"You want me to join you and Magnus?" Scourge looked at Cyclonus doubtfully.

"Yes. You're less intimidating than Galvatron." Cyclonus walked down the hallway, confidently assuming that Scourge would follow along with him. He did.

"I'm less intimidating than you. Or him. Or half the other Autobots." Scourge was, indeed, very very unintimidating-looking, wings angled downward and claws tucked anxiously away out of view. "I'm not going to be very good preparation for Galvatron."

Cyclonus abruptly stopped and turned around to face Scourge, who did his best not to collide with his Second. "Scourge--do you remember back at the very beginning? When you and your Sweeps tore Ultra Magnus apart?"

"Yes?" he said, warily.

Cyclonus gave him a small smile. "You'll be better preparation than you think." He took Scourge by the shoulders, firmly but soothingly, and pulled him close. He pressed a kiss to Scourge's beard. "Does Magnus scare you?"

"No!" At Cyclonus' doubtful look: "I mean, yes. I'm a coward, Cyc, not like you and Galvatron. Everything scares me. It doesn't mean I won't go with you."

Cyclonus moved his head back up to place kisses on Scourge's headgun. "Thank you, Scourge."

Scourge gaped at him for a moment. "You never used to thank me. I think Magnus has been an entirely too good influence."

Cyclonus shrugged and turned away. "This is personal. I can't order you to do it."

"And there's an Autobot involved." Scourge said, cynically. "An Autobot whose opinion you care about."

"Two Autobots, actually." Cyclonus stopped, looking down at Scourge again.

"Two--? Wait. Roddy is going to be there, too? Galvatron's Prime? And Galvatron isn't? And why didn't I know about this yet?"

"Very recent arrangement." Cyclonus paused. "Also I think you were busy interfacing with that Autobot spy."

"Mirage? ...Yeah, probably. He's good." Scourge shook his head. "Never mind. Lord Galvatron is okay with this, right? He knows?"

"Yes. He expects we'll convince Magnus to come to his berth soon, but if we can't--" Cyclonus shrugged. "Rodimus has done wonders for his temper. He will accept it."

"And meanwhile I get the three of you." Scourge paused for a second. "Awesome."

"Thought you'd see it that way." Cyclonus walked the rest of the way down the hallway to Magnus' quarters. Scourge could see the signs of a brief comm chat, and then the door opened to Cyclonus' touch.

Hot Rod beamed at them from Magnus' lap. Roddy's arms were unbound and they were canoodling like the pair of Autobots they were. "Cyclonus! Scourge!" He reached out an arm invitingly. "So glad to see you."

Magnus looked a bit tense, but he managed a smile for the Unicronians. "Yes! Good to see you. Both of you." He reached out an arm as well--the other one he kept wrapped around Hot Rod.

Scourge looked at Cyclonus. Cyclonus said, "Magnus. Prime," and climbed onto the berth next to them, settling into Magnus' extended arm and giving Roddy a kiss. "Scourge." It was just short of a command, and Magnus gave him a brief disapproving look.

But Scourge didn't hesitate to walk across the room and wrap Roddy in an arm and a wing--they had been in the same berth before, of course, although it had always been Galvatron's. Roddy turned to kiss Scourge while Cyclonus pulled Magnus into a kiss that Scourge would really have liked to get a better view of; by the time Roddy released him, there were hands all over each others' antennae and their paint was starting to transfer.

"Quite a pair," Roddy said to Scourge. "Magnus gets the key to my chains for the evening, although if he's not interested..." He grinned and left the offer hanging.

Cyclonus pulled back and nudged Magnus in Roddy's direction. "Take him up on it. It's an honor."

"An honor from Galvatron?" But Magnus took hold of Roddy's proffered wrists, rubbing at the plating above and below his shackles.

"And from me." Roddy offered Magnus a soft kiss, and Magnus pulled him closer, harder, giving into it. Roddy pulled out the chains and Magnus gently moved Hot Rod's arms behind his back and attached them together.

Magnus looked over, for a second, at Cyclonus. He was staring, captivated, at his counterpart taking over his Lord's role with his Lord's Prime. Scourge looked from Cyclonus to Magnus and back again, and then at Hot Rod.

"Got another set of cuffs?" Roddy asked.

"I've always got another set of chains." Scourge paused. "Well, either I do or Cyc does, but I do have one now." He pulled a pair from subspace and turned back to Cyclonus.

Now that Magnus had finished with Hot Rod, Cyclonus pressed close to him, again, and pulled him into an almost-violent embrace. "Hold me down," he ordered in a low, deep whisper. "Please."

Magnus paused, looking Cyclonus in the optics for a second, as though he were going to ask Cyclonus if he really meant that, then quickly flipped them around, pinning Cyclonus' wrists to the berth and spreading himself out over him, kissing Cyclonus hard. Cyclonus moaned and arched up into Magnus.

Scourge caught Roddy as he scrambled off Magnus' lap, settling him in a wing and petting him as they watched the two lieutenants enjoy themselves.

"Beautiful, aren't they?" Hot Rod said.

"Of course. Hey, Magnus!" Scourge reached out with the cuffs in his general direction. "Cyc needs these."

Magnus gave him a slightly startled look, but then took them and attached Cyc's wrists to each other and the berth. Then he looked at Scourge consideringly for a moment and pulled him into a deep kiss on top of Cyclonus, who broke into a loud moan and pressed up against them.

When Magnus pulled back, Scourge could see Rodimus--quite adept at moving with his arms chained beside his back these days--pressed against Cyclonus' side and gently kissing the side of his helm. Magnus wrapped his arms around all of them and the foursome was well and truly begun.