A tinkling of crystal drew Firestorm's optics away from the jury selection he was going over. A red and white youngling stood frozen on the tips of his peds, little hand still reaching for some tiny trinket on the counter, his large blue optics darting between the crystal flowers shattered from their fall off the counter and Firestorm slowly rising from his desk.

"What have I told you about playing by the crystals, little bot?" Firestorm's words were calm but strict as he stood over the nervous youngling.

"N-not to." The shame in the child's optics was obvious before he lowered his red helm. "Sowwy daddy."

"Sorry doesn't fixed those crystals Morning Glory worked so hard at cultivating." The red and yellow mech bent over, scooping his son up in his secure hold. "You're going to need to come up with a way to repay Glory for the damage you caused to her nice gift." Firestorm strode down the hall, the youngling holding onto his shoulder.

"Daddy?" The voice was cautious.

"Yes." He looked down at the child as he opened a door.

"Don'-don' put me in the quie woom." The little sparkling hands clutched onto the yellow armor as the a dark closet was revealed behind the door.
"Quiet room, little Red, it's called a quiet room." He set the sad little sparkling down in the back of the closet. "You think of some ways to repay Glory; I'll be back it a bit." The door closed; the looked clicked; Firestorm returned to reviewing his notes for the upcoming trial.

"Aw, how nice Reddy." Morning Glory placed a purple hand over her spark as the youngling held up a simple bouquet of organic flowers neatly arranged in a glass cube. "But you didn't need to go through such trouble." She lifted the bouquet and youngling up onto her ample violet lap. "I don't mind that you broke those crystal flowers. Why," the defense lawyer laughed, "I have a house full of them, and such things are going to happen with an energetic youngling running around."

Morning Glory relived the silent youngling of his gift and set it next to a neon green, miniature crystal bush, which shape matched its loving caretaker's. As her lilac arm retreated she snagged a fistful of sweet energon taffies from a wide brimmed bowl on her desk.

"Have a goody, you cute little mech you." She unwrapped two, dropping one into his cupped hands. The femme leaned back in her chair and laughed as her co-worker's creation wolfed down the treat and turned big blue optics back to her, silently begging her for another. How could any sane bot say no to such puppy-dog imploring? She dropped another in his servos, with the admonishment to slow down and really enjoy what he was tasting.

Before the youngling could bring the stick goodness to his lips, he heard very familiar ped steps coming toward Morning Glory's office. Dropping the energon goodie, he turned around on the lavender lap, sliding to the edge as Firestorm stepped into the room. His optics flashed around the brightly colored room quickly before settling on his creation.

"Ah, good." He pointed toward the door. "Go wait in my office. We'll be leaving soon."

The red and white youngling slid from Morning Glory's stable lap and walked silently out of the office.

"You know Storm," The femme rose from her chair, "as nice as it was, you didn't have to have Reddy apologies for his little accident."

Firestorm raised a finger, forestalling his co-worker. "No no, he came up with the idea all on his own."

"Really!?" Morning Glory was surprised; it wasn't often a youngling would think of doing something so considerate.

"Yes." The mech nodded, a smile hovering over his lips.

"You're doing really good as a single parent. Not to be insensitive, but I'd say you're doing better now than with her."

Firestorm shrugged. He would have preferred if Morning Glory had left Nightbird out of the conversation, but he couldn't begrudge someone speaking the truth, it was a rare thing to see in their profession.

"Has he started talking yet?" The tone was serious now.

"Only at home. Only a little." Firestorm shook his helm. His son was well past the age when most creations started talking.

"Have you taken him to see anyone about it?" Morning Glory didn't have any younglings of her own, so she tended to mother younger bots around her.
"Yes…" he hesitated, thinking. "It was made very clear, very fast, that it wasn't helping with anything." Firestorm didn't leave time for the femme to pry anymore, he strode stiffly from the room.

The youngling tried to push his father's sponge filled hand away and escape from the tub. He'd managed to splash half the water out and thoroughly soak Firestorm, who was starting to lose his tolerance with the child.

"Be still." He commanded, firmly pushing his son back down into the soapy water and scrubbing away at the grease in his arm joints. "You have to get clean weather you like it or not, so just hold still and I'll be done faster." He was never this ill behaved as a youngling, his father would have never tolerated it.

After dumping his young creation under the water, Firestorm pulled the now no longer thrashing youngling up and, applying more cleaner to the sponge, started scrubbing the small red helm. Now that his son was no longer resisting, he was able to finish in only a few minutes. Firestorm lifted the dripping child from the tub, quickly drying him off with an organic fiber towel before laying his limp son over his shoulder and carrying him off to his room.

"Go to sleep now." The mech told the quiet youngling before turning out the light and closing the bedroom door.

The child, Red Alert, twisted around on his gel berth until he was hidden within a cocoon of heating blanket. He could feel every little droplet of water his father failed to wipe away, they made him shiver and itch and squirm. They made him remember how his mom used to wash him, she always got every drop, and it tickled so when she would run the cloth across his belly and peds and everywhere. He liked it when she tickled him and laughed when he tried to squirm away, giggling. But she stopped laughing, she stopped tickling him and playing. He didn't like when she started yelling at him and pushing him around. Then she left and bots said he should be glad and happy. But why? Now it was just him and daddy, with no mommy to love him.