sv, Autobot Base, Decorating
((continued from here))
It's the time of year that brings about oversized pine trees.... decorated in all manner of shiny and regalia... only this particular tree is in the Autobot base, and it has a certain panther scaling its branches from the inside, something delicate-looking held gingerly in her mouth. A group of sparklets is busy nearby, playing with tinsel and garland.
"Stiletto?" Prowl emerges from the shadow of the tree. "What are you doing?"
Stiletto's response is a bit delayed as she carefully hangs the ornament she's carrying on a sturdy branch, "Making sure this ornament doesn't get knocked off of the tree..." Then, she's poking her head out, pleased kitty grin firmly in place.
The golden ninja comes over to look, sidestepping the little ones and the femme that's watching over them. "Where did this come from?"
"The Nexus... I was looking for a good place to hide the extra tinsel so Dad and Uncle Sideswipe couldn't use it to prank anyone.... and there was this ginormous tree there. It looked kinda sad, so I put the tinsel on it, and some of the snow on the tree melted into this!" Stiletto all but purrs, "Other people were helping decorate the tree too, so I don't think it's LOL'd."
Prowl climbs up swiftly and so carefully that no rustles come from the tree. The only sign of him is when his hand emerges from the thick foliage to touch the ornament. "Curious."
Stiletto swishes her tail a bit, "I'm kinda hoping that this year, we won't be LOL'd or anything... We...kinda had that happen last Christmas..." Then, Runabout is squealing, and her attention is on her younger cousins, who are busy tussling over a shiny bow from where some of the older Autobots are wrapping gifts. "..."
"I've heard stories." Prowl comes out of the tree and looks over to where Skywarp is trying to to separate the twins as her own little one clings to her back and watches with wide optics.
"Hey! Where're we supposed to stick this stuff again?" Sunstreaker asks, holding up several sprigs of mistletoe. Sideswipe has managed to swipe one of the sprigs, and found a way to attach it to his chassis so that it hangs over his head. He's currently trying to get Nightwish to kiss him.
Nightwish, for her part, while she has no problem with his request, is frowning down at her mate as she tries to understand his behavior. "Why do you have that plant hanging from you like that?"
"You mean nobody's ever told you about mistletoe?" Sideswipe seems a bit shocked, and moves to lead Nightwish over to the nearest seating area to teach his mate about the human traditions associated with the plant.
"Bloody fraggin' #$#@%$@@!" Slingshot's low level stream of invective suddenly bursts out into a bellow of frustration as she throws a tangled cord of lights at Air Raid's head.
Air Raid, for his part, has already made off with a couple of shiny bows, and makes a startled sound when the strand of lights hits him smack in the face.
Skywarp's cringing now, her arms around the twins as Slingshot vents her frustration at the world and stomps out.
Beside her, Fireflight looks up from where she's thoroughly wrapped in two strings of lights and a turkey and corn garland, her expression sober. "Thinks she's failed. Poor sister."
Silverbolt looks up from where she's sitting, having been given the task of tearing off tape for the gift wrapping, before she's trying to shove the tape dispenser into Ace's hands so she can go talk to her sibling, "Gonna go bring her back..."
"Sister needs time to think," says Fireflight quietly, one hand managing to get free of her bonds and pat pat Skywarp on the arm gently.
Silverbolt frowns a bit, "She didn't fail though... Optimus couldn't even get the lights as untangled as she did..." The mech in question looks over from where he, WakeJumper and Ratchet are working on hanging decorations, before Downrush points out that they're hanging the decorations crooked.
Fireflight nods as Ace gets up to come and try to unwrap her. "After she thinks."
Silverbolt nods a bit, before Air Raid, in a fit of mischief, decorates her with some of the bows he grabbed, "Ack!"
"Excuse me, Sunstreaker," says Skydive quietly from where he's standing next to Optimus and the others. "I think Skywarp needs you."
Sunstreaker nods, setting the remaining sprigs of mistletoe down nearby before he heads over to make sure Skywarp is alright, and to try to separate the scuffling siblings on the floor.
Prowl watches them, then looks back up at the crystal ornament that Stiletto put on the tree, his expression distant and sad.
Stiletto reaches out from within the tree to put a gentle paw on Prowl's shoulder. "Think you can reach the top to put the star on?"
It is the first time in her life that the young femme has managed to startle her teacher. His fangs flash inches from her leg and then he steps back, the light of his visor bright with shock and dismay.
"Whoa." Ace looks up from Fireflight, his optics wide. "Stella, are you okay?"
Stiletto just manages to pull her paw back in time, letting out a low, startled growl as she does. "Yeah... I'm fine..."
Prowl backs away. "I... I'm sorry." And then he's gone into the nearest shadow.
Optimus cycles air, before leaving Downrush, Ratchet, and WakeJumper to the decorating, intent on trying to locate Prowl. It seems Stiletto's got the same idea, as she all but leaps out of the tree, pausing only a moment to shake pine needles off of her fur, before she pads off down one of the hallways.
"His beast woke up," says Fireflight, watching them go.
Skywarp just hides her face and her armload of sparklets against Sunstreaker.
Sunstreaker clicks quietly, concerned for both his mate and his eldest daughter.
There's a bit of a silence, and then Nightside looks up from the toy train he's been playing with. "So now what?"
"Let's finish getting the decorations set up..." WakeJumper suggests, before hoisting Deluge up onto his shoulders when the femme gets near enough.
Nightside nods. "Is the tree ready for the train yet?"
"It's missing the star...." Air Raid points out with a small frown.
The younger mech looks up. "Oh. The one that's behind the monitor platform?"
"I'll get it!" Gobaith's drone shouts, just before it's tackled by Go'el's drone. The two spend a few moments scuffling on the floor while Silverbolt goes to check behind the monitor platform.
Fireflight is giggling. "Wasn't lost at all!"
Silverbolt nods, holding up the star, "let's put it on the top, like the pictures show."
Nightside nods, then gets up to take it and see if he can reach where it goes, only to stop and look around as a tiny voice calls to him.
"May I put it up?" asks Kendell curiously.
Nightside hesitates, and then looks to nearest adult male for an opinion.
Ratchet delegates the decorating to the Aquabots, before coming over to pick up Kendell and bring her closer to the tree. "Just remember to be gentle, Nightside."
"I will be." Big hands gently cradle the little femme and lift her up, and then Nightside offers advice as she kneels and works on getting the cone over the top of the tree.
Ratchet continues to watch, acting very much like an overprotective grandpa. Finally the star is in place, and then Kendell is looking down with a grave little smile of accomplishment before Nightside gently brings her down and offers her to the elderly medibot.
Ratchet gently cradles Kendell in the crook of his arm, and then moves to settle in his usual chair, only to wind up with the still scuffling Gobaith and Go'el at his feet. Arcee is over a few moments later, trying to break up the minor skirmish.
"Hey," says Nightside, gently picking up his small friends and baby brothers. "Let's put the train around the tree, okay?"
The twin drones nod as one, before they're both trying to get down so they can lay out the track for the train. Mudflap and Runabout make excited noises and try to help, though they're more focused on the train than the tracks.
Nightwish looks over from where she's holding her purring and sleeping mate and finds herself pleased with the scene around the tree, and in the room in general. Maybe, she thinks, she's understanding this 'family' business after all.
((co-written with random_xtras))
It's the time of year that brings about oversized pine trees.... decorated in all manner of shiny and regalia... only this particular tree is in the Autobot base, and it has a certain panther scaling its branches from the inside, something delicate-looking held gingerly in her mouth. A group of sparklets is busy nearby, playing with tinsel and garland.
"Stiletto?" Prowl emerges from the shadow of the tree. "What are you doing?"
Stiletto's response is a bit delayed as she carefully hangs the ornament she's carrying on a sturdy branch, "Making sure this ornament doesn't get knocked off of the tree..." Then, she's poking her head out, pleased kitty grin firmly in place.
The golden ninja comes over to look, sidestepping the little ones and the femme that's watching over them. "Where did this come from?"
"The Nexus... I was looking for a good place to hide the extra tinsel so Dad and Uncle Sideswipe couldn't use it to prank anyone.... and there was this ginormous tree there. It looked kinda sad, so I put the tinsel on it, and some of the snow on the tree melted into this!" Stiletto all but purrs, "Other people were helping decorate the tree too, so I don't think it's LOL'd."
Prowl climbs up swiftly and so carefully that no rustles come from the tree. The only sign of him is when his hand emerges from the thick foliage to touch the ornament. "Curious."
Stiletto swishes her tail a bit, "I'm kinda hoping that this year, we won't be LOL'd or anything... We...kinda had that happen last Christmas..." Then, Runabout is squealing, and her attention is on her younger cousins, who are busy tussling over a shiny bow from where some of the older Autobots are wrapping gifts. "..."
"I've heard stories." Prowl comes out of the tree and looks over to where Skywarp is trying to to separate the twins as her own little one clings to her back and watches with wide optics.
"Hey! Where're we supposed to stick this stuff again?" Sunstreaker asks, holding up several sprigs of mistletoe. Sideswipe has managed to swipe one of the sprigs, and found a way to attach it to his chassis so that it hangs over his head. He's currently trying to get Nightwish to kiss him.
Nightwish, for her part, while she has no problem with his request, is frowning down at her mate as she tries to understand his behavior. "Why do you have that plant hanging from you like that?"
"You mean nobody's ever told you about mistletoe?" Sideswipe seems a bit shocked, and moves to lead Nightwish over to the nearest seating area to teach his mate about the human traditions associated with the plant.
"Bloody fraggin' #$#@%$@@!" Slingshot's low level stream of invective suddenly bursts out into a bellow of frustration as she throws a tangled cord of lights at Air Raid's head.
Air Raid, for his part, has already made off with a couple of shiny bows, and makes a startled sound when the strand of lights hits him smack in the face.
Skywarp's cringing now, her arms around the twins as Slingshot vents her frustration at the world and stomps out.
Beside her, Fireflight looks up from where she's thoroughly wrapped in two strings of lights and a turkey and corn garland, her expression sober. "Thinks she's failed. Poor sister."
Silverbolt looks up from where she's sitting, having been given the task of tearing off tape for the gift wrapping, before she's trying to shove the tape dispenser into Ace's hands so she can go talk to her sibling, "Gonna go bring her back..."
"Sister needs time to think," says Fireflight quietly, one hand managing to get free of her bonds and pat pat Skywarp on the arm gently.
Silverbolt frowns a bit, "She didn't fail though... Optimus couldn't even get the lights as untangled as she did..." The mech in question looks over from where he, WakeJumper and Ratchet are working on hanging decorations, before Downrush points out that they're hanging the decorations crooked.
Fireflight nods as Ace gets up to come and try to unwrap her. "After she thinks."
Silverbolt nods a bit, before Air Raid, in a fit of mischief, decorates her with some of the bows he grabbed, "Ack!"
"Excuse me, Sunstreaker," says Skydive quietly from where he's standing next to Optimus and the others. "I think Skywarp needs you."
Sunstreaker nods, setting the remaining sprigs of mistletoe down nearby before he heads over to make sure Skywarp is alright, and to try to separate the scuffling siblings on the floor.
Prowl watches them, then looks back up at the crystal ornament that Stiletto put on the tree, his expression distant and sad.
Stiletto reaches out from within the tree to put a gentle paw on Prowl's shoulder. "Think you can reach the top to put the star on?"
It is the first time in her life that the young femme has managed to startle her teacher. His fangs flash inches from her leg and then he steps back, the light of his visor bright with shock and dismay.
"Whoa." Ace looks up from Fireflight, his optics wide. "Stella, are you okay?"
Stiletto just manages to pull her paw back in time, letting out a low, startled growl as she does. "Yeah... I'm fine..."
Prowl backs away. "I... I'm sorry." And then he's gone into the nearest shadow.
Optimus cycles air, before leaving Downrush, Ratchet, and WakeJumper to the decorating, intent on trying to locate Prowl. It seems Stiletto's got the same idea, as she all but leaps out of the tree, pausing only a moment to shake pine needles off of her fur, before she pads off down one of the hallways.
"His beast woke up," says Fireflight, watching them go.
Skywarp just hides her face and her armload of sparklets against Sunstreaker.
Sunstreaker clicks quietly, concerned for both his mate and his eldest daughter.
There's a bit of a silence, and then Nightside looks up from the toy train he's been playing with. "So now what?"
"Let's finish getting the decorations set up..." WakeJumper suggests, before hoisting Deluge up onto his shoulders when the femme gets near enough.
Nightside nods. "Is the tree ready for the train yet?"
"It's missing the star...." Air Raid points out with a small frown.
The younger mech looks up. "Oh. The one that's behind the monitor platform?"
"I'll get it!" Gobaith's drone shouts, just before it's tackled by Go'el's drone. The two spend a few moments scuffling on the floor while Silverbolt goes to check behind the monitor platform.
Fireflight is giggling. "Wasn't lost at all!"
Silverbolt nods, holding up the star, "let's put it on the top, like the pictures show."
Nightside nods, then gets up to take it and see if he can reach where it goes, only to stop and look around as a tiny voice calls to him.
"May I put it up?" asks Kendell curiously.
Nightside hesitates, and then looks to nearest adult male for an opinion.
Ratchet delegates the decorating to the Aquabots, before coming over to pick up Kendell and bring her closer to the tree. "Just remember to be gentle, Nightside."
"I will be." Big hands gently cradle the little femme and lift her up, and then Nightside offers advice as she kneels and works on getting the cone over the top of the tree.
Ratchet continues to watch, acting very much like an overprotective grandpa. Finally the star is in place, and then Kendell is looking down with a grave little smile of accomplishment before Nightside gently brings her down and offers her to the elderly medibot.
Ratchet gently cradles Kendell in the crook of his arm, and then moves to settle in his usual chair, only to wind up with the still scuffling Gobaith and Go'el at his feet. Arcee is over a few moments later, trying to break up the minor skirmish.
"Hey," says Nightside, gently picking up his small friends and baby brothers. "Let's put the train around the tree, okay?"
The twin drones nod as one, before they're both trying to get down so they can lay out the track for the train. Mudflap and Runabout make excited noises and try to help, though they're more focused on the train than the tracks.
Nightwish looks over from where she's holding her purring and sleeping mate and finds herself pleased with the scene around the tree, and in the room in general. Maybe, she thinks, she's understanding this 'family' business after all.
((co-written with random_xtras))