The Diego Diaries: Game Day 1

-0-At the Residence of the Prime

Ratchet looked at the destroyed door laying on the floor and stepped over it entering the residence. Inside was a forlorn scene. The kids were cuddled with various emotional adults who were sitting on couches and chairs in the living room. Beyond was a destroyed window, a dining room all askew and a pulley system pulling up a replacement for the damage. A huge piece of transparent steel was swaying gently off the terrace, big mechs making ready to pull it over the railing. He walked to Prowl who sat holding a fussy infant, Prime's arm around the two. Ratchet paused and scanned the group. "You'll live. You won't like it."

Prowl looked at him and nodded. "As long as all of us live."

Ratchet nodded. He turned and scanned everyone in the room including Elita and Jetta. "All of you are going to be fine physically. Mentally, that is for you to make right." He glanced at Spirit who looked at him with big optics. "You are my hero."

The youngling looked at him smiling wanly. Then he got up and walked to Ratchet reaching for him. Ratchet picked him up hugging him. "You are a good little mech, Spirit. I am told you saved your brother's life. That is not a small thing."

"He was going to fall. Then he did, he and atar," Spirit said in a small voice. "I cried."

"I think I did too when I heard this," Ratchet said. "Crying is good. Never be afraid to do it. It makes your inside feel better. Even Ironhide cries. Don't tell him I said so. He's a big sparkling about some things."

Spirit grinned and nodded as he snuggled into Ratchet's arms. The big medic turned to Jetta who looked grim and strained himself. "Do we have a design flaw?"

"We do. Fortunately, there are only a handful of places that have verandahs. All of the others are restaurants or public places. We are going to raise the height of the transparent guards that go around the terraces. We will raise them to the height of the guard rail. That should prevent this from ever happening again."

Ratchet nodded. "Good." He looked at Prime who sat grim faced and intense. "Apparently, you are just as good an aerialist as ever."

Optimus looked at him and smirked slightly. "Like riding a bicycle," he said.

Ratchet snorted and laughed, the mood elevating as he did. "Good for you then," he said moving to sit in a chair. "We have a football game in a few breems. Do we see you there or do I get to be the stand-in Prime and get the honors? As you know, I am always ready for my close up."

Everyone in the room grinned at that, the infants turning to gaze on their genitors in expectation. Prowl shook his helm. "You're impossible. We almost have a national tragedy and you're ready to usurp the crown."

"What can I say?" Ratchet said with a grin. "I have a thing for hats."

Prime grinned at Ratchet, then chuckled. "You have the knack."

"Don't tell Ironhide. He thinks its voodoo," Ratchet said hugging the infant in his arms. "We need to pivot forward and be grateful. What better place to do that than a football game. Especially one that will help decide the championship lineup. You do know that trophy or not, Iacon is going to beat your aft, Prowler." A smirk began to form on the white face of his BFF as Prowl rose to the bait. Ratchet grinned. /... putty in my servos.../

"You live in such delusion, Ratchet. I pity you, fool," Prowl replied smugly.

Ratchet snorted. "You watch A-Team reruns too?"

"Where do I get my best stuff but for cable tv?" Prowl said with a smirk.

"Prowler! You made a joke!" Ratchet said. "I'm proud of you. Everyone! Prowler is rallying!" Ratchet leaned forward and grinned. "I have made up my mind. The next sparkling is going to be named Prowler. Don't tell Ironhide, the doofus. Slagging Praxian customs take all the joy out of life. I also don't want him to not want to carry."

Chuckles, laughs and snorts greeted that remark. Prowl looked at Ratchet with a level gaze, smirk supported. "Are you really going to name a sparkling Prowler?"

Ratchet leaned back and grinned. "You bet. I like your name too."

Prowl snorted, then laughed. "I will hold you to it."

"Do. Remember, don't tell anyone," Ratchet said looking around the room with exaggerated conspiratorial elan. Then he sat back. "Ironhide wants a dozen and I had a dream once where you, Jazz and a few others were our sparklings. We were having dinner. Ironhide was looking at the sparklings, all of which were grown up mostly and when he got to you he considered how you didn't look like him. He said something along the lines that because your name was 'Prowl' and you were such a cold blooded math dominated little slagger it probably was Cybertronian for serial killer."

Prowl laughed out loud at that one. "Is there more?"

Ratchet thought a moment. "Orion was a wild aft youngling with a mech fixation, Jazz was tiny, you were a youngling that if it couldn't be figured out by a slide rule, it wasn't interesting. There could be more but its a fading memory."

"You need to write it down and make a story, Uncle Ratchet," Rambler said with a grin. "I would love to read it."

Prowl glanced at his son and grinned. "Traitor."

They all grinned at Rambler. Then Prime glanced at Ratchet. "Thank you for coming. You never disappoint."

Ratchet nodded. "I make house calls. Wait until you get my bill."

Prime snorted and looked at Jetta and the mechs who were sliding the window piece into place. "Jetta, its almost game time. Why don't you just fasten that and finish it after the game? I don't want anyone to miss a thing."

Jetta looked at Prime, then turned to the crew. "Brace it. We can come back afterward. Go and enjoy," he said to the mechs who grinned and nodded.

Ratchet rose and looked at the others. "I'm going down and get the mob ready. Then I'm heading over." He looked down at Spirit who was cuddled into Ratchet's arms. "Do you want to come with Ada and Atar or me?"

"I like to come with you. I feel good here," he said somewhere from the middle of Ratchet's neck.

Prowl grinned. "You take Spirit and we'll take the others. We can meet you in the lobby and you can bask in the glory of our progress if you want."

Ratchet snorted. "You would allow me to be part of the train of the Annointed One? Why Prowl, I am humbled," Ratchet said with a smirk.

"If I didn't love both of you, I would slap you for blasphemy," Miler said as he stood up, a huge smile on his handsome face.

"Me too," Venture said. He stood up and walked to Spirit. Kissing his helm, he looked at Ratchet. "Thanks. You're good tonic."

"Don't tell Ironhide," Ratchet said with a wink. He turned and after sassing his way out the door, both of them walked to the elevator and the 24th floor.

-0-Apartment 24 on the 24th floor

"Orion, come here my angel," Ravel said chasing him around the table.

Orion was screeching with delight as Grandada chased him. HIS FAVORITE GAME! SQUEEEEE!

He was caught in jig time.

Ravel strapped him into his harness and turned nearly tripping over Praxus who stood silently smiling ginormously upward at his grandada. "Praxus, my sweetie. Come here, baby," Ravel said reaching for him.

He turned and began to run too. SQUEEEEE!

Ravel smirked and chased him.

Ironhide walked out of the berthroom after having bathed Hero. He paused as Ravel caught Praxus picking him up, giving him a flurry of kisses on the cheek. "I see they play the same game with you."

"I don't mind," Ravel said with a smile. "I love them."

"They love you and Tie too," Ironhide said reaching for the little carry device beside the couch. It was filled with blankets and would be Hero's base of operation during the game. The odds of being jostled were lower in a crowd of 200 plus thousand screaming fanatics. He put her in it, her tiny helm just seen over the edge of the sides. A dollie joined her and she smiled up at her atar, a wholly cute sight. Ironhide smiled back. Turning, he inspected the troops.

The door opened, Tie Down and Sunspot entering. They paused looking around. "Everyone looks very handsome," Tie said looking down at Sunspot. "Every little mech and femme in here looks very handsome."

If Sunspot could blush he would. He hugged Tie's leg and looked at the bots. "They are cute aren't they."

Orion smiled enormously fully aware he was being discussed. He went to Sunspot and hugged him tightly. Praxus watching did the same. The three tipped over under the barrage.

Ironhide snorted and glanced at Tie and Ravel who were laughing. "Better than teevee."

Ravel nodded and bent with Tie to sort out the infants. "I won't disagree, Ironhide."

The door opened and Alor peeked inside. "Hi," he said making a bee line to Hero. He picked up her basket and kissed her. Looking at the others, he smiled. "My, don't we all look handsome today."

The laughter was loud.

-0-Outside in the hallway

Flint and Blackjack walked out of their apartment just as Spirit and Ratchet arrived at the elevator. "Look, Uncle Ratchet. Grandatar 'Jack and Uncle Flint," Spirit said pointing.

Ratchet grinned inordinately pleased that the infant could name extended family. "There they are. Don't they look handsome?"

Spirit nodded and as they reached the two who turned to wait Ratchet smiled. "There are so many good looking mechs in this corridor I may get vapor lock."

Blackjack snorted and liberated Spirit. "That's us. We inspire vapor lock."

"In Decepticons. Does that count?" Flint asked glancing at Ratchet.

"It all counts," Ratchet said with a chuckle as he turned to walk to the apartment. The others followed, Spirit cuddling with Blackjack. Entering the apartment, adjusting to the hoo-hah, Ratchet rapped on the wall. When everyone turned to him, he began. "Prowl asked me to go upstairs for a moment. It would appear that Miracle almost fell off the terrace."

The drop in temperature and joy in the room was massive and instantaneous. They looked at him with shock and fear.

"Fortunately, there was an eagle-opticed little mech there," Ratchet said nodding to Spirit, "who noticed him before he actually fell and fall he did. Optimus jumped through the window and grabbed him. They both fell. However, because he is the Messiah of his people and a stand up phenom, he grabbed a terrace railing and halted the fall. Prowl ripped off their door and ran to that floor taking Miracle and helping Optimus back up. All was saved because of Spirit."

They all turned to Spirit who cuddled closer to Blackjack. That big mech looked down at the little white botlet and nodded. "So we have a bonafide hero and baby saver here?"

Ratchet nodded. "We sure do."

"Well, that is the best thing ever," Ravel said petting Spirit's little arm gently. "Can there ever be a better brother for a sparkling than this one?"

"There are two champs upstairs in T-Bar and Rambler but today's standout and all around winner is Spirit," Ratchet said with a grin.

For a moment, they gathered to praise him, the botlets on the floor looking up with confusion. THEY were the kings of THEIR house. What was this slag?

"ADA?"

Ratchet looked down at Orion. "What?"

"WHAT HIM?"

"Him is a Hero." Ratchet grinned at Orion's expression a moment.

"HERO HER," Orion said pointing at the basket in Alor's servos.

They all paused and looked down. "He can talk in sentences," Spirit said looking at Orion with a grin.

Orion grinned back basting himself in the attention of the room. Praxus watching moved closer to Orion and smiled too. If Orion was getting it, he wanted some too. Everyone snorted at that. They were picked up and cuddled, kisses were given without end and all was good.

"What a slagging thing," Ironhide said coming back to reality first. "This could have been so bad."

Ratchet nodded. "We missed a bad one," he said. "But they are all fine if not shook up. I prescribed football."

"Good call," Alor said with a grin. "Shall we go?"

A rap on the door caught their attention. Opening it, Rambler appeared. "Ada said get the lead out."

Initiate. Search. Lead, verb. Download. Cut link. Grins by all.

"Your ada is a big bossy," Ratchet said stepping out. He scooped Rambler up and hugged him. "I like that look on him."

Rambler grinned. "He is funny isn't he."

"The ones who don't know it are the funniest of all," Ratchet said as the group walked out of the apartment heading for the elevator beyond.

-0-At the apartment in Polyhex Tower

"Come on, Kaon," Bluestreak said picking up the basket with the twins. "We have to go. Ada and Atar are going to play footie," he said.

Kaon ran out of the berthroom, dollie in servo, harness in place. The red, white, black and yellow of its design reflected his parentage. Bluestreak scooped him up and they left, hurrying to the elevator and the lobby beyond. When he caught up with the others they were part of a stream that was gathering as it wend its way toward the Municipal Stadium. The overflow would go into the School Stadium where a gigantic monitor on permanent placement at the end of the arena would display the game so perfectly it was like you were actually there.

By the time the stream trailed off every single mech and femme in Autobot City would be there. The entire city would be on automation, the serious business tied into the relevent mechs and femmes. Red Alert himself would be routed with 127 different nodes all over the city.

You would need a calculator to count those that Prowl was monitoring.

-0-TBC

2012 (12)