I have never, never gotten a response like this before! I am really happy right now! You guys are awesome! This chapter will mostly be flashbacks. Okay, in this story, you can expect...

Mentions of slash between Cybertronians.

At least one important OC.

Cursing.

General teenage themes.

A Gothic girl who is violent, can be a total bitch, and something like mutant abilities, but isn't mutant abilities.

Possible OOC-ness, but I will try to keep that to a minimum.

Is that all? I think so. If you don't like any of the things mentioned above, kindly click the back button. Consider yourself warned.

Things you need to know... [Blah] is Bumblebee's speech.

Disclaimer-I don't own Transformers Prime

Danger is My Middle Name

Chapter 5

Lae went absolutely still at the innocent question, not looking at anyone. If she had looked at anyone, they would have seen that far away look in her eyes, because memories were resurfacing. They were memories she had pushed as far back in her mind as possible, and it still wasn't enough.

~FLASHBACK~

She was only nine years old when she met Switchblade. At the time, they had been living in a small town in Montana, and when her mother had screamed at her about something she could barely remember now, she ran away. Sitting in the alley, crying, Lae looked up when she heard a voice call out to her. He was eleven years old, and cute in a kind of nerdy way, meaning he was all gangly awkward limbs with a charming smile, wild dark brown hair that was kind of curly, and his eyes...they were indescribably beautiful. The thing that stuck out the most, however, were the scars all over him, as though someone had taken a blade and cut him up.

Lae sniffled and wiped her eyes as the boy came closer. She mentally screamed at herself; how could she be such a weak coward? "Why are you crying?" the boy asked.

Lae sniffled again before admitting, "My mother was yelling at me for killing the neighbor's cat. It was an honest mistake. I summoned the kitty, and it walked into the middle of the road to cross the street. The truck came too fast, and I couldn't stop it, and it killed the poor kitty. Now my mother is mad. She says it's my fault I was born a Freak." Then Lae's eyes widened and she slapped a hand over her mouth.

She hadn't meant to say that. Father had always said to never tell anyone she was a Freak. He said humans were vile creatures who never understood Freaks, and never would. Some reacted with fear, others with anger and hate. Lae braced herself for a response like Father had mentioned, but to her surprise, the boy smiled and stepped closer, holding out his hand. "My name is Switchblade, and I'm a Freak too. Who are you?" Lae stared at his outstretched hand in awe.

Another Freak? She had thought she would never meet one. And what kind of name was Switchblade? Maybe it reflected his powers. Should she choose a name like that, too? She glanced up to meet his eyes. They were full of understanding, and as he patiently waited for a response, Lae made her decision. "Call me The Puppetmaster." She accepted his hand, and they shook, before he pulled her to her feet, saying, "You're one of the first Freaks I've met. We've got to stick together as a species. I promise I'll always be there for you. Freaks take care of their own." Looking into his eyes, right then and there, in that moment in time, she believed every word of it.

~END FLASHBACK~

"Lae?" Jolted out of her thoughts, Lae came up with a quick response, "Switchblade doesn't want to kill just humans. He wants all Freaks dead, too. Including himself. We've never really seen eye-to-eye." Then she shrugged. Her heart was pounding wildly in her chest, feeling as though it was trying to break out. She really hoped they bought the half-assed excuse.

All the robots, no, Autobots as Miko had told her, had bought the story and quickly let it go, as did the black haired human boy, Jack, and his mother, June. However, Miko and Raf were studying her, as though trying to read her mind.

Finally, Miko nodded slowly, before saying, "Come on, Lae, let's go watch Bulkhead practice in the training room." Miko and Bulkhead led the way while Lae trailed slowly behind. Yes, the response she's given them had been true, but it wasn't just that. There was so much more to it. Lae sat down by Miko when they entered the training room, but she was soon zoning out again, getting lost in memories she didn't want.

~FLASHBACK~

She gently touched the wounds on his head. The gashes were horrible there, but it was nothing compared to what Switchblade had done to his neck. Her eyes stung with unshed tears, and her heart felt as though it had just shattered. Three years ago, she had met Switchblade. Three years ago, he hadn't been a monster.

She had thought Switchblade was her friend, but when she had tried to find happiness, he dared to stop her, attacking a fellow Freak and ripping him to shreds. She had never seen anything so brutal, and while she respected the savagery of Switchblade's attack, she couldn't even begin to comprehend why. Why had he attacked Trent? He had done nothing wrong.

"This is what happens to Freaks who break the order. Happiness is overrated. Love is dead. Do not let yourself be fooled again, or I promise you'll see a massacre even worse than this," Switchblade promised darkly. The fourteen year old boy stood behind her, blood dripping from his knife-like hands. She turned around and looked at him, looked into his eyes. Those eyes that she once thought so beautiful were completely dark now, the faint glimmer of insanity increased until Switchblade looked more like a wild animal than anything else. Her heart hardened at that look. Never again. He would pay dearly for this. For betraying the trust she would never again give to him.

~TWO YEARS LATER~

He had taught her to hate. Once upon a time, she might have felt pain for losing the one friend she'd ever had, but no longer. In a way, he had been right. Emotions would get you no where. Hate and anger were a life force, but death was not something to talk so lightly about. He stood before the Freak Council that she had become a part of, pleading for the leader to change her mind, to send every Freak to war.

He called for death and destruction. He called for a full-out war against the humans. Lae knew how his mind worked. He would sit back on the sidelines, watching as the humans and the Freaks tore each other apart. He took delight in all the deaths that would occur. As he preached to the leader about the benefits of war, Lae could barely contain the urge to kill him right there. How dare he! How dare he act as though he was the only one who mattered. Rebirth, what kind of shit was that?

"No," Leader stated simply. Switchblade's eyes widened comically, and he protested, "But, Leader-" At her leader's wave, Lae shot out her hand, not even entering Switchblade's mind to control him. She'd done that once before, and wasn't about to do it again. "SILENCE! How dare you question our leader! Respect her choice. Leave, now. Do not return until three meetings after this one," Lae ordered. Sometimes it was weird, the way her powers worked. Her voice took on a stronger quality, leaving people unable to disobey her.

Since she had ordered it, Switchblade had no choice except to agree. Yet as he left, he turned back, and their eyes met. The expression there told her everything she needed to know. 'This is far from over.' She met the challenge with her own stare. 'Bring it on.'

~END FLASHBACK~

"Hey, kid! Come on, pay attention!'' Lae was snapped out of her memories once again, this time by Smokescreen. Lae glared up at him. "What do you want? And don't call me kid!" Smokescreen ignored her second question and chose to answer the first one, "Boss-bot says to take you back to your house to pick up some stuff. You coming or what?"

Lae continued to glare at him. He was ignorant and hard-headed, and Lae felt her personality clash with his. She wanted to sigh in exasperation. This guardian setup would not be easy.

That's that! Lae's background! If you have any questions about it, or didn't understand something in this chapter, PM me or ask in a review, please!