By Primus, this planet's weather was awful. The winters were painfully cold with ice and snow that threatened to freeze even the most waterproof mech's gears and wires, and the summers...Primus, the summers!Starscream's vents were all but roaring as they attempted to cool his overheating body. His metal plating was scorching hot from the relentlessly bright sunlight, so hot he wouldn't let his offspring touch him lest they burn themselves, especially the little organic he adopted over the winter. Starscream didn't even want to think of what kind of damage touching his hot plating would do to the sensitive organic, Skyhopper, who was having enough problems dealing with the heat on his own.
There were only two ways to get around the horrid heat and bright sun. Staying in their cave was out of the question - the young ones were far too bored to stay inside day after day, and attempting to force them to do so was an exercise in destroying Starscream's sanity. No, they had to take the other option.
So, here Starscream was - making his way through the last sparse trees on the outskirts of the forest and using his wings to shade his offspring from the harsh sunlight as they trekked to the lake. The water would be a welcome break from the heat, and playing in it would probably drain the sparklings' energy reserves enough for Starscream to retain his sanity for a few days.
"Are we there yet?" Coldwave piped up as he trotted to keep in pace with his matre's larger steps.
"Almost," Starscream grumbled. "And if you ask me that one more time, I'm going to feed you your tail."
