Reblog Time

It had only been another day on the Hail Mary. Rocky had been tinkering with his xenonite to create more helpful advancements for the ship, Grace watching with that astonished look in his eyes when he passed by.

However, when you’re stranded in space on a ship for so long, you’re bound to get bored. And when it came to Grace, with boredom comes ideas for curing it.

So, the scientist decided to have a little fun with the alien.

He’d opened one of the ship’s many hatches to the room he slept in with Rocky, using some sellotape he had spare to create an invisible wall between the gap.

And with Rocky’s complete lack of eyes, Grace knew the alien was bound to fall for the little prank. Hook, line and sinker.

“Hey, Rock! You free for a sec?” He called out, laid across his bed and tossing his yarn ball of Earth up, catching it and repeating the action to look as innocent as possible.

Soon enough, metal clanks could be heard as well as excited chirps.

“Rocky hear Grace. On way, on way, on way.” The translator answered, and when Grace looked up, he was met with Rocky in his xenonite ball tumbling through towards the door.

And then, just as he expected, the cornered ball toppled through the wall of tape, the sudden force making Rocky lose his balance on his nubs of feet slightly before the ball came to a halt, now covered in the sticky material.

Luckily the alien wasn’t hurt, Grace would’ve heard some kind of alarmed chirp come from Rocky otherwise.

Speaking of Grace, his head was thrown back while he went into a laughing fit, arms around his midsection.

“Ohohoh, mahahan! Hahahahah-!”

It was at this point Rocky realised he’d been tricked, slumping down in his ball like some kind of puppy that had been regretfully informed the dog park was closed.

“…Grace laugh seriously now. Question.”

The flat tone of that computer generated voice made it a lot harder for the now astronaut to stop his chortling. For a creature with no face, even he could tell he was not amused in the slightest.

And Rocky’s inability to properly conjure common human phrases didn’t help either. Grace guessed he must’ve meant ‘Are you seriously laughing right now?’

“Ohokay, okay buddy, I’m sohorry, lemme getcha outta thihis-“ He rose from his bed, kneeling down in front of the ball to peel the sticky strips away.

“Why Grace make Rocky sticky, question?” A tiny warbling grumble followed after the translator spoke for Rocky.

“Ihits just a little joke, Rocky. Happens a lot back on Earth. Just a way people mess around with each other.”

“…Humans not funny.”

Grace chuckled again, ripping the final piece of tape away before standing up.

“There ya go. Good as new.” He nodded, patting the space ball before giving Rocky a smile with a hint of lingering mischief as he searched for a nearby trash can.

“…Grace will pay Rocky for trick.”

The ex-teacher only snickered.

“Sorry, pal. No money in space.” He joked, knowing that’s not what Rocky meant. But what he didn’t realise, was Rocky was in fact very serious.

A few taps against the floor of the room made Grace turn around, noticing Rocky stalking closer in his ball.

“Grace. Pay. Rocky.”

Before Grace could even get a word in edgeways, the ball sped forward. The scientist just narrowly slid past with a startled scream, booking it down the hallway of the ship as Rocky followed.

“Grace run! No point, I will catch! Fun chase, fun!” The alien chirped happily, surprisingly able to keep up a decent speed in his ball as he stumbled after Grace.

“Dangit, Rohocky-! Slow down a secohond, let’s tahalk!”

“No talk. Catch Grace.”

Soon enough, Rocky had somehow gained enough momentum to bump into the back of Grace’s legs, meaning it was now his turn to lose his balance, crashing to the floor too.

“Agh, mother…fluffer-” He groaned, rolling onto his back. Rocky skidded to another halt, his head-body(?) titling to one side.

“Accident, accident. Grace okay, question?”

“Yep, I’m alright…” He chuckled with good nature in the sound, moving to sit up. But it wasn’t long before the weight of Rocky’s ball was on top of his chest, keeping him down on the ground.

“Good, now Rocky can continue plan.”

“Uhuhuh… what is this plan exahaHACTLY-?” A small squeak had punctuated the end of Grace’s sentence once he felt two claws digging into his sides through the mesh material of Rocky’s ball.

“ROHohock-! Nohoho, don’t do thihis, come ohon!”

“But tickles good way to teach Grace a lesson. Rocky see how Grace react. Grace get embarrassed like I was after being sticky!” Another round of warbling chirps left the alien as he continued to dig, even moving up to the bottom set of his ribs.

“Tickle. Tickle, tickle!”

Gosh darnit, why did Grace have to teach him the actual word?? He could’ve lied and made up a word a bit more… bearable to hear, even if it was just coming from a computer generated voice.

Then again.. it wasn’t like anyone else was gonna be around to witness it any time soon. Unless the ship ended up activating the video diary for Earth on its own or something.

…The impossible thought wasn’t helping the flush spreading across his cheeks, though.

“Yohohou don’t have to speheheak doing this, Rohohocky-! Oh gohohosh-!” The scientist barely suppressed a snort as he felt two of Rocky’s back legs vibrating into either sides of his belly too.

“But talking works! Grace change colour, is funny! Tickle, tickle!” Those claws finally wormed their way under Grace’s arms, making him let out his loudest squeal yet, elbows pinned to his ribs as his glasses became askew from his head tiling back again.

“YOHOHOU LIHITTLE-!” The man cut himself off with a proper snort that time, smile wide and genuine as ever as he drummed his heels on the ground behind the tickle monster of an alien on top of him.

“Grace surrender, question? Rocky win?” Grace somehow almost heard a cheeky grin in that robotic voice. He shook his head, giggling too much to form a response that would be coherent at the very least.

…And that was when he instantly regretted those words, feeling the legs that had been previously shaking into his tummy now pressing right into the sensitive cluster on nerves at his hips.

One of his infamous high-pitched shrieks filled the hall of the ship, followed by hysterical belly laughter as he writhed and squealed under Rocky.

He did pride himself on lasting what felt like a good few minutes (but was actually about 20 seconds) before he weakly tapped the side of the space ball keeping him trapped.

The weight instantly lifted as Rocky rolled to the side, more excited trills coming from him as he did his victorious jazz hands gesture.

“Good job, good job! Rocky win, Grace defeated, am Master of Tickles, statement!”

“Ihihi…” Grace hiccuped as he pushed himself back up. “Aham never calling you thahat. Or pulling a prank on you ever agahain-“

He was interrupted as Rocky pressed his ball against him, leaning his being as close as he could. His version of a hug.

“Rocky have fun. Grace laugh is nice, contagious.”

The rookie astronaut huffed, wrapping an arm around the ball as much as he could. He could never stay mad at him, not really.

“So did I, pal. But I’m gonna find a way to get to you eventually, y’know-“

“Not possible. My atmosphere impossible to be touched by you.”

“Hey, I’ve met an alien, I’m convinced anything is possible at this point.” Grace smiled and patted the ball before standing up. “Now c’mon, show me those new advancements you’ve cooked up.”

The alien perked up, quickly guiding Grace back to his tinkering area.

“Yes, yes, yes! Am proud of creations, and so will Grace be! I show, I show!”

Grace chuckled, shaking his head as he followed the eager alien. Though he did kind of lie.

Optimus Prime

Optimus hasn't been tickled much since becoming a Prime. With a war raging on and millions of lives at stake, such childish luxuries simply fell by the wayside. Once he and his team get settled on Earth, though? And ESPECIALLY after the kids come into their lives? He quickly becomes reacquainted with it. • For a long time, only Ratchet is aware of his sensitivity (he IS the team medic, after all). However, all it takes is one "carwash" for his secret to get out, and suddenly he finds himself constantly barraged by little pokes and "accidental" nudges from his teammates. • He doesn't hate being tickled, but won't actively seek it out, either. If he's in a lee mood, he's prone to just suffer in silence until someone notices the subtle shift in his behavior and takes pity on him. • Back when he and Megatron were friends, the gladiator made a habit of holding him close and tickling him to tears, particularly when he'd rambled on about something for a little too long. Optimus has a lot of good memories about these times, so tickling became a bit bittersweet for him as the war dragged on. • He has this deep, rumbling laugh with little wheezes spliced in every now and then (Miko teases that its his "old man" laugh, despite Optimus still being fairly young by Cybertronian standards). • While he won't start a tickle fight, if you drag him into one, he WILL finish it. He has no qualms about using his size to his advantage, keeping the smaller bots still as he gently tickles them to pieces. • "Perhaps next time you will think twice before starting any mischief, won't you?" Que frantic, high-pitched beeps and squeals from Bumblebee. • He definitely has a soft spot for Ratchet. The medic is his oldest friend, and he enjoys helping the old grump smile from time to time (only in private, of course; he would never wish to embarrass him in front of the others). • One of only two souls who know about Megatron's sensitivity; Knockout is the other, and only knows because he is Nemesis' primary medic. • His worst spots are his finials, the seams under his arms, and the seams along his hips.

Ratchet

• When Ratchet first arrived on Earth, he had the same world-weary, pessimistic perspective many Cybertronians did. Countless years of war had taken their toll, and he viewed playful activities like tickle fights as a waste of time. Sure, he would occasionally slip a few tickly touches into examinations, if he was close enough to the patient, but that was pretty much it. • Once the humans come into the picture, tickling becomes far more prevalent around the base, and even Ratchet isn't able to avoid it for long. All it takes is a little suggestion from Miko, and the next thing he knows, Bulkhead and Bumblebee have him boxed in and are tickling him to the floor. • After that day, a game lovingly coined "Make The Grump Giggle" becomes a weekly occurrence, and the smallest brush against his side is enough to make Ratchet yelp and gasp. • He will protest and curse like his life depends on it, but the others have noticed he makes no REAL effort to get away. • Optimus is the only one "allowed" to tickle him, as he only plays with the medic in private settings and never teases him too badly (at least, not on purpose). • His laughter is wheezy and FILLED with snorts; the poor guy sounds like he is about to keel over. • As a ler, Ratchet is downright EVIL! He knows everyone's weak spots after years of tending to them, and he will utilize them if they act recklessly in battle, if they try to avoid checkups, etc. • MAJOR sweet spot for Bumblebee (that's his child, your honor) and goes out of his way to playfully wreck, usually after an especially hard mission or another failed attempt at repairing his voice box. • Won't outright tease but WILL make snide little comments; it can't be that bad, listen to that racket you're making, maybe I should turn off my audio receptors, that kind of thing. • His worst spots are his stomach (especially if you can worm a few fingers under the armor to reach his protoform), the hip-seams and the thigh-seams.

Arcee

• Arcee is not the most touchy-feely of the group, and at first, she would sooner blast you than let you touch her. The only one allowed to get near his is Cliffjumper, and after his death, she closes herself off from affection for a good while. • Once she finally starts to heal, she slowly starts getting involved in her team's playful antics again, albeit in a strictly ler role. It takes MONTHS before she finally allows Bumblebee to turn the tables on her, and when she does, the scout looks happy enough to combust. • Her laughter is husky and low, around the same register as her speaking voice, but particularly sensitive spots can pull some adorable giggles out of her. • Teasing word surprisingly well on her, but bear in mind, she'll return whatever you give to her tenfold. • Primarily goes after Bumblebee, since she knows how much he enjoys it, but will occasionally poke at Ratchet (and even Optimus) if the mood strikes her. • Her tickles are light and quick, flitting from spot to spot before her target has the chance to get used to them. And once she finds a sweet spot? She's going to hone in on it until you're WAILING. • She's not much for teasing, preferring to just chuckle and watch her lee squirm rather than add to their torment (Tailgate and Cliffjumper were exceptions to this rule). • If Jack is having an especially hard day, she'll prod at his side until he agrees to stop being in such a sour mood (while he would never admit it, he secretly appreciates these little moments). • She is the first one to figure out Knockout is ticklish after he joins the Autobots, and she makes a point of constantly bringing it up just to fluster him. After all, he deserves it for all the shit he put them through over the years. • Her worst spots are the seams under her arms, the seams behind her knees, and her pedes.

Bumblebee

• The baby of the team and the one who gets ganged up on the most. However, Bumblebee is usually the one who STARTS the tickle fights in the first place, so you could argue he's asking for it. • When he's being tickled, his doorwings rapidly move up and down, almost like he's trying to fly away. But the second the attack moves to them? They lock up, unable to do anything but twitch and take whatever his attackers dish out. • He adores being tickled but is way too awkward to ask for them, so usually, he just resorts to antagonizing his teammates until they get fed up with him and attack. • Miko figured out his interior, specifically a spot just behind the steering wheel, is SUPER sensitive and hasn't let him hear the end of it since. • Since his voice box doesn't work, instead of laughs, you hear a series of beeps, chirps, clicks, squeals, and whirrs. • Gets into tickle fights with Bulkhead at the drop of a hat, and when Wheeljack is in town, he manages to pull HIM into them, too. • He will only go after Arcee when he KNOWS he'll win or when he wants his shit absolutely WRECKED afterwards. • Loves holding Raf in the palm of his hand and playfully wiggling a finger into his stomach, chirping and trilling little teases all the while, since he knows the boy can understand him. • After Smokescreen joins the team, Bumblebee "initiates" him by pulling him into a headlock and tickling until Bulkhead literally has to pry him off of the squealing 'bot. • His worst spots are his neck and doorwings (specifically the bases, where they connect to the back).

Bulkhead