The Diego Diaries: Down Time 1 (526) edited
-0-That morning
"ADA!"
Optics reluctantly peered out of the deeply comfortable hole he was crouching in. Around him were all his favorite foods and the Championship of Cybertron where Iacon United blasted Polyhex 42-0 playing on a monitor hovering in front of him. It was a dream of dreams but somewhere in the world beyond dreamland a fog horn was going off loudly.
"What? Go away."
"ADA!"
He turned his helm and a tiny Ironhide came into view. His processor focused on the enormous smile, twinkling optics and round little infant chassis of his oldest younger son. "What?"
"YOU COME! YOU COME ME! I LOVE YOU! ME, ORION LOVE YOU!"
Ratchet stared at the tiny bot, then grinned. "I, Ada love you too."
Orion grabbed his belly and bent over in glee that he, Ada loved him. "ADA! EAT! ME COME YOU!" he said holding out his servo.
Ratchet gave in, then sat up gripping Orion's tiny servo. "You little cutie." Ironhide peered into the room. Ratchet looked up. "Someone is making time with your old mech, Ironhide."
Ironhide grinned. "He likes to share. Probably a virtue in there somewhere. Come on out to eat."
Ratchet rose, then picked up Orion. With him giving the breakdown of the morning thus far, the two walked out to dine. Sitting at the table eating their breakfast, the others were chomping away. Ratchet paused, then looked at Ironhide. "I don't think corn dogs are a fit breakfast, Ironhide."
Ironhide grinned. "Thought we could kill the leftovers and start over again."
"Its a plan," Ratchet said putting Orion down on his chair. "A bad one but a plan nevertheless."
They sat together eating as Ratchet took internal messages about the inquests that would be happening at the Courthouse that morning. There were the twenty-four dead criminals as well as Commotion. He was going to testify to some of it but he had not done the autopsy so he would not have the major burden of reporting. It would be a long sad morning all around.
When the dishes were cleared away everyone sat staring at Ratchet. "What?" he asked with a grin.
"Are we going with Atar, Ada?" Hero asked hopefully.
"I don't know," Ratchet teased. "What do you think, Atar?" he asked.
Ironhide pretended to think about it, then grinned. "We can go together to the armory. I have to do inspections so it will be like an extended field trip."
When the squeeing died down, Ratchet stood. "You're going to have to pay attention, Ironhide. They might fall in a hole."
Ironhide grinned. "I will." He looked at his infants with an almost impossible joy. "Get down and clean up your rooms. Don't want Ada to do all your chores do you?"
They shook their helms, then climbed down from their chairs. Running wildly to their rooms, they disappeared. Ratchet looked at Prowler sitting in the middle of the table, his atar's big servo ready to catch him should he give fully in to gravity. "What a cute baby you are," he said with a smile.
Prowler smiled, then looked at Ironhide. "A!"
It was quiet a moment, then Ratchet glanced at Ironhide. "What will you give me if I pretend I didn't hear that?"
"A slagging good frag?" Ironhide asked with slightly frightened optics. "What did you hear? I didn't hear anyth-"
"A."
They both glanced at the baby who smiled madly at the attention.
"Frag," Ironhide muttered.
-0-On the street
The ride down was the usual intriguing circus. When they stepped out into the street, they paused. "If you take the Metro 1 train you can avoid a lot of slag, Ironhide. Put three of them in your hold, then carry Sunspot. Spot will follow along just fine." He looked pointedly at Ironhide. "Make sure you call Neo or Nova to let them know they won't be there today. You might ask Terradive to download Sunny's stuff into his datapad. Do you have your datapad, Sunspot?" Ratchet asked as Ironhide began to put infants into his carry hold. When that was closed, he picked Sunspot up and sat him on his giant arm.
"I have my backpack, Ada," Sunspot said with a smile.
"Good. Remember, Ironhide," Ratchet said. "No hookey without accountability."
"Why don't you call them?" Ironhide asked.
"Because you're the one who wants to keep Prowler longer," Ratchet said using his ace in the hole.
Ironhide looked at him sharply, his optics as big as truck tires. "Slagger," he said stepping toward the sidewalk and the intersection. "You are a hard core old slagger, Ratchet."
"Seventy zillion vorns with you would harden anyone, you old reprobate," Ratchet replied with a grin.
The little group walked away, then disappeared down the metro station after crossing at the light. The morning traffic was picking up as the shifts got ready to change and school was beckoning to hundreds and hundreds of infants and younglings. Ratchet turned, then walked to the intersection of Metroplex Highway 1, Aerie Hill Highway and Cultural Center Road. He crossed, then made his way to the Courthouse where the inquests would be held.
-0-Up there
:I'm here: Ravel replied as he paused in the berth room from his tidying up.
:How is Appa?: Ratchet asked as he paused to let a family pass on the sidewalk near the Courthouse.
:He's lovely, Ratchet. Rather upset about the shooting especially since you were hurt. How are you, son?:
:Good. I'm on my way to the Courthouse for inquests. Has Home Health Care been by?:
:Yes they have, Ratchet. Appa is doing very well. The medicine you gave him is doing a good job. I told them that you were my son and how could he not get better? Your appa agreed whole heartedly:
Ratchet grinned as he approached the doors of the Martian Colonial Courthouse. :You're too cute, Ada. How is Atar?:
:He's fine. We're going to be designing new knives for Springer and Drift. Appa is very happy to find himself a great grandfather to new younglings:
:We aim to please, Ada. Go easy, all of you today. Is Appa coming to the store?:
:We're taking him there. Come by if you can. He enjoys you so much, sparkling. You are his only grandson:
:I will try. Don't overwork:
:We won't. See you later, son:
:Count on it. Ratchet out: He walked into the Courthouse girding his guts for the wrenching few joors ahead.
-0-At the Armory
He walked in trying to sneak past Holi but she had optics in the back of her helm and spotted him. "Ironhide, don't you know you can't sneak past me by now?"
He paused, then looked at the tiny femme, his 'work wife' as she walked purposefully toward him. "Hi," he said weakly.
"Sunspot, you little cutie. Are you playing hookey?" she asked as she took him into her arms. She hugged him tightly, then set him down on the floor.
"I GET TO GO WITH ATAR TODAY, HOLI!" Sunspot said with almost too much emotion. "So are the-"
"So is your school work, Sunspot. Why don't you go sit down and see what Mr. Terradive sent to your datapad?" Ironhide interjected.
Badly.
Sunspot smiled brilliantly, then skipped to Ironhide's office to sit at his little table to work. Spot went with him too. Holi watched him, then grinned at Ironhide. "Alright, hand him over. You know the rules."
Ironhide paused, then turned to one side pulling the bagged and hat-toppered infant free. Turning, he handed Prowler over to Holi who took him into her arms with great delight. "Thank you, Ironhide. I will treasure this always." Then she turned to walk back to her station and desk nearby.
Ironhide grumped to himself, then entered his office closing the door. Grinning in triumph, he pulled the other three he had kept her from seeing out of his hold, setting them on the floor too. "Little femme thinks she has me," Ironhide said. "Well, she has to get up pretty early in the or-"
The door opened as Holi entered with a plate of cookies. Putting them on Ironhide's desk, she walked out with a triumphant grin and Prowler. The door closed. Three sparklings watched her come in. Three watched her go out. Then Hero looked up at Ironhide. "Atar, she is nice isn't she. She brought us cookies."
Ironhide looked down at her, then smirked. "If you say so. Who wants a cookie?" They all did including Spot. There were enough for all. Including Spot.
-0-Courthouse
He entered Courtroom 2 in the Courthouse after taking an elevator to the fourth floor. Walking out, he made his way to the group standing in front of the doors. Several of the soldiers in the shooting were there as were a number of individuals that he took to be friends of Commotion's family. He walked inside and sat at one of the tables where witnesses both of the battle and expert to the cases would sit. The room began to fill up, then Semi walked in with Coln-2 and Blackstone. Others came, then all stood as Semi moved to sit. When he did, everyone did. The room filled up, then the inquest began.
"We are here to determine the deaths of a number of individuals in the violent actions that took place yesterday on the Military Air Field of our colony. We are going to be taking testimony of the event as well as those concerned in gathering information and doing the forensics afterward. Coln-2 and Blackstone will be examining witnesses as well as presenting other evidence. Sciences and Medical are represented here as well. Gentlemen, let's begin."
So they did.
-0-Elsewhere
Prime sat in the Ops Center at the command table. The aftermath of the event was still reverberating in the colony. The humans had left the night before to go back to Earth. He was sitting here now with Prowl and other senior officers to watch the press conference that the Majority Leader of the Senate and the Speaker of the House in Washington, D. C. would be holding. He had not had a chance to speak to anyone before they left so what was coming would be new to him too. He waited with his comrades for the show to begin. Then it did.
-0-On the road to a hub somewhere
"Atar?"
"What, Hero?"
"How come we don't go on a train?"
"We did. Now we get to walk. The passenger trains don't come this way. We walk when we get here to go there."
"Okay."
Ironhide looked at the little bits following hooked one to another in a line. He had the distinct impressions of quails. They were going down a side tunnel to their next stop, walking from the train station to a hub that was slightly off the beaten path. When they arrived, they would follow their atar around the various levels of munitions storage asking good questions and being funny.
"ATAR!?"
"What, Orion?"
WHERE GO SHE!?"
"To see the bombs." (grin)
"GO SHE THERE?"
"Yep." (grin)
"Atar?"
"What, Hero?"
"Orion talks really good doesn't he?"
(grin) "Little mech gets his point across really well," Ironhide said.
"I think so," Praxus agreed as he walked along hooked to Hero. Behind him looking everywhere with a giant grin, Orion followed hooked to Praxus. "Orion is good."
"He is," Hero said nodding. "Orion is good and smart."
"HO-HO!"
"What, Orion?" Hero asked glancing backward.
"ORION LOVES HO-HO!" (Giant enormous smile)
"I love you too, Orion," Hero replied as she led their line along behind their gigantic father. "I love you too, Praxus. You are so nice. Atar?"
"What, Hero?" (giant enormous smile)
"Praxus gave me his dollie last night. Wasn't that nice?" Hero asked sweetly.
"I saw that. Little mech is a nice little mech." (grin)
"Praxus gave me his dollie. Orion would have but he didn't have one. My brothers are real nice," Hero said. "So is Sunspot. You are really nice, Sunspot." She looked backward as Sunspot and Spot followed the end of the line. "So is Spot."
Sunspot smiled. "I like Spot too. Isn't this fun?"
Hero nodded, then continued onward, her leash firmly held in her father's servo. They followed like a little train, a big happy dog at the end of the line heading toward someplace only their dad knew. "I like this, Atar. It's fun."
"I'm glad, Hero. I like it too," Ironhide said with a grin.
"Do you like it, Orion?" Hero asked glancing backward toward her older brother.
Orion smiled brilliantly. "HO-HO NICE! I LOVE HO-HO!"
And so it went.
-0-TBC November 23, 2013