SEMI-OPEN || Return to the Ship

[legalcy]

CHARACTERS: Minimus Ambus and you
LOCATION: Sunlight Room, Common Living Area, Minimus's room (closed)
DATE: Post-Mission
CONTENT: Minimus does the best thing after that mess of a mission: get to work
WARNINGS: Will add as needed


Common Living Area

[The sting of being unwanted and doing more harm than good still hurts even after millions of years of being the most hated species in the universe. Minimus wonders if he feels more torn up about it than he should considering that he was well-liked by the Galactic Council and considered to be an exception to the rule...But that wasn't Minimus about whom they were thinking. The idea of Ultra Magnus was a good story for them to cling onto: a powerful, one-mech-army that went after the worst of his kind and protected organics.

That's not who Minimus really is. And he knows he didn't agree with most of his teammate's actions, but they are what they are. He's learned that he can't control everyone to behave the way he wants. Still, the disorganization between their ranks irritates him to the core of his character. What kind of crew goes out into a field without mission control or without a agreed-upon set of guidelines to follow? The mission on the train was straightforward: find the orb, rescue their friends from being convicted for murder, stop Newt. This is different.

This calls for his specialty: bureaucracy.

His own decisions came from the prior experiences of other orbers, but they weren't written down in one resource document. It's time to fix that.

Before setting down for work, he cleans the common area, reorganizes the magazines, adjusts the furniture, and reaches a state of calm. At one of the tables, he has a writing pad and his personal datapad set up, a stack of legal books, and his personal music player playing at a low but audible volume. Today's playlist is piano music from the Romantic Era fit for studying to.

Once in a while, when he feels particularly stuck, he pauses the song and calls out:] Ah - have you been on the ship for long? I wanted to ask you a few questions.

Sunlight Room

[But when he has to be alone and ruminate on what he did - on what he said to his closest friends before the mission, on what he failed to say - Minimus braves the imaginary dirt caught in his pedes to stand in the middle of the meadow, look up at the illusion of a sky, and watch the fake clouds. Legal debates are easy for which to prepare, personal matters of the heart and apologies for accusations said during moments of distress are difficult.

At least the scenery is pleasant. He might forget that anyone else can enter without his knowing.]

Private to Drift:

If you have time, I am waiting for you in the sunlight room. I wish to apologize.

[As written, he's already there, positioned in the shadow of the forest to elegantly shade his frame. His hands are folded behind his straight back.]

Minimus's Room, Closed to Megatron

[A message has been sent to Megatron: he wants to talk in the privacy of his room. He swore that he didn't want to continue living on the ship with regrets, and it's time to follow up on his promise. His body is actually transformed and parked in the corner while the avatar of Verity sits at his desk, hands folded on the lap.]

...I want to thank you for agreeing to come here. [Even if the topic of discussion is personal, there's some sense of formality he wants to keep for now.] I was not in the best of moods a month ago, but I hope that I can be more receptive to what you say this time.

Comments

The Room (oh hi minimus)

[flickerandfade]

[ Megatron steps into the room and lets the door close behind him. He takes in the scene set before him, optics flicking from Minimus' real body in the corner to the holoform sitting at the desk. Of course. Minimus is always trying to hide himself behind armor, behind Ultra Magnus. It is one of the things that drives Megatron mad about Minimus, in spite of the affection between them.

He could be so much more if he only let himself be more and stopped trying to hide who he was at his spark. ]

Then allow me to say that I apologize for not being frank with you about what passed between Drift and myself. I should have been forthcoming instead of assuming that it was of no importance when the opposite was true. It was thoughtless of me.

Now I ask that you let me speak before you say anything further.

[ He pauses, just for a moment, then continues. ]

But let me say that when that particular dalliance began, we were both in mourning. He lost Ratchet right before he arrived here. I believed that I would never see you again and that our farewell after my sentencing had been the last I would ever see of you, in any universe. I believed that I had lost forever the chance to express my affection for you in the way that I wished I had.

[ His hands are folded at the small of his back. He refuses to fidget, because fidgeting is a sign of weakness and he beat it out of himself eons ago. ]

I offer not an excuse, but an explanation for what happened. I am sorry for violating for your trust. That I have enjoyed it in the past was of great importance to me. If I no longer possess that trust, I understand.

[legalcy]

[The avatar nods, allowing Megatron to finish speaking. As easy it would be to amend the rift with a hug or a romantic touch to the soldier, it's easier to distance himself from the base emotions of the incident if he's not himself. A set of armor to protect himself, but also to save Megatron from his distress lashing.

Minimus can't trust himself to keep that strong of a handle on his own insecurities.]

No, I agree with you. Hiding your recent dalliances from me for well over a month was an unacceptable breach of trust. Despite all that we shared with one another, you kept this a secret, and I feared what other information relevant to our...relationship...you would hide. [He adjusts the avatar's shoulders and has it tear its gaze away from its own hands and straight at Megatron.] Perhaps you may call me jealous, but I know there are those who see me as a temporary step to reach someone else.

[Dominus, usually. Tyrest. Magnus. And he thought Drift would end up on that list.]

...But in retrospect, you would not be blamed if you sought company in someone with whom you had a close relationship in the past.

Common Area

[victorylap]

Minimus, you know I haven't been here that long.

[ He laughs, though, all smiles, all Rodimus. Because hey, that's what he's supposed to do, right? Brush off the dust. Keep going. They've got a quest, a mission, and it's all going to be fine. They'll make it.

Sure.

He slumps into a chair next to Minimus. ]

We didn't get much of a chance to talk before everything went sideways. How are you?

[flickerandfade]

Let me say that you are not a stepping stone, or second in my affections to anyone I have known in the last four million years.

[ Megatron tries not to sound too hurried when he says it, but it's impossible not to let his emotions filter into his words. ]

Your respect... your affection means more than I am able to say. I returned from the Functionist universe in part because I did not want you... you or Rodimus to think less of me for failing to return. This is the same. I value you, your trust, and your care very highly.

[legalcy]

Yes, but...

[It's an excuse to talk with Rodimus, and he saw straight through him.]

I'm well. I'm glad that I could contribute to finding the orb, but everything else could have been better. [He pushes his chair away from the desk and folds his hands on his lap.] I was thinking of creating some sort of agreement on how to conduct ourselves on future missions. We did well in a smaller setting - this was before you arrived - but if this is our normal, I am not optimistic about our future performances.

[legalcy]

[It should be something Minimus already knows, but he's grateful to hear that directly from Megatron's mouth. He even dares to smile before speaking again.]

If you want to retain my trust, you mustn't hide these sorts of things from me. You're willing to come back to a universe that despises you because of me, then I want to believe that those feelings are not gone.

...I do not think less of you, Megatron. I doubt I could despise you, even if you hurt me. [It's why he had to set up this meeting. He couldn't end things like this. Megatron will never lose his grip on his Spark.] Despite knowing you were to be sentenced, I hoped that something between us could save you. It's foolish, I know, but even when you were left behind in the Functionist universe, I wanted to believe that there was some sense of truth in your affections and you didn't abandon us.

...It's just more proof that I ought to have more faith in your faithfulness, isn't it?

[victorylap]

What exactly went wrong? I wasn't really involved in planning everything, but...

[ He taps the tips of his fingers together. ]

Aside from the whole "everything blew up".

[aurable]

I'm free, yeah.

[ Minimus contacting him hadn't come as a surprise, but what did give Drift pause was the fact that this had been extended as an apology. Something Drift wasn't sure he even deserved, let alone sought out.

Drift arrived in the sunlit room within minutes. Barely making a sound despite his frame size as he moves across the short bridge to the shadowy glen by the pond. ]

Hey.

[legalcy]

[As if Minimus understood how to keep the dramatic tension in his favor, he turns away from the forest to give Drift a nod.]

Good evening. [There are no places to sit, leaving them standing in the quiet atmosphere of the forest.] I believe you understand the topic of our conversation, and there is no need for to discuss the details.

[Mostly because he wants to get over this without reliving those conversations.]

[aurable]

[ Drift was a big proponent for the well-timed dramatic pause but found himself bristling at being on the receiving end. What has him biting his tongue knows that the ball was in Minimus's court, so to speak. Not to mention even the wiry and slight Minimus was the bigger bot here by extending this olive branch. ]

Yeah, I think we can agree on that.

[legalcy]

Disagreements on our plan, Rodimus. We were fractured in opinion with little direction.

[Part of it, he could blame, is due to the lack of information, but this assumes that Viveca knew everything that was happening on her home planet, and if she didn't know that the orb was in the camps, then it's on the orbers for only accomplishing the bare minimum.]

Some of us said that experience taught us to not meddle in the affairs of the locals, others stated that we had to help based on the outcomes of prior missions. Others acted on their own. We don't have a captain to guide our actions. [A nod at his datapad.] I hope that we could at least have some sort of agreement before we plan our final moves.

[victorylap]

Sounds like a mess. And that got us, uh, back here. Which is where we wanted to be but with more collateral damage.

[ He pinches his nose. ]

Like herding turbo-foxes.

[flickerandfade]

You had every reason not to believe me.

[ Mostly. He was still stewing in his own guilt with that remark, wasn't he? ]

I promise then, not to hide such things from you in the future, should they ever occur. I want you to be able to trust that I hide nothing from you which might cause you hurt.

[ He is quiet for a moment. ]

You are important to me, Minimus. I want to be able to enjoy the time we have, if we still can.

[ Even if he doesn't deserve that forgiveness again. ]

[legalcy]

Excellent.

[He moves his hands to the front, where they're clasped together in a handshake with himself. That first hurdle was passed; the next one is bigger. His optics close for a second in lieu of a deep breath.]

I apologize for my accusatory behavior and slinging blame at you, despite you having come forth with the truth when the onus of disclosure was on Megatron. [If this sounds formal, it's because Minimus practiced writing this down first.] I understand that you acted in the belief that I would not arrive - which, based on the information you had at the time, was true.

And...I suppose we all grieve in our different ways.

Despite that, I am...[The feelings part is always difficult, especially with someone who he isn't intimately involved with.] still hurt that you chose to reveal your past relations...so casually. I'm of the mind that it should be treated as the sensitive and delicate topic that it is.

[legalcy]

[Softly:] Turbofoxes are pack animals, they move together...

[But poor simile aside, Minimus does see the heart of Rodimus's words.]

From what I've seen, without a common goal uniting us - as when we only had to inspect a train - we go in different directions, often to the detriment of others. It may be due to differing philosophies, but this is work. We should adhere to some sense of professionalism.

Which is why I am drafting a document for future reference on large missions like this.

[legalcy]

Megatron-

[How can he not react to such emotion without getting emotional himself. It's this form that stops him from standing up and getting closer.]

Ultimately, it was healthier for me to believe you abandoned me - us on purpose. When you were sentenced, it was healthier for me to assume you to be dead and to life my life knowing I would not see you again. [He crosses his arms, his eyes have returned to looking at the floor.] But you are correct.

I don't know how much time we have here, and I mustn't waste it on foolishly throwing away my own happiness.

[victorylap]

I'm not sure they're all going to want to agree to a code. It's worth a shot, though. I mean... worked for the Autobots, right?

[ Kind of. It held them together until the war ended, at least. ]

Not sure how "professional" this crew is ever going to be, either.

[legalcy]

They have to be more professional.

They tried to convince me that "borb" is a real word.

[victorylap]

...that sounds like a made-up word.

[legalcy]

You are correct. It is incorrect and does not communicate that the orb was in the form of a book.

[flickerandfade]

So you have made a decision about... 'us,' then?

[ Megatron's fave is impassive. He isn't going to let himself get excited or hopeful or anything of the sort until he hears it from Minimus' own mouth. ]

May I ask what the decision is?

[legalcy]

[Verity’s finger taps against the avatar’s lap. Once spoken, it will become a commitment.]

I want to see what the two of us could have become if we had more time.

If you are willing, of course.

[aurable]

[ Only Minimus could make an apology and soul-bearing moment sound like a stuffy lecture that wouldn't be out of place at a dry work briefing — with charts and everything. That doesn't lessen the weight of his words, however. One of Drift's finials flagged downward and out to the side as he stood there both being properly chastised as he was being handed the veritable olive branch. ]

I could have handled it better, yeah. [ Drift stares down as one of his pedes digs into the soft earth in a nervously, slowly circular grind of his heel. ] You're the bigger 'bot for giving me as much clemency as is.

[ A beat. ] ...You know what I mean.

common room!

[blackfire]

（ he prefers his own room by and large, but as it happens he is sorting through the free use bookcase to the right of the door when minimus calls out that query. he has a half-dozen books cradled in one arm, and sets a seventh — a book of hindi poetry — atop the pile before he alters his path to take him by the table where the transformer has spread out his work. red eyes flicker across the various papers, but ultimately he focuses on minimus himself. ）

What do you wish to know?

[legalcy]

[This is only furthering Minimus's philosophy that a formal speech is the best way in which to address conflict. It's bringing his friend and boyfriend back.]

No, I understand what you mean. Megatron would have said the same. [And it's been in his Spark ever since. Physical size isn't the most important thing. Minimus's hand rests on his chest while he thinks.] ...Do you mean what you said? Are you not interested in pursuing him any longer?