To kickstart the week
Title: Sparkless. (13/??)
Rating: R
Warnings: A bit of violence, angst, possible slashy goodness.
Characters: Trax, Jazz.
Setting: Movieverse AU.
Summary: In trying to live up to the name of his sire he gave his all, until he lost his own spark. Those who once loved him now called him "sparkless".
Notes: This is an AU bunny that belongs to snugsbunny, it's all her fault, I just happen to be the one writting it. Several concepts seen through the duration of this fic are hers and used with permission. This is a very AU fic so please take with a grain of salt.
Many thanks to mmouse15 for kindly beta reading this for me.
The trip to his grandfather's state had been relatively uneventful; they had left early during the cycle and although Trax had talked briefly of what he could expect, Jazz still felt a mixture of excitement and apprehension about this move and the new direction his life was taking.
He began to realize many things wouldn't be quite the same as they used to be, especially after Lord Prowl had send a couple of aides to escort them to the limits of Praxus where Trax's own assistants took over and escorted them all the way to the mech's estate. As they traversed the roads, Jazz began to realize many of the usual activities he could engage in previously were set to stop, at least until he found suitable substitutes in this new city.
What else was expected of him due to his new social situation was another matter entirely. He didn't know what acceptable behavior was for the nobility although he was aware of some basics, but he still didn't know what was expected of him, nor all the formalities and other standards he was supposed to meet now.
//You've been very quiet,// Lord Trax asked, startling Jazz.
//I'm jus' thinkin',// Jazz speed up a little to come closer to his grandfather's form, nearly touching his side but keeping a safe distance between them. //It's kinda dawnin' on me that life's gonna change and probably very much.//
Trax hummed his agreement. //Yes, some things will be different for you. I imagine you led a much different life than what nobility is like. And I admit I'd like to know about your endeavors as a sparkling and young mech.//
Jazz laughed. //What do ya wanna know?//
//Everything you have memory of. I want to catch up on everything I missed about your life.// Trax slowed down to fall back with Jazz, brushing his side gently against his grandson's. //But that can wait until we're home. I have one of my aides already setting up your rooms.//
Jazz felt uneasy, wondering what rooms would be given to him. //They're not hers... are they?//
Jazz was sure Trax would have shaken his head sadly if he wasn't in vehicle mode. //No, I ordered rooms closer to my own. Your carri-- Beat, had her rooms much further away from mine. She claimed the distance was necessary for her privacy.//
//You two didn't get along?//
//We became distant when she turned a legal adult. We used to be very close when she was a sparkling.// Trax replied sadly.
//I'm sorry to hear that.// Jazz couldn't help but nudge gently against his grandfather's side in a comforting gesture. //Ya sound like you really loved her.//
Trax nudged back against Jazz, thankful. //I did. I loved Beat more than anything in my life. I never found a mate, my spark didn't beat for anyone I'd want to share my life and spark with, but I longed for offspring, and science granted me what I desired. Beat was a really wonderful sparkling.//
Jazz didn't say anything, merely continued to drive alongside Trax, keeping himself close to the mech, lending him what comfort he could offer.
//She was a joy in my life, there was nothing quite like coming home after a business trip and have her running to greet me.// Trax voice carried all the fondness of his memories, as the events of such happy times replayed in his CPU. //But when she became a youngling, Beat began to seek others of her social situation, she became very popular amongst the noble younglings and ended up surrounding herself with company I never quite approved of.//
//Bad friends, I take it.//
//Socialites with double standards and decadent tastes I suppose. Lavish parties and other activities of that kind where what these youths dedicated to. Beat never showed an inkling of interest for my business, all she cared about was how to spend her inheritance even before she had it.//
Jazz made a soft whistling sound. //Yeah, I'm familiar with that kind of attitude, though I assume this is at a much bigger scale.//
Trax laughed. //That kind of company was of the opinionated and 'my way' kind. They were merciless amongst themselves, one wrong step and your place in the social ladder could be threatened. Beat enjoyed her position, so she was easily influenced by her friends in that sense.//
Jazz would have shaken his own head, understanding now how the mech that had carried him could have distanced herself from such loving creator. //It's a shame she didn't realize the kind of company she kept.//
//Beat cared too much about their opinion, she had to fit their standards just as they had to fit hers. She wasn't free of guilt of course, she made decisions I never approved of.// Tracks sighed heavily. //She just withered away when your sire passed. Even her friends and their influence couldn't keep her going for too long.//
Jazz made a non-committal sound. He could understand trying to fit in with friends, after all he had a circle of friends in the orphanage, and he made an effort to fit with Lord Prowl's staff, but even then he never gave up who he truly was just to fit in. It was in his personality to be agreeable and amiable. //Did she say... anythin' about my sire?// Jazz couldn't help but ask, wanting to know what he could of the mech he knew loved him so dearly.
//I don't know anything about him past a few things she mentioned. She did say the mech was living in the slums by the time she gave you away.// Trax's voice had become tired once more, weary in remembrance of what his daughter had done to her own sparkling. //She mentioned she met him in one of her outings with her friends, my assumption is she met him at some bar or pub, she used to hang in that kind of places often. I assume the mech had been working at some place like it or was a patron of such places.//
Jazz dropped his speed, trying to think of how his sire had ended in the slums or if he had always been there. //We lived in the slums all my sparklinghood, I wonder if he ever had that kind o' job.//
Trax fell back, nudging Jazz comfortingly. //Depending on the places, waiters aren't always well paid, Jazz. Some owners take special care to only pay the minimum and make them rely on the favor of the patrons to earn extra income. It's possible your sire wasn't so lucky with the patrons he served.//
//Yeah, I suppose.// Jazz sighed heavily, wishing more than ever he knew more about his creators, or at least enough to clue him to the life of his sire before his conception.
//I'm pretty sure Beat loved him, but if he wasn't a noblemech there would not be a bright future for them. If she made their relationship public, her circle of friends would have made her life hellish.// Trax murmured, a hint of bitterness slipped in his tone. //She must have kept their relationship a very well guarded secret. I believe Lord Prowl had to dig pretty deep to find any clues about Beat's relationships, and even he was only able to connect the dots because of what information you've provided to him of your life before the orphanage.//
//Yeah, I was told she had...// Jazz paused, unsure of how to bring the subject up as tactfully as possible. //She had quite a few relationships.//
Trax sighed. //Beat was quite liberal with her spark, Jazz. She had no qualms taking her pleasures or giving herself to anyone that caught her fancy. It was quite common for her circle, interfacing with commoners wasn't unheard of, and rarely was it frowned upon but a serious relationship was asking for your status and good name to be thoroughly demolished. Beat cared too much about her standing to fight for a mech she obviously loved.//
//Do you care for your standing?// Jazz couldn't help but ask.
//I would be lying if I said I do not care about maintaining my social position for the good of my business relationships,// Trax spoke softly, pausing to try to explain his situation. //However, my position and Beat's were different. It's my business relationships that matter the most, my interactions with the high society are sparse at a social level. They know I have my opinions and the economic resources to stand by those opinions. Not many socialites approved of my decision to have a sparkling without bonding, but I did it, and they had no choice but to grudgingly accept they wouldn't influence my life based around their own pre-conceptions.//
//So, ya get along with them as much as it's necessary but don't bow down to them.// Jazz mulled over the older mech's words.
//In high society, there's a line that divides the factors that matter about a mech.// Trax explained. //The economic position and the social ladder. Although our family has been part of the nobility since the early days of Cybertronian history, most of my ancestors took to the betterment of our family's wealth. There are families that can trace their origins to the first thirteen, like the Lord Prime's line. However, although in the social scale they may be higher than us, economically speaking our family is in a better situation. You can be a noble and have little money compared to a mech that worked his way from having nothing to becoming a very wealthy mech.//
Jazz hummed softly, going through the words spoken by his grandfather. //That sounds almost like Lord Prowl's sire. I know he was of noble birth but Praxus was a really poor shire when he took to its rule.//
//Lord Prowl's sire would have had his seat as a noble and treated relatively in equal terms by the socialites, perhaps frowning a little if his finish wasn't top notch, but he would have been invited to a socialite's party based solely on his noble origins. But economically speaking he would have had a hard time receiving the attention of more powerful families, even those that weren't of noble cradle.//
//So ya have economic power ta make up fer your lesser social standing?// Jazz asked.
//Not exactly. I've always been treated cordially enough simply because I do behave like a noblemech. I'm not estranged from them, I am merely someone that stands in the background.// Trax upped his speed, nudging Jazz as they neared his estate. //Beat's involvement in the high society is what got our family to gain a higher position, and why it became so important for her to maintain it. She enjoyed social life, I'm more of a business mech, I do enjoy aspects of the social life, but never to the near obsessive degree Beat did.//
Jazz upped his own speed to match his grandfather, growing a little nervous as he caught glance of the large mansion that was his family's estate. //So ya got a more public face because of that?// he asked.
//Something like that. Beat's antics were more commonly known among the nobles than my own.// Trax sighed heavily. //Unfortunately, that will also affect you, as you know.//
Jazz would have scowled if the action was possible in his vehicle mode, he remembered very well the conversation he had with his grandfather and Lord Prowl before they left, when he had been instructed about the story they would provide to breach out his origins when he faced other noble mechs. He didn't like the idea of having to lie about his origins, he was proud of the mech he was and the mech that had been his sire and also of his life in the orphanage. Yet, he knew it was best for his grand- father's sake if he went along with the lie, knowing that although he believed himself capable of standing the barrage of ill meant actions and words from the nobility, his grandfather would pay the price.
//We're here. I hope you'll come to truly find this place to be your home,// Trax spoke as they stopped at the gates of his estate and transformed. Jazz followed his lead and stared at the house that would become his new home. It was smaller than Lord Prowl's but was definitely a luxurious and lavish place.
They stepped into the house, and Jazz was immediately greeted by the main butler and his own aides, bowed to and addressed as Lord. The mech knew it was going to take him some time to get used to being bowed to and referred to by his new title, and although he hoped to adapt well, he vowed to himself he wouldn't allow this new life to change him for worse.
He was taken to the dining room where he refueled with his grandfather, sharing a little about his life with the older mech until Trax pronounced he was tired and would need some recharge. Lord Trax led Jazz to his new rooms, they were at least three times the size of his room in Lord Prowl's home, with two chambers and wash rack. His berth was big enough to fit twice on the soft platform and even had a small balcony on the bedroom area.
Jazz couldn't help but head directly to the balcony, staring out to the night sky and the shire that was to become his home once more after his time in the orphanage. He couldn't help but miss Praxus already, the shire was beautiful, but Praxus always had something about it that made it a sight to behold. He remembered the first entry of Lord Prowl's bondmate, speaking of the new life he was starting on Praxus and couldn't help but wish to re-read that entry. He subspaced the diary and re-read the first few entries, wondering if his own change of location would bring about good or bad things. Jazz couldn't help but feel so alone in these new rooms, knowing that the only familiar face was that of his grandfather, knowing that come the morning he wouldn't be seeing Volt's gentle face or Lord Prowl's stern expression and icy blue optics greeting him.
With a heavy sigh, Jazz headed to his new berth and laid down, setting the diary on a small table near the headboard of his berth and curled up, shifting around until he was finally able to fall into deep recharge, hoping his new beginning would be a good one.
Rating: R
Warnings: A bit of violence, angst, possible slashy goodness.
Characters: Trax, Jazz.
Setting: Movieverse AU.
Summary: In trying to live up to the name of his sire he gave his all, until he lost his own spark. Those who once loved him now called him "sparkless".
Notes: This is an AU bunny that belongs to snugsbunny, it's all her fault, I just happen to be the one writting it. Several concepts seen through the duration of this fic are hers and used with permission. This is a very AU fic so please take with a grain of salt.
Many thanks to mmouse15 for kindly beta reading this for me.
The trip to his grandfather's state had been relatively uneventful; they had left early during the cycle and although Trax had talked briefly of what he could expect, Jazz still felt a mixture of excitement and apprehension about this move and the new direction his life was taking.
He began to realize many things wouldn't be quite the same as they used to be, especially after Lord Prowl had send a couple of aides to escort them to the limits of Praxus where Trax's own assistants took over and escorted them all the way to the mech's estate. As they traversed the roads, Jazz began to realize many of the usual activities he could engage in previously were set to stop, at least until he found suitable substitutes in this new city.
What else was expected of him due to his new social situation was another matter entirely. He didn't know what acceptable behavior was for the nobility although he was aware of some basics, but he still didn't know what was expected of him, nor all the formalities and other standards he was supposed to meet now.
//You've been very quiet,// Lord Trax asked, startling Jazz.
//I'm jus' thinkin',// Jazz speed up a little to come closer to his grandfather's form, nearly touching his side but keeping a safe distance between them. //It's kinda dawnin' on me that life's gonna change and probably very much.//
Trax hummed his agreement. //Yes, some things will be different for you. I imagine you led a much different life than what nobility is like. And I admit I'd like to know about your endeavors as a sparkling and young mech.//
Jazz laughed. //What do ya wanna know?//
//Everything you have memory of. I want to catch up on everything I missed about your life.// Trax slowed down to fall back with Jazz, brushing his side gently against his grandson's. //But that can wait until we're home. I have one of my aides already setting up your rooms.//
Jazz felt uneasy, wondering what rooms would be given to him. //They're not hers... are they?//
Jazz was sure Trax would have shaken his head sadly if he wasn't in vehicle mode. //No, I ordered rooms closer to my own. Your carri-- Beat, had her rooms much further away from mine. She claimed the distance was necessary for her privacy.//
//You two didn't get along?//
//We became distant when she turned a legal adult. We used to be very close when she was a sparkling.// Trax replied sadly.
//I'm sorry to hear that.// Jazz couldn't help but nudge gently against his grandfather's side in a comforting gesture. //Ya sound like you really loved her.//
Trax nudged back against Jazz, thankful. //I did. I loved Beat more than anything in my life. I never found a mate, my spark didn't beat for anyone I'd want to share my life and spark with, but I longed for offspring, and science granted me what I desired. Beat was a really wonderful sparkling.//
Jazz didn't say anything, merely continued to drive alongside Trax, keeping himself close to the mech, lending him what comfort he could offer.
//She was a joy in my life, there was nothing quite like coming home after a business trip and have her running to greet me.// Trax voice carried all the fondness of his memories, as the events of such happy times replayed in his CPU. //But when she became a youngling, Beat began to seek others of her social situation, she became very popular amongst the noble younglings and ended up surrounding herself with company I never quite approved of.//
//Bad friends, I take it.//
//Socialites with double standards and decadent tastes I suppose. Lavish parties and other activities of that kind where what these youths dedicated to. Beat never showed an inkling of interest for my business, all she cared about was how to spend her inheritance even before she had it.//
Jazz made a soft whistling sound. //Yeah, I'm familiar with that kind of attitude, though I assume this is at a much bigger scale.//
Trax laughed. //That kind of company was of the opinionated and 'my way' kind. They were merciless amongst themselves, one wrong step and your place in the social ladder could be threatened. Beat enjoyed her position, so she was easily influenced by her friends in that sense.//
Jazz would have shaken his own head, understanding now how the mech that had carried him could have distanced herself from such loving creator. //It's a shame she didn't realize the kind of company she kept.//
//Beat cared too much about their opinion, she had to fit their standards just as they had to fit hers. She wasn't free of guilt of course, she made decisions I never approved of.// Tracks sighed heavily. //She just withered away when your sire passed. Even her friends and their influence couldn't keep her going for too long.//
Jazz made a non-committal sound. He could understand trying to fit in with friends, after all he had a circle of friends in the orphanage, and he made an effort to fit with Lord Prowl's staff, but even then he never gave up who he truly was just to fit in. It was in his personality to be agreeable and amiable. //Did she say... anythin' about my sire?// Jazz couldn't help but ask, wanting to know what he could of the mech he knew loved him so dearly.
//I don't know anything about him past a few things she mentioned. She did say the mech was living in the slums by the time she gave you away.// Trax's voice had become tired once more, weary in remembrance of what his daughter had done to her own sparkling. //She mentioned she met him in one of her outings with her friends, my assumption is she met him at some bar or pub, she used to hang in that kind of places often. I assume the mech had been working at some place like it or was a patron of such places.//
Jazz dropped his speed, trying to think of how his sire had ended in the slums or if he had always been there. //We lived in the slums all my sparklinghood, I wonder if he ever had that kind o' job.//
Trax fell back, nudging Jazz comfortingly. //Depending on the places, waiters aren't always well paid, Jazz. Some owners take special care to only pay the minimum and make them rely on the favor of the patrons to earn extra income. It's possible your sire wasn't so lucky with the patrons he served.//
//Yeah, I suppose.// Jazz sighed heavily, wishing more than ever he knew more about his creators, or at least enough to clue him to the life of his sire before his conception.
//I'm pretty sure Beat loved him, but if he wasn't a noblemech there would not be a bright future for them. If she made their relationship public, her circle of friends would have made her life hellish.// Trax murmured, a hint of bitterness slipped in his tone. //She must have kept their relationship a very well guarded secret. I believe Lord Prowl had to dig pretty deep to find any clues about Beat's relationships, and even he was only able to connect the dots because of what information you've provided to him of your life before the orphanage.//
//Yeah, I was told she had...// Jazz paused, unsure of how to bring the subject up as tactfully as possible. //She had quite a few relationships.//
Trax sighed. //Beat was quite liberal with her spark, Jazz. She had no qualms taking her pleasures or giving herself to anyone that caught her fancy. It was quite common for her circle, interfacing with commoners wasn't unheard of, and rarely was it frowned upon but a serious relationship was asking for your status and good name to be thoroughly demolished. Beat cared too much about her standing to fight for a mech she obviously loved.//
//Do you care for your standing?// Jazz couldn't help but ask.
//I would be lying if I said I do not care about maintaining my social position for the good of my business relationships,// Trax spoke softly, pausing to try to explain his situation. //However, my position and Beat's were different. It's my business relationships that matter the most, my interactions with the high society are sparse at a social level. They know I have my opinions and the economic resources to stand by those opinions. Not many socialites approved of my decision to have a sparkling without bonding, but I did it, and they had no choice but to grudgingly accept they wouldn't influence my life based around their own pre-conceptions.//
//So, ya get along with them as much as it's necessary but don't bow down to them.// Jazz mulled over the older mech's words.
//In high society, there's a line that divides the factors that matter about a mech.// Trax explained. //The economic position and the social ladder. Although our family has been part of the nobility since the early days of Cybertronian history, most of my ancestors took to the betterment of our family's wealth. There are families that can trace their origins to the first thirteen, like the Lord Prime's line. However, although in the social scale they may be higher than us, economically speaking our family is in a better situation. You can be a noble and have little money compared to a mech that worked his way from having nothing to becoming a very wealthy mech.//
Jazz hummed softly, going through the words spoken by his grandfather. //That sounds almost like Lord Prowl's sire. I know he was of noble birth but Praxus was a really poor shire when he took to its rule.//
//Lord Prowl's sire would have had his seat as a noble and treated relatively in equal terms by the socialites, perhaps frowning a little if his finish wasn't top notch, but he would have been invited to a socialite's party based solely on his noble origins. But economically speaking he would have had a hard time receiving the attention of more powerful families, even those that weren't of noble cradle.//
//So ya have economic power ta make up fer your lesser social standing?// Jazz asked.
//Not exactly. I've always been treated cordially enough simply because I do behave like a noblemech. I'm not estranged from them, I am merely someone that stands in the background.// Trax upped his speed, nudging Jazz as they neared his estate. //Beat's involvement in the high society is what got our family to gain a higher position, and why it became so important for her to maintain it. She enjoyed social life, I'm more of a business mech, I do enjoy aspects of the social life, but never to the near obsessive degree Beat did.//
Jazz upped his own speed to match his grandfather, growing a little nervous as he caught glance of the large mansion that was his family's estate. //So ya got a more public face because of that?// he asked.
//Something like that. Beat's antics were more commonly known among the nobles than my own.// Trax sighed heavily. //Unfortunately, that will also affect you, as you know.//
Jazz would have scowled if the action was possible in his vehicle mode, he remembered very well the conversation he had with his grandfather and Lord Prowl before they left, when he had been instructed about the story they would provide to breach out his origins when he faced other noble mechs. He didn't like the idea of having to lie about his origins, he was proud of the mech he was and the mech that had been his sire and also of his life in the orphanage. Yet, he knew it was best for his grand- father's sake if he went along with the lie, knowing that although he believed himself capable of standing the barrage of ill meant actions and words from the nobility, his grandfather would pay the price.
//We're here. I hope you'll come to truly find this place to be your home,// Trax spoke as they stopped at the gates of his estate and transformed. Jazz followed his lead and stared at the house that would become his new home. It was smaller than Lord Prowl's but was definitely a luxurious and lavish place.
They stepped into the house, and Jazz was immediately greeted by the main butler and his own aides, bowed to and addressed as Lord. The mech knew it was going to take him some time to get used to being bowed to and referred to by his new title, and although he hoped to adapt well, he vowed to himself he wouldn't allow this new life to change him for worse.
He was taken to the dining room where he refueled with his grandfather, sharing a little about his life with the older mech until Trax pronounced he was tired and would need some recharge. Lord Trax led Jazz to his new rooms, they were at least three times the size of his room in Lord Prowl's home, with two chambers and wash rack. His berth was big enough to fit twice on the soft platform and even had a small balcony on the bedroom area.
Jazz couldn't help but head directly to the balcony, staring out to the night sky and the shire that was to become his home once more after his time in the orphanage. He couldn't help but miss Praxus already, the shire was beautiful, but Praxus always had something about it that made it a sight to behold. He remembered the first entry of Lord Prowl's bondmate, speaking of the new life he was starting on Praxus and couldn't help but wish to re-read that entry. He subspaced the diary and re-read the first few entries, wondering if his own change of location would bring about good or bad things. Jazz couldn't help but feel so alone in these new rooms, knowing that the only familiar face was that of his grandfather, knowing that come the morning he wouldn't be seeing Volt's gentle face or Lord Prowl's stern expression and icy blue optics greeting him.
With a heavy sigh, Jazz headed to his new berth and laid down, setting the diary on a small table near the headboard of his berth and curled up, shifting around until he was finally able to fall into deep recharge, hoping his new beginning would be a good one.