A/N: Okay, prepare yourself pretty much ANYONE who has read my TF fics. Because for the first time, I am actually not writing a human adopted by a Transformer fic. Yeah, I think my muse has decided it's time to do something different from my norm, and this little plot bunny has just been nipping at me for a good several weeks. So here we go, my first attempt at a fic like this, hope I don't screw it up.

Also bare in mind, Change of Protocol has been discontinued. Long story shot, it just wasn't working out for me. I got bored with my own story, and that should not happen. So The Long Road to Happily Ever After will conclude after this story is over instead.

This fic will contain no parings, and be set sometime during season one of Transformers: Prime.

FULL SUMMARY: Breakdown has always been a Decepticon with little-to-no regard for human life. Tyler Beers has always been a troubled kid, growing up in a household where making "friends" or being "loved" is the very least of his worries. When an unexpected turn of events brings human and Decepticon together, they soon discover what comes from their unlikely friendship may be better than they could ever imagine.

Disclaimer: I don't own Transformers, Transformers: Prime, or any of its characters. I only own Tyler and whatever other OCs I introduce.

...

CHAPTER 1
A Chance Encounter

Breakdown was bored.

No, he'd past boredom nearly two hours ago. Now he could honestly, without a doubt say that his day of scouting had rendered him in agony. He'd never really been the type to like to sit still for long periods, nor did he care much for being refrained from causing havoc. But in the end, Knock out had one the human game of "paper-rock-scissors" they had played to decide who'd take the shift. He bitterly reminded himself to never let the incident to repeat again as he pulled into the dullest part of town, which he'd come to call "the skids".

It was what he'd call the equivalent of Kaon. A small area of town where the poorest of the poor came from. He often imagined that the area was more than likely producing a new thug, predator, or criminal every day. There was no one out on the sidewalks, and heck, there hardly ever was for that matter. Unless you wanted to run into trouble, Breakdown figured outside of the homes was the last place you wanted to be. At the sound of footsteps, Breakdown shifted his side-view mirror to realize he'd spoken too soon.

If he hand't seen it himself, he wouldn't believe what the human with these kind of guts looked like. The human in question was a child of no more than thirteen years, lanky, with his back hunched and his head down, brown hair cascade over his head, obscuring it from view. He looked like the type of a kid that somewhere such as this ate for breakfast, and had Breakdown honestly cared, he might have offered him a ride. Yet he didn't, what was one human to him after all? Nothing. Caring for humans had always been Autobot territory, and to say the least; he was no Autobot.

He'd begun to shift back into gear to leave the area when a few other humans seemed to step out. The kids that appeared were much older, and much bulkier. Much more along the lines of what Breakdown had seen around the neighborhood before. A part of him wanted to warn the kid to pick up his head and run, given there was not a fair fight to be found in any outcome of this situation. Because if there was one thing he did have, it was honor. And one of these kids the boy may have been able to stand up against, but four was not something he could attest to.

Maybe it was just a sheer stupidity glitch in his sensors. Or perhaps for some reason it was a bizarre stroke of luck for the kid, but what Breakdown did next surprised even him. Activating his holoform, he calmly stepped from his alternate form and took stride beside the boy. His holoform was tall and imposing enough that the kids would find him a hard person to match. None of them had the chance to do so though, because by the time they'd made it to them, the group had dismissed. Highly unlikely to try anything with an adult his size around.

He waited several moments before Breakdown started to turn heel and leave when a voice grabbed his attention. "You didn't have to do that y'know. I could have handled them." Breakdown's holoform turned, and eyed the young human carefully "One good punch to the groin for each of them. That's about all it'd take." He explained.

"At your size? You're lucky I came along, kid." Breakdown snorted "They'd have eaten you alive."

"You don't know me." The boy replied sharply "If worse comes to worse I've got a pocketknife in my back pocket." He glared up at the large mech, not an ounce of fear betrayed in his eyes "So why don't you mind your own business next time? Just because I'm skinny doesn't make me weak." He added, taking the pocket knife out for dramatic effect "Got it?"

Breakdown stifled laughter, though he could not help but inwardly admit, the boy had guts. To stand up against someone his size, he had to either have guts, or have the intelligence of an insect, for that matter. "Whatever you say, kid." Breakdown threw his arms up "I was just trying to be a nice guy. Didn't know you were even armed." The boy eyed him suspiciously "What's your name, punk?"

The boy was silent for a moment. "Why should I give you my name?"

"You don't have to if you don't want to." Breakdown shrugged "I'm just curious."

There was another pause. "Tyler."

"Breakdown." Breakdown held a hand out.

"What kind of a name is "Breakdown"?"

"What kind of a name is "Tyler"?"

Tyler grimaced a bit, looking thoughtfully at the Decepticon for a long moment. Maybe he wanted to tell him off again, or maybe the kid suspected he was some sort of weirdo (which wasn't too far off from the truth). But either way, he shook his head. "You're weird." Tyler replied "But I guess I should say "thanks" anyway. Since you did still save my ass." He then added "So, thanks."

"Don't mention it."

As Tyler continued on his way, Breakdown waited until he was out of view to deactivate the holoform. His thoughts still lingered on the kid. Something about him intrigued the mech greatly. Perhaps it was the fire in the way he acted, or just his pure guts. But it was, indeed, the first time a human had ever caught his attention before. And the Decepticon could not yet decipher whether or not this was a good, or bad thing.

...

"You're late."

Tyler Beers sighed as he tossed his backpack into the corner of the foyer. He was greeted to the harsh aroma of alcohol and the sight of several beer cans tossed here and there. It was days like these that Tyler liked to close his eyes, and imagine a life without his uncle Brody. He imagined what his parents were like, the parents he never had a chance to know before a car crash took them both. He imagined a life that wasn't his own, or any variation of it. That was all it was, his imagination, but some days, it was the only thing he had.

Brody Larz stepped out from the den with a smug smirk on his pudgy face. He seemed to be half-dressed in his police officer's uniform, and half naked, with a lack of pants making his briefs stand out for all to see. "I ran into someone on the way home." Tyler stood his ground "No big deal, really. I got back before dark, that's all you care about, right?"

"You could go to hell for all I care." Brody snorted "So long as you call me and let me know. I'd rather not go through the trouble of making food for you that you're not gonna eat." He grunted a bit, resting his body against the door frame "Speaking of which, I didn't quite get around to it today." Tyler rolled his eyes, knowing that was no surprise "So it looks like you'll be having whatever's left over from last night."

"We didn't eat last night either." Tyler muttered.

"And whose fault do you suppose that is?" Brody grimaced "I pull my weight around here. You're just living off my salary. Get a job, and then you can buy your own damn dinner." He slammed his fist against the door frame violently "Always whining, always complainin'. If you weren't my brother's kid, it'd be straight off to foster care for you."

Most days, Tyler would have very much preferred living in foster care over living with his uncle. He watched as Brody pulled on his pants before starting off after him. "Where are you going?" Tyler asked "I thought you didn't have work tonight?"

"Poker with the guys." Brody growled "Not that it's any of your business."

"What am I supposed to do for dinner!?"

Brody smacked the side of Tyler's head hard, glaring at the boy. He didn't like a lot of things, but he especially hated being talked to with "disrespect". He shoved Tyler against the wall violently, and looked him in the eyes. "Eat the neighbors stupid mutt for all I care. If you're gonna talk to me like that, it ain't no way to get food in your mouth." After a moment, he let go "You'd better be in bed by the time I'm home. And don't expect breakfast for that matter either, I work the early shift tomorrow."

And with that, Brody was out the door, slamming it shut behind him. Tyler felt as his stomach lurched and growled at him, frowning quietly. He dug into his pockets slowly, finding nothing of value, nor any money. It wasn't the first time he'd go to bed hungry though, it was just a fact of life when what little money your family had was mostly thrown away on Jack Daniels and poker games. He dragged himself to his room, a small, mostly converted walk-in closet in the hallway. As he hit the bed with a quiet sigh, his mind returned to the man from earlier.

He had been weird, at least in his opinion. And he got a generally negative feeling from him that he didn't like while he was at it. Yet he couldn't help but think that it wasn't the last he would be seeing of the man either. Something told him it was more than likely the first of many encounters. As he closed his eyes quietly, he let the thoughts subside from his head. If he couldn't get food to eat, at the very least, he could get a head start on a good, long night's rest.

...

A/N: And there's the first chapter! Worth continuing? Let me know. ;)