One is Company, Two is a Shadow ++Soundwave x Reader++

48

     The doubles strode down the corridors of the Nemesis, Laserbeak firmly attached to Soundwave's chassis. The avian drone cooed within their master and servant bond, waves of relief and happiness tickling their connection. Soundwave merely hummed in their bond, soothing his friend's excitement. The femme beside him remained stoic, so he was unsure of what she thought. 

     Did she see him as weak now? Unable to withstand the blasts of the Prime. His own anxieties clouded his judgement, and he failed to deduct (Y/N)'s ease and relief from her posture and natural atmosphere. He wasn't sure he wanted to enter his quarters as they neared the door. Soundwave swept through the camera footage, hoping Megatron would change his mind about at least one of them needing rest. Why he had ordered both of them to retire for that day, the lithe mech wasn't sure. His silent prayer went unanswered as the door to their private quarters swept open, and they stepped in quietly, one after the other.

         :Master,: Laserbeak crooned, his form warmer than usual because of his nearly unbridled joy, :(Y/N) was very worried for you.:

     Soundwave connected his thankfully intact appendages to the computer before typing quickly, downloading all the files he had deleted. All were important, all needed to stay with him. (Y/N) was trustworthy, but per Megatron's order, she would not be a replacement if Soundwave were to be captured again, or worse, offlined (not that the silent 'Con planned on being taken by the Autobots a second time). The femme was watering the plants in her human form, the darker shaded double having displayed herself on the berth. 

     Taking a glance at her human self, Soundwave wondered why she didn't change it from her original height or appearance. Sure, it likely held sentimental value and he understood she missed her original eye color, but why not change it to be superior? His unseen gaze likely caught her senses of being watched, even if he was only watching from the corner of his optic, but the femme didn't glance toward him until she finished her quite lengthy errand.

         "You should rest." She told him. "For performance's sake."

     But he didn't want to. Instead, he watched her deactivate the holographic generator, rising from the berth not long after and stepping away so he was able to rest. Soundwave didn't take the invitation, however. He stood across from her, staring as he searched for what she thought of him after being defeated. 

         So easily too, it seemed. 

He had failed to escape, put Decepticon data at risk, and from what Megatron had briefed him about, put (Y/N)'s identity at risk. At least, that's how he saw it. But she simply stared back at the mech, trying to determine what he was thinking through their strange connection, having no bond as mates. 

     (Y/N) saw his servo twitch when she stepped forward. Recognizing the situation, she lifted a servo to release the visor from her faceplate, Soundwave stopping her, as she predicted. The femme merely continued, staring at his blank void with sparkling (E/C) optics. Her delicate features entranced the mech, as they usually did when she decided to remove the covering around him. Tender moments often came from it, and it made their sparks pulse with longing.

     Her servo caressed the outline of Soundwave's visor, a familiar touch he would long for on lengthy and tiring days. His own feathered the femme's digits delicately, as if she'd disappear like dust. They stared at each other, Soundwave wondering what a kiss would feel like on their dermas. Hers looked so delicate, darker outline of a femme's visage enticing. Her optics brought him closer with their enchanting sparkle, and he found their helms touching.

     That was all he could bring himself to do. The mech had already broken his vow of silence, a mistake he swore not to make again until Cybertron was restored. His faceplate didn't need to be seen. Not yet.

         "I was so scared." (Y/N) whispered hoarsely. "Megatron wouldn't let me assist you. He did not reprimand me, nor scold me. He simply- stopped me." 

     Laserbeak confirmed this with the security footage of the control room at the hull of the Nemesis. The mech watched as the war lord halted (Y/N) with a servo, the femme crashing into it as she whipped around from the computer screen. She stared up at the leader, who only shook his helm with a firm expression. Starscream smirked at the side, likely waiting for the once human asset to be lectured, but Megatron merely nodded back to the terminal, and (Y/N) returned without protest.

     Soundwave listened as (Y/N) told him of the happenings thereafter. Her explanation held far more detail than Megatron's, and was accompanied by video footage she, herself, had taken. He watched as Laserbeak returned to the Nemesis, taking refuge on (Y/N)'s chassis and later the meeting over his rescue and the rebuilding of the Omega Lock. Soundwave's unseen optic brow quirked at the entrance of the Autobots when (Y/N) was sent to supervise the human research facility. The confusion on their faceplates was amusing, but the Autobots were smart, and they'd realize the infamous TIC cannot be in two places at one time.

         "Megatron said the Autobots would find out some time." (Y/N) told him. "I only hope they're smart enough to figure out it's their once human ally who has transformed into their enemy."

         -/Why/- Soundwave clipped one of his recordings.

         "Because then they will feel the loss I nearly did." She responded harshly, optics hardening into a familiar expression of hatred. Soundwave understood why Megatron didn't allow (Y/N) to assist him on the battlefield. The war lord used (Y/N)'s connection to the Third in Command to harden a hatred, a hatred for separation that now blossomed into a dark loathing for those who separated her from him. Megatron likely deducted the much stronger relationship that had grown between the doubles as well. "Soundwave, I-"

     The mech placed a thin digit across her derma, visor still blank as she stared with lubricants threatening to spill from her optics. He brushed a drop from falling, holding it steadily on his flat digit before letting it drop to the floor with a nearly silent plip. His lithe arms found their way around her, bringing the two closer and he connected their helms again. The femme calmed and the lubricants dried as she closed her optics.

     Her allegiance had been secured, and her love for Soundwave strengthened. 

     The mech only hoped Megatron would not find it as a weakness.