Chapter 22: Dropout
"Everything go okay today?" Bulkhead asked as his passenger slipped into the driver's seat. Miko huffed in response and rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, if you count having the information Ratchet drills into your head against your will praised by superiors as fun..." Miko grumbled. She growled slightly at the chuckle from the radio. "You know, I'm gonna stop going to his sessions...I really don't give a damn anymore. Yeah, I'll study with Jack, I'll listen to Raf's techno-babble. ANYTHING but the crap that ol' doc-bot puts me through! I'll be a good girl from now on!"
"Right..." Bulkhead drolled. Miko bit her lip nervously.
"uh...well...a better girl..." she chuckled.
"At least you aren't big enough for him to be yelling "MIKO! I needed that!" all the time," Bulkhead sighed. Miko giggled from the latest memory of him snapping one of Ratchet's scanners in half by accident before trying to tape it back up. "You said Duct Tape solves everything!" Bulkhead grumbled.
"It's supposed to," Miko assured folding her arms over her chest, "Not my fault that you decided to listen to me when I asked ya to go scrounging for some cool tech." Bulkhead's next slew of replies were lost amidst the wandering of Miko's unrestrained mind. Getting Jack to be her teacher again would be simple enough on his part, and if that failed she would be able to tolerate Raf if she tried to. The hard part would be splitting up from Ratchet. Knowing the medic it wouldn't be without a fight with how grouchy he could be. On the other hand he might actually be happy to be rid of the hyperactive Asian...but when in that mode he seemed even more dedicated than the actual school staff itself to benefit her education!
Just as Miko was about to tune back into what her partner was saying she caught something out of the corner of her eye. A boy in a sleek car. Vince. The more she looked at him the more distant she got from reality. He really did have qualities that she'd much more enjoy than the ones that she got from the group that she hung out with...still...they were her friends...and it'd sorta be hard to beat going on adventures with giant living machines...
"Miko!" Bulkhead's voice finally broke into her ear drums.
"SEVENTEEN SEVENTY FIVE!" she squeaked. Blinking a few times, she blushed and smiled weakly at the radio, "...sorry...thought you were Ratchet for a sec...what's up now?"
"You were starin' at that punk that nearly got ya killed. Need me to go lay the smackdown on him or somethin'?" the vehicle asked its passenger.
"Wha-no! Bulky, you aren't supposed to attack people!" Miko exclaimed in a mixture of laughter and concern.
"What? I hear the guy's a jerk," Bulkhead gave his usual excuse eliciting an eyeroll from Miko.
"Don't worry DAD, we were hanging out. I told you it was that Sideways motorcycle guy that tried to kill us," Miko reminded.
"Ah, an even bigger jerk...see him around anywhere?" the green car inquired.
"Not since he tried to murder us, but don't worry. You have my full permission to whip his ass into the fuckin' ground the next time he pops up. Not gonna lie...he...scares me a bit...not that I'm goin' soft or nothin'! It's just...it felt like we were actually going to...die..." Miko's voice trailed off a bit as the memory took hold. The realization of just who was ramming Vince's car. The determination that the bike had to knock her to the road so that it might roll her softer body through the grinding mechanisms of the high-speed vessel. The mere thought of what Sideways might've done to her had he actually succeeded in his intentions made her shudder.
"Hey, don't worry kiddo. If he ever even threatens you with me around I'm gonna slam him with everything I got!" Bulkhead assured her, "And I will be there." Miko smiled from the reassurance.
"Just don't overdo it," she chuckled, "Besides, I'm not gonna be so easy for him to take down next time. Been workin' out." Miko smirked at the laugh she recieved. "What? All the time I spend with Jack isn't just us lounging around."
"Oh believe me, ALL of us know that by now," Bulkhead murmured reddening Miko's cheeks rather intensely, "Besides, he's a giant ass machine. No offense, but doubt you're gonna do much against him."
"Well thank you Mister Self Confidence. The next time Jack's in here I just might suggest we spend the night in you-"
"Oh like scrap you are! Pull that kinda slag here and I'm transforming right on the spot and walkin' back to base alone," Bulkhead told her. Miko snickered through her teeth. "Hey...what's that punk doin'?" the car wondered aloud. All the time they'd been talking, Bulkhead had subconsciously been following Vince in his overprotective attitude. Casually he pulled up next to where the bully had parked and let Miko out to follow the suspiciously hunched boy into the electronics store he'd stopped at. The girl was just excited to being allowed on anything that'd qualify as a mission. The moment she opened the door to the store her eyes widened. There was yelling!
"Look dude, I told ya, I NEED that radio replacement. And that was a month ago! Time's up! Now either give it to me or-"
"Or what?" a female voice interrupted cutting the scruffy boy off. All too ready to get free, the clerk that Vince had been grabbing by the collar broke loose and ran out the back door. The boy himself was in his usual getup only now his face was covered by a full-head mask and his hands in black gloves. The more interesting outfit however was the one worn by the girl that stood before him. She was a bit shorter than him, but she didn't appear to be wearing clothes. Instead her body looked like it was covered in machinery save for her stomach, parts of her arms and legs, and face. A rim ran along the top of her head allowing her black hair to flow out the back of the construct. Lifting a brow, she snapped a few times to get the boy's attention.
"Yoohoo...didn't answer the question..." she commented. Grounded back in the moment, Vince did the first thing that came to his mind and took out a pocket knife. The girl practically laughed.
"Really?...really? You're going up against me with a little knife when I'm decked out in THIS?" she asked spreading her arms out along her body to display her costume.
"Don't see all of yourself protected," Vince grinned. Pulling the blade back he ran at her. The girl just shook her head. Just as he was about to make his stab, the android-looking opponent hopped out of the way and grabbed the metal object in her protected hand. Viciously Vince tried to pull it back but the grip was unbreakable. He did however have her right next to him. Grinning he produced another pocket knife and yanked it into the air. The moment that the girl saw the new weapon she squeezed the blade of the previous one that he was still holding. Vince let out a shrill cry as an electric current shot through it into his body knocking him back into a nearby shelf.
"Guh..." he hacked wobbling to stay on all fours, "Who...what are you?..." he groaned tilting his head up to the girl. The girl grinned back and put her hands on her hips.
"Call me Circuit Breaker," she told him. With his last ounce of strength, Vince tried to crawl forward and collapsed. Happy with her victory, the machine-wearing human turned to exit the building only to step on a canister that had dropped from the shelf that she'd knocked the boy into. Circuit Breaker was only happy that no one else was around to see her fall flat on her back when it rolled out from under her.
Groaning, Dreadwing attempted to morph into vehicle-mode again. And again he was simply met with the shearing pain of his twisted metal halfway jamming at the sockets that they operated in. It had taken the entirety of his skill to maneuver down to Earth without killing himself now that his wings were snapped off. Ever since then he'd been sending out signal after signal...but there was no response. Not a single sign that even the slightest faction of the Decepticons had picked him up...it was as though...something were jamming his attempts.
Dreadwing muttered something as he loosened his body back up. If he was going to reach anything on foot he'd have to keep walking. Even with the progress he'd made in the past days the Seeker had not the slightest clue of how he'd be reaching the Nemesis. To make matters worse he was being followed. It hadn't taken long for that Sideways monster to crash-land nearby once he'd impacted the Earth. Normally he'd have assaulted the traitor with everything he had at his disposal. But seeing as how he'd nearly been murdered in their previous encounter, Dreadwing had fled...but that didn't stop Sideways. With what he'd seen he knew that the...monster would be after him.
But with the double-agent's abilities...why was Dreadwing still alive? There was no reason for it! There was no doubt in Dreadwing's mind that Sideways should've overtaken him ages ago. His Spark Chamber should be ripped out and his fluids scattered across the terrain he slunked through. But he wasn't...Dreadwing was still alive...which meant only one thing from what he figured. He was being toyed with. Sideways was having fun leaving the anticipation in the air. Surely he'd strike when his guard would be let down. That was his style. Break his opponent before finishing them off. Sideways was sadistic...he was...a demon.
"And you say you got to see her?" Raf gasped.
Grinning, Miko ran her knuckles across her chest and nodded, "Yep, saw the whole thing. That Vincy boy got his ass handed to him like it was nothin'. Not that I blame him or anything. You've seen how badass that girl is. News reports ain't lyin'." Excitedly, Raf turned his attention back to the television set that Jack, Arcee, Bulkhead, and Bumblebee were watching. At first it hadn't been anything more than rumors he'd heard around school, but before long the new Jasper super hero had been on the screen at least once a week! It was just like some comic book nerd's fantasy come true! And those machines she wore...so complex...
"She sure seems cocky," Arcee commented.
"And pretty good looking..." Jack added in quiet absentmindedness. Miko's grin spread even further. Then it drooped. Yeah he was admiring the a hero...but he was saying it about Circuit Breaker, not his...bed buddy. A more stern smile now on her face, Miko slipped her arm his neck and pressed her cheek up against his.
"Who's good lookin'?" she growled lightly into his ear. All Jack could manage was a nervous chuckle as he fished his finger around his collar.
"Well, we still haven't exactly determined just what our relationship is..." he reminded in just as hushed a voice. He wished he hadn't. Almost immediately the arm around his throat tightened to spine-snapping capacity.
"Who's ass is the one in your lap at night?"
"Y-your's is..." Jack stammered. Though he was used to the touch of her skin against his by now, Jack's face still heated up a bit at the friction between them. It didn't help matters that she was practically breathing down his neck.
"So who's good lookin'?" Miko repeated.
"Y-you are..." Jack whispered, his throat tight.
"Got that right," she grinned pulling back and plopping down more leisurely at his side. Jack was just thankful that he could breathe properly again.
"Yeah, if you're into short skinny girls with flat chests," the smaller boy murmured out of the side of his mouth. The moment he ended the input, Raf found himself face-down on the ground in front of the couch.
"Oh dear, it looks like the smartest member of our group has fallen!" Miko gasped tucking her hands between her legs innocently. The sudden drop of the human finally took the Cybertronians' attention away from the television. Raf grumbled something incoherently as he got back to his feet and shot a nasty look at the Asian only to receive a smirk in return. Had Miko had her eyes elsewhere she would have probably bit back a chuckle from the display of unison that Arcee and Jack gave from the shaking of their heads. Bumblebee just made all sorts of beeping noises.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Raf grumbled walking over to the edge of the platform that the kids' lounge area was on, "though I could use a little break from the others. How's about a ride?" All too happy to accommodate, the yellow Autobot grabbed the boy and morphed into vehicle-mode.
"And we should probably be checking in on Optimus. That new message he got seems to have his full attention lately," Arcee suggested, "That girl might be fun to watch for a few seconds, but it's not getting anything done around here." Nodding, Bulkhead followed the smaller Autobot deeper into the base while the yellow car wheeled off into the desert outside. Jack gave a curious glance at Miko due to the scoff she gave the retreating alien machines.
"So now you want her to have attention," he smiled.
"A certain kind of attention," Miko elaborated. Jack felt his face flash a bit hotter again as she slouched into his body. More delicately this time, she wrapped her arms around his neck suspending her back just above his lap. Mischievously she wiggled her eyebrows at him, "Not the kind I deserve." Jack knelt his face down to her's.
"Well if we're talking about the kind that you deserve-"
"The kind I get," she corrected. As if to apologize for overstepping her bounds, Miko put a finger to her lower lip cutely and winked at him, "Me a good girl..."
"Right..." Jack nodded sarcastically as he lifted his head back up to rest against the cushion of the couch, "And me and Fowler are switching roles in the group..."
"Oh hell no you ain't!" Miko yelped pulling herself up into a sitting position on his legs. Jack snickered enticing the girl to press her face up against his. That shut him up rather quickly. "I am not gettin' with some forty-something year old over-ordering cop...and besides...I had a little...proposal for you anyway..." If Jack's face wasn't the shade of a beat yet, it was now.
"P-proposal?..." he gulped, "...I mean if you really think so I guess we can but...really?...YOU are the one asking for that kind of commitment?...and this early on?" Miko blinked a few times before her eyes shot open.
"Wha-NO! Not that kind of proposal!-er-not that I wouldn't...well I can't say that I could really promise that kind of loyalt-I mean-uh-you're great in bed and to hang out with when you loosen up but-I guess I could consider-but-"
"Miko," Jack interrupted putting a finger on her lips. Slowly her eyes drifted down to it and then back up to his. "Shut up. You know we're just going to say things to embarrass each other if this keeps up...so...what is it you wanted to tell me?" Blushing at how discomforting she'd acted, Miko cleared her throat and took a deep breath.
"Jack...TAKE ME BACK! PLEASE! I can not stand learning from Ratchet another day! I'll be a good girl! I promise! I'll do whatever you say! I'll study science! I'll study math! I'll study history! I'll study COUNTRY MUSIC! Just please say-"
"Woah woah! Miko, calm the fuck down!" Jack laughed. Halfheartedly Miko's panicked expression shrunk into a nervous smile. "...country music?"
"Well...if Ratchet's the alternative..." she trailed off hesitantly. Jack sighed and ruffled the girl's hair. A quiet mew escaped her lips as he pressed against the back of her head to bring her face up to his.
"...okay," he gave in happily. Unable to contain herself, Miko snapped her arms around his body in a tight hug.
"Oh thank you thank you thank you thank you!" she cheered nuzzling her face into his neck. Though he tried to return the embrace, Miko reeled back as his hands made their way down her back, an agonized hiss seeping through her teeth.
"Something wrong?" Jack inquired. As naturally as possible Miko waved it off.
"Just...hurt my back earlier," she shrugged, "How's about just some...light cuddling for now Mr. Darby?"
"I can live with that," he smiled pulling her back against his body by the waist, "might have to extend class though. Got a lot to teach ya." Miko grinned back.
"I am your ever-ready student oh wise teacher," she mused.
Nervousness coursed through the girl's veins like hose-water being pumped into a sprinkler system. Even though the boys were with her, she couldn't help but sweat in anticipation of what would be coming. Had it been prior to her lessons she would've had no problem going through the plan that she'd cooked up. But this was Ratchtet...her teacher...and in the days that he'd been tutoring her he'd become a monster like no other. No matter what the subject he would keep rambling on and on more than Raf would about his latest hacking achievement! It was a nightmare to take in! She was used to getting yelled at by the old rust bucket as she was with human teachers, but he'd gone so crazy with teaching that it was scary...and there was no telling what kind of horrible punishment he could come up with in that lunatic mind of his during his teaching phases!
But she had to do. She couldn't take it anymore! Miko didn't know what she'd do if she had to sit through another of those information cramming sessions! She wouldn't be surprised if she was being used as a guinea pig for some new device Ratchet had cooked up with what all she was able to remember in the endless sea of words that gushed through his mouth! Enough was enough!
"Hey guys...uh...thanks for coming with me and all...I know that I pull crap on teachers all the time...but having you here for THIS teacher...I dunno if I could go through with it without knowing you two were with me...," Miko told the boys as they neared their destination. Jack gave her a predictable smile while the shorter boy just kept his face towards the door they were approaching.
"You? Not go through with pranking a teacher? You're really losin' it aren't ya?," the youngest human mumbled. He still wasn't all that happy with the Asian even after the ride Bumblebee gave him. Jack shrugged in response to the wondering glance Miko gave him.
"You know how unbearing you can get sometimes," he murmured out of the side of his mouth.
"Yeah, but he started it," she retorted.
"Yeah, but you're Miko," Jack stated.
"...yeah...got a point there I suppose," the girl sighed. Raf turned around to face the other two as he came to a stop at the far end of the door that the lessons took place behind. Smiling as cutely as possible, Miko strolled over to him and smiled down toothily. Raf lifted a brow. If she had a happy expression on it meant that she was up to something.
"What?..." he asked suspiciously. Her demeanor still positive, Miko crouched down so that her face was just above his.
"Just wanted to say that I really mean thanks. You are my friend and all that crap. So..." Raf was at too close of a range to the girl to fight back even if he'd known to try. Miko gripped him tightly and rammed his view face-first into her chest. She snickered a bit as she felt the younger boy's body spasming in shock and excitement. For a few seconds his limbs flailed around while his head attempted to comprehend just what was going on from where he was now shoved between her breasts. Then they seized up. His joints stiffened and shook to a vertical stop like a cartoon character. "Thank you Rafael," Miko finished with a giggle before letting the boy go and standing up. Jack had to bite his lip. Raf's face was redder than his glasses. "Flat chest?"
"...y-you're...fine..." Raf stammered through his anxious throat. Jack joined in the calm laughter until Miko got ready to go through the door.
"Hey, wait a sec. What do I get?" Jack demanded.
"Oh like you have a reason to be jealous," Miko chided, "Don't worry. We got all day for you to comfort me for the inevitable guilt I'll feel for messing with the most annoying bot on the team." The girl gave him a wink to which he grinned. With her farewells taken care of, Miko took a deep breath and walked through the door. The boys stood quietly peering into the room until the panels shut again. It took Raf a minute or two to get his vocal cords back in working order.
"Ya know...you're her...whatever you are to her and all. I should probably get going. Optimus wanted to see if I could help him with this message he got from Cybertron earlier. Has to do with some guy called Alpha Gligon or something, so yeah I guess I-"
"Raf, I'm not Miko. I'm not gonna beat you up just cause she's as unpredictable to you as she is to everyone else," he told him sympathetically. Hesitantly the younger boy rubbed the back of his head, "Really though...still think she's too flat?"
"...didn't say it was a bad thing," Raf smiled. Jack smiled back.
"Well well well, if isn't the new blood," a scratchy voice chuckled. Knowing full well that it wasn't Sideways, Dreadwing whipped around and got into a fighting stance. The display only emitted more laughter from the gray Decepticon. "Please, as if you're in any position to fight," Starscream mused as he looked over his fingers. A growl swept through the blue Decepticon's throat. "I just thought I'd offer you my services..."
"No thanks, traitor," the words hissed through the Seeker's lips.
"Really now? On this foreign planet you won't take an expert survivalist's help? I'll have you know I've been getting along for probably months now on my own. And you're just passing that up," Starscream grinned.
"If you don't mind, I'd like to keep my T-cog where it is thank you very much," Dreadwing scoffed scarring a visible trace of spite and embarrassment in Starscream's face. Since he had no current orders or will to really deal with the backstabbing Cybertronian, Dreadwing turned to continue his trek in the path that he last saw The Nemesis flying in.
"His name's Sideways right?" Starscream's latest attempt stopped Dreadwing dead in his tracks.
"...how do you know him?..." Dreadwing eventually responded.
"Oh he's really not that bad a guy. Knows how to get his hands on quite a bit of power I hear...not that you'd be interested of course ya little lapdog. But he certainly knows how to make the right offers-"
"How do you know him!?" Dreadwing snapped stomping back around to look at the traitor. All he received was a grin.
"Cause he seems to value factions just as little as I do," Sideway's voice whispered into Dreadwing's audio receptor. The Seeker didn't even need to tilt his head to know that the demon was right behind him. "I welcome you our little alliance. Hopefully those wings of yours are the only things you'll lose..."
"And so what does that mean Miko?" Ratchet asked, an eager smile ever present on his face plating. Groggily the girl lifted her head and rubbed her eyes.
"The trifecta of Paris?" she grumbled a guess. Ratchet slapped his forehead overdramatically before hopping around a bit.
"No no no!" he corrected excitedly, "The Declaration of Independence is what set the colonies free!"
"And good for them," Miko mockingly clapped, "This will sure come in handy considering I'm from JAPAN."
"It's something you need to learn for your stay here, and I suspect for your knowledge of the world in general as you mature," Ratchet lectured.
"No more than I need to learn about how to break your equipment as well as my partner," she snickered, "I mean did you see that last time? It was just "SNAP!" and then "Bulkhead! I needed that!"
"Well, if you wanna know how to do that then how's about we move on to mechanics and engineering!" Ratchet clasped his hands together in an unusual ecstacy considering the subject-matter that Miko had chosen. Huffing, the girl dropped her chin onto her hand which rested on the sole desk in the room. There was just no winning. When Ratchet was in teacher-mode he just went on and on. Nothing would ever get him down. If she said something offensive he'd just warp it into a new thing to discuss and analyze. And she'd been trying ever since she sat down to do whatever she could think of to tick him off. Nothing would work!
Even now Ratchet hadn't registered that Miko was doing anything to put him off! He'd just jumped right into the new subject of drilling servo-mechanics and hydraulics into her poor defenseless brain. Was there any way of stopping the insanity? Miko cringed. Perhaps she should just give up..let the torture take hold as it always did... NO! There was a reason that she'd had Jack and Raf escort her. To keep her self confidence up! To know that she had people there behind her. Even if they didn't fully understand why they were needed, she had to pull through with her intent, for their presence if nothing else!
"And so the gears would then transfer said energy to the propulsion of the clamp that his hand would have on the object," Ratchet finished his explanation with the end of the drawing he was conducting on the virtual board behind him. Miko hadn't been all that in tune with what he had been babbling about, but she still had a general idea.
"Even so, it must be pretty embarrassing to have your stuff broken by him all the time," Miko taunted.
"That just means I have to improve on my construction. Speaking of which, I have stumbled upon some armoring that just might serve that purpose! It's a combination of diamond and destronium molecules! Why with the combination it can withstand up to-" Ratchet again countered the jibe with his obliviousness. Miko pursed her lips a bit.
"Oh dear, look at this, I have a text during class!" Miko grinned pulling out her cell phone. Finally she got some sort of negativity out of the Autobot! Unfortunately, it didn't go in her favor. Blipping, the device turned off. Miko shook the phone a few times before looking up to see the button that Ratchet had pressed.
"No phones allowed during class," he declared. Narrowing her eyes, Miko placed her phone on the desk. But she wasn't without her own technical advancements. After getting Raf in on the operation she'd managed to coax a little mechanism of her own out of the smaller boy. Her determined expression only grew more anxious as her "teacher" turned back to the board to begin another drawing.
"Now since you brought up phones how's about a little demonstration of radio waves and-" Ratchet's voice died down. The virtual screen he was using as a blackboard had turned off...in fact the entire room had blacked out from the tap Miko gave the controller that she had acquired. Only the emergency lights remained. "...now how did..." Ratchet's eyes drifted to the girl who wiggled the mechanism around happily. Cocking a brow, Ratchet tapped a few sequences into a panel next to him allowing for the power to be restored. Desperately Miko fiddled with her device...but it was no use. Ratchet had overridden its effects.
"Miko, this is no time for games. We are having a tutoring session," Ratchet informed, "But, do you by any chance know just how you turned off the power? It's quite simple if you explain it using Sentinel Prime's Law of-"
"SHUT UP!" Miko screamed. To her surprise Ratchet did as he was told, mostly due to the shock of how loudly she had spoken. He wouldn't have been surprised if the girl had the ability to offline certain machinery with her voice. The red and white Autobot was about to say something back to the rude human but stopped. One look at the girl was all it took to notice how stressed she was. Her eyes were squinting and her hands clutched her hair tightly. "Just...shut up...please...I can't take it anymore..." Cautiously, the medic kneeled down. Did she require a doctor?
"Miko, what's wrong?" Ratchet asked. Her eye twitching, the girl glanced up.
"What's wrong is you will not be quiet..." she growled, "Not for a single quarter of a minute...you just go on and on and on about stuff that frankly doesn't mean crap to me. You NEVER let up."
"Miko, I'm your teacher, I have to-"
"You don't have to do crap!...Ratchet look...let me level with ya. You're annoying as fuck okay? Yeah, some of the stuff you do like that little robo-suit demonstration the other day is pretty cool to watch...but other than that I just can't stand it."
"But Miko you need to-"
"I don't NEED to do this," she glared at the Autobot, "I can study with the others just fine. I just didn't want to. Didn't think that I would have to put up with this crap as the alternative. And before you ask why I didn't get the boys, the ones that set this whole tutor crap up in the first place, to reason with you, give it some thought. Yeah, they're my friends and they'll back me up, but you would just pressure them into letting you tutor me anyway with how pleading you can get when it comes to a project. So...that's it. I've had it, alright?" To emphasize the seriousness of the demand, Miko folded her arms over her chest. Ratchet just stared back dumbfounded for a few seconds.
"Am I...really that bad?..." he asked. Miko couldn't believe how quickly her emotions flipped. Out of nowhere a lump rose in her throat to accompany the guilt she now felt. Sighing, Ratchet slumped over and sat down in front of Miko's desk, his head downcast. Though surprised by the shift in attitude, Miko got up and walked over to the larger humanoid. "Be honest...I can take it," he grumbled, "I just...can't help it...this whole war and everything...I'd practically forgotten just what all peace was like before we came to your planet...that there was a way for society to exist cohesively...no matter how much I wanted to deny it, once you and the other kids got involved in this...I took a liking to you guys...
"I don't wanna see your planet ruined like ours was...I wanna see you kids have a future...so I try to help you when I can...to get reaccustomed to having a world that doesn't have to worry about all the scrap that the past has wrought our race with...I know I can get carried away but...I'm just so eager to explain stuff...to get away from all that sorrow we've had to go through and partake in the lightheartedness that you humans bring us..." For a rare spell Miko was at a loss of what to say. All she could do was give him a sympathetic look and put a hand on his arm.
"Doc bot...you do help us. Without you this team would be a pile in the junkyard and Megatron would've taken over the planet," Miko skimmed through her mind for the right words to use. Ratchet shifted his vision to the girl. It was a miracle that she ever took anything seriously. "You just...gotta understand...we like help and all sometimes but this...day after day, hours on end...I don't mean to make you upset or anything dude but-"
"Yeah yeah, I get it kid," Ratchet sighed. Lazily he shook his head, "Go on and see your friends, I ain't gonna stop ya...but if you wanna avoid this kinda thing, you better not figure out how to break my stuff like your partner. He could tell you stories about what I've put him through for that." Returning the grin, Miko hugged the metallic arm.
"Thanks doc-bot!" she said happily.
"It's Ratchet!" the Autobot called after her, his grumpy demeanor returning. Miko giggled as she slipped through doors before jerking to a stop in the hallway beyond. Had the ceiling been any lower, Jack would've likely hit his head from how much her sudden appearance caused him to jump.
"Where's half-pint?" Miko wondered once her laughter had died down.
"Raf was insisting that Optimus needed his help in decoding some message," Jack shrugged, "...so how'd it go?"
"Eh, he'll get over it," Miko smiled. Jack lifted an amused brow.
"So you don't need any consoling then."
"Don't you go putting words in my mouth," Miko ordered. Jack blushed as she pulled his hand onto her breast. "I got lotsa grief for you to help me get over believe me," she told him with a wink.
-end of chapter-
And we're back! Just to get it out of the way first, updates will not be happening as regularly now. Grandpa went to hospital, came back, and now requires more looking after. Added to that I don't have as much inspiration for this story now, but I will finish it, promise. It's very tasking to keep the characters having their actual show personalities while constantly throwing in all the romance crap that this story requires. Just surprised there are people that actually still stick with this honestly. Mainly I've been working on my stuff on my deviantart page (I'm warahi there), including another project that Miko and Jack are in: "The Mega Crossover of Awesome" comic. Check it out. I guarantee that by the end there will most certainly be something you like in it.
As for this story, obviously Miko can't stand learning from Ratchet. I mean just look at what he did to their science fair projects. But just who sent Optimus that message? What is it about? Who is that girl that kicked Vince's ass? Will Ratchet ever get his teaching degree? Find out the answers to probably none of these next time on Opposing Attraction!
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Oh yeah, we do an art thing in this fic don't we? Well here's the newest one: warahi deviantart com ( slash ) art (slash) Pwease-324217055