His heavy footfalls came stomping into the room at a rapid pace. The old scientist heard him coming, gently removing his glasses and rubbing the bridge of his nose.
"Dr. Cain! Dr. Cain! I won!"
His voice was brimming with enthusiasm. Cain swiveled in his chair to watch the world's newest Wonder come rushing into the room. In his hands, he held a small piece of paper. Some kind of ticket.
"Welcome home, X," the human chuckled, rearranging himself in his chair. "What's got you all excited this time?"
He said the last part with soft fondness. Ever since his activation, X had been curious about just about everything, and eager to learn whatever he could. He was so much like a human in that regard that it took Cain by surprise whenever he was reminded that X was, in fact, a being of plastic, silicone and metal.
"Dr. Cain, I won! I can't believe it!" X said again brightly. He waved the small ticket around in the air.
Dr. Cain grinned. X's enthusiasm was infectious. "Yes, you already said that. But -what- did you win?"
X beamed. "The lottery!"
The human scrunched up his nose. "Gambling…? At such a tender age," he scoffed with a teasing glint in his eye, "don't make a habit of that or you'll exhaust your allowance."
X's face blanked momentarily. "But I won… doesn't that mean I get something back?"
Cain smiled. "Well, perhaps. Let me check. Sometimes those things are confusing."
X handed over the ticket and waited. He bounced on his toes as Dr. Cain read his winning ticket.
"Hm," Cain said after a short pause. "You did win! Very nice."
He handed X back his ticket.
"How much? It's worth money, isn't it?" X asked curiously.
"300 zenny," Cain said matter-of-factly.
X paused his bouncing. "…three hundred? Is that all?"
Cain nodded. "Mhm. Not much, but you probably got your money back from the purchase. Right?"
X frowned. "What do you mean?"
Cain folded his hands in his lap. "Well, to figure out your earnings, you must compare the winnings to the purchase price. If your winnings are higher than the purchase price, you subtract the smaller number from the larger number. That is your profit."
"Profit…" X mouthed absently. "That means I didn't make any profit at all…"
"How much did you pay for the ticket?"
"300 zenny."
"Mmm, then you broke even."
X's frown deepened. "But I won…the sign said the lottery was worth 3 billion…"
Cain chuckled. "Lotteries do have one grand prize winner, but they often have smaller prizes to lure in buyers -- prizes that are much, much lower than the grand prize."
X's shoulders slumped. "But why do that? What's the point? People buy tickets to win the grand prize, not 300 zenny here or there…"
Cain nodded. "It's complete malarkey, I know. But if they didn't offer some kind of smaller prizes, people would see the odds were stacked impossibly against them, and they wouldn't buy in. Also, offering multiple prizes keeps the company clear in a legal sense. Somewhat. That gets a bit murky."
X's eyes remained glued to the floor. They had gained a glossy look, almost as if they had misted over… Dr. Cain's eyes widened. Was X…crying? Was he even capable?!
"X? What's the matter?" he asked.
X swallowed thickly and turned his face away. His voice wavered ever so slightly. "300 zenny…is not nearly enough…"
Dr. Cain looked confused. "Did you need something? If there's something you want, I can give you more money, dear boy. It's not a problem."
X's expression turned defiant, but he still refused to meet Dr. Cain's eyes. "It's not that… I wanted to… "
The old man waited silently. The display of emotions he was used to seeing in X typically remained in the range of happy and curious. He had seldom seen X feeling upset.
When X spoke again, his voice was soft. Small. Vulnerable.
"Your research…I wanted to help fund your research." He sighed. "But you need a lot more than 300 zenny…"
Cain's eyes opened wide. "Hm? That's why you bought the lottery ticket?"
And then he burst out laughing. Not out of mockery -- he hoped X didn't take it that way -- but out of endearment. He wiped a tear from the corner of his eye.
"Oh, my boy," Cain said, slowly rising. He placed his aged hands on X's arms, a warm smile on his face. "My boy, my boy. You are something precious, you know that?"
X's frown softened. He looked up at the old man's eyes, searching for the meaning of his reaction.
"You don't have to worry about that. I've been working on a grant proposal all day; it's almost finished. You came in just as I was about to take a break."
X tilted his head. "Grant proposal? What's that?"
Cain gently released him. "There are a myriad of government agencies that provide money to fools like me. They have an interest in the advancement of science, so they work the complex systems put in place for just that purpose to make sure we have the funding we need to carry on our endeavors."
X looked confused. "But how do you get the money…?"
Cain smiled. "Well, that's why I'm writing the grant proposal! We don't have to combat the randomness of a lottery system. All we have to do is ask."
X's expression still showed uncertainty. It was obvious that he was not yet put at ease. "But if other people are also asking for money, how do you know they'll give it to you?"
Dr. Cain laughed. It was a soft laugh, quiet, just under his breath; it was a laugh that made the crinkles at the corners of his eyes press together as his irises disappeared behind his heavy eyelides.
When he opened his eyes again, that bright color that belied his age was there again. He lifted a fragile hand to gently rub X's helmet. The blue android flinched, closing one eye. He welcomed the touch, though, after a short while. It was…soothing.
"Oh, just a feeling," Cain answered. "Now. I was just about to make some tomato soup and grilled cheese. Do you want one?"
X's eyes lit up. "Yes!"
Dr. Cain chuckled. "I'll start the food. You turn on the TV. It's almost time for the news, and I hear they're interviewing the Maverick Hunters today."
X's cheeks flushed red. He was suddenly very quiet.
these are old at this point, but a while back i made a megaman au where the casts of mm classic and mmx/mmz swap places in the timeline, respectively…. ciel and cain swap with dr light, sigma swaps with king, bass with vile, etc. I ran into a big roadblock where the x and zero series have waaaaaay more characters than classic, but it was a fun little experiment
