Axl glanced from the sheets and other oddments in front of them to those sitting around the table. He had to admit, this was the weirdest thing he'd ever experienced, if only for how surreal it was. Due to the unusual quiet of the world at large, Octavia was able to arrange an in person 'session', though Axl was still trying to figure out what that meant. As such, a rather...eclectic group sat around the table now.
Prometheus sat to Axl's left, dressed up in white armor with gold trim that didn't look like it could stop even a single plasma shot. He also insisted on being called 'Sir Gawain', though no one was really respecting that request, since Armatige was popping in every so often and insisted on calling him by name. Apparently, this was where Prometheus and his family lived, though only he had the coordinates. The teleport signal that brought the group here had been redirected mid-transfer from his end, and onto a teleport network that no one else even had access to.
Next to Prometheus was Dynamo, dressed in what Axl could only describe as a 'pretty princess dress', and looking surprisingly good in it. Axl found it mightily disturbing, especially the blonde wig and his determination to effect a surprisingly believable feminine voice. Axl tried very hard not to think about that.
Across the table from Axl sat Octavia, wearing an all covering black robe, glow in the dark red shades under the robe, and sitting on the table behind a large screen. As this left only a shadowed pair of glowing red eyes staring over the screen at the rest of the group - and she was wearing a voice pitcher that gave her a deep, echoing, menacing voice...well, Octavia had already had to pull the hood back three times to reassure Axl that it was still her under there, and that she hadn't been eaten by a shadow monster...something that always made CiCi laugh for some reason.
CiCi sat next to Octavia, though unlike the others had no costume. Next to her sat a Reploid that had been identified as Axle the Red. As soon as he'd been introduced to Axl, Axle had reshaped his vine body until he resembled Axl and said, "Okay, one of us is going to have to change!" This had resulted in CiCi smacking Axle in the back of the head.
Axl had countered by transforming into Axle and replying, "Well it's not going to be me!" This had gotten him a hoof to the back of his head and laughter from the others.
And now Axl was being introduced to this...Dungeons and Dragons game. He was still having trouble making sense of it, and while he was trying to 'build his character', the others talked about various things...which unfortunately wound up being mostly about him.
"I hear you're back on active Navigator duty, CiCi?" Dynamo asked idly as he arranged a few of his sheets.
"Yes," CiCi agreed. "Navigating for X while Alia is on maternity leave. I'll probably be taking over for Iris before too long, as well."
"Didn't you say the new regs meant each Hunter was assigned their own Navigator for missions, even group missions?" Prometheus queried. "So how could you Navigate for two?"
"Well, we've only been able to find two new Navigators with enough skill to handle an S Rank Hunter," Octavia explained calmly, her voice echoing. "Layer and Palette seem to be settling in nicely. I just wish Axl got along better with them. They're such nice girls..."
"Mo~om!" Axl whined, burying his face in his hands. "I only just became a Hunter and a leader. I'm not ready to add a girlfriend into that mix."
"I'm not asking you to go steady right away," Octavia chided gently. "But is it really so much to ask that you go on a few dates? I mean, Palette's going to be your navigator and it's important to get along-"
"She drives me crazy!" Axl interrupted in a grumble. "I know I'm high energy, and it's hard to find a Navigator who can keep up with me, but half the time I have to struggle to keep up with her! Not to mention she's a superfan and customized her combat specs to mimic mine..."
"Yeah, dating a fan is never pleasant," Prometheus agreed. "The time it takes to get them to stop looking at the ideal and see the real you...and then they either convince themselves you're perfect or feel betrayed that you aren't what they thought. It only works out if both can stay their own individuals, and it doesn't sound to me like Palette is sticking to that."
Octavia sighed reflectively as Axl turned to Prometheus with a grateful smile. "Well, I suppose that's true," she admitted. "But what about Layer? She's a nice, quiet girl-"
"Who half the time sounds like she forgot to get an emotional processor installed," Axl complained. "Just because I can turn into other people doesn't mean I should have to to understand what's going on in their head. That's what social cues are for...if she expressed any except when she was around Zero."
"Zero?" Octavia asked, confused.
"She has a fan crush on Zero," CiCi translated. "She won't act on it, since he's married...but she's not going to accept any other propositions in the meantime."
"You didn't catch that, Mom?" Axl asked in surprise. "Is that carelessness or just Mom-blindness desperate to hook me up?"
As that got more laughs from around the table, Octavia crossed her forelegs and huffed. "Fine then. Why don't you tell me what sort of girl does appeal to you?"
"Because you'd go out and get Gate to construct a custom girlfriend for me," Axl snapped back playfully.
Octavia facehoofed, sighing. "I'm just trying to look out for your happiness, Axl..."
Sighing, Axl leaned back. "Well...thing is if I say anything, I think Uncle Zero's gonna kill me..."
"Don't tell me you've got the hots for Iris," Dynamo teased playfully.
"N-not exactly," Axl murmured, cheeks red as he rubbed his nose with one finger. "But...someone like her, maybe...?"
"What do you mean?" CiCi asked curiously.
"Well...someone kind, gentle, supportive..." Axl slowly began to warm to his subject. "Someone who could keep up with me, but wouldn't run ahead...would be there to catch me if I fell. Someone...who would listen to all my stories. Not necessarily because she enjoyed them, just because she knows how much I like telling them. And someone with a real core of steel, not afraid to stand up for what she believes in...and absolutely terrifying to her enemies when she wants to be."
Octavia chuckled softly. "You're right, that does sound a lot like Iris. But you said she's 'not exactly' your type?"
Axl shrugged thoughtfully. "Well...maybe if she were blonde-"
Prometheus and Dynamo both burst into uncontrollable laughter...though for some reason Dynamo's eyes were glowing blue.
"What's so funny?" Axl demanded crossly. Octavia also glowered at the pair.
Dynamo's eyes returned to normal. "I...I don't know."
"It's a private joke," Prometheus explained. "It would take too long to explain." Still he thought back...
The one female bot Dr. Light had built - Roll - had been blonde. Rock had fallen for Kalinka. X had Alia. And now Axl... So all Light's like blondes, huh? he thought to himself, glancing over as Armatige - his own blonde-haired, blue-eyed wife - walked in with some snacks and their three kids clinging to her. Makes me wonder if Octavia follows that pattern...
"What about you, Octavia?" Armatige asked as she set down bowls. "I hear talk of romantic interest...what traits do you like?"
Octavia was silent for a time. "...well, I haven't really thought about emotionally," she explained. "Every time I start to think about romance for myself...it feels like something is missing." She glanced towards Dynamo. "...I've always liked blue hair though, for some reason..."
As Dynamo started to get excited, Prometheus put his hand on his shoulder. "Out of idle curiosity, Octavia...what do you think of dubstep?"
"The music?" Octavia asked, confused. "Honestly, I've never much cared for it...but any time I hear it, I find myself feeling oddly nostalgic. Why do you ask?"
Prometheus sat back, saying nothing.