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Lines	By : CGH Category: S through Z > Transformers (Movie Only) > Transformers (Movie Only) Views: 3802 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I don't own the Transformers. I am not making money off writing this.

Chapter List
- 1-Lines
- 2-2
- 3-3
- 4-4
- 5-5
- 6-6
- 7-7
- 8-8
- 9-9
- 10-10
- 11-11
- 12-12
- 13-13
- 14-14
- 15-15
- 16-16 (FINALE)
- 14
- 15
- 16
Mikaela started another contraction and it wasn't a gentle tightness like before. Just the beginning hurt as badly as her peaks earlier. Her uterus seemed to jerk itself into a tight, quivering ball, taking her internal organs with it. The stinging ache wrapped completely around her waist and grew and grew and grew until she thought her belly would turn inside out. She dropped into a squat, not caring about anything other than surviving the blinding white hotness pulling on her consciousness.

"Ohhh...ooohhh! Oh, fuck, fuck!" She wailed, unable to let go of the Jacuzzi frame, "Optimus!"

"I'm right here." Optimus' hands settled on her lower back. She flinched away. He shifted to rub her hips instead. "Here?"

"Mm." Mikaela managed to get her knees down. She couldn't communicate that her lower half seemed on the verge of ripping itself in two. Optimus picked right up on the silent cue and gently pressed inwards and upwards on her hip bones. It didn't help much, but the safety of his hands gave her somewhere to place her focus. She dragged deep breaths all the way into her belly and let them out again. The pain slowly dwindled. Her shorts were dripping wet and clung against her skin.

"There..." Optimus' hands slowly released their hold and stroked her back. "Your amniotic fluid is clear."

"Good." Mikaela gulped air into her lungs. She'd read that labor sometimes got more intense after the waters breaking, but nothing prepared her for how much! And she still had a lot more to endure!

She checked the temperature of the water, found it comfortably warm and let the Jacuzzi fill halfway. Then she started disrobing, once again ignoring the drips on her legs. She couldn't spare the energy to feel grossed out or notice the music never got turned back on.

"Man, I think I--" Mikaela dropped again into a squat. Then she leaned backwards into a crab-walking position that made it hurt more, but she couldn't make herself move again. "Ooooh. Ungh!"

"Easy." Optimus leaned down and helped her onto her hands and knees. She grabbed onto his forearms. He supported her elbows without protest. "Deep breaths, Mikaela. Deep breaths."

"Ohhhh!" She groaned through the crushing force inside her body. Her voice rose in pitch when Elita kicked right as the pain peaked. Like kicking a bruise--it made her vision go white. "Uhhhh...ooooh!"

"You're getting tense. Relax."

"I can't! She's kicking me and it hurts!"

"I know. I know..." Optimus whispered. He massaged her hips, which forced them to relax until more pain tore at her self-control. "Come on, let's walk a little more. Are you up to that?"

"Let's try." Mikaela said. She never would have moved around without his presence guiding her. All the practice they went through didn't include pain, and pain always clouded her mind.

They walked for awhile. He led her outside--she was so inside herself that she didn't even notice her naked state until Optimus draped a robe around her--and she spent a few contractions leaning on the railing. Some trees grew so close that she could rest her cheek against their cool leaves and relish the green smell of spring.

"What's my average now?"

"Three minutes apart and lasting sixty five point three seconds."

At least I'm making progress, she grumped to herself.

Ultra Magnus' white form emerged from the tree line. His optics widened at Mikaela's state and he jogged over. "Oh, my goodness! Mikaela, are you all right?"

"She is in active labor," Optimus replied.

"Labor hurts," Mikaela grunted. "It's hard work."

"I suppose it wouldn't be called 'labor' otherwise." Ultra Magnus replied. "Anything I can do?"

Mikaela, in the middle of a contraction, shook her head no. She tilted herself sideways as if to pass gas. Something inside her moved and it was suddenly a lot easier to breathe.

Social graces had completely left Mikaela's mind by then. Without a word she headed back inside, leaving Ultra Magnus confused and Optimus hurrying to follow her. She threw off the robe and drank heartily from the jug of Gatorade.

Time couldn't decide between rushing and crawling. Mikaela endured it, wondering about her progress but not willing to find out. She didn't want anything discouraging her--but she really wanted to get in the Jacuzzi!

"Oooh!"

"Stay loose. Relax your jaw. There."

Mikaela had trouble standing, but sitting and laying down made her back hurt. She was tiring fast and afraid she'd never cope if she didn't rest soon.

Optimus, bless him, found a wonderful solution. He sat on the floor, put two rolled-up towels on his thighs and hugged her against his chest. His legs supported hers so she could squat, bounce or rock her pelvis without exhausting herself, and the towels cushioned her from his metal parts. The fluid oozing from her body got all over his lower half, but he didn't care. Whenever a contraction started, he began to count the seconds softly in her ear--

"One, two, three, four..."

--and it became a chord above her moaning. Hearing him changed her whole thought process.

I made it to ten...I can get to twenty. I got to twenty, now I can last until thirty. I'm at thirty...I'll hang on to forty. Oh, forty...fifty can't be too bad. Oooh, it's going away now. I'm at sixty and I'm just fine.

"Now breathe...there."

"Ugh...that was a bad one." Mikaela rubbed her face against his cheek. "Am I dilated to five, yet? I want to get in the water before I start screaming."

Optimus sat still and blinked, listening to Ratchet's response. Even as he waited, his hands moved to her belly and he stroked it lovingly with his fingertips.

"You've just reached five centimeters." He cupped her face, smiling. "It won't belong before Elita meets the world."

"Awesome." Mikaela gathered herself for the next wave.

Optimus helped her through one more contraction before she climbed into the tub. The water was wonderful, and she laid herself down comfortably for the first time since labor started. This Jacuzzi had contoured walls that hugged her body, letting her rest on her side, and the non-slip bottom meant she didn't have to tense her legs to avoid sliding downwards.

"Does the water improve your comfort?"

Mikaela opened her eyes and smiled. "A lot, yeah."

Optimus returned her expression. He twisted the lid off the Gatorade jug and poured some into a glass she hadn't seen him bring in. Then he popped in a straw and handed it to her. "Here, hydration is important."

She sipped gratefully. "Grab me a Nutri-Grain."

He did so, and held it for her while she nibbled. Crumbs still fell in the water. She splashed them away with her hand.

The tub let Mikaela relax, though it didn't ease the pain of her contractions as much as she'd hoped. Breathing deep and moaning out loud helped at the peaks. Then it helped just before they peaked...and then she started groaning the entire duration of each pain. She felt oddly peaceful in between, something like the satisfaction of a full stomach after a delicious meal. Moaning kept her memory anchored around that calm. If she could hold onto that, she could survive the pain.

Optimus helped her change positions when her grasp on that peace wavered. He sat her up and held her hands. She stared into his optics while he assisted her into a squatting position. Sometimes she swayed her hips back and forth, making the water slosh around her stomach, all the while letting the blue light of his eyes keep her tethered to reality.

They didn't talk at all unless she initiated it with words.

"Oooooooohhh...unnnngh...ow!"

"You're doing fine."

"Mmmmmmhurts."

"I know, I know..." Thumbs petted her wrists. One hand retreated.

She gripped tighter, "Don't leave!"

"I won't." Blue optics came closer and the straw touched her lips. "Here, sip."

Cold liquid on her tongue...it was as nice as the metal palm now holding onto her shoulder. She spat out the straw when another pain came, and she sank away once more.

The contractions were peaking faster and holding for longer. She heard Optimus say they were lasting closer to ninety seconds--and being in pain made that an eternity. Her faith that the aching cramp would end wavered more and more. She went from moaning to yelling.

"Here we go. One, two, thr--"

"STOP counting!"

He closed his mouth and held onto her hands. Sometimes she squeezed his fingers tight enough to make him wince.

"Oooooh, shiiiiit..."

Time passed around Mikaela like a shadow. No matter what she did or said, Optimus stayed right next to the Jacuzzi. Rarely did a moment go by where she didn't feel his touch or hear his voice. At one point she glanced up and noticed the clock said five o'clock.

Wait, didn't I get up at five?

"What kind of five o'clock is that? Is it morning again?"

Optimus leaned over her. "No. It's evening. Twelve hours since oh-five-hundred."

"Oh." Mikaela didn't consider the question silly at all. "Could you turn on the bathroom light and leave the door open? The lamps in here are gonna be too much."

He nodded without question and did it. Then he came back and gave her a bite of a Nutri-Grain bar. Biting was hard, so he broke off a small piece and gently fed it to her. She ate because it was there, not out of genuine hunger. In fact, she noticed she'd stopped feeling hungry for awhile.

Mikaela settled on her left side. The change made her pass gas and the water bubbled, but she couldn't spare enough energy to excuse herself. She even emptied her bladder a few times. If Optimus noticed any of that going on, he didn't say a word. He pulled the plug when the water was too murky to see through, and had barely refilled the Jacuzzi before Mikaela's next wave hit. She bellowed for its duration. Something about shifting positions kicked her labor into high gear. Her contractions came fast and hard, giving her little time after one to prepare for the next. Every coping mechanism she'd read about stood forgotten in a sea of searing agony. The peaceful thirty seconds between contractions disappeared in her mind. She couldn't find the anchor memory of calmness she held onto before. There was only suffering. Did her body enjoy torturing her?

"Ohhhh--AAH!" Mikaela shrieked when the pain abated. She tried resting on her back, then she squatted and finally rolled back onto her side, her movements splashing water out of the tub. "Dammit! AAH! I can't do this! I-I can't!"

"Yes, you can." Optimus wiped stray hairs off her cheek, and she didn't know whether his calmness was charming or irritating. "You can do this."

"Nooooo...I-I c--AAH! No more! It fucking hurts! Please, God...OHHH!"

"You're fine, Mikaela. You've come so far. You can go a little longer."

"No." Mikaela gasped. "No."

Optimus reached into the water and stroked her hip--lately that felt better than anything--but now she found it annoying. Mikaela pushed his hand away, and it returned to rub her shoulder. Each contraction was the sting of the worst food poisoning she ever had in her life coupled with something invisible crushing her spine. They never fully ended before the next one began. She started feeling them in her thighs and chest. By the next one she couldn't remember why this pain even happened to her in the first place.

"I can't deal with this," she sobbed. Cold sweat broke out on her body despite her being halfway submerged in warm water. Her eyes widened when saliva pooled under her tongue. "Oh shit..."

Optimus got the bucket to her just in time to catch the bitter-tasting bile she retched up.

"Please...make it stop." Mikaela gritted her teeth.

"I can't," he said as he rubbed the back of her neck.

"Try!" She screamed, and threw up again.

"You're in transition, Mikaela." Optimus lured her onto her hands and knees by moving the bucket to the floor, which meant she had to lean on the side of the tub to reach it. "You have come a long way."

"It huuurts!"

"I know it hurts, but it has a purpose." He stroked her cheek with his knuckles.

She grunted. No energy for anything but the most basic communication. "Need to be cooler...wet cloth."

Optimus nodded and disappeared for a moment, which made her panic. Then he reappeared and laid a wet, cold washcloth against the back of her neck. Just what she needed, and it felt wonderful. She even relaxed for a few seconds while he nuzzled his mouth against her cheek.

"I love you," he whispered in her ear. Then he lifted her head for her and wiped the cloth across her brow. She leaned forward and dazedly kissed his mouth plates.

More white-hot agony. That star in Mikaela's imagination stopped dimming, it just collapsed and expanded like...like Optimus' pulsing Spark.

"Owwwww!" Mikaela gasped for the breath stolen from her lungs. "Dammit, ow! Ow...ow...OW! No, no, don't move away!"

"Shhh. I'm not leaving. I'm right here."

"Unnnngh! Ooooh!"

"Easy, easy. Breathe. Slower now--that's it."

"I'm done! I can't...I...I--AAAH! Please, God, I can't!"

"You can. You're doing so well." His voice was in her ear, and the sound of his soothing calm did more for her than he'd ever realize. Somehow, she'd wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her hot cheek to his cool metal one. He helped her sway her hips back and forth in the water.

"I feel like I'm dying," she cried. Her body would not stop shaking between contractions.

Optimus petted the back of her head. "You aren't dying. You're bringing Elita into this world."

"I c--AAAAH! OHH!"

"Breathe, Mikaela."

"FUCK breathing! You have the baby!"

Rather than answer that, Optimus just swayed side to side, prompting her to follow him and somehow find her way through the forest of hurt. No matter how deeply she went in, he always found her and brought her back out.

"Don't leave!" She grabbed his arm when he leaned back an inch.

"I won't." He touched the straw to her lips. "Sip a little--there you go."

She puked the Gatorade up during her next contraction. He wiped her mouth for her and stroked her back while she dangled her upper body against the Jacuzzi's edge. She felt his mouth plates brush her ear and shoulder. Even the sounds of his servos whirring offered comfort.

"Do I look shitty?" she panted.

"You're beautiful." Optimus smiled.

Her body stole her again, and she endured. She closed her eyes and half-dreamed of Prima leaning over her. The ancient Prime said something in Cybertronian--she understood it as the word soon.

Mikaela glimpsed her distant ancestor rearing back and roaring, her swollen belly rock-hard with contractions. She began to do the same. Her voice filled the bedroom, a song without lyrics, and somewhere inside the sound she found a dark, powerful nirvana in which she could hide from the worst of her pain. Let the agony rage like a hurricane--her voice was its eye, and the eye was a calm, safe place. She was in control again.

And she wasn't alone.

Optimus held her hand and let her yell all she wanted. He never told her to be quiet, he never even flinched at the noises she made.

Every few pains, she had urges to empty her bowels. It was fleeting, but the last rational corner of her mind knew it meant Elita would be in her arms soon. She clung to that hope as tightly as she did Optimus' fingers.

"Breathe." His voice stayed right by her ear. "Easy now...almost done...there. Here, try another sip of this."

Mikaela accepted the straw and drank heartily. She didn't feel nauseated anymore--and thirst overrode her concerns about vomiting again. The Gatorade wasn't cold, but it tasted sinfully delicious. Her mother, a nurse, taught her that Gatorade tasted the best when one's body truly needed it.

"Ahhhhh!" She yelled against another tightening in her pelvis. "I feel like her head's up my ass!"

"What an interesting sensation that must be." Optimus chuckled into her cheek.

"It's not funny!"

"It will be later."

"Whatever! It sucks right n--AAH!"

The clock said nine o'clock when Mikaela's body finally gave her a break. Everything was dark except for Optimus' optics and filtered light coming from the bathroom. She wondered if her labor was all part of a distant nightmare. Memories of agony told her otherwise. She rarely remembered pain from dreams. This was real. Elita would soon be resting in her arms.

Optimus drained and re-filled the Jacuzzi with fresh, warm water. He met her eyes and winked.

"Welcome back." He said. "Congratulations, you've survived transition."

Mikaela made a face at him when she sat up and moved the barf bucket out of sight and mind. "Where are the cereal bars?"

He gave her one. She tore off the wrapper and devoured it. Then she took a swig of Gatorade and relaxed on her back, floating slightly in the water. Her stomach thanked her by not turning over, causing heartburn or expelling anything that dared enter.

"God, where did the whole day go? I barely noticed the time going by." Mikaela wiped at her forehead. Her belly button tingled as it had in early labor, but the contraction she felt wasn't quite painful...just uncomfortable. Something inside her body shifted positions ever so slightly.

"You were occupied." Optimus trailed a hand in the water. Mikaela interlocked their fingers.

"I can't believe this is almost over. I'll miss everything but the morning sickness and her kicking me in the ribs."

Almost on cue, Elita wriggled about as if in protest having her warm environment rocked with noise and pressure. Mikaela didn't blame her.

Another soft contraction came and went. Mikaela pursed her lips before sitting up. She kept feeling twinges like an impending bowel movement coming and going. Assuming a squat position made it stronger. Mild urges became a bowling ball ready to fall out of her backside. Mikaela's body bore down on its own. She grunted, wiggling into a better position so she could support herself by leaning back against the Jacuzzi's corner.

"Are you pushing?"

"Mmmgh!"

"I'll take that as a yes."

She grunted once more, then breathed out. "Come in here with me. I want you to catch her."

Optimus stepped over the lip of the tub. There was plenty of room for him to kneel in front of her. His optics actually lit the area enough that she discarded her ideas of lighting the fireplace.

Mikaela's belly caved in and she went with it. Her body called the shots--she just obeyed its signals. She pushed as if on the toilet and stopped whenever the urges dissipated. Every few pushes, Elita shifted down another inch. Progress was taking place...albeit slowly.

"How's her heartbeat?" Mikaela asked.

Optimus' hand touched her lower belly. "She's fine." He reached back to refill the Gatorade glass and offered it to her--she only took a few sips before pushing it away.

A huge 'oh-my-God-I-have-to-poop-NOW!' feeling came over Mikaela. She sucked in a breath and bore down with all her might, helping her body do what it was already doing on its own. Incredible pressure formed somewhere deep in her pelvic region. She paused, gasping, before giving in to the next urge. Every push hurt almost as much as her transition contractions, but now she could truly do something about it.

Optimus wiped her forehead and chest down with the cloth. He'd cooled it with his hands, but his fingers were warm again whenever he touched her skin. The cool felt amazing. She gestured for the Gatorade and he gave it to her. It was wonderful to push when and how she wanted to--so much nicer than the idea of having doctors tell her when while people held her feet up.

Mikaela rested for awhile despite the urges to bear down. "Wow, you're not freaked out yet?"

"This is actually a fascinating experience." Optimus tilted his head to regard her. "Most of what I witnessed was not in the childbirth videos I observed on Youtube."

"You're going to see that part here pretty soon."

He patted her knee. His eternal patience constantly astounded her.

Mikaela grunted and dug her heels into the bottom of the Jacuzzi. She really knew things were moving when she couldn't squeeze her inner vaginal muscles. Her body kept trying to, instinctively, like it did while sitting on the toilet. "Oh! I think her head's coming down...aah! AAH! Pressure!"

"Easy now." Optimus gently probed her nether regions, but didn't dip in more than a fingertip's length. "I don't feel her head yet."

"Ooh!" Mikaela growled and threw her head back. It was complete trust in Optimus that let her make noise without fear or embarrassment. "Aaaaah!

The pressure she felt grew stronger, like a cement balloon expanding its way downward. And the second she relaxed, it retreated like a fist yanked back into a sleeve. The same thing happened again for several more pushes. But each time, the hardness retracted a little less.

"How good can you see in the dark?"

"I have engaged my night vision, so I can see quite clearly."

She hadn't even noticed anything different about his eyes. Wouldn't they glow a different color? Obviously not.

Optimus placed his finger back at her entrance. Or, rather, she led his hand there. It gave her somewhere to focus her pushes as she bore down again. Some contractions came on so hard that she pushed three or four times.

"Oh my..." His optics blinked and widened. Excitement made his voice rise a half tone higher than usual. "I feel her head! Mikaela, I feel her head!" He leaned forward and touched her forehead with his. "She's almost here."

The excitement was contagious. Mikaela's heart pounded when she released her breath and rested her brow against Optimus'. She had the urge to rock her hips a little, so she did. The pressure inside her coupled with the movements transformed her pain into something she couldn't describe. It felt like...bliss. Emotionally, mentally, she swore she was having an orgasm. The pain she experienced seemed somehow distant and purposeful. She only needed to surrender.

And so she did.

"Ohhhh!" Mikaela tossed her head back again and roared. Her entire world became the single point around Optimus' fingertip. She gasped, pushed and gasped again. Push, release, push, release.

"Take your time," Optimus whispered. He placed her hand right next to his finger. She felt soft hair. Elita's head!

The water wasn't cold, yet Mikaela shivered anyway. She placed her arm back on the edge of the Jacuzzi and focused once more on bearing down. Suddenly, a sharp stinging sensation slammed into her crotch. She let out a yelp, "Shit, that burns!"

"Keep pushing." Optimus stuck his other hand down into the water. She could feel him massaging the delicate skin of her perineum to protect it from tearing. It felt nice--and then she pushed and it stopped feeling pleasant.

"It burns, dammit! AAH!" Mikaela lifted her backside up and the veins in her neck stood out in sharp relief. So much for the incredible ecstasy she experienced earlier. She waited for the sting to die off before working with the next contraction. The burning came again, a fiery ring glowing blue-white in her mind. No way to escape except to push through it.

"She's crowning." Optimus' warm metal fingertips continued to manipulate the skin around her opening. "Oh, Mikaela...I can see the entire top of her head. Remarkable!"

Mikaela grunted, "A slimy baby's head is remarkable?"

"Definitely."

Knowing birth was imminent gave her courage, and she inhaled deep as she bore towards the ground with all her might. Searing pain created flaming circles all centered around a tiny point between her legs. She thought of nothing beyond making it stop, and pushing was the only way.

Glyphs flashed through her mind. Amidst the pains she saw all of Cybertron being born and dying. Mechs rising and falling. She witnessed Optimus and Megatron sliding out of metallic pouches and opening their eyes for the first time. She saw them fall in love and fall apart. She saw the flaming death of Orion Pax--and young Optimus on his knees, staring at the ruins of his home. He was crying--his last cry until the night of her prom eight million years later. Then she watched the All Spark flying off into space, crashing into Earth and being thrust into Megatron's chest. Burning, razing...slowly expanding until Mikaela thought she'd rip in half. Her vision flickered between reality and Cybertron like two television stations polluting each others' signals.

The Matrix of Leadership floating above seven pairs of metallic hands...

"Easy...relax."

...stars exploding into brilliant white...

"Here it comes."

...life coming from a purple glow...

"Oh, Mikaela..."

...and the Matrix of Leadership landing in human hands.

"Her head is out," Optimus announced, snapping Mikaela back into reality. He moved his finger just inside her entrance, checking the baby's throat. "Hold on a minute. The umbilical cord is around her neck--Mikaela, it's tight. Don't push!"

Exactly the words Mikaela did not want to hear. She couldn't stop her body mid-contraction!

"I can't help it!"

"Breathe. I will attempt to dislodge the cord."

The movement of his fingers around tissues stretched nearly to the maximum stung like salt in a wound. Her body screamed while her heart thudded. Another urge came and resisting tore away her last energy reserves. She just wanted it over.

Something moved, and then Optimus said, "I've freed the cord. It did not require cutting. She's all right, Mikaela. Push whenever you're ready."

"I'm so tired," Mikaela panted. This wasn't as easy as she'd imagined. She rolled her head side to side, loose strands of hair sticking to her sweaty face. "I don't know if I can...I don't--"

"Yes, you can. You are." Careful metal lips touched her brow. "I'll catch her. Don't worry."

"Gatorade."

Optimus grabbed the glass and she took several mouthfuls. Then she spat out the straw and gathered herself up.

Elita's shoulders were still inside, acting like roadblocks. Mikaela feared she'd tear all the way up her butt if she pushed again, but she closed her eyes and made herself do it anyway. The tiny body in her birth canal twisted and twitched, searing her the whole way.

"AAH! OW! OW!"

"Push, Mikaela. She's almost out."

"Fuck pushing! You push!"

"Sorry, I can't put her back."

"Shut up! You're not the one shitting a watermel--AAH!"

Somehow, Mikaela felt her body stretching more than she imagined possible. The stinging burn dulled only slightly. She strained with all her might, desperate for it to be over.

"Relax your buttocks." Optimus said as he repositioned his hands. Hearing him say that would've been funnier if he didn't accidentally pinch her clitoris between his ring and pinkie fingers. Usually that felt nice, but it didn't then! The poisonous look Mikaela shot him moved the hand faster than a sharp word. He rubbed her leg, "Sorry."

"Do that again and you--mmmgh!--will be sorry!" she snarled mid-push. "God, how much more?"

"Her shoulder is right against your pubic bone." Optimus told her. "One more push. You can do it, Mikaela."

"Promise?" she panted.

"I promise." He reassured her. "One more."

Mikaela held her breath and put all her strength into her next push. Something inside her shifted downward and wiggled like a wet fish. She felt Optimus guide Elita's head towards her butt and then forward, helping her shoulders emerge. One shoulder slipped free like a bump. As soon as the second shoulder emerged, a large part of herself was dislodging, pulling away, and suddenly--relief! All the pressure, pain and glyphs disappeared in a gush of liquid slightly warmer than the Jacuzzi water. Mikaela sagged backwards against the wall, panting in exhausted reprieve. She's out, she's out...

Optimus straightened into a kneeling position with a small, floppy white form lying facedown in his hands. He rubbed Elita's back until she squirmed, coughed and squawked in protest. Almost magically, her color went from white to healthy pink. Optimus' servos whirred as he turned her over, cupping her head in one hand and her bottom in the other. Elita's eyes fluttered open and blinked before gradually focusing on his.

Time stood frozen. They were gazing at each other like old friends meeting after a long separation.

Optimus smiled.

Elita appeared to smile back.

"Hello, Elita." Optimus whispered, and his voice actually trembled. He cradled Elita on his forearm and stroked her waxy, vernix-smeared cheek. "You'll never believe this, but--" He closed his eyes in a slow blink when she grabbed his fingertip in a tiny fist. His optics misted until they overflowed. He moved his finger up and down, shaking hands with her. "--I'm so glad to finally meet you, too."

Tears blurred Mikaela's vision. Elita was only in this world for thirty seconds, and she could tell how much Optimus already loved her.

"I might be fascinating, but your mother is amazing. Would you like to meet her?" Optimus smiled again. He bent forward and laid Elita on Mikaela's chest. Elita suddenly balled her fists and screamed her head off, each cry gurgling less as she cleared her airways.

Mikaela couldn't find words--what should she say to someone so new to everything? She embraced her daughter and nuzzled her cheek against the baby's soft forehead. All that pain for someone so tiny, and she'd already forgotten the agony.

"...hey." Mikaela's lips quivered when Elita peered up at her between mewls. That life came from hers. She knew, right then, that she'd go through the pain again and again if it meant repeating this moment. "Happy birthday, kiddo."

Elita's cries stopped again at the sound of Mikaela's voice. She smacked her lips and pursed them while taking everything in. 'So THIS is the outside world,' her expression seemed to say.

Mikaela sat there, amazed at how alert her baby was. Elita's soft, slippery skin was cooler than the air, but she quickly warmed up as Mikaela held her close.

"Elita..." Mikaela wiped a bit of birth goop off Elita's nose. There was a splotch of vernix on her forehead that gave her face the cartoon-like impression of a frown. "God, you're so little. Do you have toe thumbs like me?" She checked the baby's hands and noticed her fingers seemed square-tipped. Mikaela's fingers were slightly short and tapered. Sam had long, tapering fingertips. That meant...

Heh, you have Optimus' hands. Mikaela rubbed her thumb over Elita's tiny knuckles. The hand moved to grab her thumb. Elita's grip was strong.

"Six pounds, six ounces and nineteen inches long." Optimus shifted in the water. "She looks like you," he went on, moving to sit beside Mikaela. "We named her well. She's beautiful, Mikaela..."

Mikaela smiled and kissed Elita's forehead. Elita hiccupped and wouldn't relinquish her grip on Mikaela's thumb. It made Mikaela giggle. "Well, Elita. Wild ride or what?"

Elita crinkled her face up like she wanted to cry again, but changed her mind and yawned. She started turning her head to the side. Mikaela felt her trying to suckle, so she shifted her over--and was surprised at how easily the newborn opened wide and latched on.

Breastfeeding was a downright weird feeling. It caused her to get menstrual-like cramps and a sensation of fullness in her pelvis. Mikaela moved her leg and gave a little push, and suddenly the placenta oozed out in a small gush of pinkish blood. It felt like a hot liver against her legs. She used her knee to sort of push the rubbery umbilical cord and slick placenta off to the side.

Optimus leaned over and studied Mikaela's breasts in a way that might have offended her in the past. His face softened into a smile. "You're so perfect." He slipped his arm around her shoulders, drawing her against him. "Thank you for this experience."

Mikaela's throat ached. She leaned on Optimus and hugged Elita closer, adoring how she nursed with one tiny hand covering her eyes. Just looking at her daughter made her heart swell. I still can't believe you were inside me for all nine months, Elita. You're so cute...and so special. Do you even know why you exist?

The moment would have been more pleasant if Mikaela could ignore the weird, meaty smell surrounding her. Like exposed guts and coppery blood. It had to be the placenta. She noticed Optimus probing it a little with his fingers.

"It's bigger than I expected." He looked up, "Didn't you mention wanting to wait awhile before cutting the umbilical cord?"

Elita finished nursing. Mikaela shifted the baby to her shoulder and rubbed her back until she heard a tiny squeak of a burp.

She said, "Yeah. Give it a bit. You have a clamp, right?"

"Still in the package."

"Good. Let's get the placenta out of the water, though. It's starting to smell funky."

Optimus nodded and slid away from her. He got the Rubbermaid container, picked up the placenta by the umbilical cord and plopped it down with a wet splat.

"Shall I take Elita while you clean up?"

Nodding, Mikaela pulled the plug in the Jacuzzi. That was the moment Elita decided to pee everywhere. Mikaela let out a squeak. "Hey! I'm going to assume that's your way of saying you love me."

Optimus swooped in with the towel, but his rescue came a little too late. Elita was finished by the time he'd taken her from Mikaela's arms. Mikaela carried the plastic container with the placenta inside over to the bed. She flicked on the bedside lamp and noticed Optimus holding Elita a little awkwardly in his hands.

"Hey...remember how you held her when she grabbed your finger?" Mikaela picked Elita up and wrapped her more securely in the velvety red towel. The umbilical cord just dangled out the side, a blue, glistening thing in the dim light.

He sat down on the bed, making the shower curtain crackle. "Yes."

"Hold your arms like that. Now, cradle her..." She placed Elita in Optimus' arms. "There, just like that."

Once Optimus had it right, he seemed so natural, and Elita looked safe cradled in his armored arms. He glanced up at Mikaela and beamed. His eyes were moist near the inner corners.

Beloved Protector...

"You're a dad now, Optimus."

"Yes," Optimus said quietly, almost to himself. "Megatron never wanted to raise younglings. It was something we sometimes argued about before we separated. This is a dream I'm holding." He met Mikaela's gaze. "You made it come true. By the strangest twist of fate I have ever seen, you made it happen."

"You kinda helped, you know." Mikaela leaned against Optimus' arm and kissed his audio cover. "I always hoped any kids I had were with somebody I really loved." She grinned, "Even if he's an alien."

He laughed heartily at that, though he kept it low to avoid waking Elita.

Mikaela smiled and snagged the larger red towel meant for her. She took it with her into the bathroom, leaving the door open while she showered. Then she stuck a heavy duty menstrual pad into her underwear before putting on an old, oversized T-shirt and her red flannel pajama bottoms. It hit her then, as she reached under the shirt to put on deodorant.

I'm a mom now. Having her wasn't the hard part. The hard part starts right now. Now, I have to raise her...

Optimus glanced up. His face softened into a metallic smile, his silver facial plates glistening amber because of the bedside lamp. Elita slept peacefully in his arms like a little angel wrapped in red. She looked too innocent to have the entire repository of the Primes bouncing around inside her mind. Things would get interesting when she learned how to talk.

...but I don't have to do it alone, because she has a father that'll adore every breath she takes.

"Do you want to clean her up, or shall I?"

The shower curtain crinkled as Mikaela unrolled part of it and pulled the blankets on the bed down. "Let's both do it."

He nodded, somehow twisting around and settling Elita beside her without disturbing the baby's sleep. Mikaela happily cuddled her daughter against her chest.

Up close, Mikaela could see a little red mark on the middle of Elita's forehead. It was nestled halfway into her hairline--a thumb-sized port-wine stain shaped like the glyph for Prime. When she got older and her hair grew longer, it'd cover most of it.

Elita woke up and blinked. Her eyes were dark blue, almost black, but Mikaela knew they'd lighten to match her own in a few months.

"I examined the placenta while you showered." Optimus spoke softly. "It's intact."

"Thanks, Optimus."

"No." Optimus touched his mouth against hers. "Thank you."

She knew exactly what he meant, and couldn't help feeling guilty about how short her life was compared to his. And the possibility of him dying once and for all in battle hung over them as much as her own mortality.

Optimus glanced down when Elita whined. Then he focused on Mikaela--the smile on his face hadn't dimmed in the least. He leaned over until their foreheads touched, chuckling, "I believe she's ready for us to cut the cord and bathe her."

Mikaela grinned into his eyes. She felt too energized to lay down and sleep anyway. "Yeah...let's do it."

Mikaela watched Optimus' careful hands tie the cord in two places. There was a little blood when he cut it, but he snapped the clamp onto the stub without Elita so much as raising her voice. Without looking at the placenta, she took Elita into her arms and Optimus walked with her into the bathroom.
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