The Diego Diaries: BABY! (dd6 172)
-0-Second Friday
"What did you think of the game, Chan?" Corr gathered dishes for the washer, a new innovation that Ratchet had insisted upon a while back. For a while, they did the dishes by hand, uncertain about the convenience and whether it was for them or not. Then they used it and it was a marvel. It was a marvel like their washer and dryer. Something rather feared until they found it helped a lot. He slotted them in, then closed to door. Setting it to wash and sterilize dry, he turned to Chan. "I think that the Brigadiers played with a lot of spark."
"They did. I'm so glad that Cybertron can have teams. I think it's going to be very morale building," Chan said as he finished his last newspaper. "What do you think about today, Corr?"
Corr smiled. "I can't wait. Sunny is such a character. Poor Ironhide. What a long suffering mech."
Chan smiled. "I don't think they ruined two families when they bonded, Corr. Are you ready to go?"
Corr chuckled. "I am," he said. The two walked to the door to head to the Temple to pay their respects to the AllSpark, then walk to the Shrine to the Thirteenth Prime which had been created in a niche down from their business plaza. It was their weekend routine.
-0-Elsewhere
"RAPTOR!"
A big mech peeked into the wash rack with a sheepish grin. "I was coming back to finish that, Turbine."
"The frag you were," Turbine said as he stared at the disarray around him. He turned to his bond, a big, good natured hoot of a mech. "Clean up this mess, recruit, or I'm telling your ada."
Raptor grinned. "Do you think it'll be anything new for them?"
"No, but my ped up your aft might be," Turbine said with a grin. "Clean. Now." He walked out, bumping Raptor with his shoulder.
Raptor grinned. "It's too early for The Sexy, Turbine." He walked in with the sound of Turbine's guffaw carrying him along. Hanging up the wash nozzle to the shower, he grinned. "You love me."
A helm peeked in. "I do in spite of you and your winsome ways, slagger." Then it disappeared again.
Raptor continued with a smug grin. "Lucky you." He turned in time for a clothes basket to hit him in the face.
-0-Elsewhere
"You need to call Vinn, Hardie," Delphi said as he cleared up the newspaper datapads from the kitchen table. Breakfast was had and now they had some free time. "I want a head start on the war game. My little bot is still under modifications."
"I will," Hard Drive said. "When do you want to get to the ceremony?"
"NOW!" Delphi said with a grin. "Ratchet told me that this one would be a different look and modification. I can't wait to see it." He glanced at Hard Drive. "What do you think about Partition giving the speech?"
Hardie looked up from his book. He was sitting in a comfortable chair near the big window that allowed a spectacular view of the city beyond. "I think he's going to do fine. He really loves Ratchet and Ironhide. He's got a nice niche in that family. Did you notice that he's sweet on Lancer?"
Delphi smiled. "I saw that. It sort of surprised me and not. Lancer never was the sort to do things simply."
"No. I do like that the infants are finding things to do and people to do it with. War is a lonely business, Delph. All of the children need to have an alternative life to fall back on."
"Nothing like personal bliss?" Delphi asked with a grin.
"You mean like us?" Hardie asked with a grin. Delphi nodded his helm. "I have nothing to complain about."
It would be a very pleasant morning at the Hard Drive-Delphi homestead.
-0-In a berth room congregated around a toy box
"Ada is going to show us her dollie at lunch time," Hero was saying. "I can't wait to see it."
Orion who was standing inside the toy box with a truck in each servo nodded. "I seed the she. I, Orion, seed the she then."
"I hope its a boy," Praxus said.
Hero looked at him. "Why, Praxus? Don't you want another sister?"
Praxus looked at her, then slipped his arm around her shoulders. "I have a sister, Hero."
Prowler who was holding a dollie as he watched the three smiled broadly. "I like dollies," he said. Then he smiled again.
It would go on like that for a while.
Meanwhile, in a room nearby with the door locked …
Ratchet looked at the baby lying on the berth, its special features as glorious as they were when designed. He waffled a bit, wondering if it was too different and then deciding it was amazing. He would find out when he unveiled this infant in about three joors. He wiped the baby down, applied lotion, then slipped the little tyke into a thickness of blankets designed to help them stay warm during the unveiling. It would allow the entire infant to be seen, then a Seeker bag would be next. He had one that was thermal lined so that the baby would be instantly toasty. He grinned at the smiling infant. "You're one happy slagger. You smile non-stop. Who are you and what are you going to be like? You were an accident … a happy accident. Come on. Let's go tease your old pa."
Ratchet folded the baby into the blankets, then took another to cover it as he walked out of the room. Heading for his chair, Ironhide followed him with a frown. "You won't give me a single peek will you."
Ratchet sat, then arranged the blankets. The infant was completely covered. "Nope." He smiled a dazzling smile at Ironhide. "Less than three joors, slagger."
Ironhide sat. "Frag you, Ratchet."
Bos and Sunspot came running in, then stopped before the two. They smiled brilliantly. "ADA! CAN I SPEND THE NIGHT WITH BOS? HIS GENITORS SAID IT WOULD BE ALRIGHT! WE CAN GO TO THE WATER PARK! CAN YOU COME, TOO, AND BRING EVERYONE!?" Sunspot asked as Bos nodded in agreement.
Ratchet glanced at Ironhide who was grinning at the two. Ironhide nodded. "Sounds like fun to me."
Both of the kids squeed, then ran back to their berth room together, a bouncing Spot with them. The cat, Cousin, walked past them, then jumped into Ironhide's lap. He settled. Ironhide stroked his soft fur absently as he glared at Ratchet. The door opened and nine big kids entered. "Hi, Ada. Are we late?" Tru asked.
"No," Ratchet said. "You're early. Did you eat?"
"We did but we could use a snack," Santee said like a true 'teenager'.
"You know where the snacks are," Ratchet said as they walked to a low cupboard to raid it. With grins and nods, they carried their booty down to their own lounge where a dog and two other kids joined in on the laughter and conversation.
Ratchet grinned at Ironhide. "No one ever said in a fox hole that I would ever live like this."
"I hear ya," Ironhide said with a grin.
-0-At an apartment in the sky
"And so that's that, Atar. I want you to come, both of you," Partition said. "I want you to hear what I say and come to the party afterward. Inweld, Morius and I are going. You have to come, too."
Laslo glanced at Lucien who sat without comment. "I think that would be lovely but will we be wanted there?"
"Of course you will," Partition said as the other two nodded. "This is a good thing. I want you there."
Laslo looked at Lucien who finally nodded. "We can come for the unveiling. I like Praxian customs even if I'm off my feed about them lately. The party … I don't know. I don't think we'd be wanted."
"Then you miss the whole point, Atar," Morius said with a sense of irritation. "You will be wanted. Everyone who comes is wanted. The three of us … we're wanted."
Lucien glanced from one face to the next, then nodded. "Alright but if anything happens, we're leaving, Laslo."
Laslo nodded, then looked at his sons hopefully. "We'll come. Thank you for inviting us. Sit. Tell us of your experiences. We haven't been together like this in a while."
"We can stay until 1100 hours on the TMC before we go there," Partition said as he sat. His brothers did, too, the three buoyed by their genitors' decision. "Did you know I finished basic training and passed the field medic exam with a perfect score?"
Neither did. One would be ecstatic for his son and the other something less.
-0-The Temple to the Thirteenth Prime
They stood in front of a statue of Thirteen. He was forty feet tall, gilded with gold and silver and had jewels in his sword hilt. It was the face of a calm individual, someone filled with wisdom and courage. This was one of the most beloved shrines and around the big space sitting on shelves and niches were offerings from individuals given to this most beloved Prime over the millennia straight from the spark of the common people.
There were also recovered icons, ornamental weapons and dishes that held incense-like material that gave off a soft perfume. The place had images and words carved into the stone walls, engravings into the steel that framed the left wall, that told the story of this Prime. When the Primes came to sentience, they were in discord. Thirteen arrived, held up his servo and said, "Until all are one", a message that calmed and united them, helping them to remember their purpose. He was the one who united, he was the wise counsel, the one who was the glue that held the disparate individuals together.
He was Optimus Prime.
Almost no one knew that but it was so. Prime being a self effacing sort knew 'of' it but found it hard to assimilate. His spark had returned to The People, to guide and help them, to give His wisdom and assistance to them through the long travails of their existence. No one knew and He would tell no one. Even Alpha Trion kept the secret, though it amused him to tease Prime about it.
Covering the walls were thin sheets of gold, copper and silver leaf, hand smoothed by artisans who were in charge of recreating and then maintaining the shrines through the Temple and the Museum. The room shimmered in the soft lighting of discreet wall sconces. Nothing about this shrine was as grand as some of them but none of the Primes felt as accessible to the people as this one. He was 'their' Prime. He was them.
Chan and Corr made their prayers as they stood in the soft sweet scent of the incense-like smoke that the braziers released into the room. Others were there, all of them taking from the surroundings just what they needed. Most of the people had their favorites. All of them were reverenced but something about this Prime drew pilgrims. "This is such a blessing, Corr," Chan said taking Corr's servo into his own. "I wish we had lived closer to this shrine. I would have loved to bring Sonny here more than we did."
"We all did our best, Chan," Corr replied. "Now we can."
He nodded, then grinned. "We get another one. Ironhide is around the moon."
"So am I" Corr said. "Thank Primus both of them are knuckleheads."
They both laughed, then bowed deeply. Walking out into the cold crisp light of day, they continued onward to their cafe, then The Fortress to join the others.
-0-On the way to The Fortress
Ratchet ambled along with a carry hold filled with infant. The others were stuffed in the holds of the big kids. Ironhide was free for the new delivery, or so he had said. The laughter he got for that remark was instructive. It was bright and cold, about -87 and there was no breeze. It would be a perfect orn for the unveiling. It always nagged at him, the thought that they would hold one of these and no one would show. It was always a crap shoot as they walked into The Fortress Courtyard.
"RATCHET! YOU SHOWING THE NEW INFANT!?" Ramcharger called out.
"At 1200 hours, Ramcharger. Be there or be square," Ratchet said with a smile.
Hoo-haw and agreements greeted that as they walked inside, chatted their way to Ops Center, then walked to the table to sit and stand around it. Prowl who was there with Solus and Sojourner glanced up from his work. The two femmes were sitting on the data map eating cookies. They smiled and waved. Ratchet picked them up, turned to the big boys and grinned. "Who has Hero?"
Santee raised his servo, then added two little femmes to the one he already had. It would be a sweet thing for all when he did. Ratchet turned to a frowning Prowl. "Don't you look lovely this morning."
"Sit, fragger. You have one of mine?" Prowl asked.
Everyone grinned at his psychosis, then Ratchet patted his chassis. "I have one of my own. I don't know about you, slacker."
"Loon. Who's going to give the speech again?" Prowl asked with his usual silvery angst. Ratchet was now lapping him in the infant arms race.
"Partition volunteered and I have no problem with that. Infant is stellar lately and I think he's going to knock it out of the park as they say," Ratchet replied.
"Slagger," Ironhide said with a frown. "You're a slagger."
"How was the couch?" Optimus asked as he sat next to Prowl enjoying every minute of Ironhide's exquisite whining. Nothing was funnier.
"Inadequate," Ironhide said casting a gimlet optic toward Ratchet.
"Whiner. Poor little femme," Ratchet said with a grin.
Behind them, family and friends began to show. The trine and infants, soldiers luxe, friends, colleagues, and those who happened to drop by, all of them began to gather both here and in the rec room as outside others congregated in front of the building. Ratchet grinned at Sunstreaker who grinned at him. "Did you see Partition and by the way, you have to put an Autobrand on this one right away."
"Yes and yes," Sunstreaker said unsubbing his traveling paint kit. "Partition brought his brothers and his genitors."
Ratchet smiled. "This just keeps getting better and better."
-0-TBC 10-28-17 edited 12-24-17