a snippet of chapter three of atonement's hope
sometimes posting snippets gives me a little bit of a bite to start writing. if this story was a loaf of bread, it would have grown a green, fluffy jacket long ago.
warning, there is a very sappy prime in this snippet. :3
it's not edited yet so forgive my brackets and substitution of names with 'x'. don't want to give too much away. =D
Cordelia wasn’t sure how much time had passed. The night sky was now inky black, more tiny stars having emerged as the night had progressed. She could make out the three characteristic stars that made up Orion’s Belt, shining above her like [think of simile].
She was suspended in that strange in-between of consciousness and sleep, the world around her not seeming quite real. Her eyelashes fluttered against her freckled cheeks as her eyelids quivered open and then closed again. Sounds around her were muffled and deep, as if she was hearing them from underwater. She was vaguely aware of Optimus and X sitting close by, their towering forms a welcome comfort in the deepening night.
“…fatherhood suits you. She has changed you.” X’ regal timbre floated down to her eardrums, rousing her a little more into conscious thought.
She moved, barely a whisper against the smooth material of her sleeping bag. Above her, she heard the tell-tale sound of Optimus’ audio covers spinning, though she could not tell which direction it was in from the sound alone. He emitted a low rumble from deep within his chest, as he always did when he was deep in thought.
A few more quiet seconds passed before he responded to X, heavy with the soft contemplation that Cordelia could sense in the air around them.
“Thank you, X. She is…one of the most remarkable beings I have ever had the honour of knowing. She has changed me in ways I had not thought possible.” He paused, the sound of his audio covers spinning growing louder.
“The war for Cybertron has taken its toll upon my Spark. The loss of comrades, cities, homes, friends. Our very planet…barren and dark, now nothing more than a fractured husk, floating along like a lecherous parasite in Earth’s orbit. Ravaged and dishonoured by a shapeshifting imposter and her instruments of destruction.
“I hardened myself to it all. The loss, the pain of seeing my Autobot brethren fall to the Decepticons under whom they fought on my command. My failure to save Cybertron and to keep the AllSpark from Megatron’s grasp. All that moved through my processors was the next mission, the next punch in the fight. How I could keep my Autobots safe, even when all seemed lost.
“In following the AllSpark to this planet, I unknowingly changed the course of my life and that of Cordelia’s.
“Those first few weeks…she changed me more in that time than in the last fifteen years. I saw myself changing before my very optics. It surprised me greatly, and if I am being completely honest, frightened me as well. Fear was not an emotion I was accustomed to when it came to myself. Fear for my Autobots? Constantly. Fear for the human populace of this planet? Undoubtedly.
“But the fear that clenched around my Spark about the health, safety and overall wellbeing of this…tiny, tiny human who had literally fallen into my hand – that was something completely new to me. She was…all but broken. Almost completely crushed between the weight of all she was carrying. She held herself so tightly, making herself as small as she possibly could.
“She was so, so small. Underweight, alone and completely terrified. I immediately felt an urge to protect her. I felt this…tremendous pull to keep her safe, to take her in my hands and shield her from all that she had suffered. A mere child enduring what she had…it was unforgivable.
“In growing to love her, in protecting her, she unlocked a part of myself that I had kept hidden for millennia. The part of me that dared to hope, that dared to care for something other than the outcome of the war. A purpose to keep going, to keep fighting for the promise of a better future. Not just for my Autobots anymore. No. For her. She has allowed me to be ‘Optimus’ again, as opposed to ‘Optimus Prime’. That is a gift that I can never repay, but I will spend the rest of my life loving her. Protecting her. Nourishing her. Creating a world in which she can sleep safely without having to look over her shoulder for encroaching dangers. A world in which I can be the father she has always deserved.”
Hot tears prickled at the back of Cordelia’s eyes, rendering her vision into a watery panorama of the surrounding meadow and campfire as she refused to let them fall. She worked on keeping her breathing steady, attempting to replicate a realistic imitation of sleep. She buried her nose and mouth beneath the lip of her sleeping bag so that half of her face was concealed. She felt her lips morph into a wide and natural smile, one that had seemed to bloom up from her very heart.
Optimus chuckled then, a low, comforting sound that she could feel in her ribcage.
“So, despite my long and convoluted explanation, my answer to your statement is simply; yes. Yes she has changed me. She has taught me the value of tenderness over strength. She has given me the gift of hope. She has made my life richer for the love and support she has shown me. To call her my daughter is an honour of the highest standing.”
-- something i'm working on.