PLEASE NOTE: I do NOT own "Que Sera, Sera"! The song belongs to Doris Day.

Everything was pretty much set now. Baby toys and supplies were purchased; the crib was set up; special energon for sparklings was mixed. Everyone was trying to sparkling-proof the base—no choking hazards could be on the ground, and nothing that was sharp or dangerous to eat.

Starscream, who had never been so continuously uncomfortable in his life, finally decided to let Skywarp sing to the little twins. Skywarp either massaged Starscream's aching wings or stroked the sparkling-bump that got a little bigger every day, and Starscream could just close his eyes and relax as he listened to Skywarp's singing:

Now I have children of my own

They ask their daddy: What will I be?

Will I be handsome, will I be rich?

I tell them tenderly:

Que sera, sera

Whatever will be, will be

The future's not ours to see

Que sera, sera

"I love that song," Starscream whispered as he turned his head to the side, eyes closed. Right now he was propped up on pillows, as usual, and although he'd been achy as always, the singing and rest helped make him feel a little better. "Where have I heard it before?"

"Remember? It was the song our mother always sang to us when we were hurt or upset," Skywarp replied gently. "Now you can sing it to your sparklings. Or, I can, at least."

"Oh yes, that's right," Starscream whispered. Very vaguely, he remembered himself and his two brothers as little sparklings, all crammed into one crib; he remembered the way his mother would rock them back and forth every night until they drifted into stasis; and yes, that was the song that Starscream loved her to sing to him. That was what Starscream remembered most, the beauty that was family.

…

It was well past midnight, and Thundercracker was still wide awake. Skywarp and Moonbeam were maintaining their now-shaky relationship, so they were still sleeping in the same room together. Starscream was in a fitful stasis; he wasn't allowed to lie on his front, and his back was painful too.

All day long, Thundercracker had been feeling so many things, and none of them did he understand. Part of him wondered what it would be like if Skywarp and Moonbeam split up, and she could be Thundercracker's girlfriend…but could he do that to Skywarp?

Sure. Why not? Moonbeam was public property. Skywarp didn't own her.

Thundercracker thought of the fight Moonbeam had with Gemstone about a month ago. That fight had turned him on immensely. For the whole rest of the day he'd been so pressurized he could hardly stand it; finally he convinced Gemstone to have a little fun with him that night to get rid of all that stress.

Watching femmes fight always turned Thundercracker on. Simply put, he liked tough femmes who fought hard when they needed to, like Gemstone did. Moonbeam hadn't even stood a chance against her.

"Oh, slag, not again…" Thundercracker whispered. There it was again, pressurization. Why? It was weird; Thundercracker hadn't had Moonbeam on his mind this time. Really, he didn't know what was on his mind. Something was making his spark beat faster. Something. Thundercracker didn't know what it was or where it came from, but he was suddenly feeling very frisky.

Thundercracker didn't want just anyone. Moonbeam had been living with them for a very long time now, almost a year, and she still hadn't shown any sign of interest in him. Was he letting her slip through his fingers? Was it not meant to be between her and Skywarp?

I should probably go get Gemstone, Thundercracker thought. Maybe she can help me forget about my beloved Moonbeam again…

Thundercracker quietly slipped out of bed, making sure not to wake up Starscream, and made his way to the med bay, where Gemstone slept at night. When he walked in, there she was, sleeping. Her pearly white paint job was reflecting the moonlight, making it shine. There was a peaceful smile on her face as she slept on her side, clinging to the sheets. She didn't look like a hooker; she looked beautiful.

As he walked over to the repair table where Gemstone slept, Thundercracker felt his spark beating faster again.

"My precious Gemstone," Thundercracker whispered, stroking her head. She stirred in her sleep, but didn't open her eyes.

Thundercracker just sat there for a moment, watching Gemstone sleep. For some reason he liked it here. She was good in bed, but they weren't even doing anything right now and yet he still couldn't stop looking at her. It was confusing. So confusing.

With a heavy spark, Thundercracker kissed Gemstone on top of her head, stood up, and left the room.

…

Skywarp was interacting with Starscream's sparklings again. Later that day, Starscream had another appointment with Moonbeam, to make sure everything was fine. These appointments had to be more frequent, since the twins were pretty much here. Starscream let out a contended sigh as he heard Skywarp reach the second verse:

When I grew up and fell in love

I asked my sweetheart: What lies ahead?

Will we have rainbows, day after—

That was when Skywarp's voice broke, and he made a little whimpering noise. Starscream sat up (not without some difficulty) and looked at the purple jet; he was obviously trying to stop tears that were running down his face anyway.

"What happened?" asked Starscream. "Skywarp?"

"Don't worry about it," Skywarp insisted. "Just relax, friend."

"Well, I can't now, can I?" said Starscream. "Now I want to know what's gotten you so upset."

"I couldn't sing the 'rainbows day after day' part." Skywarp wiped his eyes and sniffed. "Moonbeam and I used to have rainbows day after day. Now we don't."

"Did she dump you?"

"Sort of," said Skywarp shakily. "Today I tried to give her a kiss, and she told me she needed a relationship 'break'. Whatever the slag that means."

"Oh," Starscream whispered. "That's harsh."

"I don't even know what she wants from me any more," Skywarp mumbled. "Sometimes she likes me, sometimes she doesn't. It's impossible for me to really know how she feels. Femmes are a mystery."

"That they are, Skywarp," said Starscream quietly. "That they are."

With that, Starscream sat up all the way, took Skywarp into his arms, and finished the rest of the song:

Que sera, sera

Whatever will be, will be

The future's not ours to see

Que sera, sera

What will be, will be

Que sera, sera

LATER THAT DAY…

This was the first appointment with Moonbeam that Skywarp felt he couldn't go to, although he had teleported Starscream there. Starscream understood why he didn't want to see his "girlfriend" right now—if she could even be called such.

"Thanks for the teleportation, Skywarp," said Starscream gratefully. "Walking around is a pain in the aft for me."

"I'll be waiting outside for you," Skywarp said back. "Make sure you tell me everything, okay?"

"Okay," Starscream promised him, and went inside the med bay.

"Wow, you look just about to pop, don't you?" said Moonbeam snidely. "Get up on the repair table."

"What are you going to do today?" asked Starscream.

"Be quiet," said Moonbeam, carefully lifting up Starscream's cockpit. "First I have to make sure their sparks are beating regularly."

It was a very uncomfortable feeling for Starscream, to have his spark squeezed. Even if Moonbeam was a good medic, it still felt kind of awkward, especially because the two of them hadn't ever really hit it off.

"So…how are the sparklings doing?" Starscream asked.

"Their spark-beats are fine," Moonbeam replied, and shut Starscream's cockpit. "Can you still feel them kicking you?"

"That's an understatement," said Starscream.

"You don't have any dizziness or anything?" Moonbeam asked. "Any other symptoms you've been having?"

"Nothing more than usual." Starscream shrugged. "Do you have any advice?"

"Pay attention to what your body tells you," Moonbeam told him. "And if you get any suspicious sort of pain, especially around the chest, come to me immediately, okay? For all you know it might be the sparklings."

"I feel a lot of pain," said Starscream.

"Well…sometimes these pains are just preparing you," Moonbeam was telling him. "Either way, though, make sure you stay in touch with me."

"Noted," said Starscream. Moonbeam sounded so colloquial, so happy. Didn't she know she was continuing to hurt Skywarp, who still wouldn't let go of her? Didn't she know she was playing hot-and-cold with him? Or did she know it, and just not care?

"What are you looking at me like that for?" Moonbeam demanded.

"Look, Moonbeam, I really appreciate you doing this for the sparklings and all, but…" Starscream sighed. "Do you have to be this way with Skywarp? He's hurt and confused out of his mind about what you want from him."

"I don't want anything from him," Moonbeam snapped. "I've just been in this relationship for awhile, and…I guess I need some fresh air."

"That's kind of insensitive," said Starscream indignantly.

"Well, that's how I feel," Moonbeam told him. "And there's nothing you can do to change that."

"You know, Moonbeam, I know you think you're better than everyone else," Starscream told her, feeling angry. "But you're not. I don't appreciate how you're treating my brother or your high-and-mighty attitude."

"Big deal," she said back. "What are you gonna do about it, huh? You don't know anything about anything."

"I'll be the judge of that." Starscream glared at her. "I challenge you to a dogfight."

"You can't do that," Moonbeam taunted. "You're grounded for the next two months, remember?"

"Fine, then, as soon as I can, we'll have a dogfight outside," Starscream snapped.

"You're on!" Moonbeam shouted.

"May the best Seeker win," said Starscream calmly. "And I think we both know who that is."

TO BE CONTINUED…