Fandom: Transformers G1/Bayverse
Author: gatekat and starshield on LJ
Pairing: Jazz/Prowl, Prowl/Soundwave
Rating: PG-13 mech/mech
Codes: Slash, Spark
Summary:
Disclaimer: The authors are only playing with their own twisted muses. Transformers belong to Hasbro. Fandom-side, check the inspirations page (gatekat-fics .livejournal .com/290 .html ) We draw from a ton of amazing stories and authors you should read.
Notes: klik = 1 minute; breem = 8.3 minutes; joor = 6.3 hours; orn = day/32 joor; metacycle = 6 (5.9285) years; vorn = 83 years/14 metacycles
~text~ bond/hardline talk
::text:: comm chatter

At All Costs 43: When Time is Given

Jazz stood on the balcony that Prowl loved the most, watching the sunset over a rebuilt Iacon. Three hundred vorns of hard work had gone into the city, into all of Cybertron. At the very edge of his visual range Jazz could pick up the lights of Praxus to the south, Protihex in the west and Altihex orbiting far to the northeast. It was an incredible sight, not unlike his early memories when he'd been sent to a party in a Crystal City Tower.

How much had changed since then?

How much hadn't changed?

Optimus was proving to be a strong and wise Prime, a greater leader in peace than he had been in battle. Under his guidance the divisions of Autobot, Neutral and Decepticon were being forgotten, mechs and femmes simply proud to be Cybertronians as they worked together to rebuild.

The old models of caste and class were done away with, replaced with a system that those who had fought for freedom had dreamed of, a system that rewarded those who worked hard and took care of those who were content as they were.

Across the bond came the sense of Prowl and the feeling of his mate's happiness at being home. No longer Prime's second in command with army to organize, Prowl still served his Prime in much the same capacity. The Praxian's days were spent sorting and organizing data, keeping Prime informed of the condition of the people he led and the planet he was responsible for, as well as functioning as one of the key planners in the rebuilding of the world they had fought so hard to save.

And while Prowl's coding was content with anything that had him planning and organizing, his personal passion was building-creating - even if it took him away from those he loved on occasion. Like his most recent decaorn long trip to review the reconstruction of Kaon. The city had suffered little by way of war-related damage, but it had been a central focus in bringing all the cities up to a minimal standard of functioning to prevent another war.

Now Prowl was on his way home, only a few blocks away. With a little help from their bond and the upgrades Jazz had received as an Autobot, he could pick out Prowl's alt mode and follow it without difficulty. A second-nature action. Programs and protocols he'd never quite managed to erase activated to feed him targeting data.

He could almost feel the heavy sniper rifle in his hands as he shifted into a more stable firing position.

It was nearly a full klik before he managed to suppress the sniper protocols and relax, soothing himself that he didn't really have a weapon and hadn't really targeted his bondmate.

His bonded disappeared from view, and the presence that was Prowl brushed against the silver mech's spark, full of love and the understanding that Prowl knew what Jazz had just been thinking.

~You didn't miss me?~ Gentle teasing as Prowl made his way upward.

~Missed you terribly,~ Jazz send all the love and longing he'd felt. ~Sounders and the kids have too.~

~Are they home, or is Soundwave on duty tonight?~ Prowl asked, moving faster at the longing he felt over the bond, intent on joining his lover on the balcony.

~He's on duty. I asked him to give me tonight,~ Jazz's words were tinged with gratitude. ~I ... we need to talk.~

The quiet whisper of a door as Prowl stepped out on the balcony, sweeping Jazz into is arms, joy at holding Jazz once more topmost in his thoughts, but with it an undercurrent of concern and old fear.

~Not that kind of talk, love,~ Jazz promised as he turned around for a kiss that drew out long but chaste. ~A good talk, I think. Just serious.~

Reassured, Prowl settled to hold his bonded. ~Inside, so we can talk, or save it for later?~

Jazz wavered. He'd really planned on talking out here, away from the enclosed spaces that they shared. For whatever reason, this balcony had always been Prowl's space, a location that Jazz rarely intruded upon and Soundwave never did.

"Talk out here?" Jazz asked, relaxing in his love's embrace.

"Of course love." Prowl kissed him again before settling down so they could talk comfortably and for however long they needed. ~I'm listening, whenever you are ready.~

Jazz simply relaxed into the comforting embrace and field. He shut off his optics and scanners, allowing the universe to close to what he could feel against his plating. The light breeze. Prowl's warmth. Prowl's EM field.

It gently washed away the doubts that had built up over the last few joors until he was purring softly.

~Sorry, it's just a big deal,~ Jazz murmured when he was sure of himself and his choice once more. ~You've both been so patient with me. I'm finally ready.~

~Jazz...~ Prowl held him closer, hope flaring in his spark as he studied his bonded.

Jazz turned to claim Prowl's mouth, eager and hungry but with no intention of trying for more. ~Bond with Soundwave, when you wish.~

~You are sure?~ Gentle spark searching along the bond, Prowl's need to be sure that Jazz was going to be all right along with love, devotion and the view of the silver mech through Prowl's optics.

A gift from Primus.

~Yes,~ Jazz pushed all his certainty and devotion in reply. ~I'm not saying I'll never have orns and we agree that we'll never be more than the casual lovers we've always been, but I'm ready for you to bond with Soundwave. I'm ready to feel him there.~

Prowl nuzzled him gently, tilting his head to look into Jazz's dark visor. ~Thank you.~

~I love you,~ Jazz smiled in reply.

~I know.~ Prowl kissed him gently, acknowledging the constant in his life, the love that had saved him when he had been ready to give up, and opened his chest plates in offering.

Without hesitation, without even considering it, Jazz opened his chest plates in reply. Joy, anticipation and adoration rushed across the bond as it grew stronger just from the lack of armor between its two halves.

Prowl shifted the smaller mech around in his arms, lining sparks up as gold edged blue light reflected on his bonded, and the emotions from Prowl reflected Jazz's.

~I love you. That will never change.~ Spark case spiraled open, spark already reaching out, and with the knowledge that there was a part there that would always be only for Jazz. ~I love you.~

With a shiver Jazz willingly fell into the merge, not even trying to put words to what Prowl meant to him, what the acceptance and time meant to him. That being allowed to love Prowl and give him what he needed meant to Jazz, Prowl's spark was flooded with Jazz's joy at being ready to give Prowl what he desired.