The Diego Diaries: Shadow Box 36 edited for boo-boos :D

-0-That night in the Bosom of Love™

"You recharging?"

"Nope. You?"

"Nope. Want to. Can't."

"Then unburden yourself, Ironhide."

Pause. "I was just thinking ..."

"Go on."

Pause. "Remember this afternoon?"

"I do."

"I said a few things that were pretty profound. I'm sure you remember them." (Smug grin)

Pause. (Grin) "I suppose I do but there were so many of them I don't know which one you're referring to."

Pause. /... slag …/ "Think."

Pause. (Bigger grin) "Are you referring to the weekend thing you want to do with Prime?"

"That's a good one but no. That's not it."

Pause.

"Ironhide."

"What?"

"Are you referring to your 'football team'?"

(Big grin) "Yep."

Pause. "So …?"

/... slag … old mech is making this hard …/ "I was thinking how we always wanted a big family."

"We do. We did. Back when. When was that? Last month?" (Grin)

"Well, what do you think?"

Pause.

"Well, Ratchet?"

"I'm thinking." (Enormous grin)

"Oh."

Pause.

"Ratchet? You still thinking?"

"Uh-hmm." (Enormous grin)

Pause. Stretches out. Becomes very long pause. Becomes the sort of pause that hangs in the air like a soap bubble. You look at it and know it will end but not when. That sort of pause.

"Ironhide."

"What?" (Hopeful voice trying not to be too needy)

Grin. "What do you want out of this? Tell me. We have six younglings now, four of them dependent."

"Uh … I was just thinking … uh ..." /... slag... old mech wants a speech.../

"Go on." (Grin) /... old coot is going to work for it …/

"I was just thinking that it would be good to space them close so that they can grow up together and be friends. I was also thinking how much the grandgenitors love the younglings. I was thinking about how much fun things can be with younglings around the house."

"You've done a lot of thinking, Ironhide." (Grin)

"I have. That's part of my mystique."

(Grin) -both

"So what about the negatives?"

"Negatives?"

"Well … we're both working full time. We both are on call full time. We're both soldiers full time. Then there is the issue of space. This apartment won't be big enough for another sparkling, Ironhide. What about that?"

Pause. Furious thinking in wily old mech processor as wilier mech waits for the inevitable retort that almost makes sense. Most of the time. "We can expand this one by kicking those two younglings out next door and adding that space to this one. It's a one berthroom apartment with a little office space. They need to find a youngling tower and live there, the slaggers."

"I hear you. That is, when their music isn't too loud."

"Makes my processor hurt just thinking about it."

Pause. "Good ideas, Ironhide. You can tell them to move out. Then you can go ask Jetta for the authorization and get the clearance from the City Administration aka Ultra Magnus to modify a structure. Then you can go to the Construction Union and hire out crews to come in and do the work. Then you can decide how to consolidate two of everything although I would leave the extra wash rack and ditch the extra kitchen … but that's just me ... we can turn that space into more living room what with FIVE sparklings at home and all … most of them walking."

"That sounds easy." /... slag … sounds like a lot of work …/ "I got it covered, Ratchet."

"You always were the mech, Ironhide."

Grins – 2

"So you're good with sparking?"

"I'm thinking about it. What brought this on, really?"

Pause. "Uh, I was thinking that we're not younglings anymore ..."

"So you're saying I'm old."

/... slag! …/ "No."

"Over the hill."

"No."

"Too rundown to wait."

"No."

"Down at heel?"

"NO! SLAG IT, OLD MECH! YOU'RE BEAUTIFUL!"

Both pause for an unexpected awww moment. Big red and white mechanism cuddles up against the amazing chassis of big black one.

"See, Ironhide, that's why you are my dream date."

Pause. Initiate search, find reference, read and blanch just a little, cut search, end up-link. "Okay."

(Grin) "You're just the best old mech. When I saw you, I said to myself, "Myself, he's the mech."

(Grin) "I was wasn't I?"

"You bet." (Huge grin)

Pleasant silence and companionable pleasure in each other's company.

"So … what do you say?"

"Well, Ironhide, I would have to have certain conditions before I agree because you aren't being forthcoming with me."

Wary pause. "What do you mean?" (Enormously wary tone trying to disguise itself as nonchalance)

(Big grin) "Why this came up now. You haven't told me the truth about why this came up all of a sudden."

"We've talked about this before."

"We have but you're hiding slag and I want to hear it come from your sweet little pie hole."

(Grins in spite of things) "It is pretty sweet."

"Won't get an argument from me. I like it so much I gave it to the last four sparklings."

HUGE shared guffaw.

Pause filled with grins.

"Tell me or no is my answer."

(Slight frown and furious internal review of the campaign battle plans) "Uh, give me a clue."

"It's a tiny thing that has a chic fashion sense and a big grin. This tiny thing likes to suck on your thumb, hang on a peg and sit up by herself. Got a clue?"

"Are you speaking of the daughter of my dreams? Our own little Hero who is. My hero that is?" (Grin)

"None other. Tell me about that."

"Tell you? I would think you already know, *Doctor*."

"That's pretty good. But I want to hear it from you, ba-bee."

(Grins)-2

"Okay. When two bots really love each other-"

Thunk!

"That hurt."

"It was meant to." (Grin) "Tell me."

"You surprise me, Ratchet. You tell me for a change."

"Alright. This is about Hero. She's going to be in school sooner or later and you won't have a buddy to run around with. All of your joors will be focused on your job and not the cute little lump hanging on a peg by the door. That's what this is. You're having sparkling withdrawal."

Pause. /... slag …/ "Is that so."

"You know it is."

Pause. "For the sake of argument, what if it is?"

"I can get Wheeljack to make you a dog. We could call it Ravage and give old Soundwave a run for his shanix."

"A dog sounds nice. They purr, right?"

"That's cats and sparklings."

"Oh." (Grin) "A dog might be good for the sparklings. I'm going to talk to Wheeljack tomorrow. Maybe Prime can do something with the Matrix and give it sentience."

"I can just hear the congressional panels now. 'FRAGGING SENTIENT DOG ROBOT? HOW? VOODOO!"

"Frag the panels. If we want a dog, we get a dog."

"You might start something Prime can't finish."

"It'll keep him off the streets and out of the saloons."

(Grin) "Yeah. That's our Optimus."

"What about the proposition?"

"Tell me, Ironhide, that I'm wrong about my point."

Pause. Stretches into a long pensive pause. "I won't say no. I do like my sparklings. I feel so … fatherly and all. I love to come home and see them. I love to see them standing around me looking up with their little grins and bright optics. Taking them to school has been so fun." He paused and his energy became very heavy. "All of our lives we've been running and fighting, hiding and enduring. I don't mind the fighting. You know I like to fight but the other stuff … I want more, Ratchet. Here, we're flourishing. I'm going to be taking my sparklings for swimming lessons at the pool when they begin. My sparklings. Our family. You and me, Ratchet. Here, we have a home with love in it."

"We always had the love, Ironhide."

"I know, old mech ..." He paused. "I know, Only One. Wherever you are is home."

Ratchet paused and nodded placing his helm on Ironhide's shoulder as he cuddled closer. "I know. That goes without saying for me too."

"I want to have a family and a life beyond war because I've seen what it is and I love it. I love this family and our life, our home. I wil fight for it, Ratchet and I want it. I want to go to football games where the younglings are playing and watch them grow up. Some fine orn we will be grandgenitors too. Until then, I want a houseful."

"Very eloquent."

Pause. Hopeful tone. "Then you agree?"

"With caveats."

"What are they?" Wary question asked warily.

"I want to design the protoform alone. I want to name this one myself. I want it to be a mech. No one is to know about those details. Not even you. You will find out on the naming day too."

Pause. Goes over angles. Checks out possibilities for landmines. Squares the corners. Plumbs the bob. Hips the hop. Can't see anything but blue skies. "Okay."

(Grins) -2

"You're hopeless, Ironhide." (Grin)

"You're putty in my servos, Ratchet." (Grin)

Pause. Stretches out.

The rest is none of your business. ;)

-0-TBC

2013 (2) For Pip