Megatron carefully plucked an entire crate full of flowers from the stargazer meadow he had stumbled upon. With Valentine's only a day away and Energon being the only thing capable of keep flowers alive for long periods of time, everything counted though this time he had competition. Apparently, Smokescreen, Bumblebee, and Starscream have all decided Arcee was their initial target and each had a different plan on winning her over. The first two didn't deserve her; they were too young and arrogant to see what she really needed, just somebody to love her for who she is, and there was no way he'd lose her to his SIC, a pathetic worm that mech was.
Signaling the Nemesis, more specifically Soundwave, a ground bridge opened and he carried his loot through. Knockout was with Soundwave when he returned. Both bots knew exactly what he had planned and both swore to keep it from Arcee and any unwanted extras.
"My liege, those plants are marvelous. Their color is sure to woo the femme," the medic smiled.
"These are not her gift. They are mere bonus attraction to let her know that I care for her. I know she likes these flowers and I'm more than willing to give them to her as the actual surprise but these aren't it."
Knockout's grin was stretched beyond its limits, "Ooohhh, I see what you're getting at. Fine then, Big M, do what you must to keep those pesky Autobot brats away from your princess. I find it weird that the dragon was able to win the spark of the lady instead of the knight in shining armor. Anyway, she's in the main deck's control room checking out old data portions from before the war, probably trying to recollect the days Cybertron was at its peak."
"Duly noted," the warlord nodded.
His processor ached from the stress of concealing all of what he planned from Arcee. It was like giving her false hope and revealing that he didn't get her anything until the last second past and he showed her what he gathered after she had wept over his lies. Guilt. Pre-guilt actually because he still had a day to configure everything to give, to express his love for her.
When he entered his chambers, he set down the crate of stargazers before sitting on his berth, deep in thought. What else could he do that the Autobot scouts and his SIC couldn't ever think of? He cradled his head in his palms for a good twenty minutes, slowly bringing the ideas he had into a single plan. He peered over to the flowers, grunting in confusion.
Suddenly, a light bulb flickered on in his mind. Smiling, he contacted his Chief Communications Officer. "Soundwave, I need you to get me a ton of paint in different colors and I also need black-lights and specialized paint to go with it as well."
He had an idea.
The next day….
Arcee hummed the song Someone Like You by Adele while scrolling through various entries about the Primes. She sat in the middle of the pathway to the main control panel that was hooked to the mega-sized window slash screen. Two Insecticons slept by her side as she did so, occasionally opening their eyes to check on her.
The Hive became loyal to her after she won against Airachnid, resisting the latter's control out of will. Now they see Arcee as a mother figure more so than a Queen. The new Queen was another Insecticon this time, one of the last remaining females of their kind who Arcee respected as much as she appreciated Prime himself.
A clattering at the door woke both insect-like mechs and distracted Arcee from her tablet before a familiar black and yellow mech appeared carrying something heart-shaped. The Insecticons growled as he approached but did not move from their comfortable positions. Arcee giggled, "What are you holding, Bee?"
"I-I…um…offer you…a gift for you to be my Valentine today," he stuttered before getting on his knees and bowing, holding up his present.
Carefully she took it, opening it to reveal several Energon sweets. "Thank you so much, Bee! If this isn't the sweetest thing I've been given thus far."
Bumblebee raised a brow, "Did you just make a pun?"
"Yep, all intended."
"Hey Arcee!" Another voice called out.
Smokescreen cockily strode in with a crate in hand, not acknowledging the other scout. "Got you something, babe. Courtesy of me."
"Oh, okay," Arcee hesitantly replied, "W-what did you bring me…now?"
The rookie smugly unsealed his gift and gestured to it. The femme and the scout both looked over its edge to see the crate layered in rose petals and hearts with a white stuffed bear with a "Be My Valentine" attached to it. In response, Arcee gave a fake smile, "How…delightful! Uh, is there something you guys aren't telling me?"
Bumblebee and Smokescreen looked at each other before Bee gave a sheepish grin, "Well, we made a bet who would woo you today and Starscream's included so…yeah."
Smiling no more, Arcee furiously got up, "I'm not a tool for a bet! This is the day you cherish love and you three make fun of it by toying with me for your own desires!? How dare you!"
"Cee, we didn't know…"
"Didn't know what? That I actually had feelings? That this day does matter to me after the two losses of my life? That I do want to find true love again and want to move on? I can't believe how selfish you guys are! "
Tears formed in her optics as she pushed through them and ran out. Both mechs received disapproving looks from the troopers, and guilt immediately coursed through their bodies. Their guilt turned to fear when growling erupted behind them. The two Insecticons reared up as several Vehicons blocked the exit.
Bumblebee and Smokescreen whimpered.
Arcee wiped the tears from her eyes, keeping her arms close to her chassis. How could they use her like that? All those years with them and they show gratitude through a bet?
"Arcee?" A deep voice shook her from her thoughts.
Megatron stared down at her with concern; he looked worried and calm at the same time. The look suited him.
The femme stifled, "Come to humiliate me too with a Valentine's gift?"
He groaned in confusion, "I…what? No, no, no, I would never. I mean, if I was still yearning to kill Optimus and take over this planet, sure, but no, not now, not ever."
An awkward silence appeared as Arcee nodded in appreciation.
The warlord cleared his throat, "I did get you something for Valentine's Day though. Well, I rather made it with the help of a few Vehicons and I'm actually not trying to win your heart. I'm only trying to heal it. I'll show you now if you want."
Reluctantly, she approached him and took his servo. Luckily, the walk to his chambers wasn't that long. In fact, it was only two rights from the hallway they were standing in. When she went in, her emotions blandly turned to confusion. The room was empty with everything except the normal things like data pads, screens, a berth, and a couple work tables. The chamber itself had about ten walls. Nothing visible as far as she could see.
"Megatron, I don't…"
Megatron raised his hand to a switch, "Look closer."
Suddenly, the lighting turned a blackish-purple and the room lit with color all around. She gawked in astonishment as she saw each inch of room was decorated in some way. Even the floor had detail.
Upon the ceiling, the night sky with colored stars shining and a blue-silver moon stood prominent and proud. On the edges that separated the walls from the ceiling, florescent light blue trees reached to touch the moon, giving the entire place the illusion of really being outside looking up. The walls were decorated in flamboyant animals and designs, and a few held pictures of herself, dancing among each different environment on each different wall. The backgrounds varied from jungle-land, where she saw amazon-based creatures and yellow eyes and skull gems, representing the Metal Heads, meadows, where deer and woodland creatures were present, the snowy tundra of Alaska with the Northern Lights skimming through the little sky above and connecting to the ceiling, and even the metal world of Cybertron where creatures she had long forgotten played on the lit buildings as if no war ever existed.
One wall, which was covered in a beach-based background, had her holding hands with Tigressa, who she considered a sister, leading her somewhere towards the next wall that held a sunset and multiple rock structures forming magnificent shapes. Tigressa herself was on all fours, smiling down at the motorcycle who was dragging her away from the beach.
The floor promoted an aquarium view where many sea creatures gave the illusion of rising from the ocean floor. An orca was below her, attempting to reach the surface as dolphins circled around it as well as the berth. The berth itself was painted to hold the Milky Way galaxy in more than one angle. On top, it was like looking down at it directly; moving downward slowly gave the impression that it was moving to its side and if you laid on the floor it would be tilted almost directly like it was from the top view. The stand the held up the berth faded from stars to the fish in the ocean before meeting with the aquarium.
Then she noticed the meadow once more. The stargazer lilies Megatron had gathered were bent into deception, giving it the appearance that she was truly looking into a meadow. When she got closer, it was obvious the flowers stuck out as did other things on the other walls.
"Oh my…how did you do this?" She gasped as she lightly played with the petals of a stargazer.
"It took me awhile, all day and all night and I was going to put it in your room, but you were asleep and I didn't want to do anything that might ruin your Valentine's Day. I did this for you and since my new chambers are down the hall, this room is now yours."
Arcee turned to him in shock, "M-mine. Thank you!"
She ran into him with a back-cracking hug. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
Megatron whimpered when she moved away, just staring at him with a frown. "You didn't do this just to get me, right?"
He sighed, "In all honesty, at first that was my plan, but after seeing you for a month and how you act, how you smile whenever I make a mistake, I realized I was truly in love with you and winning you over like the others did and I was originally going to do didn't seem fair. Today's about you, not I. You need appreciation, you need love. That is why you don't see me up there with you or anybody else…well, except Tigressa because she's now family to you despite she still loathes me and Optimus.
"I am your humble servant for the day; my job is to make you happy, not myself. I wanted to give you a gift that cherishes what you've lived to see, the new family you've made with the unlikeliest of people, and what you may want to see in the future. A reminder of our former home and our new one."
She was crying again but this time, he knew it was not from betrayal or sadness. "Thank you, Megatron! How can I ever repay you?"
He grunted slightly, "I don't know. Whatever you want to do, I guess."
"Kneel and I'll give you your gift for the day."
He kneeled but found it very uncomfortable so he changed his positioning to where he was seated on his legs, almost eye to eye with her. He leaned forward before her lips pressed against his own. His eyes widened but he didn't break away. After a minute, he gave a feral grin.
"Megatron," Arcee purred, "will you be my Valentine?"
The grin didn't disappear but his answer was not in words. He leaned back in to meet her halfway, smirking against her lips.
The room's magical imagery swirled above acknowledging the scene in it.
AN: I know I'm being a dick to Bumblebee and Smokescreen by making them seem like assholes, but I also don't ship them with Arcee, and I dislike the Arcee/Starscream ship greatly. I've also grown a fascination with black lights and the coloring that goes along with it.