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Two: I'll Protect You
"So what were you and the old man talking about in there?" Sentinel asks as soon as I enter the room. I expected this of course, so I answer smoothly,
"That Optimus Prime you love so much. He is one fine mech."
"Shut up, Jazz. You and I both know damn well you weren't. Just tell me. You know I'm going to bother you until you tell me." I laugh and answer,
"Please. It's my business and I'm goin' to keep it that way. Now get back to whatever it is you're doin' and let me be. I'm off-duty, and I'm not gonna waste it with you. Your behavior today was appallin', man. Not cool."
"Hey," snaps Sentinel, his anger starting to rise, "I didn't ask to be dragged here. I couldn't care less whether or not Prime and his team of repair 'bots stay stranded here. They're worthless, all of them. If you have a crush on one of them, fine. Whatever. Stay here and be with him, because you aren't bringing any of those rejects back onboard. No one back home is waiting for them. After they disappeared, not a single of them had any relations begging us to find them. This was all Magnus' idea. So don't tell me my behavior sucked, because honestly, this whole situation sucks."
"Grow up, Sentinel," I suddenly snap back, "Magnus is right: you could learn a thing or two from that Optimus Prime kid. He cares about his men, and he really is a good leader. He's still got a way to go, but at least he's learnin' along the way. And he's not disgustingly obnoxious, like some mechs I know."
Sentinel looks at me with this anger in his optics, an anger I've never seen before. Yes, he's been ticked off before, but never like this. I must have hit a sensitive wire to get that look. I don't know what happened between him and Optimus before they went separate ways, and I know better than to ask, but Sentinel just won't let go. I shake my head and say,
"Sentinel, it's been a long, surprisin' day. I haven't recharged in a while, so I'm off. Just mind your own business and stop bein' so angry. There's no need to harbor such feelings, kid." I walk off, knowing full well he's not going to let it go. I hate being interrogated, especially by someone whose wishes I've respected for so long. I've asked him only once about his relationship with Prime, and he refused to discuss it. Now I feel I might be in love, yet I'm not quite sure.
Everything here is all so very new, I think as I walk to my quarters. Our ship is huge, and there are many others here, but they refuse to come out. They've heard Sentinel's bogus stories about slime-spewing organics, and so, they have decided to hide on the ship and do their jobs. Not a single one will step off the ship, nor will any of them ever come into contact with Optimus Prime's Autobots. Fear of contamination will do that to you.
I suddenly realize that I'm not in the least bit tired, despite our long, eventful day. Normally, after a busy day, I would be dragging my feet to my room, fall over backwards onto my berth and either listen to my tunes or pass out, but tonight, I'm wide awake.
I have to see him again. Right now. I feel like such a youngling again, getting all excited about a crush. It feels good, actually. I'm not very old, but I'm old enough to have nearly forgotten what it was like to be a youngling. I reach my quarters and go in, but not before looking around to make sure I haven't been followed by a suspicious Sentinel or anyone else. When I find the coast is clear, I go into my room, close and lock the door.
When I was first hired by Ultra Magnus to be part of the Elite Guard, I was stunned. I knew I had worked hard, but I never thought I had worked that hard. It was an honor, the greatest moment in my young life. As soon as I was hired, I was given a job and a room (the ship is like a luxurious hotel) and I went right to work searching for ways I could get out, or anyone could get in. I found one spot in the ceiling, well-hidden by a shelf that I later filled with data pads and the like.
It's through this exit I decide to escape for the 'night' and find those Autobots. I don't think I'll let him see me; I just want to see him. Badly. I sneak through the secret door in the ceiling and crawl quickly yet quietly through the vents until I reach the final layer of the ship. I twist, turn and jump around skillfully until I reach the final exit. I kick out my only obstacle, jump out of the ship and replace the vent's cover quickly before bolting in the direction the Autobots had gone their separate way.
And like any good Cyberninja, I go off in pursuit of my goal.
This place is huge.
I mean, our ship is huge, too, but this place was built by organics, it seems. And it's massive for an organic-built structure. But the energy signatures inside tell me I've found what I came looking for, and I smile because I know I get to see him very soon.
I decide that walking right up to the front door would be the worst thing I can do, so I climb up to the roof and look around for a way in. And, as though Primus himself were watching me, I find a huge gap in the roof several yards from where I stand. There is an organic…something poking out of it, accompanied by bad artificial light shining through, telling me someone is in there, but I can elude them easy-no-problem. After all, I am a Cyberninja.
I stealthily move over to the gap and peer over the edge, wondering which of them I'm going to see. Perhaps the youngling, or the larger Autobot. Perhaps he is responsible for the gap in the first place. I smile to myself, finding the idea amusing, but then my spark freezes:
It's him. He occupies this room! I nearly gasp and give myself away, but I resist the urge and hold in my surprise. He is sitting on the floor, deep in meditative thought, from what I can tell, and he hasn't noticed me. This is wonderful, because all I want to do it watch him, get to know him from afar so that when I do actually speak to him, I won't make a fool of myself.
He's facing away from me, so all I can see is his back. But even that little bit is beautiful. He's motionless, completely still and focused on his thoughts. Silence fills the room, and I bask in it—it's not any silence, it's his silence, and I love it, despite being a music-lover myself.
I really am like a youngling again. I'm so smitten with him that I have to roll over on my back and press my hands to my spark. I off-line my optics and sigh silently. I can hardly believe my luck! Moments pass, and I turn back over to watch him again, but he is no longer there. I look around the room, trying desperately to find him, but he is gone.
"You know, you could have knocked. We would have let you in." I jump to my feet, and before he knows it, I've grabbed both his arms and pinned him down on the roof. We're both equally startled. I look down at him and he looks up at me, but I don't think he's feeling what I'm feeling, and I can't help but be disappointed.
"Off, please," he says as politely as he can, and I let his arms go and stand up, then help him to his feet. Now that we're standing next to one another, I smirk as I notice he is smaller than I am, and, judging by how he's standing, he knows it. He keeps his head up high and watches me intently, probably to see if I have any bad intentions. I laugh and say,
"I was hopin' I'd run into you. I was gonna ask if you wanted to spar sometime." Despite my nervousness, my voice doesn't tremble; nothing I do or say betrays me or my true feelings. He looks at me, perhaps trying to read my mind, then nods.
"Yes, that would be wonderful. No one else here is trained in the art of Circuit-Su. I would be honored to spar with you, um…"
"Jazz," I tell him. Apparently he is not good with names. But I don't care—he's talking to me! He wants to spend time with me! His voice is soft, yet deep and strong. I love it. I nearly clutch at my spark again, but I resist the urge—I'd rather he not know how I feel just yet. There will be another time for that. So I distract myself by asking,
"How did ya know I was here?" He smiles and answers,
"My sensors are the most sensitive ones here. I could feel your energy signature when you came within a mile of our base. I was expecting you, to be honest. I can also feel your systems overworking themselves." His smile turns into a somewhat seductive yet awkward smirk. "Something you'd like to tell me?"
Damn, he's quick. His expression tells me he knows exactly why I'm here, and even though I was looking forward to torturing myself over him, I return the smile and answer,
"I don't think I need to tell you. Seems to me you've figured it out. You're a quick one, Prowl."
"Trust me, I'm just as surprised as you are. I'm the designated introvert of this group; I don't do social activities, let alone romancing other mechs. This is all a big learning experience for me."
"Luckily fo' you, you've got a wonderful teacher to help you along," I laugh. I doubt I'll ever tell him, but I've had many sparkmates in my past. None of them ever lasted long enough to become a real relationship, however. Some of them were spontaneous, mere one-night stands, while others lasted long enough for us to decide it wasn't going anywhere. But this one…we have enough in common, yet so many differences. I'm excited about this. It feels real.
He watches me closely, then says in a sudden, less-than-sure tone,
"I've never been in love before. I don't know what to do, or how to do it, or-" I put up a hand to stop him.
"Don't worry," I tell him in my most reassuring vocals, 'I will teach you. We'll take it real slow, baby. You have nothin' to worry about." I move forward and place my hands on his arms again, but this time, I'm far gentler. I lean down so that we can be optic-to-optic, then say,
"I assume you've never been kissed?"
"Never," he answers. He tenses up; he must be uncomfortable with being touched so suddenly and without warning. He wasn't kidding when he said he didn't know what to do. Why he acted like he knew all about this sort of thing a moment, I don't know. He must have not wanted to look inexperienced, but I like inexperienced. He's really too cute. I decide that he isn't ready for a real kiss, so I ask him if I can kiss his neck. He nods, still somewhat reluctant, but if he didn't want me to do anything, he never would have let me know he'd caught on so fast.
I press my lips against his slender neck, making sure I'm not going too fast for him. I'm gentle, as I always am when it comes to love, and let my lips rest there, nothing more. He tries to hold back a shudder, and I can't help but feel as though I've just made someone very lonely very happy. Until….
"Wait!" He pushes me away and looks at my feet, almost shamefully. My smile fades instantly. Have I done something to offend him?
"I'm sorry," he says, "I'm so sorry. I can't do this."
"And why is that?" My vocals carry neither judgment nor anger. I know this is all so new to him, being angry would only push him further away. He holds himself and says meekly,
"I'm not ready. I won't be good enough. You seem so experienced, I'll just bore you. You might end up hating me."
Where in the name of Primus was this coming from? I had to know.
"Were you abused as a sparkling, Prowl?"
No," he answers, "I've just always been this way. I keep to myself, I never do anything social, and as you know, I've never done anything romantic. This just feels so strange to me. I'm almost…"
"Scared?" He gives me a look that tells me I should have kept my mouth shut, but then he sighs and answers,
"A little, yes." My smile returns and I suddenly wrap my arms around him. This time he doesn't push me away.
"You have nothing to fear, darlin'. I'll protect you." He is quiet, allowing me to hold him in my arms before he musters up the courage he needs to reach around and return the hug. It's not the strongest hug, nor is it the most convincing, but it's a start, and that's all I could have asked for at this point.
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