Sparklings are cute...and evil

[yami_samuraiflo]

And a new bunny found on tf_bunny_farm
Enjoy!

Title: Sparklingsitting
Rating: PG
Characters: Ratchet, sparkling!Perceptor, Atomia (OC)
Pairing: OC / OC
Summary: Pre-Earth. Ratchet promises to babysit a sparkling Perceptor.

Millions of years ago on Cybertron

 

Ratchet was tired. The only thing he wanted right now was a quick trip to the wash racks, a good cube or two of energon – high-grade if possible – and a long recharge. He was not needed at the hospital for some time, not after he threw his wrench at the face of his latest patient.

 

Although it wasn’t unusual for him, this time he had hit a Council member. Thankfully, the mech hadn’t pressed charge against him or the rest of the staff. He had been warned by everyone, and he had realized he should have listened.

 

That didn’t mean he wasn’t angry.

 

Ratchet hadn’t cared much anyway. But the Hospital Director had kindly but firmly told him to go home and try to relax and before he really tried to kill someone.

 

He had accepted. He really needed the rest.

 

But this stupid femme just didn’t want to leave him alone! With her foot keeping the door open, she was still begging him.

 

Well, Atomia wasn’t stupid, he corrected himself. The femme was a good scientist, specialized in chemistry and proud of her achievements so far. She had a knack for discovering new alloys to use in construction.

 

Of course, she didn’t exactly have the best reputation. Or at least, her bondmate didn’t. Quark, the mech she had chosen to live with, was older than her by millions of vorns. Granted, in their race, it wasn’t something so shocking, but she was so young... And he had been her teacher, once.

 

Let’s just say a few people were talking behind their back.

 

Not that the happy couple minded. They paid so little attention to what happened around them they hadn’t realized some people had a problem with their relationship...or their family unit.

 

No matter how many times he said ‘no’, she wasn’t going to listen.

 

“Please, Ratchet! Quark had to go to a seminar in Kaon and I really must go if I want to be on time to my classes and I don’t have anyone to take care of him while I’m away!”

“Atomia...” he tried.

“Don’t ‘Atomia’ me, Ratchet. And don’t be so loud, you’re going to wake him,” she added while moving slightly to get a better grip on the door.

 

By him, she meant the little thing recharging in her arms. A little bundle of wire and temporary armor, with a strange microscope-like thing on the shoulder. In his sleep, he had put one of his fingers in his mouth.

 

It was rather cute. But there was no way the medic would ever tell her that. His credibility and his reputation would be trashed if he did.

 

“Why can’t you just leave him alone?” he asked the femme, trying to look more grumpy than he really felt.

 

Atomia looked at him with big optics.

 

“Ratch, are you crazy? He’s barely three vorns old! I can’t leave him alone in the house! He needs a sitter!”

“And I’m a medic, so I don’t qualify!”

“As a medic, you certify for anything! If he has a problem, I’m sure you could take care of him.”

“Wheeljack could too; why don’t you ask him?”

 

He froze under the femme stare. Perhaps he shouldn’t have made that suggestion.

 

“Do you realize what you just said? Wheeljack? With my sparkling? I would be lucky if I could find all his parts!”

“He’s not so bad,” mumbled the medic.

 

True, Wheeljack had the tendency to blow up a lot of things, but he could certainly take care of a sparkling for a few joors. Or at least he hoped so...

 

Atomia’s gaze softened.

 

“I know he’s not that bad; I worked with him. In fact, one day, he certainly will be an amazing creator,” she said in a quiet voice, balancing her creation in her arms, “But I also know he had no experience with sparklings and younglings at this time. He wouldn't know what to do if Perceptor started crying. And have you seen the dump he calls a workshop? A turbo-rat wouldn’t find his young...”

“I don't have that much experience with sparklings either,” said Ratchet, though he knew she wouldn’t let him win.

“But as a medic, you had to repair a few already. You know what to do or not to do with them. Please, Ratchet... It’s really important...”

 

He winced as she looked at him with those big optics of her. Atomia was known for her ability to make any mech or femme in the vicinity feel guilty from something just by looking at them like that. Truthfully, he hoped the sparkling hadn't inherited that from her.

 

He also hoped she would never try to have other sparkling, though he knew better. She loved youths to much to just be happy with a single one. Meaning, Perceptor would likely have brothers or sisters one orn...

 

Sighing, he put a hand to his forehead. He knew he was fighting a losing battle.

 

“Ok, ok. I will take him in...”

 

He was rather surprised when the femme kissed him on the lips after she cried out in joy.

 

“Oh, thank you, thank you so much! I will not be gone for too long, I promise! And don't worry; I brought everything you will need with me. Give me a second while I get it out of subspace...” she mumbled after setting her sparkling on the ground.

 

Her sparkling who was now online and looking around with curious optics. His gaze met Ratchet's and he clicked softly in wonder, his little head tilted.

 

He looked like a scientist trying to make sense of a new discovery. Ratchet was puzzled. Could a sparkling really consider someone as a subject or specimen to observe?

 

“Perceptor, don’t bother Ratchet, please,” Atomia said while she finished emptying her subspace pockets. “Don’t worry Ratch, I think he loves you already. He’s a very curious little thing, you know? He must think of you as a new discovery, so don't be surprised if he stares at you all the time. He does that will everyone when he meets them for the first time. Don’t you think it’s cute? He likes to explore, so if I were you, I wouldn't let him out of his playpen for now. Or if you do, try to put all fragile objects out of his reach; he likes to dismantle his toys and everything he can get his hands onto just to see how they work,” she added.

 

Ratchet looked at her with surprise. He had never heard her speak so much, not even when she presented her work. Of course, here she was speaking about a different subject altogether...

 

“Do you always talk so much when you’re talking about your sparkling? Or sparklings in general?”

 

Atomia blinked.

 

“Oh, I hadn’t realized I was bothering you. I’m sorry if I talk too much; it runs in the family. I have a brother who love chatting with everyone for orns without stopping. I think he wants to have his own sparkling, but right now, he doesn’t have the ressources to create or educate one, but he’s already thinking of name. Last I heard was Silverstreak, but I think he’s going to choose something else...”

 

Ratchet silently prayed he'd never meet this mech or his hypothetical sparkling. He liked a good conversation like everyone, but the flow of words coming from the femme’s vocalizer made him slightly dizzy.

 

“Chee?”

“Ah!” yelped the medic when he felt something on his leg.

 

Dropping his head, he saw the little Perceptor hanging onto his leg. He had almost forgotten him. Next to his creator, he was incredibly silencious. How had the sparkling managed to climb up him without him?

 

Atomia giggled.

 

“Oh, he’s so cute!”

 

Cute wasn’t exactly what Ratchet had in mind right now, but he had to admit, even reluctantly, that the sparkling was...fascinating to observe.

 

Oh fantastic; he was thinking like Wheeljack now... Atomia cut through his musings.

 

“Right, I must go now. Here, you have everything you will need,” she said, dropping several things in his arms. “There’s his blanket for his nap, panels for a playpen, some of his toys, his cup for his energon... please don't give him too much and only the special blue one. He's still not able to process the others right now. I gave you a few cubes so there should be enough in case I’m not able to come back right away. Of course, if I can’t, Quark will come to fetch him instead...”

 

Ratchet tried very hard to listen to her but found he couldn't, not when Perceptor was still trying to climb up him and he had to be careful not to move and make him fall. He didn't fancy passing the next joors trying to calm down a crying sparkling.

 

Those things were dangerous when they cried. He had lost count of the number of audios he had to replace for his patients because of a sparkling's or a youngling's temper tantrum...

 

Though it seemed he wouldn’t have this problem with Perceptor; the little one was curious indeed, but without access to any tools or chemical, he doubted he would be too dangerous... And he was so quiet!

 

Primus, if one day he had creations of his own, he prayed for them to be as calm and nice...

 

After Atomia had transformed and left, the medic dropped everything to the floor. He would look through that later. For now, he had a sparkling to supervise. And the first thing he was going to do was a check up to assure himself Perceptor had all the firewall and antivirus he needed.

 

He wouldn’t be a medic if he didn’t.Letting himself drop to his knees, he carefully began patting the helm of the sparkling. Perceptor chirped under his touch, but remained where he was before beginning to run his little hands everywhere on Ratchet’s forearm.

 

“Well, little one, it's just you and me for now. How about you examine me in detail inside the apartment?”

 

The sparkling smiled at him and followed him inside, more crawling than walking but at his age, that was normal. Ratchet took him in his arms and began to tickle him under the chin, to Perceptor's greatest delight.

 

Well, perhaps taking care of the sparkling wouldn’t be so hard...