Emerald looked over the edge and spread her wings. She was standing on the roof of the Axalon, preparing to use her flight mode for the first time. She was in robot mode. She wanted to test her wings and see if she could fly well in both modes. In beast mode, she'd sort of got the hang of it. She'd flown low to the ground over short distances and felt confident enough to go the next step.

She glanced down.

"Ok, I'm going to jump now. If I fall, you'll catch me, right?"

Below, Uncle Rhinox was working on improving the external autoguns. Rattrap was supposed to be helping him but he took a short break to watch Emerald and make sure she was all right.

"Yeah, yeah," he called, "Jus' jump already, will ya?"

She'd been 'preparing' for nearly five cycles now!

"Ok."

She was still.

"Emerald, jump!!"

"Are you sure you can catch me? I might be too heavy-"

"JUMP!"

She leapt and flapped her wings feverishly. She felt herself drop and a wave of panic rushed over her. Then she caught an up draught and felt the delightful sensation of being lifted. She glided over Rattrap and flapped a few times and flew faster.

"I did it! Hey, this is great!!"

She turned in the air and soared, giggling pleasurably.

Rattrap watched her, exasperated.

She looked down at him with a huge grin and he flashed her a weary smile.

"Well done, Emmie."

"Whoo hoo!" she lifted higher up and flew in a wide circle above their heads.

"Rattrap, quit bird-watching and help me," Rhinox called.

Rattrap snorted and walked over to his big friend.

"Aren't ya interested in yer niece's flyin' progress?"

Rhinox didn't look up and continued hammering something in.

"I knew long before she got on that roof that she was perfectly capable of flying. Now hold this while I fasten the connection."

Rattrap put his hand under a metal panel and held it up while Rhinox fiddled with some wires. It had been two weeks since Emerald's arrival and frankly, little had changed. She did brighten things up a bit with her youthful energy and she'd taken the whole 'you're on earth and may never return home' ordeal rather well. Then again, so far she'd been having a good time. She'd made friends with Cheetor, she hadn't fought Predacons yet (nor would she be allowed to. She didn't know the first thing about fighting.) And everyone had been very nice to her, save Dinobot, but then stinkin' ex-preds didn't count.

"I miss bein' young," he sighed.

Rhinox paused in his work and gave him a look.

He stared at him incredulously and Rattrap shrugged with a goofy smile. He'd been hoping Rhinox would agree with him, but then he didn't really expect that kind of an answer.

"Aw, never mind me. You finished wid' dat connection yet?"

"Almost," Rhinox mumbled and fiddled a bit more, then withdrew his hand and Rattrap closed the metal flap.

"There. That ought to keep the Predacons at bay."

Rattrap sighed and looked up at the sky. Emerald was doing loops, but he wasn't really watching her.

"I dunno if Preds are da real problem," he muttered, loud enough for Rhinox to hear.

An unspoken, shared worry settled over them both.

---

Tarantulas hit his lab console so hard he gave himself a slight electric shock. It didn't do anything to improve his mood so he hit it again and got the same result.

"AHH!"

He rubbed his sore claw and glared at the computer screen.

Displayed across it were heightened alien readings. Only his computer had detected them so far - it'd be a while before the two bases realized it. They were on their way here, again, but he wasn't prepared. He was unsure in what form they'd arrive and what they intended doing. Their attempt to sterilize earth had failed in wiping them out and in fact had only enhanced some of the Beast Warriors. So, they must know this and are therefore sending in something else to deal with the transformers specifically. But what?

When the green femme bot had arrived two weeks ago, he thought her pod might be a vessel carrying something alien as it landed at a very strange time. All the pods were supposed to have come down with the quantum surge.... But it had been nothing but a somehow delayed pod with nothing in it but a small femme which had so far shown no signs of being alien.

"What are you sending?" he murmured. Of course, nothing answered him.

The silence wrapped around him and he fidgeted with his claws for a moment. Suddenly, he froze and his optics slowly brightened.

It hit him.

"Ohhhh!" he cried and slammed the console again, but this time just out of his sudden revelation. The minor shock he received jerked him into action. He turned away from the computer and scuttled over to Emerald's pod. He crouched beside it and examined the strange symbol he'd noticed on it two weeks back. Megatron had ordered he destroy the pod, but now he was glad that he hadn't.

"Oh ho ho! So THAT'S why you're so late!" he said to the empty pod and giggled like a greedy, spoilt child over a box full of chocolates.

He jumped to his feet again.

"There is work to be done," he uttered and returned to his computer.

---

Megatron twiddled his thumbs and sighed. Blackarachnia was up to something, Tarantulas was no where in sight, Rampage was especially rebellious of late and Waspinator had been behaving strangely ever since Dinobot stole the disks.

Dinobot. Of all his current dilemmas, Dinobot was one of the worst. He didn't doubt that Blackarachnia was hiding something. He suspected she'd had something to do with the destruction of his back-up files, but for now he'd let it go and just keep an eye on her. But Dinobot was more difficult. Had he passed the disks onto the Maximals? What would they do with them? Or, perhaps even worse, he hadn't passed them on...he was using, or planning on using them for his own purposes.

He felt a headache coming along and he groaned. He didn't need this anxiety.

"What I need is a nice relaxing bath," he murmured and arose from his 'throne'. But something stopped the great tyrant. He narrowed his optics and stared at his computer screen, which was flickering ominously. There was something that materialized on the screen, but its image was interrupted by grey masses of dots in horizontal bands which ran up the screen, preventing him from identifying it. He approached it tentatively, uncomfortably aware of the eerie and heavy silence in the room. The crackling and buzzing of the computer startled him slightly and left him feeling uneasy, but he ignored the gnawing fear and followed his curiosity until he was standing directly in front of it.

He strained to make sense of the glimpses he caught of the image which was struggling to show itself. The fact that the computer was behaving strangely gave him some hint that it was receiving distant and unusual signals. The noise of the computer suddenly grew louder and the screen sputtered into lengthy pauses of black and then, quite clearly, he saw a symbol which he recognized appear on the screen. It was only there for a second and a half, and afterwards the screen died completely and the computer shut itself down. But...he saw it.

The symbol...it was haunting. He remembered it, but he could not recall where from. One thing he did know for sure, though, was that it was alien.

"Someone is trying to tell me something," he whispered almost inaudibly. He didn't expect it was a warning, more like a foreboding. It was, no doubt, what had been occupying Tarantulas. Then, it all came to Megatron at once. The symbol had been on the pod, he'd left the pod with Tarantulas and...

"Drat," he said irritably and realized it was time to change his focus from Dinobot to a certain spider...

---

The sun was beginning to set and the Maximals were finishing their jobs for the day. Cheetor returned from scout duty, Rhinox and Rattrap finished upgrading the autoguns and Emerald have exhausted herself doing loops and somersaults in the air.

That evening, Tigatron and Airazor returned from their long stay away from the Axalon with some exciting news. The couple had been beaming and there was a brief confusion as to what could be making them so happy. Optimus called a meeting and everyone was expecting some great discovery they'd made on their travels. Perhaps they'd found an energon source? Had they discovered a collection of intact pods that needed attention?

What they told them was that they'd discovered pockets of trees and scattered animals, but that was not what was the primary cause of their happiness. Tigatron announced that he and Airazor had decided to bond. In Cybertronian terms, bonding was when two transformers become a pair, a couple - in human terms, they'd be engaged.

Considering the two had had an ongoing relationship, it should not have come as a surprise to the Maximals, but it did. Cheetor broke the incredulous silence that followed Tigatron's statement by saying: "Well, that calls for a celebration!" Optimus took over after that and agreed that tonight they'd hold a small celebration for the couple. Cheetor dug up some of his music, Rhinox moved the tables and chairs in the control room and Rattrap fiddled with the lights so that they each shone a different colour (ah, the joys of coloured plastic sheets!) Tigatron and Airazor were sent to a secluded area of the base while the Maximals set up.

That was what Emerald was doing now. She was decorating the interior with her own collection of pot plants (mainly flowers) which she'd kept in her room. They now sat on the shelves, consoles and the tables that had been moved to the perimeter of the room to make space for dancing. Cheetor became the evening's D-J and put on the most romantic music he had (which wasn't very romantic, but at least he was trying). Emerald felt a curious sense of excitement. She felt happy for her friends, even though she'd hardly gotten to know them. Yet, something deep inside of her stirred. A curious sense of longing. She felt even a tiny bit sad, because she wished that she had someone like Tigatron. He seemed so gentle and caring, and it was obvious he loved Airazor very much.... Oh, she was being silly. She shrugged it aside and tried to get in with the spirit of the evening.

When Tigatron and Airazor were led into the room, they were pleasantly surprised. Cheetor switched on the music, Rattrap dulled the lights and everyone clapped and cheered for them (except for Dinobot - he was sitting in the back of the room with a resigned yet strangely nostalgic smile).

The couple were urged onto the dance floor and they began a slow, flowing movement, locked in each others arms, eyes gazing at one another. Rhinox was sitting beside Cheetor, who was setting up the music playlist on the computer. Emerald was standing next to Optimus, opposite them, watching the couple.

She noted the look of absolute contentment on Airazor's face. She appeared one of the happiest people Emerald had ever seen in that moment. She sighed wistfully and glanced past them at Rhinox, who nodded at her with a smile.

"They make a beautiful couple, don't they Optimus?" she said somewhat absently.

"They certainly look happy."

"Optimus?"

Optimus was gazing at the dancing couple and nodded.

"Mmm?"

"Have you ever...have you ever loved someone?"

He looked down at the tiny femme with an unreadable  expression.

"Well, a long time ago, when I was a little older than you, I thought so. I was so wrapped up in the idea of it all, I blew it out of proportion. I was young and inexperienced so the relationship didn't last, but I'll never forget the emotions I felt at that time." He looked back at the dancers with that soft, glazed appearance a person has when remembering something with fondness.

She nodded and looked at the floor, feeling strangely insecure. It was difficult to imagine Optimus ever being her age. As long as she'd known him, he'd always been...just Optimus. Wise, mature and sure of himself.

The music ended and a new, more lively track began. Tigatron and Airazor changed their pace and Airazor giggled as they glided along the floor in quick, lively movements. Transformer dancing was very acute, systemized and seemingly flawless. Every part of their bodies moved in sync with each other and it was beautiful to observe.

Emerald laughed cheerfully and looked across the room at Dinobot. Dinobot snorted but she could see he was holding back a grin. Her gaze moved along and she caught Rattrap's eye. He was leaning against the wall, arms folded, relaxed and content.

"Yo, Big Bot!" They both turned to Cheetor. Cheetor was standing, doing a little mock-jiggle.

"Remember this? I know, it's not such an old dance, but it was really big when we left Cybertron!"

Optimus laughed heartily.

"Yes, yes I remember that. What was it called?"

Cheetor danced over to him, much to the amusement of Rhinox was was chuckling away.

"It was called The Mechbot Jive," he said, raising his eyebrows with a playful grin.

Emerald giggled as Cheetor and Optimus tried to remember the moves together, correcting each other as they went along, all in fun, of course.

She looked back across the room at Rattrap, who was chuckling too.

Something inside of her moved and she froze and just stared at him. An overwhelming sense of familiarity and warmth settled over her. Ajax...Rattrap - she'd known him all her life. She remembered him even from her earliest days. When Rhinox went to fetch something, or was busy, he'd tell her stories and would make her laugh. He never treated her like a kid, but like an individual. She liked that.

She liked him.

A thought struck her and immediately made her nervous. Her eyes darted over to Uncle Rhinox, who was watching her intently. He seemed to understand what she was thinking and nodded slowly with a small smile. She bit her lip and turned back to Rattrap. Cautiously, she made her way across the back of the room to him, keeping to the shadows and out of the way of the limelight where Tigatron and Airazor were dancing.

Rattrap was no longer looking at her when she came up next to him. He was the smallest bot out of the Maximals until she came. Dinobot teased her about being almost a foot shorter than 'the vermin' and four feet shorter than himself, but she didn't care.

"Rattrap?"

He turned and looked down at her.

"Yeah?"

Her eyes were wide and anxious.

"I was...kinda...well I was wondering if..."

"You wanna dance?"

Her spark did the equivalent of a heart skipping a beat.

She nodded.

He smiled calmly.

"You sure Uncle Green don't mind? I have a bad history of steppin' on dames' feet."

She giggled.

"I'm sure he won't mind."

He took her arms gently and she blushed. Luckily the dance was playful and lively, not slow and romantic, or she might have melted on the spot.

They didn't move in any specific way, they just danced the way they wanted to and in actual fact, she wasn't paying all that much attention to what she was doing. She was trying to hide the fact that her cheeks were burning and calm the nervous feeling inside. All her life she'd felt a small affection for Rattrap, but something happened that night. Something changed and suddenly, she felt quite something different towards him. It made her feel both happy and unsettled, but for the time being she was just letting things flow. She enjoyed the sensation of the music, the warmth, the general, pleasant atmosphere and danced blissfully unaware of the approach of the aliens, that would later destroy everything.