The Diego Diaries: Ho-Ho-Schmoe (dd8 54)
+NOTE: A funny thing happened … I decided to take New Year's Eve off and wait for the fam to call to come have cake and stuff. Well … I waited and no one called because it was December 30th, not 31st. Howzat for dumb? So … here we are. New Year's Eve and I'm tip tapping away and having a great time. I truly hope you do as well and know you're loved.
=0=Santa babying around
He walked into the building through the environmental doors followed by his 'elves'. A mountain of a mech, he strode across the concourse to halt before an assembled mob of nearly everyone there including the management. He grinned at them, then glanced at his uncles. :You ready?:
:We were born ready, infant. Literally: Sun said with a chuckle.
Jack nodded beside him as behind them their assistant and the mechs who handled the gifts took a break at this, Earth2 International School at the Earth2 Habitat. The presents were already there for the kids and elders so he would just have to hand them out and play around.
Ironhide glanced at the mob, then stood straighter. "I AM SANTA IRONHIDE! I CAME TO HO-HO-HO AND GIVE STUFF TO GOOD LITTLE AND NOT SO LITTLE BOYS AND GIRLS! HO-THE FRAG-HO!"
The entire place burst into flames.
=0=At a nursing and care facility
Magnus sat on a stool as frail appearing elders were brought to him. This was the only facility on world that handled dementia patients, situational or otherwise. They came here when family were out or when family needed a break. A number lived here full time, some permanently and others as needed in their recovery. They all had their own little rooms filled with familiar things and entertainment possibilities. There were three staffers to every patient so that burn out was controlled amongst this, a high octane care situation.
One by one, they came to him, some of them noticing him and some not. Some talked to him like he was their son or friend, someone they knew and thought he was. Some didn't speak at all. Some smiled at him without any sense of being home in their optics. Some had been through the wastelands like the Dead End and other sites where they were tossed to die and be eaten by others and the Decepticons themselves. Others had just been too long deprived of necessities and it had taken a toll on them. They were tough like all Cybertronians but there was a limit even to their remarkable species.
One stood before him now, a slight mech with a beautiful paint scheme. A femme held his arm, one that was beautiful like him. It was obvious to Magnus that someone had taken them for this, an uncharacteristically good detailing for bots who probably never had such things until now. She looked at Magnus with the look that those who had suffered ever carried in their optics. "Lord Magnus, thank you for coming to see us. Talbot has been looking forward to it. Right, Only One?" she asked the little mech with a gentle voice.
Talbot who was staring at Magnus's finials glanced at her, then smiled a vacant smile. He began to mumble words, some that Magnus recognized from hunting for lost souls in the dark places of their world. He didn't know Magnus was there, nor did he know what was happening. His little femme was hoping for him because he couldn't.
Magnus reached out to take Talbot's servo. It was small and restored but he knew this hand. It had worked too hard for too little, been honorable when nothing else was and now that Talbot was retreated into his processor shook a little from a tremor. Magnus gently squeezed it. "Talbot?" he asked gently.
The little mech stared at him, then looked past him, pausing only for a fleeting second at the sound of a faintly familiar word, his own name. His femme glanced at Magnus but didn't say anything.
"Talbot, I'm happy you're here. What would we be without you? We searched for all of you and we love you. I don't know if you truly can hear me but understand … we love and need you. Wherever you are, please know that," Magnus said softly with rising emotion in his spark.
It was deep around him with the little femme and the little mech who slightly swayed. His orderly held his other arm and looked at Talbot like he was his father. He glanced at Magnus. "We're doing some experiments in three orns that have a high likelihood to break through this barrier. Right now, Appa lives here and we take care of him full time. Amma comes in every orn and sits with him. It comforts him."
Magnus nodded, then looked at the femme. "Can you stay here with him? Would you?"
She nodded. "I would, Lord Magnus. He kept me safe in the Hollow. I have to keep him safe here."
Magnus blanched internally at the name of the place she mentioned. It was a deep hole in the ground that led underneath the city of Altihex. 'Useless' bots were tossed down there and lived in the darkness like animals. It had been a horrendous sight when they were found as battered and ill as any in the other places. "I will see to it that this can be arranged. We appear to have overlooked a real need when we created this place for you, Amma. I will personally make it so."
She grinned at him, a slight but genuine thing. "Thank you, Lord Magnus. We don't want to be a bother."
Parts of Magnus's carefully controlled psyche flashed, then settled. He reached for her arm, squeezing it very gently. "There will never be a time in this or any other dimension when either you or Talbot … or anyone else that is Cybertronian will ever be a bother. You're our gold. You're our greatest treasure. We will make a life for all of you that you always deserved. All you have to do is get well. Then come into the colony and live your life. You don't have to contribute one more thing or do anything else. Just surviving to be here is all you needed to do. Do you understand?"
She stared at him, then Talbot who was staring at Magnus's finials again. She looked back at him with emotion then nodded.
Sun who with Jack was with Magnus following Earth2 bent down. "Amma and Appa, I'm exempt. I'm an immortal. I pledge my solemn honor to both of you. Do you understand?"
She stared at him, then Jack who nodded. She bowed her helm. "I do. Thank you."
"Thank you," Magnus said as he held out a present to her. He gave the other to Talbot's orderly and the three slowly walked back to a table, placing Talbot back into a wheelchair.
The rest of the group came, some of them here for the duration but most of them having hope. By the time they were ready to leave Talbot was happily playing with a game that his femme was helping him to use. She glanced up when they began to leave.
Magnus paused from leaving to look at her, then nodded. With that, the group walked out to go to another elder hospice to bring cheer to the patients. By the evening's fall, Talbot's femme would have a place to sleep and relax with him in his hospice room.
=0=The Fortress
They ambled in having discharged their now much less lengthy portion of the Santa outreach program to the Intermediate Schools in the colony. There were four and both of them had been to all, joking and chatting up the kids, their families and the staff before finishing up. They rode their fire truck back to the HQ. Trailing behind them were the mentor kids laughing and having a good time.
The place was going great guns with family, friends and hangers-on partaking of the feast laid out and the punch that Arcee had spiked and was further laced by Greenlight who was hanging out instead ho-ho-ho-ing with the others because her boyfriend was working on shift in the Ops Center.
The two walked to the buffet line, grabbed a beer, took filled plates from Holi and Maxi, then were steered by Maxi to a table to sit and shoot the shit with her bond and a few of the others who were already here because they never left. The kids were taken care of as well. Christmas music was playing, children who were here from school once their Santa had come and gone ran in mobs around the room. It was friendly, homey and fun.
"Well, that's done for another year," Springer said as Camus, Maxi's bond grinned.
"You look good in red," Camus said.
Springer snickered. "I look good in anything." He smirked at Camus who smirked back.
"I think green and yellow suits you," Drift said to be ornery, "though red is nice. Have you ever thought about changing colors? After all, Ma did it."
"Ma is a loon," Springer said as 'Ma' came ambling through the door carrying Halo. "Speaking of the devil."
Everyone glanced toward the door as Ratchet waved madly with a giant glorious smile on his face.
"How did someone so good looking have such ugly kids?" Twin Twist asked as he pulled out a chair, turned it to sit, then sipped his beer. "Did you all take after Dad?"
Springer smirked at Twin. "The verdict is still out on who Dad actually is."
HUGE laughter greeted that as Ratchet pulled a chair to sit, set Halo on the table, handed her a cookie, then glanced around. "Frag all of you."
"Why?" Drift asked with a grin.
"Do I have to actually tell?" Ratchet asked as Halo moved to sit down. He caught her before she missed the condiment box to sit on Camus's plate.
"No." -all of them
"Fraggers," Ratchet said with a laugh.
=0=Optimus Prime
He sat on the fire truck with Prowl and half his family as it rumbled past the Mausoleum toward town. Horns were honked, images taken and waves returned as the spectacle made its way back to The Fortress. All was well in his world. There were 17 Sparkling Day Schools and a myriad of private and religious ones. It had taken a while to do his half while Paragon filled in on the other. The Monastery School was his favorite this year.
Monastery of the Clavis Aurea, Colony of Mars ...
He came in through the double doors, a slow progression as the place was filled with families and elders. The monks and Cyclonus met him, chatted a moment, then everyone followed Cyclonus through the vast facility to the permanent school in the back. It overlooked the plains and was beautiful to see. A school was there, a nice facility with good teachers, therapists and the staff who helped those who came here.
Standing in a bunch were the children, most of them the Functionalists Council infants and some kids who came here from the colony because their genitors liked the idea of it. They were silent but they weren't dull or dead appearing like before. They stared at Optimus recognizing his hat. There was a slight hum of excitement to see him. Obviously, the kids knew why he was here.
"This is … Santa Prime. He came to visit all of you because you're loved and worked very hard in school. You're kind to your families and we're proud of you," Cyclonus said in a softer tone of voice than any of the bots had heard from him before. "Santa Prime will commence."
Prime stifled a chuckle, then sat down on a chair. When he did, half the kids ran to him and the rest followed shortly afterward. It was thrilling.
Here and now …
They arrived and walked into the facility being met at the door by Maxi with drinks. Their posse were whisked in, served copious plates and seated in a place of honor. By the time everyone was there, the place was swinging, humans were dotting tables everywhere and all of the kids in the colony were either picked up or on their way home.
It was time for parties, carousing and fun for the colony, Cybertron and the restored Empire. All was well in the Haus of the Primes.
Merry Christmas Surprise, One and All.
=0=TBC 12-31-2020 01-08-2021
Happy New Year, too, world, though half of it is ahead of me. :D Know how much you are loved. -Cathy in Alaska