{A/N: Before authoress note open office told me 1928 words and this told me 1917 words. I like 1928 words since 1928 was the year my grandma was born. Some songs listened to while writing this interlude: Genesis by VNV Nation, Sweeter by Gavin Degraw end of ch 15 will likely have a full song list but listen to the first part of the opening of Genesis. Imagine Starscream in Space with Kalomel ~_^ This one is for Nick P. Not only was there awesome but it broke my writers block!}

Being outside of the base, even if it was for a supply run, made Kalomel jubilant. She had not been able to simply breathe unrecycled atmosphere for ages and ages. The things she gathered were bought this time not stolen. She had been able to acquire some cash and Barricade had seen fit to take her along on one of his small scouting missions in a suburb of a California town where the Autobot friends Mikaela and Samuel were from.

Meat and vegetable matter obtained, along with an outstanding amount of toiletries compared to what she had available recently, made her very pleased. She was going to smell like peaches for her date with the Air Commander. She shaved her legs so she would not feel under groomed, and smiled as she piled on the lotion. She had not done anything remotely girly such as this "personal maintenance," In what seemed like forever. It was normally a waste of time, but today it felt wonderful in any case, and with skin smooth and fruit scented she went out the door of her wash room and back down the hall towards her quarters with Starscream.

Her blood was singing with excitement and she could tell with just a glance at her own mental landscape that it was not all her own excitement. She felt very complimented that a Millions of years old mechanical wonderment such as he was would be excited by a date with a bitty organic like her. The tightening of the bonds with her mates would terrify anyone else with the speed at which it was proceeding. She welcomed it and opened herself to it utterly. To no longer be alone in this world or any other. To have the ties they willingly offered her. That was what made her heart sing in her chest every day now.

"The way you open yourself so utterly to it without resistance is why it is deepening and broadening so very rapidly mini medic. I for one am glad that you are so eager. Kalomel...never doubt the bond. As my creators told me when I sought to enter a Trine, there is nothing more of home and nothing you will ever find that is greater."

Kalomel did not doubt it for a second. This was the one true best gift her mother had told her of so long ago. Not what she had meant by miles to be sure, but a truer one best thing for Kalomel could not ever be found.

"Thundercracker Will you pick me up please? Its hard to reach from here."

With gentleness and affection Kalomel kissed the facial plates of her shiny black mate as soon as he brought her close enough. The bond simply SANG as if everything in the world that was good and right and made of joy was winding itself around the two of them. Starscream walked in the opening portal with Skywarp close behind. The two of them did not hesitate but to surround her with their taloned hands also.

Their metal bodies were warm. She had yet to find a reason why that they would be warm. Not all over at any rate but only in areas where processes were running would be normal. Yet they were warmer then the surrounding air always by a noticeable and sometimes cuddly amount. At present she could discover nothing to cause this, not scientifically at any rate, but as the bond deepened even further she just decided to enjoy it instead of reason it to death. Sometimes she knew her mental capacity worked against her. It made her doubt that anything could really be so simple. A four ingredient recipe for wonderment and joy throughout her foreseeable future? Surely that was against the laws of the universe somehow?

"If it is little one then they can fine us, or imprison us should they care to Try. Even so I would not retract the welcome I have given you or ask you to revoke mine in turn."

Kalomel found herself holding her data pad and Starscream activated it with a whistle-click she could not quite do yet though she was practicing and getting better at them. He used his slenderest talon to open the file on her trine bond and culture studies. The first diagram. The word for her rank was drawn then and a small caricature of her person in a perfectly adorable chibi fashion. Then a rune she did not recognize that apparently was her name in Seeker's runes. This was all inscribed in the center off the triangle made by the three jet chibi's she had first drawn. Then the colors for bond indicators were dragged to the central figure from each jet image. Then the united color for a Trine bond was drawn around her in gold as it had been with the Trine's bonding.

Dates or no dates the bonding was considered at a complete level by her Trine leader. Kalomel handed her data pad back to Starscream as her hands started to shake. Skywarp had a talon in and rubbing her back slowly while she freaked out at the fact that she had gone to sleep engaged and woke up in the morning married in a unbreakable bond to not one or two but three millions of years old Jet robots from outer space.

"Oh hell. Might as well call me Cleopatra because I'm obviously the queen of denial."

"Surely I will not do so unless it is obvious that you are in denial over one thing or another. It does not have the connotations of a positive or cute nickname Kalomel. Much the same as Screamer's favorite barbed name for me. "

Kalomel knew exactly that name that he meant. She remembered it from the first time they all came home to the nemesis together. She had even learned how it was said in Decepticon and in Seeker by now from simply listening to Screamer's teasing of his dark mate.

"Cracker, you silly aft."

Kalomel went from laughing to crying her eyes out in less then five seconds. Her shiny blue mate counted for her. The stress was just to great. So she let all the agony and pain of her life alone up until now and all her joyful feelings express themselves through the tears flowing out of her eyes and down her face.

Starscream had a small cloth hanging off of one talon. He extended it to Kalomel when she forced herself calm and stopped crying with a hiccup or two on the end of it all. The utter relief of his small mate's stress and pain felt good after knowing all the past four days the hurt and doubt she had been shoving down in order to go about her daily tasks. He felt the bonds grow even deeper and sync better now that there was not even a fragment of resistance. The feeling before of a slight unwillingness had been simple in its source. In her soul the wise child of Fate that was their newest mate had known this was going to be the only wedding she had and that no spoken vows would be uttered.

The idea of going on these 'dates' as she called them was simply customary before marrying another being. In modern human culture there was no concept of a fair and equal union between more then just the pair. They would simply have to set an example for the ignorant organics. In truth they had already done so by taking their very best female from them.

"Very best huh? I feel special now for sure."

Starscream had not thought she would reach out and master such things as reading surface thoughts regarding ones self from the minds of ones Trine-mates so very rapidly. He sent a wordless feeling of joy at her accomplishment along their pair bonding and felt her caress him back in the bond with affection and joy of her own. This was all strange to her but she felt glad to be able to handle it at all instead of 'flipping out.' Which was something she considered a weakness she could ill afford. He sent a promise that should she feel the need she was welcome to 'flip out' and felt his other mates echo the sentiment. They were beginning to know her down to the base level of her mental and spiritual 'bones.' There was no reason to judge when she was part of a Trine now and thus capable of being so deeply understood and completely accepted.

He accepted gladly her bond sending of a request for a subject change so she would not continue being overly emotional. She did not wish to have puffy eyes on their date later. He understood after a brief blip that her physical recovery from her expressions off grief or simple mental overload of systems was something that took longer depending on how often it was used. Repeatedly and she would have puffy eyes for up to half a solar cycle. It was difficult and uncomfortable for her so he thought of something else and let the matter lie still and settle down.

The 'date' was in four local 'hours' as his small mate counted time. She was intent on having a nap before hand so she could 'handle the awesomeness that was surely going to be upcoming on date with the Winglord.' She had reached deep to find his former title in Vos. It was never used or spoken aloud by his Trine or any other fliers by his request. The memories were often times enough that were he human he would cry for sure. Her light loving caress was meant as an apology. She showed him what it was to her, a part of him, a being she loved. In that moment he realized that he who was eldest of the Trine-mates was as wide open to her s she was to him. A light sense of a tease from both Kalomel and Warp and then the sense of her dropping down int organic recharge right where she lay in Thundercracker's arms.

"Help me polish up while she sleeps Skywarp."

"Certainly Screamer. High gloss or matte finish polish?"

"High gloss of course!"

Skywarp chuckled softly so as not to wake Kalomel and then pulled some polish and rags out of subspace. He felt his mate's intent to 'make him shine properly' a second before the firm contact on his plating. Soon he was as shiny as he could be made to be without a repaint. He decided then that before the second date they had he would undergo a thorough repaint. Skywarp agreed silently. He would aide the repair bots so the markings of his heritage and rankings would not have to be later redone by hand.

Content to wait out his Mate's nap, Starscream went into a low power state just above full recharge and settled back on his toes to try and get some rest. To perform as he knew he could for this newest mate of his he would need all of his faculties and a full charge. Especially since his intent was to woo her straight out of the other nine dates or at least the rest of the solo dates entirely. The vicious grin on his face plates would give even hardened gladiators pause. As he slowly recharged to full capacity he never stopped smiling.