Author's note: I plan on keeping these short and sweet but still to the point. Other than that, enjoy.
Peace was something inexperienced for the mech and he found himself reveling in the silence that the large warehouse offered him. He couldn't even hear any of the human traffic outside or really anything. The moment was wonderful and he used it just to think. Something that he seemed to have not been able to do for what felt like hundreds of years because honestly, what good was a drone that could think for himself?
The Autobots were bad, they would try to offline him like he would try to do to them. He knew that and didn't blame them. After so many years of war and so many deaths some things were just ingrained and became instinct. The Decepticons were equally bad as well, the mech considered, but more so morally wrong. They would try to kill him as well and that made them slightly worse than the Autobots considering that three days ago the Decepticon were his comrades. If he were to return to them now he would be as good as dead. They would consider him a traitor and he certainly wasn't interested in becoming a pile of spare parts.
A creak woke him from his thought process and he paused as the rolling door began to lift. Sunlight pours into the abandoned facility as the familiar woman walks in, tying her hair back as she chucks a small black sweater to the side. He watches as it flutters down, kicking up a puff of dust. Mel wipes the sweat from her forehead and for the first time the mech notices the various deep gnarling scars that crisscross up her arms. They look like burns and he can't help but watch her as she turns to him, her face pausing for a brief moment in a look that practically says, 'you're still here?' That look quickly falls and the woman replaces it with a greeting smile and for once he is unsure whether or not she is genuinely happy about his presence. She turns her back to him.
"Get your asses moving!" She bellows as she stalks out of the door the sound of banging quickly follows before two large men enter carrying various boxes that look ridiculously heavy. She enters as well, holding an equally large container, her surprisingly muscular arms straining.
"Want me to get that for you ma'am?" One of the large men ask and to the mech's confusion he sounds snide not sincere. Mel laughs throwing her head back.
"With your puny arms?" She mocks and once again he is perplexed. The man had larger arms than two of her put together. "I don't want you ladies to break a fingernail." She continues as the men bark out deep hardy chuckles as the three of them leave again only to come back with her truck full of boxes.
It takes them a little more than an hour for all of the apparent boxes to be neatly stacked in the furthest corner from him. One of the men almost placed a box by his tire but the woman threatened him with a 'boot up his ass' if he had so much as left a scratch on the mech's purple paint. Humans. He didn't understand them at all and he was certain he never would.
He transforms the second the door rolls shut and she stands with her back to him as he approaches coming to a kneel as she eyes up the nearest box. He looks at her with a subtle tilt of his head but Mel doesn't even acknowledge him much to his irritation. Carefully he reaches a single hand out and runs a claw across the tape that holds the box closed and the lids pop open.
"Great, isn't it?" She asks him but he doesn't see what she means. Inside the box are just chunks of what looks to be scrap metal that would normally have been functionless. She meets his optics and he could tell she is ecstatic about it. Whatever it is for. She smiles again, grasping the box and tucking it under one arm as she stands walking to the other side of the warehouse. He thinks about asking her what she is doing but decides against it. He figures he'll find it out sooner or later if he just watches her.
Mel dawns on a pair of thick gloves and a strange mask that reflects his own face. He can't see her expressions at all but by her body language he can tell she is still excited about something. She fires up a small device after pulling out a piece of the metal and adjust the flame until it is practically blue.
It is then that he knows that she is welding but it isn't a medial task or if it is, the woman doesn't act like it is. She is enjoying mending the metal into some shape. He watches her in a crouch and she is fascinated by the whole process, stopping ever so often to remove the mask to get a closer look at her work. In turn he is fascinated by her process.
Several hours pass and he is still beside her, watching her progress. At some point the woman turns on a small box shaped device that plays human music and it is probably the worst possible thing he has ever heard in his entire life. He considered pulling out one of his cannons and ending the horrible device permanently but he didn't want to risk the possible energon reading. At some point the device cut out but Mel just kicked it and it started up again much to the mechs distaste. Tomorrow, he told himself, that the device would mysteriously disappear before she returns.
After what seemed like a good couple hours later, she just stops, pulling the thick gloves off and letting them fall to the ground. She is still smiling though he can still see the exhaustion behind her eyes and behind her he sees what was once the large chunk of useless metal. He reaches out, touching a large talon on the almost black metal that is now in the form of an earth animals with large branch like protrusion hanging of its head. He runs the claws across it before tilting he head to the side. She meets his single visor giving him an amused grin that he doesn't understand.
"I'll finish etching the final details tomorrow." She states as she performs a partial stretch, her back popping with the movement. He points at the strange metallic sculpture, a fluid smooth gesture that surprises her. Mel knows what he is asking without him even speaking and this surprises him. He had never spoken to her before so she probably thinks that he is mute.
"I sell these." She informs with an eased shrug as she turns to look at the sculpture. "I do it to make some extra cash. Otherwise I make my money lending my warehouses to companies for shipping." He studies her before giving her a gentle nod. She steps back instinctively as he stands, still not used to being around the presence of something so large and intimidating. Imagine if she had a chance to lay eyes on Megatron, he can't help but muse with a sick sort of satisfaction at imagining her fear. She is silent as he walks to the other side the tremors caused from his steps reminding her of Jurassic park and she can't help but cover her mouth with her hand to hide the smirk.
"You've been here for three days." Mel grumbles very carefully less she insult him and he is surprised by this. He turns on his feet watching her. "Don't you want to, oh, I don't know, get out and drive some. You must be terribly bored cramped up in here." He tilts his head before letting his gaze fall to the ground. He is bored and he would love to get out and stretch his wheels. She is still watching him with a curious glint to her green eyes.
"Too dangerous." He finally admits as he sits back, crossing his legs as he leans his girth against the concrete wall. Mel is taken back by his deep voice and he knows that she didn't think he had the ability to speak. To his surprise the woman composes herself rather quickly.
"Dangerous?" She repeats and he doesn't understand the need to parrot what he had just said. "Are you scared of the humans? You blend in pretty well. I mean you just look like a fancy custom car." He shook his head, even though in reality part of him did fear what the humans were capable of. Breakdown was certainly now wary of them. He points to himself and she frowns her head tilting to the side again before her eyes widen in recognition.
"There's more of you here?" She gasps and he nods his large silver and purple head. "and they will kill you?" Again he nods and she looks glum. "So did you do something to warrant them after you?" In response he raises his hand and partially shakes it. "Sort of. You sort of did something?"
"Yes." He answers his voice sounding rather unaccustomed to being used.
"Did you steal?" He nods. "Kill?" Again the mech nods. "Lie?" This time he shook his head. "So you'll steal and kill but you won't lie?" Mel grumbles and he nods like it is the plainest logic around. She just blinks slowly.
"War." He replies as if it is the answer to everything and oddly enough it is. War explains everything and destroys everything. She nods with him, a sad gesture but it makes sense to her.
"So are you like a war fugitive." He pauses, considering the concept before nodding vigorously. She watches him, her eyes still wide and curious while his expressions are still a mystery. A small smile curves at her lips before she takes a look at him and he can tell that she has something in mind before she even speaks.
"Would a new paint job help?" Mel asks and he is taken back. He considers it before nodding. Actually yes, he can't help but think. A new paint job would through of the Autobots and Decepticons because never has there been a drone that wasn't the traditional black, purple, and silver. He nods again and the woman is smiling wider. He's beginning to think she has a think for helping others as strange as that seemed and he considered her insane for that. "I'll make a few calls. I know someone who is great with custom paint jobs." She informed and he for once wasn't sure what to think.
