I turned my collar to the damp and cold

His optics flickered on and he groaned in annoyance, because his visor was sporting a jagged crack down the left side.

Jazz sat up slowly and rocks fell away from his chest plate. He moved his right arm then his left but flinched when he felt pain shooting up his servo.

There was a long scratch on his forearm, leaking energon, though it did not seem too deep.

Memories of what happened flooded into his mind and he sprang up. Jazz instantly regretted it as the world spun and tilted. He held his head and steadied himself, and waited until the world stopped moving to look around.

"Prowl?!" He called in a loud whisper. He did not want to alert the Decepticons that he was alive in case they were still around.

"Prowl!" He called more frantically.

He climbed over the mountains of rubble searching for his friend, and continued to call his name.

His next call died in his throat when he notice one particular pile of rubble had energon slowly rolling down the rocks.

With his spark in his throat, he began to pull away rocks as quickly as he could.

When the rocks were gone he barely held in a gasp of terror.

Prowl lay in a puddle of energon amidst the rocks. There was a deep gash on his left side that still had energon leaking lazily out. The worst however was his back.

There was energon everywhere around his back, and Jazz was forced to lift the poor mech to see the damage.

He could not help the cry of horror that escaped his lips.

One of Prowl's wings was completely gone and was left on the ground when Jazz had lifted him up. Energon gushed out of it and Jazz quickly pulled out a small med-kit from subspace. He pinched the lines leaking energon and tied a cloth around the clamp, hoping to stop the leaking. Energon stained the cloth, but certainly not as bad as before.

Jazz turned to the other wing and was glad that this one was not as bad as the other. It still looked painful, though. Jazz moved it gently but pulled away when a strangled cry of pain came from his companion.

Prowl's optics flashed on, nearly white with the pain he was in. He was gasping and shaking with the pain from his back and side. He felt slightly off balance on his left side.

Prowl's optics turned to Jazz and they widened even further. He looked surprised, then a flood of understanding hit him.

"D-Decepticons?" Prowl voice was raspy and breathy, almost like he could not breath.

Jazz shook his head, "They're gone Prowl, they think we're dead." The Visored mech's servo's shook as he held Prowl, "Y-You're banged up pretty bad Prowler."

Prowl was in too much pain to reprimand his companion about the nickname.

"W-Where... are we? How long... have we been out?" Prowl asked, his voice was starting to slur and Jazz did not know what to do.

"We're 'bout seventy miles from the base and we've been here for... six joor," He said. "They should be sending out a search party for us. So...you have to hold on, okay Prowl," Jazz's voice was soft and worried. "You have to stay 'wake." He wracked his brain for a way to keep Prowl's optics online.

"Who's Lyra?" He asked suddenly.

Prowl stiffened, but the pain in his side and back forced him to relax.

"She was my first love," He whispered quietly.

He could not understand why he was telling Jazz of all people about the most painful time in his life. He chalked it up to energon loss.

"Oh," Jazz sounded lost, "What was she like?"

Then something amazing happened, Prowl smiled. It was small and soft, but it was there all the same.

"She was beautiful and kind. She always smiled and laughed more than any mech or femme I have ever met," his voice was growing softer, "She taught me how to laugh and love," his voice was trailing off and Jazz could tell he was loosing the other mech.

"What happened to her?"

Prowl began to shake, almost violently, "She was murdered."

Jazz's grip tightened on the other unconsciously, he could hear the pain in his voice.

"She was killed by a rouge bot, speeding while energized. He was driving on the wrong side of the road and they collided head on... they both died instantly." He began to shake again, "It was the most painful thing...I... thought I was going to die..."

"Is that why you refuse me all the time?" Jazz asked.

Prowl nodded, "I know I am a horrible mech... I..." His voice petered off and his optics were dimming.

"Hey, stay awake Prowler," Jazz insisted, he shook him lightly.

"I...do not... think I am going to...make it," his voice was dying. Prowl would have, should have been ashamed for the amount of emotions he was showing, but he could not bring himself to care.

"Yes! Yes you are!" Jazz said with surprising conviction. "You will be fine...Alright, I'll make a deal with you, If you live, you have to go out with me. So you have to live, please."

"And...if I...don't?" His voice was getting softer, lower.

"You will," Jazz said.

There was a sound above them and Jazz looked up.

"Hey, Jazz!?"

From where he sat, Jazz could see the golden metallic sheen of Sunstreaker and his brother. He could have jumped for joy at that moment, but instead turned back to Prowl.

"Prowl! Prowl they're...Prowl?" Jazz frowned when he saw that Prowl's optics had gone dark. He shook him and called out his name but it made no difference.

Jazz felt his own optics beginning to strain and he saw the world getting darker. He tried to fight against it, but he had his own wounds that had been slowly leaking energon since he had woken up.

His reserves were dangerously low and he knew there was nothing he could do.

He felt wind blowing and the last thing he saw was Optimus Prime and Ratchet running towards them.

He blacked out.

/?/

When Jazz onlined again, it was to the safe sounds of the med-bay. He sat up slowly to take in the familiar room and wondered if he had ever been this happy to see it.

"Awake then?" Ratchet said, entering the room and seeing him up.

Jazz ran a servo across his faceplate, "What happened...?" His optics widened as he remembered, "Prowl?! Is he 'lright?!"

Ratchet pushed him back down onto the birth with a gentle hand. "Prowl's a little banged up and still missing a door wing, but he's going to be fine," The Med bot's tone took on a more serious one, "What were you two doing down in that gorge?"

Jazz sighed, "We were attacked by some Decepticons, ones that I've never seen before."

Ratchet frowned, "You'll have to tell Prime that in your report."

Jazz nodded then sat back up, "Can...Can I see Prowl?"

Ratchet frowned and almost looked like he was going to say no, but he heard the desperation in Jazz's voice and wondered if there was something more going on between those two.

"Alright, he's this way. Careful as you get up," Ratchet said and led him down to one of the further beds.

Jazz did as he was told and followed Ratchet to the furthest bed and pulled back the curtain.

Prowl lay on his stomach, silent and still.

Jazz cringed from the sight of Prowl with only one door wing, the other only a nub. He thanked Ratchet and sat down in the chair next to Prowl's birth.

Surprising Ratchet, Jazz took Prowl's servo in his own and held it tight.

The Med-bot decided to give them alone time and knew for certain that there was definitely something going on between the Second in Command and the Third in Command.

If anything the older mech was happy for both of them. Those two needed to get out and have some fun, Prowl especially.

Smokescreen and Blustreak bolted in at that moment, both looking frantic and worried. Ratchet tried to shoo them out but they pushed past him to their brother.

Bluestreak nearly burst into tears at the sight of his older brother missing a door wing. He glanced at Smokescreen who was silent.

"We should have known... if the bond had been open...Frag it!" He cried and stormed out. Bluestreak called after him, but the eldest brother ignored him.

Bluestreak sighed and shook his head, he turned back to Prowl and Jazz.

The other conscious mech pretended not to notice what had just happened. Jazz turned back to Prowl with a frown.

The relationship of Prowl and his brothers was not really any of his business, yet.

Bluestreak turned to Prowl as well and sighed, "I'm so sorry Prowl," he said and ran a servo across the back of Prowl's head. He shook his head and left.

Jazz watched him leave in silence closed his optics. He leaned closer to Prowl and hoped he could hear him.

/?/

Prowl?

Strange, there was that voice again.

Prowler, can you hear me?

The voice no longer sounded worried, maybe sad.

You still owe me that date.

Date? What Date?

I don't think you can hear me so, I'm just gonna say it: You're something special Prowl, your a mech I want to get to know every part of. Every quark, every bit of your past, I want to know what makes you you.

Jazz?