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Flightframes and their functioning were something of lore in the Autobot ranks. Sure, they had been encountered, studied, seen, fought, interrogated, and snuffed, but the...specific details of their frame types hadn't quite reached lower tier teams. Like that under Heatwave.
When Optimus Prime had first given them their Earth vehicle alt-modes, Blades had been skeptical—very skeptical—about the rumors he had heard while back on Cybertron. He noticed differences, sure. Some weren't too bad either. He felt shinier than the day he came online as a result of the constant preening he realized he now was compelled to do. He had also never had better recharge cycles before in his functioning, discovering that despite the fact he wasn't a Seeker, he still "nested" with his berth sheets. When asked why by his team, he had shrugged and said, "Comfier on the rotors, you know."
Only he couldn't recharge flat on his back struts anymore. The two flat appendages he now possessed received highly tactile data, barest sensations bordering on pain. It had left him tossing and turning on his makeshift berth for weeks, until he finally settled on his front, or curled up on his side with his rotors twitching over the end of the berth.
Blades had found out the hard way how sensitive these flightframe instruments could be, and eagerly avoided dangerous missions at all costs. Not to mention they became scarier with each passing solar cycle on Griffin Rock. He thought his increased fear of...well, everything, was also a result of his drastically changed coding, but he couldn't be too sure. Once, as subtlety as he could manage, Blades had asked Boulder if he knew much about flightframe anatomy, but the team's science expert had been too busy helping Graham with engineering homework that he had barely even bothered to look up and shrug noncommittally before returning to his previous task.
However, there was one change Blades was sure of in his spark, and it terrified him the most. He had caught the extra...looks his teammates gave him when they thought he wasn't looking. Paranoid as he was (or had become, through his new frame-type and multiple dramas he had watched in TV) he thought that they were upset to have a flier in their midst. When he tried to explain his concern to Dani, she reassured him that the team needed him, and that maybe they weren't used to a stunningly handsome bot like him. Blades had laughed, not quite reassured, but happier none the less. He repeated her reassurances all solar cycle, until it was time to recharge, and bid everybot goodnight. He slipped into his berth, glad it was the farthest away from the rest, and settled in, the rather sizable stuffed animal he and Cody had won at the fair tucked under his arms. It was only then he fully considered Dani's words while starting the defrag process when he realized it; she had called him a handsome bot.
Oh Primus, now he understood.
His legs shifted closer to his chassis as every comment on his frame, joking or otherwise, was dredged up by his processor. They had increased during his time on Earth, and that coupled with the looks and...
Gah, what was his malfunction? That was a rumor! One invented by dregs and club-frequenters, often meant to charm and elude and seduce young bots to the Decepticon cause and...
He needed to calm down. He was just being stir crazy. Yeah. Maybe a walk would help him. The tunnels led to a nice, quiet spot, secluded up on the other side of Griffin Rock. He often went there when he needed space, or occasionally took Dani there to have picnics. Who new refueling could be such an adventure? And one that wasn't scary, either!
He decided that he might as well. Chief Burns knew, and after an hour of lectures and making him swear not to do anything brash, had allowed it. It was like he seemed to understand his Cybetronian issue more than others of his own race did. Of course, there was always the spare communicator tucked away in a dusty corner of the bunker. It was encrypted, and apparently the Starscream was on Earth, and he could maybe get some answers—
Nope, that was, as Chief Burns had said, brash. And major breach in protocol. Not to mention treason. Seeking—hah, he made a pun!—advice from other flightframes wasn't an option.
The berth creaked slightly as he swung his pedes over the edge, slipping off and stowing the stuffed plush in his subspace. His team surely knew by now, but he didn't want them getting ahold of it. Just one more thing for Heatwave to tease him about. Speaking of the fire truck...
Blades' vents stalled in a sigh. Heatwave was a light recharger, and Primus only knew when he would suddenly wake. It made sneaking out difficult, especially when Heatwave's berth was the closest to the tunnels. Blades stifled a groan. Lovely.
He snuck around Boulder's form, pausing when the bulldozer shifted, muttering slightly. Blades crept past, clearing Chase's berth with no issues. He was almost home free—
"And where do you think you're going?" Blades squeaked, whipping around to see Heatwave glaring down at him, arms crossed over his chassis. His optics burned a fierce yellow in the darkness.
"Um, I, ah, well, you see, Heatwave, uh...hi?" he sputtered, giving the fire truck a weak smile. He seemed to tower over Blades, and while the rational part of his processor knew that he actually wasn't that much taller, it was drowned out in the chaotic screaming of the rest of it. Energon pooled under his cheekplates, and he averted his optics, tapping his fingers together.
"How's it hummin'?" Heatwave growled sarcastically. Blades suddenly found him right up next to him, gaze hardened and servos on his hips. "You weren't, by chance, going after my rust sticks, were you?"
"I'm sorry He—ah, rust sticks?" Blades shuttered his optics, helm slowly cocking to the side. He was confused; since when did Heatwave enjoy sweets? "Come again?"
The fire truck's engine revved angrily before calming. "It wasn't you?"
Blades giggled quietly, mindful of the others still recharging. "No, I didn't even know you had any!"
His frame visibly relaxed before drawing up again. "Chase, I swear..."
"Chase, really? C'mon, he would keel over and have a spark attack if he so much as forgot to put his blinker on, much less steal." Blades was smiling as his processor raced. He couldn't believe his luck. But he wasn't out of the thankfully proverbial woods yet. He really hated confined spaces.
"Yeah, normally. He'll probably defend himself and say it's a 'ration' for everybot to share. Like the Pit it is!"
"I didn't know you two were into sweets. Aw, Heatwave, you actually aren't the tough husk we all think you are!" Blades let loose a burst of laughter when the fire truck tugged him over and gave him a teasingly light cuff on the finial.
"Shut it, Blades. The others are trying to recharge!"
"Sorry." They stood in silence for a few ticks before Heatwave asked, "So why are you up and about, then?"
"Ah, I, um, was thirsty. Just gonna...uh, get some low grade." Heatwave shuttered his optics, and for a moment Blades thought he was going to call him out for his lie.
Instead, he just shrugged, looping his arm across Blades' kibble. "Sounds good. I think I'll join you."
The rotary narrowed his optics in suspicion. "It's fine, then?"
"Sure. A little low grade actually sounds good, to be honest. Maybe it could go along with some rust sticks..." Heatwave trailed off. Blades clapped his servos together, flinching at the snort coming from the direction of Boulder's berth. Right. They were still in recharge.
"Really?" As the youngest and lowest ranking member of their team, Blades rarely ever had the chance to have anything besides standard middle grade energon. It wasn't like the others had a lot more, but still...
Heatwave nodded, the bottom of his lipplates curling upwards. It wasn't until after they had their midnight snack and Blades settled back down did he figure out why Heatwave had been shockingly pleasant. He was being coddled by the fire truck, almost exactly like he'd feared. And Heatwave had been considerably more...touchy, than usual. The rotary could suddenly fell the ghost of an arm slung over his back, it's touch burning through his plating.
Blades felt his rotors twitch anxiously. Dani had been right. His team wasn't used to having a stunningly handsome bot on their team. And Blades wasn't being arrogant or full of himself.
Heatwave—and most likely the others—were experiencing the allure of a flightframe, and Blades was afraid that instinctual coding had totally fragged up their processors.
It was now a question of when it fragged up his.
Well, slag, he'd felt it coming, but hadn't thought it would so soon.
The begrudging praise, the vigil for his safety, sizable consideration for his concerns of flying, and spearheading the effort was Heatwave.
And frag it all, Blades was totally falling for it.
When had his interest really piqued? Blades thought it was when Heatwave had risked deactivation to rescue him and Cody from the VR simulation about a month back. Granted, the kid had been in there with him, but Blades had apparently been priority one, according to Chase and Boulder. They had hurriedly assured him Cody was a very close second, if they were ranking them.
Then Heatwave had gone off and done a rescan, leaving him with three modes, and damn if that wasn't something a part of his processor grabbed at hungrily. Tri-formers on Cybertron were uncommon, though most of them were self-taught or guided, like Heatwave had been, rather than came online as such. Still, transforming into a boat had been pretty cool...
And kinda attractive, the crazy part of his processor supplied him with.
Blades decided that he was just going insane, and his new frame-type wasn't helping. He could definitely feel it now; the pull that made him gravitate towards others, and in more than a friendly, social way. While one might just dismiss it as getting older, Blades felt like it was different, as there was almost a burning need for contact with another, a desire for a near constant attention. At first, he realized just Dani could help relieve this itch, but soon she wasn't enough to even attempt scratching it.
Ignoring the whims of his frame proved difficult. Blades would find himself whimpering pitifully in the middle of the night, crushing loneliness tearing at his spark even though Boulder was a few strides away. Or worse, he'd snap awake, a charge roiling through his systems with no safe way for him to burn it off. Another boon was having no outlet. He couldn't talk to any of the humans, both Heatwave and Optimus said that Cybertronian romance was to be kept on the down-low and as much as he trusted Dani, he didn't know how well she would handle it. Telling his team was also out. They were grown mechs, but could get about as gossipy as protoformed femmes when they got on the vidcom with Optimus and his team.
So he would wait out these weird cycles, uncomfortable yet in control, shying away from any physical contact. Until one night cycle, when it became too much, and he found himself curled up with an extra sheet, Dani resting near his helm and half-awake, her Wonder Woman pajamas fuzzy and soft against Blades' plating.
"Sorry about this," he muttered, poking the bizarre fabric pod she had brought with her absentmindedly. He believed it was called a "sleeping bag", from the camping movies he had watched.
"Eh, it's fine." She stifled a yawn, plumping her pillow as she slipped into the sleeping bag. The puffy fabric pushed against his chestpiece as she turned over to face him. "There was something you wanted to talk about, right?"
"Yeah." He glanced behind him, a difficult task when one was lying down, and found that everyone appeared to be asleep. Technically—and Blades was really using a loophole when he said technically—the bots weren't supposed to have humans down in their makeshift barracks, but he'd seen Graham down there plenty of times when he dozed off doing homework and Boulder couldn't find another Burns to give him to. Not to mention, Cody was with them almost every other week for "slumber parties". They had been rather fun.
Suffice to say, having Dani with him for just one night cycle shouldn't be too big of a deal. She said she had left a note and everything back in her room, just in case someone went looking for her.
The human shifted closer in the dark, her tiny fleshy servos right above his spark. With a jolt, he raised his exterior temperature by a few degrees, relaxing when he heard her sigh. "Thanks, Blades."
"No problem." A few ticks passed until the rotary opened his intake uncertainly. "So, um, hey, I'm not supposed to be telling you this...but...um..."
"Hey, it's alright. Take your time, buddy," she said softly. Her reassurance was all he needed to fly into the storm, figuratively speaking. Primus, he hated the few occasions when he had to do that.
"I...I've noticed something, something that wasn't there when I was a grounder." He could practically feel her questioning gaze as he sucked in a calming intake and continued. "It's kinda like you and Taylor. And I know what face you're making, stop it."
She giggled, pressing closer to his warm plating. The cold air of the bunker never bothered him, but it must've been freezing to her. Her head plopped down on the jut of his cockpit. "Aw, Blades, you've got a crush. I thought you guys said Cybertronians didn't..."
"We may or may not have told white lies, like how Chief does. Trust me, it drove Chase crazy when we denied it that one time you guys asked." Blades curled closer, leaning his helm down as he dropped his voice to a low whisper. "We do experience feelings of a romantic nature towards one another."
"Alright, who's the lucky ladybot?" Dani asked, sitting up on one elbow.
"Uh...you see...that's kinda why we weren't allowed to tell you guys..." Blades trailed off, sheepishly glancing at the spot above Dani's head. Or what he thought was her head. He knew Cybertronians had no qualms with same frame relationships. In fact, it was hard to do otherwise, what with the vast majority of the population being mechs. But humans seemed way more squeamish at the thought.
"Oh...well, I can understand that," Dani muttered. She then hugged him around the edge of his cockpit, her arms barely covering a fourth of it. "I don't care about that kinda thing, just so you know. I once saw a girl in high school who was really awesome. We would've dated, if not for our dads."
"Wait. But I thought—" Blades unconsciously curled closer. "What?"
Dani laughed softly, her legs tucked up next to Blades. "It's a lot to explain. It's not really 'the norm', I guess, with humans. You could say we have have different equipment. But what about Cybertronians? You guys can get it on, no matter what?"
Blades sputtered in embarrassment, hissing out a scolding "Dani!" and groaning as she giggled. "Not exactly. Same frame reproduction is quite normal, actually."
"Why? Are there no girls on Cybertron?"
"No, there are femmes. They just are the minority of the population. We all have the same...equipment." Blades felt his cheekplates warm at his awkward explanation and use of Dani's phrasing, expecting her noise of disgust at any minute. It never came.
"Hm. Alien biology, huh. That's chill."
"You are taking this better than I expected," Blades said nervously. "I thought you'd be freaked out by now."
"Nah. Don't worry, bud, I'm not freaked out by this kind of stuff. You're my partner, and I'll love you no matter what." He could hear the smile in her voice, and his engine hummed happily. That was, until her voice turned rather predatory. "So, you never told me who you have the hots for, Blades."
"I...oh...you don't want to know that." The rotary's tanks churned. Slag it, he thought that Dani had forgotten.
"I do. I definitely do. After all, you wouldn't stop teasing me about Taylor. Consider it payback."
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were a Decepticon, you evil little human," Blades muttered, a pout worming its way onto his faceplate.
"Tell me. Tell me. Tell me!" she whispered, her voice growing louder and louder until Blades shushed her.
"It's...um...don't laugh..." The rotary felt like he was going to seize up with how anxious he was.
"Oh! Is it Bumblebee? I bet it's Bee!"
"No! He's my best friend. So are you. BFFs are off the list," Blades murmured quickly. While the scout was appealing, Blades would never consider him in a romantic way. Not at all.
"Who, then? Another bot I haven't met?" Dani was drumming her fingers against his cockpit.
"Noooo..." The noise came out strangled and low, but Blades could still hear the human's quiet gasp in the dark.
"It's someone on the team, isn't it?" Suddenly it was as if a mutual understanding had been forged between them. "Oh, Blades...I'm sorry. That must be tough."
"Yeah. I just...I don't know how to deal with this. And fliers on our planet supposedly have strange romance issues or something. I thought it was just a rumor, but..." The rotary shrugged helplessly. "It seems like a thing that affects everyone. It's really weird."
Dani was quiet for a moment. It lasted long enough that Blades thought that maybe she'd fallen into recharge—no, sleep, human recharge was called sleep—but then she poked him. "Heatwave. It's the boss man you've got it for."
He could hear her smiling again and buried his face in the berth sheets. "Primus, is it obvious?"
"No. But he has been a lot nicer on missions lately. And I caught him straight up looking you over the other day. I think he likes your robo-butt."
"Don't call my aft a robo-butt again." Blades could feel her shaking with suppressed laughter. "Ever."
"Got it, Mr. Hot-Buns."
"Quit it."
"Capishe, My Main Squeeze—"
"Sto-op!"
"Okay, okay, I'm done. I'm done." She sighed, her arms resting on Blades' shoulder pauldron. "Do you think he's cute? Why do you like him?"
"Promise you won't tell anybot?" A nod. "I think flier coding is playing a huge role in this, but he's older and stable. Strong, a good leader, not to mention dedicated. He's always there for his team, for me..."
"Sounds like you've got it bad. But you keep saying stuff about 'fliers' and 'grounders'. Does that make a difference?" Dani asked. She was beginning to sound tired.
"Well, there were rumors that certain flightframes, like Seekers, were super sensitive, especially when it came to emotions. They required attention and desired others in a way grounders didn't usually experience. I used to have wheels, Dani, but I've never been this..."
"Out of it?" she supplied with a yawn.
"Yeah! I don't like it, like how I don't like flying, but somehow it's still nice, like the rush of air over my rotors. You get it, right?"
"It's love. Love is weird. Are you saying Cybertronian flightframes are needy when it comes to attention and feeling loved?"
"I am not—!" He quieted when he felt the weight of Dani's stare. "Yes?"
"Okay, so there. You told me how you felt, got it off your chest, problem solved."
"It isn't solved! I still feel weird!" Blades whined. He heard Dani sigh.
"I don't know how everyone else would take it, but why don't you try to explain the issue to Heatwave? I wouldn't leave out the part about you having a monstrous crush on him, but if you have to..." She shrugged against his chestpiece. "Trust me, you'll figure it out. Now, we have a long day tomorrow, so I'm gonna crash."
"No! Dani, don't have a systems crash. Abort, abort!"
She laughed. "Just another human term, Blades. Get some rest."
Her breathing became even within a few ticks, leaving Blades to himself as he pondered her words. Telling Heatwave was a big no, but Dani said it would make things easier. Just thinking about it made him want to purge his tanks. Sure, he had had partners before back on Cybertron, though they had never stayed very long; they left either because of work, or them saying he was too clingy. Rejection was a huge fear in his processor, and if it was Heatwave rejecting him...
Blades shuddered and willed recharge to come sooner. He didn't need his fragged up fears plaguing his processor anymore. If, and that was if, he was going to tell Heatwave, he would do it in private. Maybe he'd bring Dani for emotional support. He curled closer to the human as his subroutines began main system shut down. One person knew his secret. He didn't know if he could handle two.
A week after him and Dani's "sleepover", nothing had changed. Except for when his partner closed the comms and nagged him for status updates, details, and questions about Heatwave. Those sessions, while embarrassing, didn't go unappreciated by the rotary, as he got to talk about what cute thing Heatwave had been up to that day. Their system worked pretty well, until somebot got smart and asked about the occasional one-way comm silence.
"Blades, is your comm link fritzing? If so, you should have it checked. We may need your input during patrol on flight missions and—" Chase was cut off as his teammate floundered in front of him, trying and failing to keep up with Frankie, his optics glued to the screen and audio receptors only half-listening to the police bot. Crushing Frankie in Dance Dance Revolution was his top priority at the moment.
"Blades."
"What? One nanoklik, Chase, we're almost done. I am not losing on Lady Gaga's song again!"
"What?" Frankie, predictably, won, leaving Blades huffing and irked as he faced the police bot.
"My comms? Nah, they work." He glanced behind him as Frankie nabbed her bag and gave him a wave. "See you later! I expect a rematch!"
"And you'll get one! Though it won't really be a rematch when you lose!"
The young human giggled and skipped towards the elevator to take her to the surface as Blades called back, "Oh, it is so on!"
"Then why are you silent during patrol?" Blades glanced back at Chase, who had his arms crossed over his chassis. The rotary shrugged, using the cover story him and Dani had agreed upon a few days earlier.
"Dani asked me to keep them quiet. Unlike Kade, she prefers to talk about her crush in private." Chase sighed in understanding. Listening to Kade babble about Hayley over the comms was rather tiring for all of them.
"Alright. But don't do it anymore, understood? Wait until we return home."
"Got it!" Happy to have skated by a lecture, Blades made his way to the wash racks. He hadn't had time to just soak, a habit that baffled his teammates. He told them it was part of being a flier, and that rotors were sensitive and often needed a good wash to clear them of grime. He usually took these sessions when Heatwave was out, because he was the one who complained the most about cold solvent. Since the fire truck was out on patrol, he was clear to—
"Oi, Blades!" The rotary almost squeaked when a servo landed on his shoulder pauldron. "Are you going to use up all the hot water again?"
"H-Heatwave! I thought you were patrolling with Kade today?" Blades couldn't help but notice the hitch in his vocalizer. Luckily, the fire truck seemed oblivious and in a rare good mood.
"We had a fight." Well, that didn't justify his attitude. "Chief Burns got involved, and now Kade has to deal with that rickety old hunk of scrap he calls a fire truck! I'm free for the day! It's pretty nice."
Heatwave shuttered his optics, finally noticing the anxiety washing off Blades' EM field in waves and the "deer in the headlights" expression he wore. "Relax. I've got an idea that won't use up all the good solvent."
"Y-you do?"
The fire truck nodded. "C'mon." He tugged his arm, leading him away from the wash racks and towards the loading platform. He grabbed one of their numerous cleaning buckets off a shelf before pressing the button to take them to ground level. Blades was then taken around to the back of the firehouse near the training course, and Heatwave sat him down on a crate.
"This is for me losing my helm with you the other day. Dani told me you were upset about it." Blades nodded, feeling as though he was moving in slow-motion. There was no way this was real. He was dreaming.
"I wanted to apologize for being a total glitch. Your judgement was solid, and I shouldn't have rushed you in saving those people out on the ferry." Heatwave was referring to a mission they had done a few days ago. Part of the Griffin Rock ferry had caught fire just before reaching the docks due to the rough storm brewing. He had been scared to fly in because of the pounding rain and lightning, and Heatwave had yelled his audio receptor off during the whole mission and then at home. It had seemed way harsher than usual, and had left him so upset that it had took Dani over an Earth hour to get him to stop crying.
The fire truck up-ended the bucket, and Blades slowly registered a bottle of solvent, a sponge, and a Cybertronian cleaning brush. He didn't even know they had one.
Heatwave carefully filled the bucket with water from the hose on his back and mixed in cleaning solvent. He then soaked the sponge and stood, holding his servos out in truce. "I'm sorry. I may not be a good oil bath, but if you wouldn't mind..."
Blades was wordless as he nodded, Heatwave kneeling next to one pede and slowly working the sponge over the white metal. It was then the rotary saw the true difference in their frames; his pede was smaller than Heatwave's arm, the plating curvier and more aerodynamic while the fire truck was boxier and thick. He was so lost in thought that he forgot to stop the soft purr that escaped his vocalizer as Heatwave took the cleaning brush and slid it between the transformation seams of his leg. Blades blushed at the chortle that made the fire truck's frame rumble.
All too soon he stood, the rotary whining in protest. This time Heatwave laughed, one set of servo-mounted hoses engaging and a steady stream of water rinsing the suds off his pede before he turned his attention to the other. Heatwave continued, his pace gentle and steady until he reached Blades' back.
"S'mthing the matter?" the rotary mumbled, halfway in recharge.
"I've never...um, rotors. They're sensitive, right?" Heatwave's vocalizer buzzed slightly, betraying his nervousness. Blades flicked his rotors purposely so the fire truck's servo brushed against them. He suppressed a shiver as a rush of sensory data flooded his HUD.
"You're doing fine," he murmured, giving Heatwave a reassuring smile over his shoulder struts. To Blades' surprise, he looked anxious, fidgeting as his hands reached out to touch but hovered over the delicate metal. Then he took them in his servos with the care one would use with a sparkling.
This time the rotary couldn't help but shudder as Heatwave ran the sponge up and down the length of one rotor, swirling it in small circles and applying an even pressure in just the right places. Where the fire truck learned such a thing was beyond Blades, but he leaned into the touch regardless, rotors twitching happily. Heatwave's servos felt wonderful against the metal as they cleaned away dirt and dust, and Blades swore he nearly went over the edge when digits searchingly pressed against the seams on the cover of his swashplate.
"Careful," Heatwave said, humor clear in his voice. "You nearly jumped out of your plating."
"Sorry," Blades said, denying a keen as Heatwave gently massaged solvent into the plating, then completely rinsing the rotary off. The fire truck then reached into his subspace and pulled out a buffer and a can of polish. It was Earth-based, judging by the label, but when Heatwave popped the lid, the amazing smell nearly knocked him off the crate. It had to be expensive.
"Where did you get those?" Blades asked, optics wide. "I thought you said that buffing was a waste of time!"
Heatwave looked rather sheepish when he answered, not quite reaching his gaze. "After a few months on Earth, I made a call. Optimus used to be an archivist at Iacon, and he had been in contact with quite a few flightframes before the war, so I asked him some things about having one on the team. He knew some basic procedures and debunked a few rumors, though confirmed some more. And the last time Bumblebee was here he gave me these. Said he took them from a 'Con a while back and didn't need them. He was going to give them to you, but I asked him not to."
"Why?" Blades asked, though he already knew the answer.
"So I could save it for a day I could surprise you." Heatwave lifted the buffer. "Now hush and let me fix your paintjob. It definitely could use a tune up."
Blades smiled and nodded, nearly fainting the second the buffer touched his plating. Primus, it had been ages since he'd gotten this kind of maintenance, and it fell so good. Slowly but surely small dents and scratches were buffed out, and when Heatwave pulled back, Blades swore that he was cleaner and shinier than the day he came online.
Heatwave held out his servo and helped Blades to his pedes, only to be tackled in a big hug. "Thank you. I feel amazing!"
"You look amazing," Heatwave breathed next to his audio receptor, making Blades pull back suddenly to stare at the fire truck. His cheekplates were steadily becoming blue. Dani's advice suddenly rang in his processor and he grasped Heatwave's helm in both servos. He barely had time to grunt in surprise before Blades pulled him in close to do something he hadn't done in a long, long time.
Their lipplates crashed together awkwardly, though it took about a nanoklik for Heatwave to start kissing him back and make it slightly less awkward. Two servos slid down to his waist and held him tight as the two broke, only for Blades to dive straight back in and nip along his bottom lipplate, possessed by something completely foreign. He'd never felt like this when he was a grounder, never had such a light feeling in his spark or an all-consuming need to be filled right now—
"Hey, guys?" They immediately split apart and let go of one another as Cody approached them, his attention fixed on his vidcom. Blades felt something brush against his servo and cast a side glance at Heatwave, who was staring at Cody as if nothing had happened.
"Yeah, what is it?"
Cody glanced up and smiled, totally oblivious to what he'd walked in on. "Dad wanted me to tell you that Kade is still cooling off and isn't going on patrol tonight. He said Blades and Dani are—"
::No, I'll go on patrol with dad, Cody. Blades has been feeling kinda sky sick lately. Isn't that right, partner?:: Dani's voice crackled through the comm attached to Cody's jacket and through his own link.
"Yeah. Sorry, guys. Must be a little glitch or something. I'll run a self-scan tonight, kay?" Voices of other team members expressed their apologizes and all wished that he would feel better. Chief Burns cut through the chatter.
::I guess that's alright. Change of plans. Dani, you're with me and Chase. Kade, Graham, and Boulder have patrol near the docks. Oh, and Cody?::
"Yes, dad?" he asked, his head tilted towards his comm link.
::Frankie and her dad are going to pick you up at seven. Have all of your stuff together for when they get here. Charlie out.:: The others shut their links, leaving Blades with Cody and Heatwave. Or so he thought, until movement in the upper levels of the firehouse caught his attention. It was Dani, who was waving and looking rather smug. Energon rushed to his cheeks when he realized she had seen the whole thing.
"Where are you and Frankie going, Cody?" Heatwave's voice brought him back to the youngest of the Burns family.
"The Doc is taking us up the mountain to stargaze. We're gonna camp the night and head back in the morning. I wish you guys could come along."
"Ah, me too, but being in space means you do a lot of stargazing. Right, Blades?" Heatwave turned to him, and the rotary saw a little bit of everything in his optics. Blades decided then that Dani was the best and Primus must be favoring them. Their situation seemed a little too perfect to be purely coincidental, after all.
"Yep! You haven't seen a sunset until you see one on Luna-2," Blades said, chuckling nervously. Cody shrugged.
"I'll bring you guys pictures," he said before the squeal of tires echoed from around front. "That's Frankie! Wait, no, I'm not ready yet!"
He sprinted back inside, the two bots watching him leave. "Finally," Heatwave muttered, and Blades suddenly found himself pinned against a red chassis. "I thought he'd never leave."
Blades hummed, nestling his helm into the crook of Heatwave's neck. "Well, you'll have to wait until everybot else leaves too."
It was the fire truck's turn to look surprised. "Really?"
The rotary nodded against neck cables, his olfactory sensors picking up on smoke and oil with a calm river underneath the smell of machinery. It was undeniably Heatwave.
And he undeniably loved it.
Blades decided that being a flightframe wasn't so bad. He had the libido of a Seeker, that was for sure. And the after-coding was more pleasant than it had ever been when he was a grounder.
To be fair, he'd never had a partner quite like Heatwave. They had chased down four processor-numbing overloads, and Blades felt the most sated he had ever been. Now Heatwave was helping him to the wash racks, his stamina finally giving out.
The warm spray of solvent washed over the two of them in the small space. Heatwave took a cloth and began to wipe away the mess on the rotary's thighs as he loosely gripped the other's ladder, his helm thunking against his back. Heatwave chuckled as he finished, pressing a soft kiss to the inside of one leg. "What's the matter? Are you tired? I thought you said you could outlast me."
Blades swatted weakly at the back of Heatwave's helm. "For the record, that was two overloads ago. Not to mention you are the worst, you stupid gentlebot. Always finishing last."
Heatwave laughed and began cleaning himself, the rotary leaning heavily on him. Once he finished, Blades pulled him over and kissed him lazily. For the life of him, he didn't know why he had been so scared, this was great, he wanted to it more often, and decided that he owed Dani a huge thank you.
Heatwave was the first to break away, Blades groaning in disappointment. "Aw, don't be like that. You can only say you've got a virus every once and a while, and you'll no doubt have to make up for it tomorrow."
Blades rolled his optics as Heatwave took a towel from the rack and began to dry him off. "You're being too nice. I have to say, I'm very skeptical." He winced as the fire truck finished, rubbing circles with his thumbs into the rotary's pelvic plating. "And sore. I really hope Dani goes easy on me during tomorrow's patrol."
Heatwave laughed and guided him back out of the wash racks. When Blades was steered away from his berth and led toward Heatwave's he gave the fire truck a curious look. "You want me to recharge with you?"
"That a problem?" he rumbled, his voice a tad bit possessive. Blades couldn't deny the rush of warmth that flooded his spark.
"No. It's just...what will the others think if they come back early?"
"We'll say you watched a horror movie and got scared like a little sparkling." Heatwave smirked at the scandalized expression Blades wore. "I think that's pretty believable."
"You are the worst," the rotary grumbled as he was pulled down onto the berth and tugged against Heatwave's side, one arm looped around his waist and the other under his helm. The fire truck pressed a kiss to his olfactory sensor.
"I'd say the same thing, but then I'd be lying." One leg snaked over his and he was pulled impossibly closer. "You aren't the worst. Actually, you're the best I've ever seen."
"Oh my Primus, stop. You are not going all mushy on me. That's weird!" Heatwave shrugged. Blades smiled, peppering his faceplates with tired kisses. "And you're slagging straight I'm the best you've ever seen. I'm the sexiest bot you'll ever know in your whole functioning!"
"Stupid flier. Get your processor out of the clouds!" Blades giggled and snuggled against Heatwave's warm chassis, his helm nestled under the other's chin. He released a satisfied ex-vent, his optics offlining. Yes, being a flightframe was still a foreign concept. All the needs and desires, the strange urges, the emotional hurricane and the sensitivity to everything were awkward. Difficult.
But being there, drifting off to recharge in Heatwave's arms, feeling like he was forged to be there, he found he could live with it, so long as Heatwave was the one meeting those needs and desires, satisfying those strange urges, calming the emotional hurricane and being what he felt along with everything else. In fact, he thought it actually wasn't half bad.