TF: Helpless
Rating: PG-13
Series: Movieverse
Pairings: Sunstreaker/Jolt
Summary: An incident on the battlefield leaves Jolt wanting to do more than just fight.
Disclaimer: As per usual, the good things in life are not mine to have, but belong to someone else… in this case Hasbro, Takara and IDW and anyone else I’ve forgotten…
Authors Notes: For the tf_rare_pairing March Medic!Challenge. Also, if anyone can help me find the fic I kept thinking about when I was writing this, I’d be very grateful (drabble-grateful!) - it’s a fic where Senator Ratchet becomes Medic Ratchet after being caught in a fight with Prowl (?) and ripped some of his own plating off to help seal off some damage. Then decided to retrain as a medic.
Feedback makes friends. Flames dealt with by the masters of paranoia and fire, Red Alert and Inferno.
Font used: Jolt (Because how could I not?)
“Sunstreaker!” The name left two vocalisers as the golden frontliner dropped to the ground. Jolt and Sideswipe fought their way through Decepticons to reach Sunstreaker’s side. Jolt dropped to his knees, whips retracting and leaving energy crackling over his frame.
“Fix him!” Sideswipe whirled around, keeping an optic out for any Decepticons who might try and dispatch a downed Autobot. Sunstreaker had already dealt with the Decepticon who had injured him, his frame laying grey nearby.
“I’m not a medic!” Jolt hissed, running his hands over Sunstreaker’s plating, trying to find the worst of the damage. “He’s got lines torn, and I can’t fix them.” Desperately, he held the lines together, directing the charge still running through his frame into his hands. The brief shock made Sunstreaker’s frame jerk, but it sealed the lines together. Sideswipe looked back as Sunstreaker jerked.
“What did you do?” There was accusation in his voice, and Jolt held his hands up in defence.
“Diverted some charge, it sealed the line.” He explained. Sideswipe nodded and turned back to guard.
“Well then, keep doing it.” Jolt nodded, glancing around before turning his optics back to Sunstreaker’s damaged frame. He’d already commed a medic, had commed as soon as he’d seen Sunstreaker fall. But Sunstreaker wasn’t the only casualty on the battlefield. He didn’t know how long it would take a medic to get to them. And he didn’t know how long Sunstreaker would survive. To his untrained optics, it looked bad.
~*~
Line after line, he rerouted the charge from his whips through his fingers to the lines in Sunstreaker’s frame, sealing them off until a medic could get to them. Once he finished sealing all the lines he could see, he started trying to clear out the debris and blackened plating.
“Sunstreaker’s really not going to be happy with the state of his finish…” He muttered, sweeping a hand down Sunstreaker’s thigh, a relatively undamaged part.
“Just means you get to shine him up again.” Sideswipe called over his shoulder. He’d gotten used to the fledgling relationship between Jolt and his brother, not minding it half as much as he thought he would.
“Like the way you wax me…” Sunstreaker muttered. Jolt glanced down, relieved to see Sunstreaker’s blue optics lit up, even if they were flickering.
“Hold on Sunstreaker. There’s a medic coming.” He murmured, moving one hand to caress Sunstreaker’s helm.
“Liar. Battle’s not over yet.” Jolt winced and Sideswipe glanced back.
“We’ll get you to a medic, Sunny, just stay with us.”
~*~
It seemed to take forever for the battle to end. And then longer for a medic to reach their position and transport Sunstreaker back to the base.
~*~
Jolt was waiting outside the repair bay with a very impatient Sideswipe. He’d watched the warrior pace, skating from one end of the corridor to the other, blades flicking out at what seemed like random intervals.
“Sunstreaker will be all right.” He ventured when Sideswipe rolled past him.
“You the one with a twin bond then?” Sideswipe slid to a halt and all but glared at Jolt.
“No…” Jolt fought the urge to hang his head. “But I know that Ratchet’s working on him, and Ratchet’s one of the best medics in the Autobots.”
“One of the best.” Sideswipe spat.
“And more than enough to save your brother’s sorry chassis.” Ratchet snapped, leaning against the now open doorway to the repair bay, cleaning his hands with a cloth.
“He’s all right?” Jolt asked, pushing away from the wall. Sideswipe rolled straight into the repair bay without acknowledging Ratchet.
“He’s going to be fine.” Jolt sagged back against the wall in relief.
“Thank you.” He murmured, shuttering his optics for a moment.
“I should be the one thanking you.” Ratchet said. Jolt’s optics opened wide.
“What?”
“What you did out there, sealing his lines... you kept him online long enough to reach a medic.”
“I did?” Jolt sounded as though he didn’t quite believe he’d done something so important.
“Yeah, you did kid.” Ratchet stepped forward and clapped him on the shoulder. “Now let’s get in there before that wheeled terror wrecks my repair bay.” He ushered Jolt inside, directing him to Sunstreaker’s berth before moving aside to clean equipment.
~*~
“Sunstreaker…” Jolt smiled as he reached Sunstreaker’s berth, relieved to see the golden frontliner online (and bitching about his paintjob).
“Hey.” Sunstreaker smiled the smile that only seemed reserved for him. “Ratchet says you saved my life.” Jolt shrugged and looked away.
“Sealed a few lines.”
“Frag… you should have seen him Sunny… Didn’t know he could do that.”
“I didn’t know I could do that.” Jolt put in.
“Though, looked awful when he did it… hey, have you two experimented with his whips yet?”
“Sideswipe!” The name left two vocalisers as the red frontliner grinned.
“What, I was just asking.”
~*~
“Ratchet?”
“What?” The chartreuse medic glanced over his shoulder as Jolt approached him.
“I was wondering… do you think I could learn to be a medic?” Ratchet turned round fully at that and looked at Jolt thoughtfully.
“You’d require a few upgrades… I’m presuming you still want to fight?”
“Yes.”
“Then Ironhide and Wheeljack will need to look at your specs, can’t have your whips interfering with the medic upgrades.”
“So you think it’s possible?”
“Kid, I was a senator before the war broke out.”
“A senator?” Jolt’s optics flared wide, trying to reconcile the idea of Ratchet the medic, irascible and blunt being in the political circles of Cybertron.
“Way before your time.” Ratchet waved a hand in dismissal, knowing exactly what Jolt was thinking. The warrior was too young to really remember Cybertron as it was. To his credit, Jolt just nodded.
“You sure you’re ready for this?” Ratchet had to ask. He needed to make sure that Jolt understood what becoming a medic was like.
“I know that I felt helpless with Sunstreaker… I didn’t know what to do. I want to at least know what to do in situations like that.” Ratchet hid the smile that threatened to break free. There were worse reasons to become a medic than love.
~*~
“You what?”
“I’m training as a medic.” Jolt squared his shoulders. “Ratchet’s got me slotted in for the upgrades next cycle.”
“A medic.” Sunstreaker’s voice was flat. Almost as though he was disappointed.
“I’m still going to fight, I just… I hated not knowing how to help you.” Sunstreaker seemed to relax a little at that.
“You still knew enough to help me.”
“I guessed!” Jolt retorted. “I guessed I was helping you. For all I knew, the charge I was directing in to try and seal those lines was doing more harm than good.”
“Jolt…”
“It’s not going to change who I am, Sunstreaker.” Jolt stepped closer and looked up at the golden frontliner. “I’m still going to be me. And I’m still going to be the mech who loves you.”
“Jolt…” Sunstreaker’s hesitation was for a different reason this time. They’d never made declarations of love to one another before. Jolt suddenly seemed to realise what he’d said.
“I mean…
“No, I know what you mean…” Sunstreaker cut him off, pulling him close. “I love you too.”
~*~
“It’s weird seeing him lying there like that.”
“He’s not injured.”
“I know that Sides… It’s just…”
“Freaking you out to see the little bundle of charge you love so still?”
“Shut up Sideswipe.” Sunstreaker growled, optics focussed on Jolt lying on the berth. Sideswipe rolled away a little.
“Not like you can deny it Sunny.” He grinned. “I can feel what you feel, remember?”
“Yeah…” Sunstreaker’s voice was soft and he reached out to gently stroke down one arm, fingers lingering on the red cross now bright against the blue paint.
“Hey… I wonder if his hands are going to be as sensitive as Ratchet’s?” Sideswipe asked suddenly.
“Sideswipe!” Jolt croaked out Sideswipe’s name in horror, optics flickering weakly. Sunstreaker switched from staring at Sideswipe with an incredulous expression to looking fondly at Jolt.
“Hey there…” Jolt turned to look at Sunstreaker, who smiled reassuringly at him.
“Do I even want to know how you know how sensitive Ratchet’s hands are?” Sunstreaker muttered.
“Probably not.”
~*~
“How do you feel?” Sunstreaker shook his head at Sideswipe’s comment, directing his attention towards Jolt.
“Groggy, and overwhelmed.” Jolt admitted. Sunstreaker nodded, taking Jolt’s hand in his.
“You’ll be up in no time.” He reassured his lover, squeezing gently. Jolt hissed a little as the increased sensitivity in his hands made itself known. Sunstreaker dropped his hand as though it had burnt him.
“Sorry!”
“Told you they were sensitive.” Sideswipe grinned. Sunstreaker rolled far enough away from the berth to smack him upside the helm before returning.
“Guess it’ll take a bit of getting used to.” Jolt murmured, flexing his fingers.
“Yeah. I am sorry though.” He reached for Jolt’s hand again, massaging the palm softly. He smiled as Jolt’s engine purred.
~*~
“Awake at last I see.” Ratchet stood at the doorway to the room he’d put Jolt in to recover.
“Ratchet.” Jolt tried to sit up, but Sunstreaker pushed him back down.
“Wait…” He warned gently. “Never do anything in the medbay without Ratchet’s say-so.” Ratchet nodded approvingly and stepped through the door.
“He’s right. How are you feeling?”
“A little overwhelmed.” Jolt admitted. “Feels like I’ve got sensors everywhere, and so much information coming in.”
“It will feel like that. Once the programs integrate properly, the sensor readings will dampen down.” Ratchet cabled to him and checked how the integration was going.
“Looks like things are going well. I’ll release you, but light duty for the next few cycles. And then you’ll start shifts in the medbay.”
“All right.” Jolt nodded, sitting up carefully.
“If anything feels off, or you get integration problems, come straight back to see me. And once I’ve cleared you for full duty, I want you to test out your whips, make sure there are no conflicts.”
“I’ll help.” Sunstreaker promised.
“All right, you can get out of here. Light duty for two cycles, then test your whips. Any problems, let me know.” Ratchet made a few notes on a datapad and waved them out.
~*~
“Medic!” The cry came across the comms and Jolt flicked his whips away from the Decepticon he’d just sent to the ground. He knew enough that the mech would stay down long enough for him to get away without being followed. Just to be sure, he snapped his wrist, whip flicking out and curling around the Decepticon’s neck. The charge in the whip made his whole frame twitch. Satisfied, Jolt pulled away, racing towards the coordinates that had been sent with the cry for help.
~*~
When he reached the downed mech, he paused. It was a large frontliner, way bigger than he was, and he was lying on his front. He ventured closer, kneeling down.
“Medic here. Status report?” He asked, resting a hand against the mech’s shoulders. That was his first mistake. The mech rolled over, grabbing his wrist and flinging him away. His second mistake was to automatically engage his whips. He lashed out and the mech dropped like a stone. Unfortunately, said mech had been running towards him, energon dripping from his wounds. As the whips struck, he fell, crashing to the ground and rolling into Jolt.
~*~
When Jolt onlined again, all his sensors were screaming. He pushed at the mass covering him, before he realised it was the mech he’d been trying to save. He finally made sense of the reports his sensors were giving him and, managing to roll the mech over, confirmed that there was nothing more he could do.
“Jolt!” He cringed as he heard Sunstreaker’s voice. He could really do with not being found right now.
“There you are.” Sunstreaker held out his hand and Jolt, resigned, reached for it. Sunstreaker helped him up, and they both looked at the greying Autobot.
“What happened?”
“I… it wasn’t me!” Jolt protested. “I tried to help him, but he attacked me…”
“Yeah, that’ll happen.” Sunstreaker nodded. “It can be hard working out friend from foe, especially when you’re injured.”
“I… I couldn’t do anything…” He knelt down by the mech, new scanners running, and he was a little relieved to find that it wasn’t his whips that had ushered the mech on his way to the All Spark. Whatever Decepticon had attacked him had breached his spark chamber. Even if he had been able to help, there would have been little he could do on a battlefield.
“I’m sorry…” He murmured, resting one hand on the mech’s damaged chest plating.
“Come on… we’ve got to get back. We can leave him for the recovery teams.” Sunstreaker pinged off their coordinates and pulled Jolt away.
~*~
Jolt couldn’t recharge when they got back to their base. He lay on the berth next to Sunstreaker, systems idling, but processor working overtime. Was he cut out to be a medic? Could he stop the reflexes that had been trained into him as a warrior?
“Stop worrying.” Sunstreaker murmured, pulling Jolt closer. “It wasn’t your fault. Sometimes you can’t save every mech. Even Ratchet knows that.”
“Yeah…” Jolt nodded, curling against Sunstreaker’s frame, head pillowed on his shoulder. “Just… wonder if I made the right decision.” He eventually said.
“Being a medic?” Sunstreaker asked. He could feel Jolt nod slightly. “It’s a hard job. But I think you can do it Jolt.”
~*~
“Medic!” The cry came across the comms, and Jolt checked his location. He was the closest medic to the downed mech. His processor filled with thoughts of the last call he attended as he raced towards the mech’s position. He deliberately shunted those threads to one side when he reached the coordinates, kneeling down and focussing on the injured Autobot.
“Medic here, status report.”
“Fraggers busted up my leg. Can’t move it, can’t transform.” The mech replied, blue optics flickering.
“All right, I’m here now.” Shifting position, Jolt examined the mech’s leg. There were damages linkages, but structurally, the leg was intact.
“Just a little rewiring, and we’ll have you back out there.” He murmured as he worked, twisting cables and soldering them together. The mech jerked as feeling came flooding back into his leg, stiffening with a curse. Jolt flinched, but kept working. When he finished, he sat back.
“Okay. Can you move it now?” He asked, watching as the mech moved his leg and grinned.
“Thanks doc.” He was up and racing towards the frontlines without another word. Jolt heaved himself up, relieved that he’d done the job. And well by the way the mech had headed off without even a limp.
~*~
“See, told you you could do it.” Sunstreaker murmured against his audial, arms wrapped around him.
“Yeah.” Jolt nodded. “Felt good to be able to do something.”
~*~
“Medic!” The cry came across the comms as his whips wrapped round a Decepticon.
“I’d love to stay…” He grinned, increasing the charge and watching as the mech flailed. “But I have better things to be doing.” He retracted his whips and transformed, racing across the battlefield. The location was remote, probably a sniper or a scout, he reasoned. He reached the location and stared. He couldn’t see anything but debris.
“Over here.” A hand appeared from amongst a pile of metal that looked as though it had been a building once. He crossed to the hand and pulled away a few sheets of metal until he could see the mech.
“Hi.” The yellow mech grinned up at him. “Seekers dropped a building on me.”
“You injured?” Jolt asked, shifting away a few more pieces of debris.
“Think something hit my back strut, can’t really feel my legs.”
“Could be a disconnected relay.” Jolt murmured aloud. “I’d need a closer look.”
“And that’s something you’re not going to get.” The strange voice drew Jolt’s attention away from his patient.
“Step away from him, medic, I have no quarrel with you. Yet.” Jolt twisted to look at the Seeker who had his weapons trained on them.
“I’m not going to let you hurt him.” Jolt stood up slowly, releasing the catch for his whips, but not letting them out. He did start feeding charge to them though.
“Autobot scum!” The Seeker spat, weapons charging. The yellow mech ducked down a little in his debris pile. Jolt let his whips free and sent them flying towards the Seeker. He landed on the ground with a surprised squawk, charge skittering over his plating.
“You’re a medic?” The yellow mech stared at him, optics wide.
“Warrior first, trained as a medic second.” Jolt grinned at him, checking that the Seeker wouldn’t bother them for the moment. “Now let’s get you up and moving.”
~*~
Additional scene… because you know Ratchet overheard that comment!
“How in the Pit do you know how sensitive my hands are?” Ratchet growled.
“Well, you see there was this one time you were overcharged…”
“And you took advantage of me?” Ratchet interrupted him, armor flaring in anger.
“Frag no, you were the one who took advantage of me! Came on to me and everything. Told me just how much a medic knew about pleasuring a mech…”
“Oh…”
“Yeah…”
“So…”
“….”
“Ratchet?”
“Uh…
“Yes?”
“Care for a repeat? Something that I might actually remember this time?”
“Thought you’d never ask!”
Author's Note Redux: And now I'm fed up of fiddling... damn LJ eating line breaks