Author's Note (Mini-Story): Deep thought walks over to the tiny cabin and taps the roof.

D- "Allora, you up?"

A- "I'll be out in a sec."

D- "Can I reply to the review while waiting?"

A- "Yes!"

Deepthought turns to the readers, "Hey guys, fanfiction is still being plagued by Deceptiglitches, so the reviews aren't showing up on the page. Thankfully, email still works for the reviews. Hi Giddy, yep I laughed at the same stuff too. Sorry about the song. It was Oh Christmas Tree. Allora had that one stuck in her brain until I told her to write it down. It kind of worked until another song tried to take over. *Sigh* I've got to beat the music rampaging in Allora's brain somehow. Any good tips?"

Allora comes out of the cabin with her gear, "You telling tales about my music issue?"

D- "Yes, I'm tired of hearing the Pizza Angel song."

Allora pats his ped, "Sorry bud. Want to hit the tracks?"

D- "Yes, anything to keep that song down."

Ch.13 Jaw Blaster

It was Steeljaw, Blaster's winged lion cassetticon - the oldest of his symbiotes if the headcanons of Transformers fanfiction writers were to be believed.

They were ogling and fawning over him as they formed a small crowd in front of the poor bot, making him more agitated with each second of being boxed in. Couldn't they see Steeljaw lowering into a crouch like a cat, getting ready to lash out at his so-called allies?

Jazz was trying to get the crowd to leave poor Steeljaw alone. But going one bot at a time wasn't fixing the situation, and Steel was going to explode at the rate that Jazz was going.

P- "Everybody Stop!"

Everyone turned to stared at me, dumbfounded. Steel had a look of pure terror in his optics, almost pleading for help in their intensity.

"Leave Steeljaw alone. He is not a pet to be fawned over." Crouching down so my optics were level with his, "Come over here Steeljaw, it's alright."

The bots surrounding Steeljaw parted ways to allow him to make his way over to me. He didn't move a single paw until I gave a small shake of my helm letting him know it was alright. He was over in a flash, sitting meekly with his helm down.

"You're not in trouble Steeljaw *Glancing up at the crowd* There is nothing to see here. Disperse."

Reluctantly, the crowd went back to their morning energon. Jazz hesitated before returning to his seat at our table. My doorwings informed me that Jazz was currently trying to bore holes into my helm, concerned about Steeljaw, no doubt and wondering how I would handle the situation.

"Steeljaw, are you alright?"

Looking up, he quickly nodded his helm.

"Would you like to join me for a cube of energon?"

Another head nod.

Gesturing toward one of the chairs at my table, I went over to the energon station to get Steel a cube. Finding cubes that were modified so they had wider bases and were shorter in height, I whipped up another hot chocolate mint drink.

I came back to find Steel sitting between Jazz and my current spot. Jazz was trying to hide his stare behind his datapad and Steel was avoiding optic contact with everyone. I placed the fresh cube in front of Steeljaw and sat down again.

Steel gave me an incredulous look after taking a sniff of the drink. I simply inclined my head again then returned to my own cube and datapad. The sound of tiny claws tapping the table could barely be heard before a tiny sip resounded in my audios. Then with a vengeance, louder slurps could be heard.

I looked to see Steeljaw with his front paws on the tabletop and his snout in a the drink. He must have liked the drink 'cause he was attacking it like a man who'd just come in from a 30-day trek through a desert. I don't think he would normally allow himself to make that much noise. Odd, he wasn't using his glossa to spoon in the drink like Earth quadrupeds. He seemed to share the ability to suck in fluid, like us. Interesting, I wonder if it's 'cause he has a special intake pump to make the process easier.

"Steeljaw!"

I turned to find Blaster stopped in the archway to the mess hall. Relief washing over the stereo's face plates. He made as if he were going to smother Steel in affection just as the lion tensed next to me. Reacting quickly, I thought-commed Blaster.

Blaster, hold it. Steeljaw is stressed from the commotion earlier. Slow down. Grab a cube of energon and approach slowly. I don't know why Steeljaw is upset so let's try not making it worse.

Blaster paused and seemed to take a deep breath before changing direction. He made himself a cube before heading back over to our table.

B- "Mind if I join you?"

J- "Sure thing, mech."

Blaster sat down roughly across from Steeljaw. An uncomfortable silence fell over the table as Steeljaw turned down his slurping, and Blaster just stared into his cube. Jazz was leaning his helm on his hand with a smile hiding his unease about the whole situation.

Well everyone was too embarrassed to get the conversation going, so it might as well be me.

Putting down my datapad, "Blaster, Steeljaw, is everything alright?"

Blaster started then quickly averted his gaze, "No."

Steel just shook his helm.

Jazz chuckled, "Well, we know that something is wrong. You two want to tell us what's up?"

B- "I'm not even sure what happened. "

Steel nodded to this statement.

J- "Well that's helpful. *turns helm to me* What'd you think, Prowler?"

P- "It's Prowl. *turns to Blaster* Does the issue involve your symbiotic bond with Steeljaw?"

Blaster and Steeljaw were comical as they stared at me, then switched to staring at each other, then back over to me again.

B- "How'd you know?"

P- "The crash landing has caused several issues for the crew internally. It's logical that it would have caused an issue with this as well."

Blaster blinked, "Oh." I guess he didn't think that I would refer to the game's reference to why things were unknown.

P- "After we are done with our cubes, I would recommend that both you and Steeljaw accompany me to the medbay. I believe that Ratchet and Firstaid would have a file on symbiotic relationships."

Steeljaw nodded his head and returned to his drink, the tension draining away from his frame. I guess little Steel trusts me, but I wonder why he is nervous around Blaster and not me. That doesn't seem right. If anything, it should be the other way around.

B- "Oh…That's very kind of you of Prowl, Thanks."

P- "I am going to see Firstaid this morning. It would be the best use of our time if we were to go together." That, and I would also like to keep an eye on Steeljaw. The way he is acting is making me really nervous. Are the other cassetticons acting this way?

Jazz threw back his helm to finish off his cube. "Well mechs, it's been fun but I got to run. Training session today and all that jazz. *snicker* See you, Prowler."

P- "It's Prowl."

Jazz merely grinned and sauntered out of the dining hall. Others were finishing their Gameside breakfasts and heading out to goof off.

I returned to my datapad when Blaster, not having anything better to do, started the conversation again.

B- "Sooo… You're feeling better today Prowl?"

P- "Yes. I am glad to say that the event did not cause adverse effects. However, Ratchet wants to do another examination to make sure that there is no relapse ."

Blaster blinked, "Oh, That's great. Um… What was it like?"

P- "The Auto Battle App?"

B- "Is that you're calling it? Good name. So what was it like? Ratchet didn't say what was wrong with it."

Bringing up my door wings' feed, I found that the few bots that were still in the room were leaning ever so slightly closer to overhear my experience with that messed-up app.

They wanted to hear how scared I was - how alien it was to see my body move on its own into a series of moves reminiscent of Jackie Chan. Nope, wasn't ready to share that experience with the world.

P- "Blaster, that is an experience I would recommend that no one should repeat."

With that, I ended it by standing up. Steeljaw got up at the same time, so I grabbed his now empty cube and headed over to the cube recycling bin. Blaster quickly threw back the rest of his energon in order to catch up with us.

I really couldn't blame the mech for his curiosity on the matter. He was the communications officer for the Autobots after all. He probably thrived on gossip just as much as doting on his cassetticons.

Blaster didn't bring up the subject again during our walk over to the med bay. He probably figured that I wouldn't share anything with him at this point. Steeljaw must have still felt off about Blaster 'cause he was currently using me as a shield.

It was a small relief to finally make it to the medbay - the tension between Steeljaw and Blaster seemed to grow with each step. Firstaid was setting up for the day when he turned to face us.

F- "Good morning, Prowl, Blaster, and… Steeljaw? I know why Prowl is here but why are you here Blaster?"

Blaster rubbed the back of his helm, "Well you see, ummm.. I'm not sure how to explain it but…"

Well, that's helpful, "Blaster and Steeljaw seem to have an issue with their symbiotic bond this morning, Firstaid. I assumed that the medbay would have records on this subject matter, so I invited both Blaster and Steeljaw to accompany me here this morning to see if this was the case."

Firstaid blinked rapidly, "Oh… Well, that is a surprise. I haven't had the chance to really go over the medical database. I'll text Ratchet Earthside and see if he has any thoughts."

Firstaid's optics dimmed. He didn't use the hands motions for comming another bot, so he must have been practicing the hands-free technique. Blaster and Steeljaw both fidgeted in their antsiness.

Firstaid's optics returned to their normal color. "Ratchet says he'll be Gameside in a few. In the meantime, why don't y'all take a seat and I can get started on your scan, Prowl."

I hopped onto a berth. Blaster took one across from me while Steel jumped onto one that was right next to mine. Why were those two being so jumpy and distant to each other? They were acting worse than old school friends at a class reunion. Not sure what to make of each other.

As Firstaid carried out my processor scan with a handheld device, Blaster twiddled his thumbs while Steeljaw gave him an unblinking cat stare - the kind that's like "I'm reading your soul you peasant." It felt like an eternity when Ratchet finally stepped through the medbay doors.

R- "Alright, I'm here. 'Aid how's Prowl this morning?"

F- "Prowl is fine. It's Blaster and Steeljaw that need your help this morning."

R- "You said it had something to do with their symbiotic bond, right? *Sees Aid nod* Alright then, Prowl, you can get. *thumb over a shoulder to point the way out* 'Aid, I need your help finding the right datapad."

The medics disappeared into the office that must also serve as the medbay's library. That made sense since one wouldn't want the precious datapads to be ruined by the medical chemicals. But shouldn't there be a place for backups of the data stored some place else on the ship? I'd have to ask.

As I made to get up from my perch, Steeljaw jumped from his berth and laid down close enough where I could feel the small amount of heat coming off his tiny frame while still leaving a respectful distance between us.

Did he want me to stay here to hear Ratchet's pronouncement? Isn't this a matter between cassette and stereo? Why would Steeljaw want me here? Is it because I stood up for him in the mess hall? I wasn't the only bot to do that. Didn't he see Jazz try to help him?

Blaster must have noticed my hesitance about leaving, "It's ok Prowl. *optics dimming in spaced out look* Steeljaw trusts you. *Optics return to normal color* Go ahead and stay - you're helping by just being here to support us. Thanks."

Sitting back down fully, I had the crushing urge to gently pet the winged lion. But I kept myself in check. It wouldn't do to have the S.I.C. get caught being soft. Yesterday didn't count 'cause I was in shock and needed to recover. Also, I don't think Steeljaw would be comfortable with me petting him.

Ratchet came out of the office with a datapad. Firstaid followed with what looked like a board game. Why would there be a board game in the office? Wouldn't the med bay be too busy for that sort of thing? Unless it was for overnight patients.

R- "It says here that your frame type, Blaster, has the ability to host cassetticon frames."

B- "OK, but we already knew that. Does it tell why, after finding Steeljaw's name light up in my vision screen, I call him out to find that I can sense his feelings and that he doesn't know me?"

So Blaster hasn't been able to call out the cassetticons until Steeljaw's name lit up? I guess Steel is the oldest and the scout for the others.

R- "I'm getting there, hold your amps. Cassetticons frames are sparked with incomplete sparks. It takes time for the spark to mature to complete ones. The cassetticons have the abilities to function without a host but they don't have a personally to help them make good decisions while immature, so it's your frame types' job is to host the cassetticons until they have a mature spark. When a cassetticon finds a stereo frame type mech that is willing to care for them, they form a symbiotic bond with the host. The bond is so the cassetticon can gain the personality attribute they want from the mech they are connected too. When their personality is finally established, they can then function as fully autonomous mechs."

F- "So basically Steeljaw is a splinter of your personality. Until he is mature, he is connected to your emotional processes and needs to stay close. *Thrusts board game into Blaster's hands* The reboot, must have dislodged your connection because your personality isn't exactly the same as before. Reconnect."

The Crash - that's game logic for why stuff doesn't work. Hmm, does that mean when the other cassettes wake up that they'll be just as confused?

R- "You two can play in here. I want to monitor the process for future reference when your other cassetticons finally online. *Notices me* Prowl? What are you still doing here! Get! If you're not injured, you don't need to take up space in the med bay!"

Steeljaw gave me a questioning look. I gave a minute nod of reassurance before he jumped over to Blaster to begin playing the game Firstaid had provided. I hid my small smile and turned to make my way out of the door.

Thank you.

That wasn't a comlink. I turned on my heels to see that everybot had their backs to me doing their thing. No one had called out to me and I didn't recognize the voice. Who was that? And how did they hack my systems so they could talk without the comlink?

Ratchet gave a huff and turned away from his machine, "You still here! *A wrench is pulled out from subspace* I told you, get!"

He released the wrench. And in a mad rendition of a cartoon character, I made it through the closing doors at the last second.

A clank and a "drat I missed."

Author's Note (Mini-Story): Deep Thought pulls to a stop next to an abandoned building. It has a sign that reads, "Lib.a.y." Allora jumps out, looking a little disheveled.

A- "A….aaaa…..achoooo! *sniff* I hate colds."

D- "You sure I can't catch it?"

A- "Yes Thought. I'm sure this isn't the interspecies variety of germ."

D- "If you're sure… So, why'd we stop here? Shouldn't we stop someplace that is warm for you to rest."

A- "This is a good opportunity to do some research for the next few chapters, and besides, I can always bunk in the sleeper car at night. *sniff*"

D- "I thought you were doing great so far."

A- "I am. But it never hurts to add content to future chapters by being well rounded. This chapter took a lot of research on the cassetticon relationships throughout the multiverse. *Sniff* So yeah, it never hurts to do some more research. Plus, I heard that this Library has a copy of the Covenant of Primus."

D- "Oh, so that's really why you're here. You just want to read the Covenant of Primus."

A- "Guilty. I've been waiting to read that book for well over a year. *sniff and turns to readers* So hey guys, I'm still getting your reviews even though they aren't showing up on fanfiction. I blame Deceptiglitches. I might be a little slow for a bit 'cause of this head cold. It makes my brain feel like pea soup. I'm still writing and doing some extensive research for future chapters. More info about the cassetticons will come up in later chapters. I'd give you all hugs but I don't want to get you guys sick. So Bye, love ya."