Shadowfire

Chapter 1

I perused the aisles of the car dealership, looking the cars over with a critical eye, my gaze caught on a 2014 silver Mustang convertible, I moved closer, inspecting the vehicle. Oh yeah, this would do nicely. I scanned the car and transformed, my alt form imitating the convertible. Driving out of the lot I headed home. I drove around the back of the house and parked myself in the extra large shed like garage, my holoform heading inside.
"Shaleigh!" My mum, Sarah, yelled "tell me you didn't just upgrade again"
"I can't help it mum, I like my new form"
"People are going to get suspicious, regular teenage girls don't just get a new car every week or so"
"I'll just tell them that Army Rangers get paid well" I replied nonchalantly "regular teenagers don't have purple eyes either" I pointed out "but everyone buys the contact story" she sighed, knowing I'd won the argument like always.
"Fine" I rolled my eyes at her and disappeared, reappearing inside my alt form. My room was completely different from any normal human's, I'd made a point not to invite friends from school over because there was no logical explanation for me living in the garage. The only human touches I had was a desk for doing homework and photos of clothes pinned up on a cork board, my holoform not actually needing clothes just having to scan an image. The shed was tall enough that I could transform and stand up and even had room to walk around.

I knew my parents weren't actually my parents, I could vaguely remember being sent to Earth and adopted by Will and Sarah Lennox. I had completely freaked them out the first time I dropped my holoform and what they thought was their adopted child turned out to be a baby alien robot but they had come to terms with the fact that daughter was a cybertronian and had taught me how to act human, keeping me off the government's radar. My dad's best friend, Epps, was the only other person to know what I was, and he delighted in acting like my uncle and spoiling me rotten.

I reclined on my berth and dozed off into recharge.

_____________________

I startled awake to find my dad banging on the roller door of my room.
"Come on Leah wake up" he called, coming inside "it's 0500 like you asked" I made an indignant honking sound with my horn and tried to go back to sleep, he tapped my driver side door to wake me up again. I engaged my holoform and got out of the car.
"There we go kiddo, hey don't look at me like that" he protested "you're the one who wanted this" I groaned, I had intended on following my dad into the army one day but when I had asked him to give me martial arts and weapons training that didn't mean I wanted to wake up at this Primus forsaken hour every morning. I followed him to the back of the shed, where we'd set up a punching bag and some gym equipment. He helped me strap my wrists and we began exercising. Everything's I learnt when we trained I then practiced in my proper form.

Two hours later we were done and I had to get ready for school, I scanned a different outfit on than the one I was wearing now and packed my bag before driving to school.

"Hey" my best friend Sam greeted me at the gate "oh come on no fair!" He exclaimed "not another car! Couldn't you give one to me?"
"Nope sorry Sammy" I shrugged, waking to my first period class, him following behind me like an over excited puppy.
"Anyway you won't guess what" he continued "my dad said if I got 3 A's and saved up $2,000 he'd pay the other two thousand and buy me a car, how great is that?"
"Really great, but I guess you're asking me to help you study?"
"Of course I am, I need to get 3 A's and you're the smartest person I know, can I come over to your house this afternoon to study?"
"Uh, how about we go to your house instead?" I hedged
"I don't get what's with you and not letting me come over but sure" he rolled his eyes "you're so weird" I bumped him with my shoulder.
"You're weirder"
"True" he agreed. I stopped in front of my classroom door.
"Sam, you have history now, not science"
"Oh right, I guess I'll see you later"
"See ya" I said, pushing open the classroom door. I sat in my usual seat next to my other best friend, Mikaela.
"Leah, how are you?"
"Good"
"Did I see you talking to that boy again? Witwickety?"
"Witwicky" I corrected, pulling my book and pencil case from my bag "He still has the biggest crush on you you know?"
"I know" she sighed "my friends won't stop teasing me about it"
"He's a good guy, and Trent isn't"
"I know"
"So why are you still with Trent? I mean come on you've seen him flirt with other girls in front of you"
"I don't know, I don't want to dump him I guess" sometimes I just don't get her
"You should"
"Anyway you want to come to the cafe with me and the other girls after school today?"
"Pass me the textbook will you Kayla?" I asked, ignoring her attempt at convincing me to hang out with her idiot friends.
"I know you don't like them but they're not that bad" she said, I flipped open the book and began reading.
"You act like an airhead around them Kayla" I reminded her
"I don- ok alright I do, but not on purpose"
"Come on" I sighed "we've got work to do"

_____________________

I waited inside my alt form for Sam to appear, pushing open the door for him when he finally did.
"Okay so I got one exam notification for science, one class presentation to do for history and a poem to dissect for English" he said when he sat down, I rolled my shoulders and tried not to squirm, it was always weird when someone sat on my seats "the chances for my A's are adding up!"
"Well I've got the same notification for science so we can study for that together, you're not doing advanced history so you'll have to write that speech on your own- I can help you with whatever research you need though. What's your poem?"
"Tiger tiger burning bright or something"
"Mine's Cherry Tree Inn by Henry Lawson so you can't be accused of copying me"
"Great" he said happily. I drove across town to his house, parking in his driveway.
"Shaleigh, it's been a while, how are you?" His mum greeted me when my holoform got out of my alt form.
"Hi Mrs Witwicky"
"How many times have I told you to call me Judy dear?" She said, exasperated.
"A few" I admitted. Sam's dad came out of the house.
"Sam!" He shouted "get off the grass" I was thankful I had never stepped on Ron Witwicky's grass, sometimes I could swear he cares about his grass more than anything.

I plonked myself down on their lounge and pulled out my science book. Sam tossed his bag down next to me and went to the fridge.
"Want anything?" He offered, I shook my head, pulling his science book from his bag.
"Sam" I reprimanded "no wonder you're not going to get an A without me, can you even read these notes?"
"I can to!" He protested "some of the time"
"Come on" I groaned "let's rewrite them"