The Diego Diaries: Shadow Box 42 edited for boo-boos :D
-0-In the darkness nearby
He paused and looked around, the broken field of rocks that stretched out to the horizon seriously devoid of welcome. Gazing around in his blitzed out state, Ratchet wondered where everyone was hiding. Somewhere in the blotto world of his line of vision, a number of mechs were supposed to be standing. They weren't.
Frag.
He turned at the sound of footsteps and smiled as he heard the sound of peds coming his way. Smiling like a drunk, swaying like a sot, he waited with that sort of good humor and contentment that only the seriously drunk can find. Ironhide, Alor and Drift stepped out of the darkness to enter the dimness of his starlit sentience. "Only One! You came! You saved me!"
Ironhide snorted, grinning as Ratchet launched himself at his big old daddy-o. Ironhide gripped him and they hugged. "Ironhide, I was lost. You saved me. You're my hero."
"You're really drunk, mech. Let's find a medic and get the cure," Ironhide said as he peeled Ratchet off and turned him to go. Alor took Ratchet's other arm and they disappeared into the darkness once more.
-0-At the conference room in Ops Center
Ratchet sat watching the birdies circling his processor with a big old grin. He had hugged Prowl, Alor, Smokescreen at Communications, Jazz who happened to be leaving his office, Prime, Ironhide, Alor, Prowl who grinned and hugged him back, Ironhide and Prime. When Gypsy came and gave them both the cure, he relaxed. "What happened?"
"You and Prowl got slag faced, went to the prison and called Sentinel out. Again," Springer said as he stood leaning against the wall, a grin on his handsome face.
"Oh," Ratchet replied with his own grin. "Was I awesome?"
"You were," Drift replied.
"Don't encourage him," Ironhide said with a smirk. "Mech is hell on wheels as it is."
Prime sat beside Prowl, his arm around the back of Prowl's chair. "How do you feel?" he asked the winger.
Prowl who as oscillating between intense embarrassment and a sense of empowerment for slagging Sentinel and remembering it correctly looked up at his bond. "I'm fine. You?"
"I'm fine if you are," Optimus said warmly.
Prowl leaned into him.
"What now?" Alor asked, ever practical.
"Well, I think boy's night out is over," Ironhide said glancing at Ratchet who was still swimming out of the muck.
"Okay," Ratchet said with a big sappy grin.
They all stood and Prowl turned to Alor. "Thank you for coming, Ali."
"I told you I would kick your aft if you didn't call me," Alor said with a chuckle. "That is a standing order."
Prowl smirked slightly. "I don't do this very much. Just once in a while. It usually doesn't have such a bad end."
"Old mech is a bad influence on you," Ironhide said glancing at Ratchet as he stood up.
"No," Prowl said seriously. He looked at a spot on the table. "Ratchet comes to keep me safe. You're a good mech, Ratchet."
"You are too, Prowler," Ratchet said, his own expression serious as well. "And you are the funniest drunk I ever met."
Chuckles filled the room as Prowl grinned at Ratchet. "My son called me atar."
"I noticed that," Ratchet said glancing at a slightly pensive Bluestreak.
"You are," Blue said nodding. "You are also going to give me spark arrest if you keep this up."
"He won't," Optimus said. He looked at Prowl pointedly. "I am assigning body guards for any future jaunts you take on the wild side. No more recon mechs," he said looking at Drift and Springer. "You are assigned to them for the duration the next time they go out and get slag faced."
"Awesome," Springer said grinning.
"I'm coming too," Alor said.
"Me too." -Blackjack, Flint, Smokescreen who was kibitzing at the door, Mirage who had followed Jazz into the room after he got his hug from Ratchet, Gypsy who wanted to hang around and enjoy the fun, Bluestreak who wanted to paddle, then hug the daylights out of both, Sunstreaker and Sideswipe who were listening on the bond connection from their duty on the Trigger, Ironhide who wanted to clunk their helms together and Prime who just wanted Prowl to be safe.
Like that.
They began to file out and head back to their apartments in the city. The walk was bracing and by the time they reached their floors, the high grade had worn off and they were lucid. A chat on the 24th floor was lingering with all parties breaking for their respective doors. Tie and Ravie got the executive version and with nuclear optics in the direction of their wayward boy, they left to go home with profuse thanks.
Ratchet looked around. "Are the sparklings in bed?"
"They are," Ironhide said with a grin.
Ratchet turned, walked to the berthroom and into the wash rack. He stood under the water a moment, then shut it off. Ironhide handed him a towel and soon he was sitting on the berth sagging. Ironhide sat down next to him. "You're a crazy slagger."
"You knew that going in," Ratchet said looking up at Ironhide with a grin.
"One more page in the legend," Ironhide said leaning in to kiss his bond.
"I think so," Ratchet said. "I can never let Prowl go tie one on alone."
"And you never will. You have Drift and Springer as chaperones."
"Not bad. The former Mrs. Osimus Prime and his frag toy," Ratchet said with a grin. "I'm good to go."
The slow burn of jealousy that always arose when Ratchet remarked on other mechs lit Ironhide for a moment, then tamped itself down. "You are a slagger."
"I know. You're happy that I am or you would be without a sparkling when Hero goes to school one of these fine orns," Ratchet said.
"There's no hurry for her. I can manage two sparklings. I can get another bag for the new one." His cute little pug face was adorable in its needy need for approval from The Boss.
Ratchet grinned. "We'll see."
"Tell me what you have in mind for this new one, Ratchet."
Ratchet rose and stared down at him. "No deal. You said you would abide by the terms of this contract. No hints, peeks or other signs of pitifulness by you until the third day of the naming period. You will find out and see at the same moment as the rest of the city. I won't even allow you to see him when he animates his protoform. I am going to care for him those three orns myself. All of you, family and all are going to be on the other side of the barrier. You agreed, Ironhide," Ratchet said, his optics narrowing.
"I must have been drunk," Ironhide said rising. He looked at Ratchet and hugged him tightly. "Going to be a long waiting time."
"I know," Ratchet said. "I wish it were over myself. This is going to be one stellar sparkling."
"They all are," Ironhide said as he gently swayed. They would stand that way for a while, then go to bed.
Thus endeth the evening(th).
-0-At the Residence of the Prime
They lay together in the darkness, their evening ending in passion and love. He had watched Prowl and felt despair. Yet somehow this time, Prowl's spark seemed lighter. They had fallen into passion together almost as self defense.
"Are you awake?"
"I am, Prowl."
"I am sorry for this."
"I'm not. You obviously needed to do it."
Pause. "I am sorry what I said."
"I don't care."
"I didn't mean to bring up our … relationship in front of you. That part of me doesn't exist anymore, not since I found you."
"But it does and it hurts you. There's sorrow in your spark over this. I'm sorry for that."
Prowl raised his helm off the chassis of his bond. "You are so perfect to me, so wonderful and amazing. You have nothing to be sorry for. I was with you all these millennia. I saw you under every manner of pressure, emotional trauma and despair. You made decisions that were soul killing but you did them because they were what our people needed. You saved the AllSpark and prevented the destruction of our world. You are the most noble and good spark I have ever met. Just finding you and being with you is all I could ever hope for. You were that close to me every orn and I missed you. Do you understand?"
Prime nodded. "I felt the same way about you. I just didn't know how to tell you."
"Ratchet made it happen," Prowl said settling into Prime again. "I don't like to think about Sentinel and all of that. He will never be a tenth the mech that you are. I am sorry that I give in and things happened with him. He wore me down. He was cruel to me, Optimus. But being with you makes everything right. We have a family and a home. I love to take care of you."
"You take care of everyone," Optimus said as he rubbed Prowl's shoulder gently with his digits. "You have kept us upright and moving all this time. I love to come home."
"I do too. Thank you for coming for me."
"I will always come for you, Prowl."
It was quiet a moment. Then Prowl vented a soft sigh. "I love you," he said simply.
Prime felt a radiance in his spark as the warmth of the words settled in over their link. "I know," he said quietly pulsing back the same.
The night outside lingered as the soft light of the stars lit the room with its silver radiance. It was quiet and still. It was perfect.
-0-On the beat
"Those two are something else."
"I know. It looks like we have a permanent date on the schedule the next time Prowl decides to tie one on."
Drift smirked. "Sounds like fun."
"I'm not complaining. Want to go to the lock up at Substation #4 and check out the younglings and their genitors?" Springer asked.
"I would love to," Drift said as the two turned and headed for the jail holding the rioters. Magistrate's Court would be swinging the next orn. It would be fun.
-0-In Apartment 21 on the 24th floor
"Ratchet is a piece of work."
"He is. Next time you make a deal to join them when they get arrested, let us know," Flint said as he paused on the way to his room. "I want to go too." With that, he turned and disappeared into his room for bed.
Alor grinned and glanced at Blackjack. "Life is never going to be dull. Not here, not now anyway."
"No, it isn't," Blackjack said as he finished clearing off the table. "Ironhide did good."
"He sure did," Alor said as he disappeared into the berthroom.
"I'm still taking Hero in the morning," Blackjack said with a grin.
And he did.
-0-TBC
2013 (2)
NOTES:
JC: They are aren't they? Prowl can loosen up and say and do what he can't when he's sober and Ratchet is more Ratchet. :D :D :D