Stephanie felt her way over to a chair and sat down in it. She listened to Annabelle tell her parents about what all the two girls had done together while they had been left alone.
Will was actually surprised. He knew just how long and involved his daughter's 'tea parties' could be. Spending several hours while pretending to drink non-existent tea and participating in senseless though polite conversation was far more than just boring! It was the kind of thing that made a fight against numerous Decepticons actually enjoyable! For Stephanie to have taken part in one of those tea parties really made him feel very sorry for the girl.
"We haded whole big bunches of fun! I was a Fairy Princess an' Stephy stayeded wight threw an pwayed wif me. Hers was nice. We dwank tea and ated cookies for a wong time too!" Annabelle said in an excited but serious tone.
"Well… next time I come over, we can do it again." Stephanie told Annabelle casually.
"You wealy mean it?" Annabelle demanded in disbelief.
"Sure. It was fun." Stephanie replied easily.
Will was very surprised because the girl's tone sounded like she actually meant it, when she claimed to have enjoyed the time with Annabelle.
"Stephanie… would you be willing to do this again tomorrow?" Sarah asked hopefully as she placed the spaghetti on the table, with noodles in one dish and the sauce in another.
"Sure! Me and Belle can have some more fun then." Stephanie answered with a smile.
"Good! I look forward to having you over. With Mikaela finishing up her courses in college, she is rarely able to sit for me." Sarah said as she went back to the kitchen for the garlic bread and salad.
"Well I'm not in college, and I don't have anything else to do, so I can come over any time you want." Stephanie replied easily.
"I don't think we've ever had an on call sitter before. Ironhide and Chromia help out when they have time, but they're not always available." Will mused aloud.
"Well I can be here anytime you need me. Just let Jazz and Prowl know so they aren't tearing the place up looking for me." Stephanie answered plainly.
"Stephy… you eatinged piscetti wif us?" Annabelle asked hopefully.
"No…" Stephanie answered slowly with a shake of her head and a sly smile. "But I am going to eat spaghetti with you."
"Tha's wha I sayed!" Annabelle said with a pout.
"No… you said 'piscetti'. You say it 'Spuh-get-tea'! Try it." Stephanie encouraged.
"Spa-get-tea." Annabelle tried before brightening considerably.
"I sayed it!"
"Yes you did! Very good." Stephanie complimented.
"You're correcting her speech?" Will asked in surprise as he looked at the girl to his right.
"Sure, why not? If Prowl can teach me words like 'endeavor', then I can teach Belle how to say things right." Stephanie said succinctly.
"You do know how strict Prowl is, don't you?" Will asked skeptically.
Stephanie snorted and almost laughed out loud. "He grounded me only a couple hours after I met him and found out I was living with him and Jazz. I have to stay on the base for a week. The only way I get to leave the base is when him or Jazz takes me somewhere… or Sarah does."
"That… sounds like Prowl alright." Will said as Sarah sat down and began fixing a plate.
Sarah let her husband fix his own plate, while she prepared one each for Annabelle, Stephanie, and herself. She noted that Stephanie had her eyes closed and was smelling the dish rather heavily.
"I take it that it's been a long time since you had spaghetti?" Sarah asked knowingly as she watched the girl savor a mouth full.
"Yeah! This stuff smells great… and tastes even better!" Stephanie said with a smile as she scooped up another fork full.
Will chuckled a bit as he began to eat his dinner. It seemed that Stephanie was going to turn out to be yet another that they could depend on to help with Annabelle. The old saying about it taking an entire village to raise a child was completely true. Education, sitting, medical care, and entertainment, no set of parents could tend to all of the needs a child would have on their own.
Sarah began to enjoy her own dinner. She could see that Annabelle was already dressed for bed, and had even had her bath. That in itself was a bit unusual because a lot of times, it was an argument to get the girl in the tub, but Stephanie had managed it. She could see that Stephanie had also dressed for bed. She was also wearing a night gown of sorts, though it was longer than the one Annabelle was wearing and thus covered more of the girl. She clearly remembered Stephanie's one firm bit of input at the store. The girl had insisted that all of her tops, shirts, or gowns be long sleeved. She could readily agree with Stephanie on that, because it would be hard for others not to look at the scars that covered the girl's left arm.
"Stephanie, tomorrow is our tenth anniversary. Would you be willing to supervise Annabelle so Will and I can spend a few hours alone during the evening?"
"Sure!" Stephanie answered after swallowing. "What time do you need me to be here?"
"How does five sound? I'll have dinner ready for you two, but we probably won't be home until well after midnight." Sarah asked.
"I don't have a problem with it, but you'll wanna talk to Prowl about it. He kinda likes rules and stuff." Stephanie said before shoving another fork full of food in her mouth.
"I think I can take care of that." Sarah answered with a confident smile.
Stephanie nodded her head but didn't pause in her eating. A home cooked meal was something she hadn't had in years, and she was certainly enjoying it. The food in the rec room tasted great, but this was food that was made by someone who actually cared about the people who would be eating it, and that seemed to make a huge difference in the way it tasted.
After she'd finished eating, Stephanie chatted with Annabelle for a while before she had to leave. Both Sarah and Belle walked out of the house with her, to find that Chromia was right there waiting for her.
"Jazz and Prowl are on patrol right now, so I've been asked to give you a ride… if that's okay with you." Chromia while sounding pleased.
"Sure! I don't mind at all." Stephanie said brightly. "You're not grouchy like Humbug. You're nice to talk to."
"Chromy! I see you amowwow?" Annabelle called out.
"Yes, I will return tomorrow, Sweetie." Chromia answered loud enough for the girl to hear.
BREAK
Prowl walked into his quarters followed by Jazz to see Chromia sitting on the sofa. Stephanie was in bed and already asleep. Chromia was smiling about something so much so, that she was almost ready to start laughing.
"May I enquire as to the reason for your levity?" Prowl asked over the com system.
"I am watching some videos on 'YouTube'. Apparently, the Chinese have built a walkway alongside a cliff more than a thousand feet above the ground. It is made of glass so that one can see through it, and even though it is more than thick enough to support the weight of the humans who use it, many of them are frightened because every step is accompanied by the sound of cracking glass. There is also some method they use to make the glass look like it's actually starting to crack. A lot of humans are terrified of using it! It is quite entertaining." Chromia answered cheerfully.
"Am I to understand that some humans are amused by the various reactions which are a result of fear?" Prowl asked in concern.
"Considering that it's a fear that shouldn't really exist because the humans are perfectly safe… yes!" Chromia replied with a soft snicker as she got up to leave.
After the femme had left, Prowl and Jazz both retired to their berth. It was an almost silent agreement to do so since neither of them wanted to wake Stephanie up.
BREAK
Stephanie stretched languidly in her bed after waking up. She didn't hear Jazz and Prowl moving around, but she did hear the sound of their cooling fans, so she figured that they were still asleep… or whatever it was they did in place of it. She moved very quietly as she got out of bed and got dressed for the day.
As she made her bed, Stephanie thought about taking a nice hot shower, but decided that she didn't want to wake up the two bots. She sat on her bed and stayed quiet for what felt like hours. She knew that realistically, there was no way that she waited that long, but that's what it felt like. When she finally heard one of the two bots stirring around, she called out a greeting.
"Good morning! How did you sleep?" Stephanie called out cheerily.
"Good morning Stephanie. I recharged quite well, thank you. May I inquire as to yourself?" Prowl asked
"I slept great! A nice warm and clean bed with plenty of peace and quiet. I didn't have to worry about getting chewed on by rats and roaches, so I slept like a rock!" Stephanie exclaimed happily.
"As far as I am aware, a rock is unable to sleep, nor is it capable of doing anything at all." Prowl replied in slight confusion.
"That's 'cause they don' do nuthin' but lay there. If Steph says that she slept like a rock, then tha' means she didn' hear nuthin', sense nuthin', or do nuthin' but sleep! Mah guess is, it was 'bout like bein' a rock." Jazz said as he got off the berth.
"Yep!" Stephanie answered with a smile.
"If my understanding is correct, then you were completely undisturbed while sleeping?" Prowl asked interestedly.
"Exactly! I slept so good I might as well have been a rock." Stephanie answered.
"Now your comparison becomes quite logical." Prowl replied with a smile.
"Hey Jazz… I hate to say this, but it looks like you're gonna have to tell us both what the other one is saying." Stephanie said wryly.
The Saboteur laughed. "Looks like ya're right on tha' one Steph. Ah guess Ah'm a translator now."
"It would appear that you are correct Jazz. As I am unfamiliar with human colloquialisms, I will inevitably require a translation, definition, or explanation of them." Prowl stated clearly.
The look on Stephanie's face at that moment was a bewildered mix of confusion, disgust, and total exasperation.
"What?" Stephanie blurted. "Jazz you gotta help me out here, because the only thing I got out of all that was that you're right." She added with a shake of her head.
Jazz started laughing. "Prowler said tha' he ain't good with human sayin's, an' tha' Ah'll have ta help 'im out sometimes."
Stephanie started shaking her head. "That doesn't sound very fair to you."
"Indeed. Such an endeavor does not seem equitable in that there is no obvious benefit to yourself." Prowl said sternly.
"If Ah cain't help mah friends unnerstan' each other, then Ah ain't much of a friend, now am Ah?" Jazz asked casually.
Stephanie smiled at the morning banter as she stepped into her bathroom to take a morning shower. When she left the bathroom after her shower, she was dressed for the day.
Walking into the room, Stephanie heard a strange voice from well above her head. That told her that either an unknown bot was talking or someone sitting on an unknown bot's shoulder. "Hi! I'm Stephanie. What's your name?"
"Hello Stephanie. My designation is Wheeljack. Jazz explained your condition to me and since it's not something we bots are often subjected to for any length of time, I suggested a few things that I thought might help. One of those, is this microwave with raised symbols and numbers on it."
"Hold it Steph! What all did'ja do to it there 'Jack?" Jazz demanded sternly.
"Jazz had asked a question of vital importance." Prowl said clearly.
Stephanie understood what Prowl had said that time and Prowl's tone made it clear that he was as dead serious as Jazz was. That made her wonder what was really going on.
"All I did was replace the plastic cover on the buttons so that Stephanie would be able to use it." Wheeljack answered in an affronted tone.
"Are you stating that you did not endeavor to increase the wattage output of the device?" Prowl demanded.
"What?" Wheeljack asked.
Stephanie had to agree because she also wanted some clarification on what Prowl had just said.
"You didn't try ta bump up tha power none did'ja?" Jazz almost growled.
"Of course not! I selected a high powered microwave to begin with so that I wouldn't need to. Besides at 1,200 watts this has plenty of power for what she'll be using it for and I don't want to accidentally kill her by releasing microwave radiation to boil her insides." Wheeljack said in a wounded tone.
"That is an acceptable answer." Prowl said amiably.
"How come ya didn't try ta modify it?" Jazz asked suspiciously.
"Because I'm doing that with the other one. But the radiation shielding in the door is proving a bit tricky. It wouldn't be a problem for one of us, but humans are much more fragile than we are. There can't be any radiation leakage if a human is going to be using it." Wheeljack answered quickly.
"Ah thought ya was workin' on a cane for her?" Jazz asked.
"Oh I am! That's almost done except for a few more calibrations and the paint." Wheeljack said with a grin.
"Why's it need ta be painted?" Jazz asked in confusion.
"Because being that it will be used by someone who is blind, it needs to be white with a red tip so that others will know she is blind when they see that cane." Wheeljack answered easily. "That color combination is used strictly by those who are blind, so it also serves as a type of signal to other humans that the user can not see."
"Those actions are quite logical." Prowl said easily. "However… I am curious. Why will the device need to be calibrated?"
"Because I am including a stunner in it. It won't be a lethal charge, but it will stun either a bot or human if needed. She can't see to aim a cannon or any other type of distance weapon, so she needs to have one that works on contact." Wheeljack explained while grinning.
"Why does it need to be able to stun a bot? I don't wanna hurt one of my friends!" Stephanie protested.
"Because Megatron had numerous friends before he was killed Stephanie. They are called 'Decepticons' and they are determined to exterminate all humans even though they have been known to employ some of them." Prowl answered.
"Oh! So that's just in case… right? I mean if I don't ever have to use it then that would be a good thing… wouldn't it?" Stephanie asked apprehensively.
"Yeah Steph. That'd be a very good thing! We don' want ya ta have ta defend yaself, but if ya gotta, then ya gotta be able ta do it right!" Jazz said firmly.
"Okay." Stephanie nodded.
"So anyway… this microwave has several one touch buttons that you'll likely use more than anything else." Wheeljack said as he set the machine up on top of the mini-fridge that Jazz had obtained for the girl.
Stephanie felt the buttons as Wheeljack explained what they were for. The one with several raised dots was popped corn; several horizontal wavy lines was noodles or soups; the oval was for baked potatoes; the one with a cup was for coffee, tea, or hot chocolate; the triangle was for a slice of pizza, and the vertical wavy lines was to reheat a plate of food. All of the buttons were outlined with a raised square and the numbers were also raised so that she could feel what they were. There was an 'S' for the start button, and a 'C' for the clear button. Wheeljack had blocked off the buttons that she wouldn't need such as the clock and a few other things. All told… Stephanie was ecstatically happy with the device.
"Stephanie you need to know that there is shredded cheese, butter, crushed up bacon pieces and potatoes in the fridge. A case of bottled water is sitting on the floor next to the right hand side of it, and on the left hand side are a series of shelves. A decaffeinated tea is on the top shelf, popped corn is on the second, decaffeinated hot coco is on the third shelf and Ramen Noodles are on the bottom shelf. Do you think there is anything else that you might find necessary?" Prowl explained.
"What flavor are the noodles?" Stephanie asked curiously.
"It would appear that Jazz has obtained beef flavor…"
"Great! I can eat that all day long!" Stephanie interrupted with a grin.
"Consuming such a thing for a twelve hour period would not be advisable. I believe the weight gain would be considerable." Prowl admonished seriously.
Stephanie burst out laughing. "That was a figure of speech Prowl. I meant that I happen to like beef flavor, so that was a good pick."
"There was a lot o difrent flavors ta choose from Steph, so Ah kinda went wid a plain one." Jazz explained quickly.
"Well beef is my favorite, and after that is shrimp, so you won't hear me complaining about it. Being able to eat something when I get hungry is a lot more than I'm used to. Plus… I won't always have to bother one of you just because I want something to eat." Stephanie said with a smile.
"Takin ya ta tha rec room ain't a bother Steph." Jazz began in a wounded tone.
"Indeed not. After all, occasional forays to the rec room will be necessary for us to obtain our energon rations." Prowl continued.
"Looks like this microwave was a good idea on my part. I'm glad I suggested it." Wheeljack exclaimed brightly.
Author's Notes: That walkway actually exists! A LOT of people have screaming, crying fits while trying to walk across it! Go check it out, I dare ya!