Open Wounds

The sleek seeker-like femme took an involuntary step closer to to scout as she watched a large group of Vehicons step out of the bridge, Dreadwing on their heels. Her optics shuttered slightly when she saw gleaming, bulky silver armor coming up behind them all. If only they had been just a little faster to leave. Skyfreeze had really hoped not to have to see the gladiator so soon upon arrival. While he was an interesting case to analyze at a distance, her interest died when faced with him. The in person Megatorn was not something she cared for.

Her weapon wings quivered slightly as her optics set on those claws, remembering how it felt to be at the end of them. It was so easy not to think about it while she watched or read records in the computer, but facing him again brought back the terror of that last day on Cybertron. She glanced at the Autobots to snap herself back to the current time, all of them had weapons drawn and pointed. The Prime held the orb tightly in one servo, but used the other as his cannon. She knew they wanted to open the device here to be sure it was not a trap or toxic substance but it did not look like they had that option now.

"Skyangel...?" Megatron's slickly icy voice pulled her attention back, his narrow red eyes cutting into her like blades.

Her spark twinged instantly, pain hovering at her chamber, making her wish she could rub at it. The way he stared at her, optics tinted with shock and hesitant puzzlement, told her she was the last creature in the universe he ever expected to see again, and rightly so, but a wry smirk crossed his derma anyway. She had to fight to keep her fans cycling normally, fight not to slink behind the Prime, fight not to flinch as his smile grew wider, and fight to keep her chin up in the fake confidence she was so good at portraying. Her left knee twitched either out of a ghost pain or out of her desire to flee, she was not sure which.

"It has been a long time." Megatron finally finished in that bariton slime of a vocalizer that melted into her audios.

"Has it?" She asked coyly, surprised by her own cocky lilt - Starscream was a good influence on her in some cases.

Those huge tinted silver pedes moved him forward with his confident stride of a long time warrior, "I will admit, I never expected yours to be among the faces I saw here when Soundwave told me Autobots were already on site." His jagged fangs were hard not to stare at while he spoke.

"I am quite sure you did not." She returned, words void of emotion once again. "Not that I particularly intended to see you either, but you always have been skilled at showing up in unfortunate ways."

His characteristic, gravely laugh rose to her, "Still the same femme, formal and businesslike even when you try insulting me, " The dictator's crazed eyes drilled her before moving to the Prime, "Where did you find her, Optimus? The graveyard? Are you that desperate now?"

He thought that was trying? If he wanted her to work harder, she could. It was hard not to allow herself the luxury of a frown when he made the last jab at her. The Autobots each gave him a similar look of confusion, not knowing what he could be talking about, but Optimus said nothing in return. They had no reason to understand that 'joke' of his, but she did, and it struck a chord in her. The slime had the gall to make fun of what he had done to her on Cybertron, and really, what he had done to the planet. Come to think of it, was he not the one the tried to rob the grave? Who was he to speak of desperation anyway, not that it really mattered at the moment. Still, it enraged her. This worthless mound of metal had the ball bearings to hold his head high after all he had done to Cybertron in the name of freedom?

Her servos crossed over her chassis, the way she had seen Starscream do many times, intent on seeming unmoved. "I see you have also not changed. Even your arrogance, poor humor, and dull wit is the same. It was too much to hope you might improve with age."

"Careful." His razor sharp optics flashed with a crazed, yet annoyed smile, "Remember how we parted company the last time."

Likely, she should have stayed silent, but she could not manage to hold it in, "I do not remember keeping company with you, I only recall you lurking at the doorstep like an unwanted pet."

"Skyfreeze!" Was Optimus' warning, though too late to keep her quiet.

The attack was inevitable now, thanks to her angry lashing, awaking the sleeping enemy. For all her emotionless acting she was far from it. The angry flash from the enemy made her wish she was somewhere else, or that she could have let Starscream teach her a little less. Her own words were what would bring his anger on her and that nearly sent her into a panic. The Vehicons rushed at them, Dreadwing only a second behind. Her optics widened as fear spiked through her, the hulking blue flier heading right for her. How could she have been so foolish, foolish enough to provoke him? Blazes of blue flashed around her as the Autobots began to fire their weapons, blasts of red returning in kind. Her wings twitched, eyelets down all six charging with a blue glow in ready. Normally, they stayed a dull grey-blue, no light to give them any shine. When they charged, however, all her round eyelets glowed bright with the same blue as the Autobot weapons. She did not even think, she simply began firing her charges at them, her eyes used as the main weapon targeting system - The wings were an extension of herself, so they were wired into her processor for better accuracy probability.

The large blue mech managed at avoid her first few hits, using the Vehicons as shields, leaving them frozen in place as he moved to a new location. It had been too long since she had been in a battle and she had a bad feeling she was rusty. Still, fear was a great motivator to improve. Her spark was pounding hard against her chassis, but she ignored it. Though battle had always frightened her, it also spurred her to move, considering the alternative - A fight did bring out her aggressive side, it always had. The charge was set to full power, so the Vehicons currently in stasis lock would not be moving again until well after the battle was over, not that Megatron would care. He would care, however, if his new second was hit and rendered useless for a while, so she focused her attention on him. Megatron was busy with Optimus for now, locked blades making a harsh sound as they clashed, successfully making him a target she did not dare try to hit. He was too close to Optimus for her to make an attempt, and she had a hunch he knew that. That was likely the reason he did not charge her himself. Seemingly, his memory had not gone bad with the dark energon.

Even in the battle, Megatron's words still caught her audio, as she was sure he intended, "If she is one of your new pets, Optimus, I suggest you train her better." The metal of their blades screamed in protest as the Prime tossed the other backward, lunging again while Megatron's balance was off, "I also suggest," The Decepticon snarled past gritted, sharp, denta as he blocked the blow, "that you watch her carefully. You never can trust those that can't pick a side."

Skyfreeze was almost glad when Dreadwing's bomb flying at her forced her to move out of hearing of the conversation. Part of her did not care to know what the Prime thought of her. Without thinking far past her anger, rather than running farther from the bomb, she snatched it out of the ground and hurled it back at the mech. If he wanted to fight, he should come to her level and do so, it was the only way she could catch him. Two other bombs on the ground were beeping fast in indication they were close to detonation. It was foolish, likely, but she scooped those up as well, tossing them each his way. The first she threw had been an easy dodge, even the second thrown was easy. Thank Primus, the smoke from the first two ensured he did not even see the third coming.

The explosion connected seconds before the bomb could attach against him but it was more than enough to throw him off, forcing him into a harsh landing. The dirt kicked up around him wildly, clumps and rocks sailing every direction as he plowed over it on his front. The femme ignored a few stray blasts that came her way, sprinting as fast as she could for the downed fighter while he was still in range. He fell nearly at her feet, but getting to him without being shot was another issue. Her wings pulsed as she focused on the charge, shifting more of her power into them to boost their potency.

"Don't let her get to Dreadwing!" Megatron bellowed from somewhere behind her, "Take her down, now! Leave her spark in pieces the way it should be!"

The few free drones turned their attention onto her, though they had been focused on Arcee and Bumblebee. Thankfully, that order came too late for the First Lieutenant now that she was right beside him. Without bothering to look up and slow her speed, she swiftly dropped down over him, knee joints catching either side of his waist to anchor her in place, delivering the close bast before he could move to get up. The rage filled, triumphant glint in her optics focused on Megatron as she tilted up the large helm, his horns serving as grips for her small servos. Satisfaction brimmed in her as the drones fire stopped, unsure what to do now that she was using the second as a shield. Skyfreeze, however, knew exactly what to do, her wings lighting with the charge as she fired eleven blasts at once - She loved these wings of hers! All but five connected, effectively causing the few remaining to backpedal in order to avoid being next - They had further issues when the yellow and black mech rushed them from behind.

It should not feel this good to have gotten Megatron's second, especially since the records showed he was not as horrible as most of the 'cons, but she could not help it. Even she had to allow a smirk to grace her derma, grinning like the human's mythical cheshire cat. The only thing that would have felt better was to be holding Megatron's helm up as her shield, having his body is stasis lock. Too bad he was not in range.

Megatron snarled before barking an order to retreat and attain Dreadwing. Feeling no need to keep the huge beast under her, especially since he would eventually be able to move again, she rolled off of him to hide herself behind one of the frozen drones. None of them made any attempt to come after her, they seemed all too eager to follow the order to fallback. As expected, they did not bother to take the frozen drones, or rather, Megatron did not leave them time to take any but the frozen second. The Autobots continued to fire their weapons even as the bridge appeared, swallowing them all up... or what was left of them - Only about six drones, a frozen second, and a clearly damaged leader. Whatever the Prime did, there was a clear and unmistakable trail of violet energon left in the wake of the bridge. They would not be missed in her book.

With the group gone, Skyfreeze moved to stand, her optics going wide as pain shot through her right pede. At first, she guessed it to be a ghost pain as it had been before, but as she pulled herself up, leaning heavily on the frozen drone, she noticed energon leaking fast from it. There was a significant amount of damage to it from a blast, a rather large hole, and multiple sparking wires exposed. Until now, she did not even feel it. How many others of those did she have that she had not found? She did not wish to show weakness to the others though, so she forced her struts to straighten and walked toward them with as little of a limp as she could manage.

As she moved closer, she saw Arcee lift her blaster to one of the frozen drones, "What are you doing?" Skyfreeze called with perhaps more volume than she intended.

Arcee's gaze turned to her, an optic ridge arching, "Isn't it obvious?" She sounded incredulous, as if there was no other answer, "Once they snap back, they will be shooting again. It's best to put them down before that can happen."

Her spark pulsed suddenly with something close to anger, "But they are totally at your mercy! They cannot even defend themselves, but you want to kill them like that anyway?"

"Relax, they are only drones. It's not as if they have a mind of their own. Who knows if they even can feel it." The blue femme tilted her helm, readying to fire again. "They would do the same to us."

"Don't!" Something about this did not set with her, it made something in her cry out for their helpless state... that she placed them in, "Isn't this against your codes or something? Are you really alright with killing the defenseless?"

"We will leave the Drones alive. Soundwave will pick them up once they alert him." Optimus suddenly spoke, causing all of them to turn toward him, all that could move, anyway. "They can find their way to a mine if they cannot be picked up."

"You're taking her side again?" Arcee came close to a growl, as close as she could come without being disrespectful.

The Prime did not flinch, "I am not taking sides. We do have a different code to live by than Decepticons, that is what keeps us from falling into their ways. We must not break that, even in cases like these."

"You were going to shoot Megatron when he was down after battling Airachnid's Insecticon..." Bumblebee whirred, obviously defending Arcee.

The wise optics of the leader turned to the scout, "I felt I had no choice if I intended to end this war. However, Megatron was not totally helpless... Killing the drones will also not end the war. I see no valor in such an act."

"So there is one standard for Megatron, and another for Drones?" Arcee quipped, obviously still unsatisfied.

"The drones have no choice but to follow orders, Megatron has always had a choice. He is different because he chose his path and they were born to theirs, without a choice." The Prime stated it so simply before turning to call for a bridge.

That was why she decided to follow the Autobot way, because of the one once called Orion. From a distance, she heard him speak once on Cybertron. After she heard him speak, she knew she could not follow Megatron. Granted, she followed him in the beginning, to a point, but not after she knew what the true leader was like. The warring way had never settled with her, which was why she never agreed to join either side. Freedom came at a price and she understood that, but true freedom was not simply trading one ruler for another. There had been a time, while Megatron was tempting Starscream to join, that she considered it but Optimus' way was the right one. It was easy to fall for Megatron's way, but she knew better, she knew the truth when she saw it. All her study of history and analyzing personalities had not been for nothing. Granted, in the day, some part of her pitied Megatron for all he went through, but pity was no reason to follow anyone.

Gingerly, the silver femme made her way down the hallway. As swiftly as possible on an injured pede, she had fled the others. The electric pain made it difficult not to limp, thus, she made sure to get out of their view. None of them had noticed her injuries on the way in. A few more had presented themselves, but none with any severity besides the one on her pede, which she intended to fix on her own. The wound to her side did force her to keep a servo pressed to it in order to slow the energon flow from the gash. These sorts of things were not hard, she herself knew a fair amount of medical knowledge in order to work at what she had on their planet.

Ratchet was very skilled, she did not deny his ability, she simply did not wish to show vulnerability so soon. It was better for her to seem capable and worthy as a warrior otherwise they might not desire for her to remain here. There was much they could count against her so she could not afford more. Now that the Decepticons knew of her survival she could not afford to be alone. Besides, she was ordered to come here, and she could not disobey. Like it or not, she had to be here, had to fight for them. Even though she respected the Prime, some part of her did resent being forced to come here and grovel for a place in his group. Begging to be taken in had never been in her vocabulary, which was why she brought a gift. If it was the last thing she did, she would earn this position.

"Well... look who was right!" A low, seductively delivered voice accosted her audios, instantly jerking her to attention.

Skyfreeze attempted to cover any amount of limping she might have been doing, servo snapping away from her side to standing firmly, "Excuse me?"

The sly smile on Starscream's faceplate did nothing but enhance his know-it-all reputation, "I seem to remember telling you they would not protect you." He uncrossed his servos to stroll her way, shadowed by Smokescreen, "Not only did they let you get hurt, they did not bother to help you either... so, don't you think you should have listened to me?"

"I am not hurt." She lied, but rather well even if she said so.

"Liar! I saw you walking down the hall. If that was not a limp you must be trying out a new human dance." He closed the distance between them, slipping an arm around her waist to support her, "What is the dance called?"

"Shut up." She narrowed her optics threateningly.

He hummed in amusement at his own coming joke, "Interesting name. How does the rest of it go?"

"Do you need help getting to the medical room?" Smokescreen finally offered, oddly timid about entering the display he might have seen as affection.

"I do not require medical attention, thank you." Skyfreeze shook her helm and shoved the seeker's servo away.

"Well," The rookie persisted, "I do see that you are leaking energon. Even if it is minor, the injury should be-"

The femme cut him off before he could continue, "I will handle my own repairs."

"Hmm, so you finally admit they let you get hurt!" Starscream leaned in to purr into her audio receptor. "I bet they did not lift a finger to help you, did they?"

"The injury had nothing to do with them. Injury is common during battle but I can handle myself." She went to leave the two mechs but a set of arms suddenly had her up off the floor, legs dangling over one servo, upper body cradled against his chassis and shoulder armor. The femme kicked with her good leg, slamming her fist into the Decepticon symbol. The ex-commander simply grinned at her playfully, ignoring her promises to dismantle him in his recharge. He always had enjoyed tormenting her, mainly by humiliating her publicly.

"I will see to her injury, just be useful and bring us some energon and the repair kit." Starscream cooed out the order as he passed the younger mech.

"Ratchet can fix it with no trouble." Smokescreen retorted, beginning to follow as if to cut them off.

"Trust me, she won't let him touch her. She made up her mind." His red eyes tossed a knowing look at the other, "It will be easier if you just get the kit."

It looked as if the youth would put up a fight but he relented without a further argument, leaving to presumably do as asked, though she doubted he would. The greater probability was that he would report the issues to the team, sending the medic in anyway. Starscream always did make her life more complicated whenever he was around. Still, she honestly had missed him, even missed how irritating he could be. Her body relaxed against him, faceplate slipping in to rest at the curve of his neck. For a moment, she allowed herself to snuggle against him, slipping her arms around him as best she could. Open shows of affection were difficult for her but they came much easier if no one was watching. She could relax if there were no prying optics to make her behave as she should. As a sparkling, she had been raised not to show her emotions, which worked for everyone but this mech.

In a voice far more soft and quiet, he finally spoke again as a door opened to a darkened room, "I missed you too, Angel."

He had always been the only one that took the time to understand her, even if he originally did it to find ways to irritate her. Her closed off manner made those around her deem her boring and unappealing. No one at the laboratory took the time to get to know her until he came to work there. From the first day he was stationed with her, she believed Primus had suddenly decided to hate her. He was loud and disrupted all her normal routines, and on purpose at that. No matter what she did, he was there to be in her way. He had even altered the results of a base test to ensure that her entire findings would be off for the rest of the day. Anyone that had ever run delicate testing in science knew how truly evil such an act was. Once she discovered what he had done to her, and that the endless frustration she suffered had been his idea of a joke, it was her tipping point. Pulling a prank of her own, she found a reason to bring him down to one of the supply rooms where she promptly locked him in.

She thought spending a night in that room would sober him, but it had not. Granted, he was more careful what he did to her, but he never stopped pressing her buttons, then exploring to find new ways to torment her. He took personal pleasure out of finding out exactly how to make her forget her self imposed correct behavior. She wanted his head most of the time. Exactly when their odd relationship turned into a friendship, she might never be sure. All she knew was that at some point, she laughed at his jokes and began looking forward to seeing him when she came to work. At some point, she realized he knew her better than anyone had in a very long time. The very one she believed to be Primus' joke on her turned into her dearest friend and one of the only to make it past her walls of protection.

The lights, dim though they were, came alive as they entered the small room. The room was cluttered and she honestly was not sure how anyone would find the berth without the light. It was a little surprising how run down she was once she allowed herself to feel it. He must have known it before she did. Gently, he lowered her onto a thinly padded berth, careful to rest her injured leg at the edge. Had he not turned to a life of war, he might have made a good medic, he had the bedside manner for it when he wanted to. Carefully, he tilted her knee joint as he slid in to sit at the edge, moving her injured leg to sit in his lap. His claws were shockingly gentle as he probed the exposed wires to see how badly they were damaged, his free hand lightly massaging the cables on the underside of her knee joint. With anyone else she would have considered the contact too much, and perhaps edging into too intimate, and pushed them away.

"So, of all places, why did you come here?" His red optics glanced up at her, "You said you did not know I was here, so why did you come to the Autobot base?" The way he said their name was almost like spitting at them with his tone.

"Where else would I go?" She returned his inquisitive stare, not intending to betray any of her reasons to him or anyone else.

There was a slight spark of anger in his optics at that, "You could have gone to your own kind."

"My own kind?" She let her vocaliazer remain flat, "I was not aware we were a different race from them."

There was an unmistakable edge to his voice, "You know what I mean!" He looked like he was ready to jump to his feet but he simply tugged her leg tighter against him, "How could you come here, to those creatures? How could you forgive them... and from what I gathered, help them!"

His sudden anger surprised her slightly, unsure what to do with him, "I'm afraid I do not see your point. The way I have read the history, Megatron is at fault for what happened to our planet. Were it not for his greed and lust for power, it would still be standing."

"I'm not talking about Cybertron, I'm talking about what they did to you!" He leaned his upper body forward enough that he was nearly in her face, "You can't tell me what they did to you... to both of us, is just forgiven!"

She blinked her optics at him in confusion, "I am afraid I am not sure to what you are referring, Starscream."

He nearly sneered, "You can't tell me you don't know what I mean. No one forgets something like that, Angel!" His optics took on a hint of sadness, "I know that it has haunted me all this time, even though I tried hard to forget. Why do you think I finally said yes to joining Megatron?"

The only thing she could think of to say was, "Why?"

"Revenge, that's why!" His voice had taken on more of a low growl than normal, "I wanted them to suffer for what they did."

What was he talking about? He seemed to believe she knew but she had no idea what event he could be speaking of. Something that involved both of them?Was there something she was forgetting? He seemed so intense, the anger and even pain clear and sharp in his voice. Now that she thought about it, she did not know what brought him into the ranks of the Decepticons, it was not on record. Before she got the chance to ask the question twirling in her processor, a slightly annoyed feminine voice snapped her thoughts away from the bewildering conversation.

"What do you two think we are running here, a 'Con dating service?" The human girl cocked her hips to one side as she crossed her arms over her chest, dark braid swaying at the motion, "First we have to take you in, now we have to walk in on a love session? Seriously!" Miko huffed, tossing a glance at the two human males with her.

"Miko, you can keep you commentary to yourself." Ratchet's gruff order made the femme's optics snap up from the floor as he came in.

Skyfreeze's faceplate began to heat as she realized the position she was currently in. While it was innocent, his body poised between her legs, helms so close it could have been interpreted as readying for a meeting of derma, and the dim lighting made it seem less than innocent. Without thinking, she flipped the seeker over the other side of the berth to get him off of her, sitting up just as swiftly. She only reconsidered the act after the rather loud crash resulting from it as he landed on whatever was on the floor. Starscream snarled up at her after he propped himself up but she did not look back to see how bad it was. Though she was careful to show no reaction on her faceplate, she was more than a bit mortified as well as guilty for any damage delivered to her friend. It was already shaping up to be a horrible day.

Instead of addressing any further issues, she simply focused on the broad shouldered, orange and white medic that was setting a kit on a cluttered table near her, "Thank you for bringing the kit. I can do the rest."

"Nonsense, I will take over your treatment while you are here." Ratchet glared her way, though indirectly, "Optimus ordered that I repair your wounds after Smokescreen told me of your energon loss. You should have informed me."

"I also have medical knowledge so I am capable of doing my own work." She stated flatly, not intent on allowing him close, "It is only very minor, nothing to bother with."

"I will do it." Ratchet stated, his derma set in a hard line, as if she had not even been protesting at all, as if he were doing her a favor.

"I have no need of assistance." The femme repeated more firmly this time, though she was careful not to return a glare.

A gravely chuckle rose as the seeker finally stood with a stretch of his struts, "She does not like to be touched so you will have a fight on your hands."

"Oh yeah? It didn't look like she minded being touched a minute ago." The tallest, raven haired, human boy muttered under his breath, perhaps amused.

The seeker shot the boy a sly smirk, voice turning suggestively low, "That is different, I have her conditioned." He planted his servos on the edge of the birth to lean over her shoulder, "It took forever."

Skyfreeze's blue optics flared, her building emotions coming to a boil at those words, "What was that?" Before he could flinch away, her servos were locked onto the long red spine between his optics, drawing a swift yelp. "I'm not sure I heard that, Star."

"I said you don't like to be touched?" His intakes hitched nervously, helm twisting to attempt to gain him a way out.

"No, Star, the other comment." She purred, using his hated pet name with a wicked glint in her optics as she tightened her grip.

His classic nervous chuckle made an appearance, "Funny, I can't seem to remember."

Though the medic tried hard not to show it, there was a hint of a smile playing at his derma. The femme let go of the seeker to slip down from the berth, ignoring the pain of standing. It took a bit more ignoring for her to kneel in front of the humans, running her optics over them. From the records, she knew their names, but she would not say them in case it tipped her hand. She was not supposed to know anything about the humans considering she just landed on earth. If she knew too much about anything, it would seem odd, so she would play dumb. Instead, she would ask questions she knew the answer to.

From what she had seen, she liked humans, deeming them a bit like the sparklings of her world. They were fragile but full of personality and even bravery. Each one was an individual and had their own mannerisms. They were even small, though smaller than most sparklings. They had potential though, a lot of it. It was nice to finally see them in person.

"Greetings, little ones." For once, she allowed herself a smile, "I am Skyfreeze."

"Yeah, we know, Bee told us about you." The smallest human male adjusted his large glasses with a smile, "My name is Rafael."

"So did Arcee," A sheepish grin edged at the male as he ran a hand through his dark hair nervously, "and I'm Jack... her human partner."

They were making a rather clear stand, though a friendlier one than they could have, she noticed.

The contrasting pink tufts of the girl's hair swayed slightly when she moved closer, seeming fearless, "I'm Bulkhead's partner, Miko." She tilted her head forward a bit, "So, are you a spy or what?" At least she did not hide her feelings.

Using the berth behind her as leverage, she forced herself back into a standing position, "I am pleased to encounter you. Perhaps we can talk another time." Her helm tipped toward Ratchet, having noticed him hovering worriedly as she had been near the humans, "And I will do my own repairs."

Clawed fingers jerked her roughly back onto the berth, forcing her into a reclining position, "In case you forgot, you are going to be low on energon soon if you don't stop that leaking. Stop being hard headed and let him do it. It's too much for me to do or I would."

She glared at him as he hovered over her, "I said I will do it. Minor injuries are a simple repair."

"It is not a minor repair." Both mechs in the room spoke at once, but they hardly seemed to notice - Ignoring the possible only time they would ever agree.

"It is minor enough." She finally allowed herself a lowering of her vocalizer to growl her words, but her growl turned to a vent when she felt something jab her in the knee joint.

"Thank you for distracting her, Starscream." Ratchet hummed, seeming amused as he drew away the injector.

Her wide optics shot up to the seeker, vision already fading, "Y-you slagging...rusting..."

"I know, I know." He cooed at her, "You'll dismantle me in my recharge."

"No..." She slurred, "I'll find a closet and lock you in it."

He glared down at her as she faded further, "Not funny."

So far, she was still in recharge after the shot, though she was in better condition than when she went under. There was quite a bit more damage to her system than she let show, but he knew that the minute he saw her coming down the hall. She was as stubborn as any creature alive in the universe, so seeing her walking in a slump meant she was in poor condition. Since she started out here, the medic had not seen fit to move her out of Starscream's room. They offered to give him another but he declined, insisting he could watch her. Slowly, the back of his servos ran over her delicate curves. The touch was lazy as his optics traveled over her to finally land on her faceplate. The offer was kind, surprisingly, but he had no desire to leave her. If his guess was right, she might be out for a while more.

She never had been good with drugs, they always got her. Even on Cybertron, he had only seen her take a highgrade drink once, and that was because he and the department got together and taunted her into doing it. Once he saw her like that, he knew why she never drank it. Granted, he did not hate seeing her let go like that, freely showing emotion as if she no longer cared, but he knew how much she hated being out of control. Though, honestly, that was the first time Angel made friends with the others in the workplace. For once, they saw her for what she was, full of life, humor, and fun... what he suspected of her all along. She just never gave anyone the chance to see her true personality.

Her Sire had been a scientist as well, and a great one, but not one given to emotion. He was logic based and viewed emotion as he would a scraplet infestation. While she was drunk that night, she told them about a time when she was a sparkling and she had seen an accident where a mech was killed. She said that the sight of a senseless death made her have a nightmare in her recharge, but instead of comforting his crying sparkling, her Sire hit her, warning her never to let emotion over things she could not change show through. He told her that if she wanted to feel something she should keep it to herself. It was enough to stick with her, he guessed, locked in her mind. That was the only time she ever spoke about her past but the other workers understood her a little better after that. But then, so did he.

His wings scraped the side of the berth lightly as he shifted beside her, curling his arms around her tiny waist a bit more. He leaned in to rest his helm against the side of her faceplate, glad she was in recharge so he could. After all this time he had nearly forgotten how small she was. He did remember the feeling of his servos resting on her hip as her chassis brushed against his, her surprise kiss catching him that night when he walked her home. She had to stand on the tips of her pedes to reach, but the kiss was so passionate it took his intakes a while to normalize. She had looked up at him with such a gentleness in her optics, saying his name softly and with more affection that he ever heard from her before.

His spark pulsed a bit at the memory as he shuttered his optics. Before, he told himself he walked her home to ensure she did not get lost in her drunken haze, but after, he mildly had to wonder if he really just wanted to be with her longer. When he first met her, he saw her unshakable exterior as a challenge. Her impervious reputation was something to be explored and weaknesses in it discovered. It started out as a game, but the more he had seen of her, the more he enjoyed her, even liked her. It had not taken him long to see that the emotionless front was nothing more than a mask covering up something more beautiful. Even then, he could see she was more than she let on, brilliant, and even funny if you took the time to listen. Until she kissed him though, he had not realized she felt anything for him.

By the next morning, when she came to work, the kiss was forgotten to her, but he remembered. That short kiss changed everything he thought about her before, it changed how he felt. Slowly, they became closer after that - No one moved fast with Angel. It took him a long time to find his way past her walls, but once he did, it was worth the trouble, as he knew it would be. No matter how she seemed to others, he knew who she really was. Interestingly enough, she had gotten to him too. He might have been good at pretending, but he had never trusted easily either. Just because he was good at acting did not mean he felt any connection. Angel was different though. They needed each other more than they knew back then. He was outspoken and outgoing, and she was reserved and shy. Together, they made a team. All of it changed when the war began... and then he lost her.

Her death, or what he thought was her death, pushed him to do things he never thought himself capable. After a while he did not even know himself. All he wanted was revenge but he never spoke of her or what happened again. If he never spoke of them he could pretend they were not real. He tried to forget all of those things, those painful things, and let them die in the darkness of his mind. Being with Megatron did not help much, it just made his hatred expand past the Autobots and on into the Decepticons. No matter where he went he could not escape the pain and the rage, though he tried many ways. Even killing Cliffjumper had not eased those feelings. He felt best when Megatron was 'dead' but even that was not quite enough.

He did need to ask her why, for Primus' sake, she never came back before now! Things might be different if-

Starscream pulled back to look at her when her intakes became irregular gaspings. The expression on her faceplate seemed pained as a whine escaped her. Her servos reflexively clutched at his arms for support, or perhaps comfort, as she began to writhe beneath him.