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And now on with the show...

Chapter 15: An Appointment with a Medic

Orianna P.O.V

''Hey Rachet,'' I belatedly brought my hand up to try and stifle the loud yawn that filled the Med Bay.

The chartreuse and red medic half turned in my direction, a scowl on his face. ''Still not sleeping well I see?'' The scowl deepened as he focused his entire attention on me, no doubt running internal scans and assessments as I approached.

''Something like that.'' I barely managed to refrain from folding my arms across my chest to maintain some sense of privacy. In the end I simply sighed out loud in resignation as I came to stand before him. ''I am exhausted but unless I take some sleeping tablets to knock me out, my mind won't switch off and I spend most of the night wide awake, tossing and turning.''

''Hmmm,'' the crotchety medic lowered himself toward me, his face devoid of emotion. ''You still drinking that carbonated fizzy drink before bed?''

I dipped my head in embarrassment. ''Ah, Pepsi Max? Yeah, sometimes.''

''Well, that's possibly a contributing factor. Any stimulants or diuretics within an hour of sleeping will impact your sleeping patterns. How is your diet? Are you limiting your sugar and carbohydrate intake?'' Rachet scowled at me again. ''You're not your twenties anymore OC, you need to take more care in what you ingest, as your body will find it harder to burn the calories and convert excess caloric intake into fat.''

''Hey!'' I placed my hands on my hips and glared warningly up the Autobot.

Rachet merely grunted before he continued. ''Which then begs the question are you getting regular exercise? Regular exercise helps keep your joints supple, maintain a healthy body weight and helps with mental wellbeing including sleep.''

''Look. Rachet,'' I ground out, ''I didn't come here to have you basically throw my age, weight, and dietary habits in my face mate!'' I glared daggers at him.

Rachet tilted his helm in that similar fashion to Prime. ''Well as a physician, be it Autobot or human, it comes with the territory when trying to diagnose an issue. Rule out the obvious possible contributing factors to try and ascertain what is causing the problem.''

''Nothing to do with my BMI and exercise I assure you,'' I muttered under my breath.

''They could still be contributing factors OC, without you even being aware of it.'' He shot back before turning around to continue with what he was doing prior to my arrival.

My mouth flew open in shock momentarily. I had not intended for him to hear that. /Guess you forgot you are dealing with lifeforms that have enhanced hearing among other things!/. ''Whatever!'' I grumbled as I prepared to leave. I know he meant well but I really did not need this now.

I had come to the Med Bay for two reasons. The first being I might be able to avoid Prime as I had come to learn he had an almost pathological fear of the Med Bay and would be unlikely to just ''show up'' as he had seemed to do over the past three weeks. The other reason was slightly more subversive. I was hoping to subtly learn more about Optimus by talking to Rachet about a few things. Perhaps through my conversations I would realise he wasn't as fantastic as I thought he was, and he and I were two totally different beings that could never work and that would be that! I could just get over him and move on.

''So, what is it, or who is it that you can't stop thinking about?'' Once again, my mouth flew open as I stared up at Rachet who nonchalantly stared back at me.

''Wha… what?'' I blinked slacked jawed at him.

''That would be the other logical question OC. Clearly something is on your mind that is causing you some angst, worry or concern. It is a natural process to internalise, dissect and ruminate over matters of importance and how we dealt with them, are dealing with them or will deal with them,'' Rachet lowered himself towards me, his light blue optics seeming to pierce straight through me. ''Usually, these matters of importance pertain to events, things, or people. So, which is it?''

I stared blankly at him. There was a ringing sound in my head very much like what I imagined tinnitus to be. ''Which is what Rachet?''

He pinched the bridge of his olfactory sensor in a very human like manner. ''I'll put this down to lack of recharge OC. WHAT or WHO is on your mind?''

I scuffed my feet against the ground and took a sudden interest in my olive coloured cargo pants and tan combat boots as I fidgeted with my fingernails. ''What if I would rather not say WHAT or WHO is on my mind Rachet?''

The medic snorted and rose to his pedes. ''Then I would say I think we have deduced the real reason behind your inability to recharge.''

I stood there for a moment, my mind desperately trying to think of a way to argue myself out of this. Nothing. Not a thing came to mind. I snorted out loud. /Fake it till ya make it OC/. ''Yeah well, actually, I agree to disagree there Rachet. I can assure you there is no man occupying my thoughts and keeping me from getting a decent night's sleep.'' I grinned in triumph. /Hey. What I said was true. There was no man on my mind. Well technically.../. ''Must be something else.'' Rachet merely grunted and continued with his work.

I moved to walk up the stairs and ramps that ran along the side of the building to allow humans to converse with Rachet at his optic level. An ingenious inclusion in the design process. I positioned myself near his helm and leaned on the rail – carefully. I hated heights! ''So, whatcha doin' Rachet?''

Rachet grunted. ''I'm working on creating my own holoform similar to Prime's if you must know.'' I stood upright and gripped the railing. He half turned to face me, a small grin on his dermas. ''I hear Prime's holoform was very successful in its interaction with you.''

I felt a flush of embarrassment and anger race through me in quick succession. ''Excuse me? What is that meant to mean Rachet? What did Prime tell you about that night?'' I had a deep frown on my face as I glared down at the Autobot medic. Rachet was always a bit of a grumpy bastard, but we seemed to get along. /Although that could possibly change in the next few moments/.

Rachet continued unperturbed by my reaction. ''According to Prime, the holoform was able to materialize without any apparent glitches and maintained a steady presence and image. Prime was able to both feel and be felt and,'' Rachet coughed and sent me a small smile, ''when Prime sustained a minor injury,'' I ducked my head to avoid his gaze, ''the holoform programme was able to initiate repair protocols and compensate for the damage, restoring full functionality almost immediately.''

Rachet started to turn about to resume his work, a proud expression on his face, before he paused and looked back at me. ''What did you think of Prime's holoform Orianna? Was it of an adequate comparison to a human male in terms of its appearance and physicality?''

I felt my jaw drop slightly and my eyes seemed to bulge. I tapped the railing a few times and shifted on my feet. ''Ahh, um yeah Rachet. Prime's appearance, in human form, was I'd say, adequate, as you put it.'' An image of the handsome man holding out his arms for me to hug him, the scent of him, the feel of him suddenly overwhelmed me and I fell silent for a moment as I was lost in the memory I had tried desperately to avoid recalling since that night. I hung my head towards the railing. ''It was almost like he was real. He certainly felt real to me. It felt real. But I know it wasn't.'' The last comment fell from my lips as an almost bitter whisper.

''Ha!'' Rachet burst out loud, clapping his servos together excitedly. ''Excellent, excellent!'' He turned back around grabbing what looked like a Transformer sized screwdriver and began placing various parts together, tightening them inside a small box like device. ''Given the success of Prime's holoform,'' he quickly glanced back at me and smiled, ''and now your feedback Orianna, I shall continue working on my own.''

For a moment I felt annoyed that he had not sensed my confliction and sadness. /Why would he? He has no idea why you seem torn about the life-like appearance of Prime's holoform thingy/. I sighed and rubbed my face. Trying to change the topic seemed like a good idea.

''Now Prime's holoform is adjusted to take on the appearance of a male in his late forties. Therefore, given I am older than Prime, I guess mine should look as though it is..''

''In his nineties?'' I grinned impishly down at the medic.

Rachet stared balefully up at me. ''Just why are you here anyway Orianna? Haven't you got someone else you could annoy right now? As you can see, I have work to do.'' He gestured to the table and the array of parts before him.

I grinned down at him as I tapped on the railing again. ''Aww. You trying to get rid of me Rachet?''

''Yes,'' his face was devoid of emotion. ''I should have thought that intent was obvious from my suggestion you find someone else to irritate.''

I shook my head as I laughed. ''Wow Doc Bot! You do have a way with the ladies! Bet you were beating the femmes off with, well, a rachet back on Cybertron?'' I smirked down at him as I leaned on the rail.

Rachet's optics narrowed dangerously, ''talking of beating someone with a rachet, she's well within striking distance,'' he muttered to himself as he turned about to busy himself with his work.

I ignored his not so veiled threat and sat down, dangling my legs through the railing. ''Speaking of Cybertron and times gone by, what was Prime like back when you first met him?'' I smiled as I recalled Prime's comment that he was a nerd. ''Prime mentioned he worked in the hall of records in Iacon as a data clerk. Was he a bit of a nerd? Was he a bit awkward with the femmes until he became this strong, stoic, heroic paragon of virtue?'' I knew I was pumping Rachet hard for information, but I just had to know more about him to decide how I should act. Prime was incredibly slow in giving up information about himself.

Rachet put down the tool he had in his servo, his shoulders tensed and he ex-vented deeply in frustration. ''If I answer some of your questions Orianna, will you then leave me the slag alone?'' He turned about to face me, an almost pained expression on his face.

I nodded my head. ''Yep. Seems fair.''