XXXIX. Sweet Home [Diego Garcia]

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And so the final week of her short vacation came to an end.

Catherine had hoped to spend more time with Sam, but the school week made it difficult, although he did visit as much as he could during the few free hours he had. It was enough, as each visit was full of joy and much merriment, especially on the weekend when he was able to stay for the whole day. His parents came again, too, though this time everyone went out to eat instead. Catherine was ecstatic to see the two families getting along nearly perfectly, and while it did make things better, it also made them worse. The reason being she knew she was going to have to leave.

Mrs. Judy held together well—she even managed to not tear up when they said their goodbyes. Mr. Witwicky didn’t show any sorrow, of course, but he did give the redhead a warm hug, telling her to take care of herself, which was as close to an outburst of tears as he could get. Sam was of weaker make than his father, but he knew without a doubt that she would be okay, so it was loving grins and hugs for the both of them along with a quick note to not take forever to get back and not let “Galladouche” get the best of her. She promised not to, and then after a final farewell to Bumblebee, who promised to keep in touch, they left, and she went home to pack.

It was obvious they were leaving, and not just because Lennox already had his bags out in the TV room, ready to go for their early morning leave. Both Sideswipe and Jazz were more upbeat than usual—trading shoulder punches and moving about like a bunch of athletes before a match. It was amusing, to say the least, and then became hilarious when the two mechs began to brawl it out. Jazz won, of course; while Sideswipe was flexible and filled with youthful energy, the white-armored mech was no old cog and he knew exactly how to move the silver mech right where he wanted. It was for that reason Sideswipe found himself face first in the dirt, both arms pinned and a hand ready to put him into stasis should Jazz have wished it. It was all fun and games, however, so there was no animosity between them, but rather laughter.

Yet, soon enough even they had to settle down to recharge for their trip tomorrow, and Catherine was left to spend some time with her new parents and sister. It was short, but sweet, and Sarah composed herself well, no doubt used to it thanks to Lennox having been in the military for years now. Still, there were hints of the weariness underneath—the weakened smiles; the shallow bags under her eyes; the lack of luster. Annabelle even seemed to sense it, too, and did her best to make the atmosphere better with her laughter and nonsensical baby sounds. However, Sarah couldn’t be quelled, and all went to bed with a heavy weight that only increased the next morning.

They left very early so that Annabelle was not woken; leaving only Sarah was there to see them off. She did so much like before, hiding her sadness behind a smile, though they promised they’d be back soon. Then they left, riding again in Sideswipe with Jazz close behind. The Autobots must have sensed the mood, too, for the trip was quiet all the way to the military base, and even on the plane they only talked of what they needed to do once they got back. Lennox would have to go speak with Morshower to be updated on the Decepticon search teams, and Catherine was to meet with Marissa briefly in her office before heading to Ratchet for news on the new Autobots who would arrive in two days. A part of her didn’t want to meet with her mentor, seeing as she knew it was probably the last time she would, but she knew she had a lot of work to look over.

The plane ride felt like it took forever, but eventually they landed on the island. The hot, humid air was rather welcoming although it had them sweating long before they’d even reached the island itself. Although the scenery was bland, Catherine was glad to see it. Sure, it wasn’t the ranch, but it was still one of her homes, and she had family waiting for her. In fact, both she and Lennox did—their teammates were already there with water bottles in hand, which were chucked in their direction as soon as they were within range. Laughs and shoulder claps and even hugs—only for Catherine as Lennox wasn’t “man” enough for them—were exchanged briefly before the redhead forced them to let her go on the note she had some work to do.

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