Chapter 148

-0-Ratchet and Ironhide

"Prime's going to get a sparkling before he knows it." Ironhide sat on the couch with HIS sparkling in his lap staring at the ceiling as he sucked on the feeding tube from his old dad.

[grin] "It would serve him right. Prowl has a fondness for younglings and he should've seen the servo writing on the wall earlier. Bluestreak should have been a clue."

[Silence]

"Are you always going to be a big sparkling whenever anyone holds Orion?"

"He misses me when I don't hold him."

"He misses you." [grin] "That sparkling doesn't lack for friends, Ironhide."

"He only has two genitors."

"But he has dozens of friends, Ironhide. You shouldn't be such a big sparkling about your sparkling."

[Silence]

"I love this sparkling, Ratchet. I love him so much it scares me sometimes."

Ratchet paused writing his epic to look at Ironhide who was sitting on the couch with his sparkling laying on his lap in front of him. He walked over to sit beside Ironhide. "He is at that end of the awesome scale."

Ironhide smirked. "Told you so. Came true."

"It sure did." Ratchet grinned.

Then Ironhide looked at Ratchet with an intense gaze. "You did a good deed here, Ratchet. I didn't know what I was missing. You're a miracle for me."

Ratchet smiled slightly as he gazed at the huge hulk next to him. "A small thing, Ironhide."

"No, it wasn't," Ironhide said quietly. He looked at his son then Ratchet. "It was slaggin' hard. You did a good deed and saved me from never knowing what its like to have a little mech of my own. I love you, Ratchet."

"I love you, Ironhide," Ratchet said. He leaned in to kiss Ironhide, a soft sweet kiss, then looked at the sparkling who had grabbed his peds. "I wanted a handsome sparkling, one as handsome as you."

Ironhide smirked as he looked at Ratchet. "When you say that are you really serious?"

Ratchet stared at Ironhide then frowned slightly. "What? I think you're the handsomest mech I ever saw. Why wouldn't I want our sparkling to be that handsome?"

Ironhide grinned as he shook his head slightly. "You're the best thing that ever happened to me. This sparkling? As much as I'd lay down and die for him he comes the closest second ever."

Ratchet grinned. "You're the best thing I ever did for myself. What an awful life this would have been if we hadn't gotten together. Consider the prank wars that wouldn't have happened."

"We'd have been together anyway. Seemed like a good idea to have a berth buddy."

"Oh really? You wanted me for my frame?" Ratchet asked with a grin.

"You have a pretty sexy frame, Ratchet," Ironhide said as he tucked the tube into his wrist panel. He patted the infant's belly as Orion chuckled. They both looked at him marveling as they did. "He laughs so cute. Everything about him is cute."

"That's because he's your image, Ironhide," Ratchet said squeezing Orion's ped. The infant chuckled again. "As I said, you only wanted me for my frame?"

"That and your sense of humor. You're one twisted old slagger."

Ratchet grinned. "You never complained before. As I do recall, about half of the prank wars were because you were the slagger, not me."

"True." It was quiet a moment as both of them watched their sparkling fondly. "But this one, this is the best treaty agreement outcome we ever made."

Ratchet nodded as he slid his arm along the back of the couch. He leaned into Ironhide's shoulder resting his helm on the mech. "When do we begin fire on the next one?"

Ironhide smiled. "You really want another?"

It was quiet a moment. Then Ratchet nodded. "Our people need us to do what we can. But it doesn't have to be now."

"A femme would be nice. One of each," Ironhide said quietly. "Although, another mech would be nice if they were even close to this one. This one's pretty easy going."

"He is," Ratchet said. "Sort of like his creator. A femme would be nice. But a mech like Orion … that would be nice, too. Sort of appealing, like Prime's younglings. Brothers."

"True," Ironhide said. 'Prowl is going to be a really great grand genitor."

"You do know that we're grandgenitors of that sparkling, too," Ratchet asked.

"I know," Ironhide said. It was quiet a moment. "That was a good move to take on the twins. They need some structure to their life."

"The trine's been a good thing so far. Sunstreaker is just a big lonely youngling. There's something about him that tugs at my spark. It was easy to make them ours. There's paperwork somewhere. I'll get it from Prowl and we can make it formal. I think it'll really mean something to Sunny."

Ironhide nodded. "We're already family with the genitor rights. It'd be a good thing to make it formal."

"I'll get it going," Ratchet said. "Two adult younglings, a sparkling mech and a grandson. How lucky are we?"

"Fraggin' lucky," Ironhide said.

"Language, Ironhide," Ratchet said with a grin.

Ironhide grinned, too. "Yes, dear," he said.

Orion chuckled.

-0-Autobot City, Mars

He stood in the waning sunlight watching the stars come out in the dark velvet sky. Behind him watching, too, his trine mates stood in the doorway of their barracks. They'd flown out to the promontory to sit together to talk, reminisce and feel better than they had in a while. Starscream could remember a lot of the good times, especially the old ones and few of the bad ones. That was pleasing to Thundercracker and Sky Warp. It was also pleasing that Ratchet had agreed to come to Mars and supervise the transfer of the hatchlings from Starscream to the rather beautifully made hatchling pod/incubator.

Starscream turned to look at them, smiling slightly at the peacefulness of the moment. "Two more orns. Two more orns and our kind have a better chance to survive."

Thundercracker stared at Starscream with hopefulness. "That's because you're brave, Starscream."

Starscream looked at him. "Thank you, Thundercracker. I try."

"We know," Sky Warp said. He stepped behind Starscream to slip his arms around him. He held him and laid his helm on Starscream's shoulder. "We know everything."

Starscream nodded. "Good. I forget a lot. I don't know why but I do."

"You were hurt, Star," Thundercracker said. "But no one will hurt you now. We have hatchlings to raise. Maybe more later."

"Prime has to send the message with you to our kind to come. Wait until they see you here. And this place, it's a good place for us," Sky Warp said.

Starscream nodded. "It is. It will be good to see them here. It will be good to see that we carry on after I'm dead."

For a moment, there was a sickening sorrow as Thundercracker walked to Starscream to look into his optics. He took Starscream's face into his servos. "Do you really believe, Starscream, that Sky Warp and I would ever, ever, ever allow you to be hurt anymore? The other three wouldn't allow it, I promise you. We made a clan oath between us. Prime would never allow it either. Please, try and believe it."

Starscream stared at him, at his solemn sad expression then nodded slightly. "I will try. I think my processor won't allow it. But I will try."

"Maybe Ratchet can help you. Maybe Ratchet can get that out of your thinking," Sky Warp said hopefully.

"I don't know. How will I be ready for when Megatron comes if I don't know this?" Starscream said quietly. He glanced up meeting Thundercracker's gaze. "I don't want to not be ready."

"We'll be ready for you," Thundercracker said as he pulled Starscream into an embrace. Affection was never allowed unless they were alone. "All I want you to think about are the hatchlings. Little hatchlings, Starscream. Little ones because you're brave, because you're our good leader."

Starscream felt tears and emotion welling up. He nodded then looked at the ground as he blinked his optics. "Little ones. That will be a good thing."

They agreed with him as they stood together on the tall mound where it all began to stare at the stars. They saw the heavens, beautiful and vast, a heaven that was theirs now. He saw the place from which Megatron would come to kill him. They stood a long time together, then they went inside to rest.

-0-Prime and Prowl

They put the younglings to bed, then walked to the couch to sit and talk together. It was quiet a moment then Prowl grinned. "Ratchet is a piece of work as the humans say."

"That he is," Prime said nuzzling Prowl's neck.

Prowl sitting on his lap in the usual manner tilted his helm. "You do that so well," he said quietly as he pulled Prime's arms more tightly around him. "Another facet of your great leadership qualities."

"Making wingers smile?" Prime said.

"Among other things," Prowl chuckled. "You really freeze up when I have a sparkling in my servos."

"It is not that," Prime said. "We all have a duty to have families now. Its just that the threat is still there and it worries me."

"I know," Prowl said. "I wonder where Megatron is? I wonder if Shockwave knows."

"I do not know. Maybe he is gone and maybe he will come tomorrow. That is what worries me," Prime said.

"Put it out of your processor tonight," Prowl said looking up at him. "Not here, not in this space. Let some place be sanctuary, Optimus."

"Wherever you are, Prowl, that is sanctuary for me."

Prowl felt emotion flood him. He sat up to stare into t he face of the big mech of his dreams. "A poet's soul. You have one."

Prime grinned. "The Matrix," he began but Prowl cut him off. "No. You're the best mech I ever knew. That has nothing to do with the Matrix. It's you, Optimus," he said leaning back to pull Prime's arms around him. "Thank you for loving me, Optimus. I had almost given up hope."

"You steal my words from me."

Prowl grinned. "We were pretty inept. Thank Primus for Ratchet."

Prime chuckled. "What would we do for entertainment without Ratchet and Ironhide?"

Prowl chuckled, too. "I don't know. But that was a pretty classy move of Ironhide's today."

"It was. Dangerous but classy."

Prowl nodded. "Daniels is a dangerous force, Optimus. He doesn't appear to have any values or ideals beyond his own self interest."

"Too bad for him. We are used to that kind of foe," Optimus said.

Prowl grinned. "Yeah. Poor dumb slagger."

They both laughed.

-0-Sunstreaker, Sideswipe and Bluestreak

They sat on the couch and chair catching up. Bluestreak sat on Sideswipe's lap with his arms tightly around him.

"Ratchet is our adopted genitor, Ratchet and Ironhide," Sideswipe said with amazement.

Sunstreaker smirking at the greatness of it, too.

"That's so great, Sunny.

"Ratchet is awesome. I'm having this ... thing ..." He scowled slightly then continued. "Here. Not Mars. Not anywhere but here and with no one but Ratchet."

They agreed.

"What about the naming ceremony, Sunny? We'll have it here, too, right?" Bluestreak asked hopefully.

Sunny considered that, then nodded. "Here."

Bluestreak relaxed. "This is going to be so great. We have to plan parties and things. How about a shower?"

Sunstreaker leaned back aghast at even the mention of the possibility. "No. Not with me. No way."

"Big sparkling," Sideswipe said nudging him with his ped.

"In my place, would you?" Sunstreaker asked with a growing frown.

Sideswipe snorted. "Frag no!"

Bluestreak shook his helm. "Pitiful. You're just both pitiful."

"Get used to it, Blue," Sunstreaker said as he moved to the couch to join them.

Bluestreak snuggling between two enormous sexy mechs grinned with delight. "I already am."

(Kissing is canon in Transformers. Kissing and other signs of affection. Hasbro speaketh. Verily.)