heavyweaponsbot | 3rd Transmission

You never told me of this.

[... not really. This is Ironhide we're talking about.]

[It's not like he purposefully hid his past before now. It's just that so few people ever seemed to ask...]

Um.

W-Well.

I-I can explain, but, not-- n-not on-- th-the journals.

[Even if he's not hiding it, he doesn't want to spill everything out in public.]

You want to go somewhere?

Y-Yeah. Um.

[He thinks for a few seconds. He'd rather not go to his room; getting some fresh air would be nice.]

Th-- the, uh. The-- lake? I-Is that-- a-alright?

[He likes the lake. It's almost the ocean.]

Yeah, sure. I will meet you out there.

O-Okay.

[Tucking his journal away, Xanth heads out to the shore. He's not looking forward to this; recounting his life before is not altogether pleasant, and he was so, so pathetic. It was shameful, and Xanth very much does not want to tell Ironhide anything shameful.

But he's Ironhide. He deserves to know.

Xanth moves quickly, but he came from his room and that's a fair distance from the lake. He wouldn't be surprised if Ironhide had already made it.]

[Xanth, you overestimate the abilities of old soldiers with bad hips and stairs in the way.]

[Since he can't drive out of the keep, he has to limp his way down the stairs and out of the doors. Only when he's clear does he actually transform and ~~roll out~~ drive out to the lake.]

[Well maybe he'd been outside already. Xanth couldn't be sure.

He offers a smile and a wave when he finally sees Ironhide roll up. He'd settled himself down on the edge of the lake, watching the waves roll in and out. It was calm lake, but it was enough to keep Xanth's attention.]

[With a grunt, the truck proceeds to transform near the water, but not too close. Rust is still a concern of his, after all. Especially considering he'd just driven through salt water... and... considering Ratchet wasn't here.]

[He limps up to the boy, standing just behind him to see what he's looking at.]

[Nothing much. The water is blue and clean and the waves are gentle. Xanth is far enough from the water that Ironhide, too, could settle there and not get wet.

He knows water is bad for metal. He'd be a fool not to.]

I-I wonder, y-you know, if... th-there's anything d--down at the b-bottom. S-Sunken treasure, or, y-you know. S--Something.

[He stays standing. It's perfectly comfortable for him like this. Crouching might hurt.]

[At the comment, though, he grunts, shaking his head.]

There is dirt. And weeds.

[See, Ironhide? Sunken treasure!

Still, the absolute frankness gets another smile out of Xanth.]

A-And, um. Rocks.

[There's a moment where Xanth falls silent. He chews on his lip, unsure of what to say next.]

Sorry. I-I, uh. I-- I guess I'm just-- n-not really sure wh-where to... t-to start.

[Only Ratchet thinks of dirt as treasure -- wrong Autobot, Xanth.]

Yeah. Big ones. They get stuck in your undercarriage until you transform.

[He falls quiet too, waiting. When Xanth speaks again, he just grumbles something in Cybertronian.]

I have time. Speak up whenever you feel like it.

O-Okay.

[He's quiet for another few seconds, gathering his thoughts. He shifts his legs, drawing them up closer to his chest and wrapping his arms around them. It's a comfortable position for him; he feels safe.]

I-I... n-never met m--my parents. I-I lived with... w-well, she, sh-she wasn't m-my actual g-grandmother, b-but I... I-I always c--called her that. Sh-She told me that... m-my mom couldn't k-keep me, but she... n-never said why.

B-But I... I-I think it's 'c-cause I'm not... I-I'm don't... h-have any m--magic.

[That fact still stings, even after the last year, but it's surprisingly easy to talk about.]

[He shifts closer when Xanth curls up. He's only half aware of it, most of him just waiting for the boy to speak.]

[What he says... is confusing, though.]

Is that a problem? Neither do I.

[He'd never even heard of 'magic' until the Elegante.]

[Xanth laughs nervously.]

It's-- a-a big problem, o-over there. S-See-- I'm-- a-an elf. I-I think. I, well, I-- I look l-like one. L-Like a... n-night elf.

A-And they're s-supposed to have... l-lots of magic, like, m--more than... e-everyone else. I-I don't know, I-- I-I didn't l-live with them. I-I was, um... a-adopted, by a-an Atlian. Th-they're still elves, b-but not night elves.

S-So I, um, I-- I-I stuck out like... l-like a sore thumb.

[Or like the only little boy with white hair in the entire city.]

[This prompts a long look from Ironhide. He tilts his head.]

You look human to me.

[He's not trying to demean what Xanth is telling him. It's just his observation.]

[He pauses though, turning this over in his head.]

And... they were less than approving of your presence?

[It's alright. Xanth knows Ironhide can't see the differences; they're minor enough as it is.

He nods.]

Y-Yeah. My family, m-my, uh-- a-adopted family-- th-they were okay with it. But. N-Night elves, they're-- usually w-w--weird enough, like-- th-they never leave their own c-country. A-And there's a-- a lot of rumors, b-but I don't... kn-know if they're true.

S-So the fact that I-I was o-out of there a-at all was... w-weird. A-And then when-- w-when I m-might as well b-be human, it's just...

[Xanth rubs his cheek and sighs.]

So you were distrusted outside your family.

[Maybe he should have said it more tactfully, but this is Ironhide. Tact is a foreign word.]

[Besides, he figures Xanth is probably used to it by now.]

[He is. He knows Ironhide doesn't mean anything cruel; he's just stating the facts. These are facts Xanth became used to long, long ago.]

P--Pretty much.

A-And the-- th-the older I-I got, the w-worse it got, a-and it all-- it-- s-spiraled, f-for a... a-a while.

[He winces and pulls his legs even closer. Some of those days were bad.]

B-But then... th-the-- the Elegante h-happened, and... th-that's that.

... Spiraled?

[He has a fair idea of what Xanth means. But he doesn't like it. The growl in his voice says that much.]

Then maybe it is a good thing some of those fools were lost.

Y-Yeah.

[Xanth tenses up. He's bitter as hell and, honestly, has only grown more so. Realizing that the treatment he had wasn't justified makes him wish he'd done something about it. Makes him wish he could do something now.

But he can't.

They're gone.]

Th-they weren't worth s--saving.

[Who wouldn't be bitter? After that life, and then the Elegante...?]

No. They were not. And you are better off this way.

[Xanth cracks something of a smile and finally relaxes.]

Yeah. I-I... I th--think so.

[They're gone and he's been saved from the destruction of worlds twice now. No one saw any of them fit to save.

Xanth gains a nasty satisfaction from that idea, and he's not sure if he minds the feeling.

He lets out a sigh and ducks his head, running his hand through his hair. When the motion is finished, Xanth rests said hand on his neck.]

Th--thanks. F-For... listening.

[He sees nothing wrong in being glad your enemies failed. While he wouldn't wish the End on some of Megatron's troops... the Decepticon lord himself? He hoped the End took its time with him.]

[There's no shame in hoping the scales were balanced, after everything happened.]

Yeah. Sure thing.

[That's when he crouches, letting his knuckles brush the boy's shoulder.]

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snowtop - 2011-08-20 12:13 (UTC) - Expand

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heavyweaponsbot - 2011-08-21 03:43 (UTC) - Expand

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