Ruby - Transformers: Age of Extinction fanfic

Temporary Home

All of their faces gradually came into focus, peering over her bed. Major Lennox, Tyrese, and even Mearing. They looked good, much the same really. Major Lennox and Tyrese smiled down at her, their teeth brilliant white. Mearing frowned, her eyebrows angled and her lips barely visible. They were soon pushed aside by Optimus' great metal face;

"You are safe, we are here..."

Ruby jolted awake. She rubbed the side of her head that had banged against the cab window and tried to cling onto the happy, peaceful memory. But it floated away all too soon. She clenched her teeth in annoyance and looked out of the window, narrowly avoiding hitting her head again as Optimus hit another pot hole of considerable size. There wasn't much to see. Dust from the road clouded the air.

"Optimus," she said, "Can we stop soon? I need to stretch my legs."

She didn't expect much of a response, but the big Peterbilt truck instantly pulled over. Ruby hastily opened the door and jumped out. Her hands instinctively went to her stomach where her worst battle scar was freshly healed. The movement didn't hurt, it just felt... odd.

The air was as choked up with dust as it had looked from the protection of the cab. The wind swirled it around, reminding Ruby of the sand storms she had experienced whilst battling in Egypt. It managed to smell damp and polluted, even though they were far from any city. She took a few steps away from the road, hoping to find a breath of clean air. Behind her, Optimus transformed.

"Where are we?" she asked, squinting through the dust.

"Somewhere safe." He didn't sound so sure. A foreign state for the always-so-certain Optimus Prime.

"Safe?" said Ruby, unwillingly taking in another lungful of dusty air. "For you maybe, you don't need to breath."

"I rust." He retorted.

He did look a little worse for wear. His once-gleaming blue and red metal looked dull and brown.

"Well that's decided then, we can't stay here."

"Where would you like to go?"

His flat tone worried her, but at least she had a choice this time.

"The countryside," she said, "Somewhere with greenery, and animals, horses. Maybe even mountains. Somewhere with fresh air."

In response, Optimus transformed back into a huge truck, passenger door open.

*****

Ruby turned the black card over and over in her hands. What if it was declined? What if it brought Decepticons and the FBI, CIA, and the army even, down upon her? So far she had only paid for things in cash, but the cash she had to begin with, let alone the little of it left, would not buy her a place to stay.

She handed it over to the letting agent and turned away whilst the woman proceeded with the transaction.

"There you go miss," she said brightly after a moment, "Here is your card,"

Ruby slid the black plastic into her back pocket.

"And here, are the keys!"

She dropped a hefty set of shiny silver keys into Ruby's hand.

"Thanks," Ruby felt no relief. It could still be a trap.

This woman seemed too carefree to be true. Or maybe Ruby was so saturated with things to care about everyone else was a world away.

After she was free of the stuffy letting office and the woman's overpowering perfume, Ruby broke into a nervous jog, wanting to get back to Optimus and out of town as soon as possible. She paid close attention to the feeling of her silver bangle, rolling around her wrist. It remained cool and loose. Good.

Optimus met Ruby in the middle of the road, barely stopping as she climbed into the cab. He shared her anxiety.

The ranch was beautiful. Under the protection of the mountain range were flourishing meadows, fenced with natural wood. Next to the blooming blossom tree was a small American barn containing four stalls and a tack room. On the other side was a sandy arena, and beyond that, the house itself. It wasn't anything grand, but perfect. 

Ruby took in its large windows and modern porch, framed with fairy lights. She stared about in wonder as she walked up the front steps and unlocked the door. Optimus drove off towards the barn, and would most likely check out the entire ranch before deeming it safe to transform.

Inside the house, off the main hallway was a simple living room, complete with a cosy corner sofa, and an open plan kitchen. Ruby rushed upstairs, desperate to find the bathroom and have a proper shower. 

She let out her first sigh of relief since leaving Washington as the hot water poured down her back. Then the tears came, camouflage against the shower water streaming down her face. 

 It was so final, she would never see her friends from NEST again, never live with her Autobot family again. So many of them had been lost in Chicago.

Already her brain had blocked the majority of the painful memory from the debriefing she received after leaving the hospital. 

She remembered three key points: the list of the dead, NEST was disbanded, and the worst, everyone had to go their separate ways to stay safe. Even the Autobots.

Ruby turned off the water and wrapped herself in a fluffy towel. She went to the bedroom and sat on the edge of the bed, hugging her stomach to steady her shudders. The scar there ached. She looked at the three things Mearing had given her: a new ID (her name was now Fliss), a black bank card, and a medical card, which was pure white apart from a phone number, scrawled in tiny black text. 

It was a number that she must not call, Mearing had stressed, unless her strange powers spiralled out of control. Not if she was under attack, or if Optimus needed help, just if she became a threat to others. Great.

Leaving her few things where they were, Ruby threw on some clothes, grabbed a blanket and went out into the front yard. It was dark now. She walked purposefully under the porch light, not even bothering to shut the front door. She marched over to the truck parked in the shadows, pulled herself into the cab, and curled up to sleep.