(OC POV)

I could feel my attackers glare from behind his visor, the mech's silence haunting as he watched me from where I was crouched a few dozen feet away from him. A grin stretched across my features under my battle mask as I watched him twitch knowingly, the mech suddenly launching at me with a speed that would have caught me off guard if I wasn't expecting it. With a deft twist of my frame I was out of his clawed reach, my wings opening up and with a strong stroke I was even more out of his reach making him vent in frustration quietly. He suddenly flipped and soar through the air until he landed behind me, his arms wrapping around me and tightening so quickly that I didn't have time to break his hold. Loud clapping rang through the hanger making me relax in defeat, Optimus coming up to us with a small grin on his face and the twins right behind him with matching smiles.

"I didn't think you would last that long against Soundwave. Are you the one who taught her how to fight?" Optimus said as he turned towards my uncle in curiosity, the mech merely nodding and staying silent as he always did causing me to roll my optics in exasperation.

"He taught me everything I know. My father's way of fighting was a little too…mechly for me. I needed a fighting style that went perfectly with my frame and my uncle helped me find it." I said fondly as said mech released me and rested his clawed servos on my shoulders, squeezing softly before completely pulling away and turning towards my approaching mother.

"With my help, of course. You didn't get your lovely frame from your father, you know." She said fondly as she wrapped her servos around my helm, a grin lighting up my features as I nuzzled into her touch instinctually.

"Of course, mother." I said as she pulled away, Soundwave shaking his head at the show of affection as he set a servo on my mother's lower back protectively.

"How are you Nightwave?" Optimus said as he looked at her with something akin to sadness, my mother's helm snapping towards him as a spark of anger flashed through her optics.

"I'm as good as I can be, with my sparkmate dead." She said bluntly which caused the Prime to lean back just slightly enough that anybody who was looking could see, his optics widening slightly in hurt before his expression once again became blank.

"Mother!" I barked out in surprise, my disappointment in her clear as I pulled away and turned to look at her with disbelief in my own optics.

"I apologize Nightwave, I shouldn't have asked. If you will excuse me." Optimus said before quickly making his way out of the hanger, my optics watching him while the twins came up behind me and set their servos on my back protectively.

"Mother, why must you be so rude to him?" I murmured sadly as my spark hurt for the lonely Prime, a thought popping up in my processor that I would later think on.

"It's a long story. Our past is…difficult." My mother said as she looked at her brother, Soundwave merely glancing at her before turning away and looking to outside.

"And it's just that: the past. Leave it there. Right now is the present and in the present you are being unbelievably harsh. Were you not the one to teach me to forgive? Where is that mother I remember?" I said as I turned my attention back towards her, the twins moving past us all to wait outside for me and avoid the argument.

"You don't understand." My mother said with narrowed optics as her irritation rose up, my own anger rising up in defense because I knew what she was doing was wrong.

"I don't need to. I just need to see, and what I see is a scornful femme who invokes pain." I spat out angrily before shoving past her and out of the hanger, the sound of my uncle stopping her from following me ringing through the room as I disappeared outside.

(A Week Later)

I slammed the staff against the side of the training dummy with enough force that it would've been sent flying if it wasn't reinforced for Prime, my frame twirling in a circle and ducking before I shoved the end of it into the lower abdomen causing a dent to form on the surface.

"Whoa lil femme, why so aggressive?" Jazz asked quietly from where he stood leaning against the doorway, the mech so silent that he would've spooked me if he didn't make some noise to let me know he approached.

"Don't ask." I growled out as I spun and slammed my staff into the dummy's chest, said dummy sent flying across the room while the staff snapped in two with a crack that echoed through the hanger.

"That was my favorite one." Jazz whined as he made his way into the room, the mech picking up the broken staff that I threw to the ground and looking it over with a thoughtful expression.

"Sorry." I said after taking a moment to calm down, crossing my arms over my chestplates defensively when the mech looked up at me silently.

"Wha's going on, Sky? You aint usually like dis." The saboteur murmured softly as he moved to put the broken pieces on the table against the wall, turning back towards me with a flashing visor as he stayed where he was and watched me fidget slightly.

"It's my mother. She's become…scornful lately. Always snapping at people and letting her temper get the best of her. I have half a processor to say that my father took over her frame." I murmured with a frown as I once again felt my temper rise up though I quickly stomped it back down, not wanting to take out my frustration on the 'Bots I called friends when it was mine and mine alone to bear.

"She grieving, it's a part ah da process." Jazz said with a shrug, leaning back in surprise when I vented harshly in anger and turned away from him slightly to glare at the ground.

"She snapped at Soundwave yesterday. Her own brother. And she smacked Thundercracker a few days previous! He did nothing wrong, just delivered a report that she didn't like! Thundercracker is like a brother to me, a very dear brother. The knowledge that she did that burns me." I growled out angrily at the sad look on his faceplates when he told me what happened, the disappointment in himself infuriatingly clear though I knew he did nothing wrong.

"Why don' ya try talkin to 'er?" the saboteur suggested softly, walking up to me as I off lined my optics and tried to reign in my anger before it suddenly burned even brighter.

"I tried! She said that I wouldn't understand and got angry with me." I hissed out, Jazz resting a hand on my backstruts beneath my wing joints and vented softly.

"Give it time. I know it hurts, but give it time. In da end everythin will be okeh." Jazz said before patting me softly and leaving the room, my optics watching as he walked away and disappeared outside of the hanger within moments.

"I just wish my father was here." I keened quietly as I moved towards the staff and looked down at the broken piece of metal, my vent hitching as my anger turned into pain at the feeling of my father's absence in my spark. My spark shook in its casing as I finally allowed myself to grieve instead of holding it back so I didn't look weak, the twins skidding into the hanger moments later before diving towards me and gathering me into their embrace. They whispered soft calming words into my audios in an effort to calm me down, Sunstreaker cradling me in his lap while he brother rested his helm against mine and stroked my back softly.