#ask dray

[cassandraphoenix]

B-127 meets the fox again.

English isn't Englishing cuz I was half asleep making this.

I AM LOSING MY MIND THAT'S SO GOOD!!!

HE GETS TO MEET THE FOX AGAIN, AUGHHH THE WAY HE'S SO SOFTLY HOLDING IT AND IT'S LEANING INTO HIM;;; IT'S NOT TRYING TO RUN AUGHHHH YESYEYEYSESSS!! THANK YOU!!! SO MANY SMOOCHES FOR YOU!!!

[cass-phoenix]

Thinking about Bad Dad Optimus and how he could have just bought his son a cell phone under a fake name and GHOST never would have known the difference.

So true bestie so true

Could’ve given him the name of one of his old human besties. Of course he’s still in contact with Sparkplug and/or Spike!

But, no, limited, almost non-existent radio contact and isolation was the way to go. UnU

[cassandraphoenix]

Lazy sketch of our beloved mama bear<3

She will not letting Optimus have B-127. At all.

Live, laugh love Dorothy Malto.

Pic reference from this:

Havvaniceday 🌺

HAAKFNSDKFJDSK SI LOVE HOW HE HAS TO CARRY HER HIMSELF BUT THE VIBES ARE THE SAME

Also Optimus is so big he doesn't even fit aside from his leg-

That's AMAZING, yes!!! XD

[cassandraphoenix]

How I imagine the sequel of KYHATW after Bee got bladed and turn into mini him. His first word is "mom?" When he sees Dorothy.

And he cry and telling her that he missed her

Also, I have a quick question; idk if someone asked this already.

Does Optimus even know/realize that he was hurting Bumblebee emotionally? The neglect? The distant?

I'm very curious.

DUDE WAIT I'M GONNA CRY THAT'S SO CUTE

I'll let you in on a little secret. I started thinking of a sequel idea last night but now I almost want to redo the whole thing to take place during S4 instead. Dude that kills me. HIS BIG SAD EYESSSSSS

Optimus! ☝ Does not really care that much. I mean, he might realize it, but I don't think it connects with him on an emotional level. He's a bit busy with all his other Autobots, and Bumblebee is... pretty resilient. Whatever comes his way, he can handle. Bumblebee lasted fifteen years, after all, being on his own. Why is he only running into roadblocks now, when he's with the Maltos?

(Optimus also does not realize that him being isolated for that long is a problem. Fifteen years is fifteen years no matter how long you live, but it's hard to imagine when you didn't live it yourself. I imagine he originally meant to keep in contact, but it slipped through the cracks. And if he did realize, he never acted on it. Kept getting distracted.)

Optimus is very much a bad father. Not physically abusive, but certainly neglectful, and he doesn't much care to change that. It's just convenient when Bumblebee can be tucked onto a shelf somewhere out of the way. Even Elita-1 and Megatron scolding him doesn't fix it.

So no, I don't think he realizes that it was hurting Bee! Never quite connected in his mind that it would be a problem.

STONE HIM!!!!!

[cassandraphoenix]

Thinking about the hate plague again in relation to KYHAW and Bee not even physically attacking Optimus, just yelling at him. Like, would it finally get through to OP if Bee actually told him he hated him? Just venting all of his years of bitterness and anger?

I think we all just want to see Optimus hit over the head by a clue by four. Do we need to stage Bee's death?

With my understanding/Headcanons of the hate plague, it would ultimately lead to him being attacked. Getting physically violent becomes "irrational" anger, which is when they turn red.

Nobody would know Bee was infected by the hate plague until he turned red-- until then, everyone would just think he snapped.

That being said! Here are the events, in order, that would happen:

Bumblebee shows up, just like in canon, in a spitting rage. He's screaming at Optimus, telling him everything he's ever done wrong, accusing him for his broken sparklinghood, accusing him for never caring.

For just a brief moment, Optimus starts to believe him. Perhaps the neglect really did hurt Bumblebee more than he thought. Maybe Bumblebee really is too young to be on his own.

Bumblebee eventually is drawn to attack - probably from getting into Optimus' face and someone pulls him back, and that's enough to make him snap, because the hate plague really does amplify all emotions to 100 - and turns red, revealing to everyone the nature of his outburst.

Optimus begins to think that all of that was hate plague speaking, revealing deep insecurities and not actually Bumblebee's true thoughts. The hate plague, after all, is known to manipulate emotions to be stronger than they are. Of course Bumblebee was sad about being placed in hiding, but he didn't actually hate Optimus for it. That's ridiculous.

Of course, once he's cured, Bumblebee doesn't admit that any part of it was true, but he doesn't outright deny it either.

Everyone other than Optimus knows it's the truth. They can see it clear as day, displayed on Bumblebee's shattered expression, even as he tries to apologize and claim guilt for the entire situation.

If Optimus does accept his own matter of responsibility in the matter, understand that Bumblebee is angry at him, that he's been hurting for stellar-cycles if not vorns, he would honestly probably.... go off on his own and sulk instead of actually confronting the issue.

I do want to say! A majority of the reasoning for this is because I just like reaaaaally drawing out angst. I don't like it when there's a quick easy solution. I like it when it takes a super long time to fulfill because nobody will communicate, dangit!

I also do not want to redeem Optimus because, while I do believe everyone can be redeemed, I think it makes for an interesting story when not everyone is redeemed.

Optimus is on the right side of the war, and maybe, arguably, a good person, but he is certainly not a good parent.

Even within the show it's shown that he cares for the Terrans more than Bumblebee.

Bumblebee giving the triplets guns within a day of them being born? (Production Bible, I believe, said it was his doing, or at least something he would do.) That's because that's what happened to him! He's been wielding his blaster for as long as he's been alive!

Every scrap of bad parenting on his end was learned from Optimus and I hold to that. He's working on ending the cycle of abuse (he would never abandon the Terrans, never neglect them, could not even fathom it) but it's slow going.

He doesn't fully understand how to be a good parent, but he's learning from Dot and Alex.

[cassandraphoenix]

Does Bee go back through the memories at some point? Something obviously happened with Optimus that he probably should know about if it's got Dot and Alex so worked up. And Does he then have an actual conversation with Optimus?

I like to believe he does! Probably during the weekend, when Dot and Alex have the kids?, he heads out to find a quiet place to go through it all.

Upon finding out what Optimus did, and probably still trying to justify it at least a little, Bee reaches out to him and tries to set a meeting,

It takes him three meetings of being ignored and invalidated before he realizes how little Optimus actually cares.

So, he tried to have a real conversation. It didn’t work.

He doesn’t try again.

[cassandraphoenix]

Kinda nervous to send this,

This is wip of the Keep Your Head Above Water fanart.

Love your work, keep up with the good work, havvaniceday🌺

OOOOOOH!!! OOOOOOOOOOH!! THE BABES!!!

Look at theeeeeem!! They are so, so, so adorable!!!! He’s so grumpy!!! The way she grabs his shoulder like she would for Bee… How happy she looks regardless…

That looks incredible, thank youuuuu!!!!

You are a very talented artist~

[cassandraphoenix]

Hey. If you're still accepting KYHAW questions - what would Breakdown's reaction have been to meeting B-127 again? And how much does he generally know about Bee's position as a prodigious child soldier? I can only imagine that he'd like Optimus even less here than usually. ^^"

If not, feel free to ignore me and have a nice day anyway. c:

XD Still am, not to worry Merlin!

I'm answering these a little out of order-

2) Breakdown would hate Optimus no matter what. Breakdown himself was also a child soldier, though was more teenage-aged when he was accepted into the Decepticons. One of my favourite Headcanons was that Decepticons took all the new parts from sparklings for themselves, and most sparklings in their care ended up dying for it. Breakdown was one of the lucky few where he did not die; he just had his parts replaced with older parts. (Probably because he has the good graces of a specific 'Con medic...) So, yeah, he knows B-127 was a child soldier. And he has the whole "how dare that happen to B-127" even though the same thing happened to him. They weren't exactly on good terms when the split happened, and it's only more modern-day that they've gotten past the animosity and have rekindled their brotherhood/friendship/whatever you want to call it.

1) Breakdown would honestly probably try to kidnap B-127. Not only is this his little brother, but he's younger now, too, and Breakdown has an opportunity to fix all of the mistakes he made that divided them up in the first place! Except B-127 remembers every mistake he made and even if he misses Breakdown, he's still hopping mad and is fighting against him every step of the way. He might even try to shoot Breakdown's helm off. Breakdown's just relieved to have him around, and he's not going to let anyone take him away ever again. Not Optimus, and definitely not the Maltos. Not.... the healthiest relationship by a long shot.

....remember how B-127 suspected that Breakdown had been groomed, or that Optimus had said he was? Well that is. Exactly what I imagined happened. (Though the Decepticons are not the only culprits of this, obviously.) I should also note that I don't mean grooming in a sexual way, just like. Manipulation in order to take advantage of their loyalty and making them do the "dirty work". It's also possible that Breakdown is trying to do the same to B-127. It was how he was taught, and he really, really wants B-127 to like him again.