The Diego Diaries: Happy Holidaze (dd6 570)
-0-Moving on
They walked to Prime's house after taking their 'class picture', that is, everyone gathered together and the Center's cameras took the picture, elf and Santa hats, children, pets and punters included. It was a boozy group that walked out while the rest stayed, carrying on in the fine spirit of the Autobots. Onward and upward to Prime's house for the final ho-ho-hos a good half of them went.
The humans headed out to go to Unidad for the dance and nosh party. All was well in the colony.
-0-Unidad
They came in numbers, some of them from the still closed train depot below decks by the habitat entry system. It was simple and efficient. The train platforms below the entryway of each habitat were being opened for the trains to run from each to Unidad. They were enclosed in an energy barrier on the platform that would allow the trains to enter, the passengers to disembark, then walk, elevator or escalator upstairs without fear of losing atmosphere. A femme or mech from each facility waited on the platforms to help and oversee their residents to board a train, then head off down the system to Unidad.
When they reached the new habitat, they stepped off, walked to the elevator, escalator or stairs nearby to go upward to the party. Thousands of humans would take that pathway to the party minus those of The City residences and habitats. They would come mostly by vehicle. They had platforms but it would require riding the system in its entirety because they ran all the time with the system's regular schedule, unlike those that were being used for the party just this one time. It paid to have seniority.
Carly Brooks-Spencer and Sam Witwicky along with others in the leadership of the facility greeted each new group. They came in habitat gear but would change, many of them in several large rooms set aside. Some of the women dressed up, many in traditional costume for their culture and some wanted to dance in heels.
It was a bright and cheerful place at the guests arrived. Most of them had already run their food contributions over earlier so the fuss was at a minimum. The train of humans coming was going to be a long one.
-0-Prime's house
"I could have sworn that we did this already," Ratchet said as he filled his plate from the mass of food cooked here or brought in by the big crowd that always came. Children were sitting at the table or near an elder as they ate their dinner.
"That's your problem. Swearing," Prowl said as he held a second plate for Prime to fill along with the big one in his big hand.
"You're a good old bond, Prowler. I wouldn't do what you're doing right now. Ironhide might take liberties," Ratchet said with a brilliant smile.
"He already has. You have, what … fifty children?" Prowl asked as Prime finished up his careful application of infinite food to a finite surface. He gripped a beer, then turned to Prowl with a grin. "Can you get that over there?" he asked nodding to a chair in front of a coffee table, just right to hold one while he held the other.
"Walk onward, Optimus. I got this," Prowl said as he followed Prime to the chair nearby.
Prime's genitors were already sitting with their food along with all the other elders from here and there. He sat, Prowl set down his second plate, then fussed a moment. "You done?"
"For now," Optimus said with a chuckle.
Prowl grinned, then walked to the line taking his place again.
"Cutter. You cut in," Ratchet said.
"I was helping the First Disciple of Primus," Prowl said. "Heathen." He picked up his plate, used a boarding house reach to get things he had already passed, then grabbed a beer and ambled over to sit down.
"Heathen? You take cuts, slag your own guests, then use the Matrix to get you out of jail. Who's the heathen here?" Ratchet said with a chuckle as he got a beer, glanced at the kids who were doing great work on their food, then walked over to sit.
"You, slagger," Prowl said.
"You just noticed?" Ratchet said with a grin.
The banter would continue.
-0-Unidad
The soldiers and their families, extended and otherwise entered the facility with their good cheer and bagged bottles heading to an enormous bar across the way. They chatted, then headed onward toward a mass of humans enjoying themselves. A DJ played away, someone brought in from Earth who could have paid to come even if he wasn't hired already. Dancing was going on.
The set up was beautiful across the entire promenade of the facility. Along the windows which rose up more than 250 feet was a long table that stretched out of sight. On it were white table cloths, candelabras throwing out light in the muted room with festive arrangements for the holiday. An almost unbelievable array of finger type foods were laid out with more coming from the kitchen some distance away.
Hanging from the ceiling at intervals were decorative lights that looked like massive dandelions. They were displaying a muted white light on each of the giant seed-like petals that made dandelions such successful predatory plants. The lights twinkled in the softly lit room showing a beautiful display for everyone there.
"I'm going to get something to eat. Watching the bots eat made me hungry," Bobby Epps said as he walked along hand-in-hand with his wife, Lonnie.
"You're always hungry," Lonnie said with a grin. "I'll join you. I am, too."
They headed for the tables by the windows while some of the women headed for the changing rooms nearby. Beyond the flat surface of the windows, it was possible to see the lights of different city centers in the distance shining like fairy tale castles. The Port of Mars was going great guns orn and night as newbies arrived from space and Oasis Base. It was beautiful everywhere you looked.
-0-Up there
"And that's when I punched his face," Cliff said as he sat on a couch with Buzzie. Lying in a carry basket between them on the floor was a tiny femme sleeping in a nest of yellow blankets. Agnus was having a great first Christmas Surprise snooze.
"He deserved it, Cliffie," Buzzie said loyally though from the story it sounded like 'he' didn't. No one argued. They just grinned at Buzzie.
Everyone loved Buzzy.
=0=At an apartment in Bern
They entered Jessine's apartment, Sil and Jess, then smiled at the adults and children who glanced their way. A party was going on, lots of food, family and friends. Jessine's ada walked toward them with a plate in his servo. "You're late. We worried about you, femmes. Where have you been?"
Both girls still wearing their elf hats glanced at each other with a grin, then walked into the room nearly shivering with excitement. "WE WERE SANTA PRIMING WITH ABBA RATCHET!" both said at the same time with giant smiles.
It was to their credit that none of the adults there lost body parts over that revelation. Two of them, their great grand genitors quashed grins as they watched the love of their life, one of many in the room express their great excitement about their activities. It was becoming a habit with them adventuring out into the colony doing things that were unthinkable before coming here. The two glanced at the shocked adults struggling with their anxiety with amusement.
"What does that mean, Sil?" Sil's atar asked with a slight frown, "and what were you doing with Ratchet? I thought you were with the others for your other activity."
Sil stared at him. "Jessine called me to come. She was with everyone at Ops Center and when the senior Autobots and city council members went off to Santa Prime all the people she wanted me to come as well. I'M SO GLAD I DID! IT WAS SO MUCH FUN! I'M GOING TO JOIN, TOO!"
"What? What are you joining?" Sil's grandfather asked, the son of the two who were watching with amusement and pride in the stand up little femmes facing a firing squad of parental expectation in the bold and invincible manner of youth everywhere in every universe.
They glanced at each other, then looked at the group squaring their shoulders as they did. "Jessine is with the Watch Mentor Program and I'm going to join, too. AND GUESS WHAT!? ABBA RATCHET IS GOING TO LET US JOIN THE AUTOBOT CITY YOUTH MEDICAL MENTORSHIP PROGRAM! WE'RE GOING TO LEARN HOW TO BE CNA'S! AT THE HOSPITALS!" They looked at their families with absolute delight on their sweet little faces. They were over the moon at the events of the day.
"What is a CNA, infant?" Jessine's great grand amma asked. She grinned at the femme who was starting to feel the burn.
Sil turned to the two adults who truly got her and the changing situation. "Amma, we get to learn to be certified nursing assistants. ISN'T THAT GREAT!?"
Her great grand amma grinned. "I think so. Tell me about these things you're doing, femmes. I want to know more. Don't you, Appa?" she asked her bond.
He grinned, then nodded. "I do, infants."
They walked to the two, then leaned in toward them they were so excited. "I belong to the Mars Watch Mentorship Program for sub adults that want to look into security careers. I want to be a Watch officer, Amma and Abba. I go out with the big mechs and femmes and they show me things. I get to help in all the departments. I'M GOING TO HELP DURING THE SPORTS GAMES! PULLEY AND COROS WERE THE FIRST AND WE'RE … SIL AND I ARE THE FIRST FEMMES! EVER!" Jessine said as Sil nodded excitedly.
None of the adults listening and watching showed outward discontent and emotion. They were too high caste to do that but it hung in their auras like dirt clouds.
Sil hugged Jessine tightly. "Jessie called me to come. I never had so much fun. We got to go to the shut ins and home bounds and give them presents. All of the little abbas, ammas and appas … they were so sweet and so were their families. THEY WERE SO HAPPY! IT MADE ME SO HAPPY, AMMA AND APPA!"
"Then you serve the Will of Primus when you do these things. You're part of the Watch Mentorship Program, Jessie? And this medical one?" Sil's grand amma asked.
"It's starting in two orns. Abba Ratchet wants us to be partnered with really great doctors. I'm going to tell the mechs in our group to come and be part of it, too. You never know when a medical emergency is going to happen. DID YOU KNOW THAT SUNSTREAKER IS GOING TO MAKE A TATTOO FOR US!? THAT WAY ANYONE WHO NEEDS HELP WILL KNOW WE CAN DO IT! WE CAN HELP OTHERS!" Jessine said as Sill nodded earnestly beside her.
Appa and Amma grinned, then glanced around at the others who were watching with shock. "Well, well … our little femmes want to help others and have them see the possibilities with a tattoo made by the greatest artist in our colony. Who can argue with that?" Amma asked as Appa nodded in agreement.
They wanted to. They didn't
Amma and Appa had spoken.
=0=Up there
They got up, the adults who were going and after leaving the kids in the capable servos of those staying ambled off to the door to go visit the humans in their habitats. The Resort and Unidad would be feted by the leadership which would cut down on monkey motion given everyone was checked off at Unidad. Automation was a good thing.
They ambled out, went down and in the cold air of the world around them began to sober up as they walked toward Monastery Road by cutting across everything in their way in a straight line. It would be a howling good time for all.
=0=TBC 1-15-19 edited 1-22-19
ESL
boarding house reach: in the old orns people lived in boarding houses where they had a bedroom and could use the living room but ate altogether at the same table in the dining room. Usually widow ladies had these kinds of places to make ends meet. Using a boarding house reach meant leaning over someone or into someone to reach something down the table rather than asking for it to be passed. Sometimes they did it because a slowpoke got the chicken neck instead of better parts and some because they had no manners and were selfish. Either way, its not a compliment. :D