Chapter Text
It had been a month since the sit-down. Despite that the two heads of the households were edgy when it came to sharing company, they had made peace manageable. There would be a moment when the wolf and vampire disagreed, and the vicinity they were in was filled with threatening growls and warning snarls. Before a fight could occur however, their mates would sit them back down and scold them.
Pixie still carried her friendship with Rhea, and she cherished it more than ever. Without Rhea walking into her life, Primus knew so many things would have been different.
"Pixie!" Rhea bound happily over to their afterschool tutoring session, plopping into the chair. "Guess what!"
"What do Ay guess?" Pixie asked.
Rhea looked around before telling Pixie to lean in for a whisper. "Radio asked to court me! And wanna know the best part?"
"What?" A giddy smile swept across the femme's lips, excited for Rhea.
"I told him about me, and he still accepted me! Radio said that 'it didn't change the way he saw me'. Well, I mean, he kinda found out – long story – but same difference! Isn't that great?!” She was gushing in absolute happiness, hardly able to sit still. Pixie congratulated her friend, happy for her. "We're gonna go to the junior prom together and it'll be great!"
Rhea continued for a while as she did her homework with Pixie guiding her for any help that she needed. In her spark, Pixie wanted that same thing, but from Helios. Ever since he came out of the hospital a while ago, he had viewed Pixie differently. Of course, being a gentlemech, he never voiced it out loud or became rude. Pixie pretended that she didn't notice it, but in all reality, it screamed that something was up.
As the date for their junior prom kept getting closer, not only was Rhea excited, so was Pixie; excitement, however, in a different format. From afar, Pixie could see mechs and femmes alike approach Helios about the subject and making subtle suggestions and hints. For every bot that wanted to ask Helios out, Pixie's list of bots 'Who I Want Gone' grew longer. Helios was hers and hers alone!
With three orns left, Pixie came close to giving up hope. She idly drew on her datapad, making it seem like she was working in her mathematics class. She sprang out of her chair in relief when the releasing bell went off and she scurried out of the room. Like all after schools, she went to the library and waited for Rhea.
Surprisingly, Radio came in her place with Helios in tow. Radio pushed Helios forward. "He has something to talk to you about, but he's a shy little glitch-mouse about it."
"Am not." Helios immediately protested, energon rising to his cheeks.
Radio snickered. "Well, I'm off. See you two around!" The mech left with a small skip, eager to go somewhere unmentioned. Helios cleared his vents and Pixie's attention was on him. "Well, since Radio threw me under Omega Supreme, might as well say it. Will you go to junior prom with me?"
Pixie was shocked her was actually asking her. After several torturous cycles of watching practically everyone else in school ask Helios out, he had declined just to come around and ask her. Pixie's wings fluttered excitedly, visor glowing softly.
"Yes'm. Ay'd love ta go wiff ya, Heelie." Helios beamed.
"Oh, thank Primus," he whispered, cheeks getting red once more. "I was afraid you'd... you'd already be going with someone."
"Who would Ay go wiff? Yer da only one on ma mind," Pixie said without thinking. She slapped her servos to mouth, faceplates getting redder than Helios' were. He chuckled, pulling her servos away, lacing them into his.
"I'm the only mech you think about...?" he asked softly. Pixie was lost for words, so she simply nodded. Looking around, Helios saw there was hardly anyone else in the library. He stepped closer to her. "You've been the only bot on my mind since I got here. You're beautiful, Pixie. Simply beautiful."
Pixie could tell that everything he said was true; and that warmed her spark. She smiled softly, stretching her digits just to have them scooped up by Helios. Together they walked down the hall, servos clasped. Whispers and stares accompanied them to the double doors at the front of the building. He turned to her, smiling.
"I'll see you tonight. 19:00, okay?"
"What fer?"
"Dinner and a show," he said simply before transforming and heading home. Pixie beamed to herself before hurrying home, eager to tell Rhea everything that had happened.
-
"Rhe-Rhe! Guess what! GUESS WHAT!"
"Pixie, you're going to make me deaf! Stop shouting!"
Pixie was huddled in her quarters, snuggled into her lounge chair with a portable monitor less than six inches from her face.
"Ay can't help it! AY'M EXCITED!"
"Pixie, stop shouting!"
"HELIOS ASKED MEH TAH DA JUNIOR PROM!"
"SHUT UP! NO WAY!"
"YES WAY! AN' HE'S TAKIN' MEH TAH AH MOVIE TA NIGHT!"
"PIXIE, THAT IS THE GREATEST THING IVE EVER HEARD!"
Three loud bangs came from the other side of the wall.
"Pixie, stop yelling or I am going to take that away!"
"Sorreh, Carrier," Pixie called back, giggling madly. Pixie turned her attention back to her friend, beaming at her.
"So, are you gonna kiss him tonight?"
Pixie kept chatting with Rhea as the time kept coming closer and closer, getting ready along the way. Helios had sent her details about dinner but kept the movie a secret. Telling her creators about the date had Prowl smiling softly as he hugged his daughter and pressed a kiss to her helm. "Are you excited?"
"M-hm! Vereh! An' nervous."
"There is no need for you to be nervous. You'll be having too much fun to even notice you're nervous. I promise."
Pixie smiled at her Carrier, optics briefly passing the scarred slash on his cheek. Guilt washed over her as she stepped forward and kissed his cheek apologetically.
"Since dis es yer first date, we are gonna have ah chat b'fore ya leave." Jazz said as he gestured his creation to the couch. Pixie sat upon it, curious.
"What kind o' chat?"
"Dere comes ah time where tha bots who are in love want ah sparklin’." The vampire started, grinning when Pixie's face flushed. "Ay'm nat sayin' get sparked. Primus, no. Nat fer ah few vorns. Ya like Helios, right?" Pixie nodded, helm bowed bashfully.
"Well, should ya git romantic, yer gonna feel... hot. Vampires have terrible drives as is so one lil’ kiss could make ya want more. If he says no, stop. If ya say no, Primus himself cannot stop meh from killin' 'im if he don't stop." The femme frowned at the crudeness in which the statement was voiced, but Helios would never take advantage of her. And if he did, she was strong enough to force him to stop.
"The point your Sire is trying to make is that you've grown into a beautiful, young femme. As an adult, new things come into play like responsibility and your reproduction systems. The more you are with Helios, the stronger the urge to interface will be." Pixie turned into a brighter red. Prowl stood by his mate, taking his servos. "You start small, holding servos and bird kisses. You're trying each other out. Then, say a month passes and you're starting to feel more secure with him."
Jazz pulled Prowl flush against his own frame in a close embrace.
"You aren't at the point to feel sure enough of interfacing, but you are close. Your spark beats faster, you'll feel a hot sensation down there, but you aren't ready. As you progress, the temptations spring up. Sometimes they're noticeable, other times they may not. They can be subtle gestures," Jazz slid his servos up and down Prowl's side, rubbing at his hips, as Prowl stroked his mate's arms. "Or they can be plainly obvious."
Pixie slightly squirmed, trying to avoid watching her Creators touch each other. As educational this was, it was a little disturbing. And it didn't help her fantasies of Helios romancing her.
"Whether you are ready to be berthed is up to you. Helios cannot say you are ready if you feel like you are not. If he oversteps a boundary, let him know otherwise he's going to find it okay."
"Let meh know if 'e does. Ay can set 'im straight fer ya." Pixie shook her helm in amusem*nt at her Sire.
Time approached and Pixie was out the door with Helios at her side. Jazz and Prowl watched the pair leave; the vampire was slightly uneasy, especially with the look Helios gave him. It was a short stare and Jazz knew that Helios knew who he was. Jazz wanted nothing more than to stalk his creation to make sure Helios wouldn't pull anything funny, but Pixie would be more than infuriated if she found out he was following them. The look he was given was hard, but a flicker of pain flashed through his optics. If Jazz had the power to read minds, he would have guessed that Helios was remembering the night Jazz had slaughtered his Creators and siblings.
"We have to trust him." Prowl's voice broke their silence. "Pixie can restrain him enough to be able to flee if he tries to harm her."
Jazz nodded. He felt Prowl press against his back and idly stroking his hips. "Ay hope dat won't be da case."
-
Helios led Pixie to their dinner, a restaurant that looked like it was worth a pretty penny. She looked around in awe as their waiter led them to a booth before leaving to allow them a moment to order.
"Oh, my Primus..."
"Have you not been here before?" Helios asked with a slight helm tilt.
She shook her helm. "Mah creatahs were neva big on eatin' out."
"Well, I'm sure you'll like the services here. My Creators would take us here every week. Such great memories were made here."
"Realleh?"
The waiter came back. "Are you ready to order?"
"I'll go ahead and have my usual."
Pixie looked at the menu. She hardly ate but might as well order something. "Ay'll try... this one. Please."
The waiter scribbled down their order. "I'll be back with complimentary drinks and later your orders."
"Helios, dis place is amazin'," Pixie whispered, unable to stop looking around. Everything here was interesting. The mechs and femmes, the smells, the decor, but mostly the snippets of conversations she picked up on. A couple fighting, a family trying to have a nice dinner, a birthday party off in the corner, one waiter complaining to another, the list went on and on. What world had she been living in? This place was fantastic. How had she missed it?
"So, you've never been here before?" Helios asked her as the waiter brought back two normal sized Energon cubes and set them down before both of them.
"Ay told ya, we don't get out much. But dis place is so interestin'," Pixie said earnestly. Helios laughed, smiling.
"I'm glad you like it."
They chatted for a while before their dinner was brought out. Pixie couldn't believe how much she's eaten. Probably more in that groon than she'd eaten in her entire life.
The best part though was the mechs and femmes that came over to talk to them. Well, Helios, but Pixie didn't mind at all. Everyone was friendly and modest. Shaking Helios' servos and giving her a friendly smile. The way her Sire had depicted the world to her was nothing like she was seeing it. How could she have been so blind to all the good? Why had she only seen the bad? Was it Helios or was it something else? It was hard to tell, but whatever it was, Pixie was happier than she'd ever been before. Helios was happy too. All smiles and laughs. Once or twice their servos touched as they reached for things and instead of pulling away, he'd take her servo into his and gently rub the back of it. The gesture was so subtle yet meant so much. He really cared. That was enough for Pixie.
-
The cinema they'd gone and seen had been very funny. Pixie had never been to a theater before. The screen was bigger than any other one she'd ever seen. And Helios, being the gentlemech he was, didn't laugh at her for being shocked; though she could tell he was highly amused.
Now the pair of them stood on her doorstep. Pixie could feel her Sire's gaze burning into her from the window that overlooked the street. It was hard to ignore, but she managed it.
"Thank ya, Heelie, fer everythin'." Helios smiled.
"Anything for you." His voice was so smooth. It took Pixie a lot of focus not to get lost in it. She watched him gingerly step forward, suddenly more nervous than any other point in the night. Pixie stepped closer too. Jazz's gaze was like fire burning her alive, but she didn't care. Helios closed the gap between them.
His lips melded with hers. The kiss was searing. Stars exploded before her optics as he stepped a little closer, their frames pressing together. A warm feeling starting in her lower abdomen, something she'd never felt before. It was like flames licking up her insides, smoke billowing up her throat, choking her. It was the greatest sensation she'd ever felt before. When Helios pulled away, a wave of desperate need washed over, compelling her to want to grab Helios and kiss him again and again until that burn went again. But she controlled herself and backed away, wings fluttering.
"Good night, Pixie," he said softly, turning away and walking down the steps.
"G'night Helios," Pixie whispered before stepping into the house.
Prowl was the first to greet Pixie when she came in, his soft smiling inviting. "How did it go?"
Pixie sighed magically, walking on clouds as she flopped on the couch. She touched her lips, smiling as she felt Helios' phantom lips against hers. "Ay loved et. Dinner was so yummeh, tha movie was great."
She sighed again.
"Was he a gentlemech?" Prowl asked, quite content his daughter had a splendid time. "Most definiteleh."
"Besides 'im kissin' ya on our doorstep." Jazz growled quietly. Pixie spared her Sire a tired look.
Prowl ignored his mate's comment, sitting by his daughter. "Is he a good kisser?" Jazz gave his mate an incredulous look as Pixie burned red.
"Ay felt... so alive. Et warmed mah spark, felt... warm deep enside." As she said this, Pixie felt that burning heat rise in his abdomen. "So good Ay want more."
Jazz growled. "Beh careful wit' 'im."
The femme gave Jazz an annoyed look. "Ay will, Sire."
~
Helios returned home, content as ever. He entered the darkness of his home, flicking on the lights.
"Helios, my child. I haven't seen you since a little mechling."
Helios jumped, whirling around. "Uncle!"
"That's right. I've come to take you with me, seeing that my brother and his mate are gone. You need to resume your training as a hunter."
The young mech swallowed hard. "Uncle, I can't leave here. Not yet."
His uncle gave him a hard stare. "Why can you not leave?"
"Because, uncle, I have just a few more weeks of school here. You can take me after the school vorn is finished."
The older mech approached his nephew, a servo stroking his helm. "I cannot leave you alone without defense for a few more weeks. I came as soon as I could after what happened to your Creators."
"It has been a month since... since then and I've managed fine. The vampire responsible hasn't come back for me. Please, just let me finish school. And I'll go."
~
The following morning, Helios found Pixie in the library with Rhea and he swallowed a lump down his intake. Right when he asked out the femme of his dreams, his uncle had to drop by. Last he had seen him, his uncle Reefer was a proud hunter. Reefer hunted both vampires and wolves, making him one of the deadliest mechs on Cybertron. It didn't matter what rank of danger the monster was; if he found a vampire or a wolf, they would be killed on the spot, no questions asked. Helios couldn't risk placing Pixie in danger.
When the young mech was close enough, he called out her name. She looked up with a soft smile, but her features morphed into concern at Helios' distraught face. "Pix, we need to talk."
Just the very sound of his voice was unnerving. There was fear within it. Pixie stood up, promising Rhea that she would come back before following Helios. Assured that no one would hear them, Helios began. "Pixie, my uncle wants to take me to Kaon."
Pixie's spark lurched as she stepped forward and took his servos. "What?"
Helios looked into her visor, saddness in the form of tears falling from his optics. He clutched her close, whispering. "Pixie, I think you already know what I am to... to your kind."
Her vents stalled. "I am a hunter and since the orn your Sire killed my family, I knew what you were."
Pixie trembled hard in his hold, unsure if what she was feeling was grief or insecurity. "I don't want to hurt you, but if my uncle so much as sees you, he won't hesitate to kill you. He has killed good and bad vampires without a second thought. And I don't want to watch you die."
Pixie dared to speak, her voice filled with static. "W-Wha's 'is name?"
"Reefer."
In an instant, the energon in her fuel lines dropped to her pedes. Her Sire had taught her about hunters when she was young, explaining why they were dangerous and could not be trusted. Reefer was a name that Jazz would never forget for a reason he had never stated. All Pixie knew was that Reefer was a deadly hunter. And she had to warn her Sire. Helios cupped Pixie's cheek, stroking her with his thumb. "I will go to junior prom with you in two nights, but after that, we cannot be near each other. If my uncle so much as suspects, he won't hesitate to march into school grounds..."
Pixie felt her spark shatter, coolant pouring down her cheeks. She pushed away from Helios, but he grabbed her servo and tugged her back.
"Pixie, I promise I'll come back when I leave at the end of the school vorn. I'll come back and find you."
~~
Rhea couldn't figure out what was wrong. One second Pixie had been sitting next to her and then next she was running as fast as she could - right out the door. What had happened? Sighing, she packed up her things, heading home.
She groaned softly, heading home. It was that time again. Rhea always felt funny the day of. She could feel her internals shifting and turning, almost fighting her. It made her sick. Rhea always was sick the week before and after. Her Carrier said it the Cybertronian half that didn't like becoming part of the werewolf half, so it made her feel like slag half the time. It was horrible. By the time Rhea got home, it was all she could do to not purge her tanks up onto the welcome mat.
Rhea shuffled to her room, throwing herself into her berth. She trembled. Why did it always hurt so much?
A knock from her door brought her away from the pain. She mumbled a noncommittal 'come in' and her Sire walked in. Bumblebee sat down on the edge of her berth, sympathy in his optics as he rubbed her backplates.
"Still sick, honey?"
Rhea nodded, groaning, arms gripping her middle. Despite being too big for it, Bumblebee pulled his daughter into his lap, holding her close.
"I'm sorry, Rhea," he whispered in her audio. He would've given anything for her to be normal like her brother.
"It's okay. Nothing we can do about it," she said softly, her face twisting in agony. She pulled away from Bee, crying as she frame morphed into that of a wolf. Bumblebee hated watching Rhea turn. For him, the transformation was painless and he could it whenever; but for Rhea, being only half wolf, she seemed to change by the laws of the ancients: only on a full moon. Her transformation took longer as well, prolonging her pain and suffering. It simply broke Bumblebee's spark knowing she was like this because of him.
When she was finished turning, Bee turned as well, and together they padded outside, sticking to the shadows. Tonight it would be just them prowling the town, enjoying the night. It was beautiful. The stars were out and dancing through the darkness, shining down on the two of them. The slight breeze ruffled their fur, cooling them down. It was very relaxing being the other ones out; but they weren't. Bumblebee stiffen, sniffing the air.
"Someone's here. Rhea. You need to go. Now," he growled under his breath. Rhea froze. The night was still young. Who would be out to disturb them? Pixie's sire was the only threat, right, and he wasn't even hunting them anymore.
"Who's here?" she whispered, glancing around. Before Bumblebee could reply, a silver flew through the air, just missing Rhea's face. She yelped, scrambling back. Bumblebee growled loudly, snarling at the large mech coming towards them. He was large, with dark red optics and paint job. Weapons of all sorts hung from his sides and back. Another dagger was already in his servo.
"Well well well, two wolves in one night. Won't this be just splendid?" His voice was cruel and full of amusem*nt. Rhea realized after a second what he was referring too and by then it was too late.
Bumblebee lunged at him but he was no match for the mechs brute strength. He was thrown against the wall, a knife lodged in his side, Energon splattering the alley. Rhea howled in fear and rage. She didn't have a clue what she should do, but before she could even try, the mech struck her with a rod. Pain exploded in her side as her frame seized up, electricity dancing through her. The mech laughed cruelly, picking Rhea up by the scruff of her neck.
"You're coming with me, mutt." Rhea couldn't even try to put up a fight. She hurt too much. She could faintly hear her sire howl as she was dragged away, but not long after, Rhea blacked out.
~~
Jazz jumped up, heading to the door. Who was banging on their door at this time of the night? It was mid night cycle. Opening the door, he found Optronix in the upmost distress. Tears streamed down her cheeks and her servos shook horribly.
"Please...please help me. He took my baby... That monster took my baby," she whispered, looking at Jazz like he was her only hope.
Jazz cringed, the stench of wolf lifeblood overwhelming his olfactory sensors. Bumblebee was laid out, still in wolf form, whimpering loudly in pain as the burn from the silver coursed throughout his frame. Had the hunter shoved the dagger deeper, Bumblebee would have most definitely died. Optronix explained to Jazz what had happened from her mate's perspective and the vampire snarled. A new hunter was the last thing they needed.
"Please, Jazz, he took my baby. Help me, please!" She grabbed his forearms, coolant pouring in rivets.
Jazz's gaze turned to her, his ice blue visor flaring. He gave the femme a nod. "Ay'll help ya."
"N-Nix." Bumblebee strained and his mate whirled around, dropping to her knees with her attention on him. "Get... the pack to help him..."
"Last Ay saw yer pack, dey wanted ta keel meh." Jazz growled.
"You can't take him alone." The werewolf growled back. "If you and I are level, he can kill you. Numbers... always overwhelm hunters. We need all the help... we can get."
"But ef 'e gits away, 'e will know da population of yer pack an' come back wit' help. Yer wolves claimed da majoriteh o' Iacon an' dere will beh more ova bloodbath ef ya run."
"Then how do I get Rhea back?"
That was a question no one knew how to answer.
~
"Helios! Get down here!"
The young mech snorted awake, shoving off the blankets and hurrying down the stairs. He paused momentarily, sparing a glance at all the closed doors-the rooms of his family- before meeting his uncle in their basem*nt. He gasped, staggering back at the blue werewolf struggling within Reefer's painful hold.
"Is-Is that...?!"
"Have you never seen a werewolf, Helios?" Reefer clicked his glossa in 'tsk' sounds. "Well, you are going to learn today. This here is a fine canine specimen. Large, bold, tenacious, tough. However, this is a she-wolf. A mere juvenile. See how thin her shape is?"
Rhea yelped painfully as Reefer tugged at her ear.
"Untrained in how to fight. She cries, doesn't growl. She'll die easily, like a coward. But not without humiliation."
Helios felt sick to his tank at his uncle's cruelty, looking upon the she-wolf with pitiful optics. Her blue gaze went to him, burning a gaze into his spark. It was as though she was pleading to be saved. Yet, Helios could have sworn he had seen those optics before. "Shear her."
Helios' caught the shears flying his way, servos fumbling the tool as he widened his optics. "What?"
"Shear her. Get rid of her coat. Without her coat, she will not be able to survive our treatment very long."
"But why? Like you said, she's young. Why do you want to hurt a little femme?" The look his uncle gave him was the upmost disgust.
"They are disgusting creatures. Werewolves and vampires are the worst. You need to know how to kill them. Werewolves first and then the vamp I captured; you'll kill her too. Now," throws the wolf to the ground, holding her there; "shear her." Helios servos shook slightly as he kneeled down. The wolf looked at him and those blue eyes were pleading with him. But then he realized what his uncle had said and it was sinking in.
"You have a vampire?" Reefer grinned cruelly. He snapped a silver collar around the wolf's neck, a chain keeping her tied to the wall. Reefer lead Helios to the back room. In a cage made of unbreakable metal was a small feminine vampire that Helios recognized at once. It was Pixie.
Her visor was red, fangs and talons extended. Her frame was cut up and leaking horribly, pooling at her peds. She snarled as Reefer stepped closer.
"So which do you want first? The mutt or the energon-drinker?" Helios' spark was on the verge of shattering. Pixie's gaze wasn't on him though, it was on the wolf. She looked almost more scared for the beast than for herself.
"Uncle, please, we don't have to-"
"This is apart of your training," he snapped, cutting him off. "Easy-to-kill, low level monsters. This Vamp doesn't even know how to fight properly yet. A few well placed cuts and punches and she was done. Great for practicing on. So, which will you start with, Helios?"
Pixie's helm turned so fast, he heard her neck crack. The red in her visor faded to a dark purple. Her wings trembled and she backed away, mouthing silently,"How could you?"
A few seconds of frantic thinking before he made is choice.
"The-the wolf," he practically whispered. The blue wolf whined and howled, earning her a hard slap to the muzzle.
"Leave 'er alone!" Pixie shouted. She slammed into the bars, making them rattle, but that's all they did. Reefer laughed loudly.
"Pathetic youngling. You can't break through that cage. You don't have the strength or skill." The smile on his face made Helios want to run as far away as possible. Reefer got down on his knees, flattening the wolf down, holding her in place. "Now shear her."
Helios knelt down, clippers in servo, which was shaking worse than before.
"STAPH IT!" Pixie screamed, clawing at the bars. Helios put the shear down and ran it down the wolf's back.
The cry that came from the creature was one that Helios will never be able to forget.
