Transformers Short Story

Sparkterror

GoldLine jerked awake with a harsh vent as her systems onlined hurriedly. The femme looked around her room with a beating spark. She wiped at the lubricate dripping from her optics but the liquid still left tear streaks down her face plates. GoldLine slowly pulled her sheets off of her frame and slipped out of her berth with a sniffle. She rushed to the door and pressed a button, waiting for the heavy slab to fall away before racing to her Creators room quietly. She paused to take a couple deep vents but the jolting of her senses at any movement and the pounding of her spark didn't leave. The femme leaned up on her tippy toes to press the button for the door room and waited nervously for the slab to open. After a few minutes the door slid away and GoldLine cautiously entered the room, her optics casting a soft glow on the ground as she crept towards their berth. She quietly tugged at the lowest corner of the sheet that was hanging off the berth and whispered urgently, "Carrier? Sire? You awake?" The room remained silent and GoldLine felt more tears start to leave her optics. She tugged again and said, a bit louder this time, "Carrier? Sire?" The sheet slipped from her servos as one of the mechs shifted and two blue optics meant her own, though they were half-lidded with recharge and dimmed so the femme couldn't tell whose they were. "GoldLine? What's wrong?" Ratchet's tired voice whispered back to her. GoldLine opened her intake to speak but her voice box caught and she whimpered softly, "I-I---" Ratchet ex-vented softly before pulling the sheets off of him, mindful of his sparkmate and slipped out of the berth, "Come here." GoldLine rushed into his arms, burying her helm into his chest plates as she sniffled. Ratchet rubbed at her back plating, stifling a yawn before shifting to sit comfortably on the floor, "Do you want to tell me what's wrong?" GoldLine shook her helm hurriedly and snuggled deeper into her Carrier's frame with another shudder. Ratchet vented, checking his internal chronometer and HUB for any notifications. A servo landed on his shoulder plating and Ratchet jumped, causing GoldLine to shriek and fully sob into his warm plating. Ratchet turned his helm to glare at his sparkmate, but his look held no real bite and Optimus was already apologizing, "I did not mean to startle you." Ratchet vented and gently shushed the femme, rocking her slowly. Optimus gracefully stood from the berth and quickly sat down next to the two, his optics softly lighting up GoldLine's frame. Ratchet rubbed at his face plates, waiting for GoldLine's cries to settle down. Optimus leaned into his mate's frame, his EM-field still warm with an apology. After a few minutes, GoldLine's sobs turned into sniffles and she retracted her helm to wipe at her face plates. She glanced at her Creators before noticing the wet spot on Ratchet's chest plates, wiping it away with her servo, much to Ratchet's amusement. GoldLine ex-vented, curling into Ratchet once more. Optimus raised his optic ridges in Ratchet's direction but the Medic only shrugged. "What is wrong GoldLine?" The femme didn't move from her Carrier's embrace but her audio fins twitched at her Sire's question to acknowledge she'd heard. The click of GoldLine's voice box shutting off rang throughout the quiet Hab and Ratchet shook his helm softly, "We can't help you if you don't tell us what is wrong." GoldLine tilted her helm so she could see both her Creators but her voice box never turned back on. Ratchet rubbed at her back struts with a purr of his engine and GoldLine's engine answered softly. Optimus recycled his optics, "Did you have a sparketerror?" GoldLine blinked, thinking over his question and her voice box snapped on, "What's that?" Optimus hummed, looking to Ratchet for a simpler explanation, "It's a bad memory or something not so real that bothers us....did something upset you?" GoldLine nodded her helm stiffly but didn't elaborate. Ratchet poked at her audio fin, making the femme squirm away from him, "What was your sparkterror about, sweetspark?" GoldLine covered her audio fins so Ratchet's deft digits couldn't mess with them and whispered, "You and Sire were mad at me." GoldLine buried herself back into Ratchet's form, clutching onto his frame, "Are you still mad?" Ratchet stroked her helm with a exasperated look Optimus's way, "No GoldLine, why would I be mad at you?" GoldLine sat up in Ratchet's lap, "I don't know....Sire are you mad?" Optimus chuckled, "No, I am not mad at you GoldLine." GoldLine blinked, "Oh..." The femme mulled over their conversation for a few cycle before she slowly climbed out of Ratchet's lap, rubbing at her optics, "I'm good now." Ratchet raised his optic ridges, "Are you sure?" GoldLine paused and answered fearfully, "Will the sparkterror come back?" Optimus stretched to his full height, pulling Ratchet gently up beside him, "It is a possibility." GoldLine glanced at the open door and then back at her Creators, "Can you walk me to my room?" Ratchet shared a look with his sparkmate before scooping up the femme, "Why don't you recharge with us tonight?" GoldLine shifted in his arms, "Can I?" Optimus climbed into the berth first, taking GoldLine from Ratchet as he settled himself on the other side. Optimus set GoldLine in the middle and pulled all of their sheets back on top of their frames, his optics dimming even lower, "If you have another sparkterror, you can wake us up." GoldLine wiggled in the sheets until her helm was sticking out of the top, "Okay...goodnight Carrier, goodnight Sire." Ratchet hummed, tucking an arm around her as he closed his optics, "Goodnight GoldLine." Optimus smiled down at his family before shuttering his optics closed, pulling both their frames closer to his, "Goodnight GoldLine."