The Things We Do For Love

Chapter 1/?

Author: Thalanee

Verse: AU- Bayverse

Word Count: ca. 1500 words

Rating: pg-13

Other Characters: Barricade

Warnings: MechxMech (that warning should actually be superfluous seeing as Transformers don't have genders and are only referred to as male for convenience), me mangling Jazz's speech patterns, etc

Disclaimer: I don't own them, I only wish I did.

Summary: You are Special Ops. And you are on a mission (besides your official one): to capture the spark of that enforcer you just met. Too bad the enforcer only ever thinks about his job. What's a mech to do? JazzxProwl

Author's Notes: This has been sitting on my computer for about forever, but MoltenAshes' story Humorous Love prompted me to finally work on it (in the second to last chapter there's a scene where Jazz reminisces about the times he got himself arrested to get Prowl's attention).

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No bot could really be that dense.

At least that was what everyone looking in astonishment at the scene unfolding in front of them thought.

The place: "The Corner", an energon bar almost directly next to the Enforcers' Headquarters in Praxus, owned by a retired enforcer, known to be frequented by said enforcers almost every time of the cycle, the whole decacycle.

The time: It's the end of the cycle, when nearly every enforcer to have worked the day shift or about to start night shift comes to the bar to say hello to his colleagues or to unwind over a nice cube with fellow enforcers before going home, a time when the bar is filled to the brim with the black and white and red frames of Praxus' defenders of the law.

The cast: a bar full of enforcers, Prowl and his partner Barricade among them, cannot help but stare incredulously at our other main protagonist, a dark silver mech, with helm horns and a black visor, who is in the process of trying to rob the barkeep.

If it hadn't been for the music, the silence would have been so profound, the sound of various processors and one battle computer trying to unravel the mystery before them would have been deafening. Cubes are held in midair, mouths open, card games and conversations abandoned.

The barkeep himself has quite obviously difficulties trying to reign in his laughter as the soon to be arrested robber waves a stun gun in his face. Absently the ex-enforcer wonders if the thief has noticed that the safety of his blaster is still on, rendering the weapon useless.

:: Is this really happening?:: Dodger, one of the enforcers, finally asked on an open enforcer comm. line.

:: Seems like it… :: Barricade answered, sipping his cube nonchalantly, his optics riveted on the dark silver form, who just announced "Ah'll have all yor creds and some of ya best cubes for ma way home, please."

:: Aw, look a criminal who knows his manners! :: Safeside joked.

:: As funny as this is guys, someone should arrest him, before Prowl fries his battle computer again. :: Smokescreen piped in. Every enforcers' optics discreetly (or so they think) turned to their youngest member who was busy staring at the thief, wings twitching erratically as his battle computer is busy tallying the many things this criminal is so obviously doing wrong, barely keeping himself from locking up at the sheer illogicalness of it all.

:: But who gets to arrest him?:: Safeside wondered

:: Whoever saw him first, of course:: Smokescreen answered.

:: We all saw him first!:: another enforcer countered.

:: Yeah, I call dibs:: Barricade emptied his cube in one go and set it down on the table. :: Give our Prowler something else to focus on…::

Not even waiting for an answer he poked his partners red chevron in order to get his attention .When Prowl jumped slightly and turned to him with a questioning look on his face, the tall more black than white enforcer held up a pair of cuffs and casually nodded with his head to the dark silver mech who was busy introducing himself to the barkeep.

"Name's Failsafe, ya know?" The mech grinned at his "victim". So far everything was going as he had planned. He had found the perfect bar to rob, scouted out the best time to appear to achieve his goal and, after making sure his weapon worked as it was supposed to, he put his plan into action. "Just came over from Polyhex. Gotta say, Praxus is a lovely place-" A tap on his shoulder interrupted the string of words flowing from his vocalizer. The mech known as Failsafe turned- and fought to keep from drooling.

He noticed the tall black enforcer with the white highlights and black chevron, but ignored him in favour of the gorgeous creature pointing a blaster at his face: his armour was all pearly white and glossy black, with ruby red chest armour and a tiny red arrow in a very interesting place on his hips, all accentuated by the odd line of gold. His deep red chevron drew attention to the white faceplates with the high cheeks and full lips. Slightly slanted optics shone gold, but what really drew his attention were the regal doorwings held high on the bot's back.

Getting arrested by the bot of his dreams wasn't quite part of the plan, but who was he to argue with Primus?

"I would advise you to surrender." Even the mech's voice, curiously light, with the typical Praxian lilt, was a dream. Giving the smaller mech in front of him a not so subtle once over, Failsafe's grin grew so wide that Prowl wondered if his faceplates might be about to break.

"Why, hello there," he purred at Prowl, "what's a sweet thing like you doin' in a dump like this?"

Dead silence met his question, while every single transformer in the bar did his best not to laugh at the look on Prowl's usually expressionless face: it looked like a mix between embarrassed mortification, anger, irritation and one that practically shouted "What the frag?". The blush was no help either…

:: Is he suicidal?:: Smokescreen asked over the open comm..

:: If so there are cleaner ways of committing suicide.:: Barricade drawled. He knew there was a temper hidden underneath his partner's cool exterior and Failsafe just hit all the right triggers in one go. Admirable, since no one had ever managed that before.

"Lewd jokes will do nothing to improve your situation." Had looks been able to kill, Failsafe would be writhing on the floor in agony. The icy tone conveyed clearly that the doorwinger was not amused. "Hand over your weapon and surrender."

Sticking out his lower lip in a pout the dark silver thief sighed. "Alright, don't get yor wires in a bunch." He muttered handing his blaster over to Prowl and holding out his hands for Barricade to cuff him.

Prowl nearly glitched again when he noticed, that not only was the safety on, the blaster's energy pack was missing, making it no more dangerous than a sparkling toy. He distracted himself by reading Failsafe his rights, while they escorted him out to the precinct under the laughter and applause of the other enforcers. The criminal even had the ball bearings to bow effusively on their way out of the bar.

Failsafe kept hitting on Prowl all the way to the precinct, in the precinct's waiting room while his record was updated in the enforcers data base under the optics of the Chief Enforcer Redtape (who had wanted to hear the story himself after receiving image captures and vids from what happened in the bar) and all the way to his cell.

Barricade couldn't keep from snickering now and then, especially when his younger partner threw him helpless looks, clearly not knowing what to do, as his anger had drained and only left plain confusion. Never before had a criminal he arrested complimented him throughout the process.

Once at the cell that would be Failsafe's home for the near future, Prowl led him inside and uncuffed the dark silver mech. Something he instantly regretted, because Failsafe took advantage of the opportunity- to grab Prowl's aft when he left the cell. The small enforcer let loose an embarrassing mix between a squeak and a yelp, jumping in the air, before turning around to face the grinning mech, while Barricade quickly closed the cell doors before someone did something even more stupid.

Barricade herded a sputtering Prowl out of the brig. "What on Cybertron is wrong with that mech?" Prowl nearly shrieked to the amusement of the enforcers nearby. It was the first time he had lost his composure like that and the sight was refreshing, and in the opinions of most of them, endearing. It was a good thing Prowl didn't know that, though.

Before Barricade could form a snarky comment in reply, a cheeky voice could be heard through the door to the brig, reverberating through the whole waiting room. "Nothin# wrong on this end, Sparkles. But Ah have ta say, if Ah'd known enforcers in Praxus were this cute, Ah would have hightailed it here earlier!"

It was the last thing Prowl heard, before his battle computer decided, enough was enough, and he crashed.

Author's Notes 2: You want to know who Failsafe really is? Here are some pointers: he's canon, we all love him very much and if Transformers belonged to me, pairing him with Prowl would be canon!

I know exactly how this is going to end, but I'm still mulling about the middle parts. Let me know what you think!