Transformers: A Matter of Fate

GRIEF AND A CONFESSION

A/N: nce again would like to thank everyone for the birthday wishes! :D

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CHAPTER 15

Grief and a Confession

Mark wanted to punch Coulton, yet he knew that the only thing that would land him in was trouble. How dare he say those horrible things about his dad? About Hound? About the other Autobots? He kicked at the ground in frustration as he muttered under his breath. "Don't let that fragger get to you." Mark turned around as Hound approached him in his bedroom "That man is a cold-hearted excuse for a human. And he is most certainly not worth the attention you are giving him." He added, flicking a "cigar" slightly.

Mark looked at his foster father quietly, shaking his head. He laid himself down on his bed and ran his hands along his face in exhaustion. "The way he talked about my dad... I know I said I might hate him... But the thought of him in hell." He shuddered "And the way he talked about you guys is just as bad too. I mean did you hear him? Didn't I tell you what a jerk he was!?"

"Easy, easy Mark."

"What gave him the right!?" Mark continued.

He slowly felt as arms wrapped around him, trying their best to comfort him. Mark had nearly forgotten that Hound could feel extreme distress in him, and given how upset he was now, he wasn't surprised this all applied. Hound looked down at his son, and held him close to his holoform's chest. "It's alright, Mark." Hound tried to comfort him "Yer father isn't in hell, and he can't do anything to this relationship." He noted.

"How do you know?" Mark questioned "Social services barely even allowed it, and my dad-."

"I won't let them take you away from me, that's why." Hound began, and then tapped him on the chest "And as for yer father, look in that heart of yours." Hound added, staring into his eyes "He did terrible things, yes. But was it not you who told me that he was a good person underneath the terrible actions? Someone who told ye stories and took ye to the movies?" Mark nodded his head slightly "That doesn't sound like someone who belongs in hell to me."

Mark shook his head. "Even after everything he did to you guys?"

Hound had to admit, when he looked at it that way, he wanted to say he would like to see him burn. He didn't have time to continue before Mark looked to the side. "And he's definitely right about one thing. Wherever he is, he probably hates me. Or at least feels betrayed." Mark shook his head "Even if he is up there and I get to see him again one day..."

"You miss him more than you let on." Hound commented, this time, Mark nodded without hesitation "You know that that's understandable, don't you? I'd be worried about you if you WEREN'T grieving over your loss." Mark looked down "You lost your family sooner than any child should have to. You should be able to go home to parents that love you and make you feel safe." He then noted "And no matter how hard I try I know I won't be able to completely replace that feeling."

Mark shifted a bit, uncertainty in his eyes. "Hound-."

"It's true." Hound replied calmly "I can be your surrogate father, and maybe to you a better man than he was." He explained "But I'll never be the man that raised you, the one that saw you off to your first day at school... The man who fought away your monsters, or read you to sleep." Mark could feel tears sting his eyes "And that's why I can tell that what he said about your father is what bothered you most."

Mark shook his head, and tried to wipe the tears away with the sleeve of his pajamas. Why was Hound able to see through his barrier? Why was he so good at reading him and so smart? He wasn't supposed to be this vulnerable or sad, he was supposed to fight it. "I just miss him... And every time I think about what he did, I just..." He tried to calm himself "I just don't know what to say, Hound... He was my dad, and people look at him like he was a monster. Even I do sometimes." He shook his head "I don't..."