After Daring
By Snare-chan
Pairings: Implied Side Swipe/Blurr
Ratings: T
Category(ies): General
Warning(s): None
Status: One-shot, complete
Summary: Blurr's foul mood can't stand up to everything.
Notes: Rezykel really liked this pairing and prompted me to do more. I wanted to step back into the realm of Armada and give it another go, so it worked in both our favors! Alternate title is: Dare to be Stupid. ;P
Disclaimer: I don't own Transformers Armada; wish I did like everybody else. They should put Armada in stock, then I'd buy it all!
Blurr was many things – stubborn and stern among them – but tolerant wasn't one of them, be it towards another's stupidity or otherwise. His philosophy was that existence was as hard as one made it out to be, and he personally considered it simple and unforgiving. Don't hold back, stop the Decepticons, black and white. Gray areas such as uncertainty obscured and complicated otherwise direct circumstances.
This logic was harsh and he'd heard a few cadets mumbling "unfair," but he never regretted living by it or trying to instill similar views into his subordinates. Popular opinion would lead others to suspect that he didn't care much for those he sided with, and with this he would agree, but not to the extent that he wasn't concerned about his fellows' well being and survival.
Blurr had learned his lessons the long and difficult way; he was doing his Autobot brothers a favor by training them hard and treating them as he did. The enemy wouldn't demonstrate restraint or mercy at the full peak of battle, and giving them a sample of what to expect could prepare them for what may come. War did not accommodate for those who took foolish risks.
Right now, he was in full teaching mode and having a difficult time restraining himself. Blurr was stomping down the hallway towards the medical wing and, for the most part, the journey was straightforward. This portion of the building was empty of personnel, save a while back when he'd crossed paths with a couple of Autobots who worked in delivery. They'd taken one glance at him in passing, then again to assess his appearance – posture tight, shoulders back, servos fisted – and each stepped aside to allow him uninterrupted passage right down the middle of them.
He knew when he'd reached his destination because there was a lot more activity, the few medics on staff shouting out commands to each other and running around gathering supplies. A Decepticon surprise assault had occurred, swiftly and brutally, and had made for several casualties. Serious cases were dealt with immediately and all looked to be in stable condition because the only patients stationed out front on the medical tables were those with all their limbs painfully intact.
The base had no swinging doors, since theirs were of the automatic variety, and so his entrance into the emergency sector lacked the necessary dramatic flair to announce that he was unhappy with today's events and ready to send the first nimrod that got in his way through the wall.
Everyone looked up and gave him a once-over; when they saw that he was unharmed, they went about ignoring him, returning to their repairs. Blurr meandered around the room, glancing at who was present, and when he didn't discover who he was looking for, he grabbed a doctor and turned them around, getting in their faceplate.
"Where's Side Swipe?"
The medical officer wordlessly pointed towards the back. It was close enough to be accessible from the emergency room, but closed off to provide some semblance of peace to speed up the healing process. The other had apparently already been tended to and sent off to stay out of the way.
Shoving the medic away, he went inside with every intention to first make sure that Side Swipe was still in working order, and if so, then he was going to finish the job or pummel him until the idiocy hardwired into his CPU was deleted. For better or for worse, good times and bad, he was still the ranking officer and he would have that mech's spark on a plate for allowing himself to get scrapped. Again.
He was determined to do all of that, until he actually saw what condition the other was in. He'd taken a laser shot to the shoulder, though that was the least of it. Blurr moved over to where he was lying down and tapped a couple of buttons on a pad situated at the end of the berth, and a holographic diagram popped up depicting all the cataloged battle wounds that had been inflicted on him and which were fixed or would need further care.
"Stupid kid," he grumbled softly at what he saw, dismissing the image and moving around to the side. It must not have been as quiet as he thought, because at his words Side Swipe stirred and his optics flickered back on.
Blurr didn't greet him right away, waiting to see whether or not the other would go back to recharging on his own or remain awake. It would be preferable if Side Swipe regained his energy, but knowing him, he'd underestimate his own abilities and push himself. His guess was proven correct when Side Swipe shifted again, spotting him nearby and perking up, all the notions of relaxing gone.
"Blurr, sir!"
"Keep it down. Don't exert yourself," he reprimanded.
"You're all right! I was worried for a little bit back there. Kind of silly, huh? I mean, no one can get one up on you."
Blurr snorted, ignoring the compliment entirely, and said, "You should worry less about those around you and more about your own condition. Putting yourself in the line of fire back there… What were you even thinking?"
Side Swipe at least had the common sense to look abashed at that mentioning, the repercussions of his actions earlier on the battlefield evident all over his frame. His serious wounds had been dealt with accordingly, but that did not mean they stung less, and the body work would be a hassle to deal with later.
"Did you see how I took down Demolisher, though?" Side Swipe asked, his voice soft, obviously starting to wear out. Despite his initial energy, it wasn't lasting. "I didn't think I'd get him, but I remembered a move I saw you do once. It was kind of cool."
"…Yeah, kid, you did well."
Immediately after admitting that, Blurr felt the urge to wrench out his own nuts and bolts for encouraging him. If he went gung-ho again after he was finished here, he'd have no one to blame but himself. The idea of Side Swipe running off and trying something as irresponsible as he'd done today caused his fuel pumps to nearly skip a beat.
To be honest, he wasn't sure who he was more worried about: Side Swipe, the Autobots, or the Decepticons. His track record left it open for any of the three to be at the end of one of the kid's misfortunes.
"You need to be more careful next time," he started, trying to recover from his slip. "Hurting the enemy is the goal, not scrapping the both of you. What good is a soldier that knocks himself out of the fight?"
Unconsciously, Blurr set his hand down at the edge of the berth, digits flat against the surface. He didn't notice until Sideswipe rested back with the intent of getting comfortable, and ended up resting his head on top of it. He was startled enough to tense his shoulders and almost take a step away, managing to get himself under control and prevent his hand from slipping right out from under him. Though the touch made him uncomfortable, he left it there, not wanting to jolt the other when he was obviously on his way back to getting some much-needed recharge.
"You got that?" Blurr murmured, voice still lecturing, but he'd lowered it enough not to stir him too much.
"Mmhm."
And Side Swipe was out again. Shaking his head, he was convinced they would probably have to repeat this conversation again. No doubt he hadn't processed a single thing his superior had said. Carefully managing to pull over a stool to sit on, he made himself comfortable, figuring that he had a long wait ahead of him.
-Fin-