3. Family (A TFP Fanfiction)

Chapter 16

I felt so at home. A warm, comforting feeling hummed in my spark and throughout my body as I sat by Ratchet's helm, leaning on it with my hands folded in my lap. It was so calm and peaceful to me, even though I knew our situation wasn't. 

All around me, I could feel the tension that wafted off the Autobots, and see their stiff movements and concerned expressions. They had been repeated a routine for several weeks, and I had only returned a little less than a week ago myself. It was fairly obvious that they were getting restless and nervous, like something was going to pounce at them out of nowhere. And the commanding style of the newest member of the team was not helping either.

I liked Ultra Magnus, and felt indebted to him for my rescue, but he was.. a bit too cold and calculating for my taste, and for the others as well, it seemed. Still, they tolerated him.

And still, despite all of this, it felt like I was floating on air because I was back home. A suffocating, dangerous kind of air, maybe, but I would not want it any other way.

As long as Ratchet was with me. 

The medic must have sensed my thoughts and feelings, because the corners of his derma turned up ever so slightly, his spark swelling with similar emotions. His optics did not leave his work, but I could tell that even though he was very focused on it, he always kept his spark open for me. I smiled a bit as well, lifting my hand and patting the side of his helm briefly. I turned my eyes back to the screen, the familiar green color meeting my gaze. So far, the Synthetic Energon formula was still incomplete, and Ratchet was very wary about testing it again, even on machines. I believed in him, but even I knew how nerve-racking it was for him to be putting most of his focus on it again.

I turned my head when I heard heavy steps heading our way, smiling politely when I saw that it was Ultra Magnus. I waved at him, though he paid it no mind, keeping his attention on the screen, also studying the Synth-N formula as well before speaking. 

"Doctor, what is the current status of your Synthetic Energon experiments?" he asked, his tone as serious as always. 

If Ratchet had known the Ultra Magnus was behind him, he had pretended not to notice, only turning to look at him after he spoke. "Doing the best I can, Commander, given the lack of functional equipment at my disposal," he told him, gesturing to the small pile of small and lesser-used tools. The meager set indeed had barely been used, and Ratchet had not had much time nor things to work with to perfect it.

"You do realize that an alternative energy source may be essential to our survival?" Ultra Magnus said with a stern look. 

My mouth dropped open before I even had time to think, and disbelief hit me hard. It did not even occur to me that Ultra Magnus was new to the team, and had not seen Ratchet's experience with Synth-N firsthand like I had. All I could think about was how Ultra Magnus could say such a thing! Ratchet had nearly been offlined by Megatron himself, and I knew for a fact that the commander was aware of this, having heard most of our battles from Optimus or Bulkhead. I felt heat rise to my face, and for the first time in a while, boiling anger rose in my chest. I wanted to shout at him, and I would have, if Ratchet hadn't calmly lifted a servo to, a gesture to keep quiet.

"Believe me, Ultra Magnus," he said with a dark chuckle, "no one is more acutely aware of the stakes than I am." He spat out the words a little harsher than his previous replies, his optics staring his dead into Ultra Magnus'.

This seemed to catch the commander a little of guard, though he did not show it much. He did back off a little, merely nodding and offering him a simple, "Of course," before he turned away, catching a few of the team returning from a scout mission. He seemed to regain his authoritative confidence and strode over to them and asked them a few questions, to which they replied to rather uncomfortably.