TTTB 3
Stephanie sat in the crook of Jazz's right arm as he carried her into the rec room.
She knew that she had very little money, but these two robots, no; mechs and Mrs. Lennox were going to give her something to eat without even making her pay for it. It had been a long time since anyone had tried to actually take care of her, or even show her anything. In fact, there had been only two people who'd done so since the deaths of her family. The first was her therapist Ms. Stovall, and the second was 'Old Miss Connors' who'd proven to be more than a little on the weird side.
Old Miss Connors had shown from the very beginning that she was more than a little strange by never referring to herself as anything other than 'Old Miss Connors'. As often as she'd broken down into tears during the first few days, the old homeless woman had still made her smile. She could still hear the old woman's way of talking. "Now honey, don't you fret over that. You know that Old Miss Connors won't let that happen, so you just let Old Miss Connors worry about it." She didn't care how crazy the old woman had been. No one else would bother her, and she'd felt safe while she was with the old woman.
Old Miss Connors had sort of taken her in hand and shown her the methods and means to survive on the streets. The old woman had helped her find a replacement cane after her few belongings had been stolen on the third day. She'd come to more than tolerate living on the streets in the company of Old Miss Connors. The old woman had known how to live on the streets, and had gladly taught her how to survive in such a harsh environment. She'd stayed with the woman for almost a month, before the woman had gone into a manic state, and had driven her off after coming to believe that she was sent by the government to spy for them.
Stephanie hadn't wanted to leave, but the old woman had been rather forcefully adamant, and so she'd finally left. She'd found a new area to live in, and while the smell was beyond horrible, it was a place that no one else would ever come to. Deep in the sewers of Mission City, she'd made several hiding places. Places where she could sleep without being disturbed. Places where she was safe from others who would have either turned her in for some type of reward, or would have sold or abused her for their own enjoyment.
The first time she'd encountered a few of the other homeless was during the daytime, and before she'd learned to avoid them at all costs. They had taken her makeshift cane away and forced her to the ground where they'd torn her shirt off. The sight of her scar had made them leave with disgusted comments. She hadn't been nearly as lucky during the second time when it happened at night. She still had nightmares about that time. Nightmares about what those men had laughingly done to her… and about the last thing she ever saw.
She knew beyond any doubt that she had really messed up last night. She had let not just one, but two people find her. Now because of that one mistake, she was here where there were lots of people. People who seemed to think that a foster home was a good place to be. People who didn't know just how mean and cruel the couple who ran the place had been. People who had no idea what it was like to have total strangers hate you because of how much money you'd cost them.
Once again, she wished with all her heart to have her family back. Even if she had to stay the way she was, she was sure that her family would still love her. It was a wish that she knew would never come true. She would never have a family again. It was something that she tried to accept, but at the same time, it was a horrible truth that repeatedly broke her heart. A mother; a father; either parent really, just so long as it was someone that would love her without making her feel like the trash she'd often dug through to find her latest meal.
She felt the metal arm of Jazz beneath her fingers and wondered why he would care. Why he would even bother with her. It was true that he'd broken her cane, but then he'd also gotten her help when she was sick, and he was still going to get her a new cane. She knew from living on the streets that nothing was free. Everyone wanted whatever he or she could get, and it didn't matter who got hurt by the way they got it. She didn't want to think about how long she would be here, because she was sure that she was going to end up back in that group foster home, and this time, they'd end up hurting her or worse.
"Jazz, you need to tell her what you're going to do before you do it." Ratchet warned firmly, his voice startling her out of her thoughts.
"I know, I know. Ya told me before, remember?" Jazz replied as if he'd heard it a hundred times. "Okay, Steph. I'm gonna put ya down on the table, where there's a smaller table an chairs for ya ta sit down at."
"Okay." Stephanie replied nodding her head.
"The tables and chairs for us are on top of their tables so we can hold a decent conversation with them while taking break or just shooting the breeze. This is where we can get something to eat or snack on while they have some energon to refuel their systems. It's a somewhat strange arrangement, but it actually works out fairly well." Sarah told her.
Even though Jazz had warned her that he was going to set her down on the table, Stephanie was still unable to suppress an instinctive flinch of surprise when she felt his fingers wrap around her waist. Never in her life would she have thought that being around others would be so hard. After more than four years of living on her own, and avoiding people because of how they would treat her; she'd now become afraid of them.
She grabbed a hold of Jazz's fingers so she could get her balance when he set her feet on the table. She was about to ask where one of the chairs were when Sarah got her attention.
"Have a seat over here. That way you can at least sit facing the mechs while talking to them." Sarah told her nicely as she took the girl by her right elbow and guided her towards a chair.
Stephanie quickly sat down in the chair after Sarah had taken her hand and placed her fingers on the back of it. She felt where the table was and pulled the chair out just a bit, before climbing into it. She had no idea what she was supposed to do, so she assumed the proper posture that she'd practiced so hard on, and sat there waiting.
"Okay, what do you want for breakfast?" Sarah asked kindly.
"I don't care. I'll eat whatever you want to fix. I'm not picky." Stephanie answered easily.
"Well, picky or not. You're still going to have to choose what you want, unless you'd like me to pick for you..." Sarah trailed off to allow the girl a choice.
"Okay." Stephanie said as she nodded her head in acceptance.
"Okay what? Okay that you'll choose, or okay you want me to choose?" Sarah asked a little confused.
"Will you pick for me? I don't really know what I can have." Stephanie said quietly.
Sarah was about to reply, but then she remembered the girl's ribs standing out on her body, and she decided that what Stephanie really needed was a hot, decent sized meal in her stomach.
"Sure. I can do that." Sarah said as she activated the intercom system on the table. "But first, how do you like your eggs?"
Stephanie's eyes opened wide in surprise at that question. The mere thought of fresh hot eggs on a real plate was mouth watering. Her stomach rumbled loudly in agreement with her thoughts.
"Um... cooked?" Stephanie said rather hesitantly.
"Cooked huh? Okay, how does two eggs, fried hard, with toast, hash browns, bacon, and a small bowl of grits sound?" Sarah countered with a smile.
"Like I'm in heaven." Stephanie answered in a soft awe filled tone at the thought of that much fresh food. She hadn't dared go to one of the soup kitchens for fear that Child Protective Services (CPS) would be called and she'd be sent back to that foster home.
"Make certain that the toast is whole wheat; add a large glass of Vitamin D milk, and another of orange juice. She needs the nutrition." Ratchet added quickly.
"Can I have a cup of coffee too please?" Stephanie asked hopefully in an almost plaintive tone.
"No more than two cups! You do not need that much caffeine at your age." Ratchet qualified.
Stephanie brightened as Sarah placed their orders along with two containers of energon for the mechs.
"So what kinds of things do you like to do?" Sarah asked in an attempt to find out more about the girl and make some small talk.
Stephanie shrugged before she answered. "I haven't learned how to read Braille, and I don't have a radio, so there really isn't anything I can do except remember the things I used to do."
'No wonder she hasn't come to terms with her grief. As painful as it is, she doesn't have any choice except to relive her past. I wonder if Ratchet can come up with something that might help.' Sarah thought when she heard that. Then she experienced a sudden revelation, right before she got a second idea. A soft smile graced her face as she looked up at Jazz.
"Hey Jazz. Do you think you could access the internet and download the information on Braille, and maybe the other things she might need to learn about her disability? Ratchet won't really have the time to teach her, with everything he's got going on, but I'm sure you would." Sarah asked in an almost innocent tone.
Jazz was about to make up an excuse to decline the request when he caught the sound of a sharp indrawn breath. A single glance at the source showed him the look of disbelief mixed with hope on the girl's face, and there was no way that he could find it in his spark to deny that possibility. "Yeah, I spose I can do that. It ain't like it's gonna kill me or nuthin." He quipped.
"You... you mean it? You'll really teach me to read again?" Stephanie asked in a tone of shocked surprise, but one of hope as well.
Any doubts or arguments that Jazz might have had were dispelled in that instant as he heard the sudden disbelieving hope in the girl's tone.
Ratchet frowned in thought as Stephanie and Jazz discussed what she still lacked as far as her education. He knew that he wasn't really busy enough to preclude teaching the girl, and that he would even have enjoyed the prospect. So why had Sarah made an excuse for him, before giving the task to Jazz in a way that left the mech with no way to make any excuses? Then it struck him, and his optics widened in surprise at just how smoothly the woman had managed to maneuver the mech into doing something that just might, with a little luck, prove beneficial to the both of the two involved.
The CMO looked down at Sarah, who had a soft smile on her face as she watched and listened to the two talk to each other. As an RN, she knew that Stephanie had gone through a tremendous amount of physical pain when she'd been injured and that the treatments would have been excruciating as well, and as a mother, she knew that the girl needed to learn to trust in someone, needed a friend that she could talk to and confide in. She figured that since he'd cared enough to bring the girl to Ratchet, that Jazz would fill that role nicely. From what little Stephanie had said, and what she knew about Jazz, both had suffered horribly in the battle of Mission City, and she hoped that maybe, just maybe the two could help each other get through what they had each suffered. The only real problem was that Stephanie hadn't been told what had actually killed her family and injured her so terribly. One thing she couldn't help but wonder though, was just how the girl would react when she finally learned the truth behind her injuries and the deaths of her family.
The food and the energon was brought out to the table by one of the mess officers on duty, and Ratchet quickly reached down and took the laden cart to place it on the table. He placed the two trays of human food in front of them before grabbing the two miniature barrels of energon for himself and Jazz.
The attention of two mechs and one woman were drawn to the girl who sat there for a full minute with her eyes closed. She was leaning over the plate of food and inhaling deeply with a light smile on her face. She kept doing this for a short period in spite of the way her stomach was loudly rumbling in hunger.
"Okay, why ain't ya eatin? Is something wrong with tha food?" Jazz asked her curiously.
Stephanie smiled widely and shook her head as she opened her eyes.
"Nope! Nothing's wrong. It just smells even better than I remember." She answered happily.
"I thought that such food was a typical breakfast for this region of the planet." Ratchet said a little puzzled.
"It is. At least, I think it is. It's been a really long time since I had bacon and eggs though." Stephanie replied.
"Then what have you been eating as a substitute?" Ratchet asked concerned.
"I eat whatever I can find or scrounge up in the dumpsters. Sometimes I find enough change in the coin return slots of vending machines or payphones to buy a bag of chips or something. When I save up enough, I usually find Vern the coffee vendor, and he'll sometimes give me a fresh hot Danish roll when I buy a cup of coffee if there's no one around." She answered plainly.
There was no visible movement from the medic except for the optics, which started twitching. Cooling fans kicked in at high speed to deal with suddenly overheating circuits, and the sounds of grinding metal greeted everyone's ears as his dental structures ground against each other.
"Am I to understand that you've been literally eating garbage?" Ratchet demanded in a quiet voice that was filled with rage.
"Yeah... well. Like I said. I'd rather eat garbage than go back to that foster home." Stephanie answered defensively.
"We won't let you get that hungry, Stephanie. If you get hungry, and you want something, just tell one of us, okay? That's all there is to it." Sarah said gently.
"I don't want to cost you a bunch of extra money." Stephanie replied sadly.
"Okay, first off. This base is run on Government tax money; so any time you ever paid sales tax on something, then you were paying for the food that you'll be getting while you're here. Don't think of this as charity, Stephanie. Think of it as something that you've already paid for." Sarah stated firmly.
Stephanie nodded her head and felt for her tableware to start eating. She put her napkin in her lap, and was about to pick up her fork when she got an idea. She put the fork back down and felt around her plate. Grabbing a slice of toast, she placed it to one side as she slapped one of the eggs on it. Then adding some bacon, she topped it with a second slice of toast to make a sandwich. Smiling happily at how she'd managed to avoid some really messy table manners, she started to eat her breakfast sandwich.
Sarah Lennox watched the girl savor her improvised sandwich for a moment before turning her attention to her own breakfast. It wasn't too long before she'd finished eating and was enjoying her morning coffee, when she realized that the girl was doing the exact same thing.
"I take it that you enjoyed that then?" Sarah asked good-naturedly.
"Yes Ma'am! Best I've had in a long time. Sorry I can't eat all of it, but I'm so full right now, my stomach wants to bust." Stephanie answered happily with her coffee held under her nose so she could enjoy the scent.
"You obviously should not have eaten that much! Why would you do such a thing if you knew that you were getting full?" Ratchet demanded angrily.
Stephanie opened her mouth to say something back but then she closed it quickly. She didn't want to say something that might make them turn her in to the foster system. Finally, she decided on one thing she could say. "Because I was hungry, that's why."
"That is no excuse for overeating! You can make yourself sick by doing that. Do you really want to start purging again that way you were doing the night before last? You nearly died, and you would have if Jazz hadn't brought you to me." Ratchet countered instantly.
"What's 'purging', and don't you mean last night?" Stephanie asked in confusion.
"Nah, Steph. I brought ya in two nights ago, and I don't think Ratch had an easy time of it when ya got here." Jazz told her.
"Jazz is right Stephanie. Ratchet had to do a lot to get you as well as you are now. A ton of anti biotics, a sedative to keep you calm while he inserted an NG tube into your stomach to pump that clear, and then add some medications to your digestive tract to clear up the food poisoning. If you had been at a regular hospital, you'd probably still be out cold for another couple of days." Sarah said gently.
"What's a 'En Gee' tube?" She asked curiously.
"An NG tube is a Nasal Gastric tube that is inserted in through your nose, down your throat and into your stomach. I've never had one, but from what I've seen, it's very uncomfortable to have one put in or taken out while you're awake. Some patients have even said that it's more than a little painful as well." Sarah informed Stephanie, and couldn't blame the girl when she shuddered involuntarily.
"Whatever it was that you ate last nearly killed you. Do you remember what it was?" Ratchet asked curiously.
Stephanie nodded her head. "It was a sandwich that I found in one of the bags of a dumpster. The only thing that seemed to be wrong with it was that the bread was a little hard."
"Between finding the sandwich and having the wind blow a ten dollar bill in my lap, I was beginning to think it was my lucky day." She said sadly. "I guess I was wrong."
"I don't know how you can consider getting what would have been a fatal case of food poisoning, and getting robbed lucky, but I can tell you now that while you are here there are a few rules that you will follow! You will not eat trash! You will not remain as filthy as were when Jazz brought you here! You will bathe on a daily basis, and you will maintain a presentable appearance by not wearing rotting smelly filth riddled rags!" Ratchet berated angrily.
Stephanie started shaking as tears of anger and outrage formed in her eyes. She'd never been this embarrassed or humiliated in her life. It wasn't as if she wanted to live the way she'd been doing, but it was that she hadn't had any other choice.
"Jazz, will you take me back to the alley now please." Stephanie asked in a tear-filled tone.
"Huh? What... wait, why do ya want ta leave? Ya don't even have a cane yet. I just told Wheeljack about it and he's gonna fix ya up a good one." Jazz asked in confusion.
"You... you said that I wouldn't have to do anything I didn't agree to. Well, I... I can't stay here and get yelled at when I don't deserve it. I can't… I won't! I don't want to live like I do, but I don't have any other choice." She said as she started crying harder and got out of her chair.
Sarah immediately stood up and gently put her hands on the girl's shoulders. "Stephanie wait, please. Don't listen to Ratchet."
"What!" Ratchet roared.
"Shut up Ratchet!" Sarah hissed in a barely contained rage. "Just shut up, or else I'll have you thrown in the brig so fast you won't even remember the trip! You've just done enough damage with your temper, so the best thing you can do is stay silent and keep your mouth closed!" She snarled at the medic.
The optics on both mechs shot wide in shocked disbelief. No one had ever dared to even speak to Ratchet in such a way, but to go as far as threatening to have him tossed in the brig as well was unheard of! The medic growled deep in his engine even as his dental structures ground together. He was the CMO, and no one was going to dictate how he delivered instructions to a patient. He was about to respond when the human spoke up again.
"Just shut up Ratchet! I mean not one word or sound out of you, or you'll be in the brig for a solid month, and I'll make sure that you can only advise on the treatment of a patient from that cell! Do I make myself clear?" Sarah snapped as she shot a glare of pure death at the CMO.
Ratchet gaped at the woman in stark disbelief. In the four months that they'd been at Nellis Air Force Base, the woman had never once shown any type of anger, but this was something he wouldn't have believed even if he'd been warned about it. He was not about to let the human get away with speaking to him that way.
"You can't have me put in the brig for delivering medical instructions to a patient." Ratchet retorted angrily.
"When your temper is causing that patient to refuse treatment and therefore placing that patient's life in danger; you better believe that I can, and that I will! Especially when that patient is just a kid!" Sarah snapped without hesitation.
Ratchet's right optic twitched even as his vents, fans, and auxiliary cooling systems cycled up to maximum to deal with the heat produced by his circuits. That was when he saw that the girl really did want to leave, and that she had already extracted a promise from Jazz regarding that departure. Realizing that Sarah wasn't bluffing or joking in the slightest about tossing him in the brig, Ratchet held his silence, but he was not happy about it. He didn't know exactly what had occurred in the foster home to make the girl so willing to live in such horrible conditions, but it was also obvious at the same time that she would readily do exactly that.
"Stephanie, please, just listen to me for a minute. Ratchet's a grump. He generally yells at almost everyone. He even yells at his Boss like that, so please don't take that personally. If you don't want him yelling at you, then I'll see that he doesn't do it, okay? But I can't let you go back to living on the streets when you don't even have a cane to help you get around. I'd like to help you, but I can't do that if you're not here. So, please, will you stay... for a while anyway?" Sarah said in as reasonable a tone as she could manage while being thoroughly irate with a certain medic.
Jazz sat in total silence as he watched and listened to what was happening. Never, in all the time he'd known the medic, had anyone ever made him back down like that. He'd only known Sarah for a few days, and not once had he seen any kind of temper out of her until now. It was this particular situation which convinced the saboteur that she had a temper that was rarely, if ever displayed. She was the type who was normally calm and easy going, never revealed that she even had a temper, until you got her wound up, but if you did, then you'd better be ready to vacate the planet, because nothing could save you from her wrath.
Stephanie thought about the request carefully. Then she thought about the person who was asking her to stay. She had to admit that the woman had been very friendly and had even helped her too. Then there was Jazz. The robot... no mech had promised to get her a new cane. He'd stopped the person from robbing her and she had even gotten the money back. Then he'd carried her here, even as dirty, filthy, and downright smelly as she was while she was sick. Then she suddenly realized that since Jazz was the car that had brought her here and that she'd literally been inside him! He'd even told her how nice she looked, and not to worry about how dirty she'd been when they met, and then she knew that she couldn't leave on such short notice like this.
When Stephanie nodded her head, even though it was with very obvious reluctance, Sarah let out a breath that she didn't even realize she'd been holding. Whatever disability she might have didn't matter at this point; neither did the way in which she'd received her injuries. What did matter was that no child her age deserved to be living on the streets the way that this girl had been doing, and she was going to do her best to prevent that from happening again.
"I know that this... that being here will take some getting used to, but these mechs are really good people. I've been around Ratchet long enough to know that he just doesn't want you getting sick again. Okay so he said it the wrong way. He still means well, and he doesn't want you doing anything that would put your health at risk. I know you don't like living the way you were, and I'm sure that you'll stay as clean as you can while you stay with us, now won't you?" Sarah explained in a much calmer tone.
Stephanie nodded her head slowly. "I know that sometimes I deserve to get yelled at, and even spanked, but I'm not going to be yelled at anymore when I don't do something to deserve it. He yelled at me earlier, and… and I'm glad he did, because I almost walked off a ledge… and I would've too. I was so glad to have a chance at a real shower that I wasn't even thinking about anything else. I deserved it then… but I don't now." She said in a melancholy tone.
"You're right, and he won't do it again." Sarah replied.
"Hey, Steph. I know this ain't tha best time an all, an this ain't what I had in mind when I gave ya my word, but I got ya somethin ta use until Wheeljack gets a good one made for ya. He's been a little busy this mornin settin somethin up for me, so it may be a week or two before he gets your new cane finished. I had ta explain what being blind is to him, cuz it's somethin that don't really happen ta us. Once he did understand the problem ya got, an why ya need a cane, he said he's got some ideas ta make one with some sensors in it." Jazz told her as he pulled a six-foot length of polished bamboo out of subspace.
"What do you mean sensors?" The girl quickly asked in confusion.
"He said somethin about making sure that you're tha only one that can use it, so I'm thinkin some kind of DNA sensor. He said he'd make sure that it wouldn't lock for anyone else; whatever that means." Jazz replied.
"If it won't lock straight, then no one else will want it or steal it!" Stephanie exclaimed in excitement.
"Oh, okay. Well, I know this ain't what I promised ya, but here it is anyway." Jazz said as he touched her right hand with one end of the pole.
Jazz felt truly horrible about giving the girl such a shoddy replacement, but it was all that he had been able to come up with on short notice, and he hoped that his other surprise would be much more welcome. He watched with more than a little apprehension as he handed it over.
Stephanie felt the touch on her hand and she began examining the object with her fingers to find out what it was. It only took her a few seconds to realize that it was bamboo. Taking it in her hand, she felt a familiar balance that told her it was a decent length. Stephanie's face brightened when she realized that she now had a replacement for her cane. It didn't matter that it might not be as durable as her old improvised version, this was something that would work, that she could use, and to her that was all that mattered.
Ratchet felt his spark sink, even as his circuits began to overheat once more. He could only imagine how the girl's standards had fallen in order to be glad to receive such an obviously makeshift replacement. The look of confusion on the girl's face wasn't helping to improve his mood any either.
"This is bamboo... isn't it? We're in a desert, where did you get bamboo out here?" Stephanie asked as she kept using her fingers to examine the pole.
Sarah looked from Stephanie, to the bamboo pole, and then up at Jazz. "That's a good question. You didn't raid one of the botanical gardens did you?" She asked in an accusatory tone.
"Nah. I got it from Hound. He overheard me tellin Wheeljack what I needed, and he suggested this, sayin that if it gets broke, it can be easily replaced since this stuff grows a foot a day and he's got a greenhouse full of it." Jazz answered.
"So you're saying that if that one gets broken for some reason, that Hound has already agreed to let you have another piece to replace it?" Ratchet asked quickly.
"Yep. Look Ratch, I know it ain't the best, but it can work until Wheeljack builds her a good one right?" Jazz replied a little dejectedly.
"I don't see anything wrong with it. It won't fold up, but my old one didn't do that either, and I don't know how long I had that one, so I'm used to it." Stephanie exclaimed brightly as she held the bamboo pole by one end and shook it so that the tip whipped back and forth whistling through the air as the bamboo pole flexed.
"Besides, this won't break very easy." Stephanie said as she stood up out of her chair and assumed a poor imitation of a Samurai style stance with the bamboo pole held in front of her waist. "Now, who wants some?" She added in a joking but happy tone.
Ratchet shuttered his optics and covered his face with his right hand. He simply could not believe the level of delight that the girl could take in such simple things. He was forced to take another look when Jazz spoke up.
"Yo! I'll take some o' what ya got!" Jazz stated loudly in a tone that belied the curiosity on his face.
Stephanie turned slightly towards the sound of Jazz's voice. "Okay, good! Now... where are you?" She challenged happily while turning her head in every direction except the one where Jazz's voice was coming from.
Both Sarah and Jazz burst out laughing simultaneously, while Ratchet once again put his face in his palm, but this time he also let out a soft groan.
"Ya really like that thing don't ya?" Jazz asked with more than a little doubt.
"Sure! It may not be the same as my old one, but it's still a lot better than not having one at all. Last night... no… the night before last, I was filthy, really stinky, sick, hungry, and no one to talk to. Now, I have three people to talk to, clean clothes, shoes that fit and won't give me blisters, hair that smells good because it's clean, and I haven't had that much food since my parents..." Stephanie trailed off because she couldn't bring herself to finish.
"I think what you're trying to say is 'thank you', and to that I say 'you're welcome'. I don't know how much you've had to eat lately, but that whole skin and bones thing you've got going on... is going to go! I'm an RN, so I can deal with the sight of that scar of yours, but the sight of your ribs sticking out through that scar is unbearable. I know it's not your fault, but the least you can do is let us try to put some meat on you." Sarah told her gently.
Putting her new cane in her left hand, Stephanie felt for the table with her right. When she found it, she leaned the cane against the table and got back in her chair. There were tears in her eyes as she turned towards Sarah's voice. "Thank you."
"Again, you're welcome. Now, don't worry about it. Just understand that not everyone is like those people from the foster home you were in. Now, how about we just chat, and enjoy our coffee?" Sarah said kindly.
"That sounds really good right now." Stephanie said as she tilted her head to her right and used her right hand to reach over and scratch her scalp just above her left ear.
"Wouldn't it be easier ta use your left hand for that?" Jazz asked in a mixture of surprise and confusion.
"She can't. The scar tissue isn't skin grafts so it doesn't have the flexibility of normal skin, which means that she probably has very little use of her left arm. If she can use it at all." Sarah answered quickly.
"Is that true?" Ratchet demanded instantly.
"Yes. My scar doesn't let me bend my arm or move my shoulder much. I can use my hand to work my cane, open doors, hold stuff, and things like that, but not for much else. Bending over for things isn't easy either. If I don't do it just right, it either stretches my scar or tears it… and that really hurts!" Stephanie answered plainly.
Scanning the girl's arm once more, Ratchet knew what he was looking for this time, and he discovered that the girl was telling the truth about her arm and shoulder. He knew that even human medicine, as primitive as it was, had techniques that could help restore the full use of that arm. It was more than enough to infuriate the medic. He was well aware that such callousness in regards to who could afford advanced treatments had been one of the root causes of the war, but not even at the worst point in Cybertronian history, would a sparkling be denied a procedure that would ensure proper function. He knew if it had been simply a cosmetic matter, that few Cybertronian medics would even consider performing the procedure without prior payment.
"I can still use my right hand for everything, and I guess I just got used to doing things that way." She told them.
Ratchet glared at the girl in irritation, and he was somewhat glad that she couldn't see him at that point since it wasn't actually her that he was angry at, but rather her situation. "You seem to be fairly adaptive with your skill at improvising." He admitted grudgingly.
"Well, it isn't like I have much choice. I have to use what I can find, or do without." Stephanie told him while nibbling on the hashed browns.
"If you're full, then why are ya still eatin?" Jazz asked her curiously.
"Because I'm not about to pass up good food, and I don't want to waste it either." Stephanie replied.
"Look. We'll be back for lunch, so you don't need to eat until you make yourself sick, okay." Sarah told her.
"Lunch?" Stephanie asked in wide-eyed disbelief. "I can have lunch too?"
"Yes you can have lunch... and dinner as well." Sarah said with a laugh.
Stephanie shook her head slightly. The things that were being so freely given to her were things that she had learned to do without. They were things that she now considered to be the peak of luxury. She'd long ago learned to do without such things, and even though she had resigned herself to living without them, that didn't stop her from wishing for them. She sipped at her coffee, and wondered if this were all some strange sort of dream. She caught herself before she giggled aloud. Dream? After what she'd been given, and the meal she'd just eaten, it all seemed more like a fairy tale.
Jazz watched as the girl sipped at the hot beverage. A light seemed to dance in those sightless grey eyes, even as a small smile graced her mouth. There was a huge difference between the girl he'd seen in the alley, and the one sitting at the table in front of him. When he'd first seen her, there had probably been more dirt and filth than there was girl. For another thing, he hadn't even been able to tell that she was a girl until she spoke.
Now, however, it was a different story. Stephanie was clean. Her long brown hair hung down her back in thick waves and he could see what her face looked like. She was sipping on coffee after having eaten a healthy meal, and she wouldn't be purging this one. Jazz frowned as he remembered the results of that scan. The girl's abdominal muscles had been clenched painfully as she purged like she was going expel her intestines along with the contents of her stomach. Seeing an adult purge like that would have been difficult enough, but someone as young as she was? That had been really tough to see.
Jazz didn't regret giving the girl his word about not turning her over to the human authorities, but he never would have believed that Stephanie would be so quick or so willing to go back to the life that she'd had on the streets. He had no idea how she'd been treated in the past, but however bad it had been, it was enough that she'd been willing to go back to the streets with no cane or any other means to determine her surroundings.
He couldn't help thinking back to the first encounter with her. From the first time she'd spoken, she'd shown that she wasn't the type to cry over much. If that were the case, she'd have broken down in tears after he'd broken her makeshift cane. Instead, she just asked him to tell her how much money she had, so she'd know if she could buy something for a replacement. After having used the internet to do a bit of research on blindness, Jazz knew that the nearly worthless pole had been a lifeline for the girl. Losing it would have taken away a very large portion of her independence, and yet she hadn't cried over that loss. He could understand what she meant by not wanting to be yelled at when she didn't deserve it, but that situation did make him wonder just how bad it had been in order to reduce her to tears and make her so ready to leave like that.
When the girl's eyes began to droop in spite of the coffee, Sarah knew that she needed to go back to sleep. While the salmonella infection itself had been cleared up, Sarah knew that Stephanie would still be weak, both from the toll that the near fatal case of food poisoning had taken on her as well as from malnourishment.
"Jazz, I think you should take her back to bed now. And no arguments out of you young lady!" Sarah finished firmly when she saw the girl about to protest. "You almost died two days ago, and you would have died if Jazz hadn't brought you here. It'll take you a few days to regain your strength, and until then you are going to take things slow and easy. You can continue getting to know Jazz and Ratchet after you get some rest. They're not going anywhere, so they'll be here when you wake up."
"Here. C'mon. I'll give ya a lift." Jazz said as he got up and moved around the table.
Stephanie gulped down the last of her coffee and stood up. She used her right hand to grab her bamboo cane, before she transferred it to her left hand. "What do you want me to do?"
"Have a seat in my hand. Then I'll put ya on my arm like I did when I brought ya in here." Jazz told her as he touched the back of her legs with the fingers of his left hand.
Stephanie turned around and used her right hand to detect the size of the mech's hand as she climbed into it. Jazz lifted her up and transferred her to the crook of his right arm.
The saboteur held perfectly still while Stephanie got comfortable. She turned slightly sideways and put her legs out in front of her so they could rest on the forearm of the mech holding her. She put her right hand in her lap, and her left, which was still holding her cane was moved forward just enough to allow the cane to lay alongside her legs.
As much as she hated to admit it, Stephanie was tired. She stifled a yawn and laid her head against the right side of Jazz's front bumper. Before the saboteur could even ask if she was ready, Stephanie was fast asleep.
"Just go ahead and put her to bed, Jazz. She can find out about it when she wakes up. Besides, there's something I need to say that I don't think she needs to hear yet." Sarah said quietly.
Ratchet followed the resurrected mech down the corridors and waited while he went to place the sleeping girl in her bed.
"Put me down for a minute would you? I need to get those boots off of her." Sarah explained.
Ratchet put the woman down and watched in silence as she entered the room where Stephanie was being placed in bed.
Sarah walked in to find Jazz trying in vain to get a grip on the pull of the zipper to the girl's boots.
"I know it ain't good for tha circulation ta let her sleep in these." Jazz told her softly.
Sarah nodded her head and quickly unzipped the boots and pulled them off. Then she watched as Jazz placed the girl in bed and pulled the blankets up under her left arm that still had a solid grip on the bamboo pole. She reached out to remove it, but stopped when Jazz shook his head.
"I tried that already. She'll wake up if ya do get it. She's holdin on ta that thing like her life depended on it." Jazz said in a whisper as he led the woman out of the room.
Once the door shut behind them, Sarah turned to the two mechs and frowned. "I waited until she was asleep to tell you this because I don't want her anymore upset then she already is. She doesn't know what happened in the Mission City battle. Apparently someone left instructions at the hospital where she was in ICU, that she wasn't to be told anything. Whoever it was didn't even bother to give her the excuse of a terrorist attack. All she knows is that she lost her entire family at the same time she lost her sight and the use of her left arm." She told them heavily.
"Wait! Ya mean that her family was killed by tha same plasma blast that gave her that slaggin burn?" Jazz demanded in quiet anger.
"Yes, Jazz. That's exactly what I'm saying, and the only thing she knows about any of it, is what she lost that day." Sarah answered firmly.
"She's gonna slaggin hate us!" Jazz muttered sourly.
"What? Why would she do that?" Ratchet demanded curiously.
"Cause, Ratch. It don't matter if it was an Autobot or one o tha slaggin Cons that fired tha shot that killed her family! It was our war! If that war hadn't come ta this world, her family would still be alive, and she never would have been on tha streets digging through tha slaggin garbage tryin ta find sumthin ta eat!" Jazz retorted angrily.
Ratchet cut off whatever he'd been about to say in protest, because as much as he hated to admit it, the saboteur was right.
"Jazz, it wasn't your fault..." Sarah began gently.
"Ya think she's gonna care? Look at her Sarah. Look at her! She was happy to get a slaggin stick! You tell me how she's gonna feel when she finds out her family was killed, and she got crippled because of us!" Jazz retorted disgustedly.
"We can't change any of that, and we can't take any of it back. All we can do is try to move forward from here. She needs to be off the streets, and she needs friends. Like it or not Jazz, she seems to trust you. You Jazz! Not me, or Ratchet… you. So right now, you're the best and maybe only friend she has. Sure, she's scared, and she has a right to be. She's a thirteen-year-old little girl who's learned through experience that she can't trust adults. That means she may never trust me for anything, but somehow she feels that she can trust you." Sarah explained fervently.
The silver saboteur was silent as he thought about what the human woman had told him. Whether he wanted to admit it or not, Stephanie had placed her trust in him. Trust that he wouldn't turn her in to the proper authorities. Trust that he wouldn't sell her as a slave. The mere thought of that particular fate made the mech shudder in revulsion. Thirteen years old meant that Stephanie was still a sparkling even by human standards. It didn't occur or matter to the mech that she might not have had much of a choice in the matter, what did matter to him was that a child, a mere sparkling had placed her life, and her trust in his hands. Then he'd learned that there was a possibility that one of his friends could have killed her family. Even though Stephanie had no clue at this time, Jazz wondered how he would be ever be able to face her when he knew the truth!
Jazz hung his head as he began to walk down the corridor. So Sarah had a point, but how could that point be compared to losing everything? Jazz didn't know. What he did know, was that somehow, he was going to have to tell Stephanie the truth. She deserved that much at least, even though he felt that she deserved a lot more.
She was still mostly asleep, but a dim awareness of her surroundings penetrated her mind. A soft moan of content left her as she burrowed a little deeper into the blankets that covered her. Wispy memories of the dream she'd had floated through her mind. Unlike most of her dreams, this one hadn't been another nightmare, but instead one where she'd been happy for some reason. Then she heard strange machine like noises that woke her up completely.
"Jazz? Ratchet? Is that you?" She asked as she sat up in the bed.
"Actually, my designation is Prowl." Said an unknown voice from well above her.
"Oh, okay. Sorry. My name's Stephanie." She replied quickly.
"I am not surprised at your familiarity with Ratchet since he is now involved in human medicine. But I am curious as to how you know Jazz, and why you do not recognize that I am neither of those mechs." Prowl told her.
"I met Jazz when he stopped someone from robbing me. Then I got sick and he brought me here. Ratchet said I would have died if he didn't." Stephanie answered.
"That would be a valid explanation as to why you know those two mechs, but it still does not tell me how you were unable to notice the obvious differences between myself and them." Prowl responded interestedly.
Stephanie remembered Ratchet telling her that mechs didn't really get blinded; just as she remembered how confused Jazz had been when she met him. That told her that Prowl wouldn't know anything about it either.
"I can't tell any difference unless you talk or I use my fingers to feel what you look like because my eyes don't work anymore, and they never will again. So... I'm blind." Stephanie said as she got out of the bed and used the bamboo pole in her left hand to make sure there wasn't another drop off in front of her while she approached the mech.
The sensor panels on Prowl's back that were mimicking the appearance of the doors to his alt mode rose as he observed the girl's actions. Dozens of possible reasons, alternatives, and explanations flashed through his processors as he watched her come closer before the actual reason occurred to him.
"You can't see, so you use your sense of touch to navigate your surroundings. The rod you're using serves to extend your sense of touch so that you can feel what is around you. Interesting adaptation." Prowl noted with a bit of surprise.
Stephanie frowned slightly as she considered that statement. "I never thought about it that way, but you're right. It was a good idea by someone."
"Yes, it was. Now can you explain why you are here, and not in the med bay." Prowl inquired.
"Where is here? You mean this isn't the med bay?" Stephanie asked cautiously.
"No, it isn't. These are the private quarters that I share with Jazz, who happens to be my spark mate." Prowl answered.
"What's a spark mate, and why am I here?" She asked confused.
"Spark mates are like a married human couple, but much more than that as well. They can feel and sense the other half of the bond. There is no divorce, and no way to end the bond without one of the pair dying. If that happens, the other can die as well. That was nearly the case when Jazz was killed almost five years ago." Prowl started to explain.
"Jazz was killed?" Stephanie interrupted in surprise.
"Yes. He was killed while fighting the Decepticons in Mission City. In spite of his smaller size, he ended up fighting Megatron single-handedly. He must have known that there was no way that he could possibly survive such an encounter." Prowl explained.
"Why not, and what do you mean small? Jazz isn't small!" Stephanie said fervently.
Prowl's doorwings lifted slightly in their position on his back in surprise at the girl's almost fierce defense of Jazz. "Compared to Megatron, many of us are small. Megatron is more than four times the size of Jazz, and several times more powerful. There are very few Autobots who could challenge him in single combat and hope to survive. Neither Jazz nor I are in that category. A few days ago, Optimus used an artifact of great power to revive Jazz. Had he not done so, Jazz would still be lost to us."
Prowl saw the conflicting emotions that were flowing across the girl's face as she absorbed what he was telling her, and knew that she liked Jazz. That was no surprise to the tactician, since everyone seemed to like Jazz.
"Wait. You said that the other one could die too. Did Optimus fix Jazz because you were going to die too?" Stephanie asked suddenly.
"Yes, he did. Optimus is a wise and strong leader. He didn't do this for himself, even though he also missed Jazz. He did it for Jazz and myself." Prowl explained carefully.
"I'm sorry." Stephanie apologized quietly.
"For what?" Prowl asked uncertain as to the reason for the apology.
"You... you felt him die... didn't you?" Stephanie asked softly.
"I was too far away to sense all of the details, but I felt the pain of his death." Prowl answered solemnly.
"You said that they were fighting in Mission City. Why?" Stephanie asked curiously.
"Because Megatron was after an artifact called the All Spark. It would have enabled him to use its power to give life to Earth's machines and create an army for him. He would have used that army to end the human race because he hates all organic forms of life, and he wants to rule in uncontested power." Prowl told her. "So there were several Autobots there trying to stop Megatron from claiming the All Spark. They succeeded with help from your army, and sadly Jazz was not the only one to perish that day."
"I've never heard about any of this. When did it all happen?" Stephanie asked curiously.
"It was on May twenty ninth in two thousand and seven. The Autobots weren't given any choice in when or even where they encountered the Decepticons..." Prowl began when he broke of because Stephanie had gone ghost white as the blood drained from her face.
"They... they were… they were fighting downtown... weren't they?" Stephanie stammered as she struggled to find her voice.
"Yes, that is where a majority of the battle took place. You do not appear to be well Stephanie. Should I summon Ratchet to help you?" Prowl asked as the girl began to tremble and her eyes welled with tears.
Stephanie shook her head resolutely. She knew that she had part of the truth and she was now determined to finally get the answers that she'd craved for so long. "Did buildings get blown up in that fight?" She asked with tears in her eyes as she struggled not to break down in to sobs until she got her answers.
Prowl had only been on Earth for a few short months, but he was now familiar enough with human behavior to know that Stephanie was not acting normally. Her size indicated that she was young, and the blindness was ample evidence of previous damage. Concerned, Prowl scanned the girl for the first time. His doorwings sagged as he found the residual energy signature embedded in the massive burn that covered half of the girl's upper body. He didn't need to be the tactical prodigy that he was to understand where the girl's interrogations were leading.
"That is the same date that you were injured... isn't it?" Prowl asked quietly.
Stephanie nodded her head while still trembling. "And my family was killed."
Hundreds of various protocols, rules, regulations, and even laws flashed through the tactician's processors in an instant, and his doorwings rose stiffly as a grim expression crossed his metallic features. "Where were you at that time, Stephanie?"
"What difference does it make?" Stephanie cried.
"Given that you survived, and the rather limited area of your burn, it would suggest that you were caught by after damage of plasma burst hitting something else. I will admit that while Jazz was there and did participate in the battle, he could not have been responsible because he does not possess a weapon with that level of firepower. In fact, there are only two Autobots who were present at the battle who do possess that level of firepower. If it is determined that one of them were responsible for your injury and the deaths of your family, then they will need to be prosecuted." Prowl stated firmly.
At that moment, Stephanie became so confused that it was actually hard to think. She wasn't sure that she was being told what she thought Prowl was telling her. "What do you mean?"
"What I mean Stephanie, is that self defense is not justification for causing the deaths of bystanders. It should be possible to examine the memories of the bots in question to find out who fired that shot, then the guilty party can be charged with those deaths as well as your injuries. They can also be made to make restitution. Although I do not know how that would be possible since your family cannot be replaced, and unless Ratchet is able to repair your injuries, then there is that aspect to consider as well. Those factors will make it difficult to name a specific form of restitution. That however, is something that can be determined at a later date. For now, I need to know where you and your family were in order to try to find out who was responsible." Prowl explained softly.
Stephanie collapsed to her knees on the floor before she sat on her heels in stunned disbelief. What Prowl had just told her literally had her floored. All she'd wanted to know was how her family had died. Now she not only knew how, but why as well. Now Prowl was telling her that he intended to find out who? Stephanie just couldn't believe it.
"You... you're really going to find out who killed them... aren't you?" She finally asked.
"I can't promise that I will be able to discover exactly who was responsible, but I will promise that I will do my best to find that answer. Part of my job among the Autobots is to enforce the rules that everyone has to follow. I could have assigned that task to someone else a long time ago, but I have come to know that I am very good at it. That is why I have continued to retain that responsibility. So you may rest assured that I will conduct a thorough investigation on this, but to do that, I need to know where you and your family were that day." Prowl explained.
Stephanie nodded her head in understanding. She struggled to get control of her crying, but it wasn't easy. "We were at home. It... it was my birthday. So we stayed home that day. We lived in apartment twenty one C in the Mission Plaza Building."
"Thank you. That information will be very helpful in my investigation. Now, may I ask why you have what appears to be a living area set up in the quarters that I share with Jazz?" Prowl asked curiously.
"Beats me. I know how to get back the bed over there, but that's it. Jazz carried me to the rec room to eat, and then I got tired and Ratchet and Mrs. Lennox said I needed to go to bed, and Jazz was carrying me again... and I think I fell asleep on him, because I don't remember taking my boots off or getting in bed." Stephanie said in confusion while thinking hard.
"Then, where were you before Jazz took you to the rec room?" Prowl asked.
"In the med bay. That was the first place I woke up. Ratchet said I've been there for two days, but I don't remember any of it." Stephanie stated honestly.
"Then it seems that Jazz will have to provide the answers later. In the meantime, you mentioned that you were sick, and I am aware that humans need sustenance after they sleep, which means that you most likely need something to eat. Do you have any objections with returning to the rec room?" Prowl inquired.
"No Sir! I had breakfast with Mrs. Lennox, Jazz, and Ratchet, so now I guess I'm ready for lunch. Just... um... do you know where my boots are?" Stephanie said getting excited.
"There is a set of human foot wear at one end of the bed you were sleeping in." Prowl answered.
"Okay, which end?" Stephanie asked as she turned around and started towards it.
"That would be the right hand side when facing it." Prowl answered quickly.
The noted strategist watched while the girl maneuvered around her bed and began using her right hand to put her footwear on. When she was finished, she held the bamboo rod in her left hand while straightening the bed to a degree. That was when Prowl noticed the girl hesitate. She put the rod on the bed, but then picked it up again. The girl's dilemma was one that Prowl recognized easily.
"I can place that in a sub space storage compartment where it will not be broken if you'd like. I can carry you quite easily without exerting any energy at all." Prowl suggested.
"Okay. I wondered if that's how you might do it, but I wasn't sure, and I'm not too sure about how to ask about being carried around like a baby." Stephanie said ruefully as she stepped away from her bed and handed the cane to Prowl.
"That should not pose much of a problem. While there are some mechs on base who are anti social, and do not wish to be touched by humans, most are considerate enough that they will offer. So, you most likely won't need to ask." Prowl told her as he stepped forward and extended his hand near the floor.
"Okay. So... what am I supposed to do now?" Stephanie asked uncertainly.
"My hand is a few feet in front of you at waist level. You may sit there while we head to the rec room." Prowl answered.