Whoo hoo~ Got that little spark back! Muse is cooperating again for a bit and as such not only do you get a longer chapter, but a big turning point in the story! Confusion and misunderstanding abounds and Rumble continues to be a repetitive little bugger. Not his fault; he's not all that bright. :D

Tried to get some of the humor back into the story but it got a little bit serious towards the end. Heh. Ah well. Either way, thanks for sticking with me & Thanks for reading/reviewing and you know the drill. *salutes*

Chapter 15

"I can not believe how he's been treating me! This is completely uncalled for! Brutish! Idiotic and I mean more so than usual! Sometimes I wonder how his processor even functions with so few circuits and neurons at its disposal. He's lucky he has the brain power to stand up straight! How dare he! How dare he treat me like some common grunt! I'm his second in command and should be treated as such!"

When Skywarp said he wanted to spend more time with 'Screamer and Thundercracker together, this was no quite what he meant. Though, Skywarp did have to admit that Starscream had been on a role. And maybe not all together mistaken for once in his screechy life. Lord Megatron had been particularly touchy lately and every time Starscream so much as flickered his optics their leader pounced.

Starscream had been to the med bay twice already in the past week.

The Constructicons were out of the base at the moment, though, so Skywarp and Thundercracker were stuck attempting major repairs from Lord Megatron's latest fit. Sure they could handle the small stuff – dents, clipped wires, screw tightening – easy enough on their own, but reattaching full limbs, components and circuitry was a bit out of their scope. Thankfully, Starscream was angry enough this time around that missing a limb or two didn't seem to phase him in the slightest when it came to ranting. Skywarp was just glad Thundercracker was doing most of the work.

"I haven't even done anything!" Starscream shrieked at the wall, loyal wing mates barely listening. Let them be bored. His latest audience of choice for ranting was missing in action thanks to his overprotective guardian so his wing mates would just have to do. Starscream snarled when a spark flew from the arm Thundercracker was reattaching, but he restrained himself from commenting. Megatron was the true violator! Besides, Thundercracker might stop and Starscream's be stuck reattaching his own arm. "Not a single thing! No over throwing plans. No questioning orders! Primus! I haven't even commented negatively on any of his idiotic battle plans! I've been a perfectly behaved angel!"

"Doesn't that usually mean you're hidin' something?" Skywarp snickered off to the side. Starscream had been on oddly good behavior lately. Despite appearances, there was still a chance ol' Screamer had done something to tick off their leader on the sidelines. Or so Skywarp hoped. Not that he ever wanted to question their leader, but if Starscream really hadn't done anything – the beatings may have been a bit much. "Can't blame him for being suspicious."

"He has a point," Thundercracker added. Starscream wasn't the only one suffering thanks to Megatron's bad mood. Especially since Thundercracker had yet to answer the great mystery of who Starscream was dragging to his berth. Far as Thundercracker could tell, it was no one. Not that Megatron believed that. At least Skywarp had gotten over whatever virus had possessed his processor the other day. Thundercracker wasn't sure he could take much more of this alone time himself. "You are most suspicious when you're behaving."

"I know that!" Starscream shrieked right back. "But normally he has the decency not to punish me until I actually do something! Which I haven't!" Starscream tried to calm himself down while Thundercracker finished up the last of his half-aft repair job to his arm. "He's out to get me, I swear. This is a set up!"

"Why on earth would he set you up, Starscream?" Skywarp pondered as his leader started to roll his arm checking the connections. His tone was oddly serious for what would normally be a teasing statement. "Usually you save him the trouble and do it yourself."

"I'm telling you, it's a set up!" Starscream hissed and watched as Thundercracker went to sit down next to Skywarp. His arm was stiff as hell, but it was the best he could do until someone with more experience could look at it. Wonderful. Couldn't Megatron at least have the courtesy to wait and make sure someone was around to fix him when he decided to randomly beat his Second in Command to a pulp! "He's waiting for me to crack."

"Crack and do what?" Thundercracker crossed his arms. Sure, Megatron had been moody lately but anything could have ticked him off. It wasn't necessarily Starscream that started it. He was just convenient for the stress relief. "You and Megatron have been playing this ridiculous power game for longer than anyone can remember. What would make him want to break you now?"

"How should I know?" Starscream threw his arms up in the air and winced automatically when the one refused to follow through and sparked again. Maybe he could hunt down Ramjet and get a hand. That Seeker had far more experience repairing major injuries thanks to his favorite battle tactic. "The point is," Starscream continued with a straight face. "I'm innocent."

Skywarp snorted in which Starscream obligingly struck him across the helm with an angry yelp. Thundercracker laughed when Starscream's arm fell off again.

"Soundwave," Megatron began thoughtfully as he swirled a bit of energon around in a cube. His Second In Command had gotten much better at hiding his actions as of late. If not for Soundwave tipping him off (he adored having a telepath on staff some days), he probably would have missed them. It seems Starscream had turned to quantity over quality with smaller bits of treachery that were easier to cover up. Megatron hated to admit that it would have been a wonderful tactic had Soundwave not noticed. Primus knows he never would have foreseen Starscream misfiling paperwork or siphoning energon to reduce overall stores. "Can you think of any reason Starscream has been acting up so much lately?"

"Negative." Soundwave replied. Which was true. Starscream had no reason to change his current behavior. In fact, he had not changed his current behavior. Soundwave smiled behind his faceplate. What had changed, is Soundwave finally had a reason to abuse the trust Megatron had in his Communications officer.

It wasn't his fault Starscream made this far too easy for him.

"There has to be something." Megatron continued leaning back on his throne, enjoying the relative quiet of the empty control room. It was always empty during this time of the day when all of his 'cons were off shift and the Earth's moon was in the sky. Soundwave was the only one ever down here working; like clockwork, really. Megatron liked predictability. It made life stable and controllable. Clearly something has upset the norm and Megatron wondered if it had to do with Starscream's latest fling (Curse Thundercracker for being useless!) or something he himself had done. "Something we've missed."

"Seeker: Unpredictable." Soundwave answered while hacking the files on the computer. Megatron never looked at the screen. And as such, would never know Soundwave was the one sabotaging the inventory. He'd report tomorrow that the files had been messed with, claim Starscream had done it, and sit back to yet another enjoyable beating.

The thought had crossed his mind that Soundwave was being petty, but Megatron was not the only one who adored order and predictability. Starscream's influence on Rumble was changing up the status quo and that was just as intolerable as the chance of the Seeker breaking the cassettes' little spark.

"You don't suppose I forget his manufacturing day, do you?" Megatron wondered aloud around a sip of energon. "I seem to remember him throwing a royal silent fit over that a few years back."

Soundwave restrained himself from bashing his head into the input console. He would never understand that Seeker's appeal.

"Stop pouting, already. You knew this was gonna' happen." Frenzy muttered as he sat down next to his twin. Soundwave had finally let Rumble out of his cassette mode, but his Bro' was still confined to quarters. Their boss had been in a better mood for some reason as of late (if Frenzy had to guess, it was probably due to Megatron coming down on Starscream harder than usual lately) and Rumble got a slight reprieve. Thankfully, his twin wasn't dumb enough to push his luck by trying to sneak out. But I'd been a few days and he was still sulking in the corner of the berth. "It's not even that big of a loss."

Rumble curled his arms around his knees just a little tighter. He hasn't seen Starscream in over two weeks and his spark was starting to feel a little funny. "What makes ya' say that?"

"I mean," Frenzy continued in his attempt to make his brother feel better. Frenzy didn't want to admit it, but it was mostly his fault Rumble got in trouble. Not completely though. Denying Soundwave anything when he was in a bad mood was not the best of ideas. Surely Rumble could forgive acting in his own self-defense. "It's not like he's the only 'con on the base to frag. Be glad ya' got a go with the one you really wanted once or twice and move on, Bro. Just pick a 'con Soundwave approves of next time."

Rumble definitely felt his spark clench that time. It seems getting the answer to the question he had been asking himself before he hooked up with 'Screamer got what it wanted to know. And it was bad. This was way worse than some crush or wanting to jump the hottest 'con in the base. Rumble was in so much trouble.

"Bro?" Frenzy pushed at his brother's shoulder. Rumble's mouth was open slightly and his face looked like it did when Megatron first told them they'd been given to Soundwave. "Hey? What's the matter?"

"It wasn't about the fraggin.'" Rumble admitted slowly, not so much to answer Frenzy's question, but to say out loud his own miniature revelation. The horror was slowly subsiding upon the realization that Rumble didn't care. He liked this feeling; was like a little light coming on in the dark.

Frenzy stared at his brother. He couldn't have heard that right. "Wha?"

"It wasn't about the fragging." Rumble spoke more confidently and sat up just a tiny bit straighter. Depression giving way to a much more amazing revelation. Rumble's next words were in awe. "I miss 'em, Frenz."

"Who?" Frenzy was incredulous. Was his brother off his rocker? Frenzy could understand missing interfacing having it suddenly caught off, but that's not what Rumble said. He didn't miss 'it' he missed 'him.' "Starscream? You miss Starscream?"

"Yeah." Rumble pushed up onto his peds as he stood up on the berth and could feel his spark start pulsing a little faster than normal. It felt great; like some sort of drug or dropping a load of energon cubes after carrying them for miles. "Yeah. Hanging out with him in the lab and drinking energon and doing missions and stuff." Rumble looked over at his brother. "That stuff was as much fun as the 'facing."

"You've…you blew a circuit didn't ya? All that rechargin' in cassette mode." Frenzy started to slowly shake his head. This was heading for trouble, he just knew it. Felt it in his own spark that Rumble was preparing to get in way over his head – if he wasn't under the waves already. "Not used to it and ya' blew something doing all that damn clicking with yer' spokes."

"I ain't blown nothing, Bro!" Rumble's mouth started to twitch into a smile. He was in trouble and this was going to blow up in his face but his spark was calling out and he was listening. Two weeks away from Starscream and he still wanted to go see him, even if it was to just sit in the lab and get yelled at for being a pest. He liked Starscream. Rumble liked Starscream. The words fell out of his mouth before he could stop them. "I like Starscream."

"Now I know you've blown a fuse." Frenzy stood up to stand in front of his brother. He needed to stop this now. Soundwave was already angry with Rumble over this whole damn thing and if Frenzy's inklings were right, that was the least of Rumble's worries. "Think about what you're saying! This is crazy!"

"It is, ain't it?" Rumble almost sounded mystified. It really was nuts this whole thing. Rumble never would have thought it could come to this when he first realized he may or may not have liked the Seeker. "I like Starscream."

"Bro." Frenzy grabbed Rumble's shoulders and shook them hard. "Snap out of it."

Rumble smiled and looked straight into his twin's visor. "I like Starscream." And boy did he. Rumble started and now it was all pouring out of him like Energon at a party. "I like the way his face scrunches when he's working on one of his projects in the lab." Rumble grabbed Frenzy's shoulders and grinned with them standing there mirroring each other. "And I like the way his wings twitch when he's annoyed. And when he polishes his null rays he always rubs at one part near the top with his servo twice 'cause he keeps forgetting it's a scratch and not a scuff. I like that, too. Oh, oh! When he drinks too much energon he…"

Frenzy stared as Rumble started to ramble on and on about Starscream. Little things that most people never would have noticed. As he kept going, his grip on Frenzy's shoulders tightened in his excitement and Frenzy could practically feel it radiating off his bro.' Starscream made Rumble happy. Frenzy swallowed deeply when it hit him just why Soundwave was so against this relationship. And he found himself agreeing. "Bro." Rumble kept jabbering. "BRO!"

"And-what?" Rumble stopped and took some extra air through his intakes. He hadn't known how good it would feel to let all this out. All those little things he'd noticed over the weeks building up to their first hook up. Finally putting a cap on any confusion he may have had. "What's up?"

"Starscream," Frenzy spoke slowly, "he ain't gonna' like ya' back, Bro. Yer' just a fling."

"Ya' said that about him interfacing with me, too." Rumble replied instantly. This wasn't just a quick 'face and leave. Rumble could feel it in his spark. There was something here even if it was tiny. "And he likes me enough to hang around. I can wait."

Frenzy shook his head and tried to stress his point. Rumble was missing something pretty big thanks to the giant Starscream blinders he seemed to be wearing over his visor. "Bro, it ain't gonna' work. He might frag with ya' again but he ain't gonna' like, be with you."

"Why not?" Rumble huffed and shoved his brother's arms off, breaking the contact. "I know we ain't a touchy-feely bunch around here but hook-ups ain't exactly rare." Rumble crossed his arms. "Even 'cons can keep a single partner once a while."

Frenzy stared. "Ya' don't get it do you? Bro, ya' picked the wrong 'con for this!" Frenzy shook his twin once more for emphasis. "Starscream's the exception to all the rules and norms! This shouldn't come as a shock!"

Rumble shook his head slowly. Why on earth was Frenzy freaking out so badly? "Why are you so fixed on this? Can't you be happy I like somebody?"

"Maybe if that somebody wasn't going to get you slagged!" Frenzy shouted.

Rumble balked. Where had that come from? Maybe his bro' was the one who'd blown a circuit somewhere. "What? Screamer's bad but he's not that bad. Most he's done is hit me with a null ray and even then it was something kinky-"

"Not Starscream." Frenzy glared. "Megatron you idiot!" The one person Soundwave couldn't protect them from if he was truly angry.

"Megatron? Why would he care?" Rumble nearly stuttered, optics flickering trying to think of how their leader got into this conversation. "Him and 'Screamer haven't hooked up in ages. That was like, back on Cybertron. 'Screamers hooked up with others since then and Megatron hasn't done 'nothing about them." Rumble lost his anger for a bit. "Why would he start up now?"

"You gotta' start listening to the rumor mill, Bro." Frenzy shook his head and started to get a bit mad at Soundwave for keeping Rumble out of the loop. "I know you've been locked up but surly you've at least heard that Megs has been in a nasty mood lately."

"Yeah, Boss was mentioning 'Screamer was getting pounded more than usual." And every time Rumble ignored the slight glee that leaked into Soundwave's voice. "What of it?"

"Ever stop to think why he's so angry at Starscream?" Frenzy added.

"When's he not?" Rumble shrugged, completely missing whatever it was his bro was trying to get across. Starscream was always doing something to get Megatron's first in his face. Was one of Rumble's biggest complaints he'd tell the Seeker straight to his face. "Just spell it out already."

"Here's a hint for ya,' Rumble." Frenzy gripped his fists together. "Thundercracker's latest mission for Megatron is to find out who Starscream's been fragging behind his back." Frenzy watched Rumble flinch. "Maybe you're right and Starscream does like ya' more than his other flings." Frenzy paused and watched what he was saying sink into Rumble's processor. "And maybe that's why Megatron took notice this time. Something's different and he doesn't like it." Frenzy lurched forward and grabbed his brother by the arms again. "I don't wanna' see ya' get slagged, Bro. Not over somethin' like this."

Rumble's spark froze somewhere in his chest. Wasn't he feeling on top of the world just a second ago? "But he and 'Screamer aren't," Rumble scrunched his face up and covered his mouth with this hand. He was pretty sure Frenzy was the only thing keeping him on his peds at the moment. "They haven't for years."

"But they did." Frenzy mumbled. "At one point they were an item and that could be enough. Maybe Megatron doesn't care about the occasional fling here or there 'cause it doesn't mean anything, but Starscream's only been serious with one or two mechs and Megs was one of them." Frenzy watched Rumble's face drop and was almost relieved it was finally had sunk in. Shame he had to hurt his brother in the process though. Frenzy wondered how Soundwave did this every day. "He's possessive, Bro. He doesn't give up his toys, even if he ain't usin' them no more."

"Screamer's not a toy." Rumble muttered quietly and felt his hand covering his chest place just over where his spark was surly flickering.

"I know." Frenzy bumped his twins' arm lightly with a fist. "I know, Bro."