Disclaimer: I do not own Ratchet and Clank or any of its characters. Ratchet Appreciation Week 2021 prompt list by weeksofrac of Twitter/ weeksofratchetandclank of Tumblr.

Title is in honor of a friendo, because Ratchet is their favorite character of all time and they give me so much inspiration to write and further study the Lombax mans.

((Ratchet Week took place during the week of March 7th through March 13th. I am uploading my fics late, but late fics are accepted.))

You Make Me Feel Alive

Day 1: Humble Beginnings

Chapter Summary – Day 1: The wrench was always there, and Ratchet couldn't picture a life without it.

The wrench had been with him for as long as he had been alive.

From what the Veldin orphanage had told him, the massive Omniwrench had been the only thing in the pod he had arrived in, strapped tight to the inside of the pod to keep from hurting the little Lombax kitten. Besides a cushion that fell apart not a year after Ratchet had arrived on the desert planet, Ratchet had nothing to his name.

Technically, he hadn't even had a name. No note, no indication of who built the pod, no data backlogged to see which planet he had come from…

Only the wrench.

Sand crunched under his clawed feet, only to end up sliced in half by the weight of the wrench dragged behind him. Heat beat down on his yellow fur with very little wind to ease the strength of the three suns' rays. Screams and yells echoed in his large ears, and the tiny seven-year-old Lombax winced as two lizard-based children tore past him with shrill voices.

The orphanage's playground was pretty small, but there was a tiny corner tucked near the back that nobody went to. Rumors that a rabid Horny Toad built a den back behind one of the few trees to grow on the plateau ran rampant through the child population, and anyone that went there was assumed to have some kind of death wish or had something to prove.

It was the perfect place for Ratchet to have some quiet away from the kids that bullied him mercilessly.

Ratchet picked up his pace. He ducked under the plastic slide, wincing again as more happy screeches hurt his sensitive ears. A dull ache filled his arms, but he pushed on toward the corner, fingers tight around the enormous wrench's grip.

It took a good couple of minutes for the little Lombax to reach the edge of the playground. Once a few of the minor bullies took notice of his attempted escape, they raced by him, pushing and jostling both him and his Omniwrench. Green eyes narrowed and anger flashed on Ratchet's face, but he didn't swing his wrench at them.

It scared him to think what damage a wrench slam to the head would do.

Once the minor bullies had their fun and ran away to play with on the shoddy swings, Ratchet continued his trek. It took a minute for him to reach the edge of the playground, and even though his orange T-shirt and dark-green shorts stuck to his sweaty fur, the Lombax grinned.

His large feet stepped over the dark wood of the playground's edge. A huge sigh of relief left Ratchet, and renewed energy flooded his body. Finally… a place to himself.

He toddled over to the tree by the rock wall of the orphanage. The sounds that had pierced his ears throughout his walk began to die down to a bearable volume, and Ratchet's smile softened with each step toward the tree.

A few shrubs and bushes covered the corner of the wall, a miniature landscape next to the tree. Roots snaked under the dirt, just enough to form a line under the sand but not enough to break the surface. Mystery and danger hung over the tiny place, something that both scared Ratchet but kept him going back for more.

When Ratchet's foot finally touched the first root under the ground, the Lombax heaved a sigh, whirled around on his heel, and flopped back against the dirt. Pain hit his spine, but it wasn't anything he wasn't already used to. One leg rose over the other, and green eyes looked to the bright blue sky over the planet.

There was so much out there that the little Lombax ached to explore. He knew he hadn't come from Veldin, which meant there was so much more beyond the planet. Who he was… maybe some other members of his family… the taste of adventure and digging deep into the depths of the universe to discover how it worked…

He wanted it all.

"HEY! SPACE RAT!"

Ratchet closed his eyes and groaned so loudly it flattened his body to the dirt. He sat up, ears drooping with defeat and eyes lined with exhaustion.

Three boys, all scaley and reptilian like many of Veldin's native residents, stormed towards him. Sick smiles twisted their mouths, and even with the brown T-shirts and pants, there was nothing to ease the threatening nature all of them gave off.

Ratchet pulled his legs close and wrapped his left arm around them. His right hand stayed tightly wrapped around his wrench.

"Youna, Lizafa, Hunta," the Lombax greeted. Venomous hatred tainted his words. "Glad to see Ms. Habbersnatch let you out of detention again. What'd you guys do, cry like babies and pull the same sob story again?"

Hunta, the biggest of the three and the one leading them, snarled. "You gotta lotta guts for saying that to us, runt."

"Yeah," Lizafa crowed. He leaned in to Ratchet's right, yellow eyes narrowed to slits. "You wanna push your luck anymore, snitch?"

Youna stayed quiet, as he usually did, but the lizard boy's smile deepened. He smacked his fist into his other hand, making his intentions clear.

Ratchet didn't stop the roll of his eyes. "You guys are gunna beat me up anyway. What's gunna change if I talk to you like you do to me?"

The three bullies stepped closer, growling with anger. "We'll beat you up harder," Hunta threatened. "You're gunna look nice with a black eye…"

"Oh, real original…" Ratchet huffed, and spread both his arms out wide. "Go on, beat me up like you always do. Not like you're gunna keep getting away with it…"

Lizafa laughed and nudged Hunta with the point of his elbow. "He freaking wants the pain! What a lil freak!"

"'Snitches get stitches.'" Hunta raised his fist, drawing back for the punch. "You know that rule, twerp."

One side of Ratchet's mouth lifted higher than the other. "You're doin a bad job at hiding your work, you dumbos. It's not like I can just hide a black eye just like that. So go on, do what you do and tell it to Ms. Habbersnatch."

Fury and shock appeared on Hunta's face before the shock melted away. "DIE, YOU LIL RUNT!"

Before he could swing his fist, a loud, dangerous croaking sound echoed in the air.

All four of the boys looked behind where the Lombax sat, terror shining in their eyes.

Brown skin, covered in black stripes, glowed under the afternoon sun. White spikes lined the creature's back, and telltale yellow eyes without pupils gave the four boys a death glare.

White bubbles foamed around sharp white fangs, dribbling down the corners of the Horny Toad's mouth.

Screams of fear tore from the bullies', and Ratchet's hands clapped against his sensitive ears. The three lizards whipped around with shouts of, "Let's scram!, their feet digging deep into the loose dirt to push themselves away.

Another croak left the rabid Horny Toad, and Ratchet heard dirt scatter behind him.

The massive Toad landed right in front of the three bullies, blocking them from their escape. Hunta fell back on his butt as the sick Toad bared its fangs not five inches from the lizard boy's face. Both Lizafa and Youna jumped away, abandoning their friend, and Hunta screeched as the Toad reared back to deliver a life-ending bite-

Ratchet felt his world slow to a snail's pace.

He shot to his feet, the atmosphere nothing but sludge to his body, and snatched the grip of his wrench. Strength that he never knew he had lit every nerve in his body on fire, and without thinking, Ratchet raised the heavy Omniwrench above his head.

The last thing the Toad saw was a Lombax child swinging his wrench down at it, the head of the wrench extending out with the motion of the swing.

It was over in an instant.

Air heaved into the Lombax's lungs. His world quickened again, going back to its normal pace.

And then reality hit.

Ratchet blinked, looking at the dead Horny Toad in front of him. He couldn't look away, and shock replaced every ounce of strength his body had a second ago. Vague sounds, something like Hunta getting up behind him, touched his hearing, but the Lombax was so focused in on what was in front of him that he couldn't comprehend anything else.

Happiness then hit him like a starship.

His knees knocked together, and a grin spread from ear-to-ear. Air went into his stuttering lungs, then blew out through his open mouth. Small fingers gripped the wrench's handle, so much so that the muscles in each finger started to ache.

A part of his mind really liked the way the impact had felt against his body. Another part of his mind, a larger part, asked if killing something was what he was truly happy about.

Shame wormed through Ratchet's chest. It had been fun to kill the Toad, but if hurting something was the only fun of it, he would have done it a long time ago. There was something else, something that stuck to his heart and lit a fire in his blood…

The Lombax turned his head, and looked back to the bully behind him.

Hunta was safe. Shaken up and looking at Ratchet and the Lombax's wrench with terror in his eyes, but otherwise fine.

Ratchet had saved his life.

Hunta gulped, slinking around the Toad's body and heading to where Youna and Lizafa stood at the edge of the playground a yard away. His mouth moved, almost forming words, but no sound followed. With a shaky nod of his head, Hunta bolted away, the "We won't bother you again," barely audible.

Once again, Ratchet found himself alone.

Ignoring the growing crowd of other children at the edge of the playground, Ratchet backed up from the Toad's body. He yanked his wrench with him, stumbling as the wrench's head retracted and sized down to normal.

Ratchet eyed the Omniwrench at his feet.

It had always been with him, and he knew that it always would be. But now, there was a new purpose to his only possession. He had the ability to protect himself and others with it, and something deep within him clicked.

Ratchet looked back towards the sky, heaving the wrench up. It leaned hard against his shoulder, but the Lombax wasn't paying attention.

As long as he had his wrench, he would be something. As long as he had his wrench, he would make good on his plans to explore the universe. As long as he had his wrench, he would leave Veldin and find the people who gave it to him.

And as long as he had his wrench, he would be him.

Song Inspo: "Alive" by Krewella (Surce &. Don-P Trap Remix).

I wrote these all during Ratchet Appreciation Week in March, and I'll be posting a new chapter every day this week. :) I hope you all enjoyed, and thank you so much for reading and supporting! :D