[TF] Uncharted Territory 14/28
Sep. 25th, 2019 07:05 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dracoqueen22Title: Uncharted Territory
Universe: Transformers AR, Flights of Fancy AU
Characters: Blurr/Starscream, Original Human Character(s), Sari Sumdac, Miko Nakadai, Ratchet, Megatron, Rodimus, Red Alert, Others
Rated: M
Enticements: Sexual Content, Harpy/Human Sexual Content
Summary: There were a lot of things Blurr knew with great certainty: his path, his future, his happiness. Then Starscream swooped into his life and turned everything upside down in the best possible way.
Chapter Fourteen
Blurr’s first official race of the season was the first weekend in February, on a sunny, but cool Saturday morning, the ground still wet with dew, and the sky mottled with clouds. He figured Starscream would stay holed up in his dorm the entire room, still convinced he was too ugly to be seen out in public. He’d almost completely shed his winter coat, but the new coat was slower to fill in.
He was still beautiful in Blurr’s opinion, but Starscream was more than a little self-conscious about it. Blurr didn’t push.
Besides, the meet was just an invitational. An introduction to the sort of talent he’d be facing his last season on the team. Not that Blurr was concerned. If there was one thing he was confident about, it was his track skills.
No one could beat him on the field. He was faster than everyone. His legs had earned him this scholarship, had given him a chance when everyone else abandoned him. Running down the track, the wind in his face, was the best feeling in the world. Almost like flying.
Winning was never in question.
“It’s just an invitational,” Coach Sylvester reminded him as Blurr stretched on the sidelines, thinking Starscream would probably be surprised how flexible he was. “Remember that it’s good to have secrets. Win, but let them think they have a chance.”
Blurr laughed and stripped out of his windbreaker, tossing it over the nearest bench. “I’m not that cruel.”
“Cruel would be pretending to lose,” Coach Sylvester said as she clapped him on the shoulder, squeezing with a grip that would make a wrestler blush. “Take it easy. I don’t want you pulling a hamstring or something before Nationals.”
It was, after all, a foregone conclusion Blurr would make it to Nationals. He always did. He always won, too. He always came home with the gold. He had more medals hanging in his wardrobe then he knew what to do with.
He threw her a thumbs-up. “No worries. This is old hat. I know what I’m doing.” They had this same discussion every time, didn’t they?
“You tell me you do, kid. But then you turn around and run helter-skelter over that finish line like I haven’t been trying to teach you something all year,” Coach grumbled as she rubbed at her temples. Her annoyed tone was equally fond, however.
She grumbled for the sake of grumbling these days.
Blurr stretched his arms over his head, working out the last of the tightness. His opponents headed toward the starting line. Time he joined them.
“Good luck out there,” Coach Sylvester said. “Not that you need it. I’m going to check on the others. Just remember what I told you.”
Blurr rolled his neck. “No spoilers. Got it.”
After another pat to the back nearly sent him sprawling, Coach Sylvester jogged away, already hollering at some of Blurr’s juniors who were too busy joking around and not stretching properly. Well, they’d learn when their legs started cramping in the middle of the relay.
Blurr shook his head and loped to the starting line, checking out the competition. Mostly new faces here, he noticed, though a couple he recognized from prior meets. They saw him and frowned, anger darkening their eyes.
Whatever. Jealousy was a powerful thing. They hated him because he was better. Blurr had gotten used to it by now.
He ignored them and took his assigned spot at the innermost lane. His opponents didn’t matter. Just his lane and the finish line 100 meters ahead of him.
Blurr ran them all, the 100, 200 and the 400. He held records in the 100 and the 200, and was just shy of the record for the 400. He was determined however. He’d claim it. Maybe one day, he’d go to the world championship, and beyond that, the International Games. It was a distant dream. The only one he really had, honestly.
Though here lately, that dream started turning red and blue on the edges, filled with the sound of a purring harpy, and his sweet-smelling feathers, and the taste of cinnamon sugared kisses…
Blurr shook his head as the whistle and shouted “on your marks!” urged them into starting positions. He needed to get focused on the task at hand: namely winning, but pretending to put in effort. He crouched against the starting blocks, resting his hands on the synthetic track.
He breathed in and out, centered himself. He closed his eyes, inhaled deeply, felt the track beneath his fingertips.
“Set!”
He bore his feet against the starting blocks, loose and tense all at once.
A whistle shrieked through the air, and Blurr took off, vision tunneling toward the finish line ahead of him, only vaguely aware of the other bodies running beside him. His feet pounded against the track, the wind sluicing over his face, the world a blur of color and sound. He could hear cheering and shouts, but it was secondary to the thud-thud-thud of his runners and the pounding of his heart and the sounds of his breathing.
He remembered only at the last second that he wasn’t supposed to make it look so easy, but then he flew across the finish line, with the second place winner a full half second behind him. Oops.
Blurr slowed to a stop and swept his hands through his hair, unable to stop the grin on his face. Damn, he loved this. Everything about this. Even with sweat slicking his body and the burn in his legs, and the anger slanted his direction. He heard his name over the loudspeakers, announcing his time.
9.72 seconds.
One of his best yet.
“What was that?” Coach Sylvester demanded as she stomped up to him, towel in one hand and waterbottle in the other. “Didn’t I say take it easy?”
Blurr snatched the water and drank from it, wiping the back of his hand over his mouth. “Sorry. I forgot.” He aimed for sheepish, but couldn’t keep a hold of it when pride was bursting over his shoulders. “Guess it’s not in my nature.”
The towel hit him in the face. “If you weren’t such a winner, I’d paddle you.”
Blurr laughed and wiped at the sweat on his face. “I’ll try and be less of a winner on the 200m. Scout’s honor.”
Coach Sylvester rolled her eyes. “You were never a scout.” She folded her arms over her chest. “Besides, I’m quite sure you were showing off for your biggest fan. And I don’t see that changing for the 200m.”
“My biggest fan?”
She tilted her head to the spectators, and Blurr followed her gaze. A huge grin split his lips. There Starscream was, at the front of the pack, a small bubble of space around him as the humans both wanted to keep their distance, but also get close enough to shout their questions at him. Mottled feathers and all, Starscream waved fervently in his direction.
“With a good luck charm like that, no wonder you couldn’t bear to do anything but your best,” Sylvester said with a laugh. She patted him on the shoulder. “Go say hello. The 200m meets aren’t for another ten minutes.”
Blurr supposed that the number of times his coach and fellow teammates had seen Starscream, they’d all gotten used to him.
“You spoil me,” he said.
“Yes, I know.” Coach gave him a push toward the crowd as Blurr slung the towel around his neck.
“Alright, I’m going. Sheesh.”
Blurr broke into a light jog, a squirm of happiness growing in his belly. He ignored the other people shouting his name, though he tossed them a dismissive wave. He had eyes only for Starscream.
“You won!” Starscream said gleefully, throwing his arms up.
Blurr laughed as he came to a stop on the other side of the plastic tape that served as fencing to keep the spectators from flooding the tracks. “I did.” He leaned forward, wishing they weren’t in public so he could kiss Starscream. “I thought you wouldn’t come given that, you know, you’re molting.”
Starscream lifted his shoulders in a shrug and crossed his arms. “I didn’t want to miss the opening of the season.”
Blurr rubbed the towel over his head, to give his hands something to do so he wouldn’t grab Starscream like he wanted. “I’m glad you did. According to my coach, you’re a good luck charm.”
“Of course I am.” Starscream tossed his head, feathers fluttering around his face as he grinned brightly. “And when I come back, I’ll have a surprise for you. But only if you keep winning here.”
Blurr’s gaze slanted toward the other spectators, and he felt his face turn red. He tugged the towel over the top of his head, hiding himself in the fold of it. “If you want me to win, I’ll do it,” he said, and hoped no one caught the quiver in his voice.
Starscream leaned close, the smirk on his face growing, close enough they could kiss if they weren’t in public, and people weren’t watching. “Good,” he purred. “Then I’ll see you at the finish line.”
“Blurr! Get over here!”
He startled and jumped back, tossing a guilty look over his shoulder. Coach Sylvester was waving for him across the way.
“Coming!” he shouted and half-turned back toward Starscream. “Gotta go win now. I’ll see you later?”
Starscream’s tongue flicked across his lips, a move so subtle, and yet it made Blurr’s insides twist with heat. “After the meet,” he promised.
“Blurr!”
“It’s a date,” Blurr said, in a rush, and hurried to Coach Sylvester’s summons, already seeing a chastisement in the storm cloud above her face, as she thrust his water bottle toward him impatiently.
“And what’s with you and the stars in your eyes?” she said with a visible grump.
“No reason.” Blurr chugged half the water and handed both bottle and towel to her. “Don’t be mad, but I’m going to win, okay?”
Coach Sylvester gave him a knowing look. “I figured you would.” She sighed and slung the towel over her shoulder, only to shoo him off. “Go. Line up. Just try and hold back a little, will you?”
Blurr glanced at the sidelines where Starscream waited, cheering along with the others. “I make no promises.”
He did, in fact, win. Not that there was ever any doubt. And while he could have stuck around for the interviews and the photographers and the post-race celebration with the rest of his teammates, he opted out. Coach Sylvester didn’t even push, just dismissed him with a wave, which left him free to take Starscream back to his dorm.
Victory, as it turned out, came with many, many rewards.
~
The problem with going out with Starscream in public wasn’t so much the stares or the crowds of admirers Starscream gathered, it was the almost creepy way HARP always seemed to find them, popping out of nowhere – the bushes once even – to waylay Starscream with a camera and pages upon pages of questions.
It aggravated Blurr. Starscream, by contrast, seemed to find the whole thing vastly amusing.
“Starscream! Hey, Starscream!”
“Great,” Blurr muttered. “It’s your fan club.”
Starscream laughed. “Well, can you blame them? I am one fine specimen.”
Heat stole into Blurr’s cheeks, flushing him pink all over. “That’s not the point,” he said as he rubbed at the bridge of his nose.
“It is to me.” Starscream preened, puffing his chest up, his feathers lifting high as though showing himself off.
“Hey! Wait up!”
It was Sari this time, Blurr realized with a glance over his shoulder. No Miko, so no double-teaming. She was waving her hands in the air, single high ponytail swaying as she jogged toward them, color streaks a bright green.
“Walk faster,” Blurr said, grabbing Starscream’s wrist and giving him a tug.
Starscream outright laughed. “Really? You don’t want to have a little chat?”
“No, I don’t. We’re busy!” Blurr insisted, walking a little faster.
“Dae! Dae Hyeun!”
Blurr whirled around with a growl. “I told you not to call me that!”
Sari skidded to a stop and beamed. “I know. I remember. Blurr.” Her eyes skipped over to Starscream. “Nice to see you again.”
“Nice to see you, too,” Starscream said, amusement thick in his voice. He edged closer to Blurr, nudging him with a feathery arm. “Can we help you?”
Sari clasped her hands behind her back and bounced on the balls of her feet. “What are you doing? Can I join? I just want to ask a few questions. It feels like we never get to finish our interviews.”
“That’s because you never run out of questions,” Starscream said, his lips curled into a big grin. “But we are a little busy.” He tilted his head toward Blurr. “Blurr’s going to introduce me to ice cream!”
“Can I come?” Sari clasped her hands together under her chin and looked up at them with big, innocent brown eyes. “I love ice cream.”
“Of course you do,” Blurr muttered. Was it too much to ask for some alone time with his best friend/boyfriend/possibly lover?
“No,” Starscream said. “We don’t want company.”
“Awww, that’s too bad.” Sari scuffed one foot against the ground. “Oh, well. I wanted to invite you to a welcome ceremony next week. A lot of new members of HARP want to meet you if you want to come. There’s free food and all kinds of things. You could even make some new friends!”
“I have plenty of friends,” Starscream replied with a little laugh. He slung an arm over Blurr’s shoulders, tucking him close. “In fact, I even have a best friend.”
Sari rolled her eyes. “Yeah, but Blurr’s not going to be here forever. You’ve gotta get out more.”
Blurr froze, trapped between blushing and the icy cold reminder of a conversation he’d yet to have with Starscream. The idea that what they had couldn’t last. That Blurr wasn’t always going to be here, and he couldn’t stay and Starscream couldn’t come with him.
“Pft. You don’t know what you’re talking about.” Starscream went a little still against Blurr, his hand gripping tighter. “Besides, I don’t need any new friends. My social calendar is full.”
“Awww.” Sari pouted, but there wasn’t a glimmer of defeat in her eyes. “Well, Blurr knows how to reach me if you change your mind.” She bobbed on her heels, her smile blinding. “I’ll let you two get back to your date now. Have fun!”
“Date?” Blurr spluttered, not because it wasn’t true but because he hadn’t wanted the world to find out. “What are you talking about? This isn’t a date!”
Sari grinned. “Of course it’s not.” She offered them an exaggerated wink and spun around, breaking into a light jog. “See you later!” She tossed a wave over her shoulder, and was gone before Blurr could do more than splutter and turn as red as a tomato. Argh, she was so aggravating.
“You’re cute when you’re flustered,” Starscream murmured, his hand sliding away from Blurr’s shoulder. “You blush, too. I really wish I could kiss you right now.”
Blurr ducked his head and rubbed the side of his nose. “Later.”
“Oh, I plan to,” Starscream purred and tucked his hands behind his back. “But first, you promised me ice cream.”
Blurr shoved his hands into his pockets and tilted his head to the left. “It’s this way. We’re almost there.”
The Soft ‘n Swirl was located in a small shopping center in the college town’s main hub of activity. There were dozens of small shops here, most of them locally owned though McDonald’s golden arches stood tall and proud over the other signs. But here, at least, they were used to the sight of harpies. Or they wouldn’t cause a fuss at any rate. There were enough college students around that most shopowners didn’t blink at the strange or unusual.
Sari’s words nagged at him.
“She’s right, you know,” Blurr said as the cool near-spring wind buffeted them with a burst of pollen. He brushed his hair out of his eyes, lamenting that he’d need a cut soon.
Starscream wiggled his eyebrow feathers. “About what? How beautiful I am?” He chuckled.
“No, though that is true.” Blurr sucked his bottom lip into his mouth. “I meant, about the fact I won’t be here forever. I don’t actually live here, you know. I’m just in Kaon to go to school.”
“And after?” Starscream asked.
Blurr sighed. “After, I have to find a job and a place to live. I have to start being an adult. That sort of thing.”
“You already have a job lined up?”
He wished he did. That would make it so much easier. But Blurr’s ambitions had always begun and ended with running. All else had been secondary. His current degree wasn’t even a passion. It was just a necessary means to an end.
“No, but--”
“Do you have to leave to find one?” Starscream asked.
Blurr’s forehead crinkled. “I don’t suppose so.”
“Then I don’t see what the problem is,” Starscream grumbled as he folded his arms, his feathers forming a curtain around him. “Obviously you could stay. If you wanted to.”
Blurr gnawed on the inside of his cheek. “I mean, I guess that’s true. I’d have to find a job around here, a place to live…” Soft ‘n Swirl came into view, without so much as a long line to serve as a distraction. Blurr stopped and Starscream did also, turning to face him.
“Is there somewhere else you want to be?” Starscream asked, his voice earnest, and with a hint of the desperation Blurr felt clogging his own throat.
“Well… No.” He didn’t know why all he could think about was going back to his hometown. There was nothing for him there. Not friends, not family. Nothing. Why was this even an issue? He stepped up to the counter, trying to calm the sudden raging of his heart.
Starscream’s shoulders bobbed. “Problem solved then. Just stay here.” He leaned over Blurr, staring across his head at the display. “Can we pick our ice cream now?”
Blurr supposed for Starscream it was that simple. If Blurr wanted to stay, then he should. Maybe Blurr was making this more complicated than it needed to be. But if he stayed in Kaon, would he get to run? Kaon was too small to have a team beyond the university.
If he stayed in Kaon, he’d abandon any possibility of competing in the Internationals someday. He couldn’t train here. No one would sponsor him out of Kaon. He’d have to live elsewhere for even the slimmest possibility of a chance. Sure, Blurr was hot stuff here in central-Cybertron. But on the east coast? The west coast? Competition was different.
“Sure,” Blurr said.
Starscream grinned and bounced forward, nose and hands pressed to the glass as he peered in at all the different tubs. “There are so many flavors!” he declared, a touch of awe in his voice.
“There are toppings, too,” Blurr said as he joined Starscream at the counter, already knowing what he wanted. He figured it would take Starscream a bit longer. “And you can pick a cup or a bowl or a waffle cone or a sugar cone.”
“Really?” Starscream’s tail twitched, like an excited puppy wagging.
Blurr smiled. It was so easy to do around Starscream. “Get whatever you want.”
A pleased purr echoed in Starscream’s throat. “There’s so much,” he murmured.
“Can I help you?” the young man behind the counter asked, his blue eyes dancing with amusement.
“I’ll have two scoops of mint chocolate chip on a waffle cone,” Blurr answered and gestured to Starscream with a thumb. “Also, whatever he wants. Plus as many napkins as you’re allowed to give me.”
The cashier chuckled. “We have those little moist towelettes, too. You want some of those?”
“Please.” Did Blurr sound desperate? Probably. But all he could think about was sticky feathers and a whiny Starscream later. Clean up supplies were a must.
“Sure thing.”
Johnny, as the name tag read, got to work preparing Blurr’s ice cream while Starscream scuttled back and forth in front of the counter, reading flavor tags aloud as though ranking his interest by the way the words rolled off his tongue. As soon as Johnny handed the cone over the counter, he gave Starscream an expectant look.
“Have you decided, sir?” he asked, and Blurr had to give him credit. He kept a completely straight face considering his other customer was a seven foot tall bird with a human face.
Starscream nibbled on his bottom lip, gave Blurr a limpid look, and nodded. “Could I have a scoop of butter pecan and a scoop of strawberry fields in a sugar cone cup with sprinkles on top?”
Oh, Primus. Blurr didn’t bother to conceal the grin on his face. Starscream was ever so predictable. He liked sweet, he liked colorful, and he ate strawberries like they were a food group on their own. It was unfairly adorable, and Blurr’s heart gave another pitter-patter of affection.
“Anything else?” Johnny asked as he started to put together the bowl for Starscream.
Starscream shifted his weight, gave Blurr another look, and finally shook his head. “No, thank you.”
He could be polite when he wanted.
Johnny chuckled, and didn’t seem at all bothered by the way Starscream watched him prepare the ice cream, his eyes big and round. Blurr didn’t fail to notice, either, that Johnny gave Starscream much larger scoops than he’d given Blurr, and piled far more sprinkles on top than they usually doled out. Blurr wasn’t much of a sprinkle fan, but he knew they were conservative with their toppings, usually sprinkling them on a tablespoon at a time like it really made a difference in the long run.
“Here you go!” Johnny stuck a spoon in the bowl and handed it to Starscream. “Enjoy!”
He pulled off his gloves with a snap of rubber and started ringing them up as Starscream sniffed at his ice cream. “It smells really sweet,” he murmured. His tongue slipped out, touching the very top of the pink mound covered in sprinkles. “And cold.”
“Thus the reason it’s called ice cream,” Blurr said with a laugh. He paid and dropped several bills into the tip jar. Rewarding kind cashiers was always a must for him. Especially the ones who didn’t treat Starscream like a second-class citizen. “Do you like it?”
Starscream turned the bowl around in his grip, eyed it like he would a particularly misshapen bundle of cracker jack, and then took a big bite out of the strawberry. His eyes went very wide as he rolled the taste around in his mouth. His throat bobbed as he swallowed and he stuck his tongue out, covered in pink as it was.
“Cold,” he said, and then licked his lips. “But good.”
Blurr grinned and marked ice cream down for another win. Cotton candy, no. Ice cream, yes. He tipped his head toward the little park in the center of the shopping area, a dense collection of trees and bushes and walking trails. “I’m glad. Come on. Let’s go.”
Starscream matched pace with him. “Where are we going?” he asked as he struggled to manipulate the tiny, plastic spoon.
“Somewhere we won’t have so many eyes on us.” Blurr licked around his own cone, capturing melting drips before they trailed sticky-sweet over his fingers.
“Hmm. And why wouldn’t you want us to be seen, I wonder?” Starscream purred. His tongue flicked over his lips, his eyes turning dark and hungry.
Blurr rolled his eyes. “Nothing that risque, you heathen.”
Starscream laughed.
They ducked into the cooler, chillier dim of the park. Overhead, the tall, thick trees made for a dense canopy. Sun peeked through the leaves, creating dappled shadows across the ground. The path itself was cobblestone and narrow, but it wound through the park, occasionally offering benches and small grassy areas for people to take a rest. Blurr led Starscream through a huge rhododendron that had been pruned to create a tunnel, and on the other side, was one of the largest trees in the entire park. The ground beneath it, however, was perfect for a nice, quiet place to rest.
Blurr parked himself under the tree, up against the bark, and wriggled to get comfortable. “Join me?” he asked, patting the empty space beside him.
“It would be much more comfortable in the tree,” Starscream said, but it wasn’t a refusal since he plopped himself down next to Blurr. “Though I know your smooth, small human hands aren’t that great for climbing, so I’ll let it pass.”
“Gee thanks.” Blurr attacked his ice cream with gusto, leaning in to absorb some of Starscream’s heat because he could. Distantly, they heard the sound of chatting and other people walking the paths, but most visitors rarely ventured this far inward. They wanted to walk, not stop at a dead end.
“You’re welcome.” Starscream preened and licked all around his ice cream again.
Blurr tried not to watch the movements of his tongue, but it was impossible to ignore how long and agile it was. His insides tightened with heat, pants growing a little uncomfortable around the groin, as he imagined what that tongue could do elsewhere. He already knew how well Starscream kissed.
Inevitable progression, his groin whispered.
“I’ll have to bring Roddy here someday,” Starscream mused aloud as he lick, lick, liiiicked at his ice cream. He’d love the raspberry.”
“Roddy?” Blurr repeated. Of all the names Starscream had mentioned, this one wasn’t familiar to him.
Starscream lapped long and broad around the strawberry. “Mmm. He’s the liege consort. Another smol, except he’s mostly red and orange. You two would probably get along. He’s a little brat.”
“Hey!”
Starscream grinned. “But he loves raspberries, and he’s curious about humans, too.”
“He’s the reason you wanted the raspberries at the farmer’s market.”
“Yeah. Though it was for my liege to give to him. A romantic surprise.” Starscream winked and took a big bite out of the butter pecan, making an unfairly erotic noise of satisfaction in his throat. “This is so cold, but so good. Humans are so inventive. It’s amazing.”
Blurr leaned back against the tree. “We have our moments.” He licked at his ice cream, savoring each minty-fresh bite. There was no better mint chocolate chip than that which was dyed green. Hands down. He tilted a little to the left, pressing his arm against Starscream’s. “What about you?”
Starscream nibbled on the edge of his sugar cone cup. “Hm?”
“You’re not from Kaon either, right?” Blurr prodded. “Are you leaving anytime soon?”
“No. I’m here to stay.” Starscream licked around the edge of the cone, a bit of ice cream on the corner of his lips. “I’m never going to back to Vos.”
“Why not?”
Starscream sighed and focused hard on his ice cream. “It was not a kind place to live. I couldn’t be me.”
Blurr understood that all too well. “What about your family?”
“My carrier and sire would not be too happy to see me, not after I abandoned my so-called mate.” Starscream swirled the spoon around the bowl. “I have a younger brother, however. I think about him often. If I had the chance to see Skywarp again, I would.”
“I have siblings, too,” Blurr said. He nibbled on the edge of his waffle cone. “My parents are like yours, though probably worse. They tossed me out, didn’t give me a choice in leaving. My older sister might have protested, but I wasn’t around to hear it. My younger sister is too young to have an opinion.” He chewed on his bottom lip, that squeeze around his heart returning.
He missed his family. He knew he couldn’t go back, not unless he was willing to hide part of himself and live unhappily. But he missed having a family, a home, a place he belonged. He missed holidays and birthdays and the room he’d grown up in, and tickling his younger sister and arguing with his older sister. He missed when his father used to love him, when both his parents showed up to his meets to cheer him on, the family superstar. He missed how it used to be.
Starscream rested a free hand on his knee, fingers giving him a light squeeze. “Family is complicated,” he said.
Blurr snorted a laugh over the lump in his throat. “Tell me about it.” He held out his ice cream cone to Starscream. “Want to try this one?”
“I guess you’re not afraid of getting my germs then,” Starscream teased, but he leaned in and gave it a long lick, only to wrinkle up his nose. “Ugh. Why does it taste like your toothpaste?”
“That’s the mint.” Blurr chuckled.
“Ugh,” Starscream repeated and bodily twisted away from Blurr as if to ward off the terrible ice cream. “Why would you want to have a dessert that tastes like toothpaste?”
Blurr popped the entirety of what was left in his mouth, crunching down hard on cone and ice cream. “Because it tastes good,” he mumbled around the mouthful.
“Mannerless cretin.” Starscream hunched over his own ice cream and hurriedly spooned several bites of it into his mouth. “Clearly, of the two of us, I have better taste.”
“You have no sense of adventure,” Blurr declared. He hooked his chin over Starscream’s feathery shoulder. “Can I have a taste of yours?” he asked, and pointedly stuck out his tongue, waiting for a spoonful to be fed to him.
Instead, he got a kiss, one that tasted like strawberries and butter pecan. Starscream’s tongue was cold as it shoved into his mouth, but so sweet. Blurr sighed into the kiss, forgetting for a moment that they were literally out in public and anyone could peer through the brush and see them.
“How was that?” Starscream asked against his lips.
“Risky,” Blurr said as he swept his tongue over his lips. “But sweet.”
Starscream chuckled and pressed their foreheads together. “I think we should go back to your room now.”
Blurr swallowed thickly as a flush of heat spread through his body. “Yeah, I do, too.”
They scrambled up from beneath the tree and made a beeline for the exit, Starscream gobbling down the rest of his ice cream at a rapid pace. They paused by the trash cans stationed near the main entrance to throw away their trash, ever environmentally cautious.
The first time Starscream realized humans were so rude as to toss their garbage on the ground wherever they pleased, he’d been appalled. Blurr tossed in the wrapper from his cone, and remembered the receipt he’d shoved into his pocket. He didn’t need to keep it and if he didn’t take it out now, it would end up in the wash later, and a mess he’d have to pull out the lint trap.
“Hold on. Let me toss this, too.” Blurr dug the receipt from his pocket and frowned. Something else was crumpled with it. Important? He pulled the paper free and smoothed it out.
‘Johnny,’ it said. ‘Call me.’ And then it listed a number.
Blurr’s face went crimson.
“What?” Starscream asked.
Blurr crumpled up the number and tossed it into the trash with the receipt. He had no need for either. Johnny had been cute, and his type if he hadn’t already had Starscream. Logic dictated he should have called Johnny because Starscream wasn’t a long-term plan. But frag logic. Blurr knew what his heart wanted.
“Nothing I need.” Blurr hooked his arm around Starscream and tugged the harpy closer. He had everything he wanted right here.
***
Universe: Transformers AR, Flights of Fancy AU
Characters: Blurr/Starscream, Original Human Character(s), Sari Sumdac, Miko Nakadai, Ratchet, Megatron, Rodimus, Red Alert, Others
Rated: M
Enticements: Sexual Content, Harpy/Human Sexual Content
Summary: There were a lot of things Blurr knew with great certainty: his path, his future, his happiness. Then Starscream swooped into his life and turned everything upside down in the best possible way.
Blurr’s first official race of the season was the first weekend in February, on a sunny, but cool Saturday morning, the ground still wet with dew, and the sky mottled with clouds. He figured Starscream would stay holed up in his dorm the entire room, still convinced he was too ugly to be seen out in public. He’d almost completely shed his winter coat, but the new coat was slower to fill in.
He was still beautiful in Blurr’s opinion, but Starscream was more than a little self-conscious about it. Blurr didn’t push.
Besides, the meet was just an invitational. An introduction to the sort of talent he’d be facing his last season on the team. Not that Blurr was concerned. If there was one thing he was confident about, it was his track skills.
No one could beat him on the field. He was faster than everyone. His legs had earned him this scholarship, had given him a chance when everyone else abandoned him. Running down the track, the wind in his face, was the best feeling in the world. Almost like flying.
Winning was never in question.
“It’s just an invitational,” Coach Sylvester reminded him as Blurr stretched on the sidelines, thinking Starscream would probably be surprised how flexible he was. “Remember that it’s good to have secrets. Win, but let them think they have a chance.”
Blurr laughed and stripped out of his windbreaker, tossing it over the nearest bench. “I’m not that cruel.”
“Cruel would be pretending to lose,” Coach Sylvester said as she clapped him on the shoulder, squeezing with a grip that would make a wrestler blush. “Take it easy. I don’t want you pulling a hamstring or something before Nationals.”
It was, after all, a foregone conclusion Blurr would make it to Nationals. He always did. He always won, too. He always came home with the gold. He had more medals hanging in his wardrobe then he knew what to do with.
He threw her a thumbs-up. “No worries. This is old hat. I know what I’m doing.” They had this same discussion every time, didn’t they?
“You tell me you do, kid. But then you turn around and run helter-skelter over that finish line like I haven’t been trying to teach you something all year,” Coach grumbled as she rubbed at her temples. Her annoyed tone was equally fond, however.
She grumbled for the sake of grumbling these days.
Blurr stretched his arms over his head, working out the last of the tightness. His opponents headed toward the starting line. Time he joined them.
“Good luck out there,” Coach Sylvester said. “Not that you need it. I’m going to check on the others. Just remember what I told you.”
Blurr rolled his neck. “No spoilers. Got it.”
After another pat to the back nearly sent him sprawling, Coach Sylvester jogged away, already hollering at some of Blurr’s juniors who were too busy joking around and not stretching properly. Well, they’d learn when their legs started cramping in the middle of the relay.
Blurr shook his head and loped to the starting line, checking out the competition. Mostly new faces here, he noticed, though a couple he recognized from prior meets. They saw him and frowned, anger darkening their eyes.
Whatever. Jealousy was a powerful thing. They hated him because he was better. Blurr had gotten used to it by now.
He ignored them and took his assigned spot at the innermost lane. His opponents didn’t matter. Just his lane and the finish line 100 meters ahead of him.
Blurr ran them all, the 100, 200 and the 400. He held records in the 100 and the 200, and was just shy of the record for the 400. He was determined however. He’d claim it. Maybe one day, he’d go to the world championship, and beyond that, the International Games. It was a distant dream. The only one he really had, honestly.
Though here lately, that dream started turning red and blue on the edges, filled with the sound of a purring harpy, and his sweet-smelling feathers, and the taste of cinnamon sugared kisses…
Blurr shook his head as the whistle and shouted “on your marks!” urged them into starting positions. He needed to get focused on the task at hand: namely winning, but pretending to put in effort. He crouched against the starting blocks, resting his hands on the synthetic track.
He breathed in and out, centered himself. He closed his eyes, inhaled deeply, felt the track beneath his fingertips.
“Set!”
He bore his feet against the starting blocks, loose and tense all at once.
A whistle shrieked through the air, and Blurr took off, vision tunneling toward the finish line ahead of him, only vaguely aware of the other bodies running beside him. His feet pounded against the track, the wind sluicing over his face, the world a blur of color and sound. He could hear cheering and shouts, but it was secondary to the thud-thud-thud of his runners and the pounding of his heart and the sounds of his breathing.
He remembered only at the last second that he wasn’t supposed to make it look so easy, but then he flew across the finish line, with the second place winner a full half second behind him. Oops.
Blurr slowed to a stop and swept his hands through his hair, unable to stop the grin on his face. Damn, he loved this. Everything about this. Even with sweat slicking his body and the burn in his legs, and the anger slanted his direction. He heard his name over the loudspeakers, announcing his time.
9.72 seconds.
One of his best yet.
“What was that?” Coach Sylvester demanded as she stomped up to him, towel in one hand and waterbottle in the other. “Didn’t I say take it easy?”
Blurr snatched the water and drank from it, wiping the back of his hand over his mouth. “Sorry. I forgot.” He aimed for sheepish, but couldn’t keep a hold of it when pride was bursting over his shoulders. “Guess it’s not in my nature.”
The towel hit him in the face. “If you weren’t such a winner, I’d paddle you.”
Blurr laughed and wiped at the sweat on his face. “I’ll try and be less of a winner on the 200m. Scout’s honor.”
Coach Sylvester rolled her eyes. “You were never a scout.” She folded her arms over her chest. “Besides, I’m quite sure you were showing off for your biggest fan. And I don’t see that changing for the 200m.”
“My biggest fan?”
She tilted her head to the spectators, and Blurr followed her gaze. A huge grin split his lips. There Starscream was, at the front of the pack, a small bubble of space around him as the humans both wanted to keep their distance, but also get close enough to shout their questions at him. Mottled feathers and all, Starscream waved fervently in his direction.
“With a good luck charm like that, no wonder you couldn’t bear to do anything but your best,” Sylvester said with a laugh. She patted him on the shoulder. “Go say hello. The 200m meets aren’t for another ten minutes.”
Blurr supposed that the number of times his coach and fellow teammates had seen Starscream, they’d all gotten used to him.
“You spoil me,” he said.
“Yes, I know.” Coach gave him a push toward the crowd as Blurr slung the towel around his neck.
“Alright, I’m going. Sheesh.”
Blurr broke into a light jog, a squirm of happiness growing in his belly. He ignored the other people shouting his name, though he tossed them a dismissive wave. He had eyes only for Starscream.
“You won!” Starscream said gleefully, throwing his arms up.
Blurr laughed as he came to a stop on the other side of the plastic tape that served as fencing to keep the spectators from flooding the tracks. “I did.” He leaned forward, wishing they weren’t in public so he could kiss Starscream. “I thought you wouldn’t come given that, you know, you’re molting.”
Starscream lifted his shoulders in a shrug and crossed his arms. “I didn’t want to miss the opening of the season.”
Blurr rubbed the towel over his head, to give his hands something to do so he wouldn’t grab Starscream like he wanted. “I’m glad you did. According to my coach, you’re a good luck charm.”
“Of course I am.” Starscream tossed his head, feathers fluttering around his face as he grinned brightly. “And when I come back, I’ll have a surprise for you. But only if you keep winning here.”
Blurr’s gaze slanted toward the other spectators, and he felt his face turn red. He tugged the towel over the top of his head, hiding himself in the fold of it. “If you want me to win, I’ll do it,” he said, and hoped no one caught the quiver in his voice.
Starscream leaned close, the smirk on his face growing, close enough they could kiss if they weren’t in public, and people weren’t watching. “Good,” he purred. “Then I’ll see you at the finish line.”
“Blurr! Get over here!”
He startled and jumped back, tossing a guilty look over his shoulder. Coach Sylvester was waving for him across the way.
“Coming!” he shouted and half-turned back toward Starscream. “Gotta go win now. I’ll see you later?”
Starscream’s tongue flicked across his lips, a move so subtle, and yet it made Blurr’s insides twist with heat. “After the meet,” he promised.
“Blurr!”
“It’s a date,” Blurr said, in a rush, and hurried to Coach Sylvester’s summons, already seeing a chastisement in the storm cloud above her face, as she thrust his water bottle toward him impatiently.
“And what’s with you and the stars in your eyes?” she said with a visible grump.
“No reason.” Blurr chugged half the water and handed both bottle and towel to her. “Don’t be mad, but I’m going to win, okay?”
Coach Sylvester gave him a knowing look. “I figured you would.” She sighed and slung the towel over her shoulder, only to shoo him off. “Go. Line up. Just try and hold back a little, will you?”
Blurr glanced at the sidelines where Starscream waited, cheering along with the others. “I make no promises.”
He did, in fact, win. Not that there was ever any doubt. And while he could have stuck around for the interviews and the photographers and the post-race celebration with the rest of his teammates, he opted out. Coach Sylvester didn’t even push, just dismissed him with a wave, which left him free to take Starscream back to his dorm.
Victory, as it turned out, came with many, many rewards.
The problem with going out with Starscream in public wasn’t so much the stares or the crowds of admirers Starscream gathered, it was the almost creepy way HARP always seemed to find them, popping out of nowhere – the bushes once even – to waylay Starscream with a camera and pages upon pages of questions.
It aggravated Blurr. Starscream, by contrast, seemed to find the whole thing vastly amusing.
“Starscream! Hey, Starscream!”
“Great,” Blurr muttered. “It’s your fan club.”
Starscream laughed. “Well, can you blame them? I am one fine specimen.”
Heat stole into Blurr’s cheeks, flushing him pink all over. “That’s not the point,” he said as he rubbed at the bridge of his nose.
“It is to me.” Starscream preened, puffing his chest up, his feathers lifting high as though showing himself off.
“Hey! Wait up!”
It was Sari this time, Blurr realized with a glance over his shoulder. No Miko, so no double-teaming. She was waving her hands in the air, single high ponytail swaying as she jogged toward them, color streaks a bright green.
“Walk faster,” Blurr said, grabbing Starscream’s wrist and giving him a tug.
Starscream outright laughed. “Really? You don’t want to have a little chat?”
“No, I don’t. We’re busy!” Blurr insisted, walking a little faster.
“Dae! Dae Hyeun!”
Blurr whirled around with a growl. “I told you not to call me that!”
Sari skidded to a stop and beamed. “I know. I remember. Blurr.” Her eyes skipped over to Starscream. “Nice to see you again.”
“Nice to see you, too,” Starscream said, amusement thick in his voice. He edged closer to Blurr, nudging him with a feathery arm. “Can we help you?”
Sari clasped her hands behind her back and bounced on the balls of her feet. “What are you doing? Can I join? I just want to ask a few questions. It feels like we never get to finish our interviews.”
“That’s because you never run out of questions,” Starscream said, his lips curled into a big grin. “But we are a little busy.” He tilted his head toward Blurr. “Blurr’s going to introduce me to ice cream!”
“Can I come?” Sari clasped her hands together under her chin and looked up at them with big, innocent brown eyes. “I love ice cream.”
“Of course you do,” Blurr muttered. Was it too much to ask for some alone time with his best friend/boyfriend/possibly lover?
“No,” Starscream said. “We don’t want company.”
“Awww, that’s too bad.” Sari scuffed one foot against the ground. “Oh, well. I wanted to invite you to a welcome ceremony next week. A lot of new members of HARP want to meet you if you want to come. There’s free food and all kinds of things. You could even make some new friends!”
“I have plenty of friends,” Starscream replied with a little laugh. He slung an arm over Blurr’s shoulders, tucking him close. “In fact, I even have a best friend.”
Sari rolled her eyes. “Yeah, but Blurr’s not going to be here forever. You’ve gotta get out more.”
Blurr froze, trapped between blushing and the icy cold reminder of a conversation he’d yet to have with Starscream. The idea that what they had couldn’t last. That Blurr wasn’t always going to be here, and he couldn’t stay and Starscream couldn’t come with him.
“Pft. You don’t know what you’re talking about.” Starscream went a little still against Blurr, his hand gripping tighter. “Besides, I don’t need any new friends. My social calendar is full.”
“Awww.” Sari pouted, but there wasn’t a glimmer of defeat in her eyes. “Well, Blurr knows how to reach me if you change your mind.” She bobbed on her heels, her smile blinding. “I’ll let you two get back to your date now. Have fun!”
“Date?” Blurr spluttered, not because it wasn’t true but because he hadn’t wanted the world to find out. “What are you talking about? This isn’t a date!”
Sari grinned. “Of course it’s not.” She offered them an exaggerated wink and spun around, breaking into a light jog. “See you later!” She tossed a wave over her shoulder, and was gone before Blurr could do more than splutter and turn as red as a tomato. Argh, she was so aggravating.
“You’re cute when you’re flustered,” Starscream murmured, his hand sliding away from Blurr’s shoulder. “You blush, too. I really wish I could kiss you right now.”
Blurr ducked his head and rubbed the side of his nose. “Later.”
“Oh, I plan to,” Starscream purred and tucked his hands behind his back. “But first, you promised me ice cream.”
Blurr shoved his hands into his pockets and tilted his head to the left. “It’s this way. We’re almost there.”
The Soft ‘n Swirl was located in a small shopping center in the college town’s main hub of activity. There were dozens of small shops here, most of them locally owned though McDonald’s golden arches stood tall and proud over the other signs. But here, at least, they were used to the sight of harpies. Or they wouldn’t cause a fuss at any rate. There were enough college students around that most shopowners didn’t blink at the strange or unusual.
Sari’s words nagged at him.
“She’s right, you know,” Blurr said as the cool near-spring wind buffeted them with a burst of pollen. He brushed his hair out of his eyes, lamenting that he’d need a cut soon.
Starscream wiggled his eyebrow feathers. “About what? How beautiful I am?” He chuckled.
“No, though that is true.” Blurr sucked his bottom lip into his mouth. “I meant, about the fact I won’t be here forever. I don’t actually live here, you know. I’m just in Kaon to go to school.”
“And after?” Starscream asked.
Blurr sighed. “After, I have to find a job and a place to live. I have to start being an adult. That sort of thing.”
“You already have a job lined up?”
He wished he did. That would make it so much easier. But Blurr’s ambitions had always begun and ended with running. All else had been secondary. His current degree wasn’t even a passion. It was just a necessary means to an end.
“No, but--”
“Do you have to leave to find one?” Starscream asked.
Blurr’s forehead crinkled. “I don’t suppose so.”
“Then I don’t see what the problem is,” Starscream grumbled as he folded his arms, his feathers forming a curtain around him. “Obviously you could stay. If you wanted to.”
Blurr gnawed on the inside of his cheek. “I mean, I guess that’s true. I’d have to find a job around here, a place to live…” Soft ‘n Swirl came into view, without so much as a long line to serve as a distraction. Blurr stopped and Starscream did also, turning to face him.
“Is there somewhere else you want to be?” Starscream asked, his voice earnest, and with a hint of the desperation Blurr felt clogging his own throat.
“Well… No.” He didn’t know why all he could think about was going back to his hometown. There was nothing for him there. Not friends, not family. Nothing. Why was this even an issue? He stepped up to the counter, trying to calm the sudden raging of his heart.
Starscream’s shoulders bobbed. “Problem solved then. Just stay here.” He leaned over Blurr, staring across his head at the display. “Can we pick our ice cream now?”
Blurr supposed for Starscream it was that simple. If Blurr wanted to stay, then he should. Maybe Blurr was making this more complicated than it needed to be. But if he stayed in Kaon, would he get to run? Kaon was too small to have a team beyond the university.
If he stayed in Kaon, he’d abandon any possibility of competing in the Internationals someday. He couldn’t train here. No one would sponsor him out of Kaon. He’d have to live elsewhere for even the slimmest possibility of a chance. Sure, Blurr was hot stuff here in central-Cybertron. But on the east coast? The west coast? Competition was different.
“Sure,” Blurr said.
Starscream grinned and bounced forward, nose and hands pressed to the glass as he peered in at all the different tubs. “There are so many flavors!” he declared, a touch of awe in his voice.
“There are toppings, too,” Blurr said as he joined Starscream at the counter, already knowing what he wanted. He figured it would take Starscream a bit longer. “And you can pick a cup or a bowl or a waffle cone or a sugar cone.”
“Really?” Starscream’s tail twitched, like an excited puppy wagging.
Blurr smiled. It was so easy to do around Starscream. “Get whatever you want.”
A pleased purr echoed in Starscream’s throat. “There’s so much,” he murmured.
“Can I help you?” the young man behind the counter asked, his blue eyes dancing with amusement.
“I’ll have two scoops of mint chocolate chip on a waffle cone,” Blurr answered and gestured to Starscream with a thumb. “Also, whatever he wants. Plus as many napkins as you’re allowed to give me.”
The cashier chuckled. “We have those little moist towelettes, too. You want some of those?”
“Please.” Did Blurr sound desperate? Probably. But all he could think about was sticky feathers and a whiny Starscream later. Clean up supplies were a must.
“Sure thing.”
Johnny, as the name tag read, got to work preparing Blurr’s ice cream while Starscream scuttled back and forth in front of the counter, reading flavor tags aloud as though ranking his interest by the way the words rolled off his tongue. As soon as Johnny handed the cone over the counter, he gave Starscream an expectant look.
“Have you decided, sir?” he asked, and Blurr had to give him credit. He kept a completely straight face considering his other customer was a seven foot tall bird with a human face.
Starscream nibbled on his bottom lip, gave Blurr a limpid look, and nodded. “Could I have a scoop of butter pecan and a scoop of strawberry fields in a sugar cone cup with sprinkles on top?”
Oh, Primus. Blurr didn’t bother to conceal the grin on his face. Starscream was ever so predictable. He liked sweet, he liked colorful, and he ate strawberries like they were a food group on their own. It was unfairly adorable, and Blurr’s heart gave another pitter-patter of affection.
“Anything else?” Johnny asked as he started to put together the bowl for Starscream.
Starscream shifted his weight, gave Blurr another look, and finally shook his head. “No, thank you.”
He could be polite when he wanted.
Johnny chuckled, and didn’t seem at all bothered by the way Starscream watched him prepare the ice cream, his eyes big and round. Blurr didn’t fail to notice, either, that Johnny gave Starscream much larger scoops than he’d given Blurr, and piled far more sprinkles on top than they usually doled out. Blurr wasn’t much of a sprinkle fan, but he knew they were conservative with their toppings, usually sprinkling them on a tablespoon at a time like it really made a difference in the long run.
“Here you go!” Johnny stuck a spoon in the bowl and handed it to Starscream. “Enjoy!”
He pulled off his gloves with a snap of rubber and started ringing them up as Starscream sniffed at his ice cream. “It smells really sweet,” he murmured. His tongue slipped out, touching the very top of the pink mound covered in sprinkles. “And cold.”
“Thus the reason it’s called ice cream,” Blurr said with a laugh. He paid and dropped several bills into the tip jar. Rewarding kind cashiers was always a must for him. Especially the ones who didn’t treat Starscream like a second-class citizen. “Do you like it?”
Starscream turned the bowl around in his grip, eyed it like he would a particularly misshapen bundle of cracker jack, and then took a big bite out of the strawberry. His eyes went very wide as he rolled the taste around in his mouth. His throat bobbed as he swallowed and he stuck his tongue out, covered in pink as it was.
“Cold,” he said, and then licked his lips. “But good.”
Blurr grinned and marked ice cream down for another win. Cotton candy, no. Ice cream, yes. He tipped his head toward the little park in the center of the shopping area, a dense collection of trees and bushes and walking trails. “I’m glad. Come on. Let’s go.”
Starscream matched pace with him. “Where are we going?” he asked as he struggled to manipulate the tiny, plastic spoon.
“Somewhere we won’t have so many eyes on us.” Blurr licked around his own cone, capturing melting drips before they trailed sticky-sweet over his fingers.
“Hmm. And why wouldn’t you want us to be seen, I wonder?” Starscream purred. His tongue flicked over his lips, his eyes turning dark and hungry.
Blurr rolled his eyes. “Nothing that risque, you heathen.”
Starscream laughed.
They ducked into the cooler, chillier dim of the park. Overhead, the tall, thick trees made for a dense canopy. Sun peeked through the leaves, creating dappled shadows across the ground. The path itself was cobblestone and narrow, but it wound through the park, occasionally offering benches and small grassy areas for people to take a rest. Blurr led Starscream through a huge rhododendron that had been pruned to create a tunnel, and on the other side, was one of the largest trees in the entire park. The ground beneath it, however, was perfect for a nice, quiet place to rest.
Blurr parked himself under the tree, up against the bark, and wriggled to get comfortable. “Join me?” he asked, patting the empty space beside him.
“It would be much more comfortable in the tree,” Starscream said, but it wasn’t a refusal since he plopped himself down next to Blurr. “Though I know your smooth, small human hands aren’t that great for climbing, so I’ll let it pass.”
“Gee thanks.” Blurr attacked his ice cream with gusto, leaning in to absorb some of Starscream’s heat because he could. Distantly, they heard the sound of chatting and other people walking the paths, but most visitors rarely ventured this far inward. They wanted to walk, not stop at a dead end.
“You’re welcome.” Starscream preened and licked all around his ice cream again.
Blurr tried not to watch the movements of his tongue, but it was impossible to ignore how long and agile it was. His insides tightened with heat, pants growing a little uncomfortable around the groin, as he imagined what that tongue could do elsewhere. He already knew how well Starscream kissed.
Inevitable progression, his groin whispered.
“I’ll have to bring Roddy here someday,” Starscream mused aloud as he lick, lick, liiiicked at his ice cream. He’d love the raspberry.”
“Roddy?” Blurr repeated. Of all the names Starscream had mentioned, this one wasn’t familiar to him.
Starscream lapped long and broad around the strawberry. “Mmm. He’s the liege consort. Another smol, except he’s mostly red and orange. You two would probably get along. He’s a little brat.”
“Hey!”
Starscream grinned. “But he loves raspberries, and he’s curious about humans, too.”
“He’s the reason you wanted the raspberries at the farmer’s market.”
“Yeah. Though it was for my liege to give to him. A romantic surprise.” Starscream winked and took a big bite out of the butter pecan, making an unfairly erotic noise of satisfaction in his throat. “This is so cold, but so good. Humans are so inventive. It’s amazing.”
Blurr leaned back against the tree. “We have our moments.” He licked at his ice cream, savoring each minty-fresh bite. There was no better mint chocolate chip than that which was dyed green. Hands down. He tilted a little to the left, pressing his arm against Starscream’s. “What about you?”
Starscream nibbled on the edge of his sugar cone cup. “Hm?”
“You’re not from Kaon either, right?” Blurr prodded. “Are you leaving anytime soon?”
“No. I’m here to stay.” Starscream licked around the edge of the cone, a bit of ice cream on the corner of his lips. “I’m never going to back to Vos.”
“Why not?”
Starscream sighed and focused hard on his ice cream. “It was not a kind place to live. I couldn’t be me.”
Blurr understood that all too well. “What about your family?”
“My carrier and sire would not be too happy to see me, not after I abandoned my so-called mate.” Starscream swirled the spoon around the bowl. “I have a younger brother, however. I think about him often. If I had the chance to see Skywarp again, I would.”
“I have siblings, too,” Blurr said. He nibbled on the edge of his waffle cone. “My parents are like yours, though probably worse. They tossed me out, didn’t give me a choice in leaving. My older sister might have protested, but I wasn’t around to hear it. My younger sister is too young to have an opinion.” He chewed on his bottom lip, that squeeze around his heart returning.
He missed his family. He knew he couldn’t go back, not unless he was willing to hide part of himself and live unhappily. But he missed having a family, a home, a place he belonged. He missed holidays and birthdays and the room he’d grown up in, and tickling his younger sister and arguing with his older sister. He missed when his father used to love him, when both his parents showed up to his meets to cheer him on, the family superstar. He missed how it used to be.
Starscream rested a free hand on his knee, fingers giving him a light squeeze. “Family is complicated,” he said.
Blurr snorted a laugh over the lump in his throat. “Tell me about it.” He held out his ice cream cone to Starscream. “Want to try this one?”
“I guess you’re not afraid of getting my germs then,” Starscream teased, but he leaned in and gave it a long lick, only to wrinkle up his nose. “Ugh. Why does it taste like your toothpaste?”
“That’s the mint.” Blurr chuckled.
“Ugh,” Starscream repeated and bodily twisted away from Blurr as if to ward off the terrible ice cream. “Why would you want to have a dessert that tastes like toothpaste?”
Blurr popped the entirety of what was left in his mouth, crunching down hard on cone and ice cream. “Because it tastes good,” he mumbled around the mouthful.
“Mannerless cretin.” Starscream hunched over his own ice cream and hurriedly spooned several bites of it into his mouth. “Clearly, of the two of us, I have better taste.”
“You have no sense of adventure,” Blurr declared. He hooked his chin over Starscream’s feathery shoulder. “Can I have a taste of yours?” he asked, and pointedly stuck out his tongue, waiting for a spoonful to be fed to him.
Instead, he got a kiss, one that tasted like strawberries and butter pecan. Starscream’s tongue was cold as it shoved into his mouth, but so sweet. Blurr sighed into the kiss, forgetting for a moment that they were literally out in public and anyone could peer through the brush and see them.
“How was that?” Starscream asked against his lips.
“Risky,” Blurr said as he swept his tongue over his lips. “But sweet.”
Starscream chuckled and pressed their foreheads together. “I think we should go back to your room now.”
Blurr swallowed thickly as a flush of heat spread through his body. “Yeah, I do, too.”
They scrambled up from beneath the tree and made a beeline for the exit, Starscream gobbling down the rest of his ice cream at a rapid pace. They paused by the trash cans stationed near the main entrance to throw away their trash, ever environmentally cautious.
The first time Starscream realized humans were so rude as to toss their garbage on the ground wherever they pleased, he’d been appalled. Blurr tossed in the wrapper from his cone, and remembered the receipt he’d shoved into his pocket. He didn’t need to keep it and if he didn’t take it out now, it would end up in the wash later, and a mess he’d have to pull out the lint trap.
“Hold on. Let me toss this, too.” Blurr dug the receipt from his pocket and frowned. Something else was crumpled with it. Important? He pulled the paper free and smoothed it out.
‘Johnny,’ it said. ‘Call me.’ And then it listed a number.
Blurr’s face went crimson.
“What?” Starscream asked.
Blurr crumpled up the number and tossed it into the trash with the receipt. He had no need for either. Johnny had been cute, and his type if he hadn’t already had Starscream. Logic dictated he should have called Johnny because Starscream wasn’t a long-term plan. But frag logic. Blurr knew what his heart wanted.
“Nothing I need.” Blurr hooked his arm around Starscream and tugged the harpy closer. He had everything he wanted right here.
