I only own my OC's!
Labor Day Weekend: Sunday Part 1
8:00 AM, Sunday
"Mari, wake up Baby Girl."
I open my eyes look up at Sire before turning to wake Fixit. Once he's up, I slide off the bed and run downstairs and slide into my chair. At my place is a pancake that looks like an American flag, and my strawberry syrup is waiting beside it. "Good Morning, my Mariposa."
"Morning, Mommy!" I dig into the pancake, watching Carrier, Sire, Uncle Smokescreen, and Uncle Bluestreak drink their energon as I do. "Where's Fixie?"
"Upstairs getting ready." Uncle Smokescreen had been the last one down. "He's a little nauseated today."
I tilt my head to the side. "A li'l what?"
"He's feelin' a little sick in his tanks, Li'l One."
"Oh… I wan' hims feels better…"
"I know, Little One…"
I slide off my chair and carry my now-empty plate to the sink. "We do contest today?"
"Nope." I look up to Sire in confusion. "She's no' gonna be there today, Sweets. She's with her family."
"Oh…" I smile up at him. "So no bullies in class!"
"Yep."
"Yay!" I run up the stairs before glancing over my shoulder to see Sire following me upstairs. "Hurry, hurry!"
"Ah'm comin', Li'l One. Slow down!" He steps into my room and pulls out my clothes before glancing at my packed suitcase set, which is ready and waiting for us to leave after church. "All righ', Silly Goose, come'ere." He helps me into a sleeveless dress with a sequined American flag on the top and a navy blue skirt with white trim, a white cropped denim jacket, white tights, and red metalic Mary Jane shoes with stars on the toes. He braids my hair into a crown and weaves a white ribbon through it before braiding it down my back. He clips on a red, white, and blue hair bow with a rhinestone American flag in the center, then pats me on the shoulder. "All righ', ya're ready now. If ya braid starts ta hur', Ah'll clip i' up for ya."
"Thanks, Sire." I glance over to my bags. "When we goes?"
"After church."
"Who comes wiff us?"
"Ah'm no' sure…" He sighs heavily. "Ah know Prowler invited the Protectobots ta help with ya new bonds, an' Ah know he wanted to invite Red and 'Ferno for ya security, an' Ah asked Sides and Sunny ta come an' help us ou' as bodyguards… Then we'll have ya uncles, and ya Carrier an' Ah as well…an' Fixit."
I count on my fingers until I get to ten, and pout. "I'm outta fingers, Papa!"
"We'll have…fourteen bots with us, fifteen if we coun' ya too."
"Oh…" I look up at him. "I haves lots of 'tection."
"Yep. We'll keep ya safe, Sweetspark."
"Thanks, Sire." I run out the door and down the stairs before bouncing in front of Carrier, who is currently in holoform. "I ready goes church, Mommy!"
Sire steps in behind me. "She looks very…festive, Jazz. Why?"
"She likes i', Prowler, and tomorrow is Labor Day. Ah though' we'd ge' her inta the spiri' before we leave for Indiana."
Carrier laughs—I wish he'd do that more—and looks down at me with a smile. "I believe she is already there, Jazz." He sighs. "All right, she can wear it. Mariposa, grab your toy."
I grab my fuzzy tangle and wrap it around my wrist before taking my Bible and running out the door. "Le's go! Le's go!"
"All right, we're coming, Mari!" I glance back to see him grab the keys for the pretty purple van, then turn back to everyone again. "We are using the minivan, and no complaining, Jazz. We need to keep our cover."
"How we gonna do tha' on the trip?"
"Rentals."
"Awh, come on, Prowler!"
"I said no complaining." He sighs. "Mariposa is upset enough at the moment without the two of us arguing."
"Wha's wrong, Baby Girl?"
"Human family fighted lots…"
"Oh… Ah'm sorry, Li'l One. We're tryin'." He picks me up. "Come on, Ah'll ge' ya settle' in ya sea'."
Third POV
"Are you sure about this?"
"As sure as I can be, Smokescreen. We cannot allow her to be afraid of a state because of the humans any more than we can allow her to be afraid of humanity because of the ones who raised her."
"I know that, Prowl, but she's just…so young…"
"I was younger than you when we first met, and I had been through worse than what she has been through." He steps over to the van. "She will get through this, Smokescreen." He turns to the door, only to look back at his older brother with a heavy sigh. "We will."
"I know, and I believe you can do it, but…" Smokescreen lays a hand on his brother's arm. "I'm here, if you need to talk."
"Thank you."
Normal POV
Carrier climbs in (still in holoform) and sticks the key into the car before turning it. "Everyone got their Bibles?" He waits for a chorus of "yes", then continues. "Phones?" Another chorus of "yes" before we pull out of the driveway.
Church
"Hi, Cami!"
"Good morning, Little One." She smiles. "You're full of energy today, aren't you?"
"Ah'm sorry ta leave 'er with ya like this, bu' we're goin' ta Indiana for some festival she 'members after church, an' she's really 'cited 'bou' i'."
"I can see." She smiles over at Sire. "I've got it under control, though. She'll be fine with me. Daniella's not even here today because of the holiday."
Sire shrugs. "Pete wante' ta make sure she was in church 'fore we wen' ta Indiana." He crouches to me. "Ah'll come back for ya 'fore the main service."
"Otay." I reach up and hug him. "Loves you, Sire."
"Ah love ya too, Mari. Be good now."
"I wills!"
"That's mah girl."
I step inside and look around. A little under half of the usual class are missing, probably because of family events. "All right, Marianne, take your seat so we can get started."
We step outside and clamber into the van before heading toward home. Carrier makes a quick stop at a convenience store and picks up a couple slices of pizza and a bottle of milk before handing them to me. "Fixit, watch her and make sure she doesn't choke."
I don't—I know how to be careful by now—and we pull into the drive right as I finish my last piece. We all head inside after our bags, while Sire turns to get me changed. "Jazz, quickly."
He helps me into a dark blue short sleeved dress with a white polka-dot print, white socks, and pink twinkle toes with hearts on the sides. He French braids my hair and secured the ends with blue and white hair ties, then slips in a silver S-curl tiara with three leaf shaped sapphires in the center, one blue sapphire on the bottom of the top of the S-curl on either side, and white diamond flowers with sapphire centers on the top on either side, and blue sapphire stones at the other end of the S-curl on either side, with one leaf gem where two loops join on either side, and one gem in the middle of an N loop on either side.
"Now, le's go."
"Back in the van, everyone!"
"Aren't we taking our own vehicle modes?"
"No. We are taking the Van, Bluestreak." He slips a credit card out of the wallet he uses in holoform. "And we are renting one vehicle for all of us once we reach Indiana."
"What about the twins?"
"They will be allowed to use their vehicle modes, though Sunstreaker will be asked to make a slight change. If he refuses, Jazz will handle the job."
"What job?" I lean forward. "Carrier, what job?"
Carrier leans in through the open slide door and smirks—I don't like it because it's not usually how he is. "I have a surprise waiting for you once we arrive, Little One."
"Otay… What job Sunny gotta do?"
"You will find out once we are in Indiana." He glances back to the trunk. "Are you finished?"
"Yep." The trunk slams. "We rollin' or no'?"
"We are."
I squeal. "Let's roll!" Carrier looks back at me in surprise, causing me to giggle. "Sowwy…"
"You should not be sorry for being adorable."
"Did you jus' call our Mari adorable?"
"Yep."
Base
Carrier and I head into the medbay with Fixit. "Ratchet, we need to make this quick, we have a plane to catch."
"I am aware of that, Prowl. Mari, Fixit, on the berth." He runs a scanner over the two of us, makes a confused look, and runs it over Fixit alone. "By the All Spark."
"Ratchet?"
He runs the scan a third time before sighing. "All right, their bond is stable, and one of the strongest I have ever seen, but—"
"But?"
"But I do not want him flying after this trip is over."
"Ratchet?"
"His newspark split, and I do not wish to risk the sparklings."
"Sp-split?"
"Yes, Fixit, and please do not crash on me."
Carrier lays a hand on Fixit's shoulder. "How many?"
"Three."
"Triplets…" Carrier lays a hand over his chest. "Primus…"
"Prowl…are you… P-please don't s-send us away…"
"I am not going to send you away, Fixit. We will find a way to accommodate for the triplets."
"Carrier?"
"Yes, Little One?"
"Fixie no' use li'l bed…maybe we's turn into cwib for sparklies, an' makes stairs on one sides so he can ge' in wif me?"
"That is a very good idea. I will see what we can do."
Airport
We pull into the airport about half an hour later, and fly through security—Carrier had made sure to pack things safely, and used little travel bottles for my special soaps with seals made out of plastic wrap so that we wouldn't get into trouble for lots of liquids and the bottles won't spill. I know he's worried about this trip.
We settle into the waiting area, and I watch out the window at the planes coming and going. "Hey, Peter. How's our little sister?"
"Hey, Nathan."
"Hi, Nate! How ya doin'?"
Aid's holoform slips around the two and sits beside me. "Actually, he was sick most of the night, so we're all exhausted."
"Aid…" He turns to Prowl. "I'm not backing out. Mari needs us, and I won't ruin this trip for her." He sighs, picks me up, and sits down with me in his arms. "Who else is coming?"
"Um…" Sire looks around. "We're missin' Red and 'Ferno, and the twins."
"Jazz!"
Sire shrugs. "Nicknames."
"All right, I'll accept that, but be careful. You never know who could overhear."
"Ya're startin' ta sound like Red over there."
Carrier huffs and steps over to them. "Jazz is doing his best to blow our cover. Do you have an ETA on the twins? We only have three minutes before pre-boarding."
"They're back at the security checkpoint." He huffs. "I thought Red was overly thorough about security, but they go above and beyond what he does!"
"9-11."
"Pardon me?"
"It was a terrorist attack where four planes were hijacked and slammed into buildings. They're overly thorough because they do not wish to have another attack."
"I get it. Red?"
"I'm fine, James. Just…give me a moment."
Inferno sighs and leads him to a chair before rubbing his back in circles after he's settled. We're close enough to talk without others hearing, but we still aren't talking too loudly in case someone tries to listen in. "His anxiety makes the morning sickness worse…"
"I can definitely understand that."
"Noah?"
"Yeah?"
"Why didn't you tell us?"
"I…um…" Fixit sighs heavily. "I didn't want anyone to get mad…I-I've already got one glitch…"
"Fixie…" I hug his legs. "No one gets mad over glitchies in this family. We loves you, an' we won' stop jus' 'cause ya gots some problems."
"Thank you, Mari." He turns back to them with a sigh. "It's not as bad as I've seen with Red, but…"
My eyes widen. "That's why you cwashed!"
"Y-yeah…"
"Easy Bitty…" I smile and hug him. "Is otay. I's here."
"Sir?" We turn to see a stewardess. "If you want to pre-board, we're ready for you."
"Thank you, Ma'am." He reaches down and takes my hand. "Come on, Marianne. Let's go."
We get settled—I'm sitting by the window, with Blades, Spot, and Aid behind me and Carrier beside me, with Sire by him. Sire had wanted the window seat, but Carrier insisted I get it so I can look out. He slips my backpack and duffel under the seat before storing our suitcases in the overhead compartment. "You ready?"
"Uh-huh…" I look around. "Where's Noah?"
"He is staying with Ryan and James in the row in front of us. He will be fine."
"But…but he panic…"
"And James has dealt with far worse than you have seen, even with Ryan. If he does need you, we are right behind him."
"Mari?" I pop my head up to see Fixit's holoform's head peeking at me from between the seat and the wall. "I'll be okay. You need to calm down, or you'll make yourself sick."
"Otay…"
"That's my Little Mari."
"Woves you…"
half-way through the flight
I flinch at the sound of purging nearby, and gasp when I find Aid leading Hot Spot past us, talking softly to him as he does. "Pots sick…" I pause, and shake my head. "No, nots sick, 'xactly…"
"Mari?"
"Daddy, is Pots wiff someone?"
"I think so, but I am not sure. Why?"
"Sparklie."
"You think he might be carrying?"
"Uh-huh!"
Carrier smiles. "We will bring this up to Aiden once we land. Until then, why don't you finish your picture?"
"Otay…" I look up at him. "Why you smiles?"
"I am starting to wander if Primus is trying to tell me something."
"Dat is safes to carry now?"
"I believe so… First Aid, Red Alert, Fixit…Drift…maybe Hot Spot… Who knows who will be next?"
"You?"
"I hope not. I am still very nervous, Little One. I know you want a sibling, but there is still much I need to work through…before I carry again."
"Otay." I hug him, then turn back to my coloring page.
"Aiden?"
"Yeah?"
"Nathan okay?"
"Yeah…"
"Aid…"
"He's sparked."
I giggle like mad at that. "I callied it 'gains!"
"That you did, my Marianne."
"I has snack pwease?"
"Of course." He sets a baggie or goldfish crackers on my tray. "Just a few, though. We will be eating once we reach our destination."
"M'kay."
"Ah don' thin' she's listenin', Pete."
"I is too! He say "jus' a few", an' I's gonna eats a fews."
Indiana, Airport
I watch out the window as we land in semi-familiar territory, and taxi to the gate. I watch silently as Carrier gathers my things and helps me into my backpack before slinging my duffel over his shoulder before getting our bags down. He hands me the handle of mine, and pulls theirs behind him while Sire comes up from behind with their duffel and Carrier's laptop—he'd been working on some paperwork for the General through the flight. Uncle Smokescreen comes up behind him with Uncle Bluestreak and his laptop case, while Uncle Bluestreak has his school tablet with him.
We head to the rental office first thing, and Carrier asks for a big van so we can all fit. Once we get it, we head outside and pile inside the red and white maxivan, while Carrier and Inferno work to figure out how to get our bags loaded up.
I look up when I hear the door shut, and find Carrier in the driver's seat. "Go' i' all loade' up?"
"Yes." He turns back to all of us as Inferno slides in behind me. I'm in the first row in the middle, with Fixit on one side and Hot Spot on the other. "Okay. We've got about half an hour before we get to the restaurant. If anyone gets carsick, we have the airsickness bags from the plane." He notices that I'm not in a booster seat. "Mariposa, do not move. I need to buy a booster seat." We pull into a store, and Carrier runs inside, returning quickly with a gray and dark pink booster that says "Princess" with a star at the end. He climbs in back to make sure I'm secured in it, then climbs back into the front seat. "Okay, now we can go."
