I wrote this chapter with LadyAnatar as well!
Prompt: 11 August 2010. "Convince me."
26 November 2011. Crossing Boundaries
Date started/completed: 22 November 2017
xXx
Crossing his arms over his chest, Ratchet leaned back in his chair and fixed the mech on the other side of his desk with a hard stare. "I'm not saying no, but if you want me to go along with that, then you're going to have to try a lot slagging harder to convince me it would be worth it."
Sunstreaker smiled grimly back. "I can do that. First, it will be good for morale."
"Yeah, because I'll be humiliating myself," Ratchet snarked.
"Second," Sunstreaker continued, ignoring Ratchet's comment completely, "I'll get to do a full paint job."
"Well, that's good for you, but what's in it for me?"
"That means that not only will I be busy with a productive, positive project and not getting into trouble, but if Sideswipe even thinks of bothering you while you're all shined up, then I'll beat him with his own arm."
"...Okay, other than reattaching his arm, that is a perk," Ratchet admitted.
"Obviously. Third, you'll be moving out of your comfort zone, and you can rub that in Jazz's face."
"That's nice. Of course, I could also do that by just rolling into the next town and watching some of the kids at the mall."
Sunstreaker kept talking, undeterred by the carbon crisp gallery due to a lifetime of practice dealing with his aggravating twin. "Fourth, the design comes with built-in defenses, so you won't need to deal with any restrictions."
"That's not a perk of agreeing; that's a cold-comfort assuming that I already have agreed."
"And finally," Sunstreaker concluded with a shark-like grin, "in some way, shape, or form, you will probably scare the slag out of almost everyone on base."
Ratchet was quiet for a moment, then broke his considering mood with a matching grin. "Alright, you've convinced me. Now, when exactly are you going to paint me like one of your French bots?"
Rolling his optics, Sunstreaker answered, "The French would weep if I did this to them. And I was planning on the day before the big Halloween party. Meet you in your quarters so that we can get you all clean in your wash racks?"
"Sounds like a plan."
OoOoO
He was only halfway down the hall, and he could already hear the noise, chatter, and music of the party. Was he really doing this? Ratchet glanced down at himself and hefted his "weapon" up to look at it. Absolutely, if only because the faces of the other Autobots would be hilarious. Besides, he had already let Sunstreaker shine him up like this, so he needed to follow through on attending if he wanted to keep the artist from going into fits.
He straightened his posture, squared his shoulders, and marched for the door. The Ark had automatic doors, so his entrance was not as grand as it could have been. Nonetheless, he strode into the room and searched for Sunstreaker who had said he would arrive before him.
As it turned out, everybody in the Ark must have arrived before him. The room was well-lit, but the decorations everybody had scrounged up gave the area a festive feel. And the other Autobots were dressed up too; Ratchet snorted as he saw some of the other costumes.
"Whoa, look at Ratchet!" That was Sideswipe.
Ratchet hefted his costume's weapon, warning the red mech to not antagonize him right now. The enlarged wrench-"The Wizardly Wrench Wackem" as it had been dubbed-looked mighty impressive when displayed with the rest of his attire.
Sideswipe, with Sunstreaker beside him smirking, held up his servos at the sight of the giant wrench. "Just, uh, wanted to tell you that you look great!" Sideswipe himself seemed to be dressed up as Indiana Jones, hat and all.
"Thanks." Ratchet narrowed his optics and watched a couple other bots creep away from him.
"You look kind of like... Thor?"
"Ratchet," Sunstreaker spoke up, "is the god of thunder, war, and healing." Ratchet almost saw a smirk on his face.
"Don't forget wrenches," he added as he hefted up his Wackem.
A laugh came from the side, and Ratchet turned, cape swishing behind him as he looked.
"Yo' weapon is the fiercest ever encountered by mech o' mortal!" Jazz exclaimed as he sauntered up to them, though he was careful to stay at least an arms' length from the medic.
Ratchet's optics shuttered as he took in what Jazz and his follower, Prowl, were wearing. They had gone all out for this party. Jazz had dressed up in gaudy decorative chains paired with two cloth wraps around his upper torso and hips, leaving his middle bare. The outfit reminded Ratchet of the villain slayer from one of those Star Wars movies that the Dinobots were so fond of. Prowl looked like a medieval knight come to life, with minor armor additions everywhere on his frame that the optic could see. He also bore a cape, although one much shorter than Ratchet's. At Prowl's side even hung a sword, which he hoped was fake. How Jazz had convinced the serious second in command to wear something like that, he wasn't sure.
Jazz noticed Ratchet staring at Prowl's costume. "Ya can't have my knight in shining armor. Ah see ya lookin' at his sword 'specially," he said as he turned and wrapped his arms around Prowl, chains jingling as he moved. In response, Prowl wrapped an arm around Jazz's waist.
"I don't want him," Ratchet immediately refused. No offense to Prowl, but the tactician wasn't his type.
"If Ah didn' know you so well, Ah'd take offense ta that," Jazz informed him cheerfully. "Then again, Ah wouldn't have expected ya ta wear such a fancy get-up to the party. Where'd ya get the idea from?"
Ratchet nodded to where Sunstreaker was sitting. "Sunstreaker. He talked me into it. Somehow." He tossed the wrench into the air. "I think I'll be keeping this though." The costume still felt odd. He wasn't used to so many layers of paint being laid over his base colors, but he had to admit that the final result, which exquisitely captured the visage of Thor's armor down to the smallest detail, was a true masterpiece. Pity he had to be the model.
"Use it wisely, O Ratchet," Prowl advised, wings flicking in amusement as he tried not to smirk. "Now, my companion and I bid you farewell." Jazz snickered into his armor as Prowl led him away.
Ratchet thought he heard Jazz say something about "refreshing" but he could not be sure. "Refreshments" sounded good though. As he turned, his cape swished behind him and smacked Sideswipe in the face. He left the sputtering and laughing brothers and headed for the table full of energon cubes to pick one up. He hoped he would not get a helmache in the morning, but he had solutions for that.
Not that he would share that information with the rest of the crew.
Snagging a cube, Ratchet settled against the wall to watch the crew for a few minutes. As he saw everyone having a good time, he smiled as he drank. Odd feelings from the paint and the face-smacking cape aside, he reflected that he was glad that he had let Sunstreaker convince him to dress up to come to the party. Finishing his drink, he dispersed the cube, then he headed into the middle of the fray; it was time to show everyone how to have a good time.
.
.
.
End.
