Drabble response: Prowl/Starscream, bonds - Starscream POV
Written because I was listening to Coldplay, did a double-take at the lyrics, looked up the lyrics, and pretty much went "holyfragthisisperfect!" to be Starscream's side of the previous drabble.
Question for graycalls: Would it be okay with you if I re-edited your drabble with this one and posted it at fanfiction.net and possibly at transficsation?
Warnings: Songfic. Implied violence. Slash (AKA two robots using a male identifier in a sexual relationship), but nothing explicit; more along the lines of building up to the solid relationship. Some cursing of the Cybertronian kind, i.e. slag, frag, glitch. AU (but admittedly could be G1 canon), companion fic to a previous Prowl/Starscream fic written for graycalls. Spoilers for Endgame/the last aired episode for Transformers: Animated.
Disclaimer: If you can find it through Wikipedia, it's not mine. If it's copyright, it's not mine. All I own are the names of Sanus, Swiftseek, Nova, Mach Alert (as applied to this character; I'm fully aware that Mach Alert is the actual (Japanese) name of an existing TF character), and these characters' backstory with each other. I don't even own the idea which set this all up - that belongs to graycalls, via drabble request. The lyrics to Coldplay's The Scientist are also not mine. Prowl's tactician quote is from MS Paint Masterpiece, and I found the quote off of TV Tropes and I am NOT going back to find the precise page; I lose enough time to fanfic, thank you very much. Come to think of it, Nova as Starscream's name was a bunny off tf_bunny_farm , wasn't it? So that's actually not mine, unless I'm mistaken.x
Notes: As before, Swiftseek = Prowl, Nova = Starscream, and Sanus = Jazz. New this time: Mach Alert = Red Alert. See if you can spot the reference to TF:A.
Prowl/Starscream, bonds - sequel to previous drabble
--- = division of memories/flashbacks from rest of story (in the beginning and end)
***** = division matching original drabble-fic (beginning and end)
Song lyrics are italicized and centered
Vorn = Cybertronian equivalent of a year. One vorn is approximately equal to 83 human years. Many Cybertronians living on Earth simply consider a vorn to be the average human lifespan.
"Normal dialogue"
<"Vossian/Praxian dialect">
Narration
:Comms:
Thoughts
\Spark-bond communications/
*****
In the human minutes after the Decepticons had retreated with the black and white Autobot tactician, Starscream requested an audience with Megatron. He had intended to request that he be assigned to guard duty with the Autobot SIC. Megatron had instead snapped at him, swiping at him, before raising his fusion cannon, pressing it against the Decepticon Air Commander's chest where his Spark lay, snarled something about finally being rid of a nuisance, and began to charge the fusion cannon.
The gun-mode mech was knocked off his feet by two furious Seekers. In moments Megatron was in stasis lock; in less than four human minutes (approximately half a breem, Starscream noted fuzzily) Megatron was critically damaged and would die if not given medical aid soon.
"Get him out of the room," Thundercracker hissed, optics still far too bright. The other Decepticons in the room scrambled to comply.
Star had been a nickname reserved for his bondmate's exclusive usage.
Skywarp broke in.
Lingering several moments longer, Starscream finally turned and left the room, steps slow and measured. As he started to navigate the halls to go to the brig, his thoughts turned to the past.
*****
---
Come up to meet you
Tell you I'm sorry
You don't know how lovely you are
To borrow a human phrase, it felt like it had been forever and a day since he'd first met Prowl.
Their first meeting had been far from auspicious - the black and white mech had critiqued Starscream's work, and he in turn had interpreted it as an insult of his own abilities. Some time later, his friends having calmed him, he sought out the Vossian flier (Prowl having been Sparked in Vos, he'd had a jet-frame at the time; Starscream had been Sparked in Praxus himself, and as such had originally worn a sensor-paneled Praxian-make frame) to apologize.
The purpose of the trip had actually been twofold - the graceful lines of the tetrajet build drew his optics, and the black and white paintjob only served to highlight the best features of the Vossian frame. Beyond apologizing, perhaps the mech would be open to considering a quick overload . . . ?
Soon after apologizing and being drawn into a conversation with the Vossian mech, Starscream had come to the conclusion that Prowl was utterly clueless when it came to certain aspects of social interaction. Either that, or the black-and-white was steadily ignoring every signal he made. Was the mech bonded already?
Starscream shoved the last suggestion into a box in the very farthest reaches of his cranial unit. If this mech was bonded . . .
Why am I having such a strong reaction to the thought, anyway?
---
---
I had to find you
Tell you I need you
Tell you I set you apart
Their friendship had grown from there, from tentative wariness to eventual acceptance.
Prowl had been drawn by Starscream's ability to win against him when playing 3-D tech-chess (few having succeeded in winning against Prowl).
Starscream had been drawn by Prowl's ability to understand the technical terms he used.
They both found solace in each other, conversing about the unfounded prejudice against the Vossians.
It wasn't long at all before Starscream found that he was thinking of Prowl every instant of his spare time. Being around Prowl helped to make Starscream feel alive in ways he hadn't before, pushed his reasoning to the next level and setting him apart from all the other scientists in his chosen field of xenobiology.
In return, Prowl found that the mechs and rare femme that he had to work with were becoming dull and unoriginal, exposure to Starscream having spoiled him somewhat since he expected that all Cybertronians were as smart as the tri-color jet was.
(Prowl and Starscream had switched frames some time before, since they needed the most shock value - Starscream the Vossian jet would stand out more in public perception than Starscream the Praxian mech would.)
---
---
Tell me your secrets
And ask me your questions
Oh, let's go back to the start
Starscream stopped outside the cell occupied by the black and white Praxian frame.
For a moment he wished that Prowl had chosen to keep the tetra-jet build, but knew that it was unlikely to have happened.
Too many believed that Seekers came in threes, that Seekers never bonded with non-Seekers, and so he had switched frames with Prowl - Thundercracker and Skywarp had been Vossians, Smokescreen and Bluestreak Praxians, and two trines needed to be completed.
He and Prowl had switched frames, repainted the frames to the colors they preferred, and continued on their separate paths.
Separate though their paths had been before, their chosen lot in life was bringing them into contact more and more.
---
*****
Almost absently, Starscream twitched his wings in the wing-dialect unique to the Vossian and Praxian population.
Prowl looked up.
Starscream twitched, repeating himself since the tactician hadn't seen his first query.
was the weary response as Prowl sat up to allow the sensory panels to move more smoothly.
Stupid, Starscream snapped internally. That's all you can say? Vorns of separation after bonding and all you can do is agree with him? His wings twitched again, this time in annoyance with himself.
"How long do you intend to keep me here?"
"For as long as it takes, Autoscum." Starscream regretted the words as soon as they'd left his vocaliser - now there was no hope of talking civilly to Prowl that day. What made it worse was that the words were automatic - he would have snapped them out whether or not there was a non-Vossian mech on guard that day, or even if they'd been alone.
(Starscream wished that he could see beyond the faction insignia and just see Prowl and not an Autobot. It had been decavorns since he'd been able to think that way, even not including the long period they'd spent in stasis.)
Prowl, ever calm, merely nodded. Once his trinemates started nagging him over their shared bond, Starscream turned and left without saying another word.
*****
---
Running in circles
Comin' in tails
Heads on a science apart
Starscream found his thoughts drifting again. It had been days since Prowl had been captured, and the Air Commander could not bring himself to focus on the proper topic, never mind that he was now in charge of the whole of the Decepticon army.
The topic in question this time should have been the next portion of the truce with the Autobots, but instead was the time he'd gotten lost with Prowl while exploring the massive Crystal Gardens of Praxus.
Hopelessly confused by that point, Starscream had slipped a small carved medallion from subspace. The medallion had carvings on both sides, he explained, one with the head of a turbofox, and the other with the tail of a turbofox. Which did Prowl prefer - heads or tails? Heads meant the path to the left; tails, the path on the right.
Prowl had arched an optic ridge at Starscream's blunt question, pointing out that using random chance to determine a route was somewhat illogical, to which he'd countered that it was his lucky medallion.
Prowl's optic ridge had arched further up. There was no such thing as luck, he insisted, and Starscream replied that this medallion was what had kept him alive for so long, and wasn't Prowl going to choose a side?
Cycling his vents in that way that indicated fond exasperation, Prowl chose the turbofox-head side. Starscream promptly chose the tails side and flipped the coin into the air.
Tails it was.
They emerged from the Garden less than three breems later.
Grinning, Starscream flipped Prowl the coin, told the mech to keep it. "I think you'll need it more than I do," Starscream said breezily, grinning, and melted into the crowd.
He knew what Prowl would find.
The next time he saw Prowl, the mech arched an optic ridge. "A double-sided coin?"
"I don't leave things to chance," Starscream answered. "I prefer to make my own luck."
Prowl smirked then. "That's why you're better off the researcher and I as the tactician - our thought processes are too different."
"Our heads are a science apart," Starscream half-sang. "Are you doing anything next orn after you're off shift?"
"No. Why?"
Starscream couldn't stop himself from moving towards Prowl. "Because I was hoping to share a cube of energon with you."
A brief silence, as Prowl considered the question. "You are interested in courting me."
"Yes."
The smirk returned, shading into a genuine, if shy, smile. "I'd love to, Starscream."
Starscream ignored the way his Spark leapt in its casing, insisting that it was due to the leap he'd taken impulsively and not any sort of joy-
Sighing, he pulled himself from the memories. Thundercracker and Skywarp were doing their jobs - convincing the rest of the non-Vossian Decepticons that they needed to join the Autobots in order to survive. (No Praxians remained with the Decepticons - the devastation of Praxus had seen to that.) He needed to do his own job - continue to establish diplomatic relations with the Autobots.
Prowl's small smile stayed with him the whole time.
---
*****
:Star! Prowl's talking to me!:
Starscream felt his trinemate's shock through the bond they shared, dropped all but the barest pretense of paying attention on comms duty, and listened intently to the conversation that followed. He smirked to himself at Prowl's surprise at his negotiating the cease-fire with the Autobots (he had to do something to occupy his time, after all, and he'd never been particularly keen on the war happening in the first place).
The jet due to replace Skywarp on guard duty arrived, and Starscream cursed internally.
(Just as they were getting to a breakthrough. He'd been so close to being able to go talk to Prowl again-!)
"Then why are you keeping me prisoner?"
The question swept Starscream off his pedes. Only momentarily, though, and he sent his reply to Skywarp via the trine-bond, and allowed his trinemate to answer for him.
"Because Nova wishes to know his bonded again."
Skywarp left the brig area, dimming contact with Starscream via the trine-bond and cutting off the comms, leaving the Decepticon Air Commander to stew internally. They'd been so close-!
But then the next communication from the Autobots arrived, and Starscream was forced to abandon all thoughts of the black and white mech for diplomatic talks.
*****
---
Nobody said it was easy
It's such a shame for us to part
"So . . . this is it."
"I suppose it is."
"Skyfire should be here sometime tomorow."
"Again, I offer you my congratulations."
"Naturally, this mission will be to the benefit of the Vossians and Praxians more than it will be for the all-mighty Autobot Council of Elders." I wish I didn't have to leave you.
"Starscream . . . be careful. No Vossian has ever won the prestige of being able to go on an off-world mission, and that you're going on one so dangerous and lasting such a long time . . ."
"Don't worry your pretty little frame, quick-Seeker. We'll be back safe and sound before you know it."
Prowl nodded. I wish you didn't have to leave me was written clear as the highest quality high-grade Praxian crystal in Prowl's optics, clear and unmarred by any type of influence.
Starscream wondered when he'd become able to read every nuance of Prowl's body language - even discounting the wing-dialect and the subtle signals they'd designed together. He'd been formally seeing Prowl for nearly five vorns now (it would have been a short courtship if they hadn't had outside pressures; Seeker romances were notorious for being short and to the point, but rare contact with each other had extended the romance and was threatening to take the new record for longest courtship), and he couldn't wait to formally bond with Prowl-
But there were other considerations beyond the fact that the mission was going to take him away from Prowl for a long time. New-bonded Sparks were supposed to merge frequently within the first five vorns of bonding, and Starscream's mission was going to take him away from Cybertron for at least half that time. They would bond only for the bond to break, and that couldn't be allowed to happen.
And then, of course, there was the overall master plan to think about . . .
Starscream wished that the overall master plan didn't exist, then banished the (heretic) thought from his cranial unit. He had work to do.
Starscream bid Prowl farewell, and wished that it didn't feel like he was shutting down a part of himself.
---
---
Nobody said it was easy
No one ever said it would be this hard
"Starscream? Starscream! Star-"
"They kicked me out. Even though they had that paranoid security expert of theirs look through my memories-"
"Mach Alarm was there?"
"His name was Red Alert."
"Praxian; it's his outsider name. You should have been cleared - Mach's too paranoid for them to dismiss whatever you say-"
"Then we have the ultimate proof that the Autobot Council of Elders are a bigoted group of slagging glitch-spa-Mmph!"
"Watch your vocalizer!" <"Use the dialect or wingspeech if you're going to insult them, Star!">
"I will not watch my fragging vocalizer, Prowl!" "And you aren't my maternal care unit!"
"I don't need to be your Spark-bearer to care about you!"
"And what does that make you?"
"Your friend, your lover, your bond-mate! I-"
". . ."
"Oh. Oh, Primus. I've messed this all up."
"Prowl?"
"I - I'm - My sincere apologies, Starscream. I'll . . . I'll just go now."
"Prowl! Prowl, wait! Prowl! I-"
I love you too. I loved you the way you were - blue suits you, but not as well as gold did. If only we hadn't had to change optic colors . . . if only I wasn't a part of the ruling Vossian triad . . .
---
---
Oh, take me back to the start
". . . You found me. Good for you. Now go away." Prowl never looked away from his view of Cybertron from the balcony, sensor panels held stiffly in place.
"Prowl, about what you said-"
Prowl cut him off. "It was presumptuous, idiotic, and unplanned."
"Prowl-"
"I have destroyed the friendship that we had, Starscream. It is my fault, and not your own. It will be best for us to not see each other any more."
Again it's proven that Prowl is socially awkward. Just when I thought I was making progress . . . Starscream cycled his vents in exasperation. "That's not what I came here to say."
"Then say what you wanted to and leave me alone."
Starscream reached out and pulled Prowl away from the balcony, spinning the mech so that his back was to the wall. Several quick steps carried him forward so that Prowl was backed into a corner, and had no choice but to back into the wall. The sensor panels were flared wide (Starscream knew from experience that this position was workable, but uncomfortable unless other factors came into play). Starscream pressed closer, moved until Prowl couldn't any more and pressed their chassis together. Without thinking, he reached out and ran a hand along an edge, slow and soothing.
The effect was instant. An electric tingle built up, looping into a feedback loop between them until Starscream leaned back and broke contact.
. . . Primus. That means . . . But . . . In that case . . .
This . . . There's still a chance.
Prowl's whole chassis, which had previously been vibrating with tension and what was supposed to be fury but was probably sorrow, went utterly still.
"Do you promise that you will listen to what I have to say?" Starscream murmured into the Vossian's audio (Prowl always had been Vossian to him). "That you will hear me out, and then respond afterwards without interrupting?"
"I . . . yes. Yes."
"And do you promise that you will not try to flee until I have finished speaking?"
That clearly gave Prowl pause, but the mech nodded.
"Good." Starscream stepped back, optics determined and set. "Sit down." He pointed at a chair in a corner, moving with Prowl. He'd chosen that particular chair because it was secluded, so mechs couldn't see in from outside, and also so that Prowl would still have to face him if he bolted for the balcony or the door.
(Though that was admittedly rather unlikely; they were fairly high up after all, and how had Prowl managed to get these quarters? Higher-up quarters cost more credits, and being a tactician for the rare riots which broke out and being a security officer otherwise did not pay well enough to get these quarters).
Prowl, thankfully, obeyed. "So? Talk."
Mouthy, but he'll pay attention this way. Oh frag, what if he only pretends to pay attention?
Making certain that he would lock optics with Prowl, Starscream spoke, enunciating clearly.
"You are Swiftseek, Primus-created, chosen-Thirteen, Ninth chosen."
Blue optics flared white with surprise. "Starscream, I-"
"Stop with this nonsense!" Starscream thundered, forgetting that (Skyfire-gone-lost-forever-Vos-doomed-won't-see-Prowl-Prowl-Prowl) his vocaliser had been damaged beyond repair so that only screechy tones emerged. "You know the truth as well as I do, Swiftseek. Here we are away from the outside world-"
"What, precisely, happened to your vocalizer?"
Only the muted horror in Prowl's tones kept him from unleashing a screech of pure annoyance.
"The cold damaged it," Starscream answered. "And you are avoiding the question. What you said back there-"
"I trust that it will not affect your judgment in enacting the plan-"
"It fragging better affect my judgment! We're Thirteen, we've fallen in love with each other, of course it's going to affect our judgment!"
"We've chosen to take separate sides in the war - Praxus to the Autobots, and Vos to the upcoming Decepticon rebellion! It's naturally going to affect our judgment if we end up fighting each other, bonded or not!" Prowl opened his mouth to keep talking, but stopped. "You - You're - Nova-"
"Oh, for Primus's sake," Starscream/Nova muttered. Stepping forward, he pulled Prowl/Swiftseek up from the chair. "I like you. You like me. We both like each other a lot. Can we just skip everything else and Spark-bond now?"
(Swiftseek/Prowl would later say that it was the most impulsive decision he'd made since receiving the battle computer upgrade which led to his reputation as a logic-driven aft. Nova/Starscream would say in reply that he was glad for the upgrade - it meant that Swiftseek/Prowl was all his, after all, and Nova/Starscream didn't particularly want to share Swiftseek/Prowl.)
"Yes."
A beat of silence.
Nova shifted his grip on Prowl. "Quarters?"
"Behind you and fifty-eight degrees to your right-"
The door slammed behind two mechs twined so closely around each other that combined with the wings and sensory panels, it was a miracle that either one managed to walk at all.
---
\Friend-lover-chosenmate/
\Love-affection-belongtoyou/
\MINE/
\Not arguing that/
\Amusement-affection-lust-want/
\Lust-affection-need-want-fondness/
---
I was just guessin' at numbers and figures
Pulling the puzzles apart
\Swiftseek?/
\Nova. Affection-love-fondness. What do you wish to talk about?/
\The war./
\Yes?/
\I . . . My joining the Decepticons has been foreseen. It just needs to be dramatic now./
\I realize this. We've discussed that before. What is the problem?/
\You're an Enforcer. They . . . they'll ask you to arrest me, and I'll have to . . . Worry-Concern-Fear/
\Whatever it is you must do, as long as it is for the good of Cybertron, do it. We are Thirteen; we will do as we have with other dimensions. You recall the one where we sacrificed ourselves?/
\You sacrificed yourself, you mean. My chosen persona never knew what was happening. If you're talking about the one with Megatron as a giant head, at least./
\I am./
\But - your own simulations say that the chances of us both surviving are close to none-/
\Do you know what the secret to most of my plans is, Nova? Amusement-affection-smugness/
\No. What? Query-curiosity-confusion/
\A true tactician doesn't know WHAT the slag he's doing until he's halfway done with it./
Startled laughter bubbled out of Nova's vocalizer.
---
*****
Nine days later, with the diplomatic talks all but completed, Starscream received word that Megatron had recovered enough to resume command of the Decepticons. Knowing what was bound to happen as a result, he summoned Skywarp and Thundercracker to join him in a last visit to Prowl's cell.
<"Well, at least the Seekers have diplomatic relations with the Autobots now"> Skywarp offered brightly.
<"True. Still . . .">
<"You want to end the war?">
<"I want to go with him.">
<". . .">
<". . .">
<". . . I mean yes, I want to end the war. Of course I want to end the war!">
<"Almost there, Screamer.">
<"Assume standard trine positioning, then - Skywarp, you're on the left, and Thundercracker, you're on the right.">
They rounded the final corner preceding the brig section of the Nemesis. They stopped in front of Prowl's cell.
The tactician looked up before blue optics (should be goldgoldshadeoforbitedHelix) flickered to the side.
"Megatron is recovered sufficiently to take command now."
Proximity and time must be making the shields weak - he felt the astonishment shown in startled optics, the positioning of sensor-panels, and the sharp shift of the tactician's cranial unit.
They stood there for a long time, Starscream trying to gather the courage to speak again but not daring too, too aware of the cameras in the brig and Soundwave's loyalty to the Decepticon cause.
They left at the end of the guard shift with the mech on guard.
*****
---
Questions of science
Science and progress
Do not speak as loud as my heart
Nova wished that he hadn't ever conceived the thought of entering the Science Academy. If he hadn't entered the Science Academy, Skyfire wouldn't be lost, he wouldn't have driven another bolt home into the public perception of the Vossians . . .
Then again, if he hadn't gone to the Science Academy, it could easily have been longer before he bonded with Swiftseek.
So yeah, there were advantages to the idea. Nova just wished that there were more immediate advantages than long-term ones.
---
---
And tell me you love me
Come back and haunt me
Oh, and I rush back to the start
A private transmission channel blinked at him in the corner of his HUD, internal alarms shrill as they beeped at him. He opened it, curious, but knew who it was the instant he saw the channel used.
Only Skyfire would have used the ancient com-frequency they'd shared during that fateful scientific expedition.
:We will be attacking the Decepticon base in approximately forty-five human minutes.: A pause. :I wish you the best of luck with your bonded, Starscream.:
The transmission cut out before the stunned jet had a chance to respond.
The Vossian-build mech considered his options. He was currently off-duty, due to report to Megatron in eight human minutes . . .
Frag Megatron. Seeker-thoughts were similar enough to each other that Soundwave could rarely differentiate between them. A physical all-out search of the Nemesis would take a long time, long enough for him to finish talking.
---
---
I'm going back to the start
Within minutes (less than five human minutes) he was standing at the Decepticon brig again.
<"Swiftseek.">
<"Nova.">
<"It's been a long time.">
<"Yes. Yes, it has been.">
<"Will you take me back?">
<". . . You abandoned me."> Nova flinched at the pain well-hidden in the black-and-white mech's tones.
<"Against my will. The programming-">
<"The Decepticon coding was discovered to facilitate the submersion of moral programming and anything that might persuade the newly recruited to sway from the Decepticon cause.">
<"Swiftseek-">
<"It was only used in mechs who agreed to it, when you took the sigil.">
<". . . You found out about that.">
<"It was early in the war, about a human month after you had first publically proclaimed allegiance to Megatron. I enlisted with the Autobots less than a human day after I found out. A saboteur snuck into the Decepticon labs, hoping to find data we could use against the Decepticons. He brought that back instead.">
Nova fought down a rush of hot rage. <"Your pet saboteur."> The mech who'd dared to touch something not his own, to prize his way into the puzzle-box that was Swiftseek's public persona.
<"It was not Jazz, as a matter of fact."> He belatedly realized that the hot flash of jealousy had been transmitted across their bond, shields weakened to be almost non-existent. <"He ascended to the position when his predecessor, Meister, died in an attack. Meister is the one who found the data.">
A nanosecond's debate did nothing to stop the flood of relief from Nova to Swiftseek's end of the bond. <"Ah.">
Prowl's - Swiftseek's - tones were decidedly casual. Far too casual, Nova/Starscream thought . . .
Then the impact of Prowl's words hit him. <". . . Jazz is SANUS?">
Sanus had been Eight chosen of the Thirteen. He had represented the musicians, the frame-type best suited for later spies, been the guardian of Polyhex . . . and apparently, Sanus was the mech he'd been so jealous of all these vorns.
<"Yes. He recognized me first, talked to me about it after Praxus.">
<"Oh."> Nova could manage no more intelligent response, still reeling from the realization.
Evidently Swiftseek had misinterpreted his reaction. <". . . Nova, there is nothing between us. Me and Sanus, that is. I . . . I have been, and always will be, yours.">
<". . ."> Nova was still too stunned for words, though this time for another reason.
<"When you were a Decepticon, that . . . it wasn't really you reacting. It wasn't Nova who destroyed all those Sparks. It was Starscream. I know that.">
Grateful for the change in topic, Starscream latched onto the shift. <"But that - that still doesn't excuse what I did!">
<"I understand the reasoning behind what you did. As I have told you multiple times before, just because-">
<"-One is responsible for murder does not mean that the person in question should not necessarily bear all of the guilt for their actions, especially when there was no other choice."> It was an argument he knew well - he'd gone through what was almost the same topic with the same words long before he'd taken the Decepticon insignia.
He continued the argument as they had so many times before. <"But Swiftseek, I chose to have that programming implemented. I knew what would happen when I did so. Doesn't that make me equally responsible for my actions?">
<"That is an argument which may never truly be completed, Nova, and I can still recognize an attempt to distract me when I see - or hear, as it may be - one."> Wry amusement wound through the tactician's tones.
<"But-">
<"No more buts. Forget all that. The Autobots have killed plenty in defense of Cybertron, and nobody hates them for it. Just because you did it for a different cause doesn't matter - the Decepticon cause was equally just in the beginning, if not more so. You will have my support, and once Optimus has all of the information, you will have his support too.">
Fragger. He knows I can never win an argument against him when he's using that thrice-damned battle computer of his.
<". . .">
<"Despite rumors, the Autobots would never separate bondmates"> Prowl continued. <"No method of killing one bondmate without killing the other is known - at worst, you would be put into stasis. The Autobots need my skill too much. All we will need to do is reveal our status. That will be enough to ensure that your life will be spared.">
<"But - I cannot-"> Slag! He could feel his composure crumbling, the steady foundation which had supported centavorns of separation now starting to collapse as Earthen buildings of shodden quality did during the phenomenon known as an earthquake.
<"Why do you not abandon the one who has given you so much trouble? He has beaten you, blatantly used you, thrown you aside when your usefulness was exhausted only to come knocking at your door once he has need of you again.">
If Swiftseek/Prowl was going to say anything else, it was cut off by the abrupt sound of alarms and explosions going off.
When Nova/Starscream looked back at Prowl after the sirens had faded to a less audio-splitting level, the black and white mech was on his feet.
As if on cue, Jazz (Sanus-brother-companion-protector) could be heard coming down the hall. "Prowler?"
Starscream disabled the guards with swift shots from his null-rays, and tried to ignore the fact that the mech was using his own pet name - he had his own, older one for the mech in question, after all.
"Prowler, ya in here? Pro-"
"Jazz. Give me a moment."
<"Swiftseek, I-">
<"Nova."> First time he's used my true designation. <"Come with us. Please.">
"Prowl, what are ya doin'?"
"Give me a moment, Jazz." Tactician turned from saboteur. "Starscream. Come with us."
"We don't have much time, Prowler. C'mon."
"Starscream, please." Prowl's tones had turned pleading.
"Prowler, we have to go-"
"Starscream, please!" Desperation filled Prowl's tones now, bleeding through the bond too.
"Prowl-"
"You'll be safe with us!"
Numb with surging hope, Starscream responded mechanically. "I - I can't leave my trine!"
"Starscream!"
Nova felt his coolant turn to ice in its lines.
Megatron had found them.
Oh, Primus save us-
Skywarp warped into the room carrying Thundercracker with him, grabbed the saboteur, and teleported back out in a flash of light.
Starscream moved to hide the panel to the jail cell and hit a sequence of buttons.
<"We don't have much time"> he murmured as the bars to Swiftseek's cell deactivated. <"You'll be first.">
<"Nova?">
<"I'll see you 'round, quick-Seeker"> he murmured with an affectionate grin before Skywarp got back into the room.
<"See you, lover"> Nova added to his bonded's stunned face before he vanished. <"'Rift, get in a corner. I'll stall until 'Shift returns.">
Any reply that Thundercracker might have made was cut off by Megatron thundering into the room. Red optics settled on the empty cell where an Autobot tactician had previously been, and fury flared up.
"STARSCREAM!"
Fin
Personal fanon: On a completely random side note, I think that Starscream's voice before whatever accident made his vocalizer all screechy sounded rather like Chris Martin (AKA the lead singer of Coldplay), especially from the song The Scientist, which set off this whole ficlet. He'd be awesome as Starscream's chosen holoform, even, if he ever changed it from the Moustache Guy in 2007/2009.
I was practically sugar-high the whole time I was writing this because I found the piano version of the song and it was *awesome* for writing.
Apologies for the cliff-hanger, but all should be resolved by Wednesday noon, if all goes well. If it helps any, I have a fluff ending all written out already.
I looked at the fic length after copy-pasting it into Word for future reference . . .
16 pages in word. And the first one was only 5.
And all that in 24 hours. Even taking into consideration the parts of the fic from the first . . . Wow. I scare even myself. And given that the bunny wants to expand the first one . . .
*waves goodbye to non-homework time for the next two days*
Edit 3/14/2010: I changed 'saboteur' to 'tactician'. I have no clue how I mixed up Prowl and Jazz; the empty cell was Prowl, and if I'd put "empty space in the brig" it would've been Jazz. I meant Prowl originally, so it's Prowl now.
Question for graycalls: Would it be okay with you if I re-edited your drabble with this one and posted it at fanfiction.net and possibly at transficsation?
Warnings: Songfic. Implied violence. Slash (AKA two robots using a male identifier in a sexual relationship), but nothing explicit; more along the lines of building up to the solid relationship. Some cursing of the Cybertronian kind, i.e. slag, frag, glitch. AU (but admittedly could be G1 canon), companion fic to a previous Prowl/Starscream fic written for graycalls. Spoilers for Endgame/the last aired episode for Transformers: Animated.
Disclaimer: If you can find it through Wikipedia, it's not mine. If it's copyright, it's not mine. All I own are the names of Sanus, Swiftseek, Nova, Mach Alert (as applied to this character; I'm fully aware that Mach Alert is the actual (Japanese) name of an existing TF character), and these characters' backstory with each other. I don't even own the idea which set this all up - that belongs to graycalls, via drabble request. The lyrics to Coldplay's The Scientist are also not mine. Prowl's tactician quote is from MS Paint Masterpiece, and I found the quote off of TV Tropes and I am NOT going back to find the precise page; I lose enough time to fanfic, thank you very much. Come to think of it, Nova as Starscream's name was a bunny off tf_bunny_farm , wasn't it? So that's actually not mine, unless I'm mistaken.x
Notes: As before, Swiftseek = Prowl, Nova = Starscream, and Sanus = Jazz. New this time: Mach Alert = Red Alert. See if you can spot the reference to TF:A.
Prowl/Starscream, bonds - sequel to previous drabble
--- = division of memories/flashbacks from rest of story (in the beginning and end)
***** = division matching original drabble-fic (beginning and end)
Song lyrics are italicized and centered
Vorn = Cybertronian equivalent of a year. One vorn is approximately equal to 83 human years. Many Cybertronians living on Earth simply consider a vorn to be the average human lifespan.
"Normal dialogue"
<"Vossian/Praxian dialect">
Narration
:Comms:
Thoughts
\Spark-bond communications/
*****
In the human minutes after the Decepticons had retreated with the black and white Autobot tactician, Starscream requested an audience with Megatron. He had intended to request that he be assigned to guard duty with the Autobot SIC. Megatron had instead snapped at him, swiping at him, before raising his fusion cannon, pressing it against the Decepticon Air Commander's chest where his Spark lay, snarled something about finally being rid of a nuisance, and began to charge the fusion cannon.
The gun-mode mech was knocked off his feet by two furious Seekers. In moments Megatron was in stasis lock; in less than four human minutes (approximately half a breem, Starscream noted fuzzily) Megatron was critically damaged and would die if not given medical aid soon.
"Get him out of the room," Thundercracker hissed, optics still far too bright. The other Decepticons in the room scrambled to comply.
Star had been a nickname reserved for his bondmate's exclusive usage.
Skywarp broke in.
Lingering several moments longer, Starscream finally turned and left the room, steps slow and measured. As he started to navigate the halls to go to the brig, his thoughts turned to the past.
*****
---
Come up to meet you
Tell you I'm sorry
You don't know how lovely you are
To borrow a human phrase, it felt like it had been forever and a day since he'd first met Prowl.
Their first meeting had been far from auspicious - the black and white mech had critiqued Starscream's work, and he in turn had interpreted it as an insult of his own abilities. Some time later, his friends having calmed him, he sought out the Vossian flier (Prowl having been Sparked in Vos, he'd had a jet-frame at the time; Starscream had been Sparked in Praxus himself, and as such had originally worn a sensor-paneled Praxian-make frame) to apologize.
The purpose of the trip had actually been twofold - the graceful lines of the tetrajet build drew his optics, and the black and white paintjob only served to highlight the best features of the Vossian frame. Beyond apologizing, perhaps the mech would be open to considering a quick overload . . . ?
Soon after apologizing and being drawn into a conversation with the Vossian mech, Starscream had come to the conclusion that Prowl was utterly clueless when it came to certain aspects of social interaction. Either that, or the black-and-white was steadily ignoring every signal he made. Was the mech bonded already?
Starscream shoved the last suggestion into a box in the very farthest reaches of his cranial unit. If this mech was bonded . . .
Why am I having such a strong reaction to the thought, anyway?
---
---
I had to find you
Tell you I need you
Tell you I set you apart
Their friendship had grown from there, from tentative wariness to eventual acceptance.
Prowl had been drawn by Starscream's ability to win against him when playing 3-D tech-chess (few having succeeded in winning against Prowl).
Starscream had been drawn by Prowl's ability to understand the technical terms he used.
They both found solace in each other, conversing about the unfounded prejudice against the Vossians.
It wasn't long at all before Starscream found that he was thinking of Prowl every instant of his spare time. Being around Prowl helped to make Starscream feel alive in ways he hadn't before, pushed his reasoning to the next level and setting him apart from all the other scientists in his chosen field of xenobiology.
In return, Prowl found that the mechs and rare femme that he had to work with were becoming dull and unoriginal, exposure to Starscream having spoiled him somewhat since he expected that all Cybertronians were as smart as the tri-color jet was.
(Prowl and Starscream had switched frames some time before, since they needed the most shock value - Starscream the Vossian jet would stand out more in public perception than Starscream the Praxian mech would.)
---
---
Tell me your secrets
And ask me your questions
Oh, let's go back to the start
Starscream stopped outside the cell occupied by the black and white Praxian frame.
For a moment he wished that Prowl had chosen to keep the tetra-jet build, but knew that it was unlikely to have happened.
Too many believed that Seekers came in threes, that Seekers never bonded with non-Seekers, and so he had switched frames with Prowl - Thundercracker and Skywarp had been Vossians, Smokescreen and Bluestreak Praxians, and two trines needed to be completed.
He and Prowl had switched frames, repainted the frames to the colors they preferred, and continued on their separate paths.
Separate though their paths had been before, their chosen lot in life was bringing them into contact more and more.
---
*****
Almost absently, Starscream twitched his wings in the wing-dialect unique to the Vossian and Praxian population.
Prowl looked up.
Starscream twitched, repeating himself since the tactician hadn't seen his first query.
was the weary response as Prowl sat up to allow the sensory panels to move more smoothly.
Stupid, Starscream snapped internally. That's all you can say? Vorns of separation after bonding and all you can do is agree with him? His wings twitched again, this time in annoyance with himself.
"How long do you intend to keep me here?"
"For as long as it takes, Autoscum." Starscream regretted the words as soon as they'd left his vocaliser - now there was no hope of talking civilly to Prowl that day. What made it worse was that the words were automatic - he would have snapped them out whether or not there was a non-Vossian mech on guard that day, or even if they'd been alone.
(Starscream wished that he could see beyond the faction insignia and just see Prowl and not an Autobot. It had been decavorns since he'd been able to think that way, even not including the long period they'd spent in stasis.)
Prowl, ever calm, merely nodded. Once his trinemates started nagging him over their shared bond, Starscream turned and left without saying another word.
*****
---
Running in circles
Comin' in tails
Heads on a science apart
Starscream found his thoughts drifting again. It had been days since Prowl had been captured, and the Air Commander could not bring himself to focus on the proper topic, never mind that he was now in charge of the whole of the Decepticon army.
The topic in question this time should have been the next portion of the truce with the Autobots, but instead was the time he'd gotten lost with Prowl while exploring the massive Crystal Gardens of Praxus.
Hopelessly confused by that point, Starscream had slipped a small carved medallion from subspace. The medallion had carvings on both sides, he explained, one with the head of a turbofox, and the other with the tail of a turbofox. Which did Prowl prefer - heads or tails? Heads meant the path to the left; tails, the path on the right.
Prowl had arched an optic ridge at Starscream's blunt question, pointing out that using random chance to determine a route was somewhat illogical, to which he'd countered that it was his lucky medallion.
Prowl's optic ridge had arched further up. There was no such thing as luck, he insisted, and Starscream replied that this medallion was what had kept him alive for so long, and wasn't Prowl going to choose a side?
Cycling his vents in that way that indicated fond exasperation, Prowl chose the turbofox-head side. Starscream promptly chose the tails side and flipped the coin into the air.
Tails it was.
They emerged from the Garden less than three breems later.
Grinning, Starscream flipped Prowl the coin, told the mech to keep it. "I think you'll need it more than I do," Starscream said breezily, grinning, and melted into the crowd.
He knew what Prowl would find.
The next time he saw Prowl, the mech arched an optic ridge. "A double-sided coin?"
"I don't leave things to chance," Starscream answered. "I prefer to make my own luck."
Prowl smirked then. "That's why you're better off the researcher and I as the tactician - our thought processes are too different."
"Our heads are a science apart," Starscream half-sang. "Are you doing anything next orn after you're off shift?"
"No. Why?"
Starscream couldn't stop himself from moving towards Prowl. "Because I was hoping to share a cube of energon with you."
A brief silence, as Prowl considered the question. "You are interested in courting me."
"Yes."
The smirk returned, shading into a genuine, if shy, smile. "I'd love to, Starscream."
Starscream ignored the way his Spark leapt in its casing, insisting that it was due to the leap he'd taken impulsively and not any sort of joy-
Sighing, he pulled himself from the memories. Thundercracker and Skywarp were doing their jobs - convincing the rest of the non-Vossian Decepticons that they needed to join the Autobots in order to survive. (No Praxians remained with the Decepticons - the devastation of Praxus had seen to that.) He needed to do his own job - continue to establish diplomatic relations with the Autobots.
Prowl's small smile stayed with him the whole time.
---
*****
:Star! Prowl's talking to me!:
Starscream felt his trinemate's shock through the bond they shared, dropped all but the barest pretense of paying attention on comms duty, and listened intently to the conversation that followed. He smirked to himself at Prowl's surprise at his negotiating the cease-fire with the Autobots (he had to do something to occupy his time, after all, and he'd never been particularly keen on the war happening in the first place).
The jet due to replace Skywarp on guard duty arrived, and Starscream cursed internally.
(Just as they were getting to a breakthrough. He'd been so close to being able to go talk to Prowl again-!)
"Then why are you keeping me prisoner?"
The question swept Starscream off his pedes. Only momentarily, though, and he sent his reply to Skywarp via the trine-bond, and allowed his trinemate to answer for him.
"Because Nova wishes to know his bonded again."
Skywarp left the brig area, dimming contact with Starscream via the trine-bond and cutting off the comms, leaving the Decepticon Air Commander to stew internally. They'd been so close-!
But then the next communication from the Autobots arrived, and Starscream was forced to abandon all thoughts of the black and white mech for diplomatic talks.
*****
---
Nobody said it was easy
It's such a shame for us to part
"So . . . this is it."
"I suppose it is."
"Skyfire should be here sometime tomorow."
"Again, I offer you my congratulations."
"Naturally, this mission will be to the benefit of the Vossians and Praxians more than it will be for the all-mighty Autobot Council of Elders." I wish I didn't have to leave you.
"Starscream . . . be careful. No Vossian has ever won the prestige of being able to go on an off-world mission, and that you're going on one so dangerous and lasting such a long time . . ."
"Don't worry your pretty little frame, quick-Seeker. We'll be back safe and sound before you know it."
Prowl nodded. I wish you didn't have to leave me was written clear as the highest quality high-grade Praxian crystal in Prowl's optics, clear and unmarred by any type of influence.
Starscream wondered when he'd become able to read every nuance of Prowl's body language - even discounting the wing-dialect and the subtle signals they'd designed together. He'd been formally seeing Prowl for nearly five vorns now (it would have been a short courtship if they hadn't had outside pressures; Seeker romances were notorious for being short and to the point, but rare contact with each other had extended the romance and was threatening to take the new record for longest courtship), and he couldn't wait to formally bond with Prowl-
But there were other considerations beyond the fact that the mission was going to take him away from Prowl for a long time. New-bonded Sparks were supposed to merge frequently within the first five vorns of bonding, and Starscream's mission was going to take him away from Cybertron for at least half that time. They would bond only for the bond to break, and that couldn't be allowed to happen.
And then, of course, there was the overall master plan to think about . . .
Starscream wished that the overall master plan didn't exist, then banished the (heretic) thought from his cranial unit. He had work to do.
Starscream bid Prowl farewell, and wished that it didn't feel like he was shutting down a part of himself.
---
---
Nobody said it was easy
No one ever said it would be this hard
"Starscream? Starscream! Star-"
"They kicked me out. Even though they had that paranoid security expert of theirs look through my memories-"
"Mach Alarm was there?"
"His name was Red Alert."
"Praxian; it's his outsider name. You should have been cleared - Mach's too paranoid for them to dismiss whatever you say-"
"Then we have the ultimate proof that the Autobot Council of Elders are a bigoted group of slagging glitch-spa-Mmph!"
"Watch your vocalizer!" <"Use the dialect or wingspeech if you're going to insult them, Star!">
"I will not watch my fragging vocalizer, Prowl!" "And you aren't my maternal care unit!"
"I don't need to be your Spark-bearer to care about you!"
"And what does that make you?"
"Your friend, your lover, your bond-mate! I-"
". . ."
"Oh. Oh, Primus. I've messed this all up."
"Prowl?"
"I - I'm - My sincere apologies, Starscream. I'll . . . I'll just go now."
"Prowl! Prowl, wait! Prowl! I-"
I love you too. I loved you the way you were - blue suits you, but not as well as gold did. If only we hadn't had to change optic colors . . . if only I wasn't a part of the ruling Vossian triad . . .
---
---
Oh, take me back to the start
". . . You found me. Good for you. Now go away." Prowl never looked away from his view of Cybertron from the balcony, sensor panels held stiffly in place.
"Prowl, about what you said-"
Prowl cut him off. "It was presumptuous, idiotic, and unplanned."
"Prowl-"
"I have destroyed the friendship that we had, Starscream. It is my fault, and not your own. It will be best for us to not see each other any more."
Again it's proven that Prowl is socially awkward. Just when I thought I was making progress . . . Starscream cycled his vents in exasperation. "That's not what I came here to say."
"Then say what you wanted to and leave me alone."
Starscream reached out and pulled Prowl away from the balcony, spinning the mech so that his back was to the wall. Several quick steps carried him forward so that Prowl was backed into a corner, and had no choice but to back into the wall. The sensor panels were flared wide (Starscream knew from experience that this position was workable, but uncomfortable unless other factors came into play). Starscream pressed closer, moved until Prowl couldn't any more and pressed their chassis together. Without thinking, he reached out and ran a hand along an edge, slow and soothing.
The effect was instant. An electric tingle built up, looping into a feedback loop between them until Starscream leaned back and broke contact.
. . . Primus. That means . . . But . . . In that case . . .
This . . . There's still a chance.
Prowl's whole chassis, which had previously been vibrating with tension and what was supposed to be fury but was probably sorrow, went utterly still.
"Do you promise that you will listen to what I have to say?" Starscream murmured into the Vossian's audio (Prowl always had been Vossian to him). "That you will hear me out, and then respond afterwards without interrupting?"
"I . . . yes. Yes."
"And do you promise that you will not try to flee until I have finished speaking?"
That clearly gave Prowl pause, but the mech nodded.
"Good." Starscream stepped back, optics determined and set. "Sit down." He pointed at a chair in a corner, moving with Prowl. He'd chosen that particular chair because it was secluded, so mechs couldn't see in from outside, and also so that Prowl would still have to face him if he bolted for the balcony or the door.
(Though that was admittedly rather unlikely; they were fairly high up after all, and how had Prowl managed to get these quarters? Higher-up quarters cost more credits, and being a tactician for the rare riots which broke out and being a security officer otherwise did not pay well enough to get these quarters).
Prowl, thankfully, obeyed. "So? Talk."
Mouthy, but he'll pay attention this way. Oh frag, what if he only pretends to pay attention?
Making certain that he would lock optics with Prowl, Starscream spoke, enunciating clearly.
"You are Swiftseek, Primus-created, chosen-Thirteen, Ninth chosen."
Blue optics flared white with surprise. "Starscream, I-"
"Stop with this nonsense!" Starscream thundered, forgetting that (Skyfire-gone-lost-forever-Vos-doomed-won't-see-Prowl-Prowl-Prowl) his vocaliser had been damaged beyond repair so that only screechy tones emerged. "You know the truth as well as I do, Swiftseek. Here we are away from the outside world-"
"What, precisely, happened to your vocalizer?"
Only the muted horror in Prowl's tones kept him from unleashing a screech of pure annoyance.
"The cold damaged it," Starscream answered. "And you are avoiding the question. What you said back there-"
"I trust that it will not affect your judgment in enacting the plan-"
"It fragging better affect my judgment! We're Thirteen, we've fallen in love with each other, of course it's going to affect our judgment!"
"We've chosen to take separate sides in the war - Praxus to the Autobots, and Vos to the upcoming Decepticon rebellion! It's naturally going to affect our judgment if we end up fighting each other, bonded or not!" Prowl opened his mouth to keep talking, but stopped. "You - You're - Nova-"
"Oh, for Primus's sake," Starscream/Nova muttered. Stepping forward, he pulled Prowl/Swiftseek up from the chair. "I like you. You like me. We both like each other a lot. Can we just skip everything else and Spark-bond now?"
(Swiftseek/Prowl would later say that it was the most impulsive decision he'd made since receiving the battle computer upgrade which led to his reputation as a logic-driven aft. Nova/Starscream would say in reply that he was glad for the upgrade - it meant that Swiftseek/Prowl was all his, after all, and Nova/Starscream didn't particularly want to share Swiftseek/Prowl.)
"Yes."
A beat of silence.
Nova shifted his grip on Prowl. "Quarters?"
"Behind you and fifty-eight degrees to your right-"
The door slammed behind two mechs twined so closely around each other that combined with the wings and sensory panels, it was a miracle that either one managed to walk at all.
---
\Friend-lover-chosenmate/
\Love-affection-belongtoyou/
\MINE/
\Not arguing that/
\Amusement-affection-lust-want/
\Lust-affection-need-want-fondness/
---
I was just guessin' at numbers and figures
Pulling the puzzles apart
\Swiftseek?/
\Nova. Affection-love-fondness. What do you wish to talk about?/
\The war./
\Yes?/
\I . . . My joining the Decepticons has been foreseen. It just needs to be dramatic now./
\I realize this. We've discussed that before. What is the problem?/
\You're an Enforcer. They . . . they'll ask you to arrest me, and I'll have to . . . Worry-Concern-Fear/
\Whatever it is you must do, as long as it is for the good of Cybertron, do it. We are Thirteen; we will do as we have with other dimensions. You recall the one where we sacrificed ourselves?/
\You sacrificed yourself, you mean. My chosen persona never knew what was happening. If you're talking about the one with Megatron as a giant head, at least./
\I am./
\But - your own simulations say that the chances of us both surviving are close to none-/
\Do you know what the secret to most of my plans is, Nova? Amusement-affection-smugness/
\No. What? Query-curiosity-confusion/
\A true tactician doesn't know WHAT the slag he's doing until he's halfway done with it./
Startled laughter bubbled out of Nova's vocalizer.
---
*****
Nine days later, with the diplomatic talks all but completed, Starscream received word that Megatron had recovered enough to resume command of the Decepticons. Knowing what was bound to happen as a result, he summoned Skywarp and Thundercracker to join him in a last visit to Prowl's cell.
<"Well, at least the Seekers have diplomatic relations with the Autobots now"> Skywarp offered brightly.
<"True. Still . . .">
<"You want to end the war?">
<"I want to go with him.">
<". . .">
<". . .">
<". . . I mean yes, I want to end the war. Of course I want to end the war!">
<"Almost there, Screamer.">
<"Assume standard trine positioning, then - Skywarp, you're on the left, and Thundercracker, you're on the right.">
They rounded the final corner preceding the brig section of the Nemesis. They stopped in front of Prowl's cell.
The tactician looked up before blue optics (should be goldgoldshadeoforbitedHelix) flickered to the side.
"Megatron is recovered sufficiently to take command now."
Proximity and time must be making the shields weak - he felt the astonishment shown in startled optics, the positioning of sensor-panels, and the sharp shift of the tactician's cranial unit.
They stood there for a long time, Starscream trying to gather the courage to speak again but not daring too, too aware of the cameras in the brig and Soundwave's loyalty to the Decepticon cause.
They left at the end of the guard shift with the mech on guard.
*****
---
Questions of science
Science and progress
Do not speak as loud as my heart
Nova wished that he hadn't ever conceived the thought of entering the Science Academy. If he hadn't entered the Science Academy, Skyfire wouldn't be lost, he wouldn't have driven another bolt home into the public perception of the Vossians . . .
Then again, if he hadn't gone to the Science Academy, it could easily have been longer before he bonded with Swiftseek.
So yeah, there were advantages to the idea. Nova just wished that there were more immediate advantages than long-term ones.
---
---
And tell me you love me
Come back and haunt me
Oh, and I rush back to the start
A private transmission channel blinked at him in the corner of his HUD, internal alarms shrill as they beeped at him. He opened it, curious, but knew who it was the instant he saw the channel used.
Only Skyfire would have used the ancient com-frequency they'd shared during that fateful scientific expedition.
:We will be attacking the Decepticon base in approximately forty-five human minutes.: A pause. :I wish you the best of luck with your bonded, Starscream.:
The transmission cut out before the stunned jet had a chance to respond.
The Vossian-build mech considered his options. He was currently off-duty, due to report to Megatron in eight human minutes . . .
Frag Megatron. Seeker-thoughts were similar enough to each other that Soundwave could rarely differentiate between them. A physical all-out search of the Nemesis would take a long time, long enough for him to finish talking.
---
---
I'm going back to the start
Within minutes (less than five human minutes) he was standing at the Decepticon brig again.
<"Swiftseek.">
<"Nova.">
<"It's been a long time.">
<"Yes. Yes, it has been.">
<"Will you take me back?">
<". . . You abandoned me."> Nova flinched at the pain well-hidden in the black-and-white mech's tones.
<"Against my will. The programming-">
<"The Decepticon coding was discovered to facilitate the submersion of moral programming and anything that might persuade the newly recruited to sway from the Decepticon cause.">
<"Swiftseek-">
<"It was only used in mechs who agreed to it, when you took the sigil.">
<". . . You found out about that.">
<"It was early in the war, about a human month after you had first publically proclaimed allegiance to Megatron. I enlisted with the Autobots less than a human day after I found out. A saboteur snuck into the Decepticon labs, hoping to find data we could use against the Decepticons. He brought that back instead.">
Nova fought down a rush of hot rage. <"Your pet saboteur."> The mech who'd dared to touch something not his own, to prize his way into the puzzle-box that was Swiftseek's public persona.
<"It was not Jazz, as a matter of fact."> He belatedly realized that the hot flash of jealousy had been transmitted across their bond, shields weakened to be almost non-existent. <"He ascended to the position when his predecessor, Meister, died in an attack. Meister is the one who found the data.">
A nanosecond's debate did nothing to stop the flood of relief from Nova to Swiftseek's end of the bond. <"Ah.">
Prowl's - Swiftseek's - tones were decidedly casual. Far too casual, Nova/Starscream thought . . .
Then the impact of Prowl's words hit him. <". . . Jazz is SANUS?">
Sanus had been Eight chosen of the Thirteen. He had represented the musicians, the frame-type best suited for later spies, been the guardian of Polyhex . . . and apparently, Sanus was the mech he'd been so jealous of all these vorns.
<"Yes. He recognized me first, talked to me about it after Praxus.">
<"Oh."> Nova could manage no more intelligent response, still reeling from the realization.
Evidently Swiftseek had misinterpreted his reaction. <". . . Nova, there is nothing between us. Me and Sanus, that is. I . . . I have been, and always will be, yours.">
<". . ."> Nova was still too stunned for words, though this time for another reason.
<"When you were a Decepticon, that . . . it wasn't really you reacting. It wasn't Nova who destroyed all those Sparks. It was Starscream. I know that.">
Grateful for the change in topic, Starscream latched onto the shift. <"But that - that still doesn't excuse what I did!">
<"I understand the reasoning behind what you did. As I have told you multiple times before, just because-">
<"-One is responsible for murder does not mean that the person in question should not necessarily bear all of the guilt for their actions, especially when there was no other choice."> It was an argument he knew well - he'd gone through what was almost the same topic with the same words long before he'd taken the Decepticon insignia.
He continued the argument as they had so many times before. <"But Swiftseek, I chose to have that programming implemented. I knew what would happen when I did so. Doesn't that make me equally responsible for my actions?">
<"That is an argument which may never truly be completed, Nova, and I can still recognize an attempt to distract me when I see - or hear, as it may be - one."> Wry amusement wound through the tactician's tones.
<"But-">
<"No more buts. Forget all that. The Autobots have killed plenty in defense of Cybertron, and nobody hates them for it. Just because you did it for a different cause doesn't matter - the Decepticon cause was equally just in the beginning, if not more so. You will have my support, and once Optimus has all of the information, you will have his support too.">
Fragger. He knows I can never win an argument against him when he's using that thrice-damned battle computer of his.
<". . .">
<"Despite rumors, the Autobots would never separate bondmates"> Prowl continued. <"No method of killing one bondmate without killing the other is known - at worst, you would be put into stasis. The Autobots need my skill too much. All we will need to do is reveal our status. That will be enough to ensure that your life will be spared.">
<"But - I cannot-"> Slag! He could feel his composure crumbling, the steady foundation which had supported centavorns of separation now starting to collapse as Earthen buildings of shodden quality did during the phenomenon known as an earthquake.
<"Why do you not abandon the one who has given you so much trouble? He has beaten you, blatantly used you, thrown you aside when your usefulness was exhausted only to come knocking at your door once he has need of you again.">
If Swiftseek/Prowl was going to say anything else, it was cut off by the abrupt sound of alarms and explosions going off.
When Nova/Starscream looked back at Prowl after the sirens had faded to a less audio-splitting level, the black and white mech was on his feet.
As if on cue, Jazz (Sanus-brother-companion-protector) could be heard coming down the hall. "Prowler?"
Starscream disabled the guards with swift shots from his null-rays, and tried to ignore the fact that the mech was using his own pet name - he had his own, older one for the mech in question, after all.
"Prowler, ya in here? Pro-"
"Jazz. Give me a moment."
<"Swiftseek, I-">
<"Nova."> First time he's used my true designation. <"Come with us. Please.">
"Prowl, what are ya doin'?"
"Give me a moment, Jazz." Tactician turned from saboteur. "Starscream. Come with us."
"We don't have much time, Prowler. C'mon."
"Starscream, please." Prowl's tones had turned pleading.
"Prowler, we have to go-"
"Starscream, please!" Desperation filled Prowl's tones now, bleeding through the bond too.
"Prowl-"
"You'll be safe with us!"
Numb with surging hope, Starscream responded mechanically. "I - I can't leave my trine!"
"Starscream!"
Nova felt his coolant turn to ice in its lines.
Megatron had found them.
Oh, Primus save us-
Skywarp warped into the room carrying Thundercracker with him, grabbed the saboteur, and teleported back out in a flash of light.
Starscream moved to hide the panel to the jail cell and hit a sequence of buttons.
<"We don't have much time"> he murmured as the bars to Swiftseek's cell deactivated. <"You'll be first.">
<"Nova?">
<"I'll see you 'round, quick-Seeker"> he murmured with an affectionate grin before Skywarp got back into the room.
<"See you, lover"> Nova added to his bonded's stunned face before he vanished. <"'Rift, get in a corner. I'll stall until 'Shift returns.">
Any reply that Thundercracker might have made was cut off by Megatron thundering into the room. Red optics settled on the empty cell where an Autobot tactician had previously been, and fury flared up.
"STARSCREAM!"
Fin
Personal fanon: On a completely random side note, I think that Starscream's voice before whatever accident made his vocalizer all screechy sounded rather like Chris Martin (AKA the lead singer of Coldplay), especially from the song The Scientist, which set off this whole ficlet. He'd be awesome as Starscream's chosen holoform, even, if he ever changed it from the Moustache Guy in 2007/2009.
I was practically sugar-high the whole time I was writing this because I found the piano version of the song and it was *awesome* for writing.
Apologies for the cliff-hanger, but all should be resolved by Wednesday noon, if all goes well. If it helps any, I have a fluff ending all written out already.
I looked at the fic length after copy-pasting it into Word for future reference . . .
16 pages in word. And the first one was only 5.
And all that in 24 hours. Even taking into consideration the parts of the fic from the first . . . Wow. I scare even myself. And given that the bunny wants to expand the first one . . .
*waves goodbye to non-homework time for the next two days*
Edit 3/14/2010: I changed 'saboteur' to 'tactician'. I have no clue how I mixed up Prowl and Jazz; the empty cell was Prowl, and if I'd put "empty space in the brig" it would've been Jazz. I meant Prowl originally, so it's Prowl now.