I want to thank everyone who prayed for us. They went down from 15,000 to 5,000, and we're going to be able to keep our home.
"Normal Talk"
"Bee's Talk"
"Bee's Talk Holoform"
"Bee's Text-To-Talk"
"Other Side Over the Phone (Comms)"
'Thoughts'
~Bond communication~
~Telepathic communication~
Divorce Part 3
6:00 AM, Sage's POV
I step into Marianne's room and get her up.
"Mo'ni', Sage!"
"Good morning, Little One! Glad to see you're feeling better."
"I p'ay?"
"After breakfast." I change her diaper and dress her in a white sleeveless onesie, an orange short sleeved T-shirt with a fall graphic and "FALL", orange cordoroy pants, orange socks, and an orange and brown flower headband, then start for Cody's room and wake him up. He's got daycare today, while the older kids have school. I dress Cody in a mint green polo with a box print and a brown bear on the left shoulder, navy blue pants with a bear head, green socks, and his tennis shoes, then start downstairs with the toddlers.
I step into the kitchen and set Marianne in her high chair with some of Cody's banana cereal, then buckle Cody into his booster with a coloring book. I then turn to the stove with a griddle and start making pancakes for the kids.
I have a pretty good sized pile by the time Graham and Dani come downstairs, Graham in his usual polo and jeans, while Dani's wearing a white T-shirt and orange shorts.
I great them with a smile before taking a break from frying pancakes to cut up a pancake each for Cody and Marianne. Kade comes down right as I'm setting the toddlers' plates in front of them, complete with toddler sized forks.
"Mornin', Mom." He takes the plate I'd been piling them on, which has five total left. "Ooh. Pancakes! Don't mind if I do."
"What the—Kade!"
"Hey! Save some for the rest of us!"
I sigh heavily. "Calm down, guys. I can make more."
"Good morning, Sweetheart." Charlie looks around. "What's going on?"
"Morning, Charlie." I sigh heavily. "Kade just took the last of the finished pancakes. I'll have more in a few minutes."
"No problem." He sits beside Marianne and tickles the toddler's toes. "Looks like someone's feeling better."
She giggles excitedly. "S'op! No 'icklies! No wan'!"
"Charlie…"
"Mom!"
"Dani…"
"She sounds precious."
"And she's recovering from the stomach flu, I don't need her puking today."
"All right…"
"It's almost time for you guys to be heading off to school."
"All right."
"Bye, Mom!"
"Have fun with Mari!"
"You have patrol in a few minutes, Charlie." I pull Marianne out of the high chair and start getting her cleaned up.
Charlie steps over and gives me a kiss on the cheek. "Jessie's handling EMS calls today, so you only need to worry about Marianne."
"All right." I kiss him on the cheek. "Thanks, Charlie."
"Don't mention it."
I smile before turning back to the toddler. "Let's get your shoes on, sweetie. Then we'll see about going for a walk." I slip her tiny feet into orange canvas velcro tennis shoes and grab her sweater and hat from last time, along with my jacket, and pack the diaper bag with milk, diapers, and we're ready, I carry her downstairs with one of the metal bottles and set her in the stroller. "Ready to go for a walk?"
"Baba?"
"Yep. Here you go." I hand it to her. "Ready now?"
"Uh-huh."
"Okay. Let's go!"
Jasper, Nevada, Ratchet's POV
Agent Fowler turns to me as we start to lug another piece of furniture up the stairs. "Where were you yesterday? Optimus said you had a solo mission, but—"
"Mari had the stomach flu, and I was needed in Griffin Rock. Only those who know of our kind saw me in my normal form, so no rules were broken, and Mari was glad to see me."
"I hope she's feeling better now."
"She was acting normal when I left, so she should be okay today, but I plan to get her earlier than Optimus did the last time."
"You're going after her this time?"
I shrug. "I've got to. I need to have a well-founded connection to the Burns before she's old enough to go to school. I want them to see her as a part of their family, since she doesn't have any humans here. Especially since she'll be out around the town a lot more once she's older, and they'll need a different cover than "babysitting a toddler from the mainland". She's a good kid, but they'll still need a different cover before she's four."
"And you want them to see her as what? A sister?"
"Distant cousin."
"I think I get it. So when are you leaving to get her?"
"I'm going to leave here at two. They're three hours ahead of us, so I'm getting her at five. That'll give her time to play with Cody after her nap."
"You're really doing a good job with her."
"You had doubts? I'm a Carrier, Bill."
"I was worried at first, but you've done better than most mothers I've seen out with their toddlers. Mari's very well-behaved for a child her age."
"Thank you, I guess…" I sigh heavily. "I can only do my best, Bill. She's taken me out of my comfort zone more than you think. I'm constantly worried that I'm not doing something right, or that she's going to hate me when she's older…just because I saved her from a life of abuse."
"Welcome to parenthood, Ratchet. You never feel like you're doing enough for them, but they'll love you no matter what. Teens hate everything, including their parents, so good luck when she's thirteen, otherwise, you're doing fine."
I hand him the credit card. "Seems like you need this more than I do."
"W-what? Ratchet, that's the only thing you have to get Mari's food!"
"I've already checked with the government, thank you, and they've gotten me a job at the hospital here in town."
"You'll have to put Mari in daycare, Ratchet."
"I'll find a sitter. I…don't want her in daycare yet."
"You mean because of Soundwave, right?"
"Right."
Griffin Rock, Noon, Sage's POV
I start the water boiling for lunch, then take Marianne upstairs so I can get her changed. I then dress her in an orange and white cap sleeved tunic with two pockets and blue bows, white leggings, white socks, and orange strappy flats.
I stir the macaroni and cheese I made for our lunch, then turn to the toddler in her high chair. "Ready for lunch, Sweetheart?"
"Num-num?" I nod. "Yay num-num!"
I put some on a plate for her and hand her a spoon before settling beside her with my own plate and a fork. "Eat up, Little One. It's almost naptime."
"No wan' nigh'-nigh'. Wan' Dada."
"I know, Sweetheart. He'll be back before you know it. It'll be quicker if you take your nap."
"Go nigh'-nigh', see Dada?"
"Yep."
"Otay. Go nigh'-nigh'."
"Good girl." We finish our lunch, then I get her cleaned up before laying her down for a nap with her fleece blanket and teddy bear. "Sleep well, Little One."
Griffin Rock, 3:00 PM, Sage's pov
I get Marianne up at three, and change her diaper before
Dressing her in a pink and purple striped long sleeved onesie with orange trim, a pink T-shirt with purple trim and an orange kitten graphic, orange pants with a blue print and purple ruffles at the ankles, orange socks with a blue print, and white tennis shoes, then slip the crocheted tiara on her head. I then take her downstairs. I set her in the living room with a few of Cody's toys and wait for the kids to get home.
They walk in within fifteen minutes, and Dani immediately picks up Marianne. "Hey, Mom."
"How was school?"
"Good. Milo's hitting on me again."
"Did you tell him you weren't interested?"
"Only about a hundred times, Mom."
"Graham?"
"It was fine, Mom. Got a hundred on my test."
"Great Job, Graham. Kade?"
"Great. I got interviewed for the school paper."
"Cool. What about?"
"My winning touchdown pass."
"Great. Cody?"
"I haved fun!"
"Cool!" Dani hands me a sheet of paper—the daycare's way of keeping us informed. I read over it and smile. "Looks like someone was a good boy today."
"I pway wif Mawi?"
"Go ahead, Sweetheart, but play nice, now. She's still a baby."
"Otay."
Jasper, Nevada, 1:30 PM, Ratchet's POV
I pull up outside the middle school and head inside. "I need to pick Bailey up early."
"Just a moment." She turns to the phone and picks it up. "Mr. Davis…I need you to send Bailey down to the office. His father's here to pick him up." She hangs up the phone and turns to me. "He's on his way."
"Thank you." I turn to the door when it opens. "Hey."
"What's going on?"
"We're going to pick up your sister."
"Cool!" He sighs. "I thought Orion was going to do it…"
"Nope. We're doing it this time. Come on, Bailey."
I pull into the base and let him out, then wait for him to return to his normal form before I transform. "Put your stuff away and come back out here." I turn to Optimus. "Are the coordinates set?"
He nods. "The ground bridge is ready."
"Go ahead and activate it." I transform as Bumblebee runs back out in holoform, his blue and gray collared shirt fluttering slightly in the breeze. "Remember. No Cybertronian forms, and no mention of aliens."
"Got it, Dad."
I activate my holoform and ruffle his blonde hair. "Get in."
Griffin Rock, 5:00 pm, Ratchet's POV
We pull up outside the fire station, and climb out before heading up to the door. I knock, and start when Kade opens the door. he's wearing a yellow T-shirt and jeans, and holding a sandwich. "Hey. You here for Mari?"
"Yes." Kade steps back and lets us in.
"I didn't know you had another kid."
"This is Bailey. He lost his voice in a car accident."
"Mom, Rick's here!"
"Hi Rick—oh, who's this?"
"My son, Bailey."
Sage turns from the stove. "It's nice to meet you, Bailey."
"Nice to meet you too."
I sigh at her confused look. "His voice was damaged in a car accident a few years ago."
"Ah. You two wanna stay for dinner? I'm making Chicken Parmesan."
"I need to get Mari home…"
"Hey, Rick. Good to see you again."
"I just came to pick up Mari. We need to get back home. Bailey has homework."
"I understand. I hope we'll get to see you two again soon."
"I would have to agree. Come on, Bailey."
Jasper, Nevada, Ratchet's POV
"How did our little Princess behave for them this time?"
I set Mariposa in her pen and turn to Optimus with a sigh. "Pretty good, from what I can tell."
"That is good to know."
"Dada? Num-num?"
I smile and give her some fruit bites.
