The Diego Diaries: Bond(age) 5 (dd6 375)
-0-At the scene of the crime
It would be remembered forever by every human there, soldier or civilian, how fast and how vast the guns that appeared out of nowhere were turned to face the direction of the siren. Then they disappeared just as fast as the crowd roared. At the junction nearby, a huge fire engine with Inferno sitting on top of it raced its siren again. HUGE applause, cheering and stomping followed as the crowd turned back to The Fortress steps.
Perceiving without much comprehension, Partition watched as the femme squad grabbed Lancer and carried her bodily to the engine. Perching her on top, they stepped back as Springer, Drift, Jetta, Magnus, and Maelstrom picked up Partition and carried him to the same fate. Laughing for a moment, then watching upside down as he was freighted there, too, Ratchet howled loudly. Ironhide sensing the futility followed along with Lucien and Laslo. Stuffing Ratchet on along with the other three, Inferno then leaned into the cab and the truck began to move. With siren blaring, it rolled off to do its full circuit of the colony with the six big mechs sitting on the back watching the world roll by with incredulity and hilarity.
In The City, the family was gathering with friends and children to go to the parties at the Central Labor Hall. They would have dinner later together at the Tower In The Sky in Iacon, but for now, they could leave for a while or go party. Everyone headed to the party.
-0-On a fire truck heading south
Lucien sat beside Laslo with a slight grin. "I never saw or participated in a chivery. This is interesting."
Ratchet who sat next to Laslo who was waving to someone driving alongside them as he pointed out his son, his new daughter-in-law and their bond just now grinned at Lucien. "This is slagging awesome. Some of the ghetto fun was just that."
They sped along, took the roundabout to Terra, then hit the speed dial. Every so often, the siren would go off. Ratchet peered into the window of the cab. Then he sat back and grinned. "This is an automated truck. I imagine that Inferno is controlling it remotely. Expect the million dollar tour."
He was and they would. Have it, that is.
-0-Humans
They walked down their cordoned off pathway to the vehicles parked nearby. Kids skipped and hopped, talking excitedly together as they hurried along. Piling in, they were let to go down the road to the metro where they would be led by a Watch mech walking along in front of them to the rear entrance doors where they would drive into the parties. The parties were across the interior two lane from each other so they would be easy to go to, both of them. It would be epic when they got there.
-0-Touring the main drag of Terra
Ratchet waved like the Queen of England, then like a beauty pageant winner. Then he waved like he personally knew some of the pedestrians that stopped to watch the spectacle, waving like a friend excited to see a long lost paramour, then he waved like a shy little child, and before he could find new ways to wave Ironhide popped him on the back of his noggin. Needless to say, it was a lively discussion as they headed toward the Industrial Park Highway on their 'float'.
-0-Inside the big loud party in room 113
The humans parked along the wall outside, then as a group formed lines to walk inside. A lot of mechs and the odd femme, curious little kid and googly-optic baby were also going in. The music was playing loudly so their masks automatically toned down the level of noise inside even as the bots did so as well. They walked to their roped off area, then entered it to sit on comfy couches, chairs and at tables. Looking around, the old timers saw the normal bonding party decorations … huge painted images of their particular home towns, an affectation becoming common after The Fall, lots of food and drink, comfortable places to sit, images of the bond pair in various stages of their life, some when they were babies, places for the family to sit as the center of the show, and lots of conversation and dancing.
For Lennox, it felt like any bar on any assignment he had ever undertaken. Fighting men were everywhere in the room along with their little (or gigantic) adas. They congregated in groups to talk, drink, eat food, and celebrate. It was very relaxed and happy here, filled with good friends, good entertainment and stuff to eat and drink. All was well in their (Cybertronian) world. Now all they needed was the new couple and their wacky genitors.
-0-On the way back from the Industrial Park Cities
"That was fun. I never saw a fire truck chivery go through a steel mill like that," Ratchet said as the group laughed loudly. "Poor Chromia and Maelstrom. Look what they missed. Springer. And Drift. Arcee and Magnus. I think I'm getting a complex, those slaggers." He was sitting with his big peds hanging over the side as they raced along. The others were comfortably hanging on even in this circumstance as they hit it for the first of four Seven Cities, a quad city, several other metro-former cities, Crystal City, Pax, Aerie Hill where they would get razzed out the wazoo from the hooting, hollering Seekers, the slaggers, then back to The City once more. It would take a bit of time to do that.
-0-Humans
They sat at a table watching the big mechs dance. Springer and Drift were tearing up the dance floor as only a Cybertronian could. They danced a number of different ways following the tempo of the music as they did. Right now, it was fast and they were jumping and bounding like the others around him, their arms flinging and their smiles gigantic with laughter as they did. Dancing Cybertronian style was not for the faint of spark and encompassed a lot of agility and speed. It wouldn't be too out of step on Earth given some of the dancing there but most of the time it was a seething mass of movement and colors, laughter, shouts, the odd howl, and all of the time, joy.
:Oh my god: Cindy Teasdale said as she watched. :Just when you thought that they couldn't be more perfect, this happens:
:I hear ya: Lola said as she sat beside her sister in a grinning group of bedazzled humans. : I don't think its going to get better than this for a while: she said with awe in her voice.
:I don't know: Sam said as he nodded to a pair down the mob. It was Prime and Prowl swaying slowly to their own music as they held each other in an embrace. :I think that's the tops for me:
:Awwww. Ohhhhh: -Everyone at the table.
:Where are all the good guys?: Cindy whimpered. :I'm going to get Ratchet to set me up:
:With a mech?: Sam asked with a look of amusement.
:Why not?: Cindy said with a glance around the room. :I hear Smokey is available: She tuned into his channel. :Smokey:
An improbably handsome face peered around a couple of mechs to look their way. He grinned. "Lola?" he asked as everyone listened in.
:Cindy but close enough. How about you and me going on a date?: she asked.
He stared at her, then the group with him who all began to smirk, then her again. Standing up, he backed out of the tables around him, then walked over beer in hand. "What?"
:Look at that: Cindy said nodding to Prime and Prowl who were dancing to their own tune in their own world.
Smokey grinned. "That's cute. Old people are cute."
Everyone burst out laughing, then Cindy leaned in. :How about a date? Are you still with Roddy?:
"Oh frag no. That loser?" he said as he looked around to spot Hot Rod. He did. He was hanging at the bar with friends. Smokey frowned, a totally cute look on him, then he looked at Cindy. "What sort of date?"
:How about the races this weekend? I hear Blurr is going for a rematch from the Velocitronian who tied with him last weekend: Cindy said.
"THAT WAS EPIC!" Smokey agreed. Everyone grinned at him. He was still considered a teenager among the bots and his enthusiasms proved it over and over. "Okay. Let's." He glanced over at Hot Rod, then Cindy. His expression grew a wee bit hard. "You're on. I don't know what humans do on dates so you'll have to tell me."
:Since you're asking, just know you're the single most awesome bot in this entire room of awesome bots because of it: Cindy said. :Get me at the Earth 1 habitat at 1700:
He grinned at her at the compliment which didn't hurt his rather fragile ego at the moment, then nodded. "You're on." He rose back up, grinned at the crew, then walked back to his table to sit and shoot the shit with the big bots.
:OMG! I'M HAVING A DATE WITH A BOT! A CUTE ONE WITH A GREAT AMMA AND APPA! This is SO not going on the blog: Cindy said as she clicked beer bottles with her twin. :He's moved up on the future husbands list big time:
:Since you pulled this off, fix me up and we can double date: Lola said with a grin.
:Go with Hot Rod. I hear he's available: Ron Witwicky said with a chuckle. All the kids cracked him up.
-0-Round and about
"I forgot they had a branch of The Paint Box in Aerie Hill now," Ratchet said as they finally made their way back toward The City. The crew was relaxing on the truck as it sped past the Arena District and headed down the highway with the siren going toward the Central Labor Hall freight entrance. Pulling in, it slid to a stop and they staggered off. Walking to the big doors nearby, the truck moved off to head back to Metrotitan and the hub fire department dispatch center there.
They entered, then walked the half mile down the wide two lane with sidewalks that the underground part of Central Labor Hall still employed. They could hear the party before they could see it. When they reached the doors, open and swinging with a number of mechs and femmes standing in the hallway sidewalks to chat, sip beer and bullshit, they entered to universal acclaim. In typical bonding party fashion, big mechs grabbed Partition, then passed him overhead all over the room. Several of them then carried him across the hallway to room 412 where the more sedate party was happening to do the same thing there. Given that Lancer was a 'girl', it appeared they were giving her a break.
"Well, isn't that special," Ratchet said before Maelstrom, Springer, Drift, Jetta, and the twins picked him up and sent him flying around the room as well.
Ironhide who was watching with amusement turned to Lucien who looked startled. "You better get a beer and sit down. You're going to be next."
It was instructive how fast Laslo and Lucien made it to a table with a drink. They did so just in time to see Ironhide whirl by at optic level.
-0-Around the parties
In the sedate party, the elders sat at tables of honor in the back of the room near the wall. All of the dancing and hoo-haw wouldn't bother them there. They were delighted and had most of the children. The titan kids were in the other younger party dancing away. Typhoon and his family split their time between parties, sitting with this and that amma and appa and this and that sibling of the 'bride/groom'.
Food was delicious and was being devoured with drinks galore. Bluestreak who knew how parties went among his people had made sure that loads and loads of both were on hand. The bands played, one loudly and the other in moderation as couples swayed/spazzed to the beat.
It was going to be a very, very nice evening indeed.
-0-TBC 6-2-18 edited 7-7-18