Getting Even – chapter 2
Ultra Magnus noticed that Sideswipe seemed to get a sudden interest in being Raptor's assistant. This disturbed him a little bit, since the Lamborghini was the well-known prankster on the base. But Raptor seemed to be enjoying the Mech's company and good-natured jokes, as Sideswipe diligently helped her with the arduous tasks of paperwork and endless meetings. So Magnus was hesitant to order him to other duties.
He did try to warn Raptor about the twins, but after hearing the stories of Sideswipe's pranks, all Raptor did was laugh. "If you remember, I was quite the prankster on your dear Rodimus. It's nice to see that there are Autobots with a sense of humor as well.." And with a smile, she strolled off.
Tedium of Work..
"Getting' bored with paperwork?" Sideswipe asked innocently, noticing that Raptor was rubbing her helm.
"Hmm?" She said, looking up and rubbing her optics a bit. She leaned back and with feline grace – stretched. "Yes, with Magnus called off, it's just been work, work and more work – it seems. Don't know how he handles it when I'm not here!"
"I know of a great little mech bar. You up for a drink and some poker?" He laughed.
She smiled, trusting the charismatic Autobot completely. "Yes, it's been a rather long time since I've had the chance to unwind. Why don't we invite a couple others – have a full card table?"
"Sure thing and I know some Mechs that are real good at poker!" He said with a wink.
Night on the Town..
They were joined by Sunstreaker and Jazz, and with Raptor following in the sky, they all went off base for some down time.
"Mmmm, this energon's very good! Doesn't burn going down like decepticon brew!" Raptor exclaimed as she downed another one. Then she looked at her poker partners with a serious expression. "Guess I should be careful, he, he, I've still got to fly myself home.."
"Nah, the Airialbots are assigned to this sector. We can always get Silverbolt to give you a lift!" Sideswipe joked.
Sunstreaker snorted. "Just hope you're not afraid of low-altitude flying!"
"Yep he goes with the flow – low 'n slow!" Jazz agreed.
With jokes about her 'sober ride', Raptor continued to put the drinks down. Finally, so happy she could let her guard down and have fun with the Autobots under her rule!
Hangover..
The over-energized cloud finally lifted, and Raptor groggily tried to remember what she'd done the night before. She did remember losing rather badly to Jazz, but hey, that's just how poker goes.. The ride that Silverbolt gave her was somewhat clear, she remembered how close the damned earth was and being afraid they'd crash into a power line!
Yes, the night had been fun! Made her feel almost 'human' again to have gotten plastered in the company of friends.
She slowly stood up, noticing her optics seemed a bit off on their color spectrum. But heck, as much as she had the night before – a lot of systems would be slightly off! So she shrugged it off, figuring it'd all straighten out by mid-day.
Strolling down the halls on her way to the command center, she ran into Tracks. His blue optics got very large and he looked at her rather approvingly. "You look absolutely stunning, Raptor!" Then he nodded and went on his way.
She rolled her optics; these Autobots were really trying their best to make the Alliance work! Guess, they were so sick of war, they're eager to be friendly with any queen – regardless of her insignia!
She passed by central communications, Kup turning his head to the sound of her footsteps. As he saw her, a big smile lit up the old timer's face. "Glad to see your starting to blend in!" He declared. She just nodded and kept on her way, figuring the base was like a small town; and everyone had heard about her 'poker night'.
Entering the command center, she sat down at the table and waited for the night command to report. Blaster and Perceptor wandered in, looking at her, they both got big-optic expressions of amazement.
She leaned back, still hung-over and with off-kilter optics – "Do I look that bad?" She joked; figuring her night of drinking must've taken a bit of a toll.
The two officers looked at each other. "Um, no, just a little different." Perceptor stammered.
Blaster smiled in his jovial way. "This new look truly suits you – not even the Spice girls could outshine you!"
"New look?" Raptor questioned, and then she looked down, realizing it wasn't her optics that were off-kilter – her body was a new color! "What the hell!?" She jumped to her thrusters and stomped to the full-length windows, looking at her reflection in the glass.
She was still camouflaged, but now it was in a Fuchsia, white and chrome color scheme, with a finish that shimmered like a mirror! And where her prominent decepticon insignia had been, were laser-cut insignias which changed from Autobot to Decepticon depending on the angle viewed from.
Blaster and Perceptor looked at each other, and then swiftly vacated the premises, before she blew!