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Starcrossed 14: Last Resorts
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Prowl looked around the warehouse, doing a final unnecessary confirmation that everything was in good order, and logged out of the inventory systems.

Jazz's last shift had been the previous orn, and his mate had been recharging in their small apartment since then, trying to gather as much of his strength as he could for the drive to Crystal City. He operated best the quarter orn following recharge, and had worked out a schedule with his boss for the last three decaorn that allowed him to break his shift into two parts with a longer recharge break in the middle. The mech had been agreeable-Jazz was a quick worker when he wasn't too worn out-and had even told Jazz that if he had an opening when they got back to Tyger Pax, it was his. Prowl's position was guaranteed, the foremech had all but begged him not to leave for even a short while.

"Susun! Hey, Susun!"

Prowl turned and saw the now-familiar pink femme running towards him, waving her hand. He stopped and waited.

"I heard someone say you're quitting?" she asked, looking pleadingly at him. "Is it the pay? I'm sure Ostati will give you a bonus, things haven't run this smooth in forever!"

"Nothing of the sort," Prowl assured her. "I hope to be back in a decaorn or two. Tansi's carry is a very difficult one and we need to visit a specialist in Iacon. I was warned that the testing and treatment, whatever it is, may take time. We intend to return when he is healthy again."

Her optics spiraled wide. "Oh, I didn't know, I'm so sorry," she said, and touched his shoulder with a sympathetic field. "They'll be all right, though, Tansi and the sparkling?"

"That is our hope," Prowl nodded, accepting her sympathy with warm thanks. "It's a long drive and a heavy debt otherwise. I can't lose them."

Ariel smiled warmly at him. "You make sure you come back," she said. "I can't wait to meet that sparkling, seems like no one has sparklings anymore." She sighed, shaking her head. "I'd love a sparkling but Orion goes on about how we need to wait until the economy starts to get better and how we have a responsibility to make the best life we can for any creations. I say now or never, you two are doing it right."

"I'm not one to meddle in the affairs of others, but you have the income to raise a sparkling well, if you are careful and continue to work hard," Prowl smiled at her. "There are too few sparklings, but there is too little work," he shook his helm. "I hope things work out for you and Orion as well. It would be nice for ours to have a playmate, if you win this argument." He gave her an honest, though stressed smile. "I need to go now. Tansi can only travel a few joors before resting and refueling. We need to make the most of it."

She hugged him. "Well travel safe, all three of you," she said, and stepped back to give him a stern look. "And you come back soon."

"We will see you when we can," Prowl promised without promising anything and transformed to gather his love for the painfully slow journey to Crystal City where Mucit would install the spark bond blocker. If all went well, they'd be back in a decaorn or less. If it didn't, they wouldn't be back for centuries, and never as Susun and Tansi.

He drove quickly to their apartment complex, though careful to remain within the law. The last thing he needed right now was to be pulled over and ticketed, or worse.

Jazz was starting to rouse by the time he returned and had gotten his first cube of jet high grade out. He subspaced the half that was left when Prowl walked in and stretched before rising to greet his mate with a kiss that was returned with arousal, stress and warm relief.

"I have a job when we return," Prowl murmured when they parted, though it was only enough to rest their helms together in the ancient greeting and intimacy from a time when their kind did not yet wear armor. "This apartment will be held. It's good here."

Jazz smiled and hummed. "It is good here," he said, echoing flickers of arousal, love, and welcome in his field. "I'm ready."

With a final quick kiss, Prowl turned and lead his love to the street and towards the main thoroughfare towards the northern territories. Towards Iacon.

Once away from the city they followed a simple turnaround on a smaller avenue that cut past Tyger Pax's limits, through a residency, and then joined up with the much larger highway that would take them southeast to Crystal City.

SxSxSxSxSxSxSxSx S===================S SxSxSxSxSxSxSxS

Eleven orns.

It was the longest drive Jazz could recall. It would have been half that or less if they hadn't had to stop so many times an orn for him to rest. Sometimes the best they could do was pull to the side of the road and he'd recharge in alt mode while Prowl stood watch. Most of the time Prowl found them a berth, even if it wasn't much of one.

Right now they were in one of the nicer rooms they'd rented on the journey. Nicer because they both needed the recharge and refueling very badly after so much driving and then shifting to new forms. This time they were both mid-sized grounders again, but with the more elegant lines that Crystal City favored so they wouldn't stand out here. Even Prowl wanted nothing more than to drop into recharge when his frame settled. Jazz was happy to go with that thought.

Now Jazz was reluctantly rousing from recharge, not by an alarm or for energon, but by the nuzzling and gentle strokes of his lover.

He answered with a soft hum as his vocalizer booted up. The next stretch of the journey would be their last, and time wasn't as pressing of an issue as it had been when they'd first started out.

His optics flickered on and he immediately looked for the familiar optics in the new face, armor warming under the soft touches as he nuzzled back in greeting. The nuzzle turned into a kiss as Prowl's hand slid up to caress over his spark.

"Have enough energy to be pleasured?" Prowl purred softly.

Jazz shivered under the touch. He could still feel Vortex and whatever the Pit-spawned rotor was doing to the blocks, but right after recharge when his energy was at its highest, Jazz could almost pretend like he wasn't there sometimes. And if Prowl was distracting him... even better.

"I still think this is your way of getting me used to the new frames as quickly as possible without me realizing that it's productive," he teased, shifting and pressing their thighs together.

"So long as it works," Prowl chuckled, a deep resonance washing over Jazz as hands worked lower.

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