Crack in the Pavement
Chapter 26
Dearly beloved, we have gathered here today...
Disclaimer: I don't own Transformers; I'm just prostituting it for my amusement.
Summary: Megatron uses Ironhide to get his revenge on Prime. Multiple minor side pairings, see list in fic.
Warning: Graphic rape. Torture. M/M robot slash consensual as well as NON-CON
Pairings: Non-con Megatron/ Ironhide, Con Optimus/ Ironhide. Established Jazz/ Prowl, Twins/ Ratchet, Mirage/ Cliffjumper
Cybertronian tradition dictated that on the day of the bonding ceremony, the future mates were to be kept apart and prepared for the ceremony by their families. Ratchet had no family on the Ark, actually he had no family at all. But he was not alone preparing for the ceremony. Wheeljack and Ironhide were with him, waxing his newly painted armour to a brilliant shine. Prime was the officiant, else he would have been there as well. These mechs were his family. They smiled with Ratchet and teased him as nerves overwhelmed him.
"Yer ready, Ratchet," Ironhide proclaimed, stepping back to admire the job he and Wheeljack had done on Ratchet's armour. Ratchet looked spotless, seamless. There wasn't a single imperfection in his armour. Wheeljack and Ironhide, his family, had seen to that.
"I don't feel ready," Ratchet grumbled. He felt like a youngling, his fuel processor flipping and flopping. Humans described a similar feeling as butterflies in their stomachs. Ratchet didn't think butterflies could make him feel quite this disquieted. What was he thinking? Was this really a good idea?
"Of course you don't," Wheeljack replied, his headfins flashing jubilantly. "No one feels ready on their bonding day."
"You deserve this Ratch," Ironhide said, clapping Ratchet on the back. "I admit, I never expected the Twins would be yer match but they are."
"They are," Ratchet nodded. "I can't believe it either. Those two. I can't believe they they love me. I know they do but it seems unreal."
"Don't think yer loveable?" Ironhide teased, earning him a scowl.
"Not by them," Ratchet replied. "Handsome, young mechs."
"Age is a state of processor," Wheeljack exclaimed. His optics sparkled with humour.
"This is funny and somewhat cute, Ratch," Ironhide chuckled.
"Shut it, both of you," Ratchet glowered. His intakes whirled as his engine revved and hiccupped. "I only hope that they're feeling as nervous as I am."
The Twins had expected, had planned, to prepare for the ceremony in their old, abandoned berth room. When the day of the ceremony came the brothers planned to get up early and to go to the wash racks before they became too packed with other mechs wanting to get spruced up for the coming party. Neither Sideswipe or Sunstreaker would have predicted that, when they opened their door that morning, Prowl and Jazz would seize them and usher them off to their quarters as Bluestreak followed along behind. Inside Jazz and Prowl's quarters, there were multiple cubes of energon, containers of expensive wax, and seating for five mechs. Confusion coloured the Twins' faceplates.
"You didn't even think to ask for anyone to act as your family," Prowl said, gravely. "You seem to forget you have more than just each other as family. I discipline you both regularly enough to be your older brother. Jazz is my mate and Sideswipe's favourite foe, that makes another brother to you. Bluestreak seems to like you for yourselves. He has questionable taste."
"Hey," Bluestreak complained.
"The point is we're your family too and it's time to get you two ready," Jazz exclaimed. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe, maybe for the first time in their lives, were speechless and not with anger.
The three mechs that considered the Twins family, led Sideswipe and Sunstreaker into Prowl and Jazz's private wash racks and set to work making them shine. Usually the Twins helped each other with their polish and wax. Today Prowl and Jazz each took charge of a twin while Bluestreak helped with both. By the time Sunstreaker and Sideswipe were waxed to perfection, they were laughing at Jazz's jokes and Bluestreak's attempts at solemnity, their nervousness almost forgotten.
Jazz pushed a cube into each glowing brother's servos once they returned to the main room. The Twins looked at the cubes, not entirely certain their fuel tanks could handle the fuel. Their nervousness was coming back. Prowl watched them gravely even as Jazz handed him and Bluestreak cubes before taking one for himself.
"You need to refuel," Prowl ordered. "Or you may offline during the ceremony."
"Ratchet wouldn't be impressed," Jazz added. Sunstreaker made a sound of disgust, but took a sip from his cube. Sideswipe did as well.
"Smile, you two," Bluestreak said. "You look like you're going to a funeral. This has got to be the best day of your lives to date. Be happy."
Sideswipe forced a smile from his mouth, the expression turned into a full grin. It was really happening. He looked to Sunstreaker and found that his brother grinning back at him. In just one short hour they were going to bond with Ratchet. Ratchet would be theirs for life. Excitement rushed through them. Sunstreaker turned to Prowl and hugged him, hard. Prowl froze and commanded his processor not to crash.
"Thanks," Sunstreaker said when he released Prowl. "For being a meddling brother."
"Your welcome," Prowl replied.
"It's time," Bluestreak announced. "Come on, you can't be late for your own bonding ceremony."
There was no room in the Ark big enough to fit every Autobot. No Autobot was going to be excluded from the first bonding ceremony to be performed between Autobots since well into the War. Prowl and Jazz's bonding didn't count as they eloped. Optimus had suggested, and Ratchet and the Twins had agreed, that they have the ceremony outside with the mountain as the back drop. The Autobots not involved in the ceremony were lined up waiting for it to begin when Ironhide and Wheeljack led Ratchet from the Ark and behind a privacy screen, painted with a scene of the Crystal gardens. Ratchet would walk from this screen to meet the Twins in the centre of the horseshoe where Optimus would be waiting to perform the ceremony. Curiosity made Ratchet sneak a peak at the ceremony space. Humans were seated in chairs in front of the Autobots. The chairs were draped with fabric and decorated with bows and flowers. Ratchet froze and looked at Ironhide.
"What's with the bows and flowers?" Ratchet asked. On the other side of the ceremony space, Ratchet could see the other privacy screen, painted with another scene of the gardens, that hid the Twins from his sight.
"Carly," Ironhide explained.
"What about her?" Ratchet asked, not finding the explanation all that helpful.
"She said it's a human tradition," Ironhide explained.
"Okay, why are there humans in the chairs?" Ratchet ask. There were a few dozen chairs. Men in suits and women in dresses sat in the chairs, some chairs were still empty. Ratchet could identify just by the suits and sunglasses just how many of the people seated were bodyguards to the better dressed guests.
"The Presidents and Prime Ministers of the United States, Canada, Russia and Peru sent representatives and gifts," Ironhide explained. "Optimus couldn't refuse them without making an incident out of it so we just didn't tell you. Oh don't give me that look. We didn't tell you because you would have tried to find some way to back out of it and you deserve to have a proper ceremony, surrounded by family and friends."
"I can't go through with this," Ratchet said as he doubled over. His intakes took quick shallow breathes. Ratchet felt like he was hyperventilating.
"Easy Ratch," Wheeljack soothed. "Deep intakes."
"Come on now Ratchet, you can't walk out on Sunny and Sides on yer bonding day," Ironhide said. "Yer okay."
"Ratch, I haven't seen you this nervous since your graduation," Wheeljack exclaimed. "And you had to defend your dissertation in front of the entire faculty."
"Is this why you quit teaching?" Ironhide asked. "Nerves?"
"No!" Ratchet snapped as he tried to even out his intakes and the painful pulsing of his spark. "I'm not nervous standing up and talking about what I know. But standing in front of a bunch strangers... Baring my spark..."
"Whoa, Ratch," Ironhide gasped as he barely caught Ratchet as he tumbled over. "You can do this. Yer inhibitor is in place, so no accidental overloads in front of everyone. In just a few minutes yer going to walk to Optimus and the Twins are going to meet you there. Forget anyone else is here. Just think of yer Twins."
"Why are the Aerialbots flying a patrol right over us?" Ratchet asked as he allowed Ironhide to steady him and he heard the fliers fly overhead.
"Human media got wind of the ceremony," Wheeljack explained sympathetically. "But the Aerialbots and the Air Force helicopters are keeping the skies clear of any shutter bugs."
"My bonding has become a media circus," Ratchet almost cried.
"No, no, no," Wheeljack tried to reassure him. "They aren't getting anywhere close enough to take pictures."
Cybertronian music floated to Ratchet's audios, and he looked around and bit his lip. Playing music during a bonding ceremony wasn't a Cybertronian tradition but it was a human one. Blaster and Jazz had both mentioned it and Ratchet had convinced the Twins to go along with it. They'd let him pick the arrangement, a classical score from the Golden Age of Cybertron. The music was soothing; the familiar notes slowed his rabidly pulsing spark. At least a little bit. At the very least it would mask the sound of his nervously revving engine and his hissing intakes.
"I can do this. I can do this," Ratchet repeated the mantra to himself. He took a deep breath through his intakes and straightened himself. "I think I can do this."
"He's not going to come out," Sideswipe worried aloud. "Not in front of all those humans.
"No, he will," Sunstreaker said in a less than convincing drone. He forced himself to sound confident. "He won't leave us hanging."
"Calm down, both of you," Prowl urged. "Ratchet would not abandon either of you. I'm sure he's freaking out a little but he isn't going to leave you at the proverbial altar."
"Maybe we should have warned him," Jazz commented to Prowl. "But then he probably would have cancelled the ceremony and tried to convince the Twins to elope."
"We can hear you," Sunstreaker grumbled with a sour tone. "Ratchet won't admit it but he wants a real ceremony. We wouldn't have eloped. But he probably would have cancelled and tried to wear us down."
"And we would have given in eventually," Sideswipe sighed mournfully. "He doesn't like strangers, especially not human ones."
"Spike, Carly, Sparkplug and Chip have arrived," Bluestreak announced. "Blaster has them sitting in the centre of the horseshoe. Thankfully the dignitaries weren't unhappy about sitting along the sides of the horseshoe."
"Friends take precedence," Sideswipe said. "Maybe Ratchet will be a little more comfortable seeing Sparkplug."
"Blaster is about to start the music," Jazz announced. "It's one of Ratchet's favourites, right?"
"Yeah," Sunstreaker replied. The music started. Cybertronian flutes and string instruments played together in a way that made their notes sound like rain. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe both froze. Oh Primus they were about to be bonded.
"Show time, boys," Jazz exclaimed. Over the music, Optimus's strong voice called for attention.
"Would that families of Ratchet, and the twins Sunstreaker and Sideswipe present them to be bonded," Optimus asked. All other talking ceased and every eye and optic focused on Optimus.
Ratchet and the Twins were led to Optimus by their self-appointed families. Optimus smiled at the three of them. Their families stepped back to form the ends of the horseshoe. Simultaneously Sideswipe and Sunstreaker reached out and each caught one of Ratchet servos, Sunstreaker his left, and Sideswipe his right. This close, Ratchet could hear the Twins' engines revving as loudly as his. They met his optics with an expression that mirrored Ratchet's own anxiety. Ratchet shutter edhis optics for a moment before opening them again and smiling with all the love he had for the Twins. Both smiled back with all their love.
"We stand here together to witness the bonding of Ratchet, and the Twins Sideswipe and Sunstreaker," Optimus announced in a deep, serious but warm voice. "There is no greater commitment a Cybertronian can make to another. And it is not with haste that these three mechs have come together to bond before us. We ask that Primus, Lord of Light, bless Ratchet, Sideswipe and Sunstreaker with a long and happy life together. Connected forever by the bonding of their sparks."
Optimus turned and said to Ratchet: "Ratchet, present your spark to your intendeds."
Ratchet did as instructed, slowly opened the doors of his spark casing and presented his furiously pulsing spark to Sunstreaker and Sideswipe.
"Twins, Sunstreaker and Sideswipe, present your shared spark to your intended," Optimus instructed the Twins. Not quite in unison, they opened their spark casings and bared their sparks which pulsed in frantic synchrony.
"In view of family and friends, merge your sparks together," Optimus called. The three mechs stepped together. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe angled themselves so both their sparks merged together with Ratchet's at the same time. A brilliant blue light erupted between them as their sparks bonded themselves together, and the human guests gasped. The light faded and Ratchet and the Twins stepped away from each other, drawing their sparks apart and closing their chassis. Ratchet squeezed the Twins' servos and beamed up at them. Sideswipe pulled Ratchet against his chassis hugged him. Ratchet wrapped his arms around Sideswipe and Sunstreaker pressed himself against Ratchet's back and wrapped his arms over Ratchet's.
"It is my great pleasure to present to their families and friends, the newly bonded Ratchet, Sideswipe and Sunstreaker," Optimus proclaimed. The Autobots cheered along with their human friends, and the dignitaries clapped. The bonded trio parted and smiled out at their friends and family. Ratchet shuttered his optics to keep the coolant that was beginning to pool from spilling out. How long ago had he stopped dreaming that he could ever be this happy? Sunstreaker and Sideswipe reached over their new bond and imbued him with their happiness and love. Ratchet opened his optics and reached up to touch both their faces and poured all his love over their bond.
End Chapter 26
AN/ Sorry! Sorry! Sorry! Forgot about updating this. I am fighting my writers block. It isn't going great. The plot is there it's getting it into words. NOTHING has been abandoned... They're just on hold.