Chapter Text
If it had been any other group of bots Ratchet wouldn't have believed they'd adapt this easily. Or they at least adapted to the new regime of Decepticons better than most bots coughSentinel. (Perhaps it was because they all were once let down by the Autobots before.) His teammates hadn't forgotten what he did, but they did forgive him.
(Strangely enough, they forgave him. (He didn't believe in Primus but it was some sort of a miracle.))
Betraying them and negotiating with the Decepticon leader was the hardest thing he had ever done. (But it saved them. (And broke their trust in him.)) He regretted only that he hadn't warned them beforehand as that might have softened the blow and spared all of them some grief.
(Ratchet knew Megatron. He had known the mech for ages. They had a mutual respect for each other, despite their animosity. (Megatron respected Ratchet because he, despite his demeanor cared for both his enemies and allies. It didn't matter who you were, if you were hurt, he would help you. (Ratchet respected his passion. Megatron has forgotten but he destroyed himself for Cybertron. He changed everything about himself to achieve peace. Unfortunately, he wanted peace through an iron fist. (Not so different from the High Council.))
"I'm so sorry Optimus," he said gruffly. His han-servo squeezed Optimus' shoulder.
"How could you?" Bumblebee asked, his optics bright, bright blue. (Betrayal, heartache, grief. It was a different type of grief the young ones were experiencing.) Jazz was kneeling, keeping a firm hold on the kid. Though the ninja's expression was more understanding. "Ratchet," his vocalizer staticed "please."
He still hated himself for hurting his team.
(Megatron was a tyrant. But he valued their home planet above all else. Several times throughout the war he joined with his enemies to defend Cybertron from the Quintessons or the Galactic Alliance. Ultra Magnus had too (bless his spark he made mistakes (but didn't they all?) and now he was dead). Sentinel Magnus on the other hand valued his frame and his ego.)
He knew which was the better option.
"Ratchet?" Bumblebee broke through his thoughts. Bless the kid's spark, he had forgiven him. It followed everyone else's forgiveness. (Wasp, Longarm/Shockwave (Ratchet.))
"Ratchet?" Bumblebee went limp in Blitzwing's hold, his eyes holding so much betrayal. "But...but..." The kid sounded close to crying. Oh it would take awhile for Bulkhead to forgive him.
"I'm sorry kid," the medic said. "Cool your circuits. I know what I'm doing."
"Do you?" Somebody asked. Ratchet decided to ignore the speaker.
"Yeah kid?"
Bumblebee was frowning, a rare sight on the courier's face. He was cradling his arm. Ratchet zeroed in on the scar. "My modifications are acting up. Like one minute they're good for wires, the next you could power an electric chair." He forced a smile, perhaps a reference to an Earth thing.
Ratchet gestured to the medical berth. His teammate grinned and hopped on holding out his arm. Scanning the limb he narrowed his eyes. He had seen similar chronic circumstances during the war. The scans were disorganized and random. "Hold on kid let me disable them for a while." The kid stiffened but he forced himself to relax at Ratchet's raised optic ridge and nodded.
Primus, he hoped this glitch wasn't what he thought it was.
With Bumblebee's uncharacteristic silence, it wasn't hard to drift back into his depressing thoughts.
"Joining the cruel, monstrous Decepticons Autobot Ratchet? Don't we stand for everything you disagree with?" Megatron was surprisingly sarcastic once you got to know him.
Ratchet wasn't in any mood for taunts. He was tired and sad all of a sudden. "To be frank Megatron," he replied with the weight of all his mistakes, past and present "I don't know the difference anymore."
It was odd to see a look of surprise on the tyrant. Ratchet enjoyed it all the same.
(The old faction of the Autobots made mistakes. All people did in wars. However, Ratchet remembers seeking out peaceful solutions before turning to violence. Made sure that freedom and peace were for everyone, the ability to choose, a stark contrast to their ancestors. They fought for the weak; their leader was...strong enough to be kind. The new Autobots were nothing like that.)
It took a while for his team to forgive him. Optimus forgave him first or ignored the pain until they could speak freely again. Jazz and Bulkhead, only needed time. Sari and Arcee...they didn't understand, too unaware of the current politics of Cybertron though Ratchet apologized to them. Bumblebee took the longest. (Loyalty was his strong suit and he trusted slow and hard. (Bumblebee had never really trusted the same after Longarm/Shockwave.))
"What's going on doc-bot?" Bumblebee asked.
Ratchet glanced up before sighing. "It seems that your modifications are screwed up." He pressed a few buttons, displaying the readings. "See these lines?" Bumblebee nodded. "The lines represent the EMR or electromagnetic radiation of the modification and how it interacts with the other systems in your frame. EMR lines aren't supposed to do loop de loops and look like a Vera Brady bag."
"Vera Bradley." The kid laughed so points for the medic.
"Point is, your mod is screwed up. Not your fault," he said, not even turning to see Bee's reaction. "It's bad med knowledge. Happened all the time during the Great War. Innocents went from barely needing to fight to fighting ready at a moment's notice. In summary, the voltage changes glitched your system."
"Soooo..." he struggled to ask a question.
Ratchet shrugged. "Just means we'll need to monitor it. If it becomes a problem let me know. Things like this usually start draining energon more or lead to glitches in sensory systems." He rubbed the bridge of his nose. "There's not much research on this," he said in lieu of an apology.
Bumblebee was quiet for a moment, staring, staying still. It was creepy. "Did you get a new paint job?" The mech squirmed for a moment. "Looks good. Suits you. A lot better than green." He added.
"New paint job," the red mech said with an annoying smirk. "Works every time." He glanced at Arcee and said, with an astonishing amount of respectiveness "If you want..." he said, trailing off.
"If she wants," Ratchet said. Rarely, did Arcee ever do what she wanted. (She would have loved Sari (to teach her the ways of their people, letting Sari teach her about Earth.) "Thanks by the way. What you did for the kid."
The mech looked surprised but then his smile turned genuine, "You're welcome.
Bumblebee crossed his arms and turned his head away with a snobby huff. He laughed in response and pressed their helms together before sending him away. "Go give Megatron a helmache. You've already given me plenty."
(It was nice to have Bumblebee and Bulkhead around again. He knew they needed time on their own to settle but he didn't think they'd take everything on their own. (Hypocrite.) Perhaps he shouldn't have yelled at Megatron but the tyrant made him feel like the young impulsive idiot he scolded Bumblebee for being.)
"Knock Out," he addressed the cosmetologist/doctor specifically, leveling him with a glare that made his partner shiver. "You'll be getting some new neighbors. Hurt em and I'll turn you into a refrigerator." Not that he thought the two would but they were known for their loyalty to each other, not to any faction. (He'd let the red mech figure out their commonalities. Breakdown would like Bulkhead and Bumblebee on the spot. (Grief, painting, individuality.))
Knock Out and Breakdown grinned at him with Knock Out taking on an act of innocence that Ratchet saw right through. "Of course not dear doctor. I wouldn't dream of it."
Ratchet rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Save the pleasantries for someone who cares."
Arcee came to bring him his lunch, a cheerful smile on her face. She was all smiles and sunshine, while he...wasn't. "Is everything okay? I saw Bumblebee rushing out of here." The two had instantly taken a shine to each other. (Actually, she had joined their motley crew of misfits with ease. Almost as if she was there at the beginning.)
"He's fine Arcee," he said gruffly. He patted an empty bench and sat down. "Just some glitched mods. He'll live. It ain't Cosmic Rust." (The crew of Athena was still fresh in their minds. But those idiots would live. Thanks to the efforts of Perceptor and Cosmos.) Bumblebee would be fine, he wasn't sick just a few glitches in his system that they had to take care of.
"Of course he will. You're the best medic in all of Cybertron." She winked at him and sipped her energon. "Even Megatron thinks you're the best. Knock Out looks up to you and even Shockwave asks you for advice sometimes. We should have had peace eons ago."
Ever since they reconnected her voice box and neural processor she had been nonstop. Not that anyone complained. (If they did, they'd have many bots to answer to.) A few more weeks of recovery and she would be allowed to teach again. Her excitement grew each day. It was endearing. So much hope for the future and she had only just returned.
(Arcee had loved being a teacher before the war. The newsparks loved her; she taught them to embrace themselves and be creative and passionate. Then the Senate changed the curriculum and to keep her job she had to teach those things instead. (Arcee cried because she felt restrained and awful for holding the younglings back from their curiosity and ingenuity.)
(That was before the war. It sounded so familiar and present. He remembered young bots like Perceptor and Cliffjumper, calming down, quieting down just to keep their dream jobs. Wheeljack leaving his dream job because he felt stilted.)
(Perhaps that was why Optimus defended Bumblebee. (Ratchet had seen a lot of things in the war. He had seen jerks and criminals. Autobots who were jerks and Decepticons who had more empathy than the average Autobot. In his experience, while Bumblebee was brash, cocky, and short-tempered -pun intended- the little punk would be a good bot.
He strived to fit in but never tried to change himself. While that wasn't necessarily a good thing, maybe Blitzwing had a point that Autobots engaged in too much conformity. Ratchet could admire Bumblebee's individuality and the way he forced others to be themselves just by being himself.))
Arcee was rambling on and on about the things she would teach the newsparks and how Shockwave let her into the Archives to research. How Jazz and she sparred sometimes and she was increasing her winning streak. How Optimus was arguing with Megatron over silly things and Knock Out and Bumblebee were just as bad. Apparently, Blitzwing and her were teaching Bulkhead how to paint. It was the most excited he had seen her (or any of them) since before the war.
Personally, Ratchet felt more sure of his decision every day.