If Alexis starting naming the universes she visited, this one she was in now would be called "Informative." She meshed with this Alexis well. The other gave her room and time and ideas, and a sympathy of understanding that really, with how she was taking over her life, was far beyond what she deserved.

She'd been here for two weeks. Busy weeks. Between managing the other's responsibilities and researching at night, she should have been exhausted. But Alexis was revived. Encouraged. Entirely focused on finding and figuring out and trying to understand exactly what was happening to her, and how to fix it.

This Alexis was a responsible person, a happy individual who, when she did anything, she put her all into it, including the tasks given to her by her adoptive father, Optimus Prime. She was one of seven other children that he had adopted and raised, and while she respected and admired him beyond others, he didn't fill the hole in her heart that her family left behind when she lost them through a tragic incident in her childhood.

This Alexis was also accustomed to routines and order. She needed to be in order to be as good as she was at what she did, which included organizing the groups involved in the biannual peace summits. Decepticons and Autobots had reached an understanding after they needed to work together in order to save their homeworld. An effort that ended in tragedy and loss, but also the preface to a unification after the unexpected courageous sacrifice of Megatron, who ended up saving so many lives, including his brother Optimus Prime.

Twenty years had passed since then. This Alexis had traveled to Earth and Cybertron II countless times. And yet her home was not a place, but a person. A person that barely tolerated her, hardly cared for her unless needing something. Not that this Alexis ever saw that. Her one major fault was the hope for something that would never be, with an individual that said such terrible things, acted even worse. Because of him, this Alexis couldn't see the far better options toward happiness and love that were nearby her. And while she was attracted to others, nothing ever came from it, her opportunities taken away because she couldn't let go of a chance, any chance, any acknowledgment.

It was the other's main fault that made Alexis nervous and very cautious, the seriousness of her very much one-sided-love a potential for unseen dangers. Optimus had warned her as a child, cautioned her as a teenager, and as an adult he gave her the freedom of her own choice that had come with advice that truly, she should have taken more to heart.

This Starscream may not have been evil, but he wasn't good either. Not from the memories Alexis saw, not from the echoes of conversations she heard.

The civilization behind the universal device she had seen was one whose name had long been forgotten. They were more myth than history, more a cautionary tale then any form of good news. Right now she was tracking whatever rumors she could find about where the species had traveled. She was reminded once more of how advanced the technology and knowledge was in this universe, when instead of giving her that information, the terminal she was using gave her the coordinates to their long abandoned homeworld.

That felt far too easy. Which of course it was. The planet was long abandoned, which had her browsing through the supplemental information that had her finally seeing something useful. Every known species in this universe had been cataloged and recorded, their energy signatures stored. Searching for this species energy signature revealed nothing. Searching for variations though, accounting for the time that had passed, and the possible changes that came as a lifeform adapted and grew, gave her some spotty isolated accounts from over the years, which wouldn't have meant anything if not for the fact that most came from what she realized was a nearby moon, the most recent recording from three months ago.

Finding that small clue had her continuing on far into the night, sleep abandoned yet again.

Alexis was going to be late. Which wouldn't have been so bad if she wasn't tired as well. Exhausted really. Her eyes were droopy and her vision was a little blurry, making her find the necessary datapads for the arriving delegation a frustrating effort.

Running, because there was still a small chance to get there on time, she hoped that her escort was ready to depart. She was going to need those precious minutes it would take to travel to the landing coordinates to remind herself of this species customs and expectations.

She had been so focused on trying to help herself that she had disregarded what this Alexis needed to do. She was just a temporary visitor. She would not upset the balance of another counterpart's life, not again.

Slamming into someone when she rounded what was usually an empty corridor, had not been accounted for. The wind was knocked out of her, forcing Alexis to her knees as her vision temporarily darkened.

"I apologize. I…"

At the sound of that voice, Alexis' heart froze. Oxygen stuck in her throat. Her eyes involuntary filled with tears. Of all things, she couldn't believe it happened like this. She'd been so intent on staying away from the absent Seekers that she never even considered who else she might run into.

A years worth of subconscious memories flashed behind her eyelids, followed by the real time she'd actually spent with her Airaih. The father of her child, her love, her… Fear gripped her, its source known. She couldn't move. Panic took hold of her, rendering her into a wretched, hopeless creature that really couldn't process him.

Alexis jerked away when Airaih offered his hand, an action that had her coming back to herself. She wildly grabbed to her fallen backpack and took off in a mad dash, unable to stop looking back at him.

Moving on with one's life was apparently not the same as letting go.

The more Alexis found out about her predicament, the more confusing things seemed to get. She still had none of the basic, necessary answers, but she did have coordinates that she planned to make use of… If she could last. If she somehow managed to stay in this universe long enough to. She'd already gotten permission from Optimus to take a break, but there was so much she needed to do first.

She had too many worries, too many concerns, and with the excited announcement of the Seekers' arrival, she found that she had more. Alexis reminded herself that she had nothing to worry about. This Starscream didn't seem to like Alexis, certainly didn't notice her. If she was careful, she could have free rein without seeing him… without seeing Thundercracker. A necessary avoidance, because seeing them made her mentally weak and susceptible. An irony since being around them also cleared her mind and centered her. But she still felt guilty for her actions from before. Non interference was for the best.

Alexis still researched all she could at night, which was starting to pay a toll on her physically, her focus not allowing for necessary meals and rest. Her priorities were no longer the same. She could sleep when she got home. She would eat when…

"Do you never rest, child?"

Her back stiffened. His way of addressing her was condescending and a not so subtle reminder of how he saw Alexis. She suddenly saw a memory of when this Alexis fearlessly told him how she felt about him. She'd loved him since a child, but it wasn't until she was seventeen that she felt a maturity of truth from circumstances, from her time among so many species and so many worlds that she felt the need to tell him all, or she felt like she'd drown.

He had laughed at her. But that wasn't the worst of it. Nor was the worst that she had awkwardly confessed in front of his Trinemates, one who seemed shocked, the other humored.

"You're a human," he had actually reprimanded her. "Far too young and sentimental. Small. Trivial. Simple." He looked down at her, cringing as if she'd insulted him, insulted all his kind. "You will never have anything that will remotely entice me, child."

That should have been the end of it. She'd suffered so terribly after his cruel, humiliating rejection. And for the second time in her life, she'd never felt more alone. But this Alexis had been taught to never give up on something you believed in, a lesson she warped into something damaging.

The memory faded away. Alexis turned around in her chair. The research department was empty except for a pair working in the far back corner. Like most Starscreams this once was impressive, regal, that usual air of superiority highly pronounced, yet still insulting.

She didn't answer him. Her skin was prickling, a reminder of her lost link to Thundercracker. She cringed, madly tried to think of a way out and away from him. Alexis didn't want to be noticed by him, not by her energy signature, not at all. She calmed herself. Hoping and praying that he couldn't feel her like she could him.

"Why are you doing research on multi-verses?"

That intrusive question had her acting immediately. Alexis stood up, tried to calmly close the programs she had been using and shut down the terminal. The holo-screen dimmed. She didn't know why he was suddenly showing interest in Alexis, but she didn't want any of it. She left the room without offering him a word, and incidentally ended up getting a peaceful night's sleep for the first time in weeks.

Starscream was back two days later. This time Alexis felt him before she heard him. She desperately tried to will herself not to be felt by him, which was a ridiculous effort on yet another thing she didn't fully understand.

He brought her food. Food that this Alexis happened to be allergic to. Food that meant he wanted something from her, obviously.

This time she spoke to him first, "What do you want?"

He had the gall to look offended. As if giving Alexis things and paying attention to her wasn't his well-documented way of trying to get something from her. Truly, the other Alexis would have done anything if he'd just said hello properly.

"What makes you think I require something?"

She had to watch her pronouns, catching herself just in time.

"I have known you for more than twenty years. You've never, not once brought me food." She left off the fact that if she ate what he'd brought that her throat would have swelled and she might have died. His lack of knowing hurt. Only Alexis knew it wasn't her but the other, who hadn't remained totally buried under her consciousness. This time she wasn't being influenced by the other, but assisted.

She must have made a face at him, because he was suddenly looking at her, really looking at her. Alexis should have blushed and looked away, as would have been normal for the other. Instead, she looked right back at him, staring at him as he stared at her.

"You didn't greet me upon my arrival."

Alexis burst out into a small huff of laughter at that. So that was what it was all about. He might not have liked Alexis, but her attention was something he obviously expected. This aspect of the Seeker, she actually understood. She felt relief. She felt a little calmer.

"I've been busy," she told him succinctly.

His mouth was hanging open, a dumbfounded expression growing on his sleek face, his wings twitching.

"I'm busy now," she not so subtly informed him as she turned back to the terminal and continued to read what was on the screen.

"TC and Warp have been asking about you. Seems they don't know what to make of your lack of presence," he continued to address her, ignoring her attempt at ignoring him.

Alexis sighed. This Alexis would have been waiting hours before the Seekers' arrival, would have used every spare moment to spend time with them. Whether to help Warp with one of his experiments, or TC with documenting his planetary evaluations, she would have been there.

No longer.

Perhaps she shouldn't interfere, but she also wouldn't rub this a-hole of a Seeker's ego. It was beyond her reasoning to even consider such a prospect. She had more than enough going on. She would be these Alexises as much as possible, but she would not go against her own principles nor self worth.

To the pit with him. She just wanted to go home.

See her son. See her own Thundercracker, not a freakin' dim copy that still managed to affect her.

"I'm very busy right now," she emphasized. Not that he cared, not that he even made an effort to leave her alone. He just sat down at a nearby worktable, her statement not mattering at all. "I'll be able to see more of them next time," she added, because that was the truth. Because this Alexis was nudging her, wanting her to be what she believed was reasonable.

So fine. She could do reasonable. She owed the other Alexis at least that for being so helpful. She even managed to smile up at Starscream, as if everything was as it should be, and nothing had to change. Grating really, but it wasn't as if this was her life, just a momentary outlook.

She continued with her work, this time research into a species that wanted to join their League of Unified Planets. This Alexis had so many responsibilities, so many important tasks, all the little but necessary things that needed to be done in preparation for meetings that could be galaxy altering.

The Seeker sat there for a long hour, out of stubbornness, out of what may have been shocked resentment. She didn't say anything further to him. And when he left, she hardly noticed except that her skin stopped humming.

She didn't get much sleep that night.

She avoided Starscream by creating a remote-link from the research center to her private workstation. It was harder to avoid him during the day though, as he was working on the same project that she was, something while common was really starting to annoy her.

Just a couple more weeks though, and she could leave. As soon as the upcoming summit was over, she was free to do what she wanted. If she could somehow remain that long. She continually prayed that she was able to, beseeching her God to give her at least that opportunity.

She needed answers to the questions that only grew. But she would settle for illumination. The malice Sunstreaker had shown her, the cruelty, the damage he'd done. He'd made her forget who she was, made her very identity something she had to fight for.

She hated him. She pitied him.

She hoped he was suffering like she was.

"You are... Ah'lexas?"

It had already been a long day. She was so tired. Alexis didn't even think she could do any further research. Not for herself, not for anyone. But she needed to pick up her stuff first. Being human really sucked sometimes. Or perhaps just being weak. She really wanted to ignore this person. So wanted to tell him to leave her alone, to go away. But he was standing in front of the entryway that led to her workstation, and she really needed her datapad.

If only she hadn't been so tired, she would have noticed so much sooner that it was a Vildan that was waiting for her, one that wasn't alone.

"My brother and I have been told that you have the information regarding the Senrc sector."

She didn't recognize this person, but knew he must have been the other brother Airaih had talked about whom she had never met. Not that she looked at him for long. Her eyes drifted away from him and slowly lifted up, locking with Airaih's.

Her heart jump-started inside her tight chest. Her head spun and her flesh went cold. Alexis didn't believe in fate, or destiny. In fact, she despised the thought of everything being preplanned and figured out. But coincidences, she was seeing how common they were, every universe showing her the high probability of particular paths crossing.

She shouldn't have looked at him, certainly not like she probably was. His ears tinted purple under her fierce scrutiny, his eyes widening as his breath hitched under her gaze. He was devastating. He was far too familiar. From the natural body etches along his flesh, those arresting yellow eyes that made her emotions swell and her blood pop. She wanted to say such things to him so terribly that she had to bite the inside of her cheek, hints of copper lining her tongue. But at least this time she didn't feel like bursting into tears.

He wasn't her Airaih.

He was breathing. He was alive.

She could and would deal with this. Because her Airaih was… Even now it was difficult to comprehend. They'd only shared a short moment in her life, and still, after all these years, he haunted her. But it wasn't as if it was normal for one to come in to contact with lost loved ones, even if a reproduction. And certainly not over and over again.

This universal traveling was the path to insanity. Also a reason to doubt, and to question herself and her past as the realness of him continued to stand there and observe her. Alexis forced those thoughts back, refusing to acknowledge this representation of reality. She bitterly reminded herself that her Airaih was dead. She was determined to get back to Thundercracker. To her life with her son. Too much time had already gone by. She constantly worried about what was happening in her absence, especially in regards to Aaron.

"I… I'm so sorry," Alexis blurted out, once more feeling strange and uncomfortable and working on that panic that made her want to do an about face and run… again. "I didn't mean to stare. I know that isn't…"

She shut up. If he was here among so many other species, he certainly had to look them in the eye… Females as well… Right? And it's not like he thought that meant they wanted to mate him.

"Give me a moment."

Alexis went inside her private workstation and downloaded the requested information, and gave it to Airaih's brother. It wasn't until she watched the elegant pair walk away that she realized she could have easily transmitted the data to the brothers without them coming to her.

She locked herself in her quarters after that. Thinking of new ways to avoid what seemed to be the inevitable.