#OF COURSE COUNCIL COULD DO NOTHING THEY HAD TO SEPARATE IT AND HOW DID RATCHET GOT IT

[random-cockroach]

MERCY ME

I SHOULD FINALLY GET SUSPICIOUS ABOUT EVERY WORD YOU PUT IN

I MEAN "PRIMUS SEES WHAT I SAY HE SEES" SOUNDED FOR ME LIKE A ONE BIG SPITE ABOUT HIM BEING AN ATHEIST AND HERE WE GO

I WILL BITE YOU

Monster hunter au part 10

Head in hands. Ratchet can't see, but carries the lantern anyway because it's not for him, it's for everyone else. He can't see, so when he shines it towards the mechs approaching him, this is for them to see better in the dark forest. He can't see, so he makes sure everyone who might need him can see him. It was never about him, it was about what he does for others.

Rung here actually knows he's God, but can't perform divine miracles. Although he can and does know things he's not supposed to know. Also, ironically, he knows everything Ratchet did after he blinded himself because Ratchet was carrying his spark around with him the whole time. So the phrase "Primus sees what I say he sees" was kind of prophetic haha

Previous

[transformers-valiant-keepers]

I put so much investment into Roxie and Dadlock lately (I’m sorry) and it's all I ever think about them bc who doesn't love found family tropes. For TFTN, I took in key elements of characters, backstory and lores from IDW and incorporated the ideas into my own for TFTN.

I’ve been listening to Lasting Impression by Silent Descent when writing up Dadlock’s life (which probably fitting).

Trigger warnings for mentions of discrimination, drug use, implied dubcon, medic, shadowplay / mnemosurgery(?), child abuse, depression, implied suicide, ptsd trauma(?). 

I’ll put all of this under readmore

I've been thinking about how much similarities between Roxie and Drift in having to hide certain things about themselves from the society--with Roxie being deaf who has to constantly cover her hearing aids with her long hair, and Drift was a forged triple changer. 

Triple changers cybertronians bear the brunt of discriminations for being so different and the Functionalist Council saw them as a threat to Cybertron's future and the caste systems. Techno-organics also shared the similar reaction for being much different from others and were turned away by Functionalist medics.

It was pretty telling what Drift had gone through in his life… Before Roxie was constructed with his spark, before the Greatsword connected to his spark while unaware of the intentional true purpose in store for him and Roxie later on, and before Dai Atlas took him in to the Samurai clan. 

He did not start off as a good life living on the streets and homeless on Rodion. He was an independent, mostly kept to himself, barely opening up to anyone. He endured survival instincts living on the streets, and learnt self-defence battle protocols to defend himself when necessarily. 

Obtaining Energon for refuel wasn’t easy. He went through a dark place of sleeping rough, hooked on circuit boosters to spare the pain and selling himself for Energon through sexual activities. It wasn’t his choice nor how many times had he lost count when he came close to almost-deactivation from certain outcomes.

He never forgot the time he visited the medibay clinic to be patched up and to feel safe. That was the first time he saw Ratchet.

It was not the vivid life Drift wanted to remember for discussion. He spared the dark details of his early life and post-Shadowplay-to-Autobot’s assassin era from Roxie, because it’s not something he wanted to subject her to that exposure, even for one so young and carefree who was not exposed to the Functionalist era. He only shared his life after Dai Atlas approached and took him in, which changed his life completely, to his life amongst the Samurai clans. Dai Atlas was the closest thing he would call to a Sire. He became familiar with the likes of Cyclonus and Axe.

Axe and Cyclonus became his best friends who later became his Amica Endurae. Axe does not understand the life Drift went through--he had experienced living rough--but he was the only person he could trust enough to vent to. Cyclonus, on the other hand, understood what he went through and offered her shoulder for him to vent.

Crystal City was the safest place it had been in so long for Drift, not counting the fact a particular medical clinic had been relatively safe away from the backend alleys. Everything was good afterwards, he became a trained swordmech. It takes some adjustment for him to get used to sleeping in an actual berth provided for his own amongst other things--including Energon for refuel and to live. He did meet Ratchet, despite them having met long before when Drift lived on the rough streets.

Drift received upgrades to his frame, putting the past behind him to start anew under Dai Atlas’ mentorship, and touching the Greatsword had given him a second chance to move on from his past (obvious to the fact that the Greatsword had chosen him for a reason, or what fate had in store for him).

Becoming a Samurai was the best life-changer for him.

The Functionalists Council had arranged for Drift to be taken and captured (all the while, Pharma had secretly played a part in it) and was taken straight to the Institute where he was subjected to Shadowplay against his will.

Many years later, he eventually discovered Roxie’s existence… and somehow learnt she is his Kindred. And that instinct promptly activated his paternal Sire Coding within both his and Deadlock alter-ego’s programming. 

Life for Drift was royalty fucked up after Shadowplay had changed him into a deadly, fearless assassin with Emperor Nemesis as his handler (this was revealed in Prologue Part One). He was not known as Drift, he became Deadlock--likely a case of an alter-ego formed as the result from his traumas. Before all that discovery, he met Windblade and Perceptor who became two important figures in his life and opened up his spark. As a reminisce of his early days forcing to hide the fact he’s a triple changer, Windblade had to hide her cityspeaker ability whereas Perceptor had to hide his outlier ability and refrained himself from reading others’ thoughts. They hid this from the Functionalists and found themselves form a connetion with Drift after he saved them from unforseen situations. Drift knows what it’s like to hide and pretend, and sworn to sercery to keep both Windblade and Perceptor safe. He fell in love with Windblade and Perceptor--with an emotional deep connection with the young cityspeaker and scientist--but he never got to tell them both after they got separated apart from each others.

Roxie was constructed cold with her spark being a donor from Drift’s, thus forming a strong bond between the two--such bond between a Sire and a Kindred are considered rare in some cases. This is known as Cognatio Endurae.

Though, Roxie… didn’t have a good start after being subconsciously locked away in a stasis pod by the Emperor’s doings. The sad thing is? Drift does not know whether she was physically abused constantly through the bond whenever he was resistant against being controlled, or forced to obey commands, or goes against authority orders--and the thought alone had really broken him.

He tried to save her the first time but was caught out and forced to watch in horror as The Emperor abused Roxie in front of his optics--which played into the triggers whenever he saw Roxie was harmed and he shifted into his Deadlock persona way later on. Yes, Drift and Deadlock alter ego both genuinely care for Roxie. 

Techno-organics were not well-known to Cybertronians until the 22nd or 23rd Century, but one with an organic human DNA is considered rare. Now for Roxie, being a techno-organic and all… it wasn't easy to bring her up. Drift is new to parenting and can be a worrywart over her. His past actually helped him to adapt and care for her--he eventually grows into a better person than he used to be. 

Though, what Drift never prepared for… was Roxie diagnosed with severe hearing loss, aka Deaf / Hearing Impaired, in both audial receptors. He went as far to start his research and how to help her. He is patient and relied on the bond to communicate with her, he taught her to lipread--because he had little knowledge of sign languages. Once they get their servos on functioning Hearing Aids for her, she can hear their voices. It wasn't the best or helpful to her, Drift was relieved she was responsive to his voice like a sense of familiarity to her.

Due to the immense strong bond and prioritising Roxie first before himself, Drift turned off his pain sensors to take in the burdens and sensed her emotions and pains.

But her upbringing had its moments. Roxie hated hearing tests. It made her extremely stressed over the noise levels and the lowest ringing noises were the worst of all. She was a victim to disability discrimination by society, which she was completely shunned out and struggled to make any friends. It did hurt her and her hearing wasn't perfect that the kids relentlessly teased her for her difficulties--the aftermath forced her to cover ears and hearing aids with her long hair to hide her disability. 

She was dejected and left out, unsure whether to question where she would fit in in this universe. Drift sensed this coming through the bond and tried his best to comfort her as a father wanting to understand her. Roxie’s struggles with deafness had impacted on her mental health and she went through a dark place succumbing to negative voices and far too anxious to socialise with anyone.

She would cry herself to sleep with a wish how badly she wanted to hear, and bottled all of her emotions and issues to herself. She found it completely hard to talk or open up about her feelings--even to Drift and Axe. Such intrusive thoughts prone her despair into an emotional crying mess leading to Drift exposed his spark chamber to guide and soothed Roxie out of an anxiety attack keeping her focus onto his calming, pulsing spark and enfolded within his EM field filled with nothing more than a comforting familial love.

Suffice to say, Drift had coaxed gently, without pressuring her, got her to open up to him and listened to her confide in him. One time, she accidentally slammed Drift’s doorwing, which was very sensitive, when her emotions got the best of her during an outburst and of course, Roxie felt completely bad afterwards.

Meeting new people was difficult for her, much less making new friends without the unnecessary attention from adolescent organic males. Due to the society looking down on disabled people, Roxie doesn’t want to let anyone in, something that was passed on from her Sire, without putting her guarded wall down and succumbing to heartaches. She stayed--remained--close to Drift and Wing. She trusts them and they’re the only ones she relied heavily on for their support and speak on her behalf.

Beyond that, there were complications on their welfare over the years hiding on Earth, especially when Roxie’s health was concerned. Her height growth was stunted and slowed throughout her activated age. (At eighteen activated age as example, she stood at 5ft 4in). However, there’s major issues Drift and Axe had to deal with rationalizing Energon usage after the first time they watched Roxie overcome with extreme fatigue from low Energon. They were alerted by this despite the three of them living pretty rough to hide out on Hedonia without detecting the Autobots--they moved from one hideout to another, erasing their presence from their previous accommodations. Moving to a new place made Roxie unsettled the first few nights.

Drift’s early life resurfaced given the living arrangements on Hedonia, he was willingly to sacrifice his Energon for Roxie and replenish her energy and to avoid her body going into stasis shock. He had considered an Energon transfer reserved for emergencies only just for Roxie alone, and the process was risky that Axe had berated him for it on a dangerously low Energon withdrawal. Axe could understand due to Energon being scarce and trying to save as much credits that he had gone further to search and provide fuels for the three of them to survive.

Had they lived on Cybertron, specifically in the roughest places, Drift would’ve given away a full Energon to Roxie and spared little usage for himself to live through another day.

"A good Sire would do anything for their Kindred" Drift told Axe. And the truth is, Roxie was a beacon of light to Drift through the darker aspects of his life, even with being there for her through her low days.

That's as far I've written from my head about these two and I'm having many feelings over these two.

[olivia200312]

Reunited~ RID2015! Optimus x Cybertronian! Reader

Plot: Y/N was on a mission with Drift but when she came back, there was a big surprise for her. Optimus came back after he flew off to Cybertron.

Warning: I NEVER saw RID2015 so there will be mistakes found! I apologise!

Head area: Brain: Processor / Brain Module Head: Helm Face: Face plate Ears: Audio receptors / Receptor Orifice / Audials Nose: Enstril / Olfactory Sensor Eye brow: Optical Ridge Eyes: Optics Mouth: Intake Lips: Dermas Teeth: Denta/Dentas Tongue: Glossa

Chest area: Chest: Chassis / Thoraxal Cavity Back: Hexa-Lateral Scapula Spine: Bipedalism cord / Back Strut

Chest and back armour: Chest plate Back plate Mid-section plating Neck guard Side plating

Arm area: Arms: Arms / Restarlueus Forearms: Bitarlueus Hands: Servos Fingers: Digits

Arm armour: Gantlets Shoulder pads Arm guard

Lower area:

Pelvis: Pelvis Butt: Aft / Skid-Plate Thighs: Tibulen Calves: Cadulen Feet: Pedes - the high heel bits are called Struts or Heel Struts.

Lower armour: Skirt plates Aft plate / Skid plate Thigh guard Ankle guard

General/Internal components: Muscles: Cables / Pistons - It depends on the area in question. Veins: Fual lines Stomach: Tanks Lungs: Vents - used to stop the con/bot from over heating. Heart: Spark Tattoos: D-con/A-bot Insignias and the lark T-Cog: The thing that allows all Cybertronians to transform, be that their arms or their whole body.

Bonus:

Penis: Spike

Vagina: Valve

Body: Frame

Note: the pic goes to the owner!

-----------------------------

Y/N was a young beautiful femme that was an Autobot warrior. She was a member of The Bee Team. Before she arrivied in planet Earth, she was fought along in the civil war that Megatron caused. She fought by Optimus' side and always protected him. She knew him ever since they both were sparklings.

Bumblebee or just Bee was obivously the leader of the team. He once looked completely different, but then he started to look cooler and powerful. Don't get it wrong. He was a cute scout that couldn't speak but only let out sounds. Optimus was even a mentor of Bumblebee so the scout learned a lot from him. Optimus was a very smart Prime. He knew strong and smart words.

Anyway, when Bee killed Megatron, Optimus made Bumblebee warrior before he went on a journey with Wheeljack to retrieve the AllSpark, the source of Cybertronian life only to return to a planet attacked by Unicron and his minions, though Optimus was able to defeat the chaos bringer once and for all by trapping him, the AllSpark and the Matrix...

Y/N missed Optimus a lot. I mean, who doesn't? He was a strong and smart leader. He'll do anything to protect the ones he loved. Especially Y/N. She missed the Prime already when she didn't see him anymore when he flew off with Wheeljack. She was even in love with him! But what she didn't know was that the Prime was deeply in love with her. He admired her beauty and personlity.

Y/N joined The Bee Team and Bumblebee was of course the leader. There were new Autobots too. There were: Sideswipe, Strongarm, Grimlock, Drift, Slipstream, Jetstorm and Fixit. Let me tell you a bit about them.

Sideswipe was the rebellious "bad boy" of the Bee Team who transforms into a red street racing-ready sports car and also forms the left arm of Ultra Bee. Sideswipe was first seen playing around at Kaon Plaza before being apprehended by Strongarm.

Strongarm was a cadet in the Cybertronian Elite Guard and Bumblebee's subordinate who transforms into a blue and white police-modified pickup truck and also forms the right arm of Ultra Bee. She often worries about abiding by the law and following protocol which in certain cases jeopardizes the mission.

Grimlock was a Dinobot serving as the team's muscle who transforms into a mechanical and also forms the legs of Ultra Bee, much to his disappointment. Originally being recruited as a Decepticon for committing , he ended up imprisoned on the Alchemor, he later becomes an Autobot after gaining the team's trust, and eventually gains Autobot symbols in place of his Decepticon logos following "True Colors".

Drift was formerly a Decepticon known as Deadlock, Drift is an Autobot who transforms into an orange samurai-like car resembling a cross between a Bugatti Veyron  and a Gumpert Apollo  and also forms the sword of Ultra Bee. In "Hunting Season", he came to Earth to collect the bounty placed on Bumblebee. He later joins the team to study under Bumblebee in "One of Our Mini-Cons is Missing".

Slipstream and Jetstorm were Drift's Mini-Con students who can both transform into vehicles that can attach themselves onto Drift's wrists. Both of them were originally ex-criminals that were the students of Shadow Raker before being taken in by Drift.

Fixit  was a hyperactive yet faulty-wired who originally served as the steward and guard of the Alchemor and later serves as the Autobots' caretaker and medic. He also provides the identification of the escaped Decepticons and reports their location.

So as you can see, there were some of them that were special. There's a Dinobot in the team, an Autobot that was once a Decepticon, etc.

Y/N liked almost all of them, even though some of them were aftholes and jerks.

But did you know that there was also a team named All-Stars? There are Autobots that you were pretty familiar with. There were: Optimus Prime, Jazz, Windblade, Ratchet, Undertone and Bulkhead.

Optimus Prime was originally thought to have died after the events of Transformers Prime Beast Hunters: Predacons Rising , he was resurrected by the Primes of the past to help stop their rogue brother Megatronus, whose evil would result in the destruction of both Earth and Cybertron.

Jazz was a friend of Bumblebee and Sideswipe's idol who transforms into a race car. In "Can You Dig It?", he came to Earth after receiving the distress signal from the Alchemor after it crashed and was sent there by the Autobot High Council.

Windblade was  a charming yet somewhat arrogant female Autobot who transforms into a red and black VTOL jet, making her the only Autobot in the series with a vehicle form capable of flight.

Ratchet was a grumpy veteran Autobot medic and a long-time friend of Optimus Prime who transforms into a white and red ambulance resembling a Ford E-350. He was sent by the new Autobot High Council to hunt down the war criminals where he encounters Bumblebee's group in "Decepticon Island, Pt. 1".

Undertone was a silent Mini-Con partnered with Ratchet who transforms into a buzzsaw vehicle in the show. In the toyline, he is a Cyclone Mini-Con who turns into a sphere.

Bulkhead was an Autobot Wrecker and one of Bumblebee's old teammates who transforms into a green SUV resembling a Lamborghini LM002.

It was of course nice and fun to see the familiar Autobots back from the past. But it looks like some of them decided to start a different chapter in their lives. Like for exaplemples: The team wasn't called Team Prime anymore ever since Optimus left with Wheeljack on their journey to complete an important mission. Bumblebee made his own group called The Bee Team and Y/N decided to join him. Bee was secretly happy that one of his friends decided to join him, even though he had new teammates and was the leader. Good that he learned how to have good leadership from Optimus. It was strange in the beginning to get separated from your old teammates when you were in Team Prime at the time. It was especially weird for Bee and Y/N. Bee missed his human friend Raf. He was the only one that could understand him when he lost his voicebox at the time. Y/N was in fact Smokescreen's best friend. Even though he was rookie, he was fun and funny. They only saw each other as siblings and nothing more, which it made Optimus secretly happy. Sadly, Smokescreen didn't appear anymore when the Team Prime separated and it made Y/N sad. She had to be strong and move on to protect Earth and humans.

There were of course other Autobots but you can check it out for yourself.

Anyway, Y/N was now with Drift in the Energon Mine. Fixit picked up a signal that there was Energon and he needed it for projects that he was working on. Bee commanded Y/N and Drift go together.

"Do you see any Energon?" Y/N asked while walking next to him.

"No," Drift said.

They continued to walk, looking for Energon. After almost an hour passed by, Drift found it and it made Y/N happy. They transformed into their vehicles forms and drove back to the base. Y/N was a fast F/C Lamborghini. Y/N remembered when she was on a mission with others, Optimus would lead when all of them were in their vehicles forms. It was Team Prime at the time. Agent Fowler was in Optimus' truck, honking at an old white car infront of Optimus. Y/N, Bee and Bulkhead were following Optimus. It was good old times, but sadly, good times had to end.

When Y/N and Drift arrived in the base, they both transformed. Denny and Russel came up to them. Oh yeah, did I ever told you that Denny and Russel know about Autobots existince? Luckily, they decided to keep it a secret.

"Did you get the Energon?" Russel asked.

Drift and Y/N nodded together and Drift pulled the Energon out. "Here." He then gave the Energon to Russel.

Russel smiled. "Thanks!" He then ran off to Fixit and Denny followed.

Russel was Denny's son by the way.

Bee walked up to Drift and Y/N with a smile. "Good job both of you. You may leave now." He then walked off.

Drift nodded at Y/N as a goodbye and left. He went probably to deal with his students that can be troublemakers.

Y/N then went to her berthroom. Once she entered, she closed the door behind her. She felt sad. She missed her leader. Her Prime. She hoped for a long time that he would return. She even had a pic frame of herself and Optimus on top of her nightstand. Once she looked at the pic frame, she felt tears build up in her beautiful E/C optics. "Where are you?"

Then, out of nowhere, she felt a servo on her shoulderplate. Thinking that it was Bee, she responded: "What is it, Bee?" She didn't turned around to see.

Then there was the familiar chuckle. "I'm not Bee."

That caught Y/N's attention and she turned around to see... Optimus Prime himself! She was so shocked. "O-Optimus..." She was lost.

Optimus showed his usual gentle soft smile. "Hello, Y/N."

Y/N's tears rolled down and tackled Optimus in a hug. The Prime chuckled and hugged her back close. He missed her a lot.

Y/N couldn't hold herself. She grabbed Optimus' face plate and smashed her dermas against his. She was kissing him roughly and with passion. She could feel that the Prime was shocked but kissed her back. They were kissing roughly and deep passion, because they missed each other a lot. Finally they can be together again.

I hope you all enjoyed this one shot! I apologise for mistakes! Requests are open!

Optimus Prime versions I accept: TFP, Bayverse and RID2015

Reader versions I accept: hybrid, human and Cybertronian.

[roseymoseyberry]

Arrangement (2/?)

And here we go with chapter 2, also known as “thank fucking god the meeting is finally wrapped up and look Megatron is finally back I promise he’s a significant character in this fic”

Title: Arrangement

Series: Transformers: Prime, post Predaking Rising. More or less ignores everything about RID15, and facts from the rest of the Aligned verse will be cherry-picked as I see fit

Pairing: MegaBee aka BumbleTron aka Bumblebee/Megatron

Warnings: Politics, mention of dysfunctional forced relationships, and mentions of past violence/murder. But mostly a lot of politics.

Fic Summary:

“It’s not my deal. I’m just the glitch who agreed to take the job.”

The balance of peace in post-war Iacon is precarious enough when a former warlord returns unannounced from his exile. Without a war to fight in or a leader to follow, a scout turned warrior turned uneasy politician decides to irreparably tie their lives together for the sake of maintaining that peace.

And maybe it won’t turn out to be the worst decision Bumblebee’s ever made.

Chapter Summary:

“Ratchet recalls upper caste politics,” Soundwave stated. “Common event: mecha necessitating alliance despite personal distrust or past disagreements. Common solution?”

The medic sneered and replied, “Political spark bonding.”

|Prologue|Chapter 1|

"Autobots, you need to pull yourselves together."

"Pull ourselves together? How could we? How could you?!" Ratchet hissed as he threw his arm outward. "That's Optimus he was talking about in there!"

"I'm well aware." Ultra Magnus rubbed at his temples, his ventilations even, almost too even. Bumblebee wondered if the commander was using it as a coping mechanism. "However, this situation is far too important to allow ourselves to reveal any emotional vulnerability. Tensions are high, and if we wish to garner the support of Metalhawk, Discbrake, and Watts, we must prove ourselves to be more reasonable about this topic than the Decepticon councilmecha."

Arcee was frowning, her arms across his chest, and there were green paint transfers around her shoulders and helm still from where Discbrake had held her. Her cooling fans whirled as she finally relented, "I hate to say it, but he's right."

"Arcee!" Ratchet said, appalled. "Not you too."

"You know I never stopped wanting to rip Starscream’s smug helm from his frame, but that doesn't mean Ultra Magnus isn't right."

"But at this point, there will be no trial, no punishment -- we're already losing. At this rate, Megatron is going to be a free mech."

"Not if we can somehow overcome this outburst and make it clear we are better suited to keep Megatron under house arrest," Ultra Magnus stated.

That gave the other Bots pause.

"I'll admit, having my servos on him is an appealing thought," Ratchet murmured, said servos twitching at his sides.

"We will not be abusing that power," Ultra Magnus insisted, his tone final. "To even think that way will make us obvious and the fact of the matter is even if he is entrusted to us, I have no doubt that we will have to allow for some oversight to make sure we don't do just that."

"Yeah, yeah." Ratchet waved his servo dismissively.

“Where would we even keep him?" Arcee asked.

"Bulkhead said the construction on that new building is almost done," Bumblebee said. "It'll be one of the first to have apartments with a berthroom that’s separate from the living space. Maybe we ask for Megatron to stay here until it's ready and then set him up in there and take turns watching him? It's pretty far into our territory anyway so even if he made an escape, he'd just find himself surrounded by angry Autobots."

"It’s not a territory,” Ultra Magnus corrected again. “And while it doesn't seem like a plan that will last, it will do for the time being." Ultra Magnus scrubbed his servo down his face and huffed. "That is, if we can keep our composure."

Arcee made a motion as if welding her mouth shut and Bumblebee shrugged but nodded.

Ratchet, however, pressed his lips together in a tight line as his optics cycled, and Ultra Magnus simply waited for his response. Finally, with a heavy ventilation, Ratchet muttered, “I’ll keep my mouth shut.”

"I appreciate it. I know this has been difficult for us all, and will continue to be," Ultra Magnus said, his frown sincere. His servos moved to clasp behind his back and he stood up straight. "However, we must stay focused and vigilant if we are to come out of this meeting knowing that Megatron will not be allowed to become a threat. Understood?”

Bumblebee nodded resolutely, and didn’t need to look at the other two to know they had done the same.

"So we're in agreement that the Decepticon representatives are not the ideal candidates for hosting Megatron?" Ultra Magnus said, holding up an open servo as he posed the question to the Neutrals. It only took a glance out of the corner of his optic for Bumblebee to see a small curl to Ratchet's mouth.

Still though, the other Autobots kept their silence as they waited. Arcee and Ratchet had stayed true to their word, only commenting when asked a question, but otherwise leaving Ultra Magnus to work with the Neutrals to suss out Starscream's proposition.

And to their luck, they weren't the only ones who had returned to the room wary of leaving Megatron with the Decepticons. Watts had almost immediately jumped back into the fray, discussing the sociological reasons why even with the two year gap, she doubted that being placed in proximity with the mech who had acted as their leader for millennia wouldn't affect them. Starscream pointing out that his loyalties to Megatron had always been uneasy at best did not help his position though.

"Which is why even if you don't fall back under his thumb again, we figure the other most likely result is a dead Megatron and that gets messy fast," Discbrake had replied with far too much ease for someone discussing political assassination.

But it spoke volumes to what all the others had thought.

And Starscream's wings flared only once before settling back, his mouth surprisingly staying shut about that statement.

Bumblebee could only guess at what Soundwave had told his fellow Cons to keep them under control. He suspected it might have been pretty similar to Ultra Magnus's speech.

The fear of the Decepticons falling under Megatron's command again was far too solid for the trio to argue against. The likelihood of revenge followed close behind too, leaving any arguments insisting they would not fall prey to the former leader's charisma all over again to inadvertently support the possibility of assassination instead.

So it wasn’t surprising when Metalhawk nodded.

But it did ease the vice grip that Bumblebee felt around his spark.

"I do not believe they would be a good host. Watts?"

"Agreed."

"Discbrake?"

"That's a group I don't want to see reunited, so yeah. Agreed."

"Then that's decided." Metalhawk folded his digits together as he watched the council for a reaction. Bumblebee kept his expression lax, though his pede lightly bounced under the table. Whatever the mech saw from his fellow Autobots seemed to appease him, for Metalhawk next turned to the Decepticons.

Soundwave of course revealed nothing, his visor still shifting to add data as it streamed in. And Shockwave was already difficult to read since he lacked typical cybertronian facial features.

Starscream was usually the way that Bumblebee deciphered the emotional stance of their trio. And, to his growing dread, the seeker appeared unsurprised and resigned.

A calm Starscream was a terrible sign.

But still, the Autobots waited for Ultra Magnus's lead. The Decepticons had been thwarted, but that didn't mean that victory would be easily gained.

"May I then ask how the council feels about house arrest as an option, assuming we did find a viable host?"

That got a raised optic ridge from Starscream.

"Do you truly believe we'll let you have him?"

"That is not what I asked," Ultra Magnus insisted. "I imagine that the discussion of who will host Megatron will be a long one, but the discussion that must be had before that is whether we believe house arrest to be a plan of action we wish to go down at all. Discussing who should host is pointless if we are not all agreed that house arrest is an option."

"Would house arrest appease the Autobots?" Discbrake was staring at Arcee and then Ratchet. The two glanced at each other and then at Ultra Magnus, but when the largest mech started to reply, Discbrake cut him off quickly. "I'm not asking you, Mag. I want to know what the rest of your gang thinks."

That actually had Ultra Magnus bristling, but he quelled his plating almost immediately. However, the stern look in his optics spoke volumes.

Arcee looked at Bumblebee first, and he was almost embarrassed as he lifted his servos and said, "I'm not going first."

That left Ratchet rolling his optics and before Arcee could silently ask him, the medic said, "Fine, fine, let’s just get this over with. I know my opinion doesn't hold official weight, but the fact that I was allowed at all implies that it's at least tolerated, so here it is." He uncrossed his arms and settled his elbows on the table, his servos moving as he spoke. "No, I don't like it. I think it's far more than Megatron deserves. But the fact of the matter is that this council has already gone over what I would want if it were just my decision and discarded those options for the sake of this city." His vents heaved a heavy ex-vent. "And as much as it pains me to admit, that's why I passed on a position on this council. I know I'm old and bitter, and the future of our race deserves better than that. And as much as other citizens of Iacon will share my great distaste for Megatron only receiving house arrest, I imagine they will also come to accept it knowing that it was a decision made for their benefit."

Bumblebee nearly choked on an ex-vent and even Arcee's optics were wide and bright with surprise.

Discbrake shrugged, but it was relaxed. She actually looked appeased, and down the line Watts nodded. "That's fair. What about you, Blue?"

Arcee went stiff as all optics turned to her. She shot Bumblebee a look before saying, "I don't like it either, but I also don't want to let Megatron scrap all the progress we've made. I'm willing to support house arrest as long as he's placed in the right servos."

“And whose servos would those be?” Starscream drawled as he drummed his claw tips across the table surface. Arcee shot him a dark look.

Bumblebee cut that argument off at the start, interrupting, “I don’t think anybody I know would be happy about it. Lot of mecha have wanted him dead since even before the war, so it won’t be easy. But for better or worse, they’ve trusted us enough to make decisions like this, so that has to mean something, right?”

That got a rare smile from Metalhawk. “Very true,” he said as he glanced at Discbrake and then to Watts. With a nod from both, he continued, “Then I would motion for this council to discuss candidates for hosting.”

Bumblebee started to wonder if the idea had come up because they were all so deliriously exhausted from the meeting dragging on and on.

The conversation had started with the Autobots as a host, though not because of any choice Ultra Magnus had in the matter. He was insistent that they were not looking to take the position, but would and do so honorably if they were needed. Bumblebee would have considered teasing Ultra Magnus afterwards about playing hard to get if he thought the former lieutenant understood the usual meaning of the phrase, but the fact still stood that that's exactly what Ultra Magnus was trying to pull off.

However, Starscream was having none of it. He has more than happy to return the earlier favor of pointing out every time he had attempted to assassinate his former master, interrupting now and again to describe the numerous attempts the Autobots had made themselves. It was when Ultra Magnus started to describe some precautions they could take that Starscream pointedly stared at Bumblebee and stated, "If I cannot be trusted for trying to kill the lunatic, then I cannot see how the mech who succeeded can be."

Bumblebee gave his companions a chagrined look as the Neutrals agreed.

However, there wasn't much footing to be had with having a neutral host either. Oh, there were suggestions, but they were relatively few once both Arcee and Starscream pointed out that Megatron would need to be watched by someone who could stand a chance in a fight with him. That left the list of Neutrals pitifully short, and even those who remained were either more similar to guards on their various nomadic ships or they had been in war, but it had been the one before the civil war, meaning it had been millennia upon millennia since they had been in active combat.

Which cycled back towards reconsidering Cons and Bots, and recycled the arguments against them.

And that's when Soundwave finally spoke.

“Observation: no candidates suitable for house arrest as currently described. Easily obtained trait: warrior. However, candidates who meet that trait: Decepticons and Autobots. Difficulty found in identifying a host in candidate pool who meets two more necessary traits.” Soundwave’s visor brightened to show the number one. “Candidate does not support Megatron, will keep him imprisoned and powerless.” The visor shifted to the number two. “Candidate does not wish to harm or offline Megatron, will keep him healthy and safe from adversaries.”

“So we’re basically fragged from the start,” Discbrake grumbled.

However, Soundwave shook his helm once.

“Traits do not occur naturally together. However: in warrior candidate with trait one, trait two can be implanted.”

Even Starscream looked appalled though, unsurprisingly, for the wrong reason as he snapped at his companion, “Have you finally glitched? You want to hand him over to an Autobot?!”

“Even if it were not unethical,” Shockwave added, the glyph sounding wrong from his voicebox, “there has never been success in the precise level of reprogramming you are suggesting. Your suggestion is illogical.”

“And it’s sick,” Arcee hissed, and even from where he sat, Bumblebee could hear the way her battle systems whirred, trying to online themselves. “I guess you’ve never really changed, have you?”

Bumblebee, however, watched Soundwave and waited. There had to be some explanation. While he had little doubt that Soundwave still held the Decepticon cause close to this spark, this was out of character for him. Soundwave would know the response such a suggestion would garner, should know better than to say something like that aloud—

It was Ratchet who finally said, “You don’t mean reprogramming, do you?” Soundwave shook his helm again and Ratchet’s frown only deepened. “So you’re really suggesting what I think you are?”

“Ratchet recalls upper caste politics,” Soundwave stated. “Common event: mecha necessitating alliance despite personal distrust or past disagreements. Common solution?”

The medic sneered and replied, “Political spark bonding.”

"What?" Bumblebee asked, not quite sure what he was hearing. The words separately made sense, but together it was meaningless concept.

The other mecha around the table did not seem as confused.

"You've got to be kidding," Arcee said, dumbstruck. "Political spark bonding? With Megatron?"

"It does make an odd sort of sense," Watts said, her helm tilted to one side and her optics dimmed, as if still processing the idea. "It would indeed achieve the desired effect, and did show high success rates at the time."

"When it didn't end in murder-suicide," Ratchet grit out. "It may force two mecha together and usually to give a scrap about the other’s well being. However, when things go poorly, they go very poorly."

"Only for those with some silly idea that it could turn into something meaningful," Starscream said, his tone as close to unsure as he dared in a meeting, as if he was still considering his true opinion on the matter while debating it. "For those going into the political bond understanding its purpose and who could figure out how to exist with one another, it worked well."

"As if you would really know. You may have strolled your way around the Vosian upper caste, but from what I understand, your trine was an easy arrangement.” Starscream’s wings twitched and he looked stricken at the mention of mecha long lost. If Ratchet noticed, he didn’t care. “You’d be amazed what other mecha hid behind shut doors and paid mecha like me to sneak in and fix so they could keep up the ruse." Ratchet leaned back in his chair and turned his optics on Soundwave. "But you know better."

"Potential consequences: understood. However, potential consequences if political bonding not pursued as a solution: also understood."

"While it isn't ideal, Soundwave is correct." Watts straightened and her optics glowed brighter, her processor made up. "It would not only provide motivation for Megatron's host to keep him online and well, but would also help to dissuade outside attacks from those who are upset about the decision. Any mecha who would like to see Megatron offlined might not want to see the same happen to his host, and thus would not risk an assassination."

"It would also provide an excellent cover story," Starscream said, his wings spread out wide behind him in a show of pageantry, as if his moment of weakness were nothing. "The decision wouldn't even need to be traced back to us! While it might be difficult to spin, we could present the city with this bonding ceremony instead of house arrest. We do not appear to be breaking the treaty because it will simply look as if we have given Megatron his 'freedom', but also the city is put at least partially at ease knowing that Megatron appears to be a changed mech – a bonded mech at that, chained to and placated by someone they trust."

"Don't even bother trying to put yourself up as a candidate." Arcee locked her gaze on his face, sneering. "In case you've forgotten, you're not someone who's trusted to not support Megatron."

Those wings shot straight up in agitation. "I would never--"

"You've flopped back and forth enough times that nobody could ever be sure how you felt about Megatron at any given time," Ratchet pointed out. "And I wouldn't be surprised if a bonding would just finally cement you as his pet."

Starscream hissed, but stopped himself when Soundwave lifted a servo.

"Ratchet: correct. Decepticons: will not be trusted as bond partners. Neutrals: have no warriors powerful enough. Autobots: best option."

"Ok, that's the weirdest thing I've ever heard come out of you, but I'm willing to ignore that for now," Arcee said. "But I will bring back up my question of who the frag do you think is going to agree to a political spark bond?"

That left the room silent. Bumblebee glanced at his companions – Ratchet was frowning, but he was oddly subdued, almost defeated looking, and Ultra Magnus had still not said a word, his optics nearly offlined as his processor ran fast enough that Bumblebee could have sworn he could hear it.

Finally, cautiously, he asked, "Well, first, maybe someone could tell me what exactly we would be agreeing to?"

Watts was the one who took pity, turning to Bumblebee with a soft look as she said, "Political spark bonding is a practice that long became extinct with the collapse of the senate and the upper castes. Every case was unique, but essentially it is a spark bonding between mecha that is done not out of love, but out of political necessity.”

“How does becoming spark bonded help anything?”

“It leaves two mecha stuck together,” Ratchet replied, interrupting Watts without any apparent guilt. Ratchet shifted in his seat so he was better facing Bumblebee, as if this were just another lesson, but his voice was pitched loud enough that it was for everyone in the room. “Whether the mecha involved want to bond at all doesn’t change the connection that is forged. Once sparks are bonded, they are able to find and influence each other across distances, and the fate of one spark is shared with the other.”

“I know how spark bonds work,” Bumblebee grumbled.

“Yet you’re naïve enough to not see how they can be used for less romantic endeavors,” Starscream taunted. He was focused on his claws, flexing and unravelling. “If you must have an alliance with another who you and your House do not trust, what better way to make sure they cannot double cross you than to have direct access to their very spark? To know at all times where they are and how they feel?” With an audible clacking, Starscream clenched his fist and glanced at Bumblebee. “It’s comforting to know that if they stabbed you in the back, you would just drag them to the Allspark with you.”

Bumblebee fought back a shudder. “But they have that same access to your spark, so they would have that same ability to use the bond against you.”

“A risk that many have foolishly believed they could handle,” Ratchet replied, shooting Starscream an irritated look. Starscream shrugged.

“Nothing gained without risk.”

“And it is, unfortunately, the most logical solution to the predicament,” Shockwave added. “Any Autobot who takes on the task will not support Megatron, so there is little risk of him returning to power. With a spark bond, they will be able to track his location and monitor him. That same spark bond will also enforce the need for the Autobot to keep Megatron alive, since his death will mean their own. And their fellow Autobots will be too sentimental to risk their life in their search for revenge.”

Ultra Magnus finally spoke up, his tone definitive. “The risk is still too great to the host in this case. Megatron is strong-willed and clever, so he could overwhelm and dominate the bond.”

Discbrake leaned across the table towards Ultra Magnus as she asked, “So, wait – you really don’t want Megatron under Autobot control?”

“In this case, the question of who does not matter. There is no bot alive who has any experience that could prepare them for that sort of connection with Megatron, so--”

“I do.”

Bumblebee’s shoulders hunched when, suddenly, every optic in the room was on him. Regret immediately bloomed in his spark, unsure if he should have brought it up at all. It had just come out though, voicing a realization, and it was too late to take it back. And something did have to be done about Megatron, and this was possibly the best lead they had because finally the majority of them were in agreement, and—

And he was telling the truth.

“I mean, it wasn’t a spark bond, obviously, but I have been in his mind,” Bumblebee began, forcing his frame to relax, to not make the way anxiety was creeping along his lines obvious. When the Neutrals’ optics went wide in response to his statement though, he quickly added, “Megatron was in stasis, they had the stuff for a cortical psych patch, and we needed a cure for Optimus – it’s a long story and during the war, but yeah. I’ve been in his mind and I was able to get what I wanted from him.”

“I can verify the story,” Ratchet stated, his optics narrowed and his plating flared, “but you’re leaving out that Megatron then manipulated you into doing his bidding and bringing him out of stasis.”

“Well, sure,” Bumblebee admitted with a wince. As if he could ever forget the sensation of losing control of his frame and blacking out, Megatron’s voice echoing in the darkness, nearly egging him on to crush his friend—“But that means that I’d know when he’s trying to do something like that again, right?”

“Bee,” Arcee snapped. “Do you even realize what you’re saying right now? We’re talking about spark bonding. With Megatron.”

It felt as if his spark was trapped in a vice grip and pulsing all the faster for it. Bumblebee felt sick. Yet with each pulse of his spark, he was pushed further.

“I know that. But if this means Megatron is no longer a threat and we can keep the peace--”

“No! Absolutely not!” Ratchet’s fist slammed down on the table, his optics too bright as he practically seethed next to Bumblebee, worry ebbing off his frame. “After all that Megatron has done to you, I wouldn’t let you even be in the same room as him, let alone – this!”

“He did a lot of things to a lot of mecha! I’m not a special case.”

“I have already nearly lost you twice to that monster!” Ratchet’s voice wavered with static, his servos fisted on the table surface. Bumblebee knew the medic held that guilt tightly even after all these years. “He left you with a malfunctioning voicebox for centuries!”

As if on cue, Bumblebee’s voicebox locked up at the memory.

His intake impossibly tight, the phantom touch of giant servos gripped around it, piercing and crushing, and the sound of his own scream turned to static turned to silence echoing in his processor. His voicebox hiccupped, popping with static as he recalled years of nothing but binary coming out of it, and the looks of surprise and horror and pity it earned him, the shame that welled in his spark--

"Bumblebee will not be the host and that's final."

"Agreed," Arcee said, her arms crossed over her chest. "I'll offline before I vote for that."

"I will also have to agree. As I stated, there is no one that I would feel comfortable giving this duty."

Bumblebee's spark ebbed against the vice grip.

"I could do it though."

There was a quiet chuckle that had seeker written all over it from across the table, but Bumblebee didn't have time to deal with it. Not with his companions all looking at him with varying degrees of frustration and worry on their faces.

Frustration with his naiveté, or his age, or stubbornness, or all three no doubt; worry for the very same reasons.

"No," Ratchet replied, flustered and upset. "He damaged you and killed you and—and I will not allow you to give him your spark!"

Shame sparked into indignation.

"Ok, but are we all forgetting that I killed him too?” Bumblebee asked as he pushed his pedes, his palms flat on the table still. “And you know what? When I did, it stuck. He sank to the bottom of the ocean, gun metal grey, and the only reason he’s still walking around is because of literal divine intervention. So if one of us should be afraid of the other, he should be afraid of me."

“So what?” Arcee snapped, standing up as well so that only Ratchet’s still-seated frame separated them. “So you’re even or something? It doesn’t work that way, Bee. Killing him doesn’t erase what he did.”

"Nothing that any of us did can be erased!" Bumblebee said, throwing his servos out to indicating the rest of the council. "Seven of us have actively tried to offline each other for millennia, and the other three had to leave our home planet so that they didn't get caught in the crossfire. Yet we can all still sit here and try to run a city. I think if I can stand to sit at a table with Starscream, I can find it in me to play house with Megatron.”

"This isn't just politics we're talking about, Bumblebee!" Ratchet's servo slapped against his own chest, palm above where his spark lay as he moved to stand, looming over Bumblebee. "You aren't agreeing to simply keep an eye on him! You would be agreeing to being tied to him at the most intimate level mecha can be connected. You would be giving away any ability to lead a life that isn't intimately tangled with Megatron's."

Bumblebee's tanks roiled at the thought, but he continued, anger fueling him, "I’m not an idiot, Ratch. I understand what I’m offering. But somebody has to give it up, right? If it’s not me, then it’s going to be some other poor mech who has no idea what Megatron’s like, which makes no sense.” He moved his servo to lightly bump against his chest, his pedes shifting a little wider to strengthen his stance. “If I'm the best mech for the job, then why shouldn't I be the one to do it?"

"Because Megatron and his fate are not your personal responsibility," Ultra Magnus interrupted, and for the first time that evening, there was genuine upset coloring his tone. Bumblebee turned to find the mech towering over him. "We serve the people of this city, and we work through our own personal hardships for them, but that does not mean that you must sacrifice so much when there are other options."

"What other options?" Bumblebee challenged.

That dropped like bomb on his side of the table. Ultra Magnus’s face pinched but he did not have an immediate reply. Nothing but rumbling engines came from Ratchet or Arcee either.

Given a few more seconds, Bumblebee was sure they would have rallied. The argument could have gone on for hours, given how stubborn all four of them were.

However, that was when Metalhawk stood and audibly cleared his voicebox. “Arcee, Ratchet,” he said, staring at each in turn, though his gaze lingered on Bumblebee for a moment before moving on, “and Ultra Magnus. I request that you all take your seats and show respect for Bumblebee as a councilmech. He has a right as much as any of us to present his idea in full before it is voted on, and I for one would like to hear what he has to say.”

“Seconded,” Starscream said, a lazy smirk on his lips. However, his optics were blinding in their brightness and focus on Bumblebee. “I’m very curious.”

“I see no reason to go down this path of discussion when we have not decided if political spark bonding is even a feasible option--”

“You are welcome to voice your concerns after Bumblebee is finished,” Metalhawk interrupted. Not a single plate shifted under the heated look Ultra Magnus gave him. However, the large mech finally sat. Metalhawk turned his attention next to Arcee. “And the same to you, Arcee.”

Arcee sneered, her engine growling softly. She turned to look at Bumblebee then, and said quietly, “Don’t do this, Bee.”

A flicker of guilt came and went before Bumblebee shook his helm. “Sorry.”

With a huff of her vents, Arcee sat with her arms crossed over her chest. Bumblebee had no doubt she was planning her argument, ready for her turn.

Finally, there was just Ratchet. Warily, Bumblebee lifted his gaze, and the guilt was back when he saw how distressed the medic was.

“I won’t let you do this.”

“Ratchet--”

“I won’t! If this is the only option then – then I will bond with him myself! If that’s what it will take then let me--!”

“Ratchet.” Bumblebee raised a servo to grab Ratchet’s arm, tightening his hold reassuringly. It was hard to tell which of them was trembling. “Please.” Both – it was both of them. “Trust me.”

Ratchet’s face crumpled, optics flickering.

“I can’t watch you do this.”

“Then don’t.”

Ratchet’s engine sputtered.

And then he turned, away from Bumblebee and away from the table, breaking Bumblebee’s hold. Bumblebee let him go. The swish of the door opening and closing was all that announced Ratchet’s departure.

“And to think that I’ve been accused of being dramatic.”

Bumblebee couldn’t keep his engine for revving as he shot Starscream a dark look. He didn’t rise to the bait though, just shifted so he was facing the rest of the council.

Metalhawk was watching him. They all were, in fact. Neutrals, Decepticons, and Autobots alike were staring at him expectantly, and the reality of what he was doing set in.

“The floor is yours, Bumblebee.”

“Uh, thanks, Metalhawk,” Bumblebee said before resetting his voicebox. He had never actually made a proposition in the council himself. Comments, retorts, agreements – those were easy. But presenting and defending his own idea?

He felt like he was actually doing something worthwhile.

“Obviously this isn’t something I want to do, but considering how long we’ve all been sat here arguing about things we can’t do with Megatron, I think this is something that has to be done by somebody. There’s no point in going back to earlier ideas when we’re just going to have the same arguments and end up back here again. Plus, the longer we wait to tell the city what’s happening, the more suspicious they’ll be about whatever choice we make, and—and they deserve better than that.” Bumblebee’s servos were twitching at his sides, and nothing he could do would still them. The council was quiet though, they were listening to him, and that was equal parts terrifying and thrilling. “If political spark bonding can keep the peace while making sure that Megatron isn’t a threat, then we should do it. And if an Autobot is the best choice to make sure both of those happen, then I—”

Bumblebee’s spark pulsed hard enough to hurt.

“—I think I would be the best Bot for the job.”

“Because you went swimming around in his helm?” Discbrake asked, sounding unconvinced.

“I mean, it was more than that,” Bumblebee argued. “I was inside his mind and I was able to make a deal with him based on what I figured out about him.”

“You spoke with him?” Watts looked intrigued, her servos folded and her chin propped on them.

Bumblebee nodded. “Yeah. I hadn’t planned on it, but he realized pretty quick I was in there, so I had to talk to him to figure out how to get the cure from him.”

“Which you apparently did successfully,” Metalhawk stated. When Bumblebee nodded again, he continued, “Just from talking?”

“Kinda?” Bumblebee winced, wishing he could take back the unsure tone. “I mean, I did, but it’s more than that. I was a scout my whole life until recently, so I’m pretty good at reading mecha. I don’t know Megatron as well as the Cons, but he’s not exactly a hard mech to figure out.” With a shrug, he quickly added, “Once you figure ‘em out, it’s easier to use ‘em.”

“That’s awfully sneaky for a mere scout,” Starscream said, his helm tilted ever so slightly to one side. He almost looked impressed.

Bumblebee couldn’t help a small grin thinking about his years under Jazz’s tutelage. “I was trained by the best.”

“So you have training and experience in your favor,” Starscream continued, his optics narrowing on the warrior. “But what makes you think that anyone outside this room would believe you would choose to bond with Megatron?”

“Uh. Right.” Bumblebee grimaced and rubbed at the back of his neck. “I mean, it’s kind of hard to come up with a cover story when I don’t even know what Megatron has been up to or why he’s here, you know?”

“Indeed. A logical cover story will need collaboration between both parties,” Shockwave agreed.

“Reason for volunteering?”

Bumblebee felt a shiver race down his backstruts as he looked at Soundwave. The mech still looked so calm, plating lax as his visor continued to filter data coming in from Laserbeak’s surveillance. The dots were spreading. There wasn’t likely a single mech in the city who hadn’t heard the news by now.

Why was he doing this?

“Well, somebody has to, don’t they?”

“Megatron: crushed Bumblebee’s intake, online solely due to medical assistance. Bumblebee: left permanently damaged. Bumblebee: entered Megatron’s mind, tricked him, left him for dead. Megatron: took over Bumblebee’s mind to save own life. Megatron: offlined Bumblebee. Bumblebee: offlined Megatron. Autobot companions: visibly upset over prospect of spark bonding.”  Soundwave’s visor went blank, and there was no way to see his optics through it, but Bumblebee swore he could feel the other’s heated stare. “Conclusion: Bumblebee hates Megatron; Bumblebee and Megatron are incompatible. So, question is repeated: reason for volunteering?”

Bumblebee grimaced, his processor racing to find something, anything to answer the question. It wasn’t readily available though.

It had just happened, just a realization that he had the skills, had the ability, had the experience. Then there was indignation and slighted pride because they thought he couldn't do it, that there was no way he could handle Megatron, that they thought he was too young/stupid/weak to handle that bucket of bolts. He had had to prove to them that he could!

But it was true. Bumblebee hated Megatron. From the day he was forged, Megatron was enemy number one, and he had never done anything to persuade Bumblebee otherwise. The former warlord still haunted the darkest corners of his mind.

But someone had to take responsibility for Megatron. Someone had to make the sacrifice for the sake of everyone else.

Despite everything that Megatron had done -- all the lives he had ruined and ended including Bumblebee's own -- someone had to open their spark to him to keep the peace.

Someone had to accept Megatron into their life.

"Because it's what Optimus would do."

The room was utterly silent as, slowly, Soundwave nodded.

"Acceptable."

"Bond?"

Bumblebee nodded as he shifted awkwardly on his pedes. "Spark bond specifically."

Megatron stared down at him warily, his optics cycling with thought.

"A political spark bond."

"Yep."

"To what end?" Megatron asked. There was nothing aggressive about how he spoke or in his expression, but Bumblebee still felt as if he was about to be reprimanded. "Surely I am considered a criminal."

"Things would be much simpler if you were," Bumblebee admitted. "But no. Anyone who was in the war has been forgiven for any crimes committed during it, and unfortunately that includes you."

Of all things, that only made Megatron frown deeper. "Excused of war crimes?"

Bumblebee shrugged, hoping that maintaining a casual exterior might actually fool Megatron. "You try running a planet when two thirds of it hate each other and the last third blames them both for what happened. We nearly fell back into civil war more times than anyone really wants to think about."

Megatron hummed nearly inaudibly at that, optics cycling with thought as he turned away from Bumblebee for a moment. Pacing must have been common practice among the Decepticon higher ups, considering the former warlord didn’t seem to think anything of his pede steps across the small cell and then turning to walk back where he had come from. Unlike Starscream’s near prancing during meetings though, each of Megatron’s steps were slow and measured, and his servos were clasped behind his back.

“I see. I had assumed that between my departure and your being Cybertron’s saviors, the Autobots would not face opposition to their control, even if only temporarily,” Megatron said, more thinking aloud than anything until his optics focused on Bumblebee’s again, “but apparently I assumed incorrectly.”

Bumblebee felt frustration burn in his chassis, a familiar outrage that their sacrifices were often accepted as only making up for what the war had done at best.

“Yeah, you did.”

Megatron tilted his helm at the bitter tone. “Interesting. So you decided to give everyone a legal blank slate? To what end?"

"We didn't really want to do a trial for every last mech on this planet, so it got them out of our wiring. Without having the government on their side, any actions they took would be seen as crimes against other citizens, not revenge, so it could land them in trouble. So things eventually quieted down.” Bumblebee shifted on his pedes again, and alright, maybe he could see the appeal in pacing. He decided to keep his pedes firmly on the ground though. “It’s not ideal, but at least this way everyone just lives with their own kind and tolerates the others’ existences.”

Megatron did not reply right away, his pacing coming to a slow stop in front of Bumblebee, his optic ridges creased together with thought. When realization seemed to settle in, his frown only deepened.

"You cannot punish me for fear of raising chaos amongst the population again."

"Got it in one. We need to keep you under control, but have it look voluntary to everyone else so they don’t get any ideas."

"Thus, political spark bonding." Megatron's frown finally shifted to a small, sardonic smirk. "Clever. I wouldn't have thought the Autobots capable of such a scheme."

"Technically it was Soundwave's idea."

Megatron's optics went wide, his plating shifting and rattling for a moment. "Soundwave? My Soundwave?"

"Long story, but yeah."

It was intimidating to have those piercing red optics so focused on him, as if trying to pick apart every detail, looking for answers that Bumblebee wasn't giving. And, truthfully, Bumblebee should have taken the chance to explain what had happened – to explain everything that had happened, the chaos of returning refugees, the tension of Autobots and Decepticons having to share a city again, how the council was formed and very quickly the Autobots had their power slip through their digits as Neutrals insisted on an evenly split council to represent all of the citizens, all while trying to keep everything under control so reconstruction could continue so there would even be a place for returning mecha to live--

Bumblebee's tanks roiled at the thought of having to spend that much time with Megatron. He would have to deal with it eventually though, considering he was facing a lifetime with the former warlord.

Maybe that was what made it all the worst.

Luckily, that was when Knockout called down the hall, "You almost done proposing down there? If we have a spark bonding ceremony in the future, then it's about time I be allowed to see the conjunx to be and make sure he’s looking appropriately pretty."

Bumblebee's plating flared, surprised by the other mech and flustered by the comment. At least there was relief to be found in seeing Megatron's plating flare as well, though Bumblebee couldn’t help noticing some pieces moving oddly, stiffly, and some not reacting at all.

The once fearsome warlord was, indeed, in need of a medic.

“Just a second!” Bumblebee called back, barely glancing down the hallway at Knockout before his focus was back on Megatron. It felt wrong to let the warlord out of his sight regardless of the barrier between them. After a ventilation cycle, he said to Megatron, "Look, you don't have to decide right now. I'll be back later to explain the specifics--"

"Will my agreement keep the peace?"

Bumblebee went still, staring with wide optics. Megatron’s plating had settled back into a neutral position though, and his expression gave nothing away. The autobot might as well have been trying to interpret the emotional response of a wall for all that he could glean from Megatron. Warily, he replied, "Well, it's the best plan we got, so I fragging hope so."

Megatron was studying him so closely that it made Bumblebee's spark thunder in its casing.

"Why you, scout?"

"I told you, I agreed to it--"

"But why?" Megatron stood straight upright, utilizing every bit of their size difference to tower over the small grounder. "We both know what I've done to you, never mind what I’ve done to your comrades and companions, and yet,” he said, his helm tilting just a fraction, “you come offering to tie your spark to mine."

Bumblebee scowled, and spat out, "Because I'm the best mech for the job." He stepped up closer to the barrier, armor flared wide, door wings raised high and aggressive. "You threw your best at me and I survived." He lifted his chin up, revealing his neck in a show of bravery he didn't feel all the way to the core of his spark, but far enough that he could convince himself to not hide it away again. "Apparently offlining you wasn’t enough, so I'm willing to do what it does take to make sure you never hurt anyone else ever again."

Then, of all things, Megatron smiled.

"Very well then. So long as you are doing this of your own volition and it benefits the city, then I accept your arrangement."

Bumblebee, to his chagrin, felt his jaw drop.

"What—really? Just like that? I've barely told you anything."

Megatron shrugged, his frame shifting before he started pacing again. It was a momentary relief to have those optics off of him. "You are more than welcome to tell me all the sordid details later, but I do not imagine that they will have any influence on my decision. I have all the information that I need." When he turned on his pedes, he had that weirdly fond look on his face again. "Who better to keep me in line than the scout who has always foiled my plans?"

"Warrior."

Megatron's optic ridges lifted at that, and then he was slowly walking towards Bumblebee again. Intimidation did not keep Bumblebee from continuing to blurt out, "I'm not just a scout anymore. I'm a warrior."

Megatron's grin grew.

"A title well deserved."

"Uh, thanks," Bumblebee replied after a beat of confused silence, too surprised to think of anything better to say, and regretting it as soon as he had said it. Embarrassed, he glanced back down the hall where Knockout was waiting, leaned against a wall. It was only the momentary flicker of one optic that clued him into the fact that the medic had winked at him.

Bumblebee looked back at Megatron and cleared his voicebox awkwardly.

"It's late and you clearly need some medical attention," he started, noting the irritation that was there and then gone again from Megatron's expression at the allusion to the state of his frame, "so I'll just go. I'll be back tomorrow."

Megatron nodded. "I suspect I'll be seeing a lot of you, little warrior."

Bumblebee barely held back a shudder as he turned away from Megatron and quickly made his escape down the hallway.

Knockout was watching him, nodding his only form of greeting before he jumped right in. "Any requests for your beautiful conjunx to be?" He squawked at the shove Bumblebee gave him, and sniped, "Sorry for trying to lighten the mood."

Bumblebee still felt full to bursting with agitated energy, but he managed to ex-vent and reply, "It's fine. As long as he doesn't have any weapons, he can look however he wants."

"How flexible of you," Knockout said as he finally straightened. "When I heard the news, I had assumed you would be a much stricter warden, given your history together and all. How lucky for Megatron."

Bumblebee's spark clenched tightly in his chest. "I'm not a ‘warden.’"

Knockout shrugged, replying as one servo carefully reached out to touch Bumblebee’s arm, "Your job is to keep him locked away in some apartment and compliant. We can call it political spark bonding all we like, but we both know it's far less romantic than that."

His tanks felt twisted with disgust, but Bumblebee had no response to that. He shrugged Knockout's servo away and muttered, "Just fix him up" before leaving.