"Oh, well, as long as my ego is soothed," snorts Darren. "Then I can be a luggage cart."

"Of course your ego must be soothed, or I'd be booked for labor rights violations or something."

"Luggage carts everywhere would rise up in protest. There would be unions."

"That's what unions were originally for, you know. The forty-hour work week, safer conditions, and soothed egos. You didn't sleep through class that day in History, did you?"

"Of course not," he snickers. "I am well aware of the horrifically unfair working conditions that left egos unsoothed. I'm glad you're avoiding that route."

"I want to be on the right side of history, of course. Remember me kindly in your memoirs."

"Certainly, just keep soothing my ego and we will get along fine."

"You are infinitely more interesting than Mike Newton?" suggests Bella.

Darren laughs. "Thank you. I wasn't comparing myself to him at all, actually, but I'm glad I win in a contest against him."

"You are also highly interesting on an absolute scale, I assure you."

Well that just makes Darren blush and be flattered! "You are, too," he says, giggling.

"Thank you. My ego was not troubled, so it does not need soothing per se, but it can always use a bit of inflation."

"Of course, is that a secondary job I have? Along with a luggage carrier, an ego inflater?"

"Yes. I might wind up giving you so many tasks that I have to abbreviate your job title to 'personal assistant' or something."

Darren snickers. "Exciting stuff. I can move up in the world!"

"Mm-hm."

That is when Vernon shows up to collect them! "... Coming with us, Bella?" he asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes please. Also if it's okay with you I'd like to borrow the car to go out for dinner with Darren."

Pause. Consideration. "Hm. Okay, go ahead, but your father is going to be informed of this, right?"

"...That I'm driving, or that I'm going out with Darren? I mean, the answer is yes either way, but it hasn't escalated to urgent information yet."

"Making sure. Responsible parenthood, it's required."

"Oh, by the way," says Bella, "I don't have my computer with me, but I got a ways into making Excel spreadsheet formulas produce sums of the final totals of how much of each effect a set of runes at various size multipliers will yield combined. It can't actually draw it for me, or suggest rune sets, but it'll do the calculation for most of the runes I've picked up so far."

Darren grins! "That is the best idea. I've been focusing on getting as many runes as possible rather than using them efficiently, that's kind of a huge help."