Third Person Perspective

• ~ • ~ • ~ •

"I appreciate it, Doctor, but are you certain it's alright for me to be out here?" (Y/D/n) inquired as she watched the road squatting alongside Knockout and Breakdown.

"Of course. Lord Megatron wanted you to freshen up, did he not?" Knockout said with a purr. "And what's a better way to freshen up than to get a new look?"

(Y/D/n) looked at him before smiling and giggling. The two mechs looked at each other pleasantly confused.

"I suppose you are correct. I've never had time to consider these things before." (Y/D/n) hummed, peaking over the rock they were squatting behind.

"So uh, what did you do back on cybertron?" Breakdown asked as they watched the road. (Y/D/n) glanced at him then back to the road.

"I was an engineer. I planned the buildings and explained to the builders. Same caste as you, just a different job."

"How did you know I worked construction?" Breakdown asked.

"Oh. I saw you on one of the last projects me and another engineer were working on. I never got to meet your group because I was kidnapped." She hummed.

"Kidnapped? By who?" Breakdown asked.

"A group of seekers. Why, I do not know. But that doesn't matter now." (Y/D/n) answered. "What exactly should I be looking for? I understand a ground vehicle, but what type?"

"Any kind you want. Considering the fact that you aren't participating in the war, you need to do something in your spare time. Me and Breakdown personally enjoy participating in the humans cultural practices." Knockout replied.

"None of these so far seem very appealing for my frame." (Y/D/n) replied.

"Yes, it did take a while for me to find my match as well." Knockout said, motioning to his own frame. (Y/D/n) smiled. "Breakdown found his pretty quickly though."

"I'm not picky." Breakdown huffed. (Y/D/n) giggled once more and the three just spoke with each other. About the past, about the present, and about the future.

Soon a (ground vehicle) went driving by that (Y/D/n) liked. She did a scan over it and transformed for the first time in a while.

"Nice~. Your paint is pretty faded though, we should work on that." Knockout said. "We'll need to go to a store to get you some new paint."

"Really? You'd do that for me?" (Y/D/n) asked, with a sincere, hesitant voice. Knockout and Breakdown looked at each other then looked back to her. Knockout then smirked proudly.

"Of course! We can't have our third partner in crime looking so... désordonnée." Knockout said, trying not to sound offensive by switching up language.

"Oh! Well then. That is very kind of you Knockout." (Y/D/n) replied with a smile. Breakdown and Knockout smiles back before the three of them transformed and headed to a paint shop.

"You have your holoform right, (Y/D/n)? Or should I say (Y/n)?"

"Haha... yes my human name is interesting though required. I must say these humans are quite lovely from what I've seen. It was hard to put my holoform together, there were so many wonderful features." (Y/D/n) hummed, thinking back to all the images on the data pad she was gifted by Soundwave.

"Yes, they are quite... interesting." Knockout semi-sincerely agreed.

"What do you think of humans Breakdown?"

"They're cute." Breakdown replied. "But I've had a bad run in with a group of them, so they definitely aren't my favorite."

"Ah. But that couldn't mean they're all bad."

"No. But there are definitely some bad ones." Breakdown replied, agreeing but standing by his experience.

"There's a bad bunch to every society." (Y/D/n) sighed to that reminder.

The three soon parked in a parking lot. Knockout and Breakdown seemed to tense, spotting Arcee, Bulkhead, and Bumblebee. Their paint was still chipped up from their last fight. Which would explain why they're here.

(Y/n) came to life and stepped out of her alt modes driver's seat. The two mechs did the same with their holoforms. (Y/n) bounced up and down excitedly, never having been in a human store before.

"Now, now (Y/n), calm down. Mannerisms are still required here." Knockout eased the excited girl. (Y/n) shook off her excitement and nodded.

"Right, Sorry KO." Knockout didn't choose a human name for his holoform, unlike Breakdown who chose the name "Blake".

"Let's go in then." KO said watching as (Y/n) excitedly sped walk into the building. KO and "Blake" looked at each other before entering behind (Y/n).

(Y/n) felt a wave of excitement wash over her when she saw all the colors. She knew her colors and was more than ready to redeem her colors once more. They had all faded over time when it became more and more stressful to try and take care of herself.

Not to mention the abuse she received from others that made it even more difficult, but that's beside the point.

KO and "Blake" saw this femme bubbling with joy. It was a nice change from the usual dark and cold attitude from the other Decepticons. Even Arachnid wasn't this nice and she was even a little different from the others. Just not pleasantly. It confused the two onto how this femme was Megatron's friend in the first place.

The two tensed when they spotted the Autobot holoforms and their charges. Not that they were scared, they just didn't want to throw (Y/n) into the mix and get in trouble.

"Knockout."

"Breakdown."

The Autobot holoforms stood in front of the three and really stood their ground. They wouldn't fight in a public building of course, but that wouldn't stop them from standing their ground.

"Oh. Do you guys know each other?" (Y/n) asked, confused.

"Uh. (Y/n). These are the autobots and their charges." Knockout said, motioning to the holoforms then the humans.

"Oh. Well it's nice to meet your acquaintance!" (Y/n) said before putting her hand out. Everyone stood confused. This person was strangely friendly.

"Is she human?" Arcee asked to Knockout with a glare.

"No I'm not, but it's lovely to meet some humans face to face." (Y/n) said, slipping past them to the humans. She put her hand out to them. "What are your names?"

"I'm Miko, that's Jack and that's Raf!" Miko said, sounding slightly confused herself, but she shook her hand anyway. Jack and Raf however stood nervously beside her.

"What's your game Decepticon?" Bulkhead growled, pulling Miko back from (Y/n). (Y/n) rolled her eyes and huffed.

"Please. I'm not a decepticon. I'm a neutral. Or at least I think that's what you call it... I'm not participating in this war." (Y/n) replied, crossing her arms, looking down slightly. Her excited aura fell to a depressed one.

"What?" Arcee asked. "Then why are you with the Decepticons?"

"Because I have friends on both sides of this war, I don't want it to come between my relationships. I know what is wrong and what is right, but I've only just woken up and I don't want to be a part of any fight." (Y/n) answered with a sigh.

"You're the one who was in the pod? Weren't you?" Arcee asked. (Y/n) nodded. "What's your designation?"

"(Y/D/n). Or (initials-number)." (Y/n) responded. Bulkhead paused in shock.

"(Y/D/n)? I thought you were dead." Bulkhead said shocked.

"It's nice to see you again too, Bulk. Though I feel I'm not as welcomed... from either side. Please do tell Orion— ah. Sorry.— Optimus and Ratchet I said hello." (Y/n) said with a small bow. "Now if you excuse us. We have a bit of paint shopping to do."

And just like that the two groups separated. The autobots and their charges still in shock, but getting what they needed and leaving to go report what just happened.

The excited aura on (Y/n) disappeared entirely despite their interaction ending. Knockout and Breakdown were now worried.

"Are you alright, (Y/n)?" Breakdown asked.

"Yes. I just know that things are going to be complicated now. I fear I will rarely ever be able to see my old friends. Or that they will die by one of your servos. But it's alright. Things happen. I'm just disappointed I couldn't do anything to stop this."

"We're fighting for equality." Breakdown said.

"Are we? That's what both sides are doing. I know what's going on. Please. This is exactly what I don't want. I want to be your friend. Not your enemy just because we disagree on how action should've taken place."

"You— you're right. I'm sorry." Breakdown apologized, now understanding her side in all of this. They soon got the paint and left, soon enjoying their time together as before.

It took a while, but soon (Y/D/n) was painted and flawless as before when she was younger, when she first met Megatronus.

~ • ~ • ~ • ~

"Optimus. We found out who was in that pod." Bulkhead said, transforming after Miko got out. Arcee and Bumblebee transformed quickly after.

"Some femme named (Y/D/n). She said to say hi to both you and Ratchet." Arcee finished.

"(Y/D/n)?" Ratchet questioned, turning away from the computer. "But she disappeared before the war even started."

"Has (Y/D/n) become a decepticon?" Optimus asked in a stern voice.

"No. She called herself a Neutral. I thought Megatron was against neutrals?" Arcee said, sounding confused.

"Yes, but (Y/D/n) and Megatron were friends long before the war started. Before Megatron even started speaking out against the caste system." Optimus explained. "(Y/D/n) will not be a problem to us, if you hold that concern. She's only neutral and with the Decepticons because she doesn't want to destroy her relationships. Though, you should still be careful around her in case they're tracking her."

"(Y/D/n) was the engineer of my team on Cybertron. She'd notice anything wrong within a second of it being wrong." Bulkhead said with a laugh.

"Yes. (Y/D/n) was one extremely neat bot." Ratchet agreed.

"So everyone but Bumblebee and I know this (Y/D/n)?" Arcee questioned with disbelief.

"I met (Y/D/n) through Megatron. She would ask for some of the books at Iacon that she wouldn't usually have access to, due to her caste." Optimus replied.

"I met (Y/D/n) through an accident. She was there in support of the injured crew member and when I wasn't working we'd talk. That continued a while after that." Ratchet explained.

"(Y/D/n)'s a nice femme. She had a lot of friends. I just didn't know her and Megatron were friends." Bulkhead admitted.

"It does not surprise me that (Y/D/n) would choose to stay with the Decepticons. (Y/D/n), Megatron, and Soundwave were very close. Megatron will most likely have her work in the mines, to keep them stable while they're being emptied. But Megatron might also wish to keep her out of harm's way."

"Why?" Arcee asked. "Why would he care about her? She's a coward in his perspective."

"Because they were friend's for so long. He cares deeply for her."

The base went silent momentarily. The humans were trying to process everything as well as Arcee and Bumblebee. Bulkhead was a little conflicted, but Optimus and Ratchet seemed unnerved.

"Alright then. A neutral bot." Miko came to terms with the conversation. "Maybe things will be different."

"It is possible." Optimus agreed. "Though you should not count on it."

"Changing Megatron's mind is nearly impossible."