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“What'cha got there, chief?”
Frenzy's curious voice jolted Megatron out of his thoughts. Though he was used to the minibot's tendency to barge into their quarters without even knocking, he had been deeply concentrating on his work.
“Ooh, shiny!” Frenzy said, scampering into the room.
Megatron fumbled with the object, optics checking to make sure the door was closed. It was, thankfully. “Please lower your voice,” he said.
“Oh!” The light in Frenzy's optical band also flickered towards the door. “Sorry, chief,” he whispered, apologetically.
The minibot sat down on the hard metal berth he shared with his twin on the left side of the cramped, underground room, across from Megatron. His legs swung back and forth from the edge, and he asked, “So what is it? Somethin' important? Somethin'… Illegal?”
Megatron fixed his charge with an unimpressed stare. “Frenzy.”
“What? You were lookin' all, uhh, secretive 'n stuff, I'm bound ta get curious!”
Megatron sighed. “Yes, it is important, and no, I don't want people to know about it. and it's fragile.”
Frenzy leaned in. “Yeesh, talk about a triple threat. But hey, you can trust me, can't ya? I only wanna look! And I won't even tell Rumble!”
Megatron found that extremely doubtful. Even though he knew Rumble was currently on shift with Impactor (and Primus, he really should try to get that changed at some point. The mech was a terrible influence on the little ones. Not that he ever could. Impactor would never admit it, but Megatron knew that he was quite fond of the two.), he also knew that the twins were always gossiping over their link no matter how far apart they might be.
“I will show you. But!” he exclaimed, before Frenzy got too excited, “When Rumble finds out,” when and not if, “he has to promise not to talk about it either.”
Frenzy's visor flared, and he nodded firmly. “We promise!”
Internally, Megatron smiled. He never really wanted to keep things from the twins, especially not something like this. He was far too fond of them both, ever since they were placed under his care all those stellar cycles ago. Not only that, but the item was something for their other caretaker.
“It's a gift,” he said, holding his hand out, “For Soundwave.”
In his hand was a tiny blue metal box, painstakingly polished by hand. The cover had faded silver detailing, too delicate and ornate for Megatron to even attempt to patch up. On the front was a latch, also in silver.
Megatron smiled at Frenzy. “Go on then. You can open it. Gently.”
The minibot looked up at him, as if asking if he was really allowed, then carefully pulled the latch open.
As the cover flipped up and revealed the interior, Frenzy gasped. Inside the box were two minuscule figurines entwined in a dance. Their delicate armour must have been made by hand, from this close, he could see all the tiny imperfections, not that they made the sculptures any less beautiful. The inside of the cover itself was lined with a light blue crystal material, giving it a sort of glow. In the corner of the surface that the two figurines were placed, there was a button. Frenzy hovered a servo over it, looking up at Megatron, who nodded at him.
When he pressed it, the dancing figurines started to spin. Then, music started to play, soft and twinkling. It was faint, but Frenzy eventually recognised it as some sort of… Lullaby? Some old song that he remembers Soundwave singing when he and Rumble first arrived at the mine under Nova Point, tiny and scared. It comforted them enough to lull them to recharge, something that they both had trouble with. In fact, wasn't that how Soundwave unofficially became their second caretaker?
When the twins were sent to the mine shortly after their creation, they met with Megatron, to learn the ropes. Megatron himself was still young, and grieving from the loss of his own mentor, terminus. The old mech had fallen victim to a cave-in not too long ago. But it was because of that loss that Megatron decided that he would be a mentor to the two minibots. The other miners were too brash, too uncaring. Megatron was lucky to have met Terminus, and so he was determined to be just as good to the twins. One aspect that he could never succeed at was getting them to recharge soundly. Even when he managed to get the two to shut off their optics and go to recharge, he could tell that they were having nightmares. He didn't know what to do.
It continued that way until he met Soundwave.
The mech was transferred to nova point mine to work in one of the administrative roles. Judging by his frame, it was most likely not his original function, but truly, so long as it was all classed under “Servitude”, the Functionist Council wasn't all that fussed about where low-caste mecha were employed. Soundwave was just happy that he no longer had to interact with as many mecha as he did in his old job. He was content to file paperwork in his dingy little office, with only the company of his three beastformer cassettes.
As a cassette player, however, it was only natural that he still preferred to have some noise in the background. And so Soundwave brought something to the mines that he probably wasn't allowed to have: music.
Frenzy remembered the day he heard music, pre-recorded music, for the first time in his life. So far, all he'd ever had were Tarnish mining songs and other north-hemisphere folk songs that the miners whistled from time to time. He and Rumble were walking towards the dining area when they heard it, and when the two of them paused to listen to it better, a bunch of other mecha walking behind the two nearly tripped on them! But the miners didn't get mad, they noticed the music too, and then they all followed it. It came from Soundwave's office.
The following day, there was music playing on the intercom system. It was risky, because they weren't technically allowed to get any entertainment, but Soundwave made sure to cut it whenever any of the higher-ups dropped in. Frenzy and Rumble lived in silent admiration of the mysterious, reclusive mech for cycles. Well. As silent as the two could be. Which wasn't a lot. Ravage noticed them following him pretty quickly.
Through those series of events, Megatron met Soundwave, and began enlisting his help to sing the twins to sleep. And it worked! Though Soundwave was somewhat embarrassed at first, he had a really beautiful voice, even with the synthesizer. Soundwave then started spending more time outside his office, making friends with some of the other miners, but more than that, he became closer and closer to Megatron. The two established a sort of rapport, a comfortable intimacy. Soundwave's quarters were a ways away from theirs. There had been a couple of times where Frenzy would wake up and see Megatron sprawled on the floor while Soundwave was sleeping stiffly on the mech's berth. And there had been a couple of times after that where he woke up and saw them tangled up together. It made him wish that they had one really big berth, where he and Rumble could squish themselves in the middle and they would be one big cuddly… Family? Was that the word? Yeah… Family.
Blinking the fluid coming from under his optical band away, Frenzy looked at the music box in Megatron's hand and said, “Thas' a really nice gift to give to the boss, chief. Where'd ya find it?”
“Actually, Impactor found it. You remember when they tried to transfer him to another mine a few cycles back?” Megatron paused at Frenzy's nod. “When he came back, he gave this to me. Well, threw it at me is more accurate, I suppose. He told me that he spotted it in a pile of junk, and that it seemed like something my, and I quote, nerdy aft would enjoy working on.”
Frenzy tilted his head. “That was a while ago… How long did it take ya to fix it?”
“Hmm..” Megatron thought for a klik. “It took a long time. I can't say for sure. I had to fix the internal mechanisms too, you see. If you think the sound is faint now, well, it was a lot worse when I got it. And the only mech I could think of who'd most likely have the knowledge to help was the mech I was planning on giving it to!” Megatron chuckled. “It took a lot of doing.”
Frenzy hummed. “So what's the occasion? Is it…” he gasped. “Is it the boss' creation day or something?! 'Cause if it is, me & Rumble need to get somethin' too!”
Megatron's engine Rumbled in a laugh. “No, it isn't that. Actually, I don't think even Soundwave knows when his creation day is. This gift is… Well…” he bit his lip.
“Frenzy, what do you know of the conjunx ritus?”
The minibot's optical band flashed the brightest it has ever been. “You're gonna get hitched?!”
“I-well—” Megatron fumbled over his words. “Hopefully? If all goes well, that is—”
But there was no stopping Frenzy from letting out a high-pitched squeal and running around the room, his plating rattling in excitement.
“Oh-my-Primus-it's-happening-I'm-so-excited-I-can't-believe-this!”
Laughing, Megatron reached out and grabbed Frenzy by the scruff bar and set the bot down back on the berth. “Sweet Solus, child. I did not expect you to be as enthusiastic about this as you are.”
“Why wouldn't I be?” Frenzy asked.
Megatron hesitated. “It wouldn't be… Weird?”
“Well, the two a' you have been preeetty much conjunxed for a long time anyway.”
“I—have we?” Megatron seemed genuinely caught off guard.
Frenzy looked at him as if he was an idiot. “Yeah, duh. Everyone can see it. Hey, thas' probably why Impactor gave you the box in the first place.”
“…Ah.”
“Anyway, I can't wait for the ceremony! Oh, it's gonna be so good, there's gonna be so much oil cake—”
Megatron squinted his optics and huffed a laugh. “Did someone sneak in romantic comedies from Iacon or something?”
Frenzy's faceplates flushed. “Ehh, maybe? Who's to say?”
“Anyway,” Megatron said, shaking his head, “I doubt that we'll have as grand a reception as you're imagining. I mean…”
He looked back down at the music box. “My Act of Profference is just something I cleaned up. And I don't think either of us can afford more than one oil cake.”
“Ah. Right. Things cost money. You taught me that, I remember now.” Frenzy said, flopping down on the berth in defeat, before sitting back up. “Well, that doesn't mean that you can't do something! Maybe if everyone pitches in—”
“Perhaps. But Frenzy, remember, Soundwave is a very private mech. While it might be nice to celebrate and have a big party, we should consider how he feels about it first.”
Frenzy blinked. “Oh. Right, he's not good with crowds, is he? Well…” the minibot trailed off, drawing patterns on the berth with a finger.
“Maybe it can just be the seven of us, then. You, the boss, me n' Rumble, Rav and the Condors. Oh, wait, Impactor too. I think that'd be nice.”
Megatron smiled, and pulled Frenzy up and onto his lap. “I think that would be nice too.”