Christmas Presents
Prompt: 92-Christmas, from fanfic100 table
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Sideswipe, Sunstreaker, Ratchet, Various
Word Count: 4,004
Universe: G1
Warnings: Hints of other activities
Disclaimer: Transformers is not mine.
Author's Note: Yes, it's a little late, but Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everyone!
Despite it being a human holiday they had cheerfully adopted, and the crew being in a good mood, it had still been a rather stressful day.
First, had been a sheepish Bluestreak and Bumblebee. Somehow, the sniper had twisted a doorwing while trying to help the little spy with hanging up the last of the decorations. But on the other servo, they had left out the abhorrent stockings from the last go around. The replacements were a huge upgrade this time. It had taken very little for him to straighten out the pair and send them on their way. He went back to finishing his inventory.
Not even thirteen breems later, in came Inferno, dragging a protesting Red Alert with him. The fire truck was insistent on the Security Director being checked over. Red Alert wasn’t freaking out like many of the crew would have thought at first glance, so the medic asked just why he was being brought in. With a huff, Red Alert began to calmly explain the situation. By the time they finished arguing, the irate medic was inclined to agree with Red Alert and that Inferno just needed to go with it and enjoy the activities Red had planned for him. They left the same way they entered, only Red Alert was grinning impishly as he was quickly dragged away, trailing the ribbon he had brought out as an example of what he had planned.
His third visitor was of course, Wheeljack. The engineer had somehow fried a few circuits in his hands while experimenting with a set of decorative lights the humans used on their trees. Ratchet just really didn’t want to know how it had happened. He fixed up the Lancia and sent him packing back to his lab, under threat of being Swoop’s guinea pig should he do anything else stupid or harmful to himself or others for the rest of the orn.
After him had come the rest of the science team, wondering if he could spare a moment to check over the gift they wanted to give to the crew. It was a solution guaranteed to help keep ice from forming on their windows. Of course, it had been thoroughly tested, but they wanted his final approval before distributing it out. Of course, they were completely sure it was perfectly safe to use on glass surfaces and the ice wouldn’t stand a chance against it. Of course, they were going back to the drawing board to try again and were deeply sorry about the melted surface of the metal berth. And yes, of course, they were going to carefully dispose of this mixture. And no, Wheeljack had not been part of this.
His fifth visitor was Jazz, bringing in a giggling Prowl. Yes, a giggling Prowl. Ratchet could only stare for a moment before snapping himself back to reality and demanding to know what in the slagging pit had happened. One cube of the high grade for tomorrow’s Christmas party? Only one? Well, things were beginning to look up then weren’t they? He prescribed berth rest and a cube of his timed tested and proven hangover cure. Which prompted him to quickly begin making several more batches of the soon-to-be-needed brew. And to remind certain mechs to have their image capture devices at the ready. The party promised to be blackmail gold.
On and on the day went, with mechs popping into his medbay like jack-in-the-boxes. The range of injuries and disturbances he received was actually very impressive, and would have been worth a good laugh if the last one on the list hadn’t been so…well, stupid.
Of course, the king of his stressful day was Optimus Prime.
He had slid on a patch of black ice and was currently stuck on the side of the road in a large snow drift. With a sigh, Ratchet joined the rescue team and trudged out into the cold, yucky weather. The ambulance began to berate his leader as soon as he reached him about the stupidity of driving in the snow with his trailer empty and hadn’t he learned his lesson last year with the Tree Incident? But, Prime had been ready for him. No, the trailer was not empty, and how was he supposed to play Santa Clause at the party if he didn’t have any gifts to give to the crew? And well, yes, it had been Jazz’s idea.
The rescue party trundled off back to the Ark, so excited that they didn’t even notice when Ratchet pulled a Prime and slid off into a ditch piled high with dirty snow. Grumbling, the medic managed to free himself on the fourth try and transformed to attempt to shake some of the slush out from underneath his armor. By the time he looked up to find the rest of the party, they were already out of sight.
With an annoyed sigh, he returned to his vehicle mode and slowly made his way back to the Ark. Happy voices rang through the halls as he made his way back to his quarters, his shift having ended on his journey back. The only thoughts in his processor were of the pair of mechs he hadn’t seen a sign of all cycle. His lovers had been suspiciously absent all day, not that he was complaining or anything, and he couldn’t help but hope they were already waiting for him. Maybe they would be in the mood to give him his present early? He sure felt better at the thought of an early Christmas gift exchange.
He was so lost in his thoughts and built up such expectation of what was to come that it felt like his spark dropped to the bottom of its casing when the door to his quarters opened to reveal a dark, empty space. With just a little pout, he turned the lights on and saw that everything was left as it was. No one had been in here since he left at the beginning of his shift.
Disappointed, he trudged to his wash racks, holding out on the hope that they might just arrive while he washed the snowy grime from his frame. His spark seemed to fall even lower when he finished and there was still no sign of them. He sent a ping to their comms. When the ping came back a few moments later, he was able to gather they were in Portland, and it would be sometime before they got back. He knocked back a cube of energon and settled on the berth, resolving to wait up for them. His irritation and disappointment rocking higher and sinking lower, he didn’t fight recharge when it snuck up and pulled him under, still alone.
****
His internal alarm buzzed cheerfully at him the next morning. He gave a languid stretch, content in the knowledge all of the shifts had been cut in half so the whole crew would be able to attend the Christmas party that night. He reached out with a smile beginning to form, only to have it vanish as he encountered empty air.
He was still alone.
His frame was warm, but not the warm it should have been with his lovers next to him. There wasn’t even a note on the table to show they had been there and left again. A ping to their comms. only told them they were back in Autobot territory, but neglected to give him a more precise location.
Annoyed, he grumbled all the way to the medbay where he attempted to finish the inventory he had started the day before. He got a lot further this time around as no one came into the bay to bother him. By the time his shift ended, the music was already blaring across the ship from the rec. room. Knowing his lovers would already be back from patrol and ready for the festivities, he made his way to the crowded room.
It seemed nearly everyone was there. Jazz and Blaster had the music and lights going. Bots were dancing and laughing. Prime looked ridiculous with the giant Santa hat on his head, but not as pathetic as a sulking Ironhide with elf ears on his helm who stood next to him. Optimus winked at him and passed the large red bag for his elf to carry as they moved to the spot Jazz had set up for them. Ratchet was sure the Prime was grinning wickedly behind his mask. Red Alert’s cameras tracked every move the weapons specialist made and Hound looked gleeful as he snapped some pictures for later use. Fighting a laugh, he made his way towards the other two officers.
Optimus gave him a serene look as he stopped in front of them. Ironhide huffed and crossed his arms, refusing to acknowledge either one of his friends. The semi let a sigh out of his intakes.
“Aren’t you supposed to say something, Elf?”
“Bah, humbug.”
“Hey, where’s your Christmas spirit, Hide?” Ratchet joked.
“It ran away.”
“Now, now. Be a good little elf and you’ll get a nice present later,” Prime teased.
“Frag you.”
The slow crinkling of Optimus’ optics gave away the impish smile he wore. “I guess you really don’t want your…reward for being Santa’s little helper?”
The medic barely repressed a chuckle as the red mech turned a curious optic on his leader. “What kind of reward?”
“Oh, the kind that everyone likes, of course.”
“Just get on with it, Hide,” Ratchet grinned at the frown the other gave him. “What are you supposed to say?”
Ironhide muttered something without looking any of them in the optic.
“What was that, Ironhide?”
“He’s made his list, he’s checked it twice. You know Prime knows who’s naughty and nice. Santa’s brought some gifts for you, so step right up and see if you’ve been good.”
“That wasn’t so bad,” Ratchet said with a chuckle.
Prime sighed. “He needs to put a little bit more effort into it, but that will do for the first time.”
“You do know, Ironhide, that it can always be worse,” the CMO smiled, indicating Prowl who stood off to the other side of the room with a red bow tied around his chevron and a gold bell in the center. There were other bells on his frame and the glare he was sending Jazz every time he moved and jingled was priceless.
“Oh, Jazz is so dead later,” Ironhide laughed.
Ratchet turned back to Prime. “So, I’ve been good this year. Where’s my stuff?”
“Gettin’ a little greedy there, aren’t ya?” Ironhide asked.
“Shut up, elf. And no, I’m not sitting on your lap to tell you what I want. Just hand it over.”
Optimus laughed and dug through the bag of goodies. He was frowning when he straightened. “I thought I had something else…” he trailed off, distractedly holding out a plain white card. “I’m sorry, old friend, but I must have misplaced it.”
Ratchet shrugged. “Don’t worry about it. I know where you live so I can get it later. Have you seen the Twins yet?”
The other two shared a look. “Not yet, Ratchet. Maybe they’re waiting for you somewhere?” Optimus suggested.
“Hmm, perhaps. Enjoy the rest of your evening.”
Nodding at their goodbyes and smiling as Bluestreak bounced up for his turn, he looked over the room’s occupants once more. A glance back showed the young sniper firmly nestled on Prime’s lap, both enjoying a long, comforting embrace. The gunner hopped up after a bit, present in hand, and proceeded to lean up to give Ironhide a quick peck on the cheek. With a giggle, he dashed back into the party.
Ratchet opened a comm. line to his Prime. ‘Are you by chance going to mention to a certain weapons specialist that he’s standing under the mistletoe?’
Prime gave him a bland look and sent him a straight forward, direct answer that was filled with amusement. ‘No.’
‘Have fun then and take a few pictures for me,’ Ratchet cut the line and gave the room one more glance. Still not finding even a flash of red or yellow, he left the party and retraced his steps to the medbay and his quarters. When that proved futile, he checked the wash racks and even went to their room.
There was no trace of the brothers.
The medic leaned against the wall next to the door. With a frown, he remembered the card he still held and brought it up for closer examination.
‘To Ratchet-
We’re waiting here
In darkness drear
For you to come and find us.
Take three rights
And follow the lights
Look close and you can’t miss us.
From S/S’
Cute, but not exactly what he thought he would find.
Resigned to play hide-and-seek, Ratchet reread the note. Waiting in darkness? The whole Ark was lit up like a Christmas tree so just where…aha! The caves. While they were used by some as an escape of peace and quiet and others used them for playing games and training, the caverns weren’t lit. Processor made up, he made his way to where the ship ended and the volcano began.
It would be easy to figure out what the next clue meant. He turned on his headlights and followed the tunnels. He took the first three rights he came to and was approaching the fourth when the twinkle of colorful lights in the passage to the left caught his optics. A smile formed on his lips as he followed the sparkling rainbow of color.
The end of the tunnel opened into a modestly sized, domed room. Blue lights circled the floor and rows of white icicle lights dangled from the rocky ceiling. It wasn’t bright, but when he turned off his headlights, it was just right.
‘Look close and you can’t miss us.’ There really was no missing them.
They stood together across from him, their arms crossed loosely over their chest plates. Their bright cerulean optics were watching him from under the edges of their helms. The glittering lights gave a soft shimmer to their polished and spotless armor. Around their feet were stacks of boxes of all shapes and sizes wrapped in shiny paper.
“Merry Christmas, Ratchet.” The voice was smooth and soft and gentle and sounded like nothing any other member of the crew besides him would ever hear. Shivers raced down his spine at the sound.
Even though Sideswipe had been the first to speak, Sunstreaker was the first to move. The gold mech stalked forward, all grace and perfect control. He stopped within just a few inches of their plating touching and looked like he wanted to say something, but was debating on how to put it into words.
“We wanted to make it up to you,” he said in a quiet rush.
Ratchet gave him a curious look. “Make what up to me, Sunstreaker?”
He looked down, as if he couldn’t bring himself to look the older medic in the optic. “Last year wasn’t…it could have been, should have been…”
The ambulance gave a light chuckle and placed a red hand beneath the younger mech’s chin, forcing him to look up. “Last year was perfect, Sunny. Awkward, but perfect.”
Sunstreaker sent a glance to Sideswipe. The red twin pushed off the rock wall, his movements just as controlled as his brother’s, but still with a more wild edge that set them apart. “What Sunny means is that, well, last year was great, but we felt like it could have been so much more.”
Ratchet shook his head. “I wanted nothing more than the gift I received last year.”
“Gift?” Sunstreaker asked. “But we didn’t…”
“No, you didn’t get me anything, but you didn’t need to. You two are the best gift I could ever ask for.”
Sideswipe’s smile was a little wobbly. “You’re the first mech in a long time to accept us as we are, together. There’s no way we can express just what that means to us.”
Ratchet reached out and the red fighter eagerly leaned into the hand that cupped his cheek. “I’ve been fascinated with the pair of you since I first laid optics on you. To realize that night you had an equal interest in me…”
Sunstreaker abruptly pulled away with a shake of his finned helm and a snort. Sideswipe grinned and was slower to put some distance between them. “I think we were gettin’ too mushy for Sunny’s tastes.”
“Agreed,” Ratchet replied. “So all those presents…”
“Yep. Just for you,” Sideswipe stated grandly, throwing his arm out to gesture to them all. “You know we love you, so there was nothing to stop us from spoiling you rotten this time.”
Ratchet was beginning to grin at the sight of all the gifts they had gathered just for him and move towards them, but froze in his tracks. He turned and looked back at them with optics gone wide.
“Ratchet?” Sunstreaker asked. “What’s wrong?”
The medic shook his head. “Did you just…?”
“What’s the matter, Ratch?” Sideswipe looked just as concerned as his brother. “Did we do something wrong? What…?”
“You said ‘love.’”
“What?” Sideswipe’s optics went comically wide and he shot a wild glance at the yellow bot. “I did? Well, I mean, oops. Yeah, yeah, my bad. It’s only been an Earth year and all…”
In the back of his processor, Ratchet was laughing hysterically. Watching the red twin flounder like a fish out of water and the rather frightened look on the yellow one’s face was not something one got to see every day. Sideswipe continued to desperately search for a way to cover his slip. Sunstreaker was the very definition of deer-in-the-headlights.
He knew he should really do something to soothe them. True, they had been together for exactly an Earth year today, but none of them had ever mentioned or hinted at the L word. He had been considering it, but didn’t want to pressure them, scare them off, and all that other jazz. Besides that, it just never seemed to be the right time. Between battles and recovering from injuries and work shifts and the breaks separating the fights, there just hadn’t been a moment where they were safe enough to admit anything like this.
But tonight was different. He looked around at all the effort they had put forth into making the holiday special. The cavern was cleared out and cleaned. The lights had to have taken some time to put up so they hung just right above them. And the gifts. Every box was wrapped differently, and he wondered if they had spent the past day avoiding him just so they could finish them. If this place wasn’t safe, where was? Now was as good a time as any.
Sideswipe shut up as Ratchet approached Sunstreaker. The golden mech flinched as the medic reached out and his twin shifted in preparation of intervening if needed. Sunstreaker allowed the touch on the second attempt and Ratchet gently ran his hand up the frontliner’s arm to rest on the other’s neck. “So what do you feel? Your brother seems to love me. Do you?” He kept his voice low, his tone tender. Sideswipe shifted again, his posture guarded and poised on the edge of movement. Without the delicate sensors on his red hands to feel the vibrations, Ratchet wouldn’t have been able to tell the younger brother had even made the quiet whimper. “Sunny?”
It took a long, long moment. Ratchet was in no hurry though, and patiently waited. While Sideswipe was confident enough to admit the feelings they both felt, he wanted to hear Sunstreaker say it for himself.
“I love you, Ratchet.”
So faint, so genuine. His weary spark melted in its casing. Satisfied, he spun away and moved to the presents. Behind him, Sideswipe gave a low, dangerous growl.
“So that’s it? We admit how we feel and you just walk away?”
Smirking, the medic turned and paced back to them. His smirk widened at the sight of Sideswipe’s dark glower. “You’re bold enough to say it without prompting. I needed to hear it from Sunny before I did anything about it.” That said, Ratchet slapped a bow he had swiped from two of the packages onto their chest plates. “There. Now my presents are perfect and I love them both, possibly more than they could know.”
The next instant, he was surrounded by strong frames and even stronger sparks. Both were shaking and before he knew it, he was making soft cooing sounds to calm them as he held them in return. They sank to the floor, trying to borrow as far as they could into each other. Yes, Ratchet decided, this was the safest place in the galaxy.
It was a while before the twins pulled away to look at him. Sunstreaker instantly reburied his face against the medic’s neck. Sideswipe busied himself by tracing random patterns on the red palm he cradled between his own black hands.
“You’re sure, Ratchet? I mean, you’re not just saying…because we did and all…”
Ratchet chuckled and pushed Sunstreaker back so he could watch them both while he answered. “I’m sure, Sides. I’m pretty sure that after all this time, after all the repairs I’ve made to your frames, after all the times I’ve held your sparks in my hands, that I would know just how deep my feelings run.”
Sunstreaker sighed and nuzzled in close again before he jumped up and dashed over to the pile of boxes. Sideswipe laughed at the sudden change in mood and followed to select his own offering for the medic. Ratchet watched them, his spark lighter than it had been in years. The yellow mech came back with a bound and offered his gift with an elaborate bow. The white bot eagerly tore through the paper and opened the box to find a glass ornament with streaks of blue and green in it.
“It’s beautiful, Sunny,” he said, smiling.
Sunstreaker ducked his helm. “Made it myself,” he muttered in a rush.
“You did? It’s amazing,” Ratchet carefully cradled the glass in his hands. “Thank you.”
Sunstreaker flashed him a grin that was at odds with the picture the medic had made of the yellow Lamborghini. Sideswipe came back to stand beside him, observing his twin with a fond smile. Ratchet opened a private comm. line to the red one.
‘He’s like a youngling.’
Sideswipe gave him a sidelong glance. ‘We never really got the chance to be younglings. I always tried to make sure he got the most out of the chances we did get though.’
‘What was…did you see that? His fins…’
‘Hmm? Oh, his helm fins? Yeah, they move like that.’
The fins on Sunstreaker’s helm were waving gently as he picked through the presents to find the one that would be best to give next. ‘They’re just like Blue’s doorwings, only a lot more sensitive.'‘I’ve never seen them move before.’
‘No one but me has. You’re in deep now, babe. Sunny never lets anyone see them move, unless he feels absolutely safe with them. They’re one of his weaknesses.’
There was a warning in those last words. Ratchet nodded solemnly, accepting the trust both were placing in him. He caught Sunstreaker’s hand when the mech returned. “I promise to you, to both of you,” he held out a hand for Sideswipe to take, “that I will never willingly harm you. We’ll fight and be angry, but never, never will I purposely hurt you. The rules will change in life or death situations, of course, but you’re too precious to me to risk.”
“We can deal with that,” Sideswipe answered.
“But don’t start thinking that just because we love you we’ll stop being pains in your aft,” Sunstreaker added.
Ratchet laughed as he accepted the gifts they gave him, accepted them for who they were. “I wouldn’t have you any other way.”
Thanks for reading!