A/N: There's a slight deviation from Christmas, but trust me, all will eventually make sense. And yes, I bunged my OC in as well. Please don't kill me.

Disclaimer: I wish I owned Ratbat. Sadly I don't. Transformers – Hasbro and Takara. Me – Nightraider. That's it.

Nightraider will make a bit more sense if you've read 'Creations', but it's not vital.

Italics denote telepathy

Presents: Part 3

Frenzy twiddled what was left of his thumbs, glanced over at his comatose twin, shuddered and resumed staring at the tinsel decorating the walls of the repair bay.

'This bites, chews and swallows.'

Ravage shot his brother an exasperated look.

We heard you the first time. Now shut your vocaliser.

'But I'm boooooooored.'

Laserbeak didn't even bother looking round from her place next to her stasis-locked twin.

We can always do to you exactly what that idiot Autobot Combiner and his bootleg comrades did to Soundwave, Buzzsaw, Rumble and Ratbat…

'…On second thoughts, I'm good right here.'

Ravage rolled his optics and painfully tucked Ratbat's old sparkling-blanket, Bo-bo, around his baby brother's unconscious purple and yellow frame. Laserbeak ruffled her still-healing wings and rested her head on top of her twin's golden chest.

The red Cassette tried to keep his optics averted from Rumble's berth, mostly due to the static build-up which caught in his vocaliser every time he saw the blue Cassette's injuries.

And Soundwave…

Frenzy shivered.

He'd only ever seen his creator look like that once before.

To say the last energon raid had not gone well was something of a spectacular understatement.

Intelligence reports on the Texan oil refinery had shown little in the way of human or Autobot security, and a massive stockpile of crude oil, which, when refined, created an impressive amount of high-grade energon.

The assorted Seekers, Soundwave and the Cassettes had been assigned for a lightning raid on the refinery. Get in, swipe oil-barrels, mock any Autobot who showed their face-plates, then retreat like half the Pit was on their heels.

Or at least, that was the Plan.

The Plan, however, did not take into account the presence of the Aerialbots, the Lamborghini twins, Blaster, Jazz and Prowl. It did not take into account the tiny fact that half the Aerialbots had never heard of the phrase 'targeting system', and it sure as Pit did not take into account the unfortunate and somewhat abrupt meeting of Soundwave, Thundercracker, the Cassettes, and several anti-aircraft missiles with a batch of spilled oil.

On the bright side, they had saved enough barrels to keep themselves fuelled for another few weeks, and the Autobots would probably be picking little bits of charred Lamborghini and Porsche out of their afts for the same amount of time.

Unsurprisingly, the Cassettes couldn't really see the bright side.

Soundwave had taken the brunt of the explosion in attempting to shield his creations. He was finally online after several hours of Hook's ministrations, his right arm and left leg all but vaporised. Half of his chest had been torn apart from shrapnel, and his paint-job was bubbled and warped from the heat of the fireball. His CPU and battle computer fortunately were undamaged, but it would be at least a week before he was in any fit state to leave the repair bay.

Rumble had lost most of his lower body, and was hooked into a life-support machine to stabilise his systems. He had woken up a few hours ago, just long enough to state a deep-seated wish to introduce the Aerialbots to five sets of energy bonds, a tank of water and several thousand volts of direct current.

Buzzsaw's more delicate flight systems had completely destroyed in the fireball. New parts had arrived from Cybertron, but until they could be fitted, it was safer for him to remain offline, much to his sister's distress.

Ratbat had been concussed while trying to help Frenzy drag Rumble to safety, and had become trapped in a pile of rubble. At the loss of his missile launchers and part of his right hind leg, Ravage had managed to dig his brothers out before Starscream had given the call to flee.

Someone, possibly Primus, was clearly out to get them.

If only because of what, or more accurately, who happened to them exactly 48 hours after that.

Well, more to Frenzy than anyone else.

The black and red femme jet leaned against Frenzy's berth, her optics studying the red Cassette, and then the untouched vitamin-ore supplements on the side shelf.

'Okay, we can do this my way or…actually no, just my way.'

The red Cassette met the medic's glare with his own.

'I prefer my way. It means no slagging ore supplements and thus no deliberate tank purge later on.'

Nightraider kept her glare steady.

''Zee? With my way, you get a choice. One way, you take the supplements with a nice drink of low-grade – I'll even heat it for you-'

'I choose the other way!'

'Ah-ah-ah. You haven't heard the other way yet.'

'I still choose it!'

The jet smirked and removed a massive bottle of engine lubricant from her subspace. 'Then I suggest you flip over, stick your aft in the air and think some very warm thoughts.'

Frenzy's optics widened in horror as he clamped his hands protectively to his aft.

'I changed my mind, I want the first one.'

Nightraider shook her head in mock sympathy. 'Tough. You should've gone for option one at the start, 'Zee. And, ah, these supplements can't be melted.'

'But I changed my miiiind! No! No! Offoffoffoffoffoffoff! Hands off my aft you degenerate femme!…WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGHHHHHH!'

Courtesy of a highly amused Laserbeak, the red Cassette's wail of terror and the subsequent fight would be rewound and watched every Christmas for vorns to come.

The femme jet finished sterilising her hands as she glanced over at Soundwave's berth. The Communications officer was lying painfully still while Scrapper made the structural repairs to his chest compartment.

Despite the circumstances, he was grateful to see the one who had helped to online his creations so many millions of years previously. Any software or antivirus upgrades were entrusted to Hook, but otherwise, Nightraider was the only Transformer whom Soundwave trusted, other than himself, to repair or perform physical upgrades on his Cassettes.

Hence why she had been summoned from Cybertron, along with a few, rather bizarre, requests.

The Communications officer carefully tilted his head towards his colleague. 'Disagreement with Frenzy: terminated?'

Nightraider flashed a quick smile in his direction as she started prepping her tools for surgery on Buzzsaw.

'You'd be surprised at how few mechs feel inclined to argue with me after the suppository's gone in.'

'Christmas present: unwanted by Frenzy.'

She raised an eye-ridge at the still unfamiliar term. 'And no-one's explained to me yet what this Christmas thing's meant to be.'

Soundwave briefly closed his optics in pain as Scrapper welded a support strut into place. 'Suggestion: ask Skywarp.'

'Isn't there another method? One that means I don't have to leave the repair bay?'

'Cassettes: injured. Myself: unfamiliar with fine details of event. Thundercracker: unconscious. Skywarp: uninjured and was collaborating with Cassettes prior to raid.'

The red and black jet still looked uncertain as she batted a mirrored decoration out of her line of sight and watched the patterns the light cast on Soundwave's blistered paint.

'That still involves leaving the bay.'

Hook raised his head from his rewiring job on the comatose Thundercracker. 'Megatron guaranteed your safety in the base. Why are you so concerned?'

'Megatron guaranteed my safety. Starscream? Not so much. And I did kind of tell him to bring it on the last time we met, so…yeah.'

Scrapper rolled his optics. 'Femmes. Do all of you have the ability to hold grudges or are you just a special case?'

Nightraider snorted as she finished cleaning a welding torch. 'I prefer to let my grudges die either of old age or via fusion cannon. Unfortunately, 'Screamer still hasn't fallen prey to either of these possibilities.'

The Constructicon front-loader groaned and waved a hand in the general direction of the repair bay door. 'Go. Refuel. Communicate. Agitate. Whatever. And keep your comm. link on.'

The jet slapped her comm. device as she headed towards the bay door. 'I'll bring the afternoon rations back with me.'

Her speaker buzzed as the door closed behind her. 'Hey 'Warp, you busy…?'

Soundwave lowered his optics and idly studied the damaged paintwork on his torso as Scrapper finished the patch-job on his side.

A week for him to recover, possibly longer for his creations to be able to leave the repair bay unassisted. Nightraider would be unwilling to leave until that prediction became a reality, especially considering her fondness of all the Cassettes…

'…Any reason she didn't apply for the front lines?'

The Communications officer glanced up at the surgeon. 'Refine parameters of query.'

'She's a trained medic, decent combat experience, seeker model…Megatron's always looking for troops with those specs, so why's she stuck on Cybertron with Shockwave?'

'Nightraider: prefers to create. Destruction: disliked unless necessary.'

'And yet she considers annoying the bearings out of Starscream as one of her hobbies.'

The navy blue mech smirked under his face-mask. 'Qualities in surplus: self-confidence and empathy. Known deficiencies: lack of common sense and extreme stubbornness.'

'I spy with my lil' eye…something beginning with…T!'

Ravage let his head drop against the berth and groaned.

No video-games, no book-pads, no sign of Soundwave in the immediate vicinity, no conscious Rumble…

The inevitable had happened. Frenzy had gotten bored.

And a bored Frenzy, as his siblings were only too painfully aware, was a fragging annoying Frenzy.

…Tray.

'Nope!'

…Tile.

'Nuh-uh!'

Laserbeak cracked open one sleepy optic and glared at her brother. The inability to speak ever again if you don't shut your vocaliser this second?

Frenzy returned his sister's glare. 'That's more than one word, 'Beaky.'

The red condor shut her optic and snuggled further into her twin's unconscious form. Please just pretend I've threatened you and shut up.

'Not 'til you guess. Rav, guess!'

Oh Primus, give me strength…tube?

'Guess again!'

I give up. What is it?

'Tree!'

The feline glanced around the immediate vicinity and back at his sibling. What tree? I see no tree.

'There's one in my mind!'

…Frenzy. There is your mind, and there is reality. They seem to be worlds apart.

'Meh. If I imagine hard enough, maybe we'll get a Christmas tree in here. Right where my mind says it'll be.'

Your mind also says that if you imagine hard enough, Elita-One will be writhing on your chassis demanding that you take her immediately. That doesn't mean it'll ever happen.

Frenzy folded his arms behind his head and grinned up at the ceiling. 'Maybe not, but it kills a couple o' hours.'

…Laserbeak?

The red condor opened her optics and shared a look with her feline sibling. Hmmm?

Is there any way you can kill him from here and make it look like an accident?

It's incredibly tempting, but Rumble would miss him eventually. Besides, Motormaster's already staked a claim on the pair of them after that incident with the alligator eggs.

The black Cassette sighed and rested his head next to Ratbat's battered frame. Well, it was a nice thought while it lasted.

...Mmmh...?

All of them heard it and felt the tiny psychic murmur.

The three Cassettes exchanged a glance and stared at their youngest sibling. Ravage was the first to move, carefully nuzzling Ratbat's cheek and watching closely as the little red optics came online.

…Ravage…?

Yes, little brother. I'm here.

The purple and yellow Cassette flinched at the telepathic murmur, his face scrunching up in pain as his CPU came fully online.

…I…hurt…don't wanna hurt…want…Soundwave…

Laserbeak whipped her head round and nodded at her crimson brother. Frenzy smacked his fist against the berth-side comm. link, instinctively raising his mental shields. If Ratbat felt even half as slagging lousy as they did, this wasn't gonna be pretty.

Hook's voice crackled down the line, sounding deeply put-upon.

'…What now, Frenzy? And this better not be another request for a different coloured catheter bag or I swear to Primus I'll-'

The red Cassette didn't even get the chance to snark back in kind before Ratbat's wail of pain, confusion and general ouchies shattered the relative quiet of the repair bay.

And several audio receivers.

Ratbat's lower lip wobbled as he and Bo-bo cuddled into the undamaged side of his creator's chest.

Will you be okay?

Soundwave's optics softened. He pulled Ratbat out of his position in the crook of his arm and settled him on his chest.

'I will be at full operational capacity within the week. You must not worry. It will not aid your recovery.'

What about Rumble and Buzzsaw?

'Femme CMO Nightraider is currently resident in the base. She is due to commence surgery on their systems.'

The little bat thought for a few seconds, and remembered the feeling of a kind, ages-old spark pulsing next to his, just before a warm pair of arms picked him up and let him snuggle against his creator's chest…

He perked up at the memory.

…She's the one who looked after me when I was a sparkling. She was nice!

'She will be pleased to know that you recall her.'

Is she going to fix you as well?

'She will have enough to do with repairing you and your siblings. The Constructicons will be in charge of my repairs.'

Okay. But are we still having Christmas?

Soundwave's reply was cut off by a familiar teleportation sound, and the sudden appearance of a TV monitor with Skywarp's legs attached to the base. Leaning against the purple jet's back, Nightraider balanced a tray of ener-nog, energon cubes and a stack of videos with a certain amount of difficulty.

'-'ll love it, trust me!'

'Oh, how I've missed the sense of dread I get whenever you say the words, 'they'll love it, trust me'.'

Skywarp managed to dump the TV on a nearby trolley and looked slightly hurt at his fellow jet's words as he removed the videos from her grasp.

'The humans like all this stuff, and it's all on at Christmas, so it's gotta be tradition.'

'Notice the word 'human'. There is something of a difference between humans and Cassettes. Admittedly not much in Rumble and Frenzy's case-'

An irritated yelp rang out from the side ward. 'Hey!'

'-But I'm not having my patients getting fed more human slag than is absolutely necessary. Especially when they're healing up!'

Skywarp held up the two topmost video boxes as shields. 'But they're classics!'

''The Great Escape' and 'The Snowman'?'

The purple F-15 gazed at her with what he clearly thought was his most adorable smile, and what she thought was a visible dose of indigestion.

She sighed. 'Oh…fine. But only if Soundwave has no problems with it.'

Skywarp wilted slightly under Soundwave's gaze, but didn't let his grin waver as his optics met those of Ratbat.

'RB? You and the others want some vid-time? Cartoons, war movies and general explosions, take your pick!'

The Communications officer shared a look with the black and red jet, and then gazed down at the little bundle of bat and Bo-bo on his chest. Ratbat was transfixed by the sight of both the TV and videos, his optics sparkling with excitement.

Whatever Soundwave's youngest creation wanted, he would fragging well get.

TBC