07 Rewrite

It was a beautiful day. Kara, Devon, Heather, and Jess just got back inside from running. Jess was holding Heather's feet while she did sit-ups and Devon was tinkering around on his computer. Kara glanced over his shoulder.

"Seriously? You're bidding on a pair of glasses?"

"Why not? I bid, someone else bids, no more glasses." Devon grinned. "Foolproof. Besides, I feel bad for them."

Heather twisted around and looked at Devon. "What if no one else bids?"

"Someone will!"

Jess gave Devon a skeptical look over Heather's knees. "Yeah, who?"

"I don't know! It made sense in my head." Devon said with a shrug. He grinned at Kara. "You didn't do your sit-ups."

"Yes I did. Don't make me thump you." Kara said, flipping her braid back over her shoulder. She glanced over at Jess and Heather. "Heather - when you're done, I want Jess to sit-ups too."

"Aw. . ." Jess groaned as Heather huffed out a laugh.

"If I've got to suffer, so do you!" Heather said with a grin.

Devon groaned and dropped his head into his hands. The girls looked over at him curiously. Kara rose an eyebrow.

"What?"

"The glasses are now mine."

Heather and Jess snorted. "We tried to warn you, Dev." Jess commented, switching places with Heather.

"So how much did you bid?" Kara asked, looking over Devon's shoulder.

"Five bucks."

"Well, at least you didn't waste too much money." Kara laughed. Jess started giggling half-way through her sit-up and wound up falling on the ground. Heather snickered.

"Way to go, grace."

"Shut up! It's funny!"

Heather laughed. "Point. Devon, what possessed you to bid in the first place?"

Devon shrugged. "I don't know. It seemed like a good idea at the time. Besides, I kind of feel for this guy. He's trying to get rid of a pair of glasses on Ebay. That shows a certain kind of desperation, don't you think?"

Kara gave him an odd look. "Did you have that speech prepared in your head?"

"Um - no?"

Jess snickered as she continued her sit-ups. "Way to sound convincing, Devon."

Heather let go of Jess's feet as she settled down on the floor, sitting cross-legged, Jess sitting up next to her. "So what are you gonna do with 'em?"

"The glasses? I don't know." Devon said after a moment's consideration. "I guess just leave them on my desk. I didn't think I'd actually get them."

"That's what happens when you take pity on someone." Jess said dryly. "You end up with a very old pair of glasses that you can't even use."

"Thanks for that, Jess." Devon said, rolling his eyes.

"Anytime." Jess said cheerfully.

Heather flopped down on the floor. "I'm hungry."

Kara laughed. "I have taco pastries cooking as we speak."

"You are awesome, Kara. I love you."

"I know, sweetheart."

Devon and Jess burst into snickers.

(Should we all be living in the same house in this one?)

(Yeah - it'll make things easier, I think.)

Jess grinned at Kara. "Is there any of the dip left?"

"Yes. You know where it is. Go grab it and the bag of chips and we'll nosh on that while the pastries finish baking." Kara said, jerking her head in the direction of the kitchen.

"Sweet!" Jess got up and ran for the kitchen. There was a moment's pause then - "Um, Devon? I can't reach the chips. . ."

Devon snickered as he set the laptop down and walked into the kitchen. "I'm coming, I'm coming."

"No you're not. You're just breathing hard." Jess said cheerfully as they walked back out. Heather and Kara cracked up as Devon flushed and began to sputter.

"JESS!"

Jess shot him an innocent grin as she set the bowl down on the coffee table. Heather scooted forward and crossed her arms on the table, giving Devon a wide grin. "Man - we've been tormenting you all day, haven't we?"

"Yes!" Devon mock-glared at Jess. "You just wait - I'll get you back."

Heather smirked. "Said the tomato who turns five different shades of red."

"Silence you!" Devon pointed a finger at her, but now he was starting to laugh. "You're just as bad as she is!"

"Yeah, but I keep my jokes subtle."

Kara just shook her head. "Jess! Bring the dip and chips! Maybe we can shut these two up with food!"

"Nah, we'll just talk with our mouths full."

Devon choked. Kara facepalmed, and Jess almost dropped the dip she was laughing so hard.

Jess set the dip down and dropped the bag of chips on the table next to it. She gave Devon a smile."Thanks for the help."

Devon snorted and grinned. "Yeah - no problem." he snagged a chip and dunked it before popping it into his mouth and chewing. He swallowed before looking over at Kara. "You ready for that test tomorrow?"

Kara groaned loudly. "God no. I'll be up all night studying? You?"

Devon snorted. "No way. I might be ready for my exam sometime next year, but not tomorrow."

Kara turned to Jess and Heather, who were quietly talking among themselves. "What about you two?"

Jess blinked. "What about us two?"

"Any tests or anything you guys are unprepared for?" Devon asked with a grin.

Heather groaned. "Yeah - first thing tomorrow morning."

Jess shook her head. "Not me. I've just got a few sheets of math homework, and two essays to write. My midterms are over." she paused. "If the tests you guys are taking can be called midterms."

"No. This is torture." Heather sighed and grabbed a chip. "I suppose we should study while we eat."

"I'm not." Kara said with a laugh."

Heather grinned. "Well, unlike you, I can't study until midnight like you do. I have to sleep."

------/

Barricade turned to face Megatron. "The item has been sold, my lord. Other humans have it."

Megatron growled. "Track it. We must have those glasses."

Heather met up with Jess, Devon and Kara at the mall after classes. The day had been stressful, so they could all use the time spent wandering the mall to just decompress. By the time they were done, Jess and Kara were walking out with a new necklace and a sketchbook respectively, Devon with a few new shirts, and Heather with a dress.

They headed into the parking lot when a cop pulled up behind them, flashing his lights. They stopped and turned, varying degrees of surprise and confusion on their faces. Barricade took a moment to feel just the slightest bit of pity before transforming.

Kara's eyes widened as the car started to shift on its axles. "Um, what's going on?"

Jess and Devon started inching back, pulling Kara and Heather with them. "I don't know." Devon said finally.

The car began rearranging itself before standing upright on two legs. There was a split second of dead silence before all four kids started yelling and split up. Heather and Devon went one way, Kara and Jess another.

I am really really really glad Kara's been training me! Heather was actually keeping a decent pace beside Devon, but he still reached out and grabbed her arm anyway.

And apparently the cop-monster decided to chase them. Devon glanced behind them, cursed, and started running faster. Neither of them had the air to speak, otherwise they would probably be cursing by now.

Then the Camaro showed up, and life got that much more insane.

Kara and Jess turned to look behind them and saw the cop-monster start chasing Heather and Devon. They exchanged a look and shot off after the cop-monster. Kara glanced at Jess. "So what do we do when we get there?"

"I don't know - call it nasty names?" Jess suggested. She rose an eyebrow as the Camaro slid between the cop-monster and Devon and Heather. "Or, we let the other car take care of it."

Kara gave her a strange look. "Let's get to Devon and Heather and go from there."

"Sounds like a plan to me." They caught up to Devon and Heather, and backed away as the Camaro transformed as well. Jess looked around for an exit. "Come on - this way." she said, jerking her head back toward the entrance to the parking garage.

Devon and Heather led the way out of the garage, followed very closely by Kara and Jess. The sounds of the two robots fighting grew louder as the fight moved closer to the exit. Jess shoved Devon and Heather, breaking into a run. "Quick - let's get the heck out of dodge!"

"No, wait!" Heather turned around and looked back at the garage. "I want to see what's happening."

Kara cursed. "This isn't one of your action movies - "

"I know that! I just want to see!" Heather moved in a wide circle around the entrance, trying to find a good angle without actually getting in the way. She suddenly stopped and just stared. "Holy shit."

"What?" Jess demanded.

"Looks like the Camaro is a bigger badass than the Charger." She pointed into the garage. "It won."

At that moment the robot folded back up and pulled up beside them. The back and passenger doors opened and it honked its horn. Devon suddenly laughed. "It wants us to get in!"

Heather shrugged and slid into the driver's seat, Devon, Kara and Jess following her example with a shrug. The moment all four of them were in the cab, the doors slammed shut, and the locks engaged. Devon's eyes went wide as he tried the door.

"Um, guys - did you know this was going to happen?" he asked, tugging on the door handle for emphasis. Kara and Jess were in the back, watching as Heather and Devon tried everything they could think of to get the doors open.

The radio switched on. "You'll be all right/No one can hurt you know/Come morning light/You and I will be safe and sound."

Kara stared at the radio. "Okay . . .that was faintly creepy. I'm assuming that you're trying to reassure us?"

There was a faint hint of static before a response was heard. "Yes."

Heather nodded. "All right. Now what?"

"We wait. For the others." Came the response.

Heather pinched the bridge of her nose. "Obviously, you're not from around here." At the car's questioning chirp, she added, "You used Taylor Swift. She sucks. She always sucks. We're going to have to introduce you to better music."

Jess reached around the seat and pulled her hair. "Will you focus!"

Devon held up his hand. "Wait. What others?"

"Visitors from heaven, rain down from the sky!"

Kara started laughing. "So, aliens are robots instead of little green men. That's just freaky."

Jess started to laugh too. "Oh, man. Hollywood's gonna be pissed that they were wrong. Anyone else see the movie 'Mars Attacks'?"

Devon snorted. "Yeah, and it was just as cheesy as it sounds."

The Camaro drove them a few miles out of town, where the marshes were. The doors popped open, and they warily climbed out, looking around them. Heather whistled quietly.

"If this isn't the opening scene to every horror flick in existence, I don't know what is." she remarked.

Devon gave her a dry stare. "Thanks for that. Camaro?"

There was an answering beep.

"Are you planning to kill us?" Devon asked, completely deadpan.

Kara popped him on the arm. "Devon!"

"What? It's a legit question!" Devon protested.

The Camaro seemed to actually laugh at that one. A random sound bite said, "We have nothing to fear but fear itself!"

"And spiders." Jess amended quickly.

"I would take that as a no, Devon." Kara laughed. "Okay, so I guess that means we need to make introductions, right? I'm Kara. The sissy here is Devon - "

"Hey!"

"And these two are Jess and Heather. What's your name?"

Then the Camaro picked a different song. "Sweet little Bumblebee, I know what you want from me!"

"Bumblebee. Odd name of chocie for an alien, isn't it?" Heather wondered.

"No stranger than being named after a weed." Jess shot back.

Heather grinned. "Hey, I like the fact that the plant I was named after is hard as heck to kill. It's accurate."

Devon opened his mouth to say something, then pointed up instead. "Look!"

Four meteorites blasted by, each one impacting somewhere in the distance. There were four individual booms before it went quiet again. Kara nodded slowly.

"All right, then. I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say those were friends of yours?" she asked Bumblebee.

"All for one and one for all."

Heather and Jess exchanged a look, then turned at the sound of a Semi pulling up behind them. Jess's eyes went wide.

"Whoa. Nice truck."

Heather immediately slid back as more cars appeared. She turned to Jess. "Is it just me, or is the whole alien car buff bit more weird than the aliens on earth bit?"

"I think they're both crazy."

"Yeah, but there's something really strange - "

At that point, all the cars transformed into robots. Heather just stared. "Nope. Alien part is defninitely stranger."

Devon gave them a small grin. "At least they've got decent taste in cars." he commented before turning back to the aliens. He looked over at Bumblebee. "What now?"

The biggest robot answered for him. "Are you Devon Holland?"

"Um - yes?" Devon answered edging slightly away as the robot knelt towards him. "Hi?"

"I am Optimus Prime, and I have a question to ask you."

Devon shot the girls a look, and recieved three shrugs in return. "Okay?"

"Where are the glasses you have purchased?"

Kara blinked. "You mean the ones he got on ebay?"

"Yes."

"Why?" Devon asked.

"They're probably in the mailbox by now." Heather said dryly. Kara elbowed her in the ribs. Heather simply Gibbs-slapped her. "What? It's true!"

"Doesn't asnwer the question of why it matters." Jess said, edging calmly out of the way. "Just a pair of old glasses."

Optimus Prime shook his head. "Those glasses are very important to us. Let me explain - we are Autobots, from the planet Cybertron. These are Jazz, Ironhide, Ratchet, and Bumblebee - my soldiers. The mech who attacked you is Barricade, a Decepticon. We have been fighting the Decpticons for some time now."

"Why?" Devon asked. "I feel like a broken record."

The one called Ratchet answered. "Megatron - their leader - wants to dominate the universe and use everyone else as his slaves, including us. We'd rather not."

Heather chuckled. "World domination. How Sy-Fy of him."

"Shut up, Heather." Kara said nicely.

"Girls, don't fight now. Wait until after the giant robots have left, okay?" Devon asked, grinning when both Kara and Heather punched him in the arms.

Jess grinned at Optimus. "Give 'em a second, they'll get back on track. So, why do you guys want the glasses?"

Jazz spoke up. "They have a map etched on 'em. We need 'em ta find where th' coordinates for the All-Spark are."

Heather looked up. "The All-Spark?"

Ratchet nodded. "Yes. The All-Spark created our race. Without it, there will be no more of us."

Devon frowned as he considered. "Then why does this 'Megatron' want it?"

"It can be used as a weapon." Optimus said.

"Oh. Then let's avoid that, shall we?" Jess said cheerfully.

Heather's brow furrowed. Devon edged away. "I know that look. That's the dangerous look."

"Just because I almost blew up the kitchen once - "

"Twice!"

Ironhide chuckled. "I think I like her."

"Of course you like her. She's trigger happy like ya are." Jazz laughed.

Prime pinched his noseplates. "Your friends aren't the only ones who lose track of the topic."

Jess gave Optimus a grin. "At least they kind of find their way back on track. We circle the track a couple of times and study it before getting back on it."

"Interesting way to put it." Ratchet murmured.

"I try. Anyhow - " Jess put emphasis on the last word, getting at least Kara's attention. "Back to the glasses. They should be in the mailbox, right?"

Devon frowned. "Maybe. We can check."

Heather looked at him. "Did you have them express mailed?"

"No. Why would I have same-day delivery for a pair of glasses I'll never wear?" Devon asked, giving her a grin.

"Just thought I'd ask." Heather laughed, rocking back on her heels. "So, if they're not there now, odds are, they'll arrive sometime tomorrow."

Heather turned to Optimus. "I suppose we could track them and try to intercept the UPS van." she mused.

Jess pinched her nose. "Okay, why would we want to intercept a UPS van?" she demanded. "I swear - "

"If you make one more wisecrack about my movies - "

"Threat! I feel threatened!"

"I suppose the glasses would have a tracking number since they are en route, correct?" Ironhide asked, overriding the budding argument. Kara nodded. Ironhide turned to Optimus. "The Decepticons can track it as well."

"Then we should do the same, and hope we find the glasses first."

"I don' think the 'Cons know about it, Prime." Jazz said. "Barricade went after the kids. He wouldn't have done that if Megatron thought there'd be a better way of finding it."

((lo and behold! I posted!))