Additional Disclaimer: The Wizard of Oz belongs to MGM etc. I googled to script so apologies if anything is incorrect. I got the term Drift King from the 'Fast and Furious:Tokyo Drift' movie, which belongs to whatever studio made it.(Its been years since I watched it.) Again, I make no profit off this story whatsoever.
~000~
TUESDAY
~000~
Jack's House
[brrrrring! brrrrring!brrrring! brrrring!]
Jack groaned as he slapped the alarm clock off, before dragging himself out of his nice comfy warm bed to face the day. He was not looking forward to the day ahead, as Miko appeared to want to interfere with his lovelife. huffing a sigh, he staggered to the shower, snagging a clean set of clothes from the pile of laundry his mother had left for him on his dresser.
~000~
"Did you have practice for the school production tonight?" June asked as Jack slumped into the kitchen searching for coffee.
"Yeah, I still can't believe Miko managed to get Raf and I to take part in it. Raf's one of the midget singers, and I'm a haunted tree!" Jack muttered, grimacing silently as he thought of his friend Miko's blackmail.
"Well, I'm proud that you are participating. Plenty of students just do the bare minimum to get by at school. Doing the school production will look good on your Resume." June gave her barely awake child a warm motherly smile, as she placed his breakfast in front of him.
It was only boiled eggs and toast, but she knew Jack appreciated a cooked breakfast, especially given his usually long days, shared between his school life, work, and his time with the Autobots.
~000~
Jack washed the dishes, as June left for her shift at the hospital. This was their usual routine. June made breakfast, then Jack cleaned up to allow his mother the beat the traffic in time for her shift. Jack didn't mind much. He felt lucky that they shared the housework evenly, with Jack vacuuming, doing dishes, and mowing lawns. June took up the laundry, cooking, and other miscellaneous cleaning. They had worked as a team ever since Ian Jackson Darby had left them, apparently for another younger woman he met at work.
Jack's family now consisted of himself, his mother, her parents, a couple of maternal uncles and their respective hoards of unwashed menaces that for some reason his mother tried to convince him were his cousins.
His father had not contacted them since Jack was two years old, leaving the pre-schooler wrapped in his navy biker jacket on the back porch swing asleep when he walked out on his family for the last time fourteen years ago.
Ian Darby was estranged from his father Ryan, and his mother Saphire had died some years ago. His triplet brothers Phineas and Thomas were overseas, and had never contacted Ian, as far as Jack knew, since Ian and June had been together. Ian had two sets of younger twin siblings as well. Identical twin sisters, Polly and Kaede and much younger identical twin brothers, Sonny and Stephen . A pair of much older maternal half sisters, Emerald and Ruby rounded out Ian Darby's family. None of Jack's paternal relatives appeared to have any had contact with Ian during his marriage or tried to contact Jack or his mother since the divorce.
Ian had been a paramedic when he met June Jennings at the hospital they both worked at. He had supported June through her nursing training, and they had married a year after she graduated. Cutbacks to the EMT service the year she fell pregnant with Jack meant that Ian had to find another job, which lead him to working as a sales rep for an international medical supply company.
The job took him all over the US and Canada, which meant, that though the extra money meant that they could get by with one income, Ian was rarely home for more than one weekend out of four. June's increasing paranoia and clingyness had eventually driven Ian into the 'more understanding' arms of a female co-worker, destroying his marriage.
Jack quickly finished the rest of his before-school chores before heading for the garage to Arcee.
~000~
"Morning Jack, ready for school?" Arcee asked, as she tidied away her makeshift futon berth and transformed into her Alt mode.
"I've got rehearsal for the school production after school, so I won't be finished until 5:30pm tonight." Jack slung his school bag across his broadening shoulders as he grabbed his motorcycle helmet off the workbench.
The pair made the way to school with Jack quietly trying to quietly sing the Tinman's 'If only I had a heart' as they rode to school.
~000~
After she dropped Jack off, Arcee did and internet search on the lyrics, and was able to watch the 1939 MGM version of the play while she waited for the carpark to clear so she could head to the Autobot base for the day.
~000~
Miko's House
Miko was up early as usual, having finished her usual morning kata and meditation chores. She hated doing them, but she had promised her mother and grandmother on her honour, that she would do them every morning and evening no matter what. It had been a condition of her being allowed to go to America for the remainder of her secondary schooling.
She had trudged through her homework last night, after she got back from the base. So this morning she could focus on her matchmaking.
This morning, she did a internet search of all the date-worthy places in Jasper, making a painfully short list of potential places, based on what she knew of Jack, and the places he would feel comfortable taking a girl, all while eating her traditional Japanese breakfast.
Evie was getting better at eating with chopsticks, and had taken to making Miko's breakfast. Evie liked to cook Japanese food, so Miko never quite knew what she would be eating for breakfast every morning. Julie usually cooked dinners, which were traditional American foods. Miko and Evie ate their lunch at school most days, though Miko would sometimes make up a hasty bento, from the breakfast leftovers if it was something she liked.
Her host parents, Julie and Dylan were actually quite nice, if sometimes timid people. Their daughter Evelynn was a freshman at Jasper High, who Miko had convinced (read browbeat) her into trying out for the play as well, and she had landed the role of one of the singing midgets due to her slight stature. Evie was a nice girl, quiet, studious and a little nerdy. Miko wondered idly if she should hook her up with Raf once she'd finally gotten Jack and Sierra matched off.
Miko's family in Japan had consisted of her, her parents, her cats, and her maternal grandmother Mayu. Her maternal grandfather had been killed in some inter-clan conflict up in the Iga mountains where her mother, Mariko was born. Miko never told anyone about it, as the first rule of Ninja was to never tell people you were Ninja. Miko's maternal family came from a ancient Ninja family, whereas her father Katsuo, was Tokyo born and raised. He was a typical salaryman, boring as they come doing accounting for a company that made defibrillators and other medical machines.
Her father did have a twin brother Kenta, who's two sons, had been frequent visitors while Miko was growing up. Sora and Arashi were as wild as the sky and storm they were named after.
Sora was a musician with a scream metal band called '嵐の警告' (translated as: Storm Warning) that once opened for Slash Monkey on their Japanese tour. It was Sora that taught Miko how to play the guitar, and gave her his old guitar as a 'going to America' gift.
Arashi was a drag racer, with drifting as his speciality. He was the current 'Drift King' in the local Tokyo circuit. Miko had been going to his races most weekends since she was four.
Both brothers were much older than her with Arashi being eleven years older and Sora being fifteen years older. Despite that, they both acted much younger, to the despair of their mother Rin, who wanted them both to settle down and give her grandchildren.
~000~
Jasper High
At homeroom, Sierra watched as Jack walked into the room. She admired the tall lanky boy's toned form, visible from the slightly tighter than usual T-shirt covering his torso. He glanced at her, giving her a bashful smile before ducking his head and seating himself two rows in front of her.
"Well Sierra, any ideas on where you'd like to be 'taken'?" Mandy whisper-teased her best friend.
"Not now Mands!" Sierra harshly whispered back before turned to face the teacher.
~000~
Elsewhere in Jasper High
Classes were dull, so Evie was grateful when the bell rung for lunch. She dropped her books gracefully in her locker before joining the crowd heading for the cafeteria. Evie was almost at the double doors, when a wall of sweaty muscle crashed into her.
"Watch it four eyes!" Vince growled at the four foot tall teenager, as he picked himself off the floor and off Evie.
"Maybe Evie should lend you her spare glasses then, as you don't seem to be able to see where you're going." Miko spat sarcastically at Vince, helping her host sister to her feet.
"Shut it Fashion-accident!" Vince growled menacingly at the teenage girls, tightening his right fist as though planning to hit them.
"Miko's got better fashion sense then you Vince, you live in your football uniform most of the time because you're too dumb to pick your own clothes," Mandy quipped, as she and Sierra walked past.
Humiliated, Vince stormed off towards the carpark.
~000~
Evie had eaten lunch with Miko and her friends, then gone to rehersal. One of Miko's friends was a midget singer like her, so it was nice getting to know him better.
Raf was a year younger than her, but three years ahead of her at school. He was really polite and knew alot about computers and electronics. He'd offered to take a look at her desktop computer at home on Saturday, so he was coming to her house for lunch, before he and Miko were heading out somewhere with Jack.
The pair had practised all the required parts, then headed off to their separate classes when the bell signalled the end of lunch break.
Classes had come and gone, with thankfully no more assaults in the hallways. Evie was glad to return to the main Assembly Hall to continue rehersals.
~000~
Today was the first Dress Rehearsal. Jack Darby looked like a miserable haunted tree. He'd gotten the role of the First Tree, the only tree with a proper speaking part. Ms Weiss had made him understudy to the Tinman part as well, as football always came first in Vince's life, and the weekend Matinee was during a football match.
Evie was looking forward to that show, as many of the footballers were in the production as chorus members and would be wearing thick makeup. They would be singing their parts, then hurrying to change into their game uniforms to play their arch rivals in the quarter-finals. It ought to be hilarious.
Raf looked good in his costume, Evie's face warmed a little as she appeciated the thick makeup hiding her blushing face.
"Alright everyone, places please!" Ms Weiss called out, wiping her hands on a paper towel. "We'll run through the entire production from start to finish today, then on Thursday we will focus on any rough spots. Okay?"
"Yes, Ms Weiss!", everyone replied with varying degrees of enthusiasm.
~000~
During the Tinman scene, Vince went 'postal' at Jack Darby. Jack Caulder had to pull him off after Vince tried to decapitate Jack Darby with a cardboard axe. It turned into a fist fight, though even Ms Weiss could see that Jack Darby was only doing enough to defend himself from Vince's attacks and no more.
In the end, it took six football team members to pin Vince until the police could arrive. Vince was arrested for assault with a weapon. The principal had arrived by then, and he expelled Vince on the spot.
Sierra was fussing over Jack Darby, while Lindsay and Mandy played nurse to Jack Caulder's injuries. Jack Caulder was usually one of Vince's friends, so most of us had been surprised when he defended the other Jack. Both Jack's were littered with bruises and scrapes from Vince's steel rings.
Ms Weiss gave Jack Darby Vince's role as the Tinman, and once the police had gotten statements from all the witnesses, we practised the Tinman scene once more before we all called it a night.
~000~
Jasper Police Precinct
"Darby was hitting on my girlfriend. I had to show everyone I defend what belongs to me!" Vince huffed to an unimpressed female Police Officer.
"How did this start?" She asked, internally fuming at the boy's attitude to women.
"I saw him making goo goo eyes at my girl. He passed her a pink note as he came on stage. Then he started making eyes at her. The stupid slut read the note and just gave him a soppy look back!" Vince fumed as he slammed a handcuffed fist on the table of the interrogation room.
~000~
It took more than two hours for the interrogation to be completed. The Police interrogator had eyes shining with concealed amusement when they took him to the holding cells, as he'd incriminated himself in not only the assault at the school, but also in a couple of illegal drag races that were held in the desert by locals.
All the precinct's female staff were dismayed when Vince's father, one of the most successful businessman in Jasper, came with his lawyer to bail his son out and try to have Vince's statement disallowed.
~000~
Autobot Base
Agent Fowler had been briefed on Optimus's findings about Sierra's parents, and had reassigned the girl's
father to a different, less national security sensitive base under the careful watch of an undercover agent. Another undecover agent would be posted to watch her mother.