Authors Note: As always, thank you for the kind reviews! I would love to be a published author someday... ah, dreams. Dreams of the humble and cross-eyed! Heh. Oh, there ain't no sex in this chappie. Just Optimus being silly. And, perhaps, getting somewhere with Miss Maggie?
Chapter 10Downtown Tranquillity, early morning...
Optimus Prime stood patiently underneath the window of Maggie's Government office, at two in the morning. He had even managed to lift his feet over the small gardens surrounding the medium sized building, and not squash any plants. He was proud of that. At least this place didn't have a fountain. "Maggie Madsen?"
"Piss off!"
He managed to duck the flying object (a banana?) and directed an intensely worried look at the woman. Maggie had swiftly jerked open her office window, lobbed the banana at the giant offensive robot, and then slammed shut her window again.
Crouching on thick strong thighs, Optimus looked around with concern. Traffic was non-existent. He had successfully hacked into the building's security systems, the human guards in the lobby on the other side of the building were looking at a rolling repeating screen of Optimus-Prime-free garden. They wouldn't know he was there unless they stepped outside and around the side of the building (and his scanners would tell him if they did so). And the humans appeared much too occupied with their seats, TV, football game, and Twinkies.
Prime's head snapped back around when the window was lifted open again.
"GO AWAY! Leave me alone!", the irate blonde woman hissed, hanging out the window. "I'm not talking to sex addicted aliens!"
"Maggie, please-"
"NO. And someone will see you! Get lost! I mean it!"
The window was rammed shut again. Even worse, the blind was yanked down. He had been painfully rejected. His broad armored shoulders sagged. A sigh of disappointment escaped his air vents. Women. He turned around and sank down to the ground, easing his aft gingerly onto the cool dew-soaked grass. He'd leave a dent, but he didn't care. He linked his hands between his bent up knees. His optics became unfocused. Musing. What did he have to do to get her to listen to him?
He searched the internet, coming up with thousands of ways of saying 'sorry'. Flowers? No, she'd throw them back. The same with champagne – and the bottle would hurt. No, delete that, he WAS saying sorry, she just didn't want to listen. Maybe the internet had something to say about the behaviour between men and women? A multitude of books on something called 'Amazon' scrolled through his processor. A top-selling book called 'Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus' appealed to him. He grimaced. No, no; Maggie was from Earth and he was from Cybertron. That wouldn't work.
"Stop stalking me!"
Too caught up in his thoughts, Optimus hadn't noticed the window opening again. He turned around to look over his shoulder; and was rewarded with a stiletto shoe in the head, bouncing off his forehead. On reflex, his battle mask slid into place. "Wha... Hey! Femme! Stop throwing inanimate objects at my person!"
"Suck it up, fuzz butt!"
The window banged closed again. Optimus rubbed at his head, gazing at the shoe lying forlornly in the grass beside him. She'd be wanting that back. Maggie liked her shoes immensely, and she couldn't hobble around with just one, it would affect her walking capability. His fingers cautiously picked up the lone shoe with a small pinch of his metal fingertips, holding it in front of his glowing blue optics. He directed a sly grin up at the closed-and-blinded window. He was going to deliver this to her. Personally.
The Autobot Leader went out into the street, transformed, parked his flame-patterned semi-truck self by the curb – and stepped down from the cab as his new holographic self. He retrieved the errant stiletto shoe and absorbed it into the pocket of his jeans. Patting down his clothing to make sure it was alright, he strolled up to the front of the building and knocked on the glass doors.
The guards were easy to get past, after some niggling and polite conversation. His ID given to him by the Government got him through. Thank you Mr Keller.
Exiting the lift on Maggie's floor, Optimus looked around, running a scan via his truck form parked outside. Only Maggie was present. Stalking along the hallway like the predator he was, he halted when he came to Maggie's door. Should he knock? Announce himself? Would she lock the door? Scream? Throw things again? He should bring a gift. Females liked gifts. His jean pocket bulged and popped the stiletto shoe out into his waiting hand. Ah, yes. Smiling, he palmed the door handle and quietly turned it.
Maggie was at her computer, leaning forward far enough to have her nose almost touching the screen. Her fingers hammered away at the keyboard. She hadn't noticed his entrance.
Optimus entered the room and closed the door. "Maggie?"
"HOLY SHIT!" The woman leapt out of her chair. One hand snatched up a glass paperweight and hefted it with menace like a chick from the stone age. She peered at him. "O-Optimus?"
"Yes," he nodded, holding his hands out in a peaceful gesture, "We need to talk, why won't you let me? I, uh, have brought your shoe for you," he added hopefully.
Maggie's eyes narrowed, darting over his sweet body (wow, whoa girl, put the hormones in 'park'!) and her shoe in his hand. Her lips thinned. She stuck a hand out. Optimus gently placed her shoe in her palm. Maggie started hopping on one foot while jamming the missing shoe back onto her foot.
"Alright then, out with it." Her tone was sullen. She plopped her butt back into her chair and crossed her arms over her tight Singlet top, staring at him.
Optimus stiffened his legs and linked his hands behind his back, bowing his head. "Maggie, I am very sorry for what you have had to endure at the base. I did not, WE, did not intend to offend you or make you uncomfortable with our unacceptable overtures and outlandish behaviour."
One of Maggie's eyebrows arched up cynically, she stuck her legs out in front of her, leaning back, "And?"
"The only explanation I can offer is that we have been without the presence of females for a very long time, and we have perhaps forgotten how to conduct ourselves with proper decent behaviour."
Maggie didn't move. The eyebrow stayed in its high 'so what' position.
"And..." Optimus frowned, "Ratchet and Ironhide have been ordered to confine their extra-curricular activities to their quarters."
"Oh my God, 'extra-curricular activities' huh?" Maggie snorted, tapping her fingers on her arms.
"Is this... good enough?" Optimus asked uncertainly. "We wish to make you feel at ease with us." He squirmed a bit, un-used to being on the receiving end of such female indignation. "We promise to behave, Maggie."
Maggie chewed her lip. Then threw her hands up in the air, "Alright! Alright. What the heck, I like working with you guys." She pointed a finger at him, "Make sure you keep your clothes on. And NO dry humping. Not even as a joke."
Optimus appeared confused, "Dry humping?"
Maggie chortled, "I'm not explaining it, if you don't know what it is you can't do it." Leaving Optimus to blink over her words, she turned back to her computer, stretching her stiff arms over her head with a groan. "Now skedaddle, I have over-due work to do."
Optimus studied her from behind. Her long blonde hair was hanging down her back, her petite shoulders flexing as her hands returned to the keyboard, one hand coming up to rub a shoulder and a small 'oww' issuing from her mouth. Prime's sensors perked up, "You are sore, Maggie?"
"My arms hurt," Maggie muttered, pushing some of her overgrown fringe out of her eyes. She froze when she felt smooth big hands come to rest on her shoulders.
"May I help?" The strong male hands started to knead and stroke at the congested muscles along her collarbone. Instant relief from the aching soreness in her upper back began to flood her body.
"Don't let those hands go south." Maggie warned, leaning back against him.
"Certainly not. Ironhide has maps and well-worn trails to 'down south'. I do not."
Maggie giggled, "And Ratchet?"
"He trips along after Ironhide wherever he goes. If one is doing something the other usually joins in. Sort of a, 'me too' situation." Optimus concentrated on working his hands – and keeping his holoform from flickering off. This was the longest he had ever gone with staying in his human guise.
"I noticed." She leant back further with a sigh. "That feels nice."
Optimus smiled down at her, "Mmm." Maggie's top was billowing outwards over her cleavage, affording Optimus a direct view of her pillowed breasts. They didn't do a thing for him – inorganics did not care about such things – but his hologram began to heat up. His crotch got tight.
"Uh..." Optimus stopped his hands, taking a step backwards uneasily. He was not experienced enough with holoforms to control awkward urges relayed from his synth computer to his CPU. "I better let you return to your work."
Maggie sat up, putting her hands on the armrests of her chair and turning around. Her eyes scrutinised him. "Are you okay? You sound a bit-" she took in the erection sticking out of his crotch, "strained. Optimus!"
"Huh?" He looked down at himself, then cringed. "Oh. I did not start that. Honestly! It does that itself!"
"So do most men's," Maggie said dryly. "At least you don't have Ratchet here to suck it."
Prime backed up with his hands over his offensive crotch, cupping the bulging denim. His internal commands to make the organ sink back down were being ignored. "I'm sorry, very sorry, I better leave." One of his hands reached behind him for the office door handle, groping hopefully.
"No." Maggie sighed deeply, massaging one tired eye with her hand, smudging mascara, "Don't worry."
Optimus paused; still with one hand on his groin and his thighs jammed together. His holographic face was going red. "Excuse me?"
"Look, Optimus," Maggie stood up, her heels clicking on the floor, "You're very innocent at all this. What I didn't like was how Ratchet and Ironhide acted in the rec room, you know? Ironhide didn't even bother to look embarrassed! Like, he wanted me to react to his excitement, he turned around with everything," her hands motioned upwards, then pointed at his groin, "exposed and ready to go. That's what set me off. You're not like that. Thank GOD you're not like that."
The holographic Autobot had a hopeless sad puppy expression, "But... you were throwing things at me from the window. You don't like me."
Maggie snorted. Oh, now this was getting pathetic. "Buck up, man. You are definitely not offensive to me anymore. I... um.. apologise for throwing stuff at you. There, how's that? And you were even gentleman enough to return the shoe I threw at you! You can't get more chivalrous than that."
Optimus's eyes blinked rapidly, his back to the door. "You are not going to hurl any more objects at me?"
"No."
"Really?"
"Optimus! Get over it! And stop covering yourself up!" Maggie demanded. "I will not be offended as long as your clothes stay on, alright! Like you said, you can't control it."
Slowly, with definite trepidation, the Autobot stood up tall and took his hands away from his crotch. Maggie choked. The bulge was even bigger than before!
"Um..." The woman rubbed at her forehead, flicking some fringe out of her eyes. "Do you even know what to do with that?"
Optimus quickly thought over how to phrase his response. He didn't want her coming to the conclusion he was clueless with femmes. "I understand how it is used, but I have not used it before. That does not mean I am not experienced with females..." his lips twitched into a faint smirk. She'd seen the movie evidence!
"Got a girlfriend back home, then? Who is the lucky girl that snagged you?" Maggie said jovially.
At that, the Autobot Commander's face fell. His gaze dropped down to the ground, his eyes averted from hers. He shifted on his feet. Maggie noticed his hologram flicker.
Maggie cursed herself for being stupid. These guys were at war! If he'd had a woman – or whatever they had back home – she probably would have been killed by now. "Oh no! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to pry, geez, I'm the one apologising now! I shouldn't have-"
"She died, Maggie." His voice was sad; and reflective. His eyes lifted to hers, their brilliance dimmed. His noble face appeared tired. "Assassinated. It was a long time ago."
"Sorry." Maggie hung her head down, studying her feet. "I'm sorry." She jerked when his hand came down to rest on her shoulder.
"We have all lost someone." His eyes were kind.
She couldn't look him in the face. Just looked at his chest. Silent. Slowly, feeling that he was waiting for her to say something, she gave a brief nod. She felt his hand touch her cheek, and she shuddered, closing her eyes. A gasp was pulled from her when his mouth brushed over her forehead in a chaste kiss. The closeness of his radiant aura was intimidating. Even as a human, he seemed so huge, and awesome.
A soft whisper in her ear, "Thank you, Maggie."
Her eyes opened. He was gone.
NEXT: Things change between Maggie and Optimus; while Bumblebee gets corrupted (much to Prime's disgust).