Optimus groaned as he sat down on the firm med berth in the med bay. He has found that sitting and getting up from berths was not the easiest task anymore, and while he was comfortable while laying down on them, he still disliked the effort of getting up. He lifted his legs cautiously as he moved them to lay on the berth before laying back against the backrest, and sighed deeply and rubbing his abdomen gently as he took deep intakes. He had drunk four cubes of energon before, and he was feeling very satisfied now. Now he had to endure the check up that Ratchet has been giving him and Azura once a week to keep an eye on things. Optimus did not mind, but he disliked that attachments Ratchet would place on his abdomen. These would allow Ratchet to scan Azura's system, see what systems have been formed and so on, and it also allowed Optimus to see his daughter nestled within him.

Ratchet approached the side of the berth with the various equipment and prepared them for use. He glanced at Optimus when he heard a low grumble from him. "I assume there is something on your mind, Optimus." The mech shook his head and kept his hands on his abdomen. "You just seem to be bothered by something."

"Are all those lines really necessary?" Optimus questioned, gesturing to the equipment, making Ratchet look at him in surprise. But the mech was able to work out what was bothering his leader. "You attach so many leads to my stomach, and you know that the surface is sensitive. Is it really necessary?"

Ratchet folded his arms as he gave Optimus an amused expression. "I am afraid this must happen, Optimus. I need to monitor the progress of Azura's system and condition, so that I may give accurate information to you, Optimus." Optimus did not respond, but Ratchet knew he was unhappy. "I do understand that you are experiencing discomfort from carrying Azura, Optimus. And the sensitivity that you feel on the surface of your abdomen is normal. It is why any mech or femme heavy with sparkling will punch other Cybertronians if they happen to touch, unless it is their sparkmate." Optimus has witnessed that himself, and it certainly is amusing to see. Though Optimus is unlikely to hit anyone for it. "Though you do not have the benefit of a sparkmate, so you will have to endure it for a couple more months. This first month has already gone by quite quickly."

"Azura feels like it has been longer than that." He grimaced lightly as she gave a light kick, making him hum in amusement as her displeasure of him telling Ratchet her thoughts and feelings on the matter. "It is only fair I mention it, Azura. You will be fine."

Ratchet turned to the equipment while he still had a smile on his face to proceed getting them ready. "That does not surprise me. Azura is still fully aware of her surroundings, and she clearly communicates well with you. It is natural that she is bored in there. But I most certainly will not agree to any early birth, even if that means she is no longer bored." Once the equipment was ready, he grabbed the lines and turned to Optimus. "Her health is a priority over her boredom."

Optimus moved his hands to allow Ratchet to connect the lines to his abdomen. He grimaced as the lines attach to the surface of his abdomen with ease, and he heard the familiar sounds of beeps coming from the machines. "Yeah, she knows that. And I know that as well. But I can't blame her. I have encouraged her to daydream though. That's really one of the only things she can do."

"And eavesdrop on conversations." Ratchet grabbed another set of lines to attach to Optimus's abdomen. "But she is lucky this is only a short procedure. Eight weeks can go by rather quickly. Even if there is zero decepticon activity. But I think that there will be some activity soon."

Optimus nodded in agreement. He was grimacing as the lines were attached to him, feeling the uncomfortable feeling as they remain on the surface. He did wonder how many more systems she would need before it was safe for her to leave. He knew that Ratchet has assured him that his body would go into labor when the time was right, though Optimus was not looking forward to that, even though the birth will not be a natural birth. Especially given he had no birth canal, so he would have to open his chassis for that.

"Okay...one more line..." Optimus frowned a little as he watched Ratchet attach the line before he moved a screen closer and Optimus looked at it. "I know you never get tired of seeing your daughter." Optimus smiled as Ratchet turned on the screen, and his optics stared at it. As on the screen, curled within him with lines connecting to her body, was Azura. He certainly never got tired of that. "Alright, let's see how her body is going."

"Aside from the fact she has grown a bit this week?" Optimus commented as he stared at the screen. "She definitely looks like she has gotten bigger, even from the screen." Ratchet smiled at his friend, knowing that Optimus was feeling some emotions from seeing his daughter. "But she's still so beautiful."

Azura's optics were closed. She could open them if she wanted too, as the fluid would not affect her vision, but she has chosen not to. Her arms were crossed over her chassis, and her legs were curled as she was floating within the fluid of the gestational chamber. She always looked relaxed when he saw her. And he was certain that her golden hair was growing longer as well. As it seemed to be longer than it was, but he could be mistaken.

"Looks like the two systems I picked up last week are still incomplete," Ratchet said as he read through the scans of the equipment. "Though some of her current systems have been strengthened, from what I can see. Even her t-cog is showing signs of improvement, which I didn't think it would need to. I am not sure if that means she can scan vehicles now. But we will have to wait on that one."

"That is interesting." Optimus frowned upon hearing that there have been adjustments made to Azura's t-cog. He doubted that there was a huge change, but that was an interesting piece of information. "What other systems of hers have been reinforced?"

"Mmm…the…oh, the organ that produces the different elements that gives her the different breath attacks…" Ratchet stared at the screen as he read through the different information that he could see. "Her tank…and waste system…those are the other ones that I have picked up on the scanners. But there are a few other systems developing too, but they are small, and likely to take the longest to form. Oh!" Optimus looked at Ratchet in surprise. "And it seems a gestational chamber is forming too…she didn't have one before. But it is there, though it is in the very early stages of forming."

"I see…" Optimus knew that information was not something to be concerned about for a very long time, so it didn't bother him. But he did wonder about what her future would be like. "Anything else that might be good for me to know?"

Ratchet shook his head. "Nothing major. Aside from the fact she is growing and also fully recovered from the incident too. Though only thing I have noticed is that there still seems to be a very small amount of dark energon still left in her system." Optimus looked at Ratchet with immediate concern, because he thought all of it was gone. "It seems removing the shard did not remove the dark energon entirely. But…for some reason, the dark energon has been altered somehow. I am not sure why. It still carries the same signature as dark energon, but it has changed."

"What is that going to mean for her in the future?"

Ratchet shook his head with a shrug. "I really do not know." He looked at Optimus and he could see the concern on his face. "It could mean that Azura will have a balance of light and dark in her, I don't know. Her genetic structure is different, so that could be the reason for it as well." Optimus was not sure what that meant for her, and he hoped it would not be bad. "But just remember, Optimus, dark energon won't make her evil. It will be up to us, and her future choices, to ensure she does not go down that path."

"I know. It just…I am surprised you did not notice sooner, Ratchet." He caressed the side of his abdomen, feeling deep concern for his daughter at this time. "Now…it feels like…Megatron…"

"Megatron didn't even have a part to play in her getting dark energon in her system. That was all Starscream." Optimus knew that, but he still felt as though Azura ended up with another piece of Megatron within her, and for another horrible reason. Ratchet could tell that this worried Optimus, but he could not see anything bad from it. "I understand you are concerned, Optimus. I really do. But until she is no longer within you, I really cannot give an answer on how things will proceed from now."

Even though it was likely that the dark energon now part of Azura's CNA will not be a concern for the autobots, but he did not know if it will influence the sparkling's abilities. Though even if it did, he knew that it was not Azura's fault. Azura could have new abilities that they would discover, even if it wasn't from the best of circumstances. He hopped this would not affect Azura badly though, as he knew that Azura would not be happy.

"Is he being honest?" Azura asked Optimus in a sad tone. She was feeling shocked, confused and upset right now. "Did he really find dark energon still in my body? I don't want it part of me..."

"I am sorry, Ratchet would not have made that statement if it was not true, Azura. I am truly sorry." Optimus grimaced a little as he felt her tensing and kicking out lightly, though she had unintentionally hit a particularly sensitive amniotic line. "Please don't take it out on me, Azura. I am unhappy with this news as well."

"Sorry...just another thing I have to accept."

Ratchet observed Optimus and he knew that Azura was not taking the news well. "I do apologize if this is upsetting for Azura, I truly am. Unfortunately, it was best that I told you before something does happen in the future. And I know you would not appreciate if I kept that information to myself." Ratchet looked at the screens again and intakes heavily. "Everything else is looking really good. Azura is healthy, she is growing and she seems to be on time."

He turned the machines off, except for the ultrasound machine, as Optimus did stare at it while Ratchet began to remove the other lines from his abdomen. Optimus could clearly see Azura's frightened expression, even while her optics were shut. But he could feel that fear as well. He hoped that it will not bother her too much, but he knew she was going to be thinking about it for a while. It was one of the only things she could do right now, and he felt horrible for her.

Optimus sighed deeply and looked at Ratchet. "Before we finish this check up, Azura had some questions for you." Ratchet looked at Optimus and smiled at him, knowing that he was happy to answer them. "She was asking about talking and walking after being reborn. I am not sure how to answer that."

"Ah, yes, I knew she would ask about that." Ratchet chuckled lightly, moving the equipment aside for the moment, and walked back over to the ultrasound machine. "To be perfectly honest, it might only take a week. It is not like she will have forgotten how to walk, but the fluid will soften her joints, so they will need to dry before she can even think about walking. But it will not take long at all." Optimus watched as Ratchet turned the machine off, and he could no longer see Azura. Ratchet removed the last line from his abdomen. "If anything, I expect Azura is going to…probably make us all crazy. Since she can transform so young…I imagine she will use that to her advantage. Especially if she can fly with no wings."

Optimus knew that Azura probably would be able to transform, even within the first few weeks after being reborn, but he would certainly ensure that there would be rules. He wasn't about to have a little dragon flying around all the time. Though he wasn't going to stop her all the time, it would just be something they would have to get used to. At least she won't be chased by a decepticon this time, and he knew they would enjoy that a whole lot more.

"That will be something we will have to wait to see, Ratchet. It will bring my spark a lot of joy to see that myself." Optimus caressed his abdomen with a smile before he moved to sit himself up. "However, I am happier to know that she is..."

"Uh, ep, ep, ep!" Optimus flinched in surprise and looked at Ratchet with a frown. "And just what do you think you are doing?! I am not finish yet!" Optimus stared at him before he leaned back with a sigh. "You know the check up is not just about, Azura. I need to check your system to see how it is proceeding with carrying." Optimus knew that, but he thought it wasn't really necessary to check all the time. "It will not take me long. I always check Azura first, so just relax and be patient with me, Optimus. I am sure you don't want to be laying there for too long, but I am in charge right now."

Optimus almost let out a groan as Ratchet grabbed other equipment to check Optimus's vitals to see how his system was. He understood that Ratchet needed to do this so that his system was in the clear, but it was time consuming. And he was starting to get uncomfortable on this berth, so Optimus wanted to get up and walk around. Even a drive sounded nice st this time, but he would wait for Ratchet to be done.

Optimus said nothing as Ratchet began to scan his whole body to check his system while also checking his internal body temperature, and the health of the gestational chamber. Ratchet had been concerned that the bigger Azura would grow, the weaker the chamber would become, and the sack could break early. And that would be very bad for both Optimus and Azura, since labor was a necessary part to ensure a safe birth for both mech and sparkling.

Ratchet himself has been amused from observing the changes in Optimus's behavior. From his mild mood swings, heightened irritation and his need to spend time in Azura's room has been something Ratchet never thought he would see from Optimus. He knew that he could not do anything about Optimus's mental and emotional state, because it came with the heightened pressure his system is under. Humans would refer it to hormones, though Cybertronians do not call it there. If humans had to undergo the feeling of parts of their bodies being pulled from them internally to give to their offspring, they would be irritated too.

Though Optimus was lucky his experience will only be sure. But it was enough to allow Optimus to enjoy carrying Azura. He already knew that Optimus was renovating Azura's room. Not only was he making her berth larger, the humans had suggested in painting the room and adding things like fairy lights, because they all believed that Azura would love it. And Optimus has agreed, but the humans were sorting out how to move the fish. Jack told them that the fumes of the paint could get into the fish tanks and kill the fish, and Optimus did not want to do that to happen, as he would feel terrible for letting Azura down that way.

But they were planning on painting the room, and Jack had even suggested created a mural of some of Azura's favorite things, and other things, like some Disney and Dreamworks characters. The kids were quite happy to design it as well, so that was going to be fun to create. Ratchet wouldn't be involved with that, as he kept his attention on the health and status of both Optimus and Azura, and keeping an eye on the decepticons. He would assist if needed, but he would not be directly involved.

"Ratchet, how long are you going to need at this time?" Optimus questioned, moving his hand to his face to rub the bridge between his optics. "I am starting to feel uncomfortable laying on this berth…"

"I will take as long as I need to, Optimus." Optimus just frowned slightly, and he did not argue with Ratchet. "Well, I figured you will want to know how your system is doing." He looked at the medic as he moved his hands to caress his abdomen again. "Your system is still a little bit warmer than it should be, but that is normal due to the carrying. Your body has been making good repairs to the removed parts of your body without assistance from myself. And your energon intake…" Optimus rolled his optics as he knew what was about to be said. "Now, I know purging is part of the carrying, but you do need to ingest more than you have been. Along with more rest. I suspect you want to return to your own berth after."

"No, I actually would like to take a drive. I feel the need to get out of the base for a short bit." Ratchet nodded, understanding that need. "As for ingesting more energon and getting enough recharge, I am doing what I can, Ratchet." The medic knew that, but that still did not stop him from informing Optimus of his needs. "Recharging has become a little uncomfortable, and if you happen to find a solution to that problem, I would like to hear it." The medic smirked slightly at him and Optimus rolled his optics. "Is there anything else that you have found?"

"Yes. Your gestational chamber is still strong, and is containing Azura very well." Optimus smiled as he was glad to hear that. "For a mech who has never had a gestational chamber or carried a sparkling, your system is doing remarkably well. I had concerned that your carrying would need a lot of monitoring, but once you recovered from the incident and so did Azura, things seem to be moving well. Potentially, three months might even have been a stretch on my part."

"Are you suggesting that I could birth Azura sooner than anticipated?" Ratchet nodded affirmatively, and Optimus did not know if he should feel relieved about that, or upset. He was looking forward to another two months of carrying. "Is that affirmative though? Or could you be mistaken?"

"To be honest, this particular procedure tends to never end on the exact due date that we expect it to. The last time a mech carried a sparkling in need, the birth occurred three weeks before the expected due date. But everything was fine by then. And Azura could be looking at that too."

"I hope Ratchet is right. I would like to leave sooner…even though I do fully appreciate this, daddy. You are working hard to ensure I am healthy, and I would love to feel your arms around me sooner than later."

Optimus pressed his lips together as he listened to both Ratchet and Azura. "Hmm…I guess we will need to renovate her nursery sooner than later…" He sighed as he thought about it before he smiled. "I will speak with Bulkhead about obtaining the paint for her room. She already told me what colour she would like it to be."

"Weren't the humans going to help supply it as well?" Ratchet questioned curiously. "Though I supposed it would be a massive amount of paint that they would need to obtain…I guess if they can't, we can easily produce it." Optimus nodded affirmatively, and Ratchet finally began to put things away, which meant he could probably leave the med bay. "What colour is Azura wanting for her room?"

"White for the wall where the mural is going to be painted on, while the rest she wants soft pink and red. I think it will look really nice. We will just have to move the fish before we proceed, and hopefully that can be done sooner than later." Optimus was smiling as he was imagining what Azura's room would look like as a finished product. He was really looking forward to finishing it. "I assume we are almost done right now?"

Ratchet sighed as he knew that Optimus wanted to leave. He was still amused by it though. He nodded and looked at Optimus. "We are done. Everything is good, and better than I expected, so you are free to go now." Optimus smiled and he moved to stand up. "Will you want some help getting up?"

Optimus frowned at Ratchet's offer to help and shook his head. "I am fully capable of getting up from the berth, Ratchet. I might be heavy with carrying, but I am still capable of moving without aid." The medic just chuckled a little as he backed off as Optimus sat up slowly before moving his feet off the berth. "I am still going to go for a drive. If you can't find me in the lobby, my berth room and Azura's nursery, you know where I will be."

"I can easily look for your signal as well, Optimus," Ratchet said with a smirk, making Optimus roll his optics as he placed his feet on the ground and slid off the berth with a huff. "But do be careful, Optimus. I know nothing much occurs in Jasper, but…I am sure I don't need to remind you to be careful, regardless."

Optimus nodded affirmatively. "I am always cautious, Ratchet. Even more so than I have been before. I will not put Azura in any kind of danger. I appreciate the concern." Optimus proceeded towards the door and glanced back at Ratchet. "I should be gone for about an hour. I will be back when the children have finished school."

"Alright, that will be good. Bulkhead and Bumblebee should be back with the mined energon soon as well, unless they arrived while we were busy." Ratchet moved more of the tools away and looked at Optimus just before he walked through the door. "I'll start processing the energon as well, as I imagine you are happy to see a full stockpile of cubes."

Optimus could not deny that. Though Optimus did feel bad at times for ingesting the amount of energon that he does currently. He knew it was not just for himself, but for Azura as well. But that did not stop him from feeling bad about it. After all, the other autobots needed energon too. But it was good that they had a large stockpile of crystals that will last a long time. They just needed to pretend that they didn't have access to it, in case the decepticons would get suspicious.

Optimus made his way towards the lobby, feeling eager to leave the base and go for a drive in the fresh air. And it would give him time to think and plan for things, like finishing the renovation in Azura's room. But he also would use the time to ponder on what the decepticons could be planning at this time. Especially as there has not been any activity. He did not know if Megatron had killed Starscream, due to what he did to Azura, or not. Though they would only find that out upon facing the decepticons again.

Upon entering the lobby, Optimus was met with Bulkhead and Bumblebee with large crates full of energon crystals. Arcee was standing by the ground bridge controls as the two move back into the vortex to bring more in. Optimus saw there was a lot of crystals, and it would certainly be a large enough supply to last at least a whole year. Though Optimus knew with his consumption of the energon, it would be reduced very quickly.

"Oh, hey, Optimus!" Bulkhead said enthusiastically with a big smile. "Bee and I are really happy with the haul that we have managed to harvest today, and this should be more than enough to help fill those cravings."

Bumblebee chuckled softly. "He only has two months to go, Bulkhead. We don't need to worry about our energon stores at all. It will be okay. Optimus can have as much as he wants, he needs it. And so does Azura."

"I certainly will not be able to ingest all of that." Optimus hummed in amusement as he looked at the haul. "Have you got more to bring in, Bulkhead?"

"Just one more load, and we're done." Bumblebee ran into the vortex suddenly, and the wrecker just shrugged. "Well, I am done. I'm going to get started on processing the energon, and I'll inform Ratchet so he can continue processing the energon while we run into town to pick the children up."

Optimus was very pleased to see the haul at this time. He looked at Bulkhead as the wrecker prepared to move the crystals to the processing room. "Before you proceed, Bulkhead, I wanted to speak about the renovations we plan to do to Azura's room." The wrecker was immediately interested as he looked at Prime. "Ratchet now believes that it is possible for Azura to not be inside me for as long as anticipated, so we will need to proceed quicker in regard to getting it finish."

"I see…lucky you, in one way…" Optimus smirked at Bulkhead's sarcastic comment. "But of course! We can proceed. But we still haven't worked out a spot for the fish. I will speak to the kids when they get picked up. Hmm…the lobby is kind of too risky…"

"Put the fish in my room. They will be safe in there." Bulkhead was surprised by the suggestion, but he smiled knowing it was a good idea. "There were power outlets for human technology in my room, and the tanks could easily be there, and I can keep an eye on them while we paint the room and I finish her berth."

"Good idea. I will tell that to the kids, and we can start preparing the tools to start painting. Hopefully they've worked out the mural as well." Bulkhead began to push the crate towards the processing room as Bumblebee walked back in, and Arcee closed the bridge. "Though I think since it is nearly the end of the day, we should only prepare for it. Tomorrow is Saturday, so Jack, Miko and Raf are going to want to be involved."

"That would be a good idea." Optimus walked towards the driveway, caressing his abdomen as he approached the tunnel. "I am off for a drive. I will be gone for at least an hour. I will be back when the children have returned, and can assist with moving the fish tanks."

Arcee looked at Optimus curiously as she moved to one of the crates to help move the energon. "I suspect Ratchet was okay with you going for another drive."

"It does not hurt me, Arcee. On the contrary, I am a lot more comfortable. But I am sure it could become uncomfortable." With that, he transformed, and Azura tensed within Optimus as the she felt the movements around her. She heard the sound of his engine rumbling, and she was excited for the drive. "I shall return soon."

None of the autobots responded as Optimus drove forward to make his way out of the tunnel. They all knew Optimus would return when he said that he would, so they were not worried. Optimus himself felt relief now that he was driving. It actually felt a lot more comfortable, even though he did not know why. As he drove out of the base, Optimus was already thinking about the future. Knowing that it was possible Azura could be reborn sooner than anticipated was exciting, even though he was enjoying the experience of carrying. Though he did hope that she would have all of the systems within her body by then. That was his main concern. For now, he was also thinking about improving her room. Azura was excited to see the results when she is reborn, even if it does not turn out the best, she knew it would be done with love and care. That was the most important thing.

Though while Optimus drove along the road, Azura was silent. He had thought she was recharging because of the silence, but Azura's mind was on the dark energon. She had thought that it was gone from her veins, but it has now been woven into her CNA. It made her feel very upset about it. If she had darker abilities that could be unleashed, she was afraid to use them. But she did believe the fact that dark energon doesn't make her evil. It was just part of her now. And she wished it was not. And the sparkling had no memory of the incident too. So she had no idea that Unicron had control of her for a short time. If she did know, this new information would be terrifying in other ways.