"Sparkling Of Mine"

Summary: Optimus begins his first day in being a sire once again, but realizes the others are letting him do so all on his own.

WARNING: lots of cute fluffs, violence, tragedy and other stuff you'll soon see. Rated T-M overall

Transformers © Hasbro

Amira © me

Chapter 6~~

Optimus cradled the content femmling in the refuel lounge, feeding her a perfectly warmed Energon cube. He held the sparkling with one hand while she gripped both hands onto it greedily. Little Amira suckled loudly, droplets of Energon splashing from the corner of the cube onto her cheeks. Optimus chuckled. "You must have been hungry, haven't you, little one?"

Amira blinked innocently at him and continued drinking until the cube was empty. Then she wriggled about in his arms, feeling a little uncomfortable, until she burped and calmed down. Optimus let out a hearty laugh and adjusted the sparkling so she was closer to his face. "Excuse you," he cooed. "Does your tummy feel better now?" The sparkling giggled and waved her hands in the air, wiggling her fingers.

Optimus laughed again, then abruptly stopped. Something suddenly occurred to him. He suddenly remembered the joys of being a sire. He recalled how he felt when he first held his son years ago, how he felt playing and recharging with his offspring. He remembered how magical it felt to hear his sparkling laugh, and how strong he felt to protect his child. Those feelings of happiness came flooding back and renewed his wants of being a sire.

Of course, remembering his sparkmate and offspring in life did make him feel sad, for lubricant tears sprung to his optics and his smile quivered. Optimus was brought back to reality at the sound of whimpering and looked down to Amira. She, too, had tears swelled in her wide optics, like she was ready to cry. He was confused at first, and then he remembered. He chuckled and wiped his optics.

"Do not worry," he said. "Your sire's alright. Sorry if I upset you, little one. I nearly forgot that we are now bonded by a link in our sparks, which enables us to sense one another's emotions." Amira cooed as Optimus wiped her tears with his thumb. "There, now. No more tears." The sparkling giggled and grabbed his hand, playing with his fingers. Optimus smiled and cradled her tiny hand in his massive palm, purring and nuzzling against her helm.

"Aww. How adorable."

Optimus perked up at the familiar voice and turned to the doorway to see Ironhide and a few others giggling like children, appearing rather amused by what they have just witnessed. The Prime blushed and slightly turned away; normally he wouldn't be so ashamed or embarrassed, but he couldn't help himself. No one had ever seen him behave in such a way before, not even when Elita-One and his son were alive.

"No, no," said Cliffjumper, wiping a tear from his optics, "don't mind us. Keep going!"

Hoping to save himself from humiliation, Optimus cleared his throat deeply and flared his optics, trying in vain to seem threatening. But the bots still continued to giggle and point. Defeated, the Prime sighed and slumped at the lounge table, almost not noticing little Amira beginning to fuss and whine.

Ironhide led the others in and they either sat or stood around him. "Not even a sire again for fifteen minutes and you're already cooing and acting playful," he chuckled.

The embarrassed Prime held the squirming sparkling close in his lap, narrowing his optics. "You will not breathe a word about this to anyone." The Autobots still laughed. Optimus then wore a pleading look on his face place; the last thing he wanted was his stoic image to be ruined by a single moment of playfulness. "Please?"

Ironhide chuckled at the sight of seeing his leader look so desperate, but he couldn't help but pity him. Someone in Prime's position had to keep a clean and profound image and had little to no time to relax. The big guy deserved a break and a chance to have a little fun with his new offspring. "Alright, alright, we'll keep quiet about it."

Optimus sighed of relief. "Thank you…" Suddenly felt a content feeling in his spark. Then he realized Amira had stopped wriggling and fretting in his lap. At that same instant, he felt something warm and wet trickle down his legs. He looked down to see what had happened; he exclaimed at his discovery and held a now happy and giggly Amira out. The others were confused as to what just happened, but their questions were answered when they saw something in Optimus's lap, and they instantly busted out laughing.

Little Amira just leaked on her own sire!

"Just great…" Optimus groaned, feeling his cheek plates burning with embarrassment. But Amira found the laughing bots funny and giggled louder along with them, clapping her hands and kicking her little feet.

"Oh, Primus! That is priceless!" Cliffjumper guffawed.

Bumblebee giggled, his door wings fluttering with amusement and mirth. "W-Well…when a sparkling's gotta go…"

Optimus rolled his eyes and stood up, wincing as he felt the lubricant stream down his legs. "Great. Just fan-fragging-tastic," he growled, still holding Amira out. "Could one of you hold Amira while I go and clean up?"

None of the Autobots in the room stepped up; they just stared at him with crooked grins on their face plates.

"What is it?"

Bumblebee chuckled. "Well, sir," he stated, "I believe you demanded that we are not to help you because you do not need it, nor want it. I am certain those are your exact words."

Optimus widened his optics. Was he kidding?

"Yes, that is what you said," Ironhide nodded. "Sorry, boss. Can't help you if you really don't want it."

"What? B-But…" Optimus stammered, then growled and stood tall. "Very well, then. I may not need your help after all." With that, he stormed out of the refuel lounge with a squeaking Amira towards the wash racks, and rushed by everyone else before they had a chance to ask about the stain on his lap.

Optimus quickly made sure no one was around to see their little mishap; when the coast was clear, he turned the valve and stood under the shower of cleansing fluid. Amira giggled and wiggled in his arms, like she had enjoyed humiliating the Prime. Optimus frowned and shook a finger at her. "Now, now, I'll have none of that. You do not leak on your sire, young femmling."

The sparkling stopped giggling and looked up to Optimus with a look of surprise on her little face. The sound of his voice didn't sound so nice, and the expression on his face plate looked a little scary. In an instant, she shrunk down and whimpered as tears flooded her optics. Then, just as Optimus realized his mistake, Amira threw her helm back and wailed.

"HHHUUUUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!"

Optimus cringed and held Amira out; her screams and cries echoed throughout the wash racks, ringing in his audio receptors. His late son Ranger never cried like this, not even when something scared him. Prime was at least thankful they were alone, and he hoped that no one would come in until Amira calmed down. Through their bond he could tell she was very upset, as though she was asking 'Why did you do that? I didn't do anything wrong'.

Optimus felt bad about scolding her the way he did; he hadn't meant to sound so harsh and frighten her. Hoping to relax her before someone barged in, he bounced her gently in his arms, turning away from the showerhead to shield Amira from being splashed so she wouldn't be further upset.

"There, there," he assured softly, patting her back. "I am sorry, my child. I never meant to upset you. Please, don't cry. Settle down, now." Along with his comforting words, he sent warm, happy feelings to her spark through their bond. It seemed to work, for Amira eventually started to calm down, her crying dwindling to hiccups and cute little whimpers.

She blinked away any remaining tears and looked up to her sire, checking to see if he still looked scary. Instead of a deep frown, he wore a warm, loving smile on his face. Amira calmed completely and giggled, kicking her tiny feet.

Optimus chuckled and petted her head. "Alright, little one. Let's get ourselves cleaned up." He turned towards the showerhead again and washed away the stain and smell from his lap while cradling Amira in one arm. Once he was clean, he tried giving her a little rinse. But Amira was a little frightened of the cleansing fluid splattering onto her from the giant faucet.

"Do not be afraid," Optimus told her. "It won't hurt you." He tried holding her out underneath it, but the second he did, the tiny sparkling wailed and fretted, wriggling again in his hands. A little stunned by her outburst he pulled her back against his chest. "What is the matter?" he asked. "Do you not want to be washed?" Amira only continued to fuss and cry, kicking her legs and clenching her fists.

Prime was about to give up when something suddenly popped into his thoughts; suddenly he remembered something. In his past, when the medics were cleaning his and Elita's newborn son after he was brought into the world, they had hand-washed him, and he and Elita did the same thing every time he needed a bath. Blinking the memory away, he glanced down to Amira. She was bound to be only a month old or so, but a newborn nonetheless. Perhaps she had never faced a showerhead in her life, and that was why she was so upset.

Optimus smiled a little and sat on the wash racks floor, cradled Amira in one arm, and cupped a hand to collect some cleansing fluid. Once his hand was full, he carefully lowered it beside Amira's helm; then he tipped his hand so the fluid would pour down the back of her head. When it was soaked with fluid, Optimus gingerly rubbed his hand in circles along her helm. The rubbing sensation calmed Amira; once she got a sense of what was going on, she started to relax and purr.

Optimus chuckled. "This is what you were expecting, wasn't it?" Amira replied with a purring coo, which made Optimus laugh again.

After scrubbing and rinsing her with his own hands, he shut the valve tightly and headed outside to find something to dry them off with. Still wet, Amira started to shiver in his hands. "Oh, are you cold?" Optimus cooed to her and held her near his spark. "There. Is that any better, my child?" Amira nuzzled her cheek against his chest.

He came to a closet, which kept flexible plates that heated up and absorbed any excess cleansing fluid. It dried one up, and also provided relaxing warmth. But when he opened the closet, there were none to be found. He found that odd, being absolutely sure there was plenty before he entered the wash racks. Optimus then headed off to find Ratchet to see if the medic knew where he could find some more. He found the medic in his laboratory and filled him in on the situation.

"Drying plates, you say?" Ratchet said and held one, covered in fuel and Energon, in the air. "You mean one of these?"

"Yes," Optimus nodded. "Do you happen to know where I could find more? I need a few for Amira and myself."

"That one closet had all of the drying plates we had until I can make more. It's not like they disappeared, Prime. I'm sure one will turn up."

Optimus sighed and glanced to Amira, who still continued to shiver. "I hope so. I don't want Amira coming down with anything."

Ratchet's optics fell onto the wet sparkling and sighed, as well. "Why not ask Ironhide? I am sure he and his band of misfits have some idea as to where the plates have gone."

Optimus blinked as Ratchet continued working, frowning a little; did Ratchet know something? He thanked the medic and ventured off to find Ironhide. Eventually was discovered in the training hall with the others. When they saw Optimus enter, they stopped immediately.

"Did you have a nice bath?" Ironhide asked as Bumblebee and Cliffjumper snickered.

Optimus sighed softly, and then approached them. "I am in need of a few drying plates for Amira and myself, but they've disappeared from their usual place. Ratchet tells me you might know where I can get one." He then tilted his head in confusion when they all started giggling again.

"Drying plates, eh?" Cliffjumper said, and then revealed one from the ground nearby. "You mean one of these?" Unfortunately, that plate had already been used, dabbed with lubricant and grease. Optimus slightly cringed with a nod.

"Yes. But, a fresher, unused one."

"Well, sorry, sir," Bumblebee said, "but these two used all of the plates up to wipe the sweat and grease from their protoforms…and other places." Ironhide and Cliffjumper held their sides laughing.

Optimus furrowed his optic ridges with frustration as he growled. "You are making this really difficult for me."

"Well, it sure would be nice if you had help. But you don't want any of it, remember? You said you could handle things on your own," Ironhide teased.

Prime narrowed his optics as he felt his cheek plates burn; why were they tormenting him with his own words when he was trying to do something for his sparkling? His focus instantly went from his teammates to little Amira when she began crying and coughing. "Amira…!"

The others stopped laughing to see the tiny sparkling shivering and crying in Optimus's arms, her cheeks flushed. They now had looks of pity instead of amusement on their face plates. Optimus looked to them as he rocked Amira, trying to calm her down. "I need a drying plate to warm her up," he demanded. "I do not want my sparkling to become sick. Do you understand?!"

"We're sorry, sir," Cliffjumper said. "We didn't know."

"Never mind it," Optimus growled and stormed out of the training hall towards his quarters. Hopefully he would find something there to help Amira warm up. When he arrived, he heated up his berth and laid down on his side, placing Amira beside him. The heat helped a little to calm Amira down, but she still cried.

"Oh, please settle down," Optimus begged, doing his best to give the femmling comfort. Amira continued to fuss and cry; this worried Optimus as he began to fear she was becoming sick. He contacted Ratchet, ordering him to come to his quarters.

"What's the problem?" the medic asked once he arrived.

"I am worried Amira might be getting sick," Optimus explained. "She won't settle down."

"Let me see her." Ratchet did a thorough scan of the tiny sparkling, checking to see if there was any problem. "Did you not find a usable drying plate?"

"No," Optimus grumbled. "Ironhide used them all to mess with me."

"I see. Well, there's nothing wrong with any of her systems. She might just be a little fussy or uncomfortable," Ratchet stated. "Just give her time to settle down."

The Prime sighed with a nod. "Understood. Thank you, Ratchet. You seem to be the only one who's given me a helping hand."

The medic rumbled a chuckle in his throat. "Yes. I am sorry for this, Prime. I have been aware of everyone's little stunt of not helping you out. The reason behind it is because you constantly turned us all away when we tried to assist you. So they decided to teach you a bit of a lesson."

"Is that so?" Optimus growled and held Amira close. "Well, their little stunt could have risked my sparkling becoming ill." Ratchet could only give an apologetic smile.

"That reminds me," the medic added, "you seem to have accepted the responsibility of being a sire pretty quickly. Are you sure you believe you can handle this again?"

Optimus frowned and looked to Amira, who suckled on her fingers while continuing to shiver. When he glanced at her, she blinked at him and reached for his face, grazing her fingers on his chin. The Prime smiled a little and cradled her close to his spark so she could feel his warmth. "I understand it has been a long time since I was a sire," he said, "but I have never felt this happy in a long time. Elita wanted to have a family, and I have to keep her dream alive. I will not allow myself to fail again. I have made my decision, and I am sticking with it."

Ratchet gave his helm a nod. "Well, I won't keep you. Amira is healthy, and my service is no longer needed at the moment." He turned and was about to leave, but stopped and continued, "And Optimus…I am sure Elita-One would be proud of you." With that, he left without another word.

Optimus Prime watched him go with a look of awe on his face, which slowly grew into a warm smile. He looked to Amira as she began to fuss and reach for his hand; he allowed her to hold it, chuckling when she started nibbling on his finger. He gave her a gentle kiss on her forehead, and then raised his head to the ceiling.

"I promise, Elita," he whispered, "I will keep our family alive. No matter what…"

Amira burbled a coo and wriggled in his arms, causing his smile to grow.

"No matter what…"