Hey everyone! Sorry for the delayed update, school has been a killerXD But here's chapter 3! Hope you all like it. I'm sorry if anyone thinks it's boring, but i really have a lot of plot and history to build up first. I'm trying to make it go quickly and fluidly though. Hope i've somewhat succeeded:) your reviews and suggestions would be highly appreciated:D This is an entirely flashback chapter. It's all happening around the same time periods. For this story a joor is a week, a megacycle is an hour, and an orn is a day( you all probably know this, but just to help any confusion). I actually made a sketch of what Opal looks like if anyone was interested. It's kind of hard to describe her face exactly, and i'm not sure how to make a link(I'm technologically challenged i know) but i'm blondecomicartist on deviantart if anyone wants to see it. Her colors are coming soon. I know what her colors are, i just haven't gotten the chance to add them to the pic. Please review! It keeps me going!

All Transformers characters belong to Hasbro and their other respected owners, but i own Opal:P

Flashback: First orn in the Academy

Newly chosen cadets crowded the barrack halls. They acted more like overgrown sparklings than future soldiers. One was running around with what seemed like some kind of high grade, and judging by his disoriented movements, he'd already had a lot of it. Two other big mechs were tossing armor parts that probably belonged to some unfortunate little cadet.

The Great Commander Prime would surely be shaking his head in utter disappointment if he was there. These were to be future Autobots? Most of them likely couldn't tell their processors from their afts. The Academy sure had their work cut out for them with this bunch, well her bunch. She was now a part of them, though she was trying to remain apart from them as much as possible.

Opal felt uneasy just walking through the masses of mech testosterone. She bowed her head nervously under all the judging stares and all the laughs of disbelief in her direction. According to the officer who informed her of her acceptance, not only was she the only femme training as a scout, but she was the only femme out of her entire military class.

Unfortunately, since there were rarely any femmes who aspired into the military, the administration did not create separated living situations. So she would have to share a room with mechs she didn't even know and probably would never want to know. She hoped that someone amongst the supervisors would recognize how unsafe the idea was, but figured they wouldn't give her any special treatment.

Bodies nudged and bumped against her as she continued to hastily make her way to her assigned room. She moved her head right and left, searching for the correct door number.

"Hey long time no see!" Opal cringed. She knew that haughty voice. Upon turning around, she came face to face with the same orange and black mech who gave her a hard time in the recruiting office. That incident was a few joors ago, but just seeing his pompous expression brought back hurtful, embarrassing memories. He gave her a mocking smirk and stretched the length of his body along an opened door next to him.

"Y-yeah," was all Opal said. If she hadn't felt uncomfortable before about her situation, she definitely did now. That mech would undoubtedly make sure her Academy life was a living hell. To avoid holding a conversation, Opal turned swiftly on her heel and began to walk a little more briskly down to her room.

"Hey where do you think you're going?" He called after her. The sounds of his footsteps matched her quick pace as he began to follow behind her. "So you got chosen after all huh? I guess that means we're family now right?" He chuckled and jogged up to her side.

Opal rolled her optics and looked in the other direction, "I wouldn't say we're family."

"Ouch, that's hurtful little femme, and I thought we'd be the best of buds." Opal tried to slip between two rowdy mechs in the middle of the hallway in hopes of getting farther away from the persistent one behind her, but to her dismay, he just wasn't leaving her alone.

Eventually Opal couldn't tolerate him anymore. She didn't care what he would say or what he would do; she needed to tell him to back off.

"Look! I know you don't like me. You're just that type of mech aren't you? Thinking you're better than everyone else. Thinking you're better than any femme. Like it or not I'm here, and you know what? I'm here to stay. Now I would appreciate it if you stopped calling me a little femme and let me find my bunk room." Other mechs paused to stare at the scene around them. Opal didn't care how many looks she was getting. Anger had overcome her to the point where remaining reserved was impossible. After she finished, she took a few glances around at the hall full of shocked and amused optics. Shyly directing her optics to the floor, Opal regained her introverted demeanor and continued on her way. She politely pushed through a few mechs who were still staring at her.

The orange and black cadet remained dumbfounded by her assertiveness. This was one femme that he had to put in her place.

Opal eventually found the right number, and taking a deep sigh of relief through her intakes, she hastily opened the door and slid inside.

The room was very small: there were no windows, and the chipping white paint on the walls gave it a very jail-like feeling. The only lighting came from a single row of rectangular lights on the metal ceiling. Opal felt sorry for any claustrophobic bots in her class, they would definitely have a hard time with these rooms. Upon further observation, Opal saw that there were four cots, which meant she would have three other roommates. A sunken feeling grew in her tanks at the thought. She just prayed her roommates had at least some spark of chivalry and kindness in them.

The boisterous movements and noises from the hall echoed through the door. Opal tried to concentrate as best as she could on unpacking her belongings around her chosen berth. She paused at the sudden knock on the door.

"Hey is anyone in here?" The voice sounded sweet and almost nervous. He was probably making sure he didn't disturb any other occupants. Opal liked his courteousness so far. The door hesitantly cracked open, and a bright yellow mech peered his head into the room. Opal smiled with a small giggle. He looked like a guilty little child. His large, blue optics locked with hers when he saw her sitting on her berth.

"Oh hi, I'm sorry to interrupt you, is this your room too?" He was the epitome of adorableness. Suddenly Opal felt very comfortable in his presence.

"Yeah it is. This is your room?" Opal smiled politely up at him. He opened the door further and walked slowly in.

He wasn't an overly large mech. In fact Opal was probably up to his chest standing up. But he did have an attractively armored body. His yellow paint job was decorated with black strips down a small part on his front chassis and on his back wing decals. His optics dilated as her focused on her.

"Yeah. I heard rumors about a femme joining our ranks, but I didn't know it was actually true. It's a privilege to meet you. The military could use more brave femmes like you." His kind words made her spark sore with happiness. Finally someone was willing to lift her up instead of tear her down. He squinted his optics as if he was smiling, though he had no identifiable mouth. His yellow chin came up to cover the lower half of his faceplates.

Opal wanted to run up and hug him out of pure excitement, but decided against it knowing it would probably frighten the poor mech. She was at a loss for words to say to him. He'd already proven wrong all her previous assumptions of a mech, and she just met him.

"Wow I haven't heard that before. You're the only one that I've met so far that's happy I'm here. I've already had doubts if I even belong here." Opal stared at her swinging feet dangling over the edge of the berth; then she looked up at the yellow cadet standing in front of her. He had a sad and confused expression, and knelt down to reach an eye level.

"Please don't go. You belong here. All of us, we're a family now. I can tell you now; it will be a true honor to fight alongside you." He nodded his head as he spoke. Opal shyly smiled; her faceplates felt like they were beginning to blush. Primus he was so wonderful.

Opal silently whispered, "thank you, I have no intention of leaving."

He squinted his optics again, "good, I'm so glad. My name's Bumblebee by the way." He held out his hand towards her. Opal slowly reached for it, and squeezed it softly.

"Hi Bumblebee, I'm Opal Blue, but I go by Opal."

"Opal? That's an interesting name." Bumblebee tilted his head in curiosity, "Any idea what it means?"

"Oh well, I think I remember my mother saying it stood for 'precious stone,' but it's not that exciting really." Opal shook her head, looking off to the side.

"I like it." Bumblebee stated. He then changed the subject, "so I guess we're expecting two more."

Opal stretched her arms, looking at the vacant cots, "yeah I guess, I'd be totally fine if it was just you and me in here though." They both chuckled.

"That'd be nice wouldn't it? Two beds each." He joked. Opal couldn't help but giggle. Maybe her first day at the Academy wouldn't be that bad after all.

The commotions continued outside, but for the next few megacycles, Opal and Bumblebee were simply content in sharing each other's company.

Autobot Base (same time):

"Hey Ratchet." There were numerous hard knocks against the med bay doors. "Ratch I know you're in there you stubborn aft of a medic, open up!"

Ratchet growled in aggravation and rolled his optics. Only one bot had such foul language, Ironhide.

"I'm busy what do you want?" Ratchet didn't let the doors unlock, as much as Ratchet wouldn't admit it, he enjoyed messing with the brawny security officer.

"You're always busy, come on let me in." Ironhide pleaded. Ratchet gave a relenting sigh, and activated the code to release the lock. Ironhide stumbled in; caught off guard by how fast the doors opened. He grunted at the medic and regained his footing. "Now was that so hard?"

"Don't make me throw a wrench at you. You should know more than anyone what that feels like." Ratchet threatened. Ironhide shrugged, and waved the threat off with his hand.

"I'm sorry Ratch but I need to find Prime. The Academy just sent the files for the newest cadets. He's supposed to stay in the loop with the students' progress so he can select who he wants for the army."

"I know that. This isn't the first class he's had to monitor. He's on patrol, should be back soon." Ratchet turned around to work on a computer console behind him. Ironhide didn't move from his spot.

"Is there something else you need?" Ratchet asked rather annoyed. He peered over his large, red shoulder.

"Now that ya mentioned it-" Ironhide began in a teasing tone, "I have this pain in my aft that hurts like a mother-"

"GOODBYE IRONHIDE!"

Opal and Bumblebee were becoming increasingly excited. The noises in the hall slowly died out, as cadets eventually made it into their rooms, and so far, no one else came into their room. They finished unpacking and now were just sharing stories of their past lives.

Bumblebee had lost his parents as a sparkling, and had been living in an orphanage until he was old enough to join the military. Opal did not remember much of her childhood, but most of it she was glad to forget. She mentioned her horribly abusive father, who spent most of his time drinking high grade and yelling at her and her mother. Her mother was a gentle femme, who always sang her to sleep at night. Sometimes Opal would hum the tunes she remembered from her mom, but only when she was alone. There were parts that they did not share with each other- not yet at least. Bumblebee never mentioned how his parents died, and Opal never told him about her life on the streets.

She did not want him to know that she ran away from home, or that she spent the last few years of her childhood roaming the Kaon alleys for energon and shelter. Maybe one day when their friendship was strengthened, she'd have the courage to reveal her dark, painful past, but that time was not now.

Their conversations ended when two large mechs abruptly came through the door. Opal's smile immediately faded, and Bumblebee looked at her with disappointed optics.

"So we got the femme huh?" One mech was sloppily chewing something, and he carelessly tossed his belongings on one of the empty berths. Opal jumped at the large noise the objects caused as they hit the wall behind the bed.

The other mech lazily plopped onto the last available cot, and rested his hands behind his head. "Well we're gonna have a good time with this." He winked one of his optics and smirked at Opal. She gave a scared look over to Bee, who suddenly became very protective.

"Just leave her alone guys, we're all here to be professional soldiers." Bumblebee stood up and gave a threatening look over to the two laying mechs.

"Aww what's wrong bud, you already have feelings for the little femme?" The one chewing sat up and walked over to Bee. "Come on just a little fun." He winked at Bee this time which sent Bee's bottled anger over the edge. He shoved the mech back and motioned forward to hit him again. Opal panicked and jumped in front of Bee to stop him.

"BEE WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Opal tried with all her strength to keep him restrained, and eventually Bee settled down. He looked guiltily down at her.

"Sorry." He whispered.

"It's okay, but you need to calm down." Opal patted his chestplates.

The mech growled in anger and went up to return a hit to Bee. Opal noticed his advancement and pushed Bee out of the way. The mech did not have time to react to Opal's quick action, and so his punch, originally intended for Bumblebee, instead made hard contact against Opal's face. There was a quick shriek of pain; then Opal fell backwards onto the floor. Tears were beginning to flow from her optics; the pain was horrible.

She did not want to show any weaknesses, so she tried to wipe away her wet face. The right side of her face was completely numb, and as she tried to dry her tears, she could feel her thick energon leaking down her face. The room was spinning, and Opal released anguished moans. She began to panic when she saw a puddle of her energon form under her head.

"OPAL!" Bumblebee was at her side immediately and slowly turned her over. There was a gash above and below her right optic. Undoubtedly there would be horrid bruising. "Hold on Op! I'll get a medic!"

Autobot Base:

A few megacycles following Ironhide's visit with Ratchet, the bright cerulean and green ground bridge portal crackled and whirred in the base's entrance, signaling Optimus Prime's awaited return.

Ironhide could hear his commander's heavy footsteps reverberate through the portal. When his massive body came into view, Ironhide slowly went up to meet with him.

"Prime I've been trying to get a hold of ya." Ironhide simply stated, handing him the file of datapads as he spoke.

"Yes, I have been outside of our communication range for some time. Rest assured dear friend, I was only on patrol." Optimus glanced down at the file then back to Ironhide. He raised a quizzical eyebrow. "What is this?"

"Oh the Academy sent it to ya. New cadets have been admitted. I haven't looked at it yet. Figured it was for your optics first."

"Ah yes, thank you Ironhide. You know in my absence, Ratchet helps read these, I'm sure he would be more than willing to assist you."

Ironhide rubbed the back of his helm in painful memory of the last wrench Ratchet just pelted him with. "Uhh yeah, he was…busy, I just thought I'd wait for ya this time." Optimus noticed Ironhide's wincing expression as he stroked his dented helm, and couldn't resist revealing a small smile. As much as Optimus revered Ratchet as the Autobot medic and as a long trusted friend, he was known to have a fierce temper.

"Very well, I will take care of these, thank you again old friend." Optimus smiled again, and with a nod, shifted his hips to turn towards his private quarters.

As he was beginning to leave, Ironhide stopped him midstep, "Actually, uh Prime do ya think I could look over 'em with ya. Just outta curiousity ya know?" Optimus turned the top half of his body to stare back at Ironhide; his huge armored chest was widely displayed, and his large shoulders were rolled elegantly back.

"Of course Ironhide, there is no harm in reviewing these with me." Ironhide grinned excitedly and walked to catch up with Optimus. They both then proceeded to the conference room, where they knew they could read without being disturbed.

When they had entered into the room, the large metal doors behind them closed automatically. Optimus placed the file on the long table in the middle of the room, and took a seat. With a wave of his large, metal hand, he signaled Ironhide to join him in the chair next to him. When Ironhide took his seat, Optimus began to examine the datapads in the file. He shifted a pile of them Ironhide's way, as he continued to look at one.

There was a long silence in the room, except for the occasional beep from the datapads, or the clanging of their metal arms bumping against the table. If Ironhide didn't know Optimus as well as he did, the quietness would probably start to feel a little awkward, but Optimus seemed to enjoy it. He definitely preferred the moments when he could work alone in peace.

Ironhide picked up another datapad, and was startled with what he found, "Hey Prime, check this cadet out." He lifted the pad in front of Optimus' face, who took it curiously to study it closer.

Optimus' optics widened slightly as he read the top part of the file, and his eyebrows rose in surprise. Ironhide smiled when he saw the ends of Optimus' mouth curve slowly up.

FILE NAME: BLUE, OPAL

GENDER: FEMME

PROGRAM: Scout training

Optimus read through the rest of the cadet's statistics. Her average height was larger than most femmes: about 18 feet tall. That was just above Optimus' hip; A perfect size for both stealth and power. She apparently had medical experience as well.

'Well Ratchet might enjoy that.' Optimus thought. He was extremely interested, even if he only had a datapad to go by.

"I've checked through all these others. I think she's the only femme, how about that?" Ironhide chuckled.

There were hardly any femmes who joined into the military. Most became nurses, or stayed neutral in the Civil War. In fact the only femmes who were in Optimus' army currently were Chromia and Arcee. All the Autobots enjoyed their company and playful wit. Optimus especially valued them, not only for their dangerously skilled agility, but also for their love and dedication to the Autobot cause. Regardless of their size or body type, they were invaluable in every way.

When he finished Cadet Opal's file, he grew very excited. "And you said she was the only femme?"

Ironhide shifted through the already examined datapads, "Yeah unless the Academy didn't give us every file."

Optimus nodded and stared back down at Opal's information. It has been a long time since another femme has aspired to join his army. He looked forward to monitoring this new class. He looked forward to meeting Opal Blue.

Next chapter coming soon! Hope you like the story! It gets better i promise:) Reviews are highly appreciated:D