For The Race – Prime Protector.
Chapter Six.
A/N: I am using Phoenix13's idea of mechs for this story and yes, they have equipment 'down below.' Which means I finally get to inject some humour in here! If the image of robots with 'parts' offends you, you'd probably better stop reading this once Sam has left Prime's room. Plus, 1 orn = 13 days.
Optimus was not in need of recharge himself, so he carefully lay Sam down on his berth before heading back out to his office to work, moving his desk to a point where he could look up every few moments and see Sam. He didn't think Skywarp would be up to much for a few joors after the jolt from Sam's EMP generator, but he wasn't taking any chances.
Optimus found his gaze wandering more and more to the recumbent femme on his berth, found his optics staying on her longer than necessary to ascertain that she was safe and well. In the end he gave up on his work, after all, he was a mech, and the femme on his berth was a welcome sight to his optics. Looking wouldn't hurt Sam, and the work he had could wait.
After a while he rose and moved over, his optics still fixed on Sam. He had to admire her courage and quick thinking, two things that had made an impression on him when Sam was still a human. She had managed to fight off Skywarp, no mean feat for mech, femme or human, and had remembered the weapons she had at her disposal to do so. She had managed not to freeze, and had kept her wits about her, something others in the past had not done.
Skywarp used his ability to inflict damage or cause chaos to full advantage, and it was few who were able to get over the surprise of his appearing/disappearing act fast enough to come away unscathed. Of course, the fact that they wanted Sam alive helped, had they wanted her dead she might already be so, but Sam had done well under the circumstances.
He found himself standing over her, his optics wandering over her recharging form, and wondering how those slender arms and powerful legs would feel to touch now that Sam had her alt. He reached out, paused, then continued reaching. She was recharging, need not know, and he was simply curious as to how her alt had changed her limbs.
His hand touched her shin, and he pulled back cautiously lest she waken and startle, but she didn't even stir, so he reached out again slower and let the tips of his fingers trail down her legs. He gently took each of her feet, one at a time, into his hand, then stroked back up the leg with his palm, right up to the hip, before moving his hand to her shoulder to stroke all down her one free arm.
His hand returned to her feet, stroking along the wheel that was in its resting position just above her ankle. He brought one hand back down, intrigued at the difference in texture between the rubber of the wheel and the smooth paintwork as he reached the other up to her arm again, and it was as his gaze travelled back up to Sam's face that he noticed her optics were open and that she was watching him, aware of his actions.
He was about to remove his hands and step back, but something about Sam, something about the fact that she wasn't tensing at the touch, made him leave his hands on her. He carefully stroked the foot and leg and arm he was touching, careful to keep his caresses non-sexual, non-demanding, and ready to remove his hands at any time, while watching Sam's face for a negative reaction.
Sam, for her part, had been startled but not alarmed to wake up to find the Prime touching her. The touch was not actually unpleasant, it was just a little surprising. The touches weren't paternal, but they weren't arousing either, or proprietary, just...interesting, and Sam had to admit, she was enjoying the tactile contact.
It was when Optimus shifted closer that she felt a stir of alarm, but the moment she involuntarily tensed, Optimus drew back, removing his hands from her hide and straightening up.
"Your alt mode has some most intriguing textures, although I imagine my tyres and paintwork would provide the same textures were you to compare them by touch," he said. He turned away before Sam could come up with a response, crossing to an energon dispenser in his office and returning with a cube of energon, which he handed to her as she sat up. He then boosted himself up on the berth to sit beside her, something that disconcerted Sam, but as he made no move to touch her, she relaxed again: she supposed he wanted to simply sit beside her.
"Sam, what happened today cannot be permitted to happen again. Skywarp is unpredictable and we currently have no way of countering his teleportation ability, although I have set Ironhide the task of creating a counter field that will stop him." Optimus said, turning his head to address Sam. "I must insist that you be accompanied by at least one other at all times, and when you need to recharge, you come here and recharge in my berth."
Optimus was disappointed that Sam's reaction was to lean back from him, her optics wide and frightened, but he guessed progress would be slow: he couldn't expect to go from Sam accepting inquisitive touches to becoming a berth mate within five minutes. The fact that she had not freaked at the touches was encouraging, but he had to be careful not to undo the small improvement. He continued, as if he had not had to think through what to say to reassure her.
"I will stand guard over you at such times, and take my own recharge while you are awake and under another mech's protection, and this will continue until Ironhide finds a way to nullify the threat posed by Skywarp."
Sam relaxed a bit, but still seemed wary, so Optimus slid off the berth and stood to face the flighty femme. "Ironhide is already working on a solution, I have confidence that he will find one, but for now I dare not leave you alone. The choice of mech who will accompany you during the day is up to you."
"Bumblebee," Sam said immediately, and Optimus nodded. He supposed it made sense – Optimus himself has assigned Bumblebee to be Sam's Guardian back when she was a human, and he supposed Sam would be used to the yellow scout. He nodded again as he realised that Sam might open up a bit more to Bumblebee, and maybe Bumblebee could explain things to Sam in a way the human-male-turned-Cybertronian-femme might understand better, or she might not at least perceive Bumblebee as a threat.
"Bumblebee it is," Optimus confirmed, then sent a com to Sam's guardian to come and pick Sam up. A few moments later, Bumblebee turned up.
"Okay, Sam, I'm here, shall I show you around the rec-room? Don't worry, you might get a bit of attention, but if they bother you, I'll tell them to back off," Bumblebee said, putting an arm around Sam's slim shoulders and leading her out. Optimus refrained from reminding Bumblebee that Sam's status should keep that to a minimum, realising Bumblebee was trying to take Sam's mind off her status, to reassure her, at least for now.
Optimus waited until the two were out of the doors and their low voices were no longer audible before dropping back on the berth with a sigh of his vents. He had been surprised at how aroused he had become just by stroking Sam's limbs and sitting by her. Prime he may be but he was still a mech, and like any other mech he had urges, and needs. He sometimes wished that he were not so courteous around Mikaela, only allowing her to wash him, but he was fearful of offending her if he asked her to go any further. It was true, yes, that he had yet to see Mikaela offended by anything she had found out about the 'bots, but he didn't want to find anything by being the one to offend her.
He supposed he could ask Ratchet or Ironhide, offering to repay the service, but no, Ironhide was working, Ratchet would probably find the situation amusing. And he didn't feel like being the butt of veiled jokes from the medic for the next four orns. Anyway, neither of them resembled Sam even remotely.
No, there was nothing for it, he'd have to do it himself. The image of Sam, reclining on his berth was still clear in his processors, so the required imagery was at his disposal. It was just somewhat less satisfying to relieve such frustrations yourself than with the help of another. However, what he had was likely to be all he would get, at least for some time. He hoped Bumblebee could help Sam to adjust.
Reaching up to his hips, he sprung the clasps of his crotch plate and put it carefully to one side, then reaching into the newly-exposed area, took hold of the interface cable concealed within, and began to stroke it rapidly.
oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo oOo
"It's just that – I guess the thought that Optimus is like, well, the robot equivalent of a male, it just kind of creeps me out I guess," Sam said. They had, in the end, gone to Bumblebee's room, where they could sit and talk without interruption.
"Why, Sam? I'm the robot equivalent of a male too, does that creep you out too? Or are you saying you look upon Prime as like a femme?" Bumblebee asked, his optics wide in confusion.
"No! Oh hell, Bee, I don't mean it like that! I know you're a mech too, but you're a friend, you're not interested in me that way...at least I hope you're not, and it's not that I see Optimus as a femme, it's just I've never thought of him being, well, male, with all the urges and desires and shit that that entails!" Sam was grateful for one aspect of her change: were she still human, she'd be blushing so hard her face would resemble a tomato.
"Actually, Sam, you're probably not the first person to fail to see the Prime as like any other mech," the yellow scout said, deciding that now was not the time to tell Sam that yes, he did love her, had actually secretly loved her even as a human, but was very aware of certain attractive facets of Sam's new form. "He always comes across as this noble, proud, fierce warrior, and like any romanticised character, it can be hard to see that he's a mech with the same needs and urges and feelings as any other mech." He gave a funny warble. "Yes, he has his beliefs, he'll fight for them, and one of those is standing up to bullies like Megatron and Starscream, but that doesn't make him a..." the scout searched the internet briefly for the right term, "a saint."
"It's just that...to know that he's having those sorts of thoughts, well, like about me, it's just, hell, how can I come to terms with that?" Sam exclaimed. "He's Optimus Prime, the Big Boss Bot, I look up to him, he feels almost like a father to me, and I guess that means it almost feels incestuous!"
"Sam, at least you admire him. Give it time, it's been less than a human month since you changed. And remember that touch doesn't always mean someone's gonna jump on you. Get used to being around him before you start worrying about what he's gonna do to you because Optimus won't make you do anything before you're ready. Why not ask to do something safe first, perhaps with Mikaela, like wash him, or have him and her wash you, in alt if you prefer. Ask him to help you train in Ironhide's armoury. Ask him what points you, as a smaller 'bot, could reach on an enemy about his size? There's plenty of things you could safely engage him in to get used to having him around you. Pit, Sam, ask for me to help out with doing things with him if it makes you feel better!"
To Sam's surprise, the conversation and suggestions had made her feel better, and she reached over to pat the yellow scout on one arm.
"Thanks, Bee, I appreciate this," she said. Bumblebee bobbed his head.
"Anytime, Sam," he replied. "That's what friends are for."