Twist

"It's been a week now, and I do try to visit you once a day, but," Bumblebee sighed softly, "I got held up. It's good news this time. Ultra Magnus showed up. He's taken charge of the base until you wake up... Nobody likes him, but he does a good job and he has a good spark."

Bumblebee looked down at Optimus in sadness. The Prime was silent and serene, as always. Miko said he looked like a real robot now...

It broke Bumblebee's spark to see Optimus like this. He had known Optimus for a long time. A long time ago, Megatron had captured him and tore out his voice box before leaving the scout for dead. It was Optimus who found Bumblebee buried in the rubble, barely alive, and the only survivor of his party. He'd personally carried the scout to Ratchet for medical attention and waited until he knew Bumblebee was okay before returning to his duties.

Some of the other soldiers said it was just because Bumblebee had crucial information about Megatron and the Decepticons, but Bumblebee didn't believe that. Optimus couldn't have even known Bumblebee was the scout his unit was looking for.

Optimus had stayed because he cared.

Now, in Optimus's darkest hour, Bumblebee planned to stick by the Prime's side until he knew that Optimus was okay.

"Still no news about the other dimension, but Megatron is getting bold. He's–"

The door swung open.

"Bumblebee!" Ratchet scolded. "How many times have I told you not to come in here!? The med-bay is soundproof! Ultra Magnus will have your hide! Rafael found Megatron, you need to join the others!"

Bumblebee shot up from his seat at Optimus's side and ran toward the door, leaving the Prime to his dreams. Racing down the hall, Bumblebee quickly waved to his charge and then went straight into the open groundbridge.

When he reached the other side, he couldn't believe his optics.

"Don't move!" Ultra Magnus ordered, pressing his blaster against the helm of his captive, who was pinned to the ground with his arms behind his back.

"I'm not moving," Megatron scowled. "Why would I attack you after letting you sit on me?"

Arcee frowned. "He looks exactly like the fake-real Megatron."

Ultra Magnus looked at them. "How do we tell the difference?"

"You can't," Megatron rolled his optics. "Your sociopath version of me used a cortical psychic patch to read my mind. Anything I know, he knows."

"You're not making your case better," Bulkhead stated.

Megatron nodded. "I didn't really think this out."

"I said don't move!" Ultra Magnus repeated.

"You're just like Soundwave," Megatron huffed. "I can't decide if I like it or hate it."

The commander nearly blew a vein.

"Wait, is this Temptest's Megatron?" Bumblebee asked.

"Where have you been!?" Magnus demanded.

"Allegedly," Arcee replied. "We're still trying to figure out if he's a fake."

Bumblebee tilted his helm at Megatron, who was frowning at him. "Who are you?"

"Bumblebee," he replied.

"What?"

Bumblebee frowned. "I'm Bumblebee."

"Oh."

Temptest wasn't very good at making out what Bumblebee said either. It came with practice and she had no Bumblebee where she came from... which meant that this guy... wasn't used to hearing Bumblebee's damaged voicebox either.