Despite the hours that passed, Starscream didn't recharge.

He tried to occupy himself by reading some datapads, but the truth was his anxiety was making it hard to focus. He would try to start reading something, but then he would end up reading the same line over and over without actually absorbing it. Starscream sat up in the berth when he thought he heard someone outside, but as he listened closer, and it was just the metal of the base settling. He lay back down with his wings twitching behind him.

He silently cursed himself. He knew he made a mistake by coming here, and he needed to figure his next move. He needed to get it together and stay focused to find a way out of his situation rather than jump at ghosts and whispers.

He nearly jumped out of his berth when he actually did start to hear voices. He wanted to go out and check on them and maybe get an idea of what had happened. Had they defeated the Decepticons? Had… Skywarp and Thundercracker been there? Had they asked about him?

He knew he was supposed to wait in his room, but he couldn't stand it anymore. He stood up and nearly ran to the door, almost stumbling in his nervousness. He used his holo-servo to open the door-

But it didn't open.

He tried it again, worried that his device was malfunctioning. But no, it was working as expected.

They had locked him in his room. He couldn't leave.

He took a ragged invent and stepped away from the door. They had locked him in his room.

What… did this mean? Did they not trust him? Or had that conversation with Skyfire not gone the way they wanted, and they wanted to make sure their little pet stayed where they could see him? Starscream knew he was supposed to be escorted by Bluestreak everywhere he went, but he didn't think they had been locking him away until now? This was… new. Frightening.

He took a few more steps back before the back of his legs ran into his berth. His spark was spinning rapidly in his chest, and a terrible numbness was permeating his mind. He stared dumbly at the door for more than a few moments, calculating what this meant.

They were just using him as a way to get their combiner back, and they didn't really want to help him. He had guessed this was the case early on in his relationship with the Autobots; however, he had been naive in thinking that maybe there was some hope here that he could still fit in as an equal, even if they were using him. But now that Starscream wasn't behaving like he should, and he wasn't at least pretending to enjoy the Autobots as a faction, he was a prisoner. He was just a pawn.

They had never locked him in a room at the Decepticon base.

He shivered. This was a nightmare. His mind was spiraling away from him with this information, and he was afraid he would snap in panic. He needed to get out, get out, run- fly! Yes, he needed to fly. His wings twitched irritably behind him. It had been so long since he flew, and he wanted to taste the air as it rolled over his sensors. He wanted to feel the wind cascade over his back. He wanted the thrill of his trinemates flying beside him-

There was a chime at his door.

He wiped at his face, scowling when he saw some cleaner fluid had welled up in his optics. He rubbed his face angrily and then called softly, "Enter."

The door opened, and Wheeljack stood in the doorway with a cube of energon.

Starscream opened his mouth to demand why he had been locked in, but Wheeljack… didn't look good. His white plating was marred heavily with dents, scratches, and blaster burns. His usually friendly blue optics looked worn-out, and his shoulders were slumped.

"Heya, I brought you some energon," he said. His voice sounded about as defeated as he looked.

Starscream stood up from the berth and went to the door. "Where is Bluestreak?"

Wheeljack swallowed behind his facemask. "The, uh, 'Cons were particularly angry today. Blue's hurt, but he's gonna be okay," he added hurriedly at the end.

Starscream stood by him at the door, and his face went slack. His wings sunk behind him. It was always something, wasn't it?

"It's not your fault," Wheeljack said gently.

"It is his fault," came an angry voice from the hallway.

Starscream blinked his optics as a shorter, horned red mech that he didn't know appeared and pushed Wheeljack to the side of the door to stride right in. He was pointing a digit right up into Starscream's face, and Starscream pulled back in surprise.

"This is completely your fault, but we don't even get to be mad at you!" he shouted. "Your mere presence just causes chaos wherever you go!"

Starscream's optics went wide as he took a step back. The mech was so angry with his flashing denta and intense optics, and it scared him into retreating further into his room. No one had ever been this mad at him before.

"I'm sorry-"

"Don't you dare apologize. It means nothing, you fragging piece of slag-"

Wheeljack had dropped the cube of energon and had physically put himself between the smaller bot and Starscream. "Cliffjumper, what the frag! " He held his servo out, trying to placate him.

"I'm- I'm just saying what everyone is thinking!" Cliffjumper stammered, suddenly looking less sure. "We got our afts handed to us out there, and it wasn't because we interrupted their little energon raid. They miss their little seeker, who defected, mind you-"

"Cliffjumper! Stop. There is no way you could say this is his fault- what in the actual frag is wrong with you?!"

Cliffjumper's chest was heaving as he slid his optics from Wheeljack to Starscream. "It might not be his fault, I guess," he admitted angrily. "But I don't know who else I'm supposed to be mad at."

Starscream, unfortunately, could relate.

The three of them stood there, locked staring at each other for a moment before Cliffjumper finally turned on his pede and left. Wheeljack eventually relaxed but didn't turn around.

"I'm sorry, Starscream," he said quietly. He sighed a strut-deep sigh and put a servo on the back of his neck. "He… doesn't mean it. It was just awful out there."

Starscream just looked down at the smooth metal floor as if it were the most exciting thing in the world. "I don't know what you expected," he replied coolly. Which was unfair of him, especially to Wheeljack. Yet… he hadn't been able to express his frustration about the call dropping. He hadn't been able to yell about being locked in his room for hours.

And he hadn't had the chance to get upset about how anyone who got close to him got hurt. "Wheeljack, can I-"

"I've gotta go. Sorry, Starscream, I'll bring you more energon later," Wheeljack said distractedly. Without turning around, he stepped around the puddle of energon and the upended cube on the floor. He left, and when the door snicked shut behind him, Starscream flinched.

He sat back down on the berth for a moment, thinking.

He swallowed and then got up and went back to the door. With a shaking servo, he tried to open it again with his device.

This time, it opened.

His spark spun rapidly in his chest, and he slipped out into the hallway.

The Decepticons returned to their base with surprisingly less exuberance after a victory than usual. They had sustained very few wounds and had more energon than ever. It was possibly their biggest raid yet.

But no one was really celebrating.

They had attacked one of the more heavily defended electric plants that had a side-business of making energon for the Autobots. The humans had been surprised to see them as if just the merit of being under Autobot protection and having big laser turrets would have stopped the Decepticons from even considering this place as a target.

The seekers had been particularly brutal.

They destroyed the plant and grabbed all of the stockpiled cubes almost without needing to say a word. They were oddly all on the same wavelength; even the usually-contrary Sunticons gladly took orders as they were given.

When the Autobots arrived, they probably weren't expecting a united front.

It was about revenge, certainly. The Autobots had attacked them in their home and, for all intents and purposes, had won. They had crossed a silent line they had about attacking during recharge hours. And they had gone back on their promise about Starscream.

It wasn't all about Starscream, but his unfortunate situation had pissed off more than just one Decepticon. The Autobots had permanently altered him, and then they had the sanctimonious nerve to act like they were the only answer to his happiness. The Autobot holier-than-thou attitude was hard to swallow on a typical day, but here, with their hypocrisy laid bare before them, it was particularly bitter.

Thundercracker and Skywarp had been stoic about the whole thing, but everyone could see how this affected them. Many had seen how different their relationship had become since the new Starscream entered their lives. While most Decepticons thought that having pity was a weakness, they allowed themselves the rare indulgence here. Love was hard to find in this war, and the elite trine had seemed to have grasped it before it had been taken away from them.

The Decepticons took their frustrations out on their enemies and didn't hold anything back.

Megatron greeted his soldiers back to the base with a rousing victory speech. But everyone quickly realized it didn't have the same effect as usual. His anger became evident by the end, and his servos were tightly balled into fists.

Starscream tried to avoid running into mechs as much as he could as he snuck down the hallways. Occasionally he had to wait for some to leave the hallway before going around a bend, but he managed to avoid being seen so far. He idly wondered if someone on the security team had seen him on their cameras. Had they decided to leave him alone? Or were they too distracted with the Decepticons to notice?

He kept weaving through the hallways until he came face to face with Mirage.

"And just where do you think you are going?"

Starscream froze. Of all the mechs to run into at this moment, it had to be Mirage. "I was looking for the medical bay to check on Bluestreak."

Mirage smiled and leaned against the wall. "Well, you're at the opposite end of the base for that. In fact, you seem to be heading for the command room, where the communications hub is."

Starscream's spark was practically in his throat. "I suppose I got turned around."

"You… suppose," Mirage repeated slowly. His smile turned into a harsh smirk. "Let's get you back on track, shall we?"

He stepped in close and put an arm around Starscream's back. Starscream immediately felt his frame give up control and let himself be guided to wherever Mirage wanted.

Starscream ground his denta. "Mirage. Stop, please, I don't want-"

"Sadly, it doesn't really matter what you want, Starscream. You should know this by now."

Starscream was being pushed down the hallway against his will, and he hardened his jaw. He wanted to scream out in frustration, but nothing about his body was obeying his commands. Instead, he just kept tensing and loathing every humiliating moment of being physically manipulated. "I don't know what I did to you in the past, but I understand if you hold a grudge-"

"Oh, no, not really," Mirage said with a shrug. "Not any more than others. But I do have people I care about here, and if I learned anything from Jazz, it's that sometimes you have to bend the rules to get what you want." He gave Starscream a side-glance. " If you have the ability, that is."

Starscream didn't know Jazz that well, but he doubted that was a lesson he had wanted to teach. But he was used to mechs having the best of intentions and still making his life miserable.

Starscream's shoulders slumped. "This is really unfair-" he started, but he choked on his own words, unable to complete the sentence. Despair settled into his spark, and he took a ragged breath as his venting started to increase.

Mirage just didn't care. He didn't care that Starscream hated being physically controlled against his will. He didn't care that Starscream wanted… out. He just wanted to take care of his own, and the sad part? Starscream couldn't entirely fault him for that.

But then Prime appeared in the hallway in front of them, and Mirage froze, just staring for a few moments. Prime's gaze was flicking from Starscream's grimacing face and Mirage's tight grip on his arm. Starscream didn't expect to find much hope in the Prime, and his wings fell further behind him.

If he thought he was a prisoner before, he knew that things could get so much worse.

But to his surprise, Mirage released Starscream and took a step back. "It appears he was lost, sir."

Prime watched them for a moment, saying nothing and letting the silence yawn between them and increase in intensity. Starscream wasn't sure what the Prime was looking at or looking for between the two of them, but he wasn't sure it was a good thing. The silence was prickly and uncomfortable, and his despair at being caught only worsened as the moments ticked by. Starscream cast his gaze down to the ground, trying to calm the fluttering spark in his chest.

Finally, Prime spoke up. "Thank you, Mirage. I'll take it from here."

Mirage nodded and walked away, not casting a second look at Starscream at all. Starscream watched his receding back until he turned a corner, but he still didn't feel much better. Now he was alone with Prime.

Starscream looked up and locked optics with him, and they just stared at each other.

"I tried," Starscream said simply. "But I can't."

Prime continued to watch him for a long moment and then sighed, his shoulders slumping. "I thought… I thought I had the right to this. I was so sure." He reached up to pinch the bridge of his nose. He looked older and exhausted.

"Do you want to go back to the Decepticons?"

Starscream did want to go back there, back to the familiar gazes of the mechs, back to the warm embrace of his trine, and back to the dark but fun laughter of his old comrades. Even if it was dangerous to him and even if he got hurt along the way, he knew he would never live a normal existence. He might as well be near those who wanted him around and not just because he was a bargaining chip.

But at the same time, he still felt like he needed more answers. Starscream had learned so much from the smallest of conversations with Skyfire, and having tasted knowledge, he thirsted for more. "I do want to go back, but first, I want to talk to Skyfire."

Prime's optics widened a little. Starscream bit the inside of his cheek and waited patiently for how this was going to turn out. Knowing what Starscream wanted didn't seem to matter to anyone; why would he even ask? His optics felt dull, and his wings began to hurt at how low they sagged on his back, but he kindled the smallest of hopes that Prime would finally listen to him.

"We should go now," Prime said.

Starscream gave a small gasp of surprise. He nodded, following Prime out of the hallway.

"What do you mean? Of course we want to get him back!" Skywarp cried angrily.

Thundercracker held a digit in front of his lips, trying to get Skywarp to quiet down. Megatron's speech had just finished, and he was starting to go into an angry rant about the state of the base. He usually did this when he was frustrated, and without the old Starscream here to break the tension, things were escalating quickly. Megatron grabbed Motormaster angrily and was yelling in his face. "'Warp, I'm not suggesting we don't try and get him back; I'm saying I'm not sure we should bring him back to Megatron, is all."

Skywarp narrowed his optics. "I… don't like what you are implying."

Thundercracker sighed. "Then let me make myself clear. I am not going to let Megatron have Starscream. I will not let him mold our trinemate into a shell of his past self for Megatron's vanity. I am not going to let Megatron put Starscream in danger for a political ploy. I do not trust Megatron anywhere near Starscream."

Skywarp got tenser and tenser as each word was added to Thundercracker's declaration. "But… we are here, Thundercracker. How can we get him back and keep him away from Megatron?"

Thundercracker took a deep breath and looked at the ground.

Prime drove Starscream in his trailer to a remote part of the state away from the native's settlements. He didn't talk to Starscream much, which did nothing to soothe his nervousness, but at the same time, none of his conversations with Prime had gone the way he wanted. Maybe it was better than silence was the only thing they shared.

But something was bothering Starscream. "What finally convinced you?"

Prime's engines were rumbling as they drove along. "Convinced me?"

"That I should have the freedom to make my own choices."

Prime gave him back a surprised silence that stretched long again into awkwardness. "I thought I always believed that," he replied sadly. "I think I realized I have a lot more to learn. I'm sorry for how things have gone down between us."

Starscream leaned his helm back against the wall of the trailer, deciding that he didn't mind someone apologizing to him this time.

When they arrived, and Starscream exited the trailer, Skyfire was waiting for him. His arms were folded across his chassis, and his stance was tense. Beside him stood two-winged mechs that looked incredibly nervous but said nothing.

"As I said," Prime rumbled as he transformed. "Starscream is now in your care."

"Nothing in exchange?" Skyfire asked suspiciously, arching an optic ridge.

Prime gave a side-glance to Starscream and then sighed. "No. Nothing in exchange."

Skyfire watched him for another moment and then turned to Starscream and held out his servo. "It's good to see you, Starscream," he said warmly. "Let's get you back to our home so that we can talk."

Starscream nodded. He took a few steps forward then turned to look at Prime one more time. "Please tell Bluestreak thank you from me for everything he did for me. I'm sorry he got hurt and that I couldn't say goodbye."

Prime's optics danced in the darkness, and he nodded quietly.

Starscream took Skyfire's servo, and they jumped into the air. Once they had some distance, Skyfire asked him to transform, and they flew faster to their base.

"Skyfire," Starscream asked. "Can I talk to Skywarp and Thundercracker?"

"Of course. That was always the plan if I thought that you needed to get away from the Autobots. I hope… things weren't too terrible for you."

Some tension finally released from his frame. "I think some of them really tried, which made the times where I was manipulated all the worse. But things… have not been great for me lately."

Skyfire was quiet for a few moments. "I do have something I need to show you when we land," he said. "I don't know if you need time to rest first, though. But… it's a recording from your former self."

Starscream's engine almost stalled.

"I made a recording? What… about?"

Skyfire twisted in the air. "I'll show you."