Natalia Date 2 Part 5 (End)

Alan and Natalia walked into the kitchen to find two Ariadnes seated together, with Joan’s blonde avatar looking nervous beside them.

“You know, the twins, shapeshifters, and mental influence in this hotel have to be hell on the Audience,” Alan said. He addressed the Ariadne he suspected was real, though it could easily have been Joan or Tess. “Do they label everyone in the broadcast or something?”

“Atlas records raw footage,” Ariadne said. “My father gives it to his partners in the network, and they provide their own edits and commentary. The Audience receives it in several formats: novelizations, scripts, compilations, and a few competing edits framed as reality television.”

Natalia blinked.

“What?”

“That is what surprises you?” Ariadne asked.

“That is not how reality shows work.” Natalia frowned. “They are about curating and editing a story from raw material. What you are describing sounds unpredictable. How does it make money? Who invests in something like this?”

“Why do you think the motive is profit?” Ariadne laughed. “My father makes his living as a doctor, and my mother as a translator. They are not Producers for wealth.”

“No.” Natalia looked indignant. “This is a trick, isn’t it? You are trying to get a reaction out of me.”

“Why would I lie about business structure?”

Alan moved toward the nervous Joan avatar.

“You okay?”

“I should be asking that of you.” Joan fidgeted.

“Well, I’m not, but I’ll deal.” Alan frowned. “We never got around to the weird transformation you got, did we?”

“Yeah.” Joan looked down. “It feels stupid. It is just what I look like. Everyone else had a worse day than I did.”

Natalia and Ariadne continued arguing about reality television while Alan and Joan spoke quietly.

“Joan,” Natalia said suddenly, turning toward her. “You read a lot of Ariadne’s files. Does this make any sense?”

“They are post-scarcity, I think,” Joan said. “But they do not have the same kind of resource ceiling we do. They cannot be doing this for money.”

“That is a poor term for the Stargazers, much less the broader Audience,” Ariadne said. “We have scarcity. What we lack is a permanent Malthusian ceiling.”

“So this is all for fun?” Alan asked.

“No.” Ariadne sighed. “Sorry. This is bad timing for the conversation. Sorry, Nat. I am only here to finish yesterday’s transformations. This is your date with Alan.”

“Please,” Joan said softly. “Aren’t we family?”

Ariadne winced.

“Okay. I can explain a little.”

She held up one hand.

“You have seen physical transformations. You know about mental ones. What do you think a culture becomes when those are part of its ordinary toolkit?”

“Slavers. Rapists. Mind-controllers,” Joan said.

“Somewhat.” Ariadne nodded. “But that is not what makes them dangerous. **** armies are either discontented or extensions of their master. The extension is the important part.”

The skin of Ariadne’s raised hand shifted from the brown that matched her Crawler body to a lighter shade.

“If you can make your slaves into what you want them to be, the temptation is to turn that power on yourself. Beauty, intelligence, strength, and perception can become part of your body if you are willing to change it.”

“Um, what?” Joan asked.

“I cannot speak for every Producer, but my parents curate stories of transformation. They combine unusual sources and perform unusual transformations. This inspires people who want to change themselves.”

Ariadne lowered her hand.

“The story of change becomes a change the Audience tries for themselves. They pay to tempt people.”

Natalia glanced down at her chest, then gripped the counter.

“That is one step in the story,” Ariadne said.

“Story?” Natalia looked livid. “The story is that an aging actress got a massive boob job alteration. My story is going to be that an A-list star could not get another major role, went strange, and slept with a kid barely out of high school.”

“More than one kid like that, given the age distribution of Alan’s harem.” Ariadne smiled faintly. “That is something people want to see. The parasocial fantasy is on full display. They want to see your ego break. They want to think you are just like them once everything impressive about you is stripped away.”

“So you want people to do that to themselves?” Joan asked.

“No. There are other elements we expect to spread from the show. Many people will come for the freakshow.” Ariadne looked down at her pale hand. “A freakshow that includes a talking snake who thinks she is a real girl.”

Later, Alan sat on his bed while Natalia showered. Ariadne and Joan had changed into matching plaid bathrobes. Alan examined the index card with the two transformations written on it.

Bisexual Ninja Cyborg Catgirl: Alan may reset Joan’s custom avatar every Sunday. The process will still lower Alan’s inhibitions enough to produce more revealing choices. **(Nerd)**

Once More, With Feeling: Ariadne remains host, and Alan gets to design a new baseline-human appearance for her. **(Princess)**

“Okay,” Alan said. “Ariadne’s new appearance will stick, and I do not need to be uninhibited for it. Joan's resets aren't permanent, but I won't be myself for them."

“Uninhibited might be better for me,” Ariadne said, “you were not a fun drunk. Tess’s strategy backfired last night.”

“This feels kind of racist,” Alan said, studying Ariadne. “Everyone else in the harem is white.”

“My ancestors all passed as white. This is a costume for me, one that resembles my real form enough to make me easier to identify.” Ariadne shrugged. “Higher melanin and hairlessness are not in my genetic makeup.”

“That is uncomfortable in entirely new ways.” Alan sighed. “So what do you want?”

“I want to be a dragon. If I am going to mimic a baseline human, it will never be how I see myself.”

Ariadne thought for a moment.

"I want to be a dragon. If I am to mimic a baseline human, it will never be how I see myself. Most variations I would find interesting, such as dwarfism or the body of a young child, would be too controversial for me to advise as my new form. I suggest you match me to your own tastes."

Alan winced. "Why would you want either of those?"

"My true form is large, heavy, and eats a lot. The smaller my secondary form can be, without drawing attention, the more options I gain. A particularly small child would be the ideal alternate form for logistics. Dawn Willowbrook gets away with a less **** variation on one of the more popular seasons." Ariadne shrugged.

Alan winced. “Why would you want either of those incredibly gross options?"

“My true form is large, heavy, and consumes a great deal. The smaller my secondary form can be without attracting attention, the more options I gain.” Ariadne explained.

“Can I just make you a full-time Crawler?” Alan asked.

“I would advise against it. I do not think the monster-girl fans would enjoy the modifications to the human form I normally showcase.”

“What about a naga?” Joan asked. “If we are talking about monster girls, a serpentine lower body and human top are hot. Mermaids are already kind of like that.”

“Mermaids are poorly designed for liminal aquatic lifestyles,” Ariadne said. “The upper half of a human does not balance well on a naga body either. A spider-like arrangement would be more practical, but enormous and unlikely to appeal to most of the Audience.”

“Okay. You are going to be a full-grown human woman,” Alan said. “Sorry. I cannot design an entirely new body that works.”

“Okay.” Ariadne looked disappointed.

“You said you did not want red hair because that belongs to the Parkers,” Joan said.

Alan frowned. The twins being a couple did not make him want to think of them as married.

“Yeah. You are already a great blonde. I do not want to treat someone’s ethnicity as a costume choice.”

"I don't think we should avoid nice tits, either." Joan sounded embarrassed. "Those are a big deal, here."

"Okay, they can match her mother's. Jill has the biggest I've seen in person." Alan nodded.

"That's mostly because you were trying not to check out Natalia." Ariadne laughed.

"Well, she looked uncomfortable." Alan blushed, again.

"She wasn't." Ariadne laughed. "Well, she wasn't in discomfort. The sensitivity and variability would be extremely noticeable, and probably inspired her desire to take a shower that has already lasted 45 minutes."

“White hair,” Joan changed the subject. “Not old white. Platinum, maybe. Lighter than mine. Very pale skin would make a strong contrast with her Crawler form.”

Alan blushed. “Sorry.”

“Do not be sorry.” Joan smiled. “I like not looking like my sister. I am grateful for the contrast.”

“Unusual eyes?” Joan added. “Not a true albino look, but something out of a fantasy romance. Violet, maybe?”

“Oh. I like that.” Alan nodded. “Not a full monster girl, but unusual and striking.”

“Elegant. Tall. Pale. Platinum hair. Violet eyes. Still clearly an adult. Still clearly you.”

Ariadne smiled.

“That will do.”

Pink lightning struck from the ceiling.

Alan flinched. Joan laughed.

When the light faded, an entirely different woman sat on Alan’s bed: pale, taller than before, with platinum hair and striking violet eyes.

Ariadne examined herself in the mirror.

“Well. That feels better.” She looked back at Alan. “Thank you.”

“Um, sorry about this.” Alan turned toward Joan. “Can we still discuss your changes?”

“Yes,” Ariadne said. “But without the inhibitions you were allowed for my own transformation.”

Joan tried not to look excited.

Her secondary body stepped forward and kissed Ariadne. Pink light flashed.

The body changed from Ariadne’s earlier brown, hairless style to the new one.

“Pink streaks add character,” Alan said. “Let’s go all pink. The transformation is called *Bisexual Ninja Cyborg Catgirl*. We can go full anime, right?”

“She cannot literally appear animated,” Ariadne said. “But the reference is flexible. It came from a popular contestant on another season.”

“How cyborg are we talking?” Alan asked. “Can she get robotic limbs? A tail? Useful enhancements?”

Ariadne looked pleased.

“Rockets would be impractical, but superior robotic limbs are possible.”

“Can they be as sensitive as normal limbs?” Joan asked, grinning now.

“More sensitive, obviously.” Alan laughed. “Keep most of the current look this week, but add sensory patches and an attached robotic tail. Pink hair, natural not dyed.”

“No objections at all,” Joan confirmed.

Natalia emerged from the shower twenty minutes later to find Joan juggling books with her new tail while Alan and a pale stranger watched.

Natalia resented that both of her dates had somehow sidelined her.

It was not as though she wanted to be in a harem.

So why should she care if she was not winning the stupid competition?

She cared.