I love how these just keep getting longer and longer. So I'm definitely updating at 5:30 a.m. while I listen to my dog snore on my bed. -.- He growls everytime I move. Sucks. And yes, my ever flexible medic OC, Fixit, is in this one. I love that bot. He just shows up everywhere ^-^

Chapter 3- Capture

In more unsophisticated cultures, a bride was captured and forced to marry. It was due to this that most women did not leave the house without an escort. The man, to insure that this was the woman he wanted, often followed her around and studied her closely whenever she was outside. (Tell me that wouldn't suck. Take a walk in the woods, get knocked out, and wake up married to your stalker. :\) The man was very careful with whom he chose to capture. After all, he was risking his life to capture and marry her (Fathers fought the invading man to insure that he was worthy and able to defend his future wife. It was not uncommon for a father to kill a man who was trying to kidnap a daughter.)

~*Mercury & Starscream*~

"Any cycle now," Mercury mumbled irritably. It was not her cycle. Not only had she been waiting for her best friend to meet her at the little energon café in the middle of upper-end Iacon, but she had multiple random bots staring and pointing at her, whispering about her, and taking pictures of her. This was why she was hated being out in the open like this without friends or family. You see, Mercury is the only creation of the great Optimus Prime and his mate, Elita-One, and every tourist simply had to take a photo-still of her to prove to their friends that they had, indeed, seen the only living femme Prime. Normally, the more understanding ones would take more subtle pictures when she was around her friends, not wanting to interrupt their conversations and such. Of course, there were those that moved close to take more detailed photo-stills, but she had grown rather used to them, and she was pretty good at ignoring them. It was the whispering, pointing, and staring she really despised.

::Hey, Merc? I can't come. Opi found out about the party last night.:: -Streamshot

Mercury jolted at the surprise message and suddenly felt the need to blow something up. Streamshot, though she was Mercury's best friend, was a flighty femme, and she wasn't exactly the brightest bulb in the bunch. The party was one of many she attended ever first lunar cycle, and thought Mercury warned her that her creators would be angry at her if they ever found out, the Wrecker femme still went. Now, she had to walk all the way back to the palace by herself because of Streamshot's stupidity. Well, she would have to walk to the outskirts of town. Then, once she was out of the no-fly-zone, she could fly back to the palace. With a sigh, Mercury rose to her pedes and started in an eastward direction.

The tourist bots around her surrounded her in a wide circle, far enough to not be standing on top of her, but close enough to take great pictures. Mercury sighed, hating the knowledge that this was what her life boiled down to. The Senate, ever prejudiced, refused to have a femme Prime, despite the fact that one of the Original Thirteen had been a femme. So where did that leave Mercury? A powerless femme creation of the Prime, lowered to being nothing more than a public idol, a star that little femmes stole trends from. Mercury sighed heavily as she trudged forward, slowly losing the crowd as she moved farther out of the no-fly-zone.

"Fancy seeing a femme like you out here," a deep voice said from behind her. Mercury jolted in surprise as she whirled around to see a certain Seeker standing behind her, walking in time with her. His ruby optics glittered with amusement and another emotion that I couldn't place. His silver delta wings, covered with Cybertronian engravings (tattoos), were held high in pride. His whole frame seemed strangely tensed, as if he were readying himself to spring on some unlucky prey.

"Greetings, Starscream," Mercury said politely, giving him a smile. Starscream, though he was still very much a mystery to her, was a rather nice mech to be around. He was the current leader of Vos, a Seeker-filled city-state known for having the most well-trained flyers on Cybertron, and he had come to Iacon to speak with the Senate about some matters with Vos's low-energon problems. As every visiting dignitary did, Starscream was currently taking residence in the Iaconian palace with the Prime's family, meaning Mercury saw a lot of him. In fact, it almost seemed that he made a point of bumping into her at least once in between each group refueling. Normally, he bumped into her more than once, though. It was moments like the one she was currently in that made Mercury wonder if the winged mech was stalking her.

"I had to see you one last time before we left," Starscream stated as he stepped toward her, a predatory smirk on his face.

"Oh?" she replied uneasily. It suddenly became painfully obvious how empty the streets around her were. Only she and Starscream stood there. Buildings were empty due to the fact that there was still another joor left of the working cycle. Younglings were either at a cycle-caring center (daycare center) or at the Academy. "Who is 'we'? Did your trine come to retrieve you?" she asked casually. The predatory smirk grew.

"Actually, no. 'We' is you and I, my femme. I know you've read a datapad on Seeker traditions. I saw you put it back on the shelf three solar cycles ago. Tell me, did you ever get to the chapter on Seeker relationships?" he asked, taking another step forward. Mercury's spark sank a little as it started thudding in her chassis. She could remember reading it very well.

'Seekers are easily the most instinctual of all Cybertronians. They are built to be very in tune with their sparks, and they are built as social creatures. As such, when a Seeker finds something, or the case of this chapter, somebot they want, they rarely give up until they acquire that bot. Femme Seekers, being less territorial, are nowhere near as bad as mech Seekers. A mech Seeker, once he finds a femme he desires to be his mate, will start making a "nest" for said femme. This nest will be where the femme will live for the rest of her existence. There is no way around that, seeing as a mech Seeker will keep close tabs on the one he desires as his mate.

'A mech Seeker will then start planning out his plans to capture his desired femme. This, though seen as a rather barbaric action amongst other Cybertronians, is a close-kept tradition for Seekers. The mech Seeker will find a way to gain the desired femme's trust, then he will capture her at a moment when there will be no bots around to challenge him, thus keeping his femme safe from other mechs and giving him a quick getaway at the same time. If there is another mech around willing to fight for the femme, the mech Seeker is likely to kill the mech to eliminate any witnesses before he takes his femme to the newly built nest. A mech Seeker will do anything in his means to capture this femme and get her to his nest.

'I write this as a warning to all femmes around Cybertron. If you see a mech Seeker trailing you anywhere, find help and avoid meeting with that Seeker in places devoid of other Cybertronians. If you do end up meeting this Seeker in private, and he displays predatory actions, then this author would strongly suggest you start running.'

Mercury stared at Starscream's smirking face as he took another step toward her. The author had said that running was the best option, but would Mercury even be able to outrun a mech that was known as the best Cybertronian flyer alive? He was part of the Royal Command Trine, for crying out loud! Once she got out of the no-fly-zone, there was no doubting his ability to capture her.

That's when it hit her: no-fly-zone equaled safety from a flyer. If she could keep Starscream in the no-fly-zone, she'd be safe. Maybe she could even get back to the more populated part of Iacon. Without waiting any longer, Mercury dashed off to the right and headed through a small alleyway to get to the next street. Starscream grinned as he allowed his femme a small head start. He so loved playing with his prey, only this time, the prey wasn't going to be killed. Instead, she would become his forever. He could hardly wait to show her the nest he and his brothers had built for her. Deciding he had given his little femme enough of a head start, Starscream turned and started pursuing his femme, easily enjoying the game of chase.

Mercury, however, was not enjoying the "game" at all. Her processor whirred frantically as it searched for escape routes. She had already attempted to comm. her creators, only to find that there was a jamming device somewhere in the area. She had no doubts that it was somehow of Starscream's doing. How could she have been so stupid! She hadn't thought twice of the attention Starscream lavished on her, she hadn't contemplated the signals he had given her with the heavy stares, and she hadn't even thought twice of the sweet energon cubes, the copper and rust sticks, and the expensive and rare datapads that kept mysteriously appearing on her berth before she went to recharge every cycle. How had she missed these signs? Even when she read that slaggin' datapad, she hadn't put much thought into it. She had only been curious about Starscream's culture. When she had read that chapter, she had been intrigued, thinking, like any femme would have, that it would be terribly romantic to be captured by a strong Seeker who would never betray her and would be more than willing to spend every astrosecond on his life with her in the big nest he would make, just for her. Suddenly, the romance was lost, replaced by a heavy fear that she may never get to see any other bots aside from Starscream for the rest of her life because of how overprotective he would become the second they sparkmated.

"Wrong turn, my spark," Starscream purred as he suddenly appeared in front of her from a side alley. Mercury yelped in surprise as she whirled on her foot and sprinted back the way she had come. "You can't escape me, my love," Starscream called as he laid chase. Mercury whimpered in fear. This had to be a nightmare. She didn't dare look behind her, knowing that Starscream was, no doubt, easily eating up the distance between us with his long-legged strides. Mercury crossed over an invisible line, and it seemed like a switch was flicked in her processor as her flight protocols were released from the stifling protocol lock that came with hanging out in the no-flight-zone. She felt panic flood her spark. She wasn't safe anymore. Starscream could easily transform and fly now, meaning that the chase was about to end. She had to get back to the palace, and she had to get there before Starscream caught her.

"Looks like our game is over, sweetspark," Starscream murmured from right behind her. His arms wrapped around her waist from behind as he yanked her to a stop. The momentum made her legs fly out from underneath her, but that was of no consequence to Starscream, who simply ignited his thrusters and shot into the sky. No, this wasn't happening! No, no, no! Mercury wiggled in his grip, trying with all her might to free herself. She heard Starscream chuckle in her audio receptor. "We can't have you raising a fuss the whole way home, my dear. I'm sorry for this," he said gently. He tightened his grip on his left hand and removed his right hand from her torso. Mercury heard the sound of a weapons transformation and looked down to see a null ray cannon rise from his wrist. She gasped when the mouth of the cannon pressed against the side of her torso, and the next second, she felt extreme pain immediately followed by complete numbness.

"I'm sorry, my femme," Starscream whispered, sounding truly apologetic. "You will understand, though. In time, you will understand." It was the last thing she heard as her processor took her body offline into an emergency medical stasis.

A mech Seeker will do anything in his means to capture this femme and get her to his nest.

Mercury woke up slowly. Her helm was producing a steady throbbing pain. What had she hit? Better yet, what had hit her? She was not usually a careless femme. Had she accidentally run into a building? No, she would be able to hear the steady thrum of Ratchet's spark monitor if she had, because she would undoubtedly be in Ratchet's clinic if she had injured herself to that degree. Instead, she heard nothing. Blissful silence surrounded her, something she only experienced when she was alone in her room or hiding in her father's library. So was she simply on her berth in her room? No her berth wasn't this soft. Mercury activated an internal systems check to make sure she wasn't in Ratchet's clinic with an audio receptor problem. Everything checked out except for her flight protocols. Those were rather carefully firewalled. Mercury grimaced. Why were her flight protocols offlined like that?

To lazy and comfortable to move, Mercury slowly online her optics. They offered a dim blue light on the wall she was facing. She frowned. Why was she facing a wall? She didn't know a single place that she had ever recharged that was up against a wall. She preferred recharging in an open space so that if she flung her arms in the night, she wouldn't hit anything hard. Not that she ever flung her arms in her recharge, but it was still an irrational quirk that she had. She finally decided that it would be wise to find out where she was, so she slowly turned over, ignoring the stinging pain in her left side. The sight that greeted her made her gasp. She used her arms to force herself up into a sitting position as she looked around.

She was in a cave. A metal cave with a floor completely covered in an extremely rare soft metal. She could tell by the feel of the walls and the obvious seams in the floor that the soft metal was not natural in the cave, meaning somebot had deliberately put it there before placing her in the cave. The corners where the floor met the walls were covered with a soft, metal mesh to keep smaller Cybertronian pests from making their homes there. Looking up, Mercury could see that the cave was easily twice as tall as her, giving her room to fly if she desired it, and at the very top were glowing blue energon crystals, the type that were usually sold as candy in Iacon and used as nightlights if necessary (that is, assuming said sparkling or youngling didn't eat it first). She took in the large cave, one that could comfortably fit eight or nine bulky mechs, and she couldn't help but wonder where she was. There was a single door to her right, on the left side of the cave, and a single uncovered opening right in front of her, across the large room.

"Where… am I?" Mercury murmured aloud as she painfully rose to her feet. Her side was extremely sore, and her processor was working hard to keep her from tipping over. She ignored these inconveniences as she made her way to the large opening. She leaned against the edge of the opening as horror filled her. She was at least seven Cybertronian stories off the ground in a cave that appeared to overlook the Transboreal Gulf Systems. The name was deceiving, though, as the only thing below her current spot was hard metal ground and a small river of liquid rust, as the Rust Gulf had long since dried up, leaving only a small river fed by the Sea of Rust. Mercury slowly backed into the cave, returning to the spot on the opposite side of the cave.

"What do I do?" she whispered to herself as she sank to the ground. Her back rested against the wall, and she hugged her knees to her body, ignoring the pain in her side. She had to get away before something bad happened, but she could barely remember how she got to the cave in the first place. She remembered getting angry at Streamshot, and she remembered walking away from the city. Then she met Starscream—

Wait. Starscream! He had kidnapped her. No, he had captured her. He was going to force her to be his mate! Her cooling systems kicked in as she fought back panic. She was gonna be stuck in this cave—

Her processor screeched to a stop as the book she read came back to mind.

'The nest is where the femme will live for the rest of her existence.'

Mercury looked around with a new light in her optics. She was in a nest. A nest. The soft floor was purposefully soft because she would be sleeping there for the rest of her life. Her and her sparklings. The energon crystals at the top of the cave would make perfect treats for younglings, and the crystals would always grow back. On top of that, they would provide sufficient light at night if it was needed.

Mercury was torn between being impressed and horrified. Starscream had really planned ahead when he had chosen this location. But still… did she want to mate with him? She couldn't deny the attraction she had felt for him from the beginning, but did she really want to be tied to him for the rest of her life? Mercury frowned as she debated this.

Starscream must have some intense feelings for her, or he wouldn't have chosen her. After all, Seekers were known for their intense loyalty to their trine and to their sparkmate. She wouldn't have to worry about him secretly regretting the choice in mates. Whenever she wanted his attention, she knew he would be willing to give it. If she needed something and Starscream was unable to get it, he would send one of his trine. She would want for nothing.

The sound of strong turbines filled the air, quickly growing louder and louder. Mercury, still hesitant about this decision, dropped down into a laying position and turned to face the wall so that she was on her uninjured side, in the same position she had been in when she awoke. She offlined her optics and forced her cooling systems offline just as she heard the sounds of alt. mode transformation outside the cave. She forced herself to remain calm as the sound of light footsteps sounded in her audios. The ground sank a little behind her as the offending mech knelt down beside her. A single claw gently ran down her face, from her temple to her jaw, an obvious sign of affection.

"My femme. Still resting are you?" a deep voice murmured. She felt him press something cold against the burn on her side, a burn he caused with his null ray, and repressed a shiver. "I was hoping you would be awake by now, my spark. We have much to speak about, and you have quite a few bots who wish to meet you." She didn't move as he tended to her injury. A metal patch was applied to keep out infection and rust, and Starscream ran the back of his claw down her cheek again.

"So beautiful. How did I get lucky enough to meet a femme like you? Strong, kind, and the creation of a Prime. You will make a fine Vosian queen. The mate of the Royal Command Trine's leader," Starscream murmured as he continued his petting. He hummed to himself. "I put my null ray on the lowest setting. I suppose it was still too strong. For that, I am sorry, my femme. I will make up for it. You just have to wake up." I almost frowned at how desperate his voice was becoming. Was he really that worried about me? "I've made us a wonderful nest, Mercury. It's large and soft, and it will make a perfect home for us. Just wake up, my love."

For some reason, Mercury decided to oblige him. Slowly, her optics lit up blue and locked on the wall. The claw paused on her temple, and she looked up at the Seeker that was hovering over her. Her optics met with red ones, and she involuntarily gasped. Starscream frowned at this reaction, and he returned to stroking her face, hoping it would calm her.

"Good cycle," he murmured with a smile. Mercury frowned.

"Where am I?" she asked without hesitation.

"Our nest. It's just outside of Vos, close enough that help can arrive quickly if you are threatened, but far enough away that if Vos was under attack, you would not be found by the enemy," Starscream stated, sounding eager to brag on his nest.

"And when my opiluk starts the investigation to find who botnapped me? I disappeared the day you left, and he knows of Seeker culture," Mercury countered. Starscream frowned, looking a bit like a kicked turbo-pup.

"I won't let them take you away," he said seriously. "I have brought you to our nest. I was successful in my plans, and by the time they arrive to take you back, you will have integrated into the Seeker community flawlessly, as I have planned."

"What if I don't wanna be your mate?" Mercury shot back. Starscream reeled back, a horrified and hurt look covering his faceplates. He rose to his pedes and started pacing in front of her.

"But…you—the signs were all there! My spark called to yours. I felt it! I sent you gifts at the end of ever solar cycle, tokens to prove that I could provide you sustenance, knowledge, and love. I gave you my attention, and you returned the favor. I know, because I saw the way you stared at me." Mercury blushed blue at the knowledge that she had been caught staring at him like a young femling at the Academy. "You sat to my right at every refueling, the seat that belonged to a mate. You allowed me to correct your flight pattern, something only a Seeker's intended allows. You cannot deny the way your spark speeds up when I am around, how it tries to thrum in sync with mine. You cannot deny these things!"

With a start, Mercury realized that he was telling the truth. She never allowed anybot to correct her flight patterns. It was somewhat awkward for somebot else to correct your flight because it basically meant that they thought you should fly like them, quite a bold and personal message to convey. Yet, she had allowed Starscream the privilege, seeing as it forced him to have close contact with her. She took the seat by his right because he always paid her more attention when she was there, rather than when she sat across the table from him. The gifts she found from him were received with a dreamy smile as she wondered which bot had placed them in her room.

And her spark most certainly sped up when he was around. She couldn't deny that, because even now, as she was frightened out of her processor, her spark still reached for him. She stared at him with wide optics, conviction setting in. Over the span of the half-vorn he had spent at the palace, arguing with the Senate and spending all his free time with her… she had fallen in love with him. Mercury studied him. He was standing before her, red optics shining with an unknown emotion, waiting for an answer.

"I cannot say that I am ready to mate yet…" she started, keeping her gaze locked with his. "But I can say that I reciprocate your feelings." She smiled as she watched his face light up. He dropped to his knees by her side and pulled her into his arms, eliciting a pained hiss from her. He immediately loosened his hold.

"I'm sorry," he said quickly. "I put my ray on the lowest setting, but I didn't think it would—"

"It's fine, Starscream. Just burns a bit," she assured him, moving a hand to cup his cheek. He purred as he leaned into the touch. She smiled gently, then frowned. "What did you mean by being integrated into Seeker community?" Starscream smiled.

"You can't rule Vos without being a Seeker, can you? When we join sparks, you will gain a string of coding that only Seekers have along with a file that contains Seeker instincts. It is why I have brought you to our nest. It will be far easier to teach you how to control your instincts when you are here, where nobot else can reach you."

"When… will I be allowed to see my family again?" Mercury asked slowly, gauging Starscream's reaction.

"As soon as you have been integrated, my love. An orn at the most. Thundercracker, my Second will inform your creators of our status and explain what it means and how they should react," Starscream said without hesitation. Mercury frowned.

"'How they should react?'" she repeated.

"Any attempts to retrieve you at this point, now that the mating is verbally been made consensual, will be viewed as an attempt to botnap the queen of Vos and will be treated as a declaration of war." Mercury's optics widened. A war? Over her? "Do not worry, my love. Prime will be reasonable."

"I don't know, Starscream…"

"It is for the best, Mercury. If you see them, you will change your mind. It is why we Seekers have taken to offlining flight protocols and stranding intended mates. What grounders do not understand, though, is that once a femme has become a Seeker, she no longer desires to return to the ground. Once you have lived in our nest for an orn, you will view it as your own, as the place where you will raise your sparklings. This is simply how your instincts will work."

"Oh," was her reply, because in all honesty, how else could she reply? Starscream ran a hand around the back of her helm, still holding her in his arms.

"It isn't as bad as you think it is. You'll see."

One and a half orns later

Mercury hummed as she onlined from her recharge. She really didn't feel like getting up. She was laying on the comfortable floor of her and her mate's nest, and she could feel that her mate was currently snuggling her to himself like she was an oversized comfort doll, one arm around her torso while the other served as a pillow for her helm. She felt his contentedness through their half-orn old bond, and she let her love flow gently through the bond, trying not to wake him. His response was to cuddle her closer, nuzzling his helm against the top of hers. She purred lightly at the inadvertent attention.

"Good cycle, my spark," he murmured in her audio receptor. Mercury hummed in reply. "Not very awake, are you?"

"Mm-mm."

"I don't suppose the offer of a flight would change that…?" Starscream replied. Mercury moaned in irritation at the decision. Did he really have to make her think this early in the solar cycle?

"C'n we jus'… cuddle?" she murmured on a breath. "Don' wanna move." Starscream chuckled.

"You cannot lay here forever, my femme," he replied.

"Watch me." With that, she let her optics offline again, only for them to flick back on her she felt a hand caressing her wing. She purred at the pleasurable feeling, sensitive sensors onlining on the appendages.

"C'mon, my love. You need the air. You know you do," Starscream claimed. Mercury couldn't deny that her processor was waking quicker with the promise of a flight. "Come, Mercury. Allow me to teach you how to fly."

"Okay, I'm… I'm coming," Mercury muttered as Starscream rose to his feet. She growled under her breath when she was pulled to her feet as well. "Mean mate. Mean." Said mate only chuckled at her.

"I have never known a bot to take this long to fully online," he claimed.

"So you've watched many bots online?" she asked as he pulled her to the cave's opening. Starscream chuckled.

"Only my brothers and you," he replied easily as his thrusters lit and lifted him into the air. Mercury smiled as her own, newly upgraded thrusters lit and allowed her to follow him. "Come, we must make this flight quick. I must meet with one of the Senators this cycle." Mercury frowned as he pulled her into the air, holding her hand until she was away from the cave. Then, he released her hands and transformed into the form of a sleek Cybertronian jet, a design made for speed that only the Royal Command Trine and their mates could manage to control. He was still teaching Mercury how to properly fly. She transformed as well, her black alt. mode matching his silver one almost perfectly, the only difference being that she was a bit smaller than him.

Together, they shot off into the air. To any outsider, the flight would have looked like a dance in the air. To any Seeker, it would appear as what it was: an innocently teasing game of tag. The chaser would rub a wing against the other whenever they were tagging, while the prey would dart around in a taunting game. However, Starscream was sure to keep Mercury out of sight. His Trine knew of her, important delegates and advisors of Vos knew of her, and of course the medic, but otherwise, her existence was kept a secret, especially during these times of social unrest. The lack of energon and the social castes had started causing little disputes, and Vos had been a large target as of late. It was no secret that Vos supplied its people with their own energon, and it was well-known that Vosians shared their energon with nobot else. After all, the energon was of a special mix, made for them specifically. Since they practically lived in the air, they needed more energy than normal energon could give. So they made their own. A grounder, however, would be able to live four to five solar cycles on one cube alone, whereas they had to drink three cubes of their own energon. So, as one would suspect, Vosian energon was greatly sought after, and the last thing Starscream needed was for them to discover his mate, who was still learning about her new heritage.

/Starscream/ That was the only thing that filtered through the bond before pain suddenly ripped through it. Starscream immediately transformed and caught his falling mate, who had transformed only moments ago, before looking around, trying to find the attacker. He couldn't find anybot, not with his radar or his optics.

/Skywarp, come pick us up and take us to the medbay. Now/ Starscream ordered over his trine bond. There was a muffled shhhp, and Skywarp swiftly wrapped his arms around Starscream before warping again. Mercury cried out as the warp drive transported them to the medbay inside the Vosian palace. Skywarp took a step back as Starscream called for the medic.

/I'm sorry/ Mercury sent over the bond. Starscream was about to ask her why when the sound of retching filled the medbay, and last lunar cycle's late refueling she had insisted upon was all over his chassis. Skywarp made a gagging noise and warped away. /I'm so sorry/ Mercury repeated, and to Starscream's horror, she broke down into tears.

/It's okay, my spark. It will come off/ Starscream assured her, trying to ignore the feel of it sliding down his form and seeping past his armor to his protoform.

/Now, you're gonna be late, and it's all my fault!/ she wailed via the bond.

"Fixit, get out here!" Starscream roared, sending his love and reassurance over the bond as he attempted to verbally dissuade her of her guilt. Mercury wasn't having that, though. She kept crying and apologizing as Starscream looked around the empty waiting room for a mech to help him. His savior was a white Seeker with red wings and a red medic insignia on his right shoulder. He took one look at the couple and almost laughed. Mercury was crying into her hands, while Starscream was wide-opticed and had the most desperate look on his face.

"Now what's wrong here?" he asked as he moved to his leader's side.

"Fixit!" Starscream exclaimed, looking rather relieved. The leader looked from Mercury to Fixit, back to Murcery, then back to Fixit. "What's wrong with her?" he demanded. Fixit chuckled at Starscream's crazed look.

"Why don't you hand her over to me, and I'll find out while you go to the medbay's washracks?" Fixit offered, holding his servos out to receive the sobbing femme. Starscream, however, stepped away from the medic with a warning growl. Fixit paused, then nodded as comprehension took over his expression. "She hasn't finished her initiation yet," he noted aloud. That meant Starscream wasn't going to let an unbonded mech near her unless he was extremely trustworthy. As if by cue, the waiting room door opened, and a navy blue jet that could easily be seen as Starscream's twin, despite the fact that he was both older and taller, strode in and moved directly to Starscream.

"'Warp said you'd need some help. I'll protect Merk while you cleanse yourself," Thundercracker stated. Starscream studied his brother for a klik before gently handing his mate over. They shared an intense look before Starscream strode into the medbay, where he would go to the adjoining washracks.

"Follow me," Fixit ordered, moving into the medbay. He gestured toward an empty berth while he grabbed a hand-held scanner. He was currently working on some technology that would allow a Seeker medic to have a high-scale scanner like this programmed into them when they became a medic. Grounder medics already had this, but the data was incompatible with Seeker systems. Thundercracker was extremely gentle with Mercury as he laid her on the berth, almost comically so. Fixit always loved watching newly bonded Seekers dealing with their mates, or in this case, with their trine member's mate. Always acting like they were made of glass.

"Now, let me scan you, and we'll see just what made you purge," Fixit said cheerfully.

"And fall." Fixit paused in his scanning and met her optics.

"Pardon?"

"And fall. My spark started flaring, and I couldn't stay airborne," she explained. Fixit frowned as he moved the scanner to scan her spark specifically. He smile started working its way onto his face.

"Looks like we will have the newest heir of Vos soon," Fixit announced. Mercury and Thundercracker remained straight-faced as they stared at the medic. "Don't you two get it?"

"I'm... gonna have… a sparkling?" Mercury asked softly, sounding a little lost. She had only been bonded for a half-orn! True, her and Starscream had been… close during that half-orn, but still! She wasn't even fully integrated yet!

"I'm gonna be an uncle!" Thundercracker suddenly shouted, pulling his leader's mate into a tight embrace. Mercury squeaked in surprise. "No wonder Screamer wouldn't let us come to see you last solar cycle! His spark could sense that the little one was budding, even if his processor hadn't quite caught it yet!" She frowned, kind of wishing Starscream had allowed Thundercracker and Skywarp to come by. She rather enjoyed spending time with them.

"What's this nonsense, and why are you attacking my mate?" Starscream demanded as he appeared from the washracks. Thundercracker removed himself from Mercury to give his brother a firm slap on the back. "What the slag!"

"You're gonna be an opiluk, Screamer!" Thundercracker informed him. Starscream went stiff, turning to Mercury with wide optics.

"You mean… you're…?" Mercury nodded, and had the pleasure of watching Starscream's face light up. "My femme!" he said as he rushed to her side and pulled her against himself in a tight hug. "An opiluk. I expected it, but not this soon!" he murmured.

"Now that the new-spark has separated from her own and moved into the sparkling chamber, she should be pain free. Flights need to be short and easy. No quick turns or jerky movements. As long as Skywarp doesn't warp her again, she shouldn't purge anymore. Her equilibrium systems may fluctuate from time-to-time, and she'll require more recharge and energon. For now, I would suggest you take her back to your nest. Keep her safe and warm," Fixit instructed. Starscream nodded enthusiastically.

"Come, my love. Let's get you back before anybot questions your identity and relationship to me," Starscream murmured. Fixit rolled his optics.

"Ever overprotective. Better get used to that, femme," he warned with a grin, totally ignoring Starscream scowl. Mercury allowed Starscream to lift her into his arms. They shared a single smile as he moved to the balcony entrance that every medbay had. He activated his thrusters and shot off, determined to keep his mate safe and happy. After all, what kind of mate would he be if he didn't?

Leonixon: I love writing that part out. Seems like something Sentinel would do. XD I know how it is. I'm definitely looking forward to Singles Awareness Day tomorrow. ;)

D-RockxIronhideForever: I've always hated Thunderblast, yet I love her character because if you need a mean girl, you can just throw Thunderblast in the spot. =D And good luck not using contractions! It's so hard for me not to, though I can if I'm focusing on it.

Angel897: Aw thanks :)

AlexisOptimus: XD I don't think there's a single person on Fanfic that hasn't had a moment when they didn't feel like logging in. I'm glad you didn't mind the endings. I dunno why, but they just always felt weak. XD Teehee, well, Sentinel has to train him up! So instead of making him flick a rubber band, he just hits him upside the helm. And hey, it worked! Optimus, like, never uses contractions! XD

SilverWolf1499: Yeah. Our class was shocked at the stats, too, but I did my research and checked them, and they were correct. Shocking, no? Yeah… This chapter was actually based off of my life. Sucks, doesn't it? Probably has something to do with why I now am sure to be polite to everyone who doesn't have friends, and why I encourage others to as well. I hate bullying, and my friends and I finally managed to make it to where our whole school hates it too. ^-^

Hummergrey: I definitely understand. I review my first period class. (Meh, who uses math anyways?) Yeah, last chapter was definitely from my heart. I still have self-esteem issues from bullying in elementary, and my situation was the same as Moonstrike's: one girl got the whole class in on it, only I doubt any of the guys were interested in me like that. I think that was why this was my favorite one to write.

Yeah! See, that's what I was trying to write, but my mind just shut off. -.- Now, I'm too lazy to go back and fix it because of how friggin busy I am. Valentine's Day shouldn't be this busy for a girl that isn't even dating anyone. -.-

Annebellelennox: Aw, thanks! Hence why I used Moon and Optimus. I love people being able to think that. ^-^ Makes me feel accomplished.

Yet another not-so-perfect ending, but guess what? It's friggin fivein the morning, so I actually don't care! Exhaustion FTW! XD

And Imma have reviews from Moonstrike and Optimus's story too! This is gonna be a great day, and my inbox will remained filled! Happy joy!