Tinman

Sprinkles

Early Saturday afternoon in the nearby town...

"Is this the place?" Ironhide asked Sara who was sitting in his driver's seat.

The woman nodded, "Yep. Just pull in here and I'll be right out."

Making a deep noise through his vents Ironhide replied, "I think our definitions of 'be right out' are drastically different Mrs. Lennox."

Sara shook her head laughing, "Men—No patience at all no matter what the species."

The Topkick was about to retort something about females but decided to stow it.

She tapped his steering wheel, "And please, just call me Sara. You're making me feel old."

Ironhide barked a quick laugh, "You're barely a blip of existence...Sara."

After a moment the woman smiled, "I guess I'll take that as a compliment."

He shrugged internally. When he agreed to take Sara out for her grocery shopping and purchasing a birthday present for Annabelle he didn't anticipate it would take up so much time. The black guardian didn't like to split up the Lennox family to where he couldn't guard them all. He just about refused to leave Annabelle and Will at the house, but decided the soldier was competent in matters of protection—for a little while at least. Besides that, Sara seemed adamant about having him come with her to pick up a birthday present for Annabelle so he consented.

"Just hurry. We should be getting back to Annabelle and Will." Ironhide mentioned with almost a hint of begging in his voice.

Sara rolled her eyes, "I just need to pick up something for Annabelle in here, alright?"

"And that 'something' is?" Ironhide pried.

As the woman got out and shut his door she winked, "I don't know yet."

It took a lot of will power for Ironhide not to transform his arm, grab Sara and strap her right back in the seat so they could head home. This was going to take awhile.

Patient, yet irritated, Ironhide waited out in the parking lot busying himself with a bit of Earth research. Then, a very familiar sound hit his sound receptors...a sound he didn't like. Before he could react a tiny black and white dervish skittered underneath him, followed closely by one of those "dog" rodents. Except this one was a bit more sizable than Sam's.

The white and tan blotched dog skidded to a halt next to his tire barking up a storm, much to Ironhide's annoyance. There was something it wanted underneath him. He could feel the warm presence of a tiny body near his back drive shaft. He scanned around to make sure no humans could see or hear him.

"Git!" Ironhide growled through his doors.

The dog paused for a moment but immediately began barking again. Suddenly, the fuzzy presence leaped up into a small space in Ironhide's undercarriage. Reacting out of discomfort and pain, the Topkick arched on its tires.

"HEY! OW! Get out of there!" he hissed through his vents.

The dog barked furiously, spattering his tire with slobber before circling around to the passenger side door.

Ironhide growled deeply, "I said...GIT!"

With a flick of his door/arm, the Autobot smacked the annoyance clear across the parking lot. The dog struck the side of another car, tucked tail and yelped all the way down the street.