Chapter 76 - Politicking before Christmas
(MPOV)
"You are most certainly not that innocent," Optimus smirked, extending a hand to lightly stroke a finger down my side.
"Nope, not by a long shot," I agreed with a laugh, I fought back a yawn unsuccessfully. "So if I get lonely not being able to hear your spark is there a spot around here that I can sneak into?" I asked tiredly, curling up a bit closer to his cheek.
"I had intended on holding you captive in my spark chamber until the circus started," Optimus rumbled just as tiredly. "But if you wish, just remember to rouse me before crawling into bed with me."
"Deal," I murmured, I stood and pressed a gentle kiss to his faceplates again. "Get to your recharge my beloved."
Optimus smiled gently, curling onto his right side and onlining his holoform.
"Get some sleep, my Kae," he rumbled gently, pressing a warm kiss to my lips.
I smiled up at him as the holoform winked out and Optimus' spark resonations softened into slumber. On silent feet I walked back into my own quarters and sat on the sofa, picking up my sewing. With patience, I began working the bear's face, making it soft and kind. A pale brown velveteen patch formed his nose. Body, arms, legs, head finished, I picked up a cream ivory linen handkerchief, the one I'd pilfered from Will and set to embroidering it. There was a soft knock on the door when I'd almost finished.
"Come!" I called out softly. Will wandered in and hovered at the door.
"I hope I'm not disturbing you," he murmured with a small frown.
"Not at all, come in," I murmured soothingly. He wandered into the kitchen and grabbed a cookie, coming to sit beside me on the sofa. "What's bothering you, Will?"
"How can you tell something's bothering me?" he asked curiously.
"It's the way you hold your head," I murmured automatically.
Will sighed and sagged into the sofa.
"I'm worried," Will stated quietly.
"About?" I prompted him calmly, continuing to embroider.
"Well, first off, you used up a favour from the Director of the CIA for us," Will sighed.
I laughed softly.
"That's the least of them," I murmured, "I trust you Will, so I'm going to tell you what I did to earn the favour from Barry that got him here tonight."
"Are you allowed to do that?" Will asked in shock, staring at me.
"Not all of them, but this one I can tell you," I smiled. "There were several covert ops in our area, and some not so covert. Barry did fly me to a few places as well, but I won't detail those. No the favour I called in was when one of his agents got blown, I was the closest one, so Barry called me and said, 'Angel, I need you to build a distraction so I can quietly get my man out of the area."
"What'd you do?" Will asked with a grin. I began laughing.
"Well, it was stupidly easy. I got into the blood territory and slim jimmed six cars." I grinned.
"That's it? You unlocked six cars?" Will asked curiously.
"I walked down the middle of the street, head down and unlocked six cars, one two three four five six," I laughed, bobbing my hand up and down. "And thirty-two seconds later, forty men burst out of the bar, guns out and howling. Instant riot. The guy got away clean, there were too many faces on the ATM and traffic cameras to even catch a glimpse of the two faces that didn't look at the cameras and got the hell out of there. I met him at his car, sans keys so I broke in, hotwired it and drove the guy back to headquarters."
"How the hell?" Will laughed.
"Well, the owners of the cars happened to be the rival heads of gang activity. They were meeting to discuss business." I giggled. "Driving absolutely unmarked cars. Do me a favour, Will, if you ever decide to drive an expensive car, don't bother with the unnamed, just get yourself a Beamer or a Jag or something."
"What the hell would have happened if you got caught?" Will demanded suddenly.
"Caught by who?" I asked with a small smile. "Caught by the cops? Public mischief. Caught by the bloods? Rape and death if they didn't immediately recognize me as Cal Banes' girl, if they did, then I'd be held hostage to force dad into the gang."
I carefully tied off the last thread and cut it, folding the handkerchief and setting it among the rest of the sewing.
"That's one hell of a favour," Will growled softly. I laughed.
"Don't worry about it, Will," I said gently, "It's just part of the job."
"I'm still your handler, aren't I," Will asked quietly.
"If you don't want to be, I'll understand," I stated calmly, "Lord knows I've been through my share. You do have a hell of a lot to lose."
"I'm okay with the dirty work," Will said immediately, "I just don't want to have to shoot you..."
"You won't have to," I shrugged, "that's the duty of a handler whose agent has been caught. I don't get caught."
"You were in jail," Will protested with a snort.
"Yes, I was, Liams put me there," I sighed. "I could have called Barry, but getting me out would have meant compromising Dad, Brick, Rig... Jail isn't that bad, I'm allowed to say it now, when he found out, Barry paid Jenny Wong to watch my back out of his own pocket. Set up a life insurance policy for her, the works. She died in my place." I murmured. "It was getting everything back together again once I was out that was hard. All for naught."
I looked at Will and patted his shoulder as he looked at me with sad eyes.
"Get some sleep, Will, it won't do to show up at home for Christmas without the energy to play with your baby girl," I smiled.
"One more question?" Will asked softly. I nodded.
"Are you upset that we keep tagging designations on you?" Will asked worriedly.
"If you make it difficult for me to get my reports put together I will be." I snorted. "Go, sleep," I glanced at my watch, "We'll meet back here at oh nine hundred and get the politicking out of the way before Christmas."
Will grinned and caught me in a one armed hug.
"You're the best, Kae, you know that right?" he laughed.
"Shh," I grinned, "don't fill my head with so many compliments, my ego is big enough as it is being a teenager."
Will stood up laughing, throwing a 'night Kae' over his shoulder as he went.
I stood and picked up the heavy bracelet of neural-fibres Jetfire had given me and integrated them into my system, I directed them to make some stuffed animal's eyes, taking care to match Will's hazel. I looked down and smiled at the molten glass as it quickly cooled, they sparkled with gentle humour. Perfect. Patiently, I finished the bear, inserting eyes, weights and magnets before stuffing it. The seam on the stomach took extra time, I used heavy cotton thread that would rot somewhat faster than the polyester that held the rest of the bear together. Will's embroidered handkerchief delicately nestled in the bear's heart.
Satisfied, I hugged the bear, smiling as it hugged me back. I plumped him to sit on the sofa and grabbed a fast, hot shower before curling up in my hammock.
(WPOV)
Will walked back down the corridor. A few hours proper rest, a hot shower and he felt like a new man. He kept expecting chaos to reign again.
Things were going too well, Kae was a surprise once more, it explained a lot though, CIA agent from the cradle. Weird, and a little bit wrong.
But at the moment? He'd take it.
He knocked lightly on her door again, precisely 09:00 and heard her soft 'come.'
Will opened the door and gasped slightly, there was an enormous, gorgeous teddybear sitting cheerfully on the sofa. Kae wandered out from behind one of the screens, idly brushing her hair and walking on silent, bare feet across the floor to her kitchen.
Will glanced over and caught sight of a fresh pot of coffee.
"Did you sleep at all last night?" he asked with a laugh.
"I did," Mikaela chuckled, "Good morning Optimus, good recharge?" she asked the holoform as it onlined behind her.
Will grinned and winked at the holoform, turning to go after the coffee. He glanced over his shoulder, pointing at the cookies as Mikaela chuckled and waved her hand for him to go ahead.
Oatmeal, definitely good enough for a before breakfast nibble.
"Every evening that you offer me counsel, is a night that I am gifted a proper recharge cycle," Optimus murmured. Will turned around to see the endearing sight of the young woman gently ensnared in the holoform's arms.
"So cute," Will grinned at them. Mikaela giggled as Optimus planted a gentle kiss over her carotid.
"Alright Casanova Prime," Mikaela teased the holoform gently, "Let's get the paperwork done so it's out of our hair for Christmas."
"I will not take offence to that because you have never met Casanova Prime," Optimus snorted. "I dare you to ask Chromia about him. To this day we cannot decide if she was his conquest, or he was hers."
"Knowing Chromia? She makes conquests, not the other way around," Mikaela laughed, turning in the holoform's arms and hauling herself up to press a kiss to his jaw.
"To work!" Will grinned, "If we get this stuff finished up we can roll out this afternoon, I most certainly wouldn't mind going to pick up a present for Anabelle."
"And I need to wrap this," Mikaela smiled, giving the enormous bear a gentle stroke.
"Who's that going to?" Will asked curiously.
"Anabelle," Mikaela shrugged, she gave Will a gentle smile, "a little one can never have too many stuffed animals."
"Seriously!? Kae this thing is incredible," Will stated in an awed tone, delicately picking up the bear and noting it's weight with some surprise. It felt just a little bit alive. Warm, soft, with a gentle face and smiling eyes. He looked a bit more closely at the eyes, hazel. That was just cool.
"Give it a hug," Mikaela grinned at him. Will obeyed curiously and burst out laughing as the bear seemed to hug him back.
"How much did this thing cost you!?" Will asked in a stunned tone, cradling the bear as it hugged him. Pure awesome.
"Um, ten hours," Kae shrugged. "It used to be twenty, but making eyes with neural fibres is way the hell faster than doing the glasswork by hand. I just need to find a big box for him to fit in." Kae began laughing softly as she gathered the paperwork on the coffee table, dragging an enormous cushion over and sitting on her knees. "Twenty bucks says Anabelle'll adore the presents for five minutes and immediately begin playing with the box."
Will snorted and gently set the bear down, flumping down onto the sofa beside Optimus' holoform. Kae began writing calmly, scribbled for a second with the pen and frowned at it.
"Another dead pen, bloody hell," she growled, rising and fishing out another. She started on a fresh sheet of paper and began writing. Will glanced at it and did a double take.
"That's the old standard format for reports," he stated with a grin.
"Mmn hmn," she nodded, her hand flying over the paper, "this is my initial report as your new CIA liaison, so any formal beefs that you had with Greg, a bare bones of precisely what you would like the CIA to provide, and what you are willing to offer in return." She flipped the page and looked up at Optimus and Will seriously.
Will looked at her for a moment and nodded.
"We, representing NEST operations are still a rather new operation, as such we don't have very many contacts world wide as yet. We request the CIA's help for the gathering of information, and that they pipe us any information they may already have on possible Auto-bot, Decepticon or other extraterrestrial movements."
"In return, we will gladly come to the CIA's aid, should they need extra firepower, backup, or if something in one of their own missions goes awry. Technology that they may be interested in, identification scanners and listening devices far stronger than what we've come across." Optimus continued calmly. "Our primary goal is to aid in whatever way we can for the preservation of life and freedom."
Mikaela nodded continually, writing at high speed. Occasionally, her language would change, and she would be writing in chinese.
"Alright, anything else?" she asked, looking up at the two of them.
"No, that's pretty much it," Will shrugged, "basically, we'd just like to co-operate. It's a lot harder to miss something if more eyes are watching." Mikaela nodded and jotted a few more things down.
"Okay," she said patiently, "did you want anything written down as pertaining to the former liaison, or will the fact that he's going to be in prison for a while suffice?"
"Prison's good, I don't want to clutter up Barry's desk," Will grinned.
Mikaela gave a low chuckle and sat straight.
"Alright," she stated patiently, "I can tell you right off the bat that the CIA generally prefers to keep situations among the family. We try to avoid needing noisy backup as much as possible. The technology will more than likely be well received, although I cannot promise that we will always be entirely forthcoming about the information. As you know, a great deal of the CIA's work is reliant upon her agents, and their protection is often ensured by keeping their various missions quiet.
"However, the matters of extraterrestrials have never truly been the forte of the CIA, so I cannot imagine too much trouble with the classified informations regarding as such." she grinned at Optimus, "Especially seeing as you lot have been classified for the past couple of years." she stretched for a moment.
"Alright, that's my CIA speech, I'll pipe this into Barry and try to be convincing. Personally I don't see much problem with it, but the agency tends to have a mind of it's own."
"Give it some time," Will stated urbanely, "it takes a bit of time and negotiation, but I'm sure that in time we may come to be viewed as the CIA's cousin in information gathering."
"Fair enough," Mikaela smiled, she flipped a few pages and began writing again.
"What're you doing?" Will asked curiously.
"Putting down the good draft," Mikaela murmured. Optimus read over her shoulder silently, smiling at her word usage and the positive outlook in the report. Occasionally, she would quote either he or Will, the context remaining good. A few minutes and she set the pen down, frowning as she read the report.
"I think that should do it," she murmured, "I'm going to have to make sure that I keep the roles of Ambassador and Liaison as separate as I can, or politics will force Barry to replace me as liaison." she pursed her lips, read the report again and nodded. She picked up the pen again and froze. "Barry introduced me as Agent Banes right?" she looked at Optimus curiously. He nodded.
"Right then," she gave a half smile and signed her name with a firm hand.
"That's not very long," Will frowned.
"It's Barry, give him a long report and he gets grumpy. Remember that he reads every piece of paper that's set on his desk. Short reports get results." she grinned.
"I'll take your word for it," Will snorted. "Was there anything else we needed to get done before rolling out to my place?"
"Yes, I need to wrap your daughter's gift," Mikaela stated calmly, rising and stroking the giant teddy bear.
"And you still need to eat something," Optimus rumbled in an amused tone.
"Oh not you too!" Mikaela laughed, looking over her shoulder at the holoform. "Between you and Ratchet I'd swear you're trying to make me fat – and if you say more for you to love I will hit you."
Will burst out laughing as Optimus' holoform closed his mouth, shooting Kae an absolutely innocent look.
"Don't play a player Prime," Will laughed, "Right, I'm going to go pack, you good to come stay with us for four days Kae?"
"I would be honoured," Mikaela smiled, walking toward the screens. There was a knock on the door. "Come!" Mikaela called out.
"Hey Kae is Will! there you are," Epps grinned. "What's the schedule man?"
"Paperwork is squared away, we'll leave when the slowest is ready," Will grinned.
"Are you guys doing the church thing?" Mikaela called out from behind the screen.
"Nope!" Will called back. "Just grace over the table."
"Right, I'm packed then," Mikaela grinned, hefting a duffle bag over her shoulder as she walked back through the screens and wearing entirely different clothing.
"How the hell did you do that?" Will asked with a laugh.
"Run organization," Mikaela shrugged, "my room, my dorm room, even my tent had the exact same setup, when you need to run, you do not need to be searching for what you need to pack."
"Why would you do that?" Optimus asked with a frown. Mikaela looked at the holoform for a second before setting the duffle down.
"I can't change my base codes overnight, Optimus," she said gently, "I'm conditioned to run. Originally, my duty was to take Tinny and get her out of the area at the first sign of real trouble." she closed her eyes and touched her wrist as Optimus' eyes widened. "If I ever run, you know damn well it won't be from you," she added softly.
"You just..." he started in a shocked tone. Kae smiled and the holoform strode forward, snaring her in a bearhug.
"It's limited," Mikaela murmured, smiling, "I can't hear you through it, but you know how far I go without my iPod."
"What'd you do?" Will asked curiously.
"Mikaela sent me a spark-specific location ping," Optimus rumbled with a grin. "A single modification and there will never be a time when I cannot find her."
"What's the mod?" Mikaela asked quickly, looking up at the holoform with a grin.
"I'll leave you two to it," Will laughed as Optimus beamed down at his Kae.
"What time do we roll out?" Mikaela asked quickly.
"Oh, half an hour good?" Will grinned.
"Sure, that should be enough time to hunt down a box," Mikaela laughed. "You behave," she added, grinning up at Optimus as the holoform promptly wrapped himself around her again.
"Give me a good reason for him to behave," Epps laughed.
"You mean besides the fact that I'll be staying in his sleeper?" Mikaela asked mildly.
Optimus let loose a burst of deep tones and clicks, the broad grin on his face a translation all it's own.
Mikaela smiled and answered in what sounded like the same language, just... stronger... almost more formal. And sexy at the same time.
Optimus promptly groaned and pulled her more tightly into the holoform.
"You are going to be the death of me, my Kae," he rumbled tightly.
Kae laughed and squirmed in his arms, reaching up to kiss his jaw.
"Not if I have anything to say about it," she lilted sweetly, "I'm keeping you. To work!" she announced cheerfully as Optimus laughed and released her. She bounced out of the room with a grin, scooping up duffle and bear mid-step.
"Man, you gotta get a ring on her finger," Epps laughed, whacking the holoform before Optimus winked it out, there were the sounds of his body rising the next door over.
"All in good time," Optimus rumbled with a broad grin, walking carefully behind Will and Bobby.
"Your time or our time?" Bobby called up over his shoulder.
"Both," Optimus snorted, "Bear in mind that I courted Elita for a millennia, and was engaged to her for another. Of course, ours was arranged."
"Seriously? Arranged marriage?" Will asked curiously.
"An arranged bond, a bonded guardian is often stronger, and on occasion it was possible for two bonded to merge entirely on the battle field." Optimus rumbled calmly. "It is similar to marriage, but not entirely. Elita was still free to interface with whomever she wished. As was I."
"Did you two... I'm sorry, is it rude for me to ask?" Will corrected himself quickly.
"It is... delicate, but not rude to ask," Optimus rumbled patiently. "And no, I had never found an energonic signature close enough to my own to merge entirely with another."
"Had, past tense," Epps grinned up at Optimus.
Will cocked his head and stopped, looking up at the big man as a particularly smug tone resonated from his chest. His holoform onlined beside Robert.
Smirking like the cat that had got the cream.
"I was not sure at first," Optimus admitted calmly, speaking strictly through the holoform. "But when Kae... passed..."
"And you held her in your spark chamber," Will prompted him gently, the raw pain in those eyes was heartbreaking. Optimus nodded.
"She merged with me entirely while her body was being re-built. It was a terrifying moment, if a spark is not strong enough, it is possible that the stronger of the two could accidentally overlay the gentler. Kae..." Optimus got a dreamy expression in his eyes. "For a moment, Kae wove herself around and through me. Strong enough to hold her own, and gentle enough that there was never any danger of overlaying each other."
"So she's the running beauty queen?" Epps chuckled.
"She is perfection." Optimus smiled, offlining the holoform again and striding carefully toward the entrance bay.