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It was bitterly cold. Minimus tried one last time to scrape away at the wall of snow blocking the cave entrance, but it only caused his fingers to stiffen as they came in contact with the freezing water. He hissed at the pain in his joints, and brought them close to his chest, exventing onto them in an effort to warm them up.
“Minimus, stop – you’ll only hurt yourself with that.”
Minimus turned around to see Megatron sitting on the floor of the cave, gazing down at him with concern in his optics. Their pocket of space beneath the snow was lit only by the glow of their biolights – a deep and intimate red. Minimus sighed and relented, stepping away from the wall so he could pace by Megatron. He had no intention of resting like the other bot. His small frame was not built with a strong engine, or any kind of heating systems for that matter, Also – and he loathed to admit this, even to himself – his size was not helpful in terms of trapping and retaining heat. So, he had to keep moving if he wanted to stay at all warm; it did not seem to be helping much, however. Even now, the glow from his optics seemed to be dimming as he shivered.
“Well, I should not be worrying, anyway. Rodimus and the others will be soon to help us, we just have to wait until then. N-nothing to worry about.”
“Minimus?” Megatron raised an eyebrow at the minibot’s stutter. He reached out to place a light hand on his shoulder, halting his pacing back and forth about the cave. “Are you alright?”
Minimus stiffened. First, because Megatron was… touching him.
Second, because Megatron was warm . Without even thinking, he leaned into his touch and sighed in relief.
Megatron pushed down the surprised blush on his face. “I didn’t know you were so cold…”
Minimus swallowed nervously, avoiding Megatron’s worried gaze. “Ah- the Magnus armor is, temperature-controlled. So I never found reason to… Oh, it was a mistake to leave it behind. I don’t know why I shed it in the first place.”
“Well… If you had been wearing the armor, you would likely have gotten trapped under the snow when you pushed me out of the way of that collapsing ceiling. And then where would we be?” Megatron gently rubbed Minimus’s shoulder as he spoke.
Minimus suddenly found it just a bit harder to breathe. “...I suppose you have a point. But still-” he shivered, “-that does not help my fingers from threatening to snap off.”
Megatron’s engine rumbled in the silence that fell after their conversation lapsed.
“Perhaps I can help,” Megatron said, and then Minimus felt himself being lifted off the ground by two large hands and-
“ Oh. Hmm.” Minimus could only sigh as he felt warmth envelop him. It was as if a comforter taken straight out of the dryer had been wrapped around him and he was being lulled to sleep. His frame went limp, and his small engine finally began to purr weakly as he turned his face into Megatron’s chest-
Wait. Megatron’s… chest.
Miraculously, Minimus’s strength returned to him as he tried to scramble out of Megatron’s lap, face red as the cavern around them, but the larger bot easily caught him and pulled him back in. “Minimus, don’t- Minimus- Minimus, please!”
The snow above them shivered. Both bots froze.
After a long and tense moment, Megatron sighed. “Minimus, if you’re truly uncomfortable, then I’ll let you go. But… I just want to see you well. And if the way to do that is a bit improper, then so be it. I’ll keep you warm for as long as it takes.”
When Minimus stood up, Megatron’s spark sunk in his chest.
Then, Minimus settled back down and snuggled as close to Megatron as possible. When Megatron looked down at him with a shellshocked expression, Minimus only blushed and said, “...So be it.”
Several hours later, when Rodimus and the rest of the crew broke through the wall of snow with a somewhat flashy blast of fire, they were immediately shushed by Megatron, who was holding a peacefully sleeping Minimus to his chest.
“Huh,” said Whirl. “Guess Brainstorm owes me ten bucks.”