AN: Pretty boring chapter, but oh well. I want five more reviews before I upload the next chapter. I didn't get my five reviews, but whatever. We can try for five this time.
Sidenote: I started to watch TFA. I don't think I'll really include any of it, though Bee will be a youngling and blah
Bookworm Gal: Barricade. How would you feel if something lubricated inside of you? Thanks for the review!
Fk306 animelover: Thanks, I'm glad you enjoy it. :)
Autobot Firekat: I am of the serious opinion that Prowl and illogical humans will never mix, and he'll end up in the med bay so much he'll have his own private berth.
LionLover190: Glad you like it! And of course there has to be innuendos! There's still technically teenagers in this. :P And not just yet! That wouldn't be very deceptive of a Decepticon, turned neutral or not.
EDIT1: I reposted ch.12 by accident instead of ch.13. SORRY and thanks to those who pointed it out! HERE'S the NEW chapter! :)
EDIT2: Hahaha I need a beta or to actually bother reading through these completely. Sorry for any mistakes you might find.
Prowl watched the whole scene as Barricade returned to the NEST base with Civilian Miles Lancaster, standing in his Prime's second office as the two looked out of the window. Naturally his real office would never have a window, for security issues. He was surprised when an animal, a dog like Mojo, had gotten out of the Decepticon Neutral once the back door had opened. This one was fairly bigger than the tiny Chihuahua, and a quick search on the internet informed him the breed was referred to as a Mastiff. He watched with some amusement as Miles tried to escape from Barricade, only to be kept inside as the 'con turned around and left the way it had came.
"I am still amazed by how quickly we have adapted to a 'con in our midst." Prowl said softly. "Neutral or not."
"I believe that is in part do to Miles. He felt strongly over Barricade's fate even the day he was brought here. A human who would put unflinching trust in a Cybertronian tends to mean that the Cybertronian has deserved it, for whatever reason." Optimus Prime replied.
"And the other part?" Prowl asked, watching as Sam and Bumblebee stayed at that spot, Sam playing with the Mastiff.
"This war has been going on far too long." Optimus stated. "Both sides are getting low on mechs and femmes. Keep a watchful eye on the new comer, certainly, by why act rude if they give you no cause? Bumblebee has come to have a sort of friendship with him, brought on from Sam's interaction with him, which was caused by Miles. Barricade's decision to become Neutral, while it still may have happened, was greatly influenced by Miles, as well as his tolerance of us."
Prowl thought of that before he decided on how to best say what he wanted. "To sum it up the organics on this planet are more than meets the eye?" He asked, an unusual layer of amusement peppering his normally monotone voice.
Optimus chuckled, "That they are. They are similar to us in many ways. Emotions, some motivations. We are much bigger and tend to contain a lot more metal, while they are fragile and have skin that can be broken by paper, but our general frames are the same. A head, two arms, two hands, two legs, things to stand on. We occasionally come with wings, but humans invent that stuff on their own. They have a shockingly short lifespan, but get a lot done in the time given to them. They adapt quickly."
Prowl nodded, losing himself to a thought process as his Prime went silent. He had been told of how readily Civilians Mikaela Banes and Samual Witwicky had adjusted to the whole thing. How Sam had stepped up in Mission City and excepted the Allspark cube from an injured Bumblebee; then ran from Megatron with it only to use it to offline the significantly larger being. From what he had heard Civilian Miles Lancaster had, supposedly, barely bat an eyelash when he found out that the Saleen Police Cruiser he had been working on was alive.
It seemed that all the humans that could be accepting of Cybertronians were set apart somehow, but for the life of him he couldn't figure a nice way to deem it besides what the humans deem insanity. He told his Prime as much.
"Ah, yes. Some would call them that. But I think all the 'bots under my care could have a few questionable… thought processes. Myself included, I suppose." Optimus replied, amusement evident in his tone. "The NEST members themselves, even the civilians on this base, I believe would take no offense to being called insane."
"Some of them may even take it as a compliment. Like Civilian Miles Lancaster and Sergeant Robert Epps." He said in agreement, turning his optics to focus back on to his leader.
"They'll get you to call them by their non-formal names, eventually, Prowl. Even Barricade refers to some of them that way. You may as well just give in before you become a target." Optimus said lightly, picking up a data pad to read it's contents.
"It's too late for that, I'm afraid." He stated dryly. "Jazz had them out for me since he was onlined."
"Young Samual believes that Miles enjoys tormenting Cybertronians with cop car alt modes, for some reason." Optimus replied, trying to hide his amusement by now. "Perhaps if you find out why it can be put to a stop. For you, anyway."
"Just give Miles to the rest of the Decepticons, and somehow make it so they couldn't kill him or get rid of him. They'll offline themselves." And in a rare moment, Prowl actually smiled and cracked a joke around his Prime, causing Optimus to laugh.
The two Autobots fell silent, Prowl continuing to look out the window. He watched as Sam found a stray stick, from where he wasn't sure, and played fetch with the dog. He took a minute to comm Bumblebee and find out what had happened between Barricade, the dog, and the human. When the Autobot scout answered him he let out a snort without meaning to. Glancing back at Optimus he found his leader's questioning gaze on him and decided to answer it.
"I asked Bumblebee and it appears as if the Mastiff, Mason according to Civilian Samual Witwicky, lubricated inside of Barricade, on his back seat. It is unknown where he has taken Miles or for what purpose." Prowl said, answering the unasked question.
Optimus vented slightly, the Cybertronian version of a sigh, though whether from annoyance or amusement Prowl couldn't tell. "I believe Samual would say he is doomed, then."
And Prowl could only nod in agreement.
When Barricade and Miles had come back it was evident that Barricade was much more whipped then any of them had thought with how Miles had cheerfully gotten out of the Cybertronian and walked over to his dog and Sam. Then again, after they considered it was Miles that Barricade had been going up against, no one was too surprised when he came back in one piece. The Cybertronian himself seemed just a little grouchier than normal if the scowl that was permanently etched on the holoform's face was anything to go by.
Most of NEST was outside for the night, it being fairly warm and dinner being held out in the open for once. Sam sat at a table with Will, Epps, Fig, Bumblebee, Ironhide, Jazz, and Prowl. They continued their conversations even as Miles went up to Sam. Mason was on the ground between Bumblebee and Will. The Cybertronians were in their holoforms to sit with their human counterparts, but their mech bodies weren't far away.
Miles grinned at Sam, "Back in one piece and mentally stable. I think that's a personal best, considering who I was going against."
"Well, as long as you didn't mention that Mason could have been marking Barricade as his territory and showing his dominance over him, I'm not surprised." Sam replied innocently, a smirk on his features.
The table fell in to a shocked silence at that as they watched Barricade's hands visibly twitch as if wanting to do something with them even in holoform, and the grin disappear off of Miles face. Will put a hand on Mason's collar to make sure the Mastiff stayed in one place, and Bumblebee kept a wary optic on Barricade.
"You were either a Decepticon in a past life, or I did something to deserve this." Miles stated softly. "Which is it?"
"The list." Sam replied, his smirk growing. "You mentioned having something for me for Halloween and I'm just getting my hits in while I still can if Mikaela's on your side."
Epps started to laugh, "If nothing else, the kid is smart. Might get his friend killed, but smart non the less!" And the rest of the table couldn't help but silently agree.
Miles turned around to face Barricade. "I know the potty signs, he wasn't just marking his territory. If he really wanted to show dominance he'd mount you or hump you."
Ironhide snorted, "That's supposed to make him feel better? I'd be pissed if someone let vermin lubricate inside of me, too!"
"Not helping, Hide!" Will hissed at his Guardian.
Miles glared at Ironhide for a brief moment before returning his attention to Barricade. The table watched as the two stayed silent, amused as they seemed to have a fight with facial expressions alone. Barricade glared, Miles looked apologetic and pulled puppy dog eyes pouty face. Miles ended up winning the facial expression stand off after giving a pointed look at the wash racks, making the beings at the table assume that he had offered to completely clean Barricade out, possibly more than once depending on how angry the mech was. Either way, Barricade backed down, returning to his usual scowl.
"Squishy organic on the outside, completely stupid on the inside." Epps said, grinning as Miles gave an indignant 'hey!' in response.
"So what's the big bad havin' ya do, Miles?" Jazz asked, an amused grin on his holoform's face.
"Oh, a few complete cleanings. Inside, outside. Waxing, untwisting or unkinking any wires that need it." Miles replied, pausing for a moment before he continued. "And I kind of promised to make sure he could get off base more, if not with me then with Sam and Bumblebee. One of you should tell OP that."
Everyone heard Prowl make a clearly audible sound, but none of them could quite figure out what it was. At the least, they could all assume it stood for annoyance.
"You can not just say it and it's done, Civilian Miles Lancaster. You do not have the clearance." Prowl said.
Jazz shrugged, "Well, Ah think he did, Prowler. If ya want to take tha' up with Barry-" He pointedly ignored the snarl that the 'con gave at the use of his nickname. The only one who could call the Decepticon Neutral Barry without getting their heads verbally torn off or snarled at was Miles. "-ya can do so yourself. Ah doubt if Miles asked that Optimus would actually disagree, an' Ah think it would be better for Barry as well."
"Optimus did suggest, however jokingly, that Miles could be the liaison between us and Barricade." Bumblebee cut in, amusement evident in his voice. "Miles replied only under the designation 'Flower Power', but either way that is theoretically letting him pull rank there."
Ironhide snorted once again, "If he had actually been given that rank, then theoretically yes."
"As much as I love the mentioning of the weirder things I've said, can we know why you wanted us here, Will?" Miles said, trying to effectively change the subject. It seemed to work.
"Invitation to the first annual NEST Halloween party." Will said in way of explanation.
Both the young teenagers were silent for a moment, but that was broken by Sam starting to laugh. Miles gave Will a slightly angry, but mostly incredulous look.
"Seriously?" Miles asked in an exasperated tone. "You put me and Barry through all that just for something you could have invited me to over email?"
Sam put a comforting hand on Miles shoulder. "Don't worry, Bee and me will drive Mason home!"
"You'll tell me before he lubricates in me, right?" Bumblebee asked, sounding slightly disgruntled.
Sam laughed, "Course, Bee. I know the signs as well as Miles does. Hopefully you'll be smarter than Barricade and actually listen, though."
Bumblebee looked marginally relieved, while Barricade just glared at Sam. Will, Fig, and Epps started to eat their dinner while Sam dragged Miles away from the table to a safe location. While this had to be rather far away, since the Cybertronians had better hearing than humans, Miles brought Mason with him to at least make sure his Mastiff was safe.
"So, what's really going to happen to you?" Sam asked, grinning.
Miles sighed, "Ugh, I should have known you'd know me to well. I think it'll be kind of like how you're doing it, but he'll probably play the unpredictable 'con card just to have me on my toes."
"Mind fucking you?" Sam asked, though it came off as more of a statement.
"Pretty much." Miles replied dryly. "Make me paranoid with odd behavior but never do anything that could constitute as outright payback for awhile, even though I did tell him to pull the frag over so Mason could use the restroom. But did he listen? No."
Sam laughed, "Damned if you do, damned if you don't with him."
"You are exceptionally good at your word choice tonight, Samual. Should I be worried?" Miles asked teasingly.
"Always be worried Miles." Sam grinned back.
"GARW?" He asked.
Sam nodded, "Yeah, Giant Alien Robot Worried." And the two teens laughed.
At the NEST base: Operation Halloween is a Go. (About a week after the Mason the Mastiff incident.)
It was rare for Captain William Lennox to be able to fully relax on the NEST base, between paper work and overly annoying officials, but he was as close as he could get to it out on the firing range with a weapon in his hand. That was why he was already heading out there, figuring it wouldn't be too crowded. Most of the base was off scheming or decorating for Halloween, and he was more than willing to enjoy the peace, however brief it may be.
On his walk to the firing range he couldn't help but think of how he had ended up there, and his fellow brothers, and sisters, in arms. He wouldn't really describe any of them as sane, but the did have a cluster fuck of bravery, impulsiveness, and war hardened military training to help them to survive. Even the civilians weren't too different from the military personnel at NEST, though for them you might be able to add ignorance.
Scratch that, they were all dealing with the same giant metallic beings from outer space. They were all fairly ignorant in those regards. But Will was happy to see the human NEST members get so excited over sharing a holiday with the Cybertronians, and even the Cybertronians themselves had showed interest in participating in Earth culture.
Many things that compliment Halloween, and just end up screaming it really, had been brought in. From fake blood and make up supplies, to Cybertronian sized costumes, and pumpkins. Lots and lots of pumpkins. If Halloween was anything to go by he'd hate to see Thanksgiving come. He'd almost fear a bunch of turkeys running around, but he quickly pushed that thought out of his head. Ironhide would shoot them all before they got even remotely annoying to Will.
Entering the firing range he pushed away his stray though process and focused on the two people already inside of it.
"I'm surprised one of you aren't causing any trouble." Will said casually as he strolled in and grabbed his fire arm of choice.
Epps was currently teaching Jazz how to shoot with human technology, even the ones that had been more influenced by the 'bots around them. Why the Autobot would want to learn was beyond Will, and Epps, but he had asked and who was Epps to say no?
"Tha' hurts, William. Righ' near mah spark, it does." Jazz replied, never taking his eyes off the target even as Epps instructed him to change his grip slightly or move his arm a certain way.
"Yes, well I still happen to see you the lesser of two evils. The greater one hasn't denied any accusations." He stated, eyes narrowing slightly at his Sergeant.
Epps chuckled, "Ironically enough I am contemplating going as Satan."
"And I'm going as a fraggin' banana, big deal." Will replied. "You've been quiet the past two days. What are you up to?"
"How deep of a recharge does Ironhide go into?" Epps asked, trying to sound innocent but failing.
"Why?" Will asked in return, not ready to relinquish any information until he knew why and decided losing his life over it might be worth it.
"We wan' ta make Hide a Jack-o-lantern." Jazz explained, taking a moment to shoot the target and hitting it at dead center. "An' possibly remove the ammunition of his cannons and replace 'em with…" He trailed off, looking to Epps for the right words.
"Pumpkin guts. That way if he shoots it won't hurt that much." Epps clarified, grinning at Will.
Will considered it a moment, weighing the pros and cons in his head separately. After about a minute Will told Epps what he wanted to know, as long as he would be getting pictures of it or at least able to help with the cannons. He might not be able to work them even if he had them, but he could still respect a powerful weapon when he saw it. While shoving the inside of pumpkin guts inside of said weapons might not seem like respect, it would get him a closer view while said cannons were inactivated for once.