Author's Note: Here we go people... Once more feeling generous posting an extra chapter to ensure my few faithful followers are somewhat satisfied... lol

Orianna and Prime finally get to meet face to face once more and talk... How will it all go?

Chapter 43: Ready or Not….

Prime P.O.V

My eyes flicked towards the tree line as I waited somewhat anxiously. /She had said she would come. She had said she would be here!/. I began to pace about on our small beach, my hands clasped behind my back as I watched my boots disappear into the sand with each stride.

I was nervous, worried, and excited. /Emotions Prime's don't usually experience - especially all at once/. I furrowed my brow and ceased pacing. Turning to face the expanse of water before me in the bay, I folded my arms across my chest and focused my attention on the undulating waters before me. Further out to sea I could see the faintest flickering of light as the first signs of a storm began to show. Being an island in the tropics we were often battered by storms, especially in the summer months so this was not an unusual sight.

All at once my scanners alerted me to the presence of another nearby and I whipped my head in the direction of the tree line, my spark pulsing rapidly in anticipation. /Orianna!/.

There she stood.

She was wearing a knee length white dress, her tanned shoulders exposed as the sleeves hung about her arms. Her long black hair fell about her shoulders, though a few lose strands danced about her face as the wind tugged on them gently. I felt a smile form upon my lips as I drank the sight of her in. /Primus how I have missed her – just the sight of her!/. She was biting her lower lip as she looked up at my seemingly lifeless bi-pedal mode, a strange look on her face as her eyes flicked over its form and then back to the tree line – /clearly having second thoughts/.

Concerned she may turn on her heel and leave, I yelled her name in greeting across the beach. ''Orianna!'' She started at the sound of her name, and I began to walk towards her. ''You came.'' I was genuinely surprised and happy she had done so.

The woman before me nodded as she stepped out from the trees and began to walk hesitantly towards me. A small smile had begun to spread across her lips as she approached. ''Hello Prime,'' her voice was not a whisper as it had been that night in the hanger, though nor did it ring with the confidence and familiarity it once did and a part of my spark twisted painfully at this change in her. She stopped a few paces away from me, and I took her cue, halting in my advance too. Her eyes darted out to the waters before they came to rest on my face. ''I almost didn't, but,'' she held her arms up in the air by her sides and exhaled deeply, ''here I am!''

I gazed down into brown and gold flecked eyes filled with quiet doubt. ''I noticed your indecision just now,'' I nodded back towards the tree line without taking my eyes from her face, ''and I must say, I am very glad you decided to stay.''

Orianna dipped her head as she bit her lower lip once more and nodded. Rubbing her right hand up her left arm she looked back at me and smiled softly. ''Well Prime, despite my best efforts, I guess I can't go on ignoring you indefinitely.''

''A decision I am most grateful for Orianna.'' I shook my head at her, my smile fading somewhat at her words and my recollections of the past month, deprived of her company. I only just restrained myself from reaching out to her as my voice dropped to barely a whisper. ''I have missed you so very much.''

Orianna's eyes widened at my words, and she made a small coughing noise as she turned to walk towards the water. ''So,'' she called back to me over her shoulder, ''Lennox has been a bit sketchy on the details, but it sounds as though Shanghai was a bit of a dog's breakfast, not to mention somewhat ominous?'' She stopped a few metres from the water's edge and turned back to face me, her arms across her chest.

I creased my brow at the deliberate and sudden change in topic, though I walked down towards her and once again stood opposite her, placing my hands in my jean's pockets. ''It was not textbook by any means, and regretfully there was more destruction and causalities than perhaps needed to be - and than I would have liked.'' She nodded in understanding.

I shrugged my shoulders as I stared out to the swirling waters. ''In regard to your comment on it being ominous, I can only assume you refer to the warning the Decepticon issued to me before I off-lined him.''

A shiver seemed to run through Orianna at my words, though a quick scan of her core body temperature indicated she was not cold as such. /Perhaps it was in response to my comment of terminating the Decepticon?/. ''Yeah. Something about The Fallen rising again to rule our planet?'' I felt her gaze upon me. ''That doesn't sound good Prime. Sounds like something bad is on the horizon.''

I nodded slowly as I turned to face her, my own face impassive. ''Perhaps Orianna. But there is no point worrying about something that has not yet come to pass. N.E.S.T is monitoring all detected energon signatures closely and moving swiftly to countermand any Decepticon incursions.''

She raked a hand through her hair to try and comb the lose tendrils into submission. Her brow creased, ''And what of Megatron? Is he still pushing up daisies,'' she snorted wryly, ''or crustaceans as the case may be?''

A small chuckle escaped my lips as I chanced taking a small step towards her. ''An interesting image. If by that comment you mean, is he still laying at the bottom of the Laurentian Abyss? Then, affirmative Orianna.'' I tilted my head as I considered her comment. ''Why do you ask?''

Orianna shrugged her shoulders in reply as she looked away from me back out to the dark waters. ''I don't know Prime. 'The Fallen shall rise again.' Perhaps the comment was not in reference to a new threat, but rather an old one?''

I blinked my eyes as I processed her suggestion. This possibility had not been considered, though there was no reason to do so.

Orianna looked back at me, her voice faltering as she spoke. ''Can he come back? I mean, is there a way to revive a dead Transformer?''

''Generally not, no Orianna. Once a spark ceases pulsing or is destroyed, there is little that can be done.''

''You said generally not,'' She arched an eyebrow at me. ''Which suggests to me there is a way to do it.''

I took another small step towards her until I was an arm's length away. Though her chest rose and fell as she breathed deeply to calm her rising adrenaline levels, she gave no other indication my advance was unwanted. I smiled fondly at her. /How I have missed talking to her/. ''I can see nothing gets by you Orianna…''

She snorted derisively and folded her arms across her chest again as she muttered, ''Except misinterpreting your gestures and attention towards me for love, yeah sure Prime, nothing at all!'' Orianna shuffled awkwardly on her feet, shifting her focus from me out towards the choppy waters of the bay.

I tentatively tried to reach for her, ''Orianna, please do not blame yourself…''

''Anyway,'' she took a step back from me and brushed her hair behind her ear, taking a sudden interest in the sand beneath her feet. After a sparkbeat she raised her eyes to look at me again, all previous traces of discomfort gone. ''Tell me. How might it be done?''

I lowered my hand and stared at her in silence for a spark beat, tampering down a flare of annoyance at her curt dismissal of both me and an important topic we needed to discuss. ''Well, legend has it that the Autobot Matrix of Leadership that contains the essence of our God Primus is capable of such a feat.''

''Legend? You mean you don't know?'' she eyed me carefully.

I shook my head. ''I cannot be certain Orianna as I have not personally used it for such a purpose, nor have I seen it happen, so it is a moot point on that count.''

''I see,'' she nodded in understanding.

''There is a possibility the Allspark could have served the same purpose, but it was destroyed in Mission City, as you know,'' I felt my spark pulse painfully at the recollection.

''Yeah, but you still have that small piece you collected from Megatron,'' Orianna pressed on. ''What about that?''

I shook my head. ''It is under constant surveillance and guard here on Diego Garcia and I doubt it would suffice to bring Megatron back from the dead.''

Orianna exhaled deeply. ''Well, I guess that is comforting news. So, not old threat in the form of Megatron, but an all new terrifying one that is possibly worse. Though I did not think it possible to get anything worse than Megatron!''

My lips curved into a small, half smile. ''Perhaps Orianna. I guess we shall see in due course.''

''Bloody hell Prime!'' she erupted unexpectedly, shaking her head in irritation. ''How can you be so damn calm and unphased all the bloody time!''

''Orianna, if I let everything get to me, if I reacted to every possible impending threat and crisis in a panic, I would have lost my processor millennia ago!'' I countered, a slightly reprimanding tone to my voice.

''Well, I wish I could switch off my emotions and not let things get to me like you are able to! Nothing seems to upset you.'' Two brown and gold flecked eyes filled with silent accusation seemed to bore into me.

/And here it is. The opportunity to address what has happened between us/. I suspired in frustration as I closed the distance between us, coming to stand directly before her. Orianna tensed but she did not move. ''Is that what you think Orianna? That nothing gets to me or affects me?''

She blinked rapidly as her eyes swept over my chest and came to rest on my face, swallowing nervously she nodded. ''Generally speaking. I would say that's a fairly accurate assessment of you Optimus.'' She grunted. ''I've experienced it firsthand.''

''Well, if it is all the same to you Orianna, I would beg to differ.'' My eyes held her gaze unwaveringly.

''Oh really Prime? Name one thing that has gotten to you, shaken you up.'' She glared challengingly at me. ''Actually upset you.''

The smallest of smiles tugged at the corners of my lips as I exhaled my response. ''You.''