Ratchet was not happy with you. Not. At. All. The first thing you saw when you came to was the medic's face glowering down at you. He gave you a moment to collect your thoughts before railing on you.
"What the blazes were you thinking? What did you think you'd accomplish by running full tilt into battle without getting any recharge and on low fuel?" He demanded.
Oh yeah. When Wheeljack asked for your help you hadn't really finished your energon rations. No wonder you were in such bad shape. You opened your mouth to respond but Ratchet cut you off.
"Are you a sparkling?"
"No, but-"
"But nothing! You're an adult. Nobody should have to tell you to refuel and recharge when you're supposed to! Your well-being is your own responsibility! You came uncomfortably close to going into a permanent stasis lock! Do you understand!? That's as good as dead!"
You just nodded your head, feeling ashamed. You knew that there was no point in telling Ratchet what happened. He was right. It was no one's fault but your own. You could have told Wheeljack that you'd help him another time (or just said "no", like any bot with a working processor would've done).
"You're one of the few level-headed bots I know. Don't go ruining that! If you ever end up in my med-bay for something so stupid and easily avoided again so help me I'll weld you to your recharge bed!"
"Right. Sorry, sir." You said, wincing at how timid your voice sounded.
'And don't call me, Sir!' Ratchet growled, inching dangerously close to a table full of wrenches. "I'm a medical officer not a drill sargent!"
"Sorry, Si-Ratchet. Sorry."
"Just get out of here." He grumped, though in a slightly softer tone.
You headed for the double doors that lead in and out of the med-bay.
"One more thing," Ratchet spoke up again causing you to wince slightly, expecting another scathing scolding. "You tell that tiny terror of a friend of yours that if he ever barges into my operating room like that again he'll come out of recharge with both his legs shoved up his-"
"Okay Ratchet!" You interrupted. "I'll relay the message. Thank you. Good bye."
With that you left the med-bay and almost ran into a smaller figure as they were on their way in.
"Brawn!" you cried.
The mini-bot grinned up at you.
"Finally awake, Sleeping Beauty?" he chuckled, poking you in the belly. You shoved his hand away and groaned. You were not in the mood for his ribbing, goodnatured or otherwise.
"Stuff it, Shortstop." You grumbled. "Not in the best of moods right now. Ratchet is hardly Prince Charming."
Brawn made a sound of agreement as you walked past him. He followed after you and began to walk along beside you.
"Isn't it a little ironic that I feel worse after leaving the med-bay?" You added.
Brawn stopped mid-stride. You stopped and turned to see why he stopped walking.
"You know, if you want I can go back and straighten out that old grouch." he offered, his face taking on a fearsome snarl. "I was already on my way in to give him a piece of my processor when you came out!"
"Brawn, do not go messing with Ratchet!" You warned him. "That doesn't go well for anybody! Strength is not a factor here! This is Ratchet we're talking about. This is the guy that straightens out the likes of Ironhide and Sunstreaker! Don't get on his bad side!"
"He's already on my bad side!" Brawn bellowed.
Oh boy. Not this again. Brawn had a habit of starting fights with random bots for random reasons. He once got all over Perceptor's case simply because the scientist preferred to fight the war from a lab rather than on the battlefield.
"Brawn..." you started but the mini-bot shouted over you.
"I heard what he said about me before you came out of the med-bay. He acts all high and mighty just because he's the head medical officer! Well his bedside manner is slag! I heard what he said to you before you left! How is that any way to talk to a patient!? And don't even get me started on him kicking me out of the operating room! Am I not allowed to be in the room when my partner is on the operating table!? What's that about!?"
"Yeah, what is that about, Brawn?" You said, crossing your arms and fixing him with an accusing look. "Operating rooms are for patients and medical personnel only. You barging in like that was causing a distraction in the middle of an operation. Ratchet was trying to keep me from going into permanent stasis lock. You would've felt pretty bad if I'd locked up or gone offline because you barged into the operating room."
"That wouldn't... well I... yeah, I guess..." Brawn visibly deflated with the realization of what could have happened because of him.
"Why did you do that, anyway?" you asked.
Brawn gritted his dental plate and looked away from you. "Why do you think?" he said, looking at anything but you.
"I have no idea, Brawn." You said, giving him a strange look.
"You can't be this oblivious." He grumbled. "Are you gonna make me say it right out?"
Oh geez. You had your suspicions for a while now but you never thought anything would come of it. Did Brawn have feelings for you? Brawn, who acted like expressing any kind of tenderness or softness was a sign of weakness, was crushing on his partner?
"Brawn..." You murmured, not sure how to handle the situation.
"Fine." Brawn ground out. "I like ya, alright? I like ya more than I should. Happy now?" He crossed his arms grumpily, stewing in the shame of admitting having soft feelings for someone.
"I don't know what to say." You said honestly. "I don't know how I feel about this, Brawn. I never thought anybody would fall for me."
"Look, I get it if you don't feel the same. I suspected that you probably didn't. Don't know why you'd go for somebody like me anyway." Brawn said, thinking that you were trying to let him down easy.
"I didn't say I wasn't interested." You said.
Brawn shot you a confused look.
"Then what are you trying to say?" He asked.
You sighed.
"I'm trying to say that I don't know how I feel yet. I care about you, Brawn, but I don't know if it goes that deep. Then there's the war. Frankly I don't think trying to have a serious relationship during an intergalactic war is a good idea. I think I'd rather wait until the war is over and the Autobots have won before I even think about romance."
This seemed to satisfy Brawn. He smiled in an uncharacteristically shy way.
"So is that a "maybe"?" Brawn asked.
You smiled.
"Yeah. That's a "maybe"."
Brawn was grinning again. Hopefully this meant he'd forgotten his anger against Ratchet. Probably not. You'd just have to keep an eye on him to make sure he didn't get the medic mad and end up welded to the ceiling... or with his legs removed and shoved into uncomfortable places.
Suddenly, Brawn grabbed your wrist. His touch wasn't rough, but the contact stirred bad memories that had you getting sick to your tank. At your dismayed expression, Brawn let go.
"Sorry. Didn't mean to startle ya." He said. "I just... are you okay?"
You knew what he meant. You hadn't really wanted to talk about this yet. However, you were not going to let the situation conquer you.
"I'm fine. I'm just really not happy with myself though." You said.
Brawn gave you a look of bewilderment.
"Why? How's it your fault?" he asked.
"Ratchet was right. I should have refueled and recharged when I had the chance. If I had been on the ball Starscream..." You hesitated, feeling both queasy and furious at the memory. "...he wouldn't have backed me into a corner like that. I would've been able to defend myself! There's no good reason for letting Starscream overpower me like that! If I'd just used some common sense then I could've handled the situation. I could've gotten away from Blitzwing, too!" You said, furious at the memory of how weak you were at the time.
"Blitzwing was there!?" Brawn shouted.
"At first. He's the one that cornered me in the beginning. Though, when Starscream showed up he told Blitzwing to get lost."
"Hmph. He probably wanted to take you captive and take the credit all for himself. Low life coward." Brawn growled.
"Yeah..." you mumbled. You replayed the memory of that moment over an over again. The whole situation was weird and creepy and made your protoform feel itchy and gross.
"I think I'm gonna hit the wash racks. I'm feeling kinda... icky." You added, trying not to visibly cringe. You started to walk away when Brawn stopped you again.
"What happened back there? You can tell ol' Brawn anything you know!" Brawn was grinning but you could see the concern in his optics.
You sighed.
"I don't really know what happened. Starscream was acting crazy. Well, crazier than usual." you explained.
"Crazy how?" Brawn asked, optics narrowed in suspicion.
"He seemed pretty convinced that I'd done something to him when I gave him first aid the first time I'd come across him. He said that he couldn't think straight anymore."
Brawn laughed.
"When could he ever?" he chuckled.
"That's what I was thinking!" You said with a smile. "Then he just started ranting and rambling. Nothing he was saying was making any sense. He'd go back and forth between screeching at me and muttering to himself. Then he grabbed me. Trying to take me captive like you said but you showed up and put a stop to that. At that point my system couldn't take the lack of recharge and fuel anymore and I just fainted... like a wimp."
Brawn patted your arm.
"Don't beat yourself up about it. Everybody messes up from time to time. Just don't let yourself get in that condition again." he said.
"Don't worry. I learned my lesson." you said. You made it a point to omit the parts about Starscream holding his null ray to your head while forcing you to touch his face. The memory was uncomfortable and the last thing you wanted was to give Brawn another reason to fly into a rage. There was something you wanted to get off your chest plate though.
"Hey, Brawn?" you said somewhat shyly.
"Yeah?" he said, not suspecting anything.
You knelt down and wrapped your arms around him. The action shocked the mini-bot into embarrassed stutters. Brawn wasn't a touchy-feely guy, but you just wanted to show your appreciation.
"Thanks for the rescue back there." You said.
"O-oh. Y-eah. N-no p-problem." Brawn stuttered out, still trying to act all tough even though his spark felt like it was going to go supernova. You snickered at his embarrassed face. He wasn't the best looking bot, but he was charming in his own way.
"Eugh! Get a room you two!" came a familiar snobby voice.
You looked up to see Tracks standing in the hallway with a look of disgust on his handsome face.
You rolled your optics.
"Hey, Tracks." You greeted as Brawn squirmed out of your grip, looking as humiliated as a possible.
"Honestly you two could at least show some common decorum." Tracks groused. "This is a corridor in the Ark after all, not some seedy back alley on Hedonia."
At that Brawn practically exploded.
"You wanna run that by me again, pretty boy!?" Brawn snarled, raising both fists up at the speedster.
"No need to get rough!" Tracks protested. "All I'm saying is that..."
"Stuff it, pansy! I've been itching for a fight all day, and brother, you just made my day! I'm gonna smear that fancy paint job of yours all over the walls!" The furious mini-bot charged towards Tracks who was so startled that he transformed right in the middle of the hallway and raced off in the opposite direction.
You stood there in bewilderment for a moment before sighing in annoyance and chasing after your enraged partner.
"Brawn, don't kill him!" You called as you tried to keep up with them.
None of you saw the tiny metallic beetle scurry backwards into the vents as the three of you passed by. A camera lens embedded in the little robot's head focused in on you as you raced by it. It watched you go down the hall taking in every detail of your frame. Somewhere in a secret location far away from both the Autobot and Decepticon bases, a scheming Air commander sat at a computer console watching the footage of you and your Autobot comrades. Starscream scowled at he re-watched the footage of you embracing your mini-bot partner. Was that just a friendly hug? Or did it mean something more? Was the mini-bot a companion... or a lover? Starscream grit his dental plate so hard that he thought his jaw would crack. That nasty little pest! He recognized him as Brawn and it was he that stopped him from taking you away. He would have you all to himself by now if it weren't for that meddling mini-bot! Brawn nearly killed him in their last encounter. The thought of him being bested by a mini-bot of all things was mortifying! How could something that small be strong enough to take on the Decepticon SIC!? It infuriated him more that you seemed to be fond of the little monster. He would have to get the mini-bot out of the way somehow, but taking him on directly was out of the question.
Starscream's wings twitched in irritation. You had been so kind to him during your first meeting. You didn't insult him or hit him or do anything that everyone else did. The second meeting didn't go as well. Starscream admitted that he was entirely to blame for that. He had threatened to kill you after all. But he hadn't fully understood the situation. He didn't know just how different from everyone else that you were... how much better than everyone else you were. He rested his face in his hands and sighed miserably as he watched the footage of you holding onto Brawn as he tried to fight that arrogant fool Tracks. You seemed annoyed but also content to be with those morons.
Starscream shuttered his optics as if in pain. It did hurt. This emptiness that only you could fill was excruciating. It was an emptiness that had been with him since he'd first come online. Starscream never got what he wanted. In the beginning all he wanted was to be a scientist along side his best friend Skyfire. Then Skyfire went missing and the war started. He lost both his dream job and his best friend. Then he became the Decepticon Air Commander and Megatron's second in command. It had been enough to fill the emptiness for a while but he quickly realized that Megatron was a poor leader. Megatron never listened to him when he corrected him on something. Was that not what an SIC was supposed to do? Of course, but that's not what Megatron wanted. No! Megatron wanted his Decepticons to just be a pack of Yes Mechs who just did as they were told and never asked questions! Megatron never wanted to consider that he might actually be wrong about something. He never wanted to admit that he had any faults. If a mission failed then clearly it was someone else's fault. Usually that someone was Starscream. And because he was the only one that dared to stand up to the silver brute, Megatron saved all his pent up rage for him. Starscream was beginning to wonder if the only reason Megatron kept him as SIC was so he'd have someone to knock around when things didn't go his way. It was because of this that Starscream was so insistent on replacing the tyrant and take over as the Decepticon Leader. After all that he'd been through the Seeker felt he deserved to be on top for a change.
Then Skyfire showed up in his life again. Imagine his joy at finding his long lost friend after all this time. Now imagine his dismay when his long lost friend turned against him. And why? Because he didn't flinch at taking the life of an enemy? Starscream lost his best friend (his only friend) all over again that day and it was the Autobots' fault! Those disgusting do-gooders had turned Skyfire against him!
Then there was you. You had been kind to him for seemingly no reason. Skyfire had befriended him due to their shared love of science and exploration, but with you there had been no such connection. You simply wanted to help him in spite of him being an enemy. It made no sense to him and he'd been so confused by your actions at the time. He'd been even more confused by his reactions to your touch. It wasn't until your second meeting with him that he realized why. Your touch was what he'd really been wanting his entire life. It represented simple, basic kindness which is something he'd been denied for ever since Skyfire went missing. When Skyfire turned on him, he'd given up hope that he could ever truly earn real kindness from anyone ever again. If Starscream wanted something (even kindness), he would have to take it, either with violence or deceit. Usually it was a combination of both.
It was because you were an Autobot that he couldn't have you. That hideous red face on your armor was the only thing that kept you apart. Just like with Skyfire, the Autobot's had poisoned your processor against him. He was a Decepticon and therefore he was evil and would only want to hurt you. Starscream groaned. He messed up badly when he threatened you. He'd played into the bad image that the Autobots' had instilled in you. It would be impossible to combat their brainwashing... or would it?
Starscream glanced toward his three conspirators as they gorged themselves on the energon he'd... "procured" from the Decepticon storage vault for their services. The Insecticons were repulsive creatures but at least they were useful. Bonus points for their equal dislike of Megatron.
"This is the best energon I've ever tasted!" Kickback chirped, drooling all over himself.
Starscream grimaced at the display but said nothing.
"Yes! And Starscream is much more generous than Megatron Megatron." Added Shrapnel.
Any other time, Starscream would be preening over the fact that someone thought that he was better than Megatron in any way, but he couldn't bring himself to care about that right now.
"Bombshell," Starscream addressed the third Insecticon who looked up from his meal in curiosity.
"I'm very pleased with these spybugs you've invented. I can see nearly everything that goes on in the Autobot base and none of the fools are the wiser." the Seeker said, going straight for the Insecticon scientist's ego.
Bombshell puffed up with pride. "Of course! I modeled them on this planet's insect life. Even the humans would have a hard time noticing them, and even if they did, they would only see a normal beetle! They'll never suspect that they are being spied on!" the beetle-former bragged, wiping spilled energon from under his face plate.
"I have another project I'd like you to work on for me, if you're interested." Starscream offered.
"I'd be delighted! But of course, I expect to be paid for my genius." Bombshell said.
"Of course. I'll even double the energon rations this time."
All three Insecticons looked at Starscream in surprise, mouths watering at the thought of a huge stockpile of energon.
"Furthermore if this project goes as well as the spybugs, I'll give you something even better than energon." Starscream said with a grin.
The Insecticons looked at each other skeptically. What could possibly be better than energon? The three of them murmured to each other for a moment before coming to a decision.
"What did you have in mind, Starscream?" asked Bombshell.
The Seeker grinned in wicked delight.
Quick Author's Note: I just want to let everyone know that the next chapter will mark the end of this particular story. After that I will begin to work on the other requests that I've got. Due to how long this story took to complete I may start making all remaining requests oneshots. I feel that I can get them completed faster that way. I'm also closing requests so I can work on what I have so far. So until further notice, REQUESTS ARE NOW CLOSED! Thank you for your time and readership.
PS. Does anyone know how to change the title of a story on Quotev? I need to change the word "open" to "closed" so no one gets confused.
PSS. I'm dying over the fact that my spellcheck wanted me to change the "gooders" part of the word "do-gooders" to "goobers" so it would have said "DO-GOOBERS"! WTF!? XD