Chapter Text
"Prowl, this is Jazz," Ironhide said.
"Good to meetcha Prowl. Heard alot about ya."
Prowl’s doorwings raised slightly at the informality of the other mech. While Prowl was not Jazz’s immediate superior officer, he did still outrank him. Prowl had read the mech’s file. He had only recently been promoted to officer after the battle at Kalis. He was tempted to remind the other of proper protocols when addressing other officers, but Ironhide was commander on this base, and he was was unfortunately lax with protocols himself. So Prowl refrained.
"Jazz just transferred over from the Altihex."
"Welcome to Uraya Base Jazz."
"Thanks! Lookin’ forward to bein’ here!"
***
Over the next few cycles, Prowl came to realize that Jazz was even less fond of protocols and formality than their initial introduction had led him to believe. He constantly spoke out of turn at meetings, his reports where incomplete and had grievous grammatical errors, and Prowl was being to think that he honestly had never been taught how to stand at attention. Ironhide didn’t seem to care, so Prowl only pointed out the most serious offenses. Like kicking his pedes up on the table during an officers meeting, or using his alt mode in the corridors.
Still, Prowl couldn’t deny the mech was charismatic. He was friendly, and charming, and it was clear he really cared about the bots on the base. In just a few cycles, he had more friends here than Prowl had after eight stellar-cycles.
Prowl didn’t mind. He had never been particularly popular, and honestly, he had never wanted to be. He enjoyed the occasional company of friends, but spending too much time around others exhausted him. But Jazz refused to leave him out of anything. He had dragged him to movie night three times already — which was two more times than he had been since he had first arrived at Uraya — he always insisted he sit with him and whomever he was with in the mess hall, and insisted on making conversation if they happened to pass each other in the hall.
Normally, Prowl would have found it irritating. But, well there was something about Jazz, and a little change from his normal routine wouldn’t hurt. Things would go back to normal soon enough.
One day, Prowl came into the mess hall a good joor after his normal break time. He had been in a meeting with the security teams that had run long. He picked up a cube and started for a small table in the corner, away from the crowds.
"Hey Prowler! Over here!" Jazz called from across the mess hall.
Knowing it was pointless to to refuse him — Jazz would just come to him — Prowl walked over with his cube and sat down. "Jazz, my name is Prowl. I would appreciate it if you addressed me as such," it wasn’t the first time he had said it. In fact, it was the eleventh.
"Sure Prowl, whatever ya say. So what’s there to do for fun 'round here anyway? So far it’s just been meetings and training and, well everyone’s nice and all but, well, please tell me we got more than movie night here for entertainment."
"Uraya Base is smaller than Altihex, we do not have much room for recreational facilities here."
"Ok, but still. I mean it can’t be all just business, can it? Ironhide seems like fun, surely he’s got somethin’ set up."
"I am sure he would not mind if you asked him."
"I’m askin’ ya though Prowler. What to ya do for fun?"
"Prowl," he corrected.
"Right, right, Prowl. Sorry mech."
"I usually spend my off shift catching up on paperwork. I’m afraid I am not the best one to ask about such things."
"You- No, guess that makes sense," Jazz said.
Prowl got the distinct impression that he should be offended, but he wasn’t sure why, so he dismissed it.
"So that’s really it? Ya just work and recharge?"
"No, I- My work is very important Jazz. I take it very seriously."
"Well sure, I mean so do I. But we all gotta unwind sometimes, right? Burnout’s a real thing."
"I do enjoy reading, when I have the chance."
"See, I knew you had to have hobbies! Whatcha readin’ now?"
"The History of The Praxian Crystal Gardens."
"Ah. Sounds fun," Jazz’s tone implied that he didn’t think it sounded very fun at all.
"I do have a small garden myself."
"Here on base? I’d love to see that sometime."
"You are interested in crystals?"
Jazz shrugged, "I mean, they’re pretty. I can’t say I really know much about 'em."
It was one of the few conversation topics Prowl enjoyed, and he found it hard to resist, honestly. "Very well," he nodded. "If you would like, you are welcome to come by my hab tonight. I can lend you some reading material if you would like to learn more about them."
"Sounds great mech! Ah shoot, I’m s’posed to meet Ironhide in a breem, I’ll see ya tonight though!"
Prowl nodded as Jazz finished his cube and got up to leave. He pulled out a datapad and started working on some reports he had planned to finish tonight after shift.
***
Prowl was just finishing up a report when he received a ping at his door from Jazz. He sent the code to unlock the door and put the datapad away, "Good evening Jazz."
"Hey Prowler," Jazz said with a smile as he came in.
"Jazz," Prowl frowned.
"Right! Right, sorry. Prowl. Here," he said, holding out a box. "Thought it’s be polite to bring ya somethin’."
Prowl took the box, it was an assortment of very high end energon candies, something that was hard to come by anywhere since the war started, impossible in a distant outpost like Uraya Base. "Jazz, thank you. These are- this is incredibly generous."
Jazz just shrugged, "A’int nothin’ mech. So, these your crystals? He asked, walking over to the small crystal garden Prowl had set up. It was one of the very few personal items he had displayed in his quarters.
"Yes. Please be careful, they are quite fragile," Prowl set the box down on his desk and walked over to the garden.
"They’re pretty."
"Yes," Prowl smiled. "Have you ever been to the crystal gardens in Praxus?"
Jazz shook his head, "Can’t say I have."
"If you have the chance, you should go sometime. All the crystal formations are naturally occurring, nothing has been modified beyond minor maintenance to ensure structural stability. The largest crystals in the center of the gardens reach higher than some of the buildings in Praxus. The whole center of the city is designed so that you can see those crystals from anywhere.
"Sounds beautiful, maybe ya can gimme a tour one day," Jazz said with a smile. "How long ya been growing these?"
"Most of these are offshoots from my larger collection. I have been growing crystals nearly my whole life. This particular garden is one I started two and a half vorn ago."
"Are the rest of your crystals back in Praxus?"
"Most of them. Those are too big to easily transport, and I intend to go back there one day, after the war is over. I have another garden in Iacon quit a bit larger than this as well."
"That’s real dedication Prowler. Hey, I heard crystals like music, is that true?"
"The vibrational motion of an atom in a crystal propagates to neighboring atoms, which leads to wavelike propagation of the vibrations throughout the crystal. The way in which these natural vibrations travel through the crystalline structure determine fundamental properties of the material,"^ Prowl glanced over at Jazz who looked utterly confused. "Regularly playing certain harmonies around crystals can influence the direction they grow and their ultimate shape," he explained.
"Oh, ok, that makes sense. What do you play these guys?"
"Assorted tracks from the Praxian Symphony. Would you like to hear?"
"Sure."
Prowl queued up one of his favourite tracks on the small sound system he had set up near the garden. The music was quiet, soothing.
"It’s nice," Jazz said after a moment, moving to sit down on Prowl’s berth. "Y’know, I could hook ya up with a better sound system in here if ya’d like."
"That isn’t necessary," Prowl said, picking up the box of energon candies and sitting down next to Jazz. He offered Jazz first choice. He picked out a cobalt candy, popping it in his mouth as he leaned back.
Prowl picked out a copper dusted candy, taking a small bite. They sat together, listening to the music play. It was surprisingly comfortable.
"They’re good," Jazz said after a breem. "They’re keeping to a very traditional style but still workin’ in the stylized ornaments to make it more appealin’ based on modern standards. The tempo changes the brass is doin’ ain’t easy to pull off either."
Prowl looked at him, surprised, "I wasn’t aware you had studied music."
Jazz shrugged, "Didn’t really. Just got an audial for it."
"Do you play?"
"Electro-bass, drums, digiphone, a few others."
"And you are fully self taught?"
Jazz nodded, "Made a livin’ of it before the war. I miss it, just jammin’ with my band."
"I would be interested in hearing you play sometime, if you wouldn’t mind."
"Really?"
It was Prowl’s turn to nod, "You have a very good understanding of the structure of symphony and classical music. A base knowledge of such things suggests that you would likely excel at performance."
"I don’t know about all that, but I’d love to play for ya Prowler," Jazz smiled, picking out another energon candy.
Prowl didn’t bother correcting him about his name.
They spent another joor in his room, talking about music and crystals. Prowl lent Jazz a couple datapads with information about the Praxus Crystal Gardens and growing crystals before they parted for the night. Prowl was surprised to find that not only had he had one of the most pleasant evenings he had had in a while, but he was honestly looking forward to spending time with Jazz again.