New Darlings

I made it to Arabella's office and walked toward her desk. "Daisy and Vesta aren't here?"

"They went out drinking. Well Vesta went out drinking, Daisy tagged along for the food~ I swear those girls are something when together..~ I expected a call from Daisy talking about how they pissed off one of the other Agents as usual.." Arabella sighed and chuckled softly. "Anyhoo, your reward my love~"

[Obtained Unit: Sweet's Halo.]

Dearie looked at the Halo and tilted her head. Sweet's Halo was a pink circle with two spikes at opposite ends. In the center was a six-tooth cog.

"That is how you can switch Programs. Equipping Sweet's Halo allows you to utilize not only her Program Attack, but also her Plug In Settings. It's very useful and you won't have the need of having more than one System." Arabella said and smiled at me. "One more thing.."

I looked at Arabella and noticed she gestured for me to get closer to her. I got closer and watched as she kissed my forehead. I blushed a bit and stared at Arabella. "Arabella.."

Arabella smiled at me and giggled softly at my reaction. "I'll let you know when something new comes up~ Remember this weekend, we have an important meeting with my sister..~"

I nodded and smiled at Arabella. "See ya~"

Arabella waved at me as I was leaving. I rode the elevator to the first floor and got off then left the building. I checked the time and saw it was only 6:35 PM. The night was still young and I knew someone had to still be awake.

"Proposal: Find a new Darling." Dearie said and floated around me.

I chuckled a bit and pulled out my phone then checked the Darling Map. Three icons popped up and as usual I chose the closest one to me.

[Name: Aurora White]

[Age: 25]

[Birthday: December 24th]

[Occupation: College Professor (Astronomy)]

[Hobbies: Spacing out, Gazing at the stars, Sleeping]

[Price: $650]

Aurora was a beautiful fair skinned woman with ice blue eyes and icy light blue hair that seemed oddly natural. She looked shy in her picture, but I could tell she had such a gentle demeanor.

"It would seem that Aurora is connected to Azalea. They seem like close friends. Proposal: If possible go on a double date with Azalea and Aurora in the future." Dearie said.

"Sure." I said and paid the money for Aurora then texted her.

{Aurora: I would love to go with you to Golden Kitchen!}

"And just like that, secured another Darling. Honestly this isn't as easy as I make it seem y'know." I said as I walked to my car.

"Rebuttal: No one ever said it would be easy to please all your Darlings." Dearie said as she followed me.

"Okay, smartass." I chuckled and got into my car. "Anyway, you should hide yourself while I'm in public. Y'know, make yourself less...noticable."

"Affirmative." Dearie said then transformed herself into a phone.

[Message: Transformation complete. If you need me as my H.D.S Unit form, give the command.]

"Gotcha." I said and smiled then drove off.

____________

I made it to Aurora's house and rang her doorbell. I waited outside then noticed the door opening. I looked at Aurora. She was honestly so much more beautiful in person and she had the same natural beauty as Azalea.

"A-Ahhh...Claudio, you're here..~" Aurora said shyly and smiled at me.

I smiled at Aurora then revealed a bouquet of flowers for her. "I wouldn't dare be late to a date I asked you out on..~"

[Aurora's Trust Increased.]

Aurora blushed as she stared at the flowers then looked back at me. She took the flowers and smiled sweetly. "Th-Thank you..~ This is honestly more than what you needed to do...and you got my favorite flowers too..~"

"I know what you've been through, so I decided you needed a change of pace...and that starts with a nice dinner...~" I said and gently stroked Aurora's hair behind her ear.

Aurora blushed even more and closed her eyes. "Oh Claudio..~ Let me go get my purse..~"

I nodded and waited outside for Aurora. Once she got her purse, we made our way to my car. I opened the door for her and she happily got in. I got in on the driver's side and drove to the restaurant.

We made it to Golden Kitchen and got out then walked inside the restaurant together. The waiter led us to our reserved table and got us seated. We ordered our drinks and the waited walked off to get our drinks for us. While we waited for our drinks, we decided to make small talk.

"So how was your day today..?~" I asked.

"It was quite alright, nothing special other than teaching my class..~" Aurora said and smiled at me.

"Oh? What do you teach?" I asked.

"Astronomy. I'm a huge fan of Astronomy ever since I was a little girl and my dad taught me about Astronomy. I've been studying upon this new Wonder Star on my off time, trying to learn of its origins. Some say it's from a different dimension all together." Aurora answered.

"You're studying on the Wonder Star? That means you've got some knowledge about it right?" I asked.

"Mhm!~ So far I've only been able to learn that the star contains Wonder Energy, a type of energy that resonates with a Human's Spirit which leads to Spiritually Awakened beings like Daisy and Ms. Rigel." Aurora answered.

[Proposal: Increase Aurora's Trust to uncover more Intel about the Wonder Star.]

"That's rather interesting. Oh yeah I'm sure you're quite familiar with a woman named Azalea as well right?" I asked.

"Of course!~ We work at the same college actually~ She's someone I truly appreciate for the simple fact that she helped me with everything when I first started at Diamomd State...I hear you two have a thing going on, it has all the guys jealous..~" Aurora giggled.

"I mean we do...but I'm sure she wouldn't mind sharing me with you..~" I chuckled softly.

Aurora blushed and smiled at me. "I'm sure she wouldn't..~"

The waiter came back with our drinks then began to take our orders. Once he got our orders, he took the menu then left. Aurora and I continued our causal small talk, enjoying each other's company. She expressed how happy she was when she became free from Daniel. I promised that she wouldn't have to worry about me treating her terribly ever.

Aurora and I enjoyed our dinner date and soon left the restaurant after eating and paying the bill. Aurora wanted to go to the park for a bit and I agreed to take her. Once we reached the park, we took a stroll around then soon sat down to look at the stars.

"The stars are strangely more beautiful tonight than ever before..." Aurora said.

I looked at the stars as well and rested my arm on the back of the bench. "Well...they do say you view things in a different light when you're in a more positive mood.."

Aurora smiled and stared at the night sky. "Yeah..."

Aurora and I sat outside at the park for a bit longer, admiring the night sky together. She pointed out the different constellations and even pointed out a large iridescent star that she claimed to be a large Wonder Star. I was very curious about the Wonder Star, but I also knew that Aurora didn't trust me enough to tell me more about the star.

Two hours went by and Aurora and I decided to call it a night. I took her back home and we talked at her front door a bit.

"I had a great time with you tonight, Claudio..~" Aurora said softly.

"I had a great time with you also... I'll see you around.." I said.

Aurora nodded and leaned closer to me then kissed my cheek. "Goodnight..~"

"Goodnight..." I said.

I walked back to my car and got in then waved toward Aurora and she waved back. I drove off back home for the night to get some sleep.

...

...

...

The next day, I got ready for the day and started my morning at Golden Cafe as it made Vanessa happy when I would come visit her. I also enjoyed having breakfast with Vanessa here. Today was one of those double shift days for her.

"Ugh..! If Mia hadn't called in late today, I would probably be off sleeping in so I could be well rested for my actual shift! I'm tired of carrying this store on my back!" Vanessa groaned and laid her head down.

I chuckled softly and gently rubbed Vanessa's head. "The grind isn't easy, Vee...At least you're getting paid OT."

"I know babe, but it's so tedius!" Vanessa whined softly.

[Report: New Darling Nearby.]

[Name: Mia Lane]

[Age: 21]

[Birthday: August 4th]

[Occupation: Cafe Worker]

[Hobbies: Shopping with friends, Eating sweets, Being a complete airhead]

[Price: $650]

Mia was incredibly hot. She was a beautiful woman with clear skin, golden brown hair, and light brown eyes. She had a buxom, curvy build and had a beauty mark under her left eye. She wore her job's uniform and it was a bit of a tight fit on her.

[Message: Mia is Dane's younger sister.]

'Really..? This girl is that jerk's sister..? She's incredibly hot..' I thought to myself.

[Proposal: Go on a date with Dane's sister when she's free.]

"Mia! How dare you be late?! You're a shift lead like I am so start acting like it!" Vanessa scolded.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I completely forgot to set my alarm clock last night and I overslept!" Mia apologized to Vanessa. She noticed me and tilted her head. "Ohh!~ It's Claudio!~"

"Hey Mia." I waved.

"You two know each other?" Vanessa asked.

"Not exactly, I kinda know him because my brother stole his girlfriend." Mia said.

I grunted softly and sighed a bit. 'She's not the sharpest tool in the shed is she? She's kinda worse than Cassie, but Cassie acts like an airhead on purpose... she's...kinda natural with it.'

[Affirmative. Mia is confirmed a Kindhearted Simpleton while Cassie is a Ditz.]

"I don't even really know Mia, I just know she's Dane's sister." I said.

Vanessa shrugged and stood up. She kissed my cheek and sighed. "I should get back to work. I'll catch you sometime."

"Yeah." I said and smiled.

"Come on Mia, stop gawking at my boyfriend and come clock in!" Vanessa said.

Mia looked at Vanessa then smiled. She looked back at me and waved goodbye. I stood up and gently grabbed her hand.

"Before you go, can I ask you something really quick?" I asked.

Mia stared at me then looked at our hands blushing a bit. She made eye contact with me again. "Yeah what's up?"

"Would you be willing to go on a date with me sometime?" I asked.

Mia blushed even more then smiled and nodded. "Yeah!"

"Mia!" Vanessa called out.

"I-I gotta go!~ See you soon!~" Mia said and hurried inside. "I'm coming!~"

I smiled and walked off to my car after throwing my trash away. I got in and drove off to Diamond State University.

_________________

"You know, if you like this university so much, why don't you actually sign up and join because you're here every...fucking....day..." Hannah said.

"Will you stop being so nasty toward him?" Cassie asked and crossed her arms.

"Will you break up with him?" Hannah asked.

"No!" Cassie answered.

"Then no I won't stop." Hannah said.

"Hannah...you're a bitch." Bella said.

"Me personally." Anna said.

"Enough." Dane and I said at the same time.

Cassie scoffed and crossed her arms then turned her nose up from Hannah. "Y'know, Bella is 100% correct! You are indeed being a stuck up bitch."

"Nah." Anna said in the background.

"Me?! A stuck up bitch? That's rich coming from the same girl that cried when I first started dating Claudio. You tried to sabotage us many times, I think we all know who's the real bitch at this table." Hannah said.

"Oh." Anna said.

Cassie chuckled softly and sighed. "You're funny because you're the same one who cheated on Claudio with a lesser version of him. It's giving bitchy activities."

"Nah, I wouldn't let anyone throw a stray bullet at me like that." Anna said.

"Do you do anything else but passively instigate?" I asked Anna.

Hannah stood up and slammed her hands on the table. "Okay and?"

"Hell nah." Anna said.

"And? Do you not feel any remorse?! Like open your eyes dumbass, you had EVERYTHING! And you threw it away for....Dane of all people?" Cassie asked.

[Notice: Faint H.D.S Unit signal nearby.]

I looked at my phone and noticed the dot was at our table. I didn't say anything and put my phone away. I stood up and placed my hand on Cassie's shoulder. "Calm down, Cass..~ It's alright...you're better in bed than Hannah anyway..~"

"Nah, personally I could never let my ex say that in front of me." Anna said.

Hannah stood there in disbelief and her face was red in embarrassment and anger. She groaned then stormed off.

"Not cool dude." Dane said and walked off.

I chuckled and kissed Cassie and Bella. "I'll be off, something came up."

"Mmm~ Okay Claudie~ Text me later okay?" Cassie said.

"I will..~" I chuckled.

"Oh can you come pick me up after classes?" Bella asked.

"Yeah I got you, Bellz." I said and smiled at her. "I'll be off now."

Cassie and the others waved goodbye to me and I waved back then walked off.

Once I got into a safe distance, Dearie appeared in front of me in her H.D.S. Unit form..

"Spill it, does he actually have a System?" I asked.

"I could have probably sensed something wrong as the signal was faint. It could have been when someone walked by, but I'm not too sure. If Dane does end up having a system...this would answer the question on how he stole Hannah from you." Dearie answered.

"I'll check in with Arabella to see if he actually has one. If he does..." I said.

"All System Wielders that aren't trusted by Arabella must be eliminated. That is Arabella's direct order. If Dane has a System, we must kill him." Dearie said.

"Right..." I said.