Well... don't feel like writing an author's note, really. So you guys luck out. XD
Just wanna say sorry it took so long, but more will be coming soon. I actually liked writing this chapter, especially the beginning.
Hope I made the wait worthwhile!
Starscream coughed and gagged and just all-around struggled as Megatron pinned him against the wall. "My lord, please! I'm sorry, so sorry! So sorry!"
Megatron growled and pulled Starscream away from the wall by his throat, then slammed him back against it. "You lost our girl! Can't I rely on you for anything? Each and every time I give you a task to do, you disappoint! Again and again!" He threw the other Cybertronian to the ground.
"I-I was in the sky, my lord," Starscream wheezed. "B-Barricade should have watched her-"
"Shut your audio hole." The newest Decepticon among them, a femme by the name Moonfall, pushed herself off the other wall. "He says it's your fault, Star-screams-like-a-tiny-organic-femme, then it's your fault. Would you like to have my guns shoved up your aft?"
Starscream growled, getting to his feet. "Why don't you go find an alt mode so you can be a bitch on wheels instead of just a bitch?"
Moonfall snarled, and in an instant Starscream was against the wall once more, this time pinned by the femme's servos. She bashed the back of his head on the wall and got her face close to his. "You are mine to kill, you hear me, Stars-creep? Don't go getting killed by any humans, or by Lord Megatron, because you are MINE."
He gasped and shoved her away. "H-How dare you!"
"How dare I? Pft. You pathetic aft-hole, feigning your false superiority..."
"Moonfall!" Megatron barked. "Perhaps you should go find an alternate mode."
Moonfall scowled before shooting a look at Starscream. A very nasty, vengeful look. "Of course, my lord. I shall find something suitable." She stalked past Starscream, "accidentally" bumping into him - hard. "Remember what I said, Star-screams-like-a-girl. If you get yourself killed, I'll come to the Pit myself and drag you back so I can do the job right."
Starscream stared at her as she sauntered off, even as he rubbed at his arm. He could already tell, this was going to be a love-hate relationship. "And I thought femmes were supposed to be soft and gentle... what a 'c u next Tuesday'..." As he said this, an uncomfortable, passionate heat rose in his processors, almost as if to betray him. After all, bitch or not, he hadn't seen a femme in a very, very long time.
Meanwhile, Megatron had decided to ignore the two after he'd issued his order to Moonfall. He had traveled outside, but an empty spot in his mind was making it rather difficult to concentrate on trying to think. He had gone outside before, but most of those times Blare had been with him, in his hand. She may not have remembered anything about herself, but she knew this planet; he didn't. He wasn't as confident outside without her as he was inside.
Cities were different. They were full of familiar, if primitive, technology. Cities were easy because they held something he knew for certain, something he knew and felt quite comfortable around. But out here, it was rural and strange, made him uneasy. It was all organic out here, no technology to speak of but themselves. Of course it seemed harmless enough - collections of hardened minerals, bunches of sun-absorbing chlorophyll, the odd tubes of xylem surrounded by a pulpy covering, more chlorophyll blanketing the tops of them. But harmlessness aside, it was all so weird and unfamiliar.
He sighed, scanning the area once again, for probably the fifth time today. Still no sign of Blare. But what did he expect, honestly? For her to spontaneously show up now, even though his previous searches were fruitless? There wasn't any point in looking for her when he knew he wasn't going to find her here. Had he not just lectured her about the very same thing? Just yesterday, when she'd inquired if one could see Cybertron from Earth. He clearly said no, yet she persisted with the desire to look. Humans... such odd creatures indeed.
It was true. Like an imbecile, he missed the girl. Because it had merely started as stealing an ally from the Autobots, possibly having her as a prisoner, he assumed he'd not get attached to her. She was only a human... not worth giving affection to. But the confusion in her face, that she didn't know who she was... hard to resist, really. She didn't knew she was supposed to be with the Autobots; he thought to raise her all over and make her, mold her, into a Decepticon without having to persuade her too heavily. She trusted him, because he'd saved her. Try as he might, when she told him things like, "I'm so happy you found me, Master!" or "You love me as much as I love you, right? We're a family", it was hard not to offer a compliment back or say that yes, he did love her and yes, they were a family.
So yes, he had developed a sort of affection toward her. Of course he missed her. Of course it felt as if a part of him were gone too.
He looked out over the land once again, and closed his eyes. Sometimes when there was nothing else to do, he allowed himself to browse the humans' World Wide Web. A time ago, he'd come across a philosophy site. He'd found a concept that he couldn't get out of his mind, with the situation now. It had said that if you truly care about something, you must set it free. If it knows to come back, and does come back, then it is yours forever. But if it does not return to you, it was never yours to claim in the first place.
He closed his eyes, and could almost feel Blare in his palm again, clinging tightly to his thumb with her tiny form. Her warm shape of a human, pressing against his fingers and still trusting him not to drop or crush her.
"Oh, my little butterfly... come back to me... fly back. You are, always have been, and always will be mine. Return to me, Blare."
Blare looked at the mech for a moment, then began to walk toward him. He looked as if he were thinking, and perhaps upset by something. Maybe he was upset that she was here.
She finally got closer to him, but he was still staring off into space. She worked up the courage needed, as much as she had in her, and approached him. She was easily close enough to touch him, but she made the wise decision to keep her hands to herself. "Excuse me," she called, making sure she was loud enough to be heard but not so loud that she startled him.
He glanced down, blinking at her, then tried to smile, but it wasn't completely genuine. He looked so troubled. "Hello, Blare."
She looked at the concrete beside him. "So, if I sat down beside you, would I be interrupting some kind of deep, personal reflection or something?"
This comment elicited a perfunctory chuckle from him. "No, feel free to take a seat."
She did so and crossed her legs, just as Starscream had taught her. She hadn't forgotten them. "I think I've talked to everyone but you. And Ratchet, but he seems to like the isolation so I think I'll just leave well enough alone."
"Yes. While I was speaking with Ratchet, I heard you interacting with Skids and Mudflap. It seems they've taken a shine to you."
"Oh, yeah." She shot a glimpse at the twins, and quite predictably they were were still having a wrestling match. Bumblebee was trying to play referee, to little avail. "They're kind of idiots, but... I guess they're my idiots. They're sweet, at least, and they care about each other."
"It's ideal for brothers to be so attached to each other." He sounded a little sad now, and she wondered why. "There is the joy of that bond, you know... but then there is also the agony of having it suddenly ripped apart. What do you believe, Blare? Does the joy outweigh the agony, or the other way around?"
She shrugged, grasping her ankles. "I don't know. But I know if I had a brother, I'd want to have a lot of good times with him, even if we did get separated. Maybe I'd probably feel that way if I had a sister instead, too."
"I see."
"Hey!" She tapped his arm. "I never got your name. What is it?"
"I am Optimus Prime."
"Oh..." She remembered how utterly confused and flustered she'd gotten when Ratchet mentioned the name Optimus in his little mini-word-quiz-thing. "So that was your name I got all hot and bothered over. I-I'm sorry. I was just trying to see if I remembered anything, and... I guess if I do remember anything about you, it's a little confusing."
"That's fine, Blare. You've lost your memory, and it's apparently been gone for quite some time. I wouldn't expect you to remember anything right away. Nobody does."
"I know." She pushed some hair away from her face. "But I still feel guilty. It seems like I was really close to everybody here, and I don't even remember them."
He was quiet for a moment, then he spoke again. "You know, Ratchet wants to do more work-up on you."
"He's not taking any of my blood, I can tell you that right now."
"Well, if you refuse, he'll just have Jolt hold you down while he fills up the vial."
"Even if I'm screaming at a high enough pitch to shatter glass?"
"He won't care, but he will apologize after."
She looked out at all the others, then took a breath. "I remembered something," she said quietly. "When I was with Sideswipe."
"What was it?"
"I remembered... I had some kind of conversation with him. We were talking about somebody he was trying to find, and he was upset." She reached up and rubbed at her arm. "I could feel it too. We were outside, and I was trying to calm him down. He was mad because he found out this person was alive, but he couldn't do anything. We talked... and then I felt his arms around me."
"That was all? There was nothing else to go along with that?"
She smiled a little. "I told him about it. He said of all the things I could have remembered, it was useless to remember that."
Optimus chuckled, though it sounded rather empty, like he didn't really find it funny. "That's Sideswipe for you. I'm glad you remembered one thing, no matter how little or how seemingly insignificant."
"Yeah." She brought her knees to her chest, letting out a deep breath. "I feel so guilty. I knew everyone here, didn't I? And not just acquaintances. They were all my best friends. Right?"
"That is for you to discover, Blare, not for anyone to tell you." His big, bright eyes blinked down at her. "What do you believe?"
"I... I must have," she answered, though without a lot of real conviction in her voice. "The twins... it's like they've called me 'Psycho' forever. From the first minute they met me, I mean. And Bumblebee called me his little doll... and in his real voice, too, just because I asked. That's not something you do for a stranger. I had that memory of Sideswipe. And Ironhide... um... he seems nice, I guess. And you..." She looked up at him, then back down again. "I don't... really know about you just yet. Maybe we weren't as close as I was to the others?"
"It could be so." Was it just her, or did he sound kind of... sad?
"But you know," she groaned. "You know what our relationship was, and you won't tell me."
"Because that wouldn't be your memory. That would be me feeding you all the information of what happened. You wouldn't truly remember anything. You would only know what I tell you, and none of it would be your own memories. If you remember, it's best for you to do so independently. Besides..." The corner of his mouth turned up just a little. "You'd probably just forget it again."
She scoffed, crossing her arms. "Yeah, that's a nice thing to say. Just for that, I'll make sure not to remember anything about you." But even as she said it she was smiling, just as he had.
I love Moonfall's personality. She's just so MEAN to Starscream. Is there any real reason for it? Or is she just a bitch to everyone? Hmmm, let's find out...
Also like Blare's little talk with Optimus and how they're already kind of joking with each other. How soon will she remember anything about HIM? Who knows.
Well, hope you guys liked! Reviews are always a nice surprise. Thanks for reading! ^^