pullmeoutalive | log > how are these two so darn cute?

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log > how are these two so darn cute?

It had been an admittedly strange situation they had all been in - shopping mall, zombies, black outs - it was like a horror film gone wrong.

No one had any explanation for their sudden appearance in the mall, nor did anyone have an explanation for their sudden disappearance from the mall. Just as no one had an explanation for the blue Chevrolet Volt currently parked outside of B.A.B.E.L. headquarters.

For his own part, Jolt was doing what Autobots did best (aside from kicking Decepticon skidplate), and that was hiding in plain sight. Asphalt and sunshine, he decided, were preferable to zombie-laden carpet and the near-darkness of a mall without power. He just didn't like having to wait while Naomi was inside - no doubt trying to explain where the frag she'd been all this time. Jolt'd had a similar problem relaying his whereabouts to - of all mechs - Ratchet. (No doubt the medic thought he was glitched for insisting he'd been fighting off zombies all this time.) But, after much instance, and pleading for Optimus' permission, Jolt was allowed to stay with Naomi for the time being.

The Autobot sighed inwardly. He was still waiting, and he still hated it.

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Had it not been for Naomi's track record of being (almost) entirely truthful, it might have taken hours to convince her supervisor that she hadn't been kidnapped (not exactly, anyway), she'd just been spirited away to a mall to fight off a zombie horde. Tanizaki, Fujiko, and the chief had all been frantic over her disappearance-- the latter two because losing a Level Six esper was a tremendous blow and they were both fond of her, and the latter because he still maintained hope that he'd have a bride soon enough. She was now eighteen, after all, a fine marriageable age, and she'd once been so eager to please.

And right now, she was just as eager to end the conversation after the fifth round of explanations. The director had accepted her story, with some sleepy mention about how it took forever to get zombie gunk out of clothes, and now the esper was making her way outside with Tanizaki hot on her heels.

"I really am fine, Supervisor, so--"

"I refuse to believe it, Naomi! Surely you fell victim to some dirty-handed rogue, who's just waiting to get his hands on you again! As your supervisor and the one responsible for you, I won't leave your side for even a minute, in order to protect you!"

Out of six years of respect drilled into her, Naomi held her tongue, lengthening her strides and peering into the parking lot for a glimpse of the blue she'd become so familiar with. At the moment, there was only one male whose company she was willing to seek out, and it certainly wasn't the one still ranting loudly behind her.

Upon spotting Naomi approaching, the Volt perked - though only a little - rising ever slight on its chassis. The man stalking behind her, however, almost elicited another kind of response. Biting back the urge to let his engine rev in surprise and annoyance, Jolt could only guess by the look on Naomi's face that this was her infamous Supervisor - and from the snatches of conversation he was catching as they came closer, Jolt hated him already.

However, Jolt was no Ironhide, and couldn't rely on intimidation alone (that Topkick could be scary when he wanted to be), so he elected for sitting there and looking perfectly innocent until just the right moment---

As soon as Naomi cleared it, the passenger-side door off the Volt swung open, slamming violently into the man hot on Naomi's heels. Jolt would be lying if he said the sound of impact was not satisfying at all.

Edited 2009-09-01 04:27 (UTC)

She recognized the Volt mere seconds before the door flew open, and the man behind her was suddenly no longer on his feet, but flat on his back. Eyes still wide in surprise, Naomi gave in to her instincts, scrutinizing him for any critical injuries. Other than having the wind knocked out of him, however, Tanizaki seemed to be just fine, and she took the opportunity to inch around to the other side of the car.

"Thank you," she whispered, giving the mirror a fond pat. "Ah, Supervisor? Didn't the chief say you had a meeting with Minamoto-san and the others, regarding your teams? I don't think he'll be too pleased if you miss it, and I'd hate if you did that for my sake. I'll be just fine out here."

Tanizaki was staring suspiciously at the car, as if he couldn't quite chalk up that hit to mere coincidence. But really, it wasn't as though the car could think and act on its own! The innocence on Naomi's face only confirmed it-- although she was inwardly relieved that he didn't appear to remember how Tim Toy had made the same phenomenon occur through Hypno. After another long minute, he mumbled something and shuffled inside, most likely to soothe his injured pride.

Only when she was positive he was gone (and had removed the small camera he'd clipped to her sweater), Naomi finally relaxed with a tired sigh.

"... I'm sorry about that. It took longer than I thought."

Once the coast was clear, there was a satisfied chuckle coupled with the soft purr of the Chevy's hybrid engine. "Don't be," the voice came from the car itself. Though, after a brief moment of thought, Jolt decided it would be a little strange if someone were to walk by and see Naomi chatting it up with a car.

The driver's side window rolled down, as it did so there was a brief shifting of light and suddenly there was a young man seated in the car, leaning an elbow out the window. American, by the looks of him, though surprisingly fluent in his Japanese. "That made the wait almost worth it," he remarked, flashing Naomi a grin. "How'd it go?"

"They were really understanding!" Naomi could never be grateful enough for having had the luck to be taken into B.A.B.E.L. at a time when others had been afraid of her growing abilities, and she was beaming now at the memory. "I think Doctor Sakaki still thinks there might be something wrong with my head, but the Director understood-- ah, and I also got the chance to tell her about you, and she says you're welcome to stay with us as long as you'd like. She'll tell the proper people, but otherwise, there won't be too many who know."

She fidgeted, leaning down to meet his gaze. "If that's all right with you, I mean. This might be an inconvenience for you, so if it is, please let me know."

"Inconvenience?" Jolt - or rather the hologram currently representing Jolt - made a face. "Slag no. That's awesome! I'll stay as long as you'll have me." That grin was back again, full force. He'd come to like the little human in their time together, and didn't much fancy the idea of having to leave her side just yet. (Perhaps he was coming to understand how Bumblebee felt about Sam.)

As for only a small handful of people knowing- well, he could deal with that. It wasn't much different from the norm.

HoloJolt angled his head slightly, casting a curious look at his friend. "Sooo... now what?" This was her neck of the woods, not his, and he had no idea what to do next.

It was difficult every time he did this; Naomi had to forcibly remind herself that the human gazing at her wasn't actually a human, but an alien car robot-- not that she liked him any less for it. She'd first met him as a car, after all, and it hadn't taken long before she'd settled into a comfortable (if unusual) friendship with him. Not going home just yet had to be hard, but the selfish part of her was glad he could stay with her.

"I can show you around," she volunteered, glancing over her shoulder to make sure her supervisor wasn't lurking. "I'll be able to get you inside a little bit later, and then you can meet some of my friends, but you must be bored just sitting here."

"Yes," Jolt replied instantly. The car perked again, almost like an eager dog ready to go for a walk. "I'm dying out here. Let's go."

There was a soft click as the passenger side door opened slightly - and far gentler than it had before - and Jolt gave Naomi an expectant look.

"This is going to take some getting used to," Naomi mumbled, lips quirking in a humorous smile. Flying might have been her standard mode of travel, but she certainly didn't mind giving her powers a break every now and then, and there was no denying that the inside of Jolt was very comfortable-- wait, inside? To be technical, she was inside of him, but that just sounded awkward in general--

Before she turned any redder, the girl hurriedly went around to the other side and climbed inside. He was more like a hyperactive puppy at this point, and she couldn't deny that it was adorable. And to think she'd originally thought giant alien robots were supposed to be serious and dignified all the time!

"I'm ready when you are, Jolt-san!"

For his own part, the Autobot didn't seem to notice Naomi's sudden embarrassment. The door shut behind her, and as soon as she was secure, the engine purred to life (because really, electric cars didn't have it in them to roar) and the hologram made a very convincing show of driving out of the parking lot.

"Where to?" he inquired, casting a glance at his passenger. He was, after all, determined to keep up appearances. And he might have been enjoying the looks he was getting though the window from some of the young ladies he passed.

If only some of those young ladies weren't clairvoyants and psychometers, but Naomi had expected that she'd be getting questions about her companion sooner or later. She had some time to think up something before then, thankfully.

"There are some people I need to check on," she replied, glancing out the window. "If you could drop by their hang-out, you should be able to meet them too." The instructions were given, to a seedy-looking bar that no respectable college girl would ever step close to-- and yet there she was, smiling serenely about the prospect.

The hologram quirked a curious eyebrow, but he trusted that Naomi knew what she was doing, so he followed her driving instructions easily.

"You know," he said at length. "Your... people should probably contact mine, if they haven't already. I'm sure Optimus is okay with this, but Major Lennox might be a little concerned. Besides, maybe our two teams could work together, since they've now been made aware of each other."

"That's a great idea!" Naomi had already lit up, clapping her hands together. If spending time with Jolt had been this rewarding, the opportunity to get to interact with more of his comrades was even more thrilling of a concept. The Children were bound to be excited for that kind of opportunity, and surely espers like Barret and Tim and Sakaki would enjoy it, too.

"I think the Director's gotten on it already, but if she hasn't, the chief will say something about it. He's always talking about more allies, since not too many normals want to be involved with us, and with the ECMs, it might be better to have others who aren't affected by those."

There was that grin again. Jolt could only imagine how some of the older mechs - namely Ironhide and Ratchet - would react to having a bunch of flying kids around.

"If you need contact numbers, I've got 'em," he replied. NEST was not exactly easy to get a hold of - secret organization and all. "Most of the soldiers are... "normals", but they spend all day with giant alien robots so, I'm sure a few psychics won't bother them." A pause, and the holograms eyebrows knit together in slight confusion. "Affected by what?"

"ESPer Counter-Measure. It's a device meant to block us from using our abilities... meaning if there's one in the vicinity, I won't be able to fly, or do anything psychokinetic at all." Naomi frowned, clearly not too fond of the thing, but it probably came in handy for some of the supervisors when they were up against enemy espers. "An ECCM can counteract it, but we don't always have one on hand."

Judging by the look on HoloJolt's face, he wasn't too fond of the thing either. "Huh," was all he said in response. The whole concept was a little scary - what if someone could make some kind of device to keep him and the other Autobots from transforming out of their altmodes? It wasn't a happy prospect, and Jolt was quick to clear it from his processor.

And perhaps it was fortune that they were quickly approaching the bar.

About to respond to a one-syllable reply as best she could once Jolt stopped, Naomi paused when she saw the doors of the bar fly open. In a matter of minutes, the car was surrounded by no less than fifteen leather-clad burly men on gleaming motorcycles, all eyes narrowed beneath their shades.

"Who the hell would be enough of a dumbass to butt in on our territory--" The largest began irritably, but broke off when the door opened, and Naomi hurried out.

They stood for a long moment, the girl and the gang, locked in a staring contest of sorts. Then she broke the silence first with a delighted cry of "Everyone!"

With just that, there was a joyous "Naomi-chan!!" and the smaller esper disappeared beneath the mass of bikers all fighting to be the first to hug her.

Oh Primus- Naomi had a gang of bikers. Naomi had a gang of bikers. Somehow, Jolt was both unsurprised and very, very amused. He was content to just sit there, laughing to himself, and let the reunion commence - maintaining his hologram until Naomi said it was okay to do otherwise.

Naomi had a gang of bikers. That would never be not funny.

It was inevitable that the attention would soon stray to the stranger that Naomi had hauled along with her. Out of respect to the girl who had singlehandedly faced them only in the defense of a bullied middle-schooler, no one broke out the pipes or the brass knuckles, but they did eye the "driver" rather suspiciously.

"Ah, Jolt-san..." Naomi smiled sheepishly, turning towards the hologram. "These are my friends. They've been very supportive of me. Everyone, this is Jolt-san. He's my..."

Here she hesitated, deciding against "giant robot companion", but she couldn't just call him a hologram, either. He wasn't her chauffeur, so that made him...

"... He's someone very important to me, so please treat him kindly," she concluded.

There was another little laugh from the Volt, and the door opened. The hologram stepped out of the car, as would real person, and leaned against it rather convincingly. "Nice to meet you all," he stated, shifting slightly.

The hologram shimmered, briefly - blink and the movement would have been missed completely - as it shifted from a simple hologram to what had been coined as a "hard light" holo. The older mechs had yet to make use of the technology, but the younger generation (Jolt, Sideswipe, and the twins, most notably) were outfitted with it to begin with. He was, in fact, physically there - tangible and solid - though maintaining the form was difficult and he didn't dare do it for too long. But, it served it's purpose at the moment. Jolt somehow doubted Optimus wanted him babbling about their existence to and group of humans he came across, and in order to keep up the facade, he offered a hand to the nearest of the bikers. "Any friend of Naomi's is a friend of mine."

While a flash of surprise crossed Naomi's face, the simple act didn't serve to arouse anyone else's suspicion, and so the biker extended his hand to clasp Jolt's. Finding it to be just as solid as he'd expected (and why wouldn't it be?), he nodded approvingly and stepped back.

"You'd better take good care of her, or we'll hear about it, and you'll have hell to pay for," he informed him, which apparently served as a greeting.

"I already like him better than the jackass of a supervisor!" Someone else called out, to a chorus of raucous laughter. It was obvious that they were a good bunch, if... very rough around the edges.

"Duly noted," Jolt replied easily. He was used to Ironhide's company, and no one was more rough around the edges than the old soldier. Jolt wasn't bothered by them or their attitude - and was somehow grateful for their lack of cannons.

Jolt couldn't help but laugh as well, giving Naomi a quick wink. It was obvious he approved of her friends, as they seemed to approve of him. Of all the people to make an escape from that mall with, he was glad it was Naomi. He knew it in the very core of his spark that this is where he should be, and didn't see himself leaving any time soon.

"So, do you wanna drink, or--"

"We really can't stay!" How Jolt was able to make himself tangible was something she didn't quite understand, but Naomi wasn't about to test his limits. And alcohol had to be bad on an Autobot's system somehow. "I just wanted to make sure everyone was okay, and to introduce you all, but I've still got a lot to show him!"

Jolt's eyebrows shot up at Naomi's little outburst, but he didn't remark on it. He merely flashed that grin again. "Guess that's a no, then." He couldn't eat or drink in this form anyway, and Naomi had saved him the trouble of having to explain himself. "It's been my pleasure, but the tour must go on."

They were reluctant to let the esper and her escort depart so quickly, but Naomi looked so apologetic that they couldn't bring themselves to complain, and sent them off with well-wishes and cheers.

So it was that Naomi resettled herself in the seat, stretching slightly. "They're good people," she commented. "Even if we had a misunderstanding at first, I'm glad we could work things out."

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