A Human Friend (Sequel to A Pet Squishy)

House Hunting

"I want to stay here." Thundercracker insisted.

Lana gave him an irritated look, "I KNOW you want to stay in this airplane hangar but you can't. Ben wants you out tonight."

"What's the malfunction? This hangar is almost big enough for me, it's clean, and it's out of the way. He doesn't have to DO anything for me," the blue Con insisted, "It's not like I'm out to kill him."

Lana gave the damaged Cessna an immediate glance, "Well maybe if you hadn't busted his airplanes and been such a bully, he might have let you stay."

The Decepticon crossed his hefty arms, "I needed the fuel...and I was not bullying him."

Lana lifted a blonde eyebrow, "Holding him hostage and threatening to kill him isn't bullying?"

"I just didn't want him to sic the military on me, that's all."

"Not a great first impression to make TC. You need to have empathy for...well...other humans." Lana hinted. "A little kindness can go a long way."

Thundercracker scoffed and leaned into the hangar wall, "So can a healthy dose of fear."

She ignored his remark, "You really should apologize to Ben."

"HA!" the mech barked a derisive laugh. "When I grow wheels and roll on the ground."

The young woman sighed at his retort, "Well you still can't stay here."

TC grumbled under his vocalizer.

"Don't worry. I'll find you a nice place to stay."

"I hope..." she thought to herself.

...

Nightfall...

Lana drummed her fingers on her steering wheel, waiting for Thundercracker to emerge from the hangar.

Impatiently she honked the horn to her car and leaned out the window, "Come on TC the sun's down! Let's get going!"

She sure hoped he hadn't made the decision to be a stubborn ass and not vacate Ben's property. After a few moments Thundercracker ducked under the air hangar doorway and slowly stood up, giving Lana a miffed look.

"What were you doing in there?"

"Nothing." he replied.

Lana shook her head, "Ok, just follow my car and we'll try to find you some shelter."

Very slowly, Lana drove down the road and the blue Seeker watched her for a moment.

He grumbled sourly at the irony, "Reduced to following ground rolling vehicles...terrific."

With a limped step he followed after her car, leaving Ben's property. Once he was far enough away, the old man ventured out of his house and watched the strange pair disappear into the night. Never had he been so relieved. He marched into his airplane hangar to properly look over his planes. He already knew about the punctured fuel tank but he wanted to make sure nothing else was damaged by his Decepticon "guest". Immediately he went to the plane with the most damage and stopped just short of the vehicle with a look of disbelief. The tank didn't have a hole anymore; just a smooth welded spot. Other than the paint the tank looked good as new. He glanced out toward the hangar door and shook his head.