Inevitable (Megatron x FEM/OC)

Chapter 6 - Lien

Lauren sat at her workbench attempting to fix a printer that had been dropped off for her.

A clogged ink cartridge. Easy enough, right?

Megatron sat quietly off to the side as he usually did, seemingly off in his own world.

"God, damnit!" Lauren cursed as the ink cartridge busted in her hands, staining her shirt and ashen skin in dark ink.

The mech grumbled something akin to a laugh accompanied by an exhale.

She glared. "It's not funny! How would you like it if I put ink all over you?!"

He snarled. "You will lose your appendages, bug." His claws flexed as if craving the violent threat to be made true.

"Oh, yeah? Well, I'd like to see-" She stopped abruptly, head snapping around.

"Continue with your words, girl. I'm waiting." He dared her. "Or are-"

"Wait, sshh!" She hushed, holding her hand out to him.

The decepticon growled thunderously. "You dare-"

"No. No- You have to hide!" Lauren stumbled from her stool, hastily wiping the ink across her pant legs. The familiar car horn rolling up the driveway seemed closer now.

"Do you take me for a coward, girl?" His teeth bared as he slammed his open fist down into the dirt.

"No! But I don't want to go to jail! So please, hide! Transform or something! I don't know!"

The approaching engine grew louder as she broke out into a nervous sweat. Her eyes were pleading. "Please, Lord Megatron."

Megatron growled once more before swiftly transforming into his current alt mode. The human vehicle was something he soon wished to rid himself of.

Lauren smeared her ink covered hands over her pant legs before she snatched up a blue tarp and threw it over the large truck just as the barn door swung open.

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She dare take him for some cowardice scraptrap? A fool?! Something to be hidden?!

Megatron growled inwardly as the femme threw something over top of him.

The barn door swung open and in came an unrecognized human male.

"I see you're still messing with junk." He commented as he pushed over a small metal contraption, sending it clattering to the ground.

"It's not junk." She bit defiantly. "It's my work."

"Yeah, because anyone will want some rusted out truck. Does it even run?"

Megatron half thought about transforming then and there to show the man just who he was, but the femme stepped in front of him, her arms crossed over her chest and legs stance wide. "What do you want Michael? Spit it out, or get the hell off my property."

The human male- Micheal- tossed a small stack of papers onto a nearby surface with an audible thud. "You haven't been by in weeks to collect your mail and I'm not a delivery man."

"S'not like I expected you to bring it." Her tone was flat and snide, she didn't bother to grace the paper stack with a glance.

Michael glared.

Megatron noted the way her facial features contorted into that of irritation and something else unreadable.

"The bank is going to put a lien on your house if you can't pay off the taxes by the end of the month." Micheal interjected bluntly as he scrutinized the things he saw with judgement.

Lauren's expression hardened and her chest tightened uncomfortably.

"You'll lose your house." He sniped. "And then what? You can't-"

"Get out Michael." Her jaw clenched, her tone came out hard and stern.

"You can't just ignore-"

"I said get out!" She barked, taking a threatening step forward in emphasis. Her heart beat in her throat and the rush of her blood deafened her.

Megatron watched as the two humans exchanged glances, before the male left in a huff and mutters that her ears were not privy too. His engine faded off into the distance soon after.

Lauren dropped onto her aft, pulling her knees inward with a deep groan.

The mech transformed swiftly behind her, being sure to toss away the tarp. She did not look to him. He snarled.

"If you're going to crush me then get it over with." Her tone was despondent and he noticed quickly the excess heat that radiated off her fleshy form.

"It requires more courage to suffer, than to die, girl." He grumbled. "And you're no coward."

Lauren hummed at him, but made no move to offer a verbal response as she got to her feet. His large form casted a shadow over her.

"I'm going to head inside." Her tone was even and quieter in pitch, her eyes didn't spare him a passing glance as she retreated.

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The clock struck ten and the old grandfather clock dinged rhythmically.

The sound use to bring a sense of comfort to her, but now it almost felt like a signal of impending doom of what has yet to come.

Lauren was supposed to eat dinner hours ago, but the appetite never came, nor did the motivation.

Sat huddled on the couch, the living room was illuminated by the glow of the TV.

There was no way she would be able to scrape up the money in time.

She knew that.

It was inevitable.

The sounds from the TV were lost on her as she stared off into space, eyes unblinking. The beating of her own heart became uncomfortable and she was acutely aware of the hair strands that brushed against her skin.

Where would she go?

Nowhere... A little voice in the back of her mind whispered harshly.

She had nowhere to go.

Nobody to go to.

Perhaps she had a distant cousin she could reach out to? But the likelihood of that was about as probable as her being able to pay off her debt.

Not likely and definitely not going to happen.

The TV was suddenly too loud and too bright. The air conditioning was blowing too hard.

Lauren rose to her feet and made her way out onto the porch. It was darker and the warm, stagnate air offered her comfort as she took a seat upon the steps, arms crossed atop her knees.

Heavy foreboding steps pulled her back to reality as she glanced up to Megatron's approaching silhouette, she focused her sights skyward.

The southern night sky was truly something to be marveled. Millions of stars peppered the midnight and the moon bathed everything in its soft comforting glow.

His steps came to a halt feet from her, his ruby optics focused upward as well.

She inhaled the fresh air as a breeze graced her, sweeping some of her tangled dark hair aside.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Lauren commented wistfully. "It probably looks better from space though, huh?"

"Your human eyes wouldn't be able to comprehend it." He replied flatly.

A dry laugh escaped her. "Probably."

Several more moments passed comfortably.

"What will become of your home?" Megatron glanced his optics down to her huddled form, momentarily basking the girl in a red glow. If she noticed, then she made no move to acknowledge it.

The mech wouldn't say it nor acknowledge it, but a deep feeling of rapport surfaced for the femme. To lose one's home is to lose one's self. In a way, he could understand her feeling of despondency and sorrow. Her lack of fight was something else entirely and something he didn't quite understand.

For a split second, Megatron swore he saw a glimpse of himself in the girl. A glimpse of his former self all those millenniums ago.

D-16.

Cybertron would live, thrive, again one day. He could go home and everyone would bow in thanks.

A long bout of silence passed, neither made a move to initiate.

"They will sell it and I'll be forced to leave." She rested her chin atop her knees, closing her eyes as she listened to the crickets and rustling of leaves in the wind. The sounds of tranquility. "What happened to your home? I can't see much of a reason for you to come to a place like Earth."

Megatron hummed. "That's not of your concern, girl." His tone wasn't overtly harsh. Stern maybe.

"Okay." Was all she replied. Pry, she wouldn't. It wasn't like she had the energy to spare either.

She hummed an indistinct melody to herself as she rocked back and forth gently. It reminded her of a simpler time that she desperately yearned to return to. A time with no cares in the world, all that mattered were Saturday cartoons and whatever snacks were in the pantry. A time when she was small enough for her grandfather to rock her in his (now wood rotten) rocking chair, sat upon his lap as the glow of sunlight bathed her in warmth.

Lauren didn't know when she had began nodding off, the warm Texan air like a blanket, swaddling her into blissful unconsciousness.

Megatron stared down at her balled form, steady breaths left her and her heart slowed to match.

She was in need of recharge- or sleep as humans called it. They couldn't survive without the rest period. A design flaw, he might add.

With not much of a second thought, he reached a clawed finger down and nudged her over with little to no effort.

Lauren stumbled, but caught herself with a murmur. "I'm up..." The words came out slurred slightly as she rubbed at her face. "I'm up."

"Go, girl. Recharge." His tone was assertive and firm with his order. "You insects perish without it."

Lauren rose to her feet, hunched sleepily. She bat some hair out of her face as she turned to head inside, but before she did she turned and stared up to the mech. He stared back.

"Goodnight, Megatron."

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