Hey everyone! So, I just finished my first "Bot adopts a human" fic, and I enjoyed it so much that I wanted to start another one with an idea that has been bouncing around in my brain for awhile! This is a test chap, so I ask of you all to please please PLEASE review and tell me if you want to read more, if there's anything I need to fix, etc...

This fic takes place in a slightly AU TFP verse! In this fic, the war has been over and the world has known about the existence of Cybertronian's for about twenty years. There was a final battle between Autobots and Decepticons in a battle known as the Battle of Las Vegas, and now humans and Cybertronians live in peace! In this fic, some characters who died (like Dreadwing and Breakdown) are alive, and a handful of Decepticon's have renounced the Decepticon way! They might appear in this fic later XD

Also, this fic's main bot is Mirage! I have never seen him in any of the shows (because I don't watch that many Transformers shows except for TFP XD) and so his personality is how I have imagined it! Hopefully it's kind of similar to how he acts in some of the shows XD

Any ideas for future chapters are welcome!

Please forgive me for any spelling errors, my 'B' button has gotten really sticky recently, so it makes typing words with the letter 'B' a lot tougher DX

Disclaimer's on my prof.!

Enjoy and please let me know what you think!

Mirage liked to believe himself a patient mech. Yet after a day like today, he wanted nothing more than to blast a hole into the nearest wall in anger.

The day had started horribly, with Mirage going to the rec. room for his morning energon ration, only to find that the rec. room's energon dispenser was empty and had yet to be restocked, thus he'd had to go on an empty fuel tank. Then, during mid-day patrol, he'd been bumped into by a less-than-stellar driver, which resulted in the paint along one of his doors to be scraped off in a rather brutal manner. Returning from patrol, Mirage found that Sideswipe and Sunstreaker, after having found out Mirage had outted them to Prowl after a particularly nasty prank the day before, had decided to get their revenge in the form of continuously calling him by the horrid and embarrassing nickname they'd dubbed him with: Prissy Bot.

Having reached the last straw by mid-afternoon, Mirage had escaped the continued taunts of the twins by taking to the streets, despite the downpour that had rolled in. The twins didn't dare risk their paint jobs, and thus Mirage had found sanctuary in the forms of the empty streets.

It was around six in the evening, and heavy grey clouds had blotted out the sun. Only a few other cars were on the streets, most humans in their homes and having dinner with their families, avoiding the rain that was drenching the road. Mirage found he quite liked having the streets almost completely to himself – he could take his time and move along at a leisurely pace. The sound of the rain against the pavement was soothing, and Mirage found he didn't really mind that later he'd have to wash off water marks from his plates. The feeling of the rain drumming over his plating was…Nice. Soothing.

Turning a corner, the noble-born mech found he'd reached the local high school. It was barren of people, as was the elementary school next to it. The swings of the little playground outside the elementary school swung slightly in the wind, rusted chains squeaking. Mirage paused to glance over the empty playground-

And his gaze found a small form curled up underneath the main structure of the playground.

Mirage came to a sudden halt, tires screeching slightly against the wet asphalt. Shifting out of his alt, the mech slowly approached the playground, optics narrowed as he tried to get a better look.

Upon closer inspection, Mirage was stunned to find that the form was in fact a human. A child, judging by just how small the curled up body was. A boy, Mirage concluded, based on the clothing.

The boy, beneath one of the rubbery-plastic platforms that was peppered with tiny holes, as customary for cheaper playground structures, was sitting with his knees hugged to his chest and his head resting atop his knees. Thick brown hair, so dark that it almost looked black, hid the boy's face from sight. He was dressed in a forest green hoodie and a pair of baggy jeans, both articles of clothing stained with mud in splotches. A pair of old, faded sneakers were also coated in the same drying mud. A plain blue messenger-style backpack was by the youth's side. The playground seemed to serve as very poor shelter as the boy, while not soaking, was still very much wet.

Mirage frowned to himself. Judging by the backpack, this boy was a student. But why was he here? While he was ignorant to many of human-kind's ways, he knew for a fact that schools here were let out around three-fifteen. So why was the boy here, almost three hours later than he should be?

Mirage hesitated for a moment, unsure of what to do. He couldn't just leave the boy here, that would weigh far too heavily on his conscience. But just what should he do? He wasn't the best with younglings – Frag, he had a tough enough time interacting with adults, both Cybertronian and human! He didn't want to scare the boy witless…

Finally deciding on what to say, the 'bot mentally rehearsed for a minute. Then, crouching down to make himself appear non-threatening and small as possible.

"Are you alright, little one?"

The boy twitched. For a moment, all was still, the only sound being the rumble of thunder and rapid tap of rain against the ground and Mirage's plating. Then, slowly, the boy lifted his head slightly. Dark strands of hair still hung before his eyes, but Mirage could now see a soft jawline that was just starting to loose the soft curve of adolescence (so not a child despite his size, then, but rather a young teen, Mirage mused) and pale lips that were curled in the slightest of grimaces. And then he didn't move again, as if he wasn't sure as to whether or not he was the one being spoken to. Frowning, Mirarge tried again.

"What are you doing out here? Are you alone?"

This time the boy tilted his head not up, but rather to the side, as if trying to better hear Mirage. Mirage pondered what to say next for a moment, then,

"It isn't all too safe out here. You may catch a virus."

Finally, the teen spoke.

"Virus…?"

His voice was warm, almost hesitant. For some reason, it made Mirage smile.

"Yes. The Cybertronian word for what you humans call 'illness'."

The boy perked up slightly, lips parting in wonder.

"You…You're a Cybertronian?"

Mirage raised a metal brow at the odd question, but nodded.

"Of course. I am one of the Autobots that lives in the base just outside of the city, in fact." He clarified for the teen.

Mirage's expression softened when a shiver wracked the youth's small form. He was clearly cold.

"Are your parents coming for you?"

The boy hesitantly shook his head.

"No sir. I…I was going to walk home, but…But the storm came in, and my home's too far to run to in this rain. I already slipped…" The teen gestured to his mud-coated shoes and stained pants. Mirage grimaced.

"Well…I don't believe I would feel right leaving a youngling out in the rain alone. Why don't I take you home?"

Mirage was surprised when the teen cringed at the suggestion.

"N-No!" He quickly yelped, making Mirage blink, taken aback. Seeming to realize how rude he'd sounded, the boy amended, "No, no that's okay, sir. Really. I can wait until the rain passes."

"Nonsense." Mirage stated, frowning. He grimaced when this elicited a wince from the teen, and he added in a gentler tone, "At least let me provide some better shelter for you until the storm clears. You can sit in my alt."

The boy seemed hesitant, his fingers gripping the knees of his jeans tightly.

"I….I don't know…I don't even know who you are."

Mirage chuckled.

"A fair point." He admitted. "My name is Mirage. I serve as a spy directly under Optimus Prime's command."

"Optimus Prime?" The boy wondered aloud, voice full of awe. Mirage grinned. As always, it seemed Optimus Prime continued to impress children world-wide.

"Indeed. I've served him for many vorns as a spy." A wide smile. "I even fought in the final battle against the Decepticon's twenty years back, in Nevada."

"Wow…" The teen breathed past quivering lips, awe taking the place of a substantial amount of fear. "I've heard stories about the Battle of Las Vegas." He admitted, "But its so hard to tell what's real and what's fake."

Mirage's smile softened.

"Well, why don't you sit in my alt to dry off and warm up, and I can tell you the real story about the Battle of Los Vegas." He suggested gently.

The teen pursed his lips, debating this offer. Mirage gave him the time he needed, knowing that if he pushed, then the boy would lock up and refuse to let him help. After a minute or so, the boy finally nodded, albeit hesitantly.

"Alright." He agreed. "But...But just until the rain stops."

"Of course."

Mirage went to stand when the boy asked a question that truly startled him.

"Could you help me find my cane?"

"Your…your what?"

"My cane." The boy repeated. "I put it in my bag when I found this place, but then I heard it fall out when I crawled under here, with…with all the thunder and rain, I couldn't quite hear what direction it went."

The youth's face finally turned up in Mirage's direction fully, as if to look at him. Mirage felt his spark twist painfully as his optics found the boy's milky white eyes.

The boy was blind.

Scars cut over the bridge of the teen's nose and his eyes in a crisscrossed sort of pattern, like horrible, winding ivy. The scars were not deep enough to disfigure the boy's face – aside from the pale, slightly ridged scars and milky eyes, he looked perfectly normal. But they were deep enough to be clear evidence that the boy had lost his sight in a violent way.

Managing to swallow his shock enough to look around, Mirage found the object the boy sought only a scant few feet away. It was a collapsible cane made of a light metal, folded up neatly. Gingerly, Mirage lifted the tiny object between two digits and held it out to the teen, pressing the end of the cane into his small palm. A bright smile lit up the youth's face, and his fingers curled around the metal.

"Thanks." He said, sounding truly grateful.

Crawling out from under the playground platform, the boy stood fully. He was short for his age (which, if Mirage had to guess, was fifteen), and he was lean. A bit skinny, in Mirage's opinion.

"I need to go onto the road if I am going to assume my alt mode." Mirage explained, managing to shake off some of his shock. "Do you need help?"

"That's okay." The boy's tone, so sure, made Mirage pause. Unfolding his cane, the boy headed for the nearby street at a surprisingly quick pace, only tapping his cane against the ground once in awhile. "I can handle myself."

Mirage hurried for the road as well, concerned the boy would walk into the middle of the street. He was surprised when the teen stopped at the sidewalk that was next to the road, but didn't let his shock hinder him. Quickly changing into his alt mode, the mech popped open his passenger-side door. A seatbelt slid out, gently taking the boy's wrist. The teen jumped, surprised, and Mirage could've sworn he saw fear flicker across the youth's expressive face, but the fear vanished as quickly as it had come, and the boy let Mirage guide him into the passenger seat. Shutting the door, Mirage cranked up the heater and headed for the form of shelter for himself, which came in the form of a bridge the went over the road a few blocks away.

Unable to bear the silence, Mirage found himself asking,

"So what's your name?"

The boy appeared bewildered, as if he'd never been asked that.

"I…Cole. My name's Cole."