Zixi

Protective as heck though, and he has good reason. Once the stray Decepticons realized you're a weakness to him, they come for you every time... and he hates it. It's so easy to slip into the Megatron he used to be when he finds out you're in danger. The Decepticons under his demand, his goals—you—above everything.

You bring out the best in him, but I regret to say you also bring the worst. His doubts and internal conflict are already bad enough. Maybe one day, he'll crack, and decide to keep you strictly within a safe distance always.

He will always stay as a sweetheart to you though. That's for sure.

— 🪨

Prime

note; I'm sorry I can't take this specific version of Megatron seriously, please bare with my take 😭😭

Considering how he's with Optimus, he's definitely obsessive. Like.

If you're a cybertronian, AUTOBOT, he's going to try and convince you to join his side of the war. Even to the extent of kidnapping you under the guise of getting information—but overall no harm to your frame during your visit to their ship. There's a back and forth kidnap and rescue between the autobots and decepticons. It's also really weird how he just stands there staring at you.

If you're a DECEPTICON, you'd be in a indescribable relationship with him. He respects you, but manipulative to the point that it's obvious. You're as loyal as you can be. But sometimes it feels like he's intentionally provoking you for reassurance. He still likes to stare at you.

But if you're a HUMAN, I think everyone can and will think Megatron is a weirdo. Why in the world is he keeping you in the Decepticon ship? Why's he making sure you stay alive? Hello?? Even if you're somehow useful—he's reaching with the whole "stay in my sights" or letting the other Decepticons babysit you when he's out. He really likes staring. (I like to hc that he thinks you look disgusting [denial], but interesting nonetheless LOLOL)

Overall, he's acting strange. His words suck, but despite everything, his actions are quite—nice? He gives you more freedom than you'd expect. Which is why you and everyone else question his every move; Soundwave especially. That one is watching you closely, but predictably, Megatron's watching him. Meg's careful actually—I mean, while he's an idiot when it comes to you, he's dead serious to other bots.

— 🥂

Animated

Ohhh—you must have done something pretty useful to him. Similar to Isaac Sumdac, you managed to grab his attention, enough for him to capture your person. At first, you trembled at even the thought of him.

But, I think… somewhere along the way, you grew on him. It's not just about your results anymore. Perhaps it was the lovely late night talks that stretched in time. Maybe how your expression lights up when he says something you happen to like. When he watched you gradually get out of your shell and opened yourself to him.

You actually feel safe. In his company, it seems like nothing can't harm you. He treats you well, speaks to you like you're an equal, and that's what scares you the most. Isaac constantly reminds you that he's not what he seems—and of course, you're not foolish. Also, I don't think this Megatron would be the jealous type haha. He knows what he wants.

Then change happens. Your work with him is done. The autobots freed you and Sumdac.

But he's hunting you down. He gives you a sign, a warning, a chance to stay with him. I imagine both of you don't understand why this is happening.

When he does understand, he won't hide from his desires. He'll earnestly keep you by his side, till death do you part.

Heart beating miles per second. Sweat beads dripping off your skin despite the harsh cold. Eyes frantically darting in every direction.

All of that, and it's deadly quiet.

Until it's not.

The low sound of metal scraping together violates your ears.

... You don't stick around to find out which Recordicon it is.

Run. Run. Desperate stomps of your feet speed across the floor, jumping and dodging over every little thing in your way. If there’s anything to thank on this godforsaken ship, it’s that the gaps and holes are big enough for you to squeeze through. Too small for even the smallest Cybertronians.

"Shit, shit, shit," you mutter over your breathless lips, legs burning in pain. The goggles around your neck bounce restlessly against your chest. You brace yourself for the very obvious dead end ahead.

Then—heavy metallic thuds echo in the upper section. The vent, you recognize. You falter and slow your pace.

Slugfest crashes down at the end of the hall, the impact shaking the floor and forcing you to stumble. You flinch at the thunderous roar tearing from his dentae.

"Human!" he growls, his head lowering in intimidation, tail carefully whipping left and right, "no leave!"

Slugfest? You've already dealt with Squawktalk, Glit, and hell, even Enemy. They're locked up somewhere... Did Soundwave eject everyone?

You turn around — crap.

"Heeey, Frenzy," you wheeze, a crooked smile forming as you raise your hands in surrender. The said bot is already cracking his servos as we speak. What's he doing that for?! Not like you can land a single punch on any of them! "Look. Can we please talk about this?"

Frenzy shrugs carelessly, taking a step forward. "Sweetspark, we could. Bet it'd be a whole lot easier if you stopped runnin', eh?"

"You know I—"

Abruptly, you and Frenzy stumble in a jump.

"Don't ignore Slugfest!" the cassette behind you shrieks as he pounds relentlessly, "Slugfest always forgotten! Human stay!"

"Argh! Slug! Ya gotta stop havin' tantrums in bad tim—!"

Before Frenzy can recover, you turn your heel and sprint straight toward Slugfest. It doesn't take another second for the former to catch up, however.

"I'm sorry, Slug," you cry out, trying to ignore Frenzy's rapid footsteps, "you're such a good mech! Soundwave thinks so too! Look, he's behind you right now!"

He pauses. As you predicted, he fell for it.

Slugfest deliberately turns around, a confused "Soundwave?" escaping him as he faces nothing but a wall.

You slide under the massive bot and just hope for the best.

"Soundwave not here!" Slugfest snarls, turning and slamming Frenzy into the ground.

"Get yer paws off of me! Where's the human?!" Frenzy yells, shoving Slugfest back as he desperately scans the room. Then his optics lock onto the open vent in the ceiling. "Good going, Slug. Now I've gotta fix up your mess."

Several sharp, irritated clanks echo as Frenzy hauls himself up toward the vent. Releasing an equally annoyed exvent, Slugfest turns around and runs in the opposite direction.

Your heart pounds against your ear. This sector is a bust — noted. You adjust your position cautiously across Slug's metal scales. Good thing the back part of his metal’s too thick for him to really feel you.

Once you reach the ship’s main passageway, you briskly slip off Slugfest’s bulk, his heavy thuds masking your soft footsteps.

You peek in two different directions. Both clear.

... Where in the absolute fuck are you supposed to go? In hindsight, you already know you're going to get caught—you've come up with like two lame excuses for this whole chase. Nice to know you're stupid enough to try escaping anyway. Heck, you even tried memorizing the path, but seeing it in real time under pressure easily made you lose it.

"There they are!"

Your head snaps to the right. Rumble and two other flying cassettes hot on his trail. Alright then. At least you've decided.

You bolt.

Adrenaline rushes through your limbs as you sprint down the hall. There’s no way they can get to you without hurting you, right? If there’s one thing you do know, it’s that they wouldn’t go so far as to severely injure you.

... Although. You've been wrong once; you can be wrong again.

"Leave me alone, damn it!" you yelp, staggering over your own frenzied feet. Pull it together!

"You know we can't do dat! Just come back! Don't wanna use rumbles on ya!"

For a moment, you want to smile. You probably would if you weren't so out of breath right now. Rumble's not allowed to use his pile drivers within the Nemesis.

Something tugs you under your arms.

Next thing you know, your feet are off the ground.

You turn your head upward, meeting Ratbat's yellow optics as he flutters his wings. "Ratbat. Let. Me go."

He only tilts his head. Damn it. He's just too cute to get mad at. Those big yellow eyes that look like they’ve seen a ghost, not in fear, but in genuine delight.

"Starscream's already ahead of us," a faint voice mutters in the distance, barely covered by the other cassettes' footsteps. You and Ratbat follow the sound of a door sliding open, chased by the scrambling of harsh winds.

Oh, shit. Wait a second. You rotate your hand and pat Ratbat's claws as best you can. "Okay, Ratbat. You got me. You can put me down now... sorry."

The gentle affection seems to have worked as he dives down and lets you go, offering a chirp. You smile, and it brightens him even more. "Good Rat. Uh, Bat."

And then you position Ratbat—he just let you do that for some reason—in front of you.

"Eukh!" Series of grunts burst from Rumble, Ratbat, and somehow Buzzsaw, who got caught in their trample by Rumble's flailing servo. Luckily enough, Frenzy finally gets his ass out of the vent, crashing ungracefully into their pile of thrashing, cursing heap of limbs.

By the time a single bot pushes themself up, you’re already gone.

Ravage shows up in your sight. As he trots, he intensely eyes the wide open entrance behind you. Wind whipping your clothes. Goggles protecting your eyes. How your feet are so close to the edge. Your chest heaving with frantic breaths. Watching as your lips curl.

You meet his optics.

With a smile, you throw yourself from the ship.

...

...

... What the frag. (You hate to admit it, but their way of cursing is unironically rubbing off on you now.)

Everything's jittering but you manage to slip perfectly into one of the gaps in Thundercracker's structure.

"What was that?" the blue jet says, voice loud around his form. You freeze your entire body.

"What was what?" replies Skywarp from behind him.

"Ugh. Must have a loose wire again. Remind me to remind Knockout."

"Remind me to remind you," Skywarp snickers as he drifts closer to Thundercracker. Closer to where you're hiding. "Hey. Isn't that—"

A loud metal collision. You watch under your goggles as Rumble lands butt-first on top of Skywarp, the jet slipping out of your view from the sudden change of movement. Apparently, that wasn't the only one—another sharp clang rings out, this time on the very jet you're riding.

Thundercracker's baffled voice goes off in the distance, but you're way too focused on the way your legs are dangling over the tall heights. You tighten your grip on his edges, trying to breathe correctly, don't panic—don't panic—

Giant metal fingers wrap around your wrist, pulling you up onto the jet’s surface. You stumble and steady your core, glancing up at Frenzy's expression. And in the most gentle way possible, his servos tighten around your skin.

He looks sad—much more than you thought he would.

"D'ya really want to leave us that much?"

You frown. Before you can muster an answer, a sudden jolt shakes Thundercracker. Your feet trip over themselves, but Frenzy has half the spark to balance you down—only to slip, break his grip, and fall off the jet with a shout.

"Frenzy!" you can't help but call out, sighing in relief when one of the flying cassettes hurries to save him.

Your heart leaps to your throat. Shit. Shit. What now?

You look up, eyes narrowing. The cassettes circle above you in the sky like a kettle of vultures waiting for their prey to die—or, in this case, get tired and give up.

"What do you glitches think you're doing?!" Skywarp shouts, frustrated, flying over to Laserbeak and purposefully bumping into him. Said bird lets out a shriek of annoyance. "Soundwave has to put you on a better leash—I swear—"

"Human."

You jolt from Thundercracker's voice.

"Hi, TC," you say casually, although the winds make it hard to hear you.

There's a pause before he replies. "Soundwave will never let you go."

...

A sigh escapes you. "...I know—HAHRK!"

You're taken again, your arms and legs dangling helplessly as Laserbeak grips you with his claws.

But it hurts. It hurts. It hurts. Oh scrap, it seriously does—his metal is pressing against your skin too much. Almost as if he's desperate. "Laserbeak, it hurts—!"

Like a command, he flips you over and lands you on his back. The pain subsides drastically—but it lingers. That shit's going to bruise. You grunt in pain, your chest heaving as you try to recover quickly.

You lean over the edge and glance down. Ratbat and Buzzsaw glide beneath you, following close to Laserbeak. You look deeper—you're so, so close to the ground, and you only noticed it now. You're hovering at the height of a rainforest’s shortest tree.

All you have to do is get to Buzzsaw. Once you do, you can always handle an injury or two if it gets you close enough to jump off fast—then hide in the thick cover of trees and brush.

Oh, no. You're having hope. Hope to finally escape them.

"Thanks, LB," you mutter at the same time you slip off him.

Ratbat squeals as you land on top of him, and even more when you hold onto him tightly. Yeah, not falling now, not when you're so close to freedom—

You leap onto Buzzsaw—

He screeches. Quickly, you peek over the edge, so close— just jump off—THERE!

Somewhere around your descent, you unceremoniously pull off your goggles. Not even sure if it was a good idea, but the thought of them digging into your eyes disturbed you enough to care.

...

Leaves and vines cushions your fall until—

You force your eyes open.

A red glow stands out in the sunlight. The familiar visor watches you, unwavering, as you sit on the palm of his hand. It's always been hard to figure out what he wants—what his expression truly is—and how angry he is. He hunches closer, his towering form restricted by the trees and tangled branches around you.

Soundwave only stares.

While Ravage perches on his shoulder, somehow more expressive than he is. Curious, furious.

You huff. Okay, fine, you give up. Your whole body hurts anyway.

—

Legs idly swinging over the edge, you watch as Ratchet taps on his control panel, absentmindedly nodding his head to your words. "Uh-huh."

Despite his lack of interest, you continue, wanting to vent about your day. You're used to this behavior anyway; you know he always listens. "I thought he stole it at first. I mean, I turn around and some guy is holding my wallet. Haha, but we made up quickly. It was just a misunderstanding. He was so sweet."

Ratchet shuffles over to you. He begins to do some tech things that you fear you will never understand. You reach a foot to lightly tap his armplate. He offers no reaction.

You smile. "Wanna know my first thought when we talked?"

"...What would that be?" he murmurs, his words smudged over the whisper.

"I found his voice sounding like you." With your rather cheery words, Ratchet pauses, his gaze lingering over you much more than usual. "Caught me off guard and all. Then, I imagined, what if that old man was you as a human? But nah. Sure, he sounds like you, but his fashion wasn't you. In my most humble opinion, of course."

You're yapping now—you know that. Ratchet even stopped trying to understand you a few kliks ago, returning to his own devices. Not that you mind.

"Ratchet, you're old," you say bluntly, earning a whip of a bewildered expression from him.

He grunts. "I may be rusty but—"

"No, sweetie, I meant—you're a million years old," you grimace, letting your head fall. "I can't even imagine living that long." Especially if a long period of that time was nothing but war.

A few moments of hanging silence. Ratchet lets his optics shift from you back to his work, sighing as the weight of choosing you this time settles on him.

"What is this about?" he softly asks, approaching your side, careful with the volume of his footsteps.

Suddenly, you chuckle, startling him. The mech scrunched his faceplate in confusion. "Oh, sorry. I was just thinking about the kids. To them, I'm so much older—but compared to you Autobots, I'm basically nothing."

"Nothing?" Ratchet repeats with a furrow.

"I don't mean it in a bad way. Just realizing that one day, I'll grow old, like you—but much, much quicker," you say with a weak smile. "We humans only live for about a hundred years, and that's if you're lucky."

Your word and your tone strangely crawl into Ratchet's spark with incomprehensible devastation. Earth years are in a different timezone from Cybertronian standards; that in itself is a tragically distant line.

"Your species is fragile," the medic mutters, his optics glancing slowly over your figure. "Small. Organic. Squishy. One step and you're dead."

Helplessly, you snicker, unable to feel not offended. "And your species... Big. Metal. Tough. You guys probably live long enough to watch a sun die."

"I have, in fact," he murmurs, "twice."

You blink. "Wow, Ratch, I have deep respect for you. Mm. Everyone does. It must have been hard."

He's just staring at you. Tilting your head, you make a look. He returns it with a look of his own. "See, I may not show it, but for your lifespan... I believe my respect runs far deeper than yours."

"Yeah?" you gasp. "Ratchet, you're actually—"

Ratchet stops listening to you after that. It's the usual—albeit annoying—teasing about him being indifferent to humans in general. Halfheartedly, he is listening, with you being the only noise in the headquarters, but his mind wanders somewhere else.

He has witnessed many sparks fall.

Even then, for a long, long time, they stay as his company. Valued memories that are never lost to his repository. Honorable contributions that are still relevant to this day. A mark that has never left both the Autobots and the Decepticons.

But you?

You're a human.

It could so happen that after one recharge, you'd be gone.

As if nothing ever happened. Just like the rest of the others who died.

Blue eyelights start to tremble the longer they stare at you. So full of life. A voice so new and refreshing. Ratchet hates to admit it—he's grown deeply fond of you and the kids.

"Now I guess I have to make you free of humans," you snicker, standing up and brushing off your clothes. "It's getting late anyway. Thanks for having me."

... What? Are you leaving?

The thought weighs on Ratchet, swelling like pressure inside his chassis. Like an hourglass with sand that falls and falls. The farther you are, the less time remains.

He watches blankly as you take a step. And another. Then carefully down the stairs.

Until you're walking straight to the exit. "I think I'll tell Raf tomorrow too—"

CLANG.

A powerful thud from Ratchet's pede slams into the ground, knocking you over with the sudden tremor. You grunt as you set a hand on his ankle for support. "Woah! Ratchet! What the hell?"

As you lift your head, your eyes meet an expression you've never seen Ratchet in before—you can't describe it. Disturbed? Apprehension? Fear? Hysteria? He's not saying anything. Engines are running louder than usual. Not bothering to move the colossal mech foot in front of your body.

"Ratchet?" you frown. "Are you okay?"

"Don't leave."

The words were so quiet. Almost pleading. You wait patiently. But he doesn't say anything else.

"...Is something wrong?" you urge.

Much to your dismay, he doesn't answer immediately. His eyelights shift.

"Mh—A report came in. Decepticons... They're moving. It would be safer for you to stay a little longer."

...

"...Okay. I trust you."

Maybe you imagined it—but for a moment, it looked like he sighed with nothing less than relief.

It's dangerous, anyway. It's dangerous. It's dangerous. It's dangerous.

— "Stay."

— "I'm not going anywhere."