Stingray woke to a ping he didn't want to acknowledge.

Strikeout wanted a meeting, immediately.

He pondered a moment as he lay in his bond's arms. Stingray would have been conflicted before meeting Devisplex, but now he knew the action to take.

:Strikeout, I will not meet you. I have given you my answer. By the way, laying with a turbofox is really fun. You should try it.:

He got no response, so Stingray curled closer to his bond and smiled back into recharge.

Later he sat with Chitin, going over their educational plans, playing with an eager Dotbreak.

"I think you should take art history and study this human course that is available online. Then afterwards meet up with the artist guilds to start making connections," Chitin selected the options on the screen, "We'll both be in educational sessions to get us up to standards for writing and basics. I'll take law classes so I can continue on Daywatch or Nightwatch assuming they assign me a patrol."

Stingray grinned mischievously, "Why not be my model for the fashions and we make it a family business?"

Chitin whirled, looking shocked out of his processor.

Stingray eased closer, "We can go to the same classes, then come home to study together. All of us on the same schedule."

Chitin put his servos on his hips, "You just want to interface."

Stingray leaned in, "That is a nice bonus. Plus I can be with you all orn long."

Frowning, he picked up Dotbreak, swaying with the sparkling as he babbled with his trio of dollies, "Why don't you come join me in my classes then? We can have you walking the same patrols. I'm sure your background could be useful in spotting trouble."

Stingray threw back his helm and laughed, "Me? A Nightwatch mech? I think Primus would throw a rod if I did that. Nah, I'll be a fashion designer. You'll keep the peace while I make it with designs."

Chitin pulled Stingray into his arms, hugging both his sparkling and his bond, delighting Stingray, "I love that plan. Let's do that."

"I'm thinking we could swing by and pick up lunch. Then we get Dotter and Pointbreak along with our Atars to a pool. We'll eat together, laugh, maybe accidentally dump one of them into the water?"

Chitin snorted, "All but the last, Ray."

"As you wish, Chit."

They kissed, then loved on Dotbreak.

Pinging the other family members for the meetup, they packed up Dotbreak with his dollies before leaving for lunch.

Stingray wrapped an arm around his bond, enjoying the gift of walking down streets exactly as those on Cybertron during the Golden Age. Crowds flowed along, pausing at lights to let traffic by.

Home. He finally found home. His sparkling would live here and thrive.

They entered the cafe, ordered for their impromptu lunch. They chatted with other couples, learning about more gifts available to them, like a bookstore where authors worked in full view. A music store had just opened offering both Cybertronian and human style songs and instruments for shoppers to pick up. A couple recommended classical music from a human called Mozart.

Stingray stored the lunch boxes in his carry hold as they made plans to swing by and check out the stores. Maybe with Dotter and Pointbreak.

They stepped into the sidewalk, turned to walk to the pool.

"Stingray!"

Stingray reacted to the malice, moving to stand between Dotbreak, Chitin and the speaker.

Pedestrians made a corridor as three obviously high caste mechs marched towards them.

Chitin gripped his arm, whispered, "Ray, this is not who you are."

"You stole from me," the first mech towered over Stingray, scowling deeply.

"I haven't stolen anything," Stingray replied, noting out of the corner of his optic Strikeout.

A smirking Strikeout.

Trap.

"You stole from my home on Cybertron, Stingray," the mech reached out to grab him.

Stingray made to move forward, when he suddenly had Dotbreak in his servos, the sparkling looking distressed.

"Sir," Chitin faced the taller mech calmly, "Whatever accusations you wish to make against this mech should be filed with the courts. There all your grievances will be addressed their due."

The mech sneered, "A gang member serving time? Not likely with one this slimy."

Stingray nearly lunged at the mech for the tone he used with his bond.

A cry startled him, making him look down into Dotbreak's teary face.

"It's alright Dotbreak. We'll get you to the pool," Stingray's spark fluttered with his sparkling's distress, though Dotbreak patted the wall of the box, sniffling.

"You are not taking a high caste sparkling," the mech reached out.

Stingray felt the old routines start up, his leg bracing to kick, to defend his sparkling from this aggressor.

Chitin deflected the servo easily and oddly enough respectfully, "That sparkling is formally adopted by Stingray. You need to take a step back, sir."

"You aren't Daywatch," the mech raised his servo to strike out.

"He's a policemech," a cool voice stated as an elderly high caste femme stepped out of the crowd, "Who told you this mech stole from you? As I recall, no mech nor femme could identify who broke into your home and ransacked it."

"It doesn't matter," the high caste mech snapped.

Chitin lifted his chin, "Did that mech over there tell you about Stingray?"

The entire crowd turned to Strikeout who lost the smirk an instant before optics landed on him.

"Why does it matter?" the high caste mech snarled.

"Simple, sir," Chitin smiled patiently, "The only one who would know it was your home broken into would be the police, and the burglar himself."

"How would you know that?" the high caste mech demanded.

"Because, sir, I'm the mech Stingray attempted to seduce the orn your home was broken into. I arrested him and hauled him to jail. I secured him and was in the midst of writing the report when dispatch sent the officers to your home. There should be records to prove the timing."

Stingray stared as the high caste mech backed up, considered Chitin, then whirl to Strikeout.

Strikeout shook his helm as if in disappointment, "I told you the truth. Are you going to believe the mech Stingray is bonded to, or the one telling the truth?"

Chitin looked at Strikeout, "Sir, you told this mech Stingray broke into his home?"

"I told the truth," Strikeout reiterated.

A tiny blue mech came forward, "Really? How about when you fired into the apartment building off Grit road? The one that set off the Grit siege and kept mechs pinned between Decepticons and Autobots for orns. You going to tell the truth about that?"

Stingray felt his processors fritz, "You fired into our apartment building?"

Chitin stared at Strikeout, "You fired into that building?"

The blue mech looked up at Chitin, then Stingray looked baffled, "You're the Atar and Ada of Heltron, aren't you?"

Stingray growled at Strikeout, "You fired the shot that fatally injured my sparkling?"

"That sweet spark...I'm sorry," the blue mech reached out, touched Stingray, "I didn't mean to reopen old wounds."

Chitin shivered, then backed up, "Daywatch, I will have to abstain from taking him in."

"Oh, don't worry," a voice stated, "I'm happy to take him in for disturbing the peace."

Strikeout looked at the huge Daywatch mech standing there, "I'm not disturbing the peace."

"You set off these mechs," the Daywatch mech looked at the high caste group, "to attack this mech. Not very neighborly."

"I did nothing," Strikeout replied calmly as the Daywatch mech approached.

"Strikeout, you are charged with disturbing the peace. Come with me peacefully."

Strikeout snootily lifted his helm, "I have nothing to hide."

"Then you'll walk with me?" The Daywatch mech waved to three more at the edge of the crowd, "My team are happy to speak with you at length."

Strikeout stalked by, "I will walk."

The Daywatch looked over the crowd, "Would those involved with this come as well to set the record straight?"

Chitin looped his arm with Stingray's, "We are unfortunately deeply involved."

The blue mech sighed, "So am I. The bond is gonna kick my aft to the Matrix. Going to miss lunch again."

Stingray offered one of their meals before following the Daywatch, "Here, at least you'll eat."

They walked to the Watch station to give their statements.