Optimus waited until Fowler exited the door, and finally transformed, flaring his cramped plating after several hours spent in his alt. mode. In all directions from him ran a field, grass still damp from the morning dew, only a single dirt road in front of him disrupting the otherwise monotonous terrain. As he looked further, though, he noticed what seemed to be a fence in the distance, as well as… a house? Yes, that was a house- and a rather familiar one at that, given that Fowler and himself had visited here merely a month prior.
To his left, slightly closer this time, was a forest, and as Optimus listened, he could make out the faint rustling of the wind blowing through leaves.
He went to take a step forward, and only barely managed to avoid crushing a fence when Fowler yelled for him to watch out.
Looking at the wooden structure, which seemed fully capable of falling over even without his help, Optimus went around it. Fowler stood next to him, taking in the rather depressing scenery. "It did look better when we initially checked it out," muttered the human, and Optimus hummed in agreement.
"I am certain it is not always as… bleak as right now," he said, already making his way on the path, Fowler's much lighter, and also much quicker footsteps accompanying his own. Optimus slowed down, and crouched, offering his partner a servo to step on- which the human accepted, sitting down and using Optimus' thumb to hold on.
"Where are all the things we brought along, again?" asked Fowler, tilting up an eyebrow.
Optimus met his gaze, and, with a mildly amused tone, responded, "Within my subspace- I am once again offering to explain how it functions."
"Don't even start, Prime. All of this stuff gives me a headache, and ya know it."
They passed more wooden poles, until they eventually connected, forming a fence that, while in a better shape than the one that had almost been obliterated by Optimus' pede earlier, was still partially rotted or outright missing. Optimus wondered, for a moment, why the previous owners had allowed the property to fall into such disrepair.
As if reading his thoughts, Fowler spoke up, "This is going to take a lot of work- they didn't exactly leave the house in pristine condition."
The two had finally reached the buildings. There, the path slowly faded, overtaken by the grass. To their left stood the main building- a wooden, two story house. It was still standing, and Optimus guessed that it could technically be lived in- if you were to abandon any hope for comfortable living, that is. The windows were shattered, small parts of the roof missing, and there were wooden planks missing from the walls, some having fallen down onto the ground, while others seemed to be gone entirely, leaving empty space.
Further along, where the path would have presumably gone, stood a barn. It was in a much worse condition, the roof almost entirely gone, and the front wall, where once there must have been the exit, had fallen, rotting, broken wood the only trace of it ever having been there.
He heard Fowler sigh, loudly. "We'll have to tear the whole barn down, and just build a new one…"
Optimus nodded, and reached the servo up to his chest. Fowler hopped off, settling himself next to the Autobot's helm, leaning against Optimus' audial. "I'm sure that it will look nice once we're done," the human spoke, and even though Optimus couldn't see his face, he could hear the smile in his tone.
The same smile spread to his own faceplate, and he tilted his helm to the side, gently pressing into Fowler's touch. They stayed like that for a moment, taking in their surroundings, Optimus' engine gently purring.
The morning fog had begun to disappear, giving way to bright sunlight that reflected off Optimus' plating. "It does seem… peaceful. I am glad we picked this place," he spoke after a while, turning to look at Fowler, who was still leaning against his helm, one arm wrapped around the back of it in a sort of embrace.
The human looked up, one eyebrow raised. "'We'? If I remember, you were the one who refused to leave because you liked it here so much."
"And if I remember correctly, you insisted on this being the 'perfect place'." Optimus leaned his helm forward, pressing the crest against Fowler's head, careful to avoid accidentally knocking him over, like he had done in the past.
"It is. Where else are you going to just walk around, hmm?" Fowler's tone was warm, and he closed his eyes, allowing the warm metal of Optimus' nasal ridge rest against his forehead.
3 years later...
Fowler sighed and reached for the cup of coffee, taking a sip while staring out the window. It was early, about 6 in the morning the last time he'd checked, and the sun was just barely climbing up and above the horizon. He was tired, and yet it seemed impossible to go back to sleep. It would still be a while before the long shadows it cast over the house disappeared, though. He watched the forest from a distance, a flurry of red and yellow leaves hanging above the ground like a giant painting.
After a moment, he yawned, and stood up, carrying the still mostly full cup down the stairs. The wood was still rather new, with barely any sigh that it was being walked on. The whole house was in the same condition- definitely lived in, but very new.
He put on a warm jacket and shoes, and stepped outside, breathing in the fresh, still quite cold air. Faintly, he could hear a bird singing from somewhere above him, while the chirping of crickets in the grass entered his ears. He sat down on the stairs leading up to the porch, and sipped at the coffee, taking a look around the familiar scenery. The wood he sat on was not as well off as the inside of the house, following some… incidents, where a certain person had very much underestimated their weight, and had, mistakenly, believed that the wooden planks would hold them. As a result, there was a large patch of slightly darker wood next to where Fowler was currently situated.
There was a deep, faint thud that, albeit mildly, shook the ground, followed by another, that sounded much closer. A small smile spread across his face, and Fowler listened closely to the footsteps that quickly drew near, growing louder each time. Finally, they stopped, before the sound of moving metal came from his left, and the ground shook again.
"Good morning, big guy," said Fowler, taking another sip, before looking up. Optimus' gentle optics stared back at him, the mech having sat down in front of the porch, crossleged. What little sun managed to climb over the house's roof cast a large shadow behind the Prime, and made his armor seem as though it were glowing.
"You are up rather early. Did you sleep well?" Optimus asked, his voice as slow and measured as always.
"I wouldn't say I 'slept well', but I slept."
Optimus raised an orbital ridge, but stayed silent, simply turning to look at the line of trees in the distance. His plating was relaxed, audials perked up as they picked up the various sounds around them, many of which Fowler couldn't even hear.
The former agent stood up and walked down the few stairs, coming over to Optimus and sitting down next to him, leaning his back against the mech's large pede. "Did you sleep well?" he asked, looking in the same direction.
Optimus hummed, and Fowler could clearly imagine the familiar, small, but warm smile brightening up the Prime's otherwise serious faceplate. "I have, in fact. Although I must admit, my back feels rather… unpleasant."
"Is there anything I can do for ya?" Fowler asked, setting the now empty cup onto the ground, and looking up. He was right- the smile was, indeed, there.
Optimus' gaze softened further, into that same expression that Fowler had fallen in love with. "No. I suppose I merely need to move around for a while." Optimus then leaned down, lowering his helm so that it was directly above Fowler- who, in turn, leaned up and pressed a gentle kiss on the Prime's cheek, earning a deep, purr-like sound from the mech's engine. "But thank you," the mech continued, optics offlined as he returned the gesture by gently pressing his helm against Fowler's head.
