The End of the Affai

"Doc, we love each other, so why do you continually deny your feelings?"

"Because it's wrong to act upon them, Platinum." Doc states sadly as a matter of fact.

Tina knows she is in trouble now, After all Doc rarely if ever calls her by her full name. Still she can't help asking the question she has never yet asked directly. "It's because I'm a robot, isn't it?"

"Yes." Then as Magnus sees Tina's anger he quickly adds, "But not the way you're thinking."

"Explain. What do you mean?"

"If you were a non-sentient robot acting on my feelings would be fine, but then again I wouldn't have them if you were non-sentient. But you are sentient Tina, and that means there are two moral imperatives against me acting on my feelings."

"Two?"

"I built you, Platinum. So doesn't that make me, well, your Dad?"

Tina nods. The incest taboo. Still worked against them even though there was no way that they would produce defective children. It seemed a bit stupid to apply it here though. And since she hadn't ever truly had the form of a child around Doc, he wasn't going to be overly affected by it. She drapes herself over Will Magnus "Still, I bet you could get past that, if you really wanted to, Doc. So what's the real reason?"

"Tina, you're a robot. Not officially sentient. Yes, I know all the Metal Men are sentient and you yourself are my best work. But proving sentience is a hard thing to do. I should have told half truths, saying you were my lab assistant, but I told everyone you were a robot."

"Hey, not your fault, you didn't realise I was sentient then. And it took me a lot of effort to get you to realise I was."

"True, Tina, but now we come to the crux of the matter. Legally - I own you. If your sentience is proved then I am officially enslaving people I shouldn't. And even if you weren't to press charges, which I doubt any of you really would, someone else would do so to make an example of me. So as much as I'd like to be more to you than I am, I have to stay the mildly tyrannical despot that people call Father."

Tina's eyes well. Doc has finally been honest with here and it was not what she wanted to hear, though to be honest she had been half-expecting it. If she was proved sentinent, and Doc took up her on the offers she made, he would have commited the legal equivelant of rape. Until she had legally proven herself sentient Doc would not ever respond to her feelings despite them being mutual. It made sense. He would not take advantage of her like that.

"It's not fair."

"No, it isn't, Tina." And Then Doc does something really unusual, he hugs her, letting himself receive one back. "But then life rarely is."

Authour's Note

Despite the silliness of the early Metal Men comics some of the underlying themes were timeless

Tina wanted to be treated both as the competent person she was and the most precious thing in the world by the man she loved. While exaggerated in her, this is a common theme. Doc however while he had mutual feelings for Tina felt they were wrong, yet his other dates always detected them, and were understandably jealous of her.