It was quite simple. They say to keep a watch out for the silent ones, and he supposed, upon hindsight, that he was silent. Oh, he said things. He did things. But he never said anything. In hindsight, he was an observer. Observers do just that…observe, and learn, and continue learning, hiding their finds behind a silent exterior, with some even becoming so greatly defensive of their finds to only provide better ramparts and bastions to that silent observance.
And to anyone, Prowl would be this mech. But it wasn't him. To all, he was a silent observer. But the difference between himself and an observer was that it was more of Prowl's programming to observe. Logic provided a backbone for that behavior, and it did not provide him with anything that he did not already know. It didn't form opinions. It did not stir emotions. His observances created decisions based on his own logical rules.
Therefore he could be painfully oblivious.
Just as he was when he walked into his office, a datapad in hand, and let the door slide shut. It wasn't until he rounded his desk, came to the chair, and saw the yellow in the corner of his vision that he realized he was not alone.
Prowl lowered the datapad, his optics meeting that of his intruder. He had to admit, he was caught a bit off guard, and therefore hadn't had a chance to consider what he'd say. "Sunstreaker…what are you doing in my chair?"
Sunstreaker said nothing, his face about as blank as Prowl's. With one fluid movement, he stood, reminding Prowl at just how tall the twins were, standing taller than himself and just shy of being as tall as Prime. But if Sunstreaker was trying to be intimidating, he wasn't having that effect. Sunstreaker eyed him for several more seconds before speaking. "I came to see if you were okay."
"What?"
"Okay. Are you okay?"
Prowl had to admit, he was confused. "I am perfectly fine, Sunstreaker."
He found a cube being forced into his hand, and the datapad pulled away from the other. "Sideswipe kept a tally. You haven't recharged in three orn. You haven't refueled for nearly a whole orn. Sideswipe wanted to make sure you weren't turning out to be like Red Alert."
"Overly dedicated to one's work?"
"Crazy."
Prowl considered this. He looked down at the cube in his hand, then up at Sunstreaker. "Sideswipe wanted to know, or you?"
The corner of Sunstreaker's mouth twitched, as if he wanted to smile. The datapad was put on the desk, and Sunstreaker moved past Prowl to the door. "Just don't let it happen again."
Prowl sat down, his optics still on the door. He drank the cube and left the office, leaving the datapad to shut off automatically.