One Week Later…

After arriving in the US, Saphira was very happy to travel with Will and Robert to the NEST base, though she was a bit sad she wasn't able to travel with Optimus to the base. The base they were bringing her to is a base near Washington, she did not mind at all. Will informed her she would be meeting with some superiors to speak on about her job at the NEST base, along with the rules she had to follow, basic training she might have to go through and be shown to her house. It was not yet ready for her to move in according to Will. But, it would be finished in a few days. Saphira looked forward to moving in and she was advised she would be given a few weeks to rest before starting her job anyway.

When she met the superiors, she was a bit intimidated by them as they were rather stern in their voice and it made Saphira worried on what would happen if she angers them. However, she spoke with them and she was given rules. She was glad she was not restricted on access to the autobots, except when they are in a debrief about a mission, which made sense. She was not meant to have clearance about all this, but there was not much that could be done about that now. She was pleased about her new job though, she would be given time to practice her driving skills after having a few weeks off and she would be able to pick the vehicles she would like to drive and to use in the lessons while developing a driving course students would need to learn. She was looking forward to that.

The only thing that has been troubling her was Galloway has been acting irratic. No one knows exactly why he has been acting like that, though he has been acting nervous and Saphira has made sure to avoid him as much as possible. He also has remained very vocal about getting rid of the autobots and ending the alliance. This seemed to have cost him his position though, especially since the autobots and William Lennox were given recognition for saving the world against the Fallen. Lennox himself was given a promotion to Colonel due to this, making Saphira very happy for him. Though she did hear Robert might be retiring from military life, though that has not been confirmed. He has been talking about how he was done with war, she didn't blame him about that though.

Right now, Saphira was sitting in an office overlooking the hangar waiting for the autobots to arrive. She has not seen them for a few days and she was looking forward to seeing them again. She tapped her foot lightly, humming to herself softly and fiddling with her fingers as she waited on their arrival. She knew they were arriving today, she didn't know the reason why it took longer for them to get to the base, but she guessed it was a government reason.

"There you are." She turned her head when she heard Lennox and smiled at him. "I knew I would find you lurking around here. Excited to see them again?"

Saphira nodded with a smile. "Of course. Feels like weeks already."

He smiled as he sat next to her. "Uh huh, it wouldn't be because of a certain Prime, would it?"

She rolled her eyes and grinned at Will. "Of course, Will. You know what it is like, being away from the person you love."

"Yeah, but you get to be on the base and see him more often than I get to see my wife and kid. So…not quite the same. Though, I definitely understand." He looked at the hangar and thought for a moment before looking at her. "I have good news too. Galloway is gone from the base, and he won't be coming back."

"That is good. I never liked him. There was a strange vibe from him when he spoke to me, like he was nervous and angry at the same time. I don't really know the reason for it, but I just assume because he dislikes the autobots." She looked at Will curiously. "Who's taking his place?"

"No idea yet. But…hopefully they won't be as much of an asshole as he was," Will said with a slight shrug. "Anyway, the autobots are about five minutes away." Five minutes?! Saphira makes a pouty face and looked at the hangar, making Will laugh gently. "Don't be so upset, I hear there might be something planned for you."

"Oh yeah?" Saphira looked at Will curiously. "What plan?"

"Mmm…I could tell you, but I am afraid I can't." Will chuckled softly, Saphira assumed it might be whatever idea Ironhide gave to Optimus. "All I know is, you are going to wish you don't want to come back to NEST."

Saphira grinned and felt herself blushing, which made her look away from Will shyly. The man chuckled at her gently at her response. "That sounds great…although…I think Optimus is still a bit undecided."

"How do you mean?" He frowned, looking at her curiously. "I saw you kissing him in Egypt."

"Yeah…but…I think with how he lost Elita to Megatron, he is afraid of losing me in a similar way," Saphira explained calmly. "He's a bit scared to move forward, I don't blame him, but I haven't really worked out how to convince him."

"Hmm, that is difficult. To be honest, I have overheard Optimus saying something similar too." Will shakes his head and smiled at her. "I think he really does love you, there is no doubt. But…to be fair, Saphira, there is no need to hurry a relationship. You are still young, and I think Optimus is weary about pushing too far."

"So…if he is taking me somewhere romantic, should I be…on guard?" She asked curiously before blushing. "Eh…sorry…I…I know this kind of talk is reserved for parents, so…"

Will chuckled softly and placed his hand on her shoulder, shaking it gently to comfort her. "Saphira, I am a dad to a daughter. I know I will have this kind of conversation eventually. But, I don't mind stepping in when Michael could not. As to answer your question…that is up to you. Do you even feel ready to take the next step in your relationship? And I am not just talking about sex, that I think you and Optimus should work out."

"I do…I really do, I just…am afraid. I am afraid that Optimus will not have a clear judgement." Saphira glanced away from Lennox to look at her hands nervously. "I know he won't want to hurt me. But…I don't know. I've never had a relationship, so I don't know how much it affects someone when they lose someone they love. Hell, I don't even know what love is half the time."

"You don't? Oh, because you weren't shown love until the autobots came into your life right?" She nodded to Lennox's question. "Right…hmm…well, just take it slow. I know I might have given away the surprise…"

"You didn't, I eavesdropped on them on the aircraft carrier and heard what they were saying." She didn't look at Lennox as she knew he would be staring at her in surprise. "I know I should not have. But, in all honesty I am glad. I was able to understand him more. I think knowing his feelings are important too."

"I agree…though…you should not have eavesdropped." The man smiled at her and winked. "Well, since you kind of already know what will happen, just don't ask how it was paid for. All I can say is the transformers have some good friends to help them out."

Saphira giggled softly. "Well…I don't know where we will be going, so it is technically a surprise. Don't worry, I will act like I didn't know. I don't want to hurt them."

"I know. I won't say anything either." Will winks at her and Saphira looked up as the hangar doors began to open.

'Autobots Arriving to West Hangar'

Saphira felt like a kid at the moment as she heard the intercom announce the autobots' arrival, she was super excited and stood up, walking to the railing quickly to see the Peterbilt rolling into the hangar first, followed by the Camaro, Challenger, GMC, Hummer H2, Chevrolet concepts, Stingray and a BMW F800S bike, she watched them roll in with a big smile.

"Shall we go and greet them?" Will asked as he walked towards the stairs to head down to the bottom floor.

Saphira giggled and quickly followed Will. She had her hand on the railing as she walked down the stairs, she watched the autobots come to a stop and transform. She smiled, her eyes lingered on Optimus as he transformed and his optics were quick to lock with hers with a smile upon his face.

"You finally arrived!" Will said in a loud, enthusiastic, sarcastic tone. "Took your time. You left us all alone to deal with our superiors. Especially Saphira here."

Saphira giggled at him. "We apologize, but as you were aware, it was your superiors who kept us from coming here sooner as well," Optimus said with a light chuckle. "I guess we all had to deal with them. I trust everything has been sorted for Saphira."

"Mostly, her house is not quite finished yet." He reached the bottom floor of the hangar and looked up at the autobot leader. "Although, that isn't a problem. Saphira has a lot of time before she becomes a defensive driving instructor."

"Indeed." Optimus looked at Saphira as she reached the bottom floor and dropped to one knee. "How are you feeling Saphira? Are you still sore?"

She shrugged. "Yeah, I guess I am. But I haven't really thought about my injuries that I haven't noticed. Unless I take a deep breath or laugh too hard. Besides, I am just trying to figure out what I'll do over the next few weeks."

Bee walked over to them with a smile. "I am sure you will figure it out."

She nodded at him. "I guess so. Getting settled in a new house is something, too bad I won't have time to set up a proper garden."

"You'll be able to do that again. Just that NEST doesn't want the house to have much changes, though I think that is stupid myself." Will looked up at Optimus with a smile. "Anyway, what are you planning on doing anyway?"

Optimus hummed softly and glanced between Will and Saphira. "I think that is something to find out." She tilts her head at that and looked at him curiously. "I promised Saphira we would return to a place that we both hold special. I believe that will be a lot better than sitting around waiting for the weeks to pass by. Don't you agree?" Saphira nodded and she noticed Ratchet approaching. "I hope you don't mind, we already have your bags packed."

"Huh?" Saphira was surprised by that. "I don't have anything of my own here in the base."

Will chuckled a little. "They may have had some human help."

She looked at him and rolled her eyes. "I highly doubt you know my clothing size."

"You are right. But…you had Bee go with you a few times when shopping in the rental you lived in right?" Will asked and she nodded. "He remembered your clothing size, so…"

Saphira chuckled softly. "I suppose he has a great eye for detail." She shakes her head, looking at Bee with an impressed expression. "Nothing gets by you, does it?"

"Little sister, I make sure to not let anything get by me regarding you," Bee responded through the radio with a wink.

Ratchet reached them and placed a couple suitcases on the ground. "I hope this will be enough."

"If we are going back to the field, you're missing the camping gear," Saphira said softly, looking up at Optimus curiously. "Are we going back to the emerald field?"

Optimus grinned at her. "I guess you got me there. I have somewhere else in mind, but that is a secret. Or, as humans like to say, classified. At least for now."

Saphira giggled a little, blushing slightly and glancing at the other autobots that were approaching. "What will the rest of you do while Optimus and I are away?"

"Don't you worry about us," Ratchet said to her in a gentle tone. "We will be fine without you and Optimus here to entertain us. You just go and forget about the recent events for a little while."

Saphira smiled at him and looked up at Optimus. "Hmm…I don't know if I want to forget."

His optics twitch slightly in surprise, he thought she would want to forget the battle of Egypt. But he guessed maybe she didn't want to forget because him. "I still want you to forget your pain." He picked up the suitcases gently with his hand. "Would you like to go now?"

"Now?" She widened her eyes in surprise. "Um, sure. I thought you would need to stay for a bit."

"We already been through talks that we need to, I am free to have a few weeks off. I intend to ensure those weeks are filled with good memories." Optimus transforms into the Peterbilt, opening the door for her to climb in. "If we want to go, we better go now."

Chromia walked over with a chuckle. "I hope it will be worth it for you two." She looked at Saphira with a gentle smile. "Just letting you know, we also might have some new recruits."

"Really?" Saphira did not know that, though she guessed she would have found out. "I assume I'll meet them once we get back."

"That will depend when they will arrive, but yes, you likely will meet them. I think I'll wait for them to introduce themselves to you." Chromia gestured for Saphira to get into the truck. "You should leave. You deserve a really good break."

"Thank you, Chromia." She walked over to the Peterbilt and paused when she saw Barricade, he was standing off a little with a sad expression. She tilts her head, something was different about him and she realized his optics were different. "Did Barricade change the colour of his optics? They're red, but they're not the deep, crimson red like he had before."

Barricade looked towards Saphira upon hearing his name and smirked. "Yes I did, I did not know how long it would take for anyone to notice." He walked over to them, gesturing to his eyes. "What shade of red do they look like to you?"

Saphira gazed at his eyes curiously as Barricade dropped to one knee. "Hmm…kind of like a ruby red. Not the deep red, but the ruby red with a slight tinge of pink in it. Nice to see you are not totally ashamed of your eye colour."

"Eye colour has nothing to do with loyalty," Barricade responded with a grin. "There are decepticons out there with blue eyes. It is just more common for them to have red eyes. It is just a small part of me, it doesn't mean I am still the same old mean Barricade that you met…when I was following orders sadly." He shrugged a little and winked at her. "No matter, you are stalling. You should get out of here before Optimus forces you."

"He would never do that." She giggled and began to climb up into the cab of the truck. "Besides, I am very curious as to where he wants to take me. I used to hate surprises…"

"You did?" Barricade widened his eyes at that. "Oh…I guess because you did not have good surprises before we came along. Hey, at least we transformers were the best surprise of your life."

She nodded to him, although she would say Optimus was the best surprise in her life, they would be second. "I guess we will see you in a few weeks?"

"May in two weeks, but I am not sure how long Optimus will take you for," Ratchet said with a smile. "Although, if you don't come back…well…we will understand."

Optimus said something in Cybertronian, making all the autobots laugh gently. Ironhide walked over as Saphira sat in the passenger seat. "Have a great trip, punk! We look forward to hearing all about your adventure when you get back."

"Thanks, Ironhide. We will see you soon." She waves at them and winks at Will, the man smirked as he knew what was happening.

Saphira relaxed in the seat as the door closed and Optimus rolled out of the hangar. As he drove away from the hangar, she heard the radio come on and Optimus began to go through the radio, stopping when there was gentle, romantic piano music playing. She grinned, it was so sweet and even though she knew Optimus was nervous and likely still undecided on his decision about her, she believed he would definitely take the leap.

"How far are we going to be travelling?" Saphira asked curiously as Optimus passes the gates out of the base. "A few hours? A day? Just curious so I know."

"About seven hours." She widened her eyes, that was a long drive. "I know it is noon, we will reach the location by night. But, I will keep you safe while you sleep overnight."

She smiled and got herself relaxed before widening her eyes. "Oh…um…I'll need money…"

"Bee gave me the bag you had with you when you went to Egypt." She glanced around and spotted her bag with a sigh of relief. "Your bank card should be in there I believe."

Saphira reached over and grabbed the bag, opening it to find the contents were still there. "It is. Thankfully I didn't need to call Lennox about it…though…I can't really call him without a phone that I can use to contact him."

"Will you get a new phone?" Optimus asked her curiously.

"Yeah. I won't get it until closer to me officially starting me job. Not that I want to think about it right now." She ran her hands along the seat gently as she thought about more things. "Optimus…I hope you know how happy I am to have you in my life."

"I know. I also want to…want to apologize." She raised an eyebrow when he said that, but she did not interrupt him as he continued. "I haven't been truly honest about my feelings for you. Mostly because my past haunts me, it pains me and I just fear it will repeat itself. I apologize…I do deeply care for you, and love you Saphira, that will never change."

She smiled, placing her hand on the dash in front of her gently. "It is okay. I understand. You lost Elita to Megatron, you fear that for me. We don't have to rush this…I don't think we should." She paused for a moment to think on her next words. "I am happy we are able to do things together Optimus. I think we should cherish these moments because…that is why we take pictures. They are to be cherished."

"I agree. That is why simple moments…the ones we have had already…I just want to do them for a long time. It takes everything away. I stop thinking about Cybertron, my pain…I know the others know I am in pain, but I don't often tell people about it. As a leader, I am seen as strong…"

"Yes, but you are my partner, which means you want to lean on someone who will listen and comfort you," Saphira interrupts gently with a smile. "That is why I gave you that gemstone. Not just to think about me, but to give you a brief moment of peace."

She felt the seats warming around her, almost like Optimus was blushing and it felt very comforting. "And I have made sure to keep it safe. Even now, I have it with us. I am glad that you gave it to me. I feel very happy that you are interested in listening to me and my problems…even if they are not happy."

She leaned forward slightly and kissed the dash in front of her. "Of course, you have listened to me. It would be completely unfair and selfish of me to not listen to you. Honestly…how I feel for you has been unconditional. And I don't think that will change. I just hope you don't let your fear cloud your judgement, Prime. I know you miss Elita, you have every right to. But don't let her death make your future."

"I try not to. It has been so many years…I only started thinking about her shortly after meeting you…only after I realized I began having feelings for you." Optimus hummed softly through the speakers as the music continued playing on the radio. "Especially when I realize Megatron had an interest in you."

"I guess you felt like you were living in some kind of déjà vu, right?" Saphira asked curiously.

"Yes, that would be the right way to describe it. I guess…in Mission City…it felt like I was seeing Elita and you as the same person, right up until you pushed the Cube into Megatron's chest. After that…I admit, it made me think that you managed to kill Megatron and Elita had not, and it wasn't fair." Saphira widened her eyes as she listened to him, she had no idea that was how he was thinking. "I think it brought out a lot more pain…however…Ratchet did help me to remember that Elita was a brave warrior too. She faced Megatron without any kind of fear. And I believe that. I still feel like I failed her…but…I know did not. I am not sure if Elita actually felt the same way for me as I did her, I had been sweet on her…but she didn't respond to many of my attempts to have time alone with her. So…I guess…"

"I thought you were sparkmates with her?" Saphira said softly, acting like she didn't know that already.

"I once believed we could be before her death. I look back though, and I am not sure if it was possible. Admittedly, Arcee seemed more interested in me than Elita was…but I didn't have an interest for her."

"Okay, that I never got. Arcee seemed more like a warrior of yours, she didn't seem interested in you when she arrived." That was true, Arcee had seemed more happy to be a warrior than a lover to Optimus.

"That was because she found a sparkmate sometime after Elita's death. She was no longer infatuated with me after that. And before you ask, sadly, her sparkmate died a few years ago." Saphira felt sad for Arcee, though her death somewhat meant that Arcee was with her sparkmate now. "And when she arrived here, she found out about you and my feelings for you, so I guess she felt she had to be respectful."

"Right…it is a shame we won't know. But…it sounds to me that you all have had a bad time anyway…so loses I guess are very common. Makes me sad for all of you." She looked out the window thoughtfully. "It makes me wish that all this war and nonsense about repairing Cybertron would just stop so we can have peace."

"I have the same dream, Saphira. For now, we just take our time of peace like it is a gemstone in our hands. It is precious, too precious to let it slip and disappear." Optimus changed the music suddenly to a classical song Saphira didn't recognize, making her smile slightly. "That is why our time together the next two weeks will be precious."

"Are we staying at this location for two weeks?" Saphira asked curiously.

"No. But we will be there for several days before going somewhere else. This is just a small adventure for you and I."

She felt her cheeks turning red as she blushed. She was very excited to see what Optimus had in store. "I am really excited, Optimus. Thank you. I love you so much."

"I love you too, Saphira," Optimus purred gently in response to her.

Optimus and Saphira continued to talk as he drove along the road to their destination. Saphira was so glad Optimus spoke to her about his concerns about their relationship. And she hoped now that it was off his shoulders, he could truly let himself go and throw himself into this relationship. She would not force him, but…this trip could end up with some surprises. Saphira looked forward to it no matter what happens.