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It all started after a particularly nasty fight with the Decepticons. Ultra Magnus and Wheeljack had been out scouting a possible energon mine when they'd been ambushed and cut off from any contact with the base. It wasn't until after the pair had beat off the opposition and escaped the jamming field that they'd heard any news of the attack.
Ratchet was quick to respond when the Commander requested a ground bridge out. As he hurried to comply, his quick movements brought Bumblebee and Smokescreen over to investigate. The scout let out a questioning, concerned beep even as the other mech voiced their shared thought.
“Something happen, Ratchet?”
“Ultra Magnus and Wheeljack were ambushed,” he answered briskly, servo pulling the lever down and igniting the familiar green vortex.
“What!?” the two younger mechs exclaimed together, one spoken and the other a shrill trill of binary. Ratchet swung about to shush them, optics sharp and all business. While Magnus had neglected to mention battle damage, there was still a very real chance one or both were injured. He didn't need bots getting under pede, no matter how well meaning their concern was.
“Ah-yep-ep-epep! Move to the side, both of you. They may need clearance if they come in hot!”
The two shared a look and quickly did as the medic asked, planting themselves right beside the controls. This put them both well within Ratchet's overly large personal bubble, and the red and white mech could only huff a quiet sigh before the event horizon flared.
Wheeljack appeared first, usually pristine white plating scuffed and marked with obvious signs of battle. There was a noticeable gash on his side, edges jagged and coated with congealing energon. His dorsal wings were held high, however, and a large grin stretched across his face as he swaggered through the ground bridge. He offered the three a lazy salute, optics overly bright as he continued by without a word.
The vortex flared again, Ultra Magnus' large form stepping out of the field next. He too showed obvious signs of battle, deep blue paint marred in various places. The ground bridge shut down behind him, the green flare winking out completely.
It was as the flare died that they saw it, plain as day upon the Wrecker Commander's face. Both Bumblebee and Smokescreen stared with widened optics even as Ratchet hit the two Wreckers with a scan each. The yellow scout pointed, completely speechless as he tore his optics away to stare at the mech at his side. Smokie nodded dumbly, not quite believing his optics no matter how many times he looked back to confirm what he was seeing.
Ultra Magnus was smiling.
It was a small thing, easily hidden in the harsh backdrop of the green vortex, but with the swirling light gone, it was impossible to miss. So too was it's intended target. Magnus had continued to move forward, only stopping when Wheeljack had. The smaller wrecker stretched his arms up over his helm, looking over a fussing Ratchet to grin at his commander.
“That was fun, Chief. We should do it more often~” Wheeljack's grin grew more pronounced as he sidestepped around the medic and sauntered off without further comment.
The pair by the controls whipped their optics back to Magnus, absolutely floored to find the small smile had grown a bit more pronounced. Logic circuits threatened to fry at the almost soft look to the commander's optics.
“Wheeljack! Wheeljack, get back here you are bleeding!” Ratchet had taken a step toward chasing down the retreating mech when Ultra Magnus' good servo landed on his shoulder.
“I will see that he makes it to the Medbay.”
The medic huffed once more before turning to glare at the larger mech. Preliminary scans had showed no obvious damage but he knew Magnus too well. He was as bad as Optimus about hiding injuries, and just as stubborn about admitting them when called out on it. “And you?”
“I suffered nothing more than cosmetic damage.” Nodding at the shorter mech, Ultra Magnus moved past them all and followed the path Wheeljack had taken. Ratchet threw up his hands in exasperation.
“Fine, but don't come to me if something falls off because you were too stubborn to tell me!” Rubbing at his optics, he turned to find both the younger mechs gaping after Magnus. “What is wrong with you?”
Bumblebee emitted a high pitched beep, one arm flailing after the two mechs that had just left and the other making vaguely confusing motions that Smokescreen was only too happy to mirror. How had Ratchet completely missed the fragging smile on Magnus' face? It was there, in plain sight, aimed at Wheeljack. Wheeljack had smiled back. Something somewhere had broken the universe and Ratchet was only standing there giving them a vaguely disapproving look.
“I don't speak-” the medic waved a servo in a poor imitation of their flailing before making shooing motions, “- so if you are done acting oddly, please move so I can ensure the ground bridge properly shut down.”
Giving a defeated sigh, the yellow scout tugged his only other witness to the insanity that had just occurred with him. “{How could Ratchet have missed that?}”
Smokescreen shot a wary look over his shoulder to confirm Ratchet was too busy poking at the controls before answering, “Dude, I have no idea. What even was that? Since when does he smile? I thought, you know, they were angry at each other or something.”
“{Or something,}” Bumblebee echoed, shaking his helm. Ultra Magnus and Wheeljack had been at odds ever since the Commander had landed on Earth. Putting the pair into the same room always ran the risk of starting an argument or a yelling match. Though, admittedly, it was usually Wheeljack doing the yelling. It had tapered down after some time, especially after Magnus had lost his right servo to Predaking.
Bumblebee came to a slow stop, optic ridges furrowing down in thought. Come to think of it... after that... Wheeljack's attitude had taken quite the turn where the Commander was concerned. They still fell into heated arguments at times, but the smaller wrecker had been far less prone to exploding over imagined slights. He'd even put effort into holding civil conversations with Magnus and volunteered, yes volunteered, to accompany the mech out on patrols or missions. The Commander had been understandably wary of such attempts. Just when they all thought the two might put whatever past existed between them behind them, Wheeljack would pull a stunt that would set his CO off all over again. The smaller wrecker was nothing if not determined and he'd wormed his way back into Magnus' questionably good graces not long after. Honestly, sometimes it felt like the two were... were...
Oh. Oh.
Bumblebee's servo shot out and he grabbed Smokescreen by the arm and very nearly shook him. “{Smokie, Smokie... do you think...}” Why did that mental picture have to flare up? But it all made a painful amount of sense given Wheeljack's behavior and Magnus' sudden, impossible smile. Why else would they be sharing that look right after a battle if they hadn't... hadn't... Ugh.
Smokescreen let out an 'eep', whole frame jerking in surprise as his best friend gave up and did shake him. Seeing the look on his face, however, he leaned in close, eager to hear what the scout had hit upon. “Do I think what? What'd I miss, Bee?”
“{Do you think they... fragged?}”
“They what!?”
“{You know... clanged metal? Swapped cables? Fragged?}”
“BUMBLEBEE!”
Two high pitched yelps answered Ratchet's thunderous exclamation from right behind them. Apparently the medic's attention had been attracted by Smokescreen's protest at being grabbed. Bumblebee flailed his servos at the medic, inching sideways to put his best friend between him and certain doom.
Smokescreen was laughing nervously as the medic stopped in front of them, servos planted on his hips and optics narrowed. “Oh, hey there, Ratchet. Nothing to see or hear here. No sir-ree.”
Ratchet wasn't having it, and his voice brokered no argument. “Front and center.”
The scout hung his helm and accepted his fate, slowly stepping out from behind Smokescreen to await his end. Maybe the medic would go easy on him and he'd die a quick and clean death? Looking up at Ratchet – When did he get that tall? Was he always that tall? - the scout's doorwings dropped low and he barely managed to cut off a mournful tone.
His death would not be clean and it would not be quick.
“Tell me you were not just referring to Ultra Magnus and Wheeljack. Far be it for me to police hearsay and rumors, but you should know better than to gossip about your superior officers, much less any of the team. Show some consideration and respect.”
Bumblebee hung his helm, knowing the medic was right. He did feel guilty, but at the same time the mere idea refused to be shelved or shoved into a box. It danced about his processor, conjuring unwanted images and questions that demanded to be answered. He had a feeling Ratchet would not be up to answering said questions or even up to entertaining them given the disappointed look spread across his face. Venting softly, he straightened himself out, and gave an apologetic trill.
“{You're right. I'm sorry, Ratchet.}”
“I'm not the one you should be apologizing to, but fortunately for you, neither of them were around to hear you.” That was about as lenient as the medic got, and the yellow scout was not going to waste a 'get out of jail free' card.
Neither of them seemed to have factored Smokescreen into the situation, however.
“But... it makes so much sense.” Two pairs of optics landed on the younger bot, one incredulous, the other half-horrified, half-curious. Looking up and finding the spotlight had landed on him, Smokescreen was eager to elaborate. “No, really. Didn't you see him smiling, Ratchet?”
“Smokescreen, you cannot possibly- who was smiling? Wheeljack?”
“No, Magnus! He was totally smiling and you missed it! It was bizarre. I didn't even know he could.”
“Regardless of whether he was smiling or not, how does that make it acceptable to gossip about his private life?”
“No, no, I get that. But he was smiling at Wheeljack and Jackie was totally grinning back at him.”
“That still doesn't-”
“And what did he say... 'That was fun, let's do it again sometime.' Come on, Ratchet. They totally fragged right after the battle!”
Bumblebee could only stare in horrified fascination as Smokescreen somehow completely ignored the scandalized noises coming out of the medic's vocalizer to lay out the facts as bluntly as possibly. The so-called rookie of the group was far braver than he'd ever be.
A few more odd noises escaped Ratchet before he threw up his servos with a huff and turned back toward the ground bridge. It was as the medic stepped back up to the controls that Bumblebee made the embarrassing discovery that they'd only stepped a short distance away before the epiphany had stopped him in his tracks.
No wonder they'd been overheard.
“While that scruffy troublemaker may or may not be base enough to consider such a thing, Ultra Magnus is far more discerning. He would never allow such a dereliction of duty.”
Smokescreen was grinning now, and Bumblebee found himself following suit despite the danger. The idea had been planted and now it seemed to be hounding the medic as much as it was them. Ratchet only threw those kinds of words around when he was disgruntled.
“{But Ratchet... Magnus didn't even reprimand Wheeljack for ignoring his injury.}”
“Yeah! He even said he'd take care of it, and took off after him!” Smokescreen waggled his optic ridges. “I think round two is probably-”
“I am not listening to either of you!”
“-happening right now!”
Ratchet was quite obviously still listening no matter how spectacular a hole he was boring through the controls in front of him. Bumblebee would continue to keep an optic on him – just in case – but the medic wouldn't be allowing them to talk about it if he wasn't also just the slightest bit curious. Given his own mounting curiosity, it was a risk he was willing to take.
“{When do you think they got together?}”
“Man, I don't know. Maybe after that one fight they had? I heard a lot of yelling and then a whole lot of nothing... I should have put two and two together forever ago!”
“{What fight? When was that?}” Bumblebee crowded into Smokie's personal space at the prospect of more information. They'd gotten into a lot fights, true, but this one had to be special if Smokescreen found it noteworthy enough to mention.
“I dunno, it was a while ago. I just remember it because Jackie seemed pretty chill the next day.”
“{Was that near-ish the time they got into that big battle with Predaking?}”
Smokescreen thought about it for a moment, a soft hum leaving his engine. He actually wasn't too sure on the time frame because he hadn't given it much thought at the time. “...maybe?”
“{Because he started treating Magnus a little differently after that.}”
“Oh, hey, you're right! He started volunteering for patrols and stuff!”
“{Do you think...}” Bumblebee trailed off, letting their collective imagination fill the blank.
“Totally.”
“No, no, that is enough of that!” The pair had nearly forgotten their semi-unwilling audience, and it appeared the medic had reached his limit. “If you must continue this conversation, please do it somewhere else. Ultra Magnus has far better taste than to be taken by Wheeljack of all mechs. They are complete opposites.”
The younger bots exchanged a look.
“But opposites attract!”
Ratchet groaned a long, suffering sound. “Don't bring human logic into this.”
“{They also have a history! Didn't Bulkhead say they didn't always hate each other?}”
“I fail to see how that factors into the present. If they have reconciled whatever may or may not have happened, then good. That does not mean they are together in any shape or form.”
“Oh, com'on, Ratchet. Just because you're a Grumpy Gus doesn't mean others can't be happy.”
Ratchet looked positively offended but before he could open up on Smokescreen, Bumblebee inserted himself between them and tugged his partner-in-gossip in the opposite direction. “{Haha, sorry, sorry! We'll get out of your wires, Ratchet. Come on, Smokie. I think we have patrol soon, right?}”
“We do? But I thought-” The yellow scout elbowed him, optics flicking toward the incised Ratchet meaningfully. “Oh, uh, right. Switched with Arcee, ahaha! Almost forgot!”
With that, the pair beat a hasty retreat.