"Aria, what am I supposed to do with you?" Dr. Light asked slowly. Aria wasn't sure if it was a rhetorical question, so she decided to answer.

"Make me into a fighter." She replied intensely. "Please sir! I can do it, I know I can!" Mega Man nodded, which heartened Aria. Maybe she did have a chance...

"Mega Man?" Dr. Light made his name a question. Mega hesitated, then nodded.

"She was pretty good in there doc... and she really wants it... I think we should." Aria felt like cheering. She did give Mega an impulsive hug. Then she looked into his face.

Ooops. He looked shocked and... very thrilled. Aria suddenly had the deep conviction that Mega was suffering from what her mother would have called "puppy love." And standing there hugging him wouldn't make it any better. She let go of him in a hurry, blushing. This is all I need... The day was not getting better.

"Well Aria, we'll need to come up with a design." Dr. Light smiled weakly, taking a businesslike tone. Aria blinked, then settled down to the challenge.

"Hmm... this one is nice..."

"I hate orange."

"You can always shift the colors..."

"Well, yeah, but it still looks too much like your brother."

"How about this one?"

"Way too blocky!"

"Something in pink! It needs to be pink!"

"Roll, she said no!"

"But..."

"No pink. I HATE pink. Ohhh... this one is nice..."

"Aria... that looks a bit like Bass..."

"So what? He has cool armor, not like you."

"Aria!"

In the end, her armor resembled Bass, without the helmet, and a bit more... chest than he had. Not a lot more. Aria thought resignedly. Her mother hadn't given her much in the breast department, although what she did have was perfectly formed. Oh well. Contemplating her cup size was not the most useful thing she had ever done... not that she wanted to be terribly useful. Roll had made her reconsider that.

"Aria, you look great!" Mega Man chirped, looking her over. It was worth looking at. Beautiful white armor, purple on her limbs, and silver trimming where Bass was gold. It was beautiful, and deadly.

"Urr, thanks." Aria muttered, looking herself over in a mirror. Dr. Light came up to touch her on the shoulder. She turned around, surprised.

"Aria, you have an arm-cannon like Mega Man. You might want to go out and practice for a while." It was getting late, but Aria nodded at the suggestion.

"Sure!" And she went off, humming brightly...

Aria was gasping and grinning as she fired at all sorts of targets. For practice, she was just using light shots, so she wouldn't damage anything...

"Ahem." A quiet cough from behind interrupted her. Aria whirled, blaster ready...

"Yah!" Bass almost jumped a foot, suddenly staring down the business end of a plasma buster... and he wasn't exactly clothed for combat. Aria blinked, looking him over. The black, stone-washed jeans, a purple dress shirt, black nikes, and black shades... were all very fetching. Hunh?!? Treble was sitting right next to him, panting brainlessly, but happily. Aria couldn't resist a smile at the sight.

"What are you doing here?!?" She demanded, blinking in surprise. "We're right next to the lab..." Bass flinched nervously, adjusting his glasses.

"Well... you see... I.. I..." He didn't know how to say it... this was a first for him, but... "Would you like... a date?"

"A date?!?" Aria asked, shocked... but not terribly shocked. It didn't really surprise her that much... she had instinctively known that the attraction between them was mutual. Bass shuffled his feet, looking embarrassed. He was a far cry from the fierce warrior he usually was. Treble whined softly, and Aria knelt down to give him a nice, thorough scratch. He wiggled ecstatically, yipping softly. Aria smiled. This was more what she liked out of dogs... or wolves, as the case may be. Bass bit his lip anxiously as he watched. She finally looked up with a bright smile.

"Okay." She chirped happily. Bass blinked.

"Okay?" He asked, disbelief in his voice. "Just like that? Okay?" Aria grinned at the expression on his face. He was so shocked. He must have been expecting her to kick him again...

"Do I need to fill out some forms?" She asked sweetly. Bass shook his head blankly, adjusting his glasses. She glanced down at her armor. It just wasn't suitable for travelling around incognito. "But I need to change, be back in a minute!" She dashed off towards the lab at top speed, leaving Bass looking after her. A slow, delighted smile curled his mouth as he watched her run off. She had a very shapely backside... and she was going out tonight with him...

"My first date, Treble. What do you think?" He asked his canine companion, who yapped enthusiastically. "You like her too, hunh? That's how I feel..." And he perched himself on one end of a tree trunk, waiting for her to return.

"Maybe this..." She fingered a soft green blouse. It matched her eyes perfectly, but it was years, even decades out of date. In fact it had been her mother's once. Back when she was my size. A loooong time ago... Still, she held it up against her body and viewed in in the mirror. Not bad. And she didn't want to keep Bass waiting. She quickly put it on, doing up the buttons and tying the ribbons into place. Next, she pulled on a wrinkled, but very form fitting pair of jeans. It was the best she could do on short notice. She fingered the ribbons, then looked at herself in the mirror.

I'm okay. She finally decided. The blouse was painfully out of date, but Bass was so fashion ignorant she didn't think he'd notice. And she looked good in it. As she had thought, it matched her eyes... but her chest was bare, and there was nothing there. Reaching for her jewel box, she pulled out a tiny silver necklace with a silver and fresh water pearl spider hanging off the end. She clipped it around her neck, then looked at herself. Good enough.

"Okay! Let's-hrk!" She almost ran into Roll, who had come to investigate the commotion.

"Aria, what are you doing? Why are you dressed up?" Then she glanced past Aria and into her room. Her eyes widened. "What a mess! I hope you're going to clean that!" At this point, Aria was a bundle of nerves. She was going out to see Mega Man's arch rival for a date... it was a sure bet no one was going to approve.

"Oh sure, no problem, I just have to go..." She babbled out, fighting to keep her composure. And she couldn't stop fiddling with her ribbons. "I have an appointment, see you later!" And she darted around Roll, leaving her staring after her in shock.

"Aria? Aria!" Roll called after her, then shook her head. "Well, I'm not cleaning that up..." And she shut the door to Aria's room, walking off.

The dessert place they had found wasn't cheap, but it was fun. Dark wooden tables that had been varnished until they gleamed, stain glass lighting and interesting music, surprisingly poppy. Aria grinned as Bass ordered a single banana split sundae, with two spoons. This was going to be fun...

"So... how have things been for you?" Bass suddenly asked, playing with a napkin. Aria tilted her head, wondering how she should answer that. How were things with her, really? Roll was annoying, Protoman suspicious (with good reason, she privately admitted) and Mega Man was developing a crush. In fact, he was following her around with a puppy like devotion. And Rush didn't help matters, with his loud barking and various activities. Still... it wasn't that bad. And really, what else could she say to Bass?

"It's okay." She replied softly. "I mean, it could be better, but... it's okay." She blushed slightly, playing with her hair. "How are things at Skull Fortress?" Bass frowned for a moment, looking at the table.

"Oh... okay I guess. I don't spend much time there. The Robot Masters are incredibly annoying..." Bass went into a story about Elec-man, Wood-man, a gallon of water and a leaf blower. Aria giggled as the antics unfolded, then smiled shyly as he took her hand. When he told her the slightly gory conclusion, Aria laughed. Then she told him a story about Arpeggio...

The sundae came while they were talking. Aria pulled her hand away regretfully, reaching for a spoon. They ate slowly, talking about a wide variety of topics. Treble, who was under the table, received a few pieces of Aria's half and an ear rub. Aria discovered, slightly surprised, that she and Bass really had a lot in common. They didn't like pets that jumped all over them, they both liked rock and roll, and neither of them liked bossy people.

"Gee Bass, if you don't like bossy people, why Wily?" Aria asked playfully when she learned that. He looked grim.

"He's my creator." Bass replied, his voice low. "And I hate Mega Man even more than I hate Wily..." His expression became distant. Aria was almost frightened, not knowing what to say. She touched his hand hesitantly.

"Bass?" She asked, looking into his eyes. He blinked, then smiled at her reassuringly.

"It's okay." And he touched her cheek. Her eyes were just amazing, he noticed. Green as a cats... Aria suddenly giggled, and Bass looked down to see Treble's head in her lap.

"He's such a cute puppy..." Aria petted the ferocious wolf's head, feeding him another piece of banana. Bass smiled to himself. Everything was going perfectly...

"Hey Aria?" Bass asked. Aria glanced up. "Want to go somewhere else?" He looked at the demolished sundae for a moment. "I think we're done here." Aria grinned, pushing Treble off her lap.

"Yes, let's! I know this wonderful dance club..." And she led the way.

Aria was almost asleep as she hugged Bass, riding Treble back to the lab. It had been a long night... in fact, it was now officially morning. Bass yawned slightly. It had been a tiring, but very good, night.

Treble set down in a clearing not far from the lab. Bass poked Aria in the side when she showed no sign of letting go.

"Hey sweety, rise and shine. We're here." He told her, smiling. Aria raised her head blearily, blinking in the darkness.

"Hunh? Oh..." She stepped off Treble, yawning. "Well... I guess this is goodbye." She said to Bass, who stepped up beside her. "It's been nice..." She blushed slightly as he put one arm around her.

"Yeah... I'm not sure how you feel about kissing on the first date, but..." Suddenly his lips were pressed against hers. He was exactly her height, and the contact was very intimate. At first she was too shocked to respond, but then she kissed him back, warmly. Bass sighed as he pulled away, and Aria could see the loneliness in his black eyes...

"See you again sometime?" He asked, hope and fear in his face. Aria slowly raised a hand to his cheek.

"Of course." She replied with a bright smile. "And Treble too!" She added, glancing down at the sitting wolf. He replied with a small yip. Bass blinked, then laughed.

"I can't tell if you want to see me, or him!" He joked, the tension leaving. Aria grinned, running a hand through his short black hair.

"Well, with one comes the other..." And she kissed him quickly, pulling away. "I have to go. See you... tomorrow?" She tilted her head quizzically, her blond braid bouncing. Bass nodded.