The Diego Diaries: Hoosegow For Now (dd6 389)
-0-Around the fiasco
They lay on the berths inside the drunk tank cells sawing logs as they drifted on the Sea of Oblivion. Outside in the jailhouse, half a dozen mini-cons were here for the same reason. They included someone who had raged in his cage until he fell asleep after fighting his new brother-in-law at a bonding party over football, a femme who didn't know that shoplifting-wasn't-necessary-here-where-you-could-get-anything-you-wanted-for-free-but-still-she-persisted-in-being-sneaky-about-it-so-she-was-on-a-hold-for-mental-health-at-the-magistrate-hearing-she-would-attend-in-the-morning-with-her-concerned-genitors-who-couldn't-help-her-understand-by-themselves-that-she-was-safe-and-could-be-fulfilled-here-without-sticky-fingers … that one.
There were a couple of former criminals in here as well who were up to their old tricks of scamming individuals, this time of priceless antiques. They would face the magistrate as well. It was a mixed bag and the night was still filled with possibilities.
Beyond the double doors of the 'privacy suites' as Springer and the jailers called them was general intake and the administration area where a number of individuals were rapidly bee-lining, converging on the two Miscreant Children of the Damned who were themselves heading for the magistrate for a little chat in the very soon-to-come morning court.
Outside in the parking lot, several beings began to transform back to root mode after having driven madly and/or flown to that very spot to rectify a (sorta) very (misunderstood) wrong regarding role models and familial elders of the sot variety. Hard Drive and Raptor turned to see Delphi and Turbine drive up and do the same. Overhead, they could hear the whup, whup, whup of rotors on a helicopter as a green and yellow one began to set down in the parking lot nearby, one that carried a very amused Drift on its back.
Drift stepped off, then turned to watch Springer transform back to himself. He grinned at Drift. "You're getting a fat ass. Better get to the gym."
"More to love, baby," Drift said with a chuckle. They both turned toward the jailhouse, then froze. "Hi. Are you here for the same reason as us?"
"If you mean getting my little mech and the hoodlum he bonded with out of the drunk tank, yes," Hardie said with a grin. He ADORED these two. If they weren't already his grandsons, he would have offered to adopt them anyway. It was a common feeling among the adults in the family to feel the same way. Drift and Springer were a good fit for this mob.
Springer laughed. "We tried."
"We did, too. But we're as half aft right now as they are. Let's go see about them shall we?" Delphi asked as he took Hardie's servo. They walked to the door watching as another paddy wagon arrived filled with a group of very happy, very drunk sub adults from what they could see who got into their amma's high grade … he was an artisan brewer … and had a PAR-TAY! What they were celebrating was unknown at the time.
Magistrate Court was going to be AWESOME in the … (checks time) ... in a few joors.
They entered then watched the jailers carry a short little femme into the jail as a small mech trotted after them. Springer glanced at Mojo, the night desk sargent and intake officer. "What's that about?"
"Family dispute. She slapped the slag out of her sister-in-law. Apparently, they were arguing over date night and a brawl between them broke out. Apparently as well, it was brewing over the last million or so years." He grinned. "I love my job. What can I do for you, Springer?"
"Well," Springer said as outside the doorway a lot of shouting could be heard. The sub adults had begun to come inside. A number of big mechs exited their lounge and the ongoing card game that inevitably happened during the down times when no one was needing checked into Hotel No One Wants To Stay Here. They walked out and it was silent a moment. Then HUGE giggling and carrying on happened.
In they came.
A number of very happy youngling mechs were followed by a very bouncy, very flirty mini-con femme. Then, of all individuals they could have expected, Tyke entered behind them grinning in a sheepish manner that said, "Yeah, I know better but fuck it all."
Like that.
"Tyke. What the frag?" Springer asked as everyone grinned at the big mech. "Did you get arrested, too?"
He nodded, then shrugged. "I'm in love."
"WITH ME! MY MECH IS IN LOVE WITH ME!" A tiny femme stopped tra-la-la-ing happily about, her arms flung this way and that as she danced to her own beat, she was that drunk. "TITAN IS THE BEST MECH!" She turned toward Springer. "Did you know that? He's the best, most handsomest, the smartest, wisest, most goodest mech ever," she said as she flung her arms widely to show how 'goodest' he was in comparison to 'ever'.
It was pretty big even for a tiny speck like her.
She sidled up to Springer, then tugged on his arm. He leaned down. "Did you know that he's my beau? He's the best mech that ever lived and he's mine. We met in the middle of a football game brawl."
Springer grinned at her. "You have amazing good fortune. Tyke works for me. Did you know that?"
She looked surprised, then looked way the frag upward to Tyke who was regarding Springer with a smirk and a half of mild amusement and deep, deep contempt. "YOU DO!? TITAN! THIS IS YOUR BOSS!?"
"Nope," Tyke said as he reached down to pick her up. She sat on his servo and stared at him with adoring optics. Then she leaned forward to grip his face. Pressing her cheek against his, she smiled. "WE'RE GOING TO BOND WHEN I'M OLD ENOUGH! LET ME FINISH INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL! THEN WE CAN!"
Springer nearly choked, then he grinned.
Tyke grinned back. "Count on it," he said.
Delphi who was in love himself with both of them stepped closer to the tiny femme who was a beauty. "What's your name, honey?" he asked.
"2-LIP! MY NAME IS 2-LIP! TITAN SAYS THERE'S A FLOWER ON EARTH WITH MY NAME! HE SAYS ITS BEAUTIFUL LIKE ME! HE SAID THAT!" She hugged his face again. "ISN'T HE ROMANTIC?! TITAN IS THE MECH! MY ADA SAYS SO, TOO! SO DOES MY WHOLE FAMILY!"
"That's delightful, darling. You're still going into the jail until the magistrate's court tomorrow," Delphi said. He looked at Titan. "You might lose some amma points when they hear about this."
"No, actually," Tyke said with a chuckle. "I came on this after the cops were called. I told them if she goes to jail, so do I."
"Aw, you got it bad then," Raptor said with a smile as he shook Tyke's servo. "Make sure we can come to the bonding and parties."
"YOU WILL! EVERYONE CAN!" she said as she nearly fell off his servo to the floor.
Titan caught her leg, then lowered her gently to the floor. She lay there a moment, then sat up. Standing shakily, she smiled up at Titan. "What now, beautiful?"
"You go inside, darling, and take your accommodations," Mojo said with a grin. "We made them just for you."
She smiled, then turned to look around. "Let's go. I've never been in jail before."
A big grinning mech gestured to the door. She smiled at him, then danced to the door. Pausing to look at the others, she smiled like the sun. "COME ON IN! THIS IS GOING TO BE FUN!" She entered and the others followed.
Delphi looked at a smitten grinning Tyke. "Don't let this happen again. Something tells me that wherever she is, fun happens."
"You got that right, Abba," Titan said as he walked to the door and entered.
"Lord, he has it bad. She, on the other hand is the cutest drunk I've ever seen," Turbine said with a chuckle. "What about ours, Mojo. Are they here?"
"Ironhide and Ratchet? Yes, they are. Magistrate's Court is in four joors. Why not have breakfast, then come back. It's going to be a fun court today so come and stay for it all. We have taggers, fraggers, drunks, punks, and 2-Lip. I'm going to stay for this one, too."
Everyone laughed, agreed, then the six of them stepped out into the lightening skies of morning. It would be bright soon so they ambled down to The Pit Stop where they would eat breakfast, compare notes and hope that everyone made it home in one piece. All of them would but Ironhide and Ratchet.
-0-Around the world in eighty ways
Lucien sat at the breakfast table watching Laslo work on their food. He was as happy as Lucien had ever seen him.
"I got word from Partition and Lancer that they're going camping in the Valles and they want us to come this weekend. They have a group of friends and they said they were inviting their families along to introduce them into this sport. I thought it would be fun unless you have something else planned, Lu. Inweld and Morius want to come pending their shifts. Being new on the force means less leeway that way but they plan to come if they can. Inweld wants us to meet someone he's dating, a mech who's on the force as well."
Laslo dished up the plates, they set them on the table. He sat and they chatted about life, love and fun. Lucien would find it comforting, emotionally fulfilling and as alien as anything he ever felt before. Change was a bitch. But change, like time, was inevitable.
-0-At the hospital
They sat around the lounge in their little ward eating breakfast. Their schedule was filled with rehab, counseling, rest, reading, visitation from family on and off through the orn, and chances to refresh their depleted batteries. Sonny would come later on in the morning. Delphi had told them that he was 'indisposed' and would be along shortly. They would never know the difference.
Fortunately for Ratchet.
-0-Primal Residence
Prowl grinned as he shut off the monitor. Prime was stacking morning breakfast dishes in the apartment. The children were still at daycare with all the others. They would be fed and sent to school from there. He leaned on the doorjamb. "You look good doing that."
He grinned at Prowl as he slid the last dish into the dishwasher. "Thanks. What is the sit-rep?"
"All made it home and used the cure Ratchet sent by timed WiFi. Ratchet and Ironhide are in jail. All is well otherwise," Prowl said with a smile.
"Jail? When is Magistrate's Court?" Prime said as he walked to the doorway.
"In about a half joor. Shall we?" Prowl said as he looked up at Prime.
"Wild horses could not keep me away," Prime said as they both walked to the door. They left and it closed slowly behind them.
-0-In the jailhouse right now
They gathered up breakfast trays from the sorted sordid menage a criminals that were lounging, sleeping it off and otherwise occupying their time until the guards came to shovel them into the courtroom for the hammer to fall. Ironhide and Ratchet who were sitting on their bunks side-by-side … that is, as side-by-side as the bars from two cells allowed grinned at the civilians who ran the feeding end of this zoo process.
"I was so shocked to see you two sitting here. What did you do to get arrested?" Salis asked as he stacked their trays on the cart he was pushing.
"We took the Squad on the town. I don't know how I got here. I just woke up and here I am," Ratchet said with a big smile. Salie was a friend from Iacon. A co-conspirator, actually, when Ratchet was stealing food for the poor. He was a child of the Jumble as well.
"Sounds like fun," Salie said as he moved onward with a grin.
Ratchet looked at Ironhide who was lounging on his bunk. "Well, this is fragged. I hope I had fun."
"I'm sure we didn't," Ironhide said with a chuckle. "I may get my servo patted."
"Don't tell my ada and I won't tell yours," Ratchet said.
He would be shit out of luck.
-0-Court
They fogged in, families and friends of the miscreants in the lockup. Some of them looked strained and upset while others were amused. It was hard to pick which ones belonged to which. No-A who was promoted to federal judge was still taking cases in magistrate court to keep the backlog moving. He sat down to engage Silver in a conversation that only partially pertained to the job. They were discussing a dinner all of the court members and employees were having to celebrate someone's anniversary as a judge that was happening shortly.
Prime, Prowl, all of Ironhide's appas and ammas, a fuming Alor, and a highly amused Blackjack were followed in by Springer, Drift and The Crew all of whom heard and showed up en mass to laugh and otherwise show something slightly less than support, moral or otherwise. The Squad wasn't there because they didn't know. They would be highly supportive and slightly put out that they missed 'the fun'. The twins and Bluestreak who were alerted by Raptor came as well including an amiable Metroplex, Fort Max and Kappa to give Tyke moral support. They sat together and chatted until Silver stood and told everyone to stand.
They did.
"This court is now in session led by the Honorable No-A. Please observe the decorum and be seated or we will bounce you out of here."
Everyone did. Sit, that is.
"Welcome to Magistrate's Court. We're going to hear some cases before taking a break for a private hearing. We'll try to clear the decks as fast as we can. Silver? What's the first case?" he asked.
"The Prime versus Elia of Capital City," Silver said.
The bailiff opened the door, leaned in, then stepped back as a small femme walked in with a grave expression. As she did, a worker from Public Heath attached to the Courthouse slipped out behind her. He sat in the audience and watched as she walked to the front, studiously ignoring her family who sat together in a concerned huddle.
"Elia of Capital City, you're charged with of all offenses … shoplifting. I'm surprised to see this listed on the docket. What can you tell me, infant, about your inclusion here?" No-A asked gently.
She stared at him, then glanced at her genitors. Turning back to No-A, she shrugged. "I don't know what you mean, your honor. I didn't shoplift."
"Tell me what happened?" No-A asked.
"I was in the jewelry store … my favorite, The Tinder Box. I walked out after looking when someone in the shop stopped me. We spoke a moment, then I walked onward. A Day Watchman stopped me a little bit later and brought me here. I don't know why I'm here." She stared at him without making eye contact.
"Please bring the officer and shopkeeper in here, Manley," No-A asked the bailiff.
They entered at his request, then walked to the front. She stared at the floor as they did. "Mr. Kelso, you own The Tinder Box. Correct?" Kelso nodded. "Tell us what prompted you to call the Day Watch."
He shifted uneasily. "I have seen this little femme in the store before and she's a nice little femme. We talk about jewelry. We take things on consignment from Needlenose, the designer, and she likes them, too. When she leaves, I notice things missing. Given that this is a cash-free system, I don't mind her wanting things and coming for what she wants. What bothers me is that she never goes through the check out. She slips things into her subspace, then leaves. I'm afraid for her if something happens doing this and she gets hurt or in trouble. I called the Day Watch because I worry she might need help. I've had shoplifters before. All of them seem to be troubled. I sort of watch out for them now. Processor Health has issued calls for us in business to do that if we find someone who may be in trouble. We want to help."
No-A nodded. "I see that. And you, Baffin?"
Baffin, a Day Watch officer who came to the call nodded. "Some of the business owners have this problem. They worry about those who do it. Nothing costs anything anymore but some still shoplift. This little femme had several embellishments in her subspace that were from The Tinder Box and hadn't gone through inventory check out. We brought her here like we do all shoplifters to see if they need help. Springer made it the protocol for this sort of thing when it kept popping up and after talking to Processor Health and Dr. Jarro, it became a policy for us and an alert for business owners. We deal with a lot of conditions from the war and Diaspora and we want to help everyone we come across."
No-A nodded. "I commend that policy. Thank you, both of you."
Coln-2 and a defender named Gilley who were waiting for the next few cases and the closed hearing watched the proceedings. The little femme was on a 'suspicious hold', meaning she wasn't arrested but she wasn't free until her condition could be ascertained. They both were here to advise but it was in No-A's hands where she would go from here.
"Elia, tell me about life before you came here. I'm always interested in the circumstances of our people and what they were heroic enough to survive," No-A asked.
She stared at him, then her family. "It was hard. We left when I was small and there was never any place that felt safe. I just … we came here."
"Do you feel safe here?" No-A asked gently.
She thought a moment, then shrugged. "I guess."
No-A glanced at the court mental health officer. "Satler, what can you tell us about this little femme?"
He stood. "I find that she suffers from PTSD and that her condition of vulnerability is high. It's very preliminary but I find that she's struggling to understand why she's here in court. I find her answers genuine. I'd suggest that she be an intake patient at Processor Health, get the full battery, then a plan be made for treatment. I don't believe she means to be outside the law … or be inappropriate. I just think at this stage, its a compulsion brought about by a life on the run."
"It would appear so, Satler. Elia, I'm asking that you go with Satler to the Processor Hospital for an examination and treatment. You're not charged with any crime. You're here because a lot of individuals are worried about you and want you to be happy and well. Your family may go with you. Satler, could you take them on the underground so they can have some privacy while they leave?"
"I will do that," Satler said as he stood, then walked to Elia. "Come on, Elia," he said softly. "Let's go where they can help all of us. Your family, too."
Her family stood with barely controlled despair and joined Satler and Elia as they walked to the door nearby to leave on the special security train underground that led from the courthouse to the prison and different hospitals all over the colony on closed and secured routes. The door closed behind them.
No-A glanced at Silver who stood. "The Prime versus 2-Lip, Selfige, Cooper, Dynamo, and ..." He paused a moment with a grin. "Metrotitan."
A murmur went through the room along with snickers by Metroplex, Fort Max and Kappa who sat in pretender gear behind Prime and his party. They snickered and grinned as well. The bailiff with a grin of his own opened the door and they began to walk in, three big sub adult mechs, one tiny sub adult mini-con femme with the biggest brightest smile and last, but not least, Metrotitan.
-0-TBC 6-19-18 edited 7-10-18
Kattenbelleje: No one was thinking straight that night. I imagine they'd still be going in circles given no one decided to step off and wait for him to come around again. Given that he fell off shortly after the Industrial Park, they'd be standing on a platform waiting in vain. LOL! No one covered themselves with glory that night. ;) Ask me sometime about my running in circles and screaming when my two year old niece had her head caught in the automatic windows of my car. I STILL scream over that. :D
LOL!