Saphira waited patiently at the house. She let out a few more tears as she waited, though she was more looking forward to being in Optimus's arms at the moment. She has missed him a lot. She knew that he would need to go on another mission sometime after her birthday, but she wasn't thinking about that. She was thinking of the things they could do together before than, and she was looking forward to it.
She jumped to her feet when she heard a knock on the door and ran over to open it. She smiled when she saw the young, muscular lean man with black hair and he was wearing a yellow, black striped singlet and black pants. She knew immediately who it was, and she was so happy to see him, especially since she has missed him.
"Bumblebee!" Saphira threw her arms around him. "I am so happy you came over. But I am also very sorry you had to come home because…you know…and especially since we all planned to have a good party this week."
Bumblebee pats her back gently with a smile. "Don't worry about me, little sister." He kissed her cheek and he let's go of her. "I will miss Chromia, but I also don't want to let the grief overshadow everything. That would make the week quite depressing."
"I already have had a bad week, we certainly need to end it on a high note." Saphira smiled as she looked behind Bee as she saw a man who looked to be in his late thirties with silver hair, lightly shaven beard and wore a green, button up shirt. Ratchet smiled politely at Saphira. "And I for one would like to join on this road trip that Optimus mentioned to me, but you failed to tell me."
Saphira giggled at him. "Oh, sorry…Optimus and I were kind of planning that between ourselves. I had not really told you because of that, but I was going to mention it to everyone one tonight."
"At least I know you and Optimus were being sneaky," Ratchet teased with a chuckle. "Optimus has never been that way with anyone. I guess you are just the lucky, soon-to-be sparkmate, that's why."
Saphira blushed and looked away from Ratchet, feeling flustered at Ratchet's comment. "Ratchet, did you really have to go and embarrass her like that?" She looked up and smiled when she saw a man in his late twenties, with long, dark, navy-blue hair pulled into a ponytail and wearing a white shirt and black shorts. Barricade placed his hand on Ratchet's shoulder and pulled him away from Saphira. "I have an idea, let's set up the pool room."
Saphira smiled at Barricade at his suggestion. "That is actually a good idea. A round of pools sounds like fun!" She turned to see the tall, bald, muscular man walking in and she nodded to him. "Hello, Ironhide." He grumbled a little at her and she gave him a sympathetic expression. "I hope you will be able to cheer up a little bit tonight. If you want, you can just watch. You don't need to join in."
"Thank you." Ironhide placed a hand on her shoulder, grateful for her suggestion. "I haven't been totally myself knowing we lost three of our autobots so close together. It never changes the pain. Even when Jazz was killed."
"Nobody ever said it was easy." Sideswipe walked in with a smile. She looked at the mid-twenties man with short cut, silver hair, white singlet and ripped jeans. Saphira still couldn't get over the appearance of their holoforms at times. "Oh, Brains and Wheelie are tagging along by the way." He gestured behind him as the two scrap bots roll in. "I don't mean they will come along with the road trip, but they want to join in with the entertainment tonight."
Saphira smiled as she looked down at the two bots. "Hmm, you are here to continue what we started last night, huh?"
They nod. "Of course!" Wheelie exclaimed happily with a smile. "There's absolutely no way you're gonna have a party without the two of us. We're a family! And we might be the short, little dudes of the family, but we love being a part of it."
"Yep! And we intend on making the most of what is left of the day!" Brains added excitedly. "Let's go, Wheelie! We better make sure we keep an eye on the others to make sure that they are doing the right thing."
Saphira chuckled as she watched the two small bots scurry away and she looked at Ironhide and Sideswipe. "Shall we?"
The two smile and nod. "We will meet you in there. Dino and Wheeljack are coming as well. They both are extremely excited about playing some pool," Sideswipe said, placing a hand on Ironhide and tugging him away from Saphira. "Come! Let's see what mischief the others are already up to."
Ironhide chuckled softly. "That only be Bumblebee at this time. Though I guess we can see if Ratchet and Barricade are making a nuisance too." He walked away with Sideswipe and glanced at Saphira. "I have been making a present for you by the way. I hope you will like it when you get it on your birthday."
Saphira assumed it was another weapon. She smiled at him when he let her know. "I am sure I will." She looked at the door and smiled as she saw Dino, his holoform was an early thirties man with dark, brown hair, tan skin and he was wearing a nice, red suit. She chuckled at him when she saw what his holoform looked like. "You don't need to be wearing a suit, Dino. This isn't a formal setting."
The bot grinned at her. "Ah, ma'am, I like to look nice wherever I go. Besides, I love the suits that I have seen on this planet. I want to make sure my holoform looks nice, regardless of the occasion. Even if we are going to play some pool."
"The young fellow always wants to make a nice impression." Saphira looked behind Dino to see a man in his late fifties who is bold with a grey beard and wearing a grey, striped shirt with black pants. She knew right away it was Wheeljack's holoform. "Even if he has to make a nice impression everywhere he goes. Though the lad looks rather nice in his suit."
"Finally someone says it!" Dino cheered happily and looked at Saphira, winking at her. "Don't you agree."
Saphira chuckled at him. "I will admit you look very nice, Dino. But…you and I both know that I have someone else in my life. And I know he will not like that you are trying to flirt with me right now." She glanced behind Wheeljack and noticed there was no one else. "Speaking of which…"
"Do not worry, young lady," Wheeljack interrupts gently and placed a hand on her shoulder. "He is not far behind us. He just had more to discuss with the human leaders. You know he is in that position where he might get held up some more than we do." She nodded and seemed disappointed. "He will be here soon, as will Colonel Lennox."
Her eyes light up immediately upon hearing Will was coming as well. "That's wonderful! The more the merrier!" She closed the door behind Wheeljack and walked towards the pool room. "Well, there's no use in standing and waiting for them to show up if they both have a bit more to do. I'll go grab a drink and something to nibble on while you go and check on the others."
"Do you need a hand with any of that?" Wheeljack asked gently as he and Dino followed her down the hallway. "I could carry something into the room for you. And it would give me a chance to see how humans prepare some of their food up close. I have always been curious about how it is done."
Saphira chuckled at the older bot and looked at him. "If you want to see how I plate crackers, celery, carrots and cheese around a tub of a French onion dip, sure. You can do that if you wish. It is more fun to watch when I am making something like a casserole though…but that won't happen for a while. And you might be stuck at NEST when I make them."
The bot chuckled softly as Saphira walked to the kitchen grab out a large plate. "I suppose that might be true. But I really do feel curious about it, Saphira. Even if it is simple, I simply want to watch because I am curious. I do want to know how food is grown, and Bee told me that it is a fascinating journey of watching food growing in the ground. I know you did that for some time."
"And I plan on doing it again once I get to Texas." Saphira grabbed out a few carrots, a celery bunch, cheddar cheese and a French onion dip from the fridge before placing them onto the counter. She turned back to grab out some of the cold meat as well, deciding to add that to the plate. With Will coming, she had no doubt he would munch on these too. "I enjoy growing my own food. It's good for the mind as well as the body."
Wheeljack watched curiously as Saphira sat the dip in the middle of the bowl and grabbed out a knife to begin cutting the vegetables and cheese. Dino did not stay long and walked into the pool room where there was some loud cheering already coming from the room. "Sounds like they have started a game. Though that is no issue. And hearing that growing your own food is good for the mind is intriguing to me. Why is that?"
"That is because when you are outside, breathing the fresh air, you are focused on doing something that is healthy. You get your hands dirty, but it is satisfying. By planting new seeds and watching them take root and life is extremely rewarding to me." Saphira cut the carrots first into strips. They weren't exactly like carrot sticks, but it was fine. "And you are surrounded by nature. You hear the birds in the trees and the wind blows against your skin as you work the soil to ensure that your plants grow healthy and strong. And you are also putting your mind onto something positive. Because when you put that seed into the ground, something beautiful is going to grow."
Wheeljack listened as he watched Saphira cut the carrots and moved onto the celery to cut. "Fascinating…I'd love to see that with my own eyes, Saphira. Being able to watch something like that sounds like it would be wonderful! And I think I would thoroughly enjoy witnessing and even helping."
"I think when you are able to visit, you will be able to experience it." Saphira looked at him briefly with a smile before continuing to focus on the celery as she cuts more pieces of it. "I will probably have a large garden and an orchid as well the next time you visit as I won't have anything straight away when we go to Texas."
"I know. And I am still looking forward to it." Wheeljack was very enthusiastic about it, and Saphira thought it was very sweet. "Hmm…I might do some research on the different plants humans grow to use for food. I believe plants are used for medicinal purposes, so that intrigues me too. I might be able to help with some suggestions for you."
Saphira chuckled at the bot, amused by his thoughtfulness to her. "That is very sweet of you, Wheeljack. I have to do research on the zone I am in too before I go ahead and plant anything…plus there is a lot of planning to do in general anyway. But I have other things to do first before I even think about growing my own food."
"Ah, you are talking about whatever task Everett left to you, aren't you?" The bot questioned and Saphira nodded as she finished cutting the vegetables and began to place them onto the plate neatly before she began to cut the cheese. "That is understandable. We all are already assuming it has something to do with us transformers, so at least we know something about it."
"Yeah…though I do believe that it won't be what we totally expect. I don't want to make assumptions all the time, but that is what I believe." Saphira finished cutting the cheese into sticks and placed the pieces onto the plate, making it look as neat as possible. "Aside from that, I have to figure out a few things about properties my grandfather owned and now I own. I have a lot of things to do over the coming months I think."
Wheeljack chuckled gently. "It would seem that way." He and Saphira look towards the front door when they hear a knock. "Jolly, good! He is here! I will go and let the both of them in. I thought they would be here a bit later, but looks like I was wrong." Wheeljack walked away quickly and Saphira walked over to her pantry to grab out a pack of crackets and pulled out a handful to lay on the plate. She heard the sound of the front door opening. "Afternoon, Optimus. I trust it was not too stressful for you or Lennox. But I see the both of you seem to be doing okay. We were just about to have some rounds of pool. Care to join in?"
Saphira heard light laughter from Lennox echo through the house. "I would love to join in! I could use the break from military life." He walked down the hallway and gave Saphira a big grin when he spotted her finishing up the plate. "And there she is!" She looked at him with a grin as he walked towards her. "I see you have made us both a snack to eat while we beat these guys back to Cybertron."
"I guess I have." She shrugged a little and widened her eyes when he swiped a cheese stick from the plate to eat it. She chuckled and walked over to the fridge. "Do you want a drink? I have plenty of soda left that we can have."
The man nodded. "Sure, I will have whatever is in the fridge." He looked towards the pool room when he heard cheers from the room. "Ah, looks like some of them have started without us. How rude!" He chuckled softly and looked at Saphira when she hands him a coke. "Thanks, Saphira." She walked over to the plate and picked it up to take it into the room. "I guess we should see who is winning."
She nodded and looked to the hallway, smiling as she saw Optimus. His holoform stood there with a smile on his face, wearing a tight, blue singlet with red flames around the base of the singlet and blue pants with the same pattern. She felt her cheeks heat up as she could see the visible muscles through the singlet and she could see his very broad shoulders. The scars on his skin did not bother her and she still thought he was sexy with them. She had missed stroking his strong, jawline and teasing the silver goatee on his chin, and playing with his shoulder-length, dark blue hair.
Saphira gasped as she almost ran into Lennox when he stopped at the door to the pool room. He glanced over his shoulder to grin at her. "I guess you had a bit too much eye candy, huh?"
She looked at him with a flustered expression and rolled her eyes. "Oh, shut up!" She wished Epps was here with them, but he had transferred to a different part of the military as he was over dealing with fighting decepticons. "I just was not watching where I was going."
"Oh, yeah, I know." The man glanced at Optimus as he walked up behind Saphira with a smirk on his face. "You really know how to keep her eyes off everything, Optimus. And you were not even doing anything."
Saphira felt his strong, muscular arms slide around her waist and made her heart rate increase as she felt the warmth around her body. "I do not mind. Her having eyes just for me is what I want anyway." She chuckled and shivered as she felt his lips against the back of her neck. "I have missed you."
Lennox took the plate out of Saphira's hands. "I better make sure we don't have to deal with a mess on the floor from unsteady hands." She rolled her eyes at him and he walked into the room. "Oh! It's Bee and Barricade having a game. This is going to be good."
Saphira turned to face Optimus with a smile and wrapped her arms over his shoulders to clasp her hands together. She softened her expression as she saw the sadness in his blue eyes. "I've missed you, Optimus. But I really feel like I am being selfish by asking you to even come with me to Texas…especially after losing some good friends."
Optimus saw tears brimming her eyes and he leaned forward to kiss her lips gently. "There is nothing selfish about you, Saphira. You are wanting to stop your birthday celebration so we may not feel pain, and yet you also were friends with Chromia. She would not want us to not celebrate your birthday because of her death. Nor would the twins." She shrugged with a half nod of agreement. "To me, that does not make you selfish."
Saphira did not know how he could think that and she kissed him. "I still have a hard time believing it, but you are way older than me. So I'll give you the benefit of the doubt, because you have seen things and done things that has made you into the wise leader you are now."
He hummed gently and kissed her again. "Yeah, I suppose so. But I have been through a lot as well, Saphira. I've been through the pain of losing my friends, those who I consider family, even one who I thought would be my sparkmate and one whom I thought was my brother. War has changed who I used to be, Saphira. However, you are right." He widened his smile at her. "I am about nine million Earth years…" She widened her eyes in surprise. "Five million of those is my life as a Prime."
"Huh, so I am dating a really old man," Saphira said sarcastically. "That's so gross, I should be utterly repulsed." The two of them chuckle as they kiss again. "But at least you now have a chance to have me in your life for a short time." He nodded a little as he was aware of how short human lives were compared to his own. "And I know it will be cherished."
"Yes. Shall we go and bother the team?" She nodded and turned to walk into the room with Optimus. As they enter, they see Bee taking a shot as there were five balls left on the table. Optimus looked at Ratchet as they enter. "Who is winning this match?"
"So far, Barricade," Ratchet answered affirmatively. "And we were all thinking that you and Saphira should face each other next?" Optimus and Saphira look at him in surprise. "Is that going to be an issue?"
Saphira chuckled softly and shook her head. "Nah, I think that will be fun." She looked at Optimus as she opened her can of Sunkist and sipped from it. "Nothing like a bit of friendly, lovers quarrel as soon as we see each other after a few months apart." He chuckled gently and Saphira walked over to stand by Will who was listening to the conversation. "What do you think, Will? Want to see Optimus and I battle it out to see who is the best at pool?"
The man chuckled at her in amusement. "Of course! That is a lot of fun." He held the plate towards her and Saphira grabbed some of the carrots and celery before dipping them into the dip to eat them. "Good idea on the snacks, too. I was going to ask about something to eat. But this will certainly help to fill us up."
She nodded in agreement as she watched Bee take another shot as he got two balls into the holes. "Do you think you will be able to tag along with us on the trip to Texas? I would really like it if you were there for your birthday."
"I would love to be there, Saphira. But I have a date with my wife and daughter." Saphira looked at him and gave him an understanding expression. "As much as I enjoy hanging out with you, I am afraid the ladies in my life take priority. However, I will pass my gift to Optimus so he can give to you on your birthday."
She did not feel mad that Will had to be somewhere else during her birthday. She completely understood. "I'm not mad. I know you said you'd be there, but if your wife asked you to be there with her, I am not going to get in the way. I think it will be fine, plus I already have ideas on how to spend time with the autobots."
"Oh? I am intrigued. I hope you tell me all about it." There were loud cheers as Bee hit the last balls into the holes of the table and won the game. Saphira and Will cheer happily along with him. "Well done, Bee! Now it's time for our two lovers here to take the stage."
Barricade looked at Saphira with a smirk as he and Bee retrieve the balls to place on the table, using the triangle to make sure they were in position. "Ah, the first little quarrel between you two. How lovely you put it on display for us."
Saphira rolled her eyes as she grabbed one of the pool sticks and held it, looking at Optimus. "Do you want stripe or solid color?" She asked curiously. "I usually go stripe, but…"
"I am happy to pick solid color." Optimus grabbed one of the pool sticks and looked at the Bee as he moved away. "Thanks, Bee." He smiled at Saphira, placing the stick down on the ground and resting his chin on the tip. "Ladies' first."
Saphira chuckled as she sipped her drink and placed it on the side of the table before lining up her pool stick and hitting the white ball, hitting multiple balls and smiling when two of the striped balls fall into the holes. She pumped her fist victoriously and walked around the table to line up another shot, only to miss the hole and stood up with a smirk.
"Hmm…good luck to you, Optimus," Saphira said as she watched him line his stick up. "I have some very good ideas that we can do on the way to Everett's house. When we find somewhere to stay, I think you might like a particular place to stay on the way. I have heard of it and seen pictures, but…now I have the money to stay overnight."
Optimus hits the ball and watched as it hit one of the solid coloured balls and watched as it hit another solid coloured ball and sending it into a hole. "What place would that be? You have the means of going anywhere you want now, Saphira. I will be happy with any choice that you make for us." He began to line up another shot after walking around the table.
"It is called the Ancient Lore Village." He glanced up at Saphira curiously before looking back as he took another shot. "And it looks fantastic! It is the kind of place you and I would like because it will make us feel like we are part of nature, or stepped into some other world…kind of like how we felt in the old emerald field."
His shot had hit another ball and he got two more into the holes, making Optimus in the lead so far. "That sounds interesting. I think I would definitely enjoy as the name alone suggests that it seems out of the ordinary." He looked at Dino when he let out a short laugh of amusement. "Is something the matter, Dino?"
"I did not expect that the two of you would just start going on about what you want to do on the road trip to Texas," Dino said as he chuckled some more. "I had expected you both to really get into the game. But I guess you really don't care."
She shook her head. "Nope. We're having fun though." She walked over to Lennox to grab some cheese and ham to eat. "I think that's the most important thing. Sorry that we aren't as dramatic about this as you were hoping for it to be."
Ironhide chuckled softly. "This is funny to me. The fact you both are playing and casually talking among yourselves about where we will stay during the road trip is the funny part to me. Especially since you have a crowd of us watching you."
She grinned at Ironhide, glancing at the table when Optimus missed after taking a shot and she walked over to it to line up for another shot. "That is true. Optimus and I have no need to be competitive with each other, so we simply enjoy the game as we go." She hits the white ball and knocks three balls into the holes and she smiled. "Yes!" Optimus smirked at her as she threw her fist in the air. "What? I've never done that before, and that was so awesome!"
Optimus chuckled gently at her as she lined up for another shot. "Well done, Saphira." He turned to look at the Lennox. "How about you and I take a turn once Saphira and I are finished here?" The man looked at the commander in shock. "I think it will be a lot of fun."
"The two bosses going at each other in a game of pool?" Brains chuckled loudly. "Now that I have to stay and see!" He turned to Saphira as she took another shot, hitting another ball into the hole. "Get this game over and done with, Saphira! We wanna see Lennox face off against Optimus."
Saphira chuckled at the scrap bot as she lined up again. She and Optimus played a few more rounds together, enjoying the game happily. They even both threw in a kiss with each other in the middle of the game, which made the autobots get all excited for the two and mock them for their unashamed affection to each other. When the game ended, Saphira had won the round and she stood back to allow Lennox to take over to face Optimus. That was an extremely funny round with the two battling it out to see who would win. In the end, Optimus beat Lennox and Ironhide decided to play after all this time and faced off the colonel. It was a long, but happy night.
