So I just went to the Bastille concert that my school was holding, with a promo code of course, I can't afford real things as a student. I hate that band. They ruined my expectation in men. Arghhhh. But seriously, best concert I've ever been to, better than kiis fm Jingle Ball. If you ever get the chance to go see them, do it. You won't regret it.

And I want to start writing for this story more because the semester is winding down and I'm going home soon. Oh, I am so excited for my own bathroom. And Big Hero 6 and Mockingjay were soooo fantastically good! Go watch and love.

Aquí es el próximo capítulo, have fun!

And to the girl on the computer in front of me in the library, I see you on Tumblr. Shame on you. Get back to your work. Finals are upon us!


Epps came by later that day, finding Lani curled up in a few blankets reading an old, battered book at the edge of Optimus' desk. Her red curls splayed across her shoulders, covering the corners of the bent pages. The mech, for his part, sat comfortably with a datapad in one hand and the other on his chin in concentration. The two sat completely in harmony with one another. Like the rest of the world melted away leaving the new, unorthodox couple in a beautifully serene picture.

The experienced soldier smiled, teeth gleaming in happiness for Lani, but that smile disappeared. She'd been through enough in her short life span and last night's hiccup succeeded in adding another bad memory to her repertoire of shitty experiences.

He noticed how Optimus and Lani were both in their own worlds, each of them engrossed in their own work or entertainment, but both of them were turned toward each other. Like they couldn't be distracted without including the other.

There was one positive perspective to her life, where life had cheated her of a basic childhood and darker sides of this world, she was more than rich in relationships with loving people that would do anything for her. That he could testify, knowing he and his family have been with her, walking her through life one step at a time.

Lani perked her head out of her book and waved happily at Epps. Her sudden motion made the autobot leader look up and he too revealed a small smile with the curve of his mouth plates.

"Monique wants you over tomorrow night."

The medic sat up a little straighter, her happy expression faltering. "She doesn't know...does she?"

Epps scratched the back of his bald head. "No, but you know she'd be more than happy to talk about it. She's making lasagna and keeps complaining how you're never around."

She closed the worn book and snuck a peeking glance at Optimus. A sly smile moved across her features before he could notice. "Yeah, that sounds nice. I'll be there. I miss the kids." Green eyes bore through the soldier before moving to Optimus; she repeated the motion a couple times before Epps could catch on.

"Optimus, you're more than welcome to come on over."

The ever gentle giant was taken aback and undeniably humbled at the gesture. No sound emitted from his vocal processor for a moment as he tried to gather his thoughts and accept the invitation.

"Oh my gosh, you're going to love the kids. Those fiery beasts are the death of me, but they like hanging off of tall people, you'll be great at taking Epps' place."

He smiled at her and nodded, unable to voice his gratitude. The ability for this alien species, to him at least, could open their doors to well...aliens. It was spark warming to say the least.

The mech looked fondly down at the curled up redhead. His spark lurched at the sight of her trusting, happy eyes. Such a beautiful, jade green-so welcoming. Although the had just established a budding relationship, diluting his feelings proved more difficult than before. He would not push her, that he promised himself.

Lani got up, trying to get out of the constricted blankets around her ankles.

"So we'll leave and you'll finally-Mother Fucker!" She tripped over the plush death trap and fell forward and consequently stubbed her toe against the surface. Bruised ribs: check. Head abrasion: check. Stubbed toe? Nah. The table stayed perfectly still as if the girl hadn't rammed her small toe with the force of Thor's hammer.

If he were human, his face would have paled if he were in his holoform. His head swiveled to the side and down, his mouth parted in horror.

"I-I would never!" he exclaimed before he noticed her form splayed on his working area. But then he heard the laughing below him. There Lani lay in a tangle of blankets, body convulsing in laughter at his own outburst. To the floor, Epps was no better off laughing and trying to walk out of his room at the same time.

She sat up, wiping a tear from her eye, a teeth gleaming in mirth.

"So, Galloway and world leaders and important blah blah blah stuff is tomorrow? And for tonight, would you like to be a tourist with me tonight?"


They rode together in comfortable silence. Lani sat in the drivers seat, gently tracing the leather at her side while he drove them safely to the museum. It was still fairly light outside, coming close to dusk. The weather chilled, seeing as October was closing.

Waiting for Lani to pull on her sweater, Optimus opened his door and lowered his left side closer to the ground for her convenience. She smiled gratefully, and the engine rumbled in return. She trailing a hand across the paint to the grill and waited for his holoform to appear.

A tall man, nearly 6'4'', stepped gracefully from the cab like a Greek model. Lani dropped her jaw, never really noticing how beautiful his holoform was. Sure, she'd stare at his real body all the time and obsessed over his alien, but comfortable beauty. But his earthly beauty was still up there. She wouldn't be surprised if she'd have to beat off a few women today. Dark brown hair contrasted against the bright blue eyes that dominated his handsome face. His strong jaw was met by some pretty nice cheek bones. Not Benedict Cumberbatch status, but up there.

She boldly took his arm, molding herself side into his, and together they made their way to the Smithsonian. She faintly heard him hum in contentment, which only improved her self-confidence around him.

Optimus remained intrigued to learn more about this nation's history. Lani thought it was adorable, how engrossed with everything he was. She practically dragged him from each building, wanting to see everything and not having the attention span to stay at one thing long enough for Optimus to get his fill. The two made it to almost every place there, not staying too much in the rock one, as Lani called it, claiming they had more important things to see.

Walking out from the last building, Optimus draped his arm around her shoulders to keep the cold at bay. Noticing Lani's ribs were beginning to bother her, from the flash of her hand against her abdomen, Optimus steered them toward the first building.


"And after appealing to the general publics' opinions to the high council, where Megatron had failed, they decided my fate."

"So that's when you became Optimus Prime?" she asked in deep awe.

He scratched his chin, pushing her drink out of the way. "No, that didn't happen until after I received the Matrix of Leadership. That's when I assumed my title and was considered a leader amongst my people, not necessarily someone with immense power, but some one with grave authority...the power didn't come until later."

"Wait, wait. The Matrix? Isn't that what went down in Egypt?"

"Um, yes. You were there, were you not?" His gut twisted. The thought of her being on that battle field, beautiful, red, wild curls flying in every direction with the pass of every bullet, cannon, and Decepticon. The image imprinted in his processor. And he was right there, she was so close, and yet he hadn't even noticed her very existence. If only he'd known the draw his spark had on her, calling to her.

She nodded. "Yeah, crazy stuff. That was my first time ever seeing a Decepticon." A shiver tickled down her spine.

Optimus' holoform clenched its fist. She shouldn't have needed to see such destruction. Their world had enough issues without him dragging their war across the universe.

But this is what she signed up for, and he needed to respect and accept that. "To be a part of something bigger than herself," she once told him when he'd ask why she'd chosen her career.

"That's when I first met Sam, too," she continued. "Great kid. Had to fix up his hand, though. That was ugly-and oh, I got so sunburned. Peeling for days. It was not attractive."

His melancholy subsided. She always seemed to find the lighthearted viewpoint out of any situation. This bothered him minutely; did she try to cover up unwanted experiences by forcing them into a joke? How much heartache had she really experienced in her 26 years? The coping mechanism was common enough among some in the war.

The markings on her face proved that inquiry. Bruising still lay prevalent under her eye and across her jaw line. The damage done to her ribs made movement a little more difficult, but she tried to wave off everyone's concern.

"I am still flabbergasted you were so close to me and I didn't know you...I-I wish I had found you sooner."

Her cheeks flushed scarlet and she looked down at the black table. He leaned forward to push her chin up with one warm finger. She curved her lips in a warm smile, leaning into his touch.

"You know, it's weird: you and me."

He pulled back his hand, not really understanding what she meant. It was strange, two different species together, she'd never have a normal life, a proper human existence. Is that not for her? He tried to stray from jumping to conclusions, even if it did sound a bit harsh. So he waited.

"Sorry, I didn't mean that in a bad way." She licked her lips, suddenly stiffening. "It's just...it takes me a while to be comfortable around a man alone, years actually. I've gotten better at it, but it's a psychological thing I guess from my dad. But with you, I don't feel any of that anxiety, I trust you. That's why it's weird."

His eyes softened. "Why? What happened with your parental unit?"

"I grew up in a home of two raging alcoholics." She stopped there, and placed her palms on the table. Optimus snaked his hand to clasp hers in support. She squeezed in turn and continued.

"My dad...was-is a controlling person. It-he comes off as a really nice person, really together, but it's not until you get to know him until you realize how great of a mask he puts on. I honestly can't tell you everything that happened, everything I went through with him because my mind blocked it out, mostly to give me some peace.

"But sometimes my mom will mention something about when he lived with us, or I'll see something familiar, and I'll get back flashes. And then I'll remember how bad it was, living there. I was only surviving. The climax of it all was when I was in middle school. He was a drunk. A moody, angry drunk that drank our money away at his favorite local bar. There were fights, big fights. My mom would call him a loser with his pitiful nonexistent job and he'd call her an insolent bitch and more times than not, threatened to kill her and leave... That's why I tried so hard in school-to get out."

Lani looked blankly to her right, noticing a table with a family and two girls in a mother's lap.

"My mom tried, she really did, to provide for me and keep his anger at bay, but it was too much for her. My relationship with her was strained those three years. Ok, more than that, it was awful. I thought about running away more times than I can count. I just wanted to get away. She'd call me sometimes on my way home from school telling me not to come home, that it wasn't safe, that he was in one of his moods.

"I coped through my pain with reading. That was my escape. She drained her sorrows to the bottom of wine bottles. My mom became a full blown alcoholic and after a long time of fighting and crying and begging, she gave in to rehab. So I guess there's a part of me that blames my dad for what happened, all the pain I went through, that he manipulated me to be submissive and spoke down to me on a daily basis.

"I'm still working on the forgiving thing, but it's hard to forgive someone who still thinks he did nothing wrong...You just have to know something: sometimes I'm going to get anxiety attacks, I'm going to need to be alone, or call my mom or just hold on to someone. I still get flashbacks, that's my PTSD.

Optimus stared into her eyes, they were old-older than her young age. He knew there was more to her story than she was telling him, but he'd wait. She'd tell him in time. He did the same, and that's one thing he needed to work on with Lani. He wanted her to know him through and through, with all his flaws, shortcomings, and dark memories. It would take time, but that was his main goal. In his life of suffering, he wanted her to be his beacon of hope.

She scratched the back of her neck and looked down. "I'm reluctant in trusting smooth talkers. They're notoriously good at manipulating people."

He gave her a questioning look, silently asking to elaborate.

"Well because part of that is from my dad and then other things. And I know that a lot of world leaders and people in power have that skill in their utility belt."

Optimus nodded, understanding what she meant. "Yes, Megatron is the same. That was how he gained so many followers, in the beginning."

"How did it all start? What actually made you and him start?" she eagerly asked.

He smiled gently. "Megatron was a gladiator, the best, undefeated. It was one of the only ways out of poverty, if you could survive. That's how his fame began. Our society was a caste system. Rudimentary and old fashioned, but our officials and the counsel of elders failed to end it because they feared the unrest directly following the change.

"Megatron rallied support, claiming this inequality left for no upper mobility, and that the actual all spark energy was reserved for the elite. And it was, for the most part. Those in power controlled energon supply to the districts and major cities, but those like Megatron, bound to the pit, had no power or leverage to gain any major access.

"I was an archivist, studying under my mentor Alpha Trion, when I heard his speeches, mind you when he was fairly new. He had a point, and I agreed with him-that change was necessary. But we are a proud race; it would be difficult to enact anything."

They started walking later across the grass, the place nearly abandoned save for a few pedestrians walking the grounds. The Peterbuilt sat silently in the distance alongside a curb. She smiled fondly at his true form, what a beautiful truck.

He held onto her hand the entire walk, not wanting any separation between them as he continued his story. "I stood by Megatron's side, wanting to support his fight for equal opportunities, but his efforts soon turned more radical. I think in his raising number of other supporters was when he lost sight of the real fight and when he found satisfaction in power. After that he went to the Council to push his point and pushed to make himself a Prime."

"The council, of course, rejected his demand. And that's where I came in to amend the problem with more moderate, peaceful ideas as to not enact any unrest in our increasingly fragile system. And the rest is history, up to here at least."

Lani's small hand squeezed his. "Wow, that's just amazing..." Her gaze moved out to the fountain, lost in deeper thought.

A heavy sigh filled the silence. "Ugh, I'm sorry. Here I've been complaining about my mundane problems when you've been in a centuries long war seeing more heartache and pain than me. My pain isn't anything compared to yours."

He stopped walking and spun her shoulders toward him to make her look into his eyes. He looked down at her, optics glowing in an intensity she had never seen.

"Lani," he breathed. His warm hand caressed her cheek. "Hurt it hurt no matter where it comes from."

Her lips parted. Enormous green eyes locked onto his optics. And she buried herself into his chest in a tight hug.

Optimus' spark spiked and he hummed before wrapping one arm around her back and the other hand engulfed the back of her head. The two stayed like that, neither wanting to interrupt the moment.

His holoform received an urgent message, calling for a return for base. He now more than ever wished the war was over.

She looked up with worried eyes. "What is it?"

"Decepticons. We need to return to base."

A small hint of fear swept across her features before they were set in determination. "Come on, Prime. You go kick Decepticon ass and I'll go keep soldiers alive."

And the two ran towards his alt-form, hand in hand, together.


As always, tell me what you liked. What you didn't like. What disgusted you. What gave you glorious feels. I'm like Sherlock, give me the details you gorgeous, fantastic readers.

Allons-y!