Over the next three days, Jazz's strength began to return to him. No longer was he constantly shaking with cold, nor where his intakes hitching with painful, jarring coughs and hitches. He was also, much to Prowl's relief, able to feed himself again, but his flow of demands continued to buffet the datsun like a raging river and Prowl had begun to hate the sound of his com-link's ever present buzz.

Important tasks, such as retrieving energon from the rec room, or allowing Jazz to rest his helm in the tactician's lap when he was sporting a persistent headache, did not bother Prowl. Indeed, he was only too glad to be of help when his lover was truly in need of it.

No, it was the small, menial tasks that cause anger to flare up in his CPU. Things such as being called from his office to turn down the heat in their quarters, or whining like a sparkling just so that datsun would talk to him, or, the worst one yet, being pulled out of a meeting with Optimus, because Jazz couldn't sleep and wanted Prowl to tell him a story. That one had nearly sent Prowl into a processor freeze that he would not have soon recovered from.

The tactician was loosing his famed cool. So close was he, to a mental breakdown, that even Sunstreaker and Sideswipe had been on their best behavior, for fear of setting off the ticking time bomb that was Prowl.

Mechs all throughout the base steered clear of SIC's office. Any that dared to venture near was either frightened off by the angry ranting from within, or had an unjust punishment snarled in their face followed swiftly by a slamming door.

While he single handedly spread fear through the ark, Prowl sat stewing alone, fists clenched so tightly that they were almost trembling.

"I swear," he growled to his empty office, and ugly scowl painted across his face as he watched the thunderstorm raging outside his window, "if he calls my name, in that whiny voice one more time-"

The com-link buzzed. "Proooowwwwl?"

Apparently, Jazz was not good at reading Prowl's emotions through their bond right now. Either that, or he was deliberately ignoring them.

The Tactician's frown deepened and lightening struck outside, reflecting his mood with wonderful, dramatic accuracy.

His circuits began to fritz and sizzle, his lubricants reaching boiling point. He felt like tearing something in half and right now, and he wanted that something to be his bond-mate.

"That's it," he snarled as he stormed out of his office, sending the nearby twins and Bluestreak scattering in fear of impending spark extinguishment, "no more!!"

As he stomped down the halls, grinding his denta and muttering angrily in a mix of human english and cybertronian, all the residents of the ark either fled in terror or stopped to watch in morbid fascination. Never before had they seen the tactician in such a fit of rage, and all of them were glad that they were not the targets of such anger.

He reached the quarters that he shared with Jazz, staring at it for a moment as if contemplating the pros and cons of punching it open. Apparently there were more cons, for he settled with angrily stabbing the lock code on the keypad and letting the door slide open.

There was Jazz sitting in the middle of the berth and by the look on his face, he had been planning to make some chiding remark about his mate taking so long, but the expression of utter fury on Prowl's face made any pending comment die in the Saboteur's vocalizer.

"Um........Prowl...?" he whispered hesitantly, a small shard of fear punctuating his words.

And just like that, with that one tiny utterance of his name, Prowl exploded. All his anger and resentment that had been building and building for that past three days bubbled over the rim of his mental wall and then flooded the room in a deluge of of cruel, noxious words.

"What?! What in the fragging pit is it now Jazz!!? Something that you are apparently too weak and too fragging selfish to do yourself?!! Need me to feed you?! Turn the heating down?!" he raged stalking closer to his now cowering lover.

"Or maybe you want another story!!!" the tactician snarled, "ok here's one, there once was a little autobot named Jazz, who was normally giving, caring and an amazing mech to be around, but then he got sick and turned into the biggest fragging brat in the history of Cybertron!!! Everyday he would drag his lover away from important meetings and office work to perform mundane tasks like a slave!!!! And you know what??!! That lover can't take it anymore!!!!!"

Jazz was frozen on the berth, a stricken look on his face as he watched his mate rage on and on. "P....Prowl...ah-"

"Oh no," Prowl cut him off viciously, "it's still my turn to talk!! You are and inconsiderate, selfish little glitch and I have had enough!!! Find someone else to take care of you for the next few days, because I quit!!!"

With that said he stalked toward the door and turned to give his mate one final hateful glare. "Come and find me when you know how to behave like a decent mech again!!"

As the door slid shut, he took a deep shuddering breath and leaned against it, pondering the wisdom of what he had just done.

He winced when he heard Jazz call his name in a pained sob and the force of his lover's anguish ripped through his spark. It took every ounce of his strength not to rush back into the room, gather the distraught Porsche into his arms and blubber a premature apology.

He was still angry, and Jazz had a lesson to learn, he couldn't afford to screw it up now, because he felt guilty.

With his spark feeling ten times heavier then it had before, Prowl pushed himself away from the door and shuffled back to his office.

xXx

Several hours later, whilst sitting alone at his desk, completed data pads pilled in one corner, guilt had arrived and begun to buffet Prowl around the head once more.

Jazz's sorrow continued to throb like an open wound, each sob echoing through their bond and feeling like a dagger to the spark.

The Datsun pinched the bridge of his metal nose, wishing that he had managed to keep a stronger hold on his temper. Sure, Jazz had been acting like a fragging jerk, but that didn't excuse that fact that he had snarled at him, called him awful names and then told his lover that he was abandoning him.

His doorwings twitched and then drooped as another pang of distress shot through him.

A pained sigh escaped Prowl's intakes. He couldn't do it. He couldn't leave Jazz to cry the night away alone and in pain in their quarters. Time to make things right and apologize for his actions, maybe even grovel if the situation arose. Either way, he would make it up to his mate.

He rose from his chair and headed out into the hall.

The walk back to his quarters seemed to drag on for hour, every step echoing in his audio receptors like the thunder echoing in the sky. All the while, he was wracked his processor for the right words to say to his mate. A stinging outburst like that was not something that either of them would easily recover from and he was at a complete loss as to how to begin the healing process.

Suddenly, that ominous door loomed in front of him once again and he could feel his spark sinking in its chamber. Slowly, tentatively, he raised his fist, and gently rapped his knuckles against the thick metal.

No answer.

Prowl frowned, both puzzled and alarmed. He tried again, straining his audio sensors to hear any telltale signs of crying or a choked 'come in' from his mate. Nothing. Not a single, solitary sound.

Fear shot through his spark and his hands began to tremble.

'No no,' he chided himself mentally, 'calm down, he's probably just recharging.'

That quieted the fear ever so slightly and with hands still quivering with apprehension, he managed to, shakily, punch in the lock code.

The door slid open and all the energon and lubricants in Prowl's body froze, his spark plummeting to his feet. The room was dark, Jazz's things were gone and the berth was empty.

Jazz was gone.

Hehehehehehehe..........someone pointed out to me that I should make Prowl worry in this chapter. How's that for a bucket of panic?! And yes, I know....evil cliffhanger.....i'll work on getting the next one up soon.