Work Text:
Charm
Orion Pax watched as D16’s fists slammed into the punching bag before him, leaving enormous dents in the metal and giving the other bots around a good reason to give him a wide berth. Orion Pax however still sat near him, almost getting hit by the swinging bag multiple times but not even moving an inch even when it did so. Pax did not talk, allowing D16 to get his anger out, his mutterings and snarling about Darkwing echoing down the hall along with the loud thumps and clangs of metal upon metal.
Orion worried about D16’s anger but he couldn’t fault him for it. No matter how many times Dee said that he was content or that he was happy following protocol, Orion could see his boiling rage at his station in life just beneath the surface. His beautiful, golden optics of Kaon heritage gave his true feelings away. He wanted to free him, free them all. If only he could find the Matrix of Leadership. But until then…
“Hey Dee!” He called his friend as he saw Dee’s anger ease slightly. Dee didn’t respond for a second, instead spinning on his pede and delivering a solid roundhouse kick to the punching bag and ripping the bolts out of the support beam it was hung from, sending it crashing onto the ground with a deafening ‘clang’!
D16 stood there for a moment, shocked at his own strength before looking back at Orion who just gave him a goofy grin.
“Third one this month, guess Jazz owes me a couple hundred shanix,” Orion joked, disarming D16’s rage and making the silver bot chuckle despite himself.
“I forget my own strength,” was all D16 could mutter in his defence looking sheepish.
“It’s alright Dee, hey! I got something for you!” Orion exclaimed as he jumped up and put an arm around his friend’s shoulders. D16 just humphed and half heartedly tried to shrug him off.
“It better not be a penalty for one of your idiotic trips out to the archives,” D16 rumbled as he stalked off to his recharge berth, leaving Orion hanging awkwardly in midair. He didn’t even acknowledge Pax as he hurried to his side, instead picking up an oil can and attending to his joints.
“It’s better than that!” Orion exclaimed as he began digging around in his subspace for the little trinket he picked up for D16 on a little trip to South Iacon. “I found some Megatronus Merchandise down south for you!”
D16 went rigid at the mention of Megatronus before eagerly looking towards Orion, oilcan forgotten in his servo.
“You did?” He asked, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth as he tried to downplay his excitement but he couldn’t fool Orion.
“Tada!” Orion crowed as he pulled a small little charm of Megatronus Prime’s effigy on it, a small little spear made from clear carved crystal accompanying it. “Isn’t it cute? I got myself one of Zeta Prime so we can match!”
For a moment, D16 stared at it silently before reaching out and taking it, almost reverently.
“You… got this for me?” D16 asked, his voice distant and filled with disbelief. “Why?”
“Because you’re my friend, Dee, why wouldn’t I?” Orion shrugged, leaning against Dee’s recharge berth and grinning as he proudly displayed his little Zeta charm on his datapad.
“I suppose that makes sense,” D16 nodded quietly as he gently turned the charm over in his servo. “It’s just- no one’s ever really gotten me anything before. Not… not without wanting something from me in return.”
Orion’s face fell as he considered D16’s words. No wonder he had been a bit guarded and evasive when they had first met. Orion reached over and placed a servo on D16’s shoulder, causing the other mech to look up at him, a sad and dejected look in his optics.
“Hey, I’ve got your back, no matter what, I promise,” Orion reassured him, holding up a fist to D16 for him to bump.
D16 glanced at it before a wide genuine smile spread across his face and his golden optics brightened, filling with happiness.
“Thanks, Pax,” D16 nodded to him before returning the fist bump and grinning like an idiot.
“You were watching me.”
It wasn’t a question.
Optimus Prime turned to find Megatron standing near the entrance to the training room as the Prime turned away from the observation panel.
“I like watching you,” Optimus shrugged in response. It wasn’t a lie. He truly did like watching the other mech train. Megatron rolled his optics and shook his helm.
“Train with me instead of being lazy, Prime,” Megatron scoffed. “If you have time to watch me then you have time to train with me. Elita thinks you’re getting lazy.”
Optimus felt an itch in his intake and coughed, turning his gaze from the old ex-warlord and busing himself with the console.
“I got here a few minutes before you finished,” he hastily claimed but Megatron only smirked and stalked closer to him, like a wolf stalking its prey.
“You are a terrible liar, Optimus,” Megatron rumbled warmly as he closed the gap between them. “Always have been. But it amuses me to see you try and deceive me.”
Optimus shrugged, unsure of what to say as he looked back at his old friend. His once stunning golden optics now ruby red, still filled with millions of years of anger but also anguish and hurt. His black helmet had turned silver and there were more scars and scrapes on it than there ever had been when he had been a cogless miner. His frame had changed many times and still bore scars that ran deep, a lot of them inflicted by his own axe but still, he could see the remains of D16 in the mech’s figure and optics. He was still D16, changed, but it was still his friend.
“Yeah well, I guess that just means I would be a terrible Decepticon, I guess,” the Prime offered with a nervous laugh. Megatron’s optics widened slightly at the admittedly very bad joke but he didn’t frown.
“You probably wouldn’t,” Megatron nodded with a smirk as he tilted his head, optics narrowing as he bared those strange fangs of his. “You’d be more of a liability than anything, unable to follow orders, compromising your team. I’m glad that I didn’t have to put up with you as Leader of the Decepticons.”
Optimus frowned, annoyed. “I’ve grown up, Megatron. I’m not Orion Pax any more, he’s long gone.”
Megatron’s optics widened as did Optimus’s at his unfortunate choice of words. Optimus immediately began to panic in his mind as the warmth immediately dropped from Megatron’s face to be replaced by a cold and furious glare.
“I didn’t mean– slag– Megatron–”
“I’m going to the washracks, don’t follow me,” Megatron growled, his voice cold and devoid of the warmth that had been there seconds before. The Silver mech didn’t say anything further as he turned pede and stomped off, deeper into the GHOST base, GHOST agents running out of his way to avoid his wrath.
Optimus Prime was left to stare after him, helpless and unsure of what to do.
“Great job, Prime.”