Shaping You - 7 Weaving Threads
“It’s okay!” Jazz caught Prowl in his arms before his humiliated consort could flee. “Ya didn’t forget yerself, Prowl. Ya fuelled, that’s all.”
“I made a porcineacon of myself,” Prowl counter. It broke Jazz’s spark to hear the self-hatred in his consort’s voice.
“Hardly,” he argued and stroked Prowl’s chevron. “Ya ate yer fill. No shame in that. The way yer armour’s cut, it don’t see like was meant to fuel at all.”
“Since I cannot help myself, it was designed to stop me from over indulging,” Prowl replied.
“Is takin’ more than three sip o’ energon o’er indulging?” Jazz asked.
“If it makes me grotesque?” Prowl asked as means of answer. “Yes.”
“Y’re not grotesque,” Jazz replied. “Yer gorgeous. Voluptuous. Every one o’ yer curves is perfection.”
“My curves are just brands of my excesses,” Prowl said, flicking his servo over his thigh with disgust. Jazz smoothed his servo up Prowl’s thigh. “What are your subjects going to think of me?”
“Remember, I told ya, we like our curves in Polyhex,” Jazz replied. He held Prowl’s servos and smiled at him. “They’re gonna be happy to see the Prince Consort is healthy ‘n fertile.”
“Fertile?” Prowl frowned.
“This,” Jazz said, cupping the curve low on Prowl’s belly, the evidence of their lovemaking. Prowl blushed a deep scarlet and Jazz kissed his cheekplate. “Is the sign o’ a fertile frame ‘n a productive bond. ‘M thinkin’ its playin’ a part in yer armour not closing.”
“Oh,” Prowl looked down at himself. “I do not believe I have seen this on any Praxian.”
“Probably ‘cause Praxian armour compacts it,” Jazz replied. “Don’t sound like a pleasant thing to me.”
“I cannot see your Aunt like this,” Prowl sighed. “I am indecent.”
“‘M gonna grab ya a sheet from the berth,” Jazz said. “‘N cover ya up. Won’t bother her, Prowl. Not even a little.”
It bothered Prowl. Jazz could see it and feel it. He went to the berthroom and stripped the top sheet off. When he returned, Jazz wrapped the sheet around Prowl, tying two corners below Prowl’s doorwings. The results were what Jazz would have imagined a witness of the nomadic tribe creating from memory, see receptive mates among the tribesmecha. The traditional wrappers his kinsmecha wore were made from fabrics with bright and intricate patterns. This sheet was more material than a wrapper was meant to have but more would probably make Prowl more comfortable anyways. In calor, Jazz would bring Prowl a proper wrapper and see if it suited him better than conventional armour in the hottest quartexes of the desert.
“What if it falls?” Prowl asked, arms crossed over his chassis.
“It won’t,” Jazz promised. “Y’re gonna find different types o’ wrappers ‘n kilts are common garb here, especially in calor. I learned to tie a wrapper from my ori, seen ‘m fight in one. The knots’ll hold.”
“You... go without armour?” Prowl asked, shocked.
“When it’s proper,” Jazz replied. There was a clear knock at the door. He rose from the couch. “Here she is. Don’t worry Prowl. She’s gonna like ya.”
“I hope so,” Prowl murmured.
“Auntie!” Jazz exclaimed as he opened the door. “Ya outdid yerself.”
“I tried my servo at some more recipes from Praxus,” Dipole explained. “‘N I got pressed energon for everyone. The cantine’s got yer consort’s brew. He likes it dark.”
“Ya ne’er waste yer time figurin’ how mecha like their press,” Jazz smiled. “Lemme take that tray from ya. Must weigh as much as ya.”
“I know you’ll insist,” Dipole replied. “Don’t go and drop it. I won’t ever let you forget.”
“Oh I know,” Jazz laughed. He turned back into the room and saw Prowl watching. “Come inside, Auntie. I wanna introduce ya to Prowl proper.”
“My pleasure,” the femme replied. “Dearspark, are you overheated again? I can get some ice energon for you.”
“Please don’t trouble yourself,” Prowl said, blushing sweetly. “My armour won’t close. I fuelled too much.”
“Ya did not,” Jazz gently corrected as he set the loaded tray on the low table in front of the couch Prowl was sitting on. “That torture device ain’t cut to fit ya. It’s the problem, not ya. Auntie Dipole, this is Prowl, my beautiful consort.”
“I know from my kitchen you like your pressed energon like the enforcers take it,” Dipole declared, pouring a mug for Prowl as Jazz sat down. “You never ordered anything else.”
“I should not have even had that,” Prowl said, taking the cup and smiling a little at the ominously dark fuel. “But my helmaches if I don’t have it. As it was, with just this, that armour barely fit.”
“That’s just cruel,” Dipole said. “Armour isn’t meant to be a punishment. I don’t know what your favourite fuels are yet so I brought a little of this and that to make sure you liked something. I haven’t made steamed lotus buns before. You let me know how what you think of them and I can play around with the recipe.”
“You did not need to trouble yourself for me,” Prowl said. Jazz placed one of the amber custard filled talc buns on a plate for Prowl and gave it to him. “Thank you. These are one of my favourites.”
“What else, Dearspark?” Dipole asked. “Everyone needs their favourites from time to time and they don’t always think to ask for them so I like to know, so I can make sure everyone is taken care of.”
“I like dumplings,” Prowl said. “From any culture. If you take dough and fill it with something, I like it. I have a weakness for rust sticks.”
“There’s a femme in town who makes the best sweets,” Dipole replied.
“Mirror is amazin’,” Jazz agreed. “There’s a line ‘round the block for her shop on Prima-tur.”
“What specifically about Prima-tur?” Prowl asked.
“She sets out trays of treats to sample,” Jazz explained. “Treats mecha on the roughside o’ life can’t afford. She makes sure everyone can have a treat.”
“That is very kind of her,” Prowl said.
At first, Prowl only nibbled at the fuel but Jazz could see Dipole was taking no offence. Prowl was embarrassed he could not fit his armour and nothing Jazz or Dipole or anyone could say would make that go away. But as they spoke, he relaxed a little and Dipole took advantage. She asked him his opinion on different flavours of different fuels and with this be of underhanded guidance, Prowl ate a proper meal. Jazz was relieved. It was more easily done by Dipole then him. He never wanted to see Prowl starve and deny himself again. His consort needed his energy and his vibrancy to help Jazz bring Polyhex back to prosperity. How could Prowl carry a bitlet for him if he was starved? No, they needed to get Prowl comfortable taking his fill of fuel. Ori would have no use for a consort who fainted whenever he was called to work and that was a battle Jazz did not want to fight.
“I’m thinking you have Hotwire coming by for an armour fitting?” Dipole asked.
“Yeah,” Jazz confirmed. He was on his second steamed lotus bun. The silky bun and sweet filling was one of his new favourite fuels. “Even if Prowl’s armour wasn’t out to crush’m, it’s ununtrium. Too heavy ‘n too hot for Polyhex. Don’t know how they didn’t know. They trade out here.”
“They knew,” Prowl replied. “I have no doubt. My originator insisted on ununtrium due to its value. They wished to showcase their wealth using me as their billboard.”
“‘M sorry, Prowl,” Jazz squeezed his servo. Prowl hardly even dipped his doorwings.
“It is an ostentatious waste,” Prowl sighed. “I never wore ununtrium at home. It would have been seen as tacky to wear such armour to the Hall of Justice.”
“What had ya at there?” Jazz asked.
“I was an attache to the Lord of Law,” Prowl explained. “It would have been unsightly of me to serve something as menial as the enforcers.”
“Did ya like it?” Jazz asked.
“Aspects,” Prowl replied. “I would not have dared where ununtrium there. Question of my professionalism due to how I was armoured came up often enough as it was.”
“What didn’t they like?” Jazz asked.
“Me,” Prowl replied. “My originator would come to me raving about some complaint. It did not matter what shape or style of armour I tried. Something about it was always indecent.”
“I think your originator had some frame image issues that he put onto you,” Dipole declared. “You could have be covered from knees to neck and he would found a reason to complain.”
“He did complain,” Prowl murmured. “When he inspected my bonding armour. He wanted it cut lower down my legs but the designer set it was not possible if I was to walk.”
“I don’t think I like that mech,” Dipole grumbled.
Auntie stayed for moral support as Hotwire arrived. They nibbled on the snacks she had brought with her as the detailer had Prowl try on a dozen or more different cuts of girdle and chestplate. It suited the shape of his legs to have the girdle cut high on his hips and would let him move freely and quickly. Jazz did not think Prowl appreciated the newfound mobility yet. The curve of his hips was traced to perfection with none of that ugly, extra padding to make Prowl look straight and shapeless. After much back and forth, they settled on an adjustable waist, set higher at the moment, to make Prowl more comfortable. It too hugged the voluptuous Praxian’s soft belly, rather than squishy it and Jazz liked the subtle display it did of his contributions to his consort. Prowl’s chestplate was entirely revamped. Gone was the flat, crushing plate and in its place was a bumper that hugged his wells and showed off his broad, strong shoulders and wide, proud doorwings. Together, they showed off Prowl’s beautifully lush hourglass shape.
“Are you sure this is acceptable?” Prowl asked after he and Jazz were finally left alone. Jazz nodded his helm.
“It’s armour fit for a prince’s consort,” he replied. Prowl was only wearing the mock up for now. Hotwire would use fine crystals for his headlights and accents. He would not look like a pauper’s consort but neither would he look like a greedy bride.
“There is no season where ununtrium armour is appropriate here?” Prowl asked.
“No,” Jazz replied. “It... ain’t just the weather it’s.... just ain’t somethin’ done here. Ununtrium is for medical use, for construction. It’s too valuable to waste on armour.”
“I am amazed I did not have oil thrown on me,” Prowl sighed.
“Hey,” Jazz held him at the shoulders and reassured his consort. “It ain’t like that.”
“I am sure it was for ones suffering from fuel insecurity,” Prowl replied. “To see a foreign title hunter garbed in precious metal bonding to their war hero prince.”
“It can be melted down,” Prowl said. “Can it not be? Would it be improper for me to donate the armour for the rebuilding efforts?”
“They’d be in awe o’ it,” Jazz replied. He hugged Prowl to him. “How about ya ‘n me take a tour ‘n we can see were the need is greatest. We can see where yer armour ‘n dowry can do the most good.”
“I would like that,” Prowl replied, relaxing into the embrace. “I want to help Polyhex. In every way I can. It is my home now. They are my mechanisms now.”
“Remember how ya said I wasn’t yer dream mech ‘cause yer dream mech was a humourless brute?” Jazz asked.
“Darlin’, I can’t call ya my dream mech either,” Jazz replied. “I might o’ imagined a beauty, ‘n ya are. I might o’ imagined a savant, ‘n ya are. But I could not o’ imagined that Praxus would give me such a generous ‘n devoted angel for my consort.”