And here we are folks, here's the next chapter. After much debate with my inner self, I realised that I wish to finish this story before anything else happens. I guess... a part of me has noticed it has been a long time since I've started it and this needed to be finished. But finishing it is like letting go of a child... difficult and painful.

But we all know that a lot of good things need to eventually end and this story needs it. But in the end, we know those stories live on inside of us, of our memories, and of our hearts. This story will be finishing soon... and it will be a painful way. Can't say how or why, but it will.

Just remember this: One door closes, another one opens.

Just prepare for lots of timeskips here to avoid a lot of filler, ok? Wouldn't want this to be a pain in the butt for you.

Chapter 21:

Why Do You Fight?

Training hadn't been as complicated as Silverflame had expected. For the past few months, he had been training with the Autobots almost non-stop, trying to perfect his abilities that would benefit his and his soon-to-be human charges. Even though he claimed he was doing it for Optimus because they needed a charge to protect them, but... more importantly he was doing it for the one human who mattered to him so much. He trained day in and day out, working to the point where he came close to collapsing until Ironhide had to carry him to the med bay and Ratchet had to strap him down so that he could recover from overworking.

To everyone's amusement, Silverflame was proving to be a very stubborn young mech, but what surprised everyone was the quick acceleration in his training. He had already gone from not knowing what to do to almost mastering his weapon and melee combat techniques. Still, Sideswipe and Ironhide didn't want to rush things in order for Silverflame to get to know his body. But again, Silverflame was impatient and was very determined to protect Jasmine at any cost and thus he kept on pushing and pushing until finally Ratchet had had enough of the young mech and his constant trips to the berth.

"That's it!" Ratchet shouted when Ironhide came into the med-bay with Silverflame looped over his shoulder for the umpteenth time. "You've got to stop pushing yourself so hard, Silverflame! You'll do more than just hurt yourself! It's been three months and you're only young."

Ironhide laid Silverflame on the berth as Ratchet grumbled and growled while he retrieved some of his tools. Silverflame could've sworn that the green mech had even switched to Cybertronian, much to his chagrin. Instead, he silently sat there, staring at his two-toed feet. He didn't see what the problem was. All he was doing was trying to get to his goal in order to protect his beloved charge, the one person who he was longing to speak to. But with the way how Ratchet kept on making simple complaints about pushing himself was beginning to drive him crazy.

He said nothing when Ratchet returned to his side and Ironhide stepped back to give more room. The elder mech was not at all pleased at his latest trip to the med-bay and it was written all over his faceplates. "Care to explain what happened, Ironhide?" Ratchet demanded a little coldly.

Ironhide snorted, bemused by his old friend's rising temper. "It wasn't like last time," he said, trying to keep a smile from forming on his lips. "I believe that the kid has been up on his feet all day and all night, he refuses to tell me anything. He collapsed in the middle of weapons practise and I had a sneaking suspicion it was from lack of recharge and energon."

Ratchet whirled upon Silverflame and slapped his wrench against his helm. Silverflame winced in pain, almost whimpering pathetically, but Ratchet only hit him harder on the second hit. "You idiot!" he snapped, his blue optics flashing in anger. "Do you know what happens to those who don't get any recharge or drink any energon?!"

Silverflame remained silent.

"Not going to talk, huh?" Ratchet growled and Ironhide took a further step backwards. "Well then, I guess we're going to have to do something about that. You're confined to the med-bay until you tell me what your problem is. You'll be kept under surveillance by one of our human allies and – more importantly – you'll be strapped down to that very berth you're sitting on. No training at all!"

"Fine then," Silverflame hissed.

His hands balled up into fists, a slight flash of anger washed over his processor and a part of him was very much tempted to punch Ratchet right in the face. He wanted to scream that he couldn't do it because he had to train! He had to, for Jasmine's sake! But then a wave of calm flowed through him and the anger slowly melted away until it was nothing more than a speck in the back of his processor. Ratchet was right, he had been pushing himself to the point where even his body couldn't handle the stress, something that he was still struggling to get used to.

Instead, he bowed his head and just nodded as Ratchet pushed him back down on the berth and strapped his arms and legs down, preventing him from getting up. He could still move his head and neck, so he was grateful for that. He had to force himself to hold back a whimper when Ratchet cruelly inserted a dose of energon into his systems to give his energy levels a chance to rise again.

Ironhide gave him no sympathy and he understood the reasons for it. His constant need to push himself made him a pain in the backside and that was something no one tolerated around here. Ratchet returned to his work and Ironhide left, not bothering to say anything, but one last look at him over his shoulder told Silverflame a different story.

While his energy levels slowly returned to normal a human was sent down to the med-bay to sit by his side and keep an eye on him in the hopes that he would finally come clean for his reasons, but Silverflame proved to be a lot more stubborn than Ratchet thought.

Still, Ratchet gave credit to the young mech for being so calm, unlike during the younger days of Optimus Prime when he had been aggressive regarding being strapped down when he had pushed himself to the limit.

He noticed how Silverflame tested the straps once or twice, but still Silverflame remained silent.

The past few days went by quietly, with the human keeping an eye on Silverflame and Ratchet rearranging his tools, even fixing up one or two of the Autobots that got injured during NEST's constant war with the Decepticons. But it was on one of those days that Silverflame's broad chest let off a great heave and he admitted defeat.

"Ratchet, you wanted an answer, did you not?" he asked, his deep youthful voice eventually caving.

Silverflame noticed how Ratchet's faceplates had softened somewhat and he nodded at him to go ahead with what he had to say. Silverflame wished he could pull his legs close to his chest and bury his face into his thighs for some form of comfort, but instead, he was forced to just suck it up and let the air circulate through his body. He wasn't sure how he was going to explain his reasons to Ratchet, but he hoped he would understand.

"I... I want to improve myself, to..." He hesitated, trying to choose his words carefully. "I want to be the best guardian for Jasmine, Ratchet. I've got to be the best trained warrior and protect her at any cost. She... Ratchet, ever since I saw her lying in her bed, she looked so peaceful and so content. But deep down I knew that she was hurting."

He touched his chest where his spark rested, his fingers tightening on the panels as though he was trying to bring his spark closer to his charge. He bowed his head and allowed a small tear to come to his optic. He must look pathetic for admitting something so dumb. He actually expected Ratchet to laugh at him and he closed his optics, trying to hold back his sadness.

Something gently rests itself upon his shoulder and he looks up, surprised to see Ratchet giving him a sympathetic. Then, much to his surprise, the green mech lowered his head and pressed his forehead against his own, staring intensively into his optics with a softened expression. Silverflame felt a little bit uncomfortable, but then he remembered some of his lessons with the Arcee Sisters on Cybertronian culture that this was the way how Cybertronians showed companionship and understanding with one another. The next step was up to the receiver.

Recalling his lessons, Silverflame responded by returning eye-contact and placing a hand on the back of Ratchet's head to show he accepted the kind gesture. He allowed his venting to form in synch with Ratchet's and the elder mech allowed a warm smile to cross his lips. They pulled back and Ratchet nodded his head.

"She really means a lot to you, doesn't she," he said softly, tilting his head to one side.

Silverflame took a deep vent, nodding in response. "She does," he replied. His hands clenched into fists. "I can't let anything happen to her, Ratchet. I don't know why I must protect her, but deep down in my spark I feel as though she and I were meant to meet. It's as if..." He looked down at his chest where his spark rested.

"You feel as though you owe her?" Ratchet asked, removing the straps from his arms and legs.

Silverflame shook his head, flexing his muscle cables in his forearms and wiggling his toes to allow the energon to flow through them properly. "No, I don't owe her anything." The nagging feeling deep inside his chest pulsed a bit along with his thoughts, but he shook it off, dismissing the thought. "She means a lot to me, even though I was just a truck before."

A strange look crossed Ratchet's faceplates and Silverflame wondered if his words had dug in too deeply. Much to his surprise, Ratchet's flashed a bright blue for a split second and he turned his head away, a frown forming on his brow. He then shook his head and helped Silverflame up on his feet.

"You do not need to push yourself so much just so you can protect her, Silverflame," Ratchet said kindly, though there was sternness in his voice as though he was sincere about the idea. "You've made a lot of progress these past few months, but if you keep pushing yourself and not bothering to rest, then you'll only delay things. Not just for us, but for yourself when you become Jasmine's and Jason's true guardian."

At first Silverflame was about to snap that he didn't need another lecture, but he caught himself in time and realised that there was no point in arguing with a mech who had far more experience in life than he did. Instead, he shifted his neck from side to side and said softly, "I know, and I'm sorry for causing you so much trouble. I just want to protect her with my life and that... more than anything in the world I want to be by her side as quickly as possible so that Optimus can get back to you."

Ratchet nodded his understanding. "I know, kid, but you've got to pace yourself," he said. "Take it slowly and you will go far."

Silverflame slowly swung his legs off the bed, testing out his feet since he had not been on them for a little while. "I'll try to stay out of trouble," he promised and he headed out of the medical bay before Ratchet could say anymore. He wasn't exactly in the right mood to continue talking, but a part of him thought it would be best that he got a little recharge.

A few days later, Silverflame was back on his original routine, but this time he was a lot more careful when it came to his training. Ironhide, Ratchet, and Sideswipe were very impressed with his progression and that he had learned his lesson about taking it easy. Ratchet found it best that Silverflame take two days off from training during the week and do what he wanted.

Silverflame took advantage of the situation and went about exploring island. He discovered several things but kept it to himself, he even took it upon himself to learn more about his people by reading datapads that had written texts on Cybertronian culture, history, language and even mythology. The Arcee Sisters began to teach him the language that they – when translated into English – called Cybertronix, the modern day language of the Cybertronians.

At first he found it difficult to grasp, but eventually he managed to get the hang of it and learned a bit every day. All it took was to change the tone and pitch of his vocal processor and then transmit it into an electrical voice that sounded complete alien to the human ear. Again, Silverflame found it complex but he managed to form at least several sentences in different pitches. Arcee gave him homework where he was to read datapads in Cybertronian that came with an English dictionary in case he had trouble understanding the words.

But it was the training with Sideswipe and Ironhide that he found most complex.

Sideswipe proved to be an efficient hand-to-hand teacher, but it was the techniques that boggled Silverflame's processor. There was one martial arts he found so difficult that it required human yoga to better understand, Sideswipe called it Metallikato, a special kind of martial arts that required one to fight with swords, something that Silverflame found difficult to master, even though he had managed to figure out that he had swords of his own within his body.

Once he had figured out how to get them out, the real training began and Silverflame was subjected to fighting holographic opponents as well as Sideswipe himself.

"Concentrate, youngling!" Sideswipe commanded as he used the blunt side of his blade to tap Silverflame on the side. Silverflame staggered to one side, wincing from the blow. It didn't draw energon, Sideswipe was too good to be able to harm an ally, especially a beginner like him. "What is the matter with you? You're losing focus!"

Silverflame sighed and gave the universal sign for a timeout.

Sideswipe paused and then nodded before both opponents sheathed their blades. Silverflame let off a vent of relief and sat down on a nearby bench, taking in deep gasps of air to cool his inner workings. Sideswipe rolled up alongside him, but he didn't sit down. Instead, he folded his arms across his chest and angled his head downwards, staring at him with cold disdain.

"Alright, kid, what's eating at you this time?" he asked.

Silverflame didn't detect hostility or annoyance in the warrior's tone of voice. In fact, he didn't know what he was detecting. Perhaps his inexperience prevented him from getting at what Sideswipe was demanding of him, but he completely understood the question. He picked up a cube of energon and gulped it down quickly, further cooling his overheated systems.

"Nothing is bothering me," he finally answered.

Sideswipe didn't look convinced at all. "You've stopped pushing yourself and have started to take your time," he said, waving a dismissive hand. "However, you keep allowing yourself to be hit by me when you should be focusing on your training. I'm no psyche-bot, but I know a distracted mech when I see one."

Silverflame vented. He knew that Sideswipe was right about his distractions. He hadn't stopped worrying since his talk with Ratchet some time ago. The more he thought about his concerns for Jasmine, the more distracted he got and it only pissed off the trainers even more. He stood up to his full twenty-two feet tall height, towering over Sideswipe's lithe fifteen feet. He looked down upon him for a moment and he stepped forward, strolling past his mentor and gazing at the wall at the far end of the room.

How could he explain to Sideswipe – a warrior – his concerns?

He shook his head, gathering up his thoughts and turned to face Sideswipe again. "Look, Jasmine has been on my mind and I want to get back to her," he explained, his voice quiet. "I worry that because of Optimus being there it would make her even more of a target. The Decepticons kidnapped her last time because Optimus was there. What if they attack her again and do more harm?"

He hadn't realised he had been shouting until he had finished talking and he took a step back, suddenly finding the floor more interesting. Regret filled his inner being and he unclenched his hands, allowing his muscle cables to relax.

Sideswipe rolled up to him, his faceplates were relaxed and calm as he reached up and reached as high as he could to place a comforting hand upon his arm. "I'm not very good with words, Silverflame," he said, using his name for the first time since his arrival, "but I can tell you this: Optimus Prime will protect Jasmine and Jason Clark with his very life. He won't let anything happen to them and he'll do so until you are fully prepared to protect them yourself. Until then, your job is to stay here and focus on your training. You need to get stronger and skilful in order to protect your humans."

Silverflame closed his optics for a moment, allowing his processor to push Jasmine and Jason into the back of his cranium. Sideswipe was right, he couldn't afford to get distracted no matter how much he desired to be there for the twin humans. He had to get stronger and better in order to protect them, no matter what.

"You're right," he said once he had opened his optics, "let's get back to work."

Sideswipe's lips curled up into a smirk and he rolled swiftly over to the middle of the training room, motioning to Silverflame to come forward. "Come at me!" he challenged proudly. "That is if you can break through my defences!"

Silverflame chuckled softly and he allowed his left sword to form from his hand. He charged towards his mentor, optics focused and his mind set upon his opponent, a new strength forming within him.

Over the next few months, Silverflame felt a whole new feeling building up within his character. He continued to remember Sideswipe's words, knowing that he could trust Optimus to protect Jasmine and Jason until he returned. His determination to get stronger never caused him to falter and the elder Autobots were impressed with the way how he even started to train by himself, practising the moves and taking on the holograms in the training room that made ideal targets.

His mastery on speaking Cybertronix increased too at a rapid speed, surprising the Arcee Sisters until he was even writing the language without having to check for grammar issues or even having to switch to his natural language. He still had trouble speaking the words, but Arcee and her sisters were impressed nonetheless.

Even his firing skills with Ironhide got better and better until he was even learning how to fire while performing moves on the holographic battlefield. He still wasn't as good as Ironhide, as he still missed his targets when he lost concentration or his targeting sensors were off my a millimetre. But Ironhide knew that with time and practise, Silverflame would one day be able to shoot as well as him or even Optimus. But it would take many, many centuries of discipline and mastery in order to perfect such methods.

Even as the months wore on and the year began to come to a close, a thought came to Silverflame's processor that was enough to cause him to pause in the middle of a fire fight with a holographic Decepticon. This gave the Decepticon the opportunity to shoot him in the shoulder and he staggered with surprise, dropping his gun on the ground, only for him to suddenly lose his control on the whole situation and the hologram drew in close for the kill, slashing him with its claws and he fell to his knees.

"End program now!"

The whole battlefield along with the Decepticon phased out and Silverflame opened his optics, pressing a hand to his shoulder to try and stop the bleeding. Ironhide was at his side immediately and he tried to help him to his feet, only for Silverflame to push him away with a stubborn grunt and limp by himself over to the bench.

"How bad is it?" Ironhide asked as he tried to take a look at the wound himself.

Silverflame pulled away from his touch again, growling deep within his vocal processor, "It's nothing!"

"By Primus, kid," Ironhide grumbled, "is that stubborn streak of yours back again?"

Silverflame said nothing as he continued to press his hand on the wound to ease the bleeding. He could already detect his body preparing to do minimal repairs that would slow the bleeding down until Ratchet could take a look himself. "I just lost my concentration on the fight, ok," he grumbled.

"In all these twelve months I have known you," Ironhide snorted as he reached underneath the bench and opened a hatch, pulling out a small medical kit and attempted to find the right tool that would wield the injury shut, "I have only seen you being stubborn when you were trying to get your skills up faster by pushing yourself to the limit to the point where you were driving Ratchet insane."

Silverflame sighed softly. "Look, if you think its Jasmine that's bothering me, "he said, "you've got it all wrong, it's actually..." He hesitated, trying to work out how he was going to explain this one to a mech who didn't know much about humans.

Ironhide frowned. "It's actually what?" he asked.

"It's actually... getting close to Jasmine's birthday," Silverflame finally admitted. "Her birthday is in June next year and... I wanted to get her something, but I can't without risking exposing NEST's location." He bowed his head regretfully before he slammed a fist into the wall alongside him with a loud bang, leaving a crack that quickly spread upward. "Primusdamnit, why can't I do anything that I want that doesn't involve getting everyone exposed?"

"You feel confined?" Ironhide asked.

Silverflame shook his head. "No, I want to see Jasmine when it's her birthday, but I can't because I have to stay here and train! That's all that matters to you guys and Optimus, anyway."

Ironhide watched as the young red and silver flamed mech stood up and began to pace around in front of him, his feet pounded loudly on the floor several times as though he was determined to stomp the living daylights out of it, venting out his frustration out on it as much as he could before he finally stopped and faced Ironhide once again, his youthful optics flaring with anger.

"That's all you want me to do, isn't it?" he demanded, his voice fiercely angry. "Train and train until I am deemed qualified to protect my humans?"

Ironhide opened his mouth to say something, but Silverflame cut him off with a loud roar as he slammed his fist into the same crack as before, causing it to grow even bigger. He hit the wall again, and again, and again. He didn't even realise that his injury was steadily growing worse with each punch until he felt something grab his arm in mid-strike and held it there. Silverflame whirled upon Ironhide, fists clenching tightly.

"Listen to yourself, kid!" Ironhide snarled, loud enough to cause Silverflame to flinch. "You're only making things worse for yourself by continuously hitting the wall and aggravating your wound. Now sit down, shut up, and let me tend to it."

For the first time, Silverflame obeyed without questioning the elder mech, taking his seat back down on the bench. Satisfied, Ironhide went to work on sealing the leaking cables and then providing a temporary weld to the panelling Ratchet could fix it up himself. It would be wise to not do any more training until Ratchet saw to it.

"Now tell me again on what's causing your stubborn streak to emerge again," Ironhide insisted, sitting down next Silverflame. "You said Jasmine's sparkday was coming up in June? That's only five months away. That gives you plenty of time to think of something."

At first Silverflame was confused about the term 'sparkday' until he remembered that Ironhide was using the Cybertronian term for 'birthday'. He nodded his response and leaned his back against the wall, venting softly. "I know, but that doesn't make it better," he explained. "I can't send her anything because we have to be kept hidden in order to protect the public as well as ourselves. I can't even buy her anything either because I don't know how the World Wide Web connection thing works. Arcee has been teaching me how to do it, but I haven't mastered yet."

Ironhide looked thoughtful for a moment and he placed a hand upon Silverflame's helm, gently stroking him on the antenna. Silverflame leaned into the touch and his vocal processor let off an instinctive purr of relief. The elders always did this to him whenever he felt aggravated or uncertain and their fingers often found tension in the cables at the base of his head, something that they often did for younglings or hatchlings that were frightened or frustrated. The elders would use their fingers to gently massage the cables and Silverflame felt nothing but content and his body relaxed to the point where he almost drifted into recharge.

"Listen, youngling," Ironhide spoke up, causing Silverflame to come out of his comfort, "Optimus is coming over to Diego Garcia for a few days to check up on how we are doing and to give his report to the Government. Perhaps you can voice your concerns to him when he arrives."

Silverflame's audio receptors perked up at the mention of the Autobot commander's name. "Are you sure?" he asked and Ironhide nodded. "When does he arrive?"

"He'll arrive tomorrow night," Ironhide answered. "Speak to him a day after his arrival. He might be a little exhausted from the trip."

"I'll definitely be sure to do that, Ironhide, thank you," Silverflame smiled.

"Good," Ironhide smirked. "Now let's get you to Ratchet and get him to take a look at that shoulder of yours."

At first Silverflame was nervous about seeing Optimus Prime again, but a part of him quite excited as he hadn't got the chance to fully get to know him when he and Jason had come to the junkyard to awaken him from his slumber with the All Spark shard. He still felt he owed him that much for sacrificing a part of his people's wellbeing in order to make Jasmine happy. It was something Silverflame could never give back, but he hoped to one day do something that would matter to Optimus.

As the day drew to a close and Silverflame's excitement grew even stronger, Ratchet insisted that he take the time off from his medical and cultural studies as well as his training so that he could wait for Optimus to arrive. Neither of the elders minded at all and Silverflame was grateful to be able to do something else that didn't require perfecting his processor.

Silverflame was getting so excited that he proceeded to wait outside the cargo hold on the surface of the underground base, his optical sensors peeled for any signs of the aircraft that would be bringing in the leader of the Autobots. While he waited, Silverflame watched as humans walked on by and he wasn't too surprised to spot William Lennox and Robert Epps heading in his general direction.

Feeling glad to be able to interact with humans after being kept underground for a whole year, Silverflame bent down and gave them an eager wave, which they returned and stood before him, their soft fleshy faces grinning up at him.

"Greetings, Major Lennox and Master Sergeant Epps," he said, offering his finger out for them to shake, which they did in turn. "It is good to see you again. I take that all is well?"

Both men nodded in reply. "All is well, Silverflame," Major Lennox answered. "There have been a lot of Decepticon incursions this past year and it's having me worried."

"I guess that is why the Big Man is coming to see us," Epps said, his brow furrowing in suspicion. "Maybe he's concerned about our reports to him and wants to know himself as much as he can."

Silverflame suspected that 'Big Man' was Optimus' nickname from the humans. He even had to agree with Epps that judging from the outings with the Arcee Sisters, Sideswipe, and Ironhide (with Ratchet staying behind to watch the base), there had been a lot going on since Jasmine's kidnapping. A part of him was worried for her safety with Optimus leaving his post for a few days, but Ironhide had reassured him that there was nothing to worry about with NEST keeping an eye on the area. He had still felt uneasy, but trusted Ironhide's words and Optimus' judgement.

"It has me worried too," he replied. "I don't go out with you guys on missions, but my 'gut' keeps telling me that there is more to all these incursions than anyone realises. I just don't know why I keep getting these feelings."

He subconsciously touched the panels on his chest where his spark rested. Over the past few months during his training, Silverflame had kept on getting tugs on his spark. He had tried explaining it to Ratchet, but Ratchet merely said that every Cybertronian gets those feelings when they sense something is wrong and that they couldn't explain it until it actually happened. Silverflame accepted the 'explanation' but he knew that Ratchet was hiding something. He just didn't know what it was.

"Either all, let's hope that things go well while Optimus is here," Major Lennox said, turning his gaze up to the sky in the hopes that he could catch a glimpse of the aircraft.

Silverflame and Epps followed his gaze too, watching for signs as well.

Unfortunately, Optimus didn't arrive until late in the evening and most of the humans had gone to sleep or were working their shifts. Silverflame was too excited to recharge in his berth, but he kept his audio receptors peeled for any familiar footfalls that belonged to Optimus Prime himself.

It was almost midnight by the time he managed to detect Optimus walking down the corridors towards his quarters for recharge, yet Silverflame was too excited and he bolted out of his quarters and smacked straight into Optimus.

Because he was lighter than Optimus, Silverflame was knocked back by the strong force and he fell on his aft, causing him to wince and Optimus to let off a deep rumble of laughter. Silverflame felt his cheek plates heat up with embarrassment and Optimus offered his hand out to him. Silverflame gratefully took it and he was back on his feet again.

"It is good to see you again, Silverflame," Optimus smiled softly once the young mech had dusted his armour off.

"And you as well, Optimus Prime," Silverflame replied, flexing his fingers. "I've waited a long time to see you again. I have so many questions I want to ask you, but it's late, but I thought I'd see you before you head off to your quarters." He was bouncing on the balls of his feet.

Optimus let off another laugh. "I'm sure you do, Silverflame, but it would have to wait until morning." He saw the disappointed look in Silverflame's optics and he rested a hand upon his shoulder to give him comfort. "But if you must know, Jasmine is recovering very quickly since you last saw her. Midnight, Jason, and I have been providing physical and mental support for her and she has been responding well to it. She now goes on drives with me, but she is still not well enough to work like she used to."

Silverflame's faceplates lit up with so much happiness that he rushed forward and embraced him tightly, surprising Optimus until he recovered and responded with a hug of his own. "Thank you, I've waited a long time to hear about her recovery," Silverflame said. "It means a lot to me."

"She will grow even stronger once you are ready to take charge of her and her brother," Optimus replied. "But we will talk about that later on tomorrow after my meeting with the General. I need some recharge as it has been a long flight and it took me nearly an hour to consol Jasmine that I would not be gone long. She has progressed well, but she still worries me."

"Alright, I won't keep you from your quarters, Optimus," Silverflame said and he stepped aside to let him pass. Optimus nodded gratefully and he gently brushed past him and went on his way, but not before stopping and looking at Silverflame with kindness in his optics.

"You have changed in this past year, Silverflame," he said softly. "You have progressed rabidly."

Silverflame puffed his chest out with pride. Just hearing that from Optimus was enough to make him feel much better. "Thanks, Optimus," he said. "I'll see you later."

And just like Optimus promised, by the next afternoon after he had finally dealt with the politics, Silverflame found himself sitting in the Recreation Room, waiting for Optimus to arrive. He was anxious to get things over and done with and he hoped that Optimus would understand what had been bothering him since the day before.

As he sipped away at a small cube of energon in order to starve off his anxiety, he couldn't help but allow his thoughts to wonder. He didn't know what had gone on with Optimus during his meeting with the humans, but he suspected that it did have to do with the ongoing appearances with the Decepticons. From what Ironhide had explained to him once upon a time, the Autobots and the humans had dealt with at least five Decepticons last year just shortly after Optimus had awoken Silverflame. The Decepticons proved to be no match for the two groups and they had all been taken down with ease without Optimus having to be around to provide personal assistance.

Still, as far as Silverflame was concerned, it was not his business to know the missions because it was not his duty to fight. He frowned at the thought of having to be involved in a war that made him realise he had no wish to take part in. It was true that he was training to better protect Jasmine and Jason, but he was doing it for them and not for the sake of fighting in a war he didn't belong in. If the Autobots saw fit to ask if they could recruit him, he would give them a straight answer whether they liked it or not.

He soon came to realisation why he had been so focused on this whole concept of training and learning: he was doing it for Jasmine. He was fighting to protect her and Jason no matter what the cost.

Once again he instinctively rested his hand upon his chest, now fully understanding the sensations he had been getting over the past year since his coming into full sentience: he loved Jasmine and Jason. But was it devoted loyalty love or was it family love? The same tugging sensation pulled at him again, this time it felt a little more different than before, as if it was going in the opposite direction. It confused him and he couldn't even grasp it at all.

"Silverflame."

He jumped in fright and looked up to see Optimus Prime looking down upon him with some concern. He forgot about the sensation and positioned himself to get more comfortable, gesturing for Optimus to sit and handing him a cube of energon that he had sitting at the table. Optimus thanked him and crossed one leg over the other in a casual position. Silverflame leaned back, placing his cube down as he waited for Optimus to speak.

But Optimus didn't speak even though it was according to tradition that a high-ranking Cybertronian speak first. Would it be against the law for Silverflame to break tradition and that a low ranking mech speak first? He vented softly and spoke what was on his processor, "Optimus, you know what has been bothering me?"

Optimus finished his energon and leaned forward. He didn't seem bothered by the break of tradition at all, in fact his lips were forming into a gentle smile. "I may have a hunch, but you are free to speak your mind, Silverflame, all my soldiers and friends are free to speak. Tell me why you wished to speak to me so urgently and privately."

Silverflame's hands locked together and he began to twiddle his thumbs for a bit until he had gathered his thoughts. Finally, he said in quiet voice, "Optimus, you are aware of once a year human traditions, right?"

Optimus looked puzzled, but he nodded.

"Well," Silverflame continued, pressing boldly forward, "I remembered that this June it is Jasmine's and Jason's... sparkday... and I wanted to get something for Jasmine, something that would cheer her up."

Optimus' optics widened for a brief moment, but Silverflame wasn't sure if it was surprise or that he was caught off guard by the request. Instead, his optic pupils constricted and twisted before they resumed their natural size. "You are asking a great deal, Silverflame," he said, his voice was not unkind. "However, we already have that covered."

Silverflame nearly choked on his energon, gasping until he was able to properly breathe again.

"I have been talking to the other Autobots regarding their reports about your training and studies," Optimus explained, "they have told me that you have learned a lot in just a single year, but you still need a little progression. However, I talked with Ironhide and Sideswipe, and they both agree that by the time Jasmine's sparkday comes close to, you will be ready. Although your training will never be fully finished, as it is a guardian's job to constantly research and train, continue to learn new skills."

"So..." Silverflame whispered, his voice trying to contain his excitement, "you're saying that... I'm Jasmine's birthday present?"

Optimus allowed his lips to curl up into a large smile. "That's exactly what I'm saying, Silverflame."

He just managed to switch off his audio receptors as Silverflame's youngling screeches of excitement rang across the base, and he could not help but laugh along with him.

Silverflame was going home.

And there we have it guys! Silverflame has achieved what he has longed for! In the next chapter, there will be another timeskip, but it will be jumping by at least five months at least so that we can't afford any more delays and too much boring filler. This chapter was long, but at long last it's been updated! I'm so happy!

So how do you think Jasmine will react when she reunites with her old truck? I guess we'll find out once it rocks around! Thanks so much for being so patient everyone! Next chapter will not be far away as I intend to finish this as quickly as I can.

Until then!