Optimus kept his gaze skyward, optics resting on stars that were alien and unfamiliar. His wandering thoughts kept trying to find constellations he knew or patterns he recognized, but the sparkling lights above him were not the stars he knew. He could find no sense of belonging, home or familiarity within their glow. Whenever he tried to quiet his mind : He felt his optics darting between stars, but nothing clicked into place. It was as if they too were determined to remind him : how far from home he was, how lost, how out of place, how alone... He was homesick. Though, he could not only dwell on negative.

Every time he felt his spark clench in sorrow, or his gears grind against each other in longing for something he could not have : He was filled with a strange sense of peace. He was filled with a soft voice and an air of calmness, which he had never felt. At first, this strange presence had worried him. It was almost like another mind within his own. It was like another consciousness, burried within his head. It was disconcerting. He had given thought to it, however and slowly began to unravel parts of it.

The calm, the sense that somehow everything would be all right : He could trace it back to a single memory in the tangle of his mind. More than that : He could trace it all back to a single day, a single few moments, a single person. A human. A young woman. Laurelin. Every time he thought about memories that included her : The feeling of calm washed through him. He would close his optics and tilt back his helm, letting the feelings wash over him. He had not known such calm, such right-ness, could exist.

Unfortunately : The more he thought about it, the more he let himself linger in what he knew would be a brief peace and the more he began to fret. He was working his mind into over-drive and he couldn't seem to turn it off. After the calm waves abated : His mind was instantly awash with fear, concern and confusion.

Why did this woman definitely make him feel this way ? Why, out of all the humans he had met, did this one stand out ? Why was it calm that she brought him ?

It was as if his mind already knew something he did not. As if his central processing unit and his spark were working in tandem against his thought processes. His mind was building connections within him that Laurelin meant calm, peace and right-ness. She was an oasis amidst the landscape of war and the feeling of that was being settled into his very chassis. His processor was starting to link Laurelin and all the memories of her to good and happy. It was unsettling in the strangest way for the Prime. He had never known another being to cause such an immediate and lasting reaction within himself. He knew very little about Laurelin. They had spent such little time together. They have been together only twice. And yet, here he was with his very inter-cognitive faculties, reacting to her as if they were good friends and had known each other as long as he had known Ratchet or Ironhide. He could sit and puzzle it for hours or for days. He knew he would only walk himself in circles and find no answers.

This lead him to only one conclusion, only one real viable option : He had to see her again. And not only one last time... Optimus would definitely keep regular contact with the young woman.

He had to risk bringing her further into this war for his own selfish need. The realization sat heavy upon his pauldrons.

But, he would get no rest nor peace until he figured things out. He would not be able to quiet his mind or focus on leading his people, until he knew what was happening. He could not truly be himsel, could not truly continue on as Prime, until he saw Laurelin... again... and longer, this time.

Though, he would also continue to visit her in secret at least, for now. Perhaps, he would not even let her know he was there sometimes. Maybe, just watching her would be enough to quiet him. Perhaps he wanted nothing more than to see how his interactions with her had left her. He knew that his interactions - and the interactions of Bumblebee - with Sam Witwicky were liable to spiral out of control. He knew the boy had seen too much, knew too much and was now too involved to ever lead a normal life. He thought that perhaps knowing he had not suffered Laurelin the same kind of fate : He would be quieted. He told himself that's what he believed.

The following days, he told Ratchet not to worry.

The medic wanted to spend time patching Optimus up and healing his wounds, but the Prime was distracted.

He did not yet want to tell his companions of his strange thoughts, so he looked for excuses. His injuries were not severe, after all. They were not threatening his function cycle. So, he would suffer them a bit longer.

He wanted Ratchet to relax, to enjoy the time-off after such a long and costly battle. In fact, Optimus wanted his whole team to enjoy this time-off, with no other orders than those of the humans. They had just defeated Megatron. They had just won a battle that was likely tantamount in the coming war. He wanted them to rest easy, because he could not promise them the peace would last. They could be attacked at any moment and so, every moment was precious. He received little back-talk from his companions. They understood. They were grateful and relieved.

None of them questioned when Optimus transformed. None of them seemed too curious at the moment to know where he was heading or when he would be back. Not even Ratchet, this time.

Optimus was glad they had not tried to follow him or question him. He wasn't sure what he would have said... He was certain that telling them the truth - that he was actually distracted and unsettled by feelings he was experiencing towards a young human female - would not have gone over well.

Optimus rolled quietly down the back road.

It seemed rather empty, deserted and well out of the way.

He was glad that it offered him a sense of security. Nnowhere for Decepticons to hide and no way for anyone to sneak up on him. But, at the same time : It left him little cover. He was out in the open and there was nowhere to hide.

Optimus quieted his engine and turned down his lights, as the house came into view. He rolled and stop at good distance away from Laurelin's house, hesitating. The strange sense of calm washed over him again. But, this time : It was tempered with a stirring in his wires, like a release of pent-up static electricity. It was like a surge of energy rose at the thought of Laurelin, bouncing around inside Optimus's frame like an excited child. It was not a completely negative feeling. In fact, the Prime found he rather liked it.

It appeared as if Laurelin was not home, or maybe already asleep.

Optimus cursed himself silently for not thinking about the human customs, this time again.

It was quite late. That meant humans were likely sleeping. They required the sun to light their activities and so, they slept on a diurnal clock rather than a strictly chronological one.

He felt foolish for having not considered that, despite the fact he already encountered this situation last time he had met her. Optimus hoped she was sleeping though and not out in the city. He would hate to have to explain what he was doing at her empty house in the middle of the night, if she drove home and found him parked across the way.

Yet, even that last thought was not enough to repel him : He decided to rest here for a while, under the dark velvety sky with its strange stars. Even if she was not there or even if she was sound asleep in her house : He felt the need to stay here anew, near the home where she lived. This though soothed him. It helped him find the peace and quiet he needed to fall into recharge.

She was falling ! Oh god ! She was falling !

She could feel the wind rushing past her. There was nothing to grab a hold of, nothing to slow her fall. She was surrounded by darkness. The only thing she could feel was the cold of the win slipping past and the turning of her stomach, as her body dropped lower and lower. She could not remember where she had been or what she had been doing. She could not even recall where or why she had fallen. But, she was in trouble. She had already fallen so far, that surely hitting the bottom would mean death. She wanted to scream, but the cold of the air around her tightened against her chest. She was helpless. She was tumbling through nothingness with no direction, no savior. She didn't even have anything on herself that could have helped. Not even her camera, in order to flash a light at the darkness to try and figure out where she was. She was like a rock carelessly thrown off a cliff.

Her ears began to register a strange sound. It was like the hiss and crackle of a radio turned on a station that was no longer coming through. It was the rumble of white noise, just loud enough to call her attention away from the wind. The noise grew louder and louder, until Laurelin was just as concerned with the sound as she was with falling to her death. Then, through the static noise : She began to hear something that made sense. She recognized a voice.

And that voice was calling her name !

She tried to turn her head, to see where the voice was coming from but in each direction, her eyes only met with darkness. She wanted to scream and cry, but could do neither. She was at the mercy of fate.

Just as suddenly as the noise, she felt arms around her body – strong, powerful arms – that squeezed just enough to let her know she was safe and no longer falling. She was held back to a strong chest, to a calming presence. Though the darkness was still all around her, she knew she was out of harm's way.

She reached down and grasped the arms around her waist. They were cold and metallic. She expected this to be jarring, to be frightening and strange. But, it wasn't. It felt right and good. It felt... like home. She leaned into the arms and felt her whole body relax. All the stress and worry she had been feeling drained away, as she curled into those arms.

« I am here. » The voice said, deep and soothing. « I am right here. »

Laurelin woke with a gasp, sitting straight up in her bed.

She drew a hand into her hair and tried to gather her wits.

It had just been a dream - the falling, the darkness and the cold hands. Just a dream.

She curled her lip into a slight snarl, as she shifted and realized how hot she was.

The room was stuffy and over-heated, which was probably why her dream savior had cold, metal arms.

She threw the blanket off her lap and placed her bare feet on the floor. She stood up and rubbed at her neck. She moved to open a large window. She knew some cool, fresh night air would be just what she needed.

Just a nice breeze to open the place up and get rid of the hot stale air.

Leaning through the casement, her eye caught a strange shadow. She tilted her head to one side, as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. Laurelin took in a quick breath of air, as she realized what she was looking at : « Optimus Prime... »

She thought she had spoken quietly.. But, as the roar of the engine ran through her body : She assumed she was wrong.

Two identical headlights beamed forward for only a second, before being put out.

Under Laurelin's curious gaze : The semi-truck transformed. With the loud whirring of metal against metal, of gears and wires shifting against themselves : The woman was soon faced with the giant robot, who had haunted her thoughts since their first meeting. She stared at him.

He approached the window. « Ah... Laurelin. I hope I haven't... disturbed… you. » Optimus said quietly, rubbing his helm as he stopped near the window. This put him face-to-face with Laurelin. His optics darted to her and then away. He had been caught red handed – so to speak – and he did not have any excuse. He had no reason for spying on the woman, other than his own misgivings. He was not about to tell her that. He needed to think fast… And, social excuses had never been his strong point.

« What are you doing here ? » Laurelin gently prompted, unaware of Optimus's inner turmoil.

However, she was aware of the strange flopping of her stomach upon seeing him again. She had tried to reason with herself that her inability to forget Optimus was because he was a large, metal alien. But, she was starting to suspect that wasn't the cause. She was starting to think that, maybe, she and Optimus were meant to be more than just one-time acquaintances.

« I was... close by, and I... simply wanted to make sure you were all right. I just wanted to make sure none of the escaped Decepticons had tried to contact or harm you. I would not put it past them. » Optimus found himself speaking quickly, as he came up with his excuse. It was not a complete lie though, which made it easier as he hated to lie. It was partly truth. He was worried about her. He had been concerned that the Decepticons would attempt retaliations.

« That's very kind of you. As you can see : I'm fine. Not a single Deceptico in sight. I guess that makes me lucky, doesn't it ? » Laurelin offered a smile.

Optimus's optics met her eyes and he returned the expression.

In the light from her bedroom : She noticed other scratches upon Optimus's face. Her eyes widened, as he leaned further out of her window to examine him closer. Her gaze found bent metal, torn pieces and injuries that were likely painful. « Optimus... You had others wounds than the one you showed me last time on your chest ? » She said quietly. She also frowned, obviously worried. « Megatron did that to you, didn't he ? »

Optimus nodded slowly. He tried to brush off the injuries : as leaned forward, bracing himself with a hand on Laurelin's house. « It's to be expected, Laurelin. We are in the middle of a war. There will be injuries. Nothing I have sustained is immediately detrimental to my health and functioning. Rachet take dialy care of them. »

Optimus' optics grew wider as Laurelin leaned out the window once more.

This time, she placed a hand on his face just like she did when he first came back to visit her the other day.

The Prime felt her delicate fingers along the sensitive plates on his cheek.

Her hand clutched just a little, just enough to extend a compassionate hand and touch. « You know… I saw the news coverage of the fight, the other day. It looked horrible. I was... worried... that Megatron killed you. »

Optimus blinked.

She had been worried about him since the beginning ? This tiny soft human had been worried about him ?

He felt the strange static hiss of energy again – this time, near his spark – at the thought.

Laurelin had been thinking about him enough, before he came back to her, that she was concerned for him.

Optimus could not recall anyone having made him feel like that… So wanted, so cared about. It soothed his over-active mind to know that perhaps Laurelin was just as wrought with worry over him as he had been about her.

« Megatron and I have fought countless times, over millions of years. This was just another battle. He would have had to fight harder and smarter, to beat me. »

« I'm glad he didn't anyway. » Laurelin sighed in relief.

Optimus met his optics with Laurelin's gaze.

They held eyes for a momen, before she looked away. Optimus frowned, as she sighed again.

She was concerned : « Why are you doing this, Optimus ? Why are you here protecting us ? Humans. The Earth. Why not just let Megatron destroy us ? Why not simply ignore us and fight him in the open ? Why did you risk so much to keep us safe ? Why are you still risking so much... just for us ? »

« Because it is right, Laurelin. It is the right thing to do. You – Humans – are essentially defenseless against Megatron and his Decepticons. They could destroy this planet in no time, if they were left unchecked. There is very little you could have done to stop them. If your military had had more time, you might have come up with weapons strong enough. But, the drain would have been detrimental to the health of your planet and your people. You would have lost. You would have all died. I am a Prime. It is my job to protect and serve. It is my job to make sure that every life gets a chance to thrive. It is my duty to protect those who cannot protect themselves. Against threats your people know, you are a prepared and a deadly race. But, against the Decepticons : You are merely targets. You mean nothing to them. It is my job to make sure they don't see you that way. It is my job to make it known to the galaxy that Humans are under my protection. That earth is now the Autobot's home. And, we will protect our home. »

« Humans aren't worth saving, Optimus. » Laurelin said softly. « We fight each other over stupid things. We hate each other because we all are different. We are arrogant and selfish. We are actually killing the very planet that gave birth to us. We aren't worth so much trouble. »

« Not all humans are like that, Laurelin. There are many humans who are good and selfless. They are many humans who are kind and whom go out of their way to help those in need. It is those humans which deserve to be protected. It is those humans who deserve to live. » Optimus leaned very, very gently into Laurelin's hand. « There are many humans who deserve that . »

Laurelin frowned, but nodded softly.

Optimus closed his eyes, seemed to sigh and finally, pull back from her hand. All this, with a soft smile and a kind look. « I did not mean to wake you up. It is late. I did not mean to keep you up. I am sure your days are very busy. »

« Indeed. I'm getting jobs left and right, with this whole media cover-up of your fight with Megatron. If there was a way I could clone myself : I'd be rich. »

Optimus laughed softly, watching Laurelin smile.

« Will I... see you again, Optimus ? » She couldn't help but ask this question again. She really feared never to see him again, without really knowing why he was so important for her. Laurelin wrung the fabric of her nightgown between her fingers, eyes downcast. She glanced back up, as she heard a soft rumble of an engine.

Optimus had the same reflection, again... He knew he should have walked away from her and left her alone, left her out of everything. Yet, he also clearly knew that would have been impossible. Breaking this bond – the very one that was building between the both of them – was beyond his strengths. « I will never be far, Laurelin. » He repeated her, reassuring her.

Then, Optimus stepped back. He watched Laurelin for as long as he could, as he called his transformation sequence to begin. Eventually, sensors replaced his optics. He was now forced to look at Laurelin through heat-lines on a graph. The same feeling of calm washed over him. This time, he also realized it made him happy. It did not bring up questions he could not answer. It did not make him worry or over-think things.

Something was indeed going on, but he was perhaps closer to figuring it out.

Laurelin smiled and leaned against the window frame, as the truck roared to life. She watched twin headlight beams light the road away from her house. She felt a strange tightness in her chest. She already wanted to see him again. She already wanted to touch the cold metal of his face again. She had still so many questions to ask him. She wondered if they would ever be answered one day.

Optimus titled his rear-view mirror as he pulled away. He kept the light from Laurelin's bedroom in the reflection for as long as he could.