The Start of Something Interesting...

[lastonepercent]

The day was calm, with no recent Decepticon attacks, and none suspected to be incoming for some time.  The cons were too busy licking their wounds from the last battle, one that the Autobots had decidedly come out ahead on.  The celebrations had gone on long into the night and the recreation room was already a mess.

Thus, it was the perfect chance for a lone Autobot to slip casually outside.

Mirage had no shift currently scheduled, so he was free to spend his time as he pleased.  He certainly made no move to hide his departure, greeting his comrades in the halls on the way out, but the box in his hands remained unopened despite any passing curiosity.  It was quietly shifted into subspace before long, and  the former noble shifted into alt mode just as smoothly when he reached the doors.  Despite the completely inappropriate earthen race car mode, the mech had little trouble self-adjusting before driving off into the forest covering the mountain, for business unknown...

Comments

[lastonepercent]

Mirage couldn't help but snicker a bit at Cliffjumper's reaction.

"Of course, in public! That is the entire point!"

He laughed, annoyed sadness at the disregard for their holidays momentarily forgotten.

"To join sparks in a public ritual is to share the joy and power of the joining with all who watch it. It is a holy ritual for that very reason."

He gestured outward, still amused though his words grew heavy; he truly did seem to believe in his teachings, and it showed in his tone.

"An especially powerful or pure union, like that of Emirate Lightstriker and her consort Centurion, has been known to bring the Watchers-of-the-Rite to their knees."

[cliffjumper]

"But..." Gesticulating vaguely around him again, Cliffjumper then not so much crossed his arms as just pulled them over his front, in a not-entirely-intentional move to "protect" his spark. There was no way to hide the reaction of his field flickering when Mirage mentioned it could bring people to their knees and he took a step back.

"See, that's what I mean, why would--- Shouldn't somethin' like that be private?" Optics narrowing, Cliffjumper shook his helm. There was no hiding the rather plaintive tone and Mirage had explained it yes, and in a way it made sense, but it just seemed so... wrong. Or at the least strange.

Showing your sparks... even just reflected sparklight, in public and being present when a spark merge overload happened? There was no way to even be offended or get frustrated, Cliffjumper was just utterly surprised.

[lastonepercent]

"For some, it is private, and that is their choice."

He waved a hand toward Cliffjumper's protective gesture pointedly, raising a wry optic ridge.

"But our sparks are a reflection; a part of Primus. 'Until All Are One' and all that philosophy - a joining of sparks is a representation of the very core of our beliefs, in brief miniature. Why shouldn't it be shared by those who are willing to do so?"

[cliffjumper]

Atcually noticing he'd pulled his arms around/against himself, Cliffjumper huffed and straightened his arms out, shifting on his feet. He wanted to just dismiss what Mirage was saying, because it shouldn't be something public but at the same time...

"Uh... I... s'pose so, yeah," Cliffjumper muttered, rubbing the side of his helm as he frowned at the floor. The thought, still, to be that... exposed, to be the center of attention of something like that was just...

Kind of incomprehensible.

Another twisting flicker, like one from earlier, scored down his circuits and Cliffjumper shifted on his feet again.

"... Don't get it though, how can somethin' like that bring other people who ain't even involved, just lookin', to their knees?"

[lastonepercent]

Mirage nodded, pleased that the minibot was a least trying to understand.

"Because it is a powerful sight, for one. Watching a Sparkmerge between a devoted pair - or even a trine - is something that can effect even the most hard-sparked of souls."

A flicker of his teasing grin returned, and he leaned down slightly to continue in a mock-whisper:

"Not only that, but getting caught in their field surge probably helped!"

[cliffjumper]

He'd never seen a sparkmerge second hand, but that didn't mean he couldn't understand that it probably was a pretty impressive sight. The comment about it touching even the most 'hard-sparked' got a little snort though. He wasn't really sure about that.

And then Mirage bent down slightly and Cliffjumper knew something was coming and that grin just cemented it, but it still didn't make it easier to field what Mirage said anyway.

"Mirage!" Sputtering, Cliffjumper's optics flared and his field wobbled a little in a blush, and he couldn't believe the stupid fragging noble had said that! "Are we done here?" Hissing, flustered and annoyed over being flustered, Cliffjumper knew he hadn't done a very proper job of polishing up, but slag that.

[lastonepercent]

Mirage laughed out loud, voice ringing with amusement at the minibot's reaction. Even so, he reached around himself to grab another mesh and dumped it unceremoniously over Cliffjumper's still-scuffed shoulder.

"Yes, yes. Redo that shoulder and we're done in here. We should head over before I embarrass you too much and you try to bolt on me."

He waved a hand over his face, trying and failing to calm his giggles as his optics flared brightly with mirth.

[cliffjumper]

Torn between embarrassed anger at the laughter - he was being laughed at, slag it all, and just staring up at Mirage for a moment or two because he hadn't ever been this close to Mirage when he reacted like this and laughed openly.

Even the more usually, more restrained chuckling he'd only caught from across the rec room or stuff like that.

"Fine!" Cliffjumper snapped as he grabbed the cloth and vigorously scrubbed it to smooth out the scuffs and bring out the natural shine he'd polished up elsewhere, still grappling with embarrassment.

After a moment or two of basically assaulting his shoulder, Cliffjumper hadn't just polished it up, but calmed down again, even if he still felt annoyed at it all.

"There. You satisfied now?" Cliffjumper muttered as he briefly held his arms out and then grimaced at pulled them in, putting the cloth back where it belonged.

[lastonepercent]

Mirage blinked at the shoulder-assault, laughter subsiding into a quietly hidden grin, but simply shrugged at question.

"As well as one can be, I suppose."

Not giving Cliffjumper a moment to puzzle out the meaning, Mirage gestured toward the door.

"Come then. Let us get started."

He stepped out into the hall, turning toward the makeshift 'temple' room from before.

[cliffjumper]

Cliffjumper huffed at the comment, ready to mutter something about it, before Mirage had said that. While he'd eagerly stepped away from the polishing area and been about to blow ahead, Mirage's comment reasserted reality as to the reason they were even here.

He'd forgotten it in the whirl of curiosity, incredulity and flustered surprise as Mirage explained things around their mostly put-aside religious practices. War did things like that, regardless of if any given mech had been practicing or not.

Cliffjumper trundled after Mirage, lagging quite a few steps behind which couldn't be explained by the different length of steps that they could take.

He really didn't want to do this, because despite the explanation, when he thought back on what he'd stormed in on... All it did was make his engine rumble out of cycle, a sense of uncomfortable.... something, settling around his spark chamber.

"Really don't see why I couldn't have done something else..." Cliffjumper muttered, snapping his mouth shut and vocaliser into neutral as he trailed in after Mirage and spotted Tracks.

[lastonepercent]

"I would agree," said the dour voice inside the room. Tracks was waiting and glared down at the minibot when he entered, arms crossed over his chest.

"I would much prefer him elsewhere."

Mirage sighed as he swept past the sulking aristocrat. The room was practically glowing despite the dim overhead light settings; running lights and the blue and pink glows of precious energon adding to the brilliant decor.

Too bad he didn't get to savor it just yet. He spun on a tire-heel to glare at them both.

"Well that is just too bad for you both. You are going to have to strut-it-up and deal."

[cliffjumper]

Glaring, Cliffjumper had stopped a few steps inside the door, crossing his arms. He should probably have expected Tracks to be here - when he thought about it, it was obvious Mirage wouldn't be able to do what he'd caught a glimpse of before alone.

He'd need help and for whatever reason he'd chosen the insufferable, gold-plated glitch that Tracks was for this.

"And I'd rather prefer y---" Swallowing the rest of the insult as Mirage whirled so he could stare at them both, Cliffjumper growled and gave Tracks a last glare before he glanced around the room. He had no idea where would be best, since at least he wasn't supposed to do anything but watch.

... But even that simple thought made something turn over within, between spark chamber and fuel processing system.

"So, uh. Where am I supposed to... er. Be?" He did not want to be here, and despite the rather soothing lighting the room was swathed in from the running lights and the energon, Cliffjumper felt twitchy.

Hopefully neither of them, but especially Tracks, wouldn't notice.

[lastonepercent]

Tracks gave Mirage a long-suffering sigh, but didn't argue. Ignoring the minibot as though he suddenly did not exist, Tracks turned his back on him in favor of dealing with some of the decorations on the altar.

"You will be over here," Mirage said, gesturing down toward the single mesh pouf sitting in front of the altar. Past the altar, was the low berth covered with mesh and silks; the very same that Cliffjumper had caught Tracks and Mirage carving the priest's marks on before.

The poor minibot would be getting a front-row view of Mirage's detailing.

[cliffjumper]

"Really?" At least it was a hiss, even if it's spiritual self was a whine as Cliffjumper looked from the altar where he'd be sitting, to the berth, right in front of it.

His field twitched, but thankfully he caught it before it could wobble outside of normal range, which meant no one would notice anything if they were being polite about keeping their own personal space.

Which he hoped.

Not bothering to hide his grimace, Cliffjumper stomped over to the altar, glared at Tracks and then nearly collapsed onto the pouf.

Sitting still was far harder to accomplish however, because despite the fact that it was a well-made metal mesh and was well-filled, it didn't seem... comfortable. Which was probably only partly due to Cliffjumper being uncomfortable and partly that it was large enough the easiest way to sit on it was with his legs crossed when he'd rather have sat with them under him. Easier to get up from, but the pouf was too squishy for that.

"There, happy?" With a grumble, Cliffjumper crossed his arms over his chestplates and stared at the altar instead of either Tracks or Mirage.

[lastonepercent]

"Ecstatic." Mirage drawled, turning back only briefly to glimpse Cliffjumper seated on the pouf. Satisfied, he was finally able to focus on his actual purpose there. Nodding at Tracks, Mirage was happy to begin.

Tracks began a low, wordless hum as he took up his place beside the altar, hands on the either side of a glowing square bowl of energon. Mirage knelt down on his knees along the other side, voice slowly rising up to meet Track's throbbing call.

Toneless humming slowly shifted into a chant, as Mirage began to sing in Ancient Cybertronian.

[cliffjumper]

Shamelessly, and toroughly annoyed enough not to care, even if the discussion in the washroom previously had been interesting (flustering in parts, but interesting), Cliffjumper pulled a grimace at Mirage's back as the noble turned away.

It smoothed out into a frown as the singing began however, and while he couldn't understand, the pitch seemed to vibrate right under his armour, along the surface of his protoform.

It was hard to stay still, but that was more because said vibration was sort of... itchy - it was a thing that had happened on the few holiday ceremonies he'd attended and was partly why he'd stopped - and made him want to squirm, not because he was annoyed at the time this was taking.

Because despite the low dread, for the moment soothed into nothing, over what he knew would come later, right now this was just sort of... interesting. Even if he didn't understand a single thing, which just made him want to zone off, but for now the dim lights playing off Mirage's armour, and that bowl of energon, held his interest.

[lastonepercent]

Mirage was singing out the opening ceremony prayers. He refused to let the irony or bitter disappointment show in his song; usually, this would be sung in front of a full enclave of priests at least. At best, such a ceremony would be broadcast to the entire planet.

A hastily decorated room in the back of a grubby, broken down ship with three participants was something of a step down.

But Mirage kept to the full script, chanting out the entire Rites of First Spark reserved for such an occasion. Voice ringing along with Tracks' background accompaniment, he paused only to accept the bowl of energon from the other noble, drinking deeply from the glowing purple-blue broth.

It was a very pure sort of highgrade; the only bit of 'antithetic' the priest would receive. Tracks nodding approvingly when all but a mouthful was gulped down, and he drank down the rest as Mirage continued his song.

Cliffjumper didn't know it - though he might be able to guess, given how Mirage turned to glance at him - the rites turned to the portion involving atonement and the presence of the atoner.

[cliffjumper]

The singing almost made Cliffjumper wish he knew what it meant, but only almost. While he did believe in Primus, and while this was quite... nice? it all seemed so very overdone for something that could be done in private and quietly.

Of course, right here and now this was being done in private, but that was due to necessity, not as par of the course, especially considering what Mirage had told him in the washracks and what he did know of the holiday ceremonies.

And so, nasal ridge scrunched up a little as he thought and helm tilted as he listened to the singing, still feeling like squirming because the slagging singing was getting to his sensory horns even with dialing down the sensitivity, Cliffjumper missed Mirage's stare.

Or rather, what it might mean.

All he caught was Mirage's slight turn and his optics, lambent like sunlight in the dim lighting of the room, sweeping briefly across him.

Yeah, whatever I'm still here. Cliffjumper managed to not grimace at the noble though as that thought cross his mind, mostly because he didn't want to interrupt, again.

At least not yet.

[lastonepercent]

Cliffjumper may not have noticed the significance of Mirage's glance, but he was probably able to pick out the sounds of his name, rendered in song and accented in old-fashioned glyphs amongst the Old Cybertronian.

Mirage, stating his purpose as an observer; undoing the damage he had wrought by observing peacefully what he had once disdained.

A cube was brought out from behind the altar and poured into the now-empty bowl. Song reaching a pointed plateau, Mirage knelt and gracefully offered Cliffjumper the glowing bowl.

Behind him, Tracks gave a barely audible sigh of displeasure.

[cliffjumper]

He did pick that up all right, if only towards the end, and wasn't it just odd hearing his name in that way. It sounded kinda pretty though, he could admit, but whether that was the singing or the more old-fashioned way of rendering it, he wasn't sure.

Cliffjumper, despite having followed Mirage leaving his spot by the berth and watched him fill the bowl again, was nonetheless caught by surprise when it was offered to him. H probably looked pretty startled, optics widening and the glow of them brightening before they narrowed again to glare at Tracks briefly, and then he just stared some more at the bowl.

Why did he have to drink it? Wasn't it enough he was just here?

... Apparently not.

After a few more moments, Cliffjumper gingerly took the bowl, staring narrowly at it before he slowly took a sip, eyeing Mirage for each little gulp just to gauge how much he had to drink.

[lastonepercent]

::At least half, if you please.:: Mirage said over a hasty comm.

Without the small army of junior priests and aids of a temple, the full explanations to the 'atoner' were left to Mirage or Tracks.

And given Tracks' just-barely-acceptable levels of open disdain... It was easier for Mirage to just do it himself.

Mirage remained kneeling, patiently waiting despite the pointed stare.

[cliffjumper]

::Fine.:: Grimacing over the energon, the expression thus half obscured by the bowl, Cliffjumper let out a huff from his vents and dropped his stare from Mirage's faceplates.

He couldn't keep it up for too long anyway, and he'd just come to a decision... Which might not be what Mirage might intend for him to, but if he was here he was here, right? So, optics flickering out, Cliffjumper determindedly and quickly downed the whole bowl in as quick a sweep as he could manage.

Shaking his helm and supressing a shudder as he lowered the bowl, he hoped he wouldn't regret that.

[lastonepercent]

::Thank you.::

His tone over the comm was odd - he couldn't tease or be sarcastic at all, not in this situation. It would defeat the purpose of the entire thing; a Priest jabbing verbally at an Atoner during a ceremony?

Never!

Bowing from his kneeling position, Mirage was still able to give Cliffjumper a faint smile before retrieving the bowl. Tipping the bowl all of the way back to both drink the dregs and prove that the bowl was empty, Mirage rose gracefully back up to his feet, returning to the alter.

[cliffjumper]

Engine grumbling threateningly as Cliffjumper's optics narrowed at the tone, he still remained where he was and didn't say anything. Mostly because he wasn't sure if Mirage was trying to be sarcastic and trying to hide it, or if he was being honest and he just couldn't believe he had to be that towards Cliffjumper.

Even if they'd had a perfectly okay conversation in the washracks earlier. And wasn't that a strange thought still? Not something he'd thought he'd end up doing with Mirage.

Of course, it wasn't as if it'd been for any other reason than this.

The smile, faint and brief as it was, startled Cliffjumper out of his thoughts and he dropped his optics. Then, realising what he'd just done, he straightened up again with a grimace and reluctantly followed Mirage leaving.

He wasn't looking forward to to this.

[lastonepercent]

Resuming his chanted prayers, Mirage's focus left Cliffjumper at last. The first, most important part of the minibot's participation was done - now he just had to watch.

Turning his golden gaze on Tracks, Mirage continued his recitation, formally offering Tracks the Duty-Honor of assisting the current High Priest. The other noble accepted in all the right places, of course; bowing his helm with the same level of grace.

Thrumming hum dying down, Mirage slid to his feet and climbed up onto the cushioned berth. Tracks followed, pre-cleansed and purified etching tools in hand.

Time to get down to business.