Jazz wiped off the liquid as best he could, leaning away from where it leaked into his hiding spot.
That human had been really stupid to douse Celia.
He figured if she ever showed her temper, it would be akin to Prowl's, though not the desk-flipping or imbed-data-pad-in-wall level of physical violence.
She walked into what looked like a human bathroom, moving to a stall.
Why was she going there and not the sink, like Spike did when he got mud all over his faceplates?
She sat, then without warning his hiding place was opened and a large hand grabbed him.
He let go of the buckle, realizing he'd been found out.
He was lifted to face her visor covered and masked face.
Then he got a shock as Soundwave's Ravage was lifted in her other hand.
"Joining meeting: Undesired," her optics narrowed behind the visor, "Discretion: Appreciated. Movement: Distracting."
Jazz leaned on her servo gave a winning smile, "What gave meh away?"
"Buckle: Pulled oddly," She turned to Ravage, "Chest straps: Wriggled near pockets."
Jazz grinned, "Ah was worried about ya. Ya've been doing lots of interesting things. The full get up is different."
She raised an eye ridge, then blew out a breath, "Observation spot: if given, will distracting movement cease?"
Jazz shrugged, "Ya anticipating more liquids being dumped on ya?"
She shook her helm.
"Ah'm up for a better spot. Pity Ah missed the sparkling pictures."
She rolled her optics, then set both him and Ravage on her knees.
She unzipped something, pulled the cloth piece away from an underlying frame which gave her Soundwave's boxy chassis, then lifted it.
The cloth turned out to be dry on the underside, with the exception of a spot near the pockets which were against her real chassis.
She offered her servo this time, starting with Ravage.
Ravage climbed on, then braced as Celia lifted Ravage to a part of the frame which would mirror the left pec on a human. Ravage leapt off then laid down on a junction of the framework.
Celia lifted Jazz next and he smiled.
A really good perch for him.
She carefully laid the cover on the frame, giving him a second surprise.
He couldn't see into the chassis from the outside, but on the inside, he could see out.
Settling in, he glanced at Ravage.
The feline cassette glared at him, then ran a cleaner beam over his paws, removing the grim the liquid left.
Jazz would have to take a bath in the pot the Autobots used at the house in place of their wash racks.
Celia corrected something out of view, then exited the stall.
She grabbed some paper towels and dabbed at some spots on her costume before exiting the room.
Jazz smirked at the costume for Annie / BlasterBoombox.
Pretty close to the real Blaster, with the exception of the face.
"Sorry you had to go through with that, Wavey."
Celia responded, "Desired: Decepticon interference with fake fanboys. Outcome: Successful."
"You always stood as the defender. My nature doesn't allow the in-your-face actions."
He watched Celia's servo grip the shoulder of Annie, "Fake fanboy situation: Decepticon friendly. Social topics: Autobot friendly."
"Turns out you are still our only Decepticon primary fan," she nodded across the table, "Want to explain Darla?"
"I like combiners in general. I just give the respect to the first one shown in G1, who is Devastator. Sorry."
Annie grinned, "Who is everyone's favorite Autobot?"
"Silverbolt," Darla replied, "So continuing my interests in combiners. He's so young but such a leader. He so has to deal with a wide array of teammates both in and outside his gestalt team."
"Bluestreak," the girl who looked like Bluestreak smiled wide, Sammy, spoke excitedly, "He's just so cool. Sniper and talkative. I hate silence so I like putting his scenes on repeat. Helps me calm down, better than even caffeine."
"Brawn cause he's like the strongest barring Prime and maybe Ultra Magnus, excluding the larger frame types," Jackie tapped her chin, "Cliffjumper cause he's got a big personality for such a mini-bot."
"Wheeljack, all the way, just cause he's always excited to build and make things. Plus head-fins light up," Linda's side panels did light up like Wheeljack's, just a split second behind her talking.
"Sideswipe and Sunstreaker. Two words: Jet Judo," her costume looked odd since she was silver with non-twin accruements.
"Query: Sideswipe Movieverse costume preferred?" Celia indicated the get-up.
"I loved the scene where the Movieverse Sideswipe leaps into the air, fires on the Decepticon, then proceeds to split him in half. Badaft. The movie should have had Sunstreaker, too."
Annie smiled, "Blaster for his adorable collection of rascals and he's a communications expert. Skyfire cause he's a mech out of his time but willing to adjust. How many fans do we know who can stand the changing series and universes while not bitching about it?"
All of them turned to Celia.
She looked around, but said nothing.
"You got to answer. We want to know," Darla firmed up her face.
Celia looked at Annie, "Proposal: Guessing game."
"Oh really?" Annie smirked, "Not hard unless you've changed some from last time."
Celia gestured.
"Okay, I know you asked Martha to paint your ceiling with five mechs. Prowl and Jazz are two of them. So they are your favorites."
Leaning back Celia inquired, "Favorites: Reasoning?"
Annie frowned, then asked, "Am I allowed to reveal private discussions?"
"Permission: Granted."
Jazz held still, watching Annie's face raptly, though he kept an optic on Ravage and the rest of the table.
"Your brother didn't like Prowl and Jazz, so you ended up with those toys. Also, something about truest forms of the Autobot forces."
Celia snorted, made some odd gesture.
"She needs a few minutes," Annie told the table.
"Why?" Jackie asked.
Annie replied once Celia nodded, "Celia can do the Soundwave voice and tone, but the longer she does it, the longer it takes her to reset her patterns to a normal flow. Sometimes she can't express it in Soundwave speech."
"Oh," Darla looked surprised.
Celia inhaled, then spoke softly, "The history with my brother is fairly complicated. He is the reason I was introduced to Transformers when he insisted on watching the G1 TV show and getting all the toys. He never wanted to play as the Decepticons, so he asked if I wanted to. I was ten at the time and he was a little under six. I agreed, even trying to do the voices for Megatron, Starscream and Soundwave. After a time he came to believe Prowl and Jazz weren't needed to support the Autobots, partly because of how they evolved in the TV series but also through interactions with other boys interested in the show. Prowl was too stuck up for him. Jazz wasn't really the party mech portrayed since he's the saboteur and liar. Two faced as he called it. He claimed the Autobots would succeed without them as they were wastes of space."
Growls echoed around the table.
"Is he dumb?" Darla demanded, "Prowl is a tactician and Jazz makes sure to get the information Prowl needs to function or carry out high-risk but high reward missions."
Celia leaned slightly, putting her face on her fist, "We all wear masks. We have work masks that present to our co-workers our best and most efficient job-focused selves. Around family, we wear the mask we crafted from years of interactions but may over time constrain us. To our friends we have the mask of who we want them to like, or who we want to be," she inhaled, exhaled slowly, "Part of the reason I cannot stand him any longer is because he treats me as two-faced as Jazz, or work-focused as Prowl."
Annie placed a hand on Celia's shoulder when she didn't continue, "Her brother still treats her as a Decepticon, even after she took him in when their uncle died a few years ago. He makes that slag earlier polite in comparison."
"Primus!" Jackie growled, "Point me to him and I'll kick him."
Celia held up her other hand, "No reason to. I partly resist the full Decepticon mentality for my presentation to others, but I am also not an Autobot. Just like he claims to be an Autobot, but his actions prove him to be something darker than Megatron. There is no point to fighting this battle with him anymore."
Annie leaned in, "Please tell me you are leaving him."
Celia turned her helm, nodded, "I have some acquaintances I'm helping, but once they are gone, I'm splitting from my brother. He can live on his own."
There was a prolonged silence.
Celia exhaled, "Perhaps a change in topic? Who is everyone's favorite Decepticon and why."
"Hey!" Brandy scowled, "Who says we have a favorite Decepticon?"
Celia chuckled, "Turnabout is fair play, no?"
Brandy's mouth moved up and down a few times, then she swore, "Frag it. Using Autobot honor against us."
"A very Decepticon method, yes?" Celia sounded smug.
Darla perked, "Easy for me. Hook. He's a medic among the Decepticons. He has to put them all back together and deal with their slag. Has to have a strong personality to repair Megatron without being blasted to bits."
Linda rubber her neck, "I like Thundercracker. He's like this stoic solider, just obeying orders, at least until he smacks down Starscream like in the episode Fire on the Mountain."
Brandy snorted, "Knockout in Transformers: Prime. He at least has class, plus he'll change sides when the Autobots take the top in the war."
Sammy laughed, "And he can share tips on keeping a great polish with Sunstreaker?"
Brandy made a rude gesture.
Sammy continued, "Skywarp. He's the prankster of the Decepticons yet isn't totally slagged. So he must be getting Starscream in trouble or because he's boosting morale they leave him be."
"This is hard," Jackie tapped the table top, "I think Megatron from Transformers: Prime universe. The movie ending after he's been a slave to Unicron the Destroyer, he's standing there and could continue the war, but it's like his optics are open for the first time. He walks away from the cause he championed, seeing what he'd made of it at the end."
Annie sighed, "Dreadwing, from Transformers: Prime. He's this honorable mech who could have been a wonderful Autobot, but he joined the Decepticons first. He believes so deeply in the cause, that only the death of his twin by Starscream's hands breaks his faith, and thus his loyalty. Also, his explosions were sweet."
"Don't make us guess this time," Brandy insisted as everyone looked at Celia.
"Pity. I doubt you would have guessed one of them without Annie's help," Celia leaned forward slightly, hands braced on the table to support her chin, "I'll start with my second favorite: Starscream."
"Oh this is going to be a train wreck," Brandy grinned, "How could that coward be your second favorite?"
"Imagine this," she started, "Megatron says his plan to raid a hydro-electric plant after G1 season one. What is the first thing out of Starscream's mouth?"
"Easy, the Autobots are watching all plants since we attacked two of them and also hovered near a third. It's obvious they'll be there soon," Linda laughed, "Probably drive the Decepticons off faster."
"Megatron has two options in that case," Celia offered, "Crush Starscream there, or adjust so they are ready for the Autobots. What do you think he's going to do, knowing Starscream is right?"
"Change the plans," Annie sighed, "Just to take a 'told you so' away from Starscream."
"Plus, Starscream knows his seekers well. He pulls them back in many of the episodes and," Celia tapped the table top, "He freed Skyfire, gave him a chance to join the Decepticons. Imagine how much pride Starscream had to toss away to admit to losing his partner pre-war and now has found him? Perhaps the memories of a better time drove his actions as well as gaining a very large shuttle as an ally."
"The fandom and fanfics go along the same way," Darla nodded.
"Additionally, he's the scientist Megatron uses the most, since Shockwave is off on Cybertron. Who builds all the new weapons or analyzes the Autobot ones? Starscream. He's under appreciated for this aspect as he's displayed as being more a front line solider and retreat at earliest sign of trouble," Celia tilted her helm, "My favorite is known," a gesture to indicate herself, "The reasons are numerous. Soundwave is loyal. The third episode of G1 shows Soundwave warning Megatron of Starscream's attack. That is loyalty. It comes back up in Transformers: Prime when Arachnid attempts to take over the Nemesis. No Decepticon opposes her but the silent Soundwave. Then he curb stomps her easily with an assist from Lazerbeak. When Soundwave is sent by himself, he and his symbiotes succeed in their missions. If they have any other Decepticon on the mission, it fails or is discovered due to the incompetence of the others. Even in the second episode of G1, when Soundwave is discovered, it's after he's gotten the information he sought for Megatron," she paused, "Well save that episode in RiD that I think was poorly shoved in. Soundwave wouldn't have been taken down that easily."
Silence reigned for a long moment.
"I'm tempted to change my vote now," Darla considered it, "Okay, I have two favorite Decepticons now."
"Not Megatron?" Annie asked, "I thought you asked for a portrait of all three for your ceiling."
Celia laughed, "Soundwave can't lead the Decpticons alone, he inspires too much fear because of his telepathy and manner. Starscream can't lead as he's too overconfident and only leads the Seekers well. Megatron inspires all the troops, even as he grows more and more power hungry. The three together hold the Decepticons, where the lost of one dooms them all. Just like Jazz and Prowl hold the core of the Autobots. If the Autobots lost Optimus Prime, the spirit of the Autobots would last in both Prowl and Jazz. Losing Prowl and / or Jazz would take a chunk out of the cause."
Annie guffawed, "You certainly have good reasons."
Jazz felt a flutter in his spark at hearing her say he was a core part of the Autobots. He took compliments where he could. Not every mech understood him and his position.
He didn't agree with Optimus Prime being offlined wouldn't hurt the Autobots. Prowl and he could make the attempt to keep them together but they needed a leader as charismatic as Prime to lead them.
The girls continued to chat on various topics, switching universes and discussing the latest shows. Celia remained quiet for the recent shows, listening intently if her expression was anything to go by.
He enjoyed following her lead on this, gathering information.