David took one look at Nia and then decided that she was the oneーshe would be his ally. It didn't matter that he was a bit older than the rest of the thirteen nor that he was ranked last. He just needed to make himself desirable and worthy of being an ally. And so he shall.

Setting down his drink on a nearby table, he made his way towards her. She was listening to some commons, but David was the only person to see her glazed over eyes. David knew that these commons weren't worth her time and that she was thinking of how to win.

"Hello, Miss. Nia," David smiled softly, pulling her out of her own mind. "My name is David, one of the thirteen, and I was wondering if you wouldー"

Nia placed a hand on his shoulder, stopping him mid-sentence. "No need to bargain for an alliance. I've already built one." David's insides melted, but he tried his best to keep a calm face. Nia noticed how heartbroken he got and furrowed her eyebrows as if she were confused. Quickly, she then said, "Don't worry. Your name is already written in."

A small gasp came from David and a huge grinned spread over his face. "Thank you," he managed to say in response. Nia already got a bored look on her face as she turned to look towards the opposite side of the room, and she stared there for a few minutes before snapping back to reality.

"Don't thank me just yet. I haven't stated my terms yet." Nia turned her face to look him in the face, causing David to lose all confidence he had previously. "One: don't you dare tell anyone of this alliance. This is a secret one, only going into effect after the thirteen alliance break up.

"Two: I get to pick the rest of the members," Nia continues. "The rest of the people that will be with us are Sofia and Philip. It's going to be a bit weird in the beginning, but I believe that we can take each other to the end."

David almost visibly sighed in relief after hearing her terms. He expected much worse terms coming from the first ranked. And he walked to the table with so much confidence. Now he just felt like a little puppy on a leash. But, he wasn't complaining and didn't feel like it. He was weirdly happy being a lapdog.

"Sofia already knows, but I have yet to recruit Philip. I haven't been able to pull him over to ask. Think you can help?"

David comedically bowed and said, "Of course." And offered his arm. He made his way over to Philip with Nia by his side. Philip instantly turned around after seeing two of the thirteen come to him.

"David, right?" Philip asked. He was young, probably barely out of high school, if he was able to graduate in the first place. Though, David did like how he was visibly more stronger than Philip.

"Yes, and of course you know Nia. We were wanting to offer a proposal."

"Yeah, an alliance," Nia said with a stricter, sharper tone than the gentle one David was using. "Just you, David here, me, and little Sofia over there," Nia explained and pointed to Sofia. "Once the thirteen alliance break, we come together. It's a secret until then. What do you think?"

Nia used a completely different tone with Philip than she did with David. She switched because she knew what tones to use to intimidate different people.

"That's funny as I was about to seek you out, number one. This is a weird group you formed, but if it came from your beautiful mind, I bet it will be perfect," Philip flirted with an innocent face and bad intentions.

Nia grinned with amusement. "Well, we can't be seen for too long together. Bye!" Nia turned on her glass heels, golden dress swaying and left David alone with Philip.

"Interesting, that girl. I wonder how this alliance will go," Philip said aloud, but was more of a thought to himself.

"I hope it works out for all of us. Guess I'll see you later, bye." And with that, David went to go mingle with the rest of the criminals.