Azura stared out the window as Optimus drove towards town. She was still thinking on what other things she might want to get. She knew she didn't need a heap of clothes, so she didn't need to worry about that. But she thought about maybe buying extra art stuff as that brought her some joy as well. Maybe even movies she's always wanted to watch, but wasn't able to see. Such as Disney movies, she has always wanted to see them. She knew it might be a surprise to a lot of people that she's never seen a Disney movie, but that was just how it was in the orphanage. She was always curious about why people loved the Lion King or why kids were obsessed with Frozen, and she simply felt like she was missing out.
She figured she might finally be able to do that, and buy a few of the Disney movies so she would enjoy something that everyone else seem to like. There were other things she wanted to watch too, but that would come with time. Though she did really enjoy reading, so she certainly buy a lot of books to fill a bookshelf with. So there were a lot of things she could buy.
She took a deep breath and looked at the dash. "You wouldn't mind driving by the school I'm going to, would you? I haven't actually seen the school yet and I'm kind of curious about what it looks like."
"Would you like me to drive by it before you go shopping?" Optimus asked curiously.
She nodded. "I would like that. I know that Fowler has everything sorted, I just want to see what the school looks like. Plus, I'll know where the front door is and I'll be able to go in without looking like an idiot...though I do know I need to get my class schedule in the morning too."
"Will you be able to get the schedule today?" She shakes her head. "I guess the offices are closed over the weekend. You shouldn't have any trouble finding the office. I believe it is by the front entrance, I remember seeing the signs when I came into town with Agent Fowler." Saphira hoped that was the case. She was still nervous about going to school. "I hope you know you can tell us if anything is going on in that school."
"Yes...but...you are also a secret from the rest of the world," Azura said softly. "I am not sure how you would deal with bullying...even though I am sure you would find out a way. I think if the other kids did know my adoptive parent was a military person, they might be frightened...but I don't know. I don't want to bother him with stuff like that."
"Agent Fowler has already made it known that he will help you, Azura. I may not be able to help in person...as much I as would like to..." She glanced out the window with a deep sigh as he entered the town. "But I know we can help in other ways."
"You wouldn't be able to help me with homework, though. You probably don't know how to read human language or Math." Azura knew that might be stupid, but she also knew it was normal. Kids need help with school at times, and she was no exception. "Sorry...probably should not worry you about that either."
Optimus had actually been considering learning human language and Math to try and help her, but he did know Azura was fluent in it compared to him. "I am afraid even if I were to learn how to read, write and understand your world's languages and Math, it would take me sometime to do. While we can speak the same language, thanks to the processors that we have in our system, reading, writing and understanding it is another thing. After all, some things Agent Fowler says can sometimes be oblique...and I do not fully understand what he says, so I just nod and continue with whatever it is we are discussing or needing to do."
Azura could not help but giggle. That sounded extremely funny to her because she did not know what Optimus meant by that, but hearing that he didn't always understand what Fowler was saying, and maybe even her, was rather amusing to her. Especially since she knew sometimes people say things to break the ice or just to say something stupid. Though to hear Optimus just nods and continues forward anyway was very amusing.
"That's rather funny," Azura said as she continued to giggle. "Though I guess you aren't from Earth, and some things probably don't always make sense." She glanced out the window when Optimus drove by something, and she saw it was the local aquarium. And then it hit her, she realized having something to care for would do her good. And fish was something she could have as they would not annoy Ratchet, and would only remain in the tank. "Uh, after I go shopping for clothes, there is somewhere else I want to go. I only just realized when we passed by a place."
"I will be happy to take you there. What would this place sell?" Optimus was very curious about what she had seen. "Is it something that sells something special?"
She knew this might be something Optimus has to inform Ratchet of, but she hoped not. "Uh, it is the local aquarium place. I know that I probably can't have a cat, dog or bird, but I could probably own some fish." This definitely surprised Optimus as he made a turn to drive by the school and slowed down. Azura spotted the building. "Oh, so that is what it looks like."
The high school of the town is a historic building with brown bricks with a flag pole out front and yellow bannisters to stop any potential cars from ramming into the school. It was a kind of classic school, and Azura was not too surprised to see it. Her old school was similar as they were not new buildings, but they did the job for housing the amount of students that attend and that was all that mattered.
"Well, I guess I know what it looks like now," Azura said as Optimus drove by it. "It's small, like my own one was. Though Cheyenne's a bit bigger than Jasper. At least I won't miss being forced to walk out in the snow during winter. I hated that." She glanced at the dash in surprise when she heard a sudden rev from Optimus. "Everything okay?"
"I'm sorry if I startled you. I...I just get upset for you when you tell me more things that you were forced to endure." Azura did not think he needed to be terribly upset for her, though she figured he was rather empathetic towards her. "I will never understand evils like that. Hurting innocent children is something I will never understand, and I will always vow to protect."
Azura nodded. "Do you think if you had the chance, you could have raised and protected your sparkling?"
"Of course! However...the percentage of the sparkling surviving the war was slim...very slim..." His tone was filled with sadness and regret. "It is one of the things that I regret, even if it was the right thing to do. Saving that spark's life was the only thing I had to do to protect it...and I did offer the same for the other sparks, but their carriers refused. As far as I know, only one spark managed to be birthed properly...only to die shortly after."
Ah, so his sparkling would have perished.
"I see...I guess I understand. Though I suppose it doesn't get easier." She watched as Optimus turned to drive towards the town's mall. She still wondered what Optimus wanted to tell her earlier. She figured if it was important, he would have told her. "Well, at the very least, I have a piece of your sparkling. Even though I don't know how it got to me, but my birth parents could have known it." She grabbed the crystal from under her shirt and looked at it. "There is a story with this. And I would like to hope I wasn't just left to die on the side of the road, but rather that they hoped I would be saved too."
"Azura...I..." Optimus was feeling his spark being pulled again. He knew she thought she had been abandoned, and he knew in his spark she wasn't. And while she was hoping something else, Optimus still did not know how to tell her the truth. "I..."
"It's okay, Optimus." He was surprised when she interrupts and thought she was about to say she knew what he was going to say. "If you want to tell me that you would like me to be, I guess, your substitute daughter, I would be happy to do that. I do have a piece of your sparkling, after all. And hopefully, someday, you will find them again."
Optimus's spark ached as he listened to her. He wanted to tell her he did find his sparkling, but he was still worried. It might not seem normal for Optimus to be nervous, but it was understandable due to finding his sparkling and she has grown up looking and living like a human while believing she had been left for dead. And she was in pain from it. Optimus knew it will come out she is his daughter, he just did not know how to tell her. He felt she should be comfortable in the base first since it was her home now.
"I am...happy that you feel that way. It isn't something I like to talk about...probably just like how you find it difficult to speak about...being an orphan." She nodded as he pulled into the mall parking lot. "But now is not the time to think about such things. Go and enjoy yourself, Azura. You have all day to enjoy."
She grabbed her bag as Optimus parked in a space near the back of the lot, knowing this was where the most space would be, and climbed out of the cab. "I will do just that. I hope you won't get too bored waiting for me, I would feel bad making you wait." She closed the door and turned to walk away, hiding the crystal underneath her shirt again. "I might be back in about an hour or two."
Optimus used the side view mirror to watch Azura walk away. He needed some time to think himself after the conversation they just had. Plus, he needed to figure out how he was going to tell Azura the truth. And he figured maybe when he takes Azura to places like the beach or island, that would be the better time and place to tell her. At least it would be just the two of them, and they would have somewhere private to talk. They have privacy now, but not like they would going some place else in the world.
Azura was rather happy to be heading into the mall. She did pause and glance in Optimus's direction. She realized she was enjoying her time being with Optimus. She still felt the odd connection like she had known Optimus all her life, but she was no longer concerned about that. She looked away from him to make her way into the mall, and she was lucky that she could go through the building without anyone really questioning her.
She found herself having a bit of fun trying on clothes that she's never had before, though she made sure to never go for the most expensive things. She most certainly did not want to waste the money on the card she was given on things that didn't need to be expensive. She did find a few t-shirts, singlets, blouses, shorts, skirts and pants she liked, so she picked out what she liked the most and bought them.
She also found a few dresses she really liked, and ended up with five dresses. She was so excited to have them. She could not wait to show them off, even though she knew that the autobots likely don't understand how human style was. That didn't matter much to her though, she was simply happy to have some dresses and she was going to make sure to not ruin them when she took them back with her.
She did buy some additional underwear as well, before she eventually decided she had enough shopping. She spent at least two and half hours shopping before she decided she had enough and wanted to head to the aquarium. She did know she might not get a fish today, but the tank and what she needed for it and the water too is what she needed. She also needed to finish asking Optimus if she could have it.
She hummed as she carried her bags out of the mall over to the peterbilt. She was feeling very happy, and she really hoped she would be given the okay. Especially since the fish would not go anywhere as they would remain in the tank. But she knew it would be an adjustment, just like how they were all adjusting to her living in the base. Though Azura did know that the bots seem to really welcome her, and treat her like one of their own.
And they do call me youngling. So did Starscream...might be their word for child.
As she reached the peterbilt, the passenger door opened before reached for it and smiled as she put the bags onto the seat before climbing up. "Well...I am sorry for taking longer than I had said, Optimus..." She moved the bags into the back seat once she was in the cab and closed the door behind her. "I didn't realize how much time had gone by when I realized I didn't need to do more shopping. Though I guess I did got into a few of the stores and didn't get anything until I found some clothes I liked. So that might be the reason why it has taken a while."
"It is okay, Azura. Like I said, you have the whole to enjoy." The engine starts and he reversed out of the park. "Do you still wish to go to the aquarium?" She nodded with a smile. "I believe we forgot to finish our conversation about it. You want something to look after, right?"
"Yeah, that's right..." Azura rubbed her hands together as she was hopeful she would be given the okay. "Do you think it would be okay? I would like to have some fish, if it is okay. They're not going to leave the tank, and I'll make sure to feed and care for them. You have my word for it."
"Well...I do not know why you would want to keep a fish. I thought it was something humans ate." She smiled and chuckled at him. "I guess you also keep them as pets." Optimus thought about it as he drove out of the lot onto the main road. "I don't think that should be a problem, Azura. As long as you are responsible for the fish, that will be fine. It will be Ratchet we need to convince."
"Thank you. And don't worry too much, I'm just going to get the essentials for a fish today...I'll get the fish next time. They're kind of delicate animals." She was feeling excited. She's never had a pet before and she's always dreamed of having one. And in a way, she could get get one. "At least Ratchet will never have to hear them. Fish are still very pretty though. I look forward to waking up and seeing them in the tank everyday."
Optimus was happy that Azura was happy. He knew he might have to hear some stern talking from Ratchet, but it meant more to him that he was making her happy. "Hmm...I guess you are going to have to teach us about these animals since they will be living at the base too. I would be delighted to watch you interact with the fish."
"And I intend on doing that." Azura couldn't wait until Optimus would reach the aquarium. She looked forward to setting in up and making sure things were running properly. "Now I just have to work out what kind of fish I want. My room is big enough for a large tank, so I might get one for some tropical fish...maybe."
Optimus obviously did not know anything about the animals that live in the water of the world, so he was definitely fascinated to learn more about them. He didn't know what differences there would be in fish, so he was going to learn a lot. And seeing how happy Azura was about getting fish made his spark warm. He wanted her to be happy, as it made him happy. Even if it meant he would agree to this without warning Ratchet first. At least she was not going to get a dog.
Optimus soon arrived at the aquarium, and Azura made her way into the store where she spoke to one of the workers on there. She wanted to know how to set a fish tank up, how to make sure the water was good for them and the best kind of food there was out there for fish. Azura learned quickly there was more to owning a fish than she first realized, but learning to care for them properly was exciting to her.
With the help of the worker, she picked out a seventy-litre tank that came with the filter and heater that she needed, along with the water conditioning chemicals needed, thermometer and a water testing kit. She would buy the other items she would want for the fish later. She was happy. She knew it might be at least a week before she would buy the actual fish, but she wanted to have the best start for the fish.
With all she the things she had purchased, she made her way back to Optimus and realized she wished she had asked to go with Bee or Cliff. It was a little bit high to lift the tank, even though it was not terribly heavy. It was just awkward. However, Optimus did manage to help her by opening the door and shifting the seats slightly to essentially grab the tank and move it inside the cab. Thankfully no one noticed and she climbed into the truck with the rest of the items.
Azura had a big smile on her face as she relaxed in the seat as Optimus drove away from the aquarium. "Thank you, again. I really am happy that you will allow me to get fish, Optimus. It might not the animal I've dreamed of owning, but I am going to care for them all the same."
"I am very pleased to help you, Azura. I can see this means a lot to you. I'll make sure to help you get all of this stuff to your room. Especially that tank." Optimus had every intention of getting involved with assisting her in setting up the tank and getting the fish settled. After all, she was extremely happy about this. And he would make sure that Ratchet won't have much room to object to it. "Have you already started to think about what fish you will have?"
Azura nodded. "I had a look at the fish in the aquarium. I have looked at the tetras, the gouramis, angels and many of the other fish...and I think I will go with some rainbows, gold widow tetras and maybe gouramis...not sure yet. But I also intend to get a catfish, they help clean the tank. Probably just one bristlenose."
The names of the different fish were incredibly strange to Optimus. He did not know how many species of fish there were out there, however it seemed like Azura was going to be researching the fish. At least, that is what it seemed to him. "Can different species of fish live in the same tank?"
She nods again. "Yeah. The fish I am looking at will all likely grow to a size where they won't eat each other. This is because some fish don't get so big, and I risk adding them into a tank with fish that will grow and probably eat them eventually. Thankfully, with the seventy-litre, they won't get terribly big."
"Uh, why? Do they just keep growing until they stop?" Optimus asked in a confused tone as he did not quite understand what Azura meant by the last bit.
"Oh, fish will grow to the size of their environment. It's hard to explain...I think it's just a biological thing that fish have that they grow to the size of the environment they live in. In the ocean, fish will grow to their natural size, in tanks they may not." Azura knew that sounded awful, but she knew people weren't cruel with their fish. But the producers of fish can often be cruel in mutations, especially in the goldfish. "I may get another tank in the future for more fish, so I hope you don't mind. It gives me a piece of mind to know that I caring for something...and it is something I've always wanted."
"We will start with this one first, Azura," Optimus said happily. "I will make sure that you will not have any issue. I highly doubt Ratchet will be that upset about you having the fish tank. Especially since it isn't something we need to worry about."
"I agree...but from what I am understanding from Bee and Cliff, Ratchet can get frazzled about things that are new."
Optimus was amused by her, and he guessed she was spending a little too much time with those two. "I can see you spend an awful lot of time with them. But they aren't entirely wrong about Ratchet at times, but he has a lot of good points. After all, Ratchet has been a part of the team for many years. If it weren't for him and his medical expertise, things could have looked worse before. Now he's simply working on improving the base so we may be better prepared against the decepticons. After all, that abandoned silo was filled with human technology."
"And human technology is considered primitive in Ratchet's mind, right?" Optimus just hummed in response, and she shakes her head. "Luckily you all arrived in a time where we have technology. About fifty years ago, this planet would have looked a lot different than it does now."
"So it would seem. Although, the human race has advanced pretty quickly from what I've been able to understand. I have not read through all of your history, but the little I have learned about, I would agree humans have advanced quickly. I think Ratchet underestimates the ability of the human mind, but we have lived many millennia." She still could not wrap her mind around that. She was curious about Optimus's age. He was wise and just, so she assumed he was old enough. "However, as much as the technology is good, it is not useful to us. Ratchet's been needing to improve what we have to benefit our needs. It is not an insult to humans, just a thing we need to do."
"And I understand. I am not offended, I just think it is funny." Azura looked out the window as the world goes by as Optimus leaves the town. "At least I can do something good and fun before tomorrow...I am still nervous."
"Everything will be okay, Azura. The school here won't have the same bullies you endured at the previous school." She was still nervous regardless. "And I will do what I can to be there for you if you need help, Azura. Even if I cannot go into that school and do anything for you."
She smiled as she was thankful that he would be there. She was happy for the support, and she would take it. They were the only support she had. She might have Fowler, but he was a busy man too. He couldn't be there all the time. But that was okay. Azura was happy to have the autobots as her family. They have been the best thing that happened to her, in her mind. It didn't start the way it probably should have, but it was okay.
When they arrived back at the base, Ratchet was indeed surprised by the fish tank when it was revealed what she had bought. He was unhappy at first, but realized quickly that it was unlikely to be an issue. So he did not bother questioning it. Azura had Optimus help her bring her new clothes to her room since she could not carry everything. The other autobots were happy to see how Azura and Optimus were interacting. They did not know if Optimus had said anything or not, but Ratchet already suspected that Optimus said nothing.
But for Optimus, watching Azura set up the tank and have him practically involved in the process. He watched her fill the tank, turn on the filter, test the heater and the light of the tank. He watched as she added the chemicals to the water and she was enthusiastically talking to him about the different fish she could have. He was learning slowly, but he was mostly happy that she was happy. It was the thing that was most important to him right now. Her being happy, safe and comfortable. Her knowing the truth was still important, but he would wait for the right time. If there was ever such a thing.