Disclaimer: We do not own Transformers Prime or its canon charas. We do however own our OCs. Dream'sRealm owns Darkstorm, Skybreak, Drift, Shiv, Jolt, Blackout, Air Raid, Caliber, Speedway, and Jetfire. Blondie-moyashi owns Skye Shelsher.
Theme Song: "Carol of the Bells" by Trans-Siberian Orchestra
It was December 30th and it was snowing softly outside the Autobots' new base. Since it was dangerous to remain in the Harbinger for very long, the Autobots with Agent Fowler's help were able to relocate to an active boot camp somewhere in the Sierras.
And, even though it was late, the human children insisted on having a Christmas celebration. Both Autobot, child, and soldier alike worked to hang Christmas lights and decorate trees. Darkstorm thought this to be her favorite holiday yet. She smiled softly as she stood next to her scout and listened to the gales of "I'll Be Home for Christmas" wafting through the base.
Everything just looked so lovely.
"Isn't it beautiful, Flare?" Moonracer asked with a child-like grin.
Flareup shrugged nonchalantly. ". . . It's. . . alright."
"And this Jesus was born today? And that's why we're celebrating?" Caliber asked Rafael while putting a star on one of the Christmas trees.
Raf smiled at the Vehicon and nodded. "Yeah. He was born and brought joy to everyone. And, Christmas is a great time to spend time with family, too."
In the meantime, while the others were laughing and conversing amongst themselves, Miko was hiding behind Bulkhead, attaching a small green green plant to a long wooden pole.
"Miko," Bulkhead whispered. "What is that for again?"
"It's a. . . human Christmas tradition," Miko grinned innocently.
Bulkhead raised an optic ridge, fully aware that whenever Miko bore such a countenance that she was most likely planning something, but he chose to not question it.
If it was tradition. . .
Bulkhead watched as she successfully attached the mistletoe to the pole and began to slink towards Darkstorm and Bumblebee.
His optics widened. Oh, no. . .
While they were distracted, she climbed up onto a landing and dangled the mistletoe between them.
"That is very-. . . What on earth?" Darkstorm's brow furrowed as she observed the green plant. Bumblebee, knowing full well what mistletoe was, looked down embarrassedly as his cooling fans activated.
"Miko, what is this?" Darkstorm demanded, pinching the bridge of her upper facial plating.
And the evil grin Miko gave her sent chills down Darkstorm's spine. "It's mistletoe. And you know what that means, 'Bee?"
Darkstorm raised an optic ridge and turned to Bumblebee. "I-It's mistletoe. . . If you're caught under it with someone. . . you have to k-kiss them."
Darkstorm's optics widened as her cooling fans too activated. Of course Miko would be up to something like this. . . She gazed at her charge helplessly.
Skye simply shrugged. "It is tradition."
Darkstorm's cooling fans grew steadily louder as she felt optics on them both. She vented and turned towards Bumblebee. "Well, might as well get this over with," Bumblebee said as he rubbed the back of his helm sheepishly.
Darkstorm nodded before hesitantly leaning over. Bumblebee's mouth mask disengaged and their lips met.
Darkstorm glared at Miko once they had pulled away. The child simply stared at her as if she did nothing wrong. "What? Just trying to get everyone into the holiday spirit."
"I. . . am going to give you two nano-klicks to run," the former Decepticon muttered darkly. "One. . ."
Miko's eyes widened and she climbed down her hiding place and immediately maneuvered through the crowd. Darkstorm, soon losing sight of her, gave up of trying to find her. Children will be children, after all.
Elita One, watching the others from afar with Optimus, chuckled. "Is everything always this lively?"
Optimus smiled softly. "Indeed, it is. . . I am happy that the young scout has her and that God gave me the courage and wisdom to grant her refuge here."
"It seems like just yesterday he was a youngling fresh out of the Academy and ready to join the Autobot cause," Elita smiled.
"Much time has passed, Ariel," Optimus conceded, the hint of a vent in his voice.
Elita frowned subtly and squeezed his servo. Even though their bond had been damaged, with each moment spent with him, it grew steadily stronger. She could feel his sorrow over leaving her behind. . . It must have nearly killed him to be without her for so long.
Nothing like that will happen again, Orion. We are together now. We should thank Him for His blessings.
Optimus smiled and nodded. Very well.
Elita brightened. Oh, how she wish he smiled like that more often. She knew he was their leader but she never did understand why he always had to be so. . . stoic. Well, not entirely, Elita corrected herself. He was never stoic around her.
Because you are my sparkmate. That is a completely different matter, Optimus replied through the bond.
Elita jumped slightly before laughing. Oh, how Optimus had missed hearing that laugh. . . "After joors of silence. . . that will take some getting used to."
"Well, we have all the time in the world," Optimus whispered.
Elita smiled and caressed Optimus's facial plating with a servo before something caught her optic.
Was that some sort of Earth plant above them?
"Miko!" Bulkhead yelled.
In truth, all of this surprised Moonracer. Things had drastically changed for her, and in just a few cycles too. She honestly thought that she, Flare, and Elita were going to be stuck on Cybertron forever, with no hope of escape.
But now. . . everything had changed. Ultra Magnus traveled there, drawn by a mysterious energy surge, and was able to rescue them from a life of solitude. And, from the looks of it, Moonracer could tell the war was almost over. Decepticons, Vehicons, and miners, all joining the Autobots. Surely, that had to be a good sign.
Perhaps. . . things were going to change for the better. She supposed she had to thank this human Primus and His Son for that.
She giggled to herself out of pure joy. This holiday. . . these new changes. . . even this planet and its inhabitants were just wonderful. It almost made her think they were too good to be true. And it certainly was better than anything she had experienced in the past. . .
"Is something amusing?" a baritone voice interrupted her thoughts.
She turned to the stranger with a bright smile, shaking all negative thoughts out of her processor. She had put all that behind her. She wasn't about to begin stewing on them now. "Oh. . . umm, sorry. I guess I'm just really happy today."
The Seeker nodded slowly in response. Moonracer raised an optic ridge. Why was this mech always so serious? "It's. . . Dreadwing, right?"
"Indeed, I am. And you must be Moonracer?" he replied.
She grinned and nodded. "Yup. That's me."
And what Dreadwing did next completely surprised the femme. He placed a servo on his chassis elegantly and bowed his helm. "A pleasure, I am sure."
Moonracer's cooling fans activated. "Oh, come on. You don't have to do that for lil' ol' me."
Dreadwing's brow furrowed subtly as he raised his helm. "Is it not customary to show honor to femmes?"
A. . . honorable Decepticon? No wonder he switched sides. "I-I guess. It's just. . . no one's ever really done that for me before."
"Then I am pleased to be the first," a smile tugged on Dreadwing's lip plates.
Moonracer was at a loss of what to do. This mech was treating her with only kindness and respect. . . "W-Well, thanks," she smiled in return. "So. . . what made you want to join the Autobots?"
"I. . . found that a great dishonor had fallen upon the Decepticons. . . and I chose to no longer dwell on the injuries of the past," Dreadwing answered simply.
Moonracer's smile faltered slightly. "Yeah, me too. . ."
"I am. . . sorry to hear that you and your team have been stationed on Cybertron for so long," Dreadwing finally said after a long silence.
"Eh, it's fine. Flare and I are pretty good friends and Elita was able to take care of us. It wasn't that bad," Moonracer said, trying to be optimistic. Of course, she left out the part where. . . well, she didn't really want to think about that.
Dreadwing was about to reply before something caught his optic. A green plant now hung in between them. The both of them, having already observed what that dictated, looked downwards awkwardly.
Flareup quickly approached her friend once she saw what was happening. Oh, the slag she will. Not her. Not with a Decepticon. She glared and activated one of her cannons and pointed it at the human. "It seems we have a rodent infestation. Shall I terminate?"
Moonracer's optics widened and she quickly pulled Flareup's servo with the weapon down, trying to prevent another scene from occurring. "Flare, what are you doing? The Autobots are friends with the humans."
"That was a human? Oh. . . I can never tell from this height."
Moonracer momentarily turned to Miko. "It's alright. She's just joking, that's all. . ." she said nervously before turning back to Flareup. "What is wrong with you?"
"You are not going near that Decepticon," she hissed under her breath.
"Please. It's just a harmless human tradition. Nothing to go too trigger-happy over," Moonracer tried to console.
"Don't you dare tell me-"
"Flare, he's an Autobot now. And it's not like we're bonding-"
"I refuse to let you be taken advantage of!"
Before Moonracer could indignantly respond, Dreadwing had already begun to speak. "If you are implying that I would ever do such a vile thing, then you are sorely mistaken," he replied cooly.
Flareup whipped around to face the Decepticon. "If you think you are so good now, then you're wrong. You will never be an Autobot. You're just like the rest of them. Sure, you can pretend to be one of us but deep inside, I know you're not. You'd want to see us all terminated-" she spat, inches from his facial plating.
Darkstorm and Skybreak's optics flashed indignantly as they moved to give the fiery femme a piece of their processor before Elita One motioned for them to stay back. "Flareup, cease this at once," Elita One said, her normally soft, cheerful tone hardening into a hard command.
"How can you just-?" she started to protest.
"Outside. Now," she ordered. Flareup knew better than to disobey. She vented frustratedly and deactivated her cannon, walking outside. Elita soon followed before shutting the large door behind them.
"Miko, are you alright?" Bulkhead asked worriedly.
"Y-Yeah. It was no big deal," Miko waved it off, though her guardian could clearly hear the tremor in her voice.
Bulkhead helped her down from her spot on a ledge, becoming angered slightly as he felt her trembling touch as she grasped one of his digits. Mech, he was starting to dislike this Flareup character more and more already. . . Darkstorm treated humans with more respect when she first came and she was a former Decepticon, for crying out loud.
"I'm so sorry," Moonracer bit her bottom lip component. "I didn't mean to cause all this trouble."
"It was not your fault, Moonracer, rather hers," Dreadwing responded, energon still rushing out of anger. "You are most certainly not to blame."
Moonracer vented, her shoulders sagging. She wanted to tell them that it was all right, that Flareup wasn't always like this. . . and she didn't mean what she said but she knew her words would sound hollow.
She was so tired of this. Ever since that one fateful cycle, Flareup has changed. . . and not entirely for the better. And Moonracer was forced to watch as her dear friend began to fall away, consumed by anger and grief. If only things had been different, she thought sadly. If only I had been captured in her place. . .
Then maybe she wouldn't be acting this way. She'd be the same old kind yet brave Flareup she once knew, the one who actually treated Moonracer her age no matter what anyone else thought. And cared for her, despite whatever Moonracer herself might do.
Her melancholy thoughts dissipated as she felt a servo grasp hers. Her servo was lifted before lip plates met it. She stared at Dreadwing in shock.
"Consider the tradition fulfilled," he whispered before walking away.
Moonracer simply stood there, still wondering what had truly happened and if this was or wasn't just another one of her daydreams.
"Flareup, what in the name of Cybertron possessed you to create such a scene? Miko was not doing any harm and I for one believe that Moonracer is old enough to make her own decisions," Elita asked, her previously hardened voice softening to that akin of when a mother is scolding a child.
Flareup chose not to answer, instead choosing to glare at the snow-covered ground. Elita One vented wearily. "I have tried to be understanding. . . Truly, I have been, but this needs to stop. Just because you are dwelling on the past does not mean you need to ruin her future."
Flareup's facial plating hardened into a glare once more. "How dare you! I am trying to protect her."
"Dreadwing is an Autobot now and should be treated as such."
"Don't tell me you believe that slag, Elita. Pit, he still has their insignia on his frame!" she scoffed.
"But that does not change the fact that he aided us in the previous battle without any sign of treachery." Flareup clenched her denta, not deigning to answer. "We are not on Cybertron anymore. We are a part of a team again and I expect you to start acting like it, including having some measure of respect for our allies and learning to control that violent temper of yours."
Elita turned to Flareup expectantly but the femme clenched her servos and gave no answer. Elita vented once more. "You may come back inside when you are willing to put all misguided resentment behind you."
Flareup glared harshly at the door once it closed. As if she had any idea of how she felt. She wasn't dwelling on the past. No, she was reaching towards the future. And her goal? Kill that fragger Shockwave and all of his creations.
Then. . . maybe she'd be as chipper as Elita or Moon.
She transformed into her Cybertronian two-wheeler vehicle mode, not caring if she was discovered, and began to speed out of the base.
Robots in disguise, she inwardly scoffed. Please. Optimus is bowing down to these rodents. . . If anyone has a problem, they can talk to me directly. And, truthfully, I'd like to see a human go up against my cannons.
She vented softly as she increased her speed down the icy road. Maybe this would clear her helm. . .
Skye carried a box of ornaments toward the tree, keeping a careful eye on her surroundings-rather, the people surrounding her. Ahead she saw Smokescreen working on something with Bulkhead and quickly turned to skirt around him. She felt bad every time he saw her avoid him, but she refused to indulge Miko's mischief. Skye had seen her with the mistletoe and knew all too well after the group had caught her and Smokescreen the other day, the girl would consider them prime target. She felt her face start to heat up just thinking about it.
"Special delivery." She dropped the box off at the tree and Jack paused in his decorating and turned to her.
"Thanks for running this over." He tilted his head to see behind her. "Um, you may want to go avert a crisis over there."
Skye turned her head, quickly scanning the area for what he was talking about. She quickly found it-Smokescreen's holoform was carrying a stack of boxes with breakable ornaments and it was easy to see he was struggling. She instinctively rushed over and placed her hands under the stack of boxes on the opposite site of him. Confused, he looked around the load until he saw her, smiling in thanks when he did. She nodded back, face still red.
As they made their way towards the tree Skye kept a careful eye out for Miko, desperately hoping she was terrorized someone else. Somewhere else.
"Might I ask why you're using your holoform for this? Wouldn't it just be easier to stay in your robot form?" Skye didn't mind, but she was still curious.
He motioned toward said form with his head. "Bulk' needed me to help him hold something up. Then I was asked to help move boxes."
"Aahhh." Skye nodded.
She was able to breath easy once they made it to the tree without incident. They set the boxes down next to the tree then stood, both with slightly red faces.
"Thanks for the help," Smokescreen bore an irresistable smile.
"Uh, no problem." Skye nervously smiled herself as she felt her face get a little hotter. Scrap, why did she always do this? It was just a "thank you"!
"Um, Skye?" She turned to Jack, who was pointing to something past her shoulder. She turned her head again and quickly found what he was talking about and her stomach sank. The mistletoe.
"Miko!" Surprisingly, Skye's voice carried the volume to match Bulkhead's.
"When I find you, you're going t-" She stopped as fingers lightly gripped her chin and turned her head. She stared wide-eyed at Smokescreen as he kissed her, shock forcing her to stay frozen until several seconds after he pulled away.
He looked up at Miko in the rafters and grinned, giving her a thumbs-up before deactivating his holoform.
Skye looked from where Smokescreen had been to Miko. "Wha-? You conspired with him?! I swear, you're going to regret the day you first heard the word 'mistletoe' when I get my hands on you!"
"Oh, don't act like you didn't love it," Miko smirked and called down from her perch.
Skye's intense gaze turned on Jack. "Were you in on this?"
He brought his hands up. "Hey-no, I had no part in it."
"Yup, looks like Jack's clean. . . this time, anyway."
Jack shot a deadpan look to Miko. "Please, leave me out of this."
Miko simply stuck out her tongue and began to climb down from the rafters.
"And as for you, mister." Skye turned to Smokescreen. She tried to maintain her serious face but the innocent look on his was just too much to bear. She smiled and rolled her eyes. "I'll get you back for that."
The rookie laughed lightly as he and Bulkhead finished their work. "Whatever you say."
At last, it was time to exchange presents around the large Christmas tree that lay in the dead center of the camp.
Darkstorm smiled softly when she saw Bumblebee hand her a small wrapped package. "Oh, 'Bee. You shouldn't have."
"Eh, but I did anyway. Besides, we missed your birthday. . . so I figured I might as well," the scout replied shyly.
Darkstorm brightened. She herself had forgotten that her creation day had passed… but it truly warmed her spark to know that her scout remembered. She smiled and began to delicately unwrap the package. It was a Cybertronian sized ring box. Curiously, she opened it and gasped at what she saw.
It was a silver ring with several sky blue stones embedded in the metal. "I-I know diamonds are traditional but Raf and I thought you'd like those better."
Darkstorm was at a loss of what to say. She admired the ring for several more moments before turning to her beloved scout with wide optics. "What is this?" she whispered.
"It's something that humans give each other before they get. . . married. Y-You wear it on one of your digits-" Bumblebee took the ring and gently slipped it on Darkstorm's finger. "Like this."
It fit perfectly. Darkstorm turned to Bumblebee, tears of joy beginning to well in her optics. "Thank you. . . It's. . . well, it's beautiful."
"That's true, but I'd rather have you any day," he smiled and kissed her buccal plating.
Darkstorm grinned as her cooling fans subtly activated. He certainly did know how to make her feel like she was the only femme in the world. . .
"I-I'm afraid what I was planning to give you isn't as glamorous," Darkstorm said sheepishly as she handed Bumblebee her present to him.
Bumblebee thankfully took it and unwrapped it to reveal a hologram pad. He activated it to reveal several video clips of Darkstorm, Bumblebee, Raf, and the others together, laughing and having fun. He smiled widely. "Thank you, 'Storm. . . I love it."
"Anything for you, my beloved scout."
"I'm afraid mine is even less glamorous, Dar'sain." Skye held out a small present to her guardian. "And I'm afraid you may need your holoform to get at it. It's not really large-hand-friendly, and yet it was the largest I could find of its kind."
Darkstorm smiled and nodded before activating her holoform. "If it is anything from you, I will treasure it." She gently took the present from her charge and began to unwrap it.
Skye smiled and waited to explain the significance until it was unwrapped. "It's a symbol of Christianity, fondly referred to as The Jesus Fish. Many humans place them on their cars as a symbol of their faith, and I figured since we both believe, it may suit your fancy."
"But. . . why a fish?" she asked curiously.
"It's based on a story from the Bible of the time when Jesus fed five thousand people with two fish and five loaves of bread."
Darkstorm was surprised though she knew she shouldn't be. If God healed her and Optimus when they were both on the brink of death, then His Son could easily feed a crowd full of people with nothing but mere morsels. She smiled and embraced her charge. "Thank you, Ski'ri. I shall cherish it always." Skye smiled and nodded in response.
Darkstorm pulled away and reached under the Christmas tree before handing her charge a large wrapped present. "Be careful. . . It's rather heavy."
Skye looked at her guardian with a slightly confused expression on her face before accepting the gift. She placed it on the ground and began tearing into it. Anyone a hundred miles away could've seen the moment she uncovered the gift just from her facial expression. "Dar'sain, you didn't!" She giggled like a schoolgirl as she pulled out several boxes of brand new tools.
Darkstorm soon caught Skye's contagious laughter. "Oh, but I did," she grinned. "I thought since our old base was destroyed, your tools with it, that you would appreciate a new set."
"Thank you so much! Rest assured, they will all be dinged up and oily in no time!"
"I should expect nothing less from you," Darkstorm said warmly, winking.
Skye's smile turned to Smokescreen. She handed his holoform a small package. "Inside here you will find all the details to a getaway to one Warwick Castle. A more direct link to the romantic era you will not find." Her face turned slightly red as she spoke, hoping Miko wouldn't pick up on the intent of the trip but knowing the girl likely would anyway.
"Warwick Castle, huh?" Smokescreen asked before grinning. "Wait just a nano-klick, are you asking me out on a date?"
That did it. Skye's calm and clear thoughts turned into a massive jumble, and her ever-reddening face showed it. "Um, well-kin-ehhh, well, after the other-mmmm . . . yes. I-I guess I am."
"Well, I'd love to, Skye," he smiled. "Thank you." He paused before handing Skye her present shyly. "And I uh. . . got this for you."
She accepted it with a shy smile. "Th-thank you." She opened the small box and gasped at the jewelry box hidden within the tissue paper. Jewelry? What she saw when she opened it surprised her even more.
A necklace lay within, a silver chain with a matching heart-shaped pendant. Within the edges of the heart were small diamonds and amethyst stones. It was a simple design, but as beautiful as it was meaningful.
"How did-wh . . . thank you!" She leaned over and hugged him, though it ended up being more falling on him. "How did you know what I'd like?"
"Well, I uh. . . kinda had some help," Smokescreen chuckled as he returned the embrace, glancing sideways at Darkstorm who simply grinned and placed a single digit against her lip components.
"Well I love it, thank you so much." Skye laughed as she pulled away, again more like picking herself up off him.
"You're welcome," Smokescreen widely before gesturing to Skye's neck. "May I?"
"O-of course." She turned her back to him and instinctively went to pull her hair out of the way before realizing that after they'd evacuated the base she'd had it cut. He gently placed it around her neck and attached the clasp. She smiled at him before looking down, carefully picking up the pendant so she could admire it.
Everyone's attention was diverted as Optimus and Elita One walked up to the front of the large group.
"We are celebrating a human holiday, one that emphasizes peace on earth and goodwill towards all sentient beings. . . Unfortunately, we are a long way from true peace," Optimus began. Several individuals in the audience solemnly nodded. "And now Megatron has brought his tyranny to yet another planet. But. . . we should not lose hope. Wherever there is hope, anything can be accomplished. And if God is on our side, then no force can stand against us."
"We wish to thank each and every one for your contributions and promise that our lives will not always be consumed by war. There will be an end to this. We shall see to it that Megatron and his evil regime are vanquished. We fight to uphold justice and hope. We fight to uphold peace and a Cybertron free of oppression," Elita added.
Optimus picked up a spare energon cube and held it high. "This day is for all of us. And as we look towards the birth of a new year, let us celebrate peace and remember that there is always hope. Our comrades will not have been terminated in vain for we shall see unity once more. Until all are one!"
"Until all are one!" Cybertronian and human alike yelled, raising their respective cubes and drinks high.
D/N: *raises coke glass* Until all are one! xD And a very Merry Christmas and New Year to whoever is reading. We hope you all enjoyed this chapter, filled with romance and drama and feels and we hope to hear y'all's feedback. A big thank you to our supporters, as always!
And I wished to reinforce the true reason we celebrate this season. It's not for decorations or presents or Santa Claus. It's for Jesus. He came to earth during Christmas and was born, thus bringing hope and joy to this dark world. And it's also a time to spread that same joy and hope to others.
Make sure to keep this in mind as you celebrate this wonderful time of year!
"An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom His favor rests."" Luke 2:9-14
"For to us a child is born, to us a Son is given, and the government will be on His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over His kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this" Isaiah 9:6-7
To Savvy Orion: Thank you so much! We are so glad you enjoyed the last chapter and tamales? xD Yum! As for your fanfiction story, go for it! The Lord pushed me to write my own fanfiction and look where I've gotten. And then the lovely blondie came along... and things got even more awesome! So follow your dreams and the Lord and He will bless you. As for Darkstorm's bday, it was the 21st. *goes off to call Darkstorm over to the computer*
Darkstorm: "Well, you sweet little youngling. Thank you for remembering! *smiles and hugs you* And thank you also for the birthday wishes. They are much appreciated."
To Keira N: You are so welcome! You can ask blondie or me anything and we shall try to answer y'all to the best of our ability. We are glad that we satisfied your craving for romance. As for when 'Bee dies... let's just say the drama and feels will kill. xD
Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and may God bless all of you!
Until next time, Dream'sRealm
B/N: *raises Dr Pepper can* Til all are one! And what's a Blondie/Dream chappie without some drama and romance? Especially for such a special time as Christmas. It's kinda staying around or below zero where I dwell, but it somehow doesn't detract from the holiday cheer, even for someone like me who hates extreme temperatures. In this case, it's an excuse to forego outdoor activities for more . . . feely ones x3 Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, everyone :D stay warm!