Chapter Text
Fixit slowly blinked his optics open, adjusting to the light, only to see Sideswipe standing right over him. “Ugh, what do you font- haunt- WANT, Sideswipe? It’s too early for this…” Fixit sighed, still tired and barely woken up. “C’mon, pack your bags, we’re going to that Sentry’s Solutions place today, remember?” Sideswipe enthusiastically replied. “We never agreed on that, Sideswipe. I am almost entirely sure that this is a matter that requires both of our input.” Fixit commented. He seemed agitated by Sideswipe’s decision. “Well, do you want to be fixed or not?” “I… I suppose I do.” “Pack your bags then! We leave in an hour!” Fixit had hoped for more of a conversation than that, but it seemed his decision was made for him already. The mini-con scurried away to pack his bags.
Nearly an hour later, Fixit looked over his now prepared bag to ensure that he had everything he needed. “Toolbox, books… I- I think I’m ready.” He’d double-checked- no, triple-checked- everything to make sure he had everything he’d need. “Really? Bringing your tools too?” Sideswipe scoffed at the thought of Fixit bringing his tools to a facility that would undoubtedly have the exact same tools. “Hey! You never know when you might heed- deed- NEED them!” Fixit huffed in exhaustion, as he had barely had enough time to wake himself up, “Besides, I don’t feel safe without them.” he continued exasperatedly.
“Well, come on! Let’s get going already!” Sideswipe transformed and opened his passenger side door, “Just get in already! We’re gonna be late!” That was what Fixit had been hoping for. To just… not be able to go, no matter the reason. The flyer hadn’t seemed right when Fixit had read it. Flaws? Those were what made bots themselves, they didn’t need to be fixed, right? And what did “Special Repairs” even mean? Fixit’s mind was racing with dread, before he took a deep breath to calm his nerves. “Alright.”
On the ride to Sentry’s Solutions, Fixit was abnormally quiet. He tended to get this way if he was worried, though he was just taking his time to calm himself. “Calm down, Fixit, Sideswipe knows what he’s doing. He chose Sentry’s Solutions for a good reason, he must have.” Suddenly, Fixit was jolted from his self-calming routine. “Fixit, come on, I’ve told you like 20 times, we’re here!” Fixit opened his optics- he had them closed tightly for the whole 30 or so minute long ride- to see that the building looked much different from what he had expected. It was pristine, almost looking like a human hospital. This sight reassured him temporarily, even if it wasn’t much, the establishment did look somewhat official.
Upon entry, Sentry’s Solutions’ interior looked just as pristine as its exterior. The walls of the waiting room were white with colorful dots, the furniture was plush, and there were photos of happy patients adorning the walls as a symbol of just how successful the establishment was. There weren’t very many bots there, something which simultaneously put Fixit off and reassured him. If there weren’t so many bots, Fixit wouldn’t have to worry about too much noise, but if there weren’t many bots despite the reputation of Sentry’s Solutions, then how good was it in reality?
Sideswipe quickly took a seat on one of the plush stools, which seemed to have been designed specifically for non-mini-cons to sit on, with smaller ones next to them, these seemingly designed for mini-cons. “Hey, Fixit, you should feel these seats! They’re super fluffy!” Fixit took a seat on one of the three smaller seats next to Sideswipe. To his surprise, it was just as fluffy as Sideswipe had said it was, with an added bonus- it was heated. Fixit sunk into the comfort of the seat, calmed by the atmosphere. He pulled up an e-book and started reading.
A few minutes later, a blueish-white caretaker mini-con rolled over towards Fixit and Sideswipe. “Greetings! Welcome to Sentry’s Solutions! My name is Repaira, and I will be your guide through the start of the sign-up process!” Repaira handed Sideswipe a clipboard with what looked to be a survey on it. “Dr. Sentry asked me to have you fill out this survey. He told me that it was to assess what repair services we should offer more of.” Sideswipe glanced up and down the survey, noticing that some questions seemed… off, but he didn’t make much of it. “M’kay, I’ll just fill this out… you said this was a survey for business stuff?”
“Yes, that is exactly the purpose of this survey! We aim to provide our most desired services for lower prices in order to make them more accessible for every customer!” Repaira’s voice sounded sickeningly sweet to Fixit, but he tried not to point it out. After all, he wanted to be polite in case Repaira was insecure about it. Just a second later, Fixit got a look at the survey. A quick glance, sure, but he was able to see a question, nonetheless. The only question he was able to see shook him a bit- “What would you change about your mini-con, if anything, and why? Please answer in the box below.”
Sideswipe quickly scribbled down an answer. He quickly flipped the paper over to see if there was a back side- there wasn’t. “Here you go!” He handed it back quickly, leaving Fixit with no time to see what the answer was. “Thank you! I shall take this to Dr. Sentry immediately, and then he will be out shortly to see you if is not too busy!” Repaira exclaimed, proceeding to roll through a pair of employee-only doors.
“See, Fixit? Nothing to be scared of!” Sideswipe was much more excited about this than Fixit was, that was for sure. Fixit sheepishly glanced around, “Y-yes, I suppose there’s nothing to be scared of…” he said, hoping, praying, that he had been wrong about this place.