Dawn was sneaking around again. For a few days that had been all she had been doing, ever since she had woken up in the infirmary after the involuntary fight with Optimus. Though the actual reason for her sneaking wasn't the fight, but the unexpected kiss afterwards.

That and the fact she had left the infirmary without Ratchet's permission. The medic wasn't very forgiving about things like that. Luckily most of the Autobots were constantly on some mission and she knew how to stay out of sight, occasionally letting herself be seen from afar to let everyone know she was still in the base.

Dawn didn't know how long it would take before she was ready to face Optimus (or Ratchet), but a part of her doubted she would ever be. If she had felt nothing for the Autobot leader, things would've been easier to explain, but it wasn't so. In fact, just thinking about him made her heart beat faster. That was a lot harder to explain, even to herself.

Dawn was planning on asking Sideswipe to take her to the waterfalls where he had once taken her with Sunstreaker; maybe stay there for another few days. First she just needed to forage for food and leave a note that she would be gone for a while.

Dawn walked past Wheeljack who just happened to come out of his workshop. The inventor seemed to be in a hurry and Dawn had to move quickly out of the way. "Whoa, something about to blow up in there, or what's with the hasty exit?"

Wheeljack glanced at her absent-mindedly. "No, no, not at all. But better not to go in there right now."

Dawn smiled affectionately, looking at the back of the leaving inventor. She envied his ability to lose himself in his work, not having to think about anything else. As she watched him, Wheeljack suddenly stopped and turned around.

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot. Optimus was looking for you and Ratchet's been going around telling everyone to get you to med bay even if they have to drag you there."

Before Dawn could grimace, Wheeljack continued on his way, waving his hand over his shoulder. "I don't know what that's all about, but I'd keep staying out of sight if I were you."

With that he was gone and Dawn thanked her luck she hadn't run into Prowl or worse, Ratchet himself. Taking Wheeljack's advice, she stayed clear of his workshop. The command center and med bay were of course out of limits too.

At first glance Dawn didn't see anyone in the large warehouse, so she ventured further, heading for the cold room where most of the human foods were stored. The chill air that greeted her was a nice change to the constant midsummer sun.

She eyed the boxes and shelves, pondering what she should take with her, when she heard the door behind her open. She spun around; surprised that anyone had a reason to come there. Even more surprised she was to see Optimus in his holoform.

Dawn didn't even realize how she had reacted until she hit her back painfully into a corner of the metal shelf. She quickly hid her shock in a fake smile, though from the look on Optimus' face, he already knew she wasn't exactly thrilled to see him.

"Uh… hi! W-what are you doing here?"

Optimus closed the door behind him and crossed his arms over his broad chassis. "A little bird told me you were heading this way."

"A little Cybertronian bird I guess", Dawn cursed Wheeljack in her mind. Well, at least he hadn't told Ratchet. She took a closer look at Optimus, noticing how tense he was.

"You've been avoiding me for the last few days", the red and blue Autobot stated matter-of-factly.

Dawn felt a twinge of guilt. "Well, mostly Ratchet", she forced the smile to stay on her face, though she could feel the side of her mouth twitching in protest.

"Stop", Optimus lowered his arms, his tone making it clear he wasn't there for games. "No joking and stop avoiding what happened."

While talking, Optimus approached Dawn, who retreated hastily. "T-this isn't a good idea, Optimus just stop there…"

He didn't stop and soon Dawn had nowhere to go as she felt the wall behind her. Optimus stopped in front of her, placing his hands against the wall next to her shoulders and leaned closer.

"Why? Why isn't this a good idea? Talk to me. Tell me what you're thinking."

Dawn would've told him, if she had been able to hear her own thoughts over the loud beating of her heart. She stared into the piercing, blue optics and saw determination that almost scared her. She wanted to look away, but had a feeling he wouldn't let her.

"I… I can't."

"Why not?"

Their last encounter came vividly back to Dawn and she could remember exactly what each touch had felt like. It was like her every nerve was now waiting for a repeat, becoming more sensitized in anticipation.

"Can't you see?" she snapped defensively. She was very self-conscious about the fact that she was blushing, breathing quickly and pretty much every word uttered by the mech's deep baritone voice made her shudder slightly. Especially when he spoke that demandingly.

All in all, she was sure only a complete fool could not understand what she was feeling right then. "Why don't you tell me what you're thinking", she kept her voice as even as she could, throwing the ball at the Autobot.

"You", Optimus' optics flashed in a way Dawn had never seen before. "I've been thinking about you and how you felt and…"

Optimus stopped talking, lowering his head and looking like he was struggling with something. When he looked back up, his voice wasn't quite as urgent anymore. "More precisely, I can't stop thinking about you, and I can't wait any longer to find out how you feel."

Before Dawn could prepare herself, Optimus brought his hand to her face and with the lightest touch possible, let his thumb study the soft skin. Dawn forgot to breathe for a moment, a shiver running down her spine.

"Don't… don't do this", she whispered desperately, turning away from the touch.

"Again, why not?" Optimus pushed a strand of hair behind Dawn's ear, sliding his hand down her neck. "You feel the same way, don't you? Every time we touch, it's like a fire being ignited inside."

Dawn looked somewhat surprised back at the mech, who stayed his hand. "You feel it too? This isn't… how can this be happening? It's crazy. I can't control it at all; just thinking of you makes me…"

She could feel her cheeks growing hotter and swallowed the rest of her sentence.

"What?" Optimus urged her to continue. "Please, say it."

Dawn groaned in frustration and pushed his hand away. "I can't do this when I'm not even in control of myself! I want you so badly that it hurts and I don't even know why now, so suddenly!"

She made a hasty attempt to get past Optimus, but he didn't let her leave. Grabbing her by the waist and ignoring her protests, he moved her back and stepped closer, closing her escape routes.

"Optimus!" Dawn shouted angrily, but to no avail.

The Autobot leader brought his face right in front of hers with a challenging look. "If you really want me to stop, then stop me. But do you think if you walk away, it's going to get any better?"

Dawn couldn't say anything. She hadn't even tried to use her powers since the fight and she was sure she could never use them against Optimus again, even if it was just his holoform. Plus she had a feeling he was right.

Her silence was enough of a confirmation to Optimus, who was done waiting. Dawn gasped and hung onto his arms as he easily picked her up and rather roughly threw her on an empty counter.

She didn't resist as he came to stand between her parted legs and leaned over her. His mouth went to her neck and Dawn let her head fall back, unable to escape the pleasurable feeling that was about to reach a boiling point.

Without even fully noticing, Dawn's hands started their own exploration, sliding across the smooth metal surface on Optimus' broad shoulders. Each little nibble and suck sent a static wave through her body, making her clutch him tighter.

Then, abruptly he stopped and lifted his head up. "How are you doing that?"

Dawn looked at the Autobot with confusion. "Doing what?"

Optimus was quiet for a while, keeping his thoughts to himself to Dawn's annoyance. She was just about to ask him again when he took her hand in his. "Let me try something."

Dawn wasn't any less confused, but let him guide her hand to the center of his chassis.

"Keep it there", Optimus instructed her.

"What…" she tried asking, but was interrupted by the mech's mouth suddenly covering hers. She didn't complain, though, instead just going with it. It didn't take long until Optimus pulled back again, with a puzzled look.

"Not enough…"

Dawn was getting more annoyed, first being half-forced into the situation and then ignored. "You know, you're beginning to sound like Ratchet."

"Don't try to ruin the mood", Optimus reproached her with a wry smile. "We'll have to do something about that."

Dawn took a sharp breath as the red and blue Autobot grabbed her leg in one hand and pushed her shirt up with the other. Taking advantage of the exposed skin he let his fingers slowly work their way up to her bra, while his other hand was heading up her thigh.

Dawn couldn't keep from squirming under the sensual assault. No matter how torturous it was and how set against the whole thing she had been a moment ago, now she craved for more. She tried to pull the mech closer for another kiss, but as soon as she moved her hand, Optimus stopped again.

"Patience", his voice rumbled hungrily as he took her hand again. Dawn had to wonder why he was preaching about patience when he was the one looking at her like he was about to lose control.

"I don't think so", Dawn propped herself up on her elbow. "I want to know what you're trying to do, first."

"Or what?" Optimus seemed amused and Dawn couldn't blame him. Could she even walk away if she chose to do so? And would he let her?

She gave an exaggerated sigh and laid back down with a rebellious look. Optimus hid an uncharacteristically smug grin and rewarded her with a static kiss to her stomach before looking back at her.

"Just one more thing", he promised.

There was a brief sound of metal parts shifting and before she knew, Dawn was looking at the Autobot's exposed spark. She was mesmerized by the sight and the strange feeling it gave her until Optimus started pulling her hand towards it.

"No! Wait!" she panicked, tugging her hand back futilely. "What if I hurt you?"

"This is just a holoform", Optimus reminded her. "I can feel you, but even if you somehow managed to harm it, you know it would just shut down."

Dawn was still worried and Optimus could see it. He stroked her hair comfortingly and gave her a long, tingling kiss that left her dazed. "I promise you're not going to hurt me. It's quite the contrary."

Optimus continued moving her hand slowly closer. "Look at me."

It was a gentle demand, one which Dawn couldn't deny. She could feel the warm vibrating hum strongly now, like when she had been forced to temper with the Autobot's spark chamber. It spread through her body and even seemed to envelop her mind.

Completely distracted by the overwhelming sensation, Dawn gasped in shock when she suddenly felt a hand between her legs. It wasn't just static anymore, but more like a decent electric shock.

"Every time… you feel pleasure…", Optimus' speech was now labored, though Dawn hardly even noticed it as he kept rubbing her most intimate are through her thin pants. "…you somehow convey it to me. I don't know how… but I think you're using my spark to do it."

"What?" Some of the haze filling Dawn's mind cleared as his words sunk in. "That's… w-we can't do this!"

She could hear Optimus' intakes working hard and the look in his optics had disbelief. Dawn hurried to explain before he could convince her otherwise. "This could be dangerous for all we know. I seriously have no idea if and how I'm doing what you said and I can't risk it having some bad side effects."

"Besides…" she continued hesitantly. "I, uh… need to tell you something."

Optimus sensed the change in her tone and gave her a little space. "Yes?"

"This is a strange thing too", Dawn didn't know how to say what she had to say, so she just blurted it out. "I lose my powers after I have sex."

The look on Optimus' face was blank for a moment, like he couldn't quite believe what she had said. "That… is strange, yes."

"Not permanently, of course", Dawn gave a lopsided smile. "Just for about 24 hours, depending on how much rest I get afterwards."

Optimus shook his head, returning her smile. "You must be the strangest human on the planet."

"I would really like to be able to disagree with you, but sadly I can't."

"I didn't say that was a bad thing", Optimus' smile got warmer. He caressed Dawn's face fondly and closed the spark chamber before getting up and pulling her on her feet after him. Dawn looked at him with suspicion.

"We're not doing this? After all that effort to convince me."

"Unfortunately I think you might be right about us not knowing enough. I do not worry for myself, but it's clear we still know very little about how your powers work and what they do to you."

"I got a bad feeling I know what that means", Dawn cringed, getting confirmation to her suspicions when Optimus wrapped his arms around her with an apologetic smile.

"We need Ratchet's help."

"Well, it's a good thing you're holding on to me, because that just made me want to bolt."

"Yes, I anticipated that much."

Dawn sighed in defeat. "It's going to be horribly invasive and embarrassing isn't it?"

"Yes", Optimus squeezed her tighter. "But it's for the greater good."

"And here I thought it was so that we could have sex without having to worry."

"I don't know what's better than that."

"No", Dawn rested her head against the broad chassis, feeling the warmth of the spark calling for her. "I don't know either."