The Diego Diaries: Moving On (dd8 95)
=0=Man Cave
"What's the schedule this decaorn?" Hardie asked Prowl as he raked in his winnings with the help of Halo.
"We have preliminary hearings for the Wheelus Faction trial," Prowl said as he noted his stack diminishing. He ate an Oreo anyway.
"Sounds like fun," Hardie replied. "Are you going to do them spaced out or all at once? I imagine the Sun Base trial is coming up. I forgot about any others."
"I have, too," Prime said with a grin. "Those two I am aware of and I want them close. I think its more merciful given the circumstances than making the second trial wait. I do not know if Coln is doing both. Perhaps he'll do one and consult on the other. That's a lot of work, both of them together."
"I hope the Pantheon comes," Turbine said. He grinned. "They can speak about my baby taking orders and learning the Elder Tales and Songs."
Ironhide frowned at his amma. "You really like pushing my buttons don't you."
Turbine smiled at him. "Is it working?"
"YES!"
Everyone tossed him an Oreo.
=0=Later that night after the kids were tucked in
"So something tells me you're boxed in."
Ironhide smirked at Ratchet. "I know those slaggers. They can't box me in."
"We'll see. When does she go in to do whatever it is they do?" Ratchet asked as he reclined on the berth.
"Tomorrow. At 0800. Come with," Ironhide said as he lay back.
"Count on it, slagger."
=0=At the bus stop, 0700 joors
Prowler waved as he was carried down the street by his amma and appa. Tie and Ravel were going to work so they took him to deliver to the school two floors up.
Everyone waved back.
Orion and Praxus danced up to their bus and with Miracle, Solus and Sojie, they climbed on board, were ticked off the list by Mr. Paginet, their aide, then drove off waving madly.
Everyone waved back.
More buses came for everyone and they waved as well getting waves back from their grinning elders. When they were gone everyone turned to Ironhide.
He was grinning at the buses, then lost it in the pointed attention of his elders. "What?"
"Its almost 0800 shortly."
Ironhide frowned at Turbine. "I AM IRONHIDE! I CAN TELL TIME!"
"Then move along, little mech," Turbine said.
He smirked at his amma, then began to swagger to the corner to cross before heading down the sidewalk to the Temple District. Everyone watched his aft, then followed. It would be a very amusing amused group heading for the Temple together.
=0=At the Temple Gates
"You don't have to come, any of you. She's just going to get a look over," Ironhide said. "Its not like school starts right away."
"When does it start?" Raptor asked.
"Uh, not for a week, seven orns," Ironhide replied.
"Fraud. Goofball. Lead on," Hardie said with a chuckle.
Ironhide frowned, something that if he knew they enjoyed as much as they did he would never do again, then began to walk inside to go to the huge building on the platform inside.
Everyone followed.
=0=Inside
Ironhide paused in the huge common room that was filled with visitors and the odd genitor and child waiting for the examination to happen. He glanced around, then noted the sign nearby stating 'Intake Assessments-Temple Pre-School'. "HA! There we go," he said as he headed that way.
Everyone followed.
They joined a short line, all of them with a nervous Ironhide. He glanced at them. "Aren't you due on Cybertron?"
"We can wait. We made arrangements." -all of them but Ratchet who was grinning at Ironhide with a knowing optic.
He hated that look. It was the only one that Ratchet had that he hated.
The line moved slowly, then he was the front mech waiting. A tall young priest acolyte stepped out, then smiled. "We need to see Halo."
Ironhide reaching into his carry hold and produced her. She sparkled like a diamond from the prolonged detailing he gave her the night before. One couldn't be too cute for the first orn of the rest of their old pa's wretchedness. He held her out.
"What a cutie," the trainee said as he gently took her. "Hi, Halo. Welcome to school."
She stared at him as he sat her on his arm, then glanced at everyone. "Atar? Me go to kool?"
Ironhide nodded. "Pre-school. The kind where you don't go all orn long. Beginner school."
She smiled.
The acolyte walked into the doorway with Halo as everyone followed. They walked down a hallway to a large room where a number of people sat with a box of toys. Among them was Roto. He grinned at them as they gathered around or sat.
Sela walked in with a datapad, then sat. "I want to do this one myself," she said with a smile. "I'm so happy you applied here."
"He's very religious, our little mech," Raptor said as everyone smiled and nodded. "In fact, if you ever need an extra voice to sing the prayers he's on call orn and night."
Everyone smiled and nodded again.
Ironhide didn't even bother to hide the betrayal off his face as he glanced at his appa with astonishment. "Go outside."
Laughter greeted that from everyone including Halo who didn't know why everyone was but joined in anyway.
Sela snickered long and loud, then looked at Halo. "Hello, baby. Welcome to the Temple School. See all these people?"
Halo smiled at Sela, then glanced at everyone. "The shes?" she asked causing a grin to appear on Roto's handsome face.
"Yes," Sela said. "They want to play with you. Do you want to play?"
Halo clapped her servos. "I, Halo play with the shes." She looked at the others. "I play with the shes."
"Enjoy, baby," Turbine said as she grinned at her.
The box was filled with objects which some of the mechs there used to assess her. She could count a bit, had a lot of strong attributes of intellect and body function. She followed directions well, could do a simple three step problem and knew a lot of images when shown them. She was examined by the School District doctor who was here and her audials and optics were checked as well. By the time they were finished including Roto who chatted with her, she was fully administered in the testing.
"Here you go," Sela said sliding the baby toward Ratchet. "I think we've got what we need."
Ratchet took her, kissed her cheek, then stared at his servos, empty and lonely servos as Hardie tucked the baby into his carry hold. "Slagger. Don't anyone move. I seem to have dropped a baby on the floor."
Huge laughter greeted that.
"How did she do?" Ironhide asked with a trace of anxiety.
"We have to score the tests but preliminarily she's ready to go," a tech said as he held the psychological datapad in his servos. "She's bright and happy."
"She's a good femme. Nice, too. Likes her cookie at 1100. Takes a nap like a champion. She's got one, two and three down pat," Ironhide said.
Everyone grinned as he told them about his daughter.
"We can see that," Sela said as she grinned at him. She loved, loved, loved Ironhide and his family. "I will put her in the beginning class with the other seven children. We cap at eight."
"So its small," Turbine asked as Sela nodded. "I expect to be here to assist. I can help you with the details of some of what you teach if you desire."
"I would love it, Turbine," Sela said. "The more they know who they are, the better they will grow up to become."
"What about her speech?" Sun asked.
"I'm her therapist. I asked for and got her. I have a lot of experience going back years with Orion. I'm studying this glitch problem with a number of others who have experience with this sort of thing to devise a solution. Until then, we're going to work on this same as we do with Orion."
"I'm glad. Thanks, Roto. Makes me feel better about it. Short of dropping them over the banister onto their helms, I'm not sure how to make it better," Ironhide said.
"He fell down the stairs and it fixed it when he was Orion's age but I don't think that's going to work with her somehow," Hardie said with a chuckle.
"What's the drill then, Sela?" Ratchet asked.
"We begin in seven orns. Right now, we're going to go over the data and observations to work out the different plans. We have small groups so we can do individual programs for some of them to assist anything that might need it. We go four orns, then break for two. Some of us have home visitations on those two orns and we go to Cybertron to train others for our programs.
"We go from 0700 to 1300 joors on those orns," Sela said glancing at Ironhide who frowned slightly. "We changed up the program, Ironhide. It won't be two joors an orn. We have so many good things to do with our teachers that we've changed it to six joors four orns at a stretch. Weekends as always will be off as well as any holidays that are national like Festival." Sela grinned at him. "Read your messages. We sent the changes to all the applicants in case its an issue."
"It won't be," Turbine said as everyone nodded. "Having our baby around the Allspark and the Well that long every orn is a blessing. Right, Ironhide?" he asked.
Ironhide glanced at his amma, then everyone else. He was outnumbered. "Yes, Amma."
Snickers rounded the table as everyone listened to the final commentary and what she would need to bring every orn. When they were finished, they rose and walked out as someone else brought a tiny mini-con femme in for their turn. Out to the concourse they went, then paused to gather for a chat.
"Well, this is great. We have a kid and dog in Centurion, one here in the city at the Biz Plaza, one at the Temple, nine in Iacon, and several in Terra. I'm sure I'm missing someone somewhere," Ratchet said with a chuckle.
"Just say no, Ratchet," Jack said with a wink. "I think this calls for second breakfast before we go to Cybertron." He slapped Ironhide on the shoulder. "Come on, infant. You can tell us how you feel to get slagged by a Temple priestess."
Ironhide frowned at his elders as they began to wander to The Diner On The Corner. Second breakfast would be fun.
=0=Later that morning
:Ironhide:
:What?:
:You alright?:
:No:
Ratchet grinned. :Wanna frag? Want candy? Want a shoulder to cry on?:
:Yes:
He did. They would.
=0=TBC 02-18-2021 02-21-2021