Chapter 25: Chapter 25
The Diego Diaries: Ironhide and Ratchet Part Four
=0=In the bosom of love
"If you hold yourself up just a little, Ratchet."
"Like this?"
"Can you hold that pose?"
"No."
They all paused looking at Ratchet as he stood tiredly leaning on his cane. Sitting on the berth watching propped up with pillows, Kaon played with his digits. Sitting in his own little bed nearby watching the little winger with laser optics, Orion chirped and wondered how to get hold of the infant.
The adults were preoccupied, Ironhide returning after a bit and they were trying to help Ratchet with his paint job. The upper part of his body had been painted and was looking like Ratchet again. The lower parts were harder to reach so they discussed how they could do this without paying much attention to the infants who they felt were more than corralled in their respective places.
"If you stand behind him, Blue, I can get the front and the … uh, the other stuff."
Bluestreak grinned at Ratchet and turned, moving behind him. Slipping his arms around Ratchet, he smirked. "Gotcha."
"Hold him still, Blue," Sunstreaker said kneeling down with his sprayer. He began to paint Ratchet's crotch area.
Ironhide sitting on a chair near the door smirked and chuckled. "This is so wrong on so many levels."
They joked and Ratchet snarked back, the amusement balm for stress. As they did Orion decided to make a break for it and moved to the edge of his sleeping box. Poising himself, he gripped the edge of his bed pulling as hard as he could. As he did he pitched head first on the floor below landing in a heap. He screamed and chirped, his piercing cry startling everyone. A long red streak ran up Ratchet's body from his crotch to his face as Sunstreaker's servo jerked.
Bluestreak jerked too and turned loosening his grip on Ratchet. Ratchet swayed and fell forward, Sunstreaker grabbing him. As he did, the sprayer jerked sideways and covered Bluestreak's face with red paint.
Ironhide jumping up grabbing for Ratchet turned toward the crib and the little pile of mini-Autobot lying on the floor. He looked at Orion, his little peds the only thing showing in the narrow space between his crib and the foot of the berth. Kaon startled and looking around burst into tears, his wailing filling the air as well.
Ironhide leaned Ratchet gently forward to Sunstreaker and turned, reaching down to pull Orion out of his face plant. Bluestreak, his face covered in red paint turned to picked up Kaon holding him against his shoulder.
Sideswipe overcome with the crazy sat transfixed as the tranquility of the moment dissolved. Crying infants, tilting genitors and spray painted bonds was almost more comedy than he could handle. "Primus," he said quietly then burst into laughter. They all turned to him and glared. "Its funny," he said chuckling.
They looked at each other, silently taking in the carnage. Ratchet looked at Sideswipe, suppressing his own belly laugh. "I don't think this is funny."
"Neither do I," Bluestreak said angrily patting Kaon who was crying.
Ironhide holding a crying Orion shook his head. "Nothing funny here." He would laugh later.
Sunstreaker holding Ratchet up and the spray gun in his hand glared at his brother. "Either help us, Sideswipe or get the hell out of here."
Sideswipe pulled himself together and looked at them, at the silence of their aggravation. "I'm sorry," he said with a huge grin.
Ratchet grinned brightly back. "Good, you slagger. Now help us fix this fraggin' mess."
Sideswipe smirked as they all chuckled, patting and cooing at the infants as they continued to howl.
"How am I going to get this paint off my face, Sunny?" Blue asked swaying with Kaon. The infant was pressed against Blue's shoulder, his tiny wings sagging with his angst and all around pitifulness.
"We'll have to paint over it. If I try and use solvent all the undercoats will be compromised," Sunstreaker said, pulling more paint together to cover the huge stripe up Ratchet's face and chassis. "This is crap."
"But its funny," Sideswipe said.
Sunstreaker looked at him then grinned slightly. "It is."
"Speak for yourself, slagger," Ratchet said with a grin.
=0=Later
"You look good."
"As opposed to what, Ironhide?"
"As to … uh, well … I better shut up, right?"
"Would be nice." Ratchet grinned as he sat looking at the berth nearby. Getting up would be a hell experience and he put it off for a moment.
"How much pain do you have, Ratchet?" Ironhide asked, patting Orion dry with a soft towel.
"A little," Ratchet said.
"Need help getting up?" Ironhide asked. "I'll help you in a moment."
Orion still smarting from falling on his noggin fussed in the wrap as his old dad rubbed him gently dry. Putting him on the berth, Ironhide turned to Ratchet. "What do you want me to do?"
"You can hug me."
Ironhide smiled. "The hard stuff."
"Hugging me is hard?" Ratchet asked smirking.
Ironhide paused to consider his words. "Uh, that wasn't what I meant."
"Come over here and show me, you big slagger," Ratchet said grinning at Ironhide.
Ironhide glanced at Orion, then walked over to sit down next to Ratchet. He put his arm around the medico and smiled. "You're looking mighty fine there, Ratchet."
"Why thank you, Ironhide. You're quite handsome yourself."
A piercing whistle stopped them in their tracks as they looked back at the berth. Orion sitting on the berth with a frown on his face looked at both of them. Then he gave another audial splitting whistle followed by a click and a hooting sound.
"What do you suppose he's saying?" Ratchet asked.
"I don't know. I don't think he likes you making time with me. Or maybe its the other way around," Ironhide said.
They sat and watched him, Orion looking at them with incredulity.
"He expects us to get him."
Ironhide nodded. "I'm busy."
Ratchet grinned. "So am I."
Orion staring at them with amazement looked at his servos. Lying on the bed was a dolly of Kaon's, a Sunstreaker dolly that the Army femmes had made and given him at the news of his birth. He picked it up and looked at it, then them, then it again. Then he threw it at his genitors, a look of intense pique on his face. It flew up and went over his head landing behind him. He looked at them, then the bed, then his servos, then them again.
They burst into laughter. He watched his heroes laugh at him, the treachery of it shocking, then he burst into tears, his little helm hanging, his body wilting. He flattened down until his helm was laying on his little knee assemblies, a general black cloud of despair forming over his prone body.
Ratchet and Ironhide startled by his transformation looked at him then each other. "Mercurial little slagger isn't he," Ironhide said.
"Just like his sire," Ratchet said with a chuckle. "You going to save him?"
"Should I? I don't want him to think he can manipulate us," Ironhide said.
"He already can," Ratchet said smiling. "Looks sort of cramped lying there like that. Pretty flexible little sparkling. If he had a brother he could entertain himself."
"He could teach his brother a lot of bad habits," Ironhide said.
"Tearing off wings, how to throw a dolly backwards, how to fall on his face and how to scream," Ratchet enumerated. "He's my new hero."
Ironhide snorted. "That seals the deal then," he said rising to walk to the berth. He picked up the devastated sparkling. He walked back and sat down, plopping the sniffling sparkling on his lap. The sparkling sat up and glared at both of them feeling the misery of the past few days all at once. He looked at his sire with an angry expression then leaned forward, slapping at Ironhide with his servo. Sitting back, looking at both of them uncertainly, he waited.
It was silent a moment, then Ironhide took Orion's tiny servo and patted it. "No, Orion. Bad."
The infant looked at his hero, optics wide with disbelief, then he sagged toward Ratchet holding out his servos. He began crying piteously, grasping toward his creator. Ratchet looked at Ironhide, a smirk on his face. "Nice one."
"I feel like slag."
"Better now than later."
Orion sagged between them, crying softly, his exhaustion both mentally and emotionally evident.
"Poor sparkling," Ratchet said rubbing Orion's little back gently. "Cranky old thing."
"Me or the sparkling?" Ironhide asked grinning.
"Like sire, like sparkling, Ironhide," Ratchet said grinning.
"I'm going to be gone in a few and I want to know if you can get someone to help you with him. I don't want you lifting him."
"I'll find someone," Ratchet said. "Maybe Sunstreaker or Blue."
"Blue and Sideswipe are coming with us," Ironhide said. "Don't tell anyone yet. Sunny will pitch a fit."
Ratchet nodded. "He will. Poor Sunstreaker."
"Someone has to take care of Kaon and he's not fit isn't he?"
"Actually, he could do the job but I won't tell anyone," Ratchet said.
"Good," Ironhide said.
"Who is slated to go and who will be the field medic?" Ratchet asked shifting Orion onto his lap.
"Optimus, me, Sideswipe and Blue, Mirage and Jazz, Smokescreen, Springer and Kup," Ironhide said. "We have others in mind but we need shock troops, a sniper and a few sneaks."
"Jazz. What about Bee?" Ratchet asked.
"He's on the back up list. We're keeping the operation together with the alpha team. This is so important we want mechs who worked together a long time. Prime has the call on what to do. The N.E.S.T. Soldiers are coming and we're taking Silverbolt and Cosmos."
Ratchet nodded. "Field medic?"
"First Aid is coming along with Cynabar."
"Sounds solid. I guess I'll stay back here at the homestead with the youngling and chop wood."
Ironhide grinned. "You'll sit on your aft and you'll like it."
Ratchet grinned. "You're getting all mechly on me, Ironhide. Remember? No fragging for a while."
Ironhide grinned and looked at the sparkling. "Fragging? I forgot what that was."
"You'll forget it twice as much with another one," Ratchet said with a chuckle.
"You better get a few selling points, Ratchet. Right now, that's not your best pitch."
"No. But its true," Ratchet said patting the sparkling who lay sprawled across his lap, his body sagging with fatigue. "He's going to miss you when you go. I'll miss ya."
Ironhide grinned. "I'll miss you both too. But I promise to bring you a big purple present."
"Bows optional?" Ratchet asked leaning into Ironhide's chassis.
"Whatever you want, Ratchet. Name it," Ironhide said with a grin. He squeezed Ratchet's shoulders and vented a soft sigh. It was almost normal again he thought watching Orion sagging on Ratchet's lap. The medic was white and red again, luminously beautiful and almost well it seemed. He would do what he could in the next few days and then he would go. It would be the hardest thing he could do to walk to that jet to leave.
For now, he would do whatever Ratchet needed until he was himself again. Anything.
=0=TBC 2011 (2) edited 1-26-15