All right, so this is my first fic ever published. I hope you all like it, please read and review! I will update at least once a week, but if I get reviews I may do it more often. If there are any grammatical mistakes or blatant OOC-ness or other errors, let me know so I can freak out about them. ;P

This fic idea has been sort of floating around in my imagination as a vague 'what-if' for a while now, but it was "Saving Me" by Hot Shot's girl that made me really consider writing it down, since it's got the same basic theme. You should look it up if you're a Starscream fan, it has fluffiness in it that I really enjoyed. ;) Then, the truly wonderful fic "Who Knew," by Crooked, another good read for StarscreamxOC shippers, inspired me to actually start typing. Thank you, Crooked:D Also, the Imperfection series by Macx (again, a very good read) helped me refine my ideas for this fic. And, I can't forget "To The Rats," a truly wonderful fic, which has been a great inspiration to me as well. Thank you all!

Disclaimer: I own Transformers! …no I don't. I do, however, own my OC and the storyline.

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He was floating in a haze of pain. His optics were shuttered, yet there was bright light all around him. He didn't understand… was he dead? If he was, though, why was he in so much pain? It was all very confusing.

A fresh stab of pain in his left leg made him groan aloud.

"Oh!" said a small voice from somewhere near his leg. "I'm sorry, did that hurt?"

"Hurt? Hurt? Of course it hurt! Everything hurts!"

That was what he wanted to say, anyway. But apparently his vocal processor wasn't quite ready to form words just yet. He settled for a pained grunt instead.

"I'm sorry," the small voice said again. He decided it was definitely feminine. "I didn't realize you were awake."

"Just… barely," he managed to say. He flexed a hand experimentally, and was gratified when it worked, despite the grinding of gears and fresh wave of pain that accompanied the action. He wondered if it would be possible to shut down his pain sensors. Probably not.

He flinched as his thoughts were interrupted by the feel of something small crawling over him. He shuddered, realizing how helpless he was. What was she going to do to him? He unshuttered his optics.

His left optic, he realized, was in a very bad way. It could only register light or dark, and it must have been out of alignment, because the shutter did not cover it properly. No wonder he could only see bright light. He offlined it, and focused with his good optic.

Things slowly came into focus. He was lying flat on his back, and some kind of light fixture set into the concrete ceiling was shedding bright fluorescent light on him.

And sitting on his chassis was a human female. He stared at her. She had brown hair, green eyes, and an expression of concern on her face. What was she doing here? Where was 'here'? And why did she seem more curious than afraid? Humans were supposed to fear him, weren't they? So why was he afraid of her?

He forced himself not to whimper as she extended one hand toward his face. Primus, what was she going to do to him? Shatter his other optic? Wait, how could she have possibly shattered an optic? How had that happened? He couldn't remember.

Her touch on his faceplates was soft and gentle, and he was shocked to find himself enjoying it. She stroked his cheekplate, carefully avoiding the dent in it. The effect was very calming.

He was just beginning to relax and actually enjoy the experience when he remembered what must have caused the shattered optic.

"Hey, hey, it's okay, I'm not gonna hurt you!" the human said when he cried out. But Barricade didn't even hear her; he was lost in the memory of Starscream's fist filling his vision.

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PSYCH! You thought he was Jazz! Admit it!! ;D

There's just something about Barricade's character that really appeals to me. I really think he has the potential to become a good guy. I always wondered why Bumblebee beat him so easily in the movie, when his little bio said he was a consummate hunter who'd made his name chasing down dozens of Autobots and stuff. It just didn't make much sense. And then it struck me that maybe he just wasn't really trying… and I started wondering why that would be, and thought, "What do you get when you strip away his tough exterior? He must be a big softie underneath!" (Well, not really, but he must be a little nicer than he lets on.) So this is my take on that idea. Please let me know what you think! I have this all typed out in advance, but your input is still helpful to me, and if you have a good idea I may just work it in for you. :)

Oh, and, erm… in case you were wondering, my little mental image of Barricade is a little different from how he looks in the movie… he only has two optics, and his face isn't as… complicated. Sorry if that confuses you, just try to go with it. It doesn't make that huge of a difference, just makes him a little more… loveable. ;P