The Diego Diaries: Retraction 4 (356) edited
-0-Home, Autobot City, Mars
He stood by the window swaying gently as the infant in his arms fussed and cried. He had picked Prowler up from the pillows on the couch and he hadn't stopped since that moment. The aide had told him that he was fussy for Laret and Neo even though Hero had been with him. The baby missed his genitors. Hearing that made Ratchet fill up with both joy and despair. Given their life as professional soldiers, there would be times that they would be apart. Those were desolation times for the big medic. He knew that Ironhide felt it too. But it also made him soar among the clouds that his infant needed him that much. They had gone home together to wait for the time to get the others.
"Why are you crying now, baby?" Ratchet asked as he pulsed soothing energy to the infant. "I'm right here. You are with me."
The infant looked at him, sniffling, then continued, his arms waving in frustration and angst. Ratchet put him on his shoulder and walked to the monitor. "I think that we need to have a nice dinner when the infants come home. Let's see what the take out pages tell us. We need comfort food." He considered the lists of his favorite places, then made an order. Putting the delivery times in, he turned and walked to the living room. Considering what was what, he walked to the closet nearby and began to work out The Plan for the Sparklings.
-0-Some time later
He walked to the school tower to get his son. He had checked in with the genitors, both of them spectacularly glad to see him. They sang the praises of Sunny and the sparklings complimenting Spot a great deal as well. They chatted, then Ratchet left to get the infants. Entering the lobby of the Day School, he waited. Sunspot along with Spot was up to the task of coming down to the lobby himself now. He had even 'run the sims' with Ironhide … that is, he had practiced on numerous occasions walking home by himself. Now that he had a dog, it was 'safer' for the youngling to step out and be more independent.
That Ironhide was following both of them on each occasion didn't retract from the glory of his growing opportunities to be on his own.
Ratchet waited as the elevators opened, families exiting along with the odd youngling heading for home alone. When Spot bounded out followed by Sunspot, he grinned. Sunspot paused, then smiled brilliantly. "ADA!" he said as he launched himself onto Ratchet. Ratchet hugged him, then set him down patting Spot who was dancing around him. "Time to go, youngling. We have others to get."
They turned and walked out, Sunspot updating him on the past few with the grandgenitors. Apparently, it was awesome.
-0-RTR Tools
"It is always good when Ratchet comes home. The infants need to be together again," Ravel said as he packaged a spectacular set of knives into a special box. They were ceremonial war knives that were going to be placed in the museum. Again, the beauty and workmanship of Ravel and Tie Down was being acknowledged. The knives were the first set of implements that they would supply to the museum for display. They would not be the last.
"It will do the babies good to have a genitor here. They were so good," Tie Down said. "The only thing better would be if Ironhide and his genitors were here too. They do like their family around them."
Ravel nodded as he closed the case shut. "We all like them around."
They worked on into the afternoon making the display pieces for the Museum.
-0-At the Sparkling Day School, Terra, Autobot City, Mars
They walked into the lobby and took an elevator upward. They were a bit early which would help them make their way out without too much trouble given that they were probably going to be upset. Stepping out of the elevator, they walked to the door of the classroom where the infants most likely were. "Wait here, Sunny Bunny. I'll get the sparklings," Ratchet said.
Sunspot paused and nodded. "I'll wait here with Spot," he said with a huge smile. He leaned against Spot, his arm around the big dog.
Ratchet walked in and looked around at the floor which was littered with infants getting their stuff put up in anticipation of going home. Neo walked to him and smiled. "Hi. Good to see you back."
"Thank you, Neo, for taking care of Hero and Prowler. I can't tell you how it relieves our processor," Ratchet said. "I know Prowler was a bit of a baby." He grinned. "Thank Laret for me too."
Neo chuckled, then nodded. "I'll help you get the sparklings," she said. She turned and walked into another room to get Orion and Praxus. After a moment, she came out with little bags and two cackling infants on leashes. They both paused when they saw Ratchet, then began to babble at the top of their lungs, their arms raised to be picked up.
"ADA! YOU COME! I GO YOU? WE GO YOU?! WE COME YOU. WE GO HOME?!" Orion asked in his usual loud tone.
Praxus stood smiling, his arms extended. "ADA! YOU ME GO!?"
Ratchet knelt, then hugged both tightly. "We go. You go me." Ratchet chuckled, then rose as Hero walked out in her harness carrying her own bag. She paused, then burst into tears, wailing loudly. Ratchet picked her up and looked at Neo. "I am so sorry, Neo. You aren't telling me the whole truth are you?"
"It doesn't matter. Hero was so helpful but they miss you both," Neo said as Laret came out holding Olo. "They were great, Ratchet," Laret said with a smile. Olo smiled too.
"Thank you, Laret," Ratchet replied as he put Hero down. He took her bag and leash, then looked at the femmes. "Thank you both. I'll take them off your servos now."
They nodded and watched as Ratchet got them going heading for the door and the elevator beyond. They wandered out chatting and crying, pausing to hug Sunspot and get licked by Spot. By the time they made the elevator, the school siren was sounding throughout the cities to let genitors know it was time to get them.
They continued onward downward and ambled out going against the tide coming in. It was a long meandering wander to the tower and elevator that took them to the apartment. When they got to the door there was a stack of food cartons and boxes stacked up waiting for them. The infants tried to open them but were cut short by Ratchet. "Not yet, hoodlums. Let's go inside."
The door opened and the infants entered pausing as they did. "ADA! WHAT SHE?!" Orion asked pointing at the far end of the living room. Praxus nodded looking upward at his ada.
Sunspot entered and paused smiling brilliantly. "ADA! A TENT! YOU MADE A TENT IN THE HOUSE!"
Ratchet snorted, then grinned broadly. "We're going to eat dinner in there. Consider it camping."
Enormous squeals met that as they struggled to get out of their harnesses. Orion tried to run to the tent with his on but fell backwards when he hit the end of his rope. Clambering up, he looked at his belly with a frown. "ADA! ME THIS! OFF ME! I GO SHE!" he said pointing at the tent.
Ratchet laughed, then pulled off the harnesses watching as four of his five infants ran for the tent. They disappeared inside. Then Hero came back out looking up at him. "Ada. Where is Prowler?" she asked with a slightly worried expression.
"Right here," Ratchet said pulling the baby from his carry hold. Prowler had stopped crying until he saw Ratchet again. Then he burst into tears. Ratchet turned and propped him on the couch. Hero ran to him and leaned on the cushions, staring at him with a sad of her own. "Ada, he's crying."
"He'll be better. You watch him a moment. I'm going to get dinner," he said as he turned to the door. Pulling in the boxes, he put them on the table and counter. Reaching in, he pulled out dishes that his kids loved the most. There was 'pizza', a Cybertronian drink that fizzed, little cups of a dish a lot like pudding that Cybertronian infants loved historically including his own as well as 'chocolate cake' and 'ice cream'.
"What did you get, Ada? Where is Atar?" Hero asked as she stood by Prowler holding up a dollie for him to play with. He was looking at it but he wasn't mollified. She smiled up at him. "I missed you, Ada."
"I missed you too," he said as he began to fill plates and bowls. "How about going to the tent and taking food to the babies?" Ratchet asked.
She walked over and held up her tiny servos. Ratchet gave her a bowl. "That is for Praxus." She turned and walked to the tent where the others were laughing and running around inside. "Praxus. This is for you," she said as she want under the tent and out of view.
Ratchet watched, then grinned as she came back out. She took food to Sunspot and Orion, then her own bowl. Pausing at the entrance, she looked up at Ratchet. "Ada? Are you coming too?"
"I am," he said taking sippie cups, his own plate and Prowler into servo. He walked to the tent and knelt down. Angling under, he looked at the infants inside who were sitting by the window with their food and little cups.
"ADA! COME YOU!?" Orion asked with a giant grin. "I LIKE HERE!"
Ratchet snorted. "More words, spud. I like it here too."
They ate dinner together happily. They would play in the tent until bedtime. They would flip their lids in the morning when it was back in the linen closet. Such were the vagaries of life.
-0-On the Earth
Ironhide sat beside the sensor unit as they traced the possibilities all of which turned up goose eggs. The Insecticons had gone to Earth and would likely bide their time. It was incumbent upon their side to monitor the known communication lines they had found of the bad guys. It would be ugly if they had actually linked with Arachnid but the more they thought about it, the more likely it seemed. Until they could discount it, they couldn't relegate it to the side.
Glenn Morshower walked into the command deck and paused beside Prowl. That bot picked him up and found a chair for him in a box all of the giants carried inside their subspace for just such occasions. He sat back wearily. "The base is back up. Thank you all for helping us rebuild. I would hate to think what it would be like here without that."
"It's the least we can do, Glenn," Optimus said with a nod. "We will be rebuilding the Embassy starting tomorrow. It will take at about four days we have calculated."
"It bothers me a great deal to look over there and not see it. It was comforting to see the Autobrand," he said nodding. "What is the outlook for finding these bastards?"
"Not so good," Prowl said honestly. "They went to ground."
Morshower nodded. "They can come up anywhere can't they."
Prowl nodded. "What concerns us is the idea that they have linked up with M.E.C.H. and the others."
"That came to me as well. It might just be speculation on our parts. I don't know what sort of bot this Arachnid is but maybe she did. If she did, they will act again. When they do, we can nail them. Hopefully."
Prime nodded. "We can hope."
-0-Autobot City, Mars
They filmed a night sequence, their portable lighting system throwing enough illumination for the shot. It was a fight scene and the location was off the Industrial Park Highway leading to the Industrial Park beyond. The scene was between Hooligan's character and Dart's. They were arguing over who would lead in developing a crime group in the city based on the old Cybertronian style road crews that used to terrorize city-states on their home world. It would include a brutal fight which had been carefully choreographed and staged to be filmed. Traffic coming and going from the Industrial Park slowed to watch as the director put his actors through their paces. It took four takes and several angled shots to get the one that he wanted. Then they broke the set to go back to the city and a few bits to be added on the sound stage at IntraComm.
It was just another orn for the cast and crew of 'The Bridge'.
-0-At the homestead in Sunspot's wash rack
Ratchet looked at Prowler who lay in his silver bathtub. He had scrubbed the baby, then let him lay in the warm water for comfort. "You look like a new penny."
Prowler smiled, the first one since Day Care. Ratchet smiled back, then pulled him out, taking the towel that Hero held up. Wiping him off, wrapping him tightly, Ratchet walked out, Hero in tow. They walked to the couch and sat, Ratchet putting Hero up beside him. She stood against him leaning on Ratchet's shoulder. "He's so cute."
"He is."
Prowler grinned.
"Even he thinks he is," Hero said with a smile.
"He's that end of the awesome scale," Ratchet said nodding.
"When will Grandatar Blackjack and Grandada Alor come back, Ada?" she asked looking up at him with her sweet optics and smile.
"Soon," Ratchet replied. "They miss you too."
"They do?" she asked with a smile.
"They do," Ratchet replied. "How was it staying with Fifi?"
"She's my friend," Hero said with a smile. "I love her. Her nana and naneth are nice."
"They are. They took both of you because they love you," Ratchet said nodding.
"Okay," she said with a smile. She looked at Prowler. Then she touched his chevron. "He's so cute."
"He is," Ratchet said.
"He looks like Uncle Prowl."
"You noticed that? I am amazed too," Ratchet said with a grin. "You are one observant little femme."
She smiled. At that point, Orion ran out and looked at them with a giant smile. "ADA! FUN! GO YOU!?' he asked pointing to the tent. Sunspot, Praxus and Spot peeped out.
"Okay," Ratchet said rising. He helped Hero down onto the floor. He walked to the tent and knelt. Then he crawled under it. He would stay there until bed time listening to the stories, complaints and all around hoo-hah of their orns.
Ironhide would enjoy it vicariously. Ratchet would send him the tape when the infants at long last were in bed.
-0-TBC July 6, 2013