"Well, here we are," Will announced as Ironhide pulled up to a cute house with a wrap around porch. The house was in the center of an open space of farmland with no other houses in sight. In front of the house were a variety of flowers surrounded by a fence. There was also a small cornfield behind the house.

"It's not much, but it's home," Will said as Ironhide opened his doors for us.

"I think it's nice," I told him as I reached for my bag. Will and Ironhide had brought me to my house so that I could pack. Arcee, Elita, Chromia, and Desstinee even lent me some clothes since mine had worn out.

Ironhide activated his holoform and took my guitar before Will led us to the house.

"Director Mearing decided that you should be homeschooled because of what happened at your school's Homecoming," Will was saying to me. "Since you'll be spending most of your time at the base, you can do your studies there."

I nodded before following Will into the house. It had a nice, welcoming atmosphere which made me feel right at home. A pretty woman with long curly blond hair and sky blue eyes entered the room.

"Hi, Will," she said as the two shared a kiss. "How was work?"

"Eh, not too bad," Will said before addressing us. "I brought guests."

The woman smiled widely as she and Ironhide hugged each other.

"Ironhide! It's good to have you back."

"It's nice to be back," Ironhide chuckled. The woman turned to me. I suddenly felt rather shy as she smiled at me.

"Well, hello," she said kindly. "You must be Alyssa. Will told me about you over the phone. I'm Sarah by the way."

"It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Lennox," I said shyly. "Thank you for letting me stay in your home."

Sarah just laughed and shook her head. "There's no need to be so formal, honey. Just call me Sarah."

"She's usually shy when meeting new people, but give her some time and she'll warm up to you eventually," Ironhide told her, smiling down at me slightly. "So how's Annabelle?"

"UNCLE HIDE!"

We all turned to see a little girl with blond pigtails and pink overalls run into the room and tackle Ironhide's leg. Ironhide laughed and picked up the girl, causing her to squeal happily.

"Who is this giant?" He laughed before playfully tickling the girl. "Where's my Annabelle, you little monster?"

The girl giggled. "I'm Annabelle!"

I smiled as I watched Ironhide continue to tickle the little the girl. The scene was absolutely adorable to me. She stopped giggling and looked over at me curiously.

"Who's that?" She asked, pointing at me. Ironhide smiled and turned so that Annabelle could see me more properly.

"Annie, this is Alyssa," he told her. "She's going to be staying at your house for a little while."

Annabelle blinked as she looked from me to Ironhide, then back to me. "Are you Uncle Hide's baby?"

I felt my face turn red as Will and Sarah burst out laughing. Where did that come from? Ironhide looked rather embarrassed by the question.

"N-no, she's just a friend of Bumblebee's," he said quickly. Annabelle looked back at me.

"Are you and BeeBee like my mommy and daddy?" She asked innocently. Ironhide stifled a laugh as I turned a brighter shade of red.

"Um, no... N-not exactly, yet?" I stammered. Ironhide raised an eyebrow.

Will chuckled and took Annabelle from Ironhide.

"Okay, Princess, I think that's enough questions," he said, smiling lightly. "How about you tell her how old you are?"

Annabelle gave me an adorable smile and held up five fingers. "I'm five!"

"Really?" I asked, smiling widely. "You're a big girl, aren't you?"

Annabelle smiled and nodded. "Yup!"

"She'll be six next Tuesday," Sarah told me. "You can leave your bags here while we eat dinner in the kitchen."

I was about to follow the Lennoxes into the kitchen, but Ironhide pulled me back.

"What did you mean by 'yet'?" He baited, smirking slightly. I glared at him and smacked his chest.

"Oh, shut up!"

Ironhide just laughed and followed me into the kitchen. The Lennoxes were already sitting at the table. I tried not to drool at the sight of homemade backed mac n cheese, steamed broccoli, and fresh strawberries.

"Uncle Hide, Alyssa! Sit next to me!" Annabelle called, patting two empty chairs on either side of her. Ironhide smiled and sat down in the chair on her left while I sat down in the in on her right. After Will led us in a prayer, we began to eat our meal. After the food was gone, I went to help Sarah clean the dishes while Annabelle dragged Ironhide and Will upstairs.

"Thank you for helping us clean up," Sarah said to me after we had finished.

"It was the least I could do," I told her. "I can't thank you enough for letting me stay with you while my parents are gone."

"It's our pleasure," Sarah said, smiling kindly. Then she smirked. "Anyways, I better show you to your room... But let's check in on Annabelle and the boys, shall we?"

I raised an eyebrow as I grabbed my bag and followed her upstairs. She pressed a finger to her lips as she slowly approached one of the doors and opened it quietly. I had to cover my mouth with my hand to muffle my laughing: Will and Irohide were both wearing tiaras and playing tea party with Annabelle. Sara winked at me as she pulled out an iPhone and started recording. This caused me to snort rather loudly, causing both men to quickly look up at us. We both burst out laughing as they hastily removed their tiaras.

"One day, and you've already turned to to the dark side!" Will jested, smiling lightly. Ironhide, however, was glaring murderously at me.

"Will, why don't you help Alyssa set up her room?" Sarah suggested once we had stopped laughing. She then picked up Annabelle, who was running her eyes sleepily. "I'll get Annabelle ready for bed."

"But I'm not sleepy..." Annabelle protested as she yawned loudly.

Will chuckled and kissed Annabelle lightly on the forehead. "G'night, sweetie."

"Goodnight, daddy," Annabelle yawned. "Goodnight, Uncle Hide."

"Goodnight, Annie," Ironhide said softly as he ruffled her hair.

"Goodnight, Alyssa."

I looked at Annabelle in surprise. She smiled tiredly at and closed her eyes, completely asleep.

"... Goodnight..." I whispered before following Will and Ironhide down the hall. As soon as the door closed, Ironhide turned to me with a death glare.

"If tell anyone about what you saw, I'll murder you in your sleep, Half-Pint," he growled in a low tone. I just smirked at him.

"Whatever you say, 'Hide."

Ironhide shot me a warning glare as Will just shook his head. He led us down the hall and opened the door on the left. The room was fairly simple, and had a nice amount of space. The bed wasn't exactly big, but wasn't too small either. There was also a small desk and a chair next to the window.

"It's not much," Will began.

"It's perfect," I told him. Thank you, Mr. Lennox."

Will just smiled. "Sure thing, kiddo."

Ironhide smirked lightly and ruffled my hair. "Don't stay up to late, alright? You've got training tomorrow."

I rolled my eyes. "I know, thank you Daddy."

Ironhide just flicked me on the forehead and left the room. "G'night, Half-Pint."

Will started to leave, but then stopped and looked at me thoughtfully. "Hey, Alyssa?"

"Yeah?"

"I couldn't help but notice that you looked a bit surprised when Annabelle said goodnight to you..."

I paused for a moment, then shrugged casually. "Well, aside from the Autobots, no one's ever really said that kind of stuff to me."

Will frowned. "Not even your parents?"

I didn't answer. Will's eyes narrowed.

"Alyssa, do your parents treat you well?"

I bit my lip. "W-well..."

Will placed his hands on my shoulders and gave me a stern look. "What do they do to you."

I looked down at my feet. "My mom yells and my dad's hardly comes home..."

"Have they ever hurt you?"

I was taken back by the question. How was I suppose to answer that? I did tell Bumblebee that my mom use to slap me, but I never really told him the truth...

"Alyssa." Will's voice was firm. "Answer me."

"... It's just my mom," I said softly. "S-she use to slap me, b-but that's all!"

It wasn't a complete lie... Was it?

Will sighed and ran a hand over his face. He was silent for a long time before he finally looked back down at me.

"... You can come here whenever you need to. Don't call ahead, don't pack, don't ask for permission, just come over and stay as long as you need to. We'll get you everything you need. Okay?"

I looked up at him in surprise. Why was he doing this? I had only known him for a day and now he was offering me a safe haven. The Autobots were the only ones who I had ever received any kindness from, but now the Williams and the Lennoxes...

"Thank you... Mr. Lennox."

Lennox gave me a soft smile and clapped my shoulder. "Get ready for bed, okay? You've got a long day tomorrow. Goodnight."

I watched him as he left the room. It felt nice to have someone say goodnight to me.

"Good night..."

It felt nice to finally be able to say it to someone, too.

A/N

Sorry if that sucked. I was battling a bit of Writer's Block while doing this chapter. Anyways, if anyone could suggest an adorable 5 to 6 year old actress to play Annabelle, PLEASE let me know! Your help will be deeply appreciated. Until then, Read, Vote, and Comment!