(ABANDONED)TFP: Way of the Flame

13

"I-I don't know about this, Miko... this is really high up..." nervously gulping, biting back the face of fear from showing, let alone glinting in her eyes. 

Lena agreed to spend some time with Miko, only so she wouldn't have to stay in that room for more days at a time. Not that Lena wasn't grateful for the room or anything, but she knew Jack and Mrs. Darby would pester her on going outside for a bit. 

Currently, the two sit-in, what Lena was told, a high tech AI car, explaining the self-driving part, at a high mesa top, about to go high speed down the mesa's steep slide. This was what Miko called 'dune bashing' and the dark-skinned teen had no idea what she was in for before she saw the steepness from the top. 

Holding onto the passenger's seat for dear life while Miko smiles excitedly, awaiting her daily quota of adrenaline. "Aw c'mon, Lena! You haven't even tried it yet! Are you ready? Set. Go!" On cue, the car starts tipping forward, speeding down the hill, going over bumps and small ditches. The Japanese exchange student cheers, putting her hands in the air, touching the ceiling. Lena internally screams, scrunching her lips together with her eyes open wide, unable to look away. 

Never being so relieved in these past two weeks when they finally reached the bottom, Lena lets out the breath trapped in her throat. "Yahoo! Let's go again!" Darting her panicked expressing at the 15-year-old sitting next to her, "Or... we can not go again?" shyly suggesting, earning an odd stare from the punk teen. 

Meeping herself quiet was a small defense she learned whenever Lena accidentally spat something unintentional at Leo, causing yet another beating, scolding, or starvation. Unintentionally hugging her knees into her chest again, eyes locked onto the carpeted ground, her hair swooped to her sides blocking her face. 

Humming, speaking sing-song, "Alright, how about we just go for a drive, then?" Perking her head up at the sound. Miko actually listened to her suggestion? That's new. Usually, people downcast her opinion, drowning it in dozens of others that outweigh her own.

Jerking her lips to a small smile, a smile that Miko just happened to see and take a picture of. Becoming aware of that action when Lena heard the faint click of a camera. Quickly turning to the teen, seeing her pink phone out and her mischievous grin. "M-Miko! Delete that right now!" reaching forward to grab the phone, Miko uses one hand to push Lena back on her head and the other distances the phone away. "Nope~ I've already sent it to Jack and Raf~"

Flushed, feeling the heat pool into her cheeks. Cupping her face into her hands, "Not cool, Miko. Not cool." "What? This is the first time I've actually seen you show emotion! Give me one reason not to take a picture for the scrapbook," Huffing.

Now that Miko mentions it. This is the first time in a while that Lena actually felt... a bit happy? Is this joy? Forgetting what most emotions even felt like when she buried them down and started to keep them in check, only letting her sorrows out when her brother was murdered.

Mumbling, "Just...Just warn me next time..."

Squealing, Miko doesn't hesitate to give Lena a giant bear hug, shocking the pyrokinetic, jumping a bit in her seat. "I will!" finishing the unwritten promise. 

An hour or two had passed, neither of them really knew since they weren't keeping track of the time. It was mainly Miko talking and Lena's short responses and, small, reactions. Especially when it came to Miko blasting Slash Monkey. Poor Lena thought she'd go deaf! Although watching Miko perform an 'air guitar solo' was quite amusing. Almost earning a small chuckle. Almost. Just because she let a smile slip, doesn't mean she'll let a laugh. For all Lena knows, Miko could've set up a recorder somewhere!

Bulkhead was surprised that he hasn't gotten any calls from his team about where he and Miko's whereabouts are, let alone Lena who Jack and Nurse Darby were a bit protective over. He knew that boss 'bot was going to have her join Team Prime for her own protection, but currently, he is allowing her to process everything else that has happened in the orphan's life. The ex-wrecker wasn't told anything else besides what Optimus, Arcee, and Wheeljack told Bumblebee and Ratchet. That their guardian treated them crudely and should be placed in proper custody. Although he has a suspicion that Wheeljack is hiding something from him, which is entirely unlike the other wrecker. 

One thing was for certain, staying in his alt-mode all-day is cramping his articulators. Bulkhead found Lena's personality a bit... strange... since the only females he knows are Arcee and Miko. Arcee is the toughest member of Team Prime and then Miko is a true wrecker by spark. So seeing a human as nervous and withdrawn as the dark-skinned girl sitting in his alt-mode is a modification and a foreign display for him. 

Closing her eyes for a moment to calm her beating heart. Never had she had a friendly conversation with a human before. A regular human. Let alone one close to her age. "So, Miko, what happened to those tiny robots from before? Even though I'm still annoyed of you planting three of them in my backpack, I..." piercing her lips for a moment before whispering a 'thank you'. If it weren't for that then Lena probably wouldn't be in the Darby household. In such a colorful room. Being fed. Cared for.  All these unusual feelings from unexpected generosity. 

The rock 'n' roller 15-year-old sat there with a blank face, barely hearing the 'thank you', but with Bulkhead's audio receptors increased, he heard it clear. "Well-uh... sooooo what if I-urm... told-you-that-you're-now-involved-in-an-intergalactic-war-that-may-or-may-not-be-taking-place-on-Earth-and-the-planet-had-almost-been-invaded...twice... okay-maybe-almost-every-day.." speaking so fast that it took Lena a while to fully understand what Miko just said.

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"Sorry... what now? Miko, are you okay? Did you hit your head or something during the guitar solo?"

"No. I'm being serious."