This was mainly for pure sparkling cuteness. I couldn't resist. Plus, phoenix13 was ripping me a new aft for not show her mech, Ultra Magnus, some love. Hehe. I couldn't help that he ended up getting peed on or vomited on. So here's the love girl!

a/n: italics again denote comlink communications between bots.

Ultra Magnus' quarters

With Optimus secured in one arm, Magnus punched in his security code to keep his door locked. No one could override it except for Prowl or Optimus. Magnus wasn't going to risk Elita barging in and accidentally shooting Optimus or himself in her haste to shoot Wheeljack.

"You feeling better? You stopped crying."

Optimus just stared at him, blinking his optics covers slowly. He still wasn't sure what to make of everything. It was all too much for his little cerebral processor to process! He just knew the pretty femme was angry.

"Maybe you're tired. All this excitement is a bit too much for even me," he smiled, laying Optimus down on his recharge bed. "How about a nice little recharge, hmm?"

(squawk!)

"Ok, ok," Magnus chuckle as Optimus moved into a sitting position, glaring up at him. "I see some things haven't changed. Still stubborn. No one could ever make you do anything you didn't want to."

Magnus glanced down at the dry sticky mess on his armor. Arg, the stench!

"Well, I'm going to go get clean up really quick. The stickiness I can deal with, it's the smell that's killing me."

(beep?)

"I'll only be a minute, I promise. Just stay right there."

The big red, white, and blue mech left Optimus alone. He didn't like being alone. The angry pretty red femme might come after him! So he lowered himself off the bed and crawled in the direction the big mech went. It was a smaller room than the other one.

"Oh, no you don't!" Magnus exclaimed, scooping Optimus up off the floor. "Only femmes allowed with me in the shower. I don't care if you are a sparkling and my best friend. I have limits you know."

The moment Optimus aft was set back on the bed tears filled his optics.

"Don't cry…"

Optimus cried. It wasn't just a little whimper either. No, it had to be a loud wail that reverberated off the walls.

Now, Magnus could have just let him cry while quickly taking a quick shower. But then he'd feel guilty about it. He hated it when sparklings or younglings cried. Every so often he'd have nightmares about how the youth sectors had been destroyed. He never forgot the sounds of so many young ones dying or in pain. Nor will he ever forget the pained look on Optimus face when they searched for survivors.

"I can't believe I'm doing this," he muttered, picking up the sparkling. The cries instantly quieted down. "You so owe me Optimus. You lubricated on me, puked on me, and bit me. And now this! I'm going to make sure you pay me back for each one, once you're back to yourself." He sighed, "If you get back to yourself."

(beep?)

"I wonder if you'll even remember any of this," he said, gently setting Optimus down in small counter in the washroom. "Primus, I sure hope you don't! I don't think either of us can live with this! You just stay there while I clean up."

Confident Optimus wouldn't fall Magnus moved into the shower stall and activated the cleansing reagents. He closed his optic covers and just enjoyed the hot liquid spraying him for several long minutes. What a relief to have the stink finally washed off! Yup, he was definitely going to make Optimus pay him back ten fold!

Optimus' optics widened. Wow! What's that?

Magnus' optic covers snapped open at the sound of an over excited sparkling. Optimus wasn't on the counter anymore. No, he was on the floor, in the shower stall, and slapping at the suds around Magnus' feet.

"Why me, Primus?" he asked the ceiling above.

Trills of delight echoed off the walls, suds were tossed up in the air, one sparkling was as happy as could be, and one big mech decided to enjoy the moment and smiled.

"May as well get you all cleaned up then. Maybe if you're all shiny Elita won't be so mad anymore. What do you think?"

A lightening fast Optimus climbed straight up and dangled from Magnus' chest armor with one hand while the other slapped at the cleansing reagent as it sprayed for the faucet over head.

"Here, this might make it easier…for both of us," Magnus chuckled.

With a firm grip he held Optimus under the shower, one enabling the sparkling to kick and slash at the solvent excitedly and two, enabling the sparkling to get cleaned up. Magnus himself was laughing. Optimus wasn't afraid at all blinking his optic covers rapidly as the liquid flowed over him and giggling hysterically.

However, all good things must come to an end. As much as Magnus was enjoying the moment he couldn't let anyone see him like this. Else his reputation as one the strongest and toughest mech wreckers would be ruined…forever!

Optimus looked up hopefully at the faucet but nothing came out. He beeped sadly. That was fun. But then he brightened up as he was wrapped in a fluffy white thing like the yellow and black mech had earlier.

The big red, white, and blue mech was talking to him while he was set down on the bed. Optimus didn't understand a word nor did he care at the moment. He buried his face in the soft fluff and blew raspberry after raspberry. This was fun too!

When Magnus returned from drying off he couldn't see Optimus at all, save one little foot that stuck out from the bundled towel. He reached for the towel in a bit of a panic thinking Optimus was tangled and stuck. But the towel rolled around with a raspberry blowing and giggling sparkling inside it.

Obviously Optimus wasn't in any kind of distress. So, all Magnus did was make sure his friend didn't roll off the recharge bed in a fit of excitement. Again, he decided to enjoy the moment and just kneel down and watch. It wasn't every day you got to see this side of Optimus Prime.

And when it became obvious that Optimus was trying to untangle himself, with his little aft wiggling back and forth as he tried to crawl backwards out from beneath the towel, Magnus decided to lend a hand. It was one happy sparkling that was uncovered who gave the mech a huge grin.

"Keep up this cuteness and no one will want you to go back to being yourself!"

"Ka boo!" Optimus said then pulled the towel up to cover his face.

Magnus gave him a puzzled look.

"Ka boo!" Optimus said again and then pulled the towel to cover his face, again.

"Oh, you mean peek a boo!" Magnus smiled.

Optimus shrieked and giggled. The big mech finally got it!

"So you want to play….peek a boo!"

More giggling, this time partly because Magnus tickled Optimus' belly.

Then Optimus suddenly gasped and froze in his seat. His wide, terrified optics looked past Magnus as if they'd spotted the ghost of Primus himself.

"Optimus?"

The sparkling scrambled off the bed and crawled for safety underneath the desk in the corner. Worried, Magnus rose to his feet with the intent of going after Optimus. That's when he heard the footfalls racing towards and then past his door.

"COME OUT YOU FRAGGIN COWARD!" Elita shouted as she continued away from Magnus' quarters.

Optimus felt her anger. It must have been something he did. Everyone else seemed to like him but her. So that meant he did something to make her angry. Maybe she didn't like him.

"Oh, I see," Magnus frowned. He moved across the room and knelt down to see Optimus trembling in the corner. He gently extracted his friend, cradling him in his arms. "You couldn't have picked a nice femme? You know…dainty, sweet, who just loved to cuddle with you. No, you had to pick the stubborn, smart, 'I'll kick your aft before you touch mine' femme! Don't get me wrong Optimus, Elita is beautiful but sometimes I just don't understand what you see in her."

Optimus' body suddenly when limp in Magnus' arms. His optics stared at nothing, not even acknowledging Magnus finger's as he wiggled them above.

"Optimus?"

Panic filled the City Commanders spark.

"Ratchet, please tell me your communicator's fixed!"

"Yeah, I fixed while Wheeljack was laid up in the Med Bay earlier."

"Where are you?" Magnus asked, punching in the code to unlock the door.

"I'm heading back to the Med Bay now. I'm telling you, I'm one lucky mech to still be in one piece. Elita's shot missed by mere centimeters. Still fraggin hurts though. Primus, I'll never make fun of Ironhide or Optimus again!"

"Something's wrong with Optimus!" he said, slithering out into the hall slowly. Once he saw it was clear he took off running. "He was giggling one second and now…he's not moving."

"Ah, he's probably just recharging."

"It's not recharging! I know the fraggin difference!"

"Ok, I'll…"

"I'm on my way to you, now. ETA two minutes."

Magnus stared down at the limp form in his arms. He drove his legs harder.

"Make that one minute."

Fifty four seconds later, Magnus rushed into the Med Bay. Ratchet had the main exam table in the middle of the room all prepped. So that's where Optimus was gently set down.

Ratchet knew Magnus was never the type to over react. And right away he could see something was not right with Optimus.

"Spark rate is slowing…how can that be, he's perfectly healthy," he muttered out loud to himself. He looked up from Optimus. "What exactly was he doing?"

"We were playing peek a boo. Then he suddenly got scared and hid under my desk."

"Anything else happen?"

"Elita went running by my quarters."

"Frag it to pit! They're still spark bonded! Elita mentioned she could feel Optimus was being threatened. And Ironhide said he noticed a change in Optimus just before Elita went berserk!"

"I don't understand…"

"Sparklings are very sensitive…oh Primus."

Ratchet shot across the room and punched the button to activate the PA system.

"EVERYONE FALL BACK TO THE RECREATION ROOM! THIS IS A MEDICAL EMERGENCY!"

"What's going on?" Prowl immediately asked.

"Just see to it everyone does so. Do nothing to stop Elita!" he desperately told Prowl.

"Understood. Prowl out."

"I REPEAT. THIS IS A MEDICAL EMERGENCY. FALL BACK TO THE RECREATION ROOM AND LEAVE ELITA ALONE."

So as not to cause a total panic he contacted Elita through a private comlink.

"Elita, I need you to listen to me very carefully. Optimus is in trouble and he needs your help. This is not a prank or a ploy. I'm sure you heard me tell everyone to back off. Now, I need you to get to the Med Bay as quickly as possible. Acknowledge me please."

Ratchet waited for her response. None came.

"Elita, please, your bonded sparkmate's life is in imminent danger. Acknowledge me please!"

Still, no response.

Ratchet began to pray.

Up next: We trail Elita around the base for a short bit and find out whether or not she received Ratchet urgent communiqué.