Hello, this is a little one-shot that I came up with last week. However, I was kind of reluctant to post it in this category because of the not-so-favorable results for the Battle of Chaos story. Speaking of that, thank you Harpygirl91 for your review. Anyway, enjoy and please review.

I don't own the Transformers or Sailor Moon.

A Simple Flower

Ark:

"I'm tellin' ya Optimus, Mirage is a damn traitor!" The Autobot persecutor was a small red transformer who took on the form of a Porsche 924 Turbo, named Cliffjumper. Despite his relatively small size, he was one of the more violent Autobots with a strong dedication to the cause and a hatred for the Decepticons. Yet there was something that he hated more than Decepticons, that was traitors.

"Settle down Cliffjumper. Let's not make accusations without evidence," said the Autobot Supreme Commander and possibly the greatest leader the universe has ever seen, Optimus Prime. If there was one thing he knew about his subordinate Mirage, it was that he wanted to avoid or refrain from any form of conflict, including arguments. Unlike the other Autobots, Mirage was not personally affected by the war on Cybertron and joined the military of his own will, even though he deeply did not want to get involved. However, Prime was very aware of the pain that his spy was feeling. "Is there anything you want to say in your defense, Mirage?" Deep in his spark, Optimus was hoping that Mirage would stand up for himself, but that was very unlikely.

"I do have something to say, sir." Mirage took hold of the Autobot badge from his right leg and placed on the table in front of Optimus Prime. "I've never really supported the war and I don't need to have my loyalties questioned. If Cliffjumper and some of the others continue to call me a traitor, then there is no reason for me to be here, besides getting my reputation slandered. Please tell Hound and Jazz I said goodbye." After he got everything off his chest, the now ex-Autobot transformed into his vehicle mode and drove off.

"Mirage, get back here you dirty traitor," shouted Cliffjumper as he shook his fist in the air.

"Settle down Cliffjumper," ordered Optimus Prime as he watched his former subordinate drive off into the distance. "Give Mirage some time to deal with his feelings. He'll be back before the next cycle passes." The small red Autobot gave his commander a confused look as Prime walked away. "Also, I suggest you apologize to Mirage when he returns." Initially, Prime wanted to wait for input from the smaller Autobot, but that plan was scrapped when news of Decepticon activity came blaring from Teletran-1. In response, the Autobot leader gave "the order" to his soldiers and transformed into his Cab-over semi-truck mode and led his troops to the battlefield.

"You mean if he returns," muttered Cliffjumper under his voice before transforming and joining his fellow Autobots.

Juuban Park, Tokyo, Japan:

The park was a place for family and friends to spend time together and leave all aspects of their busy lives behind. That served as the motivation for one group of young teenagers whom served as Juuban's guardians against the supernatural, the Sailor Senshi. For the most part, this group consisted of the Inner Senshi, Tuxedo Kamen, and the youngest of the senshi, Sailor Saturn. However, at the moment, they were not all together. Makoto and Ami were setting out the food for their picnic, Rei Hino and Minako were sitting under the shade of a large tree and talking about the recent gossip, Usagi and her boyfriend were spending some time under a separate tree, and Hotaru was taking a little wlak through the woods.

Because she was free from the sickness that forced her to live inside during her past life, Hotaru wanted to spend as much time as she could outdoors. The smell of the fresh grass, the beauty of the flowers, and the cuteness of the occasional small animal made every experience different and refreshing to the Senshi of Death and Rebirth. Yet, this time was a bit more different than the others. Something was there that did not belong to nature. She was able to find evidence to her hypothesis when her eyes caught a small patch of grass that was flattened but there was no visible force applying pressure to it. "I know you're there, so you can stop hiding."

"Congratulations, you found me. Now please leave me alone," said a white and blue robot as he deactivated his electron-disrupter, making himself visible to Hotaru. His appearance, particularly his posture, made the young girl sympathize him, and because of her kind nature, she wanted to comfort the large robot.

"May I ask you what's wrong, or at least may I ask you for your name?" The robot raised his head focused his optics on the female fleshling now seated beside him. Not many among the ranks of the Autobots would openly express concern for each other's emotional problems (not meaning that they won't tolerate problems) unless it was Optimus Prime or Jazz, sometimes Bumblebee. Yet this human who didn't even know him was willing to help him. The mere drive behind her action was enough to make him smile.

"Sure. My name's Mirage," answered the white and blue Autobot with a smile. "But before I can answer the other question, I need to know your name."

"Oh!" Hotaru blushed from embarrassment. "Gomenasai, my name's Tomoe Hotaru. It's nice to meet you Mirage-san. So now that the introduction is out of the way, is there anything I can do to help or something like that," asked Hotaru as she moved her hand in a circular motion to help get her point across.

At first, the Autobot was hesitant to tell his troubles to a human he just met, but there was something in her eyes that made Hotaru seem trustworthy. "See, I used to be a part of the Autobots, but I was not really supportive of their cause. Then, in our quest for energon, we were attacked and ended up being stranded on Earth. If I was not devoted to the cause on my home planet, then why should it be any different for this world? Nevertheless, I picked up my gun and fought for the protection of Earth. There are some humans who condemn us Autobots even though we saved their lives, and now, my comrades are accusing me of treason. All in all, I just can't take it any more," finished Mirage as buried his face in his hands.

"I understand how you're feeling, Mirage-san, because I've struggled with the same… similar… problems." Mirage, surprised by this announcement, looked down at the young teenager sitting beside him. Could this girl really be telling the truth or is she just saying that to make him feel better? After all, she was just a human, and a small one at that. What kind of damage could she do that could be on par with the destruction caused by the battles between the Autobots and the Decepticons? "I sense that you doubt what I said. Well, it is true." Hotaru looked down and an expression of guilt covered her face. "I am one of the Sailor Senshi, Sailor Saturn, the bringer of death and destruction." A few tears trickled down the girl's cheeks, making Mirage retract all of his doubts. "Even though I rarely use my powers, people fear me while they glorify my comrades. I feel worse when others denounce my friends for their heroics. However, when I'm about to lose all faith in the Senshi cause, there are the smiles of the few people whom are grateful. That in itself restores my confidence to fight." When her sentence was complete, Hotaru stood up and walked over to a small patch of flowers. She picked a light blue flower and returned to her company's side. "It may not be much, but here," she handed the plant to her new Autobot friend. "This is a symbol of my gratitude for you fighting to protect Earth from the Decepticons. Even if it's just me, please remember that there is someone who appreciates your efforts, Mirage-san."

"Arigato," replies Mirage as he accepted the flower. "I'll remember that if you remember you have my support too." He waited for Hotaru's response before he transformed into his vehicle mode.

Desert region, Utah:

The Autobots were having a tough time fighting off their foes. Apparently, Megatron had predicted their attempts to intervene and had set up a trap for them. Once Optimus Prime and his troops unknowingly fell into that trap, they found themselves surrounded and taking fire from almost every Decepticon stationed on Earth.

Optimus Prime and Megatron were locked in a brutal fight to the death. Superion and Omega Supreme were busy fighting off Bruticus, Menasor, and Devestator. Prowl, Jazz, Trailbreaker, and Ironhide were pinned down by constant bombardments from Octane and Blitzwing. "Cliffjumper, Bumblebee, Hound, are you bots doin' any better than we are," asked Ironhide as he fired several shots at Blitzwing.

"That's a big negative, old friend," responded Cliffjumper while barely avoiding a barrage of machine gun fire courtesy of Thundercracker and Starscream. The Autobots were in desperate need of some sort of help. The question was would that help come in time, or would it be too late to prevent them from being turned into a pile of smoking scrap iron. "If we're able to live past today, Primus, I swear that I will never talk down to Mirage again," prayed the small red warrior while waiting for his pistol to cool off.

"Mind if I hold you to that, Cliffjumper," said a voice from the distance. As soon as that statement registered in the processor of both the Autobots and Decepticons, a cloud of dust became visible as well as the one responsible for it, Mirage. "Transform," yelled the Ligier JS11 F-1 race car as it changed into its robot form. Mirage then burst into action and shot Thundercracker out of the sky. Immediately, Starscream and another one of his Seekers, Thrust, surrounded the Autobot spy from opposite sides and were about to turn him into a pile of slag. All of that would have happened if it weren't for Mirage demanding for Cliffjumper's gun and upon receiving it, taking down the two Decepticons with his incredible accuracy.

As for the other fights, Mirage's appearance gave Optimus Prime the opportunity he needed to turn the tide against Megatron. After delivering a punishing blow to the Decepticon commander's face, Prime and the other Autobots watched as Megatron called for a retreat. In the end, the Autobot's victory from a seemingly inevitable defeat was all thanks to the return of a newly motivated sharpshooter. "Welcome back Mirage," said Prime as he placed a hand on his subordinate's shoulder. "I hope you were able to deal with whatever it was that troubled you."

"I was, Optimus Prime," replied Mirage. "Now I'm back and ready to take down Megatron once and for all."

The other Autobots were curious about where this motivation in their elite friend came from. It was Cliffjumper that decided to ask Mirage. "So where did all of this confidence and enthusiasm come from Mirage," he asked with a grin.

"I'll tell ya where it came from Cliffjumper," responded Mirage as he pulled out a small object from a storage container in his arm. Proudly, he showed it off to his fellow Autobots whom were quite confused. "It came from this simple flower."