On the Courtship of Seekers, Chapter 2

[oni-gil.livejournal.com]

You read that right. XD;
Characters/Pairing: Skywarp, Thundercracker, Starscream, TC/Screamer/Warp
Summary: Seekers fly, live, work, and bond in threes. Thundercracker and Skywarp pursue a potential mate… said mate is less-than-enthusiastic. A whirlwind courtship commences…
Warnings: Awkward/pitiful/comedic/sweet attempts to be romantic
Rating: T, PG-13

Chapter 1 here.

A/N: Okay, "summer special" as in "updated every summer?" Haha… well, I finally worked up my courage to continue this. I hope it satisfies!

---

 

 

Another interesting fact to note about Seekers is that they can be incredibly persistent. Skywarp is an excellent example of this trait: once he gets an idea into his processor (which can take some time… Skywarp is many things, reader, but "bright" is not among them) he holds onto it, plays with it, chases it around, and finally acts on it.

Bonding with Thundercracker did little to improve Skywarp's patience, although some claimed it may have helped. So once he decided that he wanted to get Starscream into their trine, there could be no dissuading him.

We join our lovestruck Seeker in the doorway between his room and Starscream's, head peeking around the frame to check that the coast was clear, suspicious-looking package clasped tightly in his arms.

"What are you doing?" came Thundercracker's weary (but still lovely and deep) voice from behind him.

"I felt bad about scaring Screamer away yesterday, so I made him a feel-better present."

"I'm not sure that's the best nickname under the circumstances, Warp."

"Really? Why not?"

Thundercracker explained it to him. Again.

"Oh. Maybe not." But Skywarp's attention had already fled, as it was wont to do, and he tiptoed into Starscream's empty quarters to put the package on his berth.

"Do I even want to know what's in there?" Thundercracker asked, coming up to examine the brightly-painted metal box.

"You'll see, you'll see! Don't worry, it doesn't blow up or anything… hey, TC, what are you doing?"

Thundercracker had raised the box to his audio to check for ticking. Satisfied that the box would indeed not blow up, he put it back and allowed Skywarp to tug him back in the direction of their quarters just as the sound of the washracks stopped.

"Warp, don't you think you should maybe just give him a little time to get to know us?" he asked as the door closed.

"What kind of an idea is that? I want a proper trine already!"

Thundercracker sighed. Still, you should know, he secretly found Skywarp's exuberance endearing, if in a sometimes exasperating way. After all, he had hardly had any time to get to know Skywarp until the purple Seeker had embarked on a similar madcap campaign to get Thundercracker to notice him. Maybe the same strategy would work on Starscream.

It didn't take long for Starscream to notice the foreign box on his berth. He glared at it suspiciously, daring it to reveal its secrets, then prodded it and leapt back—just in case.

(Starscream, reader, was just the slightest bit paranoid. Then again, he did have a good reason, since usually mysterious "gifts" passed between Decepticons tended to explode.)

Next he raised it up to his audio as Thundercracker had, and finally—with a suspicious glare at his new "wingmates'" quarters—undid the clasp. Inside the box was—actually, Starscream wasn't really sure what it was, even given his impressive skills of observation. He picked the small metal object up and turned it over a few times in his hands until he discovered which way was "up." It seemed to be a crude, handmade model of some sort, and it seemed to be of Skywarp. At least, it was in the general shape of a Seeker, was messily painted purple, and held a little sign saying (in messy glyphs) "Sorry!"

Starscream blinked his optic shutters several times, still trying to puzzle it out. Was this supposed to be some sort of joke? Or could the half-wit actually be trying to apologize? Starscream snorted in disbelief. Right. Maybe he could have believed that a few decavorns ago, but not anymore. He'd been hurt a few times too often.

Still, between you and me, Starscream thought it was cute, in an idiotic way. He subspaced the little model Skywarp and picked up the box.

"Skywarp!"

Skywarp, who had been lingering just behind the door, came bursting through at once (making it painfully obvious that he had, in fact, been waiting for his new trineleader's reaction). "What? What?"

The (now-empty) box bounced off of his helm with a hollow thunk.

Like I suspected… empty, Thundercracker thought in amusement.

"You have your own quarters for a reason. Don't leave any of your junk in mine." Starscream tossed his head and turned away. "Dismissed."

The other two Seekers retreated hastily back into their quarters. Thundercracker had expected Skywarp to look disappointed, but he was grinning broadly instead, and as soon as the door closed he displayed the (lack of) contents of the box.

"See? He took it anyway!"

"Whatever it was, he'll probably use it to file some sort of harassment report."

"Why would he do that? Come on, TC, he liked it! That means he's softening up! See, he'll get used to us!"

"I don't know. He didn't seem much better than the last time we talked to him, or did you forget he hasn't been speaking to us for the past few orns?"

Skywarp frowned. "True. Maybe I should try energon goodies next time."

---

Thundercracker thought it wise to give Starscream time to get to know them before they tried once again to make Starscream a proper wingmate. Skywarp, of course, did not share his opinion on the subject.

Starscream fumed silently as he stalked from the command center, fresh from his latest spat with Megatron. The nerve of the silver mech! The sheer nerve of him, dismissing Starscream's ideas offhand. And the Seeker was supposed to be his second-in-command, but no, Megatron never listened to anything Starscream had to say.

Naturally this presented Skywarp, who was lurking further down the corridor, with a perfect opportunity. Perhaps a wise mech would have given Starscream a wide berth to avoid being on the receiving end of the Seeker's hoarsely screeching fury, but it goes without saying that Skywarp was not a particularly wise mech.

"Hey there," he said, bright and cheerful, stepping out in front of Starscream with a box of little glowing bonbons in his hands. "Energon goodie?"

Starscream stopped, more out of surprise that anyone had dared speak to him while he was in this black mood than out of desire for a goodie. "They're poisoned, aren't they."

(Perhaps I have already mentioned Starscream's paranoia, reader.)

"What? Why would they be poisoned?" Skywarp's face was of blank innocence. He took one of the candies and popped it into his own mouth, chewing and swallowing. "See?"

Starscream narrowed his optics, looking the purple Seeker up and down. What's his defect? he wondered. Why would anyone seek him out at a time like this? Certainly nobody sane.

It struck him suddenly that this was just the sort of thing he'd always imagined a wingmate would do. A wingmate would be there after Megatron tore him down, there with energon goodies and high-grade and a nice wing massage.

Starscream shook the images from his processor. Skywarp was not his real wingmate. He and that big blue mate of his were just toying with him, like all the rest.

…and yet Skywarp looked so innocent, so guileless! And those energon goodies looked good, too.

"This is one of your little tricks," Starscream hissed, but that didn't stop him from grabbing the box of candies from Skywarp's hands. "Isn't it?"

"Tricks? What are you talking about? It's just candy, Screamer."

"Don't call me that!" Starscream snapped. That was still a sore spot, and Skywarp, reader, had a nasty habit of stepping on those. "Don't mock me!"

"I wasn't," Skywarp protested, optics wide. "I promise! I didn't mean it! I just thought it was, you know."

"I know what?"

"A cute nickname."

"Cute? Cute?" Starscream shrieked. "How is this in any way cute?"

Skywarp made a valiant effort to hide his wince. Perhaps that should have told Starscream something; usually mechs had no problem showing him exactly how they felt about his grating voice, but here was poor Skywarp giving it his best shot. "I didn't mean it, Star."

"And don't call me that either!" Starscream snarled in response. "My designation is Starscream, so use it!"

"Okay, Starscream."

Starscream balked. Something about that seemed wrong, too. Oh yes… everyone else was supposed to call him Air Commander or at least sir.

But Skywarp had given him energon goodies. Starscream decided to let it slide in this case, but not out of any affection for the other Seeker, of course not…

Starscream huffed hot air from his vents and swept by, still clutching the box of candy. A wide grin spread across Skywarp's face. In his opinion, this was progress.

---

Starscream munched on the energon goodies as he tried to focus on the datapad in his hand. They were surprisingly tasty and had probably cost Skywarp more than a few credits. Well, it would take more than that to get him on Starscream's good side, especially since the red Seeker had him figured out…

He cursed under his breath and started over, reading the glyphs for perhaps the third or fourth time. It wasn't as though he liked the goodies, any more than he liked the oaf who had given them to him. Though he had to admit, in some far-distant corner of his Spark, it was sweet in a way.

And something didn't quite add up. Starscream had Skywarp pegged as the not-too-bright type, the sidekick, the comic relief. His record showed that he was a prankster, after all. And his pathetic attempts at courtship… courtship?

Starscream growled, throwing the datapad at the wall and popping another goodie into his mouth to distract himself. This wasn't courtship! It was… teasing! Mocking! Insulting!

The problem was, reader, Starscream just didn't think Skywarp was, frankly, intelligent enough to tease him like this. His mischief, as indicated on his record, was always simple. He didn't have the processing power to think things out in the long term. So how could he engage in a plot to break Starscream's Spark yet again?

That wasn't to say, Starscream hastily assured himself, that he believed Skywarp could actually want to bond with him. A Seeker would have to be crazy to want him with his defect.

(Then again, he didn't particularly want to admit, Skywarp was hardly sane.)

No, it was the blue one that was the problem. Thundercracker had the processing power that Skywarp lacked. He could orchestrate a scheme like this, and manipulate his gullible mate into courting Starscream. He was the one to watch out for.

---

As the orbits passed, Starscream began to notice all the little things Skywarp did. His datapads were mysteriously picked up off the floor while he was away; an energon cube usually awaited him at his desk; an extra container of polish ended up in his washracks. Little gifts appeared now and then as well, from shiny crystals to more energon goodies. Starscream was secretly flattered by all the attention, but he took care to keep a stern face. This wasn't real. It couldn't be. Thundercracker had put his more sincere wingmate up to it.

Still, it was cute. In an idiotic way.

But the blue Seeker remained withdrawn, probably watching to see how Skywarp's efforts were affecting Starscream, so Starscream gave him nothing to see. Creepy aloof self-absorbed Thundercracker.

The invitation took him quite by surprise.

"What?"

"I said," Skywarp repeated, with remarkable patience—for him, "do you want to go flying with me?"

"We fly all the time," Starscream answered. The three of them had been running routine patrols, nothing fancy.

"Yes, but that's different," Skywarp pestered. "Please? Please please? I want to fly for you."

For me? Starscream wondered. Now what could that purple Seeker be up to? Starscream, reader, retained some characteristics from his scientific background, and insatiable curiosity was one of them.

"All right," he said cautiously. "Fine."

Skywarp gave a trill of joy and leapt at him. Starscream jumped back, startled by the attack, only to suddenly realize it was not an attack at all, but a… hug. He thrashed and spat, only to be knocked dizzy by a sudden swirl of gravity, and then they were out under the sky.

He'd seen Skywarp's signature ability before, of course, but he had never felt it until now, and he decided he never wanted to feel it again. Skywarp's enthusiasm, however, couldn't be dampened by the glare Starscream directed his way. He shot off into the sky, and as Starscream watched him he forgot to take off.

This wasn't just any flight… it was a dance, a dance for one but with plenty of hints at another part or two. A courtship dance.

Starscream, of course, didn't know this, but he was taken aback by what he saw nevertheless. Skywarp's acrobatics were indeed optic-catching; he flew with great skill (if perhaps not quite as well as Starscream, the red Seeker quickly reassured himself) and he clearly knew it. He utilized his warping ability to its fullest, giving the flight a more personal touch as he dodged and rolled and spun and dove.

Starscream remembered that it was beneath his dignity to gape. Skywarp was clearly an excellent flier, though, and he wasn't bad-looking, and his voice was actually rather—

No. No, Starscream, don't go there…!

Still, the urge to go up and join him was too great to resist. Just for fun, Starscream told himself. Nothing serious. Let Skywarp think he was breaking down. The laugh would be on the other two later, when they realized that Starscream hadn't fallen for their pathetic trick after all.

He flew to meet Skywarp, folding neatly into his altmode and waggling his wings in challenge. The other Seeker took chase, following him through a complex imaginary obstacle course, looping and swirling in the air. At times Starscream doubled suddenly back, but Skywarp never ran into him, just peeled off to make room and came back after a moment's adjustment. It was impressive, Starscream had to grudgingly admit… Skywarp's reflexes were undeniably fast, and he was obviously very good in the air.

Besides that, it felt nice to fly with him. Starscream, for all that he was the Air Commander of the Decepticons, rarely flew with anyone, he just happened to fly in front of them and they followed. But with Skywarp it was different. He kept up. He knew how to move when and where Starscream wanted him to. He knew when to leave space and when to come in close, and when he did come in close, his energy field stretched out to brush against Starscream's, almost pleadingly.

Almost like he actually…

Starscream angled suddenly towards the ground, shifting back to bipedal mode as he dove, pedes-first. Enough was enough. He'd wasted too much of his time letting Skywarp have his fun. He didn't want to give anyone the wrong idea. It wasn't as though he actually liked Skywarp. It wasn't as though Skywarp actually wanted him. He was just like all the rest of them, he and that mate of his…

And speaking of Thundercracker, Starscream's landing faltered just a bit when he saw the blue Seeker standing there. How long had he been there, he wondered? Had he been laughing at their antics, at how easily Starscream had fallen for it?

Creepy, aloof, self-absorbed Thundercracker… he made Starscream sick, with his beautiful deep voice and his serious face and…

"What?" he shrieked as he touched down. "Come to enjoy the show? You think all it takes is some candy and some cute little barrel rolls to get me in your berth? You're despicable, both of you! I hate you!"

He stormed off into the base just as Skywarp landed behind him. The purple Seeker was almost giddy with his success, despite Starscream's harsh words. As we have previously discussed, reader, he was incredibly persistent.

"TC, did you see that? He flew with me, I mean really flew with me! We're really getting somewhere, I'm telling you!"

Thundercracker wasn't so sure. Starscream still seemed determined to repel all their advances.

Yet Skywarp did indeed seem to be softening him. Maybe his silly mate had been right… maybe Starscream would get used to them, and perhaps Thundercracker's waiting game wouldn't pay off.

Maybe, he decided, it was time to act just a little bit more like Skywarp…

Only not quite as idiotic.

 

Comments

[lilycarroll.livejournal.com]

Owww..Warp is sooo lovely S2