Transformers: A Matter of Fate

GUARDIANS AND SNAKES

CHAPTER 14
Guardians and Snakes

"So, a guardian bond, huh?"

Hound glanced down at the words that came from Mark's mouth as he entered his office. The mech stared at him for a long moment before taking out a "cigar", he might need it by the time he was done with the day. "Who told you?" Hound asked with much irritation in his voice "I figured you wouldn't be ready to know. I kept quiet for a reason." He muttered.

"I'm not mad or anything." Mark replied "I just... I'm surprised." He paused "Why would you do that?"

Hound sighed, his engines revving quietly. "The same reason my foster sire did that for me when I was a sparkling." Mark raised his eyebrows "Don't look so surprised, Mark. There were many orphans on Cybertron. Especially once the war escalated, but still some before there even was a war." He explained "I formed that bond to protect you, Mark. It makes me connected to you and fortifies my protection of you." Mark tilted his head in confusion "It puts my protective programming into the same state it would be in around my own metal and energon."

"You can do that?" Mark asked "Does that mean-?"

"I cared about you like you were my own long before." Hound chuckled "What I mean is that I can feel and sense you like I could any other child of mine." Mark gave an "OH" at that "We can't change how we feel about a person, Mark. No more than a human can." The boy nodded slowly in response "I just... Now that you're living with us, I worried about the whole Decepticon factor. So I wanted to know when you were in danger, and other things..."

Mark smiled, he had to admit, that was a very sweet thing. The fact that Hound wanted to be able to connect on him on that level definitely served to make him feel good. "Well, that's cool. Crosshairs said I can feel you like that too." Hound nodded in confirmation "So basically you'll know my emotions now?" He asked, curiously.

"And be able to communicate with you by simple thought." Hound put a fingertip to his helm "Believe you me, youngling, you'll be thankful for it. Since you'll now never have to feel alone even if it seems as though you are." Mark smiled a bit "I only didn't want to tell you because I thought it might... Be strange to you." He explained.

"A little, but it sounds awesome." Mark explained "So this is pretty normal for you guys, though?"

"Very. Nearly every guardian forms this bond with their charge." Hound explained "A lot of sparklings can't survive with a bond like that. Much like you can't survive without some form of attention in infancy." Mark nodded in understanding as the mech sighed "And for older younglings, it's supposed to help you feel safe and protected..." He purposely left out "loved" for now "So, are we okay? You don't think that it's strange, do you? Because I apologize, but I can't-."

"I'm honored." Mark replied, stopping Hound from going further "I mean, you did it to protect me, Hound. And it means a lot that you care about me like that." He looked down, then back up at him with a smile "I know you already told me you care before, but this really makes it hit home." Hound nodded in understanding "So you were an orphan too?" He asked.

Hound nodded his optics seeming to look off in the distance as he thought back upon his early years. When he had been an orphan without a home, or family. He had been lucky, much like Mark had been. He'd been found by a mech called Falco and raised into mechhood, though he often remembered fighting him, including when he himself had run away as a youth. "The mech who raised me made me the mech I myself am today." He patted his chestplate slightly "Took me in when I was even younger than you are." He shook his head "He was a heavy high grade drinker though, and he died young."

Mark nodded his head, finding it interesting. Although it did tell him a lot about why Hound did what he did for someone he barely knew, after all, on top of the loss pf his son, he also knew what Mark felt like. "That sucks." Mark replied "But he raised a pretty awesome mech if you ask me... So I think that's what matters." Hound chuckled, and nodded his head at his charge "And this bond helped you, kinda?"