To all of my dear readers and reviewers, a minor note and response to a few who ask for progression and a bit more drama: It's coming! I swear! Please please no flames I swear to you the drama and twists are coming! I already have it written out, the plotholes have been filled and the documents are already sitting (and glaring at me) in the Doc Manager.
My only excuse is this: I wrote this story as a hobby, never intending to actually publish it, except now I am. The only reason I'm not appeasing (even my own, really) the multitude whom wish the story to pick up it's excitement quickly, and therefore update several of these slower chapters in one day, is that I'm rapidly running out of pre-written material. Once I'm out of pre-written material I'm going to be down to once per week updates (If I'm lucky, my muses are being mean at the moment -_-) which I personally find kinda... scary.
But anyway, now I'm rambling... sorry... the DoTM arc is scheduled as it stands to begin in t-minus five chapters, I'm sitting on the edge of my seat, praying to all the gods currently listening that you my dear readers and reviewers will enjoy my personal little spins on it. However in the meantime:
Chapter 135 – The Brain Trust
(OPOV)
Wednesday, according to the humans.
People were yelling at him again.
Optimus just wanted to get to the Library. The group of men who had cheerfully named themselves his human civilian brain-trust were going to be there in an hour.
He really didn't want to have to call and cancel again. He felt horrible every single time he had to do it, all because this new, interim director felt like yelling at him.
Again.
He glanced at Jolt to see the bot eyeing him rather sympathetically, in fact, the bot was running several processors and frequencies.
::. Your brain-trust is meeting in three quarters of an hour, right?.:: Kae sent to him quietly.
::. They are.:: Optimus rumbled sadly, watching the Director with a purposefully bland expression. Pit. Even Will was looking at him sympathetically.
::. Fidget.:: Kae sent to him. She sounded downright mischievous.
::. What?.::
::. Start fidgeting.:: she sent cheerfully.
Uncertain what his Kae was planning, Optimus began fidgeting. Which admittedly wasn't that difficult to do, he wanted to anyway...
Will and several of the techs were looking at him in astonishment the next moment. He rarely, if ever allowed himself to fidget. Jolt was struggling not to just grin.
Five minutes of fidgeting and Kae strode into the communications central.
"Optimus," she stated perfunctorily. "For Primus sake go already."
::. Look at me irritably.::
He turned to look at her irritably.
"We both know you're not going to get anything important done while you're fidgeting," Kae stated in amusement. "Go. Answer your instincts and come back with a fresh mind."
She patted his shoulder with a smile.
Optimus nodded and took no time in obeying his mate's orders.
::. What is your scheme?.:: he asked the second the doors closed.
::. Listen.:: she replied with a silent laugh.
"My apologies, Director, Gentlemen, my Optimus hasn't had the opportunity of late to answer his primary function," Mikaela stated calmly.
"What the hell is that supposed to be?" Director Stillson demanded.
"Research," Kae stated calmly. "Much as I am bound to serve as a healer at every chance that comes across, Optimus is still an archivist deep in his spark."
"What does that have to do with anything!?" Stillson shouted.
"Well, you can't exactly go against your nature," Jolt snorted. "You can't help but get a bit antsy and irritable if you aren't allowed to perform your chosen profession after all."
Brilliant, wonderful bots, that's what his unit was. Brilliant, wonderful bots.
::. Jolt?.:: he asked in amusement.
::. Don't even worry about it.:: the technician sent to him cheerfully ::. I owe you several already, now go meet your brain-trust.::
Optimus grinned and fairly sauntered down the corridor, transforming and driving to the Library. His new favourite place next to his quarters.
There was a difference though, his quarters were only his favourite place when Kae was there with him. He adored a good archive.
He parked, onlined his holoform and walked up the steps. The scent of knowledge, of paper and the hushed, reverent atmosphere immediately eased the tension from his processors. He had half an hour still, so he went to the precise book he'd left off at, gently taking it down from the shelf along with a half dozen more.
That should cover a half hour.
He settled into his favourite spot and opened to the right page, slowly scanning his way through the human's knowledge. He could scan it far faster, but he wanted to savour it.
The librarian looked at him in amusement anyway as he flipped another page every two seconds. But she was used to him now, occasionally laughing at his tactic of starting in one corner of the archives and reading his way through to the other corner.
He liked this place, he could be himself here.
Twenty five minutes passed, contentedly leafing through books.
"You made it!" Willy MacKin called out cheerfully, plonking down beside him.
"By the grace of my mate having the presence of processor to lie for me," Optimus snorted, leaning back in his chair and rolling his eyes.
"If your woman makes your excuses for you to make your way here to gabble with us old fogies you sure as hell better keep that one," Danny McAllistar stated cheerfully.
"To the end of days," Optimus nodded with a grin. "And beyond, she is my spark-bound after all."
"How's that work?" Roland Olsen – Rolly – asked cheerfully.
"Our marriage tradition is rather different from the humans'," Optimus rumbled with a smirk. "by virtue of bonding, our two sparks have become tied together, half of mine remains with her, and vice versa. We are tied together until one denies the other at the gates to the well of all-sparks."
"That's one hell of a belief," Rolly snorted.
"More than a belief, I had a mate deny me at the gates," Optimus rumbled sadly. "There was a time, approximately one of your weeks, that I spent stretched between life and afterlife, begging her to let me follow her into our next lives."
"Jesus Mary and Joseph," Danny stated in a muted tone, shaking his head.
"Then the femme you have now?" Willy asked softly.
"Tells me every single time that I think of Elita, that she will wait for me at the gates, no matter how long it takes me to rejoin her," Optimus smiled fondly. "To the end of days and beyond I will follow and protect my Kae."
"Kae... wait... as in Mikaela Banes?" Ted Quesinberry demanded.
"The very same," Optimus grinned.
"So it's true? You made her an Auto-bot?" Ted demanded with a grin.
"For the universe I would not have changed her, she was already perfection," Optimus rumbled earnestly. "To save her life, we changed her to keep her forever."
"She was dying and still made that speech?" Rolly demanded with a grin.
"At the time she had already died and been revived," Optimus nodded. "And at the time we did not know she was dying again. My medical officer built her a new body, primarily so that if she continued to do the dangerous things she seems to gravitate to, he would have a body to put her in when she destroyed her human one."
"So what happened?"
"We are still uncertain," Optimus rumbled with a frown. "I do not believe that even Ratchet understands what the catalyst was, but Kae's body essentially converted itself into energon, it did not stop to preserve her life's functions, it did not stop to rationally understand that as it broke itself down into energon it left her spark completely vulnerable without a chamber to protect it. Ratchet barely had enough time to finish her body before her spark was floating freely without protection."
"So you're not gonna make us a slave race, upload the lot of us into bot bodies?" Rolly grinned.
"Primus no!" Optimus snorted. "Kae was an anomaly which terrified us all. We have a human officer among us now who is slowly becoming bonded to my technician, we will upload her as well, but only because she wishes it, so that they may spend a lifetime longer than your human one together. I have no doubt that when she offlines he will follow her, and personally, I would like that young bot to have the opportunity to live again."
"That's adorable, now why did you blow us off last week?" Willy demanded with a snort.
"Not by choice," Optimus rumbled with a groan. "Director Stillson decided that it was in our best interest to spend five hours yelling himself hoarse."
"Five hours!?" Rolly demanded.
"I honestly felt bad for the soldiers in our communications room," Optimus rumbled with a snort. "Unfortunately, they are not to leave their post while one of the Directors is in the room. How he goes without food, drink or rest is beyond even me. And my day is the equivalent of two of your weeks."
Danny burst out laughing.
"So then what, did you spend a few hours telling the man what an idiot he is?" he demanded with a broad grin.
"Unfortunately no," Optimus sighed. "For compassion sake I had to simply tell the man that he could take his leave."
"Compassion sake?"
"One of our female techs is pregnant, after five hours she looked close to tears waiting to go to the bathroom. The second the Director had left I practically carried her there myself." Optimus snorted.
The men laughed and thumped his shoulders.
"Right, so lets get down to some serious debating," Jack Esker grinned.
This was the moment Optimus loved the most.
They spent hours arguing, not one of them caring that he was an auto-bot, or an emperor. He was just another guy.
They moved to the café the second the human's stomachs were grumbling, and kept on arguing. It was how he learned. He loved it.
::. If you're still with your brain-trust.:: his Kae sent toward the end of the evening ::. invite them to our place for your next wednesday meeting if you like.::
Optimus grinned as the food disappeared and the humans sat back contentedly.
"Gentlemen, I have a proposition for you," he rumbled with a grin.
"And that is?" Willy asked cheerfully.
"My Kae has offered to host our next meeting," Optimus smirked. "Which knowing her, means that she is somehow scheming to irritate Director Stilson further."
"We get to see your headquarters!?" Danny grinned. "I'm in."
There were nods of enthusiastic agreement, and Optimus wrote down the instructions for them to arrive and gain entrance.
They bade each other good evening and Optimus winked his holoform out, as had become his habit around them. He revved his engines up and lightly touched his air horn as he drove past the group.
Mostly because it made them laugh.
He drove back to headquarters and found his Kae calmly removing her armour in their quarters. He smirked and disengaged his in one go, tackling his gorgeous femme to their berth and interfacing her to kingdom come.
She looked at him drowsily, a contented smile on her lips as they lay exhausted and tangled together.
"So I'll cook up some stew, annoy Director Stilson and leave you be," she murmured with a smile.
"You do not have to leave us," Optimus rumbled earnestly.
"You deserve to have your mechly brain-trust time to yourself," his Kae laughed softly.
"With you, I will gladly share everything," Optimus murmured contentedly, smiling and pulling his Kae closer.
(MPOV)
Wednesday arrived, I had a nice stew bubbling away in my human quarters. Optimus was still cheerful, his brain-trust was coming in today.
Even if Stillson was shouting again, the bots were all rather excited to meet Optimus' human group of new friends. It had reached the point that Barry and General Moreshower were kicking around somewhere. Actually, appearing in my doorway. Again.
"Are they gonna be here soon?" Barry demanded with a grin.
"What are you two on about?" I laughed at them.
"A man is defined by the men he calls his friends-" Chris started seriously.
"We wanna see what kind of people Prime gravitates to outside of military leadership stuff," Barry smirked at me. I laughed.
"Or you could save us the trouble, maybe let us steal a bowl of that stew..." Chris grinned, creeping up behind me, again.
"Or, you can hold off and have a bowl of properly finished stew and fresh bread," I told him with a smirk.
"But it smells so gooood," Bumblebee whined.
"But it'll taste better when it's done!" I replied for the umpteenth time.
::. The Brain-trust is arriving and Director Stilson is on the move.:: Sideswipe reported gleefully. I smirked.
"Bumblebee," I commanded. "You are under orders to guard this stew!"
He shot me pleading eyes. I rolled my own.
"Fine," I snorted, fishing out a couple of three spoons and scooping out a chunk of meat in each. "Taste and leave my stew alone!"
The males gleefully accepted the spoons, Bumblebee immediately wolfing his down and doing a bit of a dance as the hot meat and gravy burned his mouth.
"No, see you're doing it wrong son," Barry stated magnanimously, blowing delicately on his stew as I winked my holoform out.
::. What am I doing wrong?.:: Bumblebee asked curiously, putting their voices on the primary.
::. It's the first bite! You gotta let it cool for a moment, then just nibble at it for a while. You know, savour the fact that you got the first chunk of stew meat.:: Barry smirked.
::. You know the rules.:: I snorted, striding down the corridor.
::. Guard the stew.:: Bumblebee nodded firmly, but he was still grinning.
I made it to the entrance bay and haunted the door for a moment, lightly waving my Optimus back.
"What the hell are they doing here!?" Stilson was shouting. "Who the hell gave them clearance!?"
"That would be Optimus and I, Director," I stated urbanely, striding into the entrance bay and towering over the man. "I apologize for his rudeness, Professors."
"Whoa! I thought you'd be smaller!" William MacKin grinned up at me in a normal tone. Optimus had obviously rubbed off on him.
"How the hell do you expect them to hear you talking that quietly? Professor." Stilson sneered quietly.
"By recognizing that my hearing is actually quite acute," I stated coldly, glaring down at the man.
He paled.
"Wow, gotta give him that, normally folk are running when she gives 'em that look," Sideswipe piped up cheerfully.
"Oddly enough, at times I prefer the running." I stated just as coldly.
"A smart man knows when he's gonna get squished," Danny nodded musingly. "Which means we'd probably do better... oh... by that gold guy over there, he looks nice, and that's a seriously wicked paintjob."
He promptly wandered over to Sunny.
It was all I could do to not laugh as Sunstreaker grinned at the man.
I glared at the Director for another moment before rolling my optics.
"Gentlemen," I smiled at the brain-trust, winking my holoform online. "Shall we adjourn to the war room?"
"Do we get to blow shit up?" Danny asked cheerfully.
"Perhaps not today," I stated musingly.
"Damn. Let's go anyway," Rolly grinned. The group promptly laughed, following my holoform to the other end of the Entrance Bay. Danny threw Sunny a bright salute and scrambled after us.
"I like him," Sunny grinned to Sides.
"You like anyone who compliments your paintwork," Sides grinned at his brother.
"The squishy has good taste in paintwork," Sunstreaker stated airily.
"Go on brother, I'll be there shortly." Sides snorted.
Sunny immediately strode after us.
I shared a glance with Sideswipe as he continued idly sharpening his blades, watching Stilson out of the corner of his optic before looking back at the man.
"Good evening, Director," I stated calmly before turning and walking after myself.
Out in the corridor, my holoform froze slightly as I walked.
The Professors were looking at me in concern.
"You need not worry," Optimus stated with a smile, striding carefully toward them and meeting me at the doors. "For the best of us, simultaneously running a holoform and walking is a true test of wills. Not only is it two visual perspectives at radically different heights, but our true forms do require far more care when moving in the same arena as those smaller than us. Willy, Danny, Jack, Rolly, Ted, it is good to see you again," my Optimus rumbled with a grin.
"Holy crap you are huge!" Ted stated cheerfully, looking way up at my Optimus. "One of these years you're gonna have to try 'n explain how you squash down into that truck form of yours. That's just cool."
Optimus laughed and knelt down, offering his hands.
"Care for a lift? For your strides it is a sizable distance to our quarters," Optimus rumbled with a grin. Five humans cheerfully plonked down into his hands.
"For our strides, how long for yours?" Willy snorted.
"Twenty-five steps when he's showing off," I laughed, offlining my holoform. "Thirty two for me now, but it took me three hundred and seventy-eight to get from my quarters to the med-bay as a human, double that for communications. We're going to have to wait to eat for a bit, Will, Sarah, Anabelle and Ironhide haven't arrived yet," I added, looking up at my Optimus.
"Primus forbid us to eat before Ironhide gets here," Optimus snorted.
"The throwdown would be epic though," Ratchet piped up cheerfully, finally emerging from the med-bay. "Can you imagine it? He'd be demanding the throwdown and so completely distracted by Anabelle in his holoform's arms Skids and Mudflap would have him on his aft in minutes!"
"Gentlemen, may I introduce my First Medical Officer Ratchet-" Optimus rumbled.
"Hold off the introductions youngling," Ratchet snorted. "At least wait until we're sitting down and have the holoforms online, no sense in saying 'hi I'm Ratchet' and then say it again so I can shake some hands."
"That sounds like an ongoing argument," Jack snorted.
"Which would make you correct-" Ratchet started.
"However I have you in my hands at the moment, which has saved me being hit by a wrench," Optimus finished with a snort, turning into our quarters. I laughed and settled down on the berth, waving Sunny in to join us as Bee promptly began bouncing around.
"Are they here can we eat yet!?" he demanded with a grin.
"They are here, but we must wait for Ironhide," Optimus rumbled with a snort, lightly setting the humans down. "Jack, Ted, Willy, Rolly, Danny, our scout, designation Bumblebee." Bumblebee chirped gleefully, waving with his mech form before jumping up on our berth and squirming in to cuddle against me, Sunstreaker right beside him.
"Remind me to thank Ironhide, again," Optimus rumbled with a smile, sitting down and winding an arm around me. I looked at him curiously.
"It was his insistence that gave us these joined quarters," he smiled.
"I will," I laughed gently before onlining my holoform with his.
"Oh, wow, it is you then," Willy grinned at me. I looked at him curiously.
"You're the gorgeous femme who's always shooing Optimus out of here," Jack snorted. I began laughing, looking at my Optimus fondly.
"You know you were perfectly allowed-" I started.
"To state that it was simply my own free will that gets me to the library?" Optimus snorted. "What is the fun in that, I have the perfect mate-"
"Gotta let your bot brag," Rolly grunted amiably. I laughed at the lot of them and turned to see another group of bots standing with broad grins at the doors. Even the wreckers had flown in for tonight, Epps sitting gleefully on Leadfoot's shoulder.
"Don't forget to save some room for Ironhide to sit," I stated firmly. "We're going to wind up sitting on each other if we're all on the berth, so Jolt, go for it," I snorted.
The tech whooped and scrambled up, his Lena laughing and holding on for dear life as he squirmed into my chest-plates. He onlined his holoform on my legs, helped Lena down and took her hand. They both walked to the edge of the berth and looked down.
Sideswipe was laughing at them as he lifted them down.
I rolled my holoform's eyes and smiled at the newest humans in the group.
"Don't be shy, and don't be strangers you lot," I smiled as they stared around themselves in awe. "The human sized stuff is this way, and no doubt the lot of them will sort out their spots and online their holoforms in short order."
I turned and walked into my quarters and shot a mocking glare at my little-brother's holoform as he stood innocently.
Which of course meant he'd done something.
"What did you do?" I demanded with a snort.
"Don't blame him," Barry stated cheerfully, "He didn't even get to taste his first bite of meat, can't blame him for grabbing a second."
"And of course if I got a second chunk what's the fairness that they didn't?" Bee asked innocently.
"Just a second?" I asked in amusement.
"Just a second," Bumblebee nodded firmly.
"Brat that he is," Chris grumbled, struggling to keep his face straight.
"Fair enough," I snorted, "away with you, I'm starting to think you're more interested in my kitchen than settling your bet."
"How'd you know we have a bet going?" Barry asked curiously.
"When do you ever not?" I demanded with a snort.
"True," Chris shrugged as the groups of humans and holoforms began wandering through the open 'new technology reveal'. "Professor MacKin!?"
"General, still blowing shit up?" Willy asked cheerfully, walking forward and shaking the man's hand.
"Nah, haven't you heard? Way easier just to let this lot do it," Chris snorted.
"How is that easier? Optimus still won't take my recommendation to vaporize Stilson." Willy snorted.
"What gives you that authority?" Barry demanded.
"I taught the idiot, if he's in politics, Optimus would be doing humanity a favour."
"Ah."
"So what happened to our usual hours of sitting around shooting the shit?" Jack asked in amusement as Optimus winked his holoform to stand among them, his hands shoved in his pockets.
"It began as me simply cooking the six of you some dinner and leaving you be," I snorted from my kitchen.
"The lot of us just invited ourselves along," Ratchet added cheerfully. "Optimus is just too scrapping nice to say 'no! I want my alone time with the brain-trust."
Off in the corner, Lena was looking at Jolt's holoform somewhat critically again.
"What?" Jolt laughed at her.
"Don't get me wrong, it's a nice holoform, but I still like you better," she stated with a small pout. Jolt beamed at her.
"OH! You're that one then!" Danny stated cheerfully, reaching out and shaking her hand as she looked at him in bemusement.
"Sir?" she asked curiously.
"Sir nothing, 'Professor' if you absolutely must, Danny is preferable. Now then, Miss Davies? I'm told you're going to become a bot-" the man started cheerfully. Lena stared at him warily. "Oh! I'm sorry, Doctor Daniel MacAllistar, I'm a psychologist, I was wondering if I could study your mind during the transition."
"See, that's why you never have any patients Danny, you don't have the patience to ease your way into not scaring your patients away." Jack stated cheerfully. Sideswipe howled.
Bots and humans were everywhere, I checked the timing on the bread and commed Ironhide.
::. What's your ETA uncle?.:: I asked him cheerfully.
"Two minutes ago," he rumbled aloud with a snort, walking into Optimus' and my quarters, he lightly picked Chromia up and settled her in his lap as she sighed appreciatively.
Will, Sarah, Anabelle and Ironhide's holoform walked in the next moment.
"They're here!" Bumblebee howled. "Now can we eat!?"
Then of course the dearest of scenes, Sarah grinned and set Anabelle down. The toddler surveyed the scene for a moment before spying my mate's holoform.
"Unka Oppamus!" she squealed at the top of her lungs and promptly scrambled through the multitude of legs to launch herself at my mate's knees.
Optimus laughed and scooped her up.
How is it with you, cherished one?∂ he rumbled with a fond smile.
Good good,∂ Anabelle stated cheerfully, she turned to look at the Brain-trust seriously as Optimus looked at them.
"Gentlemen, our Major's daughter, Anabelle," Optimus stated with a smile. He looked at Anabelle. "'Bell, this is Danny, Jack, Willy, Ted, and Rolly."
"Iss nice a meechoo," Anabelle stated seriously, nodding. "An don' say I a parro, I know wha I a sayin!"
"Remarkable!" Danny stated wide-eyed. "How old are you Anabelle?"
"I fwee," Anabelle stated proudly, holding up her fingers. Three.
"Anabelle's palate is still soft and forming," Ratchet stated seriously. "I have no doubt that by the time she is five her accent will be better."
"Fanks wa'chet," Anabelle grinned at him. She held her arms out and the gruff and grumbling bot's holoform immediately softened into a grandfather's beaming smile. He lightly plucked Anabelle from Optimus' arms and wandered away with her, the two of them chatting in Cybertronian. I couldn't help but laugh softly at that.
Bumblebee promptly attached himself to my hip, shooting puppy dog eyes at me.
"You." I stated firmly.
"Me?" he asked innocently.
"Are very lucky that I have dessert for this evening as well, or you would be in deep drone-shit little-brother," I smirked at him.
"Do we get to eat yet!?" he demanded with a broad grin.
"Yes we get to eat," I laughed, hugging his holoform. "Grab the dishes out of the cupboard you dastardly tall little bot!"
"I don't get it, you call him little-brother and he's taller than you?" Rolly asked curiously.
"Kae matured faster than me 'cause she's human and you guys mature really fast," Bumblebee stated cheerfully. "So before she was a bot she was perspectively older than me cause she's smarter and more mature and she's my big sister because her spark is more powerful than mine anyway."
"Not by much," I laughed.
"Enough that you're a Prime and rightfully bonded to our Prime!" Bumblebee chirped excitedly, setting bowls down and bouncing as I began ladling bowls full from the enormous pot.
"Alright, walk!" I commanded Bumblebee as he gleefully accepted his bowl of stew. "If you spill that it'll take forever to get it out of your systems!"
"It would be so worth it though," Bee stated musingly. I glared at him as he chirped with laughter, walking to my enormous coffee table and plonking down on a cushion beside Jolt and Lena. In moments I was surrounded by a mob of hungry people and gleeful holoforms.
"I didn't know you guys ate normal... sorry, human food," Danny stated cheerfully.
"It's more of a treat for us," Ratchet snorted. "We don't get much energon from it, but my spark-daughter is a true master of your human cuisines, it's still a shock to us that you don't vaunt the sheer sensuality of eating."
"And once again," I laughed. "We... ugh, sorry, humans generally eat three times a day, it becomes as routine as transforming."
"What's it like to transform?" Rolly immediately asked with a broad grin.
"Oh Primus," I laughed. "It's... how do I explain it!? I thought it would be painful, every time I saw Ironhide transforming he had sparks shooting from his shoulder-"
"But you fixed it," Ironhide snorted. I grinned at him.
"But it's not, we simply... fold? We become compressed, I don't know, in my alternate form the best I can explain it is that I'm curled up."
"So when you're back in your root mode?" Danny asked intently.
"It's like having been curled up for several hours, and then the glorious feeling of unwinding from your chair," I smiled. "The feel of your muscles working again... sort of... I don't really get cramped up anymore, no lactic acid, just the tingling feel of your muscles working again."
"Like stretching out on your bed just before you go to sleep?" Willy asked curiously.
"Exactly!" I grinned.
"I felt that through you," my Optimus rumbled musingly. "It is an incredible feeling..."
"Annie Kae!" Anabelle demanded, clinging to my holoform's skirt. I lightly scooped her up and deposited her on my hip.
"Yes my dear?" I smiled at her.
"Me too?" she asked cheerfully.
"Yes you too," I laughed gently. "Just don't forget to blow on it, it's still hot."
"Yes Annie Kae," Anabelle grinned at me.
I grinned and pecked a kiss to her forehead, walking with a small bowl and settling her at the table between Ratchet and Arcee.
"Why I a-ways get da widdle bowl?" Anabelle demanded.
"Because you and I are tiny people, and tiny people eat small bowls," I smiled at her, indicating my own small bowl as Optimus set it down. "If you're still hungry after you've finished that you can have more." I added.
She grinned and immediately poked her finger into the bowl, pulled it out, licked the gravy off and sat patiently, looking around herself as she waited for her stew to cool.
The professors were looking at her in fascination.
"Wha?" she asked curiously.
"How is it that you are so advanced?" Danny asked in fascination.
Anabelle screwed up her face in thought.
"Unka Oppamus ∂how do I explain my education?∂" she asked curiously.
"By stating that your initial human speech patterns closely paralleled Cybertronian," Optimus rumbled with a smile. "Rather than trying to blindly learn your parent's language, we were simply able to translate for you."
"Wha he sai'," Anabelle stated with a broad grin, pointing at my Optimus.
The entire group laughed, Anabelle right along with them.
(OPOV)
Optimus sat back on the sofa, pulling his Kae's holoform tight to his side and loving the way she still squirmed slightly into just the right position.
Willy looked at them with a benign smile.
"It takes a good woman to make a man feel like a king," he stated with a smile. Optimus snorted slightly.
"I was already an Emperor, and ruled Cybertron for five vorn before she was torn apart by war," he rumbled placidly. "No, it takes a true femme to make a bot feel worthy of that title."
"So cute," Ratchet snorted.
"Sap," Ironhide added tauntingly.
"Oh let him have it, he has incredible taste in femmes after all," Chromia laughed.
"Oh, I'll agree with that, a woman that'll make her man's excuses for him to run off to waste several hours talking with us!?" Jack demanded with a laugh. "I propose a pact, here and now. If Optimus ever let's that woman go we get together and beat the tar out of him."
"Done!" Ironhide rumbled with a snort, reaching his hand to the centre of the table.
Optimus couldn't help it, he reached his hand forward and covered the grouping of hands.
"Come off it! You're joining a pact to beat yourself up!?" Ted demanded with a laugh.
"I happen to agree with you, if I were ever foolish enough to let her go, I would deserve to be slagged." Optimus rumbled firmly.
"Ugh, remind me to tell you what it feels like to be slagged before you say that." Jolt shuddered beside his Lena.
"My apologies, Jolt," Optimus immediately rumbled, reaching for the technician's holo.
Jolt looked around for a moment and cocked his head slightly, looking at his Lena.
"Albeit..." he stated musingly. "You're right, you know, a slagging's nothing to losing your intended."
"Amen," Ratchet muttered vehemently. Arcee promptly buried herself into him, stretching to press a kiss to his jaw, making him smile again.
"But onto better topics," his Kae stated gently.
"Indeed, why haven't you vaporized Stilson yet!?" Willy demanded.
Optimus couldn't help but grin as the room began howling again, albeit quietly, Anabelle was sound asleep on the enormous rocking bed behind the screens. Optimus looked around himself, surrounded by friends, family.
His Kae cuddled against him a bit more, in both body and holoform.
Out of the sight from the humans he turned slightly in his spot on their berth and caught his Kae's temple with a gentle kiss. He was jolted somewhat back into the perspective of his holoform.
"Where'd you go?" Willy demanded with a laugh.
"His mind snuck away to kiss Kae," Jolt reported cheerfully.
"Okay that can be forgiven," Danny nodded with a snort.
"That is very kind of you," Optimus rumbled in a mockingly serious tone. The group laughed again, the banter and debates continuing late into the night.
Willy finally couldn't bite back a yawn.
"You're welcome to stay the night," Will stated with a smile. "We have a good number of guest quarters here."
"Excellent idea," Rolly yawned. "Thank you, Major."
"We still rolling back?" Epps asked Roadbuster curiously.
"Aye, I think so," the Wrecker nodded calmly. "You want to catch us up?"
"Nah, you're driving," Epps snorted.
"Done!" Roadbuster grinned.
"Good to see you again man," Will grinned, catching Epps' shoulder.
"You still coming for christmas?" Sarah asked cheerfully.
"Wouldn't miss it, see you guys around," Epps grinned before following Roadbuster's holoform. Optimus watched with a smile as the crowd dispersed, both from his Kae's human quarters and from their own.
"My place or yours?" Lena murmured to her Jolt with a small smirk. Jolt looked at her for a long moment.
"Lena..." he started softly.
"Oh... uh..." she started, blushing slightly and looking down.
"Would..." Jolt stuttered softly.
Optimus looked at them worriedly for a moment as they looked away from each other, he couldn't help but sense that there was a miscommunication happening somewhere, but for the life of him he didn't know what.
Did you wish some time to yourself, Jolt?∂ Mikaela murmured to his metal body.
"No!" Jolt's holoform stated in shock.
"Huh?" Lena asked curiously.
"Oh, uh... Kae just asked if I wanted time to myself, I don't, I wanted to know if..." Jolt trailed off again, blushing.
"Jolt," Lena murmured with a small smile, lightly catching his holoform's hand. He looked at her shyly. "It's me."
Jolt snorted.
"Would you mind if I started referring to my room as our quarters?" he asked softly.
Lena's eyes widened in shock. She looked at his holoform for a moment and ran through the doors to the Prime quarters proper.
Toward Jolt.
Jolt was sitting in shock in his Kae's lap. Optimus shook his head with a low snort as Lena stopped at the base of their berth and swore.
"I need a damned ladder!" she shouted.
Optimus chuckled and leaned forward, gently offering her his hand.
She beamed at him as he delicately deposited her onto Jolt's re-animated form.
"I'd be honoured," she murmured, climbing his chest-plates to press a gentle kiss to the technician's faceplates.
"Don't take it too hard, Jolt," Optimus rumbled in a gently teasing tone. "I proposed to my Kae and she left my holoform in the middle of the room."
"But we'd rather say it to our bots, not your human representations," his Kae murmured with a gentle smile. "I wanted you, not your holoform."
"Exactly," Lena nodded firmly, kissing her Jolt's faceplates again. The technician's spark began resonating the sweet sounds of joy. Optimus smiled at them as Jolt cradled his Lena close, squirming off of the berth and toward the doors.
Finally, it was simply the two of them sitting side by side.
Mikaela's holoform was wandering around her former quarters, quietly clearing away the last of the mess, singing softly as she did.
He onlined his holoform and looked at her curiously, waiting for her to give him a task.
"Don't worry about it, my love," she smiled at him. "I'm almost done."
Optimus thought about that for a long moment.
He offlined his holoform, reached over and began lightly playing with his Kae's body. Her singing broke off with a small squeak.
"Optimus!" she moaned softly.
"Mmm?" he hummed curiously. "I still do not know how you managed with a single processor, my Kae. Perhaps now that you are a bot you can show me?"
He slid a hand down and began teasing her sweet spot.
"Thats... scrapping... cheating!" she moaned, sagging into him.
Her hand reached out and began stroking his codpiece. Almost of it's own accord, his spike freed itself to nudge at her hand.
It was his turn to moan, his Kae turned and straddled him, lipping at his neck struts the next moment.
"Optimus Prime, disengage your armour to allow for your spark-mate's attentions," his Kae purred into his auditory receptors, lightly caressing the voice of command.
"Thats... scrapping... cheating!" Optimus moaned, even as his Kae smirked at him and his armour fell away from his frame.
His gorgeous, powerful, exquisite femme.
Oh, and Director Stilson (I know I haven't really given any depth to his character) is simply an interim Director to be replaced quite soon. He's literally Galloway the second, and to be honest? I wrote out his rant, and even imagining him screaming it I was literally bored to tears re-reading it. Hence the exclusion.
But really, Galloway and Galloway the second aren't allowed to talk anymore. I duct taped their mouthes shut.