Lilah supposed that, sometime during the battle, she had lulled off into something of a trance. Neither asleep nor alert enough to be called fully awake. That strange moment when your body is swaying back and forth in a comforting, preoccupied manner and your eyes are half shut and glazed over. When you aren't aware of much of what is going on around you. The sounds of your surroundings fade into the background like a bad puppet show and your mind blanks out, so that you're little more than a husk.
For the remainder of her time spent underground, she was little more than as was previously described. Rocking back and forth and cradling her trembling, terrified pup to her, Lilah was barely even aware of the hard earth beneath her buttocks. It was no surprise, then, that the only thing that brought her out of her state of mind was the door to the shelter opening, and a soldier yelling that it was safe down to them all.
It was not the sound that reached Lilah; her ears had never, and would never accept those sound waves. Rather, it was the sudden light piercing through the murky darkness within the cellar. She winced and was forced to clench her eyes shut for some moments, trying to adapt. Tightly closed gave way to squinting, and it took her a bit to realize that, while the fight had raged above, dawn must have come. It didn't surprise her. While Lilah had had no way to tell the passage of time while down there, she knew that it had been a long time.
Her legs had long since gone numb, and her eyes ached from the light.
The sun had no way to reach down into the cellar, after all.
Standing on shaking, trembling, strength drained legs and cradling her puppy to her chest, Lilah began to hesitantly follow the group of people heading up the stairs to the world above. Her entire body ached with a persistent pain, and her frame begged for sleep. Lilah wanted nothing more than to go home, lay down, and pass out for about a week or so. But for now, she was determined to help out with anything she could around the island. The soldiers probably needed the rest more than her, and the medic's probably had their hands full with the injured. If she could, the computer analyst wanted to help.
It was a nightmare. Outside, the earth was scorched from the spray of fire from both bullets and… something else. Lilah didn't know, but it made her stomach roll and that was enough for her. In some patches, fire still blazed, though people were beginning to mill about, working to put them out. In other places, there was supplies, contained in either large boxes or medical bags of sorts. Attop the boxes sat soldiers, most of them being injured.
Between them, medics drifted with bandages and medicines. Lilah supposed that there were simply too many for the med bay. Not to mention too far away. Moving a few of the more injured may have proven fatal to them. It was better that they stay where they were.
They had not expected an attack on the island, hidden as they were. As far as anyone knew, the Decepticons had no idea where they were.
Then again, judging from what she had seen, Lilah had a sinking, dreadful suspicion that their attackers weren't of the mechanical kind. But it wasn't her place to think or say such things. That was her superior's job. Her job was the grunt work down under; and someone had to do that. Even if she would never get recognized, Lilah knew that what she did needed done and that it was important, in its own way. Even if it didn't feel like it most of the time.
Right now though, Lilah wanted to branch out, and help her comrades.
Tucking Mocha into her side with one arm braced along the pup's stomach, the brunette made her way over to one of the medics, swallowing her nervousness and exhaustion. The person in question was stony faced, with hard green eyes and shocking blonde hair. He had a medical bag in hand and seemed to be completely consumed by the task at hand. Something Lilah had to respect; he obviously took his job very seriously.
Once she was close enough, she stood patiently- waiting for him to take note of her presence. For a few moments, the medic continued to yell out instructions and keep the others of his profession in line. Then, after seemingly forever, the blonde turned towards her in confusion, seeming to sense Lilah staring into the side of his head. When jaded green eyes fell upon her form, the computer analyst felt her apprehension and nervousness jolt to a whole new height and level. This man was confident, he knew what he was doing, where his place was, and what needed done. And for some reason unknown to her, that scared her.
"What'd ya want?" The words, Lilah knew, were probably snapped out, though she could not hear it. Careful not to jostle poor Mocha, the woman motioned her hands through the hand signs she needed to perform to get her want across. After a moment of practically glaring at her as she conveyed her wishes to him, the medic replied. He spoke quickly, far faster than anyone else she had conversed with, and it was only thanks to her experience with Bluestreak that she was able to pick out all the important bits of what he was saying.
In short, the blonde wanted her to pick up a First Aid kit and start tending to those who weren't as badly wounded as the others. He also suggested- though it was more of an order- that Lilah put her puppy up before doing anything else. The normally cheerful woman, plagued by exhaustion and soreness, just about bit his head off for saying such things to her. But she held her tongue, turned on her heel, and moved to go do as he had told her to.
It would take too long to drop Mocha off back at the hotel. Lilah would have to find someone to take her back for her so she could get on the job she had been given.
Luckily, the opportunity came quickly, and by someone she knew, thankfully. Off to the side, Maggie appeared to be speaking to a very large man. And by very large, she meant that he was practically a giant. Standing at about six foot three or so inches, with a beard and rather large, dark, expressive eyes, the man seemed to bear a striking resemblance to 'Hagrid' from Harry Potter. His massive height and girth, however, put Lilah on edge. It would be all too easy for him to accidentally hurt someone.
Though hopefully that 'someone' wouldn't be her. Ever.
As she moved over towards her dirty blonde friend, a few things became clear to her. One, she was obviously very familiar with the man she was speaking with, and two, they seemed to be more than friends. While Lilah knew she would probably forget, she made a mental note to ask Maggie about him later. If she did remember, she could probably get back at her for the teasing she was likely to receive about Blue.
The moment she stepped up to the pair, the brunette found her hand encased with a giant, rough one. While gentle and careful in nature, it practically swallowed her lower arm. The muscles along the opposing hand and arm gripping her own rippled, keenly reminding her that it wouldn't take much for this giant to break her in two.
But he never made a single threatening move towards her.
Instead, he shook Lilah's hand heartily, though carefully, as if afraid of hurting her. "Very nice to meet lybov's friend! Been long time, da?" It took her a moment to gather her wits and make the connection. This was her friend's boyfriend. He was Russian. Oh dear lord.
Trying to smile despite the slight apprehension she was feeling, Lilah nodded and shook back as best as she could. Due to his beard, it was slightly difficult to make out what he was saying, but Lilah got the gist of it.
As quickly as he had swooped in and greeted her, however, the big man was gone. He released her hand, said something to Maggie that she didn't quite catch, and was practically jogging away before she could blink. Turning towards her friend, both eyebrows raised, she couldn't help but raise a question. "Did I scare him off?" The signed question brought a laugh and a head shake from Maggie. From there, a quick word exchange made it clear that Maggie was, thankfully, headed back to the motel for a nice, long nap.
She was more than happy to take Mocha back with her for Lilah.
The puppy squirmed as she exchanged hands, but didn't fight or bite. Once in Maggie's grasp, she wiggled happily and launched an assault of licks at the woman's face. The blonde grinned at the wiener dog's enthusiasm, but didn't let her succeed in her attack. She already knew all too well where that tongue had been. And she didn't want any part of it.
After a quick goodbye, the Aussie headed off with the pup to the hotel, and Lilah found herself searching for a First Aid kit. As it happened, however, it wouldn't be as easy as she thought it would be at first. Everywhere she looked, they were all in use. It was, admittedly, frustrating. She wandered through the crates and supplies and injured soldiers, looking intently for what she needed. She became annoyed however, when she found that she couldn't find anything that would even substitute for a kit.
Lilah had just passed down the third row, when she was blindsided and her poor, overworked heart just about gave out. There was a flash of color, a sudden mass of something hurtling at her at unbelievable speed, and then arms wrapping around her tightly. In the next fraction of a moment, Lilah was crushed to a firm, lean chest and embraced in rather strong arms. At first, she was sure that her heart had stopped beating in her chest for a full minute, but then she calmed enough to recognize just who it was practically crushing her.
The scent was familiar, as was the shirt garbed over the chest she found herself against. They stood there like that for several minutes. During which Lilah couldn't help but to sink into. Her body going lax against him, she found that a sense of safety and peace descended upon her. If given the chance, the brunette knew that she could stay like that forever. That was, unfortunately, not an option given to her.
Before Lilah could even blink, she was being held out at arm's length and being looked over in a rather worried manner. "Bluestreak, I'm fine." Her uneven, strange voice permeated the air, though she herself could not hear it. The young holoform before her shook his head agitatedly, as if frustrated by something she could not understand. He turned her around by her shoulders, looking her over in an almost frantic way for injuries that were not there, his spark rattling fearfully and demanding it of him. He turned her around again not even a minute later. Lilah let him have his moment of searching, heart aching.
Somehow, she understood that he was afraid. Afraid, perhaps, of losing a friend. Just as she had been afraid for him.
When Lilah was turned around again, however, to where she was facing him yet again, she raised her hands and carefully caught his face between them. They shook with fatigue, but didn't fail to answer her mental command. Bluestreak froze at the contact, his eyes darting frantically over her form just like they had before hand, however. Never stopping, as if some injury was hiding from his gaze and he knew it. "Bluestreak." The utterance of his name, uneven and nearly garbled as it was, caught his attention. Fearful, nearly crazed eyes crashed with her's.
Unknown horrors flittered in the blue depths that gazed back at her own. Memories, or perhaps nightmares? Maybe just fears. Given that he was in a war however, and that he had probably suffered some mental trauma while on his own home planet, Lilah was willing to be that it was the first option. And it made her heart ache painfully in her chest for him. Something was plaguing his mind like a disease, terrifying him and wearing him down. The deaf woman supposed, however, that he was terrified of her dying.
Though that was just what she gathered from his actions.
"I'm alright. I'm fine. Look, I'm not hurt." Lilah kept her voice slow and hopefully gentle- though she couldn't hear it- and tried to calm him down. For a moment, those terrified, beautiful blue eyes darted from her own amber ones to her uninjured form, as if unsure if he should believe her or not. After several minutes, however, he let out an unsteady breath and nodded shakily, swallowing thickly. Bluestreak's hands then slid from her shoulders, as if just now realizing where they had been and what he had been doing, fully releasing her from his grasp.
Immediately, Lilah couldn't help but to feel cold, missing the warmth of his hands on her. Pushing the feeling away, she carefully pulled her hands away from his face. "Are you alright?" The question gained her an uncertain nod. Sensing that it was futile to ask him any more questions, and that he probably didn't- for the first time since she met him- want to talk, she let it drop. For now however. Later, she would try to dig deeper and understand him better. It was probably best that she leave it alone for the moment, though. He didn't look too stable.
Unsure of how he would react, the computer analyst carefully slipped one of her hands into his.
He didn't resist.
"Why don't you come help me find a First Aid kit?" The question brought a nod from her companion, a little more down to earth and less frantic and unsure like the other movements. He seemed calmer now that he was certain that she was unharmed and had a hold of her. It was soothing to him, from what she could tell. So Lilah kept a hold on him as she continued her search, pulling Bluestreak along with her. He followed along placidly, sticking close to Lilah's side without a word.
She also took note of his vehicle form idling just a few yards behind her and his holoform. Whatever had happened, it had scared the holy hell out of him. Something that concerned her deeply. Just what had happened to the poor bot?
Lilah was just about to scream in frustration- for the First Aid kits that weren't being used saw fit to hide from her- when she finally found what she was looking for. The computer analyst just about swore angels were singing. Laying on a crate, unused and all by itself, sat a worn out First Aid kit. But that didn't matter to her. It could've been ratty and nasty and she still would've done a dance of joy. FINALLY she had found one. It wasn't brand new or anything, but as long as it had supplies inside of it, she'd be happy.
The brunette hesitated for a moment before carefully letting go of Bluestreak's hand in order to open the kit to check it over. He panicked for a moment, expression changing to one of pure terror, before he hastily grabbed hold of her shoulder and refused to let go. Lilah stopped for a moment, watching him to make sure he was alright. When the sniper seemed to calm down, having drawn some form of comfort from the physical contact between the two of them, she returned to what she was doing.
She nearly sang out with pure joy.
Inside, the kit was fully stocked with everything she needed. Closing it back up, the computer analyst slung the strap of the kit over her shoulder so that it hung near her left hip. Blue shifted his hand so it didn't get in the way, but didn't let go. When she moved to go help out with the soldier's, he was right on her heels, like a puppy following its master. His grip wasn't painful, but it was firm. And from what she could see out of the corner of her eye, he was very much disturbed by something she could not begin to understand.
He jumped at sudden movements and what she could guess were sharp noises, and when anyone came too close to her, he tense up incredibly and looked ready to defend her if need be. It was touching, but deeply concerning at the same time. It brought forth questions like, 'Just what the fuck happened?' to mind. And if Lilah was honest- which she usually was- she'd admit that it scared her a lot more than even the battle that had happened before hand.
But Lilah could only hope that he would eventually open up to her.
(AN: Welp. They both have issues. Lilah's will be revealed in due time. But I happened to come across some other Fanfiction concerning Blue's past and I have to say that it is fucked up. And I can just SEE Blue having issues. Like, abandonment issues. Under every smile is a trace of pain, right? I don't know, its just how I see it.
ANYWAY; here's another chapter, enjoy yourselves, da? :D Also, little quiz, how many of you can name the character that Maggie was talking to? XD Have a wonderful week, everyone, and leave me a review with your thoughts, yeah? :3)