//------------------------------//
// CM: Facing the Future 
// Story: Melody of the Future 
// by Tatsurou 
//------------------------------//

	Axl sat at the edge of the helipad on the roof of Central Tower, Tango curled up at his side and the Ancient Arm held lightly in his hand.  He alternated between staring out at the sunset, staring up into the sky, and staring down at the gun.  He remained thoughtful as he sat there, his stance as he'd gone up there being all the encouragement the others needed to let him have time alone.

Well, most of the others.

"Axl?" Cinnamon asked softly.  "Can...can we join you?"

Looking up, Axl saw Cinnamon and Marino watching him carefully, concerned expressions on their faces.  Sighing, Axl holstered his new gun and patted the edge to either side of him.  Tango accommodatingly shifted to be curled against Axl's back, waiting until the two girls were sitting down before curling his head around to rest in Marino's lap while his tail rested in Cinnamon's...'coincidentally' forcing the three to sit quite close together.  Axl shot the cat a look, which was dutifully ignored.

"That was quite a lot to take in," Marino spoke up quietly.  "You handling it alright?"

Axl shrugged, staring up at the darkening sky.  "More or less.  I knew ever since Prometheus told me there was a capsule with the answers out there that I came from Pre-End times.  I knew that meant whoever built me - my parents - would be dead.  Between the way the Light hologram reacted to me and the fact Prometheus mentioned a capsule singular...I kinda figured all I'd get was a message."  He leaned back against Tango.  "I guess...I don't know.  It was still a lot to take in."

"Like the fact you're technically the first Terran?" Cinnamon offered carefully.  "I mean, you were made with a blending of human and robotic code to create your RDNA.  The blending of organic and cybernetic life is what makes Terrans Terrans..."

"Yeah, there is that," Axl agreed.  "Though really, that's the last thing on my mind right now.  Learning my origins...it shook the core of my life, and not in the way I expected..."

"Don't you normally talk to Octavia about things like this?" Marino pointed out logically.  "I mean, not to rag on you or anything, but you are a bit of a Mama's boy."  Cinnamon did her best to stifle a giggle.

"...am I, though?" Axl asked thoughtfully.  "I mean, Octavia adopted me, made me a member of her family...but I already was, even if I didn't know it.  I'm her Uncle's son, her cousin.  I've called X Grandpa, but he's actually my Uncle.  Where...where do I stand with them now?"

All of them sat in silence for a time as the sun finished setting, the stars coming out and the moon rising.  Finally, it was Cinnamon who broke the silence.  "Well...where do you want to stand with them?"

"Come again?" Axl inquired, plainly lost.

"Well, technically that's the relationship," Cinnamon explained.  "But...I mean, it's not like X built Octavia, or sired her...but he's still her Dad.  Octavia might not be the one who built you...but why should that make her any less your Mom?  The bond's still there.  It's...just become complicated.  So the question is...is she still Mom to you?"

Axl let his eyes trail over the constellations.  "I want to say yes...but isn't that betraying my real Mom?  To call someone else Mom?"

"I don't think so," Marino supplied readily.  "I mean, based on what I got from the message, your parents loved you very much and wanted you to live happily.  If that means having their niece be your Mom, I don't think they'd mind."  She grinned cheekily.  "Besides, with how often they mentioned 'Vinyl' - who I'm pretty sure was a pony?"  She glanced at Axl for clarification.

"A unicorn, from what Zero says," Axl agreed.

"Well, I'm pretty sure they knew that ponies make everything crazy, so I doubt they'll judge just because you wound up with an Uncle-Grandpa," Marino concluded teasingly.  "Besides, if we haven't seen Vinyl or any of her descendants around, I'm guessing she went to wherever she came from...and she's bound to have had parents there.  Octavia will probably follow...and she'll have parents there, too.  Do you really think that'll make X any less her Dad?  Or do you think her calling X 'Dad' after everything he's done for her is a disservice to whatever stallion sired her?"

Axl let her words sink into his mind.  Finally, he turned to the one silent face.  "What do you think, Tango?" he asked curiously, doubting if he'd actually get an answer.

I think you have two smoking hot babes doing their darndest to comfort you over your stupid angst and you should get some pussy already, Tango's voice echoed in his mind.  That's why I curled them up so close to you after all.  And if you're not going to do that, you can at least make yourself useful and scratch me behind the ears.

Axl buried his face in both hands to hide his blush.  "Why did I think asking the cat about something serious was a good idea?" he whimpered quietly.

If it were serious, I'd give serious answers, Tango replied through the link.  But it's not.  You, Rock, Kalinka, X, Octavia...you're all family.  All those other terms you use - Mother, Father, Cousin - they don't matter.  All that matters is Family.  Cats are smart about that: in a colony, every breeding queen is Mom, every tom is Dad, your littermates are brothers and sisters, everyone else older than you is Uncle or Aunt, and everyone else your same age is cousins.  Who bred who or who gave birth to who doesn't matter.  Course, cats are lots smarter than bipeds that way.

Axl stared at Tango for a time, then chuckled softly.  "...you're right, Tango," he allowed ruefully.

Yeah, I know.  You really need to get some pussy .  You wouldn't be so concerned with this existential nonsense if you just got laid already.  And hey, after that musical performance, you really think either of these babes will say no to a threesome?

"Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up!" Axl whispered quietly as he tried to hide his flaming face with his hands.

Cinnamon and Marino weren't sure what was causing this reaction in Axl, but from what they could tell he seemed to be better.  At least he wasn't brooding anymore.  When Tango curled tighter, nudging them closer to Axl, they took the hint and snuggled up to him from either side.

And this is why cats are best wingmen, Tango thought smugly.  ...Axl, you can stop with the silent screaming in your mind already.  Sheesh, do I need to bug Octavia into giving you the talk or something?