It was two days after Christmas, and everyone in Griffin Rock was still in the holiday spirit. Mid-Winter morning was in less than three days, and many citizens were rushing around doing some last-minute shopping.

Heatwave, Chase, Blades, and Boulder found themselves stacking logs downtown for the annual bonfire while their human partners discussed their baking plans nearby.

Thanks to Boulder, the logs were stacked to ensure they wouldn't roll off during the snowstorm that was said to hit later that night.

Heatwave absentmindedly glanced over at the Burnses and was surprised to see his partner was missing. Confused as to why he wasn't with his siblings, he decided to see if he was okay. He scanned the area and saw him sitting on an isolated log.

"What are you doing over here?"

Kade flinched at the familiar voice behind him and almost dropped the box he was holding. "N-nothing." He tried to hide the ring box in his pocket but realized it was too late when he saw Heatwave eyeing it.

"I've been meaning to ask, what do those rings mean to you humans?" he signaled to the velvet box in his hand.

Kade mulled over the question for a few seconds before answering. "They symbolize an eternal commitment in a relationship." A faint smile stretched on his lips as he ran his thumb along the rim of the small black box.

Heatwave dipped his helm in a nod. There was a long pause while the firebot analyzed his partner's odd behavior, and Kade shifted uncomfortably under the mech's gaze.

"Nervous?" Heatwave finally asked.

"'Course not." Kade scoffed loudly and attempted to keep his 'tough-guy' act up, but Heatwave saw right through his charade and gave him a bored look.

"Okay fine." Kade relented, "...I guess I'm a little nervous." He muttered loud enough for the mech to hear as he ran a hand through his hair.

"Hey, it's okay to be nervous; this is a big step for you." Heatwave shifted from one ped to the other. He wasn't particularly good with words and struggled to come up with something that would help the redhead.

Kade continued to fiddle with the ring box. "I'm sure she'll say yes, but there's always a chance she might say no." he rambled.

"There's always a risk, Kade." Heatwave remarked. "You're an emergency responder; you know that better than anyone. You've never backed down from an emergency no matter how high the stakes were."

"This is different." The redhead interrupted.

"Yeah, but it's still a good analogy," Heatwave insisted. He recalled what HighTide told him a few months ago. "Look, all I'm trying to say is, you'll never know until you ask."

Kade mulled over Heatwave's words and slowly nodded. "Yeah.. you're right. I should be more confident in myself." his signature grin returned to his face.

"There's the Glory Hog, I know." He teased, earning him an annoyed eye roll from his partner.

"Come on; we're almost done stacking the logs for tomorrow's bonfire." He lifted the log Kade was sitting on and carried it back.

By the time Kade and Heatwave came back, the other mechs only had a few more logs to stack before they doused the stack with oil. The firebot went over to help his team while Kade joined his siblings and Dad.

"Hey, Kade." Cody greeted. "We're trying to figure out how many loaves we need to make." He filled him in, signaling to Graham, who was busy jotting down some calculations on his datapad.

"You okay?" Dani's face scrunched up with concern.

"Yeah, I'm good," Kade assured her. Graham then cleared his throat to catch their attention.

"Each loaf requires one pound of flour. We should have just enough to make one for every household on the island."

"Okay, but how are we supposed to bake that many loaves inoneoven?" Kade crossed his arms over his chest.

Graham and Chief shared worried looks before shrugging.

They had a commercial oven they used to bake the loaves for the previous years, but the lack of proper maintenance caused it to malfunction right before Christmas. Graham had ordered a new one, but it wouldn't arrive in time for Mid Winter, so they had to improvise.

"We could ask Doc," Dani suggested.

"Yes, but Mrs. Neederlander entrusted us with this role. We can't tell anyone else." Chief reminded.

"I'm sure we'll figure something out." Cody tried to stay positive.

"I hope so. Midwinter morning is in two days. Let's finish up here so we can come up with a plan when we get home," Graham suggested.

His dad and siblings agreed and walked off to find their respective partners.

Once the logs were stacked and stable, the team made their way back to the Firehouse.

Upon reaching the driveway, they were surprised to find a familiar red car parked in front of the garage.

The vehicle's door swung open, and out stepped Mrs. Neederlander looking more cranky than usual.

"Where were you? I've been knocking for 10 minutes!" She fumed.

"Mrs. Neederlander?" The Chief raised a brow. "We were setting up the logs for the bonfire downtown."

"That's no excuse!" She reprimanded. "What if I was having an emergency?" She crossed her arms over her chest, somehow making herself seem more intimidating.

The Chief let out a tired sigh. "What can we do for you, Mrs. Neederlander?"

"I stopped by to see how the baking was going." She replied.

"That's a first," Heatwave whispered to the other bots, who nodded in response.

"We have all the ingredients for the dough, but the oven we usually use malfunctioned," Cody answered.

The old lady crossed her arms over her chest and scratched her chin. She seemed to be deep in thought. "You can use the one at my cabin." it was a suggestion but sounded more like a command.

"That's alright, Mrs. Neederlander. We wouldn't want to be a burden." The Chief politely declined or at least tried to.

"Nonsense! I've got nothing better to do, and there's plenty of room for you all." she insisted.

The Chief nervously glanced back at the bots and his kids, unsure of what to say. The rest of the team shrugged in response, so the aged officer turned back to Mrs. Neederlander and dipped his head in a short, curt nod. "We appreciate it, thank you."

The old lady smiled contentedly and scooped up her cat. "Quit standing around! We don't have much time." She left no room for discussion, and before long, the bots were hauling bags of ingredients up the snowy mountains towards her cabin.

Before long, the bots were pulling up to a clearing with a familiar-looking log cabin.

The Burnses lined up at the door and waited for Mrs. Neederlander to find her keys.

A long wooden box at the end of the patio caught Cody's attention, and he curiously walked over to get a closer look. It held a few empty shells and leaves, indicating it was used as some sort of feeder but had been empty for quite some time.

The old lady walked over with a hefty bag of nuts and dried fruit and generously poured it onto the feeder. "I like to feed the local wildlife." She explained with a small smile.

Cody was pleasantly surprised and followed his family inside the cabin while the bots waited outside.

"We should start planning the delivery routes," Boulder pulled up a map of the island.

"Agreed. Last year was a disaster." Heatwave shook his helm at the memory. They had neglected to assign routes, and no one knew where to go. By some miracle, they were still able to pull it off and finished just before the sun began to rise.

"I don't suppose Hightide or Quickshadow could join us this year?" Chase turned to Blades. "It would make the deliveries much more manageable."

"I can ask, but their schedules might be full." Blades shrugged and walked off to call the mentioned bots.

"Are Blurr and Salvage still coming?" Heatwave begrudgingly asked. As much as he couldn't stand Blurr's constant complaining, he had to admit that the speedster was prominent in these tasks.

"They'll be here first thing tomorrow," Boulder affirmed with a nod.

Back inside the cabin, everyone was busy preparing the dough. While Graham measured the ingredients, Chief and Cody were mixing, and Kade and Dani were kneading. Mrs. Neederlander kept feeding the fireplace to keep the cabin warm. Mister Pettypaws slept beside the warm fire.

The sun had almost finished setting by the time they finished mixing and kneading all the dough. The four of them collectively sighed in exhaustion. All they had to do now was wait for the dough to rise overnight.

The mechs perked up at the sound of the cabin's door opening and various farewells being exchanged. After seeing their fatigued partners, they wasted no time transforming and letting them in.

"Be back bright and early," The old lady ordered from the door.

"We will. Thanks again, Mrs. Neederlander." Cody waved before climbing into Chase's passenger seat.


As promised, the rescue team awoke early the following day and immediately headed up to Mrs. Neederlander's cabin, this time with Blurr and Salvage tagging along.

It had snowed quite a bit during the night, making the drive up the mountain that much harder. Still, the trip was overall quiet, save for the occasional"How much further?"from Blurr.

It wasn't long till they reached their destination, and once the Burnses filed into the small cabin, the bots resumed planning their routes while waiting for their partners to finish baking the loaves.

"Where's Hightide and Quickshadow?" Salvage asked when he noticed the mentioned bots were absent.

"Hightide said he was scheduled to do perimeter patrols, but Quickshadow should be here soon." Blades informed.

As if on cue, the sound of wheels grinding to a stop caught their attention, and they turned to see the femme bot transforming to bot mode. Brief greetings were exchanged (along with a faint smile from Heatwave) before they filled her in on the delivery routes they were planning.

Back inside the cabin, the dough had been divided and was being shaped into loaves.

Mrs. Neederlander walked around and monitored everyone performing their tasks.

When she got to him, Kade raised a brow in question; the Chief didn't take his attention off the dough he was molding, and Graham visibly tensed as she passed him.

Then she got to Dani and was unimpressed with the unsymmetrical loaves she was making. She immediately stepped in and stopped her. "No, no, no! You're doing it all wrong." she reprimanded and took the dough from her hands.

Dani frowned and stepped back, feeling ashamed of her work. As annoyed as she was, Mrs. Neederlander felt guilty for yelling at her. "I mean...why don't I show you how to do it properly?" she offered.

Her change in tone caught everyone completely off guard, but Dani agreed nonetheless.

Dani watched her carefully and followed her instructions to the best of her abilities. A smile bloomed on her face when she began to get the hang of it.

Within a few hours, the loaves were shaped and had begun baking. The temperature in the cabin started to go up due to the oven's open fire, so Mrs. Neederlander opted to open a few windows.

In the short time frame that she had opened the door to let some fresh air into the cabin, a small squirrel casually collecting acorns on the porch caught Mister Pettypaws' eye, and he pounced at it without thought.

Naturally, the squirrel startled and scampered away, hoping to outrun the cat.

Blurr, who was sitting nearby in sheer boredom, saw the squirrel and feline bolting across the lawn and bent over to catch the cat.

Unfortunately, Mister Pettypaws easily evaded his servos and ran straight through his peds. "Almost had him." The speedster muttered with annoyance and got up to alert the others.

The squirrel scurried up the nearest tree with no luck outrunning the cat.

By the time Blurr had informed the other bots of the situation, Mister Pettypaws was chasing the squirrel up the tall evergreen and soon became stuck on a branch.

Down on the ground, Mrs. Neederlander was panicking. Her cat had never gotten stuck that high up before, and the branch didn't look like it could support his weight for very long.

The bots quickly began to brainstorm ways to get Mister Pettypaws down.

"My ladder won't be long enough to reach him. Blades, can you get close enough for Dani to grab him?" Heatwave asked.

"No, too many branches." The copter bot shook his helm after glancing up at the tree.

While the mechs were formulating a plan, Quickshadow analyzed the tree and quickly came up with her own solution.

Using her rocket boosters, the special ops agent propelled herself off the ground to reach the feline.

"I could whip up a ladder you could use as an extension." Salvage thought aloud. They were low on options.

"Or we could just do that." Blurr pointed to Quickshadow, who was already halfway up the tree trying to pry Mister Pettypaws off the branch.

Heatwave facepalmed. How could he forget she could fly?

Once she managed to pry the feline off the branch, she promptly descended and returned the cat to Mrs. Neederlander. The old lady sighed in relief and took a moment to hug her pet before she turned back to look at the femme bot. "Thank you." a vague smile pulled at her lips before she went back inside.

Having completed her task, Quickshadow glanced back at the rest of the team but was caught off guard by their shocked expressions. They all stared at her, some with their jaws hanging ajar.

"What's wrong?" She was starting to think she'd done something wrong.

Cody was the first to break out of his stupor. "..N-nothing, it's just-" he was cut off by Blades.

"We've been getting that cat down from trees foryears,and the closest thing to a 'thanks' we've ever gotten was'Took you long enough!'"Blades complained.

"How come she thanked you?" Blurr frowned. "She always yells at me for beingreckless." he made air quotations with his digits.

Quickshadow furrowed her optic ridges and waved them off. She didn't get why they were making such a fuss over a simplethank you. She looked over at Heatwave and caught his disbelieving stare as well. He quickly looked away, but she was already fighting a grin.

The Burnses headed back inside to finish baking the last few batches of bread while the mechs continued to rant about all the different times they helped Mrs. Neederlander and got told off.

"Jealous, are we?"

Heatwave turned to see that Quickshadow had moved to stand next to him. "Why would I be jealous?" his arms crossed over his windshield.

"Because your femme-friend can rescue cats better than you." her smirk widened.

Heatwave scoffed, cheek plates turning blue. "Only 'cause of your fancy tech." he defended.

"Please, firemen are practically known for getting felines out of trees." She retorted.

His optic ridges furrowed; he didn't expect her to know something like that. "..How do you know that?" he amusedly inquired.

"Blades watches a lot of cartoons." she shrugged.

"Whatever." He rolled his optics. They bickered back and forth for a few minutes, ignoring that the other bots were watching them.

Both were worked up, and neither planned on letting up. Seeing this, Boulder and Chase hauled the other mechs away to let the pair finish their dispute.

Somehow the topic had shifted, and they were now bickering over who was better at their job. Heatwave couldn't fathom how she countered his comebacks so fast. Quickshadow had this way of pushing his buttons, and it irritated him to no end.

In a moment of exasperation, he spoke without thinking. "Bet I can finish my deliveries before you." He bit his glossa, but it was too late. Quickshadow was already smirking; her optics were dangerously narrowed.

"Loser does whatever the winner wants?" she raised the stakes.

"Deal." his glossa betrayed him yet again, and he cursed himself. What the frag had he just gotten himself into?


Moonlight gleamed through the windows and illuminated the tall stacks of bread scattered around Mrs. Neederlander's cabin. Cody and his siblings were wrapping the last loaves in napkins before they loaded them into the bots.

Outside, The wind began to pick up speed, and it started to snow harder, just as Huxley had predicted in the forecast.

Once the last loaves were packed, the Burnses boarded their partners and prepared to leave.

"Can I go with you, Quickshadow?" Cody eagerly approached the femme bot, hoping to accompany her on her first time as a Rider of Mid-Winter. The agent's only response was a smile and nod before she lifted the teen into her cabin.

The Chief turned to the old lady who stood on her porch, watching them get ready to leave. "Would you like to come along, Mrs. Neederlander?" he invited.

"My days as a Rider are over." She shook her head but gave the team a fond smile. "Now move it, people!" She picked up her cat, waved goodbye, and went back into her cabin.

"We'd better hurry before the snowstorm worsens," Graham advised as he climbed into Boulder's front seat.

"You all have your routes, rendezvous at the Firehouse when you're done," Heatwave spoke.

The bots wasted no time and skied down the side of the mountain as they had done on their first Mid-Winter.

Quickshadow discreetly nudged the firebot and cast him a competitive glance before following the others down the slope.

Once she was at the base of the slope, she transformed into her Ausley Benton. "Hold on, Cody," she warned as she prepared to speed down the vacant streets.

"The roads are icy!" Cody reminded before she stepped on the gas.

A button on her control panels lit up and the sound of spikes reverberated around them. She had activated her studded tires.

She loftily smiled at the worried teen and drove over to her assigned part of town.

It wasn't long till they reached the first house on their route with her speed. "How good is your aim?" she asked as she pulled to a stop in front of the house. Cody grinned and skillfully tossed a loaf out her window. It landed in the empty basket in front of the door. "Impressive."

A smirking Heatwave appeared on her monitor just as they had arrived at the 4th house. "Finished 5 deliveries." He bragged. Quickshadow scoffed and rolled her optics at him.

Once he was gone, Cody looked at the agent with an amused smile. "What was that all about?"

She averted her gaze, pretending to be focused on driving. "We made a bet on who completes their deliveries first," she explained, slightly embarrassed of the childish bet.

"What's the loser's punishment?" he curiously asked.

"Whatever the winner chooses."


Heatwave grinned as he set his last loaf into a basket. He transformed and started for the Firehouse.

Kade had dozed off in his front seat a short while ago, so the drive back was oddly quiet.

He checked his inner clock; it was almost 1 A.M. He was honestly surprised by how fast he had finished his deliveries.

He wondered how Quickshadow was doing.Perhaps she was on her way back as well. He stepped on the gas.

As far as he knew, none of her gadgets could aid her in melting snow quickly. He had this in the bag.

The Firehouse soon came into view, and all the lights were still off. He could practically taste victory.

Once inside the garage, he immediately transformed and went down the bunker. Satisfaction filled every inch of his processor when he found no sign of the femme. He hadfinallybeaten her at something.

Before he could bathe in his apparent victory, two servos covered his optics, and he subtly flinched.

"Guess who?" A voice he knew all too well whispered in his audial. A frown replaced the smile he wore moments before, and a groan reverberated from his voicebox.

"When did you get here?" He begrudgingly asked.

"Around fifteen minutes ago." She checked her internal clock.

He let out a frustrated sigh. "But..how?"

"Laser." She replied cooly. "And Cody was a great help, as well." She motioned to the human who was still in her passenger seat.

"Hey, Heatwave!" Cody innocently smiled.

Dumbfounded, Heatwave pinched the bridge of his nose. He remembered the deal they had made and internally cursed his temper issues.

"So...what's my punishment?" The mech braced himself for anything.

Quickshadow was silent for a minute, making Heatwave's anxiety skyrocket in anticipation.

"When I think of something, you'll be the first to know." She finally responded and sashayed off, leaving the mech muttering under his breath.

It wasn't long till Blurr arrived, followed by Chase, Boulder, and Salvage.

Kade and Chief were fighting to keep their eyes open, and Graham tried to suppress his yawns.

"Where's Cody?" Chief asked, looking around for his youngest.

"And Blades and Dani?" Graham added

Quickshadow transformed and opened her door; Cody was sleeping in her seat.

Chief carefully awoke the boy and helped him out of the femme's cabin.

"Probably on their way back," Salvage replied to Graham.

While the others were shaking snow off their frames, Quickshadow sat down beside Heatwave. He was still moping over his loss.

"Lighten up, Love. At least you weren't last." she gestured to the descending platform Blades stood on.

"What took you so long?" Boulder asked once the platform had descended entirely.

Incoherent mutters were the rotary's response. Blades couldn't stop his dermas from chattering or his frame from shaking.

"His tail and rotors iced over mid-flight, so we had to finish our deliveries on foot," Dani answered for him; she was slightly shivering herself.

"Come on, Blades, I'll heat up some water." She led him to another side of the bunker.

"I'm going to bed." Kade yawned before he dragged himself to the red elevator.

"Us too." The Chief yawned and hauled a half-asleep Cody to the lift. "You bots should rest too; we have a few hours till the bonfire starts."

With nothing else to do, the bots followed the Chief's suggestion and powered down for the night. Blades joined them once his rotors defrosted.


Heatwave woke up after a few hours. His mouth was dry so he decided to get a cube of low-grade before he fell back into recharge.

The mech transformed and looked around the room. Everyone was recharging, but a certain Ausely Benton was missing.

He could only think of a handful of places she would go. Mount Griffin, the beach, or the roof of the Firehouse. Deciding the latter was the most reasonable option, he took Blades' helipad to the top of the Firehouse.

He found her leaning against the brick railing just as he had a few nights ago.

"Quickshadow?" He saw her jump and wondered why she hadn't sensed him coming.

"Primus! Why are you lurking around like that?" she chastised when she saw it was him.

"You're one to talk,Miss Solo-Agent." Heatwave quipped and sat down next to her.

"Don't start." She warned but leaned on his shoulder nonetheless.

Heatwave watched her gaze out on the town. Some houses were still covered in string lights, but most had already removed the decorations.

She seemed lost in thought.

"Are you okay?" Heatwave decided to ask.

She didn't tense at the question as she usually did. Her walls were still sky-high, but she was slowly starting to open up. Heatwave knew it wouldn't be an easy process, but then again, the stuff he dealt with was rarely easy.

"I'm fine." She replied after a few short seconds.

Heatwave nodded and didn't prod any further. He knew she would tell him eventually. He wrapped his arm around her waist to shield her from the cold, and they sat in silence, watching the sun rise over the horizon.

Unbeknownst to them, the other mechs had woken up and began to look for them when they noticed they were missing.

"Cap'n?" A new voice shattered the serene moment. The couple flinched and swiftly moved apart.

Blurr arrived just in time to see Heatwave retracting his arms from around Quickshadow's shoulder pads. It took him a while to process what was happening, but his jaw hit the floor once he did.

Heatwave and Quickshadow reluctantly turned to face the intruder, their optics wide open.

Heatwave's cheek plates were flushed blue while Quickshadow fought to preserve her professional facet.

"I-It's not what it looks like!" Heatwave sputtered.

Blurr shook his helm and a few chuckles reverberated out of his vice box. "Nu-uh. I know what I saw." He smirked.

"Blurr, I swear to Primus-'' Heatwave began, but Blurr took off for the helipad.

"HEATWAVE AND QUICKSHADOW, SITTING UNDER A TREE. K-I-S-S-I—"

Quickshadow went after him and managed to sweep his peds from under him. She had him pinned to the ground in a matter of seconds.

"He was merely trying to keep me warm; make anything out of this, and I'll send you to the med-bay, do I make myself clear?" She threatened.

Blurr swallowed hard and meekly nodded. "Y-yes, ma'am."

Quickshadow let him go and made her way to the awaiting helipad with Heatwave following close behind. Both waited for the speedster to pick himself off the floor and join them.

"Good, you're here. We're still waiting for Chief, Kade, Graham, Dani, and Cody." Boulder watched them descend on the helipad.

"Where were you two?" Blades eyed them suspiciously.

"On the roof." Heatwave answered bluntly.

Blades didn't get to question them any further because the Burnses burst into the garage a few moments later.

Soon, they were all making their way downtown. There was already a decently sized group of people gathered in front of the large log pile when they got there. Cheers erupted from the crowd when the rescue team arrived at the scene.

The bots dropped off their human partners before transforming to bot mode.

Surprisingly, HighTide was already there, waiting for them. Dr. Szeto gave him the day off when she learned about the holiday back on Griffin Rock, and since he was nothing better to do, he figured he could join them for the annual Mid-Winter bonfire.

On another note, Kade was a few seconds away from having a nervous breakdown. He scanned the crowd for any sign of Hayley's long blonde locks, heart pounding in his chest.

He grew more and more anxious as the minutes went by.What if she was still out of town?His mind trailed off.

A hand on his shoulder brought him out of his thoughts, and he dismissed the touch as Dani trying to comfort him. Before he could shrug off the hand, a familiar pink mitten made him freeze. He turned his head so fast that it almost gave him whiplash.

"Hayley!" Kade felt his breath hitch. His arms moved on instinct, and he engulfed her in a hug.

"Kade!" She didn't hesitate in returning the embrace. "Gosh, I missed you so much!" a breathy laugh left her lips.

"I did too," he replied, tightening his grip on her waist.

Chief, Graham, Dani, and Cody smiled at the couple.

Heatwave looked on with a smile of his own. He was glad they had been reunited.

Not long after, it was time to light the logs.

The townsfolk watched the firebot in anticipation. Heatwave held up his flamethrower and ignited the logs, just as he had every year prior.

Every log was consumed in flames. The spectacle elicited cheers and applause from the citizens. Everyone present took a moment to reflect on their blessings and enjoy their bread.

Heatwave noticed his partner fumbling with something in his coat pocket.

"I know she'll say yes, but don't somehow mess this up, Kade." Heatwave nudged him with his digit.

"Gee, great pep talk." Kade rolled his eyes and took a few deep breaths before going back to Hayley.

"Before I forget..." Hayley reached into her purse and pulled out a neatly wrapped box. "Merry Christmas! Sorry, it's late." She sheepishly smiled and waited for him to open it.

Kade carefully tore off the shiny wrapping paper and opened the box. Inside was a long red scarf.

"I made it myself." she smiled.

Kade was amazed. He glanced down at the scarf and smiled at the small mistakes in the pattern. He wrapped it around his neck without a second thought. "I love it!" he grinned and pressed a kiss on Hayley's cheek.

"I'm glad." she giggled.

Kade's hand brushed against the box in his pocket, and his nerves returned.

"I um... I got you a gift too." he became shy all of a sudden. "Close your eyes."

Hayley obliged and held out her hands.

Kade pulled the wrapped box from his coat pocket and placed it in one of her hands.

"I want you to open it with your eyes closed," he instructed.

Hayley fumbled with the small box before finding the tape. She had a strong feeling he was gonna scare her in some way and became cautious.

"Kade. If this is one of your pranks..." she warned.

"It's not, I promise." Kade chuckled.

"You better not be lying." She pulled the wrapping paper off the box.

Kade took a deep breath and slowly got down on one knee. He felt as though his heart was gonna fall out of his chest. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Heatwave and Cody giving him reassuring smiles.

Hayley opened her eyes, furrowed her brows, and did her best to make out what she was holding.

"What is it?" she asked.

Kade took the box from her and flung the lid open. Hayley's hand flew to her mouth when she saw him down on one knee.

"Hayley, will you marry—"

"Oh my gosh! YES!" Hayley didn't even let him finish his sentence and threw herself on him, stealing a kiss in the process.

Kade fought to keep his balance, but relief washed over him, and he gladly returned the kiss.

Having seen the proposal, the rest of the team and townsfolk erupted with cheers and applause as Kade slid the ring onto her finger.

The two were showered with congratulations and hugs. Hayley was embraced by the Chief and each one of Kade's siblings.

"Congratulations!" Dani smiled.

Soon, the crowd began to disperse, and it was just the bots, Burnses, and Greenes.

"We have to plan an engagement party." Frankie squealed.

"Party?" Blades perked up. The bots began to transform and let their partners into their cabins.

"Quickshadow and I will stay behind to clean up. You guys go ahead." Heatwave said.

Kade opened his mouth to protest. He wanted his partner to celebrate with him.

"We won't take long," Heatwave promised. Kade nodded and began to leave with the others.

Once they were gone, Heatwave and Quickshadow took a minute to watch the last few embers burn up. She leaned against the mech's frame, appreciating the familiar and calming smell of charcoal mixed with a hint of oil that filled her 'olfactory sensors.

"Bet I can clear more logs." Heatwave challenged out of the blue. He desperately needed a rematch.

She lowered her visor; the competitive glint in her optics made Heatwave grin.

"You're on."