It was getting increasingly harder, but Starscream was managing to lug the huge, heavy crib into base. This couldn't possibly be good for the sparklings, but nobody else had volunteered to carry it at the moment.

That was when Skywarp walked in, though, with a dreamy look on his face—obviously thinking about Moonbeam. When he noticed Starscream with the heavy furniture, though, he ran right over, looking concerned all of a sudden.

"Starscream, what are you doing carrying that?" Skywarp demanded.

"Well, considering I have hardly four months to go now, I figured we should put this crib in our room, don't you think?" Starscream grunted, trying to keep the crib lifted up.

"Let me help you," said Skywarp, grabbing onto the crib, and they teleported into the Seekers' room, where Skywarp worked on pushing the crib into the corner.

"Thank you, friend," said Starscream gratefully, then collapsed onto his bed.

"Moonbeam says your twins are developed enough that if they were born now, they would probably survive," Skywarp told him.

"It's probably going to get annoying later on, but for now I actually like all these jabs and jolts I've been feeling," Starscream added. "It's like their way of telling me they're doing fine."

"This is really the exciting part, you know," said Skywarp, plopping down on the bed next to Starscream. "You get to set up their living space, like with the crib, and wonder what they'll look like and act like, if any of them will look like you…and it's so nice that you put the crib in here. That way you'll always be there if they need you at night."

"Exactly," said Starscream. "You probably don't know what I mean, but I love them already."

"Oh, I know what you mean, friend," Skywarp said happily. "Do you mind if I…y'know…?"

"Go ahead," said Starscream. "Now that I'm eight months in, half the people I encounter are trying to feel the sparklings. Apparently my body's public property now."

"Sorry…" Skywarp looked a little embarrassed. "It's just…I really like sparklings…and I'm their uncle…so I just thought maybe…"

"I'm just giving you a hard time, 'Warp." Starscream was laughing. "It's okay."

Skywarp closed his eyes and put his head and hands on top of the sparklings; Starscream set one hand there too. Skywarp kept his eyes closed, but he smiled gently and whispered, "Wow, I really can feel them in there."

"I think they're old enough to hear now, actually," said Starscream. "You can try and talk to them if you want."

"Listen, sparklings, it's your uncle Skywarp," Skywarp told them tenderly, still pressing his head to Starscream's stomach and looking so happy. "I can't wait to meet you. I love you both so much and I wish you were here right now so I could pinch your little cheeks. I guess I could sing to you now if you—"

"Now, now, Skywarp, I said you could talk to them," Starscream reprimanded him. "Not sing to them."

When Skywarp sat up again, there were a few tears shimmering in his eyes as he said, "I wish these were my sparklings, not Megatron's."

"Um…that's messed up, 'Warp," Starscream told him, looking more than a little weirded out.

"Oh, no, th-that's not what I meant at all!" Skywarp laughed nervously. "I mean, I wish they were mine, but the carrier was Moonbeam, and we were starting a family. That would be the best thing in the world."

"I didn't know you were looking so far ahead into the future," said Starscream. "You really want to start a family with her?"

"There's nothing I would love more," Skywarp replied. "I mean, we haven't talked about it yet…but I'm sure she feels the same way as I do about this."

"I'm sure she does, too," said Starscream, but he was really thinking, I HOPE she does, too.

"Imagine that." Skywarp was looking dreamy again, lost in another world. "We would be the perfect family. I would be the perfect father and she would be the perfect mother, and I could teach our little sparklings everything I know…help them learn how to fly…"

"Skywarp, if you had sparklings with Moonbeam, they would be purebreds," Starscream reminded him. "They'd have a 100% chance of being able to fly instinctively from about a week after birth. You wouldn't have to teach them."

"What about your twins?" asked Skywarp. "They've only got Seeker CNA on your side."

"Our race consists mainly of the dominant traits," Starscream explained. "Chances are that at least one of them will grow up to be a natural flier, and both will most likely have Seeker qualities. Actually, being a ground-bound Decepticon is very recessive, possibly a result of minimal inbreeding between Decepticons and Autobots, who are typically grounded. Of course, when it comes to CNA nothing's guaranteed, but when you look at it logically—"

"I failed that CNA class back in Seeker School, remember?" Skywarp shook his head and laughed. "Thundercracker didn't even bother taking it."

"It was called 'Decoding the Cybertronian Genome', genius," said Starscream sarcastically, "and I'll have you know I did very well in it."

"I know you did," said Skywarp. "You were always our big science nerd."

"Hey, I got along just fine with the femmes," Starscream protested.

"I never said you didn't," said Skywarp, smiling, then gave Starscream a hug. "Well, no matter what happens, I'll always be very happy for you."

…

Skywarp knew Moonbeam was on call today, so he went to the med bay and knocked a little nervously on the door. In his hand he was holding some flowers, just for her.

"Who is it?" called Moonbeam.

"It's your loving boyfriend," Skywarp said through the door. "Nothing's wrong, but do you have a little time to talk?"

Moonbeam opened the door, laughed, and led Skywarp to the repair table. "I have plenty of time for you, sugar daddy."

"Listen, I just wanted to talk to you about something," Skywarp said, handing the flowers to Moonbeam. "Something really important."

Moonbeam looked interested now. "How important?"

Skywarp sat up on the repair table and looked away from her. "Well…you know how Starscream's been carrying for a little over eight months now, right?"

"No, I didn't know that," she said sarcastically. "Look, hon, can we wrap it up, please?"

"It's just that I'm really excited to meet the sparklings, and…" Skywarp smiled slightly. "I just wanted to know if you see sparklings in our future too."

Moonbeam's red eyes were wide, her mouth open; Skywarp hadn't seen her this shocked in awhile. For a little bit she fiddled with the flowers, then laughed artificially.

"What?" asked Skywarp.

"Look, sugar daddy, we haven't even been with each other for a year!" Moonbeam hopped up onto the repair table next to her boyfriend. "I love being with you, but I didn't have our entire lives planned out yet!"

Skywarp could feel his face heating up. "You don't…you don't want a family?"

"I might," Moonbeam told him, holding onto his forearms and making her voice soft. "Just not now. Okay?"

"Okay," Skywarp said quietly. "I can deal with that."

"Come on, sugar daddy, I've been on call all day long and nobody's gotten sick," said Moonbeam, grinning. "Do you want to get a little frisky?"

Skywarp thought of Megatron and Starscream's little sparklings, almost ready to be born. Surely Starscream would allow him to hold them…right? But it wouldn't be the same. Those adorable new sparklings might be his nephews or nieces, but they would never be his sons or daughters.

"I-I'm sorry, Moonbeam," said Skywarp sadly, hoisting himself off the repair table. "I have to go."