

Optimus led me to our room. He sat on the bed and pulled me down next to him, wrapping me in a tight hug.

"Please stay with me forever," he said.

"Of course I will," I replied, hugging him back just as tight.

"We're a family and family has to stick together forever," I added.

My sparkmate let out a shaky breath.
"Thank you for everything. I love you," he said.

I could tell he was fighting back tears. I hated seeing him like this.

"I love you very much, too, but I hate seeing you like this, babe. It's okay to cry, you know," I told him, not letting go.

"I-I can't I promised, no I swore to Primus I wouldn't cry. Blue, you know I must honor my promise," he replied.

I sighed, knowing that once he made a promise, he would never break it, no matter what.

"Alright, but just remember a wise Autobot once said: true strength isn't our physical ability; it is how we handle the ups and downs of the war and make them our own," I said, quoting him.

"That's my line," I heard him say quietly, making me smile.

He took a deep breath, then eventually fell asleep. I tucked him in bed before I climbed into bed next to him. I stared up at the ceiling and let my thoughts wander before falling asleep.

---------------------------------------------

I woke up the next day. Optimus was still asleep. I carefully got up and walked out to the main room. I saw that my brother was asleep in a chair with his head resting on the table and a blanket over him.

Aw, he must've been too sad to sleep in his room, I thought as I walked up to him.

That's when I noticed two lines of melted metal on both of his wrists, which shocked me. I never thought he would purposefully burn himself.

I guess the pain of losing his sparkmate was too much for him. Still, he should've talked to someone.

Little Cascade came out.

"Hi Aunt Blue! Why is daddy out here?" she asked as she hugged my leg.

I picked her up.
"He had a long, busy night," I replied.
"Oh. He must be really sleepy," she commented.
"That he is," I said as set her back down.

"Now, why don't you go wake up your cousin? I'll have your dad come find you when he wakes up," I added.

"Okay! Can I use the water again?" she asked.
I laughed.
"Why not," I replied.
"Yay!" she said happily as she ran off.

I sat down next to him and placed an arm around his shoulders. I really didn't want to wake him up, but at the same time I needed to get him to talk to me.

"Hey bro," I said softly.

He sleepily lifted his head, then quickly hid his wrists once he realized I was there.

"Easy. It's okay. I saw, which is why I woke you up. I need to talk to you," I said calmly.

He sat up, but avoided looking at me directly.

"I understand how you feel, believe me. We are all struggling right now. Optimus is refusing to cry because he swore he wouldn't. I had a nightmare last night about her. The right thing to do is to talk about it," I explained.

"I know. It's just...she died because of me. It's all my fault. I should've stayed by her side and protected her, like I promised I would when I first met her," Bumblebee said.

"Look at me, bro," I said.
He reluctantly looked me straight in the optics.

"It's not your fault, okay? If you really need to blame someone, blame me. I won't get mad at you, I promise. Just don't hurt yourself anymore," I told him.

He nodded and wrapped me in a hug. He started crying, so I just held him close.

"You know, Optimus once told me something that has really impacted my life. It helped me push through times when I felt like a failure," I said.

He broke away from the hug and looked at me.

"He said that true strength isn't our physical ability; it is how we handle the ups and downs of the war and make them our own," I mentioned.

He looked away. I knew that he was thinking about what I just said. I put my hand on his shoulder.

"Remember that. Now, go find your daughter," I instructed.

My brother nodded and gave me one last hug before setting the blanket on the table and going to look for Cascade. After a few minutes, Orion ran up to me.

"Mommy! Cascade got me all wet," he whined.
I laughed as I picked him up and set him on my lap. I took the blanket and wrapped it around him.

"Well then I guess Uncle Bee is going to have to have a talk with her again," I replied as I kissed his forehead.

He gave me a hug in return. I saw Optimus walk into the main room, so I gave him a small smile.

"Hey look who's here," I said as I turned Orion around.

He smiled happily when he saw his father.

"Daddy!" he exclaimed as he jumped off of me and ran up to Optimus.

He picked up Orion.

"Hey there bud. Any reason you are all wet?" he asked, giving me a small smile back.

"Yeah, Cascade dumped water on me," our son replied.

I stood up and walked over to them.

"I remember you told me one time that StarCatcher would dump water on you to wake you up, so I let Cascade do it," I told him before kissing his cheek.

"That she did," he replied, smiling at me.

"I am going out for patrol. See you soon," he said as he set Orion on the ground and left the base.

Scrap. He's going to get himself in trouble.