Summary: The Ark's most infamous trouble-makers are about to face their greatest challenge yet... in the form of a naive, little scientist who might just charm their closed-off sparks. G1; Mech/Mech slash; Spike n' Valve
Rating: M
Chapter 2
Sideswipe was in love.
He didn't know how it had happened, but his brother was helm over exhaust pipe for the geeky little scientist. It had started with his twin wanting to berth Perceptor -Sunstreaker was sympathetic to that. Perceptor, though a mech with a bland, silly alt-mode, was still nicely shaped and looked like he would be a good lay.
Sunstreaker didn't care himself. He preferred 'bots better looking, highly maintained and who didn't chatter that much -whether about themselves or particle physics. But if he could interface with Tracks and enjoy it well enough, then he figured he could do the same with Perceptor. At the very least, Sideswipe's lust for the microscope would fuel his own charge. But after a while, watching his brother go around chasing the nerdy Autobot, pulling prank after stupid prank -just to get Perceptor's fragging attention!- was beginning to infuriate the yellow lamborghini.
Why, he thought constantly, why go through all this trouble for a mech who wasn't even aware that he was being pursued?
Well, Sunstreaker just put it to the back of his processor in the beginning. Sideswipe was still interfacing with him and dragging his brightly-painted twin for fun, care-free pranks. But then, about a few months in, Sideswipe stopped asking for Sunstreaker's help with his mischief. Oh, he was still causing trouble... the Ark was in chaos with the amount of pranks the red warrior was doing, and Red Alert was close to a full systems meltdown. A lot of questions had arisen during Sideswipe's "reign of terror", as it was being called, about the motive behind the insane string of pranks.
Especially about Sunstreaker's sudden exclusion.
That was something the yellow mech wanted to know about as well.
He thought it might have just been a phase, because Sideswipe was known to take some alone time every few vorns, but the weeks turned into decacycles and his twin still did not include him in his schemes. Eventually, Sideswipe begin to participate less in their interface sessions, even refusing flat-out a romp with a very charged Bluestreak. Sunstreaker thought he might have to drag the red lamborghini in for a check-up with Ratchet; he was that concerned by his twin's sudden celibacy. Yet that didn't seem right either, because he could still feel the echo of lust passing over their bond every time Perceptor was nearby.
His concern for Sideswipe's interfacing habits was quickly forgotten the morning he stirred from recharge and realized that he had been blocked from the bond.
Not completely shut out... but walls had been erected unknowingly, greatly filtering or completely censoring the messages being passed back and forth. No matter how hard Sunstreaker tried to beat them down, the walls stayed in place, further separating him from his twin. Not like the other mech even realized... Sideswipe must have been crueler or more idiotic then he had thought for him to appear completely oblivious to their floundering connection. The yellow frontliner wanted to scream and shout and storm about this entire predicament, and indeed he had let some of his growing anger out in the Ark hallways; spending time in the brig for his unnecessary and reckless endangerment of others.
Despite all this though, the hurricane of raw, furious feelings continued to twist within the warrior; made sharper and stronger by the bitter stake of confusion and betrayal digging into his spark. Sunstreaker doubted he could ever make it go away, or forgive Sideswipe for everything that had happened.
XXXXXXXXXXXX
That changed the moment he was yanked out of recharge, the burn of laser fire searing his shoulder. His angry optics had scoped the berthroom, blaster being pulled so fast out of subspace that the motion was but a blur only a nanoklik long. There was no enemy to be found... and no twin either. Sunstreaker had raced from his quarters, right into the control room with Teletraan-1. Jazz, on duty, was surprised to see the yellow mech so late at night and voiced his curiosity. The frontliner ignored him, mashing buttons on the terminal in his fervour to locate Sideswipe.
He was just closing in on his brother's coordinates when he shouted out in pain, crumpling against Telatraan-1. The next little bit was fuzzy to the lamborghini's memory banks... He remembered Jazz jumping in surprise at his cry, the saboteur racing forward to check on the larger 'bot; one servo to his commlink as he rapidly spoke to Prowl on the other line. Sunstreaker allowed himself to be moved to the floor, the cool metal soothing the throbbing ache underneath his chassis. Ratchet was the first to come to the control room, followed closely by Prowl.
"He's uninjured," Ratchet grimaced, after running his scans.
"Then that means...," Jazz started.
"Sunstreaker, where is Sideswipe?," Prowl demanded, looking down on the lamborghini. Some might of thought that the Datsun's gaze was cold and uncaring, and though the frontliner would agree with some of them, he knew under that harsh look, the SIC was running events through his highly-advanced logistics system. "You don't know, do you?," Prowl said, when Sunstreaker refused to answer after a moment.
Prowl lifted a servo to his commlink. "Red Alert, I need you to review the video feed from earlier this evening. I need to locate Sideswipe now... he's been injured." There was a moment of silence as the security director responded to the SIC. Then Prowl did something that any of the mechs present thought they would never see: the officer swore.
"Prowler... what's up?," Jazz inquired nervously.
Ratchet helped Sunstreaker to his pedes, administering a tiny dosage of analgesic to combat the echoing pain the warrior was still feeling. "It's Sideswipe, isn't it?"
"And Perceptor," Prowl added, lifting a servo and pinching the bridge of his olfactory sensor in exasperation.
"Now why'd 'r lil' Percy be head'n 'ot wit' a mech like 'Sides?," Jazz asked, completely baffled at this point.
"Because I would have suggested giving him access of leave should he find a suitable 'bot to accompany with him for a late night science expedition," Prowl replied, servo still at his face. Venting an intake, the Datsun looked at all mechs present. "I understand your surprise, but I had not accounted on him actually taking my word, or for him to be serious in his request. It was a ludicrous idea, after all! But that matters little now... we need to gather together a team and send out a search party for them. I'll rouse Optimus in the meantime and inform him of the situation. Jazz, I need you to-"
The SIC was cut off when there was the ping over the communal frequency. Jazz was the first to reach for it, pressing a servo tightly against his audio receptor. "Jazz here," he said.
"J-jazz!," Perceptor's voice cried out over the line. The rest was almost indistinguishable through the scientist's frantic, garbled sobs but the download of the coordinates came through clear and Prowl was tapping into the frequency immediately after.
"Don't worry, Perceptor. A team will be out there shortly to collect you and Sideswipe. Just stay out of sight and keep us posted of the situation." Prowl cut the line, and turned to the others. "Jazz, Ratchet-"
"Already on it," the CMO said. "I'm going to go grab a couple more things from medbay and then I'm ready to get going."
"I'll go wake Iron'ide and Blast'r, they can help us 'ot," Jazz offered. Waiting for Prowl's nod, the saboteur ran off; Ratchet also leaving to go get his supplies.
"I'm coming," Sunstreaker said, stepping up to Prowl until he was face-to-face with the Datsun. Frowning, the officer leaned backwards slightly as the warrior continued to loom over him.
"You must follow orders. Understood?" Prowl crossed his arms over his chassis, waiting for the lamborghini's next move.
With a growl, the yellow mech spun away, skulking for the door. "Sunstreaker..."
"I'll comply. Just move your afts," Sunstreaker hissed, not even bothering to look back over his shoulder as he stormed from the command center. Prowl waited a couple more astroseconds before he too moved, heading immediately for their leader's quarters.
XXXXXXXXXXXX
Sunstreaker was glad to have Sideswipe back all in one piece, but that did not make him a happy mech all the same. Finding his brother's helm laying in Perceptor's lap; startled realization flaring brightly over their bond, shadowed by pulses of love, was not a sight he would have ever wanted to walk into. With their connection re-established because of this near-fatal encounter, the temperamental warrior ranted and raved at his twin as he was being fixed, all the while keeping his growing anger towards Perceptor buried. If Sideswipe knew how Sunstreaker felt about the scientist, then he would fight with the other lamborghini on every front. To make sure that Perceptor could no longer threaten his way of life, the yellow mech would need secrecy. Otherwise he'd never be able to get the microscope to disappear.
Sunstreaker set out to first discover why Sideswipe was so infatuated with Perceptor, and then destroy those attributes hypnotizing his brother.
The first stop: Perceptor's looks.
XXXXXXXXXXXX
Perceptor was ordinary. There was no other way to put it really. His alt-mode of a microscope was a boring and mundane thing to look at, made even more ridiculous because it was immobile and thus proved useless on the battlefield. It didn't even have a spot to mount a gun to! Sunstreaker had heard rumours that the scientist's lens could be altered to project a high-velocity laser beam from it, but considering he had never seen such a thing, the warrior wasn't going to believe it. In bi-pedal mode, Perceptor did not pose much more of a temptation. He was short -taller than the mini bots, but smaller than the rest of the crew- with a pale, almost dusty like paintjob. The scientist had no special characteristics, upgrades or any special defining features aside from what was primary to his function. He did not even have any of the sleek lines that the faster Autobots boasted, and everything about Perceptor's very attitude made the mech more like a backdrop than a person. Other than his pretty aft, which was enough to draw a few optics here and there, the red Autobot didn't have much going for him.
So why was Sideswipe so hooked up on how "adorable" the scientist was?
Sunstreaker sat sitting in the rec room, glaring across the way to the clueless mech sitting at one of the tables in the corner. Perceptor had a cube of energon placed before him, mostly untouched because as soon as the scientist had sat down he had been drawn back into his datapad and the work displayed on its screen. Even though everyone else was shifting about, the very aura of the room tense because of the yellow warrior fuming within its vicinity, Perceptor was completely unaffected and seemed to be quite merry in fact.
Well that just made Sunstreaker angrier.
The lamborghini rose to his pedes and was stomping across the rec room not a nanoklik later. Not a single mech dared to stop the warrior, though several Autobots tensed further; their optics locked on Sunstreaker warily as he approached Perceptor. The microscope was still absorbed in his work, unaware of the 'bot standing before him. Sunstreaker, surprisingly, decided to patiently wait for the smaller mech to notice him. A couple breems passed, and still the scientist sat hunched over his datapad, writing down notes and equations as he muttered to himself quietly. With an ugly snarl, the warrior slammed his fist into the table; datapad and energon cube trembling fiercely with the assault, a crack resounding loudly in the now-silent rec room.
"Oh my!," Perceptor cried, pulling back from the quaking table. He lifted his helm and was shocked to see Sunstreaker standing just across from him. "Sunstreaker? I'm sorry, did you need my attention?"
"Yes!," the yellow mech wanted to shout. "What have you done to Sideswipe, you little glitch!"
But Sunstreaker did not say these things, managing instead to rein in his fury; getting a firm grasp on his rapidly weakening self-control. "No...," he growled back after a moment.
"I... see...," the scientist replied slowly. There was confusion in those big, blue optics and the lamborghini struggled to come up with an excuse as to why he was here. Eventually he just said the first thing that came to mind.
"Optimus wants to see you."
"Oh, yes of course!," Perceptor exclaimed, suddenly relaxing. "I'll just go and see him right now then. Strange that he didn't just comm me..." The microscope got to his pedes, grabbing his energon cube and taking another sip from it before subspacing it entirely; finally grabbing his datapad and cradling it against his chassis.
"Thank you so much for informing me, Sunstreaker. I hope it wasn't any trouble to you." Perceptor smiled and his optics half-shuttered with the action. "Have a good day." And without further ado, the scientist left the rec room.
Sunstreaker stood there idling for just a klik more, before he too left; wandering off down the Ark's hallways as he continued to fume to himself. He learned later that Optimus really had needed to see Perceptor and was surprised when the small mech arrived at his office before he had a chance to comm him.
Slag.
XXXXXXXXXXXX
Sunstreaker took up stalking Perceptor around the base, trying to make things difficult for the scientist. He set up his own set of pranks and traps -since Sideswipe was still so goo-goo optics for Perceptor, there had been less trouble from the red lamborghini- and enjoyed every single cry of alarm or surprise that the microscope made when he tripped the traps. Granted, the geeky mech wasn't always the first to come across Sunstreaker's set-ups... but the warrior wasn't going to worry about those few, unaccounted for victims.
The only downside of this little habit was that the lamborghini was also witness to the other expressions that came to Perceptor's face.
Excitement, joy, fear, exasperation, amusement, triumph, exhaustion, annoyance, confusion, seriousness...
They all just looped and looped in Sunstreaker's processor; the different range of emotion the scientist was capable of and yet... there was never any actual anger in Perceptor's optics, nor defeat or despair. All of this remained with the warrior, though he never really took notice of its constant presence until one day he looked down at the drawing pad in his servos and was stunned to find a perfect image of the smaller mech smiling up at him.
He remembered that smile... It was just after Perceptor had finished another one of his lengthy projects; the amount of exhaustion and aching joints not even a consideration as the scientist leaned away from the work table, smiling that little smile of ecstatic accomplishment that was just so...
Sunstreaker threw the pad away from him in a sudden bout of rage; jumping to his pedes and storming from his room.
XXXXXXXXXXXX
Following Perceptor around wasn't helping. In fact, it was just making things worse. And seeing his brother fluttering about the microscope every chance he got only made the other warrior angrier. It became too much one day, and he ran off to locate Tracks for a quick, rough interface, but the corvette refused to engage with Sunstreaker and promptly told the lamborghini -in several variations- to frag off. Jealous, enraged and now completely rejected, the yellow mech had stormed back off to his quarters and tore the room apart. There was no feeling in Sunstreaker as he pounded at the walls, kicked at the berths; screamed, yelled, bellowed, tore, ripped, cracked and smashed everything that came near his servos. At the end of it all, not a single thing remained intact.
Sunstreaker vented heavily, looking dully at the shattered fragments of Sideswipe's favourite games shimmering among the wreckage on the floor; covered in flecks of colours from when the lamborghini had stomped on his paint set.
Silently, the warrior left the room, shutting the door behind him before heading out for a long drive.
He knew Sideswipe must have been angry at him for breaking his things as well that night, but his twin did not say anything. In fact, the red warrior only seemed to mope about until miraculously, all of his games had been replaced with a few new ones thrown in as well. Sunstreaker was perplexed at that, until the very reason stood before him a week later.
XXXXXXXXXXXX
The lamborghini glared down at the smaller mech in front of him, lip components fixed into a scowl deep enough to make Megatron envious. Suddenly anxious, Perceptor shuffled a little in place, holding a box to his chestplates tightly. "I-i-i... I am terribly s-sorry to di-disturb you," the scientist stuttered, lowering his helm self-consciously. "I-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-"
"What do you want?," Sunstreaker hissed. He wasn't going to stand here and listen to the other Autobot stumble on his words all day. He had better things to do.
"Here," Perceptor squeaked, thrusting out his arms suddenly.
The box bumped against his forearm, and the warrior unconsciously grabbed it to ensure that it didn't scuff his paint. Relieved to see Sunstreaker take the gift, Perceptor was quick to relax some. "S-sideswipe mentioned... well, I-i-i hope you like it in either case," the microscope rambled quickly, lifting his helm for an astrosecond to look at the lamborghini before dropping his gaze again.
"G-goodbye then!" Perceptor turned about and practically ran down the hall and away from the stupefied mech.
Sideswipe had mentioned, what? Sunstreaker thought, slowly trying to process the events which had just passed. Frowning again, the lamborghini turned and entered back into his quarters. Everything furniture wise had been fixed and replaced by the time he had returned to the Ark the night he had trashed it, almost as if his tantrum had never happened; yet the sparseness of the room where objects had once laid echoed loudly to Sunstreaker. He never thought he would be so angry with himself...
Putting it to the back of his processor, the warrior marched across the room to his berth, sitting down on its edge. He stared at the box in his servos for a breem, not doing anything. A voice told him to toss it away without opening it, to spite the mech that dared to think he could associate with him just because he stole his brother. But a smaller voice whispered that he should open it and see what was inside. That weak mumble proved stronger than its partner, and shortly after, Sunstreaker was opening the box. Again, he felt himself stunned into idle.
After a klik, a servo reached inside and pulled out the little card that sat on top of the items within. The lamborghini brought it up to optic-level and read it.
It said:
Sunstreaker, I am sorry to hear that all of your supplies were damaged in the accident. Such an unexpected and special talent should be fostered and shared. I hope that these can be of use to you.
-Perceptor
Sunstreaker looked from the note to the items inside the box. Drawing pads, canvas, paints, brushes, pencils, charcoals, rulers, erasers, inks and pens... Almost everything he had used before and then some.
And it was all for him.
Sunstreaker offlined his optics, sighing softly.
XXXXXXXXXXXX
Things were odd now.
The lamborghini could still feel his hatred bubbling underneath the surface, but it was buried mostly beneath a swell of curiosity and undefinable need. His stalking of Perceptor became more about the intent to study the scientist, rather than to punish him, as well as a means to contemplate the best way to approach the other mech. Usually his attempts to face Perceptor ended up the with the warrior becoming suddenly blank in the processor before stuttering some half-baked excuse and taking off in the opposite direction.
Truly, he didn't understand it himself, and though Sunstreaker had an inkling of what was going on -he was after all not as slow as his twin- he could still think of no way to stop it. This was wrong, wasn't it? He shouldn't have felt so conflicted like this! He should be angry at the mech that was taking Sideswipe away from him, not be falling for the same trap as his brother had.
But those feelings weren't coming; the rage and jealousy that he had placed so much faith on beforehand leaving him hanging over a boiling pit of greater uncertainty and anxiety. Sunstreaker didn't really like that feeling, not at all. Yet, he didn't stop studying the scientist; making further notes and sketches in his new drawing pads.
The lamborghini only hoped that this mess didn't escalate any more.
But he wasn't that surprised when next the harrowing thought rose up, talking about returning Perceptor's kindness.
XXXXXXXXXXXX
He supposed he should have expected this to happen. After all, it was inevitable really. Sideswipe came stomping into the room, palming the door shut angrily before he rounded on his twin. Sunstreaker tried to feign ignorance, but his angry glare at the paper in servos was clue enough that he was reading his brother's thoughts through the bond. "How dare you," Sideswipe hissed, approaching the other mech.
Sunstreaker refused to look at him, and the red lamborghini was forced to slap the drawing pad away. That caught his twin's attention, furious optics rising to meet his own.
"You're such a fragger!," Sideswipe continued, fists clenching at his sides. "You start off by making me look stupid in front of everybody and-"
"You mean Perceptor," Sunstreaker cut in with a growl. "You're not upset that I made you look stupid in front of everybody... you're angry because Perceptor saw you for the fool that you are!"
Sideswipe grit his denta tightly, looming closer to his brother. "Don't you dare patronize me! I saw it- I did! What, never thought I'd be able to get into Perceptor's labs too? And what was that, huh?! Leaving a painting -a gift- to a 'bot you think of nothing more than a nerd? That's under-handed, Sunny!"
"Don't call me that!," the yellow mech replied, lunging forward a bit. Sideswipe wisely pulled back some, but he kept his servos tightly clenched and ready at his sides still. "And my actions are not under-handed."
"They are too!," the other lamborghini protested. "You know that I like him; that's why you're being such a glitch about this."
Sunstreaker got to his pedes this time, fists clenched at his sides as well. "I am not being-"
"You are!," Sideswipe cut in. "Slagging... I liked him first; you can't have him Sunstreaker!"
"I don't want that little geek!," Sunstreaker shouted.
"You do too! Don't lie! I've seen you looking at him, and your drawing pads are all full of sketches of him but you can't have him," Sideswipe roared back. "You always take everything that I want; I always give you all of my attention. Why can't things be different for a change? Why can't I finally get something, just for myself?!"
"He doesn't deserve you...," the bright warrior snarled lowly.
"Listen to yourself, " the red mech spat. "You sound so fragging stupid! I care about Perceptor -I don't care if you think he's stupid, or ugly, or, or unworthy- I like him, so why can't you stop trying to sabotage my chances with him?!"
"I won't stop! You can't make me."
"Wanna bet? You're my twin, Sunstreaker, and I love ya... but I won't stand for you doing this to me. I've had enough of your selfishness; I won't deal with it anymore!"
Sunstreaker growled. "There's nothing you can do to stop me... I'm better than you. He doesn't deserve you, and you don't deserve him either!"
"Then who does, huh?!," Sideswipe yelled. "Who is 'worthy' of me?"
"Only I am!," the other mech yelled back. "Frag Perceptor if you want, but he can't have you! Not your spark; your spark is mine alone! You belong to me Sideswipe, and only me! I won't lose you to him!"
The red warrior could only shutter his optics in disbelief. "...You're glitched," he replied lowly, glaring at his twin. "Are you that fragged in the processor that you can't even decide whether you actually like Perceptor or are just jealous of him? And yours, Sunny? Yours? I'm not fragging 'yours'. I'm not something you can own; Primus, I'm not a slagging toy you keep!"
Sunstreaker did not say anything.
Sideswipe snorted in disgust. "Stay the pit away from Perceptor," he warned. "I don't want him to be confused because of your fragging, twisted feelings."
"...Don't you dare mock my feelings," the yellow lamborghini hissed. He swung out and punched his brother. "Nothing about me is wrong! Nothing! Every single one is real; don't you dare look down on my feelings!"
"N-nothing's wrong with you?!," Sideswipe shouted, blocking his twin's rain of punches. He retreated some and then lunged forward, locking servos with Sunstreaker. "Then what's all this, huh? Why are you so fragging intent on beating my processor in?! Do you think that will help!?"
The red frontliner kicked the bright warrior, triumphant over the groan he drew from the other mech for a moment, before he was kneed in the stomach. "I won't lose!," Sunstreaker bellowed, throwing more weight into their locked servos, trying to unbalance his twin. "Not you, not Perceptor -not to either of you, and not to each other too!"
The next couple breems went by in a flurry of fists and kicks; punches thrown, pedes digging into sides and legs, throwing, tossing and pinning the other against every sharp, hard surface within the room. The screaming and yelling continued, though by then it was unintelligible bellowing. But that was only the surface of the matter. Unseen to the viewing eye, another, more volatile battle was happening -in the realm of twin bonds. Back and forth, the two lamborghinis shot off projectiles of rage, attempting to cripple the other spark. It only forced the bridge of their bond open further; a flood of emotions breaking forth from their dams and rushing into the other receptacle, so much that it was overwhelming and Swideswipe and Sunstreaker were jolted away from each other at the onslaught. Venting heavily, they crumpled to the floor, lifting pain-filled optics to stare at the other from across the room.
"S-so... th-that's it, huh?," the red warrior panted, grasping his side plating as surges of electricity crackled along his sensory net still. The vicious widening of their bond left a strange tingling deep within his spark; it echoed dully as the incoming information from Sunstreaker slowed down almost to a trickle.
"..." The yellow lamborghini did not say anything, knowing that he didn't need to voice any of his thoughts. Sideswipe knew them all now, after all. Knew his confusion and his fears; his new, developing emotions that he found extremely strange but oddly hopeful...
"Y-you really didn't lie," Sideswipe murmured, shuttering his optics somewhat.
"I didn't," Sunstreaker agreed.
"I... I'm sorry," his red twin apologized.
The other warrior nodded his helm in acknowledgement.
Silence for a couple kliks.
"So... what do we do now?"
"Aside from going to Ratchet and having these dents fixed, and getting myself a new paintjob?," Sunstreaker replied.
Sideswipe chuckled a little. "He's going to be so angry with us... But, no, in all seriousness, what do we do now? I mean, we both like Perceptor and, well..."
He wasn't entirely sure why the idea came to mind, but in his confused, exhausted state it wasn't so odd for his processor to be making with the strange epiphanies randomly. And though he was loathe to say it out loud, simply because of how ridiculous it was, Sunstreaker couldn't help but to think as well how it was the most logical solution to their current predicament. "Both of us," he started vaguely, lifting his helm and staring his twin straight in his optics.
"Huh? Both of us, what now?"
"You and I -the both of us- bond with Perceptor. We'd share him, like in the past, but he'd be ours alone."
"...You really are serious about him," the red warrior mumbled, somewhat amused. "I never once thought of bonding with him, though the idea is nice."
Sunstreaker glared at his brother's evasive tactics. "Well, I'll admit it's... odd," Sideswipe sighed, "But I suppose if the gestalts can have multiple bonds, then so can we. I certainly am not about to let someone else have him in either case."
"Then we're agreed," the yellow mech said, rising to his pedes slowly. Sideswipe had done a number on him, and he knew he had done the same with the other lamborghini. Sideswipe followed Sunstreaker's action, groaning a little as he unsettled a displaced cog inside his chassis.
"Ratchet is soooooooo gonna hammer our afts for this."
"Your fault," Sunstreaker replied sullenly.
"Yeah, I suppose so," the red mech shrugged. He walked over, slinging an arm about his twin's shoulders. "Well, now that we're agreed that we both like Perceptor and are gonna share him... how 'bout we discuss our lil' cutie?"
The yellow lamborghini smirked a little, leading the both of them to the door. "Absolutely."
XXXXXXXXXXXX
There had been a shift in the universe.
Everybody aboard the Ark felt it, and it made their sensory nets crackle uncertainly. They weren't entirely sure what it was, but it presented itself as two smirking lamborghinis, resting at ease for the first time in a while in the rec room. Sideswipe and Sunstreaker weren't saying anything verbally, but it could not be mistaken that they were scheming across the bond. They had their plotting smiles on, after all. It was a greatly disconcerting sight because nobody could be sure what trouble they would cause this time, and who their victim -or victims- might be.
Prowl, coming into the rec room on his occasional drop-in for energon, noticed the odd looks being passed all around the room and quickly centered in on the source. Frowning, the Datsun immediately altered his course so that he was soon standing before the Twins, arms crossed over his chassis testily. "I suggest that you stop your plotting," the officer warned. "I have a list of punishments lined up, just waiting for you two to take one step out of line."
"Ah, Prowler," Sideswipe grinned, loving the way the SIC's doorwings twitched at his illicit use of Jazz's nickname. "We're not causing any trouble."
"Not yet," Prowl replied. "But everyone here is aware that in those processors of yours, the both of you are coming up with more inventive ways to create havoc and disruption."
Sunstreaker glared, and the red warrior by his side had the decency to pout. "That's real mean of ya, Prowl," Sideswipe said sullenly. The mech leaned back in his chair, sliding his arms behind his helm. "Isn't it against the rules to hassle innocent bystanders or something? I'm sure that I've-"
The yellow lamborghini elbowed his twin, cutting him off about the same time that Sideswipe clicked his jaw shut. Immediately the both of them lunged forward in their seats, leaning against the table intently. Clucking disapprovingly, Sideswipe motioned for Prowl to step aside. "Move, Prowl. You're blocking our view!"
The SIC shuttered his optics, unconsciously stepping to the side. The Twins settled in; a grin coming to the red warrior's lip components, his brother's optics glowing a little brighter while a smirk threatened to pull at his scowl. Baffled, Prowl turned to see what the two lamborghinis were so fixated on. He saw Perceptor walk over to the energon dispenser, datapad before his face. Still not tearing his optics from his screen, the scientists filled up a cube, taking a small, refreshing sip before subspacing the rest of the cube for later. Then he turned on his pede, heading for the door once again.
Slowly, the Datsun turned enough so he could glance at Sunstreaker and Sideswipe from the corner of his optic... and saw that their attention was zoned in on Perceptor's swaying hips. Things must have been worse than he had thought if both of the mechs were decided on chasing the microscope.
"Don't even think about it," Prowl warned lowly, doorwings hitching up a little. He was happy when two sets of optics tore away from the scientist's retreating aft; even if it was only to glare up at the SIC. "If I even feel that you're encroaching into Perceptor's space, I'll have the both of you dragged to the brig by your tail pipes and a decacycle's worth of scrubbing out the washracks, loading docks and rec room for you."
The Twins did not reply, and satisfied that his threat had been acknowledged, the Datsun turned around and headed for the door as well.
Sideswipe merely pursed his lip components, leaning back in his chair again, arms behind his helm. "Can't stop us," Sunstreaker murmured from his side, glare focused on Prowl's back struts.
"Indeed not, Sunny," the red warrior replied. "Not this time."
Two unholy smirks came to the lamborghinis faces, and quickly, everyone in the rec room diverted their optics.
Tracks, sitting at a table with Blaster, scowled somewhat behind his energon cube. Well, Perceptor was really slagged this time...
No comments:
Post a Comment