AN: Sorry for the longest awaited chapter. I've been so busy with the holidays and that crazy block isn't a block...because I'm able to write other stories on my other computer with ease. I don't know what's going on with me.
My laptop's still out of order so Dani and Pierce, Noel and Prowl are on hold, but not indefinitely. Maybe I'll be able to do Noel and Prowl without copying whatever I had on my laptop. Dani and Pierce are another story. My other website is also on hold as well.

Happy Chanukah to my Jewish Friends. :)

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Regular POV

When Joyce woke up the next morning, she didn't know what would happen today. She knew Prowl would probably be very angry and 'glitch'. He didn't have a sense of humor and took things way too seriously. While lying there in the relative peace before the war, Joyce thought about Optimus Prime. He had been very mean to her and what better way than to pull a prank on him? She wasn't sure what to do except ask Sunstreaker and Sideswipe for help in her next plan.

An urge to go to the bathroom arose and she almost considered calling out to Bumblebee for help. Sitting up in bed, she looked around and noticed that she was in a small room with a bathroom. "Well, he didn't mention that part to me when I went to bed." Joyce muttered as she got out of bed. She must have been real tired after pulling that prank not to notice the bathroom.

The bathroom was small, but it'd suffice for a while. Small tile shower, no bathtub, small sink, and a regular sized toilet. At least it wasn't cramped though. It looked big enough to move around in so Joyce had no trouble getting ready for her day. Feeling much human again, she stepped out of the bathroom and looked at the door. Would it open? Joyce walked over to the large door and surprise, it opened. How did it know she was standing there? Joyce shrugged and walked out of her room.

"Bumblebee?" She called out. No answer and she heard metal footsteps walking around somewhere.

"Joyce?" Bumblebee's voice called out from behind her.

"Hey. Um, do you have some breakfast? I'm starving. I've been up for an hour at the most and-"

"Well, we'll have to see Wheeljack." Bumblebee said.

"That cheerful, or beyond cheerful robot?"

"Mech. He's always cheerful except around Ratchet."

Joyce frowned. "I don't want any of Wheeljack's taffy bars or whatever they were called. They tasted good yesterday, but I don't really feel like having them this morning."

"We don't have many choices for you."

"Well, can't you go out to the human grocery store and pick me up something to eat? I'll go with you and-"

"Joyce. If I were to take you with me, we'd both be in trouble."

"So? We're already in a heap of trouble." Another voice said, sounding like Sideswipe. He skated into the hallway, smiling and optics twinkling with unbridled pranking ideas. "Prowler just announced that he wants to see all of us for the lovely artwork we did." He added sarcastically.

"I bet he does." Joyce murmured. "What harm could it do to let me do some of my own shopping? I mean the two of you-"

"Are going to create a diversion-" Sideswipe said. "And you both break for it."

"What for?"

"Prowler always gets cranky when he's been pranked. He's liable to take it out on us more than you. It's a good idea to leave while you can."

Bumblebee nodded. "Well, I guess after a quick refuel, we can leave." Bumblebee said, heading to the kitchen and leaving Joyce alone with Sideswipe.

Now would be the perfect time to talk to Sideswipe. "Hey, Sideswipe? Can I ask you something?"

Sideswipe bent down and placed his hand down. "Sure. Climb on. Your neck's going to hurt if you don't stop that."

Joyce climbed on and sat down. Her legs dangled between his thumb and forefinger. "What is it?"

"I've been thinking about getting Optimus Prime, too."

"He's tricky. He seems to know when we're up to something."

"What if he's not in his office? What if I can distract him for an hour?"

Sideswipe pondered. "What do you have in mind?"

"I distract him with asking to ride in his 'awesome' form because I'm getting Metro-Megaplex-Fever. Like cabin fever."

"Metro-what?"

"Well. I guess it wouldn't hurt to tell you. You can keep a secret, right?"

"Sure I can."

"We humans have a name for this city because it reminds us of a movie called, 'Metropolis'."

"'Metropolis'?" Sideswipe asked, quickly making use of what had been the Internet before it was taken over by them. "So that's why you humans call our city that." Sideswipe said after a while. He hadn't known that the film was inspired by a 'what if this would happen?'. Instead of turning for the better, 'Metropolis' was a fictional Dystopia for its citizens bordering on totalitarian Governments, dehumanizing events, environmental problems, and cataclysmic decline of society. No wonder why the humans resorted to calling 'Megaplex' 'Metropolis'. "So, you humans think we're a Dystopia?"

Joyce looked at him and said, "Your leader is like that leader in 'Metropolis' who didn't care whether we died or not. You took over our world because you believed it was yours to begin with and these so-called leaders believed power was everything. Just because you've got the weapons to do whatever you please, doesn't mean we're not incapable of taking care of ourselves. We don't need help-"

"Without our help, you'd destroy yourselves with your own weapons." Sideswipe said.

"Who are you to decide how we live?" Joyce countered. She opened her mouth to speak when Bumblebee interrupted, "Joyce."

"It's true."

"We can hold this discussion later when we're out of 'Megaplex'. I've got something to tell you."

"Good. Can we go now?"

"Sure, but didn't you want to do something with Optimus Prime?"

Joyce thought about it and nodded. "Yes. Have you ever done anything to his office when he's not there?"

"Not much." Sideswipe answered. "I think we've got the perfect prank for him. We'll weld his chair in one position and his datapads welded to the ceiling. We'll even paint them before we weld."

"Or you can put some really good super glue in his chair and when he sits down, he won't be able to get up from his chair." Joyce suggested. "Then when he tries to get up, his chair will be stuck to his 'aft'."

"That's an even better prank." Sunstreaker said, emerging from his room, trying to keep from snickering. This human had some good ideas for pulling pranks. Perhaps if she felt like it, she could become the next prankster the Autocons had.

"Don't get yourselves into trouble." Bumblebee said, holding his servo out for Joyce. Sideswipe tilted his servo forward, Joyce sliding into Bumblebee's servo. "Be careful Sideswipe. Ratchet'll have your helm if you've been manhandling humans like that."

"She's fine. Aren't you Joyce?"

Joyce glared back at the Mech. That had hurt, but Joyce didn't say anything as both twins left. Bumblebee watched them leave before looking down at Joyce. "I'm going to curl my digits around so that no one will know you're there."

"How long?"

"Not long." Bumblebee said, curling his digits around Joyce and shielding her from view.

Bumblebee left the apartment and wandered down the hallway to the hangar. "Yo, Bee!" Someone said. "How's the little human?"

"She's still sleeping." Bumblebee lied.

"Oh. That's a shame. I was looking forward to the human because I've got something she'd like. I guess I could wake her up to show her."

"Wait." Bumblebee said, grasping Wheeljack's arm. "Knowing human females, it'd be best to not to disturb her sleep. She's been up most of the night with nightmares. I should know because of Mikaela Banes and Carly Spencer."

Wheeljack looked abashed then. "Perhaps later, then. Where you heading?"

"Out for a morning ride."

"Well, how about-"

"No." Bumblebee interrupted. "Stay here. Joyce might need you when she wakes up."

"Oh joy! I can't wait to show the little human what I've got for her!" Wheeljack said. "She'll just love it-"

Bumblebee left Wheeljack before he could come up with something else. Whoever spiked the Energon this morning, spiked his well. He wasn't usually this cheerful. Bumblebee made it out of the hangar before transforming into his alt-form. Depositing Joyce into his backseat, she lay there, shivering for some odd reason. He raced out, the acceleration throwing Joyce back into the seat. "Bumblebee! What's the deal?!" Joyce asked.

"Prowler!" Bumblebee said as if that solved everything. If Prowl figured out she was with him, it'd be worse for her.

Joyce froze in his seats. "I take it they didn't win."

"I guess not." Bumblebee said. "Hang tight, Joyce."

Bumblebee sped out of the Megaplex.

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