#optimus prime x quinn harlow

[pickledpascal]

Love’s Train

Chapter Ten: 2021, Spring Break: In For a Pound

Warnings: getting drunk, smut, bad flirting.

Word Count: 6.4k

Love’s Train Masterlist

Previous Chapter  | 

As a sort of apology for last night–early morning, rather–Nate had their friends make breakfast for Quinn. Of course, they made some food for themselves but the picnic they wanted to have was for Quinn. She did let them into her house while her parents were away for the week and they’d started off on the wrong foot with the Autobots. The notion of breakfast immediately put Quinn in a good mood when Miles woke her. They walked together outside and Quinn had to rub her eyes at the sight in front of her eyes. Bumblebee, Optimus, and Ratchet were sitting outside near the table where all the food was set on while Ironhide stayed inside the barn. It looked like a feast. When did Quinn have this much stuff in the fridge? 

“Looking good, Captain.” Bee winked as he sat back, his feet swinging from side to side. When did her friends meet Bumblebee? Maybe it was during the fiasco from last night. Quinn didn’t remember. 

At the comment, Quinn glanced down at her clothes. They were her regular sleep clothes–a pair of soft shorts and a bra that looked sort of like a crop top. Nothing special. She cocked her head at Bee before she saw Optimus. Who was staring right at her.

Oh.

Oh.

Quinn immediately crossed her arms over her chest and sat at the table with her friends. She forgot she threw off her shirt after Andi and Liza left her room so Optimus hadn’t seen her like that yet. Or at all. Her friends were already digging in with Miles only having a taste for toast, Nate gorged himself on bacon and sausage, Liza had a healthy balance of everything on the table while Andi had some eggs and toast. As Quinn started to take her first few bites of her meal, conversation started up.

“So… we’re using that pool at least once while we’re here, right?” Miles asked, a piece of toast in their mouth as he looked around at the table. 

Andi nodded as soon as the words left their mouth. “Why have a pool in the first place? Actually… We should totally hang out in the pool tonight.” She suggested, winking at Quinn. It was like she knew where Quinn’s thoughts were going. 

Optimus was most likely going to be watching over them while Bee joined in on the fun, much like a father would with his children. Except that meant he would also be able to see Quinn in a bathing suit. It wasn’t the first time but that time wasn’t so deliberate. Andi would make sure this time it would be deliberate. To put Quinn in a bikini or something that showed as much skin as possible, it was fair to assume Optimus was like most men in that regard. He just happened to be thirty feet tall and made of metal. Wasn’t that big of a difference. 

“Agreed.” Liza said quickly with excitement in her eyes. She couldn’t wait to use the pool and just lay back in the water, floating.

The light of the day came and went, signaling when it was time for the humans to party. And when a party happened, it was customary for them to get drunk as hell. Except for Andi, she usually didn’t drink but it sure was fun to watch her friends lose their minds and act like children while intoxicated. Under the intense suggestions of her friends, Quinn did wear one of her more revealing swimsuits. An orange and green tropical patterned bikini with the bottoms having heart cut-outs at the hip while the top had string tied around Quinn’s neck to have it stay properly in place. She tied it a few times with the intention of not wanting to accidentally flash anyone. 

“You look positively dashing, darling.” Liza joked in a British accent, adding a wink at the end as she saw what Quinn changed into. She wore a simple one piece in a deep blue. It was like those ones a lifeguard would wear, more akin to a bodysuit than something worn for swimming. 

Miles beckoned them all outside, “Your brother got us all the good stuff.” They waved a hard lemonade in the air with a smirk on their lips.

Quinn shook her head as she crossed her arms, looking around at the scene outside. Nate was on a floatie with a red solo cup in his hand as the floatie drifted in the water. Andi was in the middle of a talk with Bee about…. Well, bees and Liza ran past Quinn to jump into the pool, making a big splash. Nate pursed his lips as water sprayed on his body, agitation making itself known in the pools of his dark eyes. 

Her friends were having fun so why shouldn’t she? Quinn grabbed a beer from the cooler and twisted the cap open, throwing it in the trash before she took a sip. 

As soon as the first drop hit her tongue, something shifted within her. 

She’s had alcohol plenty of times before, she’s twenty-two now so that gives her legality to both purchase and drink alcohol. This was different. The times Quinn would drink, it usually wasn’t for the purposes of getting drunk or to do something she’d regret in the morning. It was just because her friends were and she needed to retain some level of sobriety to watch over them. She was pretty good at it.

Now that Quinn wasn’t the one having to watch over others, she could care less.

When music started to play from Miles’ speaker, something inside Quinn’s mind started to buzz. She could barely even register her body starting to move along to the beat until Andi and Liza started to cheer. As the upbeat song ended, Quinn found herself laying on a pool chair and staring up at the night sky with a beer bottle sitting next to her. 

“The moon is so pretty.” Quinn gushed, her hands sitting folded on her stomach. A buzzed flush was starting on her cheeks, leading all the way down to her chest. She had quite a lot of beer. “I wish I could kiss her.” She pouted.

Andi chuckled off to the side of her and nodded. “You wanna kiss the moon? Not Optimus?” She asked with a smirk.

It was fun to Quinn like this. She was naturally funny already but to see her so plastered that she didn’t think before she spoke was even more hilarious. Quinn was usually so calculated, anxious that if she said anything wrong the person she said it to would despise her for the rest of their finite life. There was so much lurking behind those glasses and layers of miss matched tattoo ink.

“I want to kiss Optimus!” Quinn whined as she shook her head then giggled. “I want to do more than just kiss him, though.” Now this caught the attention of Liza and Andi while Bee just laughed as he listened. “Y’know, Ratchet said there’s ways we can fuck! He did say ‘safe.’ But if I’m gonna have sex with a thirty foot robot who has a voice that does things to me then I’d rather he would rail me into oblivion.” She hummed. Looked like Quinn was a horny drunk, huh.

Quinn’s little spiel made everyone start laughing. Except for Nate who just looked disappointed, letting out a small laugh after he couldn’t contain it anymore. And well…

It just so happened that Optimus chose to leave the barn and make his way to the pool while Quinn was in the middle of her tangent. He was standing near the far end of the pool, away from where Quinn was but he could hear everything as clearly as if he was standing right next to her. Andi lifted her hands to her mouth while Quinn cocked her head at her friend, not registering what had her looking so shocked. 

Then Quinn followed Andi’s line of sight and saw Optimus. He was standing quietly, the only noises he was emitting were from the mechanisms whirring inside him. “Oh hi, Prime!” Quinn waved happily. Her embarrassment filter left her when she was drunk. Maybe that was a good thing or else Liza was sure Quinn would have died on the spot if she was sober. Slowly, Optimus approached the human. His human. He knelt down behind the pool chair and watched as Quinn bent her neck to be able to see him as she layed. “You’re so tall.” Quinn hummed, catching his gaze in her own eyes. “I wanna climb you.”

Andi buried her head in her hands as those words left Quinn’s mouth. Maybe it was time to cut off Quinn for the night, they had been at the pool for a few hours at that point. 

Optimus looked around at the others in the pool. “I suggest all of you go inside and get some sleep. I’ll deal with this one.” He sounded like a father at that moment, scolding his children for having a party while he wasn’t there to watch them. 

Without any complaints, each of them retreated into the house while Bee transformed into his car form and drove to the front of the house. Whatever was about to happen, he didn’t want to be anywhere near them when it happened. Quinn, on the other hand, pouted. 

“But my friends!” Quinn whined, reaching out for Andi as she disappeared inside the house. 

Optimus picked Quinn up from her pool chair with both hands, one underneath the other while she sat up a little and frowned. At least she remembered to readjust herself so she wouldn’t fall from his grip. “You and your friends have had enough. Your blood alcohol content level is well above the acceptable level.” Optimus explained, optics running over Quinn’s figure as he made his way to the barn that he inhabited. It seemed as if she had other plans before getting sidetracked by her intoxication. A shame, really.

Quinn groaned in response, leaning into one of Optimus’ fingers. “I’m not a kid.” She complained with her arms crossed. 

“I know, soul spark.” Lord, did Optimus know that a little too well. His optics flicked from Quinn’s face to her chest. The bikini did nothing but enhance her chest and Optimus couldn’t not look. “But part of being soulmates is taking care of each other, is it not?” Quinn already did her part in full. She gave him and his Cybertronian brothers freedom, it was only fair Optimus would spend the rest of their lifetime together trying to live up to that. 

Quinn yawned, feeling her body start to shut down now that she wasn’t continuously having beer. “I guess so.” She hummed, eyes drowsy. Not more than a few seconds later, Quinn fell asleep in Optimus’ metallic palm.

“Should we leave?” Ratchet asked while in the middle of recalibrating Ironhide’s cannons. They were having a bit of trouble appearing when he wanted them to. 

Optimus could tell what Ratchet was insinuating. He did have certain plans that he wanted to enact that day but it wasn’t meant to be, it seemed. The Autobot leader shook his head as he turned to the small loft Quinn put a bed on. She mostly used it when she was working on cars or Cybertronians alike and it started to get late, it was far closer than trying to sneak back into the house and running into counters or tables in the middle of the dark. Optimus set Quinn on the bed as gently as he could, lifting the covers over her.

Ironhide let out a small chuckle and looked up at Optimus with a sly smirk. “You really do like this human huh?” He teased.

“Of course he does, what’s your head made of? A bag of bolts?” Ratchet smacked the back of Ironhide’s head. Even though Ratchet was the doctor of the Autobots–literally an ambulance in his other form–that didn’t mean he had the patience to deal with his colleagues. “They have the marks to prove it.” He pointed out.

Ironhide grunted in response to the smack, rubbing the back of his helm. “You really need to work on your anger issues.” He countered.

“You need to stop messing up your cannons so I don’t need to keep fixing them anymore.” Ratchet hissed.

Optimus raised his hand, suddenly stopping all their bickering. “I would appreciate it if both of you remained quiet for the rest of the night.” He growled in a whisper, glancing back at Quinn to see if she was awake. She did shift a little but as far as he could tell, she was still asleep. “Both of you act as if you were sparklings yesterday when you’re together.” He rolled his optics as he shook his head in frustration.

—----

Feeling as if something was wrong, sun sifting through the shades in small strips, Quinn slowly opened her eyes. She felt wet? Not exactly wet but that feeling after not properly drying yourself when you’re in water for a long time. Her hair felt heavy against her head. As she gained her consciousness, her eyes darted around her environment. This was not her room. But at least it was familiar. Quinn let out a relieved breath as she realized she was inside the barn. Her barn–well, it was more like Optimus’ barn. She sat up hesitantly and grimaced when she saw that she was still in her swimsuit. 

No wonder she felt wet. 

Quinn tried to stand but her legs felt wobbly. What did she do last night? Her head felt dizzy, a hand was there to keep her upright though. “Optimus!” She squeaked. How did a thirty foot tall robot with loud mechanisms sneak up on her? 

“Ratchet has informed me you may be experiencing ‘hangover’ symptoms after the amount of alcohol you ingested last night.” Optimus explained as he took his hand away when he felt Quinn was well enough to stand on her own. “It would be wise to not make the same decisions tonight.” He said softly, his optics softening their gaze.

Quinn let out a breath and nodded, with the headache that was starting to form behind her eyes…. She’d have to agree with Optimus on that one. “I… I need to shower.” She sighed before the Autobot helped her down from the loft by cradling her in his metal palm. Quinn began to walk out of the barn before Optimus stopped her.

Did he look nervous? He coughed after a moment while Quinn looked up at him expectantly. “I would like to take you on a date tonight.” Optimus finally said, kneeling down in front of her. “As it is customary for Earthlings to do before they have sex. Would you be agreeable to that?” Quinn blinked at his words, almost coughing from the shock. As far as she knew, not many people announced to their partner that they planned to fuck them later. It was as if it was the most normal thing in the world to say for him. 

“Um, I would.” Quinn nodded, feeling the heat rush to her cheeks. She was thankful no other Autobot was in the barn with them or else that would make her all the more flustered. 

The human quickly scurried out of the barn after that conversation, causing Optimus to let out a small chuckle. Quinn was such a cute and beautiful little creature but she also exhibited such strength and intelligence, whether it was in a council room filled with sides that opposed hers or being able to recalibrate an alien weapons system that was far above anything she’s ever seen before. Yes, Optimus was thankful to the universe Quinn was his soulmate. He couldn’t wait to do things to her, he would do anything to please her.

—----

“I can’t fucking believe you’re going on a date with a truck!” Nate exclaimed as he paced around the living room. He cared for more than Quinn’s brother did, but he knew Optimus for a longer time than any of her friends so he trusted the Autobot. 

Andi let out a light laugh and shook her head. “I mean, have you looked at him? He’s hot.” She argued with a shrug while taking a look at Quinn.

Quinn was cleaned and showered, her hair still a little damp from the water. She usually liked to air dry it. At the moment, she was wearing some sweatpants and a loose t-shirt. Nothing too fancy but she wanted to tell her friends to try and get some sort of advice. She’s never been on a date before or done anything intimate with another person before. In Optimus’ case, a robot. They wouldn’t have much knowledge about that but all of her friends have been on some sort of date. That’s where she needed the most help.

“He’s still a truck.” Nate narrowed his eyes slightly before he shook his head. “Does he even have a dick? I feel like we would have seen it already with how massive he is.” He hummed, his eyebrows furrowing in thought. Quite a weird thought.

But it seemed to raise the same question in the minds of everyone else in the room, their heads turning to look at Quinn. Out of all the humans on Earth, she would know.

Quinn stared blankly for a second and pursed her lips. She didn’t know for sure, she has had a few hints at the possibility though. “I dunno–I mean, Ratchet has kind of dropped hints but I–I’ve never seen it.” She admitted, averting her gaze from her friends. 

“You guys always forget that you can please women in other ways. You don’t need a dick.” Miles spoke up, rolling their eyes at the naivety in front of them. Straight people were always so…. Dick-orientated when it came to sex. They never were that creative. 

Liza cocked her head then nodded, “Yeah, that’s true.” 

Feeling the embarrassment starting to reach peak levels, Quinn slid down the couch in hopes that it would eat her alive. She did ask for this. She told them about Optimus’ plan though even she didn’t know all of the details of what the night would entail. Just the general act of sex which could mean a lot of different things. Even more so when an Autobot was the one who made the plan in the first place. Maybe Quinn was naive when it came to the topic of sex regarding any sort of Bot, she knew about their anatomy but not that well it seemed. Ratchet, on the other hand, was sure they could copulate somehow. That’s when Quinn remembered Ratchet referred to something as an ‘attachment’.... Could that mean–? Yeah… huh.

“Either way, we need to get Quinn ready for this date. Or, uh, as ready as she can be.” Andi chuckled, pulling Quinn up from her spot on the couch. It was the middle of the day already so they needed to work kinda fast in order to get her ready in time. 

By ready, Andi did not mean mentally. She couldn’t really mentally prepare to get railed by a three story tall robot with a hand that could comfortably hold her if she sat in his palm. Instead, Andi, Liza, and Miles took it upon themselves to sift through Quinn’s closet to see if she had any clothes that screamed ‘I know you wanna fuck me and I wanna fuck you too.’ In the end they settled on a hot vintage-goth style, every piece of clothing happened to be black. Quinn’s friends waited outside as she changed until the door creaked open and she appeared from behind it. Her outfit consisted of a black corset top with short sleeves, a pair of black high-waisted bell bottoms with white stitchings, and simple black heeled boots. Her makeup was of a similar vein, smudged eyeliner with a white shimmer in the inner corner and a deep red color graced her lips.

Miles nodded, confident their work was satisfactory. “Hot.” They winked with a sly smile. One thing about Miles is that they will flirt with practically anyone even if their relationship with a person was purely platonic. 

Liza hummed in agreement, “If I didn’t have a strict no ‘friends with benefits’ rule, then I would try with you.” She admitted with a slight shrug.

They were really trying their best to boost Quinn’s ego. Nothing else worked that well. This didn’t work well either besides having Quinn laugh, letting a bit of relief off her shoulders. That helped her let loose. Not by much but any sort of lightness was welcome. 

“I don’t think any of us have a chance against Quinn’s literal soulmate.” Andi rolled her eyes, crossing her arms as she looked at her fellow friends. “Not to mention he has the deepest voice I’ve heard and it… That’s hot.” She admitted before she glanced at Quinn, “Sorry.”

Quinn let out a light laugh and nodded in agreement. “No, it’s okay. I agree.” She shrugged with a chuckle.

Being with her friends, being able to joke about her love life just felt… normal. For once in her life, it felt normal. No more hiding in her room whenever Optimus called her or avoiding the ‘boyfriend’ question with her friends. Not anymore. That didn’t necessarily mean she would stop being shy about it though. Just for tonight she’d be exempt from that flustered feeling and exchange for some sense of confidence. Soon, they could see some bright headlights shining through the window.

That had to be Optimus. 

“Looks like your ride is here.” Andi teased, sending Quinn an over exaggerated wink. Like one that would be seen in a cartoon or a really cheesy rom-com. 

Quinn gave Andi a disappointed look as she shook her head even when a smile managed to crack on her lips. “I’ll get you back for that.” She narrowed her eyes as she began to make her way down the stairs and out of the house.

Optimus was in his truck form, evident by the fact that his headlights were on and at ground level. And, well, you can’t not see a truck. Especially in such vibrant colors. His driver door was already opened, awaiting Quinn to climb inside. As she climbed in, the door automatically closed behind her. The sight that awaited her was one she didn’t expect. In the passenger seat of the truck sat a bouquet of colorful flowers and a heart-shaped chocolate box.

“I heard it was customary to bring gifts on the first date.” Optimus spoke through the radio but something was off about his voice. Was he… nervous? He had teased Quinn for months at this point and now he was nervous? Maybe it was just the fact that he wanted this night to go as smoothly as possible, for the both of them.

Quinn grabbed the flowers and breathed in the scent as the truck began to move. They seemed to be fresh with how good they still smelled and that they weren’t wilted. “Where did you get these?” She asked, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion. A robot-truck simply couldn’t just walk into a store and buy these things and if Optimus did decide to do that then it would be all over the news by now. Unless he had some sort of hologram he could make, something like what Starscream or Arcee had. It helped them blend in better when driving–or in Starscream’s case, flying. 

“I had Sam and Bumblebee pick them up.” Optimus said simply, not wanting to explain anything further. She should have guessed as much. Either way, it was nice to know Sam and Bumblebee got over the shit driving them apart. They remained quiet for a few minutes, unsure how to continue until Optimus spoke up yet again, “You look quite… attractive.” He could have said the million other things inhabiting his processor but that was the most tame out of all of them. 

The things this human did to him–he didn’t think they were possible. No one, Cybertronian or human, has ever affected Optimus to this degree. Perhaps his mind was so concerned with the civil war of his people that he was too distracted to even try to have a romantic life. The safety of his world and other worlds across the galaxy was deemed so much more important than his own life that he forgot the most important thing about his fight. To be able to truly live. Quinn awakened that in him and he couldn’t thank her enough for it. 

“I could say the same for you, Prime.” Quinn chuckled softly as she caressed the leather of Optimus’ steering wheel. She always loved that the Autobot insignia was in the center in a bright silver color. “I mean, your mask…” She trailed off, a vivid image of it in the forefront of her mind. She would think about it constantly, more than she would ever admit to anyone. Anyone who wasn’t Optimus himself.

Optimus went so silent at the comment that Quinn started to get worried that his processor had shut off but if it had he would have stopped driving. “... I’ll keep that in mind.” He finally said.

Well, shit. He was definitely gonna use that against her.

Soon, the truck looked as if it was going to run into a grassy mountain but before Quinn could even think to shield herself, an opening appeared to a tunnel that led inside the mountain. She leaned forward to look around at the surroundings. It looked like an old military bunker… with some added upgrades. As Quinn exited the truck to let Optimus transform, she took her gifts with her and looked around. Everything was super-sized. Perfect size for Cybertronians like Optimus. Wait. 

“Is this… what I think it is?” Quinn asked as she turned back to Optimus to look up at him, holding her flowers against her chest.

Optimus nodded, helping Quinn up to a ledge that could make her level with him. She set her things on a desk to grab them later. “As much as I appreciate your parents' hospitality, I can tell my friends have become restless sitting around in that barn.” He explained softly, caressing Quinn’s cheek with his metallic thumb. “This way, we can carry out any missions regarding Decepticons. Or any other sort of threat to the Earth.”

“Sounds wonderful but you don’t have governmental clearance for this, do you?” Quinn asked, crossing her arms as she looked up at Optimus’ face. Even though she was on a raised platform, Optimus’ face was still a few feet taller than her. 

The Autobot shrugged guiltily, “Not exactly. Colonel Lennox knows and has notified some of his superiors but no, the government has not given us permission for this.” Optimus let out a fabricated sigh and tilted up Quinn’s chin a little more. “Either way, with permission or not, I will not have this planet destroyed because some humans do not see us as a valuable asset.” Keeping this planet safe from any Decepticon threat was one thing, but to keep it safe for Quinn was an entirely different thing. Optimus cared for the humans–most of them–but now he had an emotional tie to one of them. 

Quinn smiled, a light chuckle escaping her vocal chords. That sounded like Optimus. She wouldn’t have it any other way. Optimus narrowed his optics in fascination as he moved his finger to sit underneath Quinn’s bottom lip. There were moments where all he could think about were her lips, the deep shade of pink they usually were but not then. The red color they now were made them look all the more enticing. 

Optimus leaned his head forward, catching Quinn in a deep kiss. One that made the cooling fan inside him whir to life. The human had to cup his jaw with both her hands to try and anchor herself. Taking a breath, Quinn pulled away from Optimus’ lips. Optimus, on the other hand, had a different plan. He pulled Quinn closer to press his lips against the expanse of her neck and shoulders instead, he was planning on leaving bruises. The prospect of it made Quinn gasp, grasping onto the sides of his face plates. With the way Optimus was cradling her in his hand and dragging his lips along her shoulder, it was starting to do things to her. She could feel a heat igniting within her. The kind that made her want. 

"Optimus…." Quinn sighed, it was almost strained. She could feel herself want to whine and she almost did. 

The robot retreated from her skin and hummed, already missing the softness of her neck compared to his metal plating. "Soul spark, I need you. More than words can express in any Earthly language." He whispered as he pressed his forehead against Quinn's. 

"Then… show me?" Quinn asked softly. Similarly to what Optimus did earlier, she ran her thumb underneath the metal plates that made up Optimus' lips. They were far more warm than the rest of his face, perhaps some of her heat transferred to him. She looked up at the optics staring down at her and teased softly, "I did overhear you and Ratchet talking about different ways you could please me as safely as possible." 

A puff of smoke escaped the exhaust pipes from Optimus' back. So that was how he blushed. "Well, I wanted to know how to please you. And Ratchet gave some… educational information." He hummed, not looking at Quinn for a moment.  

Boldly, Quinn cocked her eyebrow with a smirk on her lips, "Was it helpful?"

Optimus narrowed his optic lenses and let out a hum before he scooped up Quinn in his hand. "Perhaps I should show you just how helpful it was then." He whispered with a cocky tone as he walked to a room connected to the main area. His voice gave Quinn shivers that ran down her spine. Compared to that, this room seemed to be a bit less military in nature. He set Quinn on another platform, far shorter than the one in the other room, before he sat on the floor to make himself level with her. "Undress, my soul spark." He ordered, optics fixed on her form.

The look Optimus was giving her made her feel the fire inside her start to rise. Quinn nodded silently and began to take off her shirt first, unzipping it with no trouble at all. It seemed even the universe was on her side, not wanting her to feel embarrassed if it accidentally got stuck on the fabric. She quickly discarded her shoes alongside her socks and shirt before she started to unbutton and unzip her pants. It was sort of exciting, having Optimus staring at her so attentively. A hungry look in his eyes. Quinn stared back at Optimus, clad in just some lingerie. A matching pair in a deep red color, eerily similar to the shade on her lips. 

"I never said you could stop." Optimus hummed softly, leaning closer to the platform to press a finger under Quinn's chest to lift her bra from her shoulders. He had little patience for the 'real' way to take off a bra. In all honesty, he wouldn't have cared if it ripped half under his grip. Quinn gasped as she instinctively raised her arms in front of her chest to cover herself. "There we go." Optimus sounded satisfied before he used the same finger to snap off her underwear without using much force at all. "Much better."

A shiver went down Quinn's spine after being fully relieved of all her clothes. She hadn't done anything like this so she felt more exposed than she thought she would have if she's had any intimate relationship before this. Well, Quinn also hated even being naked in the comfort of her own room. 

As if Optimus could sense it, he gave the human a light smile. "You look beautiful, soul spark." He whispered, his thumb caressing the expanse of Quinn's waist. "As much as I would love to worship every inch of skin on your body, I need you now." This was where Quinn would finally know just what kind of parts Optimus had. 

He scooped up Quinn's naked form and set her in between his legs. She could hear some shifting going on within Optimus. That's when she noticed the extra metal plates covering his crotch era started to retreat into the rest of his body to reveal an almost three foot long dick. The human blinked, unsure what to think. Sure, it made sense. Proportionally. But to actually see such a thing, to have it inside her? She didn't think it was possible. Ratchet, on the other hand, knew of some way for it to be possible or else why would he have told Optimus? Quinn had to admit, the sight made her mouth start to water.

Suddenly, Optimus' mask started to form over the bottom half of his face. It clicked into place, leaving his optics staring down at Quinn. Her heart jumped a few beats at the sight. She knew it. 

"Come here, soul spark." Optimus hummed, his voice sounding much more dark than usual. Possibly because of the mask? He helped the human climb up in between his legs with both hands to then cradle her back.

Quinn swallowed thickly as she glanced from Optimus' cock and his face. "I haven't… I don't think that will fit." She said softly, biting at her lip.

"There's no need to worry." Optimus let out a light chuckle, caressing her cheek with the back of his index finger. 

A bit of steam escaped his exhaust pipes while Quinn could hear the mechanisms beneath her working double time. The length of Optimus' dick started to shorten. She didn't think that was possible but then again, there were still a lot of things she didn't know about Cybertronians. It became a more sensible length for Quinn. A little less than a foot. Still a little more than what the human body could take but better. Quinn pursed her lips and nodded while Optimus caressed her back slightly. He gently guided her down onto his dick, letting out a light sigh from beneath his mask.

Quinn, on the other hand, was going crazy. Her brain felt as if it turned to white noise, she didn't know what to think. Well, besides the fact that she felt so good and wanted so much more. "Fuck." She whined softly. She fit as much as she could, a few inches left out but it seemed Optimus was in as much bliss as she was so he didn't care. His cock was so hard too–a given since it was made out of metal much like the rest of him. 

"Good girl." Optimus whispered softly, his fingers spreading across the expanse of Quinn's back as his optics ran down her body. "Beautiful." He hummed as Quinn started to move as well as she could. His voice sent goosebumps down her back. Optimus could tell what his voice did to her. 

Quinn panted softly as she planted her hands on Optimus' thighs to ground herself. "Optimus…! Fuck." She whined softly while Optimus ran his thumb in between her chest. Quinn could feel that fire inside her start to roar, centering itself in her stomach. 

For the first time either of them have done something like this, Optimus had a handle on everything. He treated Quinn so gently, simply admiring her body with soft caresses and small whispers of how good she was being for him. It made her heart melt, as well as making her head feel all fuzzy with the praise. Sure Optimus had given Quinn compliments before, usually on the way she'd handle a council on a particularly hard day for her but nothing quite like this. As they both started to reach the peak of what they could take, Optimus' exhaust pipes began to continuously expel some of the steam building inside him. At the same time, his cooling fans started to work double time. They were so loud Quinn could hear them. She would have thought they were endearing if she wasn't riding Optimus like her life depended on it. 

Eagerly, Quinn moved faster as she felt her orgasm approach. "Fuck… I'm…" She moaned, panting as her heart was beating fast. Breathing was hard but not in a way she didn't like. 

Optimus used his other hand to softly cup the side of Quinn's head. "Let go, soul spark." He whispered. Who was he to deny being able to see the height of Quinn's pleasure? If he did it would be like denying the universe the ability to create life. "Cum for me." 

His voice reverberated inside Quinn's body as she whined in response. Something about how deep it was just… it made her feel, made her want to do whatever he told her. "Fucking hell…" She breathed just as she felt her orgasm hit her, a loud moan escaping from her lips.

"There you go. Such a good girl." Optimus hummed in appreciation, brushing a few of his fingers through Quinn's hair.

—---

It wasn't until the middle of the day when Optimus and Quinn returned to her home. She exited the truck, her legs still feeling awfully wobbly from the previous night. Optimus quickly transformed and held her upright, a smug look in his optics. Bee was outside, arms crossed as he stared at the pair. He shook his head and walked into the barn, he didn't want to see either of them until the thought of them fucking wasn't at the forefront of his mind. It was… weird to think of it.

"Please rest today, I have a feeling I still went hard on you without meaning to." Optimus said softly, pressing a gentle kiss to the side of Quinn's head. 

Blushing, Quinn nodded with a light laugh. She didn't know of many people who had to take time out of their day to recover from having sex. And certainly not with an alien species. "I will." She promised before making her way inside the house.

She was met with her friends sitting on the couch, prepared to ask some questions. They wanted to know everything. While Quinn wanted to keep some things a secret….

[pickledpascal]

Love’s Train

Chapter Nine: 2021, Spring Break: In For a Penny

Warnings: Breaking the law, mature themes, sexual themes, guns.

Word Count: 2.5k

Love’s Train Masterlist

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To the slight dismay of Quinn, her friends decided well into the first semester of their second year together that they were going to invade her house for Spring Break. She expressed to them multiple times that it would probably be a bad idea, none of them knew quite how close Quinn was with the Autobots. Letting the Cybertronians live at her house with her parents never came up in conversation even if they talked a lot about her job with them.

“Have you met their leader yet?” Liza asked one night while having dinner with Quinn and Andi. Well, their entire group was there. Nate and Miles were gorging themselves on the food Quinn prepared for the night.

Quinn swallowed her bite slowly as she stared at Liza. “Yeah…” She admitted with a shrug, picking at her food with her fork. Her friends were far more determined to get information out of her than any members of congress could ever be. Liza alone could have been a detective if she set her mind to it.

The table let out an ‘oooohh’ before Andi made a stop motion. “That’s not important. Not as important as figuring out who the guy you talk to for hours in the middle of the night.” She changed the subject. If only Andi knew they were the same person, Quinn wondered what would happen if she ever did find out. It’d be sooner rather than later with all of them coming to her house for the break. 

“You have a boyfriend? Fucking finally.” Liza let out a relieved breath. “Did you find out if he’s your soulmate?” She asked with an excited glimmer in her eyes. 

Yeah, Quinn didn’t exactly show any of them her soul mark yet. Not that it was too hard to hide, the Cybertronian symbols blended in well with the dark ink around it. Quinn even had some blue ink tattoos scattered across her body with the black ink ones. It was a purely aesthetic choice and it paid off regarding this.

Quinn narrowed her eyes slightly as she looked at her food. Did she want to lie? Liza was asking all the hard hitting questions and they all knew Quinn’s tells. “Well, I’m not sure if it’s him.” She said, pursing her lips slightly. “But I do feel a connection with him.”

“Yes!” Andi cheered with a bright smile, glad Quinn was finally admitting her feelings to her friends. “You better invite him over to your house for spring break. We definitely wanna meet him.” 

Nate cocked an eyebrow and shook his head. “Are you sure your parents would be okay with that? I mean, there's gonna be five people staying over if he comes." Of course, there came Nate with the voice of logic in the group.

If only he knew just how accepting Quinn's parents were.

"Um, I think they'll be fine with it." Quinn said after a while, scratching at her neck nervously. 

She trusted her friends, they knew some of the worst things about her but still kept by her side. Knowing that Quinn harbored some Autobots at her house wouldn't be the end of their friendship. It might even improve it.

Miles let out a light laugh at Quinn. “That’s it then. We’re all going to Quinn’s house and meeting her maybe soulmate.” They hummed with a smile, setting their utensils on the table as they finished their meal. 

Quinn pursed her lips and sighed. It was decided and there wasn’t much she could do about it. Though it would be nice to finally let Andi know who Quinn was talking to all this time. She just wasn’t sure Optimus would like the idea of being forced to meet four new humans, all of whom he knew nothing about. Besides the times he would hear certain things from Andi through Quinn’s phone…

—----

Since Quinn didn’t want to leave Bumblebee all by himself in the college lots, she decided to offer her friends a lift to her house. Only two agreed to ride with her, Miles and Nate deciding to drive separately. At this point, Andi and Liza were familiar with the yellow Volkswagen so they didn’t question why Quinn had such an old car to begin with. While it was nice to go on a road trip of sorts with her friends, it also meant she couldn’t speak with Bumblebee on the way home. He’d sometimes tell her what Optimus was up to or if he was at the house. Simple things like that. Instead the car was filled with the voices of Quinn’s two friends. 

“One of my friends was able to discreetly hack into some S-7 records and found some pictures of the Autobots if you wanna see?” Liza said with a sly smile as she dangled her phone in front of the other girls, causing Quinn to groan. The amount of times Liza would admit to basically breaking federal law around Quinn, who was basically a law official, started to give her a headache.

Andi immediately grabbed Liza’s phone, “Gimme, I wanna see!” She opened up the other girl’s phone, they trusted each other enough to know each other’s passwords, and clicked on the camera roll. “Finally we get to have a sneak peak at the Autobot leader, we don’t even know his name! So unfair.” She scrolled through a few pictures before finding the ones she wanted.

“I bet Quinn knows.” Liza turned her head to the driver with a sly smile. “I bet you know all the alien robot secrets you just don’t tell us because the government.” She pouted, rolling her eyes. She didn’t blame Quinn for not telling them, it was just fun to be difficult. 

Andi hummed as she looked through the pictures, very engrossed in seeing each of them. The only ones she saw so far was some yellow one, a black one with his canons out, and a few small ones that looked feminine. Little did they know, they were sitting inside the yellow one. “Where’s the red and blue truck?” She asked after a while. Even though they didn’t ever really see Optimus Prime either in his truck or robot form, it was general knowledge that he was a truck. A semi to be specific. 

“Few more pictures then you’ll see him.” Liza said quickly before she turned her attention to Quinn again. “So, you’ve met their leader. You gotta give us something. What was he like?” She asked. 

Quinn swallowed nervously, adjusting her hands on the wheel as if she was the one driving. “Um, well he’s–”

“–Heard you got that deep for me, pray your love is deep for me. I’ma make you go weak for me, make you wait a whole week for me. I see you watching, I know you want it. I know you need it, you want it on you?–” The radio on the dash suddenly sprung to life before Quinn quickly turned it off, her face flushing while her friends looked at her with confusion in their eyes. Bee could really be difficult.

Quinn let out a light cough and gave the others a shy smile. “I still need to work out some kinks with the radio.” She quickly said.

“–Sticks and stones may break my bones but chains and whips excite me!–” The radio started up again before going silent. Quinn took a deep breath in through her nose so as to not slam her fist into Bee’s dash.

Liza let out a light laugh and rolled her eyes. It seemed Bee’s distraction sort of worked. Liza and Andi didn’t care to press Quinn on what Optimus was like but Quinn was incredibly embarrassed. And Liza and Andi didn’t have a clue in the world as to why, Quinn listened to those songs on a daily basis so they didn’t think it was out of the ordinary. But Quinn knew. She wasn’t the one playing those songs. Bee was. With the goal to make her feel flustered. It wasn’t a secret among the Autobots how Optimus and Quinn felt about each other, especially with the little fiasco with Ratchet wanting to educate the couple on proper ways to please each other. Optimus just happened to be the only one who wanted to listen.

—---

The rest of the drive there was mostly uneventful, besides the fact that Andi now knew what Optimus looked like. However, the photos on Liza’s phone were at least ten years old. It showed the Autobot leader’s old bot and truck form but the red and blue flames were Optimus’ signature. For Bee, it was a little easier to hide him because there were some yellow cars out on the road. 

“Wow, when you said you lived on a huge piece of land, I did not expect for you to have a barn.” Andi said as she exited the Beetle, her bags in her hands as she looked around. 

Quinn’s house was a small two-story house but it had a ton of modern touches. Her parents didn’t let anything go to rot. Even the barn looked nice, no peeling paint or doors falling off their hinges. They even had a pool in the backyard. That would be handy for when they were all drunk and off their rockers.

Liza nodded at Andi in agreement and let out a laugh as Quinn led them to their room. Miles and Nate were already there, lounging in their room. One of the best parts about this entire set up was that Quinn’s parents were going on vacation for the same amount of time they’d be visiting. The only downside was that Quinn’s brother was there to watch over them… plus four Autobots that were currently parked inside the barn.

It was late at that point so Quinn immediately locked herself in her room, not caring if her friends were going to do anything without her. As soon as her head met her pillow, she was out like a light. She cuddled up next to another pillow, wrapping her arms around it as she snored lightly.

Quinn’s sleep was interrupted in the middle of the night by a loud horn from outside the house followed by a few high-pitched screams. Quinn whined slightly as she got up from her bed and caught sight of what was happening from a window.  In their pajamas, her friends had found Optimus who was currently towering over them while Ironhide pointed his canons at them.

“Who do you work for?” Ironhide demanded while Miles ran back inside the house, a little too afraid to want to attempt to speak with the Bots. 

“No one, tin can! They’re my friends!” Quinn yelled at them as she opened up her window, shaking her head. It was three AM and it seemed neither her human friends or Cybertronian friends could resist being on the same plot of land for a day. Liza, Nate, and Andi all looked at her before she yelled at them this time. “Now get the fuck back inside the house and go the fuck to sleep!” She huffed.

Nate immediately ran inside, “No need to tell me twice.” Liza and Andi soon followed right behind him. 

Ironhide let out a huff of smoke from his nose before retreating to the barn while Optimus got closer to the house, making his way to Quinn’s window. “Those are your friends?” He asked, setting his hand on her window sill. 

Quinn nodded and let out a breath. “They’re good people. They’ll keep it a secret that you’re here.” She said. If Optimus didn’t like her friends then she’d be in trouble. It would be hard to have her soulmate not agree with the choices she made in her life. 

“Do they know who I am?” Optimus asked softly, afraid Quinn’s friends were listening in from the other side of her door. They seemed like they wanted to know every detail regarding her life. Optimus just so happened to be a big detail. Before Quinn could answer, he added, "Who I am to you?" He had a feeling they didn’t. 

Quinn looked up at Optimus' optics with a regretful look. "No, not yet but… I promise I'll tell them." She said before Optimus caressed her cheek with one of his fingers, trailing it down to her chin to tilt her head up more.

“I suggest you tell them soon, my soul spark. It would be unwise not to in case they… see something they wouldn’t want to.” Optimus whispered, another finger lifting to Quinn’s face so he was holding in between his two fingers while her breathing hitched. The heat of her skin felt good against the coolness of his metallic plating. The human looked at him with wide eyes. What exactly did Optimus have planned for her break? She wanted to find out… “I’ll leave you be for the night. Tomorrow is a different story.” The Autobot’s tone was playful as he retreated from Quinn’s window, leaving her staring at the spot Optimus was just at. 

Snapping her back into reality, Quinn could hear giggling from outside her door. Shit. She slammed her door open, finding Andi and Liza on the floor looking extremely guilty. “Hey…” Liza waved shyly.

“So you’re fucking the Autobot leader, huh?” Andi looked far more smug than Liza did. She had to live with Quinn after all. “‘Soul spark’ seems pretty romantic, don’t you think?”

Quinn crossed her arms, her cheeks bright red as she pouted at her friends. “You guys are insufferable.” She huffed as she helped her friends stand up straight. Apparently she couldn’t do anything on her own time unless it had to do with Cybertronian laws. 

“Just tell us his name and if you’ve seen his…. Well, y’know.” Andi countered, “Then maybe we’ll consider being less insufferable.” Liza lifted a hand to cover her mouth as she laughed, trying to conceal it but failing miserably.

Quinn facepalmed, shaking her head. “Optimus and no, not yet.” She decided she might as well answer truthfully instead of trying to avoid these sorts of questions.

Liza shrugged after a moment of silence, “That’ll change soon with the way he was talking to you.” She pointed out. Quinn had never felt so embarrassed in her life she had to turn away from them and fell face first into her bed.

“Just let us know when you need to be alone!” Andi called to Quinn as she closed her bedroom door and ran down the hall with Liza to their room. 

Soon after, Quinn’s phone vibrated from its place on the end table next to her bed. The human lifted her head as she grabbed her phone. The text was from Andi… She pursed her lips before she buried her head in her arms, hands gripping the sheets.

The text read: “don’t forget to wear protection !!”

[pickledpascal]

Love’s Train

Chapter Seven: 2021, Summer: A Much Needed Break

Warnings: Mature themes, talking about sex

Word Count: 1.4k

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Feeling burnt out, Quinn was relieved when Summer finally came. Occasionally having to go to a meeting while in the middle of midterms or even finals was like hell. She was stressed so she needed a break. It was a bit of a hassle to bring everything Quinn had in her dorm back, adding to it throughout the year but who the fuck cared? She was home, that's all that mattered. Plus she'd have more room in the house she planned on getting next year with a friend. It was somewhat secluded so Bumblebee would have more room to roam around without worrying about getting spotted. While it was now common sense that Cybertronians could change into their Bot form in public, Bee was still plenty worried what would happen if he did. He was as much of a son to Optimus as he could be, humans could take that to their advantage. Bumblebee could never be too careful. 

Throughout the Spring semester, Optimus would occasionally visit Quinn and Bumblebee. But Bee could tell it was mostly for Quinn. They went on midnight drives, Quinn talked about her day and Optimus would fill her in on all the drama happening at home. Her mother would rant to the Autobot leader about Quinn and Jake’s grandma, more specifically how old fashioned she was. Optimus thought it was nice, learning so much about Quinn’s life through her mother. Though… he began to despise her grandmother. Apparently she thought all Cybertronians were bad and disapproved of Quinn’s job as their ambassador. 

One thing Quinn did forget about living with her parents was how much they would bother her. And the Autobots… they were like children without their toys sometimes. The amount of random facts they would start saying–Ratchet–would hurt her brain sometimes. Ironhide would even beg Quinn to work on his canons, to improve them to some capacity but she had to decline. She promised congress she didn't work on their weapons anymore… even if she desperately wanted to. Breaking promises wasn't something Quinn made a habit of even if those humans had ulterior motives, she didn't. 

It was a bright summer day, Quinn's parents were already gone to their jobs and her brother was too. That meant she had the whole place to herself… plus four Cybertronians. Hound or Drift would come over occasionally, never notifying Quinn if they were coming. So maybe it was six? Well either way, she wanted to enjoy being outside for a little bit so she put on a bathing suit and made her way outside to a lounging chair her mother would usually use when she had the day off and there were no clouds in the sky. Quinn wore a pair of chunky sunglasses on the bridge of her nose in exchange for the thin frames she usually wore. Clad in her bathing suit, it was a simple black one piece with cutouts at her waist and a few at the side of her chest. 

She laid down on the chair, letting out a content sigh as she crossed her legs and closed her eyes. She wouldn’t mind if she went to sleep like this. Though, Quinn didn’t realize an Autobot would sneak up on her. And not the one she would have liked to.

“Quinn!” Ratchet yelled as he suddenly appeared next to her. The red and yellow bot interrupted Quinn’s nap, causing her to let out a disappointed sigh and let her sunglasses drop slightly so she could see Ratchet properly. “Since you and Optimus are together, I have compiled a list of things you will need to know regarding human and Cybertronian relationships.”

The human let out a sigh and nodded. “I might as well hear it.” She mumbled, though Ratchet didn’t hear her and continued anyway.

He thought she needed to hear them. And maybe he was right. “Regarding sexual relations, because I can tell your pheromone levels skyrocket around Optimus,” Quinn coughed, her eyes widening at that comment. “there’s a lot of different–more importantly, healthy–ways humans and Cybertronians can have se–” 

“Ratchet! Um, no thanks! Bye!” Quinn’s cheeks flushed with embarrassment as she pushed her sunglasses up to cover her eyes and immediately went back inside the house, wanting to lock herself inside for the rest of the day.

So much for enjoying the sunny weather. 

Bee made a chirping sound similar to a laugh as Ratchet let out a fabricated sigh and shook his head as he retreated back to the barn. He didn’t understand. Quinn was sexually interested in Optimus but Ratchet could tell she didn’t know if anything was possible between species. But the prospect of actually learning them seemed to be uncomfortable for the human. Maybe it was another weird human nuance none of them knew about yet.

“Ratchet, you… what were you speaking about with Quinn?” Optimus coughed to grab Ratchet’s attention. He might have heard the tail end of their conversation and was far more willing to hear the rest. Optimus might have been a Prime but there were things even he didn’t know. 

Ratchet optics widened with excitement as he smiled slightly. Of course! If Quinn had some sort of human reservation, Optimus wouldn’t have that so it was best to share it with him. “Yes, well, there’s lots of ways you and Quinn can copulate without putting too much strain on her human body. Humans are incredibly fragile after all and… it wouldn’t be smart to just fornicate without proper knowledge of the limits of the human body.” He explained as if this was a normal conversation to have.

Optimus was listening intently, especially when Ratchet started to list the different ways they could fuck if they so wished. And well… Optimus wasn’t sexually averse. He just hadn’t felt the need to until Quinn entered his life. Want would roll off his chassis in waves but he wasn’t sure what to do with it up until then. That bathing suit Quinn was wearing a few moments ago wasn’t helping either. These methods would certainly be handy for future reference. 

Unbeknownst to the two Autobots in the barn, Quinn was listening to them through a small crack in between the main doors. Her face was burning as she turned to Bee who was looking at her smugly. If the bot had a mouth she would slap that smug look off his face. 

“Not a word.” Quinn gritted out, moving away from the barn door. She was still in her bathing suit so she didn’t look as menacing as she wanted to. As if Bee could ever find her menacing to begin with.

Bee laughed softly before his radio rang out, “15 miles to the Love Shack! Love Shack, yeah, yeah!” He shook his hips slightly as he danced to the song. “Hugging and a-kissing, dancing and a-loving, wearing next to nothing ‘cause it’s hot as an oven. The whole shack shimmies!” 

Quinn shushed Bee, her cheeks flushing bright red. “Bee, I swear to god I will take both your voice box and radio out in the middle of the night when you least expect it.” She hissed. 

“Why?” Optimus asked. He’d come out of the barn, looking like he normally did. Stoic. As if he didn’t just have a way too long conversation with Ratchet about the ways to properly fuck a human if he wanted. At least he was distracted from what was happening outside.

Quinn whipped her body around, “Um, no reason.” She said, probably a little too quickly. Bee wasn’t going to be any sort of help, he looked innocent all the time and this was no different. 

Optimus let out a hum as his optics ran over Quinn’s barely clothed form. He hadn’t seen much of Quinn’s skin before besides her neck and up to her forearm. Her legs were completely bare and they looked so… plush and soft. Quinn’s tattoos decorated her body in a similar way the Cybertronian symbols did to his. Yes, they were more similar than he’d originally thought. 

Quinn averted her gaze from Optimus, feeling a shiver run over her spine. The way he was looking at her… She wanted that to happen more often.

[pickledpascal]

Love’s Train

Chapter Eight: 2021, Fall Semester: Emergency Meeting

Warnings: Government things, bitterness, hating on sam.

Word Count: 3.3k

Love’s Train Masterlist

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Quinn’s first Sophomore semester was going as well as it could. Her and her friend Andi got along well living in the same space together, her classes were harder but she knew she’d push through, and Optimus would give her a call. A call where she made sure to go to her bedroom for, but Andi knew something was up. A boyfriend maybe? She didn’t know for sure but she had her suspicions. Why else would Quinn come out of her room until an hour later? They talked for quite a while so unless the person on the other line was someone who needed Quinn to hand over some money, there was no other option in Andi’s eyes. 

Yeah, everything was going just fine.

But all good things must come to an end.

The week before Quinn’s midterms, the UN was supposed to be meeting and since she was the only alien ambassador that existed in the entire world that meant she had to go as well. At least she didn’t forget to pack her ‘professional’ clothes when moving into the apartment or else she’d be doomed. Not wearing a suit to a meeting like this was like wearing a costume in public when it wasn’t Halloween. It felt wrong, disgraceful even. 

As Quinn stuffed a carry-on suitcase with all the essentials she’d need, her phone started ringing. Optimus. It had to be. She quickly answered the phone as she exited her room with her bag in hand. “I’m accompanying you.” The deep baritone of his voice said. There was no disputing him this time, his decision was final.

“Okay but if some assholes figure you out, don’t tell me I didn’t warn you.” Quinn pursed her lips, brushing past her roommate who was doing homework on the kitchen table.

The phone on Quinn’s ear and the brevity of her actions caught Andi’s attention. “Oh! Is that your boyfriend? Tell him I said hi!” She called after Quinn before she shut the door on her. 

As soon as Quinn exited the building, she caught sight of the signature red and blue flame Peterbilt truck. Apparently, he was also driving her there himself with Bumblebee to lead the way. It was like they were some sort of convoy carrying precious cargo. Except it was a little funny to imagine a VW Beetle leading a semi truck of any kind. “You have got to be kidding me…” She hung up her phone as she lowered it into her pocket. Quinn huffed in frustration before the driver’s side door swung open, signaling her to climb in. So she did, throwing her bag in the passenger side before she used one of the steps to leverage herself inside.

Quinn had seen Optimus’ vehicular form many times but she’s never been inside him, so to speak. The driver’s cabin was actually pretty spacious and she’d probably be able to sleep in it if the drive would be too long. As soon as Quinn was strapped in, the engine started rumbling and the truck started to move. The vibration of the entire cabin gave Quinn goosebumps and not the bad kind. 

Optimus’ radio started to turn on after a while, flipping from station to station until it went quiet. “It has come to my attention that other humans we know intimately will be there. I suggest you make friends with them, they know us after all.” His voice rang out through the radio much like Bumblebee would do.

“And where did you get this information from?” Quinn asked, crossing her arms as she looked at the radio as if she was scolding a child.

The radio went silent. “... Crosshairs and Cade hacked into their data.” Optimus confessed, knowing what they did was wrong yet he still appreciated the heads up. Mostly for Quinn’s sake. Continuing when he felt it was appropriate, Optimus continued with his original point. “These humans are Colonel William Lennox, Ex-Sector Seven Agent Seymour Simmons, and Sam Witwikcy. Bee explained to me you’ve met Sam already.” 

“I did.” Quinn hummed, leaning back into the driver’s seat. Perhaps it was the simple fact Optimus was a Cybertronian so he was much more customizable than other trucks could be but the truck’s seats were incredibly comfortable… wait, was that a seat warmer button on the dash. As she turned it on, Quinn continued. “We talked for a second, didn’t say much but it looks like he didn’t know anything about the new Cybertronian laws being passed. Maybe now he does but it’s… weird. Especially for him being him.” Quinn let out a sigh. Perhaps she was so involved with the Autobots that she forgot normal humans didn’t care what happened to them. Sure, they thought they were cool but they had no idea that the Autobots protected them on a daily basis. Not so much anymore, every once in a while Optimus would send Hound, Drift, or Ironhide on a mission to investigate any sort of Decepticon activity.

Optimus’ engine hummed a little louder as a similar noise came out of the radio. “Sam is a much more… self-centered individual. But most humans are. If something does not directly involve him then he simply doesn’t care for it.” He explained. He remembered the time Sam said he couldn’t be an ‘alien ambassador.’ Perhaps he was right. Quinn was doing just fine on her own.

“What about the other two? Colonel Lennox and Agent Simmons, you know them?” Quinn asked. She knew about Simmons, he wrote some book about some big governmental secrets that came out years ago. She didn’t read it but her parents had a copy sitting on a shelf at home. Colonel Lennox on the other hand was a name she didn’t know. It was obvious he was in the military by his title, everything else was a mystery.

Optimus’ radio had to readjust for a moment before he could begin speaking properly again. “Colonel William Lennox was the head of a human–Cybertronian task force meant to take down any and all Decepticon threats on Earth. It was classified, top secret information never to be told to the public.”

“And you just told me. Great.” Quinn mumbled as Optimus continued.

“Agent Seymour Simmons was an agent of Sector Seven before it was disbanded after Megatron was originally reactivated. Since then he’s become a conspiracy theorist of sorts, helping the occasional Cybertronian in his retirement.” Optimus recounted. What a gift it must be to never forget anything. 

Yet also a great curse. 

—-----

A new day dawned on Earth, one where Quinn was lying in plush pillows and fluffy sheets. She may have only been there for business but she found pleasure in unexpected things. Like how she was riding in Optimus the whole way there. The rumbling of his engine, the vibration of the seats, the sound of his disembodied voice… She couldn’t stop thinking about it, those thoughts even invaded her in her sleep. Being in love with the leader of the Autobots will do that to a person.

Quinn woke up slowly, not really caring. The council wouldn’t start until mid-afternoon so she had some time to kill. All she really wanted to do was sleep in but she knew that if she did, she would never get out of bed. The human rolled over, her eyes fixated on the symbols imprinted onto her forearm as her mind slowly whirred back to life. Quinn slowly ran her fingers over them with a hum. She had Optimus’ mark on her and he had hers on him. She never quite realized just how possessive the nature of soul marks were, much like a wedding ring on the finger of a lover. 

Sitting up abruptly, Quinn got out of bed to get ready. Optimus has suggested it would be a good idea to try and get to know their other human allies. Quinn smoothed down her crimson suit once it was on. The shirt underneath a navy turtleneck, she had decided she wanted to match with Optimus. As subtly or not subtly as she could. Sharp black eyeliner graced her eyelids behind her usual thin black frames. 

Leaving her hotel room, three men were waiting outside Quinn’s door. Just the men she wanted to see, it seemed. She looked at each of them suspiciously. She recognized Sam, not much changed about him from last year although the suit he wore looked… worn and old. If that was Sam then the other two had to be Simmons and Lennox and, well, one of them looked like a Seymour. They stood in front of her awkwardly for a few moments until the tallest cleared his throat.

“I am Colonel William Lennox but you can call me Will or Lennox. Whichever one works for you.” So Quinn was right in her assumption as to which one was Simmons. The Colonel was dressed in a typical military uniform. Well, the suit kind, not the one with the camouflage and combat boots.

Simmons took a step closer to Quinn, a playful look in his eyes as he grabbed her hand and planted a kiss on the back of her hand. “You may know who I am already.” He smirked, trying to be suave while Lennox rolled his eyes and Sam let out a snort.

Quinn pulled her hand away from Simmons and wiped her hand on her blazer as she nodded. “I know who all of you are. Optimus and Bee filled me in.” She explained. At the mention of the Autobots, each of the men straightened up. It’s been a few years since any of them were able to make contact with either of those Cybertronians, even longer since Sam had met any Cybertronian.

“Is Optimus… here?” Lennox asked as Quinn started to walk down the hall to the elevator, all three men following her.

Quinn pursed her lips as she thought of a response. Optimus hadn’t set many rules on what she could and couldn’t say when talking to these people whom he trusted but she wouldn’t think he would appreciate his location being outed. “Can’t tell you, it would jeopardize them.” She hummed.

“C’mon, we would never do anything like that! Optimus and Bee know us.” Sam complained as they entered the elevator.

“Speak for yourself.” Simmons commented, letting out a scoff.

Quinn narrowed her eyes at Sam, her expression unimpressed. “Last time I checked, I’m in charge of human relations with Cybertronians. And the last time you even spoke to Bumblebee was more than ten years ago at this point so I could really care less that you feel some sort of entitlement over–” As the elevator stopped at the ground floor, her phone started to ring. Quinn quickly answered it, having a feeling she knew what–or who–it was.

Lennox shook his head as they all stepped out of the elevator. “Great going, Witwicky. What a nice introduction, huh?” He huffed in frustration while Sam rolled his eyes. It wasn’t the first time a woman would be difficult with him and it certainly wouldn’t be the last.

“There’s no need to be so hostile with Sam.” Optimus said over the phone, his voice sounding amused. And Quinn thought he was the more protective one.

Quinn lifted her hand to her forehead and closed her eyes in frustration. “How many times do I have to tell you not to hack into my phone’s microphone?” She hissed in a hushed voice which caught the attention of the men behind her. Who was hacking into her phone? More importantly, why?

“I’m having Bee bring all of you to me. I trust all of them not to reveal that I am here.” Optimus completely ignored her question but Quinn was used to it by now. He would tease Quinn about conversations with Andi he’d hear through her phone’s microphone about a certain ‘man’ that would call her. “See you soon, soul spark.” The line cut as soon as those words escaped his voice processor.

Even after the months since they got together, Quinn’s cheeks always flushed at Optimus’ nickname for her. “Ahem.” She coughed, grabbing the attention of the men again. “There’s been a change of plans if you would all follow me.” They all looked at each other before Quinn led the way to a bright yellow Volkswagen Beetle in mint condition, parked in the middle of the hotel lot. 

“Wow.” Simmons hummed, running a hand over the expanse of its hood. 

Lennox cocked a suspicious eyebrow, eyes trailing from the car to Quinn. “For a girl who seems to be into modernity, I did not expect you to be driving a classic.” He admitted, a hand on his hip. Quinn shrugged with a smug smile on her face as she saw Sam piece it together.

“I don’t think she’s the one driving it.” Sam smiled softly as he pet the metal plate that made up the ceiling of the car. “It’s Bee.” 

The other two men fixated their gaze on the car when they realized. As far as they’ve known Bumblebee, he’s been a Camaro. He did upgrade to the current Camaro every few years simply for aesthetic reasons. But a Beetle? It seemed so… out of character.

The doors on either side of the car opened for all of them to climb in but when Sam tried getting in the driver’s seat, the door slammed closed. “This spot is reserved for the Captain only.” The radio sparked to life. Bumblebee could speak to all of them with his own voice now, a privilege he didn’t have before. Sam backed off, mostly because of shock. 

“Did Bee–” Sam started.

“Just speak. Yes, he did. Get in, please.” Quinn hummed as she sat in her place while Simmons and Lennox slimbed in the back. That left Quinn and Sam in the front. 

Sam blinked as he got in the car and Bee started to drive. “How? I mean, he’s been having problems for a while but you don’t seem… all that surprised that he could speak normally?” He questioned, still wrapping his head around it. 

Lennox let out a small laugh at Sam’s bewilderment. Looks like he didn’t read the files on Quinn that were sent to them weeks in advance to this council. “Quinn admitted to fixing Bumblebee’s voice box. It’s relatively common knowledge Ms. Harlow here is a Cybertronian mechanic, or a Cybertronian medic if you wanna call it that.” He shrugged as Sam studied Quinn for a moment. She was young, possibly the same age as him when all the weight of the world was on his shoulders. She was handling far more gracefully than him though.

“She really does work wonders.” Bumblebee chuckled through the radio as he turned onto a backroad with lots of trees and vegetation. He was thankful Quinn equipped him with tires that could withstand the gravel roads in this area.

For Sam, it was amazing to finally be able to hear Bumblebee’s real voice. Continually. He’d hear it sometimes, mostly when Bee was under stress or in the heat of battle when he thought he might die. To hear it over and over again without any glitches in his voice was unreal. The Beetle eventually came to stop in an opening in the forest, shielded by thick trees. As everyone got out, Bee transformed into his bot form and stood near the back to simply watch the events that were about to transpire. 

A rumbling of the ground could be felt under their feet, getting closer to their location. Optimus revealed himself from behind some trees, kneeling down to be a little shorter in size. “Gentlemen, I would like to reintroduce all of you to Optimus Prime.” Quinn smiled when she saw all of their shocked faces.

How could they not be? Optimus went through many upgrades throughout the years. His bot form looked less truck-like but still had hints of it with the exhaust pipes peeking out from his back and the metal mechanisms at work inside his legs and arms. 

—----

Soon, Bumblebee took the men back to their hotel after a short talk between them and Optimus Prime. It gave him and Quinn some time alone. And not the fun kind. Optimus had some things he wanted to speak about with Quinn regarding the undoubted questions the UN council would ask about him. 

"In response, I want you to say exactly what I tell you." Optimus said, in that voice that was soft and smooth yet demanding and could make one do whatever he wished. 

Quinn narrowed her eyes at Optimus as she sat in his metallic hand. "Alright then." She let out a breath. "Lay it on me."

—---

Entering the UN headquarters was a hassle, especially with all the energon detectors and the fact that Quinn was flagged for having energon radiation all over her. She was around Cybertronians all the time, of course she would emit energon radiation. Once the guards realized she was clean and, in fact, human, they let her through to the council room. 

The plate at her desk was simply named 'Autobots' instead of the other countries like France or Germany. Quinn took a breath as she sat down at her desk, Lennox and Sam were next to her. She didn't want to let Optimus down. So far, she hadn't but it would be quite frankly embarrassing if she messed up in front of over one hundred representatives of different countries. 

The meeting itself was boring, with countries fighting over who was entitled to who's resources and if one country would aid another in their quest to take over a country that wasn't involved in the UN. So much for the "United Nations." 

Quinn had to snap herself back into reality when she realized a representative was talking to her. "And what do you say, Autobot representative? Will the Cybertronians hand over some of their resources? Their weapons?" It seemed the speaker had a British accent. The Brits… always trying to look for some new form of war. Much like the United States, perhaps that's where it got it from. 

"The Autobot leader, Optimus Prime, has expressed his concern for what humans would do with the advanced weaponry he and his Cybertronian brothers possess." Quinn responded in as level a voice she could. She'd had great practice at this point, especially listening to the way Optimus talked all the time helped. 

The representative from Spain spoke up this time. "What of the Autobot leader anyway? None of us know who he is or what he looks like. Why conceal himself if he's looking for peace between our species?"

"He's not too keen on breaking bread with the people who tried to kill him just a few years ago." Quinn admitted, tilting her head to the side slightly. "I'm the liaison here, much like how the President of the United States is not here with us today." 

Perhaps the other representatives hated Quinn. For the way she spoke to them–firm yet calm, knowing her position was always right–or perhaps for the way she was so accomplished at such a young age. Being the ambassador for an alien race of sentient robotic beings that could transform into virtually any sort of vehicle sure looked great on a resumé. But if they knew of the relationship going on between her and the Autobot leader, Quinn was sure there'd be an uproar. 

Human-Cybertronian romantic relationships were unheard of. Deemed as unnatural by some while most others haven't even considered it to be a possibility. 

It was more of a possibility than one might think.

[pickledpascal]

Love’s Train

Chapter Six: 2021, Winter Break: An Exchange is in Order

Warnings: Attempted murder/mugging, a bit of violence.

Word Count: 1.6k

Love’s Train Masterlist

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Winter break was fast in its arrival. Quinn aced most of her finals and it was hard to say goodbye to her friends she spent most of her time with during those first five months of school. She needed this break, though. Too many people felt entitled to come up to her out of nowhere and ask questions about her work with the Autobots. Not only that but… she had a bit of a scare during the few days before Winter Break. 

Quinn was walking back to her dorm from a late class–a biology lab–and a guy went up to her with a knife. He wasn't the most threatening since he seemed to be about the same age as her but Quinn knew to take any sort of threat seriously so she did what any woman in her position would do, beat the shit out of him and call the cops. She was mostly okay, a small slash on her cheek from the knife but the guy looked a lot worse than her. 

At least she'd have a cool scar out of it. 

Optimus, on the other hand, didn't find the story as amusing as Quinn did when she told him. Or Bee told him so Optimus had Quinn recount the experience. 

It was in the middle of December, snowflakes dancing around each other outside while Optimus, Bee, and Quinn were inside the barn. She didn't quite understand why Optimus was so upset, she was taught self defense for this exact reason. In case Bumblebee or any other Autobot wasn't there to protect her. Plus it would have been a real shame for Bee to waste his time vaporizing a random college kid turning to crime for money. That wouldn't do shit. 

Quinn paced around, not liking the idea Optimus was bringing up. Optimus watching her every move while she was in college? No. Well… maybe a little bit. "I’m literally fine, Optimus. One scratch. That’s it! You don’t need to baby me. Plus, how the hell is a fucking semi gonna blend in on a college campus? Not that good." She countered, shaking her head as she looked up at Optimus. 

Even while in the middle of an argument, Quinn couldn't help but stare at Optimus. The bot was in a lounging position, his knee bent upward while his other leg was laying down and pointed away from him. 

Optimus let out a noise similar to a sigh of discontent, his optics closing for a moment before he caught Quinn's gaze. "Your safety is of the utmost importance to me. It doesn’t matter that it was just one scratch, what matters is that you got hurt at all." 

That was Bee's cue to leave as quietly as possible, even if that meant his joints would start to freeze out in the snow. The pair were finally going to have their… talk? If that's what a confession could be called. Bee knew Optimus and Quinn would appreciate being alone to have their conversation.

For such a smart woman, Quinn could be so clueless sometimes. "Why? I'm not your responsibility." Her eyebrows furrowed as she crossed her arms, awaiting an answer.

"You're right, you're not." Optimus bent down, making himself level with Quinn as best he could. "But I care about you, Quinn Harlow. Far more than I ever thought I could care about any human. We are bonded." Quinn blinked in surprise. The Prime knew all this time but much like the human in front of him, he had a hard time accepting it. He's heard the legends of Primes having a soul mark but those were usually with other Cybertronians. A Prime and a human was virtually unheard of. "We cannot deny fate. It would be incredibly difficult to do so and I fear… we both would feel empty if we tried." 

Quinn let out a shaky breath through her nose, taking all of this in. How did he know? Did he… "You…. Do you have a soul mark?" She asked, flicking her eyes up to Optimus' optics. 

Optimus pursed his lips together, not answering right away until he shifted so Quinn could see the inside of his wrist. It looked as if her name was carved into the metal there, much like the symbols etched into the side of his head. So Optimus did have a soul mark and hid it or maybe Bee knew too… Quinn ran a hand through her hair and took a deep breath. Cybertronians could have a soul mark. Her world view was majorly shifting and she felt as if her brain couldn't take it. 

"Quinn…" Optimus' voice started to sound far away. Quinn could feel the Prime's hand against her back, it was cool and solid. Weirdly comfortable. Wait, when did Optimus turn sideways? 

As Quinn started to feel more and more conscious, she shook her head as she sat up on Optimus' hand. "I'm sorry…" She mumbled as she cast her head down. It was embarrassing to almost pass out when they were just starting to advance upon their soul marks.

"No need to be sorry, my soul spark." A nickname already, huh. Optimus worked fast. She didn't hate it though. Optimus tilted Quinn's head up towards him with a single finger under her chin. He cocked his head slightly as his optics studied her form once more. "I understand this is all so… jarring."

Quinn bit her lip at the feeling of Optimus' finger against her chin. This alien robot was so much more powerful than she could ever dream of being, he had the strength to snap her in half if he wished yet he was treating her so gently. As Optimus took his finger away, Quinn swallowed thickly. 

She kept staring at Optimus for a moment. "So… what does my mark say? I know it's probably your name but even Bee couldn't read it." Quinn said as she rolled up her sleeve to show it to the huge bot. 

The Prime stared at the symbols, his exhaust pipes letting out some smoke while Optimus' eyes widened. Was that how he blushed? It was actually pretty cute. "That is the language of the Primes. Only Primes can read it." He explained, his jaw clenching slightly though it didn't seem to be a… negative kind. "These are the symbols etched onto me and now they are etched onto you. For as long as we co-exist, our bond will never be broken." Optimus' optics softened as he looked into Quinn's eyes. 

Quinn's eyes traveled from Optimus to the symbols on the expanse of her forearm. They matched. She pursed her lips and let out a small huff. Now that it was confirmed they were meant for each other there was no more questioning anything. 

Quinn might as well act like how one usually would when they find their soulmate for the first time. In love, so fucking in love. She stood from Optimus' hand, grabbing his chin with both hands as she pressed his lips against his. Surprised, Optimus let out a little noise… as well as a small honk from his horn. It felt as if his systems were overheating, if only for a second. He quickly adjusted, closing his optics to simply enjoy the feeling. The human's lips were soft, warm, and smooth in comparison to his. 

Remembering she needed to breathe, Quinn pulled away from Optimus and glanced up at his optics as she panted for air. Lucky for Optimus that he didn't need air for his systems to run smoothly. 

"You're not going to let me watch over you, are you?" Optimus asked after a few moments, an affectionate tone in his voice.

Quinn's lips quirked up into a guilty smile. "I'm fine with Bee." She nodded as she ran her fingers along the profile of Optimus' jaw. She could feel all the little dents and grooves there.

Optimus narrowed his optics before he let out a sigh and shook his head. The things love was already doing to him. Quinn could convince him to do whatever, it seemed. "Will you at least let Ratchet look at that wound?" He asked, almost pleadingly.

"That, I can do." Quinn smiled brightly, nodding. 

Ratchet was great, especially when he would make comments about the pheromone levels of random people visiting this little Autobot refuge. Sometimes, that was when Quinn would laugh the hardest. The looks on their faces when their crushes would be revealed or the simple fact that they were "in the mood."

Optimus narrowed his optics for a moment as he started at Quinn. He hooked one finger under Quinn's jaw again while another settled on her cheek. "I know you cannot promise me you'll stay out of danger but can you try? For me, my soul spark?" He asked softly.

"Yeah, I can try…" Quinn hummed softly, leaning into the metallic fingers Optimus offered her. 

Perhaps it was just her mind playing tricks on her at first but Quinn thought it would be much harder to actually be in a relationship with Optimus. He seemed… a little emotionally constipated. He was always so formal or maybe he was just denying his feelings as much as Quinn was trying to. 

Either way, the way Optimus was acting certainly was welcome by Quinn.

[pickledpascal]

Love’s Train

Chapter Four: 2020: A Semblance of Normalcy

Warnings: existential crisis, sneaking out.

A/N: pandemic doesn’t exist, fuck that

Word Count: 1.4k

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Two years passed and Quinn was slowly starting to become a normal girl again. Besides the fact that her best friend was a yellow and black robot that could transform into a Camaro and, well, she certainly didn't look like a normal government official. At twenty-one, her arms were covered in various tattoos and her hair was dyed blue at the tips. She had a handle on all the Congress stuff after a while. As it all calmed, she wasn't needed as much, so it was the perfect opportunity for her to apply to colleges. She still wanted that degree, hoping she'd get a cool job with inventing. 

Who could pass up accepting the woman who spoke for the Autobots in their college? 

Which meant Quinn had her choice among what felt like hundreds of different colleges but her parents wanted her to be somewhere close. Preferably in-state. So she did. The college she chose was a two hour drive away from the five acre piece of land her parents owned. Far enough for Quinn to feel independent but close enough that she could drive back for a weekend if she wanted. 

To celebrate Quinn going to college, her parents threw a party. They invited friends and family from all over. Not that Quinn ever really met them but she appreciated the gesture. 

She made her way outside the two-story home, through the porch door and sighed as she stared at the setting sun. Most of the party-goers were inside, getting drunk and laughing with friends. Quinn looked back inside for a moment, catching a glimpse of her brother clinking a beer with someone. She let out a light laugh. 

Seeing Jake drunk was always fun to watch. Especially when he wanted to challenge Quinn to a beer pong game. He'd somehow win yet be leagues drunker than Quinn. 

A horn honking grabbed Quinn's attention. She realized it was Bee when his car door opened. Skipping her own party? What was more Quinn Harlow than that? She glanced back at her house before she stepped down from the porch and quickly got in Bee's driver's seat. The car moved as soon as Quinn got in, traveling down the dirt road that was shaded by tall trees.

"Where we going Bee?" Quinn asked, cocking her head as she looked around. She'd played in these woods when she was younger, even went camping with her family since it wasn't too far from the house.

Bee didn't respond, just the sound of his engine purring and his tires moving against dirt. That wasn't like him….

Soon, Bee stopped. He opened the driver's side door to signal Quinn to get out which she did. She looked at Bumblebee with narrowed eyes before she caught sight of that blue truck with red flames driving towards her. It stopped until it was just a few inches away from her then Quinn could see Optimus transforming into his Bot form. Gears, parts, lights, and tires rolling into place until Quinn could properly see the thirty foot tall bot. He kneeled down to be face to face with Quinn. Even then, she had to tilt her head up to look at him.

"Hello, Quinn Harlow." A deep voice rang out from in between his metallic lips, one she didn't expect but it fit. "I must commend you for all the things you've done for our race." Optimus hummed, blue optics taking in Quinn's form. Almost as if he was studying it.

It seemed all Autobots had blue optics, a detail Quinn would come to know very well.

Quinn was speechless. She'd seen Bee transform all the time but this… it was different. Optimus was a prime. The peak form of a Cybertronian. Perhaps that's why he was so goddamn big. 

The human coughed slightly and shrugged. "I, um, it's nothing." Quinn quickly said as she felt something start to prickle at her forearm. She tried to ignore it best she could. Whatever it was, it wasn't as important as meeting Optimus.

"It's not nothing." Optimus huffed out a laugh, a noise Quinn wasn't sure Optimus was capable of but it seemed he was full of surprises. "Every time you walk into that white building, you risk being ridiculed and endangered. I'm glad to call you a friend." He nodded, holding up his hand to Quinn's.

Quinn's eyes flicked from Optimus' face to the hand in front of her. It was probably as big as her entire body and she was six feet tall, above average for girls. "Um, you too." She smiled, awkwardly taking one of his fingers in her hand and shaking it. 

Optimus lowered his head a bit to be more level with Quinn and took his hand away. "I must also congratulate you on being admitted into college. As I understand these past few years have… as you say, thrown a wrench in your plans." He was certainly much more composed than his Autobot brothers. He spoke eloquently and clearly.

If only little Quinn could see her now. Conversing with that blue and red truck who led the Autobots.

"Th-Thanks." Quinn stammered slightly. Seeing Optimus close up was intimidating yet weirdly… attractive. She could see the little details of the metal plates that made up his face. "I mean, helping friends is more important than anything, right?" Quinn glanced back at Bumblebee who had transformed into his Bot form and sat at the stump of a tree.

"If only other humans could be as gracious as you." Optimus smiled lightly, a bit of a bitter tone in his voice. Not at Quinn. She could tell that already. 

—------

As Bee dropped Quinn back off at her house, she immediately made her way up to her room. That prickling on her arm was starting to bother her to no end. Like an itch she couldn't scratch. Quinn threw off the jacket she wore and rolled up her sleeve to see if anything was stuck on her skin or anything. 

There was nothing. No little bug that had managed to crawl its way into her sleeve, no raised red rash. Nothing. Well, except…. 

In the Cybertronian language, a deep blue mark appeared on the expanse of Quinn's forearm. While she couldn't read what it meant, she could tell what it was. Her soul mark appeared.

Right as she met the leader of the Autobots.

"Holy fuck." Quinn blinked, eyes wide as she slowly lowered herself onto her bed.

Of course she just had to be soulmates with Optimus fucking Prime. An alien robot. To be fair, she loved Bumblebee. But that was platonic. Like a brother and sister. But to be in love with a Cybertronian? As a human? It was hard to wrap her head around. Could they even… no, she didn't need to think about that. 

Quinn ran her hands through her hair. It was bittersweet. After all this time of wanting any sort of soul mark and she finally had it. But her soulmate wasn't human. She didn't think it was possible. But perhaps Cybertronians were more human than she had originally thought. Quinn took a few deep breaths, shaking her head from her thoughts. 

It's not like Optimus had a mark. He wouldn't have to know, especially if he didn't know about humans having soul marks to begin with. So it would be easy to hide. 

"It's okay, Quinn. You have a mark now, you're alright." Quinn whispered, trying to calm herself. 

Her thoughts about Optimus, being desperate to meet him, feeling almost betrayed when he crossed paths with her, it started to make sense. Quinn pursed her lips before she looked at her mark again. She'd saved a space for it among all the tattoos she got, still holding out hope. At least it looked at home among all the ink around it. 

If Optimus didn't know already then Quinn certainly wouldn't tell him. Not right away. Maybe down the line, when they actually start to know each other. That night was only a meeting to finally see each other for the first time. The human fighting for Cybertronian rights and the leader of the Autobots would have to meet eventually.

Funny how their paths were so acutely intertwined. 

Quinn let out a breath. College was just around the corner, that would give her time. Time to breathe, to get her thoughts together, to figure out what the hell she was gonna do. 

[pickledpascal]

Love’s Train

Chapter Three: 2018: Changing Roles

Warnings: A bit of existentialism, swearing, feelings of inadequacy, i’m an american and i still don’t know how the US government works.

Word Count: 1.7k

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It was a little unfortunate in Quinn’s opinion that she wasn’t included in the action of Cybertron almost colliding with Earth. Yet, at the same time, she couldn’t help but feel relieved. Stressful situations were never her strong suit. Going to war… she knew she’d have a mental breakdown of some sort. But just because Quinn wasn’t fighting alongside the Autobots doesn’t mean she was in the clear just yet. Earthlings were starting to change their minds again about Cybertronians. Hailed them in a more positive light, especially after they just saved Earth for possibly the millionth time. So the Autobots needed a human, someone they could trust, to speak for them in front of the entire world.

It just so happened that Quinn was that human.

It couldn’t be Cade. He was too brash and angry, someone who was sure to rub the wrong people the wrong way. Quinn seemed to be the correct choice. Someone who was diplomatic yet firm, kind but she wouldn’t budge if it came down to it. She was Bee’s recommendation and it seemed Optimus couldn’t really refuse. 

So Quinn’s dreams of going to college were put on hold. Creating a safer world for her friends was much more important than getting a mechanical engineering degree. Optimus Prime entrusted her with introducing Cybertronian-inclusive laws. She couldn’t pass up this opportunity. Bumblebee was her closest friend, she couldn’t let him down either. 

So far so good. Quinn was able to fix Bumblebee’s voice box. He could finally speak using his own voice instead of the radio and speak he did.

“How was the council?”

“Was the president there? What was he wearing?”

“If someone threatens you, I’m shooting them with my canon.”

“Fucking humans.”

Just a few things he’d say after Quinn would come back from Washington. It was weird, having to get information she’d need for the next council from Bumblebee and not Optimus. Perhaps he didn’t trust her just yet which she couldn’t blame him for. The Autobot leader was gone for years, not knowing just how much the world changed in his absence. Maybe he was just getting used to it all again. Quinn was at the junkyard, laying on the dried up dirt of the ground as she looked up at the stars. She wasn’t able to even see Optimus. Not in a way that mattered. She’d see Optimus parked to the side of Cade’s trailer or even driving out of the main road. Quinn had never seen him transform, just the truck. 

It was hard to not take it personally. Quinn was their human representative, why wouldn’t he at least want to introduce himself? It seemed a bit… childish in her eyes. Though she wasn’t sure why. Bee carried on as if everything was fine. Which it was for the most part. The few laws Quinn had introduced so far had passed, both parties afraid their approval ratings would go down if they vetoed them.

Law one was simply not making Autobots enemies of the state anymore–only in America though.

Law two was granting Autobots citizenship as if they were any other human born in the states. That one took a bit longer to pass because Cybertronians aren’t really born, especially not on Earth. They just so happened to crash land in America.

Through time, though, Quinn was able to find some old friends of Bumblebee and Optimus. Ironhide and Ratchet. They were both alive, just hiding very well. It was nice to see their reunion. Especially when Ratchet realized Bee could talk and that Quinn fixed his voice box instead of some other Autobot. The junkyard started to be like a safe haven for the bots. Somewhere away from the horrors of the world.

Bumblebee laid down next to Quinn, optics staring up at the night sky as well. “You look at the stars when you feel lost.” He hummed, gears shifting as he turned his head to look at Quinn. “What’s on your mind?”

She let out a breath and sat up, lifting her knees to her chest as she looked at Bee with a light smile. Being friends with a Cybertronian was nice, of course it was, but that meant Bee could start to pick up on the little things about Quinn. “I just–I was thinking. About Optimus. I know I’m human and we’ve hurt a lot of you but, I mean, he was the one with the final decision. Why haven’t we met yet? Sometimes I’ll see him leaving or resting next to Cade’s trailer like he is now but… he hasn’t gone all ‘robot’ mode in front of me yet. It makes me feel… disappointed.” Quinn admitted, scratching the back of her head before fixing her glasses.

Bumblebee waited a moment before he answered. If he had lips, Quinn was sure he would have pursed them. “It’s… hard because I can’t give you an answer to that. Optimus likes to keep his cards close sometimes. He wouldn’t even interact with Sam unless he was under extreme danger. Perhaps he’s keeping himself isolated from you so you are not endangered.” He suggested before continuing as he sat up as well. “Those humans who share congress with you, their intentions are not always pure.”

“I know, Bee…” Quinn sighed as she looked into Bumblebee’s bright blue optics before she was enveloped in a hug. She chuckled softly. 

At that point, she was used to slightly getting crushed in between Bee’s solid metal hands and his chest composed of the front of whatever car he’d turn into at the time. It seemed to be the latest Camaro. Honestly, Quinn was getting comfortable with hugging Bee. She cupped his cheek and smiled as he closed his optics and leaned into her touch. Bumblebee was very affectionate and… cute. 

—-----

Another day in Washington, a hotel provided by the government for the duration of her stay, and a yellow and black Camaro sitting comfortably by the side of the street. No one would even think twice to look at it. Fall was starting to roll in, brown leaves dancing along the wind before falling to the ground. Quinn’s birthday was just a few months ago. Nineteen and still not in college. 

Quinn was making her way out of the hotel, dressed in a deep blue suit and white tank top, when someone bumped into her. “Sorry!” She quickly apologized before looking up at the perpetrator. His face seemed familiar.

“It’s alright. You must be Quinn Harlow. I’m Sam Witwickey.” He introduced himself as if Quinn would have known who she was but she was drawing a blank. Sensing this, he quickly added. “I saved Optimus Prime then he saved the world…” Sam trailed off.

Then Quinn nodded, remembering. “Yeah, your face is much slimmer. Must be why I didn’t recognize you at first.” She smiled sheepishly. Sam certainly looked a lot more like an adult than in the pictures she’s seen. Truth was, Bumblebee didn’t talk about Sam much. They had some sort of fallout before Bee had to go into hiding. All the information Quinn did know about Sam was from old Sector Seven records. 

Sam cocked his eyebrow before he caught sight of the Camaro on the other side of the street. “Isn’t it… dangerous for Bee to be here?” He asked.

“Laws have been put in place in case you forgot so no. Not anymore.” Quinn answered with a small smile and a nod. “It was nice to meet you, Mr. Witwicky, but I gotta go.” She waved, making her way to Bee. 

What a weird morning in Washington… 

—------

Each day Quinn was called to congress started to blur together, it all started the same way with the same questions being asked over and over again that it would give Quinn a headache. Not sometimes but all the time.

“Which Autobots are you closest too?” 

“Bumblebee and Ratchet.”

“Why did you start working with them?” 

“To understand their anatomy.”

“What is their anatomy like?” 

“Unexplainable to a panel of people who know nothing about mechanics at all.”

“Have you worked on their weapons?” 

“Yes, however not anymore.”

“Have you been able to talk with their leader, Optimus Prime?” 

“No, he’s very secretive and only allows extremely trusted humans to speak with him. It is also safe to assume I’ve yet to speak to him because if I had I am under oath not to lie to you.”

None of this was hard. Just incredibly, mind-numbingly, tedious. Quinn hated tedious things but she agreed to help her friends and she wasn’t gonna back down just because her job would give her a headache. It was a job after all. She knew it wasn’t going to be fun. The aftermath would be. To be around Bee in public in his bot form would be a dream.

Huffing as she closed the door to the Camaro, Quinn closed her eyes and took in a deep breath. “I’m fucking tired…” She ran a hand through her hair before she dragged it down her face to try and put some life back in her face.

A static started for a second as the knobs for the radio started turning before Bee’s voice came through. Innovation was Bumblebee’s middle name if Quinn had anything to say about it. Always looking for new ways to communicate. “Back to the hotel, Captain? Or home?” He asked.

Quinn sighed as she set a hand on the steering wheel. “Hotel, I need to grab some stuff. Tomorrow morning, we’re going home.” She said as she pursed her lips. She was able to grab a few spare parts needed to fix the rest of Ironhide and Ratchet on her way over to Washington. Ironhide needed a better weapons calibration system, his canons wouldn’t power up anymore and Ratchet needed a new medical scanner. Both of which she was able to find, rummaging around in a few spare parts ditches. Quinn thought it was weird to throw away parts people didn’t think they needed anymore… Well, at least she got them for free. That’s always nice.

[pickledpascal]

Love’s Train

Optimus Prime x Quinn Harlow

Optimus Prime Masterlist

Fic on AO3

× SOULMATE AU ×

Summary: Ever since Quinn was little, she was different from her peers. See, most of her friends started getting their soul mark around 14, when they meet the person they’re supposed to be with for the rest of their life. At 18, she was a part of Cade Yeager’s little team of rebels when Quintessa tried to join Cybertron and Earth together and still had no soul mark. She was an inventor who helped create better weapons for Bumblebee, Drift, and Hound.

After the danger passed, she was chosen by the Autobots to be a representative of sorts with the humans. They wanted to co-exist as peacefully as possible with humans but that meant Quinn had to put her dreams of going to college on the backburner. The most peculiar thing about it was that when holding a council with the Autobots, her soul mark started to burn on her inner forearm. A deep blue in cybertronian font.

General Warnings: Smut, bayverse story oops, includes bumblebee (2018), definitely not good descriptions of Cybertronian customs, Optimus is barely in here oops.... college shenanigans.

ONE. TWO. THREE. FOUR. FIVE. SIX. SEVEN. EIGHT. NINE. TEN.

[pickledpascal]

Love’s Train

Chapter One: 2014: A Memory

Warnings: None!

Word Count: 1.1k

Love’s Train Masterlist

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Soul marks. They appear, either with a searing pain or you simply don’t notice them at all, when you meet your soulmate. Depending on where your soulmate might be from, it will be in their language. There’s this little urban legend that if the pain of your mark is strong then your bond with that person will last longer. Not everyone ends up with their soulmate. Sometimes they die or perhaps don’t end up choosing each other. 

It just depends on the person.

And as far as any human is concerned, no Cybertronian has ever had a soul mark or soulmate. Certainly not one that was human either.

It was during High School when Quinn learned that all the Autobots would be subject to exile. She never really cared as to why. They were the humans friends. Why would they do that to them? Maybe she couldn’t comprehend it when she was younger or maybe she did, her brain just wouldn’t let her agree with it. The Autobots fought for them and this is how they were going to be treated in return? Something in Quinn’s head screamed it was wrong.

She was fifteen, in her sophomore year when she learned the news. It was cast on the school news at 7 am sharp, like always. Her friends didn’t seem to care either way, although a little bummed they couldn’t have a self driving car. Quinn herself was a lot smaller in frame, her arms were weak with barely any blemishes on them besides a few freckles and one scar on her hand from an oven and her hair…. Well, it was its natural color–brown. Her green eyes were hidden behind some chunky, bright pink framed glasses that she would eventually hate.

One of Quinn’s friends–Jess–a girl shorter than Quinn that had dark curly hair, a deep complexion, and dark brown eyes, pursed her lips. “I mean, can you imagine having one of those bots as a car? You don’t have to drive yourself to school anymore! Just let it do it!” She said excitedly. 

“I’m sure it would be fun.” Quinn nodded solemnly, adjusting one of the straps of her backpack. “Get to talk to your car like a friend.” 

Rachel, another friend of Quinn’s, nudged her arm. “You already do that, Q.” She teased softly. She had long, straight black hair and almost whiskey-like eyes. “Red is just a little guy, we’re best friends!” She mocked Quinn’s voice, earning her a shove. 

None of them had their soul marks yet. It differed from person to person when they would get their marks but the average time was in high school, usually from the ages of fourteen to sixteen. They were all square in the middle of that range. Fifteen. Sure, there were people who would get theirs only after going to college but even then, it was like a weight was lifted. Their parents didn’t want their children to end up alone. There were extreme cases where people’s lives would end without ever having a soul mark. When it happened, it would be all over the news. Fear clutching onto the minds of parents.

Rachel asked with a light smile, “Okay but which one is the coolest? 3, 2, 1–”

“Bumblebee!” Quinn and Jess answered at the same time.

Rachel laughed and nodded, “He might be the fastest too. I mean, I don’t know what the truck one can do but I don’t think he’s that cool.” She shrugged.

Lots of things regarding the Autobots were classified. That meant Egypt was barely covered on the news, never even mentioning the Autobot leader at all. Optimus was meant to be a secret, one that only the most trusted of government agents would know about. All the public knew was that a blue truck with red flames was a part of the Autobots team even though they’ve never really seen him transform. 

“We don’t know anything about him so maybe he is.” Quinn pursed her lips as she fiddled with her shoes–they were all sitting on the floor in the corner of the main hall of the school. Her shoes were a simple black and white sneaker, nothing too special.

Jess laughed softly, “Not as cool as Bumblebee. He’s a fast car! What’s better than that?” She countered with a light smile.

Before Quinn could answer, the bell rang for the first period of the day. Her and her friends got up, waved goodbye, and went to their classes. They didn’t even know about anything happening outside school, the war happening in Chicago… yet again. But to them, that didn’t matter. What mattered was simple stuff. Getting good grades, not getting detention, learning to drive, maybe getting a new car, making sure you had an open parking spot–yeah, simple stuff.

Life would change, though. They would change and grow. Jess and Rachel would get their soul mark by the end of the school year, leaving Quinn behind. It was… weird. The sort of exclusion people without their soul mark had. It was like she was socially excluded from everything. She had to work even harder than one with a mark. And she did. Everything Quinn wanted to do, she excelled at. 

Gym wasn’t the best thing, though. It felt like torture, muscles aching after each period and then she had to continue like she didn’t want to just collapse in the middle of the hallway. But Quinn made it through. And she always would.

There were moments, times when she didn’t want to work so hard. Quinn wanted to be normal. She wanted a mark. She didn't care if she would see her soulmate again, she just wanted a mark. She wouldn’t have to get straight As or go through another look of dismay in her mother’s eyes. Quinn couldn’t take it. It was too much. She needed to escape somehow. 

Well. Cars were an escape. Her brother was one of the only people who treated her like a normal person. He had a small car collection going, one that he would let Quinn work on whenever she needed to. The only rule was that she couldn’t touch his Mustang. He was the only one allowed to work on it since it was one of the only cars he drove on a daily basis. And, well, sometimes when Quinn switched a part out, it wouldn’t work properly at first.

The only thing that would make it better in Quinn’s eyes was if she could work on a Cybertronian. She wanted to help but they were being hunted and she’d rather not endanger her family. 

Later down the line, maybe….

[pickledpascal]

Love’s Train

Chapter Two: 2017: Graduation

Warnings: Feelings of hopelessness, swearing.

Word Count: 1.3k

Love’s Train Masterlist

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Years later, it was the summer of 2017. Quinn just graduated a few weeks ago. She exchanged her bright pink glasses for a thinner black frame that complimented her eyes better. Her arms were bulkier with tattoos and muscle from working on her brother’s cars and… well, some Cybertronians as well. But her parents didn’t know about that. Only Cade and the Autobots knew. All her parents thought was that she was going to a junkyard… not necessarily a lie. 

They just didn’t know that Quinn was so full of energon radiation after holding a dinobot and working on Bumblebee’s voice box. A dream come true if she had anything to say about it.

Quinn, unfortunately, drove a regular car to the yard–a red Mazda. She said a hello to the chief on her way in and got out of the car, her tool box already in her hand. Working on Bee was easy, he was patient and more willing to be poked and prodded than any other Autobot. Drift and Crosshairs were too arrogant to admit when they needed to be worked on and Hound… Well, he had his moments. 

“Hey, Bee! Your doctor’s here!” The familiar voice of Cade rang out as he revealed himself from under the hood of a junky car. He was probably pulling something out of there for later. Bee jumped up and down giddily, a happy tempo playing from his radio as he walked into the “operating room.” Cade then looked over at Quinn as he pointed at her, “And you! You needa stop destroying all the fuckin’ parts around here and leave some for the rest of us.”

Quinn rolled her eyes, putting her middle finger in the air as she made her way towards Bee. “Love ya too, Cade!” She called back at him.

By now, it was standard procedure with Quinn and Bumblebee. After her initial freak out, of course. Who wouldn’t be excited as all hell to meet one of the Autobots who saved the world? Or, Earth at least. Bee was practically a legend and yet most of his friends were long dead. Except Optimus. Quinn heard from Cade that he was on some deep space mission to find his creator though. She could see Bumblebee was saddened by it. They had some sort of father-son relationship. Quinn couldn’t imagine what it was like to lose someone like that.

Bee laid on the metal platform and let Quinn climb on top of him with her toolbox resting on his metal shoulder. “Comfortable, Bee?” She asked, as always. Cybertronians may not be human or have the same sorts of senses humans had but they could be very sensitive. When Bee nodded, making a light ‘uh huh’ sound, Quinn started to get to work. 

Unlike Cade who wanted to try and get Bumblebee an entirely new voice box, Quinn wanted to try to fix the one he already had. It was a long and grueling process so Quinn could see why Cade didn’t want to deal with it but she had a far more careful hand than him. She had to fix the wiring, make sure Bee’s energon was going through it, and weld it back up. It seemed easy. Only a small list of things to go but so much could go wrong. The voice box could get fried if not properly wired, there’d be no way to fix it then. And Quinn couldn’t exactly tell if energon was flowing through the part. 

It was and would be a lot of trial and error. 

Quinn took out Bumblebee’s voice box with his permission and slid off the bot to work on it on a better surface. She was careful when handling it. It wouldn’t break if it fell but she didn’t want things to fall out of place. She unscrewed one end to get a good look inside. Half the wiring was done, no problems so far, she just needed to finish the rest. Quinn grabbed a welding mask and put it on, using a few pairs of tweezers to fix the wiring. The part was too small for her to use her hands and each time she would try to join two wires together, it would spark brightly. Quinn didn’t want to go blind just to help a friend.

Bee watched intently while Drift and Crosshairs started roughhousing outside after yet another argument about who should be leading, causing the building to shake. Before Quinn could accidentally cut a wire, she put her tweezers down and tore off her mask to go running outside. 

“You two!” She yelled, anger evident in her body language as she pointed at them. The pair were on the ground and paused as soon as they looked at her. “Yeah, both of you assholes! I’m trying to get some fucking work done and I’d really appreciate it if you stopped fucking around!” Quinn growled. She wasn’t afraid of any of them. Maybe she should be but they’d never hurt her even if they desperately wanted to at times.

Drift and Crosshairs scowled at each other before getting up from the ground and going their separate ways. Hound laughed at them from his place–he was sitting on a car, it looked sad, all squished and compact. “And the girl strikes back. How come she can handle them better than you, Cade?” Hound teased.

“Fuck if I know.” Cade shrugged, tearing out another part from the chassis of a car this time. 

Quinn pursed her lips, hands on her hips as she looked around the junkyard. She needed a few parts for a car she was working on. Maybe later. She went back to Bee and put her safety equipment back on. A few more wires connected and she was done for the day. It took a while for her to connect even one. There were at least twenty inside the voice box, each one tangled up and damaged. She inserted the box back inside the proper compartment.

“Sorry, Bee. I know you’ve been waiting a while but… I need to scavenge for more compatible wires. Okay?” Quinn whispered, cupping Bumblebee’s cheek as she pressed their foreheads together.

Quinn and Bee were good friends. Spending so much time together helped carve their relationship together. But even when Quinn wasn’t fixing up Bee’s voice box, they would just talk. Or… Quinn would. She’d talk about her life, how she wished she’d have her soul mark already or meet someone anyone that would be her lover. Even if people her age did meet their soulmate, they’d go through two to five partners before finally wanting to be with their soulmate. Quinn hasn’t had that yet.

She’s had nothing, really. 

Nothing besides her family, her cars, Bumblebee, and Cade. Cade was like a weird uncle who would let Quinn play with his stuff if she needed to take her frustrations out on something. Those something’s happened to turn out into new and improved weapons for the Autobots made out of old car parts. 

It felt nice to help the Autobots. Even if Drift and Crosshairs were… frustrating to be around. Both of them wanted to be the new Optimus Prime and, although Quinn has never met him, she would assume that they were nothing like him. Optimus seemed to be this supreme, untouchable being. Crosshairs could get irritated by the slightest dust making its way into his optic lens and Drift loved to start fights with the others. “Bumblebee isn’t capable” that, “swords are the more elegant weapon” this. 

From the small stories Cade or Hound have told Quinn, it seemed her younger self and old friends were very wrong about Optimus. To kill The Fallen, the original Decepticon, tame a Cybertronian dinosaur, and save the world multiple times… yeah, that blue truck with red flames was pretty cool. 

Quinn couldn’t wait to meet him. If he would ever come back…