Know that this chapter has been revised! Please vote on my current Transformers poll. Thank you so much to all who reviewed! Here's a reminder: I don't own Transformers. I only own Nexia.
This is one of the shorter revised chapters. Sorry, guys!
Stesuna the Dragon - Your reviews always bring a smile to my face. Thank you for your kind words!
electrogirl88 - Thanks! Yeah, there really are not many Ratchet stories...aww... anyway Phoenixes are some of my favorite mythical creatures and I'm always interested in Chinese mythology!
Elita One - Yup, screamer is one bad mech-dude.
Nola1 - I'll try to keep that in mind! I'm not very experienced in writing romance but I'll try my best!
Chapter 10
Admittance
The unconscious and injured winged girl was floating in a deep black void; there were no sounds and no visible motions. She strained herself to hear correctly but it was so quiet that she could hear a pin drop…if she wasn't the only thing floating in the dark abyss that is.
Her incredible glowing eyes were closed and her slightly passed shoulder length hair floated calmly around her, framing her as it danced in the inky blackness. A soft wind played with the simple yet elegant white spaghetti strap dress she was wearing. It was sort of like the ones that she would wear when she was young.
The dark was eerie but Nexia was fine; she had been in the same place several times when she had been badly hurt when she was little. This was the place in her mind that she came to heal. Her spark was placing her into a coma like sleep in order to use more of its energies to heal her wounds.
While she was immobile her spark could mend itself…if the damage was not too severe. The more damage that was caused to her spark the longer she would be in the coma. The winged girl was healing as a bright silver light and an intertwining deep, fiery red light danced across her shattered spine. Yes, the Decepti-creep Starscream had broken Nexia's spine.
Distantly, the inured winged girl could hear a mech's voice; the voice was carefully winding its way inside her mind. She started twitching inside her mind, wanting to reach out to it as the voice seemed so very familiar. Nexia started struggling within her mind, trying to force her body to respond to the male's voice.
The unconscious winged girl couldn't understand what the male was whispering…but the voice was warm. The way it comforted her fears reminded her of her grandfather, keeping her feeling safe and calmed…even in a tough situation.
Suddenly, the warmth was gone and the dancing lights stopped as she was slowly allowed to sit upright. Nexia found the strength to open her eyes and move her limbs; there was little residual pain but it would be expected from the amount of trauma she had been through.
She looked around and smiled, glad that she was finally healed. Now everyone wouldn't be as worried since she was finally awake. The winged girl twisted around more and soon she was standing in the darkness of her healing sleep; although she was healed she was still caged within her mind. She closed her eyes, slowly opening them again to face the familiar darkness, ready to go back to the real world and face its challenges.
A fiery feeling spread across Nexia's body as her spark healed itself, causing each pore to tingle as it felt like it was waking from a deep sleep. When it was finished healing her spark looked as good as new; in fact it was shining like a newly polished diamond. She smiled excitedly as she closed her eyes once again; this time she was concentrating on Ratchet's facial plates. She wanted to know what he was going to tell her when Starscream had attacked them.
Later she wanted to reveal her feelings to the mech…but she didn't know when the time was right. He had wanted to say something to her before but they got interrupted by that blasted Decepticon.
When the winged girl opened her eyes again they met the bright lights of the Medical Bay. She blinked, bringing a hand to cover her eyes until they adjusted to the searing brightness. Well…it was expected since she was in medical facility.
Nexia blushed as she remembered what had happened just before she passed out completely. Ratchet had stabbed her with an IV; he probably did it so fast because he remembered the incident with the needle. It was a kind gesture…but she could see his terrified expression through her half-lidded eyes. She wondered why the Autobot medic was so scared. It wasn't like she was worth anything important.
She frowned somewhat at the look on his face, the frantic way that he had been treating her. She wasn't anything more than a friend…but the way he had been treating her lately said otherwise. Maybe he did care about her as more that a friend - more than a confidant. She then remembered that Ratchet had helped lull her into her healing sleep, vowing to stay with her until she awoke. Nexia giggled, wondering if he had meant for her to hear that part of his whispered conversation to himself.
True to his word Ratchet's holoform was sound asleep with his head hunched over the side of the bed, resting on the covers near her abdomen. The winged girl raised an eyebrow; she was surprised that he could sleep with his holoform activated.
The Autobot medic had light bags underneath his eyes, a sure sign that he had been missing sleep. One of his hands was holding onto Nexia's other hand, clutching it as if his life depended on it. His grip was firm but soft at the same time. It made the winged girl feel safe.
Ratchet's hand gently squeezed from time to time; it was as if he were reminding himself that she was there. He twitched in his sleep, smiling softly as he squeezed his hand against hers again. She softly squeezed back, watching as the medic's smile widened in his sleep. He sighed softly, eyes twitching again; she refused to wake him since he obviously needed that much needed sleep.
The winged girl smiled softly, not wanting to disturb him but a sharp pain hit her stomach. Nexia blushed as her stomach growled, indicating that it demanded to be fed. She groaned lightly, placing a hand over her stomach, and looked around; there was usually no food in a sterile environment.
The sterile environment proved to be true as there was no food to be found; she was frustrated so she flopped back onto the pillows. She growled lightly to herself and slipped her hand out of Ratchet's, wiping it against the covers. No offense to Ratchet but it was kind of sweaty since it had been in his hand for who knows how long. She glanced at the sleeping figure again, slightly amazed that the movement didn't wake him up. He really must have been exhausted!
Nexia looked around the room once again, this time noticing the flowers, cards, and not to mention that little Asuma was curled against her other side. His fur was sticking up in places so she assumed that he had been worried about her. She reached a hand out to rub down his matted fur, gently giggling from the black kitten's reaction.
The little black kitten jumped, meowing as his eyes snapped open. He jumped up and rubbed against his mistress' face, purring up a storm as she stroked his back. His butt rose in the air as the winged girl lightly scraped her fingernails down the kitten's back. Nexia smiled happily as she continued to rub the kitten's back, a soft smile planted upon her lips.
The winged girl sat up, again, and this time she stayed up; her wings helped her balance. It was then that she noticed that she was in one of her nightgowns from the Lennox house. It was an opaque blue but it was dark enough to cover her private areas. Nexia blushed again, although harder than before, and hoped that it was either Sarah or Mikaela who had changed her.
Nexia's stomach growled again, although this time much louder. It's loud gurgling noise caused a pale blush to dust across her cheeks; Asuma cocked his head to the side as he stared at her stomach in wonder. It was a wonder that it didn't wake the sleeping medic. She turned to face him and chuckled at the small amount of drool that was gathering at the side of his mouth. It was wonderful how realistic that the holoforms were…and if she had a camera she would totally have taken a picture. She decided to take pity on the poor mech and tried to shake him awake.
"Ratch. Ratchet, dear, wake up." she whispered, shaking the holoform's shoulder. Soon she realized it was useless as the mech was out cold. The poor mech looked like he had hardly rested all week. Wait…a week?! Nexia's head snapped to the calendar on the wall, confirming her suspicion. No wonder it looked like the Autobot medic hadn't ingested the proper amount of fuel and energon!
The calendar in question had several scribbles on it and after further examination it had several frowns and smiley faces drawn on it, courtesy of Sam most likely. The winged girl's smile quickly turned into a frown. She sighed, knowing that she had caused a lot of worry. She bowed her head in frustration; everywhere she went she either caused trouble or she caused everyone to worry about her. Everything was always her fault…and she felt horrible.
An annoying beeping noise caught her attention, causing her to turn. She was too busy caught up in her thoughts to realize that it was there before…but now that she noticed it the sound greatly grated on her nerves. It was only noticed when she began to get restless, wanting to get out of the medical room. After a while of inspecting the room her eye caught sight of a gray machine - a heart monitor.
Nexia bit her lip, ashamed at herself for causing so much trouble. While it was true that her soul resided outside of her body she still needed a heart to keep her blood flowing.
The winged girl took hold of the sticky patches that were attached to her chest and began to peel them off. She cringed at the pulling sensation that the patches caused her skin but sighed in relief when they began to give way. Once the last of the sticky patches was off her chest the line on the machine flashed red, going flat, and released a long shrill beep. Anybody who wasn't in the room would think that she went into cardiac arrest because of the shrillness of the beep.
The sleeping Autobot medic snapped awake, instantly alert; his processor was going into overdrive. His head swerved to the heart monitor and his spark froze at the familiar sound. He jerked his head back to her body and thanked Primus about a hundred times when he found Nexia sitting on the bed, awake and smiling sheepishly. She waved to him, rubbing the back of her neck in embarrassment.
He notably calmed down when he saw the heart monitor patches in her hand. He launched himself forward and gathered her in his arms, wrapping his arms tightly around her shoulders. He buried his nose in her hair, smelling the exhilarating scent and mumbling words to himself and to her. His spark ached in relief, thanking anyone that came to his processor that she was alright. She smiled as well, enjoying the sensation of being wrapped in a loving embrace. It had been centuries since that had last happened.
Finally, Ratchet rose and turned off the machine as the other Autobots, plus the humans, came crashing into the room. It was actually pretty quiet once the noise of the heart monitor was shut off. Ironhide was about to demand that Ratchet tell him what was going on but cut himself off when he saw Nexia was sitting up and awake. She waved at all of them, a sheepish smile still plastered across her face as Ratchet smirked at the bunch.
Ironhide shook his massive black head, making sure that his optics were not failing him before he smirked at the medic. They shared a look before Ratchet sent a look of feigned annoyance to his best friend. The weapons specialist left, mumbling about false alarms, but Bee, Wheeljack, Hound, and Jazz stayed behind with the humans. Optimus left as soon as he made sure that Nexia was alive and well, giving the excuse that he needed to fill out more paperwork.
"I'm sorry guys. False alarm. It won't happen again." she said, smiling sheepishly and holding up the sticky patches. Sam, Mikaela, and Will all laughed while looking between her face and the dangling patches. They all mingled in the corner of the room but Sarah rushed forward and wrapped the winged girl in a huge hug. The other humans laughed at her bewildered face as the older woman tightened her hug.
"I was so worried! I thought you would never wake up! And then you started glowing red and silver…nobody knew what was going on!" she exclaimed, hugging the somewhat shocked girl. Nexia looked down at the woman who held her in her arms, eventually raising her own arms and wrapping them around the blond woman. The winged girl smiled softly at her, reassuring her that she was alright.
One by one the Autobots activated their holoforms and crowded around the edge of the bed, giving her hugs in return. She smiled as they hugged her, feeling a warm and fuzzy feeling come back whenever her spark was happy. It engulfed her, filling her frame with a tender and loving feeling. This was her family and she felt safe while in their presence. When all of the worried exclamations and explanations were over everyone sat back, talking about anything that came to mind.
"You know, Nex, Ratchet never left the room when you were in that coma. He was constantly monitoring you. The only times he left were when he was dangerously low on energon." Mikaela said slyly, elbowing the winged girl in the side. Sam came over as well, snickering at the look of shock and embarrassment on the medic's face.
Nexia started, face burning in surprised embarrassment, and instantly turned to face the medic's holoform. It was cute, his head was lowered and a faint blush was dusted across his pale cheeks. Nexia instantly flushed as well, a blush spreading across her face as the others laughed at them.
Then, to add to her embarrassment, Nexia's stomach growled. The sound that her stomach produced echoed through the room, catching the attention of the other people in the room. The others laughed even louder as Ratchet dismissed his holoform, ushering the others out of the room. He then left himself, returning minutes later with a plate of food.
"Oh, wow! Thanks! I was starving." Nexia said, smiling widely at the medic. Ratchet actiated his holoform once again, sitting down in a the same chair as before to watch her eat. She was done within minutes and they sat there quietly, watching each other, until a thought popped into her head. The Autobot medic was going to tell her something before Starscream attacked them…but he never got the chance since she was injured. It was times like then she resented the fact that she was so susceptible to damage…even though she healed well enough.
"Ratchet," she began, gaining his attention. His blonde hair fell over his glasses as he turned his head. He quickly pushed the bangs away from his face as he moved closer to the bed. The winged girl giggled at him, however, as his bangs fell in front of his glasses once again, giving him a slightly boyish look. It didn't matter; he was still handsome in her eyes.
"What were you going to say to me before Starscream attacked us? You were going to say something…but what was it?" she asked, pushing those pesky strands of hair away from his face. Ratchet's eyes widened, taken by surprise as his processor tried to form the correct words. Now was his chance! He mentally berated himself has his words ran dry. He tried to form something but it was like his processor had frozen…he couldn't form the words that he wanted to say!
"Well…if you don't want to tell me now…can I tell you something? It's been plaguing my mind for a while…and I wasn't sure if I wanted to tell you. Now would be the best time I suppose." she asked, becoming nervous. The blond holoform nodded his head, interest piqued as he wondered what his beloved wanted to tell him.
Nexia gripped the sheets on the human sized bed, biting her lip as she tried to formulate the words within her mind. Her wings twitched, showing the holoform in front of her exactly how anxious she was. Ratchet took the winged girl's hand to try to encourage her, but only succeeded in making her even more nervous. Ratchet's spark fluttered, desperately wanting to know what she wanted to tell him. If it was making her so nervous it must be something that was special.
"Don't think low of me…but…" she trailed off, not knowing how to continue. She paused for a bit, unsure how to continue but the somewhat excited sparkle in Ratchet's eyes pressured for her to continue. She held her breath but she could hold her words within her no longer.
"I'm in love with you! I've been in love with you for a long time…" she blurted out, gasping, and covering her mouth with the hand that was not held captive by the medic. She was extremely uncomfortable now that her words were hanging out in the open.
The neon mech gasped loudly as well, eyes widening in surprise. This was the last thing that he was expecting! His processor was reeling and his mouth became even dryer. He knew that he should say something but nothing was forming in his mouth.
She was expecting an answer and every second that he did not reply her heart was breaking into thousands of tiny pieces. After an eternity he finally got his mouth working but he was too late. She hung her head and smiled sadly, looking at their intertwined hands. She slowly pulled her hand from his; the look on her face was crushing his spark as well.
"I told Mikaela I shouldn't have told you. Look at me. I look so stupid. Why would you love someone like me? I'm not even in your species." she mumbled, tears gathering in her eyes. They sparkled in the light of the Medical Bay, crushing Ratchet's spark even further.
Ratchet had had enough as he snatched back her hand; she tried to pull away but he gripped it tighter, pulling her forward into a bone crushing hug. His eyes were ablaze with something she could not recognize…but felt as if she should.
"Don't you DARE say those kinds of things! You are worthy enough for me. Don't even think that you aren't." he all but yelled. He held onto her as she stopped struggling; he sighed as he buried his face into her hair, stroking her wings. She started struggling again but froze when she felt his mouth next to her ear. Now that she was somewhat calm he took the chance to tell the winged girl before him his feelings before it could be ruined with something else.
"I love you too. I always have." he whispered, nuzzling the size of her neck in an intimate gesture. She sighed, leaning into the embrace of her newfound lover. She smiled and brought her arms up around his neck in a loose hug, nuzzling her face against his chest. He ran his arms down her back and fingered the base of her wings - one of the most sensitive areas of a Phoenix's back. The small action caused her to shiver and relax into his embrace. Once she was calmed down enough they parted, looking deep into each others eyes.
"But…what about Moonracer? What if she's still somehow alive?" she asked sadly, bowing her head again. She couldn't even remember a time where she was being so emotional. Ratchet took a deep breath and removed his glasses. He pressed his forehead against hers as he began talking.
"Nexia, I love you, not Moonracer. She is but only a memory. She died thousands of years ago. You are my only love now. I love only you." he said, pressing his lips against hers in a small, sweet kiss.
They broke apart, smiling at each other. They were about to kiss again but she suddenly yawned, bringing a hand up to her mouth. Ratchet chuckled, climbing up on the bed and laying down with her, and wrapping an arm around her waist and bringing her close. She nuzzled her face into his neck, placing a small kiss against his skin as he shuddered in delight.
She happily settled up against his chest and rested her cheek on the soft material of his lab coat. She then brought one of her wings around them, leaving the to fall asleep in peace.